Synthesis and Structure of Vitamin B<Subscript>12</Subscript>-Derivatives with a Modified Ribose-Unit

Summary. The acylation at the 5′-OH group of the ribose-unit of vitamin B₁₂ (cyanocobalamin) or of aquocobalamin with two conventional reagents gave mono-acylated B₁₂-derivatives with good to very high selectivity. The site of the modification was deduced from spectral data of the products and was further supported by the crystal structure data of three such modified B₁₂-derivatives. These three B₁₂-derivatives were found to crystallize in the space group P2₁2₁2₁, irrespective of the nature of the appendage. Acylation at 5′-OH has been used to protect (or block) this group in the context of functionalization of 2′-OH or elsewhere in the B₁₂-molecule. Attachment of the bifunctional succinyl-unit has allowed the preparation of further modified derivatives of vitamin B₁₂ and binding of B₁₂-derivatives to biological carriers and other macromolecules. In aqueous solution, 5′-acylcobalamins turned out to be rather susceptible to hydrolytic loss of the acyl-functionality. Bernhard Kr?utler: In memoriam Prof. Karl Schl?gl     

Synthesis and Biological Activity of Oxidation Products of the Antiprogestine Mifepristone

 Selenium dioxide oxidation allows the selective introduction of a hydroxyl group at position 6 of the steroid skeleton of the antihormone (11β, 17β)-11-(4-dimethylamino-phenyl)-17-hydroxyl-17-(1-propynyl)-estra-4,9-dien-3-one (mifepristone, RU 486) and leads in a one-step procedure to two diastereomeric oxidation products. Their structure (6α- and 6β-hydroxy-mifepristone) was determined by NMR spectroscopy. The antiprogestinic activity of the oxidation products is comparable to that of mifepristone.     

Synthesis and Biological Activity of Oxidation Products of the Antiprogestine Mifepristone

Summary.  Selenium dioxide oxidation allows the selective introduction of a hydroxyl group at position 6 of the steroid skeleton of the antihormone (11β, 17β)-11-(4-dimethylamino-phenyl)-17-hydroxyl-17-(1-propynyl)-estra-4,9-dien-3-one (mifepristone, RU 486) and leads in a one-step procedure to two diastereomeric oxidation products. Their structure (6α- and 6β-hydroxy-mifepristone) was determined by NMR spectroscopy. The antiprogestinic activity of the oxidation products is comparable to that of mifepristone. Received August 25, 2000. Accepted (revised) October 24, 2000     

GC/MS detection of central nervous tissue as specified BSE risk material in meat products and meat and bone meals: thermal stability of markers in comparison with immunochemistry and RT-PCR

Methods for the detection of central nervous tissue (CNT) are urgently needed in food control as a means for controlling strict adherence to both food labeling and banning of specified BSE risk material. Here, we report data on heat stability of the CNT markers neuron-specific enolase (NSE) in western blotting, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in an enzyme linked immunoassay, mRNA_GFAP in a real-time PCR assay, and several fatty acids (C22:6, C24:0-OH, C24:1ω9/ω7, C24:1ω9-OH/ω7-OH, and C24:0) in gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The sample matrix, a standard material of emulsion-type sausage with varied contents of CNT (brain), was heat-treated in three studies: (1) routine meat technological heat treatment with low (85 °C, 30 min), medium (115 °C, 30 min), and high (133 °C, 30 min, 3 bar) heating of 72 anonymous samples from a blind trial; (2) heat treatment under experimental conditions (100, 110, …, 200 °C, 45 min); and (3) fractionized heating of central nervous system (up to three times) under moderate routine technological conditions (85, 100, and 115 °C, 30 min). The markers of the immunochemical methods showed a low GFAP or very low NSE temperature stability at medium and high temperature conditions. The real-time PCR assay gave inconsistent, non-quantitative results, which indicated an uncontrollable matrix effect. The relevant GC/MS markers (C24:0-OH, C24:1ω9/ω7, and C24:1ω9-OH/ω7-OH) proved to be extremely stable. Neither meat and bone meal conditions (133 °C) nor experimental heating (up to and above 140 °C) showed any reduction of GC/MS CNT quantification. On the contrary, a slight but significant increase was noted over a certain temperature range (120–140 °C) for most fatty acids, possibly due to an improved extractability of the fatty acids. We conclude that a quantitative approach is highly unreliable when using immunochemical methods; moreover, these methods might be basically prone to false-negative results depending on heat treatment and matrix composition. Therefore, antibodies with higher affinity to heat-treated CNT marker epitopes are needed. Relevant amounts of CNT (≥0.5%) in low- and medium-heated products would still be reliably detectable by the GFAP ELISA, which justifies its use as a screening method in official food control. The results obtained by the real-time PCR assay were contradictory to recently published data, indicating a need for further protocol optimization and collaborative trials. Up to date, the analytical approach using GC/MS is the only valid procedure as pertaining to heat stability and quantitative analysis; consequently, it should be recommended as the reference procedure in official food control for CNT detection in heat-treated meat products.     

