Tuning Chloride Binding,Encapsulation, and Transport by Peripheral Substitution of Pseudopeptidic Tripodal Small Cages

A highly efficient synthesis of small pseudopeptidic cages from simple precursors has been achieved by the triple S_N2 reaction between tripodal tris(amido amines) and several 1,3,5‐tris(bromomethyl)benzene electrophiles. The success of the macrobicyclization strongly depends on the central triamine scaffold, which dictates the correct preorganization of the intermediates. The chloride binding properties of the protonated pseudopeptidic cages have been studied in the solid state (by X‐ray diffraction) as well as in solution (by NMR spectroscopy and ESI‐MS) and in the gas phase (by collision‐induced dissociation (CID)‐MS). The crystal structure of the HCl salts of several cages show a chloride partially or completely caged within the cavity of the macrobicycle. Both the amino acid side chain and the substitution at the aromatic tripodal ring have an effect on the chloride binding ability. The cages derived from the 1,3,5‐benzene moiety show low affinity, whereas the triple substitution in the ring (either with Me or Et) increases the chloride binding by one order of magnitude. Besides, the cages derived from aliphatic amino acids display a stronger interaction than those derived from phenylalanine. The basis for the different mode of binding depending on the receptor structure is proposed according to the structural data (X‐ray and NMR spectroscopy). Finally, the transport of the chloride anion through lipid bilayers has been studied for selected cages. Despite the important differences in the chloride binding, the transport properties are better correlated with the lipophilicity of the molecules. Therefore, the pseudopeptidic cages sharing the same binding motif for chloride rendered very different interaction and transport properties depending on the peripheral substitution.     

A model to simplify 2D triangle meshes with irregular shapes

We present a 2D triangle mesh simplification model which is able to produce high quality approximations of any original planar mesh, regardless of the shape of the original mesh. This method consists of two phases: a self-organizing algorithm and a triangulation algorithm. The self-organizing algorithm is an unsupervised incremental clustering algorithm which provides us a set of nodes representing the best approximation of the original mesh. The triangulation algorithm reconstructs the simplified mesh from the planar points obtained by the self-organizing training process. Some examples are detailed with the purpose of demonstrating the ability of the model to perform the task of simplifying an original mesh with irregular shape.     

A Synthetic Lectin for O‐Linked β‐N‐Acetylglucosamine

Changing employment : Receptor 1 binds β‐N‐acetylglucosaminyl (β‐GlcNAc) up to 100 times more strongly than it does glucose. This synthetic lectin shows affinities similar to wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), a natural lectin used to bind GlcNAc. Remarkably, 1 is more selective than WGA. It favors especially the glycoside unit in glycopeptide 2 , a model of the serine‐O‐GlcNAc posttranslational protein modification.

     

Characterization of PVC-Tetraruthenated Metalloporphyrins Modified Electrodes: Application as Electrocatalyst in the Nitrite Reduction

Summary: This paper describes the electrochemical reduction of nitrite ion in 0.1 M NaClO₄, on glassy carbon or ITO electrodes modified with mixtures PVC- tetraruthenated metalloporphyrins. This electrode is able to keep the extraordinary electrocatalytic properties of the macrocycle allowing multielectronic transfers and a great stability as a consequence of the inclusion of the macrocycles into a polymeric support such as PVC. On the other hand, the electrochemical reduction of nitrite ion on these modified electrodes studied by cyclic voltammetry shows an enhancement in the current values and lower overpotential compared with the activity of the bare glassy carbon electrode. Controlled potential electrolysis experiments verify the production of ammonia, hydrazine and hydroxylamine, showing the electrocatalytic character and the stability of this modified electrode.     

A theoretical study of carbon-carbon bond formation by a Michael-type addition

A theoretical study of the Michael-type addition of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds has been performed in the gas phase by means of the AM1 semiempirical method and by density functional theory (DFT) calculations within the B3LYP and M06-2X hybrid functionals. A molecular model has been selected to mimic the role of a base, which is traditionally used as a catalyst in Michael reactions, an acetate moiety to modulate its basicity, and point charges to imitate the stabilization of the negative charge developed in the substrate during the reaction when taking place in enzymatic environments. Results of the study of six different reactions obtained at the three different levels of calculations show that the reaction takes place in three steps: in the first step the α proton of the acetylacetone is abstracted by the base, then the nucleophilic attack on the β-carbon of the α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compound takes place generating the negatively charged enolate intermediate, and finally the product is formed through a proton transfer back from the protonated base. According to the energy profiles, the rate limiting step corresponds to the abstraction of the proton or the carbon-carbon bond formation step, depending on substituents of the substrates and method of calculation. The effect of the substituents on the acidity of the α proton of the acetylacetone and the steric hindrance can be analyzed by comparing these two separated steps. Moreover, the result of adding a positive charge close to the center that develops a negative charge during the reaction confirms the catalytic role of the oxyanion hole proposed in enzyme catalysed Michael-type additions. Stabilization of the intermediate implies, in agreement with the Hammond postulate, a reduction of the barrier of the carbon-carbon bond formation step. Our results can be used to predict the features that a new designed biocatalyst must present to efficiently accelerate this fundamental reaction in organic synthesis.     

