Calorimetric study of the glassy state XII. Plural glass-transition phenomena of ethanol

Ethanol was found to give a metastable crystalline phase (crystal-II) when the liquid was cooled at a moderate rate. Glassy states of liquid and of newly found crystal-II were obtained in the calorimeter cell by controlling the cooling rate of the liquid. The heat capacities of these phases as well as that of the stable crystal-I were measured by an adiabatic calorimeter in the temperature range between 14 and 300 K. The glass transition temperature T_g, the heat-capacity jump at T_g, and the residual entropy were found to be 97 K, 35.3 J K^?1 mol^?1, and 8.93 J K^?1 mol^?1 for the glassy liquid, and 97 K, 22.8 J K^?1 mol^?1, and 4.24 J K^?1 mol^?1 for the glassy crystal-II, respectively. The values for the residual entropy are referred to the third-law entropy for crystal-I.The heat capacities reported previously for the supercooled liquid by Gibson et al. and by Parks and Kelley agree well with those for the metastable crystal-II. Those of the supercooled liquid connect smoothly with those obtained for the liquid above the melting temperature. Thus, ethanol is found to be another example of a low-molecular-weight compound which shows multiple glass-transition phenomena.     

A new Zn(II) coordination polymer with 4-pyridylthioacetate: assemblies of homo-chiral helices with sulfide sites

A coordination polymer [Zn(pyta)(OH)] (pyta = 4-pyridylthioacetate), was synthesized and structurally characterized; it is constructed by an alternating assembly of two types of homo-chiral helices, [Zn-OH] and [Zn-pyta], in which the sulfide moieties are fastened in the latter columns.     

Supramolecular assembly based on π-π stacking and π-cation interactions between thiacalix[6]arene and DMF

The molecular assembly of thiacalix[6]arene was formed by π-π stacking and π-DMF interactions between thiacalix[6]arene and adjoining thiacalix[6]arene and between thiacalix[6]arene and DMF, respectively. The X-ray crystal analysis also revealed that hydroxyl groups of thiacalix[6]arene adopted novel two sets of hydrogen bond with two DMF and intramolecular hydrogen bond between phenolic units, which cause to make 1,2,3-alternate configuration structure of thiacalix[6]arene.     

Heterogeneous strong base catalysis in supercritical carbon dioxide by mesoporous alumina and sulfated mesoporous alumina

The development of solid strong base catalysts utilizable in green but acidic medium of scCO₂ is reviewed. The strong base sites on mesoporous alumina and sulfated mesoporous alumina that had been generated by severe treatment at 773 K under vacuum (10^?4 Torr) were not neutralized by the compressed Lewis acidic molecules of CO₂, promoting a representative strong base-catalyzed reaction of the Tishchenko reaction as well as a typical base-catalyzed reaction of the Knoevenagel reaction in scCO₂. Infrared spectroscopy of the adsorbed pyrrole, temperature-programmed desorption of CO₂, and the poisoning by a very weak Brönsted acid of methanol have revealed that the average strengths of the base sites on mesoporous alumina and sulfated mesoporous alumina are weaker than that on conventional γ-alumina like JRC-ALO-4, but that they have a small number of strong base sites which function even in scCO₂ medium. It was found that the addition of a slight amount of THF cosolvent into scCO₂ remarkably accelerates the Tishchenko reaction over sulfated mesoporous alumina; the reaction rate in the scCO₂–THF medium was 1.5-fold and 2-fold faster than those in ordinary organic solvents such as benzene and THF and that in pure scCO₂, respectively. The unique structures of mesoporous alumina and sulfated mesoporous alumina have been fully characterized by N₂ adsorption–desorption measurements and XRD analyses.     

Prodrugs of 2',3'-dideoxyinosine (DDI): improved oral bioavailability via hydrophobic esters.

Five ester prodrugs of 2'3'-dideoxyinosine (DDI) were synthesized for the purpose of improving oral bioavailability. The prodrugs, acetate (C2-DDI), octanoate (C8-DDI), stearate (C18-DDI), benzoate (Bz-DDI), and hemisuccinate (Suc-DDI) were proved to quantitatively regenerate their parent drug by enzymatic hydrolysis. Though the chemical stability of the prodrugs under acidic conditions was not improved, their solubility in water was significantly decreased by esterification, except for Suc-DDI. Bioavailability was evaluated by oral administration to rats. Two hydrophobic prodrugs (C8-DDI and Bz-DDI) showed higher absolute bioavailability (23.5% and 31.0%, respectively) than did DDI (15.2%), though that of C2-DDI (11.5%) and Suc-DDI (4.5%) was poor.     

Absorption enhancement of polypeptide drugs by cyclodextrins. I. Enhanced rectal absorption of insulin from hollow-type suppositories containing insulin and cyclodextrins in rabbits.

The absorption of insulin (from porcine pancreas) from the rectum of rabbits after the administration of hollow-type suppositories containing insulin and five kinds of cyclodextrins (CyDs) was investigated. Three types of suppositories were employed: suppository I containing insulin (approximately 26 IU/mg) and various amounts of each CyD in citric buffer solution at pH 3.0 or powder in its cavity, suppository II containing CyD without insulin, and suppository III containing insulin without CyD. Without CyD, the insulin and glucose levels in plasma were unchanged, whereas a significant increase in the plasma insulin concentration and a marked decrease in the glucose levels were found following simultaneous administration of insulin and CyDs by suppository I. The enhancing effect of CyD on rectal insulin absorption (absorption-enhancing effect) by chemically modified CyDs (heptakis(2,6-di-O-methyl)-beta-CyD (DM-beta-CyD) and 2-hydroxypropyl-beta-CyD (HP-beta-CyD)) was higher than those by natural CyDs (alpha-, beta-, and gamma-CyD). The area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) and Cmax of insulin significantly decreased with the preadministration (administration of CyD 6, 24 and 48 h before rectal insulin administration) of DM-beta-CyD. The absorption-enhancing effect disappeared 24 h after preadministration. These results suggest that CyDs enhance insulin absorption from the rectum, and that attenuation of the membrane transport barrier function in the rectum recovers at a maximum of 24 h after administration of CyDs.     

Novel pyridinium salts as cationic thermal and photoinitiators and their photosensitization properties

Novel pyridinium salts [N‐(α‐phenylbenzyl)‐, N‐(1‐naphthylmethyl)‐, or N‐cinnamyl p‐ or o‐cyanopyridinium hexafluoroantimonates] were synthesized by the reaction of p‐ or o‐cyanopyridine and the corresponding bromides followed by anion exchange with KSbF₆. These pyridinium salts polymerized epoxy monomers at lower temperatures than previously reported for N‐benzyl‐2‐cyanopyridinium hexafluoroantimonate. The o‐substituted pyridinium salts showed higher activity than the p‐substituted ones, and the crosslinked epoxy polymers cured with these initiators showed higher glass‐transition temperatures. These pyridinium salts photoinitiated radical polymerization as well as cationic polymerization. The photopolymerization was accelerated by the addition of aromatic ketones as photosensitizers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 1037–1046, 2002