A new,validated HPLC‐MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of the anti‐cancer agent capecitabine and its metabolites: 5′‐deoxy‐5‐fluorocytidine, 5′‐deoxy‐5‐fluorouridine, 5‐fluorouracil and 5‐fluorodihydrouracil,in human plasma

A rapid and selective liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometric method was developed for the simultaneous determination of capecitabine and its metabolites 5′‐deoxy‐5‐fluorocytidine (5′‐DFCR), 5′‐deoxy‐5‐fluorouracil (5′‐DFUR), 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU) and dihydro‐5‐fluorouracil (FUH₂) in human plasma. A 200 μL human plasma aliquot was spiked with a mixture of internal standards fludarabine and 5‐chlorouracil. A single‐step protein precipitation method was employed using 10% (v/v) trichloroacetic acid in water to separate analytes from bio‐matrices. Volumes of 20 μL of the supernatant were directly injected onto the HPLC system. Separation was achieved on a 30 × 2.1 mm Hypercarb (porous graphitic carbon) column using a gradient by mixing 10 mm ammonium acetate and acetonitrile–2‐propanol–tetrahydrofuran (1 : 3 : 2.25, v/v/v). The detection was performed using a Finnigan TSQ Quantum Ultra equipped with the electrospray ion source operated in positive and negative mode. The assay quantifies a range from 10 to 1000 ng/mL for capecitabine, from 10 to 5000 ng/mL for 5′‐DFCR and 5′‐DFUR, and from 50 to 5000 ng/mL for 5‐FU and FUH₂ using a plasma sample of 200 μL. Correlation coefficients (r²) of the calibration curves in human plasma were better than 0.99 for all compounds. At all concentration levels, deviations of measured concentrations from nominal concentration were between ?4.41 and 3.65% with CV values less than 12.0% for capecitabine, between ?7.00 and 6.59% with CV values less than 13.0 for 5′‐DFUR, between ?3.25 and 4.11% with CV values less than 9.34% for 5′‐DFCR, between ?5.54 and 5.91% with CV values less than 9.69% for 5‐FU and between ?4.26 and 6.86% with CV values less than 14.9% for FUH₂. The described method was successfully applied for the evaluation of the pharmacokinetic profile of capecitabine and its metabolites in plasma of treated cancer patients. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of fluorene‐based hyperbranched polymers for solution‐processable blue,green, red,and white light‐emitting devices

For the purpose of making hyperbranched polymer (Hb‐Ps)‐based red, green, blue, and white polymer light‐emitting diodes (PLEDs), three Hb‐Ps Hb‐ terfluorene ( Hb‐TF ), Hb ‐4,7‐bis(9,9′‐dioctylfluoren‐2‐yl)‐2,1,3‐benzothiodiazole ( Hb‐BFBT ), and Hb‐ 4,7‐bis[(9,9′‐dioctylfluoren‐2‐yl)‐thien‐2‐yl]‐2,1,3‐benzothiodiazole ( Hb‐BFTBT ) were synthesized via [2+2+2] polycyclotrimerization of the corresponding diacetylene‐functionalized monomers. All the synthesized polymers showed excellent thermal stability with degradation temperature higher than 355 °C and glass transition temperatures higher than 50 °C. Photoluminance (PL) and electroluminance (EL) spectra of the polymers indicate that Hb‐TF , Hb‐BFBT , and Hb‐BFTBT are blue‐green, green, and red emitting materials. Maximum brightness of the double‐layer devices of Hb‐TF , Hb‐BFBT , and Hb‐BFTBT with the device configuration of indium tin oxide/poly(3,4‐ethylene dioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate)/light‐emitting polymer/CsF/Al are 48, 42, and 29 cd/m²; the maximum luminance efficiency of the devices are 0.01, 0.02, and 0.01 cd/A. By using host–guest doped system, saturated red electrophosphorescent devices with a maximum luminance efficiency of 1.61 cd/A were obtained when Hb‐TF was used as a host material doped with Os(fptz)₂(PPh₂Me₂)₂ as a guest material. A maximum luminance efficiency of 3.39 cd/A of a red polymer light‐emitting device was also reached when Hb‐BFTBT was used as the guest in the PFO (Poly(9,9‐dioctylfluorene)) host layer. In addition, a series of efficient white devices were, which show low turn‐on voltage (3.5 V) with highest luminance efficiency of 4.98 cd/A, maximum brightness of 1185 cd/m², and the Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE) coordinates close to ideal white emission (0.33, 0.33), were prepared by using BFBT as auxiliary dopant. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Synthesis,anti‐proliferative activity,SAR, and kinase inhibition studies of thiazol‐2‐yl‐ substituted sulfonamide derivatives

