Highlighting the processing versatility of a silicon phthalocyanine derivative for organic thin-film transistors

Silicon phthalocyanine (SiPc) derivatives have recently emerged as promising materials for n-type organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) with the ability to be fabricated either by solid state or solution processes through...

The use of a mouthwash and a dentifrice containing antimicrobial phthalocyanine derivative on the reduction of clinical symptoms of COVID-19: A randomized triple-blinded clinical trial

PurposeThis clinical trial aimed to evaluate the use of a mouthwash and a dentifrice containing antimicrobial phthalocyanine derivative (APD) on the reduction of clinical symptoms in COVID-19 patients.MethodsThis randomized triple-blinded clinical trial enrolled 500 patients aged 18 years or older submitted to COVID-19 test by nasopharyngeal swab RT-qPCR in a reference center for the diagnosis of COVID-19, had no clinical contraindications to perform mouthwash and gargle, and had access to cell phone with communication application. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to use a mouthwash, and a dentifrice both containing antimicrobial phthalocyanine derivative (APD Group) or Non-APD (Control Group). All participants were instructed to floss twice a day, toothbrushing during 2 minutes/three times a day, and for gargling/rising (5ml) during 1 minute/three times a day for 7 days. An online questionnaire was sent to collect the clinical symptoms of COVID-19 in three times: T0 (baseline - before using the oral hygiene products); T3 (three days after); and T7 (seven days after). The investigators, patients, and outcomes assessor were blinded to group assignment. Mann-Whitney test, Chi-Square test, Exact Fisher test, and Cochran’s test were used according to the nature of the variables studied, with the level of significance set at P < 0.05.ResultsNo statistically significant difference was found in the prevalence of symptoms between the groups at baseline. A statistically significant reduction of clinical symptoms was found in the Control Group (fatigue, shortness of breath, hoarse voice, sore throat, nasal congestion, and chest pain) and in APD Group (cough, fatigue, shortness of breath, hyposmia/anosmia, dysgeusia, hoarse voice, sore throat, nasal congestion, chest pain, diarrhea and irritability/confusion) during the follow-up period. There were statistically significant differences with a higher symptoms’ prevalence for the Control Group at T3 and T7. Dysgeusia, sore throat, irritability/confusion was less prevalent at the APD Group at T3, and shortness of breath, hyposmia/anosmia, dysgeusia, hoarse voice, sore throat, diarrhea, and irritability/confusion were more prevalent in the Control Group at T7.ConclusionsBased on methodology, the results demonstrated that the regular use of mouthwash and dentifrice containing APD had a positive impact on the clinical symptoms reported by COVID-19 patients.

Beneficial effects of a mouthwash containing an antiviral phthalocyanine derivative on the length of hospital stay for COVID-19: randomised trial

The risk of contamination and dissemination by SARS-CoV-2 has a strong link with nasal, oral and pharyngeal cavities. Recently, our research group observed the promising performance of an anionic phthalocyanine derivative (APD) used in a mouthwash protocol without photoexcitation; this protocol improved the general clinical condition of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. The present two-arm study evaluated in vitro the antiviral activity and cytotoxicity of APD. Additionally, a triple-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted with 41 hospitalized patients who tested positive for COVID-19. All the included patients received World Health Organization standard care hospital treatment (non-intensive care) plus active mouthwash (experimental group AM/n = 20) or nonactive mouthwash (control group NAM/n = 21). The adjunct mouthwash intervention protocol used in both groups consisted one-minute gargling/rinsing / 5 times/day until hospital discharge. Groups were compared considering age, number of comorbidities, duration of symptoms prior admission and length of hospital stay (LOS). The associations between group and sex, age range, presence of comorbidities, admission to Intensive care unit (ICU) and death were also evaluated. The in vitro evaluation demonstrated that APD compound was highly effective for reduction of SARS-CoV-2 viral load in the 1.0 mg/mL (99.96%) to 0.125 mg/mL (92.65%) range without causing cytotoxicity. Regarding the clinical trial, the median LOS of the AM group was significantly shortened (4 days) compared with that of the NAM group (7 days) (p = 0.0314). Additionally, gargling/rinsing with APD was very helpful in reducing the severity of symptoms (no ICU care was needed) compared to not gargling/rinsing with APD (28.6% of the patients in the NAM group needed ICU care, and 50% of this ICU subgroup passed way, p = 0.0207). This study indicated that the mechanical action of the protocol involving mouthwash containing a compound with antiviral effects against SARS-CoV-2 may reduce the symptoms of the patients and the spread of infection. The use of APD in a mouthwash as an adjuvant the hospital COVID-19 treatment presented no contraindication and reduced the hospital stay period.Trial registration: The clinical study was registered at REBEC—Brazilian Clinical Trial Register (RBR-58ftdj).

