Bio-functionalization of lanthanide phosphate nanoparticles / Abbas Abdulameer Salman

A series of new surface modification reagents were synthesized and applied on LaPO4:Ce,Tb nanoparticles surfaces by postsynthetic and in-situ nanoparticle modification. The compounds comprise of an oligo-ethlyne glycol backbone that is connecting an organic phosphonate function (ester, acid or acid salt) and a reactive functional group (azide or alkyne), suitable for coupling with complimentary functionalized carbohydrates by cycloaddition in click chemistry fashion. The objective of this chemical functionalization of a nanoparticle is to attach a biological receptor that enables subsequent direction of the particle in the human body for related life science application, e.g. as radio-contrast reagent for the specific recognition of cancer cells. The bio-labeling process involves two stages; in the initial stage the phosphonate binds covalently to the surface, thus chemically attaching the reactive functional group to the particle. Subsequent coupling with receptor under mild click-chemistry conditions enables the binding of the latter to the particle. Monitoring of chemical changes at the particle surface was based on IR-spectroscopy. The reaction progress was monitored by tracking azide and carbonyl vibrations. The particle loading with the organic ligand was confirmed by TGA. Furthermore, the size, shape and morphology of the LaPO4:Ce,Tb nanocrystals were examined by XRD, SAXS and transmission electron microscopy. The experimental results confirm a previously reported narrow monodisperse distribution of ellipsoidal nanoparticle with 5-7 nm diameter. They also indicate no effect of neither surface modification nor subsequent click coupling on the particle morphology

In vivo evaluation of wound healing improvement of a new Schiff base derived bromine compound (CNBP) in rats

Background: The effect of delivered bromine vapor and also bromine substitutions are shown to play an important role in anti-inflammatory activity. The present study encompasses a broad in vivo study to size up healing activity of a novel dibromide substituted Schiff based compound against cutaneous wound model in Sprague Dawley (SD) rats. Methodology/principal findings: 2, 2′-[1, 2-Cyclohexanediylbis(nitriloethylidyne)] bis[4-bromophenol], CNBP, is synthesized through a Schiff base reaction applying the related ketone and diamine as the initiators. Four groups of six in each male SD rats are divided as negative group which are treated with gum acacia, positive control animals which are treated with topical dosage of Intrasite gel, and testing groups treated with low (10 mg/kg) and high (20 mg/kg) doses of CNBP. The excisional wounds are created on the posterior neck area of each group and the wound closure percentage was measured in the two separated days of the experiment. Moreover, the histopathological evaluation and determination of activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), peroxidase (GPx), and malondialdehyde (MDA) of the skin sections are performed. Furthermore, the immunohistochemistry consists of the evaluation of Hsp70 and BAX proteins. Conclusions/significance: The wound closure percentage showed a significant increase in high dose CNBP-treated group compared to the negative control. Histopathological evaluation of the skin sections showed that granulation tissue contained more proliferating fibroblast, collagen deposition, angiogenesis, and also less inflammatory cells in the high dose CNBP-treated group compared to the normal rats. In the treated groups with CNBP, SOD, CAT, and GPx activities were found significantly higher, however, the MDA level was shown to be lower (*P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001) than the negative control. At the molecular level, CNBP (20 mg/ml, HD) improved wound-healing process via down and up regulation of Bax and Hsp70 protein, respectively at the wound site. © 201

Renewable resources-based approach to biantennary glycolipids

A new synthesis approach towards biantennary lipids of Guerbet glycoside type was developed based on oleic acid as sustainable resource. Functionalization of the double bond provided access to primary alcohols with α-branched C19-skeleton. Formulation studies with corresponding lactosides indicated formation of vesicles with high assembly stability. A relatively narrow bimodal size distribution of the latter, which turns into a narrow unimodal distribution of small vesicles upon addition of an ionic cosurfactant, suggests potential for a vesicular drug delivery system

Synthesis and biological study of acridine-based imidazolium salts

A new series of acridine based imidazolium salts was synthesized and evaluated for in vitro cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines by an MTT assay. The synthesis applied a coupling of imidazoles with 9-chloroacridines, which originated from an Ullmann condensation of a 2-chloro-benzoic acid with an aniline. The target compounds were obtained in high yields. The DPPH assay indicated considerable antioxidant activity for target compounds with simple and short alkyl chains on the imidazole, while increasing chain length and the introduction of an additional π-electron system in most cases reduced the activity. All compounds exhibited low biotoxicity against non-cancerous cell lines, whereas a few compounds showed promising anticancer activity. Unlike for the reference drugs Tamoxifen and Paclitaxel, the anticancer activity of acridine imidazolium ions is specific for only selected cancer types. Reasonable fluorescent behaviour of the products provide potential for visualization of the distribution of active drugs in tissue

Synthesis, cytotoxicity and antineoplastic activities of novel acridine-based platinum(II) organometallic complexes

Two new platinum(II) complexes incorporating acridine ligands with aniline moieties were successfully synthesised and characterised. The acridine-based ligands were synthesised by means of Ullmann's condensation. The reaction of cis-[PtCl2(DMSO)2] with the aforementioned ligand in a specified mol ratio gives 9-phenylaminoacridine cis-dichloro(dimethylsulfoxide)-platinum(II), 2a, and bis-[N-(3,5-dimethoxyphenyl) acridin-9-amine)]chloro platinum(II), 2b. Apparently, both complexes were slightly planar and in discrete asymmetrical units. Cytotoxicity and antineoplastic activity evaluations were conducted using WRL-68, MCF-7, HT-29, and HL60 cell lines. The novel complexes exhibited potent activity towards the cell lines. Concurrently, the MTT cytotoxicity assay revealed that all complexes significantly inhibited the proliferation of MCF-7 and HL60 cells. © 2019 Elsevier B.V

Prevalence and associated factors of binge eating disorder among Bahraini youth and young adults: a cross-sectional study in a self-selected convenience sample

Plain English summary Binge eating disorder is an eating disorder characterized by the consumption of a large amount of food in a short period of time with loss of control over stopping accompanied by emotional stress during the episode. Studies have identified multiple risk factors that may contribute to binge eating, including lifestyle, psychological well-being of the individual, stress, genetics, family history, age and sex. The current study examined binge eating symptoms among adolescents and young adults aged 15–30 years to estimate the prevalence of the disorder in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Furthermore, participants were tested for depression and anxiety to investigate whether they were associated with the disorder. The results revealed that approximately one-fifth of the participants had binge eating symptoms. A high body mass index, depression and anxiety were significantly associated with binge eating symptoms. We hope this study will be reliable for use in epidemiological studies and further research