Editorial Material
Biology
Marco d'Ischia
PHYSICS OF LIFE REVIEWS
(2020)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Marco d'Ischia, Alessandra Napolitano, Alessandro Pezzella, Paul Meredith, Markus Buehler
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2020)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Maria Laura Alfieri, Lucia Panzella, Marco d'Ischia, Alessandra Napolitano
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Federica Moccia, Alessandra Piscitelli, Samuele Giovando, Paola Giardina, Lucia Panzella, Marco d'Ischia, Alessandra Napolitano
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Manuel Reali, Anthony Camus, Guillaume Beaulieu, Jordan De Angelis, Christian Pellerin, Alessandro Pezzella, Clara Santato
Summary: Eumelanin, a macromolecular biopigment, shows promising potential for sustainable organic electronics. The structure-property relationships in eumelanin films were investigated through spin coating processes in different environmental conditions, revealing that the morphological changes are due to a combination of self-assembly and polymerization processes. Preliminary electrical measurements were conducted on the films to further explore their technological potential.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2021)
Article
Dermatology
Maria Grazia Ferraro, Marialuisa Piccolo, Alessandro Pezzella, Fabrizia Guerra, Francesco Maione, Gian Carlo Tenore, Rita Santamaria, Carlo Irace, Ettore Novellino
Summary: Melanocytes play a crucial role in pigment synthesis, transportation, and release, with various factors modulating their activity. Research on a nutraceutical preparation based on Annurca Apples showed a significant pro-melanogenic effect on human primary melanocytes, indicating potential for treating pigmentation disorders.
CLINICAL COSMETIC AND INVESTIGATIONAL DERMATOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biophysics
Giulio Pota, Anna Zanfardino, Michela Di Napoli, Domenico Cavasso, Mario Varcamonti, Gerardino D'Errico, Alessandro Pezzella, Giuseppina Luciani, Giuseppe Vitiello
Summary: In this study, a hydrothermal in-situ synthetic approach was proposed for the preparation of hybrid Melanin-TiO2 nanoparticles in the presence of PVA. The combination of TEM, XRD, TG/DSC, EPR, and DLS techniques was used to evaluate the role of PVA in the formation and characteristics of the hybrids. Antibacterial tests demonstrated the biocidal activity of PVA/Melanin-TiO2 nanoparticles against E. coli bacterial cultures.
COLLOIDS AND SURFACES B-BIOINTERFACES
(2021)
Review
Biology
Marco D'Ischia, Paola Manini, Zita Martins, Laurent Remusat, Conel M. O'D Alexander, Cristina Puzzarini, Vincenzo Barone, Raffaele Saladino
Summary: An interdisciplinary review explores the Primordial Multifunctional organic Entity (PriME) scenario for the origin of life, suggesting that Insoluble Organic Matter (IOM) in carbonaceous chondrites may have played a crucial role in metabolism, compartmentalization, and replication. The structural and physicochemical similarities between IOM and melanin polymers found in microorganisms may provide insights for a novel scenario at the origin of life.
PHYSICS OF LIFE REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Maria L. Alfieri, Alice Cariola, Lucia Panzella, Alessandra Napolitano, Marco d'Ischia, Luca Valgimigli, Orlando Crescenzi
Summary: This study provides evidence for the addition mechanism of thiol compounds to quinones and discovers an anomalous 1,6-type regiochemistry compared to the usual 1,4-nucleophilic addition. These findings would prompt a revision of the commonly accepted mechanisms for thiol-quinone conjugation and stimulate further research in this field.
JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Vincent Ball, Maria Laura Alfieri, Kevin Ziegler, Youri Arntz, Marco d'Ischia
Summary: The deposition efficiency and electrochemical properties of coatings obtained from different benzenediols were compared. Resorcinol showed higher deposition efficiency compared to catechol, while hydroquinone did not form detectable coating. Catechol and hydroquinone exhibited reversible electrochemical properties, while resorcinol displayed an irreversible process. The results provide insights for future studies on coating design and tailoring.
SURFACES AND INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ugo D'Amora, Alessandra Soriente, Alfredo Ronca, Stefania Scialla, Martina Perrella, Paola Manini, Jun Wei Phua, Christoph Ottenheim, Rocco Di Girolamo, Alessandro Pezzella, Maria Grazia Raucci, Luigi Ambrosio
Summary: An optimized extraction protocol for eumelanins from black soldier flies was used to study natural eumelanin pigments and develop sustainable scaffolds. Based on methacrylated hyaluronic acid and BSF-Eumel, 3D printed scaffolds exhibited favorable physico-chemical, mechanical, and biological properties to support the growth and differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Anna Mariano, Ines Fasolino, Nikita Bhupesh Dinger, Claudia Latte Bovio, Irene Bonadies, Alessandro Pezzella, Luigi Ambrosio, Maria Grazia Raucci, Francesca Santoro
Summary: During neural system development, neurons respond to cues found in the brain's environment, and these cues have been used in neural tissue engineering to create scaffolds that can guide neuronal behavior. Anisotropic aligned fibers, mimicking natural fiber structures, have proven effective in promoting cell alignment and neuronal differentiation. Melanins, including eumelanin, possess beneficial properties and have been used as coatings. Aligned poly(lactic acid) fibers coated with eumelanin promote cell alignment, morphology, and maturation of neuroblastoma cells.
