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Isoniazid (INH), being the first-line drug used as an anti-tuberculosis drug, is known to be associated with physiological deteriorations including hepatic and neurologic disturbances. This study was aimed at biochemical and behavioral characterization of toxic manifestations of isoniazid treatment in Wistar rats. Experimental animals were divided into four groups. Each group consists of six animals including the control group (saline solution), I25 group (25 mg/kg of INH), I50 group (50 mg/kg of INH), and I100 group (100 mg/kg of INH). Animals received daily INH for 30 days. Isoniazid is known to be associated with hepatotoxicity; it's among the most common causes of drug-induced toxicities. For this reason assays for aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were performed to assess liver toxicity. Moreover, behavioral study, renal, and lipid parameters were also assessed in addition to histological features of the liver and brain. Significant differences in all studied parameters were seen especially in the I100 group and a marked increase in liver enzymes activities, such as AST and ALT was observed. In another hand, there were no major clinical signs in treated animals, except fatigue and anxiety in the I100 group. On the other hand, the histological findings showed potential liver and brain injury which was evidenced by degenerative changes, infiltration, and hepatocyte necrosis, in addition to the appearance of many pyramidales cells in the gyrus. The current study findings suggest that INH interacts with multiple biochemical pathways in the body what comes up by behavioral changes and liver disturbances in animals caused by INH toxicity.

The main environmental challenges of phosphate mines are the huge amounts of waste generated as solid phosphate sludge. These contain a high phosphate rate which is necessary for agriculture production, but chemical parameters as presence of heavy metals and pH make its use possible with limited quantity. In order to be recovered for organic nursery use as a source of phosphorus, different mixtures with organic horticultural wastes in Souss-Massa Region of Morocco were tested in 220-L bioreactors. The objective was to assess the effect of composted phosphate sludge with organic horticultural residues on citrus and forest seedling growth. Solid phosphate sludge with proportions of 41, 29, 35, and 10% (w/w) was mixed with tomato waste, consisting of stems and leaves along with sheep manure (B1, B2, B3, and B7, respectively). Composts were prepared, and 4 weeks after maturity, they were used for plant growth studies using citrus rootstock (Carrizo citrange), carob (Ceratonia siliqua), and argan (Argania spinosa) plants under glasshouse conditions. The experiment was conducted in El Menzeh station of Regional Center for Agricultural Research in Rabat-Sale-Kenitra Region of Morocco. All composts were applied at different concentrations of 0, 5, 10, and 20% (v/v) with sandy soil of Maamora Forest. B7 compost applied at 10% showed significant increase in relative growth of C. citrange plants compared to control soil. Furthermore, application of 5% rate of B3 and B1 enhanced relative growth for argan and carob plants, respectively. Similarly, estimates of the area under the growth progress curves (AUGPC) showed an increase of area when B7 compost of 10%, B3 compost of 5%, and B1 compost of 5% were applied. The study shows that the application of composts as an amendment can increase the performance of substrates which leads to improving citrus and forest seedling growth.

Leishmaniasis is an infectious disease caused by parasites of the genus Leishmania and transmitted by the bite of a sand fly. To date, most available drugs for treatment are toxic and beyond the economic means of those affected by the disease. Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is a chaperone protein that plays a major role in the folding of newly synthesized proteins, specifically assisting in disulfide bond formation, breakage, or rearrangement in all non-native proteins. In previous work, we demonstrated that Leishmania major PDI (LmPDI) has an essential role in pathogen virulence. Furthermore, inhibition of LmPDI further blocked parasite infection in macrophages. In this study, we utilized a computer-aided approach to design a series of LmPDI inhibitors. Fragment-based virtual screening allowed for the understanding of the inhibitors' modes of action on LmPDI active sites. The generated compounds obtained after multiple rounds of virtual screening were synthesized and significantly inhibited target LmPDI reductase activity and were shown to decrease in vitro parasite growth in human monocyte-derived macrophages. This novel cheminformatics and synthetic approach led to the identification of a new series of compounds that might be optimized into novel drugs, likely more specific and less toxic for the treatment of leishmaniasis.

The main aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of the informal economy (IE) on foreign direct investment (FDI) in a sample of petroleum producing countries (Algeria, Norway, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia and United States) based on data covering the period of 1991–2018 and using the Non-linear Autoregressive Distribution Lag (NARDL) model. The NARDL model was built separately for each country in the study sample. The main finding of this study is the impact of IE size on FDI inflows in all of the countries in the study sample, even if they are all producing and exporting countries. The empirical results lead to distinguish between two sub-groups. The first sub-group consists of countries whose FDI inflows have been positively affected by positive and negative shocks in the IE. These countries are characterised by a high share of natural resources in their GDP. The second sub-group consists of countries whose inward FDI has been positively affected by negative shocks in the IE and negatively affected by the positive ones. The most common feature of this subgroup is the relative independence of economics from natural resources.

In order to identify potential new drugs that could be useful in preventing and treating diabetes, we benchmarked several exchange–correlation functionals and ab initio methods to accurately describe the structural, electronic and vibrational properties of 1,2,4-triazole (Tz) and 1,2,4-triazolone (TzO). This theoretical approach was employed to develop a QSAR model to correlate the quantum chemical descriptors of 1,2,4-triazolone derivatives with their antidiabetic activity. The best statistically significant correlations between the biological activity and the descriptors were generated after a multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis. A QSAR model was successfully developed and a good correlation between the experimental and predicted activity values was described.

Nowadays, the design of multistimuli-responsive and deep penetrating nanotherapeutics remains an auspicious means for improving the efficiency of anticancer therapeutics. Herein, we develop a targeted size-tunable nanosystem that would concurrently and uniformly release its therapeutic cargo into tumor cells by exploiting both extracellular and intracellular signals. This nanosystem (HPDAu) is composed of self-assembled pH-responsive DOX–PAMAM (PD) conjugates and ultrasmall PAMAM-stabilized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), incorporated into a hyaluronidase-responsive hyaluronic acid nanoshell. HPDAu nanoparticles with an initial particle size of ∼100 nm could disassemble into tiny cationic nanostructures (∼5 nm, PD and AuNPs) upon incubation with HAase, and showed a burst drug-release under tumor microenvironment-mimicking conditions (HAase and acidic conditions). Such characteristics resulted in significantly improved tumor penetration both in vitro and in vivo, along with a higher cellular uptake efficiency and tumor accumulation as compared to free drug solutions. Taking advantage of these features along with the chemotherapeutic effect (DOX) and AuNP/DOX-induced radiosensitization, HPDAu plus radiotherapy (RT) treatment resulted in a substantial increase of apoptotic and cytotoxic effects against 4T1 cells. More importantly, the radio-/chemotherapeutic feasibility of HPDAu was further validated in a 4T1 orthotropic model, revealing a prominent antitumor efficacy and reduced side-toxicity compared to monotherapy and free drug solutions. Therefore, this versatile nanoplatform with active targeting, size tunability and radio-/chemotherapeutic features could be a promising tool for tumor combinatorial therapy.

Matrix hybrid membranes, based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), poly (N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP), silica gel (SG) and zinc oxide (ZnO) were synthesized by phase inversion via immersion precipitation method. The characterization of membrane samples was performed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy, contact angle, porosity, mean pore size and water permeability measurements. The FTIR analysis showed the appearance of new bands attributed to the functional groups of SG and ZnO. The XRD analysis confirmed a modification in the structure of membranes. The prepared membranes were used for the removal of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) from aqueous solution. Membrane filtration experiments show that the water permeability and Cr(VI) rejection ratios increase with increasing the weight ratio ZnO (%)/SG (%). The maximum values of the Cr(VI) rejection rate and water permeability were respectively 85% and 685 L/m2hbar for weight ratios (0.75% of ZnO/0.25% of SG).

Background: In Morocco, phosphate processing generates large quantities of sludge which amass, form fillings, reduce arable land and distort the landscape. Phosphate wash sludge is rich in mineral elements. In order to recover some of these mineral elements including phosphorus, we considered using this sludge in a nursery as a substrate. Objective: The aim of the study was to check the effect of solid phosphate sludge amendment on some of the main soil-borne pathogens: Verticillium dahliae Kleb. and Rhizoctonia solani Kühn. Materials and Methods: The pathogens have been isolated and identified in the laboratory of Plant Pathology and Postharvest Quality of INRA-Kenitra. Phosphate wash sludge used was originated from the Khouribga phosphate treatment sludge disposal site. Different concentrations of phosphate sludge (0, 10, 30, 50, and 100 g/l) were tested on a PDA-based medium, in three replicates. The inhibitory effects on mycelial growth were measured and compared with those on the soil used by nurseries (Maamora forest soil). Petri dishes with PDA alone were used as control. The same concentrations (10, 30, 50 and 100 g/kg) were tested in vivo on two varieties of tomato and on Faba Faba bean for Verticillium dahliae and Rhizoctonia solani, respectively. Results: The results of this study showed that there was significant growth inhibition at different concentrations of solid Phosphate sludge amendments in vitro. The highest inhibition percentage was observed at 100 g/l of phosphate sludge amendments with 42% and 75% for Verticillium dahliae and Rhizoctonia solani. The high concentrations of phosphate sludge have shown lower disease severity of Verticillium dahliae on the tomato plants and a disease index of Rhizoctonia solani on the Faba bean plants. Conclusion: Based on these results, we can recommend that solid phosphate sludge can be used or mixed with other substrates in nurseries.

Several adaptor molecules bind to cytoplasmic tails of β-integrins and facilitate bidirectional signaling, which is critical in thrombosis and hemostasis. Interfering with integrin-adaptor interactions spatially or temporally to inhibit thrombosis without affecting hemostasis is an attractive strategy for the development of safe antithrombotic drugs. We show for the first time that the 14-3-3ζ–c-Src–integrin-β3 complex is formed during platelet activation. 14-3-3ζ–c-Src interaction is mediated by the -PIRLGLALNFSVFYYE- fragment (PE16) on the 14-3-3ζ and SH2-domain on c-Src, whereas the 14-3-3ζ–integrin-β3 interaction is mediated by the -ESKVFYLKMKGDYYRYL- fragment (EL17) on the 14-3-3ζ and -KEATSTF- fragment (KF7) on the β3-integrin cytoplasmic tail. The EL17-motif inhibitor, or KF7 peptide, interferes with the formation of the 14-3-3ζ–c-Src–integrin-β3 complex and selectively inhibits β3 outside-in signaling without affecting the integrin-fibrinogen interaction, which suppresses thrombosis without causing significant bleeding. This study characterized a previously unidentified 14-3-3ζ–c-Src–integrin-β3 complex in platelets and provided a novel strategy for the development of safe and effective antithrombotic treatments.

The radioactivity concentration in powdered infant milk consumed in Algeria, mainly imported from different countries, some of which had suffered from the propagation of the radiation effect after explosions of nuclear reactors, was evaluated. Milk samples were analyzed using a conducted NaI(Tl) 2×2 well detector (Canberra) and a γ-ray spectrometer using GENIE 2000 software. Twelve samples from different producers and countries were examined, and the average values of their activity concentrations were 1.19 ± 0.81, 1.45 ± 0.96, 18.07 ± 3.42, and 0.18 ± 0.06 Bq kg–1 for 226Ra 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs, respectively. The average total effective total dose due to the annual ingestion of the above four radionuclides from the ingestion of imported milk powder for infants of age under one year was estimated at 153.16 ± 7.66, 48.05 ± 2.40, 15.92 ± 0.80, and 0.030 ± 0.0015 μSv year–1. For one-year-old infants, the values were 38.69 ± 1.93, 20.27 ± 1.01, 19.29 ± 0.96, and 0.049 ± 0.0024 μSv year–1. These values are significantly lower than the international authorization value. Thus, these imported brands of powdered milk can be consumed safely and without any restrictions.

The mechanical properties of biocompatible microparticles including calcium alginate microbeads loaded gallic acid were determined by a micromanipulation technique using a Brookfield Texture Analyzers. Single calcium alginate microbeads of a regular size distribution with a mean diameter in the range of 700– 750 µm prepared by the ionotropic gelation technique were compressed to rupture with a constant speed of 0.5 mm.s−1. The corresponding force imposed on them was measured simultaneously by a force transducer. Results showed that the force imposed on these particles increased when they were compressed, but relaxed significantly when they were ruptured and the increasing alginate concentration led to the improvement of mechanical strength (microcapsules). The exploitation of the linear character of the stresses and deformation allowed us to calculate the creep function. Calculations show that the microbeads are subjected to delayed elasticity (or entropy elasticity) governed by the Kelvin-Voigt analog model. This model is then confronted with the experiment and allowed us to find the modulus of Young of the microbeads which is in agreement with our direct experimental measurements as well as the determination of the delay time and viscosity for a concentration of (3%, w/v).

