Cationic nitrile‐functionalized Ag(I)‐ and Hg(II)‐N‐heterocyclic carbene complexes of CCC,CNC, and NCN pincer‐type carbene ligands: Synthesis,crystal structures,and characterization

Three nitrile‐functionalized (benz)imid‐ zaolium derivatives with CCC, CNC, and NCN coordination pockets have been synthesized and isolated as the bromide salts and are converted into their hexafluorophosphate counterparts ( 5–7 ) by ligand metathesis. N‐heterocyclic carbene Ag(I)‐ and Hg(II)‐complexes ( 8–10 and 11–13 ) are readily formed in good to excellent yields from ligand precursors 5–7 and Ag₂O and Hg(OAc)₂, respectively. All reported compounds have been characterized by various spectral and analytical techniques, such as FTIR, ¹H, and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy and X‐ray diffraction studies. Solid‐state structures of carbene precursors 5 , 7 , and an Ag(I)–carbene complex 10 have been determined crystallographically. Single crystal X‐ray crystallography of complex 10 reveals the chelation of carbene carbons to metal center in almost a linear manner. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 23:486–497, 2012; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com . DOI 10.1002/hc.21041     

Femtosecond laser-assisted etching of three-dimensional inverted-woodpile structures in fused silica

Three-dimensional inverted-woodpile (WP) structures were embedded in a microchannel by femtosecond laser direct-writing of fused silica followed by chemical etching with diluted hydrofluoric acid. We show the hole size is linearly dependent on laser-scanning depth for various pulse energies, permitting the control of laser exposures to facilitate close 5 μm periodic packing of uniform microcapillary arrays. Exposure compensation for depth-dependent etching rate and optical beam aberrations yielded stable and crack-free uniform inverted-WP structures. The direct formation of the inverted-WP structure together with microchannels in an all-fused silica substrate, offers chemical stability and inertness, and biocompatibility to be exploited as new microfluidic systems for chromatography and electro-osmotic pumps.     

Identification and design of antimicrobial peptides for therapeutic applications

Indiscriminate use of antibiotics has led to a rapid increase of antibiotic resistance among microbes which has increased the need to develop novel antimicrobial agents to fight various infectious diseases. Peptide antibiotics signify a novel class of therapeutic agents and have been isolated from a wide variety of multi-cellular organisms. Peptide antibiotics have shown broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity and they not only kill different bacteria, but also kill various fungi, parasites, protozoans and cancerous cells. Peptides bear several properties that make them particularly attractive such as their small size, rapid activity and a low chance for development of resistance. Because of these distinct properties, the focus for research on antimicrobial peptides has increased tremendously in the recent years. Despite their potential, only selected cationic antimicrobial peptides have been able to enter in clinical trials. Therefore, there is a pressing need to develop new approaches to identify novel antimicrobial peptide therapeutics replacing conventional antibiotics. Recent findings strongly suggest that one can design a new generation of antimicrobials peptides with a wide range of systemic and topical applications against bacterial infections. In this review, we focus on the identification and design of novel antimicrobial peptides for therapeutic applications based on different approaches and strategies. This review also highlights some recent advances in the study of the molecular basis of anti-microbial activity in these peptides, their current pharmacological and clinical development and future directions and applications.     

Somatic Embryogenesis and Synthetic Seed Production—a Biotechnological Approach for True-to-Type Propagation and In Vitro Conservation of an Ornamental Bulbaceous Plant Drimiopsis kirkii Baker.

An efficient plant regeneration protocol through indirect somatic embryogenesis pathway via callus had been developed from the leaf explant of an ornamental bulbaceous plant Drimiopsis kirkii. Optimum friable calli were induced on Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with 3.0 mg/l of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 1.0 mg/l of α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA). On subculturing the callus on MS medium supplemented with 2.5 mg/l of thidiazuron (TDZ), 73.3 % of the cultures responded with 20.4?±?0.3 somatic embryos (SEs) per 500 mg callus at different stages of development after 6 weeks of culture. The highest response of 86.7 % with 28.3?±?0.5 embryos per 500 mg callus was observed on MS medium supplemented with 2.5 mg/l TDZ and 1.0 mg/l NAA. SEs were encapsulated in calcium alginate beads for the production of synthetic seeds (SSs) and their storability was investigated. The highest SS germination (93.3 %) was observed in 1.0 % sodium alginate followed by 86.7 % germination with 2.5 % sodium alginate. The SSs were stored at three different temperatures (4, 15, and 24?ºC) up to 6 months. The SSs kept at 15 °C showed 64.4 % germinability even after 4 months of storage. Both nonencapsulated and encapsulated SE-derived plants were successfully transferred to soil with 93.3 and 88.3 % survival rate accordingly. Randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis revealed that there were no somaclonal variations among the plants produced via somatic embryogenesis and they are true-to-type to their parental plant. These results confirmed the most reliable methods, which can be further used for genetic transformation studies as well as for mass propagation of ornamental D. kirkii at a commercial level.     