A series of novel thiazol‐2‐yl substituted‐1‐sulfonamide derivatives were synthesized from anilines. This involved the coupling of sulfonyl chlorides with thiazol amine to obtain the final compounds 7a – 7j and 8a – 8j . All synthesized compounds were screened for anticancer activity against MCF‐7, HeLa, A‐549, and Du‐145 cancer cell lines by 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Preliminary bioassay suggests that most of the compounds show anti‐proliferation to different degrees, with doxorubicin used as positive control. The synthesized compounds show IC₅₀ values in the range 2.74–8.17 μM in the different cell lines. The compounds 7d , 7e , 8a , 8d , and 8e were active compared to doxorubicin. The compounds having butyl and pantyl chains were more active than their lower and higher carbon chains and also their ring counterparts.     

Phenothiazine‐S,S‐dioxide‐ and fluorene‐based light‐emitting polymers: Introduction of e−‐deficient S,S‐dioxide into e−‐rich phenothiazine

A novel series of poly(10‐hexyl‐phenothiazine‐S,S‐dioxide‐3,7‐diyl) and poly(9,9′‐dioctyl‐fluorene‐2,7‐diyl‐alt‐10‐hexyl‐3,7‐phenothiazine‐S,S‐dioxide) (PFPTZ‐SS) compounds were synthesized through Ni(0)‐mediated Yamamoto polymerization and Pd(II)‐catalyzed Suzuki polymerization. The synthesized polymers were characterized by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and elemental analysis and showed higher glass transition temperatures than that of pristine polyfluorene. In terms of photoluminescence (PL), the PFPTZ‐SS compounds were highly fluorescent with bright blue emissions in the solid state. Light‐emitting devices were fabricated with these polymers in an indium tin oxide/poly(3,4‐ethylene dioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate)/polymer/Ca/Al configuration. The electroluminescence (EL) of the copolymers differed from the PL characteristics: the EL device exhibited a redshifted greenish‐blue emission in contrast to the blue emission observed in the PL. Additionally, this unique phenothiazine‐S,S‐dioxide property, triggered by the introduction of an electron‐deficient SO₂ unit into the electron‐rich phenothiazine, gave rise to improvements in the brightness, maximum luminescence intensity, and quantum efficiency of the EL devices fabricated with PFPTZ‐SS. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 1236–1246, 2007     

Removal of 4‐chlorophenol using graphene,graphene oxide,and a‐doped graphene (A = N,B): A computational study

Density functional theory (including van der Waals correction with the PBE‐D functional) is applied to the study of 4‐chlorophenol (4‐CP) adsorption on graphene oxide (GO), A‐doped graphene (A = N, B), and pristine graphene and test their possible application for 4‐CP removal. Results show that on GO adsorption is improved by the hydrogen bond interactions between the adsorbents and 4‐CP, suggesting that functionalized graphene is a preferable alternative than pristine graphene for 4‐CP removal. In addition, the stability of hydrogen bonds is confirmed by molecular dynamics calculations using the PM6 potential. Without hydrogen bonds, A‐doped graphene models show a comparable performance for 4‐CP removal than pristine graphene. Finally, even in a solvent medium, 4‐CP adsorption is strong. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Syntheses,antitumor activities,and antiangiogenesis of exo‐3,6‐epoxy‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydrophthalimidoethanoyl‐ 5‐fluorouracil and its polymers

