Lanthanide‐induced shifts in the structural elucidation of β‐hydroxydecalones

The use of Eu(fod)₃ in the analysis of the ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectra of cis and trans‐fused β‐hydroxydecalones is described. The relative configuration of the substituents is discussed using the PMLIS algorithm to determine the lanthanide (Eu) ion position in the complex in an effective axially symmetric model. The conformations of two cis‐decalones are also discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Remarks on GIAO-DFT predictions of 13C chemical shifts

Predicting (13)C chemical shifts by GIAO-DFT calculations appears to be more accurate than frequently expected provided that: (a) the comparison between experimental and theoretical data is performed using the linear regression method, (b) a sufficiently high level of theory [e.g. B3LYP/6-311 + + G(2d,p)//B3LYP/6-311 + + G(2d,p) or PBE1PBE/6-311 + G(2df,p)//B3LYP/6-311 + + G(2d,p)] is used, (c) the experimental data originate from the measurements performed in one solvent whose influence is taken into account at the molecular geometry optimization step and, first of all, during the shielding calculation, (d) the experimental data are free of heavy atom effects or such effects are appropriately treated in calculations, and finally (e) the conformational compositions of the investigated objects are known.     

Torsion angle relationship of the 17O NMR chemical shift in α,β‐unsaturated carbonyl compounds

The torsion angle effect on the isotropic shielding of ¹⁷O nucleus in α,β‐unsaturated carbonyl groups is studied by means of density functional theory (DFT) calculations using a polarizable continuum model (PCM) for the solvent, employing the PBE0 functional together with the 6‐311G(d,p) basis set for geometry optimization, and the 6‐311+G(2d,p) basis set for calculating the NMR shielding with the gauge‐including atomic orbitals (GIAO) method. This study adds new information on the sensitivity of the ¹⁷O nucleus to conformational changes, revealing a strong dependence of the ¹⁷O NMR chemical shift on the dihedral angle between the carbonyl and the vinyl moiety in all studied compounds; remarkable differences are observed with the data reported for α‐diketones. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

DFT‐GIAO 1H and 13C NMR prediction of chemical shifts for the configurational assignment of 6β‐hydroxyhyoscyamine diastereoisomers

¹H and ¹³C NMR chemical shift calculations using the density functional theory–gauge including/invariant atomic orbitals (DFT–GIAO) approximation at the B3LYP/6‐311G++(d,p) level of theory have been used to assign both natural diastereoisomers of 6β‐hydroxyhyoscyamine. The theoretical chemical shifts of the ¹H and ¹³C atoms in both isomers were calculated using a previously determined conformational distribution, and the theoretical and experimental values were cross‐compared. For protons, the obtained average absolute differences and root mean square (rms) errors for each comparison showed that the experimental chemical shifts of dextrorotatory and levorotatory 6β‐hydroxyhyoscyamines correlated well with the theoretical values calculated for the (3R,6R,2′S) and (3S,6S,2′S) configurations, respectively, whereas for ¹³C atoms the calculations were unable to differentiate between isomers. The nature of the relatively large chemical shift differences observed in nuclei that share similar chemical environments between isomers was asserted from the same calculations. It is shown that the anisotropic effect of the phenyl group in the tropic ester moiety, positioned under the tropane ring, has a larger shielding effect over one ring side than over the other one. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

13C isotope effects on 1H chemical shifts: NMR spectral analysis of 13C‐labelled D‐glucose and some 13C‐labelled amino acids

The one‐ and two‐bond ¹³C isotope shifts, typically ?1.5 to ?2.5 ppb and ?0.7 ppb respectively, in non‐cyclic aliphatic systems and up to ?4.4 ppb and ?1.0 ppb in glucose cause effects that need to be taken into account in the adaptive NMR spectral library‐based quantification of the isotopomer mixtures. In this work, NMR spectral analyses of some ¹³C‐labelled amino acids, D ‐glucose and other small compounds were performed in order to obtain rules for prediction of the ¹³C isotope effects on ¹H chemical shifts. It is proposed that using the additivity rules, the isotope effects can be predicted with a sufficient accuracy for amino acid isotopomer applications. For glucose the effects were found strongly non‐additive. The complete spectral analysis of fully ¹³C‐labelled D ‐glucose made it also possible to assign the exocyclic proton signals of the glucose. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conformational analysis of the disaccharide methyl α‐d‐mannopyranosyl‐(1→3)‐2‐O‐acetyl‐β‐d‐mannopyranoside monohydrate

