Synthesis of a polyprenyl-type library containing 1,4-disubstituted-1,2,3-triazoles with anti-biofilm activities against Pseudoalteromonas sp.

A terpenoid-like library containing 1,4-disubstituted-(1H)-1,2,3-triazoles was prepared by means of 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of geranyl and farnesyl azides with a set of terminal alkynes, in order to design a new class of potentially active anti-biofilm compounds. Reactions were optimized to proceed under mild conditions and in high yields. Two compounds were found to possess interesting activity against Pseudoalteromonas sp. biofilm. This process is suitable for combinatorial chemistry of marine natural product-like compounds.     

Dynamic chemical devices: photoinduced electron transfer and its ion-triggered switching in nanomechanical butterfly-type bis(porphyrin)terpyridines

A series of butterfly-type molecular constructs has been prepared in good yield by using a double Stille coupling synthetic protocol. They are composed of a terpyridine (terpy) scaffold and two wings composed of appended porphyrins that are capable of switching from an extended W geometry to a compact U geometry upon cation coordination of the terpy unit. The porphyrin moieties exist in the constructs either as free bases or they can be sequentially metallated, thus giving rise to wings of different "colours". Stationary and time-resolved emission studies of the HZn, ZnAu and Zn2Au constructs show that the electronic properties are strongly dependent on the geometry. In the extended W conformation an energy-transfer process is seen from the free base to the Zn-metallated porphyrin. In the U conformation in Zn2Au the donor luminescence resulting from the singlet excited state of the Zn wing is strongly, quenched not only due to the heavy atom effect but also due to a fast electron-transfer process to the ground state of the Au wing. Furthermore, the binding of (alpha,omega)-diamine substrates to the Zn(II)-porphyrin sites can also influence the conformation of the system. For the Zn2Zn construct, single-crystal diffraction experiments with synchrotron radiation allowed the structure to be solved by direct methods and fully refined; it shows the expected U conformation. The central Zn atom is six-coordinate, whereby the zinc atom is coordinated by the eta3-terpy ligand as well by monodentate and semi-chelating acetate anions. The structure is made rigid by hydrogen bonds involving the aqua ligands on the outer Zn centres and acetate oxygen atoms. The present system thus represents a double-trigger-modulated optomechanical switching device with selective substrate binding for either metal atoms or tailored ligands. Both energy- and electron-transfer processes can be controlled opening a means of improving the on/off ratio in future constructs.     

Development of liposomal immunosensor for the measurement of insulin with femtomole detection

The monitoring of insulin is of great relevance for the management of diabetes, the detection of pancreatic islet-cell malfunction, the definition of hypoglycemia, and the diagnosis of insulinoma. A liposomal immunosensing system for the determination of insulin was developed in this study. The insulin sensor was constructed by the immobilization of anti-insulin antibodies on the inner wall of the microcapillary immunoseparator. Liposomes tagged with anti-insulin and encapsulating a fluorescent dye were used as the detectable label. In the presence of insulin, sandwich immunocomplexes were formed between the immobilized antibodies in the column, the sample of insulin, and the antibody-tagged sulforhodamine B-dye-loaded liposomes. Signals generated by lysing the bound liposomes with 30 mM n-octyl-β-d-glucopyranoside were measured by a fluorescence detector. The detected signal was directly proportional to the amount of insulin in the test sample. The liposomal immunosensing system successfully detected as low as 136 attomole. MeOH (30%) was used for the regeneration of antibody-binding sites in the microcapillary after each measurement, which allowed the immunoseparator to be used for at least 70 repeated assays. The antibody activity in this proposed microcapillary immunoseparator could be well maintained for at least 1 week. The calibration curve for insulin in Tris-buffered saline had a linear dynamic range of 10 pM-10 nM, and the total assay time was less than 30 min. The coefficient of variation for triplicate measurements was <5.00%, which indicated that well-reproducible results can be obtained by this newly developed method.     

