Geographical distribution of plutonium derived from the atomic bomb in the eastern area of Nagasaki

In order to know the distribution of plutonium derived from the Nagasaki atomic bomb, soil samples were measured to determine the ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu isotope ratio of and concentrations of ^239+240Pu and ¹³⁷Cs. The ^239+240Pu concentrations in soils, except for Nishiyama area, were close to the average concentration of soil collected in Japan. In soils collected at the Nishiyama area and at the eastern area of Nagasaki Prefecture and at part of northern area in Kumamoto Prefecture, the ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu ratios were lower than the global fallout values. This suggests that plutonium from the atomic bomb was deposited in the eastern area from the hypocenter reaching up to 100 km eastwards.     

The first total synthesis of concanamycin f (concanolide a)

A highly stereoselective total synthesis of the macrolide antibiotic concanamycin F (1), a specific and potent inhibitor of vacuolar H(+)-ATPase, has been achieved by a convergent route involving the synthesis and coupling of its 18-membered tetraenic lactone and beta-hydroxyl hemiacetal side chain subunits. The C1-C19 18-membered lactone aldehyde 4 was synthesized through the intermolecular Stille coupling of the C5-C13 vinyl iodide 24 and the C14-C19 vinyl stannane 25, followed by construction of the C1-C4 diene and macrolactonization. Synthesis of 4 via a second convergent route including the esterification of the C1-C13 vinyl iodide 45 and the C14-C19 vinyl stannane 47 followed by the intramolecular Stille coupling was also realized. The highly stereoselective aldol coupling of 4 and the C20-C28 ethyl ketone 5 followed by desilylation provided 1 which was identical with natural concanamycin F.     

Chip-based nLC-TOF-MS is a highly stable technology for large-scale high-throughput analyses

Many studies focused on the discovery of novel biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of disease states are facilitated by mass spectrometry-based technology. HPLC coupled to mass spectrometry is widely used; miniaturization of this technique using nano-liquid chromatography (LC)-mass spectrometry (MS) usually results in better sensitivity, but is associated with limited repeatability. The recent introduction of chip-based technology has significantly improved the stability of nano-LC-MS, but no substantial studies to verify this have been performed. To evaluate the temporal repeatability of chip-based nano-LC-MS analyses, N-glycans released from a serum sample were repeatedly analyzed using nLC-PGC-chip-TOF-MS on three non-consecutive days. With an average inter-day coefficient of variation of 4 %, determined on log₁₀-transformed integrals, the repeatability of the system is very high. Overall, chip-based nano-LC-MS appears to be a highly stable technology, which is suitable for the profiling of large numbers of clinical samples for biomarker discovery.     

Rhodium-Catalyzed Enantioselective Synthesis,Structures, and Properties of Single and Double Azahelicene-Like Molecules

The enantioselective synthesis of aza[6] and [7]helicene-like molecules have been achieved by the cationic rhodium(I)/axially chiral biaryl bisphosphine complex-catalyzed intramolecular [2+2+2] cycloaddition of cyanodiynes. This protocol was successfully applied to the diastereo- and enantioselective synthesis of an S-shaped double aza[6]helicene-like molecule with a high ee value of 89 %. Although no epimerization and racemization were observed in the double carbo[6]helicene-like molecule at 80 °C, epimerization and racemization of the double aza[6]helicene-like molecule proceeded at 80 °C. This double aza[6]helicene-like molecule showed good fluorescent quantum yields and chiroptical responses under both neutral and acidic conditions.     

Cross‐Coupling of Organolithium with Ethers or Aryl Ammonium Salts by C−O or C−N Bond Cleavage

Various aryl‐, alkenyl‐, and/or alkyllithium species reacted smoothly with aryl and/or benzyl ethers with cleavage of the inert C?O bond to afford cross‐coupled products, catalyzed by commercially available [Ni(cod)₂] (cod=1,5‐cyclooctadiene) catalysts with N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands. Furthermore, the coupling reaction between the aryllithium compounds and aryl ammonium salts proceeded under mild conditions with C?N bond cleavage in the presence of a [Pd(PPh₃)₂Cl₂] catalyst. These methods enable selective sequential functionalizations of arenes having both C?N and C?O bonds in one pot.     

Isolation and structure determination of a new lasso peptide subterisin from Sphingomonas subterranea

A new lasso peptide named subterisin was isolated from the culture broth of Sphingomonas subterranea NBRC 16086^T. The molecular formula of subterisin was established as C₇₈H₁₂₁O₂₂N₂₁ based on accurate mass analysis. The chemical structure of subterisin was determined by 2D NMR experiments. The presence of macrolactam ring of Gly1–Glu8 was indicated by NOESY experiment and MS/MS analysis. The three-dimensional structure of subterisin in solution was established by calculation based on NMR data. The proposed biosynthetic gene cluster of subterisin was found on the genome of S. subterranea.     

One‐Pot Stereoselective Synthesis of 2‐Acylaziridines and 2‐Acylpyrrolidines from N‐(Propargylic)hydroxylamines

The stereoselective direct transformation of N‐(propargylic)hydroxylamines into cis‐2‐acylaziridines was achieved by the combined use of AgBF₄ and CuCl. Copper salts were found to promote the transformation of the intermediary 4‐isoxazolines into 2‐acylaziridines and both 3‐aryl‐ and 3‐alkyl‐substituted 2‐acylaziridines could be prepared by using this method. Furthermore, subsequent 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides that were generated in situ from the intermediary 2‐acylaziridines with maleimides was achieved in a stereoselective one‐pot procedure to afford the corresponding 2‐acylpyrrolidines, which consisted of an octahydropyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole skeleton.