A new monomer, exo‐3,6‐epoxy‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydrophthalimidoethanoyl‐5‐fluorouracil (ETFU), was synthesized by the reaction of exo‐3,6‐epoxy‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydrophthalimidoethanoyl chloride (ETPC) and 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU). The homopolymer of ETFU and its copolymers with acrylic acid (AA) and vinyl acetate (VAc) were prepared via photopolymerizations with 2,2‐dimethoxy‐2‐phenylacetophenone at 25 °C for 48 h. The structures of the synthesized monomer and polymers were identified by Fourier transform infrared, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The ETFU contents in poly(ETFU‐co‐AA) and poly(ETFU‐co‐VAc) were 26 mol % and 26 mol %, respectively. The number‐average molecular weights of the polymers, as determined by gel permeation chromatography, ranged from 5600 to 17,000. The in vitro cytotoxicities of 5‐FU and the synthesized samples against mouse mammary carcinoma and human histiocytic lymphoma cancer cell lines increased in the following order: ETFU > 5‐FU > poly(ETFU‐co‐AA) > poly(ETFU) > poly(ETFU‐co‐VAc). The in vivo antitumor activities of the polymers against Balb/C mice bearing the sarcoma 180 tumor cells were greater than those of 5‐FU at all doses tested. The inhibitions of the samples for SV40 DNA replication and antiangiogenesis were much greater than the inhibition of the control. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 4272–4281, 2000     

A phenylenevinylene‐thiophene‐phenyleneethynylene copolymer: synthesis,characterization, and photovoltaic properties

A phenylenevinylene‐thiophene‐phenyleneethynylene copolymer, poly{[1′,4′‐bis‐(thienyl‐vinyl)]‐2‐methoxy‐5‐(2′‐ethylhexyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylene‐vinylene‐alt‐1,4‐dioctyloxyl‐phenyleneethynylene}(PTPPV‐ PPE), was synthesized by the Sonogashira Pd‐catalyzed cross‐coupling reaction. The copolymer possesses higher thermal decomposition temperature (T_d = 382°C) compared with poly{[1′,4′‐bis‐ (thienyl‐vinyl)]‐2‐methoxy‐5‐(2′‐ethylhexyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylene‐vinylene} (PTPPV). The absorption and photoluminescence (PL) peaks of PTPPV‐PPE solution and solid film locate in between those of the homopolymers of PTPPV and poly(1,4‐dioctyloxyl‐phenyleneethynylene) (PPE), and closer to that of PTPPV. Photovoltaic cell was fabricated based on the blend of PTPPV‐PPE and PCBM with a weight ratio of 1:1. The primary result shows an open circuit voltage (V_oc) of 0.72 V which is higher than that of the PTPPV (0.67 V), and a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 0.3% under the illumination of AM1.5, 100 mW/cm² which is much better than that of PPEs. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chain‐extended,hydroxyterminated‐polybutadiene‐based polyurethaneureas: Synthesis,reaction kinetics,and properties

Hydroxyterminated‐polybutadiene‐based prepolyurethanes were prepared with two different catalysts, dibutyltindilaurate (DBTDL) and triethylamine (TEA); chain extension of the prepolyurethanes followed with two different aromatic diamines, oxydianiline and 4,4′‐diaminodiphenylsulfone, in various concentrations. The prepolyurethane synthesis followed second‐order kinetics, with the DBTDL catalyst showing better efficiency for urethane formation than TEA. TEA‐catalyzed synthesis suffered from the self‐association of isocyanates as a major side reaction, following second‐order kinetics with respect to isocyanate concentration. Although there was a gradual increase in the intrinsic viscosity during prepolyurethane synthesis in the presence of DBTDL, the intrinsic viscosity remained almost constant with the progress of the reaction in the presence of TEA. The tensile properties of prepolyurethane and polyurethaneureas synthesized in DBTDL‐catalyzed reactions were higher than the properties of those synthesized in TEA‐catalyzed reactions. The variation of the tensile strength with the diamine concentration was correlated with the crosslink density and sol fraction. The solubility of the hard segment of polyurethaneurea in the reaction medium appeared to be important in influencing the tensile properties. The effects of the diamine concentration (chain extender) on the diffusion coefficient and activation energy of diffusion of toluene in polyurethaneureas were studied. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 2978–2992, 2001     

