Total synthesis of fully acetylated N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac), 2-deoxy-beta-Neu5Ac, and 4-epi-2-deoxy-beta-Neu5Ac from D-glucose

Sialic acid and its analogues have been synthesized using a salenCo(II) complex catalyzed hetero Diels-Alder reaction and oxidative azidation (CAN/NaN3) of silyl enol ether as the key steps.     

Preparation of 4-pentenoic acid ester of Neu5Ac and 4-pentenyl glycoside of Neu5Ac and their application to glycosylation

Novel sialosyl donors, 4-pentenoic acid ester of N-acetylneuraminic acids (Neu5Ac) and 4-pentenyl glycoside of Neu5Ac were successfully prepared from the corresponding per-O-acetylated 2-hydroxy and 2-chloro derivatives of Neu5Ac, respectively and applied to the synthesis of O-sialosides.     

Photoinduced reversible pH change in aqueous solution of azoaromatic poly(carboxylic acid)

To regulate the pH value of an aqueous solution containing polyelectrolyte by photoirradiation, an azoaromatic poly(carboxylic acid), acrylic acid(AA)-p-phenylazoacrylanilide (PAAn) copolymer was synthesized and the photoresponse of the polymer solution was investigated. AA-PAAn copolymer, which takes a compact form in the ordinary state owing to the presence of azoaromatic side chains, is transformed into an extended form when azoaromatic moieties are isomerized by photoirradiation. Thus, the pH value of the solution can be reversible regulated by irradiation and interruption of light through a change in polymer conformation. The range of the pH change was about 0.15. These phenomena can be explained on the basis of polarity change induced by the photoisomerization of azoaromatic side chains.     

Unique self-anhydride formation in the degradation of cytidine-5'-monophosphosialic acid (CMP-Neu5Ac) and cytidine-5'-diphosphosialic acid (CDP-Neu5Ac) and its application in CMP-sialic acid analogue synthesis

Sialyloligosaccharides are synthesised by various glycosyltransferases and sugar nucleotides. All of these nucleotides are diphosphate compounds except for cytidine-5'-monophosphosialic acid (CMP-Neu5Ac). To obtain an insight into why cytidine-5'-diphosphosialic acid (CDP-Neu5Ac) has not been used for the sialyltransferase reaction and why it is not found in biological organisms, the compound was synthesised. This synthesis provided the interesting finding that the carboxylic acid moiety of the sialic acid attacks the attached phosphate group. This interaction yields an activated anhydride between carboxylic acid and the phosphate group and leads to hydrolysis of the pyrophosphate linkage. The mechanism was demonstrated by stable isotope-labelling experiments. This finding suggested that CMP-Neu5Ac might also form the corresponding anhydride structure between carboxylic acid and phosphate, and this seems to be the reason why CMP-Neu5Ac is acid labile in relation to other sugar nucleotides. To confirm the role of the carboxylic acid, CMP-Neu5Ac derivatives in which the carboxylic acid moiety in the sialic acid was substituted with amide or ester groups were synthesised. These analogues clearly exhibited resistance to acid hydrolysis. This result indicated that the carboxylic acid of Neu5Ac is associated with its stability in solution. This finding also enabled the development of a novel chemical synthetic method for CMP-Neu5Ac and CMP-sialic acid derivatives.     

Interaction of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) with perfluorooctanoic acid in aqueous solution

Interaction of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAM) with perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) was explored in aqueous solution. Increasing concentrations of PFOA were observed first to depress slightly the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) then to elevate it at concentrations greater than ca. 2.5 mM. At concentrations >ca. 3.5 mM, the LCST transition could not be detected by either microcalorimetry or cloud point measurements. PNIPAAM appeared to promote the micellization of PFOA. Pinacyanol dye experiments were ambiguous, but the aggregation concentration reported by surface tension measurements was clearly depressed upon addition of PNIPAAM.     

Synthesis of a sialic acid dimer derivative, 2'alpha-O-benzyl Neu5Ac-alph-(2-->5)Neu5Gc

The preparation of a disaccharide 2, Neu5Ac-alpha-(2-->5)Neu5Gc having a alpha-benzyl protecting group at the reducing end, by the coupling of the easily accessible building units 4 and 5 is described. Subsequent deprotection of the coupling adduct led to the isolation of the target compound 2 in high yield.     

Photochemistry of Fe(III) complex with glyoxalic acid in aqueous solution

Nanosecond laser flash photolysis technique was used to study photochemistry of Fe(III) complex with glioxalic acid. The primary photochemical process was found to be inner-sphere electron transfer in the excited complex leading to formation of the long-lived radical complex [Fe^II … ^·OOC-C(O)H]²⁺. A number of important spectral-kinetic parameters of this species were determined and mechanism of photolysis of Fe(III)-glioxalate complex was proposed. 1 The article was translated by the authors.     

