Publications

Abstract Antibacterial resistance poses a critical public health threat, challenging the prevention and treatment of bacterial infections. The search for innovative antibacterial agents has spurred significant interest in quaternary heteronium salts (QHSs), such as quaternary ammonium and phosphonium compounds as potential candidates. In this study, a library of 49 structurally related QHSs was synthesized, varying the cation type and alkyl chain length. Their antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, including antibiotic-resistant strains, were evaluated by determining minimum inhibitory/bactericidal concentrations (MIC/MBC) <= 64 mu g/mL. Structure-activity relationship analyses highlighted alkyl-triphenylphosphonium and alkyl-methylimidazolium salts as the most effective against S. aureus CECT 976. The length of the alkyl side chain significantly influenced the antibacterial activity, with optimal chain lengths observed between C-10 and C-14. Dose-response relationships were assessed for selected QHSs, showing dose-dependent antibacterial activity following a non-linear pattern. Survival curves indicated effective eradication of S. aureus CECT 976 by QHSs at low concentrations, particularly compounds 1e, 3e, and 5e. Moreover, in vitro human cellular data indicated that compounds 2e, 4e, and 5e showed favourable safety profiles at concentrations <= 2 mu g/mL. These findings highlight the potential of these QHSs as effective agents against susceptible and resistant bacterial strains, providing valuable insights for the rational design of bioactive QHSs.

Abstract Tolcapone is an orally active catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitor used as adjuvant therapy in Parkinson's disease. However, it has a highly hepatotoxic profile, as recognized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As a possible solution, nanoscience brought us several tools in the development of new functional nanomaterials with tunable physicochemical properties, which can be part of a solution to solve several drawbacks, including drug's short half-life and toxicity. This work aims to use PEGylated poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles as a stable carrier with lower hydrodynamic size and polydispersity to encapsulate tolcapone in order to overcome its therapeutic drawbacks. Using the nanoprecipitation method, tolcapone-loaded nanoparticles with a DLC% of 5.7% were obtained (EE% of 47.0%) and subjected to a lyophilization optimization process to obtain a final shelf-stable formulation. Six different cryoprotectants in concentrations up to 10% (w/v) were tested. A formulation of PLGA nanoparticles with 3% hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP beta CD) as a cryoprotectant (PLGA-HP@Tolc), presenting sub-200 nm sizes and low polydispersity (PdI < 0.200) was selected. Cytotoxicity assays, namely, MTT and SRB, were used to study the metabolic activity and cell density of tolcapone and PLGA-HP@Tolc-treated cells. In both assays, a hepatocarcinoma cell line (HepG2) growing in glucose or glucose-free media (galactose-supplemented medium) was used. The results demonstrated that the treatment with the PLGA-HP@Tolc formulation led to a decrease in cytotoxicity in comparison to free tolcapone-treated cells in both media tested. Moreover, the elected formulation also counteracted ATP-depletion and excessive ROS production induced by tolcapone. The results suggest that HP beta CD might have a dual function in the formulation: cryoprotectant and anticytotoxic agent, protecting cells from tolcapone-induced damage. Using an in vitro COMT inhibition assay, the PLGA-HP@Tolc formulation demonstrated to inhibit COMT as efficiently as free tolcapone. Overall, the results suggest that tolcapone-loaded PLGA NPs could be an interesting alternative to free tolcapone, demonstrating the same in vitro efficacy in inhibiting COMT but with a safer cytotoxic profile.

Abstract Nitrocatechols are the standard pharmacophore to develop potent tight-binding inhibitors of catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT), which can be used as coadjuvant drugs to manage Parkinson's disease. Tolcapone is the most potent drug of this class, but it has raised safety concerns due to its potential to induce liver damage. Tolcapone-induced hepatotoxicity has been attributed to the nitrocatechol moiety; however, other nitrocatechol-based COMT inhibitors, such as entacapone, are safe and do not damage the liver. There is a knowledge gap concerning which mechanisms and chemical properties govern the toxicity of nitrocatechol-based COMT inhibitors. Using a vast array of cell-based assays, we found that tolcapone-induced toxicity is caused by direct interference with mitochondria that does not depend on bioactivation by P450. Our findings also suggest that (a) lipophilicity is a key property in the toxic potential of nitrocatechols; (b) the presence of a carbonyl group directly attached to the nitrocatechol ring seems to increase the reactivity of the molecule, and (c) the presence of cyano moiety in double bond stabilizes the reactivity decreasing the cytotoxicity. Altogether, the fine balance between lipophilicity and the chemical nature of the C1 substituents of the nitrocatechol ring may explain the difference in the toxicological behavior observed between tolcapone and entacapone.

Abstract Catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitors (iCOMT), such as entacapone, have been successfully employed to treat tremor-related symptoms of Parkinson's disease. However, iCOMT has been associated with a short half-life and poor oral bioavailability. Nanobased drug delivery systems have often been used to overcome this type of setbacks. Therefore, entacapone was encapsulated in PEGylated poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA)-based nanoparticles (NPs) via a nanoprecipitation process, as well as in PEGylated nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) using a solvent emulsification/evaporation method. Both nanoformulations presented sub-200 nm populations, with zeta-potential (ZP) values close to -30 mV, and showed stability at different pHs, while maintaining their physicochemical properties mostly intact, presenting only a change in their superficial charge (ZP values), indicating their interaction. Both nanoformulations presented interaction with mucins, which anticipates good permeation and bioavailability for oral and topical administration. No cytotoxic effects were observed for lyophilized PLGA NPs encapsulating entacapone, in which 2-hydroxypropyl-ss-cyclodextrin (HP beta CD) was used as a cryoprotectant at 3% concentration (HP-PLGA@Ent), in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2), human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y), or human epithelial colorectal adenocarcinoma (Caco-2) cell lines. Conversely, NLCs encapsulating entacapone (W-NLCs@Ent) presented cytotoxic effects on the HepG2 cell line, likely due to intracellular lipid accumulation or storage. Both nanoformulations maintained a COMT inhibition effect in HepG2 cells, using 3-BTD as the COMT probe. An increase of entacapone permeability in both monolayer and coculture models (Caco-2 and Caco-2/HT29-MTX, respectively) was observed for the developed nanoformulations. Overall, this work shows that encapsulated entacapone in different nanocarriers could be a stimulating alternative to solve entacapone setbacks, since they improve its physicochemical properties and permeability while still maintaining the COMT inhibitory activity.