Preparation and characterization of poly(l-phenylalanine) chiral stationary phases with varying peptide length

Three new chiral stationary phases with different lengths of l-phenylalanine peptide were prepared by solid-phase synthesis with tert-butoxycarbonyl (Boc)-l-phenylalanine on silica. The effect of phenylalanine peptide length on enantioselectivity was studied. The best separation of R/S-warfarin was achieved by the chiral stationary phase with intermediate peptide length. These stationary phases were found to exist mainly in alpha-helical conformation by using FT-IR spectra. The end-capping reagents for the N-terminus of the peptide were also evaluated.     

Measurement of B(0)(d)-B_(0)(d) mixing rate from the time evolution of dilepton events at the upsilon(4S)

We report a determination of the B(0)(d)-&B_(0)(d) mixing parameter Deltam(d) based on the time evolution of dilepton yields in Upsilon(4S) decays. The measurement is based on a 5.9 fb(-1) data sample collected by the Belle detector at KEKB. The proper-time difference distributions for same-sign and opposite-sign dilepton events are simultaneously fitted to an expression containing Deltam(d) as a free parameter. Using both muons and electrons, we obtain Deltam(d) = 0.463+/-0.008 (stat)+/-0.016 (syst) ps(-1). This is the first determination of Deltam(d) from time evolution measurements at the Upsilon(4S). We also place limits on possible CPT violations.     

Cobalt oxide supported gold nanoparticles as a stable and readily-prepared precursor for the in situ generation of cobalt carbonyl like species

A treatment of cobalt oxide supported gold nanoparticles (Au/Co₃O₄) under syngas atmosphere effectively generated a cobalt carbonyl-like active species in the reaction vessel. The preparation of Au/Co₃O₄ was quite simple and the in situ generated cobalt species could be used as a stable and easy handling alternative for dicobalt octacarbonyl without bothersome purification prior to use. The reactions, which are sensitive to the purity of the dicobalt octacarbonyl, such as the alkoxycarbonylation of epoxides and the Pauson-Khand reaction, smoothly progressed with Au/Co₃O₄.     

Selective chemiluminescence method for monitoring of vitamin K homologues in rheumatoid arthritis patients

Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin involved in blood coagulation and bone metabolism. The detection and monitoring of vitamin K homologues in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients is a challenging problem due to the smaller concentrations of vitamin K and the presence of several interfering medications. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a new highly sensitive and selective chemiluminescence (CL) method designated to quantify vitamin K homologues in plasma of RA patients including phylloquinone (PK, vitamin K₁), menaquinone-4 (MK-4, vitamin K₂) and menaquinone-7 (MK-7, vitamin K₂). The method was based on the unique photochemical properties of vitamin K homologues that were exploited for selective luminol CL reaction. The correlation coefficients of 0.998 or more were obtained in the concentration ranges of 0.1-100 ng mL⁻¹ vitamin K homologues. The detection limits were 0.03-0.1 ng mL⁻¹ in human plasma for vitamin K homologues. The developed HPLC-CL system was successfully applied for selective determination of vitamin K homologues in plasma of RA patients. The developed method may provide a useful tool for monitoring vitamin K homologues in different clinical studies such as RA, osteoporosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in which vitamin K is intervented.     

3D interconnected ionic nano-channels formed in polymer films: self-organization and polymerization of thermotropic bicontinuous cubic liquid crystals

Thermotropic bicontinuous cubic (Cub(bi)) liquid-crystalline (LC) compounds based on a polymerizable ammonium moiety complexed with a lithium salt have been designed to obtain lithium ion-conductive all solid polymeric films having 3D interconnected ionic channels. The monomer shows a Cub(bi) phase from -5 to 19 °C on heating. The complexes retain the ability to form the Cub(bi) LC phase. They also form hexagonal columnar (Col(h)) LC phases at temperatures higher than those of the Cub(bi) phases. The complex of the monomer and LiBF(4) at the molar ratio of 4:1 exhibits the Cub(bi) and Col(h) phases between -6 to 19 °C and 19 to 56 °C, respectively, on heating. The Cub(bi) LC structure formed by the complex has been successfully preserved by in situ photopolymerization through UV irradiation in the presence of a photoinitiator. The resultant nanostructured film is optically transparent and free-standing. The X-ray analysis of the film confirms the preservation of the self-assembled nanostructure. The polymer film with the Cub(bi) LC nanostructure exhibits higher ionic conductivities than the polymer films obtained by photopolymerization of the complex in the Col(h) and isotropic phases. It is found that the 3D interconnected ionic channels derived from the Cub(bi) phase function as efficient ion-conductive pathways.     