Synthesis and properties of new soluble triphenylamine‐based aromatic poly(amine amide)s derived from N,N′‐bis(4‐carboxyphenyl)‐N,N′‐diphenyl‐1,4‐phenylenediamine

A new triphenylamine‐containing aromatic dicarboxylic acid, N,N′‐bis(4‐carboxyphenyl)‐N,N′‐diphenyl‐1,4‐phenylenediamine, was synthesized by the condensation of N,N′‐diphenyl‐1,4‐phenylenediamine with 4‐fluorobenzonitrile, followed by the alkaline hydrolysis of the intermediate dinitrile compound. A series of novel triphenylamine‐based aromatic poly(amine amide)s with inherent viscosities of 0.50–1.02 dL/g were prepared from the diacid and various aromatic diamines by direct phosphorylation polycondensation. All the poly(amine amide)s were amorphous in nature, as evidenced by X‐ray diffractograms. Most of the poly(amine amide)s were quite soluble in a variety of organic solvents and could be solution‐cast into transparent, tough, and flexible films with good mechanical properties. They had useful levels of thermal stability associated with glass‐transition temperatures up to 280 °C, 10% weight‐loss temperatures in excess of 575 °C, and char yields at 800 °C in nitrogen higher than 60%. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 94–105, 2003     

3‐P⩵O‐Functionalized Phospholane 1‐Oxides by the Michael Reaction of 1‐Phenyl‐2‐phospholene 1‐Oxide and Dialkyl Phosphites,H‐Phosphinates,or Diphenylphosphine Oxide

The addition of dialkyl phosphites, H‐phosphinates, and diphenylphosphine oxide on the β carbon atom of the not too reactive double bond of 1‐phenyl‐2‐phospholene 1‐oxide was carried out in two ways. According to the first approach (A), the P‐reagents were activated by trimethylaluminum prior to the Michael addition. The second method (B) involved the microwave(MW)‐assisted solventless reaction of the P‐species with the phospholene oxide. In general, method A was more efficient and more selective than route B. However, the addition of dialkyl phosphites and diphenylphosphine oxide could also be accomplished well under MW conditions. The disadvantage of the MW‐assisted approach is that the Michael adducts are formed as a mixture of isomers. The 3‐P⩵O‐phospholane oxides are novel products, and among these, the bis(phosphine oxide) is the precursor of the bidentate P‐ligand LuPhos.     

Modification of a Small β‐Barrel Protein,To Give Pseudo‐Amyloid Structures,Inhibits Amyloid β‐Peptide Aggregation

Aggregation of amyloid β‐peptide (Aβ) is closely related to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Although much effort has been devoted to the construction of molecules that inhibit the aggregation of Aβ1‐42, high doses are needed for the inhibition of Aβ aggregation in many cases. Previously, we reported that designed green fluorescent protein (GFP) analogues that gives pseudo‐Aβ β‐sheet structures can work as an aggregation inhibitor against Aβ. To further test this design strategy, we constructed protein analogues that mimic Aβ β‐sheet structures of amyloids by using insulin‐like growth factor 2 receptor domain 11 (IGF2R‐d11) as a scaffold. A designed protein, named IG11KK, which has a parallel configuration of Aβ‐like β sheets, can bind more preferentially to oligomeric Aβ1‐42 than the monomer. Moreover, IG11KK suppressed the aggregation of Aβ1‐42 efficiently, even though lower concentrations of IG11KK than Aβ were used. The aggregation kinetics of Aβ in the presence of the designed proteins revealed that IG11KK can work as an inhibitor not only for the early to middle stages, but also in the latter stage of Aβ aggregation owing to its favorable binding to oligomeric structures of Aβ. The design strategy using β‐barrel proteins such as IGF2R‐d11 and GFP is useful in generating excellent inhibitors of protein misfolding and amyloid formation.     