Underivatized steroids on persilanized capillary columns with non-vaporizing on-column injection

Recent developments in the preparation of capillary columns by persilanization of the glass surfaces have resulted in highly inactive, heat-stable columns. With this type of column certain steroid hormone classes can be analyzed without derivatization; these include the 17-keto steroids, 11-oxo compounds, estrogens, and progesterone metabolites. It has been found that good quantitative analysis calls for non-vaporizing, on-column injection, as normal vaporizing injection results in breakdown of thermolabile compounds such as estriol and 17-OH progesterone metabolites. The gas chromatographic method described was used to obtain urinary steroid profiles.     

Synthesis and Structure of Vitamin B12-Derivatives with a Modified Ribose-Unit

The acylation at the 5′-OH group of the ribose-unit of vitamin B₁₂ (cyanocobalamin) or of aquocobalamin with two conventional reagents gave mono-acylated B₁₂-derivatives with good to very high selectivity. The site of the modification was deduced from spectral data of the products and was further supported by the crystal structure data of three such modified B₁₂-derivatives. These three B₁₂-derivatives were found to crystallize in the space group P2₁2₁2₁, irrespective of the nature of the appendage. Acylation at 5′-OH has been used to protect (or block) this group in the context of functionalization of 2′-OH or elsewhere in the B₁₂-molecule. Attachment of the bifunctional succinyl-unit has allowed the preparation of further modified derivatives of vitamin B₁₂ and binding of B₁₂-derivatives to biological carriers and other macromolecules. In aqueous solution, 5′-acylcobalamins turned out to be rather susceptible to hydrolytic loss of the acyl-functionality.     

Steroid imines as chiral ligands. Diastereoselective formation of (1-azadiene)Fe(CO)3 complexes by sterically tuning the ligand coordination spheres

The condensation of steroid amines with α,β-unsaturated aldehydes leads to the formation of chiral 1-azadiene ligands with a steroid core attached to nitrogen. If the azadiene chain is situated at the D-ring of the steroid at C₁₆ or C₁₇, respectively, the two diastereotopic faces of the ligand may be discriminated by different neighbouring substituents and their configuration. The reaction of these ligands with Fe₂(CO)₉ produces mixtures of diastereomeric (1-azadiene)Fe(CO)₃ complexes. By increasing the steric demands of the neighbouring groups it is possible to improve the diastereoselectivity of this complexation reaction from 1:1 mixtures using the least sterically hindered ligands to complete diastereoselectivity using the azadiene derived from cinnamaldehyde and 16β-amino-3-methoxy-estra-1,3,5(10)-triene-17β-ol. In addition, the molecular structure of [17β-(3-phenyl-prop-2-enyliden)-amino-3-methoxy-estra-1,3,5(10)-triene]Fe(CO)₃ was determined by X-ray structure analysis.     

