Enzymatic enantiomeric resolution of phenylethylamines structurally related to amphetamine

Both enantiomers of several phenylethylamines, structurally related to amphetamine, have been prepared in good yields and excellent enantiomeric purity by enzymatic kinetic resolution using CAL-B and ethyl methoxyacetate as the acyl donor. In the case of the 4-hydroxyderivative of amphetamine (compound 4i), the S enantiomer racemized possibly in a dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) under the enzymatic conditions used.     

A simple, general route to 2-pyridylidene transition metal complexes

Pyridinium 2-carboxylates decompose thermally in the presence of a variety of late transition metal precursors to yield the corresponding 2-pyridylidene-like complexes. The mild reaction conditions and structural diversity that can be generated in the heterocyclic ring make this method an attractive alternative for the synthesis of 2-pyridylidene complexes. IR spectra of the Ir(i) carbonyl compounds [IrCl(NHC)(CO)(2)] indicate that these N-heterocyclic carbene ligands are among the strongest σ-electron donors.     

Gold‐Catalyzed Tandem Hydroamination/Formal Aza‐Diels–Alder Reaction of Homopropargyl Amino Esters: A Combined Computational and Experimental Mechanistic Study

A tandem gold‐catalyzed hydroamination/formal aza‐Diels–Alder reaction is described. This process, which employs quaternary homopropargyl amino ester substrates, leads to the formation of an intrincate tetracyclic framework and involves the generation of four bonds and five stereocenters in a highly diastereoselective manner. Theoretical calculations have allowed us to propose a suitable mechanistic rationalization for the tandem protocol. Additionally, by studying the influence of the ligands on the rate of the gold‐catalyzed reactions, it was possible to establish optimum conditions in which to perform the process with a variety of substituents on the amino ester substrates. Notably, the asymmetric version of the tandem reaction was also evaluated.     

Two-loop effective theory analysis of pi (K)-->enu[over ]_{e}[gamma] branching ratios

We study the ratios R_{e/mu};{(P)} identical withGamma(P-->enu[over ]_{e}[gamma])/Gamma(P-->munu[over ]_{mu}[gamma]) (P=pi, K) in Chiral Perturbation Theory to order e;{2}p;{4}. We complement the two-loop effective theory results with a matching calculation of the counterterm, finding R_{e/mu};{(pi)}=(1.2352+/-0.0001)x10;{-4} and R_{e/mu};{(K)}=(2.477+/-0.001)x10;{-5}.     

Fast determination of prominent carotenoids in tomato fruits by CEC using methacrylate ester-based monolithic columns

In this study, the major carotenoids (beta-carotene and lycopene) present in tomato fruits were analyzed by CEC with a methacrylate ester-based monolithic column. The effects of the porogenic solvent ratio, and the hydrophobicity of bulk monomer employed were examined on carotenoids separations. A fast separation of these analytes was achieved in less than 5.0 min in a mobile phase containing 35% THF, 30% ACN, 30% methanol, and 5% of a 5 mM Tris aqueous buffer, pH 8, with lauryl methacrylate-based monoliths. The CEC method was evaluated in terms of detection limit and reproducibility (retention time, area, and column preparation) with values below 1.6 microg/mL and 7.2%, respectively. The proposed procedure was successfully applied to the determination of both carotenoids in fruits of several tomato-related species and its usefulness to analyze large series of samples for nutritional quality screening trials in tomato breeding programs is demonstrated. To our knowledge, this is the first work that exploits the powerful and user-friendly monolithic technology for quality breeding and germplasm evaluation program purposes.     

Commercial Origanum compactum Benth. and Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume essential oils against natural mycoflora in Valencia rice

Chemical composition of commercial Origanum compactum and Cinnamomum zeylanicum essential oils and the antifungal activity against pathogenic fungi isolated from Mediterranean rice grains have been investigated. Sixty-one compounds accounting for more than 99.5% of the total essential oil were identified by using gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Carvacrol (43.26%), thymol (21.64%) and their biogenetic precursors p-cymene (13.95%) and γ-terpinene (11.28%) were the main compounds in oregano essential oil, while the phenylpropanoids, eugenol (62.75%), eugenol acetate (16.36%) and (E)-cinnamyl acetate (6.65%) were found in cinnamon essential oil. Both essential oils at 300 μg/mL showed antifungal activity against all tested strains. O. compactum essential oil showed the best antifungal activity towards Fusarium species and Bipolaris oryzae with a total inhibition of the mycelial growth. In inoculated rice grains at lower doses (100 and 200 μg/mL) significantly reduced the fungal infection, so O. compactum essential oil could be used as ecofriendly preservative for field and stored Valencia rice.     

Solid-phase extraction of prostanoids using an automatic sample preparation system.

A commercial automated solid-phase extraction system for cyclooxygenase arachidonic acid metabolites in urine samples has been evaluated. Comparison of manual and automatic batch (36 samples) extraction procedures for tritium labelled prostanoids added as tracers to urine samples has shown equivalent results with recoveries greater than 90% for prostaglandins E2, F2alpha and 6-keto prostaglandin F1alpha as well as thromboxane B2. Analyte stability is not affected by the automated procedure, which uses less solvents and has a faster overall processing time than the manual method. The automated system has been applied to the extraction of prostanoids in urine samples from workers exposed to dichloroethane.     

Do the generalized polynomial chaos and Fröbenius methods retain the statistical moments of random differential equations?

The aim of this paper is to explore whether the generalized polynomial chaos (gPC) and random Fröbenius methods preserve the first three statistical moments of random differential equations. There exist exact solutions only for a few cases, so there is a need to use other techniques for validating the aforementioned methods in regards to their accuracy and convergence. Here we present a technique for indirectly study both methods. In order to highlight similarities and possible differences between both approaches, the study is performed by means of a simple but still illustrative test-example involving a random differential equation whose solution is highly oscillatory. This comparative study shows that the solutions of both methods agree very well when the gPC method is developed in terms of the optimal orthogonal polynomial basis selected according to the statistical distribution of the random input. Otherwise, we show that results provided by the gPC method deteriorate severely. A study of the convergence rates of both methods is also included.