Functionalization of Pentacene: A Facile and Versatile Approach to Contorted Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

In this work, a facile and versatile strategy for the synthesis of contorted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) starting from the functionalized pentacene was established. A series of novel PAHs 1 – 4 and their derivatives were synthesized through a simple two-step synthesis procedure involving an intramolecular reductive Friedel–Crafts cyclization of four newly synthesized pentacene aldehydes 5 – 8 as a key step. All the molecules were confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and their photophysical and electrochemical properties were studied in detail. Interestingly, the most striking feature of 1 – 4 is their highly contorted carbon structures and the accompanying helical chirality. In particular, the optical resolution of 2 was successfully achieved by chiral-phase HPLC, and the enantiomers were characterized by circular dichroism and circularly polarized luminescence spectroscopy. Despite the highly nonplanar conformations, these contorted PAHs exhibited emissive properties with moderate-to-good fluorescence quantum yields, implying the potential utility of this series PAHs as high-quality organic laser dyes. By using a self-assembly method with the help of epoxy resin, a bottle microlaser based on 3 a was successfully illustrated with a lasing wavelength of 567.8 nm at a threshold of 0.3 mJ/cm². We believe that this work will shed light on the chemical versatility of pentacene and its derivatives in the construction of novel functionalized PAHs.     

Frontispiece: Controlled Self-assembly of Gold(I) Complexes by Multiple Kinetic Aggregation States with Nonlinear Optical and Waveguide Properties

Introduction of multiple kinetic aggregation states (Aggs) into the self-assembly pathway could bring complexity and flexibility to the self-assemblies, which is difficult to realize due to the delicate equilibria established among different Aggs bonded by weak noncovalent interactions. Here, we describe a series of chiral and achiral d¹⁰ Au^I bis(N-heterocyclic carbene, NHC) complexes, and the achiral complex could undergo self-assembly with multiple kinetic Aggs. Generation of multiple kinetic Aggs was realized by applying chiral or achiral seeds exhibiting large differences in elongation temperatures for their respective cooperative self-assembly processes. We further showed that the chiral Au^I self-assemblies having non-centrosymmetric packing forms exhibit nonlinear optical response of second harmonic generation (SHG), while the SHG signal is absent in the achiral analogue. The crystalline achiral Au^I self-assemblies could function as optical waveguides with strong emission polarization.     

Linkage Microenvironment of Azoles-Related Covalent Organic Frameworks Precisely Regulates Photocatalytic Generation of Hydrogen Peroxide

Artificial H₂O₂ photosynthesis by covalent organic frameworks (COFs) photocatalysts is promising for wastewater treatment. The effect of linkage chemistry of COFs as functional basis to photoelectrochemical properties and photocatalysis remains a significant challenge. In this study, three kinds of azoles-linked COFs including thiazole-linked TZ-COF, oxazole-linked OZ-COF and imidazole-linked IZ-COF were successfully synthesized. More accessible channels of charge transfer were constructed in TZ-COF via the donor-π-acceptor structure between thiazole linkage and pyrene linker, leading to efficient suppression of photoexcited charge recombination. Density functional theory calculations support the experimental studies, demonstrating that the thiazole linkage is more favorable for the formation of *O₂ intermediate in H₂O₂ production than that of the oxazole and imidazole linkages. The real active sites in COFs located at the benzene ring fragment between pyrene unit and azole linkage.     

Synthesis and characterization of a novel arylacetylene oligomer containing POSS units in main chains

A novel arylacetylene oligomer containing octamethyl POSS units in main chains was prepared from difluoride octamethyl POSS (diexo-(CH₃)₈Si₈O₁₁F₂) and diethynylbenzene (DEB) by Grignard reaction and characterized by FT-IR, NMR, WAXD, GPC, DSC, and TGA. The curing reaction kinetic of the oligomer was studied by Kissinger and Ozawa methods and the kinetic parameters were obtained. The cured polymer had good thermal and thermal-oxidative properties. TGA analyses demonstrated that the thermal decomposition temperature (T_d5) of the cured polymer in nitrogen and air were 503 and 479 °C, respectively.     

Na5[MB24O34(OH)12].nH2O (M = Cr(3+), Al(3+)): unprecedented spherelike polyborate clusters from boric acid flux synthesis

Two novel isotypic polyborate cluster compounds Na 5[MB 24O 34(OH) 12]. nH 2O (M = Cr (3+), Al (3+)) have been synthesized in a boric acid flux closed system at 220 degrees C by using gel as precursors. The structure of the Cr compound was determined by low-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and the Al compound was confirmed to be isostructural by powder X-ray diffraction and similar FT-IR spectra and thermal behavior. Na 5[CrB 24O 34(OH) 12]. nH 2O crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2 1/ c with the cell parameters a = 17.4549(3) A, b = 11.1976(2) A, c = 21.2403(3) A, beta = 94.644(2) degrees , V = 4137.85(12) A (3), and Z = 4. The predominant feature of the structure are the spherelike polyborate clusters [MB 24O 34(OH) 12] (5-). The M (3+) cation is located at the center of the cluster, around which four hexaborate units ([B 6O 10(OH) 3] (5-)) are tetrahedrally assembled in almost a perfect T d symmetry. To the best of our knowledge, [MB 24O 34(OH) 12] (5-) is the first example of a polyborate cluster that contains 24 boron atoms. Upon heating, the compounds show two steps of weight loss, including the loss of the disengaged water and dehydration of the hydroxy groups. The first step is reversible, retaining the structure framework. The second weight loss is continuous and irreversible.     

