An investigation on 3-acetyl-7-methoxy-coumarin Schiff bases and their Ru(II) metallates with potent antiproliferative activity and enhanced LDH and NO release†

New cyclometallated ruthenium(ii) complexes of 3-acetyl-7-methoxycoumarin-4N-substituted thiosemicarbazones were synthesized and characterized by analytical and spectral techniques. The crystal structures of the ligands H2L1-3 and complexes (1, 2 and 4) were confirmed by X-ray crystallography. The analysis showed that the ligands have undergone C-H activation at the C(4) carbon of the pyrone ring and acted in a tridentate fashion by binding through C, N and S atoms. CT-DNA and protein (BSA/HSA) binding studies were carried out to analyze their interaction with biomolecules. Good binding affinity with DNA was observed with intercalative binding mode, which was further confirmed by EB displacement and viscosity measurement studies. The quenching mechanism with BSA/HSA was found to be static. Three dimensional (3D) fluorescence measurements were carried out to validate the micro environmental changes in the serum albumins. Their antioxidant propensity and antimicrobial study insisted that the compounds displayed good spectrum of activity. Evaluation of their anticancer potential against MCF-7 (human breast cancer) and A549 (human lung carcinoma) cell lines revealed that the complexes exhibited better activity than the ligands and cisplatin. Further, the results of LDH and NO release assays supported the cytotoxic nature of the compounds. The non-toxic nature of the compounds was established by testing against the non-cancerous cell line HaCaT (human normal keratinocyte). © 2018 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Prevalence and socio-demographic association of depression, anxiety and stress among university students

Prevalence of Stress, anxiety and depression has been identified to be high among university students which may affect their social and professional lives. The study aims at assessing the prevalence of stress, anxiety and depression among university students and analyzes their association with gender, ethnicity and area of upbringing. The study also intends to identify their coping strategies. This was a cross sectional study utilizing validated questionnaires. It was conducted among a total of 143 university students in Johar bahru. The questionnaires used were the socio-demographic questionnaire, DAAS-21 questionnaire and Brief coping strategy Questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS software. Descriptive statistics was used. The mean age of the students under the study was 25.02±8.6 years. Depression was seen in 62.2% of the students and anxiety and stress were seen in 78.3% and 55.9 % students respectively. Depression, anxiety and stress were found more in females than males. Anxiety was more in Malays and depression and stress was more among other ethnic groups. Anxiety and depression were seen more in students with a rural upbringing and stress in students with a urban upbringing. There was no significant association between depression, anxiety, stress and gender, ethnicity and area of upbringing. The mean score for the common coping strategies employed which was acceptance, positive reframing and self distraction were 2.8±0.9, 2.8±1.0, 2.8±1.0 respectively. Prevalence of anxiety was more compared to stress or depression. Students used active coping Strategies to cope with stress