dl-Limonene as an Alternative Sustainable Solvent to Xylenes for the Industrial Preparation of Release Formulations.

Many industrial processes use aromatic hydrocarbons as solvents, including benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX). However, their use is discouraged due to their toxicological profile. Research is ongoing to find alternative more sustainable solvents.

Synthesis of a Small Library of Glycoderivative Putative Ligands of SGLT1 and Preliminary Biological Evaluation.

Sodium-glucose co-transporter 1 (SGLT1) is primarily expressed on the membrane of enterocytes, a type of epithelial cell found in the intestines, where it mediates the unidirectional absorption of glucose and galactose. Beyond its well-established role in nutrient absorption, SGLT1 also plays a protective role in maintaining the integrity of the intestinal barrier. Specifically, the natural ligand of SGLT1 (d-glucose) and a synthetic -glucoside developed by our group can induce a protective anti-inflammatory effect on the intestinal epithelium.

Semisynthetic Glycoconjugates as Potential Vaccine Candidates Against Haemophilus influenzae Type a.

Glycoconjugate vaccines are based on chemical conjugation of pathogen-associated carbohydrates with immunogenic carrier proteins and are considered a very cost-effective way to prevent infections. Most of the licensed glycoconjugate vaccines are composed of saccharide antigens extracted from bacterial sources. However, synthetic oligosaccharide antigens have become a promising alternative to natural polysaccharides with the advantage of being well-defined structures providing homogeneous conjugates.

Pyranoid Spirosugars as Enzyme Inhibitors.

Background: Pyranoid spirofused sugar derivatives represent a class of compounds with a significant impact in the literature. From the structural point of view, the rigidity inferred by the spirofused entity has made these compounds object of interest mainly as enzymatic inhibitors, in particular, carbohydrate processing enzymes. Among them glycogen phosphorylase and sodium glucose co-transporter 2 are important target enzymes for diverse pathological states.

Inhibition of the Hexosamine Biosynthetic Pathway by targeting PGM3 causes breast cancer growth arrest and apoptosis.

Cancer aberrant N- and O-linked protein glycosylation, frequently resulting from an augmented flux through the Hexosamine Biosynthetic Pathway (HBP), play different roles in tumor progression. However, the low specificity and toxicity of the existing HBP inhibitors prevented their use for cancer treatment. Here we report the preclinical evaluation of FR054, a novel inhibitor of the HBP enzyme PGM3, with a remarkable anti-breast cancer effect.

Flavonoids in the Treatment of Alzheimer's and Other Neurodegenerative Diseases.

Flavonoids are phytochemicals present in almost all terrestrial plants and, as a consequence, in plant-based foods, and thus consumed by humans through diet. Recent evidences suggest that several flavonoids have positive effects against dementia and Alzheimer's disease, reversing age-related declines in neurocognitive performances. In this review, we provide a general classification of natural and synthetic flavonoids, a description of their physico-chemical properties, in particular their redox properties and stability, and an extensive overview about their biological activities and structure-activity relationship in the field of neurodegenerative diseases.

Structural Modifications of cis-Glycofused Benzopyran Compounds and Their Influence on the Binding to Amyloid-β Peptide.

A small library of glycofused tricyclic compounds with a central pyran ring chemically modified in the position para to the ring oxygen has been synthesised. The influence of the chemical modification on the structural conformation of the compounds and on their ability to bind Aβ peptide has been evaluated respectively using molecular mechanics (MM) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, and STD NMR spectroscopy. The introduction of particularly polar/charged groups leads to the loss of binding ability, without a significant change in the conformation, whilst other substitutions does not significantly affect either the structural conformation or the binding.

Nanoliposomes presenting on surface a cis-glycofused benzopyran compound display binding affinity and aggregation inhibition ability towards Amyloid β1-42 peptide.

Nanoliposomes decorated on their surface with ligands for Aβ-peptides, the key morphological features of Alzheimer's disease (AD), have been synthesized and characterized for their ability to target Aβ-peptide aggregates. A tricyclic benzopyrane-glycofused structure has been exploited as Aβ-peptide ligand, which was linked to liposomes via a copper-free, chemoselective, biocompatible click chemistry reaction. The tricyclic-decorated liposomes presented a mean diameter in the nanomolar range (150-200 nm), a negative z-potential and a good stability, at least up to one month.

Sodium glucose cotransporter 1 ligand BLF501 as a novel tool for management of gastrointestinal mucositis.

Background: Recent studies demonstrated that engagement of sodium glucose transporter 1 (SGLT-1) by orally administered D-glucose protects the intestinal mucosa from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced injury. We tested whether SGLT-1 engagement might protect the intestinal mucosa from doxorubicin (DXR)- and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-induced injury in animal models mimicking acute or chronic mucositis.

Methods: Mice were treated intraperitoneally with DXR, alone or in combination with 5-FU, and orally with BLF501, a glucose-derived synthetic compound with high affinity for SGLT-1.

Exomethylene-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (emEDOT): a new versatile building block for functionalized electropolymerized poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophenes) (PEDOTs).

A new versatile thiophene derivative exomethylene-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (emEDOT) is introduced. The molecule can be straightforwardly prepared in two steps from commercially available derivatives and enables facile further derivatization through both acid catalyzed additions of alcohols and standard thiol-ene click chemistry. The preparation of electrochromic materials and of an electrochemical avidine sensor is shown by the oxidative polymerizations of several functionalized EDOT monomers straightforwardly prepared from emEDOT.

Natural glycoconjugates with antitumor activity.

Cancer is one of the major causes of death worldwide. As a consequence, many different therapeutic approaches, including the use of glycosides as anticancer agents, have been developed. Various glycosylated natural products exhibit high activity against a variety of microbes and human tumors.