Structures and conformations of metabolites of antitumor cyclic hexapeptides, RA-VII and RA-X.

Metabolites of antitumor cyclic hexapeptides, RA-VII and -X which were isolated from Rubia cordifolia were studied by hepatic microsomal biotransformation in rats and in bile juice of rabbits to which these drugs were administered intravascularly. Their structures and conformations were elucidated by two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance techniques, temperature effect on NH protons and nuclear Overhauser effect experiments. Specific N-demethylation of Tyr-3, O-demethylation and hydroxylation at aromatic rings of Tyr-3 and -5 were observed. Compared with metabolites of RA-VII, most of RA-X was excreted unchanged in the bile juice. Relationship among their structures, conformations and antitumor activities is also discussed.     

Chiral ligand-controlled asymmetric conjugate addition of lithium amides to enoates

The external chiral ligand-controlled asymmetric conjugate addition reaction of lithium amides with alpha,beta-unsaturated esters provided beta-amino esters in high yields and high enantioselectivities.     

Analysis of the interaction between human plasma fibronectin and gelatin by affinity electrophoresis

The interaction between human plasma fibronectin and gelatin was analyzed by affinity electrophoresis, in which the fibronectin was subjected to electrophoresis in a 4% polyacrylamide gel in the presence and absence of gelatin, as an affinity ligand, and the fibronectin band was stained by an immunoblotting method. The apparent dissociation constants (Kd) of fibronectin for gelatin were calculated from affinity plots based on the original affinity equation at different pHs, urea concentrations, and temperatures. The fibronectin exhibited much lower affinity in the presence of urea. The Kds at 37 degrees C were 1.49 X 10(-7) M, 2.50 X 10(-6) M, and 3.58 X 10(-6) M with 2 M, 3 M, and 4 M urea, respectively. The van't Hoff plots of Kd values against absolute temperature (T) showed that the value of log Kd decreased in proportion to the increase in the value of 1/T within the range of 15-50 degrees C. The standard enthalpy, the standard free energy change at 37 degrees C, and the entropy change at 37 degrees C for association were calculated to be -124.7 kJ/mol, -33.23 kJ/mol, and -295.1 J/mol/deg, respectively. These results suggest that a hydrophilic interaction, such as hydrogen bond or van der Waals interaction, plays an important role in the binding of plasma fibronectin to gelatin.     

In Situ Processing of Nano Crystalline Oxide Particles/Polymer Hybrid

Nano sized crystalline particles/polymer hybrids were synthesized form designed metal-organic precursors. The newly developed method is composed of the synthesis of organic matrix by polymerization and the in situ nucleation and growth of crystalline oxide particles in the organic matrix below 100°C. The design of metal-organic precursor modified with polymerizable ligand and the selection of reaction conditions does influence the size and crystallinity of ceramic particles in organic matrix. The nano-sized magnetic particle/polymer hybrid exhibits the interesting feature of superparamagnetism and quantum size effect. The crystalline particles of BaTiO₃/, PbTiO₃/, and KNbO₃/polymer hybrids behave to be dielectric and show the typical electro-rheological behavior.     

Manipulation of droplets by dynamically controlled wetting gradients

The reversible transportation of droplets was realized by spatiotemporal control of the wetting gradient. The surface wetting was reversibly regulated by using electrochemical reactions of the ferrocenyl (Fc) alkanethiol monolayer, and the wetting gradient was generated by the application of the in-plane bias voltage to the substrate. The back-and-forth motion of the wetting boundary, where the surface changed from wetting to repulsive, sequentially caused a droplet unidirectional spreading and shrinking on the surface. These unidirectional deformations resulted in the net transport of the droplet in an inchwormlike manner. The droplet moved backward when the direction of the in-plane bias voltage was reversed.     

Simple indole alkaloids and those with a non-rearranged monoterpenoid unit

This review covers newly isolated simple indole alkaloids, structure determinations, total syntheses and biological activities reported in the literature in 2003.     

