Excited-state proton transfer of 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazole in microemulsions: selective enhancement and slow dynamics in aerosol OT reverse micelles with an aqueous core

Excited-state proton transfer (ESPT) of 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazole (2PBI) in reverse micelles has been studied by steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. The nanometer sized water pool in the n-heptane/Aerosol OT (AOT)/water microemulsion is found to promote tautomer emission of this probe, as is evident from the emergence of a Stokes shifted band at 450 nm at the expense of the normal emission band on increasing the water content of the system. In the nonaquous microemulsion with a methanol core, the normal emission is quenched but no tautomer emission is obtained. With an acetonitrile core, there is no change in emission properties. Similarly, there is no evidence of ESPT in Triton X-100 reverse micelles. This indicates the requirement of ESPT to occur in microheterogeneous media; the medium should be a ternary system comprised of water and a hydrophobic phase separated by a negatively charged interface. In the microemulsions with an aqueous core, the fluorescence decays of 2PBI at the red end exhibit rise times of 0.8 ns and the time-resolved area-normalized emission spectra (TRANES) exhibit an isoemissive point, indicating slow dynamics of the two-state ESPT of 2PBI in aqueous AOT reverse micelles. The origin of the selective enhancement in AOT microemulsions as well as the slow dynamics is explored using fluorescence spectroscopic techniques, with support from quantum chemical calculation.     

Nucleation of beta-hairpin structures with cis amide bonds in E-vinylogous proline-containing peptides

Synthesis and conformational studies of peptides containing the E-vinylogous prolines 1 (VPro1) and 2 (VPro2), Boc-Ala-Val-VPro1-Xaa-Leu-OMe (3, Xaa = Gly; 4, Xaa = Phe), Boc-Ala-Val-VPro2-Xaa-Leu-OMe (5, Xaa = Gly; 6, Xaa = Phe), Boc-Leu-Ile-Val-VPro1-Xaa-Leu-OMe (7, Xaa = Gly; 8, Xaa = Phe), and Boc-Leu-Ile-Val-VPro2-Xaa-Leu-OMe (9, Xaa = Gly; 10, Xaa = Phe), were carried out. It has been shown that both VPro1 and VPro2 lead to the formation of 12-membered intramolecularly hydrogen bonded structures very similar to type VI beta-turns with a cis Xaa-VPro amide bond in the major conformers in all the peptides 3-10, resulting in the nucleation of beta-hairpin type structures in these molecules in CDCl(3).     

Total synthesis of (−)-clavosolide A

The total synthesis of (−)-clavosolide A is achieved employing a radical-mediated route to build the substituted tetrahydropyran unit, a Yamaguchi reaction to construct the diolide aglycon and the Schmidt method for the final glycosidation step.     

Role of local structure on motions on the potential energy landscape for a model supercooled polymer

We have conducted detailed Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations of a model glass forming polymeric system near its apparent glass transition temperature. We have characterized the local structure of the glass using a Voronoi-Delaunay analysis of local particle arrangements. After a perturbative face elimination, we find that a significant fraction of Voronoi polyhedra consist of 12 pentagonal faces, a sign of icosahedral ordering. Further, we have identified metabasins of particle vibrations on the potential energy landscape on the basis of persistence of particle positions and neighbors over a simulated trajectory. We find that the residence times for vibrations are correlated with a particular Voronoi volume and number of neighbors of a particle; the largest metabasins correspond to particles whose average Voronoi volume is close to the value expected on the basis of the density, and whose approximate number of neighbors is close to 12. The local distortion around a particle, measured in terms of the tetrahedricity of the Delaunay simplices, reveals that the particles with a higher degree of local distortion are likely to transition faster to a neighboring metabasin. In addition to the transition between metabasins, we have also examined the influence of vibrations at inherent structures (IS) on the local structure, and find that the the low frequency modes at the IS exhibit the greatest curvature with respect to the local structure. We believe that these results establish an important connection between the local structure of glass formers and the activated dynamics, thereby providing insights into the origins of dynamic heterogeneities.     

