Effect of pressure on the proton transfer rate from a photoacid to a solvent. 4. Photoacids in methanol

The pressure dependence of the excited-state proton dissociation rate constant of four photoacids, 2-naphthol-6,8-disulfonate (2N68DS), 10-hydroxycamptothecin (10-CPT), 5-cyano-2-naphthol (5CN2), and 5,8-dicyano-2-naphthol (DCN2), are studied in methanol. The results are compared with the results of the pressure dependence study we recently conducted for several photoacids in water, ethanol, and propanol. The pressure dependence is explained using an approximate stepwise two-coordinate proton transfer model. The increase in rate, as a function of pressure, manifests a strong dependence of proton tunneling on the distance which decreases with an increase of pressure between the two oxygen atoms involved in the process. The decrease in the proton transfer rate with increasing pressure reflects the dependence of the reaction on the solvent relaxation rate. We found that, for the relatively weak photoacids 2N68DS, 10-CPT, and 5CN2, the proton transfer rate constant increases by a factor of about 5-8 at a pressure of about 1.5 GPa. For a strong photoacid like DCN2, the rate increase was only by a factor of 2.     

Abnormally mild synthesis of bis(dithiolo)pyrroles from 2,5-dimethylpyrroles

[chemical reaction: see text]. Treatment of N-substituted 2,5-dimethylpyrroles 2 with an equilibrated mixture of disulfur dichloride and DABCO in chloroform at 0 degrees C gives pentathiepinopyrroles 3 in moderate yields; further reaction of 3 with the same mixture at room temperature leads, in an extensive reaction cascade, to bis(dithiolo)pyrroles 4 in high yield; 2 can be converted into 4 in a one-pot operation under unusually mild conditions.     

Influence of Al2O3 Nanoparticles on the Thermal Stability of Ultra-Fine Grained Copper Prepared by High Pressure Torsion

Summary.  Ultra-fine grained (UFG) Cu (grain size 80 nm) containing 0.5 wt.% Al₂O₃ nanoparticles (size 20 nm) was prepared by high pressure torsion (HPT). Positron lifetime spectroscopy was employed to characterize the microstructure of this material, especially with respect to types and concentration of lattice defects. The evolution of microstructure with increasing temperature was studied by positron lifetime spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements. The thermal stability of the Cu + 0.5 wt.% Al₂O₃ nanocomposite was compared with that of pure UFG Cu prepared by the same technique. The processes taking place during thermal recovery of the initial nanoscale structure in both studied materials are described. Received October 5, 2001. Accepted (revised) December 20, 2001     

Synthesis of Oligonucleotides Containing Trans Mitomycin C DNA Adducts at N6 of Adenine and N2 of Guanine

Mitomycin C, (MC), an antitumor drug, is a DNA alkylating agent currently used in the clinics. Inert in its native form, MC is reduced to reactive mitosenes, which undergo nucleophilic attack by guanine or adenine bases in DNA to form monoadducts as well as interstrand crosslinks (ICLs). Although ICLs are considered the most cytotoxic lesions, the role of each individual adduct in the drug's cytotoxicity is still not fully understood. Synthetic routes have been developed to access modified oligonucleotides containing dG MC-monoadducts and dG-MC-dG ICL at a single position of their base sequences to investigate the biological effects of these adducts. However, until now, oligonucleotides containing monoadducts formed by MC at the adenine base had not been available, thus preventing the examination of the role played by these lesions in the toxicity of MC. Here, we present a route to access these substrates. Structural proof of the adducted oligonucleotides were provided by enzymatic digestion to nucleosides and high-resolution mass spectral analysis. Additionally, parent oligonucleotides containing a dG monoadduct and a dG-MC-dG ICL were also produced. The stability and physical properties of all substrates were compared via CD spectroscopy and UV melting temperature studies. Finally, virtual models were created to explore the conformational space and structural features of these MC-DNA complexes.     

Design of pincer complexes based on (methylsulfanyl)acetic/propionic acid amides with ancillary S‐ and N‐donors as potential catalysts and cytotoxic agents

Pincer complexes featuring readily tunable tridentate ligand frameworks comprise one of the most actively studied classes of organometallic and metal–organic compounds and find extensive use in catalysis, organic synthesis, materials science, and other fields of chemistry and allied disciplines. Currently growing attention is devoted to non‐classical ligand scaffolds, such as functionalized carboxamides, which offer multiple options for directed structural modifications. In this study, the reactions of (methylsulfanyl)acetyl and propanoyl chlorides with 2‐(aminomethyl)pyridine, 2‐(2‐aminoethyl)pyridine, 8‐aminoquinoline and 2‐(diphenylthiophosphoryl)aniline afford a series of new pincer‐type ligands based on functionalized carboxamides. The ligands obtained readily undergo direct cyclopalladation under the action of PdCl₂(NCPh)₂ in dichloromethane at room temperature, resulting in Pd(II) pincer complexes with N,N,S‐ and S,N,S‐donor sets. Importantly, some of the cyclopalladated derivatives can also be produced efficiently under solvent‐free conditions according to the approach recently developed by our group. The complexes obtained have been tested for cytotoxicity against several human cancer cell lines and catalytic activity in the model Suzuki reaction. The results have been compared to those for the related Pd(II) pincer complexes to define the main structure–activity relationships and to outline the most promising structures for further investigations.     

Numerical demonstration of fluctuation dynamo at low magnetic Prandtl numbers

Direct numerical simulations of incompressible nonhelical randomly forced MHD turbulence are used to demonstrate for the first time that the fluctuation dynamo exists in the limit of large magnetic Reynolds number Rm>1 and small magnetic Prandtl number Pm<1. The dependence of the critical Rmc for dynamo on the hydrodynamic Reynolds number Re is obtained for 1 less than or similar Re less than or similar 6700. In the limit Pm<1, Rmc is about 3 times larger than for the previously well-established dynamo at large and moderate Prandtl numbers: Rmc less than or similar 200 for Re greater than or similar 6000 compared to Rmc approximately 60 for Pm>or=1. It is not yet possible to determine numerically whether the growth rate of the magnetic energy is proportional, Rm1/2 in the limit Rm-->infinity, as it should be if the dynamo is driven by the inertial-range motions at the resistive scale.     

Composites based on doped polyaniline and polyimide with tricyclodecene structures in the backbone

Conducting composites based on an alicyclic polyimide and polyaniline doped with nonylnaphthalenesulfonic acid or with undoped polyaniline were prepared. Their physicomechanical and electrical properties were studied. The accelerating effect of conducting polymers on the polycondensation was demonstrated.     

Electron scattering in the interacting boson model

It is suggested that the interacting boson model be used in the analysis of electron scattering data. Qualitative features of the expected behavior of the inelastic excitation of some 2⁺ states in the transitional SmNd region are discussed.