2,2′-(p-Phenyl­enedithio)diacetic acid

The complete molecule of the title compound, C10H10O4S2, is generated by a crystallographic inversion centre. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into a one-dimensional chain by inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds

A closer look at interacting dark energy with statefinder hierarchy and growth rate of structure

We investigate the interacting dark energy models by using the diagnostics of statefinder hierarchy and growth rate of structure. We wish to explore the deviations from $\Lambda$CDM and to differentiate possible degeneracies in the interacting dark energy models with the geometrical and structure growth diagnostics. We consider two interacting forms for the models, i.e., $Q_1=\beta H\rho_c$ and $Q_2=\beta H\rho_{de}$, with $\beta$ being the dimensionless coupling parameter. Our focus is the I$\Lambda$CDM model that is a one-parameter extension to $\Lambda$CDM by considering a direct coupling between the vacuum energy ($\Lambda$) and cold dark matter (CDM), with the only additional parameter $\beta$. But we begin with a more general case by considering the I$w$CDM model in which dark energy has a constant $w$ (equation-of-state parameter). For calculating the growth rate of structure, we employ the "parametrized post-Friedmann" theoretical framework for interacting dark energy to numerically obtain the $\epsilon(z)$ values for the models. We show that in both geometrical and structural diagnostics the impact of $w$ is much stronger than that of $\beta$ in the I$w$CDM model. We thus wish to have a closer look at the I$\Lambda$CDM model by combining the geometrical and structural diagnostics. We find that the evolutionary trajectories in the $S^{(1)}_3$--$\epsilon$ plane exhibit distinctive features and the departures from $\Lambda$CDM could be well evaluated, theoretically, indicating that the composite null diagnostic $\{S^{(1)}_3, \epsilon\}$ is a promising tool for investigating the interacting dark energy models.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures; accepted for publication in JCA

Aqua­chlorido{1-[1-(4-hydroxy­phen­yl)-1H-tetra­zol-5-ylsulfan­yl]acetato}(methanol)(1,10-phenanthroline)manganese(II)

The title complex, [Mn(C9H7N4O3S)Cl(C12H8N2)(CH4O)(H2O)], contains an MnII ion six-coordinated by one O atom from the 2-[1-(4-hydroxy­phen­yl)-1H-tetra­zol-5-ylsulfan­yl]­acetate ligand, two N atoms from a chelating 1,10-phenanthroline ligand, one O atom from a methanol mol­ecule, one Cl atom and one water mol­ecule in a distorted octa­hedral coordination geometry. The existence of O—H⋯Cl, O—H⋯N and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds further produces a two-dimensional structure

Poly[[(2,2′-bipyridine)(μ 3-7-oxabicyclo­[2.2.1]heptane-2,3-dicarboxyl­ato)cadmium] monohydrate]

The title compound, {[Cd(C8H8O5)(C10H8N2)]·H2O}n, was obtained by the reaction of cadmium acetate with 2,2′-bi­pyridine and 7-oxabicyclo­(2.2.1)heptane-2,3-dicarb­oxy­lic anhydride. The CdII atom is seven-coordinated in a distorted penta­gonal–bipyramidal configuration, defined by five O atoms from the carboxyl­ate groups of three 7-oxabicyclo­[2.2.1]heptane-2,3-dicarboxyl­ato ligands and two N atoms from the 2,2′-bipyridine ligand. Two O atoms link two CdII atoms, forming a dinuclear center: the Cd—O—Cd bridging angle is 110.19 (6)°. The polymeric structure extends along [100] and is linked by inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds involving the solvent water molecule. Extensive π–π stacking exists between 2,2-bypiridine ligands along [010] with centroid-centroid distance of 3.650 (2) 

(Z)-1,3-Bis(4-chloro­phen­yl)-2-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)prop-2-en-1-one