The crystal structure of methyl α‐d ‐mannopyranosyl‐(1→3)‐2‐O‐acetyl‐β‐d ‐mannopyranoside monohydrate, C₁₅H₂₆O₁₂·H₂O, ( II ), has been determined and the structural parameters for its constituent α‐d ‐mannopyranosyl residue compared with those for methyl α‐d ‐mannopyranoside. Mono‐O‐acetylation appears to promote the crystallization of ( II ), inferred from the difficulty in crystallizing methyl α‐d ‐mannopyranosyl‐(1→3)‐β‐d ‐mannopyranoside despite repeated attempts. The conformational properties of the O‐acetyl side chain in ( II ) are similar to those observed in recent studies of peracetylated mannose‐containing oligosaccharides, having a preferred geometry in which the C2—H2 bond eclipses the C=O bond of the acetyl group. The C2—O2 bond in ( II ) elongates by ～0.02 Å upon O‐acetylation. The phi (?) and psi (ψ) torsion angles that dictate the conformation of the internal O‐glycosidic linkage in ( II ) are similar to those determined recently in aqueous solution by NMR spectroscopy for unacetylated ( II ) using the statistical program MA′AT, with a greater disparity found for ψ (Δ = ～16°) than for ? (Δ = ～6°).     

Deuterium Quantification through Deuterium‐Induced Remote 1H and 13C NMR Shifts

Partial labeling by deuterium may be quantified through simple integrations of those ¹H (200 or 400 MHz ) and ¹³C (100.6 MHz ) NMR resonances that are split into pairs by chemical shifts ⁿΔ=δ(deuterated)?δ(nondeuterated) as induced by deuterium across n>2 chemical bonds. The relative intensities of the two components of a pair are shown to be influenced to practically equal degrees by relaxation effects, so that a deuterium fraction may be determined from ¹H and ¹³C integral pairs at more remote molecular positions under the routine conditions of fast accumulative spectral acquisition.     

Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shifts of nitromalonamide

The OH chemical shift of the enol form of nitromalonamide is found at 18.9 ppm both in DMSO-d(6) and in DMF-d(7) indicating a very strong hydrogen bond. The OH chemical shift is insensitive to temperature changes. Contrary to the large OH chemical shift, a small two-bond deuterium isotope effect of 0.135 ppm due to deuteration at the OH position is found at the enolic carbon. This is confirmed by density functional theory calculations. The observed effects are interpreted as due to an equilibrium between identical enolic forms. These show a strong OH...O hydrogen bond as well as a NH...O-N=O hydrogen bond.     

Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shifts of negatively charged NH…N systems

Deuterium isotope effects on ¹³C chemical shifts are investigated in anions of 1,8‐bis(4‐toluenesulphonamido)naphthalenes together with N,N‐(naphthalene‐1,8‐diyl)bis(2,2,2‐trifluoracetamide) all with bis(1,8‐dimethylamino)napthaleneH⁺ as counter ion. These compounds represent both “static” and equilibrium cases. NMR assignments of the former have been revised. The NH proton is deuteriated. The isotope effects on ¹³C chemical shifts are rather unusual in these strongly hydrogen bonded systems between a NH and a negatively charged nitrogen atom. The formal four‐bond effects are found to be negative indicating transmission via the hydrogen bond. In addition, unusual long range effects are seen. Structures, ¹H and ¹³C NMR chemical shifts and changes in nuclear shieldings upon deuteriation are calculated using density functional theory methods. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stereochemical analysis of the 3α‐ and 3β‐hydroxy metabolites of tibolone through NMR and quantum‐chemical investigations. An experimental test of GIAO calculations

The configuration at C‐3 of the 3α‐ and 3β‐hydroxy metabolites of tibolone was studied by extensive application of one‐ and two‐dimensional ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy combined with molecular modeling performed at the B3LYP/6–31G(d) level. Using HF and DFT GIAO methods, shielding tensors of the two molecules were computed; comparison of the calculated NMR chemical shifts with the experimental values revealed that the density functional methods produced the best results for assigning proton and carbon resonances. Although steroids are relatively large molecules, the present approach appears accurate enough to allow the determination of relative configurations by using calculated ¹³C resonances; the chemical shift of pairs of geminal α/β hydrogen atoms can also be established by using calculated ¹H resonances. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Substituent effects on 13C chemical shifts of ketenimines: a GIAO/HF and DFT study

GIAO/HF and DFT methods were utilized to predict the ¹³C chemical shifts of substituted ketenimines. GIAO HF/6–311+G(2d,p) and B3LYP/6–311+G(2d,p) methods were applied on the optimized B3LYP/6–31G(d) geometries and ¹³C chemical shifts of C_α and C_β of substituted ketenimines were correlated with group electronegativities. HF and DFT calculations indicated that increasing substituent group electronegativity leads to increasing chemical shift of C_β of substituted ketenimines, whereas the C_α values decrease. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Studies on the Mass Spectra of N‐Aryl α,β‐Unsaturated γ‐Lactams

The mass spectra of a series of N‐aryl α,β‐unsaturated γ‐lactams were studied. Besides the molecular ion, the three characteristic fragments such as [M⁺‐29], [M⁺‐55], and [M⁺‐82] were commonly found in a series of N‐Aryl α,β‐unsaturated γ‐lactams in EI/MS. Further more the mechanism for the interpretation of these fragments is also de scribed.     

