Through-Space Spin Coupling in a Silver(II) Porphyrin Dimer upon Stepwise Oxidations: AgII⋅⋅⋅AgII,AgII⋅⋅⋅AgIII,and AgIII⋅⋅⋅AgIII Metallophilic Interactions

Metallophilic interactions between closed-shell metal ions are becoming a popular tool for a variety of applications related to high-end materials. Heavier d⁸ transition-metal ions are also considered to have a closed shell and can be involved in such interactions. There is no systematic investigation so far to estimate the structure and energy characteristics of metallophilic interactions in Ag^II/Ag^II (d⁹/d⁹), Ag^III/Ag^III (d⁸/d⁸), and mixed-valent Ag^II/Ag^III (d⁹/d⁸) complexes, which have been demonstrated in the present study. Both interporphyrinic and intermetallic interactions were investigated on stepwise oxidation by using a rigid ethene-bridged cis silver(II) porphyrin dimer and the results compared with those for highly flexible ethane-bridged analogues. By controlling the nature of chemical oxidants and their stoichiometry, both 1e and 2e oxidations were done stepwise to generate Ag^II/Ag^III mixed-valent and Ag^III/Ag^III porphyrin dimers, respectively. Unlike all other ethene-bridged metalloporphyrin dimers reported earlier, in which 2e oxidation stabilizes only the trans form, such an oxidation of silver(II) porphyrin dimer stabilizes only the cis form because of the metallophilic interaction. Besides silver(II) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(II) interactions in cis silver(II) porphyrin dimer, stepwise oxidations also enabled us to achieve various hitherto-unknown silver(II) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(III) and silver(III) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(III) interactions, which thereby allow significant modulation of their structure and properties. The strength of Ag ⋅⋅⋅ Ag interaction follows the order Ag^II/Ag^II (d⁹/d⁹)<Ag^II/Ag^III (d⁹/d⁸)<Ag^III/Ag^III (d⁸/d⁸). Single-crystal XRD, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ¹H NMR and EPR spectroscopy, and variable-temperature magnetic investigations revealed various oxidation states of silver and metallophilic interactions, which are also well supported by computational analysis.     

RNAi for Insect Control: Current Perspective and Future Challenges

The research on the RNA interference (RNAi) for the control of insect pests has made significant growth in recent years. The availability of the genomic sequences of insects has further widened the horizons for the testing of this technology to various insect groups. Different modes of application of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) have been tested; however, the practicability of delivery of dsRNA in insects still remains the biggest challenge. Till date, the oral delivery of dsRNA in insects is one of the efficient approaches for the practical application of this technique. The uptake of dsRNA from the insect gut is mediated either by SID-1/SID-2 transmembrane proteins or by endocytosis; however, the systemic RNAi machinery still remains to be revealed in insect species. The RNAi-mediated gene knockdown has shown striking results in different insect groups, pointing it to be the upcoming technique for insect control. However, before the successful application of this technique for insect control, some potential issues need to be resolved. This review presents the account of prospects and challenges for the use of this technology for insect control.     

“Dial-In” Emission from a Unique Flexible Material with Polarization Tuneable Spectral Intensity

The development of organic photoluminescent materials, which show promising roles as catalysts, sensors, organic light-emitting diodes, logic gates, etc., is a major demand and challenge for the global scientific community. In this context, a photoclick polymerization method is adopted for the growth of a unique photoluminescent three-dimensional (3D) polymer film, E, as a model system that shows emission tunability over the range 350–650 nm against the excitation range 295–425 nm. The DFT analysis of energy calculations and π-stacking supports the spectroscopic observations for the material exhibiting a broad range of emission owing to newly formed chromophoric units within the film. Full polarization spectroscopic Mueller matrix studies were employed to extract and quantify the molecular orientational order of both the ground (excitation) and excited (emission) state anisotropies through a set of newly defined parameters, namely the fluorescence diattenuation and fluorescence polarizance. The information contained in the recorded fluorescence Mueller matrix of the organic polymer material provided a useful way to control the spectral intensity of emission by using pre- and post-selection of polarization states. The observation was based on the assumption that the longer lifetime of the excited dipolar orientation is attributed to the compactness of the film.     

Total Synthesis of the 7,10‐Epimer of the Proposed Structure of Amphidinolide N,Part II: Synthesis of C17–C29 Subunit and Completion of the Synthesis

The total synthesis of 7,10‐epimer of the proposed structure of amphidinolide N was accomplished. The requisite chiral C17–C29 subunit was assembled stereoselectively via Keck allylation, Shi epoxidation, diastereoselective 1,3‐reduction, and a later oxidative synthesis of the THF framework. The C1–C13 and C17–C29 subunits were successfully coupled using a Enders RAMP “linchpin” as the C14–C16 three carbon unit, thereby controlling the chirality at C14 and C16. The labile allyl epoxy moiety was successfully constructed by Grieco–Nishizawa olefination at a final stage of the synthesis.