Pseudo four-component synthesis of benzopyranopyrimidines

An efficient and simple method for the synthesis of new benzopyranopyrimidines via a pseudo four-component reaction of salicylic aldehydes, malononitrile and various amines in the presence of a catalytic amount of LiClO₄ is reported. The advantages of this procedure are mild reaction conditions, high yields of products and operational simplicity.     

THE APPLICATION OF N,N′DIBROMO-N,N′-1,2-ETHANEDIYL BIS(P-TOLUENESULFONAMIDE) AS A POWERFUL REAGENT FOR CONVERSION OF CARBOXYLIC ACIDS INTO ESTERS AND AMIDES WITH TRIPHENYLPHOSPHINE

In the presence of equivalent amounts of triphenylphenylphosphine and N,N′-dibromo-N,N′-1,2-ethanediylbis(p-toluenesulphonamide) ester and amide compounds can be generated in high yields from the corresponding carboxylic acid and alcohols or amines.     

Effect of load on structural and frictional properties of alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers on gold: some odd-even effects

We have conducted molecular dynamics simulations to study the frictional properties of alkanethiols CH(3)(CH(2))(n-1)SH (Cn, 12 ≤ n ≤ 15) self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au(111) surfaces, under various loading and shearing conditions. For the examined alkanethiols, we found some evidence of the friction coefficient being dependent on the number of carbon atoms in the molecule being odd or even. Alkanethiols with n = odd show consistently higher friction coefficients than those with n = even. Such odd-even effect seems to be independent of the sliding velocity. However, the effect is significant only at lower loads (<700 MPa). The structural origin of this odd-even effect has been discussed. The effect of loading on the structure is also studied. For dodecanethiol (n = 12) we find the film responds to increased loading initially by increasing the tilt and then by deformation of individual molecules. SAM-Au contacts under shear show periodic storage and release of energy and a clear stick-slip pattern in the shear stress, film thickness, and the tilt and tilt orientation angles.     

Influences of anionic and cationic dopants on the morphology and optical properties of PbS nanostructures

Selenium and zinc are used as anionic and cationic dopant elements to dope PbS nanostructures. The undoped and doped PbS nanostructures are grown using a thermal evaporation method. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） results show similar morphologies for the undoped and doped PbS nanostructures. X-ray diffraction （XRD） patterns of three sets of the nanostructures indicate that these nanostructures each have a PbS structure with a cubic phase. Evidence of dopant incorporation is demonstrated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）. Raman spectra of the synthesized samples con- firm the XRD results and indicate five Raman active modes, which relate to the PbS cubic phase for all the nanostructures. Room temperature photoluminescence （PL） and UV-Vis spectrometers are used to study optical properties of the undoped and doped PbS nanostructures. Optical characterization shows that emission and absorption peaks are in the infrared （IR） region of the electromagnetic spectrum for all PbS nanostructures. In addition, the optical studies of the doped PbS nanos- tructures reveal that the band gap of the Se-doped PbS is smaller, and the band gap of the Zn-doped PbS is bigger than the band gap of the undoped PbS nanostructures.     

Poly(N,N′-dichloro-N-ethyl-benzene-1,3-disulfonamide, N,N,N′,N′-tetrachlorobenzene-1,3-disulfonamide, poly(N,N′-dibromo-N-ethyl-benzene-1,3-disulfonamide, and N,N,N′,N′-tetrabromobenzene-1,3-disulfonamide catalyzed formylation of amines and alcohols using ethyl formate under microwave irradiation

A simple, rapid, and efficient procedure for formylation of primary and secondary amines and alcohols using ethyl formate catalyzed with poly(N,N′-dichloro-N-ethyl-benzene-1,3-disulfonamide (PCBS), N,N,N′,N′-tetrachlorobenzene-1,3-disulfonamide (TCBDA), poly(N,N′-dibromo-N-ethyl-benzene-1,3-disulfonamide (PBBS) and also N,N,N′,N′-tetrabromobenzene-1,3-disulfonamide (TBBDA) was adopted. The reactions were performed under microwave irradiation with high yields.     

Multiple electrosprays generated from a single polycarbonate microstructured fibre

Electrospray ionization (ESI) has been invaluable to the mass spectrometric detection of biomolecules, due largely to the sensitivity afforded by the ionization technique. Lower flow rates, e.g. in the nanoelectrospray regime, result in smaller initial electrosprayed droplets, leading to higher ionization efficiency and greater signal. One approach to improving sensitivity without lowering flow rate is to generate multiple electrosprays (MESs) from the same sample, essentially splitting one larger flow into smaller flows in the nanoESI regime. Presented here is a series of novel MES emitters in the form of polycarbonate fibres. Based on microstructured fibre (MSF) technology whereby a set of homogeneous parallel channels are formed in a heat‐drawn fibre intended to conduct light, a custom design was fabricated in which 3, 6, 9 and 12 holes were arranged in a radial pattern to prevent inhomogeneities in the electric field. The MSFs have dimensions that are compatible with current standards in nanoESI equipment, and the tip is more compatible with standard MS orifices than other larger multielectrospray emitters. By measuring the spray current provided by the various emitters under the same solvent/voltage/total flow rate conditions, a plot was obtained clearly demonstrating the expected dependence on the square root of the number of holes, i.e. the number of independent electrosprays. With this firm proof of principle using this design/format, further effort is justified in developing similar emitters in alternative materials that better prevent surface wetting and allow greater hole density, ultimately leading to greater signal enhancement. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Multiscale QM/MM molecular dynamics study on the first steps of guanine damage by free hydroxyl radicals in solution

Understanding the damage of DNA bases from hydrogen abstraction by free OH radicals is of particular importance to understanding the indirect effect of ionizing radiation. Previous studies address the problem with truncated DNA bases as ab initio quantum simulations required to study such electronic-spin-dependent processes are computationally expensive. Here, for the first time, we employ a multiscale and hybrid quantum mechanical-molecular mechanical simulation to study the interaction of OH radicals with a guanine-deoxyribose-phosphate DNA molecular unit in the presence of water, where all of the water molecules and the deoxyribose-phosphate fragment are treated with the simplistic classical molecular mechanical scheme. Our result illustrates that the presence of water strongly alters the hydrogen-abstraction reaction as the hydrogen bonding of OH radicals with water restricts the relative orientation of the OH radicals with respect to the DNA base (here, guanine). This results in an angular anisotropy in the chemical pathway and a lower efficiency in the hydrogen-abstraction mechanisms than previously anticipated for identical systems in vacuum. The method can easily be extended to single- and double-stranded DNA without any appreciable computational cost as these molecular units can be treated in the classical subsystem, as has been demonstrated here.