Novel 2-(R-phenyl)amino-3-(2-methylpropenyl)-[1,4]-naphthoquinones: synthesis, characterization, electrochemical behavior and antitumor activity

Novel 2-(R-phenyl)amino-3-(2-methyl-propenyl)-[1,4]-naphthoquinones (R = H, 4-OMe, 4-Ferrocenyl, 4-Me, 3-Me, 4-I, 3-I, 4-CN, 3-CN, 4-NO2 and 3-NO2) derived from nor-lapachol [2-hydroxy-3-(2-methylpropenyl)-1,4-naphthoquinone] were obtained in good yields. Their structures were proposed on the basis of a single crystal X-ray diffraction study (R = OMe, 2b), ¹H and 13C NMR studies and calculations using the B3LYP functional and the 6-311+G(2d,p) basis set. The half-wave potentials of the aminonaphthoquinones and ¹H NMR chemical shifts of the 3-propenyl hydrogen in 2a-k show good correlation with the substituent Hammett constants on the phenylamino ring. The antitumor assays showed promising activity for substrate methoxy-nor-lapachol 1 and the 4-ferrocenyl derivative 2c.Novas 2-(R-fenil)amino-3-(2-metilpropenil)-[1,4]-naftoquinonas (R = H, 4-OMe, 4-Ferrocenil, 4-Me, 3-Me, 4-I, 3-I, 4-CN, 3-CN, 4-NO2 e 3-NO2) derivadas do nor-lapachol [2-hidroxi-3-(2-metilpropenil)-1,4-naftoquinona] foram obtidas em bons rendimentos. A estrutura dos compostos foi proposta com base em estudos de difração de raios-X (R = OMe, 2b), dados de RMN de ¹H e 13C e cálculos teóricos utilizando o funcional B3LYP e a base 6-311+G(2d,p). Os potenciais de meia-onda das aminonaftoquinonas e o deslocamento químico do hidrogênio da cadeia 3-propenil dos compostos 2a-k mostraram boa correlação com as constantes de Hammett dos substituintes presentes no anel fenileno. A avaliação da citotoxicidade evidenciou atividade antitumoral promissora para o substrato metóxi-nor-lapachol 1 e o derivado 4-ferrocenil 2c.169178Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES

Taxonomy based on science is necessary for global conservation

Peer reviewe

Photography-based taxonomy is inadequate, unnecessary, and potentially harmful for biological sciences

The question whether taxonomic descriptions naming new animal species without type specimen(s) deposited in collections should be accepted for publication by scientific journals and allowed by the Code has already been discussed in Zootaxa (Dubois & Nemésio 2007; Donegan 2008, 2009; Nemésio 2009a–b; Dubois 2009; Gentile & Snell 2009; Minelli 2009; Cianferoni & Bartolozzi 2016; Amorim et al. 2016). This question was again raised in a letter supported by 35 signatories published in the journal Nature (Pape et al. 2016) on 15 September 2016. On 25 September 2016, the following rebuttal (strictly limited to 300 words as per the editorial rules of Nature) was submitted to Nature, which on 18 October 2016 refused to publish it. As we think this problem is a very important one for zoological taxonomy, this text is published here exactly as submitted to Nature, followed by the list of the 493 taxonomists and collection-based researchers who signed it in the short time span from 20 September to 6 October 2016

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Effect of Acyl Chain Length on Hydrophobized Cashew Gum Self-Assembling Nanoparticles: Colloidal Properties and Amphotericin B Delivery

Given its many potential applications, cashew gum hydrophobic derivatives have gained increasing attraction in recent years. We report here the effect of acyl chain length on hydrophobized cashew gum derivatives, using acetic, propionic, and butyric anhydrides on self-assembly nanoparticle properties and amphotericin B delivery. Nanoparticles with unimodal particle size distribution, highly negative zeta potential, and low PDI were produced. Butyrate cashew gum nanoparticles presented smaller size (Candida albicans strains. An excellent storage colloidal stability was observed for unloaded and loaded AmB without use of surfactant. Considering the AmB delivery, the acyl derivative with low chain length is shown to be the best one, as it has high drug loading and AmB release, as well as low minimum inhibitory concentration against Candida albicans strains