A survey on pupae parasitoid species of (Lajonquiere) (Lepidoptera, Lasiocampidae) in China.

Cryptomeriajaponicavar.sinensis Miquel in south China is currently overwhelmingly infested by a native caterpillar species, (Lepidoptera), which is causing severe economic losses and ecological disasters in both planted and natural forests. Our results include report of five parasitoid species and eight parasitoid flies within and a dominant endoparasitoid species , which attacks pupae of with a high parasitism rate.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1-benzylidene-3,4-dihydronaphthalen-2-one as a new class of microtubule-targeting agents.

A series of 1-benzylidene-3,4-dihydronaphthalen-2-one derivatives were designed and synthesized, and their biological activities in vitro and in vivo were evaluated. The results showed a number of the title compounds exhibiting potent nanomolar activity in several human cancer cell lines. Of these, compound 22b showed the strongest inhibitory activity against human CEM, MDA-MBA-435, and K562 cells (IC(50) = 1 nM), displayed in vitro inhibition of tubulin polymerization (IC(50) = 3.

Ethyl 5-(4-amino-phen-yl)isoxazole-3-carboxyl-ate.

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C(12)H(12)N(2)O(3), contains two mol-ecules in which the benzene and isoxazole rings are almost coplanar, the dihedral angles between their mean planes being 1.76 (9) and 5.85 (8)°.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1-phenyl-1,2,3,4-dihydroisoquinoline compounds as tubulin polymerization inhibitors.

A series of 1-phenyl-3,4-dihydroisoquinoline derivatives and several 1-phenyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline, 1-phenyl-isoquinoline analogues were synthesized, and their cytotoxicity and tubulin polymerization inhibitory activity were evaluated. The 1-phenyl-3,4-dihydroisoquinoline compounds were found to be potential tubulin polymerization inhibitors. Compound 5n, bearing a 3'-OH and 4'-OCH(3) substituted 1-phenyl B-ring, was shown to confer optimal bioactivity.

Design, synthesis, and activity evaluation of broad-spectrum small-molecule inhibitors of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins: characteristics of broad-spectrum protein binding and its effects on anti-tumor activity.

On the basis of the comparison of the structure of the Bim BH3: Bcl-x(L) complex and that of the ABT-737: Bcl-x(L) complex, a series of class A compounds were designed. These compounds had the basic skeleton of ABT-737 and the h2 residues of Bim BH3. These residues had shown themselves to be relevant to Bim BH3's broad-spectrum binding properties in saturation mutagenesis assays.

Imidazolone-amide bridges and their effects on tubulin polymerization in cis-locked vinylogous combretastatin-A4 analogues: synthesis and biological evaluation.

A series of novel combretastatin-A4 analogues in which the cis-olefinic bridge is replaced by an imidazolone-amide were synthesized, and their cytotoxicity and tubulin-polymerization inhibitory activities were evaluated. These compounds appear to be potential tubulin-polymerization inhibitors. Compounds 10, 9b and 9c, bearing 3'-NH₂-4'-OCH₃, 4'-CH₃ and 3'-CH₃-substituted 1-phenyl B-ring, confer optimal bioactivity.

Transcriptional response of Candida albicans biofilms following exposure to 2-amino-nonyl-6-methoxyl-tetralin muriate.

Aim: To identify changes in the gene expression profile of Candida albicans (C albicans) biofilms following exposed to 2-amino-nonyl-6-methoxyl-tetralin muriate(10b) and clarify the mechanism of 10b against C albicans biofilms.

Methods: Anti-biofilm activity of 10b was assessed by tetrazolium (XTT) reduction assay and the action mechanism against biofilms was investigated by cDNA microarray analysis and real-time RT-PCR assay.

Results: Ten differentially expressed genes were directly linked to biofilm formation and filamentous or hyphal growth (eg, NRG1, ECE1 and CSA1).

Design and synthesis of novel pyrazino[2,1-a]isoquinolin derivatives with potent antifungal activity.

A series of novel pyrazino[2,1-a]isoquinolin compounds were designed, synthesized, and their antifungal activities in vitro were evaluated. The results showed that all of the title compounds exhibited antifungal activities. Most of them exhibited stronger antifungal activities than the lead compounds; compound 7c is more potent than fluconazole against two of the three tested fungal strains.

2-Amino-nonyl-6-methoxyl-tetralin muriate inhibits sterol C-14 reductase in the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway.

Aim: To investigate the action mechanism of a novel chemical structural aminotetralin derivate, 2-Amino-Nonyl-6-Methoxyl-Tetralin Muriate (10b), against Candida albicans (C albicans) in the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway.

Methods: Antifungal susceptibility test of 10b was carried out using broth microdilution method, the action mechanism of 10b against C albicans was investigated by GC-MS spectrometry and real-time RT-PCR assay, and cytotoxicity of 10b in vitro was assessed by MTS/PMS reduction assay.

Results: 10b reduced the ergosterol content markedly, and the 50% ergosterol content inhibitory concentration (ECIC(50) value) was 0.

[Nandeshi: a powerful inhibitor of human acrosin activity].

Objective: To evaluate the inhibitory effect of Nandeshi, an acrosin inhibitor, on human acrosin activity.

Methods: We collected sperm samples from 10 healthy fertile men and cultured them with Nandeshi at 30 degrees C for 5 minutes at the concentrations of 0. 100, 0.

Construction of a three-dimensional pharmacophore for Bcl-2 inhibitors by flexible docking and the multiple copy simultaneous search method.

B-Cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) protein is a new promising target for anticancer drugs. A number of anticancer Bcl-2 inhibitors with diverse chemical structures have been discovered in recent years. In this paper, the flexible docking was performed to determine the binding modes of the representative inhibitors from different structural types.

[Synthesis and antifungal activity of 1-(1,2,4-triazolyl-1H-1-yl)-2-(2,4-diflurophenyl)-3-(4-substituted benzyl-1-piperazinyl)-2-propanols].

Aim: A series of triazole antifungals were synthesized to search for novel triazole antifungals with more potent activity, less toxicity and broader spectrum.

Methods: Nineteen 1-(1,2,4-triazolyl-1H-1-yl)-2-(2,4-diflurophenyl)-3-(4-substituted benzyl-1-piperazinyl)-2-propanols were designed and synthesized, on basis of the three dimensional structure of P450 cytochrome 14 alpha-sterol demethylase (CYP51) and their antifungal activities were also evaluated.

Results: All the title compounds were first reported.

Comparative Studies on Crystal Structures of Four Members of Cytochrome P450 Superfamily.

Secondary and steric structures and hydropathy plots of the 4 crystals of P450cam, P450terp, P450eryF and P450BM3 were compared to illustrate the structural conservation of cytochrome P450 superfamily proteins. Although sequence identities of four P450s are generally low (19%-26%), their topology is quite similar. All four structures have 13 alpha-helices and beta1-beta4 sheets in common.

A Three-dimensional Model of Lanosterol 14alpha-demethylase of Candida albicans.

The three-dimensional structure of lanosterol 14alpha demethylase (P450(14DM), P450(51() of Candida albicans was modeled based on crystallographic coordinates of four prokaryotic cytochrome P450(S): P450BM3, P450cam, P450terp and P450eryF. The sequence of P450(51) was aligned to those of known proteins using a knowledge-based alignment method. The main chain coordinates of the structurally conserved regions (SCRs)) were transferred directly from the corresponding coordinates of P450BM3.