Kinetics of Water Exchange on the Dihydroxo-Bridged Rhodium(III) Hydrolytic Dimer

()()Conventional (18)O isotopic labeling techniques have been used to measure the water exchange rates on the Rh(III) hydrolytic dimer [(H(2)O)(4)Rh(&mgr;-OH)(2)Rh(H(2)O)(4)](4+) at I = 1.0 M for 0.08 < [H(+)] < 0.8 M and temperatures between 308.1 and 323.1 K. Two distinct pathways of water exchange into the bulk solvent were observed (k(fast) and k(slow)) which are proposed to correspond to exchange of coordinated water at positions cis and trans to bridging hydroxide groups. This proposal is supported by (17)O NMR measurements which clearly showed that the two types of water ligands exchange at different rates and that the rates of exchange matched those from the (18)O labeling data. No evidence was found for the exchange of label in the bridging OH groups in either experiment. This contrasts with findings for the Cr(III) dimer. The dependence of both k(fast) and k(slow) on [H(+)] satisfied the expression k(obs) = (k(O)[H(+)](tot) +k(OH)K(a1))/([H(+)](tot) + K(a1)) which allows for the involvement of fully protonated and monodeprotonated Rh(III) dimer. The following rates and activation parameters were determined at 298 K. (i) For fully protonated dimer: k(fast) = 1.26 x 10(-)(6) s(-)(1) (DeltaH() = 119 +/- 4 kJ mol(-)(1) and DeltaS() = 41 +/- 12 J K(-)(1) mol(-)(1)) and k(slow) = 4.86 x 10(-)(7) s(-)(1) (DeltaH() = 64 +/- 9 kJ mol(-)(1) and DeltaS() = -150 +/- 30 J K(-)(1) mol(-)(1)). (ii) For monodeprotonated dimer: k(fast) = 3.44 x 10(-)(6) s(-)(1) (DeltaH() = 146 +/- 4 kJ mol(-)(1) and DeltaS() = 140 +/- 11 J K(-)(1) mol(-)(1)) and k(slow) = 2.68 x 10(-)(6) s(-)(1) (DeltaH() = 102 +/- 3 kJ mol(-)(1) and DeltaS() = -9 +/- 11 J K(-)(1) mol(-)(1)). Deprotonation of the Rh(III) dimer was found to labilize the primary coordination sphere of the metal ions and thus increase the rate of water exchange at positions cis and trans to bridging hydroxides but not to the same extent as for the Cr(III) dimer. Activation parameters and mechanisms for ligand substitution processes on the Rh(III) dimer are discussed and compared to those for other trivalent metal ions and in particular the Cr(III) dimer.     

Equilibrium studies in solution involving nickel(II) complexes of flexidentate Schiff base ligands: isolation and structural characterization of the planar red and octahedral green species involved in the equilibrium

Three new flexidentate 5-substituted salicylaldimino Schiff base ligands (L1-OH-L3-OH) based on 1-(2-aminoethyl)piperazine (X=H, L1-OH; X=NO2, L2-OH; and X=Br, L3-OH) and their nickel(II) complexes (1a, 1b, 2, and 3) have been reported. The piperazinyl arm of these ligands can in principle have both boat and chair conformations that allow the ligands to bind the Ni(II) center in an ambidentate manner, forming square-planar and/or octahedral complexes. The nature of substitution in the salicylaldehyde aromatic ring and the type of associated anion in the complexes have profound influences on the coordination geometry of the isolated products. With the parent ligand L1-OH, the product obtained is either a planar red compound [Ni(L1-O)]+, isolated as tetraphenylborate salt (1a), or an octahedral green compound [Ni(L1-NH)(H2O)3](2+), isolated with sulfate anion (1b); both have been crystallographically characterized. In aqueous solution, both these planar (S=0) and octahedral (S=1) forms are in equilibrium that has been followed in the temperature range 298-338 K by 1H NMR technique using the protocol of Evans's method. The large exothermicity of the equilibrium process [Ni(L1-O)]+ + 3H2O + H+<=>[Ni(L1-NH)(H2O)3](2+) (DeltaH degrees=-46 +/- 0.2 kJ mol(-1) and DeltaS degrees=-133 +/- 5 J K(-1) mol(-1)) reflects formation of three new Ni-OH2 bonds in going from planar to the octahedral species. With the 5-nitro derivative ligand L2-OH, the sole product is an octahedral compound 2, isolated as a sulfate salt while with the bromo derivative ligand L3-OH, the exclusive product is a planar molecule 3 with associated tetraphenylborate anion. Both 2 and 3 have been structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis.     

