Curvy ligands for H 2 storage? Enhancement of H2 adsorption has been observed in coordination framework materials, an example of which is depicted, by the introduction of phenanthrene and 9,10‐dihydrophenanthrene groups into porous CuII–carboxylate framework materials of NbO topology.
A drug of two halves : New artificial compounds composed of a macrosphelide core skeleton and an epothilone side chain were designed and synthesized. These compounds were more potent inducers of apoptosis than the parent natural‐type macrosphelides.
Following the light: Photoredox catalysis along with aminocatalysis have proved to be the right combination for one of the most challenging asymmetric transformation in organic synthesis: the direct intermolecular α‐alkylation of aldehydes.
Strikingly simple : The low‐temperature and solvent‐free synthesis of LiBH4 from LiH in a borane atmosphere at ambient pressures is reported. The results indicate that the formation of B? H bonds is the limiting step for the formation of LiBH4 from the elements. Therefore, the use of diborane as a starting reactant allows one to circumvent the reaction barrier for the B? B bond dissociation and explains the rather moderate synthesis conditions.
Quite sublime : Thin‐layer fabrication of unsublimable large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by pulsed laser deposition was used to prepare samples for scanning tunneling microscopy. Giant PAHs with up to 222 carbon atoms can be visualized—a size that was previously not possible because of the lack of suitable deposition methods.
Bright lights : Fullerene–silica hybrid nanoparticles have bright photoluminescence, high photostability, and low cytotoxicity, which are assets for bioimaging agents. The origin of the photoluminescence of the nanoparticle is the C–O–Si bond (see picture).
A new pick‐up line : The first uranyl‐selective DNA‐binding protein is designed using the E. coli nickel(II)‐responsive protein NikR as the template. The resulting NikR′ protein binds uranyl (see picture) with a dissociation constant Kd=53 nM and selectively binds to DNA in the presence of uranyl.
π–π assisted : Photoinduced electron transfer from cofacial porphyrin dimers to electron acceptors is prominently accelerated, whereas the back electron transfer is decelerated, relative to the corresponding porphyrin monomer (see figure).
Block copolymers in seconds : Catalyst‐free, ambient‐temperature click conjugation of individual polymer strands becomes possible using novel ATRP‐derived cyclopentadienyl‐capped polymers in an extremely rapid hetero‐Diels–Alder cycloaddition with macromolecules equipped with electron‐deficient dithioester end groups prepared by the RAFT process.
PS, I love you! Novel mixed phosphole/thiophene π‐conjugated systems were synthesized and their electronic properties have been studied both experimentally by UV/Vis spectroscopy and electrochemistry and by theoretical calculations. Exploiting the chemistry of both P‐ and S‐heteroles allows the generation of a diverse range of novel ring‐fused benzophosphole–thiophene derivatives.
Aryl–alkyl cross‐coupling products are obtained by the iron‐catalyzed oxidative heterocoupling of organozinc reagents under mild conditions. This novel reaction pathway is versatile, allowing for the use of primary and secondary aliphatic diorganozinc reagents as coupling partners as well as tolerating functionalized aryl‐ and alkylzinc reagents.
Protein roll call : Peptide‐based building blocks, in which both an α‐helix‐forming segment and a β‐sheet segment are located within a single macrocyclic structure, self‐assemble into α‐helix‐decorated artificial proteins. This approach provides a starting point for developing artificial proteins that can modulate α‐helix‐mediated interactions occurring in a multivalent fashion.
At the double : DFT studies on the biosynthesis of prostacyclin (PGI2, see scheme) from prostaglandin H2 (PGH2) show two reaction mechanisms through two different oxidation states, an FeIV–porphyrin intermediate and an FeIII–porphyrin π‐cation radical, followed by a proton‐coupled electron‐transfer process.
