Medicinal Chemistry 

About: Medicinal Chemistry is an academic journal published by Bentham Science Publishers. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Medicine & Docking (molecular). It has an ISSN identifier of 1573-4064. Over the lifetime, 1948 publications have been published receiving 23521 citations.

Impacts of bioinformatics to medicinal chemistry.

Abstract: Facing the explosive growth of biological sequence data, such as those of protein/peptide and DNA/RNA, generated in the post-genomic age, many bioinformatical and mathematical approaches as well as physicochemical concepts have been introduced to timely derive useful informations from these biological sequences, in order to stimulate the development of medical science and drug design. Meanwhile, because of the rapid penetrations from these disciplines, medicinal chemistry is currently undergoing an unprecedented revolution. In this minireview, we are to summarize the progresses by focusing on the following six aspects. (1) Use the pseudo amino acid composition or PseAAC to predict various attributes of protein/peptide sequences that are useful for drug development. (2) Use pseudo oligonucleotide composition or PseKNC to do the same for DNA/RNA sequences. (3) Introduce the multi-label approach to study those systems where the constituent elements bear multiple characters and functions. (4) Utilize the graphical rules and "wenxiang" diagrams to analyze complicated biomedical systems. (5) Recent development in identifying the interactions of drugs with its various types of target proteins in cellular networking. (6) Distorted key theory and its application in developing peptide drugs.

Nanotechnology and its Applications in Medicine

Abstract: Nanotechnologyis the study of extremely small structures, having size of 0.1 to 100 nm. Nano medicine is a relatively new field of science and technology. Brief explanation of various types of pharmaceutical nano systems is given. Classification of nano materials based on their dimensions is given. An application of Nanotechnology in various fields such as health and medicine, electronics, energy and environment, is discussed in detail. Applications of nano particles in drug delivery, protein and peptide delivery, cancer are explained. Applications of various nano systems in cancer therapy such as carbon nano tube, dendrimers, nano crystal, nano wire, nano shells etc. are given. The advancement in nano technology helps in the treatment of neuro degenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Applications of nano technology in tuberculosis treatment, the clinical application of nanotechnology in operative dentistry, in ophthalmology, in surgery, visualization, tissue engineering, antibiotic resistance, immune response are discussed in this article. Nano pharmaceuticals can be used to detect diseases at much earlier stages.

Curcumin is an Inhibitor of p300 Histone Acetylatransferase

Abstract: Histone acetyltransferases (HATs), and p300/CBP in particular, have been implicated in cancer cell growth and survival, and as such, HATs represent novel, therapeutically relevant molecular targets for drug development. In this study, we demonstrate that the small molecule natural product curcumin, whose medicinal properties have long been recognized in India and Southeast Asia, is a selective HAT inhibitor. Furthermore the data indicate that alpha, beta unsaturated carbonyl groups in the curcumin side chain function as Michael reaction sites and that the Michael reaction acceptor functionality of curcumin is required for its HAT-inhibitory activity. In cells, curcumin promoted proteasome-dependent degradation of p300 and the closely related CBP protein without affecting the HATs PCAF or GCN5. In addition to inducing p300 degradation curcumin inhibited the acetyltransferase activity of purified p300 as assessed using either histone H3 or p53 as substrate. Radiolabeled curcumin formed a covalent association with p300, and tetrahydrocurcumin displayed no p300 inhibitory activity, consistent with a Michael reaction-dependent mechanism. Finally, curcumin was able to effectively block histone hyperacetylation in both PC3-M prostate cancer cells and peripheral blood lymphocytes induced by the histone deacetylase inhibitor MS-275. These data thus identify the medicinal natural product curcumin as a novel lead compound for development of possibly therapeutic, p300/CBP-specific HAT inhibitors.

Protease inhibitors in the clinic.

Abstract: This review describes the clinical status (based on available information) of experimental drugs that inhibit enzymes called proteases, or more precisely a sub-class of proteases called peptidases that catalyse the hydrolysis of polypeptide main chain amide bonds. These peptidases are classified by the key catalytic residue in the active site of the enzyme that effects hydrolysis, namely aspartic, serine, cysteine, metallo or threonine proteases. In this review we show structures for 108 inhibitors of these enzymes and update the clinical disposition of over 100 inhibitors that have been considered worthy enough by pharmaceutical, biotechnology or academic researchers and their financial backers to be trialed in humans as prospective medicines. We outline some of their chemical and pharmacological characteristics and compare the current status of protease inhibitors in the clinic with what was observed about 5 years ago (Leung et al, J. Med. Chem. 2000, 43, 305-341). We assess the progress of protease inhibitors into man, predict their futures, and outline some of the hurdles that have been overcome and that still remain for this promising class of new therapeutic agents.

Antimicrobial Activity of Phenolics and Glucosinolate Hydrolysis Products and their Synergy with Streptomycin against Pathogenic Bacteria

Abstract: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the in vitro antibacterial effects of different classes of important and common dietary phytochemicals (5 simple phenolics - tyrosol, gallic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and chlorogenic acid; chalcone - phloridzin; flavan-3-ol - (-) epicatechin; seco-iridoid - oleuropein glucoside; 3 glucosinolate hydrolysis products - allylisothiocyanate, benzylisothiocyanate and 2-phenylethylisothiocyanate) against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. Another objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dual combinations of streptomycin with the different phytochemicals on antibacterial activity. A disc diffusion assay was used to evaluate the antibacterial activity of the phytochemicals and 3 standard antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, gentamicin and streptomycin) against the four bacteria. The antimicrobial activity of single compounds and dual combinations (streptomycin-phytochemicals) were quantitatively assessed by measuring the inhibitory halos. The results showed that all of the isothiocyanates had significant antimicrobial activities, while the phenolics were much less efficient. No antimicrobial activity was observed with phloridzin. In general P. aeruginosa was the most sensitive microorganism and L. monocytogenes the most resistant. The application of dual combinations demonstrated synergy between streptomycin and gallic acid, ferulic acid, chlorogenic acid, allylisothiocyanate and 2-phenylethylisothiocyanate against the Gram-negative bacteria. In conclusion, phytochemical products and more specifically the isothiocyanates were effective inhibitors of the in vitro growth of the Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria. Moreover, they can act synergistically with less efficient antibiotics to control bacterial growth.