Chemical studies of the radical scavenging mechanism of bisorbicillinol using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical

A potent antioxidant, bisorbicillinol, which is a member of the bisorbicillinoid family isolated from the culture broth of Trichoderma sp. USF-2690, produces a stable radical-terminated symmetric dimer by donating two hydrogen atoms to the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical.     

Prenylated xanthones from the bark of Garcinia xanthochymus and their 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activities

Garcinia xanthochymus has been widely used in traditional Chinese medicine for expelling worms and removing food toxins. Bioassay-guided fractionation of an EtOAc-soluble extract of G. xanthochymus stem bark led to the isolation of six new xanthones. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods, especially 2D-NMR techniques. Free-radical-scavenging activities of the isolated compounds were elucidated through DPPH method. Most of the isolated compounds showed considerable free radical scavenging activity on DPPH assay. Compound 1 exhibited effective antioxidant scavenging activity against DPPH radical with an IC?? value of 19.64 μM, and compound 6 showed the lowest activity among all the tested molecules, with an IC?? value of 66.88 μM. These findings support the notion that the plant genus Garcinia is a good source of bioactive compounds.     

Targeted isolation of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitors from Saxifraga atrata and their antioxidant activities

Saxifraga atrata is an important traditional Tibetan medicine used to treat cough and pneumonia, and has tremendous medicinal potential. In this study, we devised a technique to separate 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitors from a methanol extract of S. atrata. The material was first processed using MCI GEL CHP20P medium-pressure liquid chromatography, yielding 1.1 g of the target fraction Fr2. Subsequently, online hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl assay was used to identify prospective 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitors, and two 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitor fractions (Fr24 and Fr25) were identified from Fr2. Then, medium-pressure preparation was continued using an XIon column to separate two 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitor fractions (Fr24 and Fr25). The target compound was concentrated in fractions Fr24 and Fr25 using reverse-phase liquid chromatography during further separation procedures. Finally, the purity, structure, and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitory activity of the isolated 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitors were determined. Two 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl inhibitors (adenosine with the half maximal inhibitory concentration of 66.87 ± 14.33 μM and (-)-4-O-(E)-caffeoyl-l -threonic acid with the half maximal inhibitory concentration of 59.06 ± 5.02 μM) were isolated with purities exceeding 95%. The results showed that this technology is effective in the targeted separation of antioxidants from natural products.     

Study of reaction of gossypol and its imino derivatives with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl

Structures and state in solutions of natural polyphenol gossypol and four its imino derivatives, three of which were synthesized for the first time, were studied by IR and NMR spectroscopy, and by quantum chemistry. The reaction of these compounds with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) in ethanol was examined. The antioxidant activity of the studied compounds in the reaction with DPPH was evaluated using the values of the stoichiometric coefficients of reaction, EC₅₀, T ₁^2/DPPH and AE parameters. Gossypol hydrazones were shown to be 5–10 times more efficient, while Schiff base to be less efficient as antioxidants in comparison with gossypol itself. The influence of metal cations on the antioxidant activity of gossypol derivatives was studied.     

Radical scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl of ascorbic acid 2-glucoside (AA-2G) and 6-acyl-AA-2G

The radical scavenging activity of the stable derivatives, which are O-substituted at the C-2 position of ascorbic acid (AA), against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) was evaluated in buffer under different pH conditions, and compared with those of AA and alpha-tocopherol. AA was shown to have 50% radical scavenging ability (EC50) at a concentration of 2.2 x 10(-5) M against 0.1 mM DPPH in 60% ethanol. Ascorbyl 6-palmitate, a lipophilic AA derivative which has a free endiol group and is therefore unstable, also showed potent radical scavenging activity with EC50 of 2.9 x 10(-5) M. A typical lipophilic antioxidant, alpha-tocopherol gave a similar EC50 value as that of AA. In contrast, ascorbyl 2,6-dipalmitate, AA 2-phosphate and AA 2-sulfate exhibited negligible scavenging activity. On the other hand, 2-O-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-L-ascorbic acid (AA-2G) and a series of 6-O-acyl-2-O-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-L-ascorbic acids (6-Acyl-AA-2G) themselves exhibited the radical scavenging activity of EC50: 6.1 x 10(-5) M and 4.4 x 10(-5)-5.9 x 10(-5) M, respectively, although their activities were lower than that of AA. Among 6-Acyl-AA-2G derivatives, the EC50 values tended to decrease with increasing length of their acyl carbon group. Increasing pH of the buffer resulted in decrease in the scavenging activity of all compounds tested as expected. We speculate that the difference in the radical scavenging activity of derivatives O-substituted at the C-2 position of AA may be ascribed to the linkage type of the substituent group to the endiol-lactone resonance system and the degree of dissociation of the C-3 proton.     

