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Biomedical subjects

O Kayser

Publications and source records attributed to O Kayser.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Antileishmanial activities of aphidicolin and its semisynthetic derivatives.

Aphidicolin and a series of semisynthetic aphidicolan derivatives have been identified in in vitro tests as novel drugs with antiparasitic potential. All compounds have been tested against extracellular promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, L. infantum, L. enriettii, and L. major and against intracellular amastigotes of L. donovani in murine macrophages. The compounds showed antileishmanial activity at concentrations in the microgram range (50% effective concentration [EC(50)] = 0.02 to 1.83 microg/ml). The most active derivative (aphidicolin-17-glycinate hydrochloride) had EC(50)s of 0. 2 microg/ml against extracellular and 0.02 microg/ml against intracellular L. donovani parasites. To validate the pharmacological potential of tested drugs, pharmacological safety was determined by testing all compounds against two neoplastic cell lines (squamous carcinoma [KB] and melanoma [SK-Mel]) and against murine bone marrow-derived macrophages as host cells. With minor exceptions only for macrophages, tested aphidicolans did not show significant cytotoxicity (EC(50) > 25.0 microg/ml). Structure-activity relationships of these aphidicolan derivatives are discussed.

Animals↗

Atovaquone nanosuspensions show excellent therapeutic effect in a new murine model of reactivated toxoplasmosis.

Immunocompromised patients are at risk of developing toxoplasma encephalitis (TE). Standard therapy regimens (including sulfadiazine plus pyrimethamine) are hampered by severe side effects. While atovaquone has potent in vitro activity against Toxoplasma gondii, it is poorly absorbed after oral administration and shows poor therapeutic efficacy against TE. To overcome the low absorption of atovaquone, we prepared atovaquone nanosuspensions (ANSs) for intravenous (i.v.) administration. At concentrations higher than 1.0 microg/ml, ANS did not exert cytotoxicity and was as effective as free atovaquone (i.e., atovaquone suspended in medium) against T. gondii in freshly isolated peritoneal macrophages. In a new murine model of TE that closely mimics reactivated toxoplasmosis in immunocompromised hosts, using mice with a targeted mutation in the gene encoding the interferon consensus sequence binding protein, i.v.-administered ANS doses of 10.0 mg/kg of body weight protected the animals against development of TE and death. Atovaquone was detectable in the sera, brains, livers, and lungs of mice by high-performance liquid chromatography. Development of TE and mortality in mice treated with 1.0- or 0.1-mg/kg i.v. doses of ANS did not differ from that in mice treated orally with 100 mg of atovaquone/kg. In conclusion, i.v. ANSs may prove to be an effective treatment alternative for patients with TE.

Animals↗

Proanthocyanidins and related compounds: antileishmanial activity and modulatory effects on nitric oxide and tumor necrosis factor-alpha-release in the murine macrophage-like cell line RAW 264.7.

A series of 17 proanthocyanidins and structurally related compounds was tested for activity against Leishmania donovani amastigotes and promastigotes in vitro. Most of the polyphenols significantly inhibited the intracellular survival of L. donovani amastigotes (EC50 0.8-10.6 nM) when compared with the antileishmanial drug Pentostam (EC50 10.6 nM), but all were inactive against the extracellular form (EC50 7.8 to >86 nM). Noteworthy is that all compounds exhibited only moderate or no cytotoxicity against the murine host cells (EC50 7.8 to >56 nM; >25 microg/ml). These polyphenols were further evaluated for immunomodulatory effects on macrophage functions, including release of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) and interferon (IFN)-like properties using several functional assays. The results showed that all compounds induced murine RAW 264.7 cells only moderately to release NO (7-26 microM) relative to the reference stimulus IFN-gamma/LPS (119 microM). The TNF-inducing potential of the polyphenols producing 50% lysis in murine L929 cells ranged from absent to 138 U/ml at the host cell subtoxic concentration of 50 microg/ml. The highest TNF-inducing activity was associated with those flavan-3-ols with galloyl groups (98-127 U/ml). For proanthocyanidins, it appeared that an increase in the flavanyl chain length did not enhance the induction of TNF-release (32-86 U/ml and below detection limits for oligomers and polymers, respectively). With interferon-like activities, phylloflavan and a prodelphinidin polymer showed appreciable cytoprotective effects, as reflected by the inhibition of the cytopathic effect of encephalomyocarditis virus on L929 fibroblast cells (38 and 36 U/ml, respectively). All remaining compounds displayed only negligible or moderate protective effects at subtoxic concentrations up to 25 microg/ml (<5 to 12 U/ml). These results indicate that proanthocyanidins and related compounds have favorable antileishmanial activity in vitro and might be considered as beneficial immunological response modifiers provided there are no bioavailability problems.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

In vitro leishmanicidal activity of monomeric and dimeric naphthoquinones.

