Publications by authors named "Jose Carlos Netto-Ferreira"

The natural products 7-hydroxycoumarin (7HC) and 7-hydroxy-4-methylcoumarin (7H4MC), known as umbelliferone and hymecromone, respectively, are one of the simplest structural examples from coumarin's family, showing several biological activities. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) is the main model protein used in laboratory experiments to characterize the biophysical capacity of potential drugs to be carried until the target in the bloodstream. Thus, the interaction BSA:7HC and BSA:7H4MC was biophysically characterized by circular dichroism (CD), steady-state, and time-resolved fluorescence techniques combined with molecular docking calculations via cross-docking approach to better correlate with the biological medium.

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Lapachol (LAP), a natural 1,4-naphthoquinone used in popular medicine in South America, is an antioxidant and antimicrobial compound in teas and infusions and used as a food additive; however, its interactive profile with the main protein carrier of compounds in the human bloodstream (human serum albumin, HSA) was not still characterized. Additionally, the impact of LAP in binding clinically drugs to albumin is still unknown. Thus, the present work describes the interaction HSA:LAP using different biophysical techniques, i.

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Despite ortho-quinones showing several biological and pharmacological activities, there is still a lack of biophysical characterization of their interaction with albumin - the main carrier of different endogenous and exogenous compounds in the bloodstream. Thus, the interactive profile between bovine serum albumin (BSA) with β-lapachone (1) and its corresponding synthetic 3-sulfonic acid (2, under physiological pH in the sulphonate form) was performed. There is one main binding site of albumin for both β-lapachones (n ≈ 1) and a static fluorescence quenching mechanism was proposed.

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The present work reports the biological assays between synthetic BF-naphtyridine complexes and four proteins: human serum albumin (HSA), calf-thymus DNA (CT-DNA), tyrosinase and acetylcholinesterase enzymes via spectroscopic analysis at physiological conditions, combined with molecular docking simulations. The BF-complexes presented spontaneous and moderate binding ability to HSA through the ground-state association (static fluorescence quenching mechanism). The main binding site is Sudlow's site I (subdomain IIA) and the binding does not perturb significantly both secondary and surface structure of HSA.

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In the type II diabetes mellitus, Metformin hydrochloride is recommended as a common FAD approved drug. Synthesis of novel metformin series has been widely explored, mainly due to its biological importance and to improve their pharmacokinetic profile. Generally, human serum albumin (HSA) is the main protein used to study drug viability analysis.

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The photochemical reactivity of the triplet state of pyrano- and furano-1,4-naphthoquinone derivatives (1 and 2) has been examined employing nanosecond laser flash photolysis. The quinone triplets were efficiently quenched by l-tryptophan methyl ester hydrochloride, l-tyrosine methyl ester hydrochloride, -acetyl-l-tryptophan methyl ester and -acetyl-l-tyrosine methyl ester, substituted phenols and indole ( ∼10 L mol s). For all these quenchers new transients were formed in the quenching process.

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Thiosemicarbazone is a class of compounds with potential applications in medicine, presenting high capacity to inhibit the growth of cancer cells as well as low toxicity. Because of high interest in anticancer studies involving thiosemicarbazones as new chemotherapeutic agents, a synthetic thiosemicarbazone derivative, 4-N-(2'-methoxy-styryl)-thiosemicarbazone (MTSC) was evaluated in vivo against Ehrlich carcinoma in an animal model. In vivo results demonstrated that MTSC treatment induced the survival of mice and altered significantly the body weight of the surviving mice 12 days after tumor inoculation.

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The interaction between the main carrier of endogenous and exogenous compounds in the human bloodstream (human serum albumin, HSA) and a potential anticancer compound (the capsaicin analogue ) was investigated by spectroscopic techniques (circular dichroism, steady-state, time-resolved, and synchronous fluorescence), zeta potential, and computational method (molecular docking). Steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence experiments indicated an association in the ground state between HSA:. The interaction is moderate, spontaneous (Δ° < 0), and entropically driven (Δ° = 0.

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A series of N-aryl-2-phenyl-hydrazinecarbothioamides have been investigated as possible inhibitors of tyrosinase, an enzyme involved in the development of melanomas. The hydrazinecarbothioamides 1-6 were synthesized from the reaction between phenylhydrazine and isothiocyanates, for which three different methods have been employed, namely stirring at room temperature, by microwave irradiation or by mechanochemical grinding. Quantitative yields were obtained for the later technique.

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A novel series of piperonal mesoionic derivatives (PMI 1-6) was synthesized. Tyrosinase inhibition in the presence of PMI-1, -2, -3, -4, -5 and -6 as well as human serum albumin (HSA) binding studies with PMI-5 and PMI-6 were done by spectroscopic and theoretical methods. The mesoionic compound PMI-5 is the most promising tyrosinase inhibitor with a noncompetitive inhibitory mechanism and an IC=124μmolL.

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In the North of Brazil (Pará and Amazonas states) the leaves of the plant Talinum triangulare (popular: cariru) replace spinach as food. From a phytochemical point of view, they are rich in compounds of the group of pheophytins. These substances, related to chlorophyll, have photophysical properties that give them potential application in photodynamic therapy.

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The photophysics and photochemistry of the β-lapachone derived diphenyldihydrodioxin 3 were investigated using steady-state and time resolved techniques. Laser excitation of 3 leads to the formation of its cation radical 4 (absorption maxima at 410 and 450 nm and a lifetime of 10 μs), which was confirmed by its thermal generation employing tris(2,4-dibromophenyl)-aminium hexachloroantimonate (BAHA) as the electron acceptor. The cation radical 4 was also formed via the triplet excited state of 3 through a triplet sensitized process using benzophenone (ET = 69 kcal mol(-1)) as the sensitizer.

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Article Synopsis
  • The triplet excited state of benzophenone has an electron donating ability that is not commonly acknowledged.
  • This ability allows for a unique method to synthesize gold nanoparticles through photochemical processes.
  • This approach offers a new perspective in the field of nanoparticle production, highlighting the potential for using organic compounds in creating materials at the nanoscale.
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The size of photochemically-prepared niobium nanoparticles (NbNP) can be controlled by varying the concentration of the photoinitiator in the reaction mixture. The particles, which may be metallic in nature, are readily oxidized upon air exposure to form stable niobium(v) oxide nanoparticles (NbONP) that act as strong Brønsted acids.

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The influence of ring size on the photobehaviour of condensed 1,4-naphthoquinone systems, such as pyrano- and furano-derivatives (1 and 2, respectively) has been investigated. The absorption spectra for both families of naphthoquinones reveal clear differences; in the case of 2 they extend to longer wavelengths. A solvatochromic red shift in polar solvents is consistent with the π,π* character of the S(0)→ S(1) electronic transition in all cases.

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In an effort to determine the details of the solid-state reaction mechanism and diastereoselectivity in the Norrish type II and Yang cyclization of crystalline α-adamantyl-p-methoxyacetophenone, we determined its solid-state quantum yields and transient kinetics using nanocrystalline suspensions. The transient spectroscopy measurements were complemented with solid-state NMR spectroscopy spin-lattice relaxation experiments using isotopically labeled samples and with the analysis of variable-temperature anisotropic displacement parameters from single-crystal X-ray diffraction to determine the rate of interconversion of biradical conformers by rotation of the globular adamantyl group. Our experimental findings include a solid-state quantum yield for reaction that is 3 times greater than that in solution, a Norrish type II hydrogen-transfer reaction that is about 8 times faster in crystals than in solution, and a biradical decay that occurs on the same time scale as conformational exchange, which helps to explain the diastereoselectivity observed in the solid state.

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Photoexcitation of gold nanoparticles in their plasmon transition around 530 nm provides the means to carry high-energy reactions at room temperature. In the case of dicumyl peroxide (with activation energy of 34.3 kcal/mol) the reaction occurs in less than 1 min under 532 nm laser excitation.

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The influence of the phenolic hydroxyl group of ortho-hydroxy atorvastatin metabolite (Ato-OH) on the photochemistry of atorvastatin (Ato) has been evaluated by steady and time-resolved experiments. Direct excitation of Ato and Ato-OH led to phenanthrene-like intermediate formation, being ∼30% for Ato-OH less efficient than that for its parent compound in methanol. Both, Ato and Ato-OH are able to quench benzophenone (E(T)∼69 kcal mol(-1)) and xanthone (E(T)∼74 kcal mol(-1)) triplet excited state with rate constants close to diffusion limit control which suggest energy transfer mechanism is taking place.

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alpha-Lapachone is a natural 1,4-naphthoquinone with promising biological activity. The fused dihydropyran ring present in its structure, acting as formal 2-alkoxy and 3-alkyl substituents to the quinone moiety, endows this compound with milder redox properties and lower toxicity, when compared with other bioactive 1,4-quinones. Its photochemistry, here reported, seems to originate from the triplet state, which shows pipi* character.

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The photochemical reactivity of beta-lapachone (1), nor-beta-lapachone (2) and 1,2-naphthoquinone (3) towards amino acids and nucleobases or nucleosides has been examined employing the nanosecond laser flash photolysis technique. Excitation (lambda = 355 nm) of degassed solutions of 1-3, in acetonitrile, resulted in the formation of their corresponding triplet excited states. These transients were efficiently quenched by l-tryptophan, l-tryptophan methyl ester, l-tyrosine, l-tyrosine methyl ester and l-cysteine (k(q) approximately 10(9) L mol(-1) s(-1)).

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The photochemical reactivity of beta-lapachone (1), nor-beta-lapachone (2) and beta-lapachone 3-sulfonic acid (3) has been examined by laser flash photolysis. Excitation (lambda = 266 nm) of degassed solutions of , in acetonitrile or dichloromethane, resulted in the formation of detectable transients with absorption maxima at 300, 380 and 650 nm. These transients, with lifetimes of 5.

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The photochemistry of ninhydrin in benzene and water was studied by laser flash photolysis and electron paramagnetic resonance. Its photochemistry was shown to be dependent on the solvent. In benzene, a triplet excited state was observed, which underwent hydrogen abstraction reactions or reduction to the radical anion.

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The rate constants for the quenching of indane-1,2,3-trione (1) and 5-methoxyindane-1,2,3-trione (2) triplets by olefins, in degassed benzene solution, have been measured by laser flash photolysis. The alkenes studied included acyclic, cyclic, isolated and conjugated dienes, and enol ethers. No quenching was observed when irradiation was performed in the presence of olefins substituted with electron-accepting groups such as maleic anhydride, dimethyl fumarate, dimethyl maleate or chalcone.

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