Computational NMR spectroscopy of organoarsenicals and the natural polyarsenic compound arsenicin A

The (1)H and (13)C NMR chemical shifts and coupling constants of a series of organoarsenic compounds were calculated with DFT methods and compared with available experimental spectra. We show that non-relativistic methods successfully model the NMR spectra of these molecules; relativistic spin-orbit effects are small but appreciable for (13)C shifts, and their inclusion is beneficial. Application of the same methods of calculation to the intriguing natural polyarsenic compound arsenicin A allowed several viable alternative structures to be ruled out and thereby confirmed the previously suggested adamantane-like structure of arsenicin A. These results not only reinforce the known predictive power of DFT NMR calculations, but also open the way for the investigation of other naturally occurring molecules with unusual structures outside the scope of empirical methods.     

Decomposition of formamide assisted by microwaves, a tool for synthesis of nitrogen-containing heterocycles

Generation of ammonia via thermal decomposition of formamide was studied under microwave conditions to provide an efficient tool for the synthesis of nitrogen-containing heterocycles. Quinazolin-4-ones, which are known as building blocks for molecules with pharmaceutical interest, were chosen as examples. Our work confirms that reactants may have different behaviours under microwaves, depending on power input, reached temperature and pressure in the vials. Full control and fine tuning of these parameters are achievable using modern microwave technology.     

Compression elastic modulus of neutral,ionic, and amphoteric hydrogels based on N‐vinylimidazole

Several hydrogels of N‐vinylimidazole and sodium styrenesulfonate have been prepared by radical cross‐linking copolymerization in aqueous solution, using N,N′‐methylene‐bisacrylamide as crosslinker. Depending on composition, these hydrogels were neutral, amphoteric, cationic or anionic. Compression‐strain measurements were performed on samples as‐synthesized and swollen in deionized water or in acid aqueous solutions, with and without salt. It was thus found that the cross‐linking densities determined by compression measurements on as‐synthesized samples are in good accordance with those calculated by means of the model of polymer networks with pendant vinyl groups. A non‐Gaussian parameter (β) was introduced to explain that the elastic moduli (G) of samples swollen at equilibrium are larger than predicted by the Gaussian model. The β values of the neutral or ionized systems increase with swelling and fall into a single curve, which denotes a common behavior. Swelling has two opposite effects on G; on the one hand G decreases because the polymer volume fraction diminish and the system shifts from the affine limit to the phantom one; on the other, β increases and contributes to increasing G. The balance of those two opposite effects determines the variation of G with swelling. The possible contribution of ionic crosslinks to ν_e for the polyampholyte and for the polycation wearing divalent counteranions was discussed. A peculiar system is poly(sodium styrenesulfonate), whose cross‐linking density is much lower than expected. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 47: 1078–1087, 2009     

Synthesis of carbo- and heterocycles via a palladium-catalysed allene insertion-nucleophile incorporation-Michael addition cascade

A novel palladium catalysed three-component cascade process is described involving allenylation of an aryl iodide to generate a (π-allyl)palladium species which is intercepted by a carbon or nitrogen nucleophile followed by intramolecular Michael addition to afford carbo- and heterocycles in good yield.     

Volumetric and transport properties of aerosol-OT reversed micelles containing light and heavy water

Densities and viscosities of sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (AOT in-heptane system containing light and heavy water, as a function of the molar ratio R (R=[H₂O or D₂O]/[AOT]) were measured at 0, 5, 25 and 40°C. At low R values, the apparent molar volume of deuterium oxide is smaller than that of light water. The difference is related to the strength of the hydrogen bonding H₂O and D₂O. The viscosities of both H₂O-AOT-n-heptane and D₂O-AOT-n-heptane systems were explained in terms of intermicellar interactions mainly governed by hydration of the head groups of AOT.     

A study of resveratrol-copper complexes by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and density functional theory calculations

Resveratrol is a polyphenolic compound found in plants and human foods which has shown biological activities including chemoprevention, acting through a mechanism which involves the reduction of Cu(II) species. By electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry we have produced and detected the resveratrol-copper complexes [Resv+Cu](+), [Resv+Cu+H(2)O](+) and [2Resv+Cu](+) by using a resveratrol/CuSO(4) solution in CH(3)CN/H(2)O. The most stable structures of the detected complexes have been calculated at the B3LYP/6-311G(d) level of theory. Resveratrol interacts with the copper ion through nucleophilic carbon atoms on the aromatic ring and the alkenyl group. The fact that only singly charged ions were observed implies that Cu(II) is reduced to Cu(I) in the ESI process. For investigating the structure-reactivity correlation, we have carried out a similar study on the synthetic analogue dihydroresveratrol (DHResv). For the latter only the [DHResv+Cu](+) complex has been detected.     

Metal‐assisted regioselectivity in nucleophilic substitutions: a study by Raman spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations

A series of complexes (Fe^II, Cu^II and Ni^II) of the N,O bidentate ligand 6,7‐dichloroquinoline‐5,8‐dione in water was investigated by using Raman spectroscopy, and the experimental peaks were assigned with the help of computed spectra by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. A strong shift to lower wavenumbers was observed for the vibration of the CO group involved in chelation, depending on the type of metal ion. When each complex was used in the substitution reaction by the nucleophilic reagent piperidine, two products having the same molecular composition but showing the substituent in different regions of the molecule were obtained, and moreover their regioselective formation was in agreement with the size of the Raman shifts previously observed for the complexes. This example confirms the potential of the approach involving Raman spectroscopy combined with DFT calculations in the characterization of metal complexes as key intermediates in organic reactions, with the possibility of predicting the metal system capable to achieve the highest selectivity. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Essential Spectra, Matrix Operator and Applications

This paper gives a survey on some recent results on the spectral theory of block operator matrices. We study the closeness in the product space and we give some conditions to characterize the essential spectra in the Browder resolvent set case. Furthermore, we apply the obtained results to several models such as delay equations, Sturm–Liouville problem and transport equations.     

Cymantrene conjugation modulates the intracellular distribution and induces high cytotoxicity of a cell-penetrating peptide

The conjugation of cymantrene CpMn(CO)(3) to cell-penetrating peptide hCT(18-32)-k7 alters the intracellular distribution in MCF-7 cells compared to the unmodified peptide, as visualized by fluorescence microscopy, and leads to an increased nuclear accumulation; the peptide and cymantrene compound themselves are not toxic, but the bioconjugate shows a significant cytotoxicity with an IC(50) value of 36 micromol l(-1).