Design and Synthesis of Polyoxazole‐based Macrocycles Tethered with a Phosphonate Group

We present the design and synthesis of polyoxazole‐based macrocycles containing a phosphonate group. A reliable route was established that allows for convenient and versatile incorporation of various phosphonate functionalities such as phosphonate ester, acid, and salt at the macrocyclic ring periphery. Such unprecedented macrocyclic compounds are anticipated to be appealing candidates as telomerase inhibitors.     

An efficient ionic liquid supported divergent assembly of 3,6-branched glucosamine-containing pentasaccharide

We utilized the glycosyl acceptor tagging method with ionic liquid support for synthesis of the core segment of Clostridium botulinum C2 toxin ligand through a divergent synthetic strategy without chromatographic purification.The total yield was 57.1% and the reaction was completed in 10 h.The efficient ionic liquid supported glycosylation and purification procedure was applied for the synthesis of branched glucosamine-containing oligosaccharides for the first time,which expanded the scope of ionic liquid supported synthesis of biologically important oligosaccharides.     

Synthesis of biodiesel over ZnO/Ca(OH)2/KF catalyst prepared by the grinding method

A novel ZnO/Ca(OH)₂/KF solid base catalyst was prepared by the grinding method and applied to biodiesel synthesis by the transesterification of soybean oil. The effect of various parameters such as KF molar amount, calcination temperature, the amount of catalyst, molar ratio of methanol to oil, reaction temperature, and time on the activity of the catalyst were investigated. The catalysts were characterized by several techniques of thermogravimetry/derivative thermogravimetry, X–ray diffraction, Hammett indicator method, and scanning electron microscopy. The analysis results indicated that the KF interacted with Ca(OH)₂ and formed KCaF₃ phase before calcination of the catalyst. The formed KCaF₃ crystal phase was the main catalytic active component for the catalyst activity. In addition, the basicity of ZnO/Ca(OH)₂/KF was greatly influenced by the different calcination temperates, and the catalyst activity was correlated closely with the basicity. A desired biodiesel yield of 97.6 % was obtained at catalyst amount of 3 %, methanol/oil of 12:1, and reaction time of 1.5 h at 65 °C.     

紫外荧光硫分析仪用燃烧管的结构改进研究

对紫外荧光硫分析仪用石英燃烧管进行了结构改进,在原结构设计的基础上,增加了裂解氧预热管、挡板和氧气反吹口等。实验表明,相比于原结构设计的石英燃烧管进样量20μL和检出限0.2 mg/L,改进后的燃烧管进样量提高到了100μL,检出限达0.05 mg/L,线性范围为0.1～600 mg/L,相关系数大于0.999。采用改进后的燃烧管测定10.0 mg/L硫含量标准物质,其相对偏差为–1.5%～3.1%,测定结果的相对标准偏差为1.77%(n=10),两者均符合油品硫含量检测要求。改进后的燃烧管可替代市场上的其它国产石英燃烧管,进行油品中硫含量的测定。     

A Biomimetic Nanoparticle to “Lure and Kill” Phospholipase A2

Inhibition of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) has long been considered for treating various diseases associated with an elevated PLA2 activity. However, safe and effective PLA2 inhibitors remain unavailable. Herein, we report a biomimetic nanoparticle design that enables a “lure and kill” mechanism designed for PLA2 inhibition (denoted “L&K-NP”). The L&K-NPs are made of polymeric cores wrapped with modified red blood cell membrane with two inserted key components: melittin and oleyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (OOPC). Melittin acts as a PLA2 attractant that works together with the membrane lipids to “lure” in-coming PLA2 for attack. Meanwhile, OOPC acts as inhibitor that “kills” PLA2 upon enzymatic attack. Both compounds are integrated into the L&K-NP structure, which voids toxicity associated with free molecules. In the study, L&K-NPs effectively inhibit PLA2-induced hemolysis. In mice administered with a lethal dose of venomous PLA2, L&K-NPs also inhibit hemolysis and confer a significant survival benefit. Furthermore, L&K-NPs show no obvious toxicity in mice. and the design provides a platform technology for a safe and effective anti-PLA2 approach.     

