Publications by authors named "Fernanda F Simas"

Bauhinia forficata is a medicinal plant known as cow's paw, used for many purposes. Although there are studies that aimed to elucidate compounds from the plant leaves, there is no information about its polysaccharides. This study intended to obtain a polysaccharide rich fraction from its leaves, structurally characterize the water-soluble polysaccharides, as well as evaluate their effect on THP-1 cells.

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Natural substances are strategic candidates for drug development in cancer research. Marine-derived molecules are of special interest due to their wide range of biological activities and sustainable large-scale production. Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that originates from genetic mutations in melanocytes.

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The regulation of metastasis-related cellular aspects of two structurally similar AGIs from prunes tea infusion, with different molar masses, was studied in vitro against Triple Wild-Type metastatic melanoma (TWM) from murine and human origin. The higher molar mass AGI (AGI-78KDa) induced TWMs cells death and, in murine cell line, it decreased some metastasis-related cellular processes: invasiveness capacity, cell-extracellular matrix interaction, and colonies sizes. The lower molar mass AGI (AGI-12KDa) did not induce cell death but decreased TWMs proliferation rate and, in murine cell line, it decreased cell adhesion and colonies sizes.

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Erythrosine displays potential photodynamic activity against microorganisms and unhealthy cells. However, erythrosine has high hydrophilicity, negatively impacting on permeation through biological membranes. Combining biological macromolecules and thermoresponsive polymers may overcome these erythrosine-related issues, enhancing retention of topically applied drugs.

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Melanoma is a highly metastatic and rapidly progressing cancer, a leading cause of mortality among skin cancers. The melanoma microenvironment, formed from the activity of malignant cells on the extracellular matrix and the recruitment of immune cells, plays an active role in the development of drug resistance and tumor recurrence, which are clinical challenges in cancer treatment. These tumoral metabolic processes are affected by proteins, including Galectin-3 (Gal-3), which is extensively involved in cancer development.

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A fucoxylomannan (FXM) was isolated from the mushroom Ganoderma lucidum through alkaline extraction followed by dialysis, freeze-thawing, and fractionation by Fehling's solution. The main chain of FXM presented α-d-Manp-(1→4)-linked units, and some of them were branched at O-6 position by α-l-Fucp-(1→2)-β-d-Xylp groups. Its M was 35.

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Sulfated polysaccharides (SPs) from seaweeds are potential bioactive natural compounds, but their DNA protective activity is poorly explored. This article aimed to evaluate the genotoxic/antigenotoxic potentials of a sulfated heterofucan from brown seaweed Spatoglossum schröederi (Fucan A - FA) and a sulfated galactan from green seaweed Codium isthomocladum (3G4S) using in vitro Comet assay (alkaline and oxidative versions) with HepG2 cells. The antioxidant activity of these SPs was evaluated by total antioxidant capacity, radical scavenging, metal chelating, and antioxidant enzyme activity assays.

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Polysaccharides from seaweed have been shown to present a variety of antitumor effects, however the understanding of which structural patterns are responsible for these biological effects are still unclear. This review aimed to gather and critically evaluate published data of seaweed polysaccharide's chemical structure elucidation and their relation with antimelanoma effects. Data were collected at the electronic article databases Science Direct, NCBI/Pubmed and Google Scholar, selecting papers with polysaccharide structural information and biological effects on melanoma models.

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Polysaccharides α-D-galactan (GAL-Am) and β-D-glucan (GLC-Am) were obtained from Amanita muscaria fruiting bodies. They were purified using different methodologies, such as Fehling precipitation (for both fractions), freeze-thawing process and ultrafiltration (for GLC-Am). Results showed that the GAL-Am has (1 → 6)-linked Galp main chain branched at O-2 by terminal Galp units and has not been previously reported.

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Advanced melanoma patients that are not included in common genetic classificatory groups lack effective and safe therapeutic options. Chemotherapy and immunotherapy show unsatisfactory results and devastating adverse effects for these called triple wild-type patients. New approaches exploring the intrinsic antitumor properties of gold nanoparticles might reverse this scenario as a safer and more effective alternative.

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Although polyaniline (PANI) is a widely investigated conductive polymer for biological applications, studies addressing the biocompatibility of colloidal PANI dispersions are scarcely found in the literature of the area. Therefore, PANI nanoparticles stabilized by the natural polysaccharide gum Arabic (GA) were screened for their biocompatibility. The GA successfully stabilized the colloidal PANI-GA dispersions when exposed to a protein-rich medium, showing compatibility with the biological environment.

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In the present work, gold nanoparticles were synthesized through a green route by using, for the first time, polysaccharides extracted from pineapple gum (PG) as the reducing and capping agent. The obtained nanoparticles (AuNPs-PG) were characterized by UV-VIS, FTIR, TEM, FESEM, EDX, XRD, and zeta potential measurements, which confirmed that PG was effective to produce AuNPs with an average diameter of 10.3 ± 1.

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Acacia mearnsii gum is not commercially exploited, being characterized as residue from A. mearnsii cultivation. This work investigated the A.

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Passion fruit peel (PFP) is a by-product from the fruit processing industry, accounting for approximately 50 % of the fruit weight. It is well known for its health properties, although few studies evaluated its rheological properties. PFP polysaccharides (PFPP) contain a high methoxyl pectin (HMP), specifically a 70 % methyl-esterified homogalacturonan.

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A β-D-glucan was obtained from the edible mushroom Pholiota nameko by hot aqueous extraction and purification. NMR and methylation analyses of the purified fraction (GHW-PN, 1.46% yield) indicated the presence of a (1 → 3)-linked β-D-glucan, highly substituted (~27%) at O-6 by single units of β-D-Glcp or by (1 → 6)-β-D-Glcp fragments.

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The polysaccharide isolated from the gum exudate of palm Scheelea phalerata (SPN) was water-insoluble and composed of Fuc, Ara, Xyl, and uronic acid moieties in a 5:34:54:7 molar ratio: 12% of phenolics were also present. A soluble polysaccharide (SPNa) was obtained after alkaline treatment, which contained Fuc, Ara, Xyl and uronic acid in a 7:44:42:7 molar ratio, with only 2% phenolics. SPNa had an M(W) approximately 1.

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Structural features of the acidic, highly substituted glycanoxylan (LCP; 87% yield) from the gum exudate of the palm, Livistona chinensis, family Arecaceae, were determined. It had [alpha]D -30 degrees, Mw 1.9x10(5) and a polydispersity ratio Mw/Mn of approximately 1.

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