Triazolyl phenyl disulfides: 8-Amino-7-oxononanoate synthase inhibitors as potential herbicides

Biotin plays an important role in Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings under carbonate stress

Globally, many saline-alkali soils are rich in NaHCO₃ and Na₂CO₃, which are characterized by a high pH Carbonate stress caused by this kind of soil severely damages plant cells and inhibits plant growth. Biotin and HCO₃^- participate in the first and rate-limiting reaction of the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway, but whether biotin contributes to plant responses to carbonate stress is unclear. In this study, we revealed that high carbonate and biotin concentrations inhibited Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedling growth. However, specific concentrations of carbonate and biotin decreased the inhibitory effects of the other compound at the germination and seedling stages. Additionally, a carbonate treatment increased the endogenous biotin content and expression of AtBIO2, which encodes a biotin synthase. Moreover, phenotypic analyses indicated that the overexpression of AtBIO2 in Arabidopsis enhanced the tolerance to carbonate stress, whereas mutations to AtBIO2 had the opposite effect. Furthermore, the carbonate stress-induced accumulation of reactive oxygen species was lower in plants overexpressing AtBIO2 than in the wild-type and bio2 mutants. Accordingly, biotin, which is an essential vitamin for plants, can enhance the resistance to carbonate stress.

The Biotin Biosynthetic Pathway in Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a Validated Target for the Development of Antibacterial Agents

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, responsible for Tuberculosis (TB), remains the leading cause of mortality among infectious diseases worldwide from a single infectious agent, with an estimated 1.7 million deaths in 2016. Biotin is an essential cofactor in M. tuberculosis that is required for lipid biosynthesis and gluconeogenesis. M. tuberculosis relies on de novo biotin biosynthesis to obtain this vital cofactor since it cannot scavenge sufficient biotin from a mammalian host. The biotin biosynthetic pathway in M. tuberculosis has been well studied and rigorously genetically validated providing a solid foundation for medicinal chemistry efforts. This review examines the mechanism and structure of the enzymes involved in biotin biosynthesis and ligation, summarizes the reported genetic validation studies of the pathway, and then analyzes the most promising inhibitors and natural products obtained from structure-based drug design and phenotypic screening.

Environmentally friendly synthesis of unsymmetrical dialkyl disulfides by reacting organic halides with thiourea and sodium thiosulfate in an aqueous medium

The developed synthetic procedure is economical and environmentally friendly. It also avoids using toxic organic solvents, and an oxidant or a reductant.

Synthesis and glutathione reductase inhibitory properties of 5-methyl-2,4-dihydro-3H-1,2,4-triazol-3-one's aryl Schiff base derivatives

Glutathione reductase (GR) is responsible for the existence of the reduced glutathione (GSH) molecule, a crucial antioxidant against oxidative stress reagents. The antimalarial activities of some redox active compounds are attributed to their inhibition of antioxidant flavoenzyme GR, and inhibitors are therefore expected to be useful for the treatment of malaria. In this work, a fast and effective synthesis and the GR inhibitory properties of 5-methyl-2,4-dihydro-3H-1,2,4-triazol-3-one's aryl Schiff base derivatives are reported. For this aim, the triazol nucleus was obtained, which was substituted with identical groups: ester, hydrazide, and Schiff base system at the N-2 and N-4 nitrogen atoms. The majority of the reactions were carried out by utilizing both microwave and conventional methods in order to compare their yields and reaction times. Beside this, the occuring E/Z geometrical isomers from the CN double bond and the cis/trans amide conformers at the CONH single bond were studied. In the biological activity section of this work, it was found that all synthesized compounds have better inhibitory activity than N,N-bis(2-chloroethyl)-N-nitrosourea against GR; especially, two molecules, 6e and 6f, are the best among them. The evidence indicates that these Schiff base derivatives, with triazole ring, are strong GR inhibitors and novel antimalaria candidates.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 3-alkylsulfanyl-4-amino-1,2,4-triazole derivatives

Based on our previous work, a series of novel 3-alkylsulfanyl-4-amino-1,2,4-triazole derivatives were designed, synthesized and evaluated for their antiproliferative activities. The results indicated that some compounds possessed significant antiproliferative activities against four cancer cell lines, HepG2, HCT116, PC-3, and Hela. Particularly, the most promising compound 8d displayed 184-, 18-, and 17-fold improvement compared to fluorouracil in inhibiting HCT116, Hela and PC-3 cell proliferation with IC50 values of 0.37, 2.94, and 31.31μM, respectively. Most interestingly, the compound did not affect the normal human embryonic kidney cells, HEK-293. Moreover, mechanistic investigation showed that the representative compound 8d induced apoptosis and blocked cell cycle in G2/M phase in Hela cells in a dose-dependent manner. These findings suggest that compound 8d may have potential to be developed as a promising lead for the design of novel anticancer small-molecule drugs.