Highly efficient transfer of chirality from macrocyclic conformation in the tandem oxy-Cope/Claisen/ene reaction

We report three highly stereoselective pericyclic reactions occurring in cascade leading to the synthesis of Decalins skeletons possessing two contiguous quaternary centers. The tandem reaction is triggered by an oxy-Cope rearrangement to create in situ a 10-membered ring enol ether macrocyle 6, which immediately rearranges via a Claisen [3,3] shift to the corresponding E-cyclodec-6-en-1-one 7. The latter spontaneously cyclizes via a transannular ene reaction to produce Decalin 5. Analysis of the mechanism with respect to the origin of the high diastereoselectivity of the tandem oxy-Cope/Claisen/ene reaction is presented.     

Single crystal X- and Q-band EPR spectroscopy of a binuclear Mn(2)(III,IV) complex relevant to the oxygen-evolving complex of photosystem II

The anisotropic g and hyperfine tensors of the Mn di-micro-oxo complex, [Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4)](PF(6))(3).CH(3)CN, were derived by single-crystal EPR measurements at X- and Q-band frequencies. This is the first simulation of EPR parameters from single-crystal EPR spectra for multinuclear Mn complexes, which are of importance in several metalloenzymes; one of them is the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II (PS II). Single-crystal [Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4)](PF(6))(3).CH(3)CN EPR spectra showed distinct resolved (55)Mn hyperfine lines in all crystal orientations, unlike single-crystal EPR spectra of other Mn(2)(III,IV) di-micro-oxo bridged complexes. We measured the EPR spectra in the crystal ab- and bc-planes, and from these spectra we obtained the EPR spectra of the complex along the unique a-, b-, and c-axes of the crystal. The crystal orientation was determined by X-ray diffraction and single-crystal EXAFS (Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure) measurements. In this complex, the three crystallographic axes, a, b, and c, are parallel or nearly parallel to the principal molecular axes of Mn(2)(III,IV)O(2)(phen)(4) as shown in the crystallographic data by Stebler et al. (Inorg. Chem. 1986, 25, 4743). This direct relation together with the resolved hyperfine lines significantly simplified the simulation of single-crystal spectra in the three principal directions due to the reduction of free parameters and, thus, allowed us to define the magnetic g and A tensors of the molecule with a high degree of reliability. These parameters were subsequently used to generate the solution EPR spectra at both X- and Q-bands with excellent agreement. The anisotropic g and hyperfine tensors determined by the simulation of the X- and Q-band single-crystal and solution EPR spectra are as follows: g(x) = 1.9887, g(y) = 1.9957, g(z) = 1.9775, and hyperfine coupling constants are A(III)(x) = |171| G, A(III)(y) = |176| G, A(III)(z) = |129| G, A(IV)(x) = |77| G, A(IV)(y) = |74| G, A(IV)(z) = |80| G.     

Biological response as a function of conformation,chirality, and electronic characteristics: A catecholamine study

The hypothesis is introduced, that nonrigid drug molecules interact with biological receptors in a well-defined but unknown conformation that need not belong to an energy minimum. A verification of this assumption has to include a match of conformation and chirality. Even the different action of pairs of nonrigid enantiomers allow one to recognize uniquely the important role of conformations because flexible molecules are partially able to avoid wrong attachment to the receptor. According to a simple model, a monotonic relation between biological activity and rotational barriers (and/or torque constants) can be expected and, by means of rank correlation analysis of adrenergic activities, has been found, too. In order to apply the latter method, particularities concerning quantitative structure–activity analyses of nonrigid and/or chiral molecules are worked out. We optimized conformations by means of analytically calculated first partials of the energy and a quasi-Newton method. Using a convenient numerical method, it was shown that coplanar conformations of catecholamines are generally unstable. Moreover, CNDO /2 proved to be a reliable method for conformational studies, in which rotations about conjugated bonds [1] are not considered.     