A series of monomeric and dimeric naphthoquinones with potential for treatment of Leishmania infections was identified in vitro using both a direct cytotoxicity assay against extracellular promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, L. infantum, L. enriettii, and L. major and a test against intracellular amastigote L. donovani residing within murine macrophages. Several naphthoquinones proved to be active at concentrations in the microgram range (EC(50) 0.9-17.0 microg/ml). When tested against a panel of human cancer cell lines (KB, SKMel, A549, MDA) and murine bone marrow culture-derived macrophages (BMMPhi) as mammalian host cell controls, compounds with anti-Leishmania-activity showed moderate (EC(50)>25 microg/ml) to pronounced (EC(50)<10 microg/ml) toxic effects.

Animals↗

In vitro leishmanicidal activity of monomeric and dimeric naphthoquinones.

A series of monomeric and dimeric naphthoquinones with potential for treatment of Leishmania infections was identified in vitro using both a direct cytotoxicity assay against extracellular promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, Leishmania infanturn, Leishmania enriettii, and Leishmania major and a test against intracellular amastigote L. donovani residing within murine macrophages. Several naphthoquinones proved to be active at concentrations in the microgram range (EC(50) 0.9-17.0 microg/ml). When tested against a panel of human cancer cell lines (KB, SKMel, A549, MDA) and murine bone marrow culture-derived macrophages (BMMPhi) as mammalian host cell controls, compounds with anti-Leishmania-activity showed moderate (EC(50)>25 microg/ml) to pronounced (EC(50)<10 microg/ml) toxic effects.

Animals↗

Nanosuspensions of poorly soluble drugs--reproducibility of small scale production.

The major problem of many newly developed pharmaceutical drugs is their poor solubility in water and simultaneously in organic media. To solve these problems formulation as nanosuspensions is an attractive alternative. During the drug development process screening for an optimal formulation by homogenisation is essential. Time and cost effective production in an initial phase of R&D can be conducted on lab scale by using the Micron Lab 40 in its discontinuous version. In this report reproducibility of small scale production parameters (particle size, size distribution, content of microparticles) was exemplary studied for the drug RMKP22.

Morpholines↗

Nanosuspensions as a new approach for the formulation for the poorly soluble drug tarazepide.

Poorly soluble drugs are often a challenging problem in drug formulation, especially when the drug is not soluble in either aqueous media or organic solvents. Attempts to overcome the solubility problem are, e.g. solubilisation with mixed micelles or forming a complex using cyclodextrines, but these approaches are of limited success. Another problem with new high potential drug is that these drugs often show bioavailability problems. One tried to improve the in vivo performance of poorly soluble drugs by reducing the particles size of the drug thus leading to an increased surface area and an increased dissolution velocity (Müller et al., 1994, 1999). Some of these problems occurred with tarazepide and therefore it was tried to create a formulation with this drug as nanosuspension which is suitable for intravenous administration.

Benzodiazepines↗

Heavy metal contamination of nanosuspensions produced by high-pressure homogenisation.

High pressure homogenisation is a method for the production of nanosuspensions. In this process crystalline drug particles are pressed with high pressure through a narrow homogenisation gap. Due to the conditions in the gap it seems possible that metal erosion can occur. In this study the heavy metal (Fe) contamination of nanosuspensions produced by high pressure homogenisation was determined. Therefore nanosuspensions were analysed by atom absorption spectroscopy concerning their load of iron which is chosen as reference metal. The results show that the erosion of metal is below 1 ppm and will not cause any toxicological problems.

Calibration↗

Nanosuspensions for the formulation of aphidicolin to improve drug targeting effects against leishmania infected macrophages.

A series of labdans and their derivatives have been identified as novel potential antileishmanial drugs using an in vitro test system against extracellular promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes of Leishmania donovani in murine macrophages (Kayser, O., Kiderlen, A.F., 1998. In vitro activity of leishmanicidal labdanes and related compounds. Proceedings of the Ninth International Congress of Parasitology, Monduzi Editore, Bologna, 925-929). Of these compounds, aphidicolin, a tetradecanhydro-3,9-dihydroxy-4,11b-dimethyl-8, 11a-methano-11aH-cyclo-hepta[a]naphthalin-4,9-dimethanol+ ++ (Fig. 1), was shown to be highly active at concentrations in the microgram range (EC(50) = 0.16 microg/ml). To improve drug targeting effects aphidicolin was formulated as nanosuspension and retested for its enhanced activity (EC(50) = 0.003 microg/ml).

Animals↗

New trichothecenes isolated from Holarrhena floribunda.

