Characterizations of Some N—Substituted—salicylhydrazide in Mixtures by NMR Diffusion Ordered Spectroscopy

1 INTRODUCTION Metallacrown has emerged as inorganic host molecules. There has been considerable interest in metallacrown chemistry owing to its potential applications in chemically modified electrodes, anion-selective separation agents, liquid-crystal precursors and magnetic materials[1]. Multidentate ligands which can bridge two metal ions are used to synthesize metallacrowns. The cyclic repetition of the ligand bridging two metal ions generates the macrocyclic metal cluster. In the c…     

Imaging Mass Spectrometry: Hype or Hope?

Label-free imaging mass spectrometry provides a new look into different research areas. Will chemical mass microscopy on a biological system move from hype to hope?

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Molecular Recognition of Disaccharides in Water: Preorganized Macrocyclic or Adaptive Acyclic?

When facing the dilemma of following a preorganized or adaptive design approach in conceiving the architecture of new biomimetic receptors for carbohydrates, shape-persistent macrocyclic structures were most often chosen to achieve effective recognition of neutral saccharides in water. In contrast, acyclic architectures have seldom been explored, even though potentially simpler and more easily accessible. In this work, comparison of the binding properties of two structurally related diaminocarbazolic receptors, featuring a macrocyclic and an acyclic tweezer-shaped architecture, highlighted the advantages provided by the acyclic receptor in terms of selectivity in the recognition of 1,4-disaccharides of biological interest. Selective recognition of GlcNAc₂, the core fragment of N-glycans exposed on the surface of enveloped viruses, stands as an emblematic example. NMR spectroscopic data and molecular modeling calculations were used to ascertain the differences in binding mode and to shed light on the origin of recognition efficacy and selectivity.     

Impact of Zeolite Framework Composition and Flexibility on Methanol-To-Olefins Selectivity: Confinement or Diffusion?

The methanol-to-olefins reaction catalyzed by small-pore cage-based acid zeolites and zeotypes produces a mixture of short chain olefins, whose selectivity to ethene, propene and butene varies with the cavity architecture and with the framework composition. The product distribution of aluminosilicates and silicoaluminophosphates with the CHA and AEI structures (H-SSZ-13, H-SAPO-34, H-SSZ-39 and H-SAPO-18) has been experimentally determined, and the impact of acidity and framework flexibility on the stability of the key cationic intermediates involved in the mechanism and on the diffusion of the olefin products through the 8r windows of the catalysts has been evaluated by means of periodic DFT calculations and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. The preferential stabilization by confinement of fully methylated hydrocarbon pool intermediates favoring the paring pathway is the main factor controlling the final olefin product distribution.     

Microwave-Assisted Solvent Extraction of Melamine from Seafood and Determination by Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry: Optimization by Factorial Design

Melamine attracts considerable attention because of its toxicity. The determination of melamine in seafood was performed by gas-chromatography–mass spectrometry, using an optimized version of a method adopted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The melamine was extracted by closed-vessel microwave-assisted solvent extraction (MAE), as a valid alternative in sample preparation, to reduce analysis time and provide less ambiguous data. The procedure was optimized by means of experimental factorial design considering the three main variables that affect this process: microwave oven power, the maximum temperature inside the extraction tube, and the hold time. The recovery of melamine in spiked samples was used as the elemental response value of the design. Temperature and hold time had a more positive effect on the response than the microwave power. A significant positive interaction was observed between oven power and hold time. A temperature of 70°C and a hold time of 1 min gave a recovery of 92 ± 5% for a microwave power of 600 W. Under these conditions, the total microwave extraction time was approximately 2 minutes, a much shorter time compared to the ultrasonic bath, which required a total time of 40 min. The repeatability of the method was approximately 3%. The limits of quantification were 0.55 mg kg^?1 for MAE and 1.9 mg kg^?1 for the ultrasonic bath; the linearity was confirmed up to 10 mg kg^?1. In conclusion, the MAE procedure was shown to be an excellent alternative to the official method.     

