What crystals of small analogs are trying to tell us about cellulose structure

The molecular geometries from crystal structures of 23 small molecules such as cellobiose were reviewed and extrapolated to give model cellulose chains. Within a given model, all monosaccharide units and their linkages are identical so the models are regular helices. Despite fairly large ranges for the glycosidic linkage torsion angles and , 29° and 57°, respectively, there is little variation in the n and h parameters of the model helices. They are extended, with h values (the advance per residue along the helix axis) of 5.04–5.27 Å. Some models were slightly right-handed, with n values up to 2.12 residues per helix turn. Left-handed models were in the majority, and their n values were as large as –2.91. These results are consistent with known structures of cellulose and its derivatives. An exception comes from a heavily derivatized cellobiose molecule. It yields right-handed helices with n 4.5 and h 3 Å. Because one half turn of this helix reverses the direction of the chain in a compact region, the linkage geometry is a model for chain-folding. Other derivatives that are unable to form the O3O5 hydrogen bond gave left-handed helices. The puckering of the glucose rings was also surveyed. A number of rings in small molecule structures are puckered to a degree that is similar to the puckering determined for methyl cellotrioside, cellotetraose, cellulose I and cellulose II.     

Selective cleavage of P-N bonds and the conversion of rhodium N-pyrrolyl phosphine complexes into diphosphoxane-bridged dimers

Rhodium(I) complexes trans-[RhCl(CO)(PR(2)[NC(4)H(3)C(O)Me-2])(2)] (R = Ph, NC(4)H(4)) react with water to give the diphosphoxane-bridged dimers [Rh(2)Cl(2)(CO)(2)(mu-PR(2)OPR(2))(2)] following cleavage of the P-N bonds to the 2-acetyl-N-pyrrolyl groups. The two dimers have been crystallographically characterized and show a number of structural differences, with the PPh(2)OPPh(2) compound possessing semibridging chloride and carbonyl ligands whereas the P(NC(4)H(4))(2)OP(NC(4)H(4))(2) compound contains only terminal chlorides and carbonyls. No evidence for cleavage of the P-N bonds involving the unfunctionalized N-pyrrolyl groups in trans-[RhCl(CO)(P[NC(4)H(4)](2)[NC(4)H(3)C(O)Me-2])(2)] was observed.     

Synthesis and Characterisation of a Thiocarbonyl containing Osmium Cluster

Reaction of CS₂ with H₂Os₃(CO)₈(MeCN)S in cyclohexane yields a product H₂Os₃(CO)₇(CS)S₂. this has been characterised by NMR and mass spectroscopy, and by X-ray analysis, and has been shown to contain a terminal thiocarbonyl ligand.     

Synthesis of a simplified bryostatin C-ring analogue that binds to the CRD2 of human PKC-alpha and construction of a novel BC-analogue by an unusual Julia olefination process

[structure: see text] The synthesis of two truncated bryostatin analogues 2 and 3 is described. High-field NMR measurements on the C-ring analogue 3 in C(2)H(3)CN containing 25% (2)H(2)O have shown that it binds to the CRD2 of human PKC-alpha at virtually the same position as phorbol-13-acetate (PA) and bryostatin 1 (1). NMR titration studies have also revealed that 3 binds to the CRD2 with a potency similar in magnitude to PA but much less potently than 1.     

Interactions of proteins with uniform colloidal hematite and chromium hydroxide particles. I. Adsorption

The adsorption of ovalbumin, -globulin, and lysozyme on uniform spherical hematite and chromium hydroxide particles in aqueous media has been studied as a function of the pH at a constant ionic strength. The uptake of ovalbumin and -globulin was greatest at their isoelectric points and differed little at 10^–2 and 10^–3 mol dm^–3 NaNO₃. The adsorption of lysozyme was strongly influenced by the ionic strength.The deposition of ovalbumin on hematite in the presence of Mg (NO₃)₂ was significantly greater than that with NaNO₃ under otherwise comparable conditions. Dialysis experiments with ovalbumin against magnesium nitrate solutions showed Mg²⁺ to be specifically bound to the protein.The shapes of isotherms indicated monolayer coverage for ovalbumin and multilayer coating for lysozyme for both adsorbents. The shapes of isotherms of -globulin on hematite point to a rearrangement of the protein on the particle surface, while a monolayer was found on chromium hydroxide particles.Supported by the NSF Grant CHE-9108420Part of a Ph.D. thesis     

Novel binding of beryllium to dicarboxyimidazole-based model compounds and polymers

The ligand 4,5-dicarboxyimidazole (H(2)DCI) and its methyl derivative 1-methyl-4,5-dicarboxyimidazole (H(2)MDCI) have been shown to bind to Be(II) forming a zwitterionic species that has been structurally characterized. A new dicarboxyimidazole-based polymer has been prepared and its Be-binding properties have been studied using NMR ((1)H and (9)Be) and fluorescence spectroscopy; it represents a rare example of beryllium binding to a polymer. Models of the mononuclear and polymeric Be(II)-binding sites have been studied using density functional theory (DFT), and the (9)Be NMR chemical shifts of these model materials have been calculated for the purpose of direct comparison to experimentally observed values. Differences in the binding modes of the mononuclear and polymeric species are discussed.     

