The antioxidant tempamine: in vitro antitumor and neuroprotective effects and optimization of liposomal encapsulation and release

The piperidine nitroxide tempamine (TMN) is a cell-permeable, stable radical having antioxidant, anticancer, and proapoptotic and/or pronecrotic activities, as was demonstrated by us in cell cultures. We also demonstrated synergism between TMN and doxorubicin in doxorubicin-sensitive and doxorubicin-resistant cell lines. Treatment of the C26 mouse colon carcinoma model in vivo also demonstrated synergism between TMN and doxorubicin in sterically stabilized liposomes (SSLs) containing TMN (SSL-TMN) and those containing doxorubicin. The above effects of TMN and SSL-TMN motivated us to develop and optimize the SSL-TMN formulation so that it will be able to reach the disease site with a sufficiently high TMN level and a release rate needed to achieve a therapeutic effect. Because TMN is an amphipathic weak base, it was remote loaded by an intraliposome high/extraliposome low transmembrane ammonium sulfate gradient. The kinetics and level of TMN loading were monitored by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR); the latter also indicates TMN precipitation in the intraliposomal aqueous phase. The regeneration of the original CV and EPR signals by the ionophore nigericin indicates that TMN remained fully intact during loading and release. The cardinal role of the transmembrane ammonium ion gradient in the loading process was proven by the use of the selective ionophores nonactin (for NH4+) and nigericin (for H+). The anion of the ammonium salts affects loading stability and the rate of TMN release, both mediated through the TMN state of aggregation in the intraliposomal aqueous phase. The greater the TMN salt precipitation, the slower the TMN release rate. This was supported by measurement of osmolality, which is inversely related to TMN salt precipitate. Precipitation is in the order SO4(-2)>Cl-1>glucuronate-1. Liposome lipid composition, magnitude of the transmembrane ammonium ion gradient, and type of anion of the ammonium salt determine the amount of TMN loaded and its release rate.     

Raman spectral study of the constitution and equilibria of nitric acid and d-nitric acid

From relative integrated intensity measurements of the symmetric stretching vibration of nitrate ion in nitric acid solutions (both HNO ₃ /H ₂ O and DNO ₃ /D ₂ O), the mass law concentration quotients, Q were obtained as functions of concentration. By extrapolation the limiting dissociation constants were estimated to be 24.4 and 15 respectively at 25°C. It is shown that this constant refers to a process in which the ion pair H ₃ O⁺ NO ₃ ^– is in equilibrium with the dispersed, solvated H ₃ O⁺ and NO ₃ ^– ions.     

Studies towards the synthesis of ertugliflozin from l-Arabinose

A new method for the diastereoselective synthesis of enantiomerically pure ertugliflozin was developed. The crucial step involves an aldol condensation between 1-(4-chloro-3-(4-ethoxybenzyl)phenyl)ethanone and (4R,5R)-5-(((tert-butyldimethylsilyl)oxy)methyl)-2,2-dimethyl-5-((trityloxy)methyl)-1,3-dioxolane-4-carbaldehyde, which was prepared from known 2-C-trityloxymethyl-2,3-O-isopropylidene-l-erythrose (easily accessible in three steps from l-arabinose) by standard reduction/oxidation and protection/deprotection manipulations. Dihydroxylation of the aldol condensation product and further global deprotection led to the formation of the target molecule.     

Accurate prediction of norbornadiene cycle enthalpies by DLPNO-CCSD(T1)/CBS method

The DLPNO-CCSD(T₁)/CBS method combined with simple reactions containing small reference species leads to an improvement in the accuracy of theoretically evaluated enthalpies of formation of medium-sized polyalicyclic hydrocarbons when compared with the widely used composite approach. The efficiency of the DLPNO-CCSD(T₁)/CBS method is most vividly demonstrated by comparing with the results of G4 calculations for adamantane. The most important factor in choosing appropriate working reaction is the same number of species on both sides of the equation. Among these reactions, the reactions with small enthalpy change usually provide a better cancellation of errors. The DLPNO-CCSD(T₁)/CBS method was used to calculate the enthalpies of formation of compounds belonging to the norbornadiene cycle (norbornadiene, quadricyclane, norbornene, nortricyclane, and norbornane). The most reliable experimental enthalpies of formation are recommended for these compounds by comparing calculated values with conflicting experimental data.     

Combinatorial discovery of fluorescent pharmacophores by multicomponent reactions in droplet arrays

Fluorescence imaging in clinical diagnostics and biomedical research relies to a great extent on the use of small organic fluorescent probes. Because of the difficulty of combining fluorescent and molecular-recognition properties, the development of such probes has been severely restricted to a number of well-known fluorescent scaffolds. Here we demonstrate that autofluorescing druglike molecules are a valuable source of bioimaging probes. Combinatorial synthesis and screening of chemical libraries in droplet microarrays allowed the identification of new types of fluorophores. Their concise and clean assembly by a multicomponent reaction presents a unique potential for the one-step synthesis of thousands of structurally diverse fluorescent molecules. Because they are based upon a druglike scaffold, these fluorophores retain their molecular recognition potential and can be used to design specific imaging probes.     

