The components of xRNA: synthesis and fluorescence of a full genetic set of size-expanded ribonucleosides

The synthesis and properties of a full set of four benzo-expanded ribonucleosides (xRNA), analogous to A, G, C, and U RNA monomers, are described. The nucleosides are efficient fluorophores with emission maxima of 369-411 nm. The compounds are expected to be useful as RNA pathway probes and as components of an unnatural ribopolymer.     

Supercritical extraction of phloroglucinol and benzophenone derivatives from Hypericum carinatum: quantification and mathematical modeling

The aerial parts of Hypericum carinatum (Guttiferae) were extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide under constant temperature (40, 50 or 60°C) and gradual pressure increase (90, 120, 150 and 200 bar) aiming at the recovery of enriched fractions containing uliginosin B, cariphenone A and cariphenone B, compounds of pharmaceutical interest. The yields of these substances were determined by high‐performance liquid chromatography and compared with those obtained with n‐hexane maceration. The supercritical‐fluid extraction showed higher selectivity than the conventional solvent extraction method. After defining 40°C and 90 bar as the best conditions to obtain the target compounds, a mathematical model was used for the extraction process and a good correlation was achieved with the experimental data.     

Environmental effect on essential oil composition of Aloysia citriodora from Corrientes (Argentina)

Lemon verbena (Aloysia citriodora Palau) is indigenous to South America and was introduced into Europe. It is cultivated mainly due to the lemon-like aroma emitted from its leaves, which are utilized for the preparation of herbal tea reputed to have antispasmodic, antipyretic, sedative and digestive properties. In this work we introduce the enantiomeric distribution of sabinene and limonene by bidimensional gas chromatography (chiral GC-GC) as a genuine quantitative parameter in order to improve the knowledge so far available on A. citriodora oil. Multivariate analysis afforded information on the similarities and differences of wild and cultivated A. citriodora populations during different seasons in the same environmental conditions. The results indicated that it was possible to discard the environmental and seasonal effect on the chemical composition of A. citriodora for wild and cultivated materials belonging to the same genetic origin.     

Self-repairing complex helical columns generated via kinetically controlled self-assembly of dendronized perylene bisimides

The dendronized perylene 3,4:9,10-tetracarboxylic acid bisimide (PBI), (3,4,5)12G1-3-PBI, was recently reported to self-assemble in complex helical columns containing tetramers of PBI as basic repeat unit. These tetramers contain a pair of two molecules arranged side-by-side and another pair in the next stratum of the column turned upside-down and rotated around the column axis. Intra- and intertetramer rotation angles and stacking distances are different. At high temperature, (3,4,5)12G1-3-PBI self-assembles via a thermodynamically controlled process in a 2D hexagonal columnar phase while at low temperature in a 3D orthorhombic columnar array via a kinetically controlled process. Here, we report the synthesis and structural analysis, by a combination of differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray and electron diffraction, and solid-state NMR performed at different temperatures, on the supramolecular structures generated by a library of (3,4,5)nG1-3-PBI with n = 14-4. For n = 11-8, the kinetically controlled self-assembly from low temperature changes in a thermodynamically controlled process, while the orthorhombic columnar array for n = 9 and 8 transforms from the thermodynamic product into the kinetic product. The new thermodynamic product at low temperature for n = 9, 8 is a self-repaired helical column with an intra- and intertetramer distance of 3.5 ? forming a 3D monoclinic periodic array via a kinetically controlled self-assembly process. The complex dynamic process leading to this reorganization was elucidated by solid-state NMR and X-ray diffraction. This discovery is important for the field of self-assembly and for the molecular design of supramolecular electronics and solar cell.     

Experimental investigation of heat conduction in polyester-Al2O3 and polyester-CuO nanocomposites

This paper presents an experimental analysis of the thermal conductivity of nanocomposite systems composed of unsaturated polyester resin (UPR) as matrices and two different metal-oxides nanoparticles as fillers: alumina (aluminum oxide) and tenorite (copper oxide). The nanoparticles used were alpha-Al₂O₃ (30-40 nm) and CuO (30-50 nm). Samples were fabricated using simple molding and homogenization using magnetic stirring. Thermal conductivities were measured using a device that complies with ASTM norms C518-04 and E1530-06. Measurements were taken at three different temperatures (0 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C), for different sets of samples, varying the nanoparticle fraction used in composite systems. Finally, the experimental data are compared with traditional models for predicting the thermal conductivity of composite materials, showing that the traditional models underestimate the measured values.     

Ortho-hydroxyphenylhydrazo-β-diketones: tautomery, coordination ability, and catalytic activity of their copper(II) complexes toward oxidation of cyclohexane and benzylic alcohols

