The structure of enopeptins A and B, novel depsipeptide antibiotics

The structures of enopeptins A and B, novel depsipeptide antibiotics with 1,3,5,7,9-decapentaene-1,10-dicarboxylic acid and 2-amino-3-hydroxycyclopent-2-enone in a side chain, were determined by chemical and spectroscopic means.     

Simple preparation and catalytic activity of Pd particles dispersed mesoporous carbons from poly(VDC/MA) containing Pd and Y compounds

We report a simple preparation of Pd particles dispersed mesoporous carbons. The carbons were prepared by steam activation of carbonized vinylidene chloride/methyl acrylate copolymer (poly(VDC/MA)) containing yttrium acetylacetonate (Y(acac)(3)) and palladium acetylacetonate (Pd(acac)(2)). The resulting carbons consist of high contents of mesopore and uniformly dispersed fine Pd particles. We measured the catalytic activities of the carbons obtained for hydrogenation of methyl linoleate. The Pd particles dispersed in mesoporous activated carbons obtained from poly(VDC/MA) containing both Y(acac)(3) and Pd(acac)(2) showed high catalytic activities, compared with the microporous activated carbon obtained from poly(VDC/MA) containing only Pd(acac)(2). Especially Pd particles dispersed in mesoporous carbons exhibited excellent selectivity for hydrogenation of diene (methyl linoleate) to monoene (methyl oleate).     

Sub-Doppler rotationally resolved spectroscopy of lower vibronic bands of benzene with Zeeman effects

Sub-Doppler high-resolution excitation spectra and the Zeeman effects of the 6(0)(1), 1(0)(1)6(0)(1), and 1(0)(2)6(0)(1) bands of the S1(1)B2u<--S(0)(1)A1g transition of benzene were measured by crossing laser beam perpendicular to a collimated molecular beam. 1593 rotational lines of the 1(0) (1)6(0) (1) band and 928 lines of the 1(0)(2)6(0)(1) band were assigned, and the molecular constants of the excited states were determined. Energy shifts were observed for the S1(1)B2u(v1=1,v6=1,J,Kl=-11) levels, and those were identified as originating from a perpendicular Coriolis interaction. Many energy shifts were observed for the S1(1)B2u(v1=2,v6=1,J,Kl) levels. The Zeeman splitting of a given J level was observed to increase with K and reach the maximum at K=J, which demonstrates that the magnetic moment lies perpendicular to the molecular plane. The Zeeman splittings of the K=J levels were observed to increase linearly with J. From the analysis, the magnetic moment is shown to be originating mostly from mixing of the S1(1)B2u and S2(1)B1u states by the J-L coupling (electronic Coriolis interaction). The number of perturbations was observed to increase as the excess energy increases, and all the perturbing levels were found to be a singlet state from the Zeeman spectra.     

General synthesis of sugar-pendant 1,3-propanediamines containing a C-glycoside linkage

A straightforward route to C-glycoside linked sugar-pendant 1,3-propanediamines is described. The three-step preparation procedure involves (1) C-glycosylation of an OH-protected α-glycosyl halide with malononitrile, (2) catalytic hydrogenation of the nitriles to amines, and (3) deprotection of acetyl groups via acid-catalyzed hydrolysis. In the case of the galactose derivative, excess sodiomalononitrile promotes the second addition of a carbanion in the first step. The β-anomeric configuration was confirmed by X-ray crystallography of the glycosylated intermediates. This method demonstrates a general method to access a new class of carbohydrate-pendant C-glycoside chelators.     

Pre-fibrillation of pulps to manufacture cellulose nanofiber-reinforced high-density polyethylene using the dry pulp direct kneading method

The dry pulp direct kneading method is an industrially viable, low-energy process for manufacturing cellulose nanofiber (CNF)-reinforced polymer composites, where the chemically modified pulps are nanofibrillated and uniformly dispersed in the polymer matrix during melt compounding. In the present study, cellulose fibers of various sizes ranging from surface-fibrillated pulps (20 μm in width) to fine CNFs (20 nm in width) were prepared from softwood bleached kraft pulps using a refiner and a high-pressure homogenizer. These cellulose fibers were modified with alkenyl succinic anhydride and dried. The dried fibers were used as a feed material for melt compounding in the dry pulp direct kneading method to fabricate CNF-reinforced high-density polyethylene (HDPE). When surface-fibrillated pulps were employed as a feed material, the pulps were nanofibrillated and dispersed uniformly in the HDPE matrix during melt compounding. The resulting composites had much better properties—i.e., much higher tensile modulus and strength values, and much lower coefficient of thermal expansion values—than the composites produced using pulps without pre-fibrillation. However, when CNFs were used as a feed material, they were shortened and agglomerated during melt compounding, and the properties of the composites consequently deteriorated. The study concludes that surface-fibrillated pulp, which can be produced cost-effectively using a refiner on an industrial scale, is more suitable as a feed material than CNFs for melt compounding in the dry pulp direct kneading method. This finding enables the elimination of a preliminary step in the preparation of CNFs from pulps, which is a time-consuming and energy-intensive process.

