Facilitated sulfate transfer across the nitrobenzene-water interface as mediated by hydrogen-bonding ionophores.

Facilitated SO4(2-) transfers by hydrogen bond-forming ionophores are investigated across the nitrobenzene (NB)-water interface by using polarography with a dropping electrolyte electrode. Bis-thiourea 1, alpha,alpha'-bis(N'-p-nitrophenylthioureylene)-m-xylene, is found to significantly facilitate the transfer of the highly hydrophilic SO4(2-) whereas its counterpart, N-(p-nitrophenyl)-N'-propylthiourea (ionophore 2), cannot. In contrast to the predominant formation of a 1:1 complex with SO4(2-) in the bulk NB phase, the SO4(2-) transfer assisted by 1 is indeed based on the formation of a 1:2 complex between SO4(2-) and ionophore, even under the condition of [SO4(2-)]aq > [1]org. Such an exclusive formation of the 1:2 (SO4(2-) to ionophore) complex at the NB-water interface is not observed with structurally similar bis-thiourea 3, alpha,alpha'-bis(N'-phenylthioureylene)-m-xylene, where p-nitrophenyl moietes of bis-thiourea 1 are simply replaced by phenyl groups. The facilitated transfer of SO4(2-) with bis-thiourea 1 is further compared to that of HPO4(2-) and H2PO4- across the NB-water interface, which was previously shown to be assisted by 1 through the formation of the 1:1 and 2:1 (anion to ionophore) complexes, respectively. On the basis of these examinations, unique binding behaviors of hydrogen bond-forming ionophores at the NB-water interface are discussed, with a view towards development of ionophore-based anion-selective chemical sensors.     

Basic study of the gelation of dimethacrylate‐type crosslinking agents

An investigation was made of the gelation of dimethacrylate‐type crosslinking agents in view of an application for separation media. The study mainly centered on a crosslinking agent, glycerol dimethacrylate (GDMA), which is relatively hydrophilic because of a hydroxyl group in the middle of its structure. The gelation of GDMA was compared with that of other hydrophobic crosslinking agents such as ethylene glycol dimethacrylate and 1,6‐hexanediol dimethacrylate. The diluents used in the study were toluene, toluene with methanol, and cyclohexanol. The gelation was observed in real time with a charge coupled device camera and dynamic light scattering (DLS). Also, the separated dry gels were extensively characterized with scanning electron microscopy, BET (N₂ absorption and desorption isotherm), and Fourier transform infrared. DLS analysis showed a stronger molecular interaction of GDMA gelation in toluene, whereas this interaction was much weaker in an alcoholic solvent such as toluene with methanol or cyclohexanol. This indicated that GDMA gelation might proceed through hydrogen bonding as well as a crosslinking reaction of vinyl groups. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 949–958, 2006     

Photografting of vinyl polymers onto ultrafine inorganic particles: Photopolymerization of vinyl monomers initiated by AZO groups introduced onto these surfaces

The photografting of polymers onto ultrafine inorganic particles, such as silica and titanium oxide, initiated by azo groups introduced onto these surfaces was investigated. The introduction of azo groups onto the particles was achieved by the reaction of 4,4′-azobis(4-cyanopentanoic acid) with surface isocyanate groups, which were introduced by the treatment with tolylene 2,4-diisocyanate. It was found that the photopolymerization of vinyl monomers, such as methyl methacrylate (MMA), styrene, and N-vinylcarbazole, is initiated by ultrafine particles having azo groups. The corresponding polymers were effectively grafted onto these surfaces through the propagation of the polymer from the surface radicals formed by the photodecomposition of the azo groups: e.g., the percentage of grafting of PMMA and polystyrene onto silica was reached to 112 and 176%, respectively. The percentage of grafting onto silica in the graft polymerization initiated by photodecomposition of surface azo groups was much larger than that initiated by thermal decomposition. Polymer-grafted ultrafine particles thus obtained gave a stable colloidal dispersion in good solvents for the grafted chain. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Flow injection system with in-line Winkler's procedure using 16-way valve and spectrofluorimetric determination of dissolved oxygen in environmental waters

Flow injection spectrofluorimetry with in-line Winklers procedure was developed for the dissolved oxygen (DO) determination. 2-Thionaphthol reacted with iodine produced by Winkler’s method to form fluorescence inactive disulfide compound. To automate the process completely, a 5-channel flow system with a newly designed 16-way valve was assembled. The system consisted of a dispersion coil (DC), a precipitate formation coil (PFC), a precipitate dissolving coil (PDC), and extraction coil (EC). A calibration can be constructed by using a standard iodine solution for dissolved oxygen. The calibration graph was linear over the range 1.2×10⁻⁴∼6.0×10⁻⁴ mol l⁻¹ iodine (1.96∼9.80 mg O l⁻¹)). The relative standard deviation (n=6) was below 0.3% for the 4×10⁻⁴ mol l⁻¹ iodine (6.27 mg O l⁻¹) determination. The sample throughput was 12/h.     