Design,Synthesis, and in vitro Anti‐mycobacterial Activities of Propylene‐tethered Heteronuclear Bis‐isatin Derivatives

A series of novel propylene‐tethered heteronuclear bis‐isatin derivatives were designed, synthesized, and assessed for their in vitro and anti‐mycobacterial activities. All hybrids exhibited considerable antibacterial and anti‐mycobacterial activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv and multi‐drug‐resistant tuberculosis (MDR‐TB) with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranging from 16 to 256 μg/mL. In particular, the heteronuclear bis‐isatin 4i (MIC: 25 and 16 μg/mL) was most active against M. tuberculosis H₃₇Rv and MDR‐TB strains, which was fourfold and greater than eightfold more potent than the first‐line anti‐tubercular agents rifampicin (MIC: 64 μg/mL) and isoniazid (MIC: >128 μg/mL) against MDR‐TB, could act as a lead for further optimization.     

Design,Synthesis, and In Vitro Anti‐mycobacterial Activities of Propylene‐Tethered Gatifloxacin‐Isatin Hybrids

A series of propylene‐tethered mono‐/bis‐isatin‐gatifloxacin hybrids 3a–f and 4a–f were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for their in vitro anti‐mycobacterial activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) H37Rv and multidrug‐resistant tuberculosis (MDR‐TB) as well as cytotoxicity against VERO cell line. The results indicated that all hybrids exhibited promising anti‐mycobacterial activities against MTB H37Rv and MDR‐TB with MIC ranging from 0.25 to 16 μg/mL. In particular, the mono‐isatin‐gatifloxacin hybrid 3e (MIC: 0.25 and 0.25 μg/mL) was found to be most active against MTB H₃₇Rv and MDR‐TB strains, which was twofold more active than the parent gatifloxacin (MIC: 0.5 μg/mL) and comparable with rifampicin ( RIF ) (MIC: 0.25 μg/mL) against MTB H₃₇Rv, and 4‐ > 512 times more potent than the three references gatifloxacin (MIC: 1.0 μg/mL), RIF (MIC: 64 μg/mL), and isoniazid (>128 μg/mL) against MDR‐TB, could act as a starting point for further optimization.     

Main‐chain,thermotropic, liquid‐crystalline,hydrogen‐bonded polymers of 4,4′‐bipyridyl with aliphatic dicarboxylic acids

A series of main‐chain, thermotropic, liquid‐crystalline (LC), hydrogen‐bonded polymers or self‐assembled structures based on 4,4′‐bipyridyl as a hydrogen‐bond acceptor and aliphatic dicarboxylic acids, such as adipic and sebacic acids, as hydrogen‐bond donors were prepared by a slow evaporation technique from a pyridine solution and were characterized for their thermotropic, LC properties with a number of experimental techniques. The homopolymer of 4,4′‐bipyridyl with adipic acid exhibited high‐order and low‐order smectic phases, and that with sebacic acid exhibited only a high‐order smectic phase. Like the homopolymer with adipic acid, the two copolymers of 4,4′‐bipyridyl with adipic and sebacic acids (75/25 and 25/75) also exhibited two types of smectic phases. In contrast, the copolymer of 4,4′‐bipyridyl with adipic and sebacic acids (50/50), like the homopolymer with sebacic acid, exhibited only one high‐order smectic phase. Each of them, including the copolymers, had a broad temperature range of LC phases (36–51 °C). The effect of copolymerization for these hydrogen‐bonded polymers on the thermotropic properties was examined. Generally, copolymerization increased the temperature range of LC phases for these polymers, as expected, with a larger decrease in the crystal‐to‐LC transition than in the LC‐to‐isotropic transition. Additionally, it neither suppressed the formation of smectic phases nor promoted the formation of a nematic phase in these hydrogen‐bonded polymers, as usually observed in many thermotropic LC polymers. The thermal transitions for all of them, measured by differential scanning calorimetry, were well below their decomposition temperatures, as measured by thermogravimetric analysis, which were in the temperature range of 193–210 °C. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 1282–1295, 2003     

Design,Synthesis, and Insecticidal Activity of 1,5‐Diphenyl‐1‐pentanone Analogues

