Homopiperazine-rhodamine B adducts of triterpenoic acids are strong mitocans.

Parent pentacyclic triterpenoic acids such as ursolic-, oleanolic, glycyrrhetinic, betulinic and boswellic acid were converted into their acetylated piperazinyl amides that were coupled with rhodamine B. SRB assays to evaluate their cytotoxicity showed all of these triterpene-homopiperazinyl-rhodamine adducts 16-20 being highly cytotoxic for a panel of human tumor cell lines even in nanomolar concentrations while being significantly less cytotoxic for non-malignant cells. Interestingly enough, these compounds were even more cytotoxic than previously prepared piperazinyl analogs, thus making the homopiperazinyl spacer a very interesting scaffold for the development of biologically active compounds.

Targeting mitochondria: Esters of rhodamine B with triterpenoids are mitocanic triggers of apoptosis.

Triterpenoic acids, ursolic acid (1), oleanolic acid (2), glycyrrhetinic acid (3) and betulinic acid (4) were converted into their corresponding methyl 5-8 and benzyl esters 9-12 or benzyl amides 21-24. These derivatives served as starting materials for the synthesis of pink colored rhodamine B derivatives 25-36 which were screened for cytotoxicity in colorimetric SRB assays. All of the compounds were cytotoxic for a variety of human tumor cell lines.

Ruthenium-catalyzed oxidative C-H alkenylations of anilides and benzamides in water.

A cationic ruthenium(II) complex enabled efficient oxidative alkenylations of anilides in water as a green solvent and proved applicable to double C-H bond functionalizations of (hetero)aromatic amides with ample scope. Detailed studies provided strong support for a change of ruthenation mechanism in the two transformations, with an irreversible metalation as the key step in cross-dehydrogenative alkenylations of benzamides.

Olive phenolics increase glutathione levels in healthy volunteers.

Several in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that olive phenols exert potent biological activities including, but not limited to, antioxidant actions. These activities are shared by phenols found in olives, olive oil, and olive mill wastewater (OMWW). The aim of this study was to investigate whether a commercially available OMWW preparation could influence some parameters of oxidative status in healthy human volunteers.