Stabilizing heteroatom-centered 16-vertex group 11 tetrahedral architectures: Bonding and structural considerations toward versatile endohedral species

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were carried out on a series of clusters made of a centered tetrahedral 16-atom superatomic cage having 20 or 18 jellium electrons (je) and structurally related to [Au₂₀], namely [X@M₁₆] (M = group 11; X = group 2, 4, 12, 14 element). Such species provide further information of how two different electron counts offer a more preferred endohedral situation for specific group elements. Calculations show that the encapsulated atom provides supplementary orbitals to stabilize the bonding M₁₆ MO's. Different favored electron counts are found depending on the nature of the encapsulated atom, as observed by the formation of 20-je species when encapsulating a group 14 element and 18-je species when encapsulating a group 2 element. In addition, the capabilities to enable reactive sites along the cage structure are found via the formation of σ holes at the coinage-metal edges, as shown by their electrostatic potential surface. Such naked species, which constitute an interesting addition to libraries of examples as small models for doped M(111) surfaces of fcc metals, reveal that different superatomic electronic configurations can favor the encapsulation of certain group elements. These results can guide further design of endohedral species.     

Identification of sildenafil,tadalafil and vardenafil by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry on short capillary column

Sildenafil and its analogues (tadalafil and vardenafil) are phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors used in the treatment of male erectile dysfunction. Some dietary supplements, herbal preparations and food products which claim to enhance male sexual function have been found to be adulterated with these drugs. In this study, a gas chromatograph–mass spectrometer (GC–MS) assay was developed for identification of the drugs. In addition to good and short chromatographic separation that can be achieved within 6 min by using a short 10 m capillary column, no prior sample clean-up before GC–MS analysis was required, thus making this assay a cost saving and rapid method. Furthermore, the assay is specific as the identification of sildenafil, tadalafil and vardenafil were done by detection of molecular ions; m/z 474, 389 and 448, respectively, and several other characteristic ions resulted from the mass fragmentation of individual molecules. Using our currently developed assay, sildenafil and its analogues were successfully identified in food and herbal matrices.     

Electronic structure of CeRhX (X = Sn,In)

Electronic structure of the compounds CeRhIn and CeRhSn have been studied by the X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) and ab initio band structure calculations. CeRhSn shows the non-Fermi liquid characteristics at low temperatures, while CeRhIn exhibits a Fermi-liquid ground state. At ambient temperature the XPS data reveal an intermediate valence state of Ce ions in both systems. The Ce core-level XPS spectra are very similar and indicate the strong coupling of the Ce 4f and the conduction band states (Δ ≈ 100 meV). The valence band spectra we interpret with the help of ab initio calculations as well as using the results for the reference compounds LaRhIn and LaRhSn. The comparative analysis of the theoretical band structures and charge density plots reveal the changes in chemical bonding and the hybridization between the Ce 4f and the other valence states introduced by the replacement of In by Sn atoms. The more covalent character of the chemical bonding in the stannides is in line with the smaller thermal expansion. Finally, for CeRhIn we found a typical temperature dependence of the crystal lattice, while CeRhSn shows distinct anomaly at about 120 K, presumably related to the change in planar Ce–Rh bonds.     

Magnetism and electronic structure of the intermetallic compound Ce5CuBi3

We have studied the electronic structure as well as magnetic, electronic transport and thermodynamic properties of the intermetallic compound Ce₅CuBi₃. It was found that Ce₅CuBi₃ undergoes three successive phase transitions at 25?K, 13.7?K and 3.5?K. We attribute the multiple magnetic phase transition to be associated with the two non-equivalent magnetic sublattices of the magnetic Ce ions. The investigated compound is characterized by an enhanced ratio C_p /T at 2?K, which may be interpreted as being due to the nearness of the 4f-level to the Fermi level and some contribution of magnon excitation. The core-level photoemission spectra indicate that Ce ions in Ce₅CuBi₃ are very close to trivalent which is consistent with the magnetic susceptibility data. The calculated band structures using the scalar-relativistic linear muffin-tin orbital method in the atomic sphere approximation and the all-electron full potential linear augmented plane wave plus local orbitals method have been performed for the non-magnetic ground state and as well as for collinear ferromagnetic and ferrimagnetic spin alignments. The largest stabilization energy is found in the case of a ferromagnetic structure. The calculated moments on the two sites of the Ce atoms are in agreement with the experimental value (0.93?μ _B /Ce). The calculations predict that the studied compound has a pseudogap in the DOS curve. Analysis of the partial DOS suggests some differences in hybridization strengths between the Ce-Bi and Ce-Cu orbitals.     

