Theoretical studies on the influence of metallic cations on ring opening of propylene oxide catalyzed by metal-salen complexes

We studied the ring opening of propylene oxide (PO) by salen-M coordinated OH⁻ group [M = Al(III), Sc(III), Cr(III), Mn(III), Fe(III), Co(II), Co(III), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), Ru(III) and Rh(III)]. The results show that the ring-opening energy barriers for M(II) complexes are much lower than those with M(III) complexes in the gas phase, and the barriers correlate linearly with the negative charges on the OH⁻ group and the Fukui function condensed on the OH⁻ group. The nucleophilicity ordering in the gas phase can be rationalized by the ratio of formal positive charges/radius of M cations. Solvent effect greatly increases the barriers of M(II) complexes but slightly changes the results of M(III) ones, making the barriers similar. Analysis indicates that the reaction heats are linearly proportional to the reverse reaction barriers. The relationships established here can be used to estimate the ring-opening barriers and to screen epoxide ring-opening catalysts.     

Design and synthesis of the honeycomb PtSnNa/ZSM-5 monolithic catalyst for propane dehydrogenation

A novel PtSnNa/ZSM-5 monolithic catalyst was designed and synthesized for the propane dehydrogenation reaction, which was a significant transformation in industry. Experimental results showed that although the propane conversion and the propylene selectivity gradually fell down along with the reaction time, the descent speed of the PtSnNa/ZSM-5 monolithic catalyst was slower than that of the granule catalyst and the propane conversion and propylene selectivity of the reaction with monolithic catalyst still remained at a high level after 12 hr. The monolithic catalyst had regular pore structure that facilitated the separation of the product from the catalyst and reduced the limitation on internal and external diffusion and mass transfer, and led to the high catalytic activity and stability. The catalyst could be easily fabricated and was of highly industrial application potential.     

Facile preparation and synergy study of DMC/ZnGA composite catalyst for the synthesis of oligo (propylene‐carbonate) diols

To overcome the weak carbon dioxide (CO₂) conversion ability of Zn‐Co double metal cyanide (DMC) catalyst, zinc glutarate (ZnGA) catalyst was introduced into the DMC catalytic system and applied for the synthesis of oligo (propylene‐carbonate) diols. The DMC/ZnGA composite catalyst (mass ratio = 10:1) exhibited an excellent synergistic effect which had enhanced CO₂ activation ability, high yield and good selectivity. In copolymerization process, ZnGA catalyst not only provided activated CO₂ for DMC catalyst, but also transferred the propagating chain with more alternating structures to DMC catalyst. Both of the two effects increased the carbonate content in the final products. Overall, DMC catalyst dedicated to the polymer chain growth, while the increased CO₂ conversion mainly attributed to ZnGA catalyst. Oligo (propylene‐carbonate) diols with carbonate unit content of 45.1 mol%, Mn of 1228 g/mol, W_PC of 4.3 wt% and high yield of 1689 g/g _cat was obtained.     

Synthesis of CO2-based functional poly(carbonate-co-lactide)

TPPAlCl-PPN⁺Cl⁻ binary catalyst (where TPPAlCl is 5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrin aluminum chloride, PPN⁺Cl⁻ is bis[triphenylphosphine] iminium chloride, the molar ratio of TPPAlCl to PPN⁺Cl⁻ is 1 to 0.5) can initiate the effective one-pot/one-step ternary copolymerization of CO₂, lactide and 4-vinyl-1-cyclohexene-1,2-epoxide, and the quaternary copolymerization of CO₂, propylene oxide, lactide, 4-vinyl-1-cyclohexene-1,2-epoxide, to form multiblock poly(carbonate-co-lactide) products with pendant vinyl group. The ternary copolymerization product composes of polylactide (PLA) block and poy(vinylcyclohexylene carbonate) (PVCHC) block, and the quaternary copolymerization product composes of poy(propylene carbonate) (PPC) block, PLA block and PVCHC block, which are verified by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, ¹H-¹H cosy, hetero-nuclear multiple bond correlation, DTG, and Gel permeation chromatography analysis. The functionality and glass-transition temperature of the products can be easily adjusted by the copolymerization variables, such as the molar ratio of comonomers, copolymerization temperature, pressure of CO₂, the concentration of the catalyst.     

Thermo‐ and pH‐sensitive triblock copolymers with tunable hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties

Polymers consisting of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and statistical poly[(acrylic acid)‐co‐(tert‐butylacrylate)] (P(AA‐co‐tBA)), attached to both extremities of Jeffamine® (D series based on a poly(propylene oxide) (PPO) with one amine function at each end) using atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) are presented in this article. An original bifunctional amide‐based macroinitiator was first elaborated from Jeffamine®. tBA polymerization was subsequently initiated from this macroinitiator. This polymerization occurs in a well‐controlled manner leading to narrow molecular weights distribution. Amphiphilic copolymers were finally obtained after complete or partial hydrolysis of the PtBA blocks into PAA. The control of the partial hydrolysis of tBA units, conducted in a concentrated HCl/tetrahydrofuran mixture, is demonstrated. The properties of the triblock copolymers were preliminary investigated in aqueous solution by absorbance, DLS measurements and SEC/MALS/DV/DRI analysis as a function of temperature and pH modifications, providing evidences of thermo‐ and pH‐sensitive self‐assembly of the copolymers. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2606–2616     

Effect of Acid Treatment of Montmorillonite on “Support‐Activator” Performance to Support Metallocene for Propylene Polymerization Catalyst

This work is focused on montmorillonite (MMT)‐based “support‐activators” (S‐As) for the metallocene‐catalyzed propylene polymerization. This catalyst was previously industrialized; however, for further technological advances, the activation mechanism is investigated. The chemical and morphological requirements of the S‐A are surveyed using both commercially available raw clay minerals (non‐acid‐treated) and acid‐treated clay minerals. The S‐A possessing strong‐acid sites (pK a < ?8.2) gives a highly active catalyst. Acid treatment of MMT induces morphological changes as well as the formation of strong acid sites. Based on pore size distribution analysis and atomic force microscopy observations, it is concluded that the strong acid sites are located in the small pores around the edge of the clay mineral (not in the interlayer), where the structure is disordered by the acid treatment.

     

Blockage of Wnt/β‐Catenin Signaling by Nanoparticles Reduces Survival and Proliferation of CLL Cells In Vitro—Preliminary Study

The Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway is shown to play a significant role in the control of the survival, proliferation, and differentiation of hematopoietic cells. Studies have confirmed that aberrant activation of canonical Wnt signaling occurs in various forms of leukemia, and is crucial for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) pathogenesis. The aim of the study is to evaluate the influence of maltotriose (M3) modified fourth generation poly(propylene imine) dendrimers (PPI‐G4) on Wnt/β‐catenin pathway gene expression in CLL (MEC‐1) cells and to compare these findings with those obtained with fludarabine (FA). Microarray data analysis reveals seven of 19 Wnt/β‐catenin pathway genes whose expression changes significantly during dendrimer and FA treatment: WNT10A, WNT6 , and CDH1 among others. PPI‐G4‐M3 is already known to influence MEC‐1 cell apoptosis and proliferation. The obtained results suggest that the reduction in cell survival under the influence of glycodendrimers and FA may be due to loss of Wnt signaling.     

聚(碳酸丁二醇酯-co-三环癸烷二甲醇碳酸酯)的制备与性能

采用熔融酯交换和缩聚两步法,合成了以1,4-丁二醇、4,8-三环[5.2.1.0(2,6)]癸烷二甲醇和碳酸二苯酯为原料的聚(碳酸丁二醇酯-co-三环癸烷二甲醇碳酸酯)(PBTCx, x为进料中TCD占二元醇总量的百分比)。用1H NMR和13C NMR对PBTCs的微观结构和组成进行了表征。采用GPC、 DSC、 XRD、 TG对PBTCs的分子量、玻璃化转变温度(Tg)、热稳定性等进行了研究。结果表明,PBTCs的Mw为10500~124800 g?mol-1, Mn为6300~73000 g?mol-1, PDI为1.59~1.73; PBTCs呈无定形态、Tg为-3.43 ℃~70.90 ℃, PBTCs表现出比PBC更高的热稳定性。薄膜拉伸试验结果表明,PBTC30(拉伸强度为33.54 MPa,断裂伸长率为275.69%)和PBTC40(拉伸强度为32.13 MPa,断裂伸长率为294.63%)具有较高的强度和韧性,在薄膜材料中具有一定的应用潜力。     

Copolymerization of Carbonyl Sulfide and Propylene Oxide via a Heterogeneous Prussian Blue Analogue Catalyst with High Productivity and Selectivity

This study demonstrates the superiority of a stable and well-defined heterogeneous cobalt hexacyanocobaltate (Co₃[Co(CN)₆]₂), a typical cobalt Prussian Blue Analogue (CoCo-PBA) that catalyzes the copolymerization of carbonyl sulfide (COS) and propylene oxide (PO) to produce poly(propylene monothiocarbonate)s (PPMTC). The number-average molecular weights of the PPMTC were 66.4 to 139.4 kg/mol, with a polydispersity of 2.0–3.9. The catalyst productivity reached 1040 g polymer/g catalyst (12.0 h). The oxygen-sulfur exchange reaction (O/S ER), which would generate random thiocarbonate and carbonate units, was effectively suppressed, and thus the selectivity of the monothiocarbonate over carbonate linkages was up to >99%. It was shown that no cyclic thiocarbonate byproduct was produced during the heterogeneous catalysis of COS/PO copolymerization using CoCo-PBA as the catalyst. The content of monothiocarbonate and ether units in the copolymer chain could be regulated by tuning the feeding amount of COS.     

Effect of Penetration Enhancers on Toenail Delivery of Efinaconazole from Hydroalcoholic Preparations

The incorporation of permeation enhancers in topical preparations has been recognized as a simple and valuable approach to improve the penetration of antifungal agents into toenails. In this study, to improve the toenail delivery of efinaconazole (EFN), a triazole derivative for onychomycosis treatment, topical solutions containing different penetration enhancers were designed, and the permeation profiles were evaluated using bovine hoof models. In an in vitro permeation study in a Franz diffusion cell, hydroalcoholic solutions (HSs) containing lipophilic enhancers, particularly prepared with propylene glycol dicaprylocaprate (Labrafac PG), had 41% higher penetration than the HS base. Moreover, the combination of hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin with Labrafac PG further facilitated the penetration of EFN across the hoof membrane. In addition, this novel topical solution prepared with both lipophilic and hydrophilic enhancers was physicochemically stable, with no drug degradation under ambient conditions (25 °C, for 10 months). Therefore, this HS system can be a promising tool for enhancing the toenail permeability and therapeutic efficacy of EFN.