ObjectiveA meta-analysis of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies to investigate alterations in brain metabolites in people with HIV (PWH), the relationship between metabolite alterations and combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), and the relationship between metabolite alterations and cognitive impairment.MethodsThe PubMed database was searched for studies published from 1997 to 2020. Twenty-seven studies were identified, which included 1255 PWH and 633 controls. Four metabolites (N-acetyl aspartate [NAA], myo-inositol [mI], choline [Cho], and glutamatergic metabolites [Glx]) from 5 brain regions (basal ganglia [BG], frontal gray and white matter [FGM and FWM], and parietal gray and white matter [PGM and PWM]) were pooled separately using random-effects meta-analysis.ResultsDuring early HIV infection, metabolite alterations were largely limited to the BG, including Cho elevation, a marker of inflammation. cART led to global mI and Cho normalization (i.e., less elevations), but improvement in NAA was negligible. In chronic PWH on cART, there were consistent NAA reductions across brain regions, along with Cho and mI elevations in the FWM and BG, and Glx elevations in the FWM. Cognitive impairment was associated with NAA reduction and to a lesser degree mI elevation.ConclusionsThe BG are the primary region affected during early infection. cART is successful in partially controlling neuroinflammation (global mI and Cho normalization). However, neuronal dysfunction (NAA reductions) and neuroinflammation (mI and Cho elevations) persist and contribute to cognitive impairment in chronic PWH. Novel compounds targeting NAA signal pathways, along with better neuroinflammation control, may help to reduce cognitive impairment in PWH.

Under conditions of starvation, normal and tumor epithelial cells can rewire their metabolism toward the consumption of extracellular proteins, including extracellular matrix‐derived components as nutrient sources. The mechanism of pericellular matrix degradation by starved cells has been largely overlooked. Here it is shown that matrix degradation by breast and pancreatic tumor cells and patient‐derived xenograft explants increases by one order of magnitude upon amino acid and growth factor deprivation. In addition, it is found that collagenolysis requires the invadopodia components, TKS5, and the transmembrane metalloproteinase, MT1‐MMP, which are key to the tumor invasion program. Increased collagenolysis is controlled by mTOR repression upon nutrient depletion or pharmacological inhibition by rapamycin. The results reveal that starvation hampers clathrin‐mediated endocytosis, resulting in MT1‐MMP accumulation in arrested clathrin‐coated pits. The study uncovers a new mechanism whereby mTOR repression in starved cells leads to the repurposing of abundant plasma membrane clathrin‐coated pits into robust ECM‐degradative assemblies., Cancer cells catabolize extracellular matrix (ECM) components to maintain growth when nutrients are depleted. This study reports that tumor cells repurpose the invadopodia‐, protease‐dependent program to elicit a massive ECM degradation mechanism, under regulation by mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1. Nutrient scarcity blocks endocytosis of membrane type 1‐matrix metalloproteinase converting arrested clathrin‐coated pits into powerful matrix degradation units.

Zizyphus lotus L. (Desf.) (Z. lotus) is a medicinal plant largely distributed all over the Mediterranean basin and is traditionally used by Moroccan people to treat many illnesses, including kidney failure. The nephrotoxicity of gentamicin (GM) has been well documented in humans and animals, although the preventive strategies against it remain to be studied. In this investigation, we explore whether the extract of Zizyphus lotus L. (Desf.) Fruit (ZLF) exhibits a protective effect against renal damage produced by GM. Indeed, twenty-four Wistar rats were separated into four equal groups of six each (♂/♀ = 1). The control group was treated orally with distilled water (10 mL/kg), the GM treated group received distilled water (10 mL/kg) and an intraperitoneal injection of GM (80 mg/kg) 3 h after, and the treated groups received ZLF extract orally at the doses 200 or 400 mg/kg and injected intraperitoneally with the GM. All treatments were given daily for 14 days. At the end of the experiment, the biochemical parameters and the histological observation related the kidney function was explored. ZLF treatment has significantly attenuated the nephrotoxicity induced by the GM. This effect was indicated by its capacity to decrease significantly the serum creatinine, uric acid, urea, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl-transpeptidase, albumin, calcium, sodium amounts, water intake, urinary volume, and relative kidney weight. In addition, this effect was also shown by the increase in the creatinine clearance, urinary creatinine, uric acid, and urea levels, weight gain, compared to the rats treated only with the GM. The hemostasis of oxidants/antioxidants has been significantly improved with the treatment of ZLF extract, which was shown by a significant reduction in malondialdehydes levels. Histopathological analysis of renal tissue was correlated with biochemical observation. Chemical analysis by HPLC-DAD showed that the aqueous extract of ZLF is rich in phenolic compounds such as 3-hydroxycinnamic acid, catechin, ferulic acid, gallic acid, hydroxytyrosol, naringenin, p- coumaric Acid, quercetin, rutin, and vanillic acid. In conclusion, ZLF extract improved the nephrotoxicity induced by GM, through the improvement of the biochemical and histological parameters and thus validates its ethnomedicinal use.

The SARS-CoV-2 viral spike protein S receptor-binding domain (S-RBD) binds ACE2 on host cells to initiate molecular events, resulting in intracellular release of the viral genome. Therefore, antagonists of this interaction could allow a modality for therapeutic intervention. Peptides can inhibit the S-RBD:ACE2 interaction by interacting with the protein-protein interface. In this study, protein contact atlas data and molecular dynamics simulations were used to locate interaction hotspots on the secondary structure elements α1, α2, α3, β3, and β4 of ACE2. We designed a library of discontinuous peptides based upon a combination of the hotspot interactions, which were synthesized and screened in a bioluminescence-based assay. The peptides demonstrated high efficacy in antagonizing the SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD:ACE2 interaction and were validated by microscale thermophoresis which demonstrated strong binding affinity (∼10 nM) of these peptides to S-RBD. We anticipate that such discontinuous peptides may hold the potential for an efficient therapeutic treatment for COVID-19.