Non-reductive scavenging of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) by peroxyradical: a useful method for quantitative analysis of peroxyradical

A stable radical 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) has long been used as a convenient method for the antioxidant assay of biological materials such as cysteine, glutathione, ascorbic acid, tocopherol and polyhydroxy aromatic compounds (hydroquinone, pyrogallol, etc.). In this study, non-reductive scavenging of DPPH was investigated by electron spin resonance (ESR) analyses for the purpose of developing a useful method for quantitative determination of peroxyradical. Since DPPH was degraded in the presence of peroxyradical derived from UV-irradiated benzoylperoxide and the peroxyradical-induced degradation of DPPH was inhibited by the addition of a spin trapping agent 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO), it is concluded that DPPH is non-reductively scavenged by peroxyradical. Therefore, it is suggested that DPPH could be a useful agent for the quantitative measurement of peroxyradical.     

Reaction of phenols with the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical. Kinetics and DFT calculations applied to determine ArO-H bond dissociation enthalpies and reaction mechanism

The formal H-atom abstraction by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (dpph(*)) radical from 27 phenols and two unsaturated hydrocarbons has been investigated by a combination of kinetic measurements in apolar solvents and density functional theory (DFT). The computed minimum energy structure of dpph(*) shows that the access to its divalent N is strongly hindered by an ortho H atom on each of the phenyl rings and by the o-NO(2) groups of the picryl ring. Remarkably small Arrhenius pre-exponential factors for the phenols [range (1.3-19) x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1)] are attributed to steric effects. Indeed, the entropy barrier accounts for up to ca. 70% of the free-energy barrier to reaction. Nevertheless, rate differences for different phenols are largely due to differences in the activation energy, E(a,1) (range 2 to 10 kcal/mol). In phenols, electronic effects of the substituents and intramolecular H-bonds have a large influence on the activation energies and on the ArO-H BDEs. There is a linear Evans-Polanyi relationship between E(a,1) and the ArO-H BDEs: E(a,1)/kcal x mol(-1) = 0.918 BDE(ArO-H)/kcal x mol(-1) - 70.273. The proportionality constant, 0.918, is large and implies a "late" or "product-like" transition state (TS), a conclusion that is congruent with the small deuterium kinetic isotope effects (range 1.3-3.3). This Evans-Polanyi relationship, though questionable on theoretical grounds, has profitably been used to estimate several ArO-H BDEs. Experimental ArO-H BDEs are generally in good agreement with the DFT calculations. Significant deviations between experimental and DFT calculated ArO-H BDEs were found, however, when an intramolecular H-bond to the O(*) center was present in the phenoxyl radical, e.g., in ortho semiquinone radicals. In these cases, the coupled cluster with single and double excitations correlated wave function technique with complete basis set extrapolation gave excellent results. The TSs for the reactions of dpph(*) with phenol, 3- and 4-methoxyphenol, and 1,4-cyclohexadiene were also computed. Surprisingly, these TS structures for the phenols show that the reactions cannot be described as occurring exclusively by either a HAT or a PCET mechanism, while with 1,4-cyclohexadiene the PCET character in the reaction coordinate is much better defined and shows a strong pi-pi stacking interaction between the incipient cyclohexadienyl radical and a phenyl ring of the dpph(*) radical.     

Enzymatic condensation and polycondensation reactions in organic solvents

Lipases in organic solvents catalyse lactonisation or polymerisation of ω-hydroxyesters. Under these conditions the enzymes exhibit both enantioselectivity and prochiral selectivity. This approach was used to develop the synthesis of chiral γ-lactones and A-B type polyesters from racemic or prochiral hydroxyester substrate.     

High-performance liquid chromatography with post-column 2,2′-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging assay: Methodological considerations and application to complex samples

An improved post-column 2,2′-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay for the screening of antioxidants in complex matrices was developed. Experimental parameters believed to be influential to DPPH response were studied in a univariate approach. Optimum conditions were found to be: 5 × 10⁻⁵ M DPPH reagent prepared in a 75% methanol: 25% 40 mM citric acid-sodium citrate buffer (pH 6) solution, degassed with nitrogen; reaction coil of 2 m × 0.25 mm i.d. PEEK tubing; detection at 521 nm; analysis at room temperature. The analytical utility of this protocol was evaluated by screening for antioxidants in thyme and green tea, in comparison with two commonly employed methodologies.     

