Total Synthesis of Carthamin,a Traditional Natural Red Pigment

The first total synthesis of carthamin ( 3 ), a historic natural red pigment, has been achieved. The molecular structure was efficiently constructed by assembling two equivalents of the in situ generated lithiated monomers and triisopropyl orthoformate. This synthesis confirms the structure proposed in 1996.     

Chiral Separation of Carboxymethyl Derivatives of Amines by Liquid Chromatography on Reversed-phase Silica Gel Coated with N-n-Dodecyl-L-hydroxyproline

Carboxymethyl derivatives of amines containing a chiral α-carbon were separated into enantiomers by high-performance liquid chromatography using octadecylsilanized silica gel coated with N-n-dodecyl-L-hydroxyproline as the stationary phase and an aqueous solution containing copper(II) as the mobile phase. Detection was by post-column reaction involving derivatization to tertiary amine and chemiluminescence reaction of ruthenium bipyridine complex.     

Synthesis and evaluation of simplified functionalized bongkrekic acid analogs

Bongkrekic acid (BKA) is a strong inhibitor of adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT), inducing inhibition of adenosine triphosphate synthesis. We designed and synthesized simplified benzene-ring-containing BKA analogs. The key reaction is the one-pot double Sonogashira reaction, which forms the main skeleton. The analogs were efficiently synthesized in 8–10 longest linear sequence steps. This synthetic method can be applied for the preparation of other analogs having different combinations of carbon chain lengths. Furthermore, the allyloxy group on the benzene ring can be easily replaced by other functional groups. Our preliminary biological evaluation based on mitochondrial inhibitory effects revealed the high potency of the analogs bearing the same carbon chain length as that of BKA. In particular, the prefunctionalized analogs are potential ANT inhibitors.     

Comparison of the Catalytic Activities of Three Isozymes of Carnitine Palmitoyltransferase 1 Expressed in COS7 Cells

The enzyme carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT1) catalyzes the transfer of an acyl group from acyl-CoA to carnitine to form acylcarnitine, and three isozymes of it, 1a, 1b, and 1c, have been identified. Interestingly, the 1c isozyme was reported to show no enzymatic activity, but it was not clearly demonstrated whether this inactivity was due to its dysfunction or due to its poor expression. In the present study, we (a) expressed individual CPT1 isozymes in COS7 cells, (b) evaluated quantitatively their expression levels by Western blotting using the three bacterially expressed CPT1 isozymes as standards, and (c) evaluated their catalytic activities. With these experiments, we successfully demonstrated that the absence of the enzymatic activity of the 1c isozyme was due to its dysfunction. In addition, experiments on the preparation of standard CPT1 isozymes revealed that the 1c isozyme did not show the standard relationship between migration in an SDS–PAGE gel and molecular size. We further tried to determine why the 1c isozyme was inert by preparing chimeric CPT1 between 1a and 1c, but no clear conclusion could be drawn because one of the chimeric CPT1s was not sufficiently expressed.     

High‐Resolution Crystal Structure of a Silver(I)–RNA Hybrid Duplex Containing Watson–Crick‐like CSilver(I)C Metallo‐Base Pairs

Metallo‐base pairs have been extensively studied for applications in nucleic acid‐based nanodevices and genetic code expansion. Metallo‐base pairs composed of natural nucleobases are attractive because nanodevices containing natural metallo‐base pairs can be easily prepared from commercially available sources. Previously, we have reported a crystal structure of a DNA duplex containing T? Hg^II? T base pairs. Herein, we have determined a high‐resolution crystal structure of the second natural metallo‐base pair between pyrimidine bases C? Ag^I? C formed in an RNA duplex. One Ag^I occupies the center between two cytosines and forms a C? Ag^I? C base pair through N3? Ag^I? N3 linear coordination. The C? Ag^I? C base pair formation does not disturb the standard A‐form conformation of RNA. Since the C? Ag^I? C base pair is structurally similar to the canonical Watson–Crick base pairs, it can be a useful building block for structure‐based design and fabrication of nucleic acid‐based nanodevices.     

Three new polyketide-terpenoid hybrids from Penicillium sp

Three novel hybrid polyketide-terpenoid metabolites were isolated from a Penicillium minioluteum strain. Their structures were determined by NMR spectroscopic analyses and X-ray crystallography. The proposed biosynthetic pathway including a unique retro-Claisen migration of methyl carbonate correlates the three compounds with berkeleydione and berkeleytrione.     

New cytotoxic 14-membered macrolides from marine-derived fungus Aspergillus ostianus

Three new 14-membered macrolides, named aspergillides A, B, and C (1, 5, and 7), were isolated from marine-derived fungus Aspergillus ostianus strain 01F313, cultured in a medium composed of bromine-modified artificial seawater. The structures of the new compounds were determined by analyses of 1D and 2D NMR spectra. Their absolute configurations were elucidated by the modified Mosher's method and chemical conversions. The new compounds showed cytotoxic activity against mouse lymphocytic leukemia cells (L1210).     

Acetylsanadaol,a diterpene having a novel skeleton,from the brown alga, Pachydictyon Coriaceum

Structures of new diterpenoids, sanadol ($\text{4}$) and acetylsanadol ($\text{5}$), isolated from $\text{Pachydictyon}$$\text{coriaceum}$, are determined, and sanadaol is produced by an acid-catalyzed ene reaction of dictyodial.     

Carbon dioxide fixation by microalgae photosynthesis using actual flue gas discharged from a boiler

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - To mitigate the effects of carbon dioxide discharged from a boiler in a power plant, CO2 fixation by microalgae photosynthesis was studied. For the algae...