Antiproliferative activity and apoptosis-inducing mechanism of Amaryllidaceae alkaloid montanine on A549 and MOLT-4 human cancer cells.

The isoquinoline alkaloids found in Amaryllidaceae are attracting attention due to attributes that can be harnessed for the development of new drugs. The possible molecular mechanisms by which montanine exerts its inhibitory effects against cancer cells have not been documented. In the present study, montanine, manthine and a series of 15 semisynthetic montanine analogues originating from the parent alkaloid montanine were screened at a single test dose of 10 μM to explore their cytotoxic activities against a panel of eight cancer cell lines and one non-cancer cell line.

Design of semisynthetic derivatives of the Amaryllidaceae alkaloid ambelline and exploration of their cytotoxic activities.

Ambelline, an alkaloid from the Amaryllidaceae family with a crinane-type skeleton, has not yet demonstrated any outstanding biological activity. However, its analogues prepared by derivatization of the C-11 hydroxyl group show different interesting effects. Continuing our earlier work, twelve novel aromatic esters were developed (, , , , , ) and studied, together with previously synthesized derivatives (, , , , ) in terms of their cytotoxic activity.

Multimodal Contrast Agent Enabling pH Sensing Based on Organically Functionalized Gold Nanoshells with Mn-Zn Ferrite Cores.

Highly complex nanoparticles combining multimodal imaging with the sensing of physical properties in biological systems can considerably enhance biomedical research, but reports demonstrating the performance of a single nanosized probe in several imaging modalities and its sensing potential at the same time are rather scarce. Gold nanoshells with magnetic cores and complex organic functionalization may offer an efficient multimodal platform for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), photoacoustic imaging (PAI), and fluorescence techniques combined with pH sensing by means of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). In the present study, the synthesis of gold nanoshells with Mn-Zn ferrite cores is described, and their structure, composition, and fundamental properties are analyzed by powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, magnetic measurements, and UV-Vis spectroscopy.

Pancracine, a Montanine-Type Amaryllidaceae Alkaloid, Inhibits Proliferation of A549 Lung Adenocarcinoma Cells and Induces Apoptotic Cell Death in MOLT-4 Leukemic Cells.

Pancracine, a montanine-type Amaryllidaceae alkaloid (AA), is one of the most potent compounds among natural isoquinolines. In previous studies, pancracine exhibited cytotoxic activity against diverse human cancer cell lines in vitro. However, further insight into the molecular mechanisms that underlie the cytotoxic effect of pancracine have not been reported and remain unknown.

Disruption of Cell Adhesion and Cytoskeletal Networks by Thiol-Functionalized Silica-Coated Iron Oxide Nanoparticles.

One of the major obstacles that limits the use of magnetic nanoparticles in biomedical applications is their potential toxicity. In the present study, we evaluated the cytotoxic effects of thiol-functionalized silica-coated iron oxide (FeO@SiO-SH) nanoparticles using human lung epithelial cells A549. We investigated the effect of FeO@SiO-SH nanoparticles on the cell viability, proliferation, cell cycle distribution, adhesion, apoptosis, and the orientation of the cytoskeletal networks, as well as on expression of proteins involved in cell death, cell survival, and cell adhesion.