In the title mol­ecule, C17H11Cl2N3O, the C=C bond connecting the triazole and 4-chloro­phenyl groups adopts a Z geometry. The dihedral angles formed by the triazole ring and the 4-chloro substituted benzene rings are 67.3 (1) and 59.1 (1)°. The dihedral angle between the two benzene rings is 73.5 (1)°

Bis{1-[4-(benz­yloxy)phen­yl]-4,4,4-tri­fluoro­butane-1,3-dionato(1−)}dipyri­dine­cobalt(II)

In the title compound, [Co(C17H12F3O3)2(C5H5N)2], the CoII ion is situated on a twofold rotation axis, coordinated by four O atoms from two 1-[4-(benz­yloxy)phen­yl]-4,4,4-trifluoro­butane-1,3-dionate(1−) (L) ligands and two N atoms from two pyridine ligands in a distorted octa­hedral geometry. The two pyridine rings form a dihedral angle of 84.63 (7)°. The two benzene rings in L are twisted at 58.83 (5)°. Weak inter­molecular C—H⋯F hydrogen bonds consolidate the crystal packing

Atherosclerosis and Helminths Infection

Atherosclerosis is a chronic disease that causes various cardiovascular complications. Plaque formation in atherosclerosis is considered similar to the pathogenesis of other autoimmune diseases; thus, immunomodulation and immunosuppression may present strategies for the treatment and prevention of these diseases. Interestingly helminth infection was found to inhibit T helper 1-mediated autoimmune diseases and T helper 2-mediated allergy and asthma, indicating significant potential for clinical application. Some study even found that therapeutic efficacy of the viable tapeworm was superior to dexamethasone treatment. Recently, some studies have shown an inverse association between helminth infections and inflammatory diseases, including diabetes mellitus, lipid abnormality, and atherosclerosis. Will the underlying mechanism bring us a new idea on the treatment for these diseases? We tried to find an answer by reviewing recent articles

Effects of polymer molecular weight on relative oral bioavailability of curcumin

Yin-Meng Tsai,1 Wan-Ling Chang-Liao,1 Chao-Feng Chien,1 Lie-Chwen Lin,1,2 Tung-Hu Tsai,1,31Institute of Traditional Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, 2National Research Institute of Chinese Medicine, 3Department of Education and Research, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, TaiwanBackground: Polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles have been used to increase the relative oral bioavailability of hydrophobic compounds and polyphenols in recent years, but the effects of the molecular weight of PLGA on bioavailability are still unknown. This study investigated the influence of polymer molecular weight on the relative oral bioavailability of curcumin, and explored the possible mechanism accounting for the outcome.Methods: Curcumin encapsulated in low (5000–15,000) and high (40,000–75,000) molecular weight PLGA (LMw-NPC and HMw-NPC, respectively) were prepared using an emulsification-solvent evaporation method. Curcumin alone and in the nanoformulations was administered orally to freely mobile rats, and blood samples were collected to evaluate the bioavailability of curcumin, LMw-NPC, and HMw-NPC. An ex vivo experimental gut absorption model was used to investigate the effects of different molecular weights of PLGA formulation on absorption of curcumin. High-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection was used for quantification of curcumin in biosamples.Results: There were no significant differences in particle properties between LMw-NPC and HMw-NPC, but the relative bioavailability of HMw-NPC was 1.67-fold and 40-fold higher than that of LMw-NPC and conventional curcumin, respectively. In addition, the mean peak concentration (Cmax) of conventional curcumin, LMw-NPC, and HMw-NPC was 0.028, 0.042, and 0.057 µg/mL, respectively. The gut absorption study further revealed that the HMw-PLGA formulation markedly increased the absorption rate of curcumin in the duodenum and resulted in excellent bioavailability compared with conventional curcumin and LMw-NPC.Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate that different molecular weights of PLGA have varying bioavailability, contributing to changes in the absorption rate at the duodenum. The results of this study provide the rationale for design of a nanomedicine delivery system to enhance the bioavailability of water-insoluble pharmaceutical compounds and functional foods.Keywords: absorption, duodenum, molecular weight, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), PLGA, relative oral bioavailabilit