A new polymorph of tri(<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-tolyl)boroxine

A new orthorhombic polymorph of tri(p-tolyl)boroxine (Pmn2₁) with relatively short intermolecular B–O distances of 3.321 Å was crystallized from CDCl₃ at ambient temperature. The crystal structure of the orthorhombic polymorph of tri(p-tolyl)boroxine shows the shortest intermolecular B–O contact yet found in boroxines. The cell dimensions of the orthorhombic polymorph of tri(p-tolyl)boroxine are a = 21.888(4) Å, b = 9.304(2) Å, and c = 4.7804(10) Å. The structural features of the orthorhombic polymorph of tri(p-tolyl)boroxine are quite different from a previously reported monoclinic (Beckett et al., J. Organomet. Chem. 1997, 535, 33–41) but similar to that of tri(p-bromophenyl)boroxine (Avent et al., Coll. Czech. Chem. Commun. 2002, 67, 1051–1060). Obviously, electronic effects of substituents on the boron centers influence the structural features of substituted boroxines less than discussed in earlier reports (Boese et al., Angew. Chem. 1987, 99, 239–241).     

Synthesis of the four‐arm star‐block copolymer [PVC‐b‐PBA‐CH(CH3)?CO?O?CH2]4C by SET‐DTLRP initiated from a tetrafunctional initiator

Pentaerythritol tetrakis(2‐iodopropionate) was used as a tetrafunctional initiator for the Na₂S₂O₄ catalyzed SET‐DTLRP of n‐butyl acrylate in water at room temperature. The resulting tetrafunctional poly(n‐butyl acrylate) macroinitiator with M_n = 14,864 or M_n = 3627 per arm was used to initiate the SET‐DTLRP of vinyl chloride and provide the first examples of four‐arm star‐block copolymers [PVC‐b‐PBA‐CH(CH₃)? CO? O? CH₂]₄C. The M_n of the PVC segment from each arm of the four‐arm star‐block copolymer varied between 353 and 33,622. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 628–634, 2009     

A variational principle for block operator matrices and its application to the angular part of the Dirac operator in curved spacetime

The operator associated to the angular part of the Dirac equation in the Kerr-Newman background metric is a block operator matrix with bounded diagonal and unbounded off-diagonal entries. The aim of this paper is to establish a variational principle for block operator matrices of this type and to derive thereof upper and lower bounds for the angular operator mentioned above. In the last section, these analytic bounds are compared with numerical values from the literature.     

Aluminium Mediated Glycosaminoglycan/Amyloid-β Association Mechanism

In Alzheimer’s disease, it has been proposed that glycosaminoglycans facilitate amyloid fibril formation and/or stabilize the plaque aggregates. Chondroitin sulfates are sulfated glycosaminoglycans represented an ideal distribution of charge for amyloid-β (Aβ) interactions. Recent studies have suggested a possible link between the neurotoxicity of aluminum and the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. In this paper, the interaction of Aβ with chondroitin sulfates immobilized on a chromatographic column and the role of aluminum had been studied using a biochromatographic approach (molecular chromatography). A novel biochromatographic column was developed in our laboratory for studying this interaction. This study demonstrated that the aluminum interacted with Aβ and played a role in the Aβ/chondroitin sulfates association. For a Al³⁺ concentration (x) in the medium less than 30 μmM, the Aβ/chondroitin sulfates binding decreased with x due to a decrease of the charge–charge interactions between Aβ and its chondroitin sulfates binding site. Above 30 μmM of Al³⁺ in the medium, the affinity of Aβ to chondroitin sulfates increased slightly with x because the net number of ions (n) (Al³⁺ or Cl⁻) released or bound upon complex formation is low. As well, it was clearly demonstrated, that above 30 μmM the n value depend on the Al³⁺ concentration in the bulk solvent. This dependence was due to a gradual and conformational change of the Aβ which around 80 μmM adopted a less flexible structure; its binding site was thus less accessible to Aβ and Aβ/chondroitin sulfates association decreased slightly.

     

Gelatin‐based photopolymers for bone replacement materials

Gelatin‐based monomers were considered as suitable base component for the 3D structuring of potential bone replacement materials by stereolithographic techniques. Different methacrylate‐based gelatin derivatives were prepared, whereas a polyethylene glycol modified derivative GP4M turned out to have the highest tolerance toward other monomers. These are essential as they allow the tuning of the photoreactivity and the mechanical properties. Cell culture experiments with osteoblast‐ and endothelial‐like cells confirmed negligible cytotoxicity of these monomers. Finally, we were able to show the possibility of producing arbitrary cellular structures with these gelatin‐containing formulations using stereolithography. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2009     

Optimization of the Isolation of Some Taxoids from Yew Tissues

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - A new TLC procedure has been developed for the purification, separation, and isolation of paclitaxel and cephalomannine from yew...