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Flavones exhibit a variety of beneficial effects and are well known for their medicinal importance in several diseases, including cardiovascular, neurodegenerative and cancer. The inclusion of the piperazine ring to the flavone backbone is an important strategy in drug discovery but only a few studies have synthesized piperazinyl flavone compounds to test their biological activity. While there is a major focus on the antioxidant properties of drugs in therapy of several diseases of inflammatory origin, we synthesized a series of the novel piperazinyl flavone analogues bearing the phenyl ring with different substituents. The analogues were evaluated for in vitro antioxidant activity against superoxide anion radical, hydroxyl radical, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical, and hydrogen peroxide scavenging properties. The total antioxidant status based on the absorbance of the 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) radical cation (ABTS +• ) and total antioxidant capacity using the Fe(III)-ferrozine complex were also monitored. The results of the above studies showed that the compounds synthesized were found possessed moderate radical scavenging potential, and that their interaction with reactive oxygen species is complex and depends on their structural conformation and the type of substituent R in the piperazine ring being attached. Best antiradical activity were found for the compounds with methoxy groups on the phenyl ring of substituent R, whereas the presence of methoxy or trifluoromethyl groups in substituent R resulted in higher ABTS +• and ion Fe(III) reduction. These compounds are promising molecules to be used for their antioxidant properties and may be regarded, after improvement of the antioxidant potential, to control diseases of free radical etiology., (Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The direct effect of the four catecholamines (adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine and isoproterenol) on superoxide anion radicals (O2•) was investigated. The reaction between 18-crown-6-ether and potassium superoxide in dimethylsulfoxide was used as a source of O2•. The reactivity of catecholamines with O2• was examined using chemiluminescence, reduction of nitroblue tetrazolium and electron paramagnetic resonance spin-trapping techniques. 5,5-Dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide was included as the spin trap. The results showed that the four catecholamines were effective and efficient in inhibiting chemiluminescence accompanying the potassium superoxide/18-crown-6-ether system in a dose-dependent manner over the range 0.05-2 mM in the following order: adrenaline > noradrenaline > dopamine > isoproterenol, with, IC50 = 0.15 ± 0.02 mM 0.21 ± 0.03 mM, 0.27 ± 0.03 mM and 0.50 ± 0.04 mM, respectively. The catecholamines examined also exhibited a strong scavenging effect towards O2• when evaluated this property by the inhibition of nitroblue tetrazolium reduction (56-73% at 1 M concentration). A very similar capacity of O2• scavenging was monitored in the 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide spin-trapping assay. The results suggest that catecholamines tested may involve a direct effect on scavenging O2- radicals., (Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

A chemiluminescent technique was applied to determine antioxidative activities of adriamycin, farmorubicin, mitomycin C and bleomycin against superoxide anion radical (O(2)(•)) in aprotic medium. The antioxidant capacity was expressed as the decrease in light emission from the O(2)(•) solution by and antibiotic. A KO(2) solution in dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) and 18-crown-6 ether were used for the generation of O(2)(•). The results showed that the examined compounds decreased the chemiluminescence (CL) sum from the O(2)(•)-generating system in a dose-dependent manner. Among the antibiotics examined, adriamycin, farmorubicin and bleomycin exhibited antioxidant activity almost comparable to that of 1,2-dihydroxy benzene-3,5-disulphonic acid (tiron), an efficient of the O(2)(•) inhibitor. Mitomycin C was two-times less effective as tiron in decreasing the initial CL intensity. The proposed assay with usage of ultraweak CL technique and the KO(2)-DMSO-crown ether system was useful for the evaluation of antioxidant activity in aprotic solvents., (Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The tetracycline family antibiotics are widely used as human and veterinary treatments. The drugs are effective as antibiotics and also show antimicrobial and non-microbial action. However, the antioxidant properties of tetracyclines have not been characterized in aprotic media. To better understand their biological functions, the in vitro superoxide anion radical (O2•¯) scavenging activities of tetracycline, chlortetracycline, oxytetracycline, doxycycline and methacycline were characterized, along with a very efficient O2•¯ scavenger, tiron, in dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO), using ultra-weak chemiluminescence (CL). We found that tetracycline, chlortetracycline and doxycycline efficiently inhibited CL from the O2•¯-generating system at concentration levels of 0.02-1.0 mmol/L. Methacycline and oxytetracycline were the O2•¯ scavengers at concentration levels of 0.01-0.1 mmol/L, whereas when their concentration was lowered the drugs were capable of generating O2•¯, leading to CL enhancement. For all the data obtained in this study, the scavenging activity for the compounds tested decreased in the following order: tetracycline > doxycycline > chlortetracycline > tiron methacycline > oxytetracycline. These results indicate that the tetracycline drugs directly alter O2•¯ redox chemistry in aprotic media., (Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)