Kinetics of HCCl + NOx reactions

The kinetics of reactions of HCCl with NO and NO₂ were investigated over the temperature ranges 298–572 k and 298–476 k, respectively, using laser‐induced fluorescence spectroscopy to measure total rate constants and time‐resolved infrared diode laser absorption spectroscopy to probe reaction products. Both reactions are fast, with k(HCCl + NO) = (2.75 ± 0.2) × 10^?11 cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1 and k(HCCl + NO₂) = (1.10 ± 0.2) × 10^?10 cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1 at 296 K. Both rate constants displayed only a slight temperature dependence. Detection of products in the HCCl + NO reaction at 296 K indicates that HCNO + Cl is the major product with a branching ratio of ? = 0.68 ± 0.06, and NCO + HCl is a minor channel with ? = 0.24 ± 0.04. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 34: 12–17, 2002     

Temperature effects on the IR spectra of crystalline amino acids,dipeptides, and polyamino acids. V. L-serylglycine

The IR spectra of L-serylglycine (H₃⁺N-CH(CH₂-OH)-CO-NH-CH₂-COO⁻), recorded at 413–93 K, have been studied, and the observed frequencies were assigned. Based on the results, we concluded that the stability of hydrogen bonds in the structure changed as a result of variation of temperature. The conclusions were compared with the results of IR spectroscopic studies of the crystals of α-glycylglycine, DL-serine, and glycine under the similar conditions.     

7-Ethyl-2,3,5,6,8-pentahydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone (echinochrome A): A DFT study of the antioxidant mechanism. 1. Interaction of echinochrome A with hydroperoxyl radical

The molecular geometry and electronic structure of hydroxy-substituted naphthazarin (NZ)-7-ethyl-2,3,5,6,8-pentahydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone (echinochrome A, (Et)NZ(β-OH)₃, 1) were calculated by the B3LYP/6-311G(d) method. The influence of the (i) character of the β-OH groups dissociation and (ii) conformational mobility of molecule 1 and the anions, radicals, and radical anions derived from 1 on the energy of their reactions with hydroperoxyl radical was studied by the (U)B3LYP/6-31G and (U)B3LYP/6-311G(d) methods. The enol-enolic tautomerism due to the transfer of hydrogen atoms of α-OH groups and rotational isomerism of the β-OH groups at the C(2) and C(3) atoms and of the α-OH groups at the C(5) and C(8) atoms were studied. The equilibrium in the gas-phase reaction 1 + ^•OOH ⇄ (Et)(HO-β)₂NZ(β-O^•) + HOOH (1) (quenching of hydroperoxyl radical) is shifted to the separated reagents. Heterolysis of the O—H bond in one of the three β-hydroxy groups considerably reduces the energy of subsequent O—H bond homolysis in either of the two remaining β-hydroxy groups. As a consequence, the reaction (Et)(HO-β)₂NZ(β-O⁻) + ^•OOH ⇄ (Et)(HO-β,⁻O-β)NZ(β-O^•) + HOOH (2) (quenching of hydroperoxyl radical) becomes exothermic and the equilibrium is shifted to the formation of hydrogen peroxide. The Gibbs energy gain in reaction (2) varies from −6.4 to −10.9 kcal mol⁻¹ depending on which β-hydroxy group is involved in the O—H bond homolysis. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 3, pp. 400–415, March, 2007.     

