An improved synthesis, spectroscopic (FT-IR, NMR) study and DFT computational analysis (IR, NMR, UV–Vis, MEP diagrams, NBO, NLO, FMO) of the 1,5-methanoazocino[4,3-b]indole core structure

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine derivatives as dual CDK2/PIM1 inhibitors with potent anti-cancer activity and selectivity

The discovery of novel, selective inhibitors targeting CDK2 and PIM1 kinases, which regulate cell survival, proliferation, and treatment resistance, is crucial for advancing cancer therapy. This study reports the design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of three novel pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine derivatives (6a-c), confirmed via spectral analyses. These compounds were assessed for anti-cancer activity against breast, colon, liver, and cervical cancers using the MTT assay. Among the tested compounds, 6b exhibited superior efficacy, with higher selectivity indices for HCT-116 (15.05) and HepG2 (9.88) compared to the reference drug staurosporine. Mechanistic studies revealed that 6b induced apoptosis (63.04-fold increase) and arrested the cell cycle at the G0-G1 phase, highlighting its anti-proliferative effects. In an in-vivo solid Ehrlich carcinoma (SEC) mouse model, compound 6b significantly reduced tumor weight and volume, exceeding the efficacy of doxorubicin. Additionally, 6b potently inhibited CDK2 and PIM1 kinases (IC50: 0.27 and 0.67 µM, respectively) and reduced tumor-promoting TNF-alpha expression, as confirmed by histopathological and immunohistochemical studies. Computational analyses, including molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations, and DFT calculations, provided insights into the binding stability and interaction mechanisms of 6b with CDK2 and PIM1, while in-silico pharmacokinetic and toxicity evaluations confirmed its favorable drug-like profile and safety. This study highlights compound 6b as a promising dual CDK2/PIM1 inhibitor with potent anti-cancer activity and selectivity, paving the way for its further optimization and development as a lead molecule in cancer therapy.

Synthetic approaches for novel 3-heteroaryl-4-hydroxy-1-methylquinoline-2(1H)one: spectroscopic characterization, molecular docking and DFT investigations

Ring opening and recyclization reactions with 4-hydroxy-6-methyl-3-nitro-2H-pyrano[3,2-c]quinoline-2,5(6H)-dione (1) was examined towards some carbon nucleophilic reagents. Treatment of key precursor 1 with cyanoacetamide, malononitrile dimer and 1H-benzimidazol-2-ylacetonitrile afforded pyridines 2, 3 and pyrido[1,2-a]benzimidazole 4, respectively. Reaction of compound 1 with 5-amino-2,4-dihydro-3H-pyrazol-3-one and 5-amino-3-methyl-1H-pyrazole furnished pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine derivatives 5 and 6. Further, pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines 7-9 were synthesized from recyclization of compound 1 with some 6-aminouracil derivatives. Compounds 2-4 demonstrated favorable efficacy in HepG-2 liver cancer cells comparable to reference drug (cisplatin), exhibiting IC50 values of 8.79-17.78 μM L-1. The optimized geometrical configurations of the synthesized compounds were determined, using DFT calculations conducted at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level, for computing various parameters including molecular electrostatic potential (MEP), global reactivity indices, frontier molecular orbital (FMO) analysis, and nonlinear optical (NLO) characteristics. The obtained results revealed that, compound 3 exhibits the smallest energy gap (ΔE = 2.783 eV), while compound 9 presents the largest energy gap (ΔE = 3.995 eV). Also, compound 9 with a hardness value (η) of 1.998 eV demonstrated greater hardness and stability compared to other compounds, whereas compound 3 with a softness value (S) of 0.719 eV-1, is comparatively softer and more reactive. The experimental infrared (IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of the current compounds were compared with the simulated spectra derived from DFT computations, revealing a good agreement. SwissADME analyses suggested that all prepared compounds adhere to the Lipinski, Ghose, and Veber principles fitting to drug likeness. Utilizing the topoisomerase IIβ protein (PDB ID: 4G0U) as a receptor, molecular docking analyses were conducted to investigate the binding interactions of the synthesized compounds and correlated with their anticancer efficacy. Further, MEP surfaces of the studied compounds were analyzed to ascertain the reactive sites appropriated to electrophilic and nucleophilic attacks. The theoretical investigation suggests that the synthesized compounds possess potential applicability for future NLO applications.