Graphical abstract

     

High-resolution Mn EXAFS of the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II: structural implications for the Mn4Ca cluster

The biological generation of oxygen by the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II (PS II) is one of nature's most important reactions. The recent X-ray crystal structures, while limited by resolutions of 3.2-3.5 A, have located the electron density associated with the Mn4Ca cluster within the multiprotein PS II complex. Detailed structures critically depend on input from spectroscopic techniques, such as EXAFS and EPR/ENDOR, as the XRD resolution does not allow for accurate determination of the position of Mn/Ca or the bridging and terminal ligand atoms. The number and distances of Mn-Mn/Ca/ligand interactions determined from EXAFS provide important constraints for the structure of the Mn4Ca cluster. Here, we present data from a high-resolution EXAFS method using a novel multicrystal monochromator that show three short Mn-Mn distances between 2.7 and 2.8 A and, hence, the presence of three di-mu-oxo-bridged units in the Mn4Ca cluster. This result imposes clear limitations on the proposed structures based on spectroscopic and diffraction data and provides input for refining such structures.     

Dynamics and thermodynamics of dimerization of parallel G-quadruplexed DNA formed from d(TTAGn) (n=3-5)

Parallel G-quadruplexes formed from oligonucleotide sequences, d(TTAGn), where n = 3-5, have been shown to form a dimer through end-to-end stacking of 3'-terminal G-tetrads. The monomers and dimers of the G-quadruplexes are in dynamic equilibrium with an exchange rate of approximately 1 s-1. A thermodynamic study demonstrated that the dimerization of the G-quadruplexes is largely enthalpic in origin.     

Application of Hot Press Sintering to Na2O-B2O3-SiO2 Gels Containing Quantum Dots for Lowering of Densification Temperature

Na₂O-B₂O₃-SiO₂ (NBS) gels containing a large amount of CdS quantum-dots (10 wt%) were densified using the hot press (HP) sintering method. By HP treatment, full-densification temperature could be lowered by about 40°C than that of the normal non-pressing (NP) heat treatment. Exciton absorption of CdS quantum-dots in HP-sample showed a large blue shift compared with that in the NP sample, and the size-distribution of CdS dots remained very sharp, with a mean particle diameter d = 3.66 nm and a standard deviation of = 0.72. HP pressure had a large effect on the reduction of sintering temperature and time, resulting in the suppression of the aggregation and growth of CdS quantum-dots in NBS glasses.     

Single crystal X- and Q-band EPR spectroscopy of a binuclear Mn(2)(III,IV) complex relevant to the oxygen-evolving complex of photosystem II

The anisotropic g and hyperfine tensors of the Mn di-micro-oxo complex, [Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4)](PF(6))(3).CH(3)CN, were derived by single-crystal EPR measurements at X- and Q-band frequencies. This is the first simulation of EPR parameters from single-crystal EPR spectra for multinuclear Mn complexes, which are of importance in several metalloenzymes; one of them is the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II (PS II). Single-crystal [Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4)](PF(6))(3).CH(3)CN EPR spectra showed distinct resolved (55)Mn hyperfine lines in all crystal orientations, unlike single-crystal EPR spectra of other Mn(2)(III,IV) di-micro-oxo bridged complexes. We measured the EPR spectra in the crystal ab- and bc-planes, and from these spectra we obtained the EPR spectra of the complex along the unique a-, b-, and c-axes of the crystal. The crystal orientation was determined by X-ray diffraction and single-crystal EXAFS (Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure) measurements. In this complex, the three crystallographic axes, a, b, and c, are parallel or nearly parallel to the principal molecular axes of Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4) as shown in the crystallographic data by Stebler et al. (Inorg. Chem. 1986, 25, 4743). This direct relation together with the resolved hyperfine lines significantly simplified the simulation of single-crystal spectra in the three principal directions due to the reduction of free parameters and, thus, allowed us to define the magnetic g and A tensors of the molecule with a high degree of reliability. These parameters were subsequently used to generate the solution EPR spectra at both X- and Q-bands with excellent agreement. The anisotropic g and hyperfine tensors determined by the simulation of the X- and Q-band single-crystal and solution EPR spectra are as follows: g(x) = 1.9887, g(y) = 1.9957, g(z) = 1.9775, and hyperfine coupling constants are A(III)(x) = |171| G, A(III)(y) = |176| G, A(III)(z) = |129| G, A(IV)(x) = |77| G, A(IV)(y) = |74| G, A(IV)(z) = |80| G.     

The effect of fluorination: a crystallographic and computational study of mesogenic alkyl 4-[2-(perfluorooctyl)ethoxy]benzoates

The series of alkyl 4-[2-(perfluorooctyl)ethoxy]benzoates (F8-n) shows a systematic change of crystal structures depending on the length of the alkyl chain: separate packing of perfluorooctyl (Rf) and alkyl (Rh) chains from each other for shorter (n=2) and longer (n=11) members, alternate packing of Rf and Rh chains for middle (n=6,7) members, and an intermediate type of packing for n=4. Semiempirical MO calculations show slightly repulsive interactions between the Rf chains, and attractive ones between Rf and Rh chains and between Rh and the core of a molecular pair. It is concluded that fluorination determines the molecular shape of the crystal structures by making the chain rigid. It is confirmed that the interactions between Rf chains are small compared with those between other moieties and that they are forced to aggregate owing to the exclusion from other moieties. Thus, the effect is dependent on the geometries and intermolecular interactions of the other moieties.