Chemical Synthesis, 3D Structure,and ASIC Binding Site of the Toxin Mambalgin‐2

Mambalgins are a novel class of snake venom components that exert potent analgesic effects mediated through the inhibition of acid‐sensing ion channels (ASICs). The 57‐residue polypeptide mambalgin‐2 (Ma‐2) was synthesized by using a combination of solid‐phase peptide synthesis and native chemical ligation. The structure of the synthetic toxin, determined using homonuclear NMR, revealed an unusual three‐finger toxin fold reminiscent of functionally unrelated snake toxins. Electrophysiological analysis of Ma‐2 on wild‐type and mutant ASIC1a receptors allowed us to identify α‐helix 5, which borders on the functionally critical acidic pocket of the channel, as a major part of the Ma‐2 binding site. This region is also crucial for the interaction of ASIC1a with the spider toxin PcTx1, thus suggesting that the binding sites for these toxins substantially overlap. This work lays the foundation for structure–activity relationship (SAR) studies and further development of this promising analgesic peptide.     

Recent Progress in Direct Introduction of Fluorinated Groups on Alkenes and Alkynes by means of CH Bond Functionalization

The direct introduction of fluorine and fluorinated building blocks has recently attracted a lot of attention and particularly the direct functionalization of alkenes and alkynes. This review will highlight the major progress recently made in that field, with a focus on photocatalyzed transformations, base‐promoted processes, and transition metal‐catalyzed functionalization of alkenes and alkynes. Special attention will be paid to explanations of the reaction mechanisms.     

A General Method for Preparing Bridged Organosilanes with Pendant Functional Groups and Functional Mesoporous Organosilicas

New organosilica precursors containing two triethoxysilyl groups suitable for the organosilica material formation through the sol‐gel process were designed and synthesised. These precursors display alkyne or azide groups for attaching targeted functional groups by copper‐catalysed azide–alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) and can be used for the preparation of functional organosilicas following two strategies: 1) the functional group is first appended by CuAAC under anhydrous conditions, then the functional material is prepared by the sol‐gel process; 2) the precursor is first subjected to the sol‐gel process, producing porous, clickable bridged silsesquioxanes or periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs), then the desired functional groups are attached by means of CuAAC. Herein, we show the feasibility of both approaches. A series of bridged bis(triethoxysilane)s with different pending organic moieties was prepared, demonstrating the compatibility of the first approach with many functional groups. In particular, we demonstrate that organic functional molecules bearing only one derivatisation site can be used to produce bridged organosilanes and bridged silsesquioxanes. In the second approach, clickable PMOs and porous bridged silsesquioxanes were prepared from the alkyne‐ or azide‐containing precursors, and thereafter, functionalised with complementary model azide‐ or alkyne‐containing molecules. These results confirmed the potential of this approach as a general methodology for preparing functional organosilicas with high loadings of functional groups. Both approaches give rise to a wide range of new functional organosilica materials.     

Supramolecular Water Oxidation with Ru–bda‐Based Catalysts

Extremely slow and extremely fast new water oxidation catalysts based on the Ru–bda (bda=2,2′‐bipyridine‐6,6′‐dicarboxylate) systems are reported with turnover frequencies in the range of 1 and 900 cycles s^?1, respectively. Detailed analyses of the main factors involved in the water oxidation reaction have been carried out and are based on a combination of reactivity tests, electrochemical experiments, and DFT calculations. These analyses give a convergent interpretation that generates a solid understanding of the main factors involved in the water oxidation reaction, which in turn allows the design of catalysts with very low energy barriers in all the steps involved in the water oxidation catalytic cycle. We show that for this type of system π‐stacking interactions are the key factors that influence reactivity and by adequately controlling them we can generate exceptionally fast water oxidation catalysts.     

Multiple Stable Conformations Account for Reversible Concentration‐Dependent Oligomerization and Autoinhibition of a Metamorphic Metallopeptidase

Molecular plasticity controls enzymatic activity: the native fold of a protein in a given environment is normally unique and at a global free‐energy minimum. Some proteins, however, spontaneously undergo substantial fold switching to reversibly transit between defined conformers, the “metamorphic” proteins. Here, we present a minimal metamorphic, selective, and specific caseinolytic metallopeptidase, selecase, which reversibly transits between several different states of defined three‐dimensional structure, which are associated with loss of enzymatic activity due to autoinhibition. The latter is triggered by sequestering the competent conformation in incompetent but structured dimers, tetramers, and octamers. This system, which is compatible with a discrete multifunnel energy landscape, affords a switch that provides a reversible mechanism of control of catalytic activity unique in nature.     

Click approaches in sol–gel chemistry

The combination of the copper-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction with sol–gel processing enables the versatile preparation of sol–gel materials under different shapes with targeted functionalities through a diversity-oriented approach. In this account, the development of the CuAAC reaction under anhydrous conditions for the synthesis of sol–gel precursors and for the assembling of magnetic nanoparticles on self-assembled monolayers is related, as well as the use of the classical CuAAC methodologies for the functionalization of mesoporous silica nanoparticles and microdots arrays. Coupling CuAAC and Sol–Gel will result in simplified preparations of multifunctional materials with controlled morphologies.     

Naphthochromenones: Organic Bimodal Photocatalysts Engaging in Both Oxidative and Reductive Quenching Processes

Twelve naphthochromenone photocatalysts (PCs) were synthesized on gram scale. They absorb across the UV/Vis range and feature an extremely wide redox window (up to 3.22 eV) that is accessible using simple visible light irradiation sources (CFL or LED). Their excited‐state redox potentials, PC*/PC^.? (up to 1.65 V) and PC^.+/PC* (up to ?1.77 V vs. SCE), are such that these novel PCs can engage in both oxidative and reductive quenching mechanisms with strong thermodynamic requirements. The potential of these bimodal PCs was benchmarked in synthetically relevant photocatalytic processes with extreme thermodynamic requirements. Their ability to efficiently catalyze mechanistically opposite oxidative/reductive photoreactions is a unique feature of these organic photocatalysts, thus representing a decisive advance towards generality, sustainability, and cost efficiency in photocatalysis.     

Green approaches for the synthesis of nucleotides,their conjugates and analogues

Abstract

We have developed original one-pot and protecting group-free approaches, which are also user-friendly and reliable, to synthesize nucleotides and derivatives starting from nucleoside 5’-monophosphates. Both methods present convenient set-up, i.e., non-dry solvents and reagents, substrates in their sodium or acid form, and commercially available and cheap phosphorus reagents as sodium and potassium salts.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 2-substituted vinylgembisphosphonates against Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei

Abstract

A series of 2-substituted vinylidene-1,1-bisphosphonate esters and their acids were synthesized and tested in vitro for activity against Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei. For each compound, % parasite viability in treated wells was calculated relative to untreated controls for both P. falciparum and T. brucei. Fifty percentage inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) was also determined for the compounds. Chloroquine and pentamidine were used as positive control drug standards for activity against P. falciparum and T. brucei, respectively. The esters had better antiparasitic activity compared to their corresponding acids. Some of the compounds reduced % parasite viability to as low as 24.3% for P. falciparum and down to 0.602% for T. brucei. Tetraethyl-2-(o-tolyl)-ethene-1,1-bisphosphonate (3b) recorded the best IC₅₀ against T. brucei which was 0.0345?µmol/mL.