Palladium-catalyzed reaction of 2-hydroxy-2-methylpropiophenone with aryl bromides: a unique multiple arylation via successive C-C and C-H bond cleavages

2-Hydroxy-2-methylpropiophenone undergoes a unique multiple arylation via C-C and C-H bond cleavages upon treatment with excess aryl bromides in the presence of a palladium catalyst to give 1,1,2,2-tetraarylethanes and 4,4-diaryl-1-phenylisochroman-3-ones.     

Mössbauer spectroscopic study on spin crossover coordination polymer Fe(3-Clpy)2[Pd(CN)4]

⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopic results on the alternatively prepared spin crossover coordination polymer Fe(3-Clpy)₂Pd(CN)₄ sample I agree with those of SQUID data. Mössbauer specrum at RT shows two diffrent doublets which correspond to the HS1(inner doublet) and HS2(outer doublet). The intensity of the HS1 doublet decreases on cooling to 78 K at the expense of a new one featuring the LS singlet. Almost 100 % of HS1 change to LS singlet due to iron(II) ions coordinated by four N atoms of cyano groups and two N atoms of 3-Clpy ligand in the sample I. The SQUID data of the sample I prepared by a new direct contact method are different from those of the already reported Fe(3-Clpy)₂Pd(CN)₄ sample. The differences of the SQUID data are associated with particle size effects in molecule spin crossover samples.     

S-allyl Cysteine Enhances Testosterone Production in Mice and Mouse Testis-Derived I-10 Cells

Hypogonadism, associated with low levels of testosterone synthesis, has been implicated in several diseases. Recently, the quest for natural alternatives to prevent and treat hypogonadism has gained increasing research interest. To this end, the present study explored the effect of S-allyl cysteine (SAC), a characteristic organosulfur compound in aged-garlic extract, on testosterone production. SAC was administered at 50 mg/kg body weight intraperitoneally into 7-week-old BALB/c male mice in a single-dose experiment. Plasma levels of testosterone and luteinizing hormone (LH) and testis levels of proteins involved in steroidogenesis were measured by enzymatic immunoassay and Western blot, respectively. In addition, mouse testis-derived I-10 cells were also used to investigate the effect of SAC on steroidogenesis. In the animal experiment, SAC significantly elevated testosterone levels in both the plasma and the testis without changing the LH level in plasma and increased phosphorylated protein kinase A (p-PKA) levels. Similar results were also observed in I-10 cells. The findings demonstrating the increasing effect of SAC on p-PKA and mRNA levels of Cyp11a suggest that SAC increases the testosterone level by activating the PKA pathway and could be a potential target for hypogonadism therapeutics.     

High-throughput screening for combinatorial thin-film library of thermoelectric materials

A high-throughput method has been developed to evaluate the Seebeck coefficient and electrical resistivity of combinatorial thin-film libraries of thermoelectric materials from room temperature to 673 K. Thin-film samples several millimeters in size were deposited on an integrated Al2O3 substrate with embedded lead wires and local heaters for measurement of the thermopower under a controlled temperature gradient. An infrared camera was used for real-time observation of the temperature difference Delta T between two electrical contacts on the sample to obtain the Seebeck coefficient. The Seebeck coefficient and electrical resistivity of constantan thin films were shown to be almost identical to standard data for bulk constantan. High-throughput screening was demonstrated for a thermoelectric Mg-Si-Ge combinatorial library.     

N-cyclopropylation of indoles and cyclic amides with copper(II) reagent

Copper-mediated coupling reactions of cyclopropylboronic acid with indoles and cyclic amides are described. The process utilizes catalytic or stoichiometric amounts of copper(II) acetate, DMAP, and NaHMDS at 95 degrees C under an atmosphere containing oxygen. A variety of functional groups remain intact throughout the reaction.     

Direct observation of OH radicals ejected from water ice surface in the photoirradiation of nitrate adsorbed on ice at 100 K

Production of gaseous OH radicals in the 248-350 nm photoirradiation of NO3(-) doped on amorphous ice at 100 K was monitored directly by using resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization. The translational energy distribution of the OH product was represented by a Maxwell-Boltzmann energy distribution with the translational temperature of 3250 +/- 250 K. The rotational temperature was estimated to be 175 +/- 25 K. We have confirmed that the OH production should be attributed to the secondary photolysis of H2O2 produced on ice surface on the basis of the results of controlled photolysis experiments for H2O2 doped on ice surface.     

Synthesis of diaminopimelic acid containing peptidoglycan fragments and tracheal cytotoxin (TCT) and investigation of their biological functions

Bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan (PGN) is a potent immunostimulator and immune adjuvant. The PGN of Gram-negative bacteria and some Gram-positive bacteria contain meso-diaminopimelic acid (meso-DAP), and we have recently shown that the intracellular protein Nod1 is a PGN receptor and recognizes DAP-containing peptides. In this study, we achieved the synthesis of DAP-containing PGN fragments, including the first chemical synthesis of tracheal cytotoxin (TCT), GlcNAc-(beta1-4)-(anhydro)MurNAc-L-Ala-gamma-D-Glu-meso-DAP-D-Ala, and a repeating-unit of DAP-type PGN, GlcNAc-(beta1-4)-MurNAc-L-Ala-gamma-D-Glu-meso-DAP-D-Ala. For the synthesis of PGN fragments, we first established a new synthetic method for an orthogonally protected meso-DAP derivative, and then we constructed the glycopeptide structures. The ability of these fragments to stimulate human Nod1, as well as differences in Nod1 recognition of the variety of synthesized ligand structures were examined. The results showed that the substitution of the N terminus of iE-DAP is necessary for stronger Nod1 recognition, but the structure of the substituent seems not to be strictly recognized. The importance of the carboxyl group at the 2-position of DAP for human Nod1 stimulation was also shown.     

C8-alkynyl- and alkylamino substituted 2′-deoxyguanosines: a universal linker for nucleic acids modification

Incorporation of modified nucleosides with a flexible universal linker is of great value for post-synthetic modification of nucleic acids. Thus, C8-alkynyl- and alkylamino substituted 2′-deoxyguanosines were synthesized for the first time and incorporated into short oligonucleotide sequences. The preference for syn conformation of these C8-substituted 2′-deoxyguanosines and the stability of the duplexes were discussed. The stabilizing effect of Z-DNA has also been examined.