A facile synthesis of 2-acetylnaphtho[2,3-b]furan-4,9-dione

Reaction of the parent naphtho[2,3-b]furan-4,9-dione 2 with various electrophilic reagents was difficult, and only nitration of 2 gave small amounts of 2-nitronaphtho[2,3-b]furan-4,9-dione 4 . Then 2-acetylnaphtho[2,3-b]furan-4,9-dione 1 was not obtained by the acetylation of 2 . On the other hand, compound 1 that is isolated from Tabebuia Cassinoides and has cytotoxic activity, was obtained from 3-lithiofuran in five steps.     

Structure-activity relationships of rat neuromedin U for smooth muscle contraction.

Rat neuromedin U (r-NMU) and its fragment peptide amides were synthesized by solid-phase methodology. Using a chicken crop smooth muscle contraction assay, the potency of r-NMU and its fragments relative to porcine neuromedin U-8 (p-NMU-8) was r-NMU: 10.25 +/- 2.88, r-NMU (6-23): 8.01 +/- 1.04, r-NMU (10-23): 2.76 +/- 0.46, r-NMU (13-23): 2.81 +/- 0.52, and r-NMU (16-23): 0.88 +/- 0.19, respectively. Two heptapeptides, r-NMU (17-23) and r-NMU (16-22), had a relative potency of 0.61 and 0.03 respectively, and elicited maximal contraction at a dose of 10 microM to a similar degree to p-NMU-8. The other shorter C-terminal fragments did not elicit the maximal contraction or any activity. In a rat uterus contraction assay, r-NMU (13-23), but not r-NMU (16-23), at a dose of 4 nM retained as high a stimulatory activity as r-NMU itself. r-NMU (17-22) was the smallest peptide fragment to elicit the maximal sustained contraction at 10 microM. These results indicate that the amino acid sequence Phe-Leu-Phe-Arg-Pro-Arg, corresponding to positions 17 to 22 of r-NMU, may be essential for contractile activity. N-terminal peptide segments Tyr-Gln-Gly-Pro corresponding to positions 6 to 9, and Ser-Gly-Gly corresponding to positions 13 to 15, appear to be of special importance for potent activity.     

Agonistic and antagonistic activities of neuromedin U-8 analogs substituted with glycine or D-amino acid on contractile activity of chicken crop smooth muscle preparations.

To study the structure-activity relationships of neuromedin U-8 (NMU-8) (H-Tyr-Phe-Leu-Phe-Arg-Pro-Arg-Asn-NH2) and to develop a NMU-8 antagonist, twenty-three NMU-8 analogs substituted with Gly or the corresponding D-amino acid(s) at positions 1-8 were synthesized by solid-phase techniques. On isolated chicken crop preparations, the contractile activity of the synthetic NMU-8 analogs was compared with that of NMU-8 and their antagonistic activity was assayed against NMU-8. The replacement of Phe2, Phe4, Arg5, Pro6, Arg7 or Asn8 with Gly brought about a drastic decrease of the agonistic activities. Substitution of the corresponding D-amino acid residue for Phe2, Phe4, Arg5, Pro6 or Asn8 caused a marked decrease of the agonistic activities, while the replacement of Tyr1 with D-form enhanced the activity. It was further revealed that [D-Pro6]-NMU-8 and [D-Leu3, D-Pro6]-NMU-8 exerted a non-competitive antagonistic activity against NMU-8 with x values of 5.22 +/- 0.12 and 5.34 +/- 0.09, respectively. [D-Phe2, D-Pro6]-NMU-8, [D-Arg5, D-Pro6]-NMU-8 and [D-Pro6, D-Asn8]-NMU-8 showed a very weak antagonism. The results indicated that 1) the side chain of each amino acid at positions 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of NMU-8 is of relative importance for the expression of the contractile activity, and 2) [D-Pro6]-NMU-8 and its four analogs acted as an antagonist against NMU-8.     

Synthesis of thyrotropin-releasing hormone-related peptides using N alpha-tert-butyloxycarbonyl-omega-(N-tert-butyloxycarbonylcarbamoyl)- alpha-amino acids

Application of N alpha,Nca-di-tert-butyloxycarbonylhomoglutamine to synthesis of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) analogs was examined. The delta-lactam formation from homoglutaminylpeptides took place more easily than gamma-lactam formation from glutaminylpeptides in water or dioxane containing acetic acid. [pHgu1,Nva2]-TRH had dose-dependent antagonistic activity against pentobarbital anesthesia in mice, but almost no binding activity to TRH receptor in rat brain.     

