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Two new labdane diterpenoids, namely hedycoronals A and B (1 and 2, resp.), were isolated from the rhizomes of Hedychium coronarium, together with eight known diterpenoids, 4-11, and a known diarylheptanoid, 3. The structures of 1 and 2 were established by detailed interpretation of their 1D- and 2D-NMR spectra and HR-ESI-MS data. Inhibitory activities against human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUMECs) proliferation and cytotoxic activities against four cancer cell lines were assessed for all the isolates. Most of these metabolites showed moderate or potent cytotoxic activities against four cancer cell lines. Moreover, compounds 3 and 8 exhibited promising inhibitory activities against HUMECs with the IC(50) values of 6.4 to 3.3 μM.

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This paper presents the synthesis and characterization of two series of polymeric compounds comprising eight furan‐based polyamides prepared via melt polycondensation at low temperatures using various combinations of five aromatic raw materials. The chemical and physical structures and thermal stabilities of the obtained polyamides were investigated by various characterization methods. In addition, the polyamides were subjected to solubility testing in five common organic solvents. The results showed that the proposed furan‐based polyamides possessed thermal stabilities similar to those of conventional high‐performance aromatic polyamides, but with greatly improved solubility. Accordingly, the introduction of furan groups increased the solubility of the polyamides with respect to the solubility of their individual precursors, which is highly advantageous for subsequent polyamide processing and expanding their range of potential applications.

The structure of Escherichia coli chaperonin GroEL was studied using various experimental tools. Such studies produced information about its structure with increasing details. Moreover, remarkable advances in experimental methods provided a step forward in understanding the reaction cycle involved in GroEL-mediated protein folding. In the current review we summarize recent progress, focus on the structure of GroEL and understand the mechanism involved in GroEL-mediated protein folding. This review is divided into the following sections: (i) Section 1 provides basic understanding on protein folding, (ii) Section 2 not only describes various tools used to elucidate the structural aspects of GroEL but also provides details about its structure with particular emphasis, (iii) Section 3 describes allosteric transitions and the reaction cycle involved in GroEL-mediated protein folding, (iv) Section 4 explains iterative annealing and smoothing of the energy landscape model and finally (v) Section 5 discusses applications and recent progress.