Biologically active metabolites from fungi, 19: new isocoumarins and highly substituted benzoic acids from the endophytic fungus, Scytalidium sp

Six known metabolites, two new isocoumarins 4 and 8, and one new highly substituted benzoic acid derivative 9 were isolated from the ethyl acetate culture extract of a fungal endophyte, Scytalidium sp. In addition, another new benzoic acid 10 with an unusual 1,2-dicarbonyl side chain was indirectly identified from its methylated derivatives 10a-10d.     

Stabilities and Redox Properties of Cu(I) and Cu(II) Complexes with Macrocyclic Ligands Containing the N2S2 donor Set

The complexation of Cu(I) and Cu(II) by a series of 12-, 14- and 16-membered macrocyclic ligands 1–6 containing the N₂S₂ donor set has been studied potentiometrically, spectrophotometrically and voltammetrically. In the case of Cu(II), mononuclear complexes CuL²⁺ with stability constants of 10¹⁰–10¹⁵ are formed. In addition, partially hydrolyzed species Cu(L)OH⁺ are observed at pH > 10 for the 12-membered ligands. For Cu(I), beside the specis CuL⁺ with stabilities of 10¹²–10¹⁴, the unexpected formation of protonated species CuLH²⁺ was detected. In contrast to the well-known general trends in coordination chemistry, the stability of these protonated species increases relative to that of the complexes with the neutral ligand when the ring size and concomitantly the distance between neighbouring donor atoms is decreased. From the stability constants of the Cu(I)- and Cu(II)-complexes the redox potentials have been calculated and are compared to the values of E^1/2 obtained by cyclic voltammetry. Despite the identical donor set the Cu(II)/Cu(I) redox potentials of the complexes are spanning a range of 340 mV or six orders of magnitude in relative stability, reflecting the importance of subtle differences in steric requirements.     

Kinetic studies of the on/off reaction of the amino group in the side chain of Cu(II), Ni(II), and Co(II) complexes with 14-membered tetraazamacrocycles

The kinetics of the on/off reaction of the amino group in the side chain of tetraazamacrocyclic Cu2+, Ni2+ and Co2+ complexes has been measured. The rate law k(obs)=k(0)+k(H)[H+]+k(OH)/[H+], the sum of the forward and reverse reaction, gives rise to u-shaped pH dependences from which the three rate constants can be determined. k(H) describes the proton assisted dissociation of the amino group bound to the metal ion and is roughly correlated to the equilibrium constant of the reaction. k(OH) is determined by the protonation constant of the free amino group and the rate constant describing the binding of the amino group to the metal ion. k(0) is composed of the rate constant for the opening of the chelate ring without proton assistance and the rate for the reactivity of the ammonium group in the formation of the chelate ring. Our results show that the rates of the opening and closing of the chelate ring are very little dependent on the nature of the metal ion.     

Apparent molal volumes of aqueous solutions of bis-tetraalkylammonium salts at 25°C: Methylene-group contribution to the limiting molal volume

Densities of aqueous solutions of a series of polymethonium chloride and bromide salts (CH₃)₃–N–(CH₂)_n–N–(CH₃)₃X₂ have been measured at 25°C. Apparent molal volumes have been calculated, and methylene-group contributions to the limiting apparent molal volumes °_v have been estimated. Constant values of the methylene-group contribution of 16.5 and 17.0 cm³-mole^–1 were obtained for the bromide and chloride salts, respectively. These values are consistent with methylene-group contributions reported for other series of organic electrolytes.     

On the cavitation energy of water

Free-energy-perturbation theory from molecular dynamics calculations has been used to obtain the DeltaG of adjoining cavities' formation in water. The DeltaGs for systems with three, five and seven cavities are compared with that of a single cavity of the same volume, and found to be in good agreement. The conditions under which the analytical formulation of the energy of cavity formation proposed by Pierotti holds are discussed. The data for a single cavity have been tabulated and can lend themselves to a simple numerical implementation in standard quantum chemical packages, which can be used when high accuracy for DeltaG(cav) is required.     

Nucleophilic Substitution in Dipolar Aprotic Solvents: Hexamethylphosphoric triamide

The rate of the reaction between ethyl tosylate and chloride as well as bromide ion has been measured in hexamethylphosphoric triamide in the presence of several counterions. Rate constants for the free ions at 25.0° are 14.4 mole^?1 for chloride and 2.0 mole^?1min^?1 for bromide, both independent of the cation used. The equilibrium constants for ion pair dissociation of lithium-, ammonium- and tetra-n-butylammonium chloride are 3.97 × 10^?2, 1.52 × 10^?3 and 6.36 × 10^?3 mole, and for the corresponding bromides 3.30 × 10^?2, 9.65 × 10^?3, and 9.62 × 10^?3 mole.     

Activation energies for nucleation and growth and critical cluster size dependence in JMAK analyses of kinetic Monte-Carlo simulations of precipitation

Kinetic Monte-Carlo (KMC) methods are used as an approach to simulate precipitation in Cu-alloyed bcc Fe. In order to characterize the process, transformed fractions, that is, the precipitated atoms, are related to Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov theory. However, simulated data often deviate from corresponding fit curves and so does the resulting growth exponent when compared to theoretical expectations. Furthermore, some data may suggest the development of a metastable phase. In our study, we show that the characteristics of the transformed fraction and, as a consequence, the derived growth exponents sensitively depend on the number of atoms that are considered to form a particle and hence contribute to the transformed fraction. With a temperature dependence of the critical cluster size and additionally accounting for severe impingement of the particles, we obtain growth exponents which lie close to the expected range between n = 1.5 and n = 2.5 for pre-existing nuclei or continuous nucleation, respectively. From these, we obtain activation energies for nucleation and growth of precipitates. In this way, atomistic KMC simulations yield thermodynamical quantities, which can be valuable input parameters for larger length scale simulation methods, for example, for Phase Field Method simulations.