Novel anti-adipogenic effect of CF3-allylated indole in 3T3-L1 cells

Treatment options of nitrogen heterocyclic compounds in industrial wastewater: From fundamental technologies to energy valorization applications and future process design strategies

Nitrogen heterocyclic compounds (NHCs) widely exist in industrial wastewater and presented significant environmental and health risks due to their toxicity and persistence. This review addressed the challenges in treating NHCs in industrial wastewater, focusing on developing sustainable and efficient treatment processes. While various technologies, including adsorption, advanced oxidation/reduction processes (AOPs/ARPs), and microbial treatments, have been studied at the experimental stage of treating synthetic wastewater, scale-up for industrial applications is imperative. After analyzing the characteristics of NHCs and evaluating different treatment methods with the aid of efficiency and cost-benefit analysis, efficient detoxification while maximizing energy recovery constitutes a critical requirement in treating NHC-containing wastewater. Hence, we proposed a comprehensive strategy combining hydrolysis-acidification pretreatment enhanced by electro-assisted micro-aeration with methanogenic anaerobic digestion as core treatment units. The process design for NHC-containing wastewater treatment should consider the dynamic balance between removal efficiency, energy consumption, and ammonia recovery, incorporating environmental and economic impacts through life cycle assessment and technical-economic analysis. The potential of machine learning in optimizing operational parameters, predicting effluent quality, and supporting process design decisions is promising. To develop interpretable and practical solutions, the integration of data-driven approaches with mechanistic understanding and prior knowledge is indispensable. This review provided novel insights into sustainable NHC treatment strategies in the context of energy valorization and artificial intelligence advancement, offering guidance for future research and industrial applications.

Design, synthesis and structure-activity relationship of novel 2-pyrimidinylindole derivatives as orally available anti-obesity agents

Due to the emerging global epidemic of obesity, developing safe and effective agents for anti-obesity is urgently needed. Our previous study found that 2-pyrimidinylindole derivative Wd3d exhibited potential anti-obesity activity. Herein, to further optimize the potential moiety, structural modifications were proceeded for two rounds in this study. Firstly, we designed, synthesized, and evaluated 36 new derivatives of 2-pyrimidinylindole scaffold with different substituents on the indole ring and pyrimidine ring to investigate their structure-activity relationship (SAR). Then, analogs with potent activity had the aldehyde group replaced with the acylhydrazone group to reduce cytotoxicity and improve metabolic stability. Detailed SAR studies and animal evaluation experiments led to the discovery of the compound 9ga, which significantly reduced TG accumulation with an EC50 value of 0.07 μM and showed relatively low cytotoxicity with an IC50 value of around 24 μM. Oral administration of 9ga effectively prevented the excessive growth of body weight and lessened fat mass as well as liver mass, decreased lipid accumulation in the liver and blood, and improved the heart injury parameter in the diet-induced obesity mouse model significantly better than Wd3d. A mechanism study showed that 9ga regulated the lipid metabolism during early adipogenesis by inhibiting PPARγ pathway. In conclusion, our study further highlights the anti-obesity potential of 2-pyrimidinylindole derivatives in diet-induced obesity.

Designing of efficient two-armed colorimetric and fluorescent indole appended organosilicon sensors for the detection of Al(III) ions: Implication as paper-based sensor

Metal ions have significant roles in diagnosis, industry, human health, and the environment. To design and develop new lucid molecular receptors for the selective detection of metal ions is important for environmental and medical applications. In the present work, two-armed indole appended Schiff bases conjoined with 1,2,3-Triazole bis-organosilane and bis-organosilatrane skelton sensors for naked eye colorimetric and fluorescent detection sensors for Al(III) are developed. The introduction of Al(III) in sensor 4 and 5 show red shift in UV-visible spectra, changes in fluorescence spectra and immediate color change from colorless to dark yellow. Furthermore, the pH and time response studies were explored for both sensors 4 & 5. The sensors 4 and 5 exhibited significantly low detection limit (LOD) in nano-molar range 1.41 × 10-9 M and 0.17 × 10-9 M respectively from emission titration. The LOD form absorption titration was found to be 0.6 × 10-7 M for sensor 4 and 0.22 × 10-7 M for sensor 5. In addition, the sensing model is developed as paper based sensor for its practical applicability. The theoretical calculations were performed on Gaussian 03 program by relaxing the structures using Density functional theory.

