Formation and crystal structure of 1-methyl-2-phenylindolizine-3-acetonitrile

1-Methyl-2-phenylindolizine-3-acetonitrile was unexpectedly obtained in the reaction of 1-methyl-2-phenylindolizine-3-thioaldehyde with cyanide ions. Its structure was determined by IR, ¹H NMR, MS, elemental analyses, and X-ray crystallography. Colorless regular prism shaped crystals of C₁₇H₁₄N₂ crystallize in the space group C2/c with cell dimensions a = 12.956(3) Å, b =10.516(2) Å, c = 20.429(4) Å, and = 90°, = 104.98(3)°, = 90°, V =2688.7(9) ų, D _calc =1.217 Mg/m³, and Z = 8.     

Electrochemical Reduction of Carbon Dioxide to Methanol on Hierarchical Pd/SnO2 Nanosheets with Abundant Pd–O–Sn Interfaces

Electrochemical conversion of CO₂ into fuels using electricity generated from renewable sources helps to create an artificial carbon cycle. However, the low efficiency and poor stability hinder the practical use of most conventional electrocatalysts. In this work, a 2D hierarchical Pd/SnO₂ structure, ultrathin Pd nanosheets partially capped by SnO₂ nanoparticles, is designed to enable multi‐electron transfer for selective electroreduction of CO₂ into CH₃OH. Such a structure design not only enhances the adsorption of CO₂ on SnO₂, but also weakens the binding strength of CO on Pd due to the as‐built Pd–O–Sn interfaces, which is demonstrated to be critical to improve the electrocatalytic selectivity and stability of Pd catalysts. This work provides a new strategy to improve electrochemical performance of metal‐based catalysts by creating metal oxide interfaces for selective electroreduction of CO₂.     

Catalyst-free photocyclization for the synthesis of spiro-fused aromatic organic semiconductor based on SFX

A green protocol with catalyst-free photo-induced cyclization for the synthesis of a spiro-fused organic semiconductor molecule based on spiro[fluorene-9,9′-xanthene] (SFX) was developed. The photophysical and electrochemical properties of the spiro-fused compound (DPCzSFX) have been characterized. The results showed that the molecular stability and the property of the charge injecting/transporting were improved due to the cyclization. And the broadening of the emission spectrum in film makes the sipro-fused compound possible for the application as a host in the white phosphorescent organic light-emitting diodes. However, the same reaction for the spirobifluorene-based dipenylamine derivative did not occur under the same condition, which also highlights the importance of the oxygen heteroatom in the ring to the reaction of cyclization.     

Structure and morphology controllable synthesis of Ag/carbon hybrid with ionic liquid as soft-template and their catalytic properties

Ag/carbon hybrids were fabricated by the redox of glucose and silver nitrate (AgNO₃) in the presence of imidazolium ionic liquid ([C₁₄mim]BF₄) under hydrothermal condition. Monodisperse carbon hollow sub-microspheres encapsulating Ag nanoparticles and Ag/carbon cables were selectively prepared by varying the concentration of ionic liquid. Other reaction parameters, such as reaction temperature, reaction time and the mole ratio of silver nitrate to glucose, play important roles in controlling the structures of the products. The products were characterized by XRD, TEM (HRTEM), SEM, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), FTIR spectroscopy and a Raman spectrometer. The possible formation mechanism was proposed. The catalytic property of the hybrid in the oxidation of 1-butanol by H₂O₂ was also investigated.     

LiFePO4 doped with magnesium prepared by hydrothermal reaction in glucose solution

Lithium iron phosphate （LiFePO4） doped with magnesium was hydrothermally synthesized from commercial LiOH, FeSO4, H3PO4 and MgSO4 with glucose as carbon precursor in aqueous solution. The samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and constant charge-discharge cycling. The results show that the synthesized powders have been in situ coated with carbon precursor produced from caramel reaction of glucose. At ambient temperature （28±2℃）, the electrochemical performances of LiFePO4 prepared exhibit the high discharge capacity of 135 mAh g^-1 at 5C and good capacity retention of 98% over 90 cycles. The excellent electrochemical performances should be correlated with the intimate contact between carbon and LiFePO4 primary and secondary particles, resulting from the in situ formation of carbon precursor/carbon, leading to the increase in conductivity of LiFePO4.     

