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Abstract: A simple one-pot synthesis of aryl alkyl sulfides from various bromobenzenes containing a hydroxy, hydroxymethyl, hydroxyethyl, and carboxylic acid group at -o, -m, and -p positions is reported here. The reaction proceeds through, in sequence, in situ protection of the hydroxy or carboxylic acid group by reaction with a Grignard reagent, lithium-halogen exchange, the formation of lithium thiolates, and the nucleophilic attack of lithium thiolates on various electrophiles without isolation of the thiolates, in one vessel. This procedure required a very short reaction time (1–1.5h) and gave the corresponding sulfides in 75–97% yields. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A novel class of natural PPAR agonists, 2,4-dimethyl-4-hydroxy-16-phenylhexadecanoic acid 1,4-lactone (1), were discovered in marine natural product libraries. The synthesis of 1 was accomplished starting from vinylmethyl ketone. Ring formation of the α,γ dialkyl γ-lactone was achieved via the stereo-controlled reaction of a ketyl radical anion with a chiral methacrylate. In the PPAR agonistic assay, the most potent of the four stereoisomers had EC50 values of 12μM for mPPARα, 9μM for mPPARδ and >100μM for mPPARγ. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Eight kaempferol oligosaccharides were isolated and identified from Camellia japonica seed cake. The chemical structures of the isolates were determined by using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques, such as high-performance liquid chromatography with a photodiode array detector (HPLC-PDA), one-dimensional (1H and 13C), and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (1H–1H COSY, HSQC and HMBC), ESI-Q-TOF-MS, and optical rotation. To evaluate the anti-aging efficacy of kaempferol oligosaccharides for cosmetic use, the MMP-1 inhibitory effects of the isolates were studied using human dermal fibroblasts which were cultured in HaCaT cell-conditioned media. The MMP-1 inhibitory assay results revealed that kaempferol-3- O -β- d -xylopyranosyl-(1 → 3)-α- l -rhamnopyranosyl-(1 → 6)- O -β- d -glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)- O -β- d -glucopyranoside showed the most potent MMP-1 inhibitory activity. The basal level inhibition was 50 ppm, which indicated that C. japonica seed cake is a promising material for the development of anti-aging skin cosmetics. Image 1 • Eight kaempferol oligosaccharides were isolated from Camellia japonica seed cake. • The structures of isolates were elucidated by spectroscopic evidence. • Eight kaempferol oligosaccharides showed MMP-1 inhibitory activities. • Seed cake of C. japonica can be a promising material for anti-aging cosmetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Skin aging is a major risk factor for the dermal diseases, and interventions to attenuate cellular senescence are expected to reduce the risk for age-related diseases involving skin atrophy. However, blocking cell death or extending proliferation causally results in side effects and an increased cancer risk. For identification of a safer approach, we focused on PDK1 inhibition, which could revert cellular senescence and reduce senescence factors in skin in vitro, in a human skin equivalent model and in an exploratory, placebo-controlled, interventional trial. Natural phytochemical kaempferol tetrasaccharides resulted in a significant reduction in cellular senescence, and an increase in collagen fiber was observed in the skin cell and human skin equivalent. Clinical enhancement in skin appearance was noted in multiple participants, and an immunohistochemical study revealed improvement in the histological appearance of skin tissue and extracellular matrix. This change was associated with relative improvement in histological markers of senescence and clinical appearance of the aged skin and an increase in collagen fiber, an essential factor for preventing skin atrophy and consistency of the basement membrane. These results indicate that PDK1 inhibition is a potentially effective antiaging intervention, suggesting a diagnostic role and preventive actions of PDK1 in senescence-associated skin atrophy. [Display omitted] • Kaempferol tetrasaccharides (KT1) inhibit PDK1 enzyme activity via direct binding-mediated fashion. • KT1, one of the strong PDK1 inhibitor, attenuates skin atrophy in human skin equivalent model and exhibit anti-wrinkle activity in clinical study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two actinomycetes, a member of the rare halophilic genus Streptomonospora and a Nocardiopsis sp. (Nocardiopsaceae), strains CNQ-082 and CNQ-675, respectively, were isolated from marine sediments collected off shore near La Jolla, California. HPLC-UV guided fractionations of the extracts of these strains yielded marinopyrones A–D ( 1 – 4 ), the structures of which were elucidated by interpretation of 1D and 2D NMR and HRMS spectroscopic data. Oxidative ozonation, followed by conversion of the acid product to an α-naphthyl amide, provided the absolute configuration at the chiral center on the side-chain. Marinopyrones A–D were examined for the inhibitory activity on nitric oxide production in LPS-activated mouse macrophage cells (RAW 264.7); marinopyrone D ( 4 ) was inhibitory with an IC 50 value of 13 μM. To our knowledge, marinopyrones A–C are only the second reported natural products from the rare halophilic genus Streptomonospora . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ethanolic extract of the root of Piper methysticum was found to inhibit melanogenesis in MSH-activated B16 melanoma cells. Flavokawains B and C were isolated from this extract based on their anti-melanogenesis activity and found to inhibit melanogenesis with IC 50 values of 7.7 μM and 6.9 μM, respectively. Flavokawain analogs were synthesized through a Claisen–Schmidt condensation of their corresponding acetophenones and benzaldehydes and were evaluated in terms of their tyrosinase inhibitory and anti-melanogenesis activities. Compound 1b was the most potent of these with an IC 50 value of 2.3 μM in melanogenesis inhibition assays using MSH-activated B16 melanoma cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We have discovered and demonstrated the in vitro and in vivo PPARδ-selective activity of novel Y-shaped agonists. These compounds activated hPPARδ with EC50 values between 1 and 523 nM. Surprisingly, compounds 10a, 11d, 11e and 11f were the most potent and most selective hPPARδ agonists with 104-fold selectivity over the other two subtypes, namely, hPPARα and hPPARγ. The PPARδ ligands 10a, 11e and 11f showed good bioavailability and in vivo efficacy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We report the synthesis and in vivo activity of a novel anti-atherogenic agent, isosteric selenium PPARδ-selective ligand. This ligand did not cause significant body or liver weight changes and did not have obvious adverse effects on intestinal polyp formation. Our overall results clearly demonstrate that PPARδ is a viable drug candidate for targeting and treating atherosclerosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Jasmonic acid (JA) plays pivotal roles in diverse plant biological processes, including wound response. Chloroplast lipid hydrolysis is a critical step for JA biosynthesis, but the mechanism of this process remains elusive. We report here that DONGLE (DGL), a homolog of DEFECTIVE IN ANTHER DEHISCENCE1 (DAD1), encodes a chloroplast-targeted lipase with strong galactolipase and weak phospholipase A1 activity. DGL is expressed in the leaves and has a specific role in maintaining basal JA content under normal conditions, and this expression regulates vegetative growth and is required for a rapid JA burst after wounding. During wounding, DGL and DAD1 have partially redundant functions for JA production, but they show different induction kinetics, indicating temporally separated roles: DGL plays a role in the early phase of JA production, and DAD1 plays a role in the late phase of JA production. Whereas DGL and DAD1 are necessary and sufficient for JA production, phospholipase D appears to modulate wound response by stimulating DGL and DAD1 expression. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]