Organometallic derivatives of Rh- and Ir-substituted polyoxotungstates with Keggin structure: reactivity screening by electrospray ionization mass-spectrometry

ESI-MS based methodology for the rapid reactivity screening of [PW(11)O(39)RhCl](5-) and [PW(11)O(39)Ir(H(2)O)](4-) toward various metalation-intended substrates (reagents with an activated C-H bond, boronic acids and organotin compounds) is presented. Formation of a series of new organometallic POM derivatives with Rh-R (R = malonate, phenylacetate, CH(3), Ph, ferrocenyl) and Ir-R (R = CH(3)) bonds is reported.     

Hydrolysis of phosphotriesters: a theoretical analysis of the enzymatic and solution mechanisms

A theoretical study on the alkaline hydrolysis of paraoxon, one of the most popular organophosphorus pesticides, in aqueous solution and in the active site of Pseudomonas diminuta phosphotriesterase (PTE) is presented. Simulations by means of hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) potentials show that the hydrolysis of paraoxon takes place through an A(N)D(N) or associative mechanism both in solution and in the active site of PTE. The results correctly reproduce the magnitude of the activation free energies and can be used to rationalize the observed kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) for the hydrolysis of paraoxon in both media. Enzymatic hydrolysis of O,O-diethyl p-chlorophenyl phosphate, a phosphotriester having a leaving group with higher pK(a) than paraoxon, was also simulated. Hydrolysis of this phosphotriester by PTE follows a A(N)+D(N) mechanism with a pentacoordinate intermediate. Moreover, the leaving group of this new substrate coordinates to one of the zinc ions of the bimetallic active site in order to stabilize the large negative charge developed on the oxygen atom of the leaving group when the P-O bond is broken in the products state. To accommodate this new ligand in the coordination shell, carbamylated Lys169 must be displaced from one zinc ion to the other, which in turn affects the acidity of Asp301, a residue originally bound to the second zinc ion. This ability to displace some of the ligands of the coordination shell of the zinc centers would explain the promiscuity of this enzyme, which is capable of catalyzing hydrolysis of different substrate by means of different mechanisms.     

Determination of bisphenol diglycidyl ether residues in canned foods by pressurized liquid extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A new confirmatory method for simultaneous determination of bisphenol diglycidyl ether residues (BADGE, BADGE.H(2)O, BADGE.2H(2)O, BADGE.H(2)O.HCl, BADGE.HCl, BADGE.2HCl, BFDGE and BFDGE.2HCl) from canned food has been developed. The proposed method includes extraction by pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) followed by liquid-liquid partition and purification by solid phase extraction (SPE). Several solvent systems and different operating conditions (time, temperature) have been investigated for PLE optimization. A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) coupled to atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation tandem mass spectrometry (APCI-MS-MS) method was developed for the separation, quantification and confirmation. The ion source settings were optimized using a design of experiments (DOE). The optimized method was applied to the determination of these chemicals at very low levels in different samples with a quantification limit of 5 ng/g. Recoveries ranged between 82 and 101% and standard deviations were less than 10%.     

The structure of ([W3Q4X3(dmpe)3]+, Y-) ion pairs (Q = S, Se; X = H, OH, Br; Y = BF4, PF6, dmpe = Me2PCH2CH2PMe2) in dichloromethane solution and the effect of ion-pairing on the kinetics of proton transfer to the hydride cluster [W3S4H3(dmpe)3]+

The 1H,19F HOESY spectra of the title compounds in CD2Cl2 solution indicate that the cluster cations form ion pairs with the BF4- and PF6- anions with a well-defined interionic structure that appears to be basically determined essentially by the nature of the X- ligand. For the clusters with X = H and OH, the structure of the ion pairs is such that the counteranion (Y-) and the X- ligands are placed close to each other. However, when the size and electron density of X- increase (X = Br), Y- is forced to move to a different site, far away from X-. The relevance of ion-pairing on the chemistry of these compounds is clearly seen through a decrease in the rate of proton transfer from HCl to the hydride cluster [W3S4H3(dmpe)3]+ in the presence of an excess of BF4-. The kinetic data for this reaction can be rationalized by considering that the ([W3S4H3(dmpe)3]+, BF4-) ion pairs are unproductive in the proton-transfer process. Theoretical calculations indicate that the real behavior can be more complex. Although the cluster can still form adducts with HCl in the presence of BF4-, the structures of the most-stable BF4--containing HCl adducts show H...H distances too large to allow the subsequent release of H2. In addition, the effective concentration of HCl is also reduced because of the formation of adducts as ClH...BF4-. As a consequence of both effects, the proton transfer takes place more slowly than for the case of the dihydrogen-bonded HCl adduct resulting from the unpaired cluster.     

Polymer-supported molybdenyl thioglycolate as oxygen atom transfer reagent

Oxo-transfer reactions of a variety of substrates in DMF or methanol using polymer-supported molybdenyl thioglycolate (PSMT) have been investigated. The clean oxidation of Me₂PhP, n-butanethiol or benzoin to yield Me₂PhPO, disulfide or benzil, respectively, occurs in high yield. In the presence of air or pyridine N-oxide, a catalytic cycle is accomplished which goes on until the completion of the substrate.