Mild,Selective Oxidation of Aromatic Alcohols Using β-Cyclodextrin-Functionalized Glass Microparticles: Characterization,Stability, and Application

The surface of glass microparticle (GMP) was functionalized with β-cyclodextrin (→ GMP-β-CD) and was characterized by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). GMP-β-CD was used to catalyze oxidation of alcohols into aldehydes and katones with excellent yield (86–92%). The modified surface of GMP-β-CD showed no change or degradation after repeated use as confirmed from XPS analysis after 10 cycles.

[Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications® for the following free supplemental resource(s): Full experimental and spectral details.]     

Free Radical–Mediated Chemoselective Reduction of Enones

A novel methodology has been devised for the chemoselective reduction of enones involving the use of ⁿ Bu₃SnH and azobisisobutyronitrile. The 1,4-reduction of variously substituted α,β-unsaturated cyclic and acyclic enones has been successfully carried out under free radical reaction conditions. The reaction has been determined to proceed via single-electron transfer.

[Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications^® for the following free supplemental resource(s): Full experimental and spectral details.]     

New citrinin derivatives from the deep-sea-derived fungus Cladosporium sp. SCSIO z015

Abstract

During the course of our search for novel bioactive compounds from marine fungi, four new citrinin derivatives, cladosporins A–D (1–4) were isolated from a culture broth of the deep-sea-derived fungus Cladosporium sp. SCSIO z015. Their complete structural assignments were elucidated by the extensive spectroscopic investigation. The absolute configurations of 1–3 were established by quantum chemical calculations of the electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra. Compounds 1–4 showed weak toxicity towards brine shrine naupalii with LC₅₀ values of 72.0, 81.7, 49.9 and 81.4?μM, respectively. And 4 also showed significant antioxidant activity against ɑ,α-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals with an IC₅₀ value of 16.4?μM.     

Determination of oil contents from eight varieties of olea europaea (Olive) grown in Pakistan

Abstract

The olive (Olea europaea L.) is a worldwide famous tree crop having valuable commercial role due to nutritional as well as therapeutic benefits obtained from its edible oil. Eight varieties of Olea europaea L. fruits were obtained from three Agricultural research institutes located in different areas of Pakistan including Quetta, Lorallia and Zhob to extract and determine their oil contents by conventional method as solvent extraction (soxhlet apparatus). Statistical analysis showed significant (p?=?0.002) difference in oil composition of collected plants. Highest amount (percentage) of oil was obtained from Gemlik variety (65%) from Lorallia and lowest oil content from Dolece-agogia variety (17.5%) collected from Quetta. Further research is under consideration to rule out best suitable factors including some soil and environmental factors to obtained more potential cultivars of Olea europaea in Pakistan.     

Highly stable core-surface-crosslinked nanoparticles as cisplatin carriers for cancer chemotherapy

Cisplatin is a potent anticancer drug with low solubility in water. A new type of highly stable polymer micelles, namely core-surface-crosslinked nanoparticles (SCNPs) made from amphiphilic brush copolymers, were evaluated as the carrier of cisplatin. Cisplatin could be loaded in the SCNPs with poly(varepsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) cores and hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) or poly[2-(N,N-dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate] (PDMA) shells with high loading efficiency (approximately 90%). In vitro cellular uptake experiments indicated that both SCNPs could be easily taken up by SKOV-3 ovarian cancer cells. Both cell proliferation assay and IC50 measurements indicated that cisplatin encapsulated in the SCNPs had much enhanced cytotoxicity to the cancer cells compared to free cisplatin. The positive charges on the PCL/PDMA SCNPs promoted the cellular internalization of the nanoparticles, resulting in higher cytotoxicity of cisplatin in these SCNPs. The IC50 of the cisplatin encapsulated in PCL/PDMA SCNPs was as low as 0.01 microg/mL, lower than that of cisplatin in PCL/PEG SCNPs and free cisplatin.     

Selective removal of heavy metal ions using sol-gel immobilized and SPE-coated thiacrown ethers

