Lactobacillihave been shown to promote health functions. In this study, we analyzed the mechanism by which four different strains of probiotics affected innate immunity, such as regulation of ROS, cytokines, phagocytosis, bactericidal activity, signaling by NF-κB pp65, and TLR2 activation. The production of ROS was dependent on the concentration and species ofLactobacillus. The results obtained from the tested strains (Lactobacillus rhamnosusGG,L. rhamnosusKLSD,L. helveticusIMAU70129, andL. caseiIMAU60214) showed that strains induced early proinflammatory cytokines such as IL-8,TNF-α, IL-12p70, and IL-6. However, IL-1βexpression was induced only byL. helveticusandL. caseistrains (after 24 h stimulation). Phagocytosis and bactericidal activity of macrophages against various pathogens, such asS. aureus,S. typhimurium, andE. coli, were increased by pretreatment withLactobacillus. The nuclear translocation NF-κB pp65 and TLR2-dependent signaling were also increased by treatment with the probiotics. Taken together, the experiments demonstrate that probiotic strains ofLactobacillusexert early immunostimulatory effects that may be directly linked to the initial inflammation of the response of human macrophages.

A possible inhibitor of proteases, which contains an indole core and an aromatic polar acetylene, was designed and synthesized. This indole derivative has a molecular architecture kindred to biologically relevant species and was obtained through five synthetic steps with an overall yield of 37% from the 2,2′-(phenylazanediyl)di(ethan-1-ol). The indole derivative was evaluated through docking assays using the main protease (SARS-CoV-2-M^pro) as a molecular target, which plays a key role in the replication process of this virus. Additionally, the indole derivative was evaluated as an inhibitor of the enzyme kallikrein 5 (KLK5), which is a serine protease that can be considered as an anticancer drug target.

Excellent quadratic non-linear optical (ONL-2) properties of the poly(2,5-bis(but-2-ynyloxy) benzoate, containing a polar diacetylene as a chromophore, were found. According with the Maker fringes method, oriented polymer films showing an order parameter of ∼0.23 can display outstanding and stable Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) effects under off-resonant conditions (SHG-532 nm). Also, the macroscopic non-linear optical (NLO)-coefficients were evaluated under the rod-like molecular approximation, obtaining: χ_zzz⁽²⁾ and χ_zxx⁽²⁾ in the order of 280 ± 10 and 100 ± 10 pm V⁻¹, respectively. The mechanical and chemical properties, in addition to the large ONL-2 coefficients exhibited by this polymer, make it a promising organic material in the development of optoelectronic/photonic devices.

The new polyheterocyclic compound, 2-benzyl-7-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-morpholino-6-((1-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methyl)-6,7-dihydro-5H-pyrrolo[3,4-b]pyridin-5-one, was synthesized by a sequential combination of 4-chlorobenzaldehyde, (1-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methanamine, 2-isocyano-1-morpholino-3-phenylpropan-1-one, and maleic anhydride under a microwave-assisted one-pot process [Ugi-Zhu/aza Diels-Alder cycloaddition/N-acylation/decarboxylation/dehydration] with a 28% overall yield. The synthesized compound was fully characterized by 1D (¹H, ¹³C) and 2D (COSY, HSQC, and HMBC) NMR, FT-IR, and HRMS.