New hydrazone o-HO-phenylhydrazo-β-diketones (OHADB), R(1)NHN═CR(2)R(3) [R(1) = HO-2-C(6)H(4), R(2) = R(3) = COMe (H(2)L(1), 1), R(2)R(3) = COCH(2)C(Me)(2)CH(2)CO (H(2)L(2), 2), R(2) = COMe, R(3) = COOEt (H(2)L(4), 4); R(1) = HO-2-O(2)N-4-C(6)H(3), R(2)R(3) = COCH(2)C(Me)(2)CH(2)CO (H(2)L(3), 3), R(2) = COMe, R(3) = COOEt (H(2)L(5), 5), R(2)R(3) = COMe (H(2)L(6), 6A)], and their Cu(II) complexes [Cu(2)(CH(3)OH)(2)(μ-L(1))(2)] 7, [Cu(2)(H(2)O)(2)(μ-L(2))(2)] 8, [Cu(H(2)O)(L(3))] 9, [Cu(2)(μ-L(4))(2)](n) 10, [Cu(H(2)O)(L(5))] 11, [Cu(2)(H(2)O)(2)(μ-L(6))(2)] 12A and [Cu(H(2)O)(2)(L(6))] 12B were synthesized and fully characterized, namely, by X-ray analysis (4, 5, 7-12B). Reaction of 6A, Cu(NO(3))(2) and ethylenediamine (en) leads, via Schiff-base condensation, to [Cu{H(2)NCH(2)CH(2)N═C(Me)C(COMe)═NNC(6)H(3)-2-O-4-NO(2)}] (13), and reactions of 12A and 12B with en give the Schiff-base polymer [Cu{H(2)NCH(2)CH(2)N═C(Me)C(COMe)═NNC(6)H(3)-2-O-4-NO(2)}](n) 14. The dependence of the OHADB tautomeric equilibria on temperature, electronic properties of functional groups, and solvent polarity was studied. The OHADB from unsymmetrical β-diketones exist in solution as a mixture of enol-azo and hydrazo tautomeric forms, while in the solid state all the free and coordinated OHADB crystallize in the hydrazo form. The relative stabilities of various tautomers were studied by density functional theory (DFT). 7-14 show catalytic activities for peroxidative oxidation (in MeCN/H(2)O) of cyclohexane to cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone, for selective aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohols to benzaldehydes in aq. solution, mediated by TEMPO radical, under mild conditions and for the MW-assisted solvent-free synthesis of ketones from secondary alcohols with tert-butylhydroperoxide as oxidant.     

Solvation force induced by short range, exact dissipative particle dynamics effective surfaces on a simple fluid and on polymer brushes

The thermodynamic properties of a simple fluid confined by effective wall forces are calculated using Monte Carlo simulations in the grand canonical ensemble. The solvation force produced by polymer brushes of two different lengths is obtained also. For the particular type of model interactions used, known as the dissipative particle dynamics method, we find that it is possible to obtain an exact, simple expression for the effective force induced by a planar wall composed of identical particles that interact with those in the fluid. We show that despite the short range of all forces in the model, the solvation force can be finite at relatively large distances and therefore does not depend only on the range of the interparticle or solvent-surface forces. As for the polymer brushes, we find that the shape of the solvation force profiles is in fair agreement with scaling and self-consistent field theories. The applications and possible extensions of this work are discussed.     

Mechanism of Al(3+)-catalyzed oxidations of hydrocarbons: dramatic activation of H2O2 toward O-O homolysis in complex [Al(H2O)4(OOH)(H2O2)](2+) explains the formation of HO• radicals

A radical mechanism of hydrocarbon oxidations with the environmentally friendly and cheap homogeneous nontransition metal system [Al(H(2)O)(6)](3+)/H(2)O(2)/MeCN-H(2)O was proposed for the first time on the basis of DFT calculations. A dramatic activation of H(2)O(2) toward homolysis in the key intermediate [Al(H(2)O)(4)(OOH)(H(2)O(2))](2+) due to the presence of the easily oxidizable OOH coligand provides, without a change of metal oxidation state, the generation of HO(?) radicals, which then oxidize hydrocarbons. Nonradical mechanisms of the olefin epoxidation with the same catalytic system were also investigated.     

Syntheses, molecular structures, electrochemical behavior, theoretical study, and antitumor activities of organotin(IV) complexes containing 1-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-cyclopentanecarboxylato ligands

The organotin(IV) compounds [Me(2)Sn(L)(2)] (1), [Et(2)Sn(L)(2)] (2), [(n)Bu(2)Sn(L)(2)] (3), [(n)Oct(2)Sn(L)(2)] (4), [Ph(2)Sn(L)(2)] (5), and [PhOSnL](6) (6) have been synthesized from the reactions of 1-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-cyclopentanecarboxylic acid (HL) with the corresponding diorganotin(IV) oxide or dichloride. They were characterized by IR and multinuclear NMR spectroscopies, elemental analysis, cyclic voltammetry, and, for 2, 3, 4 and 6, single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. While 1-5 are mononuclear diorganotin(IV) compounds, the X-ray diffraction of 6 discloses a hexameric drumlike structure with a prismatic Sn(6)O(6) core. All these complexes undergo irreversible reductions and were screened for their in vitro antitumor activities toward HL-60, BGC-823, Bel-7402, and KB human cancer cell lines. Within the mononuclear compounds, the most active ones (3, 5) are easiest to reduce (least cathodic reduction potentials), while the least active ones (1, 4) are the most difficult to reduce. Structural rearrangements (i.e., Sn-O bond cleavages and trans-to-cis isomerization) induced by reduction, which eventually can favor the bioactivity, are disclosed by theoretical/electrochemical studies.     

Gas chromatography - optical fiber detector for assessment of fatty acids in urban soils

Fatty acids have been used as biomarkers of the microbial community composition of soils and they are usually separated and quantified by gas-chromatography coupled to a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). The aim of this study was to develop, validate and apply a methodology based on gas chromatography coupled to optical fiber detection (GC-OF) for screening five fatty acids used as indicators of fungal and bacterial communities in urban soils. The performance of the GC-OF methodology (optical fiber detector at 1550 nm) was evaluated by comparison with the GC-FID methodology and it was found that they were comparable in terms of linear range, detection limit and analytical errors. Besides these similar analytical characteristics, the GC-OF is much cheaper than the GC-FID methodology. Different concentrations were determined for each fatty acid indicator which in turn varied significantly between the soil samples analyzed from Lisbon ornamental gardens. Additionally, the GC-OF showed a great potential as alternative for determination of eleven or more fatty acids in urban soils.