Surface layering in ionic liquids: an X-ray reflectivity study

The surface structure and thermodynamics of two ionic liquids, based on the 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium cations, were studied by X-ray reflectivity and surface tensiometry. A molecular layer of a density approximately 18% higher than that of the bulk is found to form at the free surface of these liquids. In common with surface layering in liquid metals and surface freezing in melts of organic chain molecules, this effect is induced by the lower dimensionality of the surface. The concentrations of the oppositely charged ions within the surface layer are determined by chemical substitution of the anion. The temperature-dependent surface tension measurements reveal a normal, negative-slope temperature dependence. The different possible molecular arrangements within the enhanced-density surface layer are discussed.     

Selective modification of the 2-position of pyridoxol

Pyridoxol, protected by acetylation of the hydroxyl groups, has been converted to its N-oxide which upon reaction with perfluoroacetie anhydride yields a 2-nor-2-hydroxymethylpyridoxol derivative as an intermediate. This compound undergoes acyl migration from the 3-position. Protection of the pyridoxol hydroxyls by benzylalion followed by the same treatment yields the unrearranged α²-hydroxy derivative. This compound has been converted to a series of α²-substituted pyridoxols (X = -Cl, -Br, -OCOCH₃, -OCH₃, -OC₂H₅).     

Excess molar enthalpies of the ternary mixtures: (diisopropyl ether or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran) + cyclohexane + n-heptane at 298.15 K

Microcalorimetric measurements of excess molar enthalpies, at 298.15 K, are reported for the two ternary systems formed by mixing either diisopropyl ether or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran with binary mixtures of cyclohexane and n-heptane. Smooth representations of the results are presented and used to construct constant excess molar enthalpy contours on Roozeboom diagrams. It is shown that useful estimates of the ternary enthalpies can be obtained from the Liebermann and Fried model, using only the physical properties of the components and their binary mixtures.     

Adding water to sugar: a spectroscopic and computational study of alpha- and beta-phenylxyloside in the gas phase

The gas phase structures of phenyl alpha- and beta-d-xylopyranoside (alpha- and beta-pXyl) and their mono-hydrates have been investigated using a combination of resonant two-photon ionization (R2PI), ultra-violet hole-burning and resonant infrared ion dip spectroscopy, coupled with density functional theory (DFT) and ab initio computation. The hole-burning experiments indicate the population of a single conformer only, in each of the two anomers. Their experimental and calculated infrared spectra are both consistent with a conformational assignment corresponding to the computed global minimum configuration. All three OH groups are oriented towards the oxygen atom (O1) on the anomeric carbon atom to form an all trans(ttt) counter-clockwise chain of hydrogen bonds. The mono-hydrates, alpha- and beta-pXyl(H(2)O) each populate two distinct structures in the molecular beam environment, with the water molecule inserted between OH4 and OH3 or between OH3 and OH2 in alpha-pXyl(H2O), and between OH2 and O1 in either of two alternative orientations, in beta-pXyl(H2O). In all of the mono-hydrated xyloside complexes, the water molecule inserts into the weakest link of the sugar molecules' hydrogen-bonded chain of hydroxy groups, creating a single extended chain, strengthened by co-operativity. The all-trans configuration of the xylose moiety is retained and the mono-hydrate structures correspond to those calculated to lie at the lowest relative energies.     

Exact rotamer optimization for protein design

Computational methods play a central role in the rational design of novel proteins. The present work describes a new hybrid exact rotamer optimization (HERO) method that builds on previous dead-end elimination algorithms to yield dramatic performance enhancements. Measured on experimentally validated physical models, these improvements make it possible to perform previously intractable designs of entire protein core, surface, or boundary regions. Computational demonstrations include a full core design of the variable domains of the light and heavy chains of catalytic antibody 48G7 FAB with 74 residues and 10(128) conformations, a full core/boundary design of the beta1 domain of protein G with 25 residues and 10(53) conformations, and a full surface design of the beta1 domain of protein G with 27 residues and 10(60) conformations. In addition, a full sequence design of the beta1 domain of protein G is used to demonstrate the strong dependence of algorithm performance on the exact form of the potential function and the fidelity of the rotamer library. These results emphasize that search algorithm performance for protein design can only be meaningfully evaluated on physical models that have been subjected to experimental scrutiny. The new algorithm greatly facilitates ongoing efforts to engineer increasingly complex protein features.     