New Rh derivatives of s-indacene active in dehydrogenative silylation of styrene

The mono- and bimetallic complexes [(2,6-diethyl-4,8-dimethyl-s-indacenide){Rh(COD)}] (1), anti-[(2,6-diethyl-4,8-dimethyl-s-indacenediide){Rh(COD)}₂] (2a), syn-[(2,6-diethyl-4,8-dimethyl-s-indacenediide){Rh(COD)}₂] (2b) were synthesized and characterized spectroscopically and in the case of complex 2b, by means of X-ray diffraction. The ¹³C and ¹⁰³Rh NMR studies suggest that the bonding mode of the indacenediide ligand can be described as intermediate between η³- and η⁵-coordination. This result was confirmed by the crystal structure of 2b as evidenced by the slippage of the rhodium atom towards the periphery of the ligand. Cyclic voltammetry studies revealed a strong intermetallic communication through the fused ring ligand. This property was further illustrated by higher activity and selectivity of binuclear complexes 2 for the catalytic dehydrogenative silylation of styrene.     

Staudinger ligation of peptides at non-glycyl residues

The Staudinger ligation provides a means to form an amide bond between a phosphinothioester and azide. This reaction holds promise for the ligation of peptides en route to the total chemical synthesis of proteins. (Diphenylphosphino)methanethiol is the most efficacious of known reagents for mediating the Staudinger ligation of peptides, providing high (> 90%) isolated yields for equimolar couplings in which a glycine residue is at the nascent junction. Surprisingly, the yields are lower (< 50%) for non-glycyl couplings due to an aza-Wittig reaction that diverts the reaction toward a phosphonamide byproduct. Here, the partitioning of the reaction toward Staudinger ligation (and away from the aza-Wittig reaction) is shown to increase with increasing electron density on phosphorus. This electron density can be tuned either by installing functional groups on the phenyl substituents of (diphenylphosphino)methanethiol or by changing the polarity of the solvent. Installing p-methoxy groups and using a solvent of low polarity (such as toluene or dioxane) provide especially high (> 80%) isolated yields for the ligation of two non-glycyl residues. These conditions retain the high chemoselectivity of the reaction and do not lead to a substantial change in reaction rate. The traceless Staudinger ligation is now poised to enable the iterative ligation of peptides with little regard for their sequence, as well as the synthesis of amide bonds for other purposes.     

Ferromagnetic heteronuclear {Fe(4)(Er,Lu)(2)} cyclic coordination clusters based on ferric wheels

A new family of hexanuclear ferric-lanthanide [Fe(III)(4)Ln(III)(2)(Htea)(4)(Piv)(6)(N(3))(4)] clusters, where Ln(III) = Er(1) and Lu(2) is reported. Variable temperature solid-state magnetic susceptibility studies of 1 and 2 reveal the presence of ferromagnetic (1) or competing anti- and ferromagnetic exchange interactions (2) between the constituent Fe(III) ions.     

Polycationic chitosan-conjugated photosensitizer for antibacterial photodynamic therapy

The complex nature of bacterial cell membrane and structure of biofilm has challenged the efficacy of antimicrobial photodynamic therapy. This study was aimed to synthesize a polycationic chitosan-conjugated rose bengal (CSRB) photosensitizer and test its antibiofilm efficacy on Enterococcus faecalis (gram positive) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (gram negative) using photodynamic therapy. During experiments, CSRB was tested along with an anionic photosensitizer rose bengal (RB) and a cationic photosensitizer methylene blue (MB) for uptake and killing efficacy on 7-day-old E. faecalis and P. aeruginosa biofilms. Microbiological culture based analysis was used to analyze the cell viability, while laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) was used to examine the structure of biofilm. The synthesized CSRB showed absorbance spectrum similar to the RB. The concentration of CSRB uptaken by both the bacterial biofilms was significantly higher than that of RB and MB (P < 0.05). Photoactivation resulted in significantly higher elimination of both bacterial biofilms sensitized with CSRB than RB and MB. The structure of biofilm under LSCM was found to be disrupted following CSRB treatment. The present study highlighted the importance of inherent cell membrane permeabilizing effect of chitosan and increased cell/biofilm uptake of conjugated photosensitizer to produce significant antibiofilm efficacy during photodynamic therapy.     

Solid-phase synthesis of a library of C-terminal agmatine dipeptides using a backbone amide linker (BAL) strategy

In this Letter, we report a novel solid-phase strategy using a backbone amide linker (BAL) attached to a polystyrene support for the synthesis of C-terminal agmatine dipeptides. Our method eliminates the need to purify intermediates by column chromatography and enables us to build rapidly an 18-member library of C-terminal agmatine dipeptides which are subsequently screened for inhibitory activity against a viral enzyme.