Synthesis of C3-dihydrofuran substituted coumarins via multicomponent approach

An efficient method was developed for the synthesis of dihydrofuran substituted coumarin from a one-pot, four-component reaction of 2-hydroxy aromatic aldehydes, 6-methyl, 4-hydroxy pyranone, aromatic aldehyde, and pyridinium ylide in the presence of tri-ethylamine under microwave irradiation. The reaction proceeds under solvent-free conditions to afford C3-dihydrofuran substituted coumarin in a diastereoselective manner in good yields (71–89%).     

Regio- and stereoselective co-iodination of olefins using NH4I and Oxone

A simple, efficient, and environmentally benign protocol for the synthesis of vicinal iodohydrins and iodoesters from olefins using NH₄I and Oxone in CH₃CN/H₂O (1:1) and dimethylformamide (DMF) / dimethylacetamide (DMA), respectively, without employing a catalyst at room temperature is described. Regio- and stereoselective iodohydroxylation and iodoesterification of various olefins with anti fashion, following Markonikov’s rule, was achieved and the corresponding products were obtained in good to excellent yields. In addition, 1,2-disubstituted olefins afforded excellent diastereoselectivity.     

One-pot multicomponent diastereoselective synthesis of novel dihydro-1H-furo[2,3-c]pyrazoles

An efficient method was developed for the diastereoselective synthesis of novel fused dihydro-1H-furo[2,3-c]pyrazole by a one-pot, four-component reaction of β-keto ester, hydrazine, aromatic aldehyde, and pyridinium ylide in the presence of triethylamine under microwave irradiation in solvent-free conditions in good yields. The merits of this cascade Knoevenagel condensation/Michael addition/cyclization sequence include its high atom economy, good yields, and efficiency of producing three new bonds (two C–C and one C–O) and two stereocenters in a single operation.     

Rhodamine urea derivatives as fluorescent chemosensors for Hg

New rhodamine derivatives bearing urea group have been synthesized for the detection of metal ions. Especially, the dimeric system 2 displayed a selective fluorescent enhancement and colorimetric change upon the addition of Hg²⁺, in which the spirolactam (nonfluorescent) to ring opened amide (fluorescent) process was utilized. The association constant of 2 with Hg²⁺ was calculated as 3.2 × 10⁵ M⁻¹.     

Carbon nanotube-modified microelectrodes for simultaneous detection of dopamine and serotonin in vivo

Dopamine and serotonin are important neurotransmitters that interact in the brain. While dopamine is easily detected with electrochemical sensors, the detection of serotonin is more difficult because reactive species formed after oxidation can adsorb to the electrode, reducing sensitivity. Carbon nanotube treatments of electrodes have been used to increase the sensitivity, promote electron transfer, and reduce fouling. Most methods have focused on nanotube coatings of large electrodes and slower electrochemical techniques that are not conducive to measurements in vivo. In this study, we investigated carbon-fiber microelectrodes modified with single-walled carbon nanotubes for the co-detection of dopamine and serotonin in vivo. Using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry, S/N ratios for the neurotransmitters increased after nanotube coating. Electrocatalytic effects of nanotubes were not apparent at fast scan rates but faster kinetics were observed with slower scanning. Nanotube-modified microelectrodes showed significantly less fouling after exposure to serotonin than bare electrodes. The nanotube-modified electrodes were used to monitor stimulated dopamine and serotonin changes simultaneously in the striatum of anesthetized rat after administration of a serotonin synthetic precursor. These studies show that nanotube-coated microelectrodes can be used with fast scanning techniques and are advantageous for in vivo measurements of neurotransmitters because of their greater sensitivity and resistance to fouling.     

A remarkable accelerating effect of Ag-salt on intramolecular cyclization of o-(1-alkynyl)benzenesulfonamides

Herein, we report transition metal-catalyzed intramolecular cyclization of o-(1-alkynyl)benzenesulfonamides to afford 3-substituted benzothiazines regioselectively via a C-N bond forming reaction and Cu-catalyzed sequential C-N and C-C bond formation leading to the corresponding 3,4-disubstituted derivatives.     

A comparative study on the modeling of sound pressure field distributions in a sonoreactor with experimental investigation

In sonochemical reactors the effect of emerging cavitation bubbles has significant influence on the amplitude and structure of the developing sound field. Calculations show that the damping parameter and the phase velocity may, depending on the pressure amplitude, change by several orders of magnitude. For example, the sound velocity in water comes to 1500 ms⁻¹, whereas in a bubbly liquid it may decrease to 20 ms⁻¹, which is much below the velocity of sound in air (about 340 ms⁻¹). In this paper, a method of calculating the time dependent three-dimensional pressure field in sonochemical reactors of various shapes is presented. It takes into account inhomogeneous distributed wave parameters which are a function of the spatial depending pressure amplitude. The modeled results are then compared with experimentally measured values of a certain kind of reaction vessel. The agreement is found to be satisfactory.     

Fluorescence quenching, time-resolved fluorescence and chemical modification studies on the tryptophan residues of snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina) seed lectin

Fluorescence quenching and time-resolved fluorescence studies have been performed on the galactose-specific lectin purified from snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina) seeds, in order to investigate the tryptophan accessibility and environment in the native protein and in the presence of bound ligand. Estimation of the tryptophan content by N-bromosuccinimide modification in the presence of 8 M urea yields four residues per dimeric molecule. The emission spectrum of native lectin in the absence as well as in the presence of 50 mM methyl--d-galatopyranoside (MeGal) shows a maximum around 331 nm, which shifts to 361.8 nm upon reduction of the disulfide bonds and denaturation with 8 M urea, indicating that all four tryptophan residues in the native state of this protein are in a hydrophobic environment. The extent of quenching that is observed is highest with acrylamide, intermediate with succinimide, and low with Cs⁺ and I⁻, further supporting the idea that the tryptophan residues are predominantly buried in the hydrophobic core of the protein. The presence of MeGal (50 mM) affects the quenching only marginally. Time-resolved fluorescence measurements yield bi-exponential decay curves with lifetimes of 1.45 and 4.99 ns in the absence of sugar, and 1.36 and 4.8 ns in its presence. These results suggest that the tryptophan residues are not directly involved in the saccharide binding activity of the T. anguina lectin. Of the four quenchers employed in this study, the cationic quencher, Cs⁺, is found to be a very sensitive probe for the tryptophan environment of this lectin and may be useful in investigating the environment of partially buried tryptophan residues and unfolding processes in other proteins as well.     

The Crystal and Molecular Structure of (μ‐terephthlato) bis [(N‐Salicylidene ‐N'‐(2‐hydroxyethyl) ethylenediamine) Copper(II)]

The title compound [[Cu(shen)]₂(tp)], {[Cu(C₁₅H₁₇O₄N₂)]2}, where tp = dianion of terephthalic acid and shen = (N‐salicylidene‐N'‐(2‐hydroxyethyl ethylene‐diamine)) has been prepared and its crystal structure determined by single crystal X‐ray diffraction at room temperature. The complex crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Pbca with four formula units in a unit cell of dimensions a = 12.298(2), b = 14.214(2) and c = 16.436(2)Å. The structure consists of binuclear units with Cu(II) ion bridged by the tp ligand in a bis‐unidentate fashion. The five coordinate Cu(II) complex adopts a distorted square‐based pyramid. A crystallographic inversion center has been located at the center of the benzene ring of the tp bridging ligand. The Cu … Cu distance inside a same binuclear entity is 11.069Å. Intermolecular aromatic ring stacking interactions were observed with the shortest atom to atom contact being 3.423Å.