Mismatches Improve the Performance of Strand‐Displacement Nucleic Acid Circuits

Catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) has previously proven useful as a transduction and amplification method for nucleic acid detection. However, the two hairpin substrates in a CHA circuit can potentially react non‐specifically even in the absence of a single‐stranded catalyst, and this non‐specific background degrades the signal‐to‐noise ratio. The introduction of mismatched base pairs that impede uncatalyzed strand exchange reactions led to a significant decrease of the background signal, while only partially damping the signal in the presence of a catalyst. Various types and lengths of mismatches were assayed by fluorimetry, and in many instances, our MismatCHA designs yielded 100‐fold increased signal‐to‐background ratios compared to a ratio of 4:1 with the perfectly matched substrates. These observations could be of general utility for the design of non‐enzymatic nucleic acid circuits.     

Batch versus Flow Photochemistry: A Revealing Comparison of Yield and Productivity

The use of flow photochemistry and its apparent superiority over batch has been reported by a number of groups in recent years. To rigorously determine whether flow does indeed have an advantage over batch, a broad range of synthetic photochemical transformations were optimized in both reactor modes and their yields and productivities compared. Surprisingly, yields were essentially identical in all comparative cases. Even more revealing was the observation that the productivity of flow reactors varied very little to that of their batch counterparts when the key reaction parameters were matched. Those with a single layer of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) had an average productivity 20 % lower than that of batch, whereas three‐layer reactors were 20 % more productive. Finally, the utility of flow chemistry was demonstrated in the scale‐up of the ring‐opening reaction of a potentially explosive [1.1.1] propellane with butane‐2,3‐dione.     

An Aluminophosphate Molecular Sieve with 36 Crystallographically Distinct Tetrahedral Sites

The structure of the new medium‐pore aluminophosphate molecular sieve PST‐6 is determined by the combined use of rotation electron diffraction tomography, synchrotron X‐ray powder diffraction, and computer modeling. PST‐6 was prepared by calcination of another new aluminophosphate material with an unknown structure synthesized using diethylamine as a structure‐directing agent, which is thought to contain bridging hydroxy groups. PST‐6 has 36 crystallographically distinct tetrahedral sites in the asymmetric unit and is thus crystallographically the most complex zeolitic structure ever solved.     

A Frequency-Selective pH-Responsive paraCEST Agent

Paramagnetic chemical exchange saturation transfer (paraCEST) agents are well-suited for imaging tissue pH because the basis of CEST, chemical exchange, is inherently sensitive to pH. Several previous pH-sensitive paraCEST agents were based on an exchanging Ln³⁺-bound water molecule as the CEST antenna but this design often added additional line-broadening to the bulk water signal due to T₂ exchange. We report herein a pH-sensitive paraCEST agent that lacks an inner-sphere water molecule but contains one Ln-bound −OH group for CEST activation. The Yb³⁺ complex, Yb( 1 ), displayed a single, highly shifted CEST peak originating from the exchangeable Yb-OH proton, the frequency of which changed over the biologically relevant pH range. CEST images of phantoms ranging in pH from 6 to 8 demonstrate the potential of this agent for imaging pH. Initial rodent imaging studies showed that Gd( 1 ) remains in the vascular system much longer than anticipated but is cleared slowly via renal filtration.     

Diversely Functionalised Cytochalasins through Mutasynthesis and Semi-Synthesis

Mutasynthesis of pyrichalasin H from Magnaporthe grisea NI980 yielded a series of unprecedented 4′-substituted cytochalasin analogues in titres as high as the wild-type system (≈60 mg L⁻¹). Halogenated, O-alkyl, O-allyl and O-propargyl examples were formed, as well as a 4′-azido analogue. 4′-O-Propargyl and 4′-azido analogues reacted smoothly in Huisgen cycloaddition reactions, whereas p-Br and p-I compounds reacted in Pd-catalysed cross-coupling reactions. A series of examples of biotin-linked, dye-linked and dimeric cytochalasins was rapidly created. In vitro and in vivo bioassays of these compounds showed that the 4′-halogenated and azido derivatives retained their cytotoxicity and antifungal activities; but a unique 4′-amino analogue was inactive. Attachment of larger substituents attenuated the bioactivities. In vivo actin-binding studies with adherent mammalian cells showed that actin remains the likely intracellular target. Dye-linked compounds revealed visualisation of intracellular actin structures even in the absence of phalloidin, thus constituting a potential new class of actin-visualisation tools with filament-barbed end-binding specificity.     