Hydrolysis of Tetraglycine by a Zr(IV)-Substituted Wells–Dawson Polyoxotungstate Studied by Diffusion Ordered NMR Spectroscopy

The use of diffusion ordered NMR spectroscopy (DOSY) for the analysis of complex reaction mixtures involving polyoxometalates (POMs) was demonstrated for the hydrolysis of the peptide tetraglycine by the K₁₅H[Zr(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)₂]·25H₂O Wells–Dawson type cluster. ¹H DOSY NMR studies have shown that severe signal overlap observed in the one-dimensional ¹H NMR spectrum of reaction mixtures containing a POM and peptides could be overcome by the two-dimensional character of a DOSY NMR measurement. A clear distinction between the ¹H NMR signals of the products formed during the hydrolysis of 5.0 mM of tetraglycine catalyzed by 1.0 mM of K₁₅H[Zr(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)₂]·25H₂O was observed based on the extra dimension containing information about diffusion coefficients that distinguishes a typical DOSY measurement from conventionally used 1D ¹H NMR. The spectrum clearly shows the presence of 5 species with diffusion coefficients of 3.71 × 10^?10 m²/s (3.91; 3.84; 3.82 and 3.62 ppm), 4.39 × 10^?10 m²/s (3.87; 3.76 and 3.61 ppm), 5.26 × 10^?10 m²/s (3.67 and 3.63 ppm), and 7.46 × 10^?10 m²/s (3.37 ppm) that are assigned to the non-hydrolyzed tetraglycine, the hydrolysis intermediate products triglycine and glycylglycine, and the end product of hydrolysis glycine, respectively. In addition, a signal assigned to cyclic glycylglycine, with a diffusion coefficient practically identical to the diffusion coefficient of glycylglycine was observed at 3.86 ppm. In addition, ¹H and ³¹P NMR spectroscopy were further used to study the binding of tetraglycine to K₁₅H[Zr(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)₂]·25H₂O and the solution speciation of K₁₅H[Zr(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)₂]·25H₂O.     

Sensitivity enhancement of solid-state NMR spectra of half-integer spin quadrupolar nuclei: Double- or single-frequency sweeps? Insights from the hyperbolic secant experiment

Improved sensitivity enhancements of the central NMR transition of non-integer spin quadrupolar nuclei in MAS powder samples are realized when only a single satellite transition spinning side band is irradiated using a conventional double-frequency sweep experiment compared to irradiation of the entire spinning side band manifold. For example, for ⁸⁷Rb in RbClO₄, enhancement factors of 2.2 versus 1.9 are observed when only one satellite transition spinning side band is targeted versus the entire spinning side band manifold. Similarly, for ²⁷Al in Al(acac)₃, the corresponding enhancement was 3.4 compared to 2.6.     

Aryloxy radicals from diaryloxydiazirines: alpha-cleavage of diaryloxycarbenes or excited diazirines?

The synthesis of diaryloxydiazirines, precursors to diaryloxycarbenes, is described. Thermolyses of the diazirines afford anticipated carbene products, but photolyses afford both carbenes and aryloxy radicals by alpha-scission. UV spectra of the carbenes and radicals are observed. [reaction: see text]     

Mass spectrometric identification of oxidative modifications of tryptophan residues in proteins: Chemical artifact or post-translational modification?

Oxidative modification of tryptophan to kynurenine (KYN) and N-formyl kynurenine (NFK) has been described in mitochondrial proteins associated with redox metabolism, and in human cataract lenses. To a large extent, however, previously reported identifications of these modifications were performed using peptide mass fingerprinting and/or tandem-MS data of proteins separated by gel electrophoresis. To date, it is uncertain whether NFK and KYN may represent sample handling artifacts or exclusively post-translational events. To address the problem of the origin of tryptophan oxidation, we characterized several antibodies by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, with and without the use of electrophoretic separation of heavy and light chains. Antibodies are not normally expected to undergo oxidative modifications, however, several tryptophan (Trp) residues on both heavy and light chains were found extensively modified to both doubly oxidized Trp and KYN following SDS-PAGE separation and in-gel digestion. In contrast, those residues were observed as non-modified upon in-solution digestion. These results indicate that Trp oxidation may occur as an artifact in proteins separated by SDS-PAGE, and their presence should be carefully interpreted, especially when gel electrophoretic separation methods are employed.     