Synthesis of pennogenyl saponins using three methods

The synthesis of pennogenyl saponins using three important methods of glycosylation is reported in this article. Six correlative compounds (7–12) were first synthesized. As donors (1–6), glycosyl halide, trichloroimidate, and thioglycoside were chosen to study their reaction with the acceptor pennogenin. In these reactions the difference in steric hindrance between 3-OH and 17-OH of pennogenin was utilized skillfully and only the 3-hydroxyl group of pennogenin could be connected with each kind of donors selectively. There was no reaction at the 17-hydroxyl group, which had no protection. The characteristic above makes it convenient to synthesize compounds of pennogenyl saponins. Published in Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 4, pp. 348–350, July–August, 2007.     

Bismuth(III) complexing with some N- and N,N-substituted thioureas

Stability constants at ionic strength I = 2 and 293 K were determined spectrophotometrically for multiligand bismuth(III) complexes with thiourea (Tu), N-phenylthiourea (Ptu), N-phenyl-N′-propylthiourea (Pptu), N,N′-diphenylthiourea (Bptu), and N-allyl-N′-propylthiourea (Aptu). The protonation constants of these ligands in perchloric acid solutions were also determined. The stability of the listed complexes changes in the following order of ligands: aptu > tu > pptu > ptu > bptu. This order coincides with the order of changing protonation constants. Original Russian Text ? N.N. Golovnev, G.V. Novikova, and A.A. Leshok, 2009, published in Zhurnal Neorganicheskoi Khimii, 2009, Vol. 54, No. 2, pp. 374–376.     

Synthesis and Evaluation of Conformationally Restricted N4-Tetradentate Ligands for Implementation in An(III)/Ln(III) Separations

The previous literature demonstrates that donor atoms softer than oxygen are effective for separating trivalent lanthanides (Ln(III)) from trivalent actinides (An(III)) (Nash, K.L., in: Gschneider, K.A. Jr., et al. (eds.) Handbook on the Physics and Chemistry of Rare Earths, vol. 18—Lanthanides/Actinides Chemistry, pp. 197–238. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, 1994). It has also been shown that ligands that “restrict” their donor groups in a favorable geometry, appropriate to the steric demands of the cation, have an increased binding affinity. A series of tetradentate nitrogen containing ligands have been synthesized with increased steric “limits”. The pK _a values for these ligands have been determined using potentiometric titration methods and the formation of the colored copper(II) complex has been used as a method to determine ligand partitioning between the organic and aqueous phases. The results for the 2-methylpyridyl-substituted amine ligands are encouraging, but the results for the 2-methylpyridyl-substituted diimines indicate that these ligands are unsuitable for implementation in a solvent extraction system due to hydrolysis.     

Kinetics and mechanism of oxidation of chromium(III)-l-arginine complex by periodate

Oxidation of the chromium(III)-l-arginine complex [CrIII(L)2(H2O)2]+ by periodate has been investigated. In aqueous solutions, [CrIII(L)2(H2O)2]+ is oxidized by IO−4 according to the rate law: d[CrVI]/dt=k2K5[CrIII]T [IVII]T/1 +([H+]/K1)+K5[IVII]T where k2 is the rate constant for the electron transfer process, K1 the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of [CrIII(L)2- (H2O)2]+ to [CrIII(L)2(H2O)(OH)]+H+, and K5 the pre-equilibrium formation constant. Values of k2= 4.02×10−3s−1, K1=5.60×10−4m and K5=171m−1 were obtained at 30°C and I=0.2m. Thermodynamic activation parameters were calculated. It is proposed that electron transfer proceeds through an inner-sphere mechanism via coordination of IO−4 to chromium(III). This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Determination of steroid hormones in blood by GC–MS/MS

This paper presents the development, optimization and validation of a methodology to determine nine key steroid hormones (viz. pregnenolone, progesterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, androstenedione, testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, estrone, 17α-estradiol and 17β-estradiol) expressed in the steroidogenesis in biological fluids. The analytical method allows for the determination of steroid hormones in blood plasma and serum down to 0.08–0.16 ng/mL for estrogens, 0.20–0.36 ng/mL for androgens and 0.36–0.43 ng/mL for progestagens. These limits of detection were obtainable using a two-step solid-phase clean-up for fractionation and elimination of interfering lipids (fatty acids, phospholipids, glycerides and sterols) from the steroid hormones. The accuracy of the method was 50–112% in the range 0.10 to 2.00 ng/mL.     