Discovery of new molecular hybrid derivatives with coumarin scaffold bearing pyrazole/oxadiazole moieties: Molecular docking, POM analyses, in silico pharmacokinetics and in vitro antimicrobial evaluation with identification of potent antitumor pharmacophore sites

This synthetic organic methodology involves the creation of novel coumarin-based hybrids of series (1-4) with pyrazole ring and (5-8) with oxadiazole moiety. The targeted compounds were tested for In vitro Antimicrobial efficacy against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Candida albicans pathogenic microbes using disc diffusion and broth microdilution with ciprofloxacin and fluconazole as reference standards. Density functional theory (DFT) studies were used to study atomic structure and reactivity, including absolute electronegativity (χ), electrophilicity (ω), electron acceptor (ω+), donor capabilities (ω-), electron affinity (EA), energy gap (ΔE), global hardness (η), global softness (S), and ionisation potential (IP) and FMOs, NBOs, MEP, and Mulliken Charge analysis. The POM tests found three integrated pharmacophore sites with antibacterial, antiviral, and anticancer activities. Molecular docking studies are also used to determine the S. aureus nucleoside diphosphate kinase receptor's affinity and mode of action for the synthesized drugs. In silico analysis of thermodynamic and therapeutic effectiveness properties, including Lipinski's 'rule of five', Veber's rule, and ADME properties, predicted toxicity-free, non-carcinogenic, and risk-free oral administration of the synthesized complexes.

Density functional theory, molecular docking, In vitro and In vivo anti-inflammatory investigation of lapachol isolated from Fernandoaadenophylla

Medicinal plants are the main source of active chemical constituents responsible for curing or mitigating various ailments. To discover new, safe, and effective drug candidates the isolation and screening of natural products are essential. In the current research work, lapachol was isolated from Fernandoa adenophylla, which was evaluated for anti-inflammatory effect followed by molecular docking. The isolated compound was tested for anti-inflammatory effects using in vitro (HRBC assay) and in vivo (xylene-induced ear edema) experimental models. Various concentrations of lapachol demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects with a percent potential of 77.96 at 100 μM. Different concentrations of Lapachol demonstrated a dose-dependent anti-edematous effect with a maximum percent effect of 77.9 % at a higher dose. The histopathological study revealed that the application of xylene led to a significant increase in ear thickness, along with clear signs of ear edema and infiltration of inflammatory cells, as well as epidermal hyperplasia of the dermis when compared to the control group. However, treatment with the investigated compound showed a significant reduction in ear thickness and pathological differences comparable to those observed in the group treated with diclofenac. Density functional theory calculations are accomplished to gain insight into structural and spectroscopic properties. Geometry optimization, FMO, and MEP analyses are performed. Overall, the molecular docking results indicate that lapachol has potential as a COX inhibitor by binding to the active sites of both COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes.

A detailed computational investigation on the structural and spectroscopic properties of propolisbenzofuran B

This investigation deals with some structural and spectroscopic aspects of propolisbenzofuran B molecule as one of the most important bioactive molecules which exists in the bee propolis composition. FT-IR vibrational analysis carried-out at B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of the theory. ¹H and ¹³C NMR chemical shift have been predicted with GIAO method. TD- DFT calculations have been established to predict the UV- Vis spectral analysis for propolisbenzofuran B molecule. The detailed structural analysis such as electronic characterization, HOMO and LUMO, DOS plot, Molecular Electronic Potential (MEP), Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) are performed and discussed for studied molecule.