Unbiased tau-leap methods for stochastic simulation of chemically reacting systems

The tau-leap method first developed by Gillespie [D. T. Gillespie, J. Chem. Phys. 115, 1716 (2001)] can significantly speed up stochastic simulation of certain chemically reacting systems with acceptable losses in accuracy. Recently, several improved tau-leap methods, including the binomial, multinomial, and modified tau-leap methods, have been developed. However, in all these tau-leap methods, the mean of the number of times, K(m), that the mth reaction channel fires during a leap is not equal to the true mean. Therefore, all existing tau-leap methods produce biased simulation results, which limit the simulation accuracy and speed. In this paper, we analyze the mean of K(m) based on the chemical master equation. Using this analytical result, we develop unbiased Poisson and binomial tau-leap methods. Moreover, we analyze the variance of K(m), and then develop an unbiased Poisson/Gaussian/binomial tau-leap method to correct the errors in both the mean and variance of K(m). Simulation results demonstrate that our unbiased tau-leap method can significantly improve simulation accuracy without sacrificing speed.     

Herglotz's theorem and quaternion series of positive term

The present paper first introduces the notion of quaternion infinite series of positive term and establishes its several tests. Next, we give the definitions of the positive‐definite quaternion sequence and the positive semi‐definite quaternion function, and we extend the classical Herglotz's theorem to the quaternion linear canonical transform setting. Then we investigate the properties of the two‐sided quaternion linear canonical transform, such as time shift characteristics and differential characteristics. Finally, we derive its several basic properties of the quaternion linear canonical transform of a probability measure, in particular, and establish the Bochner–Minlos theorem. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

术前经动脉化疗栓塞治疗婴儿肾母细胞瘤的疗效观察

目的探讨术前经动脉化疗栓塞治疗婴儿肾母细胞瘤的可行性。方法2009年6月至2014年5月收治6例婴儿单侧肾母细胞瘤,术前评估肿瘤手术一期切除困难,所有婴儿均行经导管肾动脉化疗栓塞,术后4周内行肿瘤根治性手术切除,记录并分析6例婴儿的治疗结果、并发症及随访结果。结果6例婴儿介入后肿瘤体积均缩小,平均缩小39.03%（23.95%~61.8%）,介入治疗总有效率达83.33%（5/6）;手术中瘤体完整切除率为100%,无肿瘤破溃及污染腹腔情况。手术后随访时间平均为42.8个月,无肿瘤复发、远处转移及死亡。结论术前经动脉化疗栓塞治疗婴儿巨大肾母细胞瘤是安全、有效的,能为一期手术切除困难的肾母细胞瘤患儿提供一种新的治疗模式。     

Therapeutic deferoxamine and deferiprone monitoring in β‐thalassemia patients’ plasma by field‐amplified sample injection and sweeping in capillary electrophoresis

One CE method was established for detecting deferoxamine (DFO) and deferiprone (DFR) in plasma. For β‐thalassemia patients, DFO and DFR are major medicines to treat the iron overload caused by blood transfusion. Field‐amplified sample injection combined with sweeping was used for sensitivity enhancement in CE. This method was performed on an uncoated fused‐silica capillary. After liquid–liquid extraction, the plasma samples were electrokinetically injected into capillary at +10 kV for 180 s. The phosphate buffer (100 mM) containing 50 mM triethanolamine was used as the BGE (pH 6.6). Separation buffer was phosphate buffer (100 mM, pH 3.0) containing 150 mM SDS. This method showed good linearity (r ≥ 0.9960). Precision and accuracy were evaluated by the results of RSD and relative error of intrabatch and interbatch analyses, and all of the absolute values were less than 6.12%. The LODs (S/N = 3) were 200 ng/mL for DFO, and 25 ng/mL for DFR. The LOQ (S/N = 10) of DFO and DFR were 600 and 75 ng/mL, respectively. This method was applied for clinical applications of five β‐thalassemia patients.     

Syntheses and crystal structures of three copper(II) complexes with bulky Schiff bases derived from rimantadine

The reactions of copper(II) chloride dihydrate and three bulky Schiff base ligands derived from rimantadine and salicylaldehyde (or methoxy-substituted salicylaldehydes), generated C₃₈H₄₈CuN₂O₂ (1), C₄₀H₅₂CuN₂O₄ (2), and C₄₀H₅₂CuN₂O₄ (3), respectively. These complexes were characterized by infrared spectra, UV–vis, elemental analysis and molar conductance. X-ray single-crystal diffraction analysis reveals that 1 has two different spatial configurations, 1a and 1b. For 1a, each asymmetric unit consists of one mononuclear copper(II) molecule. For 1b, each asymmetric unit consists of two copper(II) mononuclear molecules. All the complexes crystallize in the monoclinic system, P2₁/c space group for 1a and 2; P2₁/n space group for 1b; C2/c space group for 3. Each complex for 1–3 consists of one copper(II) and two corresponding deprotonated ligands. The central copper(II) in all complexes is four-coordinate via two nitrogens and two oxygens from the corresponding Schiff base ligands. The geometry around copper in 1a, 1b, and 2 is distorted square planar, but square planar in 3.