Ghayoor Abbas Chotana

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is a leading cause of Urinary tract infections (UTIs) worldwide. Its resistance is growing rapidly to various conventional antibiotics and poses a severe threat to global health due to growing recurrent infections, prolonged hospitalization, treatment failure, and increasing healthcare costs. The urgent need for novel antibacterial drugs with greater effectiveness has been emphasized by the rising resistance of UPEC to commonly used antibiotics, particularly sulfonamides. Nowadays, the clinical effectiveness of well-established antibacterial sulfonamide-based drugs is compromised due to widespread resistance. Therefore, structural improvement of sulfonamide via a nitro group and electron-withdrawing fluorine substituents is an excellent strategy to enhance the target-binding affinity, lipophilicity, and antibacterial activity while potentially overcoming current mechanisms of resistance. Despite this, nitro-substituted fluorinated sulfonamide derivatives have not yet been explored against MDR UPEC. In this work, a library of sixteen sulfonamide derivatives was synthesized via nucleophilic substitution reactions and characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). Broth microdilution and colony-forming unit assays were used to evaluate their antibacterial activity, and field-emission scanning electron microscopy was used to examine bacterial morphology changes. Among all compounds, 4g (nitro-substituted bis-CF3 sulfonamide) exhibited promising activity with an MIC of 125 μg/mL, demonstrating an 87.5% reduction relative to the reference sulfamethoxazole concentration of 1000 μg/mL. Structure–activity relationship analysis revealed that antibacterial performance was enhanced due to the incorporation of a nitro group and trifluoromethyl functionalities. Molecular docking studies further supported these findings, using bacterial Dihydroproteorate synthase (DHPS), compound 4g demonstrated the strongest binding affinity (-8.2 kcal/mol), approximately 10.8% higher than that of sulfamethoxazole (-7.4 kcal/mol). Overall, these findings signify that nitro-substituted tri-fluorinated sulfonamide derivatives are promising antibacterial agents and offer an appropriate platform for developing next-generation drugs for effective clinical therapies against UPEC-associated urinary tract infections.

Herein, we report the synthesis of six CF 3 -pyridyl-substituted aromatics via Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling, incorporating electronically diverse heterocyclic (pyrazine, benzothiadiazole) and homocyclic (chrysene, anthracene, pyrene, perylene) cores to systematically probe structure-property relationships. UV-Vis absorption, steady-state and time-resolved photoluminescence, electrochemical measurements, and quantum chemical calculations demonstrate that the homocyclic derivatives exhibit long fluorescence lifetimes (τ), high photoluminescence quantum yields (ɸ PL ), large dipole moment changes (Δμ), optimally aligned frontier energy levels, and backbone-delocalized charge redistribution. Among these, anthracene-based compound (H-An) shows longest τ and highest ɸ PL with strongly suppressed non-radiative decay, pyrene derivative (H-Py) displays the largest Δμ, while the perylene analogue (H-Per) demonstrate red-shifted absorption, computed high light-harvesting efficiency, minimal exciton binding energy, and the lowest hole and electron reorganization energies, highlighting their potential as bright emitter or absorber for optoelectronic applications. In contrast, the heterocyclic compounds (H-Pz and H-BTD) are weakly emissive or nearly non-emissive, indicative of dominant non-radiative relaxation pathways. Density functional and time-dependent DFT calculations reproduce the experimental trends, underscoring that strategic core engineering within the CF 3 -pyridyl framework is an effective approach for tuning optical, charge-transport, and emissive properties in organic optoelectronic materials.

Microtubules are crucial for various cellular processes, including cell division, where they form highly dynamic spindle fibers for chromosomal alignment and segregation. Interference with microtubule dynamics through microtubule targeting agents (MTAs) blocks progression through mitosis, ultimately resulting in apoptosis. Although MTAs have been effectively used as a frontline treatment for various cancers, multidrug resistance (MDR) often limits their effectiveness. This study focuses on selenadiazoles, a group of organic selenium compounds with anticancer activities. Eighteen novel 1,2,5‐selenadiazole derivatives were synthesized, three of which ( 9d , 9f , and 9i ) showed potent antiproliferative activity in HCT116 colorectal cancer cells. Treatment of cells with 9f (SSE1706), one of the most potent compounds (GI ₅₀ value of 1.89 ± 0.99 µM), disrupted mitotic spindle formation, leading to G2/M arrest. 9f inhibited microtubule polymerization in cell‐based assays, and long‐term treatment with 9f stabilized p53 and induced apoptosis. Moreover, 9f effectively inhibited the growth of mouse and human colon cancer‐derived organoids. Finally, 9f exhibited potent antiproliferative activity against MDR‐1 overexpressing KB‐V1 cells, highlighting its potential to overcome MDR. These findings suggest 9f as a lead compound for further optimization studies, particularly targeting MDR.

Three indoloquinoxaline-capped small-molecule donors are designed and synthesized. Integrated experiment-DFT analysis shows efficient electronic, optical, and charge-transfer properties, highlighting their promise for viable organic solar cells.