Effects of finite size nuclei in relativistic four-component calculations of hyperfine structure

The effect of a finite size model for both the nuclear charge and magnetic moment distributions on calculated EPR hyperfine structure have been studied using a relativistic four-component method based on density functional theory. This approach employs a restricted kinetically balanced basis (mDKS-RKB) and includes spin-polarization using noncollinear spin-density exchange-correlation functionals in the unrestricted fashion. Benchmark calculations have been carried out for a number of small molecules containing Zn, Cd, Ag, and Hg. The present results are compared with those obtained at the Douglas-Kroll-Hess second order (DKH-2) method. The dependence of the results on the quality of the orbital and auxiliary basis sets has been studied. It was found that some basis sets contain irregularities that deteriorate the results. Especial care has to be taken also on the construction of the auxiliary basis for fitting the total electron and spin-densities.     

Bestimmung von Tellur in Mikrogrammengen mit Hilfe der Simultankomparationsmethode

Zusammenfassung Ein Verfahren zur Bestimmung von Tellurspuren mit Hilfe der Simultankomparationsmethode wurde ausgearbeitet, das auf der Bichromat-Ferriin-Reaktion beruht. Ferriin wird von Tellur(IV) reduziert; dieser Prozeß wird von Bichromat induziert. Bei diesem Verfahren werden die Tellurspuren durch Natriumhypophosphitreduktion mit Arsen oder Selen als Träger abgeschieden, der Metallniederschlag wird mit Salpetersäure zu Tellur(IV) oxydiert, die zu untersuchenden Proben und die Standardreihe gleichzeitig gestartet und verglichen. Mit dieser Methode kann Tellur auch in Mikrogrammengen mit einem Fehler von weniger als ±10% bestimmt werden. Störend wirken nur die Pt-Metalle und Au(III).

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Determination of tellurium in microgram amounts with the aid of the simultaneous comparation method

Summary A procedure has been worked out for the determination of traces of tellurium with the aid of the simultaneous comparation method, and based on the bichromate-ferriin reaction. Ferriin is reduced by tellurium(IV); this process is induced by bichromate. In this procedure the traces of tellurium are precipitated by means of sodium hypophosphite-reduction with arsenic or selenium as carriers. The metal precipitate is oxidized to tellurium(IV) with nitric acid; the samples under investigation and the standard series are started at the same time and compared. By means of this method it is possible to determine tellurium, even in microgram amounts, with an error of less than ± 10%. Only the platinum metals and gold(III) interfere.

     

Synthesis of the antigenic tetrasaccharide side chain from the major glycoprotein of Bacillus anthracis exosporium

A synthesis of the pentenyl glycoside of the tetrasaccharide side chain from the major glycoprotein of Bacillus anthracis by a [3 + 1] approach is described. The construction of the 1,2-trans-glycosidic linkage in the terminal anthrose moiety was achieved through the application of known alpha-nitrilium ion-mediated beta-selective glycosylation methodology. An iterative glycosylation strategy was used for the assembly of the trirhamnan building block. A new route to the anthrose saccharide was developed from D-galactose.     

Solitonic waves in polyene dications and principles of charge carrier localization in π‐conjugated organic materials

The quantum‐chemical investigations by ab initio method (restricted Hartree–Fock/6‐31G**) have been performed for a series of unsubstituted, monosubstituted, and disubstituted neutral polyenes and their double charged cations. The waves of charge alternation (characterized by the difference in the electron densities at the nearest carbon atoms or Δq function) and bond length alternation (characterized by the lengths difference of the nearest carbon–carbon bonds or Δl function) are reported. Comparisons are made with the corresponding monocationic polymethine molecules. We found that ionization by two electrons results in formation of two solitonic waves of charge alternation, rather than superposition of two overlapping solitonic waves into one. These waves behave similar to two independent elastic particles, which do not penetrate into each other despite the special confinement by the length of chromophore π‐system. In monosubstituted polyene dication, Δq and Δl functions contain two waves each; however, only one wave is mobile and sensitive to a change of the chemical nature of the terminal group, whereas the second wave remains practically unchanged. The introduction of one oxymethyl or phenyl terminal groups leads to a relatively small shift of the mobile wave from the center to a direction of the terminal group. The effect of the amino or tropilium terminal groups is much more pronounced and leads to a shift of the mobile wave to the end of the molecule. In disubstituted polyene dication, both solitonic waves become mobile and shift symmetrically to both ends. The general principles of the charge localization described in this study may be used in molecular design and fine‐tuning of the charge transport properties in plastic photovoltaics and other organic semiconducting materials. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.