Flexible and Hierarchical Metal–Organic Framework Composites for High‐Performance Catalysis

The development of porous composite materials is of great significance for their potentially improved performance over those of individual components and extensive applications in separation, energy storage, and heterogeneous catalysis. Now mesoporous metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) with macroporous melamine foam (MF) have been integrated using a one‐pot process, generating a series of MOF/MF composite materials with preserved crystallinity, hierarchical porosity, and increased stability over that of melamine foam. The MOF nanocrystals were threaded by the melamine foam networks, resembling a ball‐and‐stick model overall. The resulting MOF/MF composite materials were employed as an effective heterogeneous catalyst for the epoxidation of cholesteryl esters. Combining the advantages of interpenetrative mesoporous and macroporous structures, the MOF/melamine foam composite has higher dispersibility and more accessibility of catalytic sites, exhibiting excellent catalytic performance.     

Reduction of aldehydes and ketones by transfer hydrogenation with 1,4-butanediol

1,4-Butanediol has been used as the hydrogen donor in transfer hydrogenation reactions. The equilibrium is driven by the formation of gamma-butyrolactone, and the diol is therefore not required in excess.     

Prototype protein assembly as scaffold for time-resolved fluoroimmuno assays

Turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV) is an icosahedral plant virus with an average diameter of 28 nm and can be isolated in gram quantities from turnip or Chinese cabbage inexpensively. In this study, it was selected as a prototype bionanoparticle for time-resolved fluoroimmuno assay (TRFIA). Two types of reactive amino acid residues were employed to anchor luminescent terbium complexes and biotin groups based on orthogonal chemical reactions. While terbium complexes were used as luminescent signaling groups, biotin motifs acted as a model ligand for protein binding. The bioconjugation results were confirmed by MS and Western blot analysis. Steady-state and time-resolved luminescence study of the dual-modified viruses demonstrated that the spectroscopic properties of the Tb complex are unperturbed by the labeling procedure. The dual-modified particle was probed by fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) experiments using avidin labeled with an Alexa488 fluorophore, which bound to the biotin on the surface of the particle, as an energy acceptor, and terbium complexes as an energy donor. The emission and excitation spectra of the dual-labeled TYMV particle displayed residual virus fluorescence and Tb luminescence upon ligand-centered excitation. The Tb luminescence lifetime was 1.62 ms and could be effectively fitted with a single-exponential behavior. In the TRFIA, an efficient transfer of 66% was observed, and the calculation using the F?rster radius of 41 A allowed for an estimation of the average donor-acceptor distance of 36 A. Our studies show that the two reactive sites can communicate with each other on the surface of a nanoscale biological assembly. In particular, the ligand-receptor binding (biotin and avidin in this paper) was not interfered with when anchored to the surface of TYMV. Therefore, as a prototype of polyvalent bionanoparticles, TYMV can be used as scaffold for sensor development with TRFIA.     

Synthesis and hydrolysis studies of a peptide containing the reactive triad of serine proteases with an associated linker to a dye on a solid phase support

The synthesis of a Tentagel-supported peptide incorporating the reactive triad of serine, histidine and aspartic acid, found within serine protease enzymes, is described.     

Kishner's reduction of 2-furylhydrazone gives 2-methylene-2,3-dihydrofuran, a highly reactive ene in the ene reaction

[reaction: see text] The Kishner reduction of 2-furylhydrazone gives 2-methylene-2,3-dihydrofuran as the major abnormal reduction product. 2-Methylene-2,3-dihydrofuran is an excellent ene in the carbonyl-ene reaction, reacting with a variety of aldehydes. Most notable was the asymmetric carbonyl-ene reaction of 2-methylene-2,3-dihydrofuran and decanal using Ti(OCH(CH3)2)4/(S)-BINOL to give the corresponding alcohol in 66% yield and 94% ee. The reaction of 2-methylene-2,3-dihydrofuran with 2 equiv of 1,4-benzoquinone unexpectedly gave a monoalkylated 1,4-hydroquinone/1,4-benzoquinone electron donor-acceptor complex.     

False position in Leonardo of Pisa's Liber Abbaci

We examine the rhetorical methods of Leonardo of Pisa in his exposition of single false position in Liber Abbaci. For example, Leonardo makes extensive use of formulaic phrases in his solutions. Some of these formulas also seem to indicate whether a particular solution needs further justification. Although he prefers proofs in terms of the pseudo-Euclidean canon of al-Khwārizmī, sometimes such proof eludes Leonardo and he resorts instead to justification by experiment. We also look at the extent to which using symbolic representations might distort our view of Leonardo's thinking.     

Simultaneous Visualization of Mitochondria and Lysosome by a Single Cyanine Dye: The Impact of the Donor Group (-NR2) Towards Organelle Selectivity

Journal of Fluorescence - A benzothiazolium-based hemicyanine dye (probe 3) has been synthesized by attaching a morpholine group into a phenyl benzothiazolium skeleton. Probe 3 exhibited...     

Finite phase transitions in countable abelian groups

Let A be an infinite set that generates a group G. The sphere S _A (r) is the set of elements of G for which the word length with respect to A is exactly r. We say G admits all finite transitions if for every r ≥ 2 and every finite symmetric subset W ì G\{e}{W \subset G{\setminus}\{e\}}, there exists an A with S _A (r) = W. In this paper we determine which countable abelian groups admit all finite transitions. We also show that \mathbbRⁿ{\mathbb{R}^n} and the finitary symmetric group on \mathbbN{\mathbb{N}} admit all finite transitions.