Synthesis of alkyl glycosides from cyclodextrin using cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase from Paenibacillus sp. RB01

Alkyl glycosides have potential use as biodegradable detergents due to their high surface activity with low toxicity. Recent progress in the application of enzymes to the preparation of these surface-active compounds demonstrates the advantages to the chemical synthesis. In this work, alkyl glycosides were, for the first time, synthesized from cyclodextrin (CD) and various soluble alcohols by transglycosylation reaction using cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGTase) from Paenibacillus sp. RB01. Several alcohols (methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, 2-propanol, 1-butanol and 2-butanol) as glycosyl-acceptor substrates were evaluated. It was found that the reaction products which were analyzed by TLC were maximum for 30% methanol, 20?C30% ethanol, 10?C20% 1-propanol, 10% 2-propanol, 8% 1-butanol and 5?C10% 2-butanol. In addition, the increase in the yield of alkyl glycoside formation was achieved by using methanol as an acceptor. Optimal reaction conditions for methyl glycoside synthesis from CD were to incubate 1.2% (w/v) ??-CD and 240 U/mL of CGTase in a water/methanol system containing 30% (v/v) methanol, pH 6.0 and a temperature of 40???C. At least three main methyl glycoside products were formed having 1?C3 monosaccharide units attached to methanol which were in accordance with the results of MS analysis.     

Effect of addition of iron on morphology and catalytic activity of PdCu nanoalloy thin film as catalyst in Sonogashira coupling reaction

Palladium‐supported catalysts are complex assemblies with a challenging preparation. Minor changes in their preparation conditions can affect the activity, selectivity and lifetime of these catalysts. PdCuFe nanoparticle (NP) thin films were supported on reduced graphene oxide (RGO) by the reduction of the organometallic complex [PdCl_2‌(cod)] (cod = cis ,cis ‐1,5‐cyclooctadiene), and [Cu(acac)₂] and [Fe(acac)₃] (acac = acetylacetonate) complexes at a toluene–water interface. We have investigated the application of the liquid–liquid interface method for preparing ultrathin films of catalysts and have evaluated the catalytic activity of the prepared NPs for the Sonogashira coupling reaction in micelle media. Also, we have investigated the effect of the addition of iron on the morphology, size and catalytic activity of PdCu/RGO NPs. Our study shows that both of the prepared catalysts (PdCu/RGO and PdCuFe/RGO) are efficient and recoverable catalysts for the Sonogashira carbon–carbon coupling reaction. This method has advantages compared to other routes, such as short reaction times, high to excellent yields, facile and low‐cost method for the preparation of the catalysts, and easy separation and reusability of the catalysts.     

A study of host-guest complexation between amodiaquine and native cyclodextrin. Characterization in solid state and its in-vitro anticancer activity

Amodiaquine (AQ) has been used widely as an antimalarial drug. Amodiaquine is a mannich base 4-amino quinolone with a mode of action similar to that of chloroquine. The inclusion complex of AQ with β-Cyclodextrin (β-CD) in solution phase is studied from the ground and excited state with UV-Visible and fluorescence spectroscopy, respectively. A binding constant and stoichiometric ratio between AQ and β-CD are calculated by BH equation. The solid complexes are prepared by physical method (PM), kneading method (KM) and co-precipitation method (CP). The solid complex is characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and powder X-ray diffraction. The CP method gives the solid product with a better yield than that of physical mixture and KM products. The orientation and structure of the complex are proposed based on the analysis of Patch-Dock server. The anticancer activity also performed for pure AQ and their complex with β-CD. It is clearly shown that an improvement of anticancer activity of AQ while forming complex with β-CD. The solid inclusion complex behaves as the better anticancer ability than AQ alone.     

Immobilized palladium on modified magnetic nanoparticles and study of its catalytic activity in suzuki–miyaura C–C coupling reaction

A new magnetically reusable nanosolid, Fe₃O₄@PPCA@Pd(0) (PPCA = piperidine‐4‐carboxylic acid), as a versatile and highly effective catalyst was fabricated and characterized using transmission and scanning electron microscopies, X‐ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier transform infrared and energy‐dispersive spectroscopies and vibrating sample magnetometry. This nanosolid shows great catalytic activity for the synthesis of biphenyl compounds in short reaction times and with high yields. The magnetic character of this catalyst allows retrieval and multiple uses without appreciable loss of its catalytic activity. Our system not only solves the basic problems of catalyst separation and recovery, but also the reactions can be performed in green media. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of alkali metal doping on surface properties and catalytic activity/selectivity of CaO catalysts in oxidative coupling of methane

Surface properties （viz. surface area, basicity/base strength distribution, and crystal phases） of alkali metal doped CaO （alkali metal/Ca= 0.1 and 0.4） catalysts and their catalytic activity/selectivity in oxidative coupling of methane （OCM） to higher hydrocarbons at different reaction conditions （viz. temperature, 700 and 750 ℃; CH4/O2 ratio, 4.0 and 8.0 and space velocity, 5140-20550 cm^3 ·g^-1·h^-1） have been investigated. The influence of catalyst calcination temperature on the activity/selectivity has also been investigated. The surface properties （viz. surface area, basicity/base strength distribution） and catalytic activity/selectivity of the alkali metal doped CaO catalysts are strongly influenced by the alkali metal promoter and its concentration in the alkali metal doped CaO catalysts. An addition of alkali metal promoter to CaO results in a large decrease in the surface area but a large increase in the surface basicity （strong basic sites） and the C2＋ selectivity and yield of the catalysts in the OCM process. The activity and selectivity are strongly influenced by the catalyst calcination temperature. No direct relationship between surface basicity and catalytic activity/selectivity has been observed. Among the alkali metal doped CaO catalysts, Na-CaO （Na/Ca = 0.1, before calcination） catalyst （calcined at 750 ℃）, showed best performance （C2＋ selectivity of 68.8% with 24.7% methane conversion）, whereas the poorest performance was shown by the Rb-CaO catalyst in the OCM process.     

Synthesis,microwave‐promoted catalytic activity in Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling reactions and antimicrobial properties of novel benzimidazole salts bearing trimethylsilyl group

A mixture of benzimidazole salts (2–7), Pd(OAc)₂ and K₂CO₃ in DMF–H₂O catalyzes the Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling reactions promoted by microwave irradiation resulting in high yield within a short time. In particular, the yield of the Suzuki–Miyaura reactions with aryl bromides was found to be nearly quantitative. The synthesized benzimidazole salts (2–7) were identified by ¹H‐¹³C, NMR, IR spectroscopic methods and microanalysis. The molecular structure of 1 was determined by X‐ray crystallography. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of the novel benzimidazole derivatives (1–7) were also tested against standard strains. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structure–activity relationship of N‐heterocyclic carbene–Pd(II)–imidazole complexes in Suzuki–Miyaura coupling between 4‐methoxyphenyl chloride and phenylboronic acid

A series of N‐heterocyclic carbene–PdCl₂–imidazole [NHC–Pd(II)–Im] complexes were synthesized and the structure of most of them was unambiguously determined by X‐ray single‐crystal diffraction. The structure–activity relationship of these complexes was investigated for the Suzuki–Miyaura coupling between 4‐methoxyphenyl chloride and phenylboronic acid, and the effect of the NHCs and Im moieties were fully discussed. The sterically hindered IPr‐based complex showed the highest catalytic activity. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.