Turel Group and Rhenium
Our main focus is still on ruthenium complexes; however, in recent years we have also started to explore rhenium [1–3]. Historically, rhenium primarily served as a chemical analogue for technetium, as it has similar chemistry and stable isotopes. This allowed researchers to study technetium-based radiopharmaceuticals without the risks and limitations associated with radioactive materials. In […]
Fighting the SARS-CoV-2 Virus with Zinc Compounds
Over the past two and a half years, the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has greatly affected all of our lives. In addition to the rapid development and approval of various vaccines, research has also been conducted on therapeutic options to treat the COVID-19 disease. Oral medications that patients could simply use at home are especially desirable. We […]
Krka Grand Prize
Every year the well-established Slovenian pharmaceutical company Krka opens the call for applications for the Krka Prize contest. This year a record number of 114 undergraduate and postgraduate students responded to the call and among them 5 Krka Grand Prizes for special research achievements, 25 Krka Prizes and 44 Krka Prizes with special recognition were […]
Successful end of »coronavirus« year 2020 and start of a new one in Turel group
Although coronavirus is still limiting and regulating our daily lives as well as affecting research activities, several positive things worth mentioning happened in our group in the last months of 2020. In October 2020, a new PhD student (junior researcher) Simona Gričar has started her doctoral studies under the supervision of assist. prof. Jakob Kljun. […]
Metal based compounds as drugs against many diseases
People were using metals and metal compounds for the treatment of various diseases for millennia. Nowadays chemists rationally synthesise metal complexes with the aim to use them in medical practice. Without any doubt, the most well-known drug of this type is cisplatin which is a famous anticancer drug. In our labs the most efforts were […]
Ruthenium anticancer complexes. Looking for possible targets and further insights into the mechanisms of action.
This year we have continued with research on versatile ruthenium compounds and several publications were successfully published. Promising research on pyrithione complexes was continued within doctoral study of Jerneja Kladnik. Several novel pyrithione analogues were prepared and characterized, extensive biological tests were performed in the cooperation with dr. I. Romero-Canelón (University of Birmingham, UK) and […]
150th anniversary of the periodic table of chemical elements. Periodic table, Mendeleev and philately.
Russian chemist Dmitri I. Mendeleev (1834–1907) has formulated the periodic system of chemical elements (PSCE) in 1869. Frequently, this is considered as one of the greatest inventions in chemistry. The year 2019 marks the 150th anniversary of this discovery and has thus been proclaimed the “International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements (IYPT2019)” […]
Our study on inhibition of cholinesterases and glutathione-S-transferases by organoruthenium complexes selected for cover feature in October 2018 edition of ChemMedChem
In this paper , a library of 17 organoruthenium compounds was screened for inhibitory activity against cholinesterases and glutathione-S-transferases of human and animal origins. The cover feature picture (see below) shows an organoruthenium-pyrithione complex which inhibits cholinesterases and glutathione-S-transferases at pharmaceutically relevant concentrations while we observed no undesirable physiological responses on the neuromuscular system as well […]
Our study on concomittant polymorphism selected for cover page in June 2018 edition of Acta Crystallographica, Section C
Polymorphism is a well-known phenomenon and represents the ability of a solid material to exist in more than one form. It is not only important from the academic point of view but has also many practical applications or consequences. A typical example is the pharmaceutical industry where many drugs receive regulatory approval for only one […]
Spring in Ru lab
Several interesting and important things have happened in our group during spring 2018. During his short stay at our Faculty, Prof. Bostjan Kobe has shortly visited our labs. Bostjan and Iztok were classmates during their study of chemistry at the Univerity of Ljubljana. Bostjan later went to University of Texas Soutwestern America Medical Center at […]