Solvation effect of the cation of the supporting electrolyte in hexamethylphosphoramide

Polarographic reductions of sodium and potassium ions in hexamethylphosphoramide (HMPA) have been examined in various supporting electrolytes. The supporting electrolytes, which have much the same solvated radii and much the same electrocapillary curves, sometimes have a significantly different influence on the polarographic reductions of metal ions. The Li⁺ and Hex₄N⁺ ions provide a typical example. Their effective radii are seen to have much the same characteristics. However, the polarographic reduction of the sodium ion shows a difference in shape between that occurring in Li⁺ solution and that in Hex₄N⁺ solution. Another example is found in the case of Et₄N⁺, Me₄N⁺ and 5N6⁺, whose r_eff and the electrocapillary curves are much the same. However, the polarographic reductions of the sodium and potassium ions are different in these solutions. The solvation number of the solvent molecule of the supporting electrolyte cation seems to exert a great influence on these reductions. The electrocapillary curves were also examined with the tetradodecylammonium ion, tetradecylammonium ion and tetraphenylphosphonium ion used as the supporting electrolytes. The inhibition of the reduction of metal ion for these cations is evidence for their lack of solvation. The effects of the solvated asymmetrical tetraalkylammonium ions on the polarographic behaviour were also examined. When some methyl groups cooperate with the tetraalkylammonium ion, the chemical character is between that of the Et₄N⁺ ion and that of the Me₄N⁺ ion.     

Synthesis and antitumor activities of novel benzoylphenylurea derivatives.

Seventy novel benzoylphenylurea compounds were synthesized and their antitumor activities were examined in vivo against P388 leukemia. N-(2-Nitrobenzoyl)-N'-[4-(2-pyrimidinyloxy)phenyl]ureas showed the highest antitumor activities when dosed intraperitoneally or orally. Their structure-activity relationships were examined with particular focus on the position and the variety of substituent on each aryl ring.     

Fullerometallic ion chemistry: reactions of C(60)Fe+ and C(20)H(10)Fe+ in the gas phase

Fe+ has been attached to buckminsterfullerene, C(60), and corannulene, C(20)H(10), in the gas phase, and the reactivities of C(60)Fe+ and C(20)H(10)Fe+ have been measured with several small inorganic and organic molecules in helium bath gas at 0.35 Torr using a selected-ion flow tube (SIFT) mass spectrometer. Comparisons with measured reactivities of the bare Fe+ ion indicate that the presence of C(60) and C(20)H(10) leads to enhancements in reactivity at room temperature of up to 5 orders of magnitude. Ligation was the only chemistry observed with D(2), N(2), CO(2), CH(4), C(2)H(2), C(2)H(4), SO(2), C(6)D(6), NH(3), H(2)O, and CO, but other channels were observed to compete with adduct formation in the reactions with N(2)O and O(2). The number of molecules sequentially ligated to the ion was different: up to five molecules of ligand added sequentially to Fe+, up to four molecules of ligand were observed to attach to C(60)Fe+, while only up to three molecules added to C(20)H(10)Fe+. C(60)+ and C(20)H(10)+ were observed to be unreactive toward the same ligands. The kinetic results show the influence of carbonaceous surfaces on metal ion reactivity and are interpreted in terms of the nature of the coordination of Fe+ to the carbonaceous surface. Catalytic effects of the carbonaceous surfaces were identified for the reactions with N(2)O and O(2).     

Brominations of steroidal hormone having alpha,beta-unsaturated ketone, 17-O-acetyltestosterone, in the presence of silver triflate

Bromination of 17-O-acetyltestosterone (17beta-acetoxyandrost-4-en-3-one) (1) was performed with 1, 5, and 10 eq of Br2 in AcOH-Et2O at room temperature. In all cases 2alpha,6beta- (2) and 2alpha,6beta-dibromo-17beta-acetoxyandrost-4-en-3-one (3) were obtained, although the yields were dependent upon the conditions used. Bromination of compound 1 with 10 eq of Br2 in the presence of silver trifluoromethanesulfonate (silver triflate, AgOTf) at room temperature for 12 h gave 2,7alpha-dibromo- (4) and 2,4,7alpha-tribromo-17beta-acetoxy-3-hydroxy-1-methylestra-1,3,5(10)-triene-6-one (5). The formations of the products were inferred on the basis of products obtained under controlled brominations of 1 in the presence of AgOTf, and of those obtained by the brominations of compounds 9-13 also in the presence of AgOTf.     

Speed of sound in liquid cyclic alkanes at temperatures between (283 and 343) K and pressures up to 20 MPa

The speed of sound in liquid cyclopentane, cyclohexane, methylcyclopentane and methylcyclohexane were measured, with a sing-around technique operated at a frequency of 2 MHz, at temperatures from (283 to 343) K and pressures up to 20 MPa with an estimated error of less than ± 0.2 per cent in the high-density region. From these measurements the densities and isobaric and isentropic compressibilities of each compound were estimated. The behaviour on the temperature and pressure in these quantities is discussed based on the difference in molecular shape between cyclic and normal alkanes with those for n-alkanes.