Mild template synthesis of a copper(II)-containing macrocyclic compound with 4,4,6-trimethyl-2,3,7,8-tetraazanonen-6-dithiohydrazide-1,9 in a gelatin-immobilized matrix

The complexing processes in the triple copper(II)–thiocarbohydrazide–propanone system taking place in a copper(II) hexacyanoferrate(II) gelatin-immobilized matrix in contact with aqueous-alkaline solutions (pH12), containing thiocarbohydrazide and propanone, have been studied. Template synthesis leading to a macrocyclic coordination compound with the tetradentate N,N,S,S-donor ligand, (4,4,6-trimethyl-2,3,7,8-tetraazanonen-6-dithiohydrazide-1,9), occurs under these specific conditions when thiocarbohydrazide and propanone are the ligand synthons.     

On the interaction of silyl triflates with enamines: iminium ion formation versus silylation

The interaction of Me₃SiOTf and (C₆F₅)₃SiOTf with enamines generating α-silyl-substituted iminium ions is investigated. A trimethylsilyl iminium cation is formed as a long-lived species observable by NMR spectroscopy, whilst the tris(pentafluorophenyl)silyl analogue is very labile and prone to the loss of a proton. On the basis of the latter phenomenon, a method for the synthesis of β-silyl enamines is proposed.     

Accreditation of reference material producers: the example of IRMM's Reference Materials Unit

The potential approaches for third-party assessment of reference material producers are revisited and the activities of the Reference Materials (RM) Unit of the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) to obtain accreditation to ISO Guide 34 and ISO 17025 are described. Accreditation was related to the Unit as all matrix RM activities of the institute are concentrated there. A management system was established that allows sufficient flexibility to be applicable to a wide range of RMs while being precise enough to ensure compliance with ISO Guides 30, 31 and especially 34 and 35. Accreditation was achieved in 2004 with independent scopes for testing and RM production and was confirmed and extended in 2005. The key aspects of the RM Unit's management system for RM production are presented. Presented at BERM-10, April 2006, Charleston, SC, USA     

Effects of annealing on crystallinity and phase behaviour of PET/PC block copolymers

The effects of the annealing on the properties of PET/PC block copolymers, obtained by reactive blending in the presence of different catalysts and for different mixing times, have been studied. The annealing, performed in conditions that promote the crystallization, has been used to better understand the role of block length in determining the phase behaviour. The copolymers characterized by blocks with molecular weight larger than 8000 are able to reorganize towards more ordered domains. This rearrangement maintains the phase separation, as two crystalline phases are present before and after annealing, due to the immiscibility of long blocks. In copolymers characterized by blocks with molecular weight equal to about 2500, that is the higher limit for the miscibility in the amorphous state in PET/PC block copolymers studied in this work, the rearrangement of the chains during annealing causes a phase separation leading to two crystalline phases. Only in the copolymers with molecular weight of blocks lower than 1500, the very short block length hinders the crystallization: therefore, only in this case a phase separation does not take place after annealing.     

RE3Ga9Ge (RE=Y, Ce, Sm, Gd and Yb): compounds with an open three-dimensional polygallide framework synthesized from liquid gallium

The RE₃Ga₉Ge compounds (RE=Y, Ce, Sm, Gd and Yb) were synthesized at 850°C in quantitative yield from reactions containing excess liquid Ga. The orthorhombic crystal structure is characterized by a unique three-dimensional open Ga framework with parallel straight tunnels. In the tunnels, inserted are arrays of the RE atoms together with interpenetrated monoatomic RE-Ga-Ge planes. A complex disordered arrangement of the RE and Ga atoms is observed in the monoatomic plane. Depending on the extent of disorder, the crystal structure could be presented either in a sub-cell (no ordering) or in a super-cell (partial ordering). Single-crystal X-ray data for Ce₃Ga₉Ge sub-structure: space group Immm, Z=2, cell parameters a=4.3400(12) Å; b=10.836(3) Å; and c=11.545(3) Å; super-structure: space group Cmma, Z=8, cell parameters a=8.680(3) Å; b=23.090(7) Å; and c=10.836(3) Å. The refinement based on the full-matrix least squares on F_o²[I>2σ(I)] converged to final residuals R₁/wR₂=0.0226/0.0528 and 0.0729/0.1569 for the sub- and super-structures, respectively. The relationship between the disordered sub-structure and partially ordered super-structure is discussed. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show Curie-Weiss behavior at the temperatures above 30 K with the negative Weiss constants Θ=−49(1) and−7.7 K for Gd and Ce analogs, respectively. An antiferromagnetic transition is observed in the Gd analog at T_N=26.1 K. The μ_eff obtained for both analogs is close to the RE³⁺ free-ion value.     