Three series of novel 1,5‐diphenyl‐1‐pentanone derivatives were designed and synthesized. Their structures were characterized by IR, ¹H NMR techniques, and elemental analysis. The insecticidal activities of the new compounds were preliminarily evaluated. The bioassay results indicated that the compounds X11 – X30 displayed better aphicidal activity against Aphis gossypii than compounds X1 – X10 and the lead compound (E)‐1,5‐diphenyl‐1‐penten‐1‐one ( A ). The inhibitory rates of compounds X6 and X29 were 100% against Plutella xylostella (L.) at 600 mg·L^?1. Compounds X12 , X13, X19 , X24, X25 , X26 and X27 showed higher insecticidal activity against Tetranychus cinnabarinus (Boisduval) at 600 mg·L^?1 than the lead compound ( A ).     

Functionalization of Quinazolin‐4‐ones Part 3: Synthesis,Structures Elucidation,DNA‐PK,PI3K,and Cytotoxicity of Novel 8‐Aryl‐2‐morpholino‐quinazolin‐4‐ones

A series of novel 8‐aryl‐2‐morpholino quinazolines ( 11a – n , 12a – d , 14a – f , and 15 ) were synthesized from the precursor 2‐thioxo quinazolin‐4‐ones 8 . The 8‐aryl‐2‐morpholino quinazolines compounds were assayed for DNA‐PK and PI3K. All compounds showed low DNA‐PK % inhibition activity at 10 μM compound concertation, and the most active was 8‐(dibenzo[b,d]thiophen‐4‐yl) 12d with 38% inhibition. Similar pattern of PI3K α, β, γ, and δ isoforms inhibition activity at 10 μM were observed. The most active isoform was PI3K δ of 41% inhibition for 8‐(dibenzo[b,d]furan‐4‐yl) compound 11 . Most compounds were less active than expected in spite of the strong structural resemblance to known inhibitors ( NU7441 , 3 , 4 , and 6 ). Loss of activity could be attributed to the tautomerization to the aromatic enol (4‐OH), which could specify that the important functional group for the activity is the 4‐carbonyl (C=O) group. Alternatively, the aromatization of the pyrimidine heterocyclic ring could alter the conformation, and thus binding site, of the 2‐morpholine ring, which could reduce the compound‐receptor hydrogen bonding to the morpholine 4‐oxygen. Selected compounds displayed appreciable cytotoxicity with 6‐chloro‐8‐(dibenzo[b,d]thiophen‐4‐yl)‐2‐morpholinoquinazolin‐4(1H)‐one 11j exhibiting the greatest activity with an IC₅₀ of 9.95 μM. Therefore, the mechanism of the cytotoxicity of compound 11j were not through DNA‐PK or PI3K inhibition activity.     

Synthesis and properties of soluble and light‐colored poly(amide‐imide‐imide)s on the basis of tetraimide‐dicarboxylic acid condensed from 4,4′‐oxydiphthalic anhydride, 2,2‐bis[4‐(4‐aminophenoxy)phenyl]propane,and m‐aminobenzoic acid,and various aromatic diamines

A new type of tetraimide‐dicarboxylic acid ( I ) was synthesized starting from the ring‐opening addition of m‐aminobenzoic acid, 4,4′‐oxydiphthalic anhydride, and 2,2‐bis[4‐(4‐aminophenoxy)phenyl]propane at a 2:2:1 molar ratio in N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP), followed by cyclodehydration to the diacid I . A series of soluble and light‐colored poly(amide‐imide‐imide)s ( III _a–j) was prepared by triphenyl phosphite‐activated polycondensation from I with various aromatic diamines ( II _a–j). All films cast from N,N‐dimethylacetamide (DMAc) had cutoff wavelengths shorter than 390 nm (374–390 nm) and b* values between 25.26 and 43.61; these polymers were much lighter in color than the alternating trimellitimide series. All of the polymers were readily soluble in a variety of organic solvents such as NMP, DMAc, N,N‐dimethylformamide, dimethyl sulfoxide, and even in less polar m‐cresol and pyridine. Polymers III _a–j afforded tough, transparent, and flexible films that had tensile strengths ranging from 96 to 118 MPa, elongations at break from 9 to 11%, and initial moduli from 2.0 to 2.5 GPa. The glass‐transition temperatures of the polymers were recorded at 240–268 °C. They had 10% weight loss at a temperature above 540 °C and left more than 55% residue even at 800 °C in nitrogen. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 707–718, 2002; DOI 10.1002/pola.10153     