The NHC-Se scaffold has emerged as an intriguing target, opening new avenues for discovering compounds that could significantly improve public health. Recently, extensive efforts have been made to synthesize NHC-Se-based organic compounds for various biomedical applications. Herein, we disclose a straightforward method to access a series of new N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-derived organoselenium molecules functionalized with an amide moiety. The parent NHC-Se adduct with a pendent ester moiety is sufficiently activated to facilitate a base- and additive-free ester-to-amide bond transformation. Furthermore, the use of PEG 3550, a biocompatible solvent, enhances reaction efficiency and simplifies the workup. This approach employs a broad spectrum of aliphatic amines with good functional group tolerance, offering a versatile and ecofriendly method for extending chemical space around organoselenium compounds. Additionally, density functional theory (DFT) calculations provide insights into the electronic properties, stability, and reactivity profiles of the synthesized compounds, suggesting their promising potential for applications in biomedical fields.

An environmentally benign route for the synthesis of sulfonamides via Sulfur (VI) Fluoride Exchange (SuFEx) chemistry utilizing N‐methylimidazole, that simultaneously act as a base, precatalyst, HF by‐product scavenger, as well as solvent, is described. This one‐step sulfonamide synthesis exhibits excellent reactivity toward highly electron‐deficient and less nucleophilic anilines as well as aminopyridines while tolerating a wide range of functional groups. In addition to the desired sulfonamide target, we also isolated an ionic salt as the sole side product from the reaction mixture that has been identified as bis[1‐methyl‐1H‐imidazole‐3‐ium] hexafluorosilicate (IV). The glass surface of reaction vessel is acting as the source of silicon present in the isolated side product. Formation of hexafluorosilicate salt is also facilitating the consumption of sulfonyl fluoride for sulfonamide synthesis. Optimization of the reaction under various conditions, as well as the isolation of the bis[1‐methyl‐1H‐imidazole‐3‐ium] hexafluorosilicate (IV) salt, highlight the crucial role of N‐methylimidazole and support the glass‐assisted approach. Besides the first example of glass–assisted SuFEx catalyzed by benign organic bases, this reaction also offers an alternative route for accessing protic hexafluorosilicate‐based molten salts without employing external HF. The synthetic utility of this SuFEx route for late‐stage functionalization is also demonstrated.

Originating from the basic chalcone structure, bis-chalcones are characterized by their dual α,β-unsaturated carbonyl systems and carry a range of biological activities that include antimicrobial, antiviral, antiparasitic, antioxidant, antiproliferative, and chemical reactivities that warrant a review to cover recent progress. Thus, this review presents the significant potential demonstrated by bis-chalcones in various biological applications. For example, compounds 2.3.1 showed excellent antiparasitic activity against leishmania with good selectivity index, and compounds 2.2.1-2.2.3 showed submicromolar activity against SupT1 cells. Compound 2.6.22 stood out in its antiproliferative activity against a panel of 60 different cell lines. Compounds 2.6.4 and 2.6.9 have been shown as submicromolar noncompetitive xanthine oxidase inhibitors. We also present their recent applications in material science, for example, as photosensitizers and photoinitiators, to showcase their broader potential for innovation in both medicinal chemistry and industrial applications.

MOFs are emerging photocatalysts designed by tuning organic ligands and metal centers for optimal efficiency. In this study, a samarium decorated MOF-808(Ce) metal organic framework was fabricated by facile hydrothermal synthesis. The synthesized samarium decorated MOF-808(Ce) was characterized by using analytical techniques such as SEM, EDX, XRD and TGA to study its morphological, thermal and structural properties. SEM images showed that MOF-808(Ce) comprised of truncated octahedrons. The morphology of the material was changed upon Sm incorporation. Sm/MOF-808(Ce) exhibited better UV-vis light absorption properties than MOF-808(Ce) as evidenced by its slightly higher band gap value. This material was exploited for the degradation of the drug cefaclor from water. Cefaclor removal followed double a first order in parallel model (DFOP). Under UV light, 97.7% of the cefaclor was removed in only 20 minutes and after 60 minutes this removal efficiency was increased to 99.25%. These features exhibited that samarium decorated MOF has immense potential for the photocatalytic degradation of cefaclor as it generates e⁻ and h⁺ to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency and it is a promising candidate to treat wastewater without formation of harmful byproducts.

The growing concerns about environmental pollution, particularly water pollution, are causing an increasing alarm in modern society. One promising approach to address this issue involves engineering existing materials to enhance their effectiveness. A one-step solvothermal reconstruction approach was used to build an eco-friendly two-dimensional (2D) AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF composite. The characterizations confirm the formation of a metal–organic framework (MOF) at the layered double hydroxide (LDH) surface. The resulting synthesized material, 2D AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF, demonstrated remarkable efficacy in decontaminating methylene blue (MB), a model cationic dye found in water systems. The removal performance of 2D AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF was significantly higher than that of pristine 2D AlNiZn-LDH. This improvement shows the potential to increase the adsorption capabilities of nanoporous LDH materials by incorporating organic ligands and integrating meso-/microporosity through MOF formation on their surfaces. Furthermore, their kinetic, isothermal, and thermodynamic studies elucidated the adsorption behavior of this composite material. The results of synthesized MOF showed excellent removal efficiency (92.27%) of 10 ppm of MB aqueous solution as compared to pristine LDH. Additionally, the as-synthesized adsorbent could be regenerated for six successive cycles. This method holds promise for the synthesis of novel and highly effective materials to combat water pollution, laying the groundwork for potential advancements in diverse applications.