Sorbent materials based on three thiacrown ethers, 1,4,7,10-tetrathiacyclododecane (12S4), 1,4,7,10,13-pentathiacyclopentadecane (15S5) and 1,4,7,10.13,16-hexathiacyclooctadecane (18S6) were prepared either by immobilizing the ligands into sol-gel (SG) matrix or coating on commercial solid phase extraction (SPE) column. SG sorbents were characterized by FT-IR, energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX) and thermogravimetric analysis/derivative thermogravimetric analysis (TGA/DTG). A marked thermal stability of the ligands when immobilized in sol-gel matrix was noted. The competitive sorption characteristics of a mixture of eleven metal ions (Mg²⁺, Zn²⁺, Cd²⁺, Co²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ca²⁺, Cu²⁺, Ni²⁺, Ag⁺, V⁴⁺, Hg²⁺) using: (i) batch method with ligands trapped in SG matrices, and (ii) off-line SPE column containing coated ligands were studied using ICP-MS. The extraction of metals were optimized for key parameters such as pH, contact time/flow rate, particle size (for SG sorbents) and ligand concentration. Under the optimized conditions, all the immobilized thiacrown ethers exhibited highest selectivity toward Ag⁺, with lesser responses to Hg²⁺ while the extraction of other metal ions were negligible. Among the SG sorbents, 18S6-SG offer the highest capacity and the best selectivity over Hg²⁺. However, for practical applications such as for selective isolation and preconcentration of Ag⁺, the SPE type especially based on 18S6 is preferred as analysis time and recoveries are favorable. The sorbents can be repeatedly used three times as there was no significant deterioration in the metal uptake (%E > 90%) or interference from other metal ions. The optimized procedures were successfully applied for the separation and preconcentration of traces Ag⁺ in different water samples.     

Alpha-glucosidase inhibitory constituents from Cuscuta reflexa

Two new compounds, 7'-(3',4'-dihydroxyphenyl)-N-[(4-methoxyphenyl)ethyl]propenamide (4), and 7'-(4'-hydroxy,3'-methoxyphenyl)-N-[(4-butylphenyl)ethyl]propenamide (5) have been isolated from Cuscuta reflexa along with five known compounds, 6,7-dimethoxy-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one (1), 3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-2-propen-1-ethanoate (2), 6,7,8-trimethoxy-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one (3), 3-(4-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-propen-1-ol (6), 2-(3-hydroxy-4-methoxyphenyl)-3,5-dihydroxy-7-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside-4H-1-benzopyrane-4-one (7), reported for the first time from this species. Structures of these compounds were determined by spectral analysis. These compounds showed strong inhibitory activity against alpha-glucosidase.     

Chemical profiling and standardization of Lepidium meyenii (Maca) by reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography

Lepidium meyenii (Maca) is one of the few plants that can be cultivated in the harsh climate of the Andes. Its nutritious hypocotyl is traditionally used as food and medicine, and Maca products are increasingly becoming popular in the western world as tonics. This paper describes the first analytical method allowing the determination of the main macamides and macaenes, the marker compounds of L. meyenii. A separation within 35 min was possible by using a C-12 stationary phase, an acidic mobile phase comprising of acetonitrile and water, and raising the column temperature to 40 degrees C. By monitoring the separation at 210 and 280 nm, the markers were detectable as low as 0.40 microg/ml. In order to validate the method, accuracy, precision, linearity, limit of detection and intra/inter day repeatability were determined. The analysis of several commercially available Maca products showed a similar qualitative pattern but significant differences in the quantitative composition. The percentage of total markers in the preparations varied from 0.15 to 0.84%, resulting in daily intakes for the consumer from 1.52 to 14.88 mg, respectively.     

Characterization of polyoxyalkylene block copolymers by combination of different chromatographic techniques and MALDI-TOF-MS

Polyoxyalkylene diblock copolymers (consisting of PEO as hydrophilic block and PBO or PHO as hydrophobic block) are characterized by combination of two dimensional liquid chromatography and MALDI-TOF-MS. Liquid chromatography under critical conditions (LCCC) is used as first dimension and fractions are collected, mobile phase evaporated and diluted in the mobile phase used in the second dimension (SEC, LCCC or LAC). This two-dimensional chromatography in combination of MALDI-TOF-MS gives information about purity of reaction products, presence of the byproducts, chemical composition and molar mass distribution of all the products.     

Template tailoring: Accurate determination of heterozygous alleles using peptide nucleic acid and dideoxyNTP

Measurement of the length of DNA fragments plays a pivotal role in genetic mapping, disease diagnostics, human identification and forensic applications. PCR followed by electrophoresis is used for DNA length measurement of STRs, a process that requires labeled primers and allelic ladders as standards to avoid machine error. Sequencing‐based approaches can be used for STR analysis to eliminate the requirement of labeled primers and allelic ladder. However, the limiting factor with this approach is unsynchronized polymerization in heterozygous sample analysis, in which alleles with different lengths can lead to imbalanced heterozygote peak height ratios. We have developed a rapid DNA length measurement method using peptide nucleic acid and dideoxy dNTPs to “tailor” DNA templates for accurate sequencing to overcome this hurdle. We also devised an accelerated “dyad” pyrosequencing strategy, such that the combined approach can be used as a faster, more accurate alternative to de novo sequencing. Dyad sequencing interrogates two bases at a time by allowing the polymerase to incorporate two nucleotides to DNA template, cutting the analysis time in half. In addition, for the first time, we show the effect of peptide nucleic acid as a blocking probe to stop polymerization, which is essential to analyze the heterozygous samples by sequencing. This approach provides a new platform for rapid and cost‐effective DNA length measurement for STRs and resequencing of small DNA fragments.