Mouse B cells lacking NFATc1 exhibit defective proliferation, survival, isotype class switching, cytokine production, and T cell help.

We have reported synthesis and vesicular assembly of a novel amphiphilic polyurethane with hydrophobic backbone and hydrophilic pendant carboxylic acid groups which were periodically grafted to the backbone via a tertiary amine group. In aqueous medium the polymer chain adopted a folded conformation which was stabilized by intrachain H-bonding among the urethane groups. Such a model was supported by concentration and solvent-dependent FT-IR, powder XRD, and urea-mediated "denaturation" experiments. Folded polymer chains further formed vesicular assembly which was probed by dynamic light scattering, TEM, AFM, SEM, and fluorescence microscopic studies, and dye encapsulation experiments. pH-dependent DLS and fluorescence microscopic studies revealed stable polymersome in entire tested pH window of 3.5-11.0. Zeta potential measurements showed a negatively charged surface in basic pH while a charge-neutral surface in neutral and acidic pH. MTT assay with CHO cell line indicated good cell viability.

The supramolecular synthon approach has been exploited to design simple salt-based supramolecular gelators derived from a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) - naproxen; one such biocompatible anti-inflammatory gelator salt was converted into a topical gel that showed excellent in vivo self-delivery application in treating imiquimod (IMQ)-induced skin inflammation in mice.

BackgroundIncreasingly, the role of chronic inflammation and its mediators in tumor generation and progression is gaining importance in the field of cancer research. In this context, candidature of non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as potential anti-tumor therapeutic agent is being evaluated globally. In the present study we have evaluated the anti-cancer effect of a series of newly synthesized naproxen derivatives on human breast cancer cell lines.MethodsMCF-7 (poorly invasive) and MDA-MB-231 (highly invasive) cells were treated with different concentrations of naproxen sodium and its derivatives in vitro, and the underlying mechanism of action was monitored by employing studies related to induction of apoptosis, activation of caspases, cell-cycle progression, synthesis of PGE2 and cellular migration.ResultsAfter a preliminary screening using MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, it was evident that naproxen derivative 4 has a better killing property compared to its parent compound naproxen sodium (NS). On further investigation, it was apparent that the observed growth inhibitory activity on MDA-MB-231 cells after treatment with 4, was not due to cell cycle arrest but due to an early induction of apoptosis and subsequent induction of caspases 3 and 9. Derivative 4 could also inhibit COX activity in MDA-MB-231 cells as evidenced by reduction in prostaglandin E2 secretion. Moreover, 4 was capable of delaying the overall migration rate of MDA-MB-231 cells in vitro.ConclusionIn this study we report that a naproxen-derivative (4) has powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties as it induces appreciable amount of apoptosis in breast cancer cell line, and can also delay migration of cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) which would in turn delay cancer cell invasion and formation of secondary tumours in primary breast cancer patients. Thus, we propose that 4 is worthy of further investigation due to its potential as a therapeutic agent in anti-tumor treatment regimen.

A well-known nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), namely, naproxen (Np), was conjugated with β-alanine and various combinations of amino alcohols and l-alanine. Quite a few bioconjugates, thus synthesized, were capable of gelling pure water, NaCl solution (0.9 wt %), and phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (pH 7.4). The hydrogels were characterized by rheology and electron microscopy. Hydrogelation was probed by FT-IR and temperature-variable (1)H NMR studies. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SXRD) of a nonhydrogelator and a hydrogelator in the series established a useful structure-property (gelation) correlation. MTT assay of the hydrogelators in the mouse macrophage RAW 264.7 cell line showed excellent biocompatibility. The prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) assay of the hydrogelators revealed their anti-inflammatory response, which was comparable to that of the parent NSAID naproxen sodium (Ns).