Current Bioactive Compounds - Volume 7, Issue 4, 2011

Cysteine proteases are important therapeutic targets for numerous disease states including arthritis, osteoporosis, African sleeping sickness and Chagas disease. They have been shown to be viable drug targets for parasitic diseases through in vitro and animal model studies. This review examines the development of vinyl sulfone containing cysteine protease inhibitors. Peptidyl vinyl sulfones are superior inhibitors as they Read More

Probiotic agents are defined as live microorganisms, which confer a health benefit to the host when administered in adequate amounts. However, also molecules produced by both probiotic and non-probiotic bacteria and administered alone seem to provide beneficial effects similar to those obtained with live cells. These molecules can stimulate different signalling pathways by activating pattern recognition receptors and mo Read More

Epidemiological studies have consistently shown that regular consumption of fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains and fish oils, is strongly associated with reduced risk of developing chronic diseases, such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases. Over the years, numerous bioactive compounds have been identified that contribute to these beneficial health effects. In particular, carotenoids have been shown to exhibit Read More

This review documents chemical structures and antifungal activities of 68 compounds isolated from 22 Piper species of the plant family Piperaceae. These compounds include amides, flavonoids, prenylated benzoic acid derivatives, lignans, phenylpropanoids, butenolides, and cyclopentenediones. Some of them may serve as leads for potential pharmaceutical or agricultural fungicide development.

Thirty secnidazole derivatives have been synthesized and evaluated for Helicobacter pylori (H. Pylori) urease inhibitory activities and anti-inflammatory activities. All of them were reported for the first time. Their chemical structures were characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, MS, and elemental analysis. Compound 5a, 6c and 8c showed the most potent urease inhibitory activities and anti-inflammatory activities with IC Read More

Stevia rebaudiana (Bert.) Bertoni (Asteraceae) leaves are natural source of steviol glycosides, which are used commercially for sweetening and flavouring foods and beverage. The essential oil from the roots of S. rebaudiana was isolated by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS) techniques. A total of sixty components constituted 86.57% Read More