The coloration of tungsten-oxide film by oxygen deficiency and its mechanism

The transmissivity and the optical absorption of a WO₃ film with oxygen deficiencies introduced were characterized and compared with those of an electrochromically colored WO₃ upon injecting a proton (H⁺). The WO₃ film with oxygen deficiencies introduced was clearly colored blue. It was shown that the wavelength regions of optical absorption of both films almost overlapped each other.     

Pentagon Equation Arising from State Equations of a C*-Bialgebra

The direct sum \({{\mathcal O}_{*}}\) of all Cuntz algebras has a non-cocommutative comultiplication \({\Delta_{\varphi}}\) such that there exists no antipode of any dense subbialgebra of the C*-bialgebra \({({\mathcal O}_{*},\Delta_{\varphi})}\). From states equations of \({{\mathcal O}_{*}}\) with respect to the tensor product, we construct an operator W for \({({\mathcal O}_{*},\Delta_{\varphi})}\) such that W* is an isometry, \({W(x\otimes I)W^{*}=\Delta_{\varphi}(x)}\) for each \({x\in {\mathcal O}_{*}}\) and W satisfies the pentagon equation.     

Reactions of tris(2‐pyridyl)phosphine oxides with electrophiles: Formation of 5‐substituted 2,2′‐bipyridyls

The reaction of tris(2‐pyridyl)phosphine oxides with benzeneselenenyl chloride in methanol gave the corresponding 5‐phenylseleno‐2,2′‐bipyridyls together with a small amount of 2,2′‐bipyridyls. Similarly, the reaction with arenesulfenyl chlorides in aqueous acetonitrile afforded two kinds of coupling products, 5‐phenylthio‐2,2′‐bipyridyls and 2,2′‐bipyridyls. While in the reaction with arenesulfinyl chlorides in aqueous acetonitrile, four corresponding bipyridyl derivatives, 2,2′‐bipyridyls, 5‐arylthio‐2,2′‐bipyridyls, 5‐arylsulfinyl‐2,2′‐bipyridyls, and 5‐arylsulfonyl‐2,2′‐bipyridyls, were formed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 14:72–81, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/hc.10085     

Direct access to tetrasubstituted cyclopentenyl scaffolds through a diastereoselective isocyanide-based multicomponent reaction

An efficient strategy combining the stereocontrol of organocatalysis with the diversity-generating character of multicomponent reactions is described to produce structurally unique, tetrasubstituted cyclopentenyl frameworks. An asymmetric Michael addition–hemiacetalization between α-cyanoketones and α,β-unsaturated aliphatic aldehydes was performed for constructing cyclic hemiacetals, which were next employed as chiral bifunctional substrates in a new diastereoselective intramolecular isocyanide-based multicomponent reaction. This approach furnished a diversity of structurally complex compounds – including peptidomimetics and natural product hybrids in high stereoselectivity (up to >99% ee and up to >99 : 1 dr) and in moderate to high yields.

Simple and available reagents are combined in this new three-component isocyanide-based multicomponent reaction providing an interesting and straightforward way to prepare complex and highly functionalized cyclopentenyl rings.     

Discovery of New Cytotoxic Aplaminone Derivatives from the Sea Hare Aplysia kurodai and Elucidation of Their Accumulation from Local Sea Algae through the Food Chain

The shell-less herbivorous marine mollusk (sea hare) Aplysia kurodai is known to contain a variety of bioactive substances. While these compounds have been thought to originate from sea algae or their associated microbes, most of their origin and acquisition pathways are still unclear. Six new cytotoxic aplaminone derivatives, bromodopamine-terpenoid hybrid molecules, were isolated from A. kurodai. Among them, isoaplaminone had a reverse prenyl group at the C15 aliphatic chain, which is a rare structural feature from the viewpoint of terpenoid biosynthesis. Investigation for chemical components in A. kurodai and the sea algae collected at several different locations revealed that two major aplaminones were contained in the Laurencia complex species at specific sites. Our chemical and ecological studies provide new insights into the origin of marine alkaloid toxins and their dynamism through the food chain.     

Room-Temperature Alkyl-Diphenylpyrene Liquefication by Molecular Desymmetrization

Achieving the lowest phase transition temperature with minimal chemical modification in highly crystalline π-conjugated molecules is a universal problem in related research fields. This paper reports room-temperature liquefication of diphenylpyrene isomers by introducing bulky yet flexible branched alkyl chains through molecular desymmetrization. Six isomers with different symmetries depending on the positions of the phenyl groups and alkyl groups were synthesized, and three of the isomers were found to be liquids at 25 °C, a state in which they have remained for more than five years. Although it is generally believed that the lower the symmetry of a molecule, the less likely it is to crystallize, one molecule with a relatively high molecular symmetry unexpectedly did not crystallize, which was evidenced by the kinetic inhomogeneity of this amorphous material (practically stable liquid) assessed by rheological analysis.