The spinel lithium titanate oxide (Li4Ti5O12, LTO) has been extensively studied as one of the most promising alternatives to carbon materials in energy conversion and storage devices, due to its high structural and thermal stability, rate capability, and excellent cycling stability. In this study, Li4Ti5O12/multi-walled carbon nanotubes (LTO-MWCNTs) free-standing and flexible composite electrodes/buckypapers were prepared via tape casting technique and well compared with commercially available LTO. The structural, morphological, electrical and electrochemical properties of LTO-MWCNTs buckypaper as well as LTO were studied. The electrical conductivity of LTO-based buckypaper was found to be very high i. e, 4.4 × 102 Scm−1 at room temperature. Further, the buckypaper prepared by synthesized LTO showed higher specific capacity (166 mAhg−1) compared to commercially available LTO (137 mAhg−1) at 0.2 C rate. The enhanced electrochemical performance of as-synthesized LTO-based buckypaper is mainly attributed to the higher electronic conductivity and homogeneous distribution of particles with its small size which facilitates large amount of active sites for lithium insertion and also short diffusion paths.

Chitin and chitosan have been successfully produced, from Moroccan shrimp shells, using the microwave technology. This efficient extraction method of chitin and chitosan was evaluated and demineralization, deproteinization and deacetylation steps were investigated. The effect of the reaction time, the HCl and the NaOH concentration, at different powers (90 W, 160 W, 350 W, 500 W and 650 W) was studied. The results shown that a chitosan with low degree of acetylation has been extracted using 50% of NaOH solution, at power range 500–650 W, and the deacetylation reaction was more than 80% completed after 10 min. Microwave assisted extraction allowed to produce chitosan with medium and high molecular weight (300–360 kDa). Chitin deacetylation by microwave heating was more efficient than the conventional heating, and high desacetylation degree was obtained using microwave heating in just a few minutes. This technology can save huge amount of energy when implemented on industrial scale, it's a highly economical extraction method. By this technology, we have successfully produced the chitosan CTS with low NaOH concentration (30%), which allows to avoid manipulating an extremely high concentration of a corrosive substance, especially at industrial scale. Chitosan CTS has a degree of acetylation of 23.4% and a molecular weight of 165 kDa.

At present, the demand for natural energy has been ever increasing, so energy has become a major concern for everyone. As Long Term Evolution Base Stations consume a large amount of the total energy expenditure in a cellular network, it is of keen interest to researchers to reduce the energy consumed by BSs when considering network planning. In this paper, we consider the green radio network planning problem for the LTE cellular networks. Our aim is to reduce energy consumption by reducing the number of active BSs, which will also reduce the production of carbon dioxide. Now BSs are currently operated and deployed for the worst traffic peak estimates. However, traffic fluctuates with time depending on the mobile stations behavior and their data needs. From our point of view, in order to investigate more realistic cases, we consider the situation where the traffic information is taken as imprecise and uncertain value. So, we introduce a model of problem where each traffic is a fuzzy variable, and then, we present a decision-making model based on possibility theory. To solve the problem, we propose a solution method using genetic algorithms and a dynamic Evolved Node B switching on/off strategy. The obtained results showed the efficiency of our approach and demonstrated considerable energy saving, through dynamic adaptation of the number of active BSs.

In search for antitumor metal-based drugs that would mitigate the severe side-effects of cisplatin, Ru(II) complexes are gaining increasing recent interest. In this work, we report on the synthesis, characterization (1H- and 13C-NMR, FT-IR), and cytotoxicity studies of two new half-sandwich organometallic Ru(II) complexes of the general formula [Ru(η6-arene)(XY)Cl](PF6) where arene = benzene or toluene and XY = bidentates: dipyrido[3,2-a:2′,3′-c]phenazine (dppz) or 2-(9-anthryl)-1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline (aip), which are bound to Ru(II) via two phenanthroline-N atoms in a characteristic “piano-stool” configuration of Ru(II)-arene complexes—as confirmed by vibrational and NMR spectra. In addition, cytotoxic studies were performed for similar half-sandwich organometallic [Ru(η6-p-cymene)(Me2dppz)Cl]PF6 complex (Me2dppz = 11,12-dimethyl-dipyrido[3,2-a:2′,3′-c]phenazine). This study is complemented with elaborate modeling with density functional theory (DFT) calculations, which provided insight into reactive sites of Ru(II) structures, further detailed by molecular docking on the B-DNA dodecamer, which identified binding sites and affinities: most pronounced for the [Ru(η6-benzene)(aip)Cl](PF6) in both A-T and G-C regions of the DNA minor groove. Cytotoxic activity was probed versus tumor cell lines B16, C6, and U251 (B16 mouse melanoma, C6 rat glioma, U251 human glioblastoma) and non-tumor cell line HACAT (HACAT normal human keratinocytes). This is the peer-reviewed version of the following article:Nikolić, S.; Grgurić-Šipka, S.; Djordjević, I. S.; Dahmani, R.; Dekanski, D.; Vidičević, S.; Tošić, J.; Mitić, D.; Grubišić, S. Half-Sandwich Ruthenium(II)-Arene Complexes: Synthesis, Spectroscopic Studies, Biological Properties, and Molecular Modeling. Journal of Coordination Chemistry 2019, 72 (1), 148–163. [https://doi.org/10.1080/00958972.2018.1553298]. Supplementary material: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/3753]

Agarose is a biopolymer extracted from the red marine alga (Rhodophycees), it is widely used in agribusiness, pharmaceutical industry or as electrophoresis. The solution of this biopolymer in water gives rise to a more or less rigid solid mass called gel. This gel can be described as a matrix generating a macromolecular three-dimensional network. In this work, we exploit the experimental measurements of the stress undergone by the gel and the underlying deformation as a function of the different concentrations of the agarose to determine the creep function of this polymer in a linear regime according to the Boltzmann superposition principle. It turns out from the calculations that the gel is subjected to a delayed elasticity governed by Voigt’s analog model. This model allowed us to find the elastic modulus of the gel, and to determine the delay time and viscosity as function s of agarose concentrations.

The synthesis and characterization of new functionalized bipyrazolic compounds namely 1,6-Bis(3′-ethoxycarbonyl-5′-methyl-l '-pyrazolyl) hexane (2), 1,6-Bis(3′-hydroxymethyl-5′-methyl-l '-pyrazolyl) hexane (3) and 1,6- Bis(3′-carboxyl-5′-methyl-l '-pyrazolyl) hexane (4) were reported. The antibacterial activity against two Gram positive and two Gram negative bacteria was also investigated. Quantum calculations using DFT method have been performed to determine the structure activity relationship (SAR). The molecular electrostatic potential surface (MEPS) evidenced the favorable effect of the presence of an electrophilic site in enhancing the antibacterial activity of such compounds.

