New insights into the coordination chemistry and molecular structure of copper(II) histidine complexes in aqueous solutions

Aqueous solutions of Cu2+/histidine (his) (1:2) have been analyzed in parallel with infrared, Raman, ultraviolet/visible/near-infrared, electron spin resonance, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy in the pH range from 0 to 10. Comprehensive interpretation of the data has been used to extract complementary structural information in order to determine the relative abundance of the different complexes. The formation of six different, partly coexisting species is proposed. Structural proposals from literature have been unambiguously confirmed, refined, or, in several cases, corrected. At highly acidic conditions, Cu2+ and his are present as free ions, but around pH = 2, coordination starts via the deprotonated carboxylic acid group. This results in the intermediate species Cu2+[H3his+(Oc)] and Cu2+[H3his+(Oc)]2. The coordination via Oc is attended with a drop in the pKa value of the other receptor groups resulting in a concomitant conversion to the bidentates Cu2+[H2his0(Oc,Nam)] and Cu2+[H2his0(Oc,Nam)]2, with the latter being dominant at pH = 3.5. Coordination of the imidazole ring begins around pH = 3 and leads to the formation of the mixed ligand complexes Cu2+[H2his0(Oc,Nam)][Hhis-(Oc,Nam,Nim)] and Cu2+[Hhis-(Nam,Nim)][Hhis-(Oc,Nam,Nim)] around pH = 5. It is demonstrated that coordination of the imidazole ring occurs predominantly via the N(pi) atom. At pH > 7, the double-tridentate ligand complex Cu2+[Hhis-(Oc,Nam,Nim)]2 is the major species with the N atoms in the equatorial plane and the O atoms in the axial position. This complex decomposes at pH > 10 into a copper oxide/hydroxide precipitate. The overall results provide a consistent picture of the mechanism that drives the coordination and complex formation of the Cu2+/his system.     

Supply quality management with wholesale price and revenue-sharing contracts under horizontal competition

In a number of industries (e.g., the airplane industry, aerospace industry, auto industry, or computer industry), certain suppliers essentially have a monopoly on the production technology for key components, and inevitably manufacturers in these industries have common suppliers. A key part of manufacturers’ work with suppliers concerns improving the quality of their respective products, which gives rise to a collaborative activity usually termed as “supply quality management”. When the manufacturers are competitors, they do not wish to see a common supplier dividing his involvement in quality improvement unequally between themselves and their rivals. However, as the suppliers collaborate with several manufacturers, it is highly questionable whether their efforts will be strictly equivalent for each manufacturer. In this paper, a non-cooperative dynamic game is formulated in which a single supplier collaborates with two manufacturers on design quality improvements for their respective products. The manufacturers compete for market demand both on price and design quality. The paper analyzes how each party should allocate resources for quality improvement over time. In order to take into account the potential coordinating power of the compensation scheme adopted in this type of decentralized setting, we compare the possible outcomes under a wholesale price contract and a revenue-sharing contract.     

Triterpene glycosides and glucosyl esters, and a triterpene from the leaves of Schefflera actinophylla

From the EtOAc and 1-BuOH fractions, three new ursane-type and four new lupane-type triterpenes, along with nine known glycosides and glycosyl esters of lupane-type were isolated from the leaves of Schefflera actinophylla. All the isolated compounds were obtained for the first time from this plant. The structures of the new triterpenes were determined through a combination of spectroscopic and chemical analyses.     

Daptomycin: A Novel Macrocyclic Antibiotic as a Chiral Selector in an Organic Polymer Monolithic Capillary for the Enantioselective Analysis of a Set of Pharmaceuticals

Daptomycin, a macrocyclic antibiotic, is here used as a new chiral selector in preparation of chiral stationary phase (CSP) in a recently prepared polymer monolithic capillary. The latter is prepared using the copolymerization of the monomers glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) in the presence of daptomycin in water. Under reversed phase conditions (RP), the prepared capillaries were tested for the enantioselective nanoliquid chromatographic separation of fifty of the racemic drugs of different pharmacological groups, such as adrenergic blockers, H1-blockers, NSAIDs, antifungal drugs, and others. Baseline separation was attained for many drugs under RP-HPLC. Daptomycin expands the horizon of chiral selectors in HPLC.     

Halogenation of Xanthenyl and Thioxanthenylallenes

Reactions of acids with vinylidenexanthenes (or thioxanthenes) 1 and 9-methoxy-9-vinylxanthenes (or thioxanthenes) 8 give xanthene- (or thioxanthene-) 9-spiro-1′-indenes 7 . With bromine or sulfuryl chloride they give the corresponding 2′-halogenoxanthene- (or thioxanthene-)9-spiro-1′-indenes 5 . Formation of such derivatives depends on preferential attack of the reagents on allenes 1 to give initially xanthylium (or thioxanthylium) ions 3 which cyclize. One π bond of the allenes 1 can be selectively reduced in acid media. Chemical and spectral evidence for these routes are presented.     

Reactions with Hydrazidoyl Halides XII Synthesis of Pyrazolo[5,1-c]-1,2,4-triazine,Selenadiazolo[3,2-a]quinazolones,Selenadiazoline, Thiadiazoline and Thiazole Derivatives

Several new pyrazolo[5,I-c]triazine, selenadiazoline, thiadiazoline, selenadiazolo[3,2-a]quitiazolone, and arylazothiazole derivatives were synthesised by the reaction of hydrazonoyl halides with different reagents. The structure of new heterocycles were assigned on the basis of their elemental analysis, spectral data, and alternate synthesis whenever possible.