Crystal structure of thiogermanic acid H(4)Ge(4)S(10)

X-ray diffraction analysis reveals the thiogermanic acid H(4)Ge(4)S(10) possesses discrete adamantane-like Ge(4)S(10)(4)(-) complex anions. Each thioanion is composed of four corner shared GeS(2.5)(-) tetrahedral units. Crystals were grown from anhydrous liquid hydrogen sulfide reactions with glassy germanium sulfide at room temperature. The crystal structure was solved and refined from single crystal diffractometer data (Mo Kalpha radiation) obtained at 173 K. H(4)Ge(4)S(10) is triclinic, centrosymmetric space group Ponemacr;, with a = 8.621(4) A, b = 9.899(4) A, c = 10.009(4) A, alpha = 85.963(7) degrees, beta = 64.714(7) degrees, gamma = 89.501(8) degrees, and Z = 2. Average bridging and terminal d(Ge-S) distances are 2.229 and 2.206 A, respectively. Vibrational mode assignments are reported from Raman scattering and IR absorption spectra of polycrystalline samples. The nu(s)(Ge-S-Ge) and nu(s)(Ge-S(-)) stretching modes are observed at 354 and 405 cm(-)(1), respectively.     

Folate antagonists. 6. Synthesis and antimalarial effects of fused 2,4-diaminothieno[2,3-d]pyrimidines

2,4-Diamino-5,7-dihydro-6H-thiopyrano[4′,3′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrirnidine, 2,4-diamino-9H-mdeno[1′,2′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine, 2,4-diamino-5H-indeno[2′,1′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine, 9,11-diamino-5,6-dihydronaphtho[1′,2′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine, 7,9-diamino-5,6-dihydronaphtho[2′,1′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine, 2,4-diamino-7-benzy]-5,6,7,8-tetrahydropyrido[4′,3′:4,5]thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine, and various 2,4-diamino-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-[1]benzothieno[2,3-d]pyrimidines were synthesized by cyclization of the requisite fused 2-aminothio-phenene-3-carbonitriles utilizing chloroformamidine hydrochloride in diglyme. Several compounds exhibited strong inhibitory effects against Streptococcus faecalis (MGH-2), Staphylococcus aureus (UC-76), Streptococcus faecium (ATCC 8043), Lactobacillus casei (ATCC 7469), and Pediococcus cerevisiae (ATCC 8081) in vitro, and three compounds displayed antimalarial activity against Plasmodium berghei in mice and P. falciparum (Uganda I) in vitro.     

A new route of oxygen isotope exchange in the solid phase: demonstration in CuSO4.5H2O

Temperature-programmed desorption mass spectrometry (TPD-MS) measurements on [(18)O]water-enriched copper sulfate pentahydrate (CuSO(4).5H(2)(18)O) reveal an unambiguous occurrence of efficient oxygen isotope exchange between the water of crystallization and the sulfate in its CuSO(4) solid phase. To the best of our knowledge, the occurrence of such an exchange was never observed in a solid phase. The exchange process was observed during the stepwise dehydration (50-300 degrees C) of the compound. Specifically, the exchange promptly occurs somewhere between 160 and 250 degrees C; however, the exact temperature could not be resolved conclusively. It is shown that only the fifth, sulfate-associated, anionic H(2)O molecule participates in the exchange process and that the exchange seems to occur in a preferable fashion with, at the most, one oxygen atom in SO(4). Such an exchange, occurring below 250 degrees C, questions the common conviction of unfeasible oxygen exchange under geothermic conditions. This new oxygen exchange phenomenon is not exclusive to copper sulfate but is unambiguously observed also in other sulfate- and nitrate-containing minerals.     

Coordination compounds of indium : XXXVI. The direct electrochemical synthesis of neutral and anionic organoindium halides

The electrochemical oxidation of indium metal in cells of the type leads to the formation of RInX₂ compounds; if 2,2′-bipyridine is also present, the products are the adducts RInX₂·bipy (R = CH₃, C₂H₅, C₆H₅, C₆H₅CH₂, C₆F₅; X = Cl, Br, I (not all combinations)). When R′₄NX is present instead of bipy, the products are the salts R′₄N[RInX₃]. The electrochemical oxidation apparently proceeds via the general mechanism discussed previously. Anomalous results with CH₃I or C₂H₅I are discussed in the light of the known solution chemistry of organoindium(III) compounds.     

Macrophage-targeting oligopeptides from Mortierella alpina

The realm of natural products of early diverging fungi such as Mortierella species is largely unexplored. Herein, the nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) MalA catalysing the biosynthesis of the surface-active biosurfactants, malpinins, has been identified and biochemically characterised. The investigation of the substrate specificity of respective adenylation (A) domains indicated a substrate-tolerant enzyme with an unusual, inactive C-terminal NRPS module. Specificity-based precursor-directed biosynthesis yielded 20 new congeners produced by a single enzyme. Moreover, MalA incorporates artificial, click-functionalised amino acids which allowed postbiosynthetic coupling to a fluorophore. The fluorescent malpinin conjugate penetrates mammalian cell membranes via an phagocytosis-mediated mechanism, suggesting Mortierella oligopeptides as carrier peptides for directed cell targeting. The current study demonstrates substrate-specificity testing as a powerful tool to identify flexible NRPS modules and highlights basal fungi as reservoir for chemically tractable compounds in pharmaceutical applications.

Specificity profiling of a nonribosomal peptide synthetase of an early diverging fungus revealed high substrate flexibility. Feeding studies with click-functionalised amino acids enabled the production of fluorescent peptides targeting macrophages.     

Open-Source Browser-Based Tools for Structure-Based Computer-Aided Drug Discovery

We here outline the importance of open-source, accessible tools for computer-aided drug discovery (CADD). We begin with a discussion of drug discovery in general to provide context for a subsequent discussion of structure-based CADD applied to small-molecule ligand discovery. Next, we identify usability challenges common to many open-source CADD tools. To address these challenges, we propose a browser-based approach to CADD tool deployment in which CADD calculations run in modern web browsers on users’ local computers. The browser app approach eliminates the need for user-initiated download and installation, ensures broad operating system compatibility, enables easy updates, and provides a user-friendly graphical user interface. Unlike server apps—which run calculations “in the cloud” rather than on users’ local computers—browser apps do not require users to upload proprietary information to a third-party (remote) server. They also eliminate the need for the difficult-to-maintain computer infrastructure required to run user-initiated calculations remotely. We conclude by describing some CADD browser apps developed in our lab, which illustrate the utility of this approach. Aside from introducing readers to these specific tools, we are hopeful that this review highlights the need for additional browser-compatible, user-friendly CADD software.     

Measurements Of Biogenic Hydrocarbons And Their Atmospheric Degradation In Forests

Abstract

An analytical procedure for the sampling and quantitative determination of biogenic hydrocarbons in the atmosphere is presented. The method is based on the adsorptive preconcentration of the hydrocarbons using Tenax TA/Carbopack B filled sampling tubes followed by thermodesorption of the trapped compounds and gas chromatographic analysis. To avoid losses of the biogenic alkenes as a consequence of their reaction with ozone on the adsorbents during the sampling step, an ozone scrubber is used in front of the adsorption tubes. Diurnal variations of the monoterpene- and ozone-concentrations are determined at different heights in and above a forest stand (coniferous and deciduous trees) in the Vosges (Col du Donon, 760 m a.s.l.) in order to elucidate the importance of terpene-oxidation reactions on the formation of peroxidic products in forest air.