Intrinsic folding of small peptide chains: spectroscopic evidence for the formation of beta-turns in the gas phase

Laser desorption of model peptides coupled to laser spectroscopic techniques enables the gas-phase observation of genuine secondary structures of biology. Spectroscopic evidence for the formation of beta-turns in gas-phase peptide chains containing glycine and phenylalanine residues establishes the intrinsic stability of these forms and their ability to compete with other stable structures. The precise characterization of local minima on the potential energy surface from IR spectroscopy constitutes an acute assessment for the state-of-the-art quantum mechanical calculations also presented. The observation of different types of beta-turns depending upon the residue order within the sequence is found to be consistent with the residue propensities in beta-turns of proteins, which suggests that the prevalence of glycine in type II and II' turns stems essentially from an energetic origin, already at play under isolated conditions.     

Influence of the Lanthanide Ion and Solution Conditions on Formation of Lanthanide Wells–Dawson Polyoxotungstates

Lanthanide complexes of polyoxometalates, including the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand, have been pioneered by Michael T. Pope, to whom this paper is dedicated. Examination of the solid-state and solution behavior of lanthanide complexes of the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand are reported here to identify trends that will facilitate rational synthesis of hybrid organic lanthanide polyoxometalate complexes. Therefore, combining our data with that obtained by Pope and others a number of trends come into view. It is clear that there are two structural types for the 1:1 or 2:2 [Ln(H₂O)_X(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)]₂ ¹⁴⁻ species. The early lanthanides show a “cap to cap” structure that allows the Ln ion to be 9 coordinate and accommodates the longer bond lengths. The mid-late lanthanides show a “cap to belt” structure that allows the lanthanides to be 8 coordinate; this structural type is appropriate for the shorter bond lengths of the later lanthanides. The 1:1⇌1:2 equilibrium, that was observed by Pope for the Ce(III) analog is prevalent for the early- mid lanthanides. This equilibrium is slightly dependent on pH; however, cations have a major influence on this equilibrium. Larger, poorly hydrated cations appear to favor the 1:2 species for the early to mid lanthanides. Cations do not appear to influence the equilibrium for the later lanthanides; for all counterions, the 1:1 species was stable with no trace of the 1:2 species. Stability constants, K1 and K2, for the early to mid lanthanides were measured in this study by a competitive method and compared well with other published stability constant determinations. We suggest that the stability constants are not only dependent on the strength of interaction of the Ln with the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand, but are also significantly influenced by the medium. The medium may bias the equilibria of the early-mid lanthanides and later lanthanides. The log K₁/log K₂ ratios are very close, suggesting that it is difficult to separate the 1:1 and 1:2 Ln: α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ species.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material for this article is available at and is accessible for authorized users.This paper is dedicated to Professor Michael T. Pope in honor of his substantial and sustained contributions to polyoxometalate chemistry and his inspiration to scientists working in the field.     

Laser desorption of DNA oligomers larger than one kilobase from cooled 4-nitrophenol

A unique matrix system consisting mostly of 4-nitrophenol has shown to be very effective for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometric analysis of large DNA oligomers when a cooled sample stage was used to prevent the sublimation of this matrix under vacuum. Using this 4-nitrophenol matrix with UV laser desorption, detection of picomole quantities of DNA oligomers containing up to approximately 800 nucleotides was routinely achieved. The effectiveness of this matrix was further demonstrated by the observation of a double-stranded DNA oligomer larger than 1000 base pairs, seen as a denatured single-stranded species, with a molecular ion mass exceeding 300 000 Da. The potential applications of 4-nitrophenol as a matrix for DNA sizing are discussed.     

Maximum hardness in P6 isomers

Parr and Chattaraj proposed a principle of maximum hardness for stable molecular structures. Pearson and Palke used ab initio SCF MO calculations for ammonia and ethane to demonstrate the operation of the principle. In this paper, we present ab initio SCF MO results for five isomeric forms of the homoatomic P⁶ cluster as further support for the principle of maximum hardness. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.