Characterization of very low thermal conductivity thin films

Characterization of thermal transport in nanoscale thin films with very low thermal conductivity (<1 W m^?1 K^?1) is challenging due to the difficulties in accurately measuring spatial variations in temperature field as well as the heat losses. In this paper, we present a new experimental technique involving freestanding nanofabricated specimens that are anchored at the ends, while the entire chip is heated by a macroscopic heater. The unique aspect of this technique is to remove uncertainty in measurement of convective heat transfer, which can be of the same magnitude as through the specimen in a low conductivity material. Spatial mapping of temperature field as well as the natural convective heat transfer coefficient allows us to calculate the thermal conductivity of the specimen using an energy balance modeling approach. The technique is demonstrated on thermally grown silicon oxide and low dielectric constant carbon-doped oxide films. The thermal conductivity of 400 nm silicon dioxide films was found to be 1.2 W m^?1 K^?1, and is in good agreement with the literature. Experimental results for 200 nm thin low dielectric constant oxide films demonstrate that the model is also capable of accurately determining the thermal conductivity for materials with values <1 W m^?1 K^?1.     

Tractor beam for fully immersed multiple objects: Long distance pulling,trapping, and rotation with a single optical set‐up

In this article, we have theoretically demonstrated the mechanism of an active tractor beam for multiple fully immersed objects with additional abilities to yielding stable long distance levitation, a controlled rotation and a desired 3D trapping. This is demonstrated with a single optical set‐up by using two coaxial, or even non‐coaxial, superimposed higher order monochromatic Bessel beams of reverse helical nature and different frequencies. The superimposed beams can possess periodic intensity variations both along and around the beam‐axis due to a difference in longitudinal wave‐numbers and beam orders, respectively. The difference in frequencies of the two laser beams makes the intensity pattern to move along and around the beam‐axis in a continuous way without manual ramping of phase, which allows for bidirectional movement of completely immersed multiple particles. The condition for increasing or decreasing the dimension of binding regions is also proposed here to manipulate multiple immersed objects of different sizes under dipole approximation.

     

Conformational Studies of a Six-Membered Phostone

Abstract

Although 1,3,2-dioxaphosphorinanes generally assume chair conformations,¹ there are examples in which the ring adopts the boat or twist-boat form.¹ Recent studies on the synthesis, stereochemistry, and reactivity of 2-alkoxy-2-oxo-1,2-oxaphosphorinanes (phostones) have revealed both cis and trans isomers of 3-(diphenylhydroxymethyl)-2-ethoxy-2-oxo-1,2-axaphosphorinane² to assume a chair conformation in the solid state. In the present work, the conformational properties of cis and trans-3-methoxycarbonyl-2-methoxy-2-oxo-1,2-oxaphosphorinanes were investigated by X-ray analysis, variable temperature ³¹P, ¹H and ¹H{³¹P} NMR spectroscopy, molecular mechanics, and semiempirical calculations. The X-ray crystal structure of the trans isomer revealed a chair dormation with equatorial phosphoryl and carbomethoxy groups. No changes were observed in the ³¹P NMR spectra of either isomer in the temperature range of 183–333 K. A complete set of vicinal J_HH coupling constants was extracted from the ¹H{³¹P} spectra of each isomer taken at five temperatures over the range of 213–293 K and refined by simulation of the spectra. The best-fit analysis of this data using a generalized Karplus equation³ revealed that the conformation of the trans isomer in solution was close to that found in the solid state. This conformation corresponded to the global energy minimum calculated by both molecular mechanics and PM3 semiempirical method. A substantial contribution from an inverted chair conformation of the cis isomer had to be assumed to achieve a reasonable fit of the coupling constants calculated from the generalized Karplus equation.     

Vinyl Polymerization by Carbon Black. II. Modification of Carbon Black and Its Use in the Polymerization of N-Vinylcarbazole

Modification of carbon black N220, ISAF-HM, by aprotonic and protonic acids uniquely improves its catalytic activity in relation to the polymerization of N-vinylcarbazole. The polymerization is first order in monomer and directly proportional to the weight of the catalyst. However, the molecular weights of the polymer do not depend significantly on the nature of the modification. Heat treatment of the catalysts at 500°C reduces the yield of polymer drastically. The activation energy of the polymerization by unmodified carbon black is 83 kJ/mol as compared to 71 kJ/mol for the modified catalyst. Modification by dialkylzinc (0.1 to 0.4 M) produces stereoregularity as indicated by the MEK insolubility of the polymer.     

Quantification of water soluble vitamins in six date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) cultivar's fruits growing in Dubai,United Arab Emirates,through high performance liquid chromatography

In present investigation, a comparative analysis of water soluble vitamins viz., B1 (thiamine HCl), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (nicotinamide), B5 (pantothenic acid), B6 (pyridoxine HCl), B9 (folic acid), B12 (cyanocobalamin) was carried out in fruits (immature, semimature and mature) of six date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) cultivars (“Barhee”, “Khalasah”, “Muzati”, “Shishi”, “Zart”, “Zardai”) growing in United Arab Emirates (UAE) by high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC). The fruits were collected at three developing stages (immature, semimature and mature). Quantitative analysis of water soluble vitamins yield showed a significant variation within the different cultivars and the developing stages of date palm fruit. Vitamin B1, B3, B5, B6 were maximum (μg/100 g f.w.) in “Shishi”, “Zardai”, “Shishi” and “Muzati” at their matured stage, however, vitamin B2, B9, B12 were detected in immature fruit of “Khalasah”, “Khalasah” and “Shishi” cultivars. The vitamin production in fruits of different date palm cultivars was, therefore, developing stage specific and cultivar dependent. The present study showed that the date palm fruit could be used for human consumption with value addition of water soluble vitamins at their specific developmental stages.