Asymmetric organocatalysis: from infancy to adolescence

After an initial period of validating asymmetric organocatalysis by using a wide range of important model reactions that constitute the essential tools of organic synthesis, the time has now been reached when organocatalysis can be used to address specific issues and solve pending problems of stereochemical relevance. This Review deals with selected studies reported in 2006 and the first half of 2007, and is intended to highlight four main aspects that may be taken as testimony of the present status and prospective of organocatalysis: a) chemical efficiency; b) discovery of new substrate combinations to give new asymmetric syntheses; c) development of new catalysts for specific purposes by using mechanistic findings; and d) applications of organocatalytic reactions in the asymmetric total synthesis of target natural products and known compounds of biological and pharmaceutical relevance.     

Asymptotic approximations for second-order linear difference equations in Banach algebras, II

A Liouville-Green (WKB) asymptotic approximation theory is developed for some classes of linear second-order difference equations in Banach algebras. The special case of linear matrix difference equations (or, equivalently, of second-order systems) is emphasized. Rigorous and explicitly computable bounds for the error terms are obtained, and this when both, the sequence index and some parameter that may enter the coefficients, go to infinity. A simple application is made to orthogonal matrix polynomials in the Nevai class.     

An efficient synthesis of the phytoestrogen 8-prenylnaringenin from isoxanthohumol with magnesium iodide etherate

Xanthohumol was isolated from supercritical carbon dioxide-spent hop and transformed into isoxanthohumol. The demethylation of isoxanthohumol with the best yield 93% occurred when MgI₂ etherate in anhydrous THF was applied. Salts such as MgBr₂, MgCl₂, CaI₂, Mg(OAc)₂, Mg(OMe)₂ were also investigated. A convenient method for the xanthohumol isolation from supercritical carbon dioxide-spent hop is also described.     

Highly efficient synthesis of homoallylic alcohols and amines via allylation of aldehydes and imines catalyzed by ZrOCl2·8H2O in water

The allylation of aldehydes and imines has efficiently been carried out by treatment with allyltributylstannane in the presence of a catalytic amount of ZrOCl₂·8H₂O in water to form the corresponding homoallylic alcohols and amines, respectively, in high yields.     

Crystal Structure of 8-Demethoxyrunanine

A new hasubanane-type alkaloid, 8-demethoxyrunanine, was isolated from Sino- menium acutum and characterized by melting point, HREIMS, 1H NMR, and X-ray diffraction analysis. X-ray diffraction reveals that the title compound crystallizes in the orthorhombic system, space group P212121 with a = 7.308（1）, b = 21.742（5）, c = 22.893（4）A, V = 3637.5（11） A^3, Z = 8, Dx = 1.254 g/cm^3, F（000） = 1472, μ（MoKα） = 0.087 mm^-1, the final R = 0.0438 and wR = 0.0575 for 4497 independent reflections with Rint = 0.0192 and 2091 observed reflections with I 〉 2σ（I）. Four rings （ring A： one benzene ring, ring B： one hexagon carbon ring in a half-chair conformation, ring C： one hexagon carbon ring with α,β-unsaturated ketone segment （-CR2=CR1-C=O） in a screw-boat conformation, and ring D： one nonplanar tetrahydropyrrole） form a hasubanane-type alkaloid.     

基于CASSCF参考函数的块相关耦合簇方法对烷烃中单键解离势能面研究

用以完全活化空间自洽场(CASSCF)波函数为参考波函数的块相关耦合簇(BCCC)方法(简称CAS-BCCC)研究了烷烃(甲烷和乙烷)中的单键解离过程的势能面(PES). 与其它理论方法比较的结果表明, 该方法可以对所研究的整个解离势能面给出定量准确的描述.     

A simple and cost effective method for the quantification of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine from urine using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid and high-throughput method for the determination of urinary levels of the oxidative stress biomarker, 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG), has been developed and validated using liquid chromatography combined with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The assay features a cheap and readily available non-isotopic internal standard, a single-step filtration sample preparation, and a total analysis time of 6 min including column re-equilibration. The method was validated based on linearity, accuracy (100-106%), precision (CV < 7%), sample preparation stability (< or =5%, 72 h). Intra-laboratory patient ranges were established comparing children and adults (n = 345).     

Simultaneous determination of swertiamarin and its metabolites (5Z)-5-ethylidene-8-hydroxy-3,4,5,6,7,8-hexahydro-1H-pyrano[3,4-c]pyridin-1-one and erythrocentaurin in broth of Aspergillus niger by HPLC

When cultivated with Aspergillus niger, swertiamarin, an important drug, is rapidly transformed into erythrocentaurin and (5Z)-5-ethylidene-8-hydroxy-3,4,5,6,7,8-hexahydro-1H-pyrano[3,4-c]pyridin-1-one (M(1)), a new compound with high anti-inflammatory activity. A simple and rapid HPLC method for simultaneous determination of swertiamarin and its two metabolites in broth of A. niger is described. The chromatographic separation was achieved on a C(18) ODS column (250 x 4.6 mm i.d.) by gradient elution with 0.04% formic acid in water and 0.04% formic acid in acetonitrile as the gradient mixtures. The flow rate was 1 mL/min, the detection wavelength was 237 nm and the column temperature was kept at 30 degrees C. The retention times of swertiamarin, erythrocentaurin and M(1) were 14.6, 16.8 and 24.8 min, respectively. The mean absolute recoveries of three analysts were over 96%. Quantification limits were 0.02 microg/mL for swertiamarin and 0.05 microg/mL for both of the two metabolites. The method was applied for the quantification of swertiamarin and its two metabolites during the fermentation process and the evaluation of the bioavailabilities in the Caco-2 monolayer.     

TD-DFT Study on the Electronic Spectrum Properties of 2,7＇-（Ethylene）- bis-8-hydroxyquinoline and Its Derivatives

The structures of 2,7＇-（ethylene）-bis-8-hydroxyquinoline and its derivatives were optimized at the ground states using ab initio HF and B3LYP methods. At the same time, the molecular structures of the first singlet excited state for 2,7＇-（ethylene）-bis-8-hydroxyqulnoline and its derivatives were optimized by CIS/6-31G（d）. The absorption and emission spectra based on the above structures were obtained by the time-dependent density functional theory （TD-DFT） by the B3LYP method with the 6-31G（d） basis set. The calculated results of luminescence originate from the electronic transition from the hydroxphenol ring of 8-hydroxyquinoline A to the pyridine ring of 8-hydroxyquinoline B. Their luminescence wave bands can be tuned by different substituents on the ligand of 8-hydroxyquinoline.