Anomalous dielectric behavior and thermal motion of water molecules confined in channels of porous coordination polymer crystals

Guest water molecules confined in channels of porous coordination polymer crystals [Ln(2)Cu(3)(IDA)(6)]·nH(2)O (Ln = La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Ho, Er; IDA = [NH(CH(2)COO)(2)](2-); n ≈ 9) exhibited large dielectric constants (ε) and antiferroelectric behaviors at high temperatures (e.g., ε(Sm) ≈ 1300 at 400 K). In addition, plots of the temperature dependence of ε showed broad peaks at ～170 K, below which ε became very small. These puzzling temperature dependences of ε are consistent with the results of molecular dynamics simulations, suggesting the "freezing of thermal motion" of water molecules at ～170 K.     

Synthesis of the ABC ring system of Jiadifenin via Pd-catalyzed cyclizations

An efficient route toward the central ABC system of jiadifenin has been developed using two key Pd-catalyzed cyclizations. A protic solvent-activated Mizoroki-Heck reaction was used to construct the C(9) quaternary carbon and the A ring. A cascading Tsuji-Trost cyclization/lactonization sequence was employed to establish the BC ring system and the C(5,6) stereochemistry.     

Cooperative catalytic reactions using organocatalysts and transition metal catalysts: enantioselective propargylic alkylation of propargylic esters with aldehydes

The enantioselective propargylic alkylation of propargylic esters with aldehydes in the presence of a copper complex and an optically active secondary amine as cocatalysts has been found to give the corresponding propargylic alkylated products in good yields as a mixture of two diastereoisomers with a high enantioselectivity.     

Copper-catalyzed enantioselective propargylic amination of nonaromatic propargylic esters with amines

The enantioselective propargylic amination of propargylic pentafluorobenzoates bearing an alkyl group at the propargylic position with amines in the presence of catalytic amounts of a copper complex and an optically active diphosphine such as BINAP has been found to give the corresponding propargylic amines in good yields with high enantioselectivity.     

Use of the MALDI BioTyper system with MALDI–TOF mass spectrometry for rapid identification of microorganisms

In a clinical diagnosis microbiology laboratory, the current method of identifying bacterial isolates is based mainly on phenotypic characteristics, for example growth pattern on different media, colony morphology, Gram stain, and various biochemical reactions. These techniques collectively enable great accuracy in identifying most bacterial isolates, but are costly and time-consuming. In our clinical microbiology laboratory, we prospectively assessed the ability of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI–TOF MS) to identify bacterial strains that were routinely isolated from clinical samples. Bacterial colonies obtained from a total of 468 strains of 92 bacterial species isolated at the Department of Clinical Laboratory at Chiba University were directly placed on target MALDI plates followed by addition of CHCA matrix solution. The plates were then subjected to MALDI–TOF MS measurement and the microorganisms were identified by pattern matching with the libraries in the BioTyper 2.0 software. Identification success at the species and genus levels was 91.7% (429/468) and 97.0% (454/468), respectively. MALDI–TOF MS is a rapid, simple, and high-throughput proteomic technique for identification of a variety of bacterial species. Because colony-to-colony differences and effects of culture duration on the results are minimal, it can be implemented in a conventional laboratory setting. Although for some pathogens, preanalytical processes should be refined, and the current database should be improved to obtain more accurate results, the MALDI–TOF MS based method performs, in general, as well as conventional methods and is a promising technology in clinical laboratories.     

Design and stereoselective synthesis of four peptide nucleic acid monomers with cyclic structures in backbone

Four isomers of the monomer of peptide nucleic acid (PNA) were derived from (2S,4R)‐4‐hydroxyproline; they had different stereochemistries at the C² and C⁴ positions in the pyrrolidine ring. These different backbone conformations corresponding to four different stereochemistries were realized through a combination of inversions at the C² and the C⁴ positions in pyrrolidine ring. The obtained backbone frameworks were reacted with N‐benzoyl thymine to give the corresponding PNA monomers. Spectroscopic comparison of the resultant monomers confirmed their stereochemistries. J. Heterocyclic Chem., (2011).     

The effect of Cl...π interactions on the conformations of 4‐chloro‐5‐(2‐phenoxyethoxy)phthalonitrile and 4‐chloro‐5‐[2‐(pentafluorophenoxy)ethoxy]phthalonitrile

4‐Chloro‐5‐(2‐phenoxyethoxy)phthalonitrile, C₁₆H₁₁ClN₂O₂, (I), and 4‐chloro‐5‐[2‐(pentafluorophenoxy)ethoxy]phthalonitrile, C₁₆H₆ClF₅N₂O₂, (II), show different types of electrostatic interaction. In (I), the phenoxy and phthalonitrile (benzene‐1,2‐dicarbonitrile) moieties are well separated in an open conformation and intermolecular C—H...π interactions are observed in the crystal packing. On the other hand, in (II), the pentafluorophenoxy moiety interacts closely with the Cl atom to form a folded conformation containing an intramolecular halogen–π interaction.     

Oxidative coupling polymerization of 2,3‐dihydroxynaphthalene with dinuclear‐type copper(II) catalyst

The oxidative coupling polymerization of 2,3‐dihydroxynaphthalene with the novel dinuclear‐type copper(II) catalysts successfully produced poly(2,3‐dihydroxy‐1,4‐naphthylene). For example, the MeOH‐insoluble polymer with a number average molecular weight of 4.4 × 10³ from the polymerization using the complex of CuCl₂ and N,N′‐bis(2‐morpholinoethyl)‐p‐xylylenediamine ( p ‐ 1 ) at room temperature under an O₂ atmosphere followed by acetylation of the hydroxyl groups was obtained in 63% yield. The structures of the tetraamine ligands and the counter anion of the copper(II) salts significantly influenced the catalyst activity. The polymerization of 2,2′‐dimethoxy‐1,1′‐binaphthalene‐3,3′‐diol with the 2CuCl₂‐ p ‐ 1 catalyst, however, resulted in a lower yield. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 1635–1640, 2005     

Synthetic studies of the cyclic depsipeptides bearing the 3-amino-6-hydroxy-2-piperidone (Ahp) unit. Total synthesis of the proposed structure of micropeptin T-20

The first total synthesis of a cyclic depsipeptide possessing the 3-amino-6-hydroxy-2-piperidone (Ahp) unit was successfully achieved in a convergent manner by the oxidative construction of the Ahp unit at the later stage of the synthesis. This synthetic work provides data indicating that the structure of the target Ahp-depsipeptide, micropeptin T-20, should be re-examined.