Calorimetric investigation of poly(methacrylic acid) and poly(acrylic acid) in aqueous solution

The enthalpy of dissociation of poly(acrylic acid) and of poly(methacrylic acid) in water and in 0.5N NaCl at 25°C has been measured over a wide range of degrees of neutralization of the polyelectrolytes. In the case of poly(methacrylic acid) the calorimetric data permit the direct evaluation of the enthalpy of conformational transition of the polymer. For this transition, with the aid of standard free energy data derived from potentiometric titrations, the change in entropy was also estimated. The relative accuracy of the thermodynamic data, and the possibility of deriving therefrom information on the mechanism of transitions of the type, globular coils → expanded coils for partially hydrophobic synthetic polyelectrolytes in aqueous solution are discussed.     

Fluorescent imidazolium-based cyclophane for detection of guanosine-5'-triphosphate and I(-) in aqueous solution of physiological pH

A new water-soluble and fluorescent imidazolium-anthracene cyclophane (1) effectively recognizes the biologically important GTP and I(-) over other anions in a 100% aqueous solution of physiological pH 7.4. Fluorescence and (1)H NMR spectra and ab initio calculations demonstrate that emission arises from the formation of an excimer state and quenching occurs upon GTP/I(-) binding through (C-H)(+)···A(-) hydrogen bond interactions.     

Nitrilotriacetic acid transformation photo-induced by complexation with iron(III) in aqueous solution

Summary The phototransformation of iron(III) nitrilotriacetate, Fe(NTA), was studied at 20 °C under monochromatic excitation at different pHs. The conjugation of excitation wavelength and pH gives rise to different photochemical behaviour. In acidic medium, it always results in a redox process giving rise to Fe^II, HCHO and CO₂ but the stoichiometry of the photoproducts depends on the excitation wavelength. At long wavelength (365 nm), the Fe^II/HCHO ratio of unity implies a redox reaction between Fe^III and the carboxylic group whereas at short wavelength (254 nm) the Fe/HCHO ratio is equal to 2 and implies a redox process between Fe^III and a water ligand. In neutral solution and at 365 nm, a photosolvation is observed with NTA release; at 254 nm a subsequent redox process between OH and the hydrous ferric oxide is involved. In terms of the fate of Fe(NTA) in the environment at pH 5–6 and under sunlight, all of the above photochemical reactions can occur.     

Pulse radiolysis of poly(acrylic acid) in deoxygenated aqueous solution

Absorption spectra of macroradicals formed by irradiation of poly (acrylic acid) in aqueous solution are presented and the role of intermediates of water radiolysis in their formation is discussed. Both the rate constant of ·OH reaction with the polymer and the process of macroradicals decay are shown to be strongly dependent on pH. The macroradicals formed in dissociated polymer molecules have a lifetime of several minutes.     

Radiolytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in dilute aqueous solution: pH dependence

The reactions of hydroxyl radical and hydrated electron intermediates of water radiolysis were studied in the radiolytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) at pH values of 4, 6 and 8. The hydrated electron reactions are also suggested to contribute to the aromatic ring decomposition in addition to the highly effective hydroxyl radical reactions. The experimental results suggest also some contribution from the O₂^−•/HO₂^• pair to the degradation. The degradation efficiency was found to be the highest at pH 8 and the lowest at pH 6.     

The surface tension of poly(acrylic acid) in aqueous solution

Summary Surface tension has been measured of polyacrylic acidwater solutions with pH 3–11. Until approximately pH 4.6 corresponding to 10% neutralization, PAA-solutions are surface active and inactive at higher pH, time dependence of equlibrium surface tension is analysed. Non-ionized neutral chain segments are surface active, their diffusion to surface is rate determining.

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Zusammenfassung Es wurde die Oberflächenspannung von wäßrigen Polyacrylsäure-Lösungen der pH-Werte von 3–11 gemessen. Bis zu einem pH-Wert von etwa 4.6, d. h. 10% Neutralisation, sind die Lösungen oberflächenaktiv, bei höheren pH-Werten inaktiv. Es wird die Zeitabhängigkeit der Einstellung der Gleichgewichtsoberflächenspannung analysiert. Nicht ionisierte, neutrale Kettensegmente sind oberflächenaktiv. Diffusion zur Oberfläche ist der zeitbestimmende Faktor.