Synthesis and characterization of nanoparticulate MnS within the pores of mesoporous silica

Mesoporous silica was loaded with nanoparticulate MnS via a simple post-synthesis treatment. The mesoporous material that still contained surfactant was passivated to prevent MnS formation at the surface. The surfactant was extracted and a novel manganese ethylxanthate was used to impregnate the pore network. This precursor thermally decomposes to yield MnS particles that are smaller or equal to the pore size. The particles exhibit all three common polymorphs. The passivation treatment is most effective at lower loadings because at the highest loadings (SiO₂:MnS molar ratio of 6:1) large particles (>50 nm) form at the exterior of the mesoporous particles. The integrity of the mesoporous network is maintained through the preparation and high order is maintained. The MnS particles exhibit unexpected ferromagnetism at low temperatures. Strong luminescence of these samples is observed and this suggests that they may have a range of important application areas.     

Structural characterization of single-walled carbon nanotube bundles by experiment and molecular simulation

A procedure, combining molecular simulation, Raman spectroscopy, and standard nitrogen adsorption, is developed for structural characterization of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) samples. Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations of nitrogen adsorption are performed on the external and internal adsorption sites of homogeneous arrays of SWNTs of diameters previously determined by Raman spectroscopy of the sample. The results show the importance of the peripheral grooves of a nanotube bundle at low relative pressure and the insensitivity of nanotube diameter toward adsorption on the external surface of the bundle at higher pressures. Simulations also reveal that samples containing thin nanotubes have less internal adsorption capacity that saturates at lower pressure than those comprising large diameter nanotubes. The fraction of open-ended nanotubes in a sample can be estimated by scaling the simulated internal adsorption inside nanotubes to obtain a near perfect fit between simulated and experimental isotherms. This procedure allows extrapolation of adsorption properties to conditions in which all nanotubes in the sample are open-ended.     

Quantitative analysis of perchlorate in extracts of whole fish homogenates by ion chromatography: comparison of suppressed conductivity detection and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

The perchlorate anion (ClO ₄ ^– ) is an anthropogenic contaminant of increasing concern in water supplies, and has been shown to disrupt thyroid activity. Most perchlorate analyses are currently carried out by ion chromatography (IC) with suppressed conductivity detection (SCD). While this procedure has been demonstrated to provide acceptable performance for analysis of water samples, the determination of perchlorate in high-conductivity aqueous extracts of plant or animal material is not readily accomplished by IC-SCD unless lengthy cleanup protocols are applied. With the addition of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) to IC, it was hypothesized that the interference imposed by various ionic species could be significantly reduced without the need for purification; however, the analysis of perchlorate in relatively unpurified extracts of biologically derived homogenates by IC-ESI-MS has not previously been described in the literature. The research presented here represents a comparison of the capabilities of IC-SCD and IC-ESI-MS to detect perchlorate in reagent water and in crude extracts of perchlorate-exposed fish (threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus). ESI-MS was found to compare favorably to SCD for the detection of perchlorate in deionized water, and to exceed SCD performance in perchlorate analysis of fish-derived extracts.     

The active-site structure of umecyanin, the stellacyanin from horseradish roots

The type 1 copper sites of cupredoxins typically have a His(2)Cys equatorial ligand set with a weakly interacting axial Met, giving a distorted tetrahedral geometry. Natural variations to this coordination environment are known, and we have utilized paramagnetic (1)H NMR spectroscopy to study the active-site structure of umecyanin (UMC), a stellacyanin with an axial Gln ligand. The assigned spectra of the Cu(II) UMC and its Ni(II) derivative [Ni(II) UMC] demonstrate that this protein has the typical His(2)Cys equatorial coordination observed in other structurally characterized cupredoxins. The NMR spectrum of the Cu(II) protein does not exhibit any paramagnetically shifted resonances from the axial ligand, showing that this residue does not contribute to the singly occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) in Cu(II) UMC. The assigned paramagnetic (1)H NMR spectrum of Ni(II) UMC demonstrates that the axial Gln ligand coordinates in a monodentate fashion via its side-chain amide oxygen atom. The alkaline transition, a feature common to stellacyanins, influences all of the ligating residues but does not alter the coordination mode of the axial Gln ligand in UMC. The structural features which result in Cu(II) UMC possessing a classic type 1 site as compared to the perturbed type 1 center observed for other stellacyanins do not have a significant influence on the paramagnetic (1)H NMR spectra of the Cu(II) or Ni(II) proteins.