Vol 66, No 10 (2017)

The review briefly outlines the results of authors’ theoretical research into unique hyperkagome atomic and orbital order in geometrically frustrated iridium spinel-like structures. The structural mechanism of formation of the hyper-kagome atomic order is established. It is shown that closed loops of Ir—Ir bonds represent a fundamental feature of the iridium spinel-like structures. Each loop consists of ten atoms, thus being a decagon. We assume that decagons are responsible for abnormal chemical and physical properties of crystals. A prediction is made of structural types of crystals in which the hyper-kagome atomic order can exist.

This review summarizes the recent advances in the construction of organic and hybrid systems having considerable potential for practical applications in pharmacology, medicine, materials science, petrochemistry, and chemistry of high-energy compounds. The methodological classification of the approaches into classical and interdisciplinary is proposed. Examples of the efficient application of these approaches for investigating complex molecular systems, as well as for developing new methods of synthesis are given.

The methods of synthesis of biologically active nanostructured systems based on functional and natural polymers are reviewed. The formation of nanosystems in the process of interaction between synthetic water-soluble polyelectrolytes and amphiphilic ionic surfactants is discussed. The influence of structure and stability of these systems on their biological activity is considered. The complexation between DNA and polycations with the formation of compacted DNA molecules, and the transport of resulting complexes into the cells are discussed. The data on nanostructuring of hemoglobin using polyfunctional crosslinkers and the data on the use of the obtained nanoparticles as oxygen-transporting blood substitutes are summarized. Using nanodisperse silver stabilized with poly(vinylpyrrolidone) as an example it was demonstrated, that transferring silver into nanodisperse state results in widening its bioactivity.

The Way2Drug informational-computational platform (www.way2drug.com/dr) provides access to the data on drugs approved for medicinal use in the USA and Russian Federation, as well as computational possibilities for the prediction of biological activity of drug-like organic compounds. Currently realized computational tools of the platform, which allow one to predict several thousands of biological activity types, including the interaction with molecular targets, pharmacotherapeutic and side effects, metabolism, acute toxicity for rats, cytotoxicity, influence on gene expression, and other properties characterizing the evaluation how promising are particular drug-like compounds as potential pharmaceuticals, are reviewed. Using the Way2Drug platform, one can not only select the most promising "hits" for the synthesis and testing of biological activity but also reveal new indications for the launched drugs.

Possible reactions of the mononuclear iron nitrosyl complex [Fe(SC(NH₂)₂)₂(NO)₂]Сl•H₂O in an aqueous solution were studied using quantum chemical modeling. The electronic structures of the possible intermediates were examined by the NBO and AIM methods. The substitution of the thio ligand in the iron—sulfur nitrosyl complex by a water molecule and the formation of dimeric intermediate complexes were found to facilitate the NO-donation process.

Thermodynamics and kinetics of sorption with the participation of nicotinic and isonicotinic acids on the strongly basic anion exchanger АВ-17-8 were studied. According to calorimetric measurements, partial (differential) heat of sorption was estimated for anions and zwitterions of pyridinecarboxylic acids upon sorption by the OH-form of the anion exchanger AB-17-8 at 298K. Sorption of zwitterions of pyridinecarboxylic acids by the OH-form of the strongly basic anion exchanger can be presented as the process that involves independent reactions of ion exchange, dissociation of pyridinecarboxylic acid, and neutralization. The kinetics of sorption on the strongly basic anion exchanger with the participation of nicotinic and isonicotinic acids is shown to be controlled by the slow diffusion of the components in the polymer phase. For the organic anion in the phase of the anion exchanger АВ-17-8, the diffusion coefficient is equal to (1.3±0.4)•10^–12 m² s^–1.

Polymer particles containing carboplatin (CPt) were developed by the inclusion of this antitumor agent in a copolymer of lactic and glycolic acids (PLGA-COOH 50/50). The polymer particles were found to have a spherical form with an average diameter not exceeding 200 nm, the ζ-potential is equal to–32.2±1 mV. The CPt-loaded polymer particles possess a cytotoxic activity against human small cell and non-small cell lung carcinoma (lines H69 and A549), as well as against mouse mammary adenocarcinoma (line Ca755). The results of the in vivo studies carried out on female mice of line C₅₇Bl/6 with inoculated mouse melanoma of line B16 showed increasing of lifespan of the animals and inhibition of tumor growth for groups treated with the polymer particles, as compared to the animals treated with the drug substance CPt.

A reaction of R-adamant-1-yl isocyanates with 4-[(4-aminocyclohexyl)oxy]benzoic acid and 1-(4-aminopiperidin-1-yl)propan-1-one in DMF afforded corresponding ureas in 90—95% yield, the target-oriented inhibitors of epoxide hydrolase sEH. The ureas are characterized by reduced melting points and increased solubility in water, as well as by inhibitory activity in the range of 0.5—4.0 nmol L^–1.

A high efficiency of indirect bilirubin removal from systems modelling blood plasma by polymers of various structures and, most importantly, by hemocompatible hypercross-linked polystyrenes such as Styrosorb is demonstrated. Approaches to increasing the selectivity of hypercross-linked polystyrenes for the removal of bilirubin from biological fluids with a high serum albumin content were found, making them promising materials for the manufacture of hemosorption columns effective for hepatitis therapy and other conditions caused by a high bilirubin content in the blood plasma.

An efficient method for the synthesis of novel 9H-imidazo[1,2-a]benzimidazole derivatives containing a biphenyl substituent at position 2 was developed. These compounds, belonging to the privileged substructures, have been tested for a wide range of pharmacological activities in the in vitro test panel. It was shown that the synthesized derivatives demonstrated high antioxidant activity, some of them inhibit type 1B protein tyrosine phosphatase, activate AMP-activated protein kinase, possess antiplatelet properties, and a rare and very interesting kind of activity, the ability to break cross-links of glycated proteins. The most active compounds can be suggested for further optimization.

A synthetic immunogen representing a complex of a conjugate of a macromolecular carrier (natural protein) and a hapten (morphine drug) covalently bound to poly(4-nitrophenyl acrylate) (PNPA) has been developed. The macromolecular carrier in the conjugate is a human serum protein (human gamma-globulin, HGG, or human serum albumin, HSA). The optimal design of the synthetic immunogen was developed. The epitope accessibility and specificity of the immunogen complexes were investigated by ELISA. It was established that antigenic determinants are not shielded upon binding to antibodies for complexes with the optimal (1: 10) ratio of the conjugate to the synthetic polymer. The accute toxicity of PNPA was estimated. The immunogenicity of synthetic complexes was studied in rat immunization models. An influence of the immunogen structure and vaccination dose on the ability to produce specific antibodies to morphine was found.

Cytotoxicity to K-562 leukemia cell line of two spiro compounds containing selenium or sulfur atom in their structure were compared. 4-Fluorophenyl-(1-thia-3-azaspiro[5.5]undec-2-en-2-yl]amine hydrobromide was synthesized and characterized for the first time. It was found that the introduction of a sulfur atom is more promising for this biological model, since it leads to a 3-fold increase in the therapeutic index in the case of the sulfur-containing compound.