     

Time-dependent Cu-induced gelation of poly(ethylene-alt-maleic acid) in aqueous solution

The complexation of Cu²⁺ ions with an alternating copolymer of maleic acid (MAc) and ethylene in aqueous solution was followed through turbidimetry and absorption spectrophotometry as a function of the polymer concentration and the metal ion-to-polymer molar ratio, r. The introduction of Cu²⁺ ions was performed in aqueous solution through neutralization of the polyacid with Cu(OH)₂ powder. A gelation window between homogeneous and phase-separated solutions was observed in the phase diagram of the polymer/Cu²⁺ mixture and the viscoelastic properties of the hydrogels were evaluated through rheology measurements. It is found that the stiffness of the hydrogels can be tuned by the polymer concentration and the mixing ratio r. Moreover, the stiffness of the hydrogels increases substantially with time. In fact, this time evolution may be as long as one month or longer if the composition of the aqueous solution is close to the gelation threshold. The gelation properties can be qualitatively explained from the possible formation of binuclear polymer/Cu²⁺ complexes in aqueous solutions, as indicated from the absorption spectroscopy results.     

Fluorescence imaging for in situ detection of cell surface sialic acid by competitive binding of 3-(dansylamino)phenylboronic acid

Sialic acid (SA) usually locates at the terminal position of the sugar chains on cell membranes, and its expression level is closely associated with cancer. Here polysialic acid (PSA) embedded gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were prepared and functionalized with fluorescent 3-(dansylamino)phenylboronic acid (DAPB) for in situ imaging and detection of cell surface SA. The fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) from DAPB to AuNPs quenched the fluorescence of DAPB. In the presence of additional SA or SA-abundant cells, the competitive binding of DAPB with SA and PSA led to the release of the assembled DAPB from the surface of PSA-embedded AuNPs, resulting in fluorescence of DAPB on SA-abundant cell surface. The proposed methods realized the in situ imaging and monitoring of cell surface SA, and could also be applied to the quantification of cell number and the amounts of cell surface SA. This work not only proposed a convenient visualization method for the analysis of SA on cell membranes, but also provided a potential tool for accelerating the elucidation of the basic role of SA in various biological processes and development of anti-cancer therapies.     

Salicylic acid derivatives form stable complexes with scandium(III) ion in aqueous solution

The stability constants of 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA) and 5-sulfosalicylic acid (5-SSA) complexes of Sc(III) were determined by potentiomeric pH titration. ML and ML2 type first and second complexes were observed in the solutions of 5-NSA and 5-SSA with Sc(III) at 25 degrees C in I=0.1 M ionic medium. The stability constants of Sc(III)-5NSA and Sc(III)-5SSA systems were also investigated by spectrophotometry to determine the stoichiometries of the complexes formed in the reactions. Our results showed that Sc(III)-5SSA complexes are more stable than the Sc(III)-5NSA complexes in aqueous solutions.     

Kinetics of oxidation of organic compounds by silver(II) in aqueous perchloric acid solution. Part 5

Summary The kinetics and mechanism of oxidation of a series of alcohols, namely cyclohexanol, cyclopentanol, pentan-2-ol and benzyl alcohol, by silver(II) perchlorate in perchloric acid solution. have been investigated by the stopped-flow technique. These oxidations proceed through two parallel pathways involving Ag²⁺ and AgOH⁺ species. In the case of benzyl alcohol, the hydroxo species, which has been found to be almost universally reactive toward different organic substrates, is inactive; this behaviour has been interpreted in terms of interaction of the oxidant with the aromatic moiety in the alcohol. The reactivities are discussed in terms of substrate reaction sites with reference to electronic availability and reaction products.     

Reaction of pentaammine(urea-O)cobalt(III) cation with chlorine and hypochlorous acid in aqueous solution

Summary The Co(NH₃)₅[OC(NH₂)₂]³⁺ cation in aqueous acid reacts with chlorine and hypochlorous acid, with two sequential steps observed in each case. Rate constants for both steps show a first-order dependence on [oxidant], with k₁/k₂ always <20, but varying with the choice of reactant and acid. Rate constants with Cl₂ as reactant are faster than with HOCl, possibly related to preferential attack by Cl⁺ compared with OCl^– on the bound urea. Competition by ions (HSO ₄ ^– , Cl^– or NO ₃ ^– ) measured by product analysis of reactions conducted in 1 M acid produced competition ratios R (R=[CoX]/[CoOH₂][X]) which are similar to values determined with a range of leaving groups previously, indicating a mechanistic constancy. No formation of Co(NH₃)₅Cl²⁺ was observed in reactions conducted in H₂SO₄ or HNO₃, implying that free Cl^– is not generated at the reaction site and captured by the metal ion. Electronic and vibrational spectra of the intermediate formed in the two stage reaction is indicative of a change from an O-bound to an N-bound ligand in forming that intermediate, although it cannot be a simple isomerization due to the dependence on [oxidant]. A possible mechanism is discussed.     

Fluorescent GTP-sensing in aqueous solution of physiological pH

A new water-soluble imidazolium anthracene derivative not only differentiates two structurally similar compounds GTP and ATP but also acts as potential fluorescent chemosensors (as a quencher and an enhancer, respectively) for GTP and ATP in 100% aqueous solution (pH = 7.4, 10 mM HEPES).