The goal of this work was the study of drug-excipient interactions of ternary mixtures between diclofenac sodium when introduced with excipients commonly explored in solid dosage formulas such as microcrystalline cellulose and stearic acid obtained by three methods. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the structural characterization technique of diffraction (XRPD) were used to investigate the characterization and potential physical and chemical interactions of solid products of diclofenac sodium with excipients prepared by different methods. This work revealed a possible interaction between diclofenac sodium, microcrystalline cellulose, and stearic acid in mixture prepared by microwave irradiation also; it was found compatibility for ternary mixtures prepared by physical mixture and co evaporation methods. Results of this study can be useful in the development of the method of preparation and select adequate excipients with suitable compatibility.

Arginine metabolism mediated by arginases plays a critical role in cell and tissue function. The arginine hydrolysis is deeply involved in the urea cycle, which helps the kidney excrete ammonia from blood. Upregulation of arginases affects microenvironment stability due to the presence of excess urea in blood. To regulate the arginase activities properly, a synthetic peptide based on the structure of human arginase I was designed and assessed. Preliminary data shows it inhibits human arginase I and II with an IC50 of 2.4 ± 0.3 and 1.8 ± 0.1 mmol, respectively. Our kinetic analysis indicates the inhibition is not competitive with substrate – suggesting an allosteric mechanism. This result provides a step towards specific inhibitors design. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11033-021-06176-5.

International audience; A series of new ditriphenyltin(IV) dicarboxylate complexes of general formula (Ph3SnOOC-Pz)2R with Pz: pyrazole and R: alkyl or ether, have been synthesized from bipyrazoledicarboxylic acid and hydroxytripheyltin. These complexes, noted C1-C7, have been characterized by IR, 1 H and 13 C NMR spectroscopies. The molecular structures of C3: 1,3-Bis[(5-methyl-2-H-3-triphenyltincarboxylate pyrazol)]propane and C7: Bis[(2-methyl-2H-3triphenyltincarboxylate pyrazol)ethyl]oxide have been confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Both compounds crystallize in the monoclinic symmetry: C3 in P21 space group with a = 15.915(1) Å, b = 10.0791(8) Å, c = 13.823(1) Å, α = 90°, β = 100.459(3)°, γ = 90° and C7 in P21/n space group, with a = 15.0951(7) Å, b = 8.9847(3) Å, c = 34.244(1) Å, α = 90°, β = 101.421(2)°, γ = 90°.. The two cristallographically independent Sn1 and Sn2 atoms are tetra coordinated within distorted tetrahedral environments, very similar in the two compounds. The antifungal activity of these organotin complexes and their corresponding bipyrazoledicarboxylic acid (ligands) has been evaluated against the pathogenic Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis. This activity greatly depends on the nature of ligands and on the dose used. The presence of triphenyltin moiety improves considerably the antifungal activity becoming close to that of the benomyl (fungicide).

Group contribution models can be used to predict the thermodynamic properties. The basic data used to determine the interaction parameters are VLE, HE and infinite dilution activity coefficient data. However in the absence of the required data, SLE measurements of eutectic systems are of great interest for fitting interaction parameters of group contribution methods. The knowledge of solid–liquid equilibria (SLE) of binary mixtures is essential for the design and development of separation process involving crystallization. In the present study, experimental SLE of binary mixtures containing N,N-dimethylaniline, diethylamine, cyclohexylamine, n-alkanes, and cyclohexane were measured by a static method of direct thermal analysis, using an apparatus derived from that of Smit. The experimental data obtained with this technique are compared with those predicted by Group contribution models: Mod. UNIFAC (Do) and DISQUAC models. The liquid-phase activity coefficients were also calculated. The experimental results illustrated that these systems showed a eutectic behavior, and a good agreement is obtained between experimental and predicted SLE. The use of the new c-CHNH2 group instead of the CHNH2 group in the modified UNIFAC Dortmund model showed excellent results.

The vascular inflammatory response involves the coordinated action of a large network of molecular mediators and culminates in the transmigration of leukocytes into the site of inflammation. Inflammatory mediators include a variety of protein families, including adhesion molecules such as integrins and members of the immunoglobulin superfamily, as well as other cytokines and chemokines. In this study, a rat model of traumatic skeletal muscle injury was used to demonstrate endoplasmic reticulum resident protein 72 (ERp72) overexpression in the early phase of the inflammatory response that follows skeletal muscle injury. Reverse transcription‑quantitative PCR, western blotting, dual‑labeling immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence experiments confirmed that ERp72 was expressed on the endothelial cells of blood vessels present at the injured area. In addition, a cell‑based neutrophil adhesion assay indicated that a polyclonal antibody specific for ERp72 significantly reduced adhesion of neutrophils to activated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (35% reduction). These data suggested that ERp72 expression on vascular endothelial cells may play a role in skeletal muscle inflammation and could be considered as a target for the modulation of leukocyte‑endothelial cell interactions in an inflammatory setting.

International audience; Two new organotin (IV) bipyrazole-dicarboxylate macrocyclic complexes, C1 (C58H100N8O10Sn4) and C2 (C58H100N8O12Sn4, 4 H2O), are synthesized by reaction of the bipyrazole-dicarboxylic acids L1 = 1,1′-(propane-1,3-diyl)bis(5-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxylic acid) and L2 = 1,1′-(2-hydroxypropane-1,3-diyl)bis(5-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxylic acid) with oxide di-(n-butyl)tin. The structure of these complexes is characterized using NMR, IR and UV-visible spectroscopies as well as single crystal X-ray diffraction. Compound C1 crystallizes within the triclinic symmetry in space group P1 with a = 12.9410(5), b = 13.6143(5), c = 22.7675(8) Å, α = 92.981(1), β = 91.180(1), γ = 116.966(1) °, while C2 crystallizes within the rhombohedral symmetry in space group R3 with a = b = 29.4419(5), c = 23.0326(5) Å, α = β = 90 and γ = 120 °. The analysis by X-ray crystallography diffraction reveals that both complexes are centrosymmetric macrocycles and contain a tetra-nuclear four-fold ladder-like organo-oxotin cluster. Two Sn atoms are found to be five-coordinated while the two others are four-coordinated. The antifungal activity of these metal-cyclic compounds C1 and C2 is examined and compared to that of the corresponding ligands against the pathogenic strain Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis. The complexes C1 and C2 possess an interesting fungicidal power even higher than the ligands L1 and L2.

