Synthesis of di-Iron-Containing Inorganic Synzyme, γ-SiW10{Fe(OH2)}2O386?, and the Liquid-Phase Oxidation Catalysis

The Keggin-type di-iron-substituted silicotungstate, -SiW₁₀{Fe(OH₂)}₂O₃₈ ^6– (I), was synthesized by the reaction of the lacunary [-SiW₁₀O₃₆]^8– with Fe(NO₃)₃ in an acidic aqueous solution and isolated as the tetra-n-butylammonium salt (TBA-I). It was characterized by various analyses and the structure with the oxo-bridged di-iron site was clarified. TBA-I was stable and catalyzed selective oxidation of various alkanes and alkenes with hydrogen peroxide: cyclohexane, adamantane, n-hexane, and n-pentane were catalytically oxidized. Even lower alkanes such as methane, ethane, propane, and n-butane were catalytically oxidized. It was remarkable that the efficiency of hydrogen peroxide utilization to oxygenated products reached up to ca. 100% for the oxidation of cyclohexane and adamantane. Alkenes were mainly epoxidized with hydrogen peroxide. It was demonstrated that the TBA-I showed high turnover number of 135–147 for the oxidation of cyclohexane with 1 atm oxygen.     

Quinoxaline-oligopyrroles: improved pyrrole-based anion receptors

Novel quinoxaline derivatives bearing dipyrromethane or tripyrromethane substituents act as improved anion receptors as compared to the unsubstituted dipyrrolylquinoxaline core from which they are derived.     

Uric acid quantification in fingernail of gout patients and healthy volunteers using HPLC‐UV

The presence of elevated uric acid (UA) levels is a sign of gout, that is, hyperuricemia. In this study the monitoring of the UA levels in less‐invasive biological samples, such as the human fingernail, is suggested for the diagnosis and therapy of gout. Twenty‐six healthy volunteers (HV) and 22 gout patients (GP) were studied. The UA was extracted from human fingernail samples, then separated on an Inertsil ODS‐3 column (250 × 4.6 mm i.d., 4.0 μm, GL Sciences) by isocratic elution using methanol–74 mm phosphate buffer (pH 2.2) 2:98 (v/v). A UV detector was used to monitor the samples at 284 nm. Using the developed method, different UA concentrations were found in the GP and HV. When comparing the concentrations from GP with those from HV, a statistically significant correlation was observed between the UA (p < 0.01). In this study, the UA was confirmed as a potential biomarker for the diagnosis and therapy of gout. We have developed a novel sensitive, and simple method for the determination of UA in the fingernails of GP and HV. The human fingernail may serve as a noninvasive biosample for the diagnosis of gout. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Proton Order–Disorder Phenomena in a Hydrogen‐Bonded Rhodium–η5‐Semiquinone Complex: A Possible Dielectric Response Mechanism

A newly synthesized one‐dimensional (1D) hydrogen‐bonded (H‐bonded) rhodium(II)–η⁵‐semiquinone complex, [Cp*Rh(η⁵‐p‐HSQ‐Me₄)]PF₆ ([ 1 ]PF₆; Cp*=1,2,3,4,5‐pentamethylcyclopentadienyl; HSQ=semiquinone) exhibits a paraelectric–antiferroelectric second‐order phase transition at 237.1 K. Neutron and X‐ray crystal structure analyses reveal that the H‐bonded proton is disordered over two sites in the room‐temperature (RT) phase. The phase transition would arise from this proton disorder together with rotation or libration of the Cp* ring and PF₆^? ion. The relative permittivity ε_b′ along the H‐bonded chains reaches relatively high values (ca., 130) in the RT phase. The temperature dependence of ¹³C CP/MAS NMR spectra demonstrates that the proton is dynamically disordered in the RT phase and that the proton exchange has already occurred in the low‐temperature (LT) phase. Rate constants for the proton exchange are estimated to be 10^?4–10^?6 s in the temperature range of 240–270 K. DFT calculations predict that the protonation/deprotonation of [ 1 ]⁺ leads to interesting hapticity changes of the semiquinone ligand accompanied by reduction/oxidation by the π‐bonded rhodium fragment, producing the stable η⁶‐hydroquinone complex, [Cp*Rh³⁺(η⁶‐p‐H₂Q‐Me₄)]²⁺ ([ 2 ]²⁺), and η⁴‐benzoquinone complex, [Cp*Rh⁺(η⁴‐p‐BQ‐Me₄)] ([ 3 ]), respectively. Possible mechanisms leading to the dielectric response are discussed on the basis of the migration of the protonic solitons comprising of [ 2 ]²⁺ and [ 3 ], which would be generated in the H‐bonded chain.     

Fast and quantitative analysis of branched-chain amino acids in biological samples using a pillar array column

In this study, a fast and quantitative determination method for branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), namely leucine, isoleucine, and valine, was developed using a pillar array column. A pillar array column with low-dispersion turns was fabricated on a 20?×?20-mm² microchip using multistep ultraviolet photolithography and deep reactive ion etching. The BCAAs were fluorescently labeled with 4-fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole (NBD-F), followed by reversed-phase separation on the pillar array column. The NBD derivatives of the three BCAAs and an internal standard (6-aminocaproic acid) were separated in 100 s. The calibration curves for the NBD-BCAAs had good linearity in the range of 0.4–20 μM, using an internal standard. The intra- and interday precisions were found to be in the ranges of 1.42–3.80 and 2.74–6.97 %, respectively. The accuracies for the NBD-BCAA were from 90.2 to 99.1 %. The method was used for the analysis of sports drink and human plasma samples. The concentrations of BCAAs determined by the developed method showed good agreements with those determined using a conventional high-performance liquid chromatography system. As BCAAs are important biomarkers of some diseases, these results showed that the developed method could be a potential diagnostic tool in clinical research.     

Facile Synthesis of Oxamides by Efficient Trapping of Carbamoyl Lithiums with Isocyanates

Unsymmetrical oxamides are conveniently synthesized in good yields by a new trapping reaction of unstable carbamoyl lithiums with isocyanates.     

Synthesis of Sulfonylurea Derivatives Used as Oral Antidiabetics by the Selenium-Assisted Carbonylation Using Carbon Monoxide with Sulfur

Sulfonylurea derivatives including useful antidiabetics (Tolbutamide, Chlorpropamide) were synthesized in good yields from benzene-sulfonamides with thiocarbamates in the presence of DBU. Thiocarbamates were prepared by the selenium-assisted carbonylation of primary amines with carbon monoxide, sulfur, and methyl iodide under mild conditions.