Enantioselective desymmetrization of meso-N-(heteroarenesulfonyl)aziridines with TMSN3 catalyzed by chiral Lewis acids

A catalytic enantioselective desymmetrization of meso-N-(heteroarenesulfonyl)aziridines with TMSN₃ using chiral Lewis acids afforded products with high enantioselectivity. As proof of the utility of this procedure, the precursor of selective κ-opioid agonist (1S,2S)-(−)-U-50,488 was synthesized.     

One-pot synthesis of optically active allyl esters via lipase-vanadium combo catalysis

The combination of vanadium-oxo compounds (3 or 4) with a lipase produced the regio- and enantioconvergent transformation of racemic allyl alcohols (1 or 2) into optically active allyl esters. In this system, the vanadium compounds catalyzed the continuous racemization of the alcohols along with the transposition of the hydroxyl group, while the lipase effected the chemo- and enantioselective esterification to achieve the dynamic kinetic resolution.     

Surface plasmon resonance study on binding interactions of multivalent cyclophane hosts with immobilized guests

Guest‐binding affinities of water‐soluble cyclophane heptadecamer (1) and pentamer (2) with immobilized guests such as 1‐pyrenylmethylamine (PMA) and 2‐(1‐ naphthyl)ethylamine (NEA) were investigated by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) measurements. As a typical example, the binding constants (K) for 1 and 2 with the immobilized PMA as a guest were evaluated to be 2.5 × 10⁷ and 2.7 × 10⁶ M^?1, respectively, and were much larger than that of a monocyclic reference cyclophane (K, 2.5 × 10⁴ M^?1). Interestingly, in the complexation of 1 and 2 with the immobilized guests, more favorable association and dissociation rate constant values (k_a and k_d, respectively) were observed in comparison with those for the monocyclic cyclophane, reflecting multivalent effects in macrocycles. The multivalent effects in macrocycles as well as molecular recognition abilities of the cyclophane oligomers were confirmed even when the guest molecules were immobilized on SPR sensor chip surfaces. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fabrication of marker area to align TEM tomographic tilt series of rod-shaped specimens

In this study, we present a new method for placing markers for alignment of tomographic tilt-series of rod-shaped specimen before 3D reconstructions. By this method, markers (gold nanoparticles) were placed only on the carbon layer (referred to as the "marker area") deposited for protecting the specimen surface against ion beam irradiation; this placement was achieved by vacuum evaporation of gold with the help of a mask fabricated adjacent to the specimen. Experimental results showed that the use of the proposed method facilitates the identification of the markers in the alignment process, because the image of the marker area consists of simple high-contrast images of the gold nanoparticles on the carbon layer. The performance of the proposed method was successfully verified experimentally by applying it to a high-density Au/SiO? nanocomposite material as a test specimen.     

A possible interpretation of CDF dijet mass anomaly and its realization in supersymmetry

Recently, the CDF Collaboration reports an anomaly in dijet mass distribution in association with a lepton and missing energy. We discuss a possibility that the origin of the lepton and missing energy comes not from a W boson but a new boson particle, which is also responsible for the dijet mass peak. We show that such a situation can be realized in the framework of the minimal supersymmetric standard model and the dijet anomaly can be explained.     

Sensitivity analysis incorporating fuzzy evaluation for scaling constants of multiattribute utility functions

A multiattribute utility function can be represented by a function of single-attribute utility functions if the decision maker’s preference satisfies additive independence or mutually utility independence. Additive independence is a preference condition stronger than mutually utility independence, and the multiattribute utility function is in the additive form if the former condition is satisfied, otherwise it is in the multiplicative form. In this paper, we propose a method for sensitivity analysis of multiattribute utility functions in multiplicative form, taking into account the imprecision of the decision maker’s judgment in the procedures for determining scaling constants (attribute weights).     

Catalytic Mannich-type reaction of phosphorylimidates

Phosphorylimidates reacted with N-Boc imines in the presence of a catalytic amount of potassium hexamethyldisilazide, to afford the corresponding Mannich-type adducts in high yields. It was shown that, like sulfonylimidates, phosphorylimidates can function as ester equivalents. In contrast to sulfonylimidates however, phosphorylimidates exhibited high anti-selectivity even in low polar solvents. An explanation for the anti-selectivity is given.     

An efficient procedure for preparation of 2-monoalkyl or 2-monoaryl-3-ethoxycyclobutanones

Optimized reaction conditions for the preparation of various 2-monosubstituted 3-ethoxycyclobutanones are described. 2-Monoalkyl 3-ethoxycyclobutanones were efficiently prepared by the reaction of the corresponding carboxylic acid chlorides and an excess amount of ethyl vinyl ether in the presence of diisopropylethylamine at 90 °C in a sealed tube. 2-Monoaryl 3-ethoxycyclobutanones were prepared by using 2,6-lutidine as a base in the above-mentioned procedure.