New reactions of a dibenzo[a,e]pentalene

Reduction of dibenzo[a,e]pentalene 3 (denoted as dibenzopentalene hereafter) with excess lithium gave dilithium dibenzopentalenide 1. Since oxidation of 1 with iodine gave 3, redox behavior between 1 and 3 is controllable and reversible. Reaction of 3 with methyllithium gave lithium 5-methyldibenzopentalenide 5, the formation of which was evidenced by some trapping experiments and X-ray crystallographic analysis. Reactions of 3 with halogens gave 5,10-dihalodibenzopentalenes, 8 and 9. Some optical properties of novel dibenzopentalene derivatives are also demonstrated.     

Stereoselective synthesis of benzyl-protected β-galactosides by propionitrile-mediated glycosylation

β-Selective galactosylation was studied using a series of 2-O-benzylated phenyl 1-thio-galactosides and glycosyl acceptors in propionitrile with BSP-TTBP-Tf₂O. The glycosylation enabled us to synthesize useful precursors of N-acetyllactosamine and core 1 O-glycoserine derivatives in a highly convergent manner.     

Synthesis of hexagonal nickel hydroxide nanosheets by exfoliation of layered nickel hydroxide intercalated with dodecyl sulfate ions

One-nanometer-thick nickel hydroxide nanosheets were prepared by exfoliation of layered nickel hydroxides intercalated with dodecyl sulfate (DS) ions. The shape of the nanosheets was hexagonal, as was that of the layered nickel hydroxides intercalated with DS ions. The nickel hydroxide nanosheets exhibited charge-discharge properties in strong alkaline electrolyte. The morphology of the nanosheet changed during the electrochemical reaction.     

Synthesis of zinc 3-hydroxymethyl-porphyrins possessing carbonyl groups at the 13- and/or 15-positions for models of self-aggregative chlorophylls in green photosynthetic bacteria

Zinc 3-hydroxymethyl-protopyropheophorbide-d derivatives 1, 2, and 3 possessing carbonyl group(s) at the 13/15-, 13-, and 15-positions, respectively, and 4 lacking the C=O group were prepared from naturally occurring chlorophyll-a. Zinc porphyrins 1 and 2 possessing the 13-C=O self-aggregated in an aqueous micellar solution, similarly to the self-aggregates of BChls-c/d/e in the main light-harvesting antenna systems of green photosynthetic bacteria, whereas 3 and 4 lacking the 13-C=O failed to make such well-ordered aggregates. These results indicated that both the presence of the C=O group and its situation at the 13-position were preferable for formation of the well-ordered J-aggregates.     

"Inject-mix-react-separate-and-quantitate" (IMReSQ) method for screening enzyme inhibitors

Many regulatory enzymes are considered attractive therapeutic targets, and their inhibitors are potential drug candidates. Screening combinatorial libraries for enzyme inhibitors is pivotal to identifying hit compounds for the development of drugs targeting regulatory enzymes. Here, we introduce the first inhibitor screening method that consumes only nanoliters of the reactant solutions and is applicable to regulatory enzymes. The method is termed inject-mix-react-separate-and-quantitate (IMReSQ) and includes five steps. First, nanoliter volumes of substrate, candidate inhibitor, and enzyme solutions are injected by pressure into a capillary as separate plugs. Second, the plugs are mixed inside this capillary microreactor by transverse diffusion of laminar flow profiles. Third, the reaction mixture is incubated to form the enzymatic product. Fourth, the product is separated from the substrate inside the capillary by electrophoresis. Fifth, the amounts of the product and substrate are quantitated. In this proof-of-principle work, we applied IMReSQ to study inhibition of recently cloned protein farnesyltransferase from parasite Entamoeba histolytica. This enzyme is a potential therapeutic target for antiparasitic drugs. We identified three previously unknown inhibitors of this enzyme and proved that IMReSQ could be used for quantitatively ranking the potencies of inhibitors.     

