Monofluoroalkene-Isostere as a 19F NMR Label for the Peptide Backbone: Synthesis and Evaluation in Membrane-Bound PGLa and (KIGAKI)3

Solid-state ¹⁹F NMR is a powerful method to study the interactions of biologically active peptides with membranes. So far, in labelled peptides, the ¹⁹F-reporter group has always been installed on the side chain of an amino acid. Given the fact that monofluoroalkenes are non-hydrolyzable peptide bond mimics, we have synthesized a monofluoroalkene-based dipeptide isostere, Val-Ψ[(Z)-CF=CH]-Gly, and inserted it in the sequence of two well-studied antimicrobial peptides: PGLa and (KIGAKI)₃ are representatives of an α-helix and a β-sheet. The conformations and biological activities of these labeled peptides were studied to assess the suitability of monofluoroalkenes for ¹⁹F NMR structure analysis.     

Supported dual‐acidic 1,3‐disulfoimidazolium chlorozincate@HZSM‐5 as a promising heterogeneous catalyst for synthesis of indole derivatives

HZSM‐5‐supported Brönsted and Lewis acidic ionic solid 1,3‐disulfoimidazolium chlorozincate materials ([dsim]₂[ZnCl₄]@HZSM‐5) were synthesized with various ratios (3, 6, 9, 17 and 50% w/w). The heterogeneous materials were characterized via a variety of spectroscopic techniques. Dual acidity of these materials was determined using specified techniques. These acidic solids were examined as stable heterogeneous catalysts for the Fischer indole reaction of equimolar amounts of phenylhydrazine hydrochloride and various aliphatic or aromatic ketones at 80–90°C in neat condition to produce substituted indole derivatives. The efficient 17% ionic salt‐loaded HZSM‐5 composite was easily reused for ten consecutive cycles with a slight loss of its activity. The recycled catalyst was further analysed using powder X‐ray diffraction and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometric techniques.     

Synthesis of chloro,fluoro, and nitro derivatives of 7‐amino‐5‐aryl‐6‐cyano‐5H‐pyrano pyrimidin‐2,4‐diones using organic catalysts and their antimicrobial and anticancer activities

Chloro, fluoro, and nitro derivatives of 7‐amino‐5‐aryl‐6‐cyano‐5H‐pyrano pyrimidin‐2,4‐diones were produced by reacting malononitrile, barbituric acid, and aromatic aldehydes together with a DABCO catalyst in an aqueous one‐pot reaction. This is the first report of these compounds being synthesized with DABCO as a catalyst, which produced the compounds in yields in excess of 90%. The 2,4‐difluoro derivative ( 11 ) was novel. The structures of the synthesized compounds were elucidated by means of ¹H, ¹³C, and 2D NMR spectroscopy. Compound 2 (2‐Cl derivative) had MBC values of <200μM against both Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA, and the 2‐nitro derivative 5 had an MBC of 191μM against the Gram–ve Escherichia coli. The synthesized compounds were also tested for their anticancer activity against a HeLa cell line, where all the compounds showed better activity (IC₅₀ values between 129μM and 340μM) than 5‐fluorouracil, a commonly known anticancer drug.     

Trifluoroethylxanthate as an Analytical Reagent: AAS of Zinc,Antimony and Lead After Coprecipitation of Their Trifluoroethylxanthates onto Microcyrstalline Naphthalene

Abstract

A sensitive method has been developed for the direct atomic absorption spectrometric determination of zinc, antimony and lead after coprecipitation of their trifluoroethylxanthates onto microcrystalline naphthalene. The metal xanthates are quantitatively coprecipitated over the pH ranges: Zn, 5.9–8.4; Sb, 4.0–6.0 and Pb, 4.0–11.0. The solid mass consisting of the metal complex and naphthalene is dissolved in DMF. This solution is aspirated into an air-acetylene flame at 213.9, 217.6 and 217.0nm for Zn, Sb and Pb, respectively. Beer's law is obeyed in the concentration range 2–50, 3–90 and 5–60 μg of Zn, Sb and Pb, respectively in 10ml of the final DMF solution. RSDs are at the ± (0.5–0.6)% level (n=10). The concentration for 1% absorption is 0.019, 0.035 and 0.060μg/ml for Zn, Sb and Pb, respectively. The method is suitable for the preconcentration of the metals from a larger volume of the aqueous phase, and has been employed for their determination in standard reference materials. It may be employed for the simultaneous determination of Zn, Pb and Sb in a solution by pH control.     

Cascade Mi (i = 1–5) subshell X‐ray emission at incident photon energies across the Lj (j = 1–3) subshell absorption edges of 66Dy

The total M shell and the M_k (k = ξ, αβ, γ, m) X‐ray production cross sections for ₆₆Dy have been measured at incident photon energies across its L_j (j = 1–3) subshell absorption edge energies, ranging 7.8–9.2 keV. This study aims to investigate the evolution of the probability for cascade decay of L_j subshell vacancies as the tunable incident energy ionizes progressively different ₆₆Dy L_j subshells. The experimental X‐ray production cross sections have been compared with theoretical ones calculated using the nonrelativistic Hartree–Fock–Slater (HFS) model‐based photoionization cross sections; three sets of the X‐ray emission rates, fluorescence and Coster–Kronig yield based on the nonrelativistic Hartree–Slater (NRHS) model, Dirac–Hartree–Slater (DHS) model and Dirac–Fock (DF) model; the L_j (j = 1–3) subshell to the M_i (i = 1–5) subshell vacancy transfer probabilities evaluated in the present work. Presently measured total M shell and the M_αβ X‐ray production cross sections are found to be significantly lower than the theoretical ones evaluated using physical parameters based on the relativistic Dirac–Fock/Dirac–Hartree–Slater model calculations, whereas a much better agreement is observed with respect to the NRHS model‐based calculations; however, the measured X‐ray production cross sections are still systematically lower than the NRHS values.     

Phase Separation in Confined Geometries

The kinetics of phase separation or domain growth, subsequent to temperature quenches of binary mixtures from the one-phase region into the miscibility gap, still remains a challenging problem of nonequilibrium statistical mechanics. We have an incomplete understanding of many aspects of the growth of concentration inhomogeneities, including the effect of surfaces on this process, and the interplay with wetting phenomena and finite-size effects in thin films. In the present paper, an overview of the simulation approaches to this problem is given, with an emphasis on solutions of a diffusive Ginzburg-Landau model. We also discuss two recent alternative approaches: a local molecular field approximation to the Kawasaki spin exchange model on a lattice; and molecular dynamics simulations of a fluid binary Lennard-Jones mixture. A brief outlook to open questions is also given.