Thermolyzable polymer networks and star polymers containing a novel,compact, degradable acylal‐based dimethacrylate cross‐linker: Synthesis,characterization, and thermolysis

A compact, cleavable acylal dimethacrylate cross‐linker, 1,1‐ethylenediol dimethacrylate (EDDMA), was synthesized from the anhydrous iron(III) chloride‐catalyzed reaction between methacrylic anhydride and acetaldehyde. The ability of EDDMA to act as cross‐linker was demonstrated by using it for the preparation of one neat cross‐linker network, four star polymers of methyl methacrylate (MMA), and four randomly cross‐linked MMA polymer networks using group transfer polymerization (GTP). For comparison, the corresponding polymer structures based on the commercially available ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) cross‐linker (isomer of EDDMA) were also prepared via GTP. The number of arms of the EDDMA‐based star polymers was lower than that of the corresponding EGDMA polymers, whereas the degrees of swelling in tetrahydrofuran of the EDDMA‐based MMA networks were higher than those of their EGDMA‐based counterparts. Although none of the EDDMA‐containing polymers could be cleanly hydrolyzed under basic or acidic conditions, they could be thermolyzed at 200 °C within 1 day giving lower molecular weight products. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 5811–5823, 2007     

Synthesis,Profiling, and Bioactive Conformation of trans‐Cyclopropyl Epothilones

A series of new 3‐deoxy‐C(12),C(13)‐trans‐cyclopropyl‐epothilones have been prepared, bearing benzothiazole, quinoline, thiazol‐5‐ylvinyl, or isoxazol‐3‐ylvinyl side chains. For analogs with fused aromatic side chains, macrocyclic ring‐closure was based on ring‐closing olefin metathesis (RCM) of a precursor incorporating the fully elaborated heavy atom framework of the target structure (including the side chain moiety), while side chain attachment for the thiazole and isoxazole‐containing 16‐desmethyl analogs was performed only after establishment of the macrolactone core. Two approaches were elaborated for a macrocyclic aldehyde as the common precursor for the latter analogs that involved ring‐closure either by RCM or by macrolactonization. Benzothiazole‐ and quinoline‐based analogs were found to be highly potent antiproliferative agents; the two analogs with a thiazol‐5‐ylvinyl or an isoxazol‐3‐ylvinyl side chain likewise showed good antiproliferative activity but were significantly less potent than the parent epothilone A. Surprisingly, the desaturation of the C(10)?C(11) bond in these analogs was associated with a virtually complete loss in antiproliferative activity, which likely reflects a requirement for a ca. 60 ° C(10)?C(11) torsion angle in the tubulin‐bound conformation of 12,13‐trans‐epothilones.     

Red,green, and blue electrochromism in ambipolar poly(amine–amide–imide)s based on electroactive tetraphenyl‐p‐phenylenediamine units

A series of novel poly(amine–amide–imide)s (PAAIs) based on tetraphenyl‐p‐phenylenediamine (TPPA) units showing anodically/cathodically electrochromic characteristic with three primary colors [red, green, and blue (RGB)] were prepared from the direct polycondensation of the TPPA‐based diamine monomer with various aromatic bis(trimellitimide)s. These multicolored electrochromic polymers were readily soluble in polar organic solvents and showed excellent thermal stability associated with high glass‐transition temperatures (288–314 °C) and high‐char yield (higher than 60% at 800 °C in nitrogen). The PAAI films revealed electrochemical oxidation and reduction accompanied with high contrast of optical transmittance color changes from the pale yellow neutral state to the green/blue oxidized state and red reduced state, respectively. The electrochromic films had high‐coloration efficiency (CE = 178 and 242 cm²/C at the first and the second stages, respectively), low‐switching time, and good redox stability, which still retained a high electroactivity after long‐term redox cycles. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010