Products of Photo- and Thermochemical Rearrangement of 19-Membered di-tert-Butyl-Azoxybenzocrown

The preparation and characterization of products of the photochemical and thermochemical rearrangements of 19-membered azoxybenzocrowns with two, bulky, tert-butyl substituents in benzene rings in the para positions to oligooxyethylene fragments (meta positions to azoxy group, i.e., t-Bu-19-Azo-O have been presented. In photochemical rearrangement, two colored typical products were expected, i.e., 19-membered o-hydroxy-m,m′-di-tert-butyl-azobenzocrown (t-Bu-19-o-OH) and 19-membered p-hydroxy-m,m′-di-tert-butyl-azobenzocrown (t-Bu-19-p-OH). In experiments, two colored atypical macrocyclic derivatives, one 6-membered and one 5-membered ring, bearing an aldehyde group (t-Bu-19-al) or intramolecular ester group (t-Bu-20-ester), were obtained. Photochemical rearrangement led to one more macrocyclic product being isolated and identified: a 17-membered colorless compound, without an azo moiety, t-Bu-17-p-OH. The yield of the individual compounds was significantly influenced by the reaction conditions. Thermochemical rearrangement led to t-Bu-20-ester as the main product. The structures of the four crystalline products of the rearrangement—t-Bu-19-o-OH, t-Bu-19-p-OH, t-Bu-20-ester and t-Bu-17-p-OH—were determined by the X-ray method. Structures in solution of atypical derivatives (t-Bu-19-al and t-Bu-20-ester) and t-Bu-19-p-OH were defined using NMR spectroscopy. For the newly obtained hydroxyazobenzocrowns, the azo–phenol⇄quinone–hydrazone tautomeric equilibrium was investigated using spectroscopic methods. Complexation studies of alkali and alkaline earth metal cations were studied using UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy. ¹H NMR spectroscopy was additionally used to study the cation recognition of metal cations. Cation binding studies in acetonitrile have shown high selectivity towards calcium over magnesium for t-Bu-19-o-OH.     

Transition state for intramolecular C–H bond cleavage in [(LCu)2(μ-O)2]2+ (L = 1,4,7-tribenzyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane)

Hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical electronic structure calculations reveal the transition state for C–H bond cleavage in [(LCu)₂ (μ-O)₂]²⁺ (L=1,4,7-tribenzyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane) to be consistent with a hydrogen-atom-transfer mechanism from carbon to oxygen. At the MPW1K/double-zeta effective core potential(+)|univeral force field level, 0 K activation enthalpies for the parent, p-CF3, and p-OH substituted benzyl systems are predicted to be 8.8, 9.5, and 7.8 kcal/mol. Using a one-dimensional Eckart potential to estimate quantum effects on the reaction coordinate, reaction in the unsubstituted system is predicted to proceed with a primary kinetic isotope effect of 22 at 233 K. Structural parameters associated with the hydrogen-atom transfer are consistent with the Hammond postulate. Received: 10 October 2000 / Accepted: 3 November 2000 / Published online: 3 April 2001     

Polymorphism and thermal decomposition of [Ni(DMSO)<Subscript>4</Subscript>]I<Subscript>2</Subscript>

Tetrakis(dimethyl sulphoxide)nickel(II) bis(iodide) was studied by thermogravimetry (TG) and simultaneous differential thermal analysis (SDTA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The gaseous products of the decomposition were on-line identified by a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS). Thermal decomposition of the title compound proceeds in three main stages. In the first stage, which starts just above ca. 419 K, the compound loses two dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) molecules per one formula unit and small amount of iodide ion. In the second stage (464–552 K) the next DMSO ligands and the iodide ion simultaneously are released. In the last stage (552–900 K) NiSO4 is created which next decomposes to NiO and SO₃.