In search for future good adsorbents for CO2 capture, a nitrogen-rich triazole-type Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) is proposed based on the rational design and theoretical molecular simulations. The structure of the proposed MOF, named Zinc Triazolate based Framework (ZTF), is obtained by replacing the amine-organic linker of MAF-66 by a triazole, and its structural parameters are deduced. We used grand-canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations based on generic classical force fields to correctly predict the adsorption isotherms of CO2 and H2O. For water adsorption in MAF-66 and ZTF, simulations revealed that the strong hydrogen bonding interactions of water with the N atoms of triazole rings of the frameworks are the main driving forces for the high adsorption uptake of water. We also show that the proposed ZTF porous material exhibits exceptional high CO2 uptake capacity at low pressure, better than MAF-66. Moreover, the nature of the interactions between CO2 and the MAF-66 and ZTF surface cavities was examined at the microscopic level. Computations show that the interactions occur at two different sites, consisting of Lewis acid-Lewis base interactions and hydrogen bonding, together with obvious electrostatic interactions. In addition, we investigated the influence of the presence of H2O molecules on the CO2 adsorption on the ZTF MOF. GCMC simulations reveal that the addition of H2O molecules leads to an enhancement of the CO2 adsorption at very low pressures but a reduction of this CO2 adsorption at higher pressures. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and AIP Publishing. This article appeared in J. Chem. Phys. 154, 024303 (2021); doi: [https://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0037594] Supplementary material: [https://cer.ihtm.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/4512]

The objective of this study is to investigate the formation of scale at the level of multi-stage flash evaporators (MSF). Scale (tartar) is the result of the precipitation of insoluble species such as calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate, and magnesium hydroxide. As a solution to this problem, we propose to pre-treat seawater before introducing it into evaporators. Pre-processing by the precipitation process is a method that protects evaporators (MSF). Our strategy consists of pre-treating seawater by three different ways using potassium hydroxide at a temperature of 25 ℃, sodium carbonate at different temperatures 25, 35, 50, and 100 ℃, and the combination of potassium hydroxide and sodium carbonate at 25 and 100 ℃. As a result, we noticed that the treatment of 1 L of seawater heated at 100 ℃ using 10 g of sodium carbonate completely eliminated the calcium ions and reduced the concentration of magnesium ions from 747.22 to 142.8 mg/L. The treatment of the filtered solution of 10 g/L of sodium carbonate heated to 100 ℃ with 3 g of potassium hydroxide, however, allowed the removing of the remaining magnesium ions. On the other hand, the pre-treatment of seawater carried out with a mixture of sodium carbonate and potassium hydroxide and heated at 100 ℃ gave the best result through the total elimination of both ions of sodium carbonate and magnesium.

Sampling of the vast conformational landscape of organic compounds remains a challenging task in computational chemistry, especially when it comes to the characterization of soft-degrees of freedom and relatively small energy barriers between different local minima. Therefore, studying the intrinsic properties of isolated molecules using focused experiments such as high-resolution molecular spectroscopy provides a powerful approach to validate and improve available quantum chemical methods. Here, we report on the most abundant gas-phase structure of ethyl 2-methyl pentanoate under molecular jet conditions, which we used to benchmark several exchange–correlation functionals and ab initio methods at the quantum chemical level. The observed conformer of ethyl 2-methyl pentanoate in the gas-phase is of C1 symmetry and exhibits a large amplitude motion around the C–C bond in proximity to the carbonyl moiety, which, unlike in the case of its structural isomer ethyl 2-ethyl butyrate, is very sensitive to the applied quantum chemical method and basis set. Depending on the applied quantum chemical method, the dihedral angle of the lowest energy conformer is optimized to absolute values of ±20°. This is far above the usual convergence error of the theoretical methods and has a tremendous impact on the rotational constants of this conformer, which complicates the prediction of rotational spectra and the assignment of experimental data. We show that the loss of symmetry in the aliphatic chain bound to the carboxylic moiety of ethyl esters results in a shift of the dihedral angle value due to a flat potential well around the corresponding C–C bond. Our benchmark calculations further indicate the potential relevance of the wB97X-D functional for this ethyl pentanoate and other related ethyl esters.

Background Citrus reticulata is one of the most cultivated fruit with great benefits for humans in the world. Citrus reticulata peel has several biological activities within them hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, antimicrobial and antioxidant. The present study emphasizes on the in vivo wound healing and in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of Citrus reticulata peel extract. Methods Forty albino mice (23–29 g) of either sex were divided into four groups. The test groups were treated with experimental ointment (0.5% and 10% of methanolic extract), negative control were treated with Vaseline and the positive control were treated with silver sulfadiazine. Burn wounds were induced on dorsal area of mice bodies. Wound area measurement was carried out every day during 22 days. Biochemical screening was performed to identify possible compounds. Antioxidant and antimicrobial activities were also determined. Results Significant wound healing activity was observed with topical application of Citrus reticulata peel extract. Wound area reduction at day 16 of treatment was 100% for both treated groups (0.5% and 10%) when compared to positive and negative control it was 100% and 98.32% respectively at day 22. Furthermore higher rate of wound contraction (100% on 16th day) was observed for both treated groups. The result of biochemical screening showed that C. reticulata peel is characterized by highest amount of total polyphenols (13.19 mg/g), flavonoids (4.07 mg/g), vitamin C (13.20 mg/g), carotenoids (0.032 mg/g) and lowest content of macronutrients (Proteins: 0.40%, reducing sugars: 7.21%; lipids: 1.5%). Additionally C. reticulata peel exhibited remarkable antioxidant activity using DPPH and phosphomolybdate methods as well as the extract possess antimicrobial effect against pathogen bactria. Conclusion The findings from this research indicated that Citrus reticulata peel extract is effective in inhibiting the growth of pathogen bacteria and could be of therapeutic potentials for wound healing.

We developed an experimental methodology to monitor response dynamics of single human cells to hydrogen peroxide. Our approach is based on fluidic control of both magnitude and time-evolution of the external perturbation, and on high-throughput imaging of intracellular fluorescent redox reporters. We applied step stimulus to MCF7 cells with hydrogen peroxide concentration in the range of 10 to 500μM. First, our data highlights dynamic adaptation of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) scavenging system at several time scales. Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Phosphate (NADPH) level is rapidly restored within 10 min after a transient decrease, while glutathione (GSH) redox potential is slowly driven back toward pre-stimulus level (within one hour). Extra-cellular glucose is necessary for adaptation of both NADPH level and GSH system. Second, our results also reveal large cell-to-cell variability in the dynamic response to external ROS. Our experimental approach is readily usable to monitor other cellular redox systems such as thioredoxins. As response-heterogeneity can lead to fractional killing, we finally discuss how our methodology can be an opportunity to link dynamics of ROS scavenging and cellular fate such as cell death.