Hydrogen-bonded networks in organic conductors: crystal structures and electronic properties of charge-transfer salts of tetracyanoquinodimethane with 4,4'-biimidazolium having multiprotonated States

[structure: see text] Novel hydrogen-bonded charge-transfer salts of TCNQ with mono- and diprotonated 4,4'-biimidazolium were synthesized in order to demonstrate the high potential of the 4,4'-biimidazole system in a molecular conductor from the viewpoint of crystal engineering and electronic modulation. Crystal structure analyses of neutral 4,4'-biimidazole and TCNQ salts revealed the formation of two types of hydrogen-bonding modes of the 4,4'-biimidazole moiety depending on the protonated states. Neutral 4,4'-biimidazole possessed a linear chain mode of hydrogen-bonding to construct two-dimensional network. In the TCNQ salt of monoprotonated 4,4'-biimidazolium, the 4,4'-biimidazole moiety formed a dimer by a complementary mode of hydrogen-bonding. In contrast, the salt of diprotonated 4,4'-biimidazolium showed a double linear chain mode of hydrogen-bonding to construct a three-dimensional network. The formation of two types of hydrogen-bonding modes made the difference in the stacking patterns of TCNQ columns and in their transport properties. The TCNQ salt of diprotonated 4,4'-biimidazolium exhibited high electrical conductivity (sigma(rt) = 1.1 x 10(-1) S cm(-1)).     

Ferroelectric phase transitions in Pb2xSn2(1-x)P2Se6 system

Heat capacities of the Pb_2xSn_2(1-x)P₂Se₆ crystals (x=0, 0.098, 0.251, 0.402 and 1.0) were measured using an adiabatic calorimeter at temperatures between 10 and 350 K. In the crystal of x=0, two heat capacity anomalies corresponding to the ferroelectric commensurate - intermediate incommensurate(C-IC) phase transition temperature T _i, and the incommensurate - paraelectric (IC-N) phase transition temperature T _c, were observed at 193.24±0.10 and 220.07±0.15 K, respectively. The phase transition temperatures decreased with an increase in Pb²⁺ concentration. The anomaly at Ti disappeared at x=0.251 in the mixed systems of the Pb_2xSn_2(1-x)P₂Se₆. In the crystal of Pb₂P₂Se₆ (x=1.0), no phase transition was observed. The normal heat capacities for the mixed crystals were determined by least squares fitting of the Debye and Einstein functions to the experimental data. The anomalous heat capacities gave the phase transition entropies of 8.5 and 1.5 J mol^-1 K^-1 for x=0. The large transition entropies are consistent with an order-disorder mechanism in the ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transitions in x=0. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Solvent and steric effects on the extraction of copper(II) with pivalic acid

The solvent extraction of copper(II) with trimethylacetic acid using benzene and 1-octanol as solvents was performed at 25 degrees C and 0.1 mole. dm(-3) ionic strength in the aqueous phase. In contrast to the extraction of copper(II) with a saturated straight-chain carboxylic acid in benzene, the dimeric copper(II) trimethylacetate was observed to dissociate into the monomer, even at a moderately high concentration of copper(II) in the benzene phase. In the system using 1-octanol as a solvent, both the monomeric and dimeric copper(II) species are suggested to be solvated by some 1-octanol molecules. It has been found that the dimerization and adduct formation of copper(II) species in benzene may more effectively enhance the extractability of copper(II) than the solvation by 1-octanol molecules.     

Synthesis and polymerization of 4-o-vinylbenzyl-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine

Some hindered amine polymers containing 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine structure were synthesized. A new monomer, 4-O-vinylbenzyl-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine, was homopolymerized and copolymerized with some vinyl monomers in the presence of AIBN as an initiator. The obtained amine polymers were oxidized with hydrogen peroxide to obtain the polymers having nitroxyl radical moiety.