Spectroscopic study of the light-harvesting protein C-phycocyanin associated with colorless linker peptides

C-Phycocyanin (PC) trimers associated with linker polypeptides were isolated from the phycobilisome (PBS) rods of Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. LXY refers to a linker polypeptide (L) having an apparent mass of Y kDa, located at position X in the phycobilisome where X can be R (rod), C (core) or RC (rod-core junction). Measurements of the absorption, fluorescence and excitation anisotropy of PC trimer, PC.LR32.3 and PC.LRC28.5 complexes document the spectroscopic modulation of each linker polypeptide on the PC chromophores. The difference spectra between the PC trimer and the PC-linker complexes show that although the effect induced by the linker polypeptides is qualitatively similar in behavior, the extent of the modulation is greater in PC.LRC28.5. Measurements taken at 77 K show that a red-wavelength component of the PC trimer absorption-fluorescence spectra is the target of the linker's influence and that this component is altered to a greater extent by LRC28.5. In addition the 77 K absorbance of the PC trimer resolves band features that are consistent with an excitonic coupling interaction between neighboring alpha 84 and beta 84 chromophores. These band features are also evident in the absorbance of PC.LR32.3 but are absent in PC.LRC28.5 indicating that LRC28.5 may be perturbing the coupling interaction established in the PC trimer alpha 84-beta 84 chromophore pairs. Structurally, the linker polypeptide should disrupt the C3 symmetry in the central cavity of the associated phycobiliprotein and this asymmetric interaction should serve to guide the transfer of excitation energy along PBS rods toward the core elements.     

Multiplicative posets

A functionf from the posetP to the posetQ is a strict morphism if for allx, y P withx we havef(x). If there is such a strict morphism fromP toQ we writeP Q, otherwise we writeP Q. We say a posetM is multiplicative if for any posetsP, Q withP M andQ M we haveP ×Q M. (Here (p ₁,q ₁)<(p ₂,q ₂) if and only ifp ₁<p ₂ andq ₁<q ₂.) This paper proves that well-founded trees with height are multiplicative posets.This research was supported in part by NSERC Grant #69-1325.     

1,2,4,5‐Tetrazines vs. Carboxylic Acid Dimers: Molecular Chemistry vs. Supramolecular Chemistry

The structures of six new tetrazines have been determined and their molecular packing has been compared to the supermolecular architecture observed in related carboxylic acid dimers. In the tetrazines, covalent N? N bonds are considered to replace the intermolecular O? H???O hydrogen bonds of the carboxylic acids. In the systems investigated, it is apparent that, in the majority of cases, the covalent six‐membered ring of the tetrazine is an appropriate replacement for the carboxylic acid synthon. This apparent interplay between molecular and supramolecular units may have applications in the crystal engineering of new materials.     

Stark shift of the A2Pi(1/2) state in 174YbF

We have measured the Stark shift of the A2Pi(1/2)-X2Sigma+ transition in YbF. We use a molecular beam triple resonance method, with two laser transitions acting as pump and probe, assisted by an rf transition that tags a single hyperfine transition of the X state. After subtracting the known ground state Stark shift, we obtain a value of 70.3(1.5) Hz/(V/cm)2 for the static electric polarizability of the state A2Pi(1/2) (J=1/2),f by fitting our data to a purely quadratic Stark shift in the interval 0-5 kV/cm. A more exact analysis that does not assume a perfectly quadratic Stark effect yields the value mu(e)=2.48(3) D for the electric dipole moment of the A2Pi(1/2)(v=0) state.     

Capillary array scanner for time-resolved detection and identification of fluorescently labelled DNA fragments

The first capillary array scanner for time-resolved fluorescence detection in parallel capillary electrophoresis based on semiconductor technology is described. The system consists essentially of a confocal fluorescence microscope and a x,y-microscope scanning stage. Fluorescence of the labelled probe molecules was excited using a short-pulse diode laser emitting at 640 nm with a repetition rate of 50 MHz. Using a single filter system the fluorescence decays of different labels were detected by an avalanche photodiode in combination with a PC plug-in card for time-correlated single-photon counting (TCSPC). The time-resolved fluorescence signals were analyzed and identified by a maximum likelihood estimator (MLE). The x,y-microscope scanning stage allows for discontinuous, bidirectional scanning of up to 16 capillaries in an array, resulting in longer fluorescence collection times per capillary compared to scanners working in a continuous mode. Synchronization of the alignment and measurement process were developed to allow for data acquisition without overhead. Detection limits in the subzeptomol range for different dye molecules separated in parallel capillaries have been achieved. In addition, we report on parallel time-resolved detection and separation of more than 400 bases of single base extension DNA fragments in capillary array electrophoresis. Using only semiconductor technology the presented technique represents a low-cost alternative for high throughput DNA sequencing in parallel capillaries.