The Crystallization and Melting Behaviors of PDLA-b-PBS-b-PDLA Tri-block Copolymers

In this study,the poly(D-lactide)-block-poly(butylene succinate)-block-poly(D-lactide)(PDLA-b-PBS-b-PDLA)triblock copolymers with a fixed length of PBS and various lengths of PDLA are synthesized,and the crystallization behaviors of the PDLA and PBS blocks are investigated.Although both the crystallization behaviors of PBS and PDLA blocks depend on composition,they exhibit different variations.For the PDLA block,its crystallization behaviors are mainly influenced by temperature and block length.The crystallization signals of PDLA block appear in the B-D 2-2 specimen,and these signals get enhanced with PDLA block length.The crystallization rates tend to decrease with increasing PDLA block lendth during crystallizing at 90 and 100°C.Crystallizing at higher temperature,the crystallization rates increase at first and then decrease with block length.The crystallization rates decrease as elevating the crystallization temperature.The melting temperatures of PDLA blocks increase with block lengths and crystallization temperatures.For the PBS block,its crystallization behaviors are mainly controlled by the nucleation and confinement from PDLA block.The crystallization and melting enthalpies as well as the crystallization and melting temperatures of PBS block reduce as a longer PDLA block has been copolymerized,while the crystallization rates of the PBS block exhibit unique component dependence,and the highest rate is observed in the B-D 2-2 specimen.The Avrami exponent of PBS crystallites is reduced as a longer PDLA block is incorporated or the sample is crystallized at higher temperature.This investigation provides a convenient route to tune the crystallization behavior of PBS and PLA.     

Water Catalysis of the Reaction of Methanol with OH Radical in the Atmosphere is Negligible

Faced with the contradictory results of two recent experimental studies [Jara‐Toro et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017 , 56, 2166 and Chao et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2019 , 58, 5013] of the possible catalytic effect of water vapor on CH₃OH + OH reaction, we report calculations that corroborate the conclusion made by Chao et al. and extend the rate constant evaluation down to 200 K. The rate constants of the CH₃OH + OH reaction catalyzed by a water molecule are computed as functions of temperature and relative humidity using high‐level electronic structure and kinetics calculations. The Wuhan–Minnesota Scaling (WMS) method is used to provide accurate energetics to benchmark a density functional for direct dynamics. Both high‐frequency and low‐frequency anharmonicities are included. Variational and tunneling effects are treated by canonical variational transition state theory with multidimensional small‐curvature tunneling. And, most significantly, we include multistructural effects in the rate constant calculations. Our calculations show that the catalytic effect of water vapor is not observable at 200–400 K.     

Divergent Biomimetic Total Syntheses of Ganocins A–C,Ganocochlearins C and D,and Cochlearol T

A divergent synthetic approach to six Ganoderma meroterpenoids, namely ganocins A–C, ganocochlearins C and D, and cochlearol T, has been developed for the first time. This synthetic route features a two‐phase strategy which includes early‐stage rapid construction of a common planar tricyclic intermediate followed by highly selective late‐stage transformations into various Ganoderma meroterpenoids. Key to the strategy are a bioinspired intramolecular hetero‐Diels–Alder reaction and Stahl‐type oxidative aromatization, allowing efficient formation of the common tricyclic phenol intermediate. A nucleophilic dearomatization of the phenol unit, combined with a regioselective 1,4‐reduction of the resulting dienone, enabled rapid access to ganocins B and C. Additionally, site‐selective Mukaiyama hydration, followed by an intramolecular oxa‐Michael addition/triflation cascade, served as a key strategic element in the chemical synthesis of ganocin A.     

Rate-dependent asymmetric hysteresis modeling and robust adaptive trajectory tracking for piezoelectric micropositioning stages

Nonlinear Dynamics - Hysteresis is an inherent characteristic of piezoelectric materials that can be determined by not only the historical input but also the input signal frequency. Hysteresis...     

Dynamic and wear characteristