Use of thiosulfonate for the protection of thiol groups in peptide ligation by the thioester method

Use of thiosulfonate for protecting thiol (-SH) groups in peptide ligation by the thioester method was examined. Thiosulfonate was introduced and was stable in the presence of silver ion, 4-dihydro-3-hydroxy-4-oxo-1,2,3-benzotriazine, and diisopropylethylamine. Based on these results, a strategy for using the thioester method and the native chemical ligation method in the synthesis of a single polypeptide is described.     

胆甾类分子钳对氨基酸衍生物的对映选择性识别

用差紫外光谱滴定法考察了以脱氧胆酸作spacer的手性分子钳1～3对一系列α-氨基酸甲酯的对映选择性识别性能。结果表明,分子钳1和2与客体氨基酸甲酯形成1:1型超分子配合物,并显示较好的手性识别能力。分钳3对所考察的氨基酸甲酯均没有明显的识别作用。讨论了主-客体间尺寸/形状匹配、几何互补等因素对形成超分子配合物的影响,并利用计算机模拟作辅助手段对实验结果和现象进行了解释。     

Kinetic resolution of 2-hydroxy-2-aryl-ethylphosphonates by a non-enzymatic acylation catalyst

Optically pure hydroxyphosphonates are widely used as derivatizable compounds that can be incorporated into a variety of synthetic strategies for the preparation of other high value organic products. A non-enzymatic kinetic resolution procedure to obtain chiral 2-hydroxy-2-arylethylphosphonates from the easily available racemic counterparts is described. A range of 2-hydroxy-2-arylethylphosphonates was efficiently resolved employing a planar-chiral DMAP derived catalyst with good selectivities (up to S=68). The chiral hydroxyphosphonates were isolated in good yields and high enantiomeric excess (>94% ee).     

Adsorption of cholic acid on surface of organosilicas containing chemically bound quaternary ammonium groups

It was found that silica modified with quaternary ammonium groups exhibits higher adsorption properties than cholesteramine, a sequestering adsorbent used in medicine for regulating the level of cholic acids in the organism. The constants of ion-exchange, aggregation, and stability, as well as the distribution coefficients, for synthesized organosilicas were calculated. It was shown that adsorption of cholic acid depends on the structure of the quaternary ammonium groups grafted to the silica surface.     

Thermodynamic quantities for the protonation of amino acid amino groups from 323.15 to 398.15 K

Flow claorimetry has been used to study the interaction of protons with glycine, DL--alanine, -alanine, DL-2-aminobutyric acid, 4-aminobutyric acid, and 6-aminocaproic acid in aqueous solutions at temperatures from 323.15 to 398.15 K. By combining the measured heats for amino acid solutions titrated with NaOH solutions with the heat of ionization for water, the log K, H^o, S^o, and C_p ^o values for the protonation of the amino groups of these amino acids have been obtained at each temperature studied. Equations are given expressing these values as functions of temperature. The H^o and S^o values increase while log K values decrease as temperacture increases. The trends for log K, H^o, S^o, and C_p ^o are discussed in terms of changes in long-range and short-range solvent effects. The trend in H^o, S^o, and C_p ^o values with temperature and with charge separation in the zwitterions is interpreted in terms of solvent-solute interactions and the electrostatic interaction between the two oppositely charged groups within the molecule.     

New lamellar structure formed by an adamantyl derivative of cholic acid

The self-aggregation of the sodium salt of a new adamantyl amide of the 3beta-amino derivative of cholic acid (Na-AdC) in aqueous solution has been investigated by surface tension, dynamic light scattering, fluorescence, small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) measurements. These last two techniques suggest that a lamellar phase, consisting of charged bilayers of Na-AdC separated by solvent and periodically stacked, is formed in aqueous solution. The structure of the bilayer is inferred from the resolution of the crystal of the compound in its acid form. The adamantyl moieties, which are mutually interlocked, reside in the central region of the bilayer, and the carboxylic groups are directed toward the hydrophilic region. The structure is open enough to allow water molecules to interact with a fluorescence probe located at the central hydrophobic region.     

Enhancement of lysosomal osmotic sensitivity induced by the photooxidation of membrane thiol groups

The osmotic lysis of photodamaged lysosomes is a critical event for killing tumor cells. How the photodamage increases lysosomal osmotic sensitivity is still unclear. In this work, the effect of the photooxidation of membrane thiol groups on the lysosomal osmotic sensitivity was studied by measuring the thiol groups with 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) and examining the lysosomal beta-hexosaminidase latency loss in a hypotonic sucrose medium. The results show that methylene blue-mediated photooxidation of lysosomes decreased their membrane thiol groups and produced cross-linkage of membrane proteins (molecular weight ranging from 75000 to 125000), which was visualized by sodium dodecyl sulfatepolyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Simultaneously, the lysosomal osmotic sensitivity increased. These photoinduced alterations of the lysosomes could be recovered by reducing the oxidized thiol groups with dithiothreitol. It indicates that the photooxidation of membrane thiol groups can increase the lysosomal osmotic sensitivity and therefore provides a new explanation for the photoinduced lysosomal lysis.     

The determination of thiol groups in polysulfide prepolymers by infrared spectrometry

Methods for the determination of thiol groups (0.5–6% w/w) in polysulfide prepolymers and formulated polysulfide sealants by computer-assisted infrared spectrometry are discussed. The weak SH absorption near 2460 cm^?1 is inhanced by digital manipulation, and a combination band near 2650 cm^?1 can be used as an internal standard over the range 0–% thiol. Direct analysis of condensed-phase samples gives satisfactory results for pure prepolymers, but for formulated sealant prepolymers there is interference from fillers. Such formulations are first dissolved in chloroform and centrifuged to remove slids. The results are slightly affected by the prepolymer resin concentration, and the alcohol stabiliser in the chloroform may alter the internal standard band by shifting the baseline. Both these factors must therefore be controlled. The solution method is suitable for the analysis of aged uncured sealant prepolymers as well as fresh material. Computer control of the spectrophotometer provides results in about 3 min, exclusive of sample preparation time.     