Synthesis and anti-HIV-1 activity of 1,5-dialkyl-6-(arylselenenyl)uracils and -2-thiouracils

The 1,5-dialkyl-6-(arylselenenyl)uracils 10a-h and -2-thiouracils 10i-p have been synthesized as potential anti-HIV-1 agents. Cyclization of N-alkyl-N'-[3,3-di(methylthio)-2-alkylacryloyl]ureas 6a-d and -thioureas 6e-h in acetic acid either containing a catalytic amount of methanesulfonic acid at 80°or containing 1 equivalent of methanesulfonic acid at room temperature afforded 1,5-dialkyl-6-(methylthio)uracils 7a-d in 84–96% yields and 1,5-dialkyl-5,6-dihydro-6,6-di(methylthio)-2-thiouracils 11a-d in 88–99% yields, respectively. Oxidation of 7a-d and 11a-d with either 3-chloroperoxybenzoic acid in benzene or aqueous sodium periodate solution in methanol gave 1,5-dialkyl-6-(methylsulfonyl)uracils 8a-d in 88–98% yields and 1,5-dialkyl-6-(methylsulfinyl)-2-thiouracils 12a-d in 57–73% yields, respectively, which were subsequently treated with arylselenol 9a-b in ethanolic sodium hydroxide solution to afford 10a-p in 6099% yields. Of these compounds, 6-[(3,5-dimethylphenyl)selenenyl]-5-isopropyl-1-(3-phenylpropyl)uracil ( 10h ) inhibited HIV-1 replication in MT-4 cells at a 50% effective concentration (EC₅₀) of 0.0006 μM with a selective index of 44833, which is 7.7-fold more potent than AZT.     

Proteomics and Detection of Uromodulin in First-time Renal Calculi Patients and Recurrent Renal Calculi Patients

Renal calculi disease or known as kidney stone disease is the most common urological disorder in both men and women, although it is more prevalent in men. The lifetime chance for an individual to develop renal calculi is ~10% whereas the risk of recurrence in a 10-year period is 74%. Therefore, a diagnostic tool for screening or detecting renal calculi is greatly needed. In this study, we analyze urinary protein profiles from patients with renal calculi for the first time (RC), healthy subjects (HS), and patients with recurrent renal calculi (RRC) to identify a biomarker for detecting the disease. Urinary proteins were isolated by salt precipitation and the proteins resolved by SDS-PAGE. Target proteins were analyzed with LC/MS/MS. Thirty-two proteins were identified from healthy subjects and patients. Uromodulin was the most abundant urinary protein in HS but was a very faint band if detected at all from those that formed renal calculi for the first time (p < 0.05). Yet the excreted levels of urinary uromodulin in RRC were similar to those of the HS suggesting that uromodulin is a reliable biomarker for only RC. In addition, a few immunoglobulins that were commonly found in the urine of both RC and RRC, which include Ig alpha heavy chain 1, Ig gamma-2 c region, Ig gamma-3 heavy chain disease protein, Ig heavy chain variable region, Ig heavy constant region gamma 4, and Ig heavy chain. Ig heavy chain Fab frag and antibody a5b7 chain B may serve as potential biomarkers for renal calculi disease.     

Symmetry lowering by cage doping in spherical superatoms: Evaluation of electronic and optical properties of 18-electron W@Au12Pt n (n = 0-4) superatomic clusters from relativistic DFT calculations

Attempts to expand the versatility of well defined clusters are a relevant issue in the design of building blocks for functional nanostructures. Here, we investigate the plausible formation of related structures from the emblematic highly symmetrical 18-e [W@Au₁₂] cluster. The calculated [W@Au₁₂Pt_n] series, with n = 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4, show cohesion energies, HOMO-LUMO gap, adiabatic electron affinities (AEAs) and adiabatic ionization potentials (AIPs), indicating a relative stability to the parent cluster [W@Au₁₂] experimentally characterized, where clusters with n = 1 and n = 4 are suggested as the most stable with respect to oxidation. The resulting symmetry lowering away from the high icosahedral symmetry upon adding Pt atoms induces a sizable splitting of the frontiers shells, which in turn effectively modify the properties of the calculated clusters, as observed from calculated optical properties. The estimated absorption spectra show an interesting broadening effect of the absorption peaks, which appears as a useful approach for further design of broad black absorbers, which are able to absorb light in a wider range, with potential capabilities to enhance the efficiency of thin film solar cells and photocatalysis processes, among other applications.