Stereo- and regioselectivity in asymmetric synthesis of α-amino substituted benzocyclic compounds

The enantiomerically pure chiral benzocyclic amines 6–8 were obtained by asymmetric transamination of the corresponding prochiral ketones 9a–c. The method involves: (a) formation of chiral imines 10a–c from the prochiral ketones 9a–c and the inexpensive chiral auxiliary (R)- or (S)-phenylethylamine (PEA); (b) asymmetrically induced reduction of these imines to the diastereomeric amines 11a–c and 12a–c; (c) catalytic hydrogenation to remove the benzylic fragment of the chiral PEA auxiliary. The stereoselectivity of the imine reduction, as well as the regioselectivity of the catalytic hydrogenation, are strongly dependent on the size of the saturated ring condensed with the benzene ring. This approach was used to develop a convenient, high yielding, and stereoselective route to several practically important optically active α-amino substituted benzocyclic compounds.     

Treatment of Malignant Melanoma by High-Peak-Power 1064 nm Irradiation Followed by Photodynamic Therapy

Irradiation of B16 pigmented melanoma subcutaneously transplanted in C57 mice with a single 650 mj pulse (10 ns) of 1064 nm light from a Q-switched Nd: YAG laser caused instantaneous bleaching of the pigmented tissue. Visual and histological examination of the resulting gray-colored tumor revealed the breakdown of melanosomes with no detectable alteration of the normal and tumor-overlying skin. Histological examination of the irradiated tumor showed some degree of vascular damage; the depth of the photodamage was not affected by the successive delivery of three consecutive light pulses. The bleached tumor grew at a modestly slower rate but the high-peak-power (HPP) laser treatment did not affect the tumor concentration of a photodynamic sensitizer Si(IV)-naphthalocyanine (isoBO-SiNc) intravenously injected 24 h before Nd : YAG irradiation. Treatment of the B16 pigmented melanoma by photodynamic therapy (PDT: 1 mg/kg isoBO-SiNc, 300 mW/cm², 520 J/cm²) from a 774 nm diode laser immediately after the 1064 nm irradiation resulted in a 16 day delay of tumor regrowth, which was markedly longer than the delay (ca 6 days) obtained after PDT under identical conditions without the preirradia-tion. Thus, pretreatment of pigmented tumors with HPP 1064 nm light appears to enhance their susceptibility to conventional PDT. The tumor response was further enhanced by repeating the combined HPP/PDT treatment at an interval of 10 days (regrowth delay: 27 days), as well as by applying hyperthermia immediately after HPP/PDT (regrowth delay: ca 34 days).     

Synthesis and anion binding properties of 2,5-diamidothiophene polypyrrole Schiff base macrocycles

[reaction: see text] Two easy-to-synthesize polypyrrolic 2,5-diamidothiophene Schiff base macrocycles are reported, along with their anion binding properties as determined via UV-vis spectroscopic titrations carried out in dichloroethane. There is a striking difference between the interactions with anions of the two macrocycles, a finding ascribed to differences in their rigidity. For example, the more flexible dipyrromethane-derived macrocycle displays a 1.2:1 hydrogen sulfate versus nitrate selectivity, while its more rigid bipyrrole-derived congener shows a 7.4:1 selectivity in favor to hydrogen sulfate.