Kinetics study of amine cleavage reactions of various resin-bound thiophenol esters from marshall linker

The kinetics of cleavage reactions of seven resin-bound thiophenol esters with three amines has been studied by single-bead FTIR. The reactivity of these seven thiophenol esters was dependent on their structures and could be summarized as follows: 5-benzimidazolecarboxylic thiophenol ester > alkyl thiophenol ester > aromatic thiophenol ester. The reactivity of three amines was summarized as follows: n-butylamine > 3,4-dimethoxyphenethylamine > 1-piperonylpiperazine. The rate of the cleavage reaction increased 2-fold per 10 degrees C rise in reaction temperature. Oxidation of the thiophenol linker increased the rate of the cleavage reaction by 580-fold.     

Self-assembly of diorganotin(IV) 2-{[(E)-1-(2-oxyaryl)alkylidene]amino}acetates: An investigation of structures by X-ray diffraction, solution and solid-state tin NMR, and electrospray ionization MS

The diorganotin(IV) compounds, [Me₂SnL²(OH₂)]₂ (1), [ⁿBu₂SnL²(OH₂)]₂ (2), [ⁿBu₂SnL¹]₃ · 0.5C₃H₆O (3), [ⁿBu₂SnL³]₃ · 0.5C₆H₆ (4) and [Ph₂SnL³]_n · 0.5C₆H₆ (5) (L = carboxylic acid residue, i.e., 2-{[(E)-1-(2-oxyaryl)alkylidene]amino}acetate), were synthesized by treating the appropriate diorganotin(IV) dichloride with the potassium salt of the ligand in anhydrous methanol.The reaction of Ph₂SnL² (L = 2-{[(E)-1-(2-oxyphenyl)ethylidene]amino}acetate) with 1,10-phenanthroline (Phen) yielded a 1:1 adduct of composition, [Ph₂SnL²(Phen)] (6).The crystal structures of 1-6 were determined.The crystal of 1 is composed of centrosymmetric dimers of the basic Me₂SnL²(OH₂) moiety, where the two Sn-centres are linked by two asymmetric Sn-O?Sn bridges involving the carboxylic acid O atom of the ligand and a long Sn?O distance of 3.174(2) Å.The dimers are further linked into columns by hydrogen bonds.The coordination geometry about the Sn atom is a distorted pentagonal bipyramid with the two methyl groups in axial positions.The structure of 2 is similar.The same Sn atom coordination geometry is observed in compound 3, which is a cyclic trinuclear[ⁿBu₂SnL¹]₃ compound. Each Sn atom is coordinated by the phenoxide O atom, one carboxylate O atom and the imino N atom from one ligand and both the exo- and endo-carboxylate O atoms (mean Sn-O(exo): 2.35 Å; Sn-O(endo): 2.96 Å) from an adjacent ligand to form the equatorial plane, while the two butyl groups occupy axial positions. Compound 4 was found to crystallize in two polymorphic forms. The Sn-complex in both forms has a trinuclear [ⁿBu₂SnL³]₃ structural motif similar to that found in 3. In compound 5, distorted trigonal bipyramidal Ph₂SnL³ units are linked into polymeric cis-bridged chains by a weak Sn?O interaction (3.491(2) Å) involving the exocyclic O atom of the tridentate ligand of a neighboring Sn-complex unit. This interaction completes a highly distorted octahedron about the Sn atom, where the weakly coordinated exocyclic O atom and one phenyl group are trans to one another. In contrast, a monomeric distorted pentagonal bipyramidal geometry is found for adduct 6 where the Sn-phenyl groups occupy the axial positions. The solution and solid-state structures are compared by using ¹¹⁹Sn NMR chemical shift data. Compounds 1-6 were also studied using ESI-MS and their positive- and negative-ions mass fragmentation patterns are discussed.     

Nanoswitches based on DNA base pairs: why adenine-thymine is less suitable than guanine-cytosine.