Background Vitamin C (ascorbic acid, AscH2) has been shown to enhance immunity. Here, we studied its immunomodulatory effect on human endothelial cells (ECs) during S. aureus infection. Materials and methods The ex vivo effects of AscH2 were performed on primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) infected or not with S. aureus. Results AscH2 treatment induced a marked downregulation of nitric oxide (NO) production and a moderate upregulation of arginase activity in S. aureus-infected HUVECs (respectively, p 0.05). Although the upregulated release levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecular 1 (sICAM-1/sCD54) and sE-selectin (sCD62E) molecules were not significantly different between treated and untreated S. aureus-infected HUVECs, AscH2 treatment induced reversing effect on sICAM-1 release when comparing to uninfected control HUVECs. Moreover, AscH2 treatment appears to have a significant effect on preventing HUVEC necrosis induced by S. aureus infection (p 0.05). Additionally, S. aureus infection markedly downregulated total bound calcium ions (bCa2+) levels as compared to control HUVECs, whereas, AscH2 treatment induced a slight upregulation of bCa2+ levels in infected HUVECs as compared to infected and untreated HUVECs (p > 0.05). On the other hand, AscH2 treatment downregulated increased total cellular cholesterol content (tccCHOL) levels in HUVECs induced by S. aureus infection (p 0.05, and p Conclusions Our outcomes demonstrated that, during S. aureus infection, AscH2 treatment promotes human ECs survival and function, as well as prevents inflammatory response exacerbation, while inducing bactericidal activity.

We demonstrate a collinear acousto-optic modulator in a suspended film of lithium niobate employing a high-confinement, wavelength-scale waveguide. By strongly confining the optical and mechanical waves, this modulator improves by orders of magnitude a figure-of-merit that accounts for both acousto-optic and electro-mechanical efficiency. Our device demonstration marks a significant technological advance in acousto-optics that promises a novel class of compact and low-power frequency shifters, tunable filters, non-magnetic isolators, and beam deflectors., 14 pages, 10 figures

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are induced upon pathogen infection plays an important role in host defence. The rickettsial pathogen Anaplasma phagocytophilum, which is primarily transmitted by Ixodes scapularis ticks in the United States, has evolved many strategies to escape ROS and survive in mammalian cells. However, little is known on the role of ROS in A. phagocytophilum infection in ticks. Our results show that A. phagocytophilum and hemin induce activation of l-tryptophan pathway in tick cells. Xanthurenic acid (XA), a tryptophan metabolite, supports A. phagocytophilum growth in tick cells through inhibition of tryptophan dioxygenase (TDO) activity leading to reduced l-kynurenine levels that subsequently affects build-up of ROS. However, hemin supports A. phagocytophilum growth in tick cells by inducing TDO activity leading to increased l-kynurenine levels and ROS production. Our data reveal that XA and kynurenic acid (KA) chelate hemin. Furthermore, treatment of tick cells with 3-hydroxyl l-kynurenine limits A. phagocytophilum growth in tick cells. RNAi-mediated knockdown of kynurenine aminotransferase expression results in increased ROS production and reduced A. phagocytophilum burden in tick cells. Collectively, these results suggest that l-tryptophan pathway metabolites influence A. phagocytophilum survival by affecting build up of ROS levels in tick cells.

Exposure of phosphatidylserine (PS) in the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane is induced by infection with several members of the Alphaherpesvirinae subfamily. There is evidence that PS is used by the equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) during entry, but the exact role of PS and other phospholipids in the entry process remains unknown. Here, we investigated the interaction of differently charged phospholipids with virus particles and determined their influence on infection. Our data show that liposomes containing negatively charged PS or positively charged DOTAP [N-[1-(2,3-Dioleoyloxy)propyl]-N,N,N-trimethylammonium)] inhibited EHV-1 infection, while neutral phosphatidylcholine (PC) had no effect. Inhibition of infection with PS was transient, decreased with time, and was dose dependent. Our findings indicate that both cationic and anionic phospholipids can interact with the virus and reduce infectivity, while acting through different mechanisms. Charged phospholipids were found to have antiviral effects and can may be used to inhibit EHV-1 infection.

BackgroundImmune activities of monocytes (MOs) can be altered within the microenvironment of solid malignancies, including breast cancer. Metformin (1,1-dimethylbiguanide hydrochloride, MET), has been shown to decrease tumor cell proliferation, but its effects have yet to be explored with respect to the crosstalk between monocytes and breast cancer cells. Here, we investigated the effects of MET on overall phenotypic functional activities of autologous MOs during the interplay with primary breast cancer cells.MethodsHuman primary breast cancer cells were either cultured alone or co-cultured with autologous MOs before treatment with MET.ResultsMET downregulated both breast cancer cell proliferation and the ratio of phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt)-to-Akt in breast cancer cells. Additionally, we observed that, in the absence of MET treatment, the levels of LDH-based cytotoxicity, catalase, intracellular free calcium ions (ifCa2+), IL-10 and arginase activity were significantly reduced in co-cultures compared to those of MOs cultivated alone whereas levels of iNOS were significantly increased (for all comparisons, p < 0.05). In contrast, MET upregulated breast cancer cell LDH-based cytotoxicity levels when co-cultured with MO. MET also induced upregulation of both the inducible enzymatic activity of nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and arginase activity in MO cells and co-culture systems, although these differences did not reach significant levels for iNOS activity (p > 0.05). MET greatly decreased phagocytic activity in isolated MOs while inducing a robust increase of catalase activity in co-culture systems and of superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in MOs, but not in MOs co-cultured with breast cancer cells. MET strongly upregulated the levels of ifCa2+ in co-culture systems and IFN-γ production in both isolated MOs and co-culture systems. Moreover, MET treatment markedly downregulated IL-10 production in MOs, while inducing a slight increase in co-cultures (p > 0.05).ConclusionsOur results show that the phenotypic functional activities of MOs change when co-cultured with primary human breast cancer cells. Furthermore, treatment with MET induced enhancing effects on the production of antitumor cytokine IFN-γ and ifCa2+, as well as cytotoxicity during breast cancer cell-MO crosstalk.Novel Highlights includeFirst analysis of the anti-tumoral effects of Metformin on primary human breast cancer cells and the crosstalk with autologous monocytes.Phenotypic functional activities of monocytes change during their interplay with breast cancer cells, which is improved by upregulation of IFN-γ after Metformin treatment.Metformin induces downregulation of phosphorylated-Akt1/2-to-Akt1/2 ratio in breast cancer cells.Metformin downregulates phagocytic capacity of monocyte from breast cancer patients.