Effects of Temperature and Mobile Phase Condition on Chiral Recognition of Poly(l-phenylalanine) Chiral Stationary Phase

Characteristics of the chiral stationary phase with poly(l-phenylalanine) peptide selector, which was in ??-helical state, was reported. Since environmental factors affect peptide conformation, the changes in enantioselectivity were examined depending on column temperature and mobile phase conditions (ionic strength, pH, mobile phase composition). Column temperature and pH drastically affected the enantioselectivity. Based on these changes, the relation between chiral recognition and secondary structure of the peptide selector was discussed. The column stability during sequential analysis under different separation conditions was also evaluated.     

Structure refinement of sub-cubic-mm volume sample at high pressures by pulsed neutron powder diffraction: application to brucite in an opposed anvil cell

Neutron powder diffraction measurements of 0.9 mm³ of mixture of deuterated brucite and pressure medium were conducted at pressures to 2.8 GPa, using an opposed anvil cell and a medium-resolution diffractometer at Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex pulsed neutron source. Spurious-free diffraction patterns were successfully obtained and refined to provide all structural parameters including Debye–Waller factors. Tilting of hydroxyl dipoles of brucite toward one of the three nearest-neighbor oxygen anions was confirmed to be substantial at pressure as low as 1.5 GPa. By this application, technical feasibility to analyze such a small sample has been newly established, which would be useful to extend the applications of neutron diffraction at high pressures.     

Properties of hadron and quark matter studied with molecular dynamics

We study the hadron-quark phase transition in a molecular dynamics (MD) of quark degrees of freedom. The hadron state at low density and temperature, and the deconfined quark state at high density and temperature are observed in our model. We investigate the equations of state and draw the phase diagram at wide baryon density and temperature range. We also discuss the transport property, e.g. viscosity, of $q\bar q$ matter. It is found that the ratio of the shear viscosity to the entropy density is less than one for quark matter.     

Practical synthesis of a neuropeptide Y antagonist via stereoselective addition to a ketene

[Reaction: see text]. The synthesis of neuropeptide Y antagonist 1, currently under clinical investigation for the treatment of obesity, is described. The convergent synthesis from trans-spirolactone carboxylic acid intermediate 2a and aminopyrazole 3 is predicated on a stereoselective route to the former. The coupling reaction of ethyl 4-oxocyclohexanecarboxylate (10a) with lithiated isonicotinamide 11 was investigated in detail, but even optimized conditions only provided a 45:55 ratio of trans:cis isomers (12a:12b). While selective crystallization schemes were developed to isolate the thermodynamically less stable trans isomer 2a, improved stereocontrol was subsequentially achieved by the application of ketene chemistry. The ketene formation and quench was investigated under a variety of conditions aimed at maximizing the trans:cis ratio. Reacting a mixture of carboxylic acids 2a and 2b with POCl3 in THF, followed by concomitant addition of tert-butyl alcohol in the presence of TMEDA at 35 degrees C provided a 4:1 ratio of trans:cis tert-butyl esters (18a:18b) via in situ ketene formation. Ester hydrolysis, followed by selective crystallization of undesired 2b as the HCl salt, led to isolation of 2a in 47% overall yield. Aminopyrazole intermediate 3 was synthesized via the condensation reaction of 2-fluorophenylhydrazine hydrochloride (4a) with acrylonitrile derivative 5 in 65-70% yield. Coupling of advanced intermediates 2a and 3b via activation with thionyl chloride gave a 92% yield of 1.