Amino­pyrimidine–carboxyl­(ate) interactions in trimethoprim maleate,an antifolate drug

In the title cocrystal, trimethoprim maleate [2,4‐di­amino‐5‐(3,4,5‐tri­methoxy­benzyl)­pyrimidin‐1‐ium maleate], C₁₄H₁₉­N₄O₃⁺·­C₄H₃O₄^?, the trimethoprim mol­ecule is protonated at N1. The carboxyl group of the maleate ion makes a specific double hydrogen bond of type N—H?O with the 2‐amino group and the protonated N1 atom of the trimethoprim cation which is similar to the carboxyl­ate–trimethoprim cation interaction observed in the complex of di­hydro­folate reductase with trimethoprim. The pyrimidine moieties of trimethoprim cations are centrosymmetrically paired through a pair of N—H?N hydrogen bonds involving the 4‐amino group and the pyridinium N3 atom of a symmetry‐related molecule. One of the O atoms at the maleate carboxyl­ate group bridges the 2‐­amino and 4‐amino groups on either side of the paired trimethoprim cations. The other O atom of the carboxyl­ate group forms an intramolecular O—H?O hydrogen bond with the carboxyl group. These characteristic hydrogen bonds result in infinite two‐dimensional aggregation of rings into a supramolecular ladder, which is further crosslinked through weak C—H?O interactions with methoxy groups of neighbouring trimethoprim mol­ecules to form a layered structure.     

A new antifungal and antiprotozoal bibenzyl derivative from Gavilea lutea

A new bibenzyl derivative (4), together with two glycosylated flavonoids (1 and 2), batatasin III (3) and the phenanthrene isohircinol (5) were isolated from the aerial parts of Gavilea lutea. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic studies including 1D and 2D NMR, UV, IR and HRESIMS. All isolated compounds were evaluated for their antifungal activity towards Candida albicans. The new compound 4 showed inhibitory activity with a MIQ of 50 μg. In addition, compound 4 exhibited a selective activity (IC₅₀ = 2.3 μg/mL) against Leishmania donovani.     

Study on the stereochemical control of dihydroxylation of vinyl epoxides and their derivatives

The results obtained from a study on the stereochemical control in the dihydroxylation of the double bond of vinyl epoxides and their derivatives (bromo derivatives, azido derivatives and vinyl aziridines) are presented herein. A significant diastereoselectivity was observed for the bromo derivatives, azido derivatives and N-protected vinyl aziridines, whereas vinyl epoxides and unprotected vinyl aziridines showed no diastereoselectivity. The results obtained are generally consistent with the Kishi model.     

Synthesis of tryptamine derivatives via a direct, one-pot reductive alkylation of indoles

An efficient, one-pot reductive alkylation of indoles with N-protected aminoethyl acetals in the presence of TES/TFA is reported. It represents the first general method for the direct synthesis of tryptamine derivatives from indoles and nitrogen-functionalized acetals. This convergent and versatile approach employs safe and inexpensive reagents, proceeds under mild conditions, and tolerates several functional groups. The new procedure was efficiently applied to a gram-scale synthesis of both luzindole, a reference MT2-selective melatonin receptor antagonist, and melatonin.     

Ad-nilpotent ideals of a parabolic subalgebra

We extend the results of Cellini and Papi [P. Cellini, P. Papi, Ad-nilpotent ideals of a Borel subalgebra, J. Algebra 225 (2000) 130–140; P. Cellini, P. Papi, Ad-nilpotent ideals of a Borel subalgebra II, J. Algebra 258 (2002) 112–121] on the characterizations of ad-nilpotent and abelian ideals of a Borel subalgebra to parabolic subalgebras of a simple Lie algebra. These characterizations are given in terms of elements of the affine Weyl group and faces of alcoves. In the case of a parabolic subalgebra of a classical simple Lie algebra, we give formulas for the number of these ideals.     

Global air quality and climate

Emissions of air pollutants and their precursors determine regional air quality and can alter climate. Climate change can perturb the long-range transport, chemical processing, and local meteorology that influence air pollution. We review the implications of projected changes in methane (CH(4)), ozone precursors (O(3)), and aerosols for climate (expressed in terms of the radiative forcing metric or changes in global surface temperature) and hemispheric-to-continental scale air quality. Reducing the O(3) precursor CH(4) would slow near-term warming by decreasing both CH(4) and tropospheric O(3). Uncertainty remains as to the net climate forcing from anthropogenic nitrogen oxide (NO(x)) emissions, which increase tropospheric O(3) (warming) but also increase aerosols and decrease CH(4) (both cooling). Anthropogenic emissions of carbon monoxide (CO) and non-CH(4) volatile organic compounds (NMVOC) warm by increasing both O(3) and CH(4). Radiative impacts from secondary organic aerosols (SOA) are poorly understood. Black carbon emission controls, by reducing the absorption of sunlight in the atmosphere and on snow and ice, have the potential to slow near-term warming, but uncertainties in coincident emissions of reflective (cooling) aerosols and poorly constrained cloud indirect effects confound robust estimates of net climate impacts. Reducing sulfate and nitrate aerosols would improve air quality and lessen interference with the hydrologic cycle, but lead to warming. A holistic and balanced view is thus needed to assess how air pollution controls influence climate; a first step towards this goal involves estimating net climate impacts from individual emission sectors. Modeling and observational analyses suggest a warming climate degrades air quality (increasing surface O(3) and particulate matter) in many populated regions, including during pollution episodes. Prior Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios (SRES) allowed unconstrained growth, whereas the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) scenarios assume uniformly an aggressive reduction, of air pollutant emissions. New estimates from the current generation of chemistry-climate models with RCP emissions thus project improved air quality over the next century relative to those using the IPCC SRES scenarios. These two sets of projections likely bracket possible futures. We find that uncertainty in emission-driven changes in air quality is generally greater than uncertainty in climate-driven changes. Confidence in air quality projections is limited by the reliability of anthropogenic emission trajectories and the uncertainties in regional climate responses, feedbacks with the terrestrial biosphere, and oxidation pathways affecting O(3) and SOA.     

Raman and SERS study on cimetidine–metal complexes with biomedical interest

Cimetidine (cim) is one of the most potent histamine H₂‐receptor antagonists for inhibiting excessive acid secretion caused by histamine; it has been hypothesized that the therapeutic effects can be related to its interactions with metal ions. Raman spectra of the solid cim with Co(II), Cu(II), Ni(II) and Zn(II) metal complexes show that they can adopt two different structures: one is octahedral and the other, with Zn(II), is probably tetrahedral. The octahedral structure appears to be distorted both by the different metal ions as well as by the different anion present. The study was extended to very dilute solutions (ppm range) by using the surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique, mimicking the physiological concentrations of cim and its metal complexes. SERS spectra suggest that, upon the binding of cim to silver colloids, the formation of stable 1:2 cim–metal complexes is excluded, the formation of 1:1 adduct appearing more probable; in this product the metal reaches its total coordination shell by complexion with water molecules. To better explain the binding mechanism of cim to a metal (Ag) surface, we performed theoretical B3LYP calculations on cim alone as well as on cim bonded to an Ag₂ metal cluster in presence of water, observing a sufficiently good agreement between experimental and theoretical wavenumbers. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Efficient synthesis of scutellarein

Scutellarein is a component of Scutellaria, recently known as a potent cytotoxic agent on human leukaemia cells. The aim of this study was the synthesis of scutellarein and its methylated derivative. The new features are the innovating method to afford flavones from flavanones and the A-ring regioselective bromination step that lead to the target molecule by a facile and high-yielding pathway.