Determination of Volatile Markers from Magnum Hops in Beer by In-Tube Extraction—Gas Chromatography—Mass Spectrometry

ABSTRACT

A chromatographic method was developed for the identification of volatile markers from Magnum hops in two types of beer. The study was initially performed with Magnum hop pellets and hop essential oil and subsequently with traditional and flavored beer during the primary fermentation. The volatile compounds were isolated employing the in-tube extraction (ITEX) technique followed by identification and quantification through gas-chromatography—mass spectrometry (GC-MS) operating in scan mode. The main authentication markers identified in traditional beer were from aromatic compounds, aldehydes and alcohol esters. The most predominant authentication marker compounds in beer flavored with Magnum hop essential oil were obtained from terpenoids, followed by acid esters, alcohol esters and alcohol classes. A unique feature of this study was represented by the discriminant markers for the authentication of Magnum hop variety, identified in hop pellets, hop essential oil and flavored beer. The application of this methodology can be used for optimization of brewing technology and process parameters in view of prolonging fruity hop flavor stability of Romanian beers.     

Three-Stage Extraction of Gelatines from Tendons of Abattoir Cattle: 2—Properties of Gelatines

The subject of our previous paper (part 1) was three-stage extraction of gelatines from short cattle tendons. In this paper, we studied influence of extraction conditions on quality of produced gelatines??protein content, ash content, rigidity of gelatine gels, viscosity, and distribution of molecular weights. Ash content of gelatines ranged in limits 3.5?C10.5?%. Rigidity of the gels was influenced by extraction conditions and by elastin content in gelatines; highest-quality gels display rigidity of 213 Bloom. Viscosity of gelatines ranged from 2.47 to 12.11?mPa?s. Molecular weights of gelatines display a proportion of fractions from 20 to 36?kDa, a quite high proportion of fractions from approximately 50 to 100?kDa, in some cases even fractions above 200?kDa appear. It was found that transition temperature and melting temperature of gelatines extracted from tendons are in accord with data on gelatines obtained by traditional extraction techniques from skins and bones. With respect to efficiency of the whole extraction process and to quality of extracted gelatine, we may recommend extraction conditions as follows: in the 1st processing stage, shaking degreased starting material with water in ratio 1:10 at 25?°C for 5?h; in the 2nd stage, treating the swelled material with 5?% (w/w) added proteolytic enzyme at 40?°C for 25?h; in 3rd stage, extracting gelatine while boiling for 16?min.     

Three-Stage Extraction of Gelatines from Tendons of Abattoir Cattle: 1—Reaction Conditions

Short and long tendons of abattoir cattle are collagen by-products of the meat industry. They offer no utilisation at present, being a raw material source of over 90?% protein characteristic. This contribution deals with the three-stage extraction of gelatine from short cattle tendons. The principle of treatment consists in processing degreased tendons in the first processing stage in an environment resulting in the swelling of the starting material. In the second stage, the material is treated with a proteolytic enzyme to produce such disruption of the collagen substrate that makes gelatine extraction when boiling possible in the third stage of the process. In order to study the influence of the significant parameters during the extraction process on gelatine yield, experiments were planned using a factor experiment of 2³ types. The variables under study were the duration of the second processing stage (5?C25?h), temperature in the first and second processing stages (10?C40?°C) and the addition of a proteolytic enzyme (1?C5?%) on the quantity of the extracted gelatine. The results were processed statistically, and statistical significance of the studied factors was thus found. Contour graphs were plotted to easily survey the influence of the observed factors on gelatine yield. The process achieves up to 71?% efficiency, runs under atmospheric pressure and mild reaction conditions, and is conducive to preparing quality gelatines.     

Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Small Peptides: Can One Derive Conformational Preferences from ROESY Spectra?

Folding properties of beta-peptides were investigated by means of NMR experiments and MD simulations of beta-dipeptides, which serve as small test systems to study the influence of stereocenters and side chains on hydrogen-bond and consequently on secondary-structure formation. Two stereoisomers, SR and SS, of a Val-Phe dipeptide, and of the corresponding Ala-Ala dipeptide, and a Gly-Gly dipeptide were simulated in methanol for 40 ns. In agreement with experiment, the isomers of the Val-Phe dipeptide adopt quite different conformers at 298 K, the differences being reduced at 340 K. Interestingly, the SR isomer shows enhanced hydrogen bonding at the higher temperature. The adopted conformations are primarily determined by the R or S side chain substitution, and less by the type of side chain. Back-calculation of (1)H ROESY spectra and (3)J coupling constants from the MD simulations and comparison with the experimental data for the Val-Phe dipeptides shows good agreement between simulation and experiment, and reveals possible problems and pitfalls, when deriving structural properties of a small and extremely flexible molecule from NMR data only. Inclusion of all aspects of internal dynamics is essential to the correct prediction of the NMR spectra of these small molecules. Cross comparison of calculated with experimental spectra for both isomers shows that only a few out of many ROESY peaks reflect the sizeable conformational differences between the isomers at 298 K.     

Extraction of phosphoric acid with long-chain tertiary amines—II: Extraction from potassium hydrogen phosphate and various acid solutions

The extraction of phosphoric acid from its aqueous solutions containing various proportions of potassium hydrogen phosphates with the long-chain tertiary amine Alamine 336 in toluene was studied at 25°C. Also measured was the exchange of phosphate anions with the anions of strong mineral acids (chloride, bromide and sulfate) between aqueous acid solutions and those of Alamine 336 in toluene at 25 and 40°C. The extraction of phosphoric acid was previously found to increase with the activity of undissociated acid a_H3PO4. It therefore decreased on replacement of H₃PO₄ with KH₂PO₄ due to reversal of the acid dissociation and to formation of the dimeric species H₅P₂O₈⁻ in the aqueous phase, and conforms to the previously proposed model with the inclusion of this aqueous species. The relative affinities of the anions for the tertiary substituted ammonium cation increase in the order: H₂PO₄⁻<HSO₄⁻<Cl⁻<Br⁻.     

Molecular Recognition in Organic Crystals: Directed Intermolecular Bonds or Nonlocalized Bonding?

Molecules are held together mainly by forces acting between individual atoms. Does the same apply to molecular clusters? Does intermolecular cohesion depend on weak bonds between individual atoms in different molecules or on less localized, more diffuse interactions between molecules? We discuss these questions from several viewpoints and in particular compare interpretations based on the extension of Bader's atoms in molecules (AIM) theory to cover closed‐shell intermolecular interactions with interpretations based on the new pixel method for the calculation of coulombic, polarization, dispersion, and repulsion energies from the electron density of molecular clusters.     

Molecular tethering or aggregation: is the existence of charge-transfer bands indicative of the formation of blue-box/tetrathiafulvalene inclusion complexes?

The interaction between tetrathiafulvalene and tetracation cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) fragments-the key elements of many rotaxane systems-was investigated theoretically by using ab-initio second-order perturbation methods. In addition to the inclusion complex observed in the solid state, a thermodynamically stable "exterior" complex was identified. Calculation of the UV/Vis spectra for the inclusion and the exterior complexes indicated that the charge-transfer band that is often used to predict the formation of the inclusion complexes in solution is, in reality, due to the exterior mode of complexation. These results suggest that UV/Vis spectroscopy is not a reliable method for assigning the complexation modes in TTF:BB(4+) rotaxanes and related systems.