Anisotropic Poisson Effect and Deformation‐Induced Fluorescence Change of Elastic 9,10‐Dibromoanthracene Single Crystals

Elastic organic crystals have attracted considerable attention as next‐generation flexible smart materials. However, the detailed information on both molecular packing change and macroscopic mechanical crystal deformations upon applied stress is still insufficient. Herein, we report that fluorescent single crystals of 9,10‐dibromoanthracene are elastically bendable and stretchable, which allows a detailed investigation of the deformation behavior. We clearly observed a Poisson effect for the crystal, where the short axes (b and c‐axes) of the crystal are contracted upon elongation along the long axis (a‐axis). Moreover, we found that the Poisson's ratios along the b‐axis and c‐axis are largely different. Theoretical molecular simulation suggests that the tilting motion of the anthracene may be responsible for the large deformation along the c‐axis. Spatially resolved photoluminescence (PL) measurement of the bent elastic crystals reveals that the PL spectra at the outer (elongated), central (neutral), and inner (contracted) sides are different from each other.     

Anisotropic Poisson Effect and Deformation-Induced Fluorescence Change of Elastic 9,10-Dibromoanthracene Single Crystals

Elastic organic crystals have attracted considerable attention as next-generation flexible smart materials. However, the detailed information on both molecular packing change and macroscopic mechanical crystal deformations upon applied stress is still insufficient. Herein, we report that fluorescent single crystals of 9,10-dibromoanthracene are elastically bendable and stretchable, which allows a detailed investigation of the deformation behavior. We clearly observed a Poisson effect for the crystal, where the short axes (b and c-axes) of the crystal are contracted upon elongation along the long axis (a-axis). Moreover, we found that the Poisson's ratios along the b-axis and c-axis are largely different. Theoretical molecular simulation suggests that the tilting motion of the anthracene may be responsible for the large deformation along the c-axis. Spatially resolved photoluminescence (PL) measurement of the bent elastic crystals reveals that the PL spectra at the outer (elongated), central (neutral), and inner (contracted) sides are different from each other.     

Coherent Vibration and Femtosecond Dynamics of the Platinum Complex Oligomers upon Intermolecular Bond Formation in the Excited State

Femtosecond time-resolved absorption and picosecond time-resolved emission measurements were carried out for highly concentrated aqueous solutions of K₂[Pt(CN)₄] to investigate excited-state dynamics of the [Pt(CN)₄²⁻] oligomers formed with metallophilic interactions. Time-resolved absorption spectra exhibit complicated dynamics that are represented with five time constants. Among them, the 90-ps and 400-ps dynamics were assigned to the S₁ → T₁ intersystem crossing of the trimer and tetramer coexisting in the solution by comparison with the fluorescence decays. Clear oscillations of transient absorption were observed in the first few picoseconds, and the frequency-detected-wavelength 2D analysis revealed that the 135-cm⁻¹ and 65-cm⁻¹ oscillations arise from the Pt–Pt stretch motions of the S₁ trimer and S₁ tetramer, respectively. The obtained time-resolved spectroscopic data provide a clear view of the excited-state dynamics of the [Pt(CN)₄²⁻] oligomers in the femto-/picosecond time region.     

Asymmetric Hydroformylation of Vinylfurans Catalyzed by {(11bS)‐4‐{[(1R)‐2′‐Phosphino[1,1′‐binaphthalen]‐2‐yl]oxy}dinaphtho[2,1‐d:1′,2′‐f]‐ [1,3,2]dioxaphosphepin}rhodium(I) [RhI{(R,S)‐binaphos}] Derivatives

The asymmetric hydroformylation of 2‐ and 3‐vinylfurans ( 2a and 2b , resp.) was investigated by using [Rh{(R,S)‐binaphos}] complexes as catalysts ((R,S)‐binaphos = (11bS)‐4‐{[1R)‐2′‐phosphino[1,1′‐binaphthalen]‐2‐yl]oxy}dinaphtho[2,1‐d:1′,2′‐f][1,3,2]dioxaphosphepin; 1 ). Hydroformylation of 2 gave isoaldehydes 3 in high regio‐ and enantioselectivities (Scheme 2 and Table). Reduction of the aldehydes 3 with NaBH₄ successfully afforded the corresponding alcohols 5 without loss of enantiomeric purity (Scheme 3).