Isolation,Structure Determination and Synthesis of New Acetylenic Steroids from the Sponge Calyx nicaaensis

Two acetylenic steroids, cholest-5-en-23-yn-3β-ol ( 5 ) and 26,27-dinorcholest-5-en-23-yn-3β-ol ( 3 ), and another unsaturated steroidalcohol, stigmasta-5,23-dien-3β-ol ( 7 ), were isolated from the sponge Calyx nicaaensis. The structures of these two acetylenic steroids were established by synthesis. Several attempts to synthesize the marine steroids alcohol calysterol ( 1 ), with a cyclopropene-containing side chain, starting from cholest-5-en-23-yn-3β-ol are also recorded. Addition of ethyl-diazo-acetate to the triple bond was performed, but the reduction to the methyl derivative yielded decomposition products.     

Investigation by infrared absorption of the by-products of the cyanoethylation of cotton cellulose

The soluble cyanoethyl ether of cellulose, prepared by reaction in the presence of NaOH catalyst to high degrees of substitution (DS = 2.95), can be precipitated by various organic media and contains more nitrogen than can be accounted for by simple addition of acrylonitrile at each cellulose hydroxyl group. Infrared absorption spectra of such samples and of the reacted residues show various types of vibrational absorption bands, characteristic of amino groups. At advanced stages of the reaction the characteristic broad unresolved band of cellulose extending from 1200–950 cm.^?1 largely disappears, leaving only a few weaker bands which likely overlap those due to C–N stretching. Comparison is made of the spectra of the partially cyanoethylated cellulose and the polyacrylonitrile which forms in the stock acrylonitrile, to characterize the products. It is inferred that the highly cyanoethylated cellulose, partly dissolved in the acrylonitrile, further degrades and changes under a complex mechanism to various forms of amines. The yellow to orange color of the samples is assumed to be due to these by-products. The thermogravimetric analysis reveals that these products are more heat-resistant than the cyanoethylated cellulose.     

Synthesis of 4,12-dihydro-4-oxoquino-[1,8a,8-a,b]quinoxaline-5-carboxylic acid derivatives

The synthesis and antibacterial activity of 1-substituted amino-2-fluoro-4,12-dihydro-4-oxoquino[1,8a,8-a,b]quinoxaline-5-carboxylic acid derivatives are described. The synthetic route includes a carbon homologation and two intramolecular nucleophilic displacement cyclization reactions leading to the novel 4,12-dihydro-4-oxoquino[1,8a,8-a,b]quinoxaline-5-carboxylic acid heterocycle.     

Sterols with Cyclopropane-Containing Side Chains: Synthesis and Acid Isomerization

To test the eventual involvement of sterols with a cyclopropane containing side chain in bio-methylation processes, 24,25-methanocholest-5-en-3β-ol ( 5 ) and 24,25-methano-26-methylcholest-5-en-3β-ol ( 6 ) were synthesized. Together with the naturally occurring cyclopropane petrosterol ( 1 ), they were submitted to acid isomerization to provide chemical models for some of their potential metabolites.     

Mass spectrometry in structural and stereochemical problems—CLXXXVII A study of skeletal rearrangements in chromans by combined 13C and deuterium labeling

Chroman (I), 2,2-dimethylchroman (II), flavan (III) and 2,2-diphenylchroman (IV) were labeled with ¹³C or deuterium at every position of importance. The mass spectra of these labeled compounds make possible a detailed interpretation of some very complex carbon skeleton rearrangements. The combination of deuterium and ¹³C-labeling revealed that loss of CH₃, C₂H₅ and C₇H₇ fragments from chroman (I), 2,2-dimethylchroman (II) and 2,2-diphenylchroman (IV) respectively, occurs by multiple pathways involving aryl or alkyl migrations with little hydrogen randomization prior to fragmentation. Although ejection of C₇H₇ from flavan (III) occurs to a small extent by a route similar to those mentioned above, its [M ? C₇H₇] fragment can also be formed by a pathway involving no phenyl migration but extensive hydrogen scrambling. The validity of the schemes proposed on the basis of the ¹³C labeling data was checked by using them to predict the spectra of the deuterium labeled compounds.     

Regio- and stereo-selectivity of alkenyl radical ring closure: A theoretical study

A theoretical study has been undertaken of the relative rates and the regio- and stereo-chemistry of ring closure of a variety of alkenyl, alkenylaryl, alkenylvinyl and similar radicals. The method involves the application of MM2 force-field calculations to model transition structures for which the dimensions of the arrays of reactive centres have been obtained by MNDO-UHF techniques. The results, which generally accord with guidelines based on stereochemical considerations, show excellent qualitative and satisfactory quantitative agreement with experimental data. The method has been successfully applied to complex systems including ring closure of alkylperoxy radicals, and formation of the triquinane system by three consecutive cyclisations.     

Inaccessible hydroxyl groups on silica are accessible in supercritical CO2

The three main types of hydroxyl groups on a silica surface are classified as isolated, hydrogen bonded, and inaccessible. The isolated and hydrogen bonded groups are the most important as these readily exchange with D(2)O and thus are exposed to reactant molecules. However, it has generally been accepted that the inaccessible groups do not participate in surface reactions as only a small fraction of these groups exchange with D(2)O. It is shown that the inaccessible hydroxyl groups on nonporous fumed silica and mesoporous MCM-48 silica powders and films fully exchange with D(2)O and are reactive with octadecylydimethylchlorosilane when supercritical CO(2) is used as the solvent. Furthermore, it is found that the CO(2) penetrating the regions containing the inaccessible groups is not removed by simple evacuation but rather slowly diffuses from the silica over periods of months.     

Synthesis and metal ion complexing properties of novel chromogenic cryptands

Four novel chromogenic benzocryptands and one side-armed chromogenic cryptand have been synthesized and their complexing abilities for alkali metal cations are described.