Arylation with Unsymmetrical Diaryliodonium Salts: A Chemoselectivity Study

Phenols, anilines, and malonates have been arylated under metal‐free conditions with twelve aryl(phenyl)iodonium salts in a systematic chemoselectivity study. A new “anti‐ortho effect” has been identified in the arylation of malonates. Several “dummy groups” have been found that give complete chemoselectivity in the transfer of the phenyl moiety, irrespective of the nucleophile. An aryl exchange in the diaryliodonium salts has been observed under certain arylation conditions. DFT calculations have been performed to investigate the reaction mechanism and to elucidate the origins of the observed selectivities. These results are expected to facilitate the design of chiral diaryliodonium salts and the development of catalytic arylation reactions that are based on these sustainable and metal‐free reagents.     

Contactless conductivity detector array for capillary electrophoresis

A CE system featuring an array of 16 contactless conductivity detectors was constructed. The detectors were arranged along 70 cm length of a capillary with 100 cm total length and allow the monitoring of separation processes. As the detectors cannot be accommodated on a conventional commercial instrument, a purpose built set‐up employing a sequential injection manifold had to be employed for automation of the fluid handling. Conductivity measurements can be considered universal for electrophoresis and thus any changes in ionic composition can be monitored. The progress of the separation of Na⁺ and K⁺ is demonstrated. The potential of the system to the study of processes in CZE is shown in two examples. The first demonstrates the differences in the developments of peaks originating from a sample plug with a purely aqueous background to that of a plug containing the analyte ions in the buffer. The second example visualizes the opposite migration of cations and anions from a sample plug that had been placed in the middle of the capillary.     

Development of an automated dual‐mode supercritical fluid chromatography and reversed‐phase liquid chromatography mass‐directed purification system for small‐molecule drug discovery

We report the development of a dual‐mode mass‐directed supercritical fluid chromatography and reversed‐phase liquid chromatography purification system. The addition of a third pump allows for flexible mobile phase control between the two techniques, and enables operation of either chromatography mode within minutes by activation of a set of switching valves on a single system. Software control, fluidic pathways, interface to the mass spectrometer, and fraction collection have been modified for compatibility between both separation methods. The conditioning solvent and tuning parameters for the mass spectrometer were adjusted to achieve an ideal signal trace in either mode with good linearity (r² > 0.970) over a range of concentrations and minimal noise for accurate peak detection and isolation. The registration success rate is 90% and overall sample recovery for either technique is 80?90%. Combining two orthogonal separation and purification modes in one single system has improved the purification throughput of complex mixtures and has been a valuable, cost‐saving tool in our laboratory.     

Discovery and validation of urinary exposure markers for different plant foods by untargeted metabolomics

While metabolomics is increasingly used to investigate the food metabolome and identify new markers of food exposure, limited attention has been given to the validation of such markers. The main objectives of the present study were to (1) discover potential food exposure markers (PEMs) for a range of plant foods in a study setting with a mixed dietary background and (2) validate PEMs found in a previous meal study. Three-day weighed dietary records and 24-h urine samples were collected three times during a 6-month parallel intervention study from 107 subjects randomized to two distinct dietary patterns. An untargeted UPLC-qTOF-MS metabolomics analysis was performed on the urine samples, and all features detected underwent strict data analyses, including an iterative paired t test and sensitivity and specificity analyses for foods. A total of 22 unique PEMs were identified that covered 7 out of 40 investigated food groups (strawberry, cabbages, beetroot, walnut, citrus, green beans and chocolate). The PEMs reflected foods with a distinct composition rather than foods eaten more frequently or in larger amounts. We found that 23 % of the PEMs found in a previous meal study were also valid in the present intervention study. The study demonstrates that it is possible to discover and validate PEMs for several foods and food classes in an intervention study with a mixed dietary background, despite the large variability in such a dataset. Final validation of PEMs for intake of foods should be performed by quantitative analysis.

One-Pot Synthesis and Applications of N-Heteroaryl Iodonium Salts

An efficient one-pot synthesis of N-heteroaryl iodonium triflates from the corresponding N-heteroaryl iodide and arene has been developed. The reaction conditions resemble our previous one-pot syntheses, with suitable modifications to allow N-heteroaryl groups. The reaction time is only 30 min, and no anion exchange is required. The obtained iodonium salts were isolated in a protonated form, these salts can either be employed directly in applications or be deprotonated prior to use. The aryl groups were chosen to induce chemoselective transfer of the heteroaryl moiety to various nucleophiles. The reactivity and chemoselectivity of these iodonium salts were demonstrated by selectively introducing a pyridyl moiety onto both oxygen and carbon nucleophiles in good yields.     

Ultrasonic properties of a suspension of microspheres supporting negative group velocities

The ultrasonic attenuation coefficient, phase velocity, and group velocity spectra are reported for a suspension that supports negative group velocities. The suspension consists of plastic microspheres with an average radius of 80 microm in an aqueous medium at a volume fraction of 3%. The spectra are measured using a broadband method covering a range from 2 to 20 MHz. The suspension exhibits negative group delays over a band near 4.5 MHz, with the group velocity magnitude exceeding 4.3 x 10(8) m/s at one point. The causal consistency of these results is confirmed using Kramers-Kronig relations.     

Drug-dendrimer supramolecular complexation studied from molecular dynamics simulations and NMR spectroscopy

Fully atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and NMR spectroscopy were employed to get insights about the molecular details of drug-dendrimer supramolecular association phenomena, using piroxicam (PRX) and the third generation poly(amido amine) (PAMAM-G3) dendrimer as model systems. Theoretical results concerning the complex stoichiometry suggest that PRX forms drug-dendrimer complexes of the type 24:1 at pH 7.0. This result was validated with the experimental quantities obtained from aqueous solubility profiles, which led to an empiric stoichiometry of 23:1 for the PRX:PAMAM-G3 system. The predicted binding mode between PRX and PAMAM-G3 accounts for the preferred encapsulation of the drug inside dendrimer cavities, which is mainly driven by van der Waals and hydrogen bonding interactions, and to a lesser extent, for the external association of the guest through electrostatic contacts with the positively charged amino groups of PAMAM periphery. The binding mode obtained from MD simulations was confirmed with 2D-NOESY experiments, which evidence the preferred internal complexation of PRX with PAMAM-G3. The predominance of internal encapsulation over external contacts in the PRX:PAMAM-G3 system differs from the general behaviour expected for acidic anionic guests, for which external electrostatic interactions with the positively charged PAMAM surface have been postulated as the most relevant factor for drug association.     

NMR imaging of solid polymers: Strategies for chemical-shift selectivity

One reason that the solid-state imaging field is exciting is because of its potential to provide spatially resolved chemical information from deep inside a solid sample. To achieve this goal, methods are needed which exploit the many NMR parameters to generate image contrast. We describe two strategies for employing the chemical-shift anisotropy as a contrast mechanism in images of abundant nuclei in solid polymers. We illustrate these approaches with images which map spatial variations of molecular orientation in samples of polytetrafluoroethylene.