Total Synthesis of (±)‐Phyllantidine: Development and Mechanistic Evaluation of a Ring Expansion for Installation of Embedded Nitrogen‐Oxygen Bonds

The development of a concise total synthesis of (±)‐phyllantidine ( 1 ), a member of the securinega family of alkaloids containing an unusual oxazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane core, is described. The synthesis employs a unique synthetic strategy featuring the ring expansion of a substituted cyclopentanone to a cyclic hydroxamic acid as a key step that allows facile installation of the embedded nitrogen‐oxygen (N?O) bond. The optimization of this sequence to effect the desired regiochemical outcome and its mechanistic underpinnings were assessed both computationally and experimentally. This synthetic approach also features an early‐stage diastereoselective aldol reaction to assemble the substituted cyclopentanone, a mild reduction of an amide intermediate without N?O bond cleavage, and the rapid assembly of the butenolide found in ( 1 ) via use of the Bestmann ylide.     

Synthesis of a series of diaminobenzo[f]- and diaminobenzo[h]pyrimido[4,5-b]quinolines as 5-deaza tetracyclic nonclassical antifolates

A series of diaminobenzo[f]- and diaminobenzo[h]pyrimido[4,5-b]quinolines 1–11 were designed as 5-deaza tetracyclic nonclassical, lipophilic antifolates. The compounds were designed as conformationally semi-rigid and rigid analogs of 2,4-diamino-6-phenyl- 12 and 2,4-diamino-7-phenylpyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines 13 and 14 . The target compounds were synthesized by cyclocondensation of chlorovinyl aldehydes obtained from appropriately substituted 1- or 2-tetralone, with 2,4,6-friaminopyrimidine. Compounds 1–11 were evaluated as inhibitors of P. carinii and T. gondii dihydrofolate reductases. These pathogens cause fatal opportunistic infections in AIDS patients. In addition, the selectivity of these agents was evaluated using rat liver dihydrofolate reductase as the mammalian source. In general the benzo[f]pyrimido[4,5-b]quinolines 1–5 were more potent than the corresponding benzo[h]pyrimido[4,5-b]quinoline analogues 6–11 against P. carinii and rat liver dihydrofolate reductase and were equipotent against T. gondii dihydrofolate reductase. Compounds 6–11 were moderately selective towards T. gondii dihydrofolate reductase with IC₅₀S in the 10⁻⁷ M range. In contrast analogues 1–5 lacked selectivity against P. carinii or T. gondii dihydrofolate reductase and were, in general, potent inhibitors of rat liver dihydrofolate reductase with IC₅₀S in the 10⁻⁸ M range. Analogues 1 and 4 were evaluated against a series of tumor cell lines in vitro and were found to have moderate antitumor activity (IC50 10⁻⁶ M). The structure activity/selectivity relationships suggest that benzo[f]pyrimido analogues 1–5 with the phenyl ring substitution in the “upper” portion of the tetracyclic ring are better accommodated within the rat liver (mammalian) dihydrofolate reductase and P. carinii dihydrofolate reductase active sites compared to the benzo[h]pyrimido analogues 6–11 which have the phenyl ring substitution in the “lower” portion of the tetracyclic ring. In contrast T. gondii dihydrofolate reductase does not discriminate between the isomers and binds to both series of compounds with similar affinities.     

Copper(I) halide complexes with 2,2′-bis(diphenylphosphano)-1,1′-binaphthyl (rac-binap) and heterocyclic thiones. Racemic compounds in chiral and achiral crystal space groups

Reactions of copper(I) halides with racemic 2,2′-bis(diphenylphosphano)-1,1′-binaphthyl (rac-binap) in 1:1 molar ratio afforded mononuclear complexes of the type [CuX(rac-binap)] (X = Cl, Br, I) which, on further treatment with 1 equiv. of pyridine-2-thione (py2SH), pyrimidine-2-thione (pymtH) or 4,6-dimethyl-pyrimidine-2-thione (dmpymtH) gave rise to the formation of mixed-ligand complexes of the formula [CuX(rac-binap)(thione)]. The molecular structures of [CuBr(rac-binap)(py2SH)] · 2CH₂Cl₂, [CuBr(rac-binap)(py2SH)] · CH₂Cl₂ and [CuBr(rac-binap)(dmpymtH)] · CH₂Cl₂ have been established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Each of the complexes features a distorted tetrahedral copper(I) center with the phosphane acting in a chelating fashion. The complexes are strongly luminescent in the solid state at ambient temperature. Unusually, the [CuBr(rac-binap)(py2SH)] · 2CH₂Cl₂ molecules crystallise in a chiral space group with independent S- and R-enantiomers in the asymmetric unit.