Toothbrushing with a dentifrice containing antimicrobial phthalocyanine derivative for the intraoral reduction of viral load of SARS-CoV-2: a pilot study

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the toothbrushing with a dentifrice containing antimicrobial phthalocyanine derivative (APD) for the intraoral reduction of viral load of SARS-CoV-2.Material and methods: Twenty COVID-19 positive dentate patients were selected and toothbrushes with a dentifrice containing APD for 2 minutes. Self-collected samples of unstimulated saliva were carried out three times: T0 (baseline, before toothbrushing), T5 (5 minutes after toothbrushing), and T30 (30 minutes after toothbrushing). The analysis of RNA viral was performed by RT-PCR using TaqPath™ COVID-19 multiplex Real-Time RT-PCR test for detection of three viral genes (ORF1ab, N and S genes). Evaluation of the effects was based on difference in cycle threshold (Ct) value. Friedman's test and pairwise comparison with Bonferroni corrections were used, with a significance level of 5%. Results: The Ct values were significantly higher (p=0.020) at T30 in comparison to T0 and T5. The greatest difference in the Ct values was between T30 and T0 (3.83). Conclusion: This pilot study suggests that oral hygiene action associated with an antimicrobial chemical dentifrice may be an important tool for SARS-CoV2 viral load reduction in oral cavity.

Virucidal activity of the antiseptic mouthwash and dental gel containing anionic phthalocyanine derivative: in vitro study

Aim: This research suggested an in vitro virucidal action of a dental gel and a mouthwash with phthalocyanine derivative.Purpose: The aim of this study was to report an in vitro study evaluating the virucidal capacity of mouthwash and dental gel containing anionic phtalocyanine derivate (APD).Methods: The research followed the recommendations of the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) and adapted methodology, described in the standards EN14776: 2015; ASTM E1053-11 and the Robert Koch Institute - RKI, in addition to Good Laboratory Practices (GLP). The determination of the percentage of inactivation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus particles was carried out by imposing the viral solution in contact with the respective tested products, with intervals of 30 seconds, 1 and 5 minutes, with subsequent submission of the aliquots, recovered in cell culture microplates following virus titration using the TCID50 (50% Median Tissue Culture Infectious Dose).Results: The Mouthwash APD presented 90% of viral inactivation percentage while the dental gel APD demonstrated 99.99% of viral inactivation.Conclusion: In vitro analyzes showed that mouthwash and dental gel APD can reduce the viability of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles.

Beneficial effects of a mouthwash containing an antiviral phthalocyanine derivative on the length of hospital stay for COVID-19: Randomised trial

Background: The risk of contamination and dissemination by SARS-CoV-2 has a strong link with nasal, oral and pharyngeal cavities. Recently, our research group observed the promising performance of an anionic phthalocyanine derivative (APD) used in a mouthwash protocol without photoexcitation; this protocol improved the general clinical condition of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. Methods: The present two-arm study evaluated in vitro the antiviral activity and cytotoxicity of APD. Additionally, a triple-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted with 41 hospitalized patients who tested positive for COVID-19. All the included patients received World Health Organization standard care hospital treatment (non-intensive care) plus active mouthwash (experimental group AM/n=20) or nonactive mouthwash (control group NAM/n=21). The adjunct mouthwash intervention protocol used in both groups consisted one-minute gargling/rinsing / 5 times/day until hospital discharge. Groups were compared considering age, number of comorbidities, duration of symptoms prior admission and length of hospital stay (LOS). The associations between group and sex, age range, presence of comorbidities, admission to Intensive care unit (ICU) and death were also evaluated. Results: The in vitro evaluation demonstrated that APD compound was highly effective for reduction of SARS-CoV-2 viral load in the 1.0 mg/mL (99.96%) to 0.125 mg/mL (92.65%) range without causing cytotoxicity. Regarding the clinical trial, the median LOS of the AM group was significantly shortened (4 days) compared with that of the NAM group (7 days) (p=0.0314). Additionally, gargling/rinsing with APD was very helpful in reducing the severity of symptoms (no ICU care was needed) compared to not gargling/rinsing with APD (28.6% of the patients in the NAM group needed ICU care, and 50% of this ICU subgroup passed way, p=0.0207). Conclusions: This study indicated that the mechanical action of the protocol involving mouthwash containing a compound with antiviral effects against SARS-CoV-2 may reduce the symptoms of the patients and the spread of infection. The use of APD in a mouthwash as an adjuvant the hospital COVID-19 treatment presented no contraindication and reduced the hospital stay period. Trial Registration: The clinical study was registered at REBEC - Brazilian Clinical Trial Register (RBR-58ftdj) in 10/28/2020.

A versatile heterogeneous photocatalyst: nanoporous gold powder modified with a zinc(II) phthalocyanine derivative for singlet oxygen [4 + 2] cycloadditions

Nanoporous gold was functionalized with a photosensitizer, a zinc(II) phthalocyanine derivative. Such systems are active for the generation of reactive singlet oxygen which can be used for photocatalytic oxidation reactions. This study aims to demonstrate the versatility of such an approach, in terms of substrates and the employed solvent, only possible for a truly heterogeneous catalytic system. The activity of the hybrid system was studied for [4 + 2] cycloadditions of three different types of dienes and a total of eight substrates in two organic solvents and once in water. The highest activity was measured for 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran, which is also highest in terms of sensitivity for the reaction with 1O2. Trends in conversion could be anticipated based on reported values for the rate constant for the reaction of 1O2. In almost all cases, an amplification of the conversion by immobilization of the sensitizer onto nanoporous gold was observed. The limiting case was ergosterol, which was the largest of all substrates with a van-der-Waals radius of about 2.1 nm. Additional factors such as the limited lifetime of 1O2 in different solvents as well as the hampered diffusion of the substrates were identified. Graphic abstract