Iron nanoparticles in the coupling of alkyl halides with aryl Grignard reagents

Iron nanoparticles, either formed in situ stabilized by 1,6-bis(diphenylphosphino)hexane or polyethylene glycol (PEG), or preformed stabilized by PEG, are excellent catalysts for the cross-coupling of aryl Grignard reagents with primary and secondary alkyl halides bearing beta-hydrogens and they also prove effective in a tandem cyclization/cross-coupling reaction.     

Carbohydrate-derived amino-alcohol ligands for asymmetric alkynylation of aldehydes

[reaction: see text] Conformationally restricted amino alcohols based on carbohydrate scaffolds provide flexible and fine-tuneable libraries that greatly expand the range of ligands available in the Zn(OTf)(2)-mediated addition of alkynes to aldehydes, in some cases with very high stereoselectivities.     

Atomic Layer Deposition of Aluminum-Free Silica onto Patterned Carbon Nanotube Forests in the Preparation of Microfabricated Thin-Layer Chromatography Plates

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - We describe the direct, conformal, atomic layer deposition (ALD) of silica onto carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the microfabrication of...     

Safer Conditions for the Curtius Rearrangement of 1,3,5‐Benzenetricarboxylic Acid

A rapid method to prepare 1,3,5‐triaminobenzene and its derivatives is the tris‐Curtius rearrangment of 1,3,5‐benzenetricarboxylic acid. The hazards associated with the acyl azide route are minimized by using 1,2‐dichloroethane as solvent. A second method that avoids acyl azide preparation uses diphenylphosphoryl azide to yield the tricarbamate in one step.     

A conserved asparagine in a ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme positions the substrate for nucleophilic attack

The mechanism used by the ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme, Ubc13, to catalyze ubiquitination is probed with three computational techniques: Born–Oppenheimer molecular dynamics, single point quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics energies, and classical molecular dynamics. These simulations support a long-held hypothesis and show that Ubc13-catalyzed ubiquitination uses a stepwise, nucleophilic attack mechanism. Furthermore, they show that the first step—the formation of a tetrahedral, zwitterionic intermediate—is rate limiting. However, these simulations contradict another popular hypothesis that supposes that the negative charge on the intermediate is stabilized by a highly conserved asparagine (Asn79 in Ubc13). Instead, calculated reaction profiles of the N79A mutant illustrate how charge stabilization actually increases the barrier to product formation. Finally, an alternate role for Asn79 is suggested by simulations of wild-type, N79A, N79D, and H77A Ubc13: it stabilizes the motion of the electrophile prior to the reaction, positioning it for nucleophilic attack. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Complex Macromolecular Architectures by Reversible Addition Fragmentation Chain Transfer Chemistry: Theory and Practice

Reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) chemistry can be effectively employed to construct macromolecular architectures of varying topologies. The present article explores the principle design routes to star, block, and comb polymers in the context of theoretical design criteria for the so‐called Z‐ and R‐group approaches. The specific advantages and disadvantages of each approach are underpinned by selected examples generated in the CAMD laboratories. In particular, we demonstrate how the modeling of full molecular weight distributions can be employed to guide the synthetic effort. We further explore the theory and practice of generating amphiphilic block copolymer structures and their self‐assembly. In addition, the article foreshadows how modern synthetic techniques that combine RAFT chemistry with highly orthogonal click chemistry can be employed as a powerful tool that furthers the enhancement of macromolecular design possibilities to generate block (star) copolymers of monomers with extremely disparate reactivities. Finally, the ability of RAFT chemistry to modify the surface of well‐defined nano‐ and microspheres as devices in biomedical application is detailed.

     

Dispersion of a cloud of particles by a moving shock: Effects of the shape, angle of rotation, and aspect ratio

This paper discusses the particle-laden flow development from a cloud of particles in an accelerated flow behind a normal moving shock. The effects of the aspect ratio of a rectangular and ellipsoidal cloud and the cloud’s angle of attack with respect to the carrier flow are studied. Computations are performed with an in-house high-order weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO-Z) finite-difference scheme-based Eulerian-Lagrangian solver that solves the conservation equations in the Eulerian frame, while particles are traced in the Lagrangian frame. Streamlined elliptically shaped clouds exhibit a lower dispersion than blunt rectangular clouds. The averaged and root-mean-square locations of the particle coordinates in the cloud show that the cloud’s streamwise convection velocity increases with decreasing aspect ratio. With increasing rotation angle, the cross-stream dispersion increases if the aspect ratio is larger than unity. The particle-laden flow development of an initially moderately rotated rectangle is qualitatively and quantitatively comparable to the dispersion of an initially triangular cloud.     

Contra-Hofmeister anion extraction by cyclosteroidal receptors

Steroid-based receptors with enclosed binding sites, formed from quaternary ammonium and macrocyclic bis-urea units, can substantially override the Hofmeister series in anion phase transfer experiments.