Rhodium(II)-Catalyzed Selective C(sp3)−H Amination of Alkanes

The development of an efficient catalytic system enabling the conversion of alkanes to valuable nitrogen-containing building blocks is reported. Light alkanes can be selectively functionalized by an intermolecular C(sp³)−H amination reaction that proceeds at room temperature in the presence of only 1 mol % of a dirhodium(II) complex. Selective amination of tertiary C(sp³)−H within acyclic or cyclic alkanes used as limiting components leads to the corresponding amides isolated with yields in the 51–96 % range. The reaction, that can be performed on a gram-scale, applies with equal levels of efficiency and selectivity to more complex hydrocarbons.     

Transpositions de doubles liaisons de p-menthènes et de p-menthadiènes catalysées par des bases

The displacements of double bonds by basic catalysts (N-lithioethylene diamine with an excess of ethylene diamine, potassium t-butylate in dimethylsulfoxide, benzyl-sodium in boiling xylene) are studied on p-menthenes and p-menthadienes. The isomerizations of p-menthadienes are accompanied by dehydrogenation. A representative mechanism of isomerization and dehydrogenation according to the catalyst is proposed for limonene.     

Photon energy dependence of fragmentation of small argon clusters

Photofragmentation of small argon clusters with size below ten atoms is reported. In this size range significant modifications from the electronic properties and geometry take place. When tuning the photon energy through the argon 2p edge, the fragmentation pattern is changed. Specifically, cation dimer production is enhanced at the 2p(32)-->4s resonance, while above the 2p edge almost complete atomization is observed. In both cases, the widths of the peaks in the mass spectra indicate that a large amount of kinetic energy is imparted to the fragment due to the formation of multiply charged clusters. A model based on "Coulomb explosion"-charge separation, simply resulting in a complete atomization of the cluster with no dependence on the photon energy-is insufficient to explain the observed photofragmentation of small clusters.     

The size of neutral free clusters as manifested in the relative bulk-to-surface intensity in core level photoelectron spectroscopy

A new approach for obtaining an estimate of the effective size of the free neutral clusters is proposed. The approach relies on an experimental measure of the surface and interior or "bulk" cluster atoms provided by the x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and on a model for the attenuation of photoelectrons ejected from the bulk of the cluster as the result of the ionizing irradiation. The experimental part gives the ratio of the electron signal from the bulk cluster atoms to that from the cluster surface atoms for a wide range of cluster sizes and electron kinetic energies. The attenuated response of the bulk atoms is modeled using an exponential law with the cluster size and kinetic-energy-dependent electron escape depth as parameters. For the experimental size range, model-based calculations for Ar, Kr, and Xe clusters are presented. The cluster size estimates obtained from comparison of the model calculations and experimental results agree well with those determined from the parameters of the cluster creation process. The combination of experiment and modeling also makes it possible to estimate the effective escape depth for electron propagation in free clusters. For Ar, Kr, and Xe clusters of varying mean size, absolute determination of the surface and bulk electron binding energies of the core levels used in the experiments has also been made.     

Effect of ultrasound therapy on the repair of gastrocnemius muscle injury in rats

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the pulsed ultrasound therapy (PUT) in stimulating myoregeneration and collagen deposition in an experimental model of lacerative gastrocnemius muscle lesion in 30 Wistar rats. Fifteen rats were treated (TG) daily with 1 MHz pulsed ultrasound (50%) at 0.57 W/cm² for 5 min, and 15 were control animals (CG). Muscle samples were analyzed on postoperative days 4, 7 and 14 through H&E, Picrosirius-polarization and immunohistochemistry for desmin. The lesions presented similar inflammatory responses in both treated and control groups. The areal fraction of fibrillar collagen was larger in the TG at 4 days post-operatively (17.53 ± 6.2% vs 6.79 ± 1.3%, p = 0.0491), 7 days (31.07 ± 7.45% vs 12.57 ± 3.6%, p = 0.0021) and 14 days (30.39 ± 7.3% vs 19.13 ± 3.51%, p = 0.0118); the areal fraction of myoblasts and myotubes was larger in the TG at 14 days after surgery (41.66 ± 2.97% vs 34.83 ± 3.08%, p = 0.025). Our data suggest that the PUT increases the differentiation of muscular lineage cells, what would favor tissue regeneration. On the other hand, it is also suggested that there is a larger deposition of collagenous fibers, what could mean worse functional performance. However, the percentage of fibers seems to have stabilized at day 7 in TG and kept increasing in CG. Furthermore, the collagen supramolecular organization achieved by the TG is also significant according to the Sirius red staining results.     

Molecular alignment of ammonia studied by electron-ion-ion coincidence spectroscopy

Electron-ion-ion coincidence measurements carried out at discrete resonances near the N 1s threshold in ammonia are reported. The measured coincidence spectra show clear alignment of the molecule upon resonant core-electron excitation. The coincidence data are analyzed to extract information about the molecule in the excited state by simulating the alignment and the dissociation processes. Dynamic changes in molecular geometry are found as the photon energy is scanned through the N 1s-->4a(1) resonance, whereas for the N 1s-->2e state the geometry and kinetic energy released upon dissociation remain unchanged. The alignment of the core-excited molecules is found to be preserved even in two-step dissociation processes.