ADVANCED MATERIALS INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Brigida Silvestri, Paolo Armanetti, Giulio Pota, Giuseppe Vitiello, Alessandro Pezzella, Luca Menichetti, Vincenzo Giannini, Giuseppina Luciani
Summary: Photoacoustics is an increasingly recognized biomolecular imaging technique due to its non-invasiveness, deep penetration, high spatial resolution, and excellent endogenous contrast. Recent research has shown that a self-structured biocompatible nanoprobe, consisting of ternary hybrid nanoparticles with a silver core and a melanin component embedded into a silica matrix, exhibits excellent photoacoustic response. The interaction between eumelanin and silver is found to play an important role in the in situ-generated metal-organic interface. By systematically varying the metal/melanin component, the stability and intensity of the photoacoustic response can be tuned for various biomedical and theranostic applications.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Fabio Mocerino, Alessandro Pezzella, Ugo Caruso
Summary: A novel dihydroxyindole derivative with metal chelation properties was achieved by introducing the 2-amino-6-methylbenzothiazole chromophore at the carboxyl group of the melanin precursor. The interaction of the new amide derivative with metal ions was systematically investigated for potential use in charge storage systems, and the stoichiometry of the zinc-amide complex was determined in comparison with the parent 2-carboxy-5,6-dihydroxyindole.
Article
Polymer Science
Maria Laura Alfieri, Federica Moccia, Gerardino D'Errico, Lucia Panzella, Marco d'Ischia, Alessandra Napolitano
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Faiza Diaba, Gisela Trenchs
Summary: The first violet light-mediated synthesis of gamma- and delta-lactams from N-alkenyl trichloroacetamides is reported in this paper. The reactions are conducted in tetrahydrofuran or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran as the sole solvent without catalysts or additives, under non-anhydrous conditions in an air atmosphere where the solvent serves as the radical initiator.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Feroze Hussain, Sajjad Ahmed, Ashiq Hussain Padder, Qazi Naveed Ahmed
Summary: This study reports a novel and efficient one-pot synthesis method for mixed phosphorotrithioates, which does not require supplementary additives and shows broad applicability.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Hyunjin Oh, Ikyon Kim
Summary: A new 1,2,4-triazole-pyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazine hybrid system, 6-acylpyrrolo[1,2-a][1,2,4]triazolo[5,1-c]pyrazine, was synthesized using a catalyst-free method. This method involved sequential exposure of pyrrole-2-carbonitrile-derived substrates to DMF-DMA and acyl hydrazide, resulting in the formation of acylated pyrazine and 1,2,4-triazole rings, enabling the installation of various substituents at specific positions on the core skeleton.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Ming Yan, Si-fan Wang, Yong-po Zhang, Jin-zhong Zhao, Zhuo Tang, Guang-xun Li
Summary: Here we developed an efficient photocatalytic approach for the convenient preparation of sulfinamides. The reaction allows for the gram-scale preparation of sulfinamides and the one-pot synthesis of various sulfonyl amides.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Farzaneh Bandehali-Naeini, Zahra Tanbakouchian, Noushin Farajinia-Lehi, Nicolas Mayer, Morteza Shiri, Martin Breugst
Summary: Two tandem catalytic systems were developed for the synthesis of novel 3,4-disubstituted maleimides using the same Ugi adducts. Different maleimide structures can be synthesized using either Pd or Cu catalysis.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Tanya Raghava, Anjan Chattopadhyay, Subhadeep Banerjee, Nivedita Sarkar
Summary: Amine substitution of two ortho fluorine atoms of tetrafluoroterephthalonitrile through SNAr chemistry is easily achievable. But further fluorine substitution is only possible under forcing conditions, yielding valuable fluorophores for bioimaging.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
Review
Chemistry, Organic
Anju Chadha, Santosh Kumar Padhi, Selvaraj Stella, Sowmyalakshmi Venkataraman, Thangavelu Saravanan
Summary: Alcohol dehydrogenases are enzymes that use cofactors for oxidation or reduction reactions of alcohols or carbonyl compounds. They are utilized in green chemistry and have applications in the production of pharmaceuticals. Recombinant enzymes have solved the challenge of producing purified enzymes in large quantities. Engineered alcohol dehydrogenases have been used in asymmetric synthesis in industry. Various methods have been established for regenerating expensive cofactors to make the enzymatic process more efficient and economically viable.
ORGANIC & BIOMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY
(2024)