The Novel Inhibitory Effect of YM976 on Adipocyte Differentiation

The pyrimidine derivative YM976 (4-(3-chlorophenyl)-1,7-diethylpyrido(2,3-d)-pyrimidin-2(1H)-one) exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-asthmatic effects. Considering that accumulation of lipids in adipose tissue is accompanied by inflammation, we investigated whether YM976 affects adipocyte differentiation. We found that YM976 significantly decreased lipid accumulation without cytotoxicity and reduced the expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBPα) as well as their lipogenic regulators including fatty acid synthase (FASN) and fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) in 3T3-L1 cells induced for differentiation. YM976 mainly inhibited the early stage of adipocyte differentiation. Furthermore, intracellular cAMP level was elevated by YM976 resulting in increased phosphorylation of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Conversely, decreasing the levels of AMPK or treatment with Compound C, an AMPK inhibitor, lessened the suppressive effects of YM976 on PPARγ transcriptional activity and adipogenesis. Thus, our results suggest YM976 as a novel potential compound for controlling lipid accumulation and formation of adipocytes in obesity.

Anti-Adipogenic Effects of Salicortin from the Twigs of Weeping Willow (Salix pseudolasiogyne) in 3T3-L1 Cells

Salix pseudolasiogyne (Salicaceae), the “weeping willow,” has been used in traditional Korean medicine to treat pain and fever due to its high concentrations of salicylic acid and salicin. The present study investigated bioactive compounds from S. pseudolasiogyne twigs to discover bioactive natural products. Phytochemical investigation of the ethanol (EtOH) extract of S. pseudolasiogyne twigs followed by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC/MS)-based analysis led to the isolation of two salicin derivatives, salicortinol and salicortin, the structures of which were determined by interpretation of their NMR spectra and data from the LC/MS analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of salicortinol isolated from S. pseudolasiogyne. The isolated compounds were evaluated for their anti-adipogenic effects in 3T3-L1 cells. Both salicortinol and salicortin were found to significantly inhibit adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells. In particular, salicortin exhibited a strong inhibitory effect on lipid accumulation. Furthermore, salicortin inhibited the expression of lipogenic and adipogenic transcription factors, including FASN, FABP4, C/EBPα, C/EBPβ, and PPARγ, without inducing cytotoxicity. These results suggest that salicortin could be a potential therapeutic compound for the prevention or treatment of metabolic disorders such as obesity.

Bioactive Phytochemicals from Salix pseudolasiogyne Twigs: Anti-Adipogenic Effect of 2'-O-Acetylsalicortin in 3T3-L1 Cells

Salix pseudolasiogyne (Salicaceae) is a willow tree and has been used as a medicinal herb in Korea to treat pain and fever. As a part of an ongoing study to identify bioactive natural products, potential anti-adipogenic compounds were investigated using the ethanol (EtOH) extract of S. pseudolasiogyne twigs. Phytochemical investigation of the EtOH extracts using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS) led to the separation of two compounds, oregonin (1) and 2'-O-acetylsalicortin (2). The structures of the isolates were identified using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and LC/MS analysis. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first report identifying oregonin (1) in twigs of S. pseudolasiogyne. Here, we found that the isolated compounds, oregonin (1) and 2'-O-acetylsalicortin (2), showed anti-adipogenic effects during 3T3-L1 cell differentiation. Notably, 2'-O-acetylsalicortin (2), at a concentration of 50 µM, significantly suppressed lipid accumulation. Moreover, the mRNA and protein levels of lipogenic and adipogenic transcription factors were reduced in 2'-O-acetylsalicortin (2)-treated 3T3-L1 cells. Taken together, these results indicate that 2'-O-acetylsalicortin (2), isolated from S. pseudolasiogyne twigs, has the potential to be applied as a therapeutic agent to effectively control adipocyte differentiation, a critical stage in the progression of obesity.