International audience; The development of novel sensing systems requires breakthroughs in the conception of multifunctional materials. In this sense, while extensive research has been dedicated to the individual tuning of the electrical or optical properties of different materials, the combination of both features would result in a promising field of research that would further extend opportunities for engineering novel function in sensor geometries. In the present work, we employed a highly attractive optical material for mid-infrared (MIR) sensing (chalcogenide glasses, ChG) and focused on the spatial control of its surface electrical potential via a thermoelectrical imprinting process. Different glass compositions based on the system Ge-Sb-S-Na were prepared by varying the sulfur stoichiometry and the sodium content. Each glass was thermally poled using electrodes with specific patterns, and subsequent structural modifications and surface electrical potential were then evaluated via Raman spectroscopy and Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM). Raman cartographies show structural modifications attributed to alkali depletion following the patterns of the electrodes used for the imprinting process. Furthermore, KPFM measurements show clearly defined motifs on the electrical potential which are associated to charges implanted into the glass matrix. It was shown that the surface potential can vary in sign within an amplitude range of 10V and exhibit patterning at the micrometer scale. We observed that the efficiency of the surface

Luminal androgen receptor (LAR) breast cancer accounts for 10% of all triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC). Anti-androgen therapy for this subtype is in development, but yields only partial clinical benefits. In this study, we aimed to characterize the genomic alterations of LAR TNBC, to analyze activation of the PI3K signaling pathway and to compare the response to PI3K pathway inhibitors with that to anti-androgen therapy in patient-derived xenografts (PDX) of LAR TNBC. Methods: Four LAR PDX models were identified, on the basis of their transcriptomic profiles, in a cohort of 57 PDX models of TNBC. The expression of AR-related genes, basal and luminal cytokeratins and EMT genes was analyzed by RT-PCR and IHC. AKT1 and PIK3CA mutations were identified by targeted NGS, and activation of the PI3K pathway was analyzed with a reverse-phase protein array. Three LAR PDXs with a PIK3CA or AKT1 mutation were treated with the AR inhibitor enzalutamide, a PI3K inhibitor, a dual PI3K-mTOR inhibitor and a mTORC1-mTORC2 inhibitor. Finally, we screened a clinical cohort of 329 TNBC for PIK3CA and AKT1 hotspot mutations. Results: LAR TNBC PDXs were significantly enriched in PIK3CA and AKT1 mutations, and had higher levels of luminal-androgen-like gene expression and a higher PI3K pathway protein activation score than other TNBC subtypes. Immunohistochemistry analysis revealed strong expression of the luminal cytokeratin CK18 and AR in three LAR PDX models. We found that mTOR and PI3K inhibitors had marked antitumor activity in vivo in PDX harboring genomic alterations of PIK3CA and AKT1 genes that did not respond to the AR antagonist enzalutamide. PIK3CA mutations were detected in more than one third of AR+ TNBC from patients (38%), and only 10% of AR-negative TNBC. Conclusion: Our results for PDX models of LAR TNBC resistant to enzalutamide indicate that PIK3CA and AKT1 are potential therapeutic targets.

The essential oil of Myrtus Communis (MyC) from the region of Chefchaouen (northeastern Morocco) analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) is mainly composed of I, 8-cineole (35.6%), myrtenyl acetate (32.7%), and ⍺-pinene (8.9%). The inhibitory effect of this oil studied on the corrosion of Copper in a solution of H2SO4 0.5 M, shows a mixed type behavior. We were able to show that the essential oil of Myrtus Communis inhibits the corrosion of Copper in the tested solution with a significant efficiency which increases with the oil concentration to reach a maximum of 93.5% at a concentration of 2 g/l. The submerged surface of copper has been identified by Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM/EDS), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) spectroscopy and Contact angle measurements (θ). The experimental studies Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and Potentiodynamic Polarization (PDP) were completed by the theoretical studies (Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations and monte carlo (MC) simulations). Experimental data showed that the inhibitor Myc is effective against the corrosion acid of copper.

The present paper examines the adsorption of two novel heterocyclic compounds of the pyran derivatives, namely, 2-amino-4-(2-chlorophenyl)-5-oxo-4,5-dihydropyrano[3,2-c]chromene-3-carbonitrile (PY-2Cl) and 2-amino-4-(4-chlorophenyl)-5-oxo-4,5-dihydropyrano[3,2c]chromene-3-carbonitrile (PY-4Cl) against the corrosion of mild steel (MS) in molar hydrochloric acid (HCl) medium. The experimental investigation was carried out utilizing a series of techniques including Weight Loss (WL), Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and Potentiodynamic Polarization (PDP). Results showed that inhibition effectiveness of PY-2Cl and PY-4Cl increases with their concentration. Polarization results showed that PY-2Cl and PY-4Cl displayed mixed type behaviour. Inhibition efficiencies of PY-2Cl and PY-4Cl followed the order: 85.8% (PY-4Cl)

Combination of antiangiogenesis and chemotherapy holds vast promise for effective inhibition of tumor proliferation and invasion. Herein, a multifunctional self-assembled nanosystem consisting of amphiphilic c(RGDyK)-functionalized low-molecular-weight heparin-gambogic acid conjugate (cRHG) is developed, using c(RGDyK) peptide as αv β3 integrin targeting moiety to realize a double-targeted delivery to both tumor cells and angiogenic vasculature. cRHG with a markedly decreased anticoagulant activity can self-assemble into nanosized particles (around 150 nm). cRHG nanoparticles effectively inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-triggered tube-like formation of HUVEC and neovascularization of subcutaneous Matrigel plugs. More importantly, the targeting ability of cRHG nanoparticles is revealed by their efficient internalization by αv β3 integrin-positive cells (U87MG and HUVEC) in vitro and obvious accumulation of Cy7/cRHG in the tumor site with strong fluorescence signals in both cancer cells and neovasculature. Besides, cRHG maintains the in vitro cytotoxic activity of gambogic acid, while achieving the highest in vivo antitumor activity in U87MG mouse xenograft model and displaying better safety profile than free drugs solutions. Mechanistic investigations reveal the substantial inhibition of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha, VEGF, and CD31 expression by cRHG nanoparticles with remarkable down-regulation of VEGFR2 phosphorylation. These results suggest that cRHG nanoparticles provide a versatile nanoplatform for efficacious combinatorial tumor therapy.