Deuterium isotope effect on 13C chemical shifts of tetrabutylammonium salts of Schiff bases amino acids

Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shift of tetrabutylammonium salts of Schiff bases, derivatives of amino acids (glycine, L-alanine, L-phenylalanine, L-valine, L-leucine, L-isoleucine and L-methionine) and various ortho-hydroxyaldehydes in CDCl3 have been measured. The results have shown that the tetrabutylammonium salts of the Schiff bases amino acids, being derivatives of 2-hydroxynaphthaldehyde and 3,5-dibromosalicylaldehyde, exist in the NH-form, while in the derivatives of salicylaldehyde and 5-bromosalicylaldehyde a proton transfer takes place. The interactions between COO- and NH groups stabilize the proton-transferred form through a bifurcated intramolecular hydrogen bond.     

The Renaissance of α‐Methylene‐γ‐butyrolactones: New Synthetic Approaches

The amount of research activity concerning α‐methylene‐γ‐butyrolactones and α‐alkylidene‐γ‐butyrolactones has increased dramatically in recent years. This Review summarizes the structural types, biological activities, and biosynthesis of these compounds, concentrating on publications from the past 10 years. Traditional approaches to α‐methylene‐γ‐butyrolactones and α‐alkylidene‐γ‐butyrolactones are then reviewed together with novel approaches, including those from our own research group, reported more recently.     

Formation of Periodic γ‐Turns in α/β‐Hybrid Peptides: DFT and NMR Experimental Evidence

Hybrid peptidic oligomers comprising natural and unnatural amino acid residues that can exhibit biomolecular folding and hydrogen‐bonding mimicry have attracted considerable interest in recent years. While a variety of hybrid peptidic helices have been reported in the literature, other secondary structural patterns such as γ‐turns and ribbons have not been well explored so far. The present work reports the design of novel periodic γ‐turns in the oligomers of 1:1 natural‐α/unnatural trans‐β‐norborenene (TNAA) amino acid residues. Through DFT, NMR, and MD studies, it is convincingly shown that, in the mixed conformational pool, the heterogeneous backbone of the hybrid peptides preferentially adopt periodic 8‐membered (pseudo γ‐turn)/7‐membered (inverse γ‐turn) hydrogen bonds in both polar and non‐polar solvent media. It is observed that the stereochemistry and local conformational preference of the β‐amino acid building blocks have a profound influence on accessing the specific secondary fold. These findings may be of significant relevance for the development of molecular scaffolds that facilitate desired positioning of functional side‐chains.     

Complete assignments of 1H and 13C NMR resonances of oleanolic acid, 18α‐oleanolic acid,ursolic acid and their 11‐oxo derivatives

Complete assignments of ¹H and ¹³C NMR chemical shifts for oleanolic acid, 18α‐oleanolic acid, ursolic acid and their 11‐oxo derivatives based on ¹H, ¹³C, 2D DQF‐COSY, NOESY, HSQC, HMBC and HSQC‐TOCSY experiments were achieved. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of Phenanthrene Derivatives through the Reaction of an α,α‐Dicyanoolefin with α,β‐Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds

Phenanthrene derivatives were prepared by reacting an α,α‐dicyanoolefin with different α,β‐unsaturated carbonyl compounds resulting from Wittig reaction of ninhydrin and phosphanylidene or condensation of barbituric acid and an aldehyde. The easy procedure, mild and metal‐catalyst free, reaction conditions, good yields, and no need for chromatographic purifications are important features of this protocol. The structures of the product of type 3 and 5 were corroborated spectroscopically (IR, ¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR, and EI‐MS). A plausible mechanism for this type of reaction is proposed (Scheme 1).     

Comparison of Methionine α,γ‐Lyase and Homocysteine α,γ‐Lyase for Electrochemical Determination of Homocysteine

Recently, a novel enzymatic method was developed for determination of homocysteine. This method utilizes the electrochemical hydrogen sulfide sensor along with methionine α,γ‐lyase to accomplish the fast, accurate, sensitive and selective measurements. As a continuation of this work, another enzyme, homocysteine α,γ‐lyase, was used and the parallel experiments of using both enzymes were carried out against the effect of pH, sensitivity, linearity, and interferences, in an intended comparison between these two enzymes. The excellent linearity of amperometric currents against homocysteine concentrations, high sensitivities and low detection limits for both enzymes reconfirmed that the electrochemical method is superior over other analytical means. The high enzymatic activity of methionine α,γ‐lyase surpassing homocysteine α,γ‐lyase endowed the former higher sensitivity, lower detection limit and faster response than the latter, suggesting methionine α,γ‐lyase a better candidate for homocysteine measurement by electrochemical method. The differences between these two enzymes on the trends of response time and sensitivity at different pH environments, reactivity toward several forms of homocysteine as well as on the interference from several agents were also addressed and discussed.