Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 12, Issue 3, 2016

Astrocytes exert multiple functions in the brain such as the development of blood–brain barrier characteristics, the promotion of neurovascular coupling, attraction of cells through the release of chemokines, clearance of toxic substances and generation of antioxidant molecules and growth factors. In this aspect, astrocytes secrete several growth factors (BDNF, GDNF, NGF, and others) that are fundamental for cell viability, o Read More

Since ancient time, India is a well known subcontinent for medicinal plants where diversity of plants is known for the treatment of many human disorders. Grewia asiatica is a dicot shrub belonging to the Grewioideae family and well known for its medicinally important fruit commonly called Falsa. G. asiatica, a seasonal summer plant is distributed in the forest of central India, south India, also available in northern plains and Read More

Detection of biomarkers for neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs) within brain tissues of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients has always been hampered by our inability to access and biopsy tissue of key brain regions implicated in disease occurrence and progression. Currently, diagnosis of NDDs is principally based on clinical observations of symptoms that present at later stages of diseas Read More

The two most common forms of dementia are Alzheimer’s disease (AD) followed by vascular dementia (VaD), together accounting for a whopping 60-80% of total dementia cases worldwide. Even though these diseases are recognized as ‘common’, they still remain underdiagnosed. Recent research suggests that AD and VaD are closely intertwined. The symptoms of AD and VaD can be similar and the two conditions can occ Read More

The use of natural products in drug discovery and development have an important history. Several therapeutic agents have been investigated during the biological screenings of natural compounds. It is well documented that plants are possibly the core of novel substances that led to the discovery of new, novel, and effective therapeutic agents. Therefore, in the last few decades, scientists were thoroughly attempting for t Read More

For decades, adjuvant hormonal therapy has become the standard treatment of patients with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. Currently, the drugs available are GnRH agonists, selective estrogen receptor modulators, and aromatase inhibitors. The use of GnRH agonists represents a potentially reversible treatment that can restore ovarian function after chemotherapy. In premenopausal women, systemic therapy bas Read More

Triple-negative breast cancer represents approximately 10-20% of all breast cancers and is associated with worse prognosis than other subtypes, with a higher risk of recurrence and death than other breast cancer types. This cancer is considered a heterogeneous disease comprising a spectrum of cancers with distinct activated biological pathways, various levels of chemosensitivity and different propensity for metastasi Read More

The approach to the axilla is an evolving paradigm, and recognition of the complexity of breast cancer (BC) biology is changing treatment options. The sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) technique is based on the excision and histological examination of the axillary lymph nodes(s), which is assumed to be the first one draining from the primary tumor. SLNB can accurately stage the axilla, and several trials have shown that th Read More

Breast cancer is common in the elderly, as more than 50% of these tumors are diagnosed in patients aged 65 years or older. Elderly women may also delay reporting or underreport to their physician suspicious symptoms and lesions, so that breast cancer is more likely to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage, with putatively inferior outcomes. Adjuvant hormonal therapy has clear benefits for all women with hormone rec Read More

The prognosis of breast cancer is strongly influenced by the stage of the disease; therefore, it is essential that breast cancer lesions be diagnosed at the earliest stages. There is an urgent need to identify different biomarkers with a high accuracy for the early detection of this cancer to facilitate clinical management of the disease. A wide number of substances named serum tumor markers can be detected in the serum Read More

Succinate dehydrogenase inhibitors (SDHIs) are fungicides with an amide bond widely used to control plant diseases caused by phytopathogenic fungi. Because of broad spectrum activity of new SDHIs, they have attracted wide attention from the research community. A series of structurally novel SDHIs with a bioactive 1,2,3-triazole moiety were designed and synthesized. Bioactivity screening showed that some of designed N Read More

Background: As a virulence factor secreted into host cells, the Mycobacterium tuberculosis protein tyrosine phosphatase (MptpB) mediates the intracellular survival of M. tuberculosis. MptpB has become an attractive target for the development of new anti-tuberculosis drugs. Objective: In the present study, we assessed the inhibitory activity of marine fungus-derived bostrycin and its derivatives against MptpB in vitro. Meth Read More