Identification of Interleukin-8-Reducing Lead Compounds Based on SAR Studies on Dihydrochalcone-Related Compounds in Human Gingival Fibroblasts (HGF-1 cells) In Vitro
MOLECULES
Authors: Schueller, Katharina; Hans, Joachim; Pfeiffer, Stefanie; Walker, Jessica; Ley, Jakob P.; Somoza, Veronika
Abstract
Background: In order to identify potential activities against periodontal diseases, eighteen dihydrochalcones and structurally related compounds were tested in an established biological in vitro cell model of periodontal inflammation using human gingival fibroblasts (HGF-1 cells). Methods: Subsequently to co-incubation of HGF-1 cells with a bacterial endotoxin (Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide, pgLPS) and each individual dihydrochalcone in a concentration range of 1 mu M to 100 mu M, gene expression of interleukin-8 (IL-8) was determined by qPCR and cellular interleukin-8 (IL-8) release by ELISA. Results: Structure-activity analysis based on the dihydrochalcone backbone and various substitution patterns at its aromatic ring revealed moieties 2 ' ,4,4 ' ,6 ' -tetrahydroxy 3-methoxydihydrochalcone (7) to be the most effective anti-inflammatory compound, reducing the pgLPS-induced IL-8 release concentration between 1 mu M and 100 mu M up to 94%. In general, a 2,4,6-trihydroxy substitution at the A-ring and concomitant vanilloyl (4-hydroxy-3-methoxy) pattern at the B-ring revealed to be preferable for IL-8 release inhibition. Furthermore, the introduction of an electronegative atom in the A,B-linker chain led to an increased anti-inflammatory activity, shown by the potency of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid N-vanillylamide (13). Conclusions: Our data may be feasible to be used for further lead structure designs for the development of potent anti-inflammatory additives in oral care products.
Modeling and Simulation of Temperature and Relative Humidity Inside a Growth Chamber
ENERGIES
Authors: Diaz-Florez, German; Mendiola-Santibanez, Jorge; Solis-Sanchez, Luis; Gomez-Melendez, Domingo; Terol-Villalobos, Ivan; Gutierrez-Banuelos, Hector; Araiza-Esquivel, Ma; Espinoza-Garcia, Gustavo; Garcia-Escalante, Juan; Olvera-Olvera, Carlos
Abstract
Modeling and simulation of internal variables such as temperature and relative humidity are relevant for designing future climate control systems. In this paper, a mathematical model is proposed to predict the internal variables temperature and relative humidity (RH) of a growth chamber (GCH). Both variables are incorporated in a set of first-order differential equations, considering an energy-mass balance. The results of the model are compared and assessed in terms of the coefficients of determination (R-2) and the root mean squared error (RMSE). The R-2 and RMSE computed were R-2 = 0.96, R-2 = 0.94, RMSE = 0.98 degrees C, and RMSE = 1.08 degrees C, respectively, for the temperature during two consecutive weeks; and R-2 = 0.83, R-2 = 0.81, RMSE = 5.45%RH, and RMSE = 5.48%RH, respectively, for the relative humidity during the same period. Thanks to the passive systems used to control internal conditions, the growth chamber gives average differences between inside and outside of +0.34 degrees C for temperature, and +15.7%RH for humidity without any climate control system. Operating, the GCH proposed in this paper produces 3.5 kg of wet hydroponic green forage (HGF) for each kilogram of seed (corn or barley) harvested on average.