Synthesis of 2-unsubstituted imidazolones from bisamides via a one-pot,domino dehydration/base promoted cyclisation process

A one-pot, domino process was developed as an alternative approach for the preparation of 2-unsubstituted imidazolones. The methodology utilizes readily accessible bisamides, which upon a dehydration/cyclisation sequence produced imidazolones in good yields. The transformation relies on the compatibility of the dehydrating agent and base, and the reaction conditions tolerate various functional groups.     

Reactive organoallyl species generated from aryl halides and allene: allylation of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and cyclic ketones employing Pd/In transmetallation processes

Allylation of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and cyclic ketones promoted by Pd/In transmetallation processes has been studied. The unsaturated aldehydes underwent regioselective 1,2-addition to afford secondary homoally alcohols. The reactions have been performed using Pd(OAc)₂/PPh₃ as catalytic system and metallic indium affording the products in good yields. The same transformation with unsaturated ketones proved to be less efficient, while saturated cyclic ketones delivered generally excellent yields in the presence of CuI. In these latter processes the presence of a distal heteroatom influences the reaction rate.     

Proton and protonic entities in solid heteropoly compounds: An ab initio calculation of the environmental effect on the ion

Systematic experimental investigations of heteropoly compounds, particularly their structure and activity, led to the conclusion that most of their characteristics are governed by the presence of protons and protonic entities. Special attention has been paid to two forms of 12-tungstophosphoric acid: hexahydrate (WPA-6) and dehydrated phase (WPA-0). It was postulated that in WPA-6 dynamic equilibrium of protonic entities exists, and that dehydrated phase is stabilized by protons. To confirm the role of the “free protons” or “proton gas” derived on the basis of thermal, structural and spectroscopic experimental studies, we carried out also ab initio calculations on a number of systems containing ion. We were not able to perform direct calculations on the real systems investigated experimentally since the structure of heteropoly compounds is too complex. However, it has been found that ion in WPA-6 definitely is not planar and the results obtained indirectly support the postulated dynamic equilibrium, i.e. possibility of existing of free protons.     

Sample preparation methods in the analysis of pesticide residues in baby food with subsequent chromatographic determination

Pesticides are widely utilized at various stages of cultivation and during postharvest storage to protect plants against a range of pests and/or to provide quality preservation. Reliable confirmatory methods are required to monitor pesticide residues in baby foods and to ensure the safety of baby food supply. This review covers methods in which pesticide residues have been determined in baby food by the use of a wide range of chromatographic techniques after various sample preparation steps. The main attention is paid to the evaluation and improvement of sample extraction and clean-up methods (liquid extraction, solid-phase extraction (SPE), dispersive SPE (DSPE), microextraction procedures, matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) and supercritical fluid extraction (SFE)) considering low concentration levels of pesticide residues in baby food resulting from stringent European Union (EU) legislation. Instrumental aspects together with the matrix effects significantly contributing to the most important parameters considered in pesticide residues analysis of baby food--limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantification (LOQs) were included within the scope of this overview. Paper involves also monitoring studies.     

Localized Visualization of Chemical Cross-Talk in Microsensor Arrays by Using Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy

 An investigation of an array of four Pt microband electrodes 25 μm wide and spaced 25 μm apart was performed with the scanning electrochemical microscope (SECM). Where possible the SECM measurements were confirmed with conventional electrochemical measurements. It is shown how the sensiti- vity of the SECM recycling current to the activity of the underlying surface can be used to probe the homogeneity of enzyme-modified microelectrodes. The diffusion of H₂O₂ between these micro enzyme- electrodes and unmodified electrodes was investigated and it was demonstrated how the SECM can be a powerful tool in the elucidation of the properties of these electrodes. Received June 8, 1998. Revision November 12, 1998.     

Study on the Performance of Three Different Capillary Gas Chromatographic Analyses in the Evaluation of Milk Fat Purity

The adulteration of milk fat with foreign fat has been and still is a major concern in the dairy industry. Milk fat purity is currently evaluated by triglyceride analysis by using the Official EU method. The detection limit of the various vegetable and animal fats ranges between 4 and 6%. This research was carried out to verify whether it is possible to decrease the detection limits of beef tallow, which is the most widely used adulterating animal fat. For this purpose, determinations of diglycerides and 3,5-cholestadiene, together with the Official EU method, were applied both to several samples of pure milk fat and to mixtures of milk fat with different percentages of beef tallow. The best results were obtained combining the data deriving from the three determinations by multivariate statistical techniques; in particular, the statistical model obtained by the UNEQ technique seems to be able to decrease the detection limit of beef tallow from 5.2 to 2%. The diglyceride and 3,5-cholestadiene evaluation, combined with the Official EU method for triglycerides, can be usefully applied both to detect small additions of beef tallow and to demonstrate the adulteration of milk fat samples showing results close to the detection limit of the official method.     

Norbornane as the novel pseudoglycone moiety in nucleosides

Novel nucleoside analogues based on bicyclo[2.2.1]heptene/heptane were prepared by linear synthesis starting from commercially available 1,2,3,4-tetrachloro-5,5-dimethoxycyclopentadiene 1. The crucial step of the synthesis was insertion of the amino group to the position 7 of the substituted bicyclo[2.2.1]heptene with anti-configuration by a Ritter reaction (H₂SO₄, AcOH, CH₃CN). All nucleobases were constructed at this amino function. The prepared family of the target nucleosides was tested for cytostatic and antiviral activity.     

Fluorescence Spectroscopy and Confocal Microscopy of the Mycotoxin Citrinin in Condensed Phase and Hydrogel Films

The emission spectra, quantum yields and fluorescence lifetimes of citrinin in organic solvents and hydrogel films have been determined. Citrinin shows complex fluorescence decays due to the presence of two tautomers in solution and interconversion from excited-state double proton transfer (ESDPT) process. The fluorescence decay times associated with the two tautomers have values near 1 and 5 ns depending on the medium. In hydrogel films of agarose and alginate, fluorescence imaging showed that citrinin is not homogeneously dispersed and highly emissive micrometer spots may be formed. Fluorescence spectrum and decay analysis are used to recognize the presence of citrinin in hydrogel films using confocal fluorescence microscopy and spectroscopy.     

Formation of membranes based on polyacrylonitrile and butadiene-acrylonitrile elastomer in the presence of copper ions

The presented study provides a possibility to create ultrafiltration (UF), polyacrylonitrile(PAN)/butadiene-acrylonitrile elastomer (BNR)/N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) membranes. Influence of different concentrations of the elastomer on the formation of a more porous structure was studied and compared with that observed using membranes made of polyacrylonitrile. Specific influence of copper ions in a solution of polymers on the formation of an asymmetric selective layer was also monitored. The study was conducted to prepare membranes with high efficiency in emulsion and colloidal systems separation.     

Efficient γ-amino-proline-derived cell penetrating peptide-superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle conjugates via aniline-catalyzed oxime chemistry as bimodal imaging nanoagents

Aniline-catalyzed oxime chemistry was employed to conjugate a γ-amino-proline-derived cell penetrating peptide to superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs). Internalization of the novel nanoconjugate into HeLa cells was found to be remarkably higher compared to the analogous TAT-SPION conjugate.