Factors affecting the preparation and properties of electrodeposited silica thin films functionalized with amine or thiol groups

Well-adherent sol-gel-derived silica films functionalized with amine or thiol groups have been electrogenerated on gold electrodes and both the deposition process and the film properties have been studied by various physicochemical techniques. Electrodeposition was achieved by combining the formation of a self-assembled "nanoglue" on the electrode surface, the sol-gel process, and the electrochemical manipulation of pH to catalyze polycondensation of the precursors. Gold electrodes pretreated with mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) were immersed in sol solutions containing the selected precursors (tetraethoxysilane, TEOS, in mixture with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane, APTES, or MPTMS) where they underwent a cathodic electrolysis to generate the hydroxyl ions that are necessary to catalyze the formation of the organosilica films on the electrode surface. Special attention was given to analyze the effects of deposition time and applied potential and to compare APTES and MPTMS films. Characterization was made using quartz crystal microbalance, scanning electron microscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and atomic force microscopy (including in situ monitoring). The electrodeposition process was found to occur at two growing rates: a first slow stage giving rise to rather homogeneous, yet rough, films with thickness in the sub-mum range (increasing continuously when increasing the deposition time), which was followed by a faster gelification step resulting in much thicker (>1 microm) and rougher macroporous deposits. These two successive situations were observed independently on the applied potential except that more cathodic values led to narrower sub-microm ranges (as expected from the larger amounts of the electrogenerated hydroxyl catalyst). Thiol-functionalized silica films were deposited more rapidly than the amine ones and, for both of them, permeability to redox probe was found to decrease when increasing the film thickness because of higher resistance to mass transport.     

An efficient method for the construction of functionalized DNA bearing amino acid groups through cross-coupling reactions of nucleoside triphosphates followed by primer extension or PCR

Single-step aqueous cross-coupling reactions of nucleobase-halogenated 2'-deoxynucleosides (8-bromo-2'-deoxyadenosine, 7-iodo-7-deaza-2'-deoxyadenosine, or 5-iodo-2'-deoxy-uridine) or their 5'-triphosphates with 4-boronophenylalanine or 4-ethynylphenylalanine have been developed and used for efficient synthesis of modified 2'-deoxynucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) bearing amino acid groups. These dNTPs were then tested as substrates for DNA polymerases for construction of functionalized DNA through primer extension and PCR. While 8-substituted adenosine triphosphates were poor substrates for DNA polymerases, the corresponding 7-substituted 7-deazaadenine and 5-substituted uracil nucleotides were efficiently incorporated in place of dATP or dTTP, respectively, by Pwo (Pyrococcus woesei) DNA polymerase. Nucleotides bearing the amino acid connected through the less bulky acetylene linker were incorporated more efficiently than those directly linked through a more bulky phenylene group. In addition, combinations of modified dATPs and dTTPs were incorporated by Pwo polymerase. Novel functionalized DNA duplexes bearing amino acid moieties were prepared by this two-step approach. PCR can be used for amplification of duplexes bearing large number of modifications, while primer extension is suitable for introduction of just one or several modifications in a single DNA strand.     

Rapid labeling of amino acid neurotransmitters with a fluorescent thiol in the presence of o‐phthalaldehyde

LIF detection often requires labeling of analytes with fluorophores; and fast fluorescent derivatization is valuable for high‐throughput analysis with flow‐gated CE. Here, we report a fast fluorescein‐labeling scheme for amino acid neurotransmitters, which were then rapidly separated and detected in flow‐gated CE. This scheme was based on the reaction between primary amines and o‐phthalaldehyde in the presence of a fluorescent thiol, 2‐((5‐fluoresceinyl)aminocarbonyl)ethyl mercaptan (FACE‐SH). The short reaction time (<30 s) was suited for on‐line mixing and derivatization that was directly coupled with flow‐gated CE for rapid electrophoretic separation and sensitive LIF detection. To maintain the effective concentration of reactive FACE‐SH, Tris(2‐carboxyethyl)phosphine was added to the derivatization reagents to prevent thiol loss due to oxidation. This labeling scheme was applied to the detection of neurotransmitters by coupling in vitro microdialysis with online derivatization and flow‐gated CE. It is also anticipated that this fluorophore tagging scheme would be valuable for on‐chip labeling of proteins retained on support in SPE.     

Grafting of amino groups on polybutadiene by hydrosilylation

Hydrosilylation catalyzed by hexachloroplatinic acid was used to introduce tertiary amino groups in an hydroxytelechelic polybutadiene. Kinetics and mechanisms were investigated. At low silane concentration, the reaction is first-order in Pt, second-order in silane and zero-order in vinylic double bonds. The apparent rate constant is inversely proportional to the concentration of amino groups (inhibitory effect). At high silane concentration, very sharp acceleration periods are observed and explained by a transformation of a weakly active Pt(II) catalyst into a more active Pt(O) compound.     

On the relative acidity and basicity of the amino groups of the nucleic acid bases

Quantum chemical calculations are reported on the deprotonation and protonation of the amino groups of the nucleic acid bases adenine, guanine and cytosine, in an attempt to compare the relative reactivities of these groups. In the light of renewed interest in the amino groups as reactive sites for certain carcinogenic and carcinostatic agents, we discuss the possible significance of our results for the interpretation of these molecular interactions.