Substituted Watson–Crick guanine–cytosine (GC) base pairs were recently shown to yield robust three‐state nanoswitches. Here, we address the question: Can such supramolecular switches also be based on Watson–Crick adenine‐thymine (AT) base pairs? We have theoretically analyzed AT pairs in which purine‐C8 and/or pyrimidine‐C6 positions carry a substituent X=NH^?, NH₂, NH₃⁺ (N series), O^?, OH or OH₂⁺ (O series), using the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) of density functional theory at the BP86/TZ2P level. Thus, we explore the trend in geometrical shape and hydrogen bond strengths in AT pairs along a series of stepwise protonations of the substituents. Introducing a charge on the substituents leads to substantial and characteristic changes in the individual hydrogen bond lengths when compared to the neutral AT pair. However, the trends along the series of negative, neutral, and positive substituents are less systematic and less pronounced than for GC. In certain instances, internal proton transfer from thymine to adenine occurs. Our results suggest that AT is a less suitable candidate than GC in the quest for chemically controlled nanoswitches.     

The Power of Kinetic Inertness in Improving Platinum Anticancer Therapy by Circumventing Resistance and Ameliorating Nephrotoxicity

Even in the modern era of precision medicine and immunotherapy, chemotherapy with platinum (Pt) drugs remains among the most commonly prescribed medications against a variety of cancers. Unfortunately, the broad applicability of these blockbuster Pt drugs is severely limited by intrinsic and/or acquired resistance, and high systemic toxicity. Considering the strong interconnection between kinetic lability and undesired shortcomings of clinical Pt drugs, we rationally designed kinetically inert organometallic Pt based anticancer agents with a novel mechanism of action. Using a combination of in vitro and in vivo assays, we demonstrated that the development of a remarkably efficacious but kinetically inert Pt anticancer agent is feasible. Along with exerting promising antitumor efficacy in Pt-sensitive as well as Pt-resistant tumors in vivo, our best candidate has the ability to mitigate the nephrotoxicity issue associated with cisplatin. In addition to demonstrating, for the first time, the power of kinetic inertness in improving the therapeutic benefits of Pt based anticancer therapy, we describe the detailed mechanism of action of our best kinetically inert antitumor agent. This study will certainly pave the way for designing the next generation of anticancer drugs for effective treatment of various cancers.     

Energy-efficient syngas production through catalytic oxy-methane reforming reactions

The considerable recent interest in the conversion of stranded methane into transportable liquids as well as fuel cell technology has provided a renewed impetus to the development of efficient processes for the generation of syngas. The production of syngas (CO/H2), a very versatile intermediate, can be the most expensive step in the conversion of methane to value-added liquid fuels. The catalytic oxy reforming of methane, which is an energy-efficient process that can produce syngas at extremely high space-time yields, is discussed in this Review. As long-term catalyst performance is crucial for the wide-scale commercialization of this process, catalyst-related studies are abundant. Correspondingly, herein, emphasis is placed on discussing the different issues related to the development of catalysts for oxy reforming. Important aspects of related processes such as catalytic oxy-steam, oxy-CO2, and oxy-steam-CO2 processes will also be discussed.     

A facial microwave-assisted synthesis, spectroscopic characterization and preliminary complexation studies of calix[4]pyrroles containing the hydroxamic-acid moiety

The synthesis, spectroscopic characterization and preliminary complexation properties of functionalized calix[4]pyrroles are described. To date, two generalized preparative approaches have been pursued (i) modifying the basic pyrrole-plus-ketone synthesis of calix[4]pyrrole by using microwave irradiation protocol, (ii) the basic meso-tetra(methyl) meso-tetra(p-nitrophenyl) calix[4]pyrrole skeleton was functionalized to give hydroxamic acids, especially in the meso-position of the macrocycles. The structures of novel calix[4]pyrrole hydroxamic acid derivatives were confirmed on the basis of various physico-chemical techniques such as elemental analysis, FT-IR, ¹H NMR and FAB-Mass. The results of preliminary studies on the extraction of vanadium (V) with the host calix[4]pyrrole hydroxamic acids were elucidated by significant examination of UV–Vis spectroscopy and ICP-AES. Single crystal structure of basic meso-tetra(methyl) meso-tetra (p-nitro phenyl) calix[4]pyrrole moiety has also been reported.