New approaches to enantioselective fluorination: Cinchona alkaloids combinations and chiral ligands/metal complexes

The selective construction of carbon-fluorine bonds is of great interest to medicinal chemists because the replacement of a hydrogen or an oxygen atom with a fluorine atom in biologically active molecules can confer the molecules with improved physicochemical properties and biological activities. Since the first discovery of enantioselective fluorination using N-fluorocamphorsultam, our synthetic interest had been focused on the development of chiral N-fluorosulfonamide derivatives capable of enantioselective fluorination. However, these initial efforts revealed several limitations in both chemical yields and enantioselectivities of the fluorinated products. We present here the background of our personal story of the enantioselective fluorination reaction and some successful applications of the methods to the design and synthesis of biologically active products. Two novel approaches using cinchona alkaloid/Selectfluor^® combinations and chiral ligands/metal complexes have been pursued, respectively. In addition, the recent advances in this area by other groups are also described briefly.     

Crystal structures of n-alkanes with branches of different size in the middle

We synthesized four branched n-alkane samples C35-C1, C35-C4, C35-C6, and C35-C4Ph with the same number of carbons as the main chain, n = 35, to which the methyl, butyl, hexyl, and butyl phenyl groups were respectively attached at the middle, and also the corresponding linear homologue of C35, and studied their crystalline structures from DSC, IR, and Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction measurement, and computer simulation. Solid-solid phase transitions characteristic of linear alkane C35 are not observed for any branched alkanes, and their melting temperatures Tm are lowered to 325.2, 318.5, 314.3, and 314.1K, respectively. Main chains of branched alkane molecules are not folded, irrespective of length and chemical structure of branches, but are extended to take the planar zigzag form in the solid state. The branches of C35-C4 and C35-C6 are also aligned inside the crystal in the extended form. Data analyses on solution-grown crystallized samples reveal that, with increasing the branch length, their crystal structures transform from polymorphic forms of the orthorhombic (P2(1)2(1)2(1)) and the triclinic (P) for C35-C1 and C35-C4 to the unique triclinic form for C35-C6 and C35-C4Ph, so as to minimize extra surface energy invoked by introduction of long branches.     

Transformation of arctiin to estrogenic and antiestrogenic substances by human intestinal bacteria

After anaerobic incubation of arctiin (1) from the seeds of Arctium lappa with a human fecal suspension, six metabolites were formed, and their structures were identified as (-)-arctigenin (2), (2R,3R)-2-(3',4'-dihydroxybenzyl)-3-(3",4"-dimethoxybenzyl)butyrolactone (3), (2R,3R)-2-(3'-hydroxybenzyl)-3-(3",4"-dimethoxybenzyl)butyrolactone (4), (2R,3R)-2-(3'-hydroxybenzyl)-3-(3"-hydroxy-4"-methoxybenzyl)butyrolactone (5), (2R,3R)-2-(3'-hydroxybenzyl)-3-(3",4"-dihydroxybenzyl)butyrolactone (6), and (-)-enterolactone (7) by various spectroscopic means including two dimensional (2D)-NMR, mass spectrometry, and circular dichroism. A possible metabolic pathway was proposed on the basis of their structures and the time course of the transformation. Enterolactones obtained from the biotransformation of arctiin and secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG, from the seeds of Linum usitatissium) by human intestinal bacteria were proved to be enantiomers, with the (-)-(2R,3R) and (+)-(2S,3S) configurations, respectively. Compound 6 showed the most potent proliferative effect on the growth of MCF-7 human breast cancer cells in culture among 1 and six metabolites, while it showed inhibitory activity on estradiol-mediated proliferation of MCF-7 cells at a concentration of 10 microM. These results indicate that the transformation of 1 by intestinal flora might be essential for the manifestation of the estrogenic and antiestrogenic activity of 1.