Bioassay-guided fractionation of an extract of Holarrhena floribunda stem, has led to the isolation of the new trichothecenes, 8-dihydrotrichothecinol A (1), loukacinol A (2), and loukacinol B (3), and the known compounds, trichothecolone (4), trichothecin (5), trichothecinol A (6), rosenonolactone (7), 6beta-hydroxyrosenonolactone (8), and rosololactone (9). The structures were determined by spectral and chemical methods, and absolute configurations were established by a modified Horeau's method using HPLC. Compounds 1 and 6 exhibited significant cytotoxicity against several human tumor cell lines, whereas compound 8 showed moderate and weak antileishmanial activity toward extracellular and intracellular Leishmania donovani, respectively.

Animals↗

Antimicrobial, antitumor and antileishmania screening of medicinal plants from Guinea-Bissau.

Following an ethnobotanical search carried out in Guinea-Bissau, eighteen extracts derived from sixteen medicinal species were screened for antimicrobial, antitumor and antileishmania activity. Significant antitumor activity was found for Holarrhena floribunda against KB (squamous carcinoma), SK-Mel 28 (melanoma), A 549 (lung carcinoma) and MDA-MB 231 (mamma carcinoma) cell lines, with corresponding IC50 values of 7.9, 9.0, 3.4 and 9.9 micrograms/ml. Khaya senegalensis and Anthostema senegalense exhibited a significant activity against Leishmania donovani with IC50 values of 9.8 and 9.1 micrograms/ml, respectively. Most of the extracts showed week or moderate antibacterial and antifungal activity, with MIC values in the range 0.25-1.0 mg/ml. Active extracts were submitted to bioassay-guided fractionation, and the IC50 and MIC of the active fractions were determined.

Animals↗

In vitro leishmanicidal activity of aurones.

A series of aurones with drug-potential for Leishmania infections was identified in vitro using both a direct cytotoxicity assay against extracellular promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, L. infantum, L. enriettii, and L. major, and a test against intracellular amastigote forms of L. donovani residing within murine macrophages. The most active aurone (6-hydroxy-2-[phenylmethylene]-3(2H)-benzofuranone) had an EC50 of 0.45 microgram/ml in the extra-, and an EC50 of 1.40 micrograms/ml in the intracellular assay. Other aurones were active between 0.06-12.50 micrograms/ml and 0.04-7.81 micrograms/ml, respectively. When tested against murine bone marrow-derived macrophages as a mammalian host cell control, the compounds showed only moderate cytotoxicity (EC50 2.32 to > 25.0 micrograms/ml). This is the first report on aurones as a new class of natural products with leishmanicidal activity.

Animals↗

Evaluation of the antimicrobial potency of tannins and related compounds using the microdilution broth method.

The antimicrobial activity of a total of 27 tannins and related compounds was evaluated against 8 microorganisms, including 2 Gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus), 4 Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis), and 2 yeasts (Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans). The compounds tested were generally found to possess only weak to moderate antibacterial, but fairly high anticryptococcal activities. Attention is given to structure-activity relationships with emphasis on simple galloyl esters, hydrolyzable tannins and proanthcyanidins among this class of secondary products.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Leishmanicidal activity of aurones.

This is the first report on aurones as a new class of natural products with leishmanicidal activity. A series of aurones with drug-potential for Leishmania infections was identified in vitro using both a direct cytotoxicity test against extracellular promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, L. infantum, L. enriettii, and L. major, and a test against intracellular amastigote L. donovani residing within murine macrophages. The compounds proved to be active at concentrations in the microgram range between 0.4 and 5.0 microg/ml. When tested against murine bone marrow-derived macrophages as a mammalian host cell control, all compounds showed only moderate cytotoxicity (EC50 2.32-25.0 microg/ml).

Animals↗

Antibacterial activity of extracts and constituents of Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium reniforme.

The antibacterial activity of extracts and isolated constituents (scopoletin, umckalin, 5,6,7-trimethoxycoumarin, 6,8-dihydroxy-5,7-dimethoxycoumarin, (+)-catechin, gallic acid and its methyl ester) of Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium reniforme (Geraniaceae), plant species used in folk medicine by the Southern African native population, was evaluated against 8 microorganisms, including 3 Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and beta-hemolytic Streptococcus 1451) and 5 Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Haemophilus influenzae). Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) varied with the preparation of the extracts and microorganisms tested, from about 0.6 mg/ml for aqueous phases to over 10 mg/ml for crude Pelargonium extracts. With the exception of the ineffective (+)-catechin, all the potentially active compounds exhibited antibacterial activities with MICs of 200-1000 micrograms/ml. The results provide for a rational basis of the traditional use of the titled Pelargonium species.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