Comparable Ionicity of the Solutions of Aprotic and Protic Ionic Liquids by Anion Substitution

Temperature dependent molar conductances and fluidities of bisulfate and ethyl sulfate anion-based ionic liquids were measured. The extent of dissociation of the ionic liquids was estimated from the Walden plot in term of ionicity. The ionicity mainly depends on the magnitude of Coulombic forces, altered by the anion’s Lewis basicity. Aqueous solutions of aprotic ionic liquids, in general, possesses ionicity in the range of ≈70–99%. This article reveals that the substitution of the anion by bisulfate and ethylsulfate reduces the ionicity of aqueous solution of these ionic liquids to the range of 10–37%. This is very close to that exhibited by some of the protic ionic liquids and phosphonium based ionic liquids with sweetner anions. The concentration dependent molar conductance of these ionic liquids has been fitted to Mahiuddin and Ismail’s equation. To our surprise, the molar conductances of bisulfate-based aprotic ionic liquids are remarkably high, even though these ionic liquids possess lower ionicity.     

A Series of Iron(II)-NHC Sensitizers with Remarkable Power Conversion Efficiency in Photoelectrochemical Cells**

A series of six new Fe(II)NHC-carboxylic sensitizers with their ancillary ligand decorated with functions of varied electronic properties have been designed with the aim to increase the metal-to- surface charge separation and light harvesting in iron-based dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). ARM130 scored the highest efficiency ever reported for an iron-sensitized solar cell (1.83 %) using Mg²⁺ and NBu₄I-based electrolyte and a thick 20 μm TiO₂ anode. Computational modelling, transient absorption spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed that the electronic properties induced by the dimethoxyphenyl-substituted NHC ligand of ARM130 led to the best combination of electron injection yield and spectral sensitivity breadth.     

Cannabis-Derived Compounds Cannabichromene and Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Interact and Exhibit Cytotoxic Activity against Urothelial Cell Carcinoma Correlated with Inhibition of Cell Migration and Cytoskeleton Organization

Cannabis sativa contains more than 500 constituents, yet the anticancer properties of the vast majority of cannabis compounds remains unknown. We aimed to identify cannabis compounds and their combinations presenting cytotoxicity against bladder urothelial carcinoma (UC), the most common urinary system cancer. An XTT assay was used to determine cytotoxic activity of C. sativa extracts on T24 and HBT-9 cell lines. Extract chemical content was identified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) was used to determine apoptosis and cell cycle, using stained F-actin and nuclei. Scratch and transwell assays were used to determine cell migration and invasion, respectively. Gene expression was determined by quantitative Polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The most active decarboxylated extract fraction (F7) of high-cannabidiol (CBD) C. sativa was found to contain cannabichromene (CBC) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Synergistic interaction was demonstrated between CBC + THC whereas cannabinoid receptor (CB) type 1 and type 2 inverse agonists reduced cytotoxic activity. Treatments with CBC + THC or CBD led to cell cycle arrest and cell apoptosis. CBC + THC or CBD treatments inhibited cell migration and affected F-actin integrity. Identification of active plant ingredients (API) from cannabis that induce apoptosis and affect cell migration in UC cell lines forms a basis for pre-clinical trials for UC treatment.     

Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of some novel benzofuran based 1,2,3-triazoles

In the present study, a series of novel {6-[(1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methoxy]-3-methylbenzofuran-2-yl}(phenyl)methanones (7a–7o) have been synthesized using click chemistry approach. The structures of all newly synthesized compounds were characterized by FT-IR, ¹H and ¹³C NMR, and MASS spectral data. Most of products demonstrated high antimicrobial activity.

     

Extractive spectrophotometric determination of nitrite in polluted waters

Nitrite is diazotised with p-nitroaniline in hydrochloric acid and coupled with 8-quinolinol in alkaline medium to give a purple azo dye (λ_max = 550 nm, ? = 3.88 × 10⁴ l mol^-1 cm^-1). Extraction of the dye into 3-methyl-1-butanol shifts the absorption maximum to 570 nm and improves the apparent molar absorptivity to 5.852 × 10⁴ l mol^-1 cm^-1. Beer's law is obeyed for 0.01–0.06 ppm nitrite. The Sandell sensitivity is 0.00078 μg cm^-2. The method is applicable to polluted waters.     

Carbon-13 substituent chemical shifts of 4-substituted bicyclo[2.2.2]oct-1-yl cyanides

The carbon-13 substituent chemical shifts of 4-substituted bicyclo[2.2.2]oct-1-yl cyanides are a linear function of the substituent inductive parameters.     

Metabolic Tumor Imaging with Rapidly Signal-Enhanced 1-13C-Pyruvate-d3

The metabolism of malignant cells differs significantly from that of healthy cells and thus, it is possible to perform metabolic imaging to reveal not only the exact location of a tumor, but also intratumoral areas of high metabolic activity. Herein, we demonstrate the feasibility of metabolic tumor imaging using signal-enhanced 1-¹³C-pyruvate-d₃, which is rapidly enhanced via para-hydrogen, and thus, the signal is amplified by several orders of magnitudes in less than a minute. Using as a model, human melanoma xenografts injected with signal-enhanced 1-¹³C-pyruvate-d3, we show that the conversion of pyruvate into lactate can be monitored along with its kinetics, which could pave the way for rapidly detecting and monitoring changes in tumor metabolism.     

Relation of coordination number to memory and threshold switching in chalcogenides

The paper reports a structural study of some memory and threshold chalcogenides in terms of coordination numberC, defined byC=8−N, and is the average coordination number for covalently bonded materials. The average number of nearest neighbours surrounding a central atom, obtained for As-Ge-Te (memory) and Se-Ge-Te (threshold) systems have been used to estimate the cohesive energies, assuming simple additivity of bond energies. The bonding pattern so obtained, explains certain properties of these glasses.