Mechanism and kinetics of the reaction of the 2-propargyl radical with ammonia

Gas-phase mechanism and kinetics of the reactions of the 2-propargyl radical (H₂CCCH), an important intermediate in combustion processes, with ammonia were investigated using ab initio molecular orbital theory at the coupled-cluster CCSD(T)//B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,2p) method in conjunction with transition state theory (TST), variational transition state theory (VTST), and Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Macus (RRKM) calculations for rate constants. The potential energy surface (PES) constructed shows that the C₃H₃ + NH₃ reaction has four main entrances, including two H-abstraction and two addition channels in which the former are energetically more favorable. The H-abstraction channels occur via energy barriers of 24 (T0/P2) and 26 kcal/mol (T0/P3) forming loose van de Waals complexes, COM_1 (12 kcal/mol) and COM_2 (14 kcal/mol), respectively. These complexes can easily be decomposed via barrier-less processes resulting HCCCH₃ + NH₂ (P2, 14 kcal/mol) and HCCCH₃ + NH₂ (P3, 15 kcal/mol), respectively. The additional channels occur initially by formation of two intermediate states, H₂CCCHNH₃ (35 kcal/mol) and H₂CC(NH₃)CH (37 kcal/mol) via energy barriers of 37 and 40 kcal/mol at T0/1 and T0/5, respectively, followed by isomerization and decomposition yielding 21 different products. These processes are fully depicted in an as-complete-as-possible PES. The rate constants and product branching ratios for the low-energy channels calculated show that the C₃H₃ + NH₃ reaction is almost pressure-independent. For the temperature range of 300–2000 K, the HCCCH₃ + NH₂ is the major product, whereas the minor one, HCCCH₃ + NH₂, has more contribution when temperature increases. Theoretical results on the mechanism and kinetics of the reaction considered may be helpful for future experiments as well as for understanding the role of the propargyl radical in combustion chemistry.     

Photochemical reactions of organomercury compounds in organic solvents

The quantum yields of photolysis of organomercury compounds in different organic solvents have been measured. It was shown that the quantum yields of photolysis of nitro derivatives of mercury compounds and the symmetric (methylnaphtyl)mercury compound are equal to unity. The photolysis of halo derivatives of benzylmercury proceeds with lower quantum yields as compared with photolysis of analogous dibenzylmercury derivatives. The quantum yields of photolysis of organomercury compounds are almost independent of the solvent.     

The kinetics of hydroxyl radical reactions with cyclopropane and cyclobutane

A laser flash photolysis/resonance fluorescence investigation has been carried out to study the kinetics of the overall reactions OH + cyclopropane (1) and OH + cyclobutane (2) in the temperature range 298–490 K and at 298 K, respectively. The following kinetic parameters have been determined: k₁ =(3.9 ±0.6) 10⁻¹²exp- (2.2 ± 0.1)kcal mol⁻¹/RT molecule⁻¹cm³s⁻¹, k₂(298 K) = (17.5 ± 1.5)10⁻¹³molecule⁻¹ cm³s⁻¹.     

The kinetics of radical reactions in the radiolysis of aqueous solutions of organic nitro compounds

Pulsed radiolysis and computer simulation of gamma radiolytic decomposition of organic nitrates in aqueous solutions were performed to determine the rate constants for reactions with the participation of intermediates determining the mechanism of the process. 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene, 2,4-dinitrotoluene, and cyclic nitramine, cyclotrimethylene-trinitramine, were used as substrates. The bimolecular rate constants for the reactions of hydrated electrons (e _aq ^? ) and hydroxyl radicals (^?OH) with the substrates and constants for the recombination of electron adducts and carbon-centered radicals (the products of the detachment of the H atom from the nitro compound molecule by the OH radical) were determined by direct measurements with the use of high-speed spectrophotometry. Computer simulation of the reaction scheme was used to estimate the rate constant for significant reactions, monomolecular forward and back reactions of electron adducts and electron transfer to molecular oxygen, and refine the rate constant for the reaction of e _aq ^? with tert-butanol.