Capillary GC-MS investigation of the metabolism and excretion of oxabolone in man

The metabolism of oxabolone cipionate, 17-(3-cyclopentyl-1-oxopropoxy)-4-hydroxyestr-4-en-3-one, a synthetic anabolic steroid, was investigated in man, the cumulative urinary excretion and the metabolism of the compounds being studied by GC-MS in both electron impact and chemical ionization modes. After administration by injection to volunteers, five different metabolities were detected in urine. The metabolites and the parent compound were detected in urine up to a week after administration.     

Dithionite adducts of pyridinium salts: regioselectivity of formation and mechanisms of decomposition

¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy has been used to detect and to characterize the adducts formed, in alkaline solutions, by the attack of dithionite anion on 3-carbamoyl or 3-cyano substituted pyridinium salts. In all studied cases, only 1,4-dihydropyridine-4-sulfinates, formed by attack of dithionite oxyanion on the carbon 4 of pyridinium ring, were found. This absolute regioselectivity seems to suggest a very specific interaction between the pyridinium cation and the dithionite through the formation of a rigidly oriented ion pair, determining the position of attack. In weak alkaline solution, the adducts decompose according to two mechanisms S_Ni and S_Ni′: the S_Ni path is operative in all studied cases and preserves the 1,4-dihydro structure yielding the corresponding 1,4-dihydropyridines, whereas the S_Ni′ path involves the shift of 2,3 or 5,6 double bonds yielding 1,2- or 1,6-dihydropyridines, respectively. The formation of 1,2- or 1,6-dihydropyridines, in addition to 1,4-dihydro isomers, depends on their respective thermodynamic stabilities.     

C-C coupling of aryl groups and allyl derivatives on Pt(II)-phenanthroline fragments: crystal and molecular structure of the tbp [(η,η-2-allyl,5-methyl-phenyl)iodo(1,10-phenanthroline)platinum(II)] complex containing the N-N ligand in axial-equatorial coordination mode

The reactions between allyl compounds CH₂CHCH₂Fn bearing electron-withdrawing functional (Fn) groups and cationic {Pt(aryl)(1,10-phenanthroline)}⁺ fragments generated in situ are described. The aryl and platinum addition to the terminal and, respectively, internal unsaturated carbon is generally observed. The subsequent H-C_aryl bond activation, followed by HFn elimination, affords the ortho organic fragment (Pt)-aryl-CH₂CHCH₂ η¹,η²-chelate to the platinum. This process does not occur when the regiochemistry is of Markownikov type and the Pt-CH₂CH(aryl)CH₂Fn fragment is formed. The described results are compared with those concerning the behaviour of unsubstituted α-olefins. The X-ray crystal structure of the title five-coordinate complex shows a distorted tbp arrangement of the ligands with the iodide in the equatorial plane and the unusual axial-equatorial coordination mode of the 1,10-phenanthroline.     

Chemical composition of volatile and fixed oils from of Salvia argentea L. (Lamiaceae) growing wild in Sicily

The chemical compositions of the essential oil and of the non-polar extracts (petroleum ether, dichloromethane) of the aerial parts (flowers, leaves and stems) of Salvia argentea L. were determined by GC-FID and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis. 14-Hydroxy-α-humulene (40.1%) was recognised as the main constituents of the essential oil of S. argentea, together with 1,3,8-p-menthatriene (12.1%), globulol (7.4%) and β-sesquiphellandrene (5.8%). Tritriacontane (9.9% and 14.1%), heptacosane (8.4% and 10.5%), hentriacontane (8.3% and 10.9%), tetradecanal (8.4% and 10.2%) and methyldotriacontane (7.9% and 7.6%) were recognised as the main constituents of the extracts in petroleum ether and dichloromethane, respectively, whereas methyl linolenate (36.6% and 13.5%) and methyl myristoleate (10.5% and 18.5%) were recognised as the main constituents of the methylated extracts.     

Synthesis of pyrrolidinone PNA: a novel conformationally restricted PNA analogue

To preorganize PNA for duplex formation, a new cyclic pyrrolidinone PNA analogue has been designed. In this analogue the aminoethylglycine backbone and the methylenecarbonyl linker are connected, introducing two chiral centers compared to PNA. The four stereoisomers of the adenine analogue were synthesized, and the hybridization properties of PNA decamers containing one analogue were measured against complementary DNA, RNA, and PNA strands. The (3S,5R) isomer was shown to have the highest affinity toward RNA, and to recognize RNA and PNA better than DNA. The (3S,5R) isomer was used to prepare a fully modified decamer which bound to rU10 with only a small decrease in Tm (delta Tm/mod = 1 degree C) relative to aminoethylglycine PNA.     

Is the alignment of nematics on a polymer slab always along the rubbing direction? A molecular dynamics study

ABSTRACT

We have studied the alignment and molecular organisation within a thin film of the popular nematic 5CB sandwiched between two flat polymer slabs, examining the effect of polymer chemical nature and morphology with atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. We have chosen two common polymers: polystyrene (PS) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), either with their chains in random coil conformation (disordered) or with chains unidirectionally stretched (ordered). We found that, independently on the arrangement of the chains, both surfaces align planarly the liquid crystal, in accord with experimental observation. Moreover, while 5CB molecules align along the chains stretching direction of the PMMA ordered surface, on the combed PS surface they arrange on average perpendicularly to the stretching direction. This behaviour is attributed to the chemically specific interactions between the respective aromatic moieties of PS and 5CB.     

Synthesis and reactivity of formamidinato rhodium(I) complexes

The syntheses of [Rh(diol)(formamidine)]₂ complexes (diol  cycloocta-1,5-diene (1); diol  norbornadiene (2); formamidine  N,N′-di-p-tolylformamidine) are reported. These complexes are dimeric and contain the bridging formamidino ligand. They react with CO, dppe and PPh₃ with displacement of the diene ligand to yield the known [Rh(CO)₂(formamidine)]₂, [Rh(dppe)₂]⁺ and [Rh(PPh₃)₂(formamidine)], respectively; the last complex, in which the formamidine acts as a chelating ligand, was isolated only as the O₂ adduct. With HCl or HBF₄ aqueous 1 and 2 do not form hydrides but instead the formamidino cation [p-tolyl-NHCHNHtolyl-p]⁺ and the complexes [Rh(diol)X]₂ (X  Cl, F); a possible scheme for the reaction with HCl is proposed. The [Rh(C₈H₁₂)(formamidine)]₂ complex reacts with heterocumulenes as CS₂, SO₂, PhNCS and PhNCO with diene displacement; the only product isolated was [Rh(CS₂)₂(formamidine], to which a polymeric structure is assigned.