The synthesis and spectroscopic characterization of (+)-demethoxyaspidospermine: Density functional theory calculations of the structural, electronic, and non-linear optic and spectroscopic properties

(+)-Demethoxyaspidospermine was synthesized via the acylation of aspidospermidine with acetic anhydride, and the structure was determined by elemental analysis and Fourier-transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic tools and was supported by the simulated spectroscopic studies. Next, the stable geometries obtained by the conformational analysis performed at the B3LYP/6-31G(d, p) level were used for further investigations carried out in B3LYP and M06-2X functionals, and Hartree–Fock (HF) method, employed by the 6-311++G(d, p) basis set. Also, the natural bond orbital analysis revealed that the most contribution to the lowering of the stabilization energy came from n → π* and π → π* interactions. Moreover, the non-linear optic analysis has shown that the title compound can be a useful agent in the optoelectronic devices because of the optical properties. Also, the chemical reactivity tendency for nucleophilic or electrophilic attack reactions on the compound was evaluated by frontier molecular orbital analysis, and the reactive sites of the compound was shown by highest molecular orbital and lowest unoccupied orbital amplitudes and molecular electrostatic potential diagrams.

Amine-terminated dendritic polymers as a multifunctional chelating agent for heavy metal ion removals

In this study, amine-terminated hyperbranched PAMAM (polyamidoamine) polymer (AT-HBP) was synthesized as a multifunctional chelating agent to remove two heavy metal ions (Cr(III) and Cu(II)) from the simulated wastewater solutions. The AT-HBP was characterized by Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) analysis. The removal process was carried out in two different methods, centrifuged process and ultrafiltration. The concentration of heavy metal ions before and after removal was measured by inductively coupled plasma (ICP) instrument. The removal processes were evaluated by changing different parameters such as solution pH, AT-HBP dosage, and metal ion concentration. To evaluate the extend of binding of heavy metal ions in the presence of AT-HBP the presence of salt in the solution was also examined on the performance of the removal system. The overall results indicated that removal percentages higher than 98% for Cr(III) and 86% for Cu(II) were achieved for heavy metal concentrations of 100 mg/L for both removal process methods. Furthermore, the function of second generation of polypropylenimine (PPI) was compared to AT-HBP. The results reveal that the removal of Cr(III) and Cu(II) ions by AT-HBP were approximately 20% and 10% higher compared to PPI, respectively. Finally, hyperbranched dendritic polymer with lower expenses to synthesize compared to dendrimer underlined favorable properties as a multifunctional chelating agent and enhancement of ultrafiltration process for wastewater treatment. Graphical abstract.

Molecular structure and spectral characteristics of hyperoside and analysis of its molecular imprinting adsorption properties based on density functional theory

The structure of hyperoside was optimized according to the skeletal types of different galactopyranosides in hyperoside at the DFT/B3LYP/6-31++G(d,p) level, and the frequencies were calculated. The accuracy of the theoretical calculations of the ¹H and ¹³C NMR signals was evaluated by linear correlation. The excited state was calculated via time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT). The stable conformation, NMR, UV-vis, natural bond orbital (NBO), molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and thermodynamic information were obtained. In the most stable conformation of hyperoside, seven intramolecular hydrogen bonds are formed, which affect the imprinting efficiency. The theoretical ¹H and ¹³C NMR results are in good agreement with the experimental results. The B3PW91 function is more suitable than B3LYP for TD-DFT calculations. Combining the UV-vis and NBO analyses, the HOMO→LUMO transition mainly results from the n→π^∗ transition of the phenolic hydroxyl groups and the π→π^∗ transition of the benzene ring on the B ring in ethanol. The HOMO-1→LUMO+1 transition mainly results from the n→π^∗ and π→π^∗ transition on the A ring. The MEP and NBO calculations indicate that the imprinted active sites are mainly located on the carbonyl oxygen atom and the hydroxyl hydrogen atoms. As the temperature increases, the molecular heat capacity, entropy, enthalpy, and activity of the imprinting sites increase. The obtained results provide strong theoretical guidance for hyperoside in the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers and separation techniques.