A simple and sensitive liquid chromatographic method for the analysis of free docosanoic, tetracosanoic and hexacosanoic acids in human plasma as fluorescent derivatives

Docosanoic (C22), tetracosanoic (C24) and hexacosanoic (C26) acids are saturated very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA) present at trace levels in biosamples. VLCFA can be used as potential biomarkers for the diagnosis of hereditary diseases such as X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy. Because the analytes to be detected are at trace levels, a sensitive fluorimetric liquid chromatographic method was developed to analyze VLCFA in plasma. The method is simple based on extracting VLCFA from plasma with toluene, and the obtained toluene extract was subject to the derivatization of VLCFA with a fluorescent reagent 2-(2-naphthoxy)ethyl-2-(piperidino)ethanesulfonate (NOEPES) without solvent evaporation/replacement. The resulting fluorescent derivatives were monitored by fluorimetric detection (excitation at 225 nm and emission at 360 nm), giving a high sensitivity with the limit of detection about 5.0 nM (S/N = 3, 10 μL injected) of the analytes. Application of the method to the analysis of VLCFA in the plasma of patients with adrenoleukodystrophy proved practical and effective.     

Spontaneous resolution of a racemic nickel(II) complex and helicity induction via hydrogen bonding: the effect of chiral building blocks on the helicity of one-dimensional chains

The reactions of a racemic four-coordinated nickel(II) complex [Ni(alpha-rac-L)](ClO4)2 (containing equal amount of SS and RR enantiomers) with l- and d-phenylalanine in acetonitrile/water gave two less-soluble six-coordinated enantiomers of {[Ni( f-SS-L)(l-Phe)](ClO4)}n (Delta-1) and {[Ni(f- RR-L)(d-Phe)](ClO4)}n (Lambda-1), respectively. Evaporation the remaining solutions gave two six-coordinated diastereomers of {[Ni 3(f- RR-L)3(l-Phe)2(H 2O)](ClO4)4}n (a-2) and {[Ni3(f- SS-L)3(d-Phe)2(H2O)](ClO4)4}n (b-2), respectively (L = 5,5,7,12,12,14-hexamethyl-1,4,8,11-tetraazacyclotetradecane, Phe(-) = phenylalanine anion). The reaction of [Ni(alpha-rac-L)](ClO4)2 with dl-Phe(-) gave a conglomerate of c-1; in which, the SS and RR enantiomers preferentially coordinate to l- and d-Phe(-) respectively to give a racemic mixture of Delta-1 and Lambda-1, and the spontaneous resolution occurs during the reaction, in which each crystal crystallizes to become enantiopure. Removing Phe(-) from Delta-1 and Lambda-1 using perchloric acid gave two enantiomers of [Ni(alpha-SS-L)](ClO4)2 (S-3) and [Ni(alpha-RR-L)](ClO4)2 (R-3). Dissolving S-3 and R-3 in acetonitrile gave two six-coordinated enantiomers of [Ni( f-SS-L)(CH3CN)2](ClO4)2 (S-4) and [Ni( f- RR-L)(CH3CN)2](ClO4)2 (R-4), while dissolving [Ni(alpha-rac-L)](ClO4)2 in acetonitrile gave a racemic twining complex [Ni(f-rac-L)(CH3CN)2](ClO4)2 (rac-4). Delta-1 and Lambda-1 belong to supramolecular stereoisomers, which are constructed via hydrogen bond linking of [Ni( f-SS-L)(l-Phe)](+) and [Ni(f-RR-L)(d-Phe)](+) monomers to form 1D homochiral right-handed and left-handed helical chains, respectively. The reaction of S-3 with d-Phe(-) gave {[Ni(f-SS-L)(d-Phe)](ClO4)}n (5), which shows a motif of a 1D hydrogen bonded zigzag chain instead of a 1D helical chain. Compound a-2/ b-2 contains dimers of [{Ni(f-RR-L)}2(l-Phe)(H2O)](3+)/[{Ni( f- SS-L)}2(d-Phe)(H2O)](3+) and 1D zigzag chains of {[Ni(f-RR-L)(l-Phe)](+)}n /{[Ni(f-SS-L)(d-Phe)](+) n . The homochiral nature of Delta-1/Lambda-1, a-2/b-2, S-3/R-3, and S-4/R-4 are confirmed by the results of circular dichroism (CD) spectra measurements.     

Synthesis and anti-HIV-1 activity of S-dihydro(alkyloxy)benzyloxypyrimidine derivatives

Several 2-heteroaryl-, 2-heteroarylcarbonylmethyl-, 2-arylcarbonylmethyl, and 2-arylethyl derivatives of S-dihydro(alkyloxy)benzyloxypyrimidines have been synthesized and the anti-HIV activities of these compounds were tested in C8166 cell and against RT enzyme. It was found that some of these compounds showed good activity against HIV-1 (EC ₅₀ = 0.014–0.8 μM) with low toxicity (CC ₅₀ value of 222–564 μM) and high selectivity (SI value of 278–37743). The structure-activity relationships (SAR) of these compounds have also been discussed. First two authors contributed equally to this work Correspondence: Yan-Ping He, Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry for Natural Resource Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Science and Technology, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, People’s Republic of China; Yong-Tang Zheng, Laboratory of Molecular Immunopharmacology, Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, People’s Republic of China.