Letters in Drug Design & Discovery - Volume 15, Issue 3, 2018

Background: In recent years, the multi-drug resistance of bacteria and fungi strains has become a worldwide problem. The incidence of fungal and bacterial infections is experiencing a serious growth and the microorganisms have developed several new mechanisms of antibiotic resistance. Methods: Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) constitute one of the well-known barrier defense systems of plants. They have been isolated fro Read More

Background: The marine macroalgae are very diverse group of benthonic photosynthetic organisms. These organisms are a source of a high variety of phytocompounds useful to the human kind, demonstrating several applications in the human and animal nutrition, in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food and biotechnological industries. Several bioactivities were reported, as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immune-modulato Read More

Background: Hyptis pectinata (Lamiaceae) is commonly known as ‘sambacaita’ and ‘canudinho’ in Brazil. In folk medicine, this plant is used to treat rhinopharyngitis, nasal congestion, certain skin diseases, gastric disorders, fever and bacterial infections. The present study aimed to study the phytoconstituents from the H. pectinata essential oil. Methods: The chemical composition of the essential oil from the leaves of H. pectin Read More

Background: Metal-based antimicrobial agents have recently been identified as an alternate therapy for the treatment of infectious diseases. This investigation relates to one-pot solventfree preparation of some new transition metal complexes of omeprazole (OMP), followed by their characterization and in vitro applications as anti-Helicobacter pylori agents and urease inhibitors. Methods: The complexes were charact Read More

Background: In the current study, we evaluate the possible in vitro hepatoprotective and antioxidant activity of Asphodeline lutea (L.) Rchb. dry root extract (ALE), and isolated from the same extract 2-acetyl-1,8-dimethoxy-3-methylnaphthalene (1). The potential of the main root compounds, chrysophanol (2) and caffeic acid (3), was studied as well. A model of non-enzyme lipid peroxidation (LPO) in isolated liver microsomes w Read More

Background: Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn (Milk thistle) is a medicinal herb fraught with flavonolignans known as silymarin. Methods: We investigated and compared in vitro effects of commercial silibinin (mixture of two diastereomers, silybin A and silybin B) and milk thistle flavonolignans on the kinetic parameters and activities of aldehyde oxidase (AO) and xanthine oxidase (XO) of rat liver. Samples of milk t Read More

Background: In this investigation, we aimed to purify and elucidate compounds from Spatoglossum asperum J. Agardh (Dictyotaceae). Moreover, general toxicity, anti-proliferative, antibacterial and antioxidant properties of crude extracts were studied. Methods: The extract was isolated by petroleum ether (PE), dichloromethane (DCM) and methanol (MeOH) using Soxhlet. The PE and DCM extracts were subjected to vacuum Read More

Background: The work describes the voltammetric determination of mercury(II), copper( II), lead(II), cadmium(II), zinc(II) by square wave anodic stripping voltammetry (SWASV) in herbal medicines. Methods: The voltammetric measurements were carried out using a conventional three electrode cell and two working electrodes, a gold electrode (GE) and a stationary hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE). The analytic Read More

Background: Many studies have shown the benefits deriving from plants secondary metabolites to human health also for the prevention of several diseases associated to oxidative stress including cancer, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes mellitus. Nowadays there is a high attention on plant secondary metabolites and analytical techniques related to their identification and characterization. Conclusion: This review aims to rep Read More

Background: Neurodegenerative, neurological and mental disorders, as well as substance abuse have a worldwide high incidence rate, becoming relevant factors that contribute to premature morbidity and mortality. Dopamine is well known to be involved in these pathologies. The key focus in the search for new drugs, that alleviate or cure these diseases, is pursuing the design of compounds with both efficacy and fewer adver Read More

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major cause of acute lower respiratory- tract infections (ALRI) in young children, elderly and high-risk adults and results in considerable hospitalizations. The fusions of RSV were proved to be a potent target in combating virus. Methods: A series of newly reported isoindol-5-ones derivatives as RSV fusion inhibitors was studied via in silico methodologies 3D-QSAR (CoMFA and CoMS Read More

Introduction: Stryphnodendron rotundifolium Mart. is a native specie of the “Cerrado” area of Northeast Brazil and is used in traditional communities for the treatment of inflammation, infection, gastritis and other diseases. Objective: We evaluated the gastroprotective effect of the hydroalcoholic extract of Stryphnodendron rotundifolium Mart. (HESR) in animal models of classic gastric lesions, the mechanism of acti Read More

Introduction: Astronium fraxinifolium (Anarcadiaceae) is used in folk medicine in inflammation diseases. This study evaluates the chemical profile as well as antioxidant, antimicrobial, gastroprotective and wound healing activities of the hydroalcoholic extract of Astronium fraxinifolium bark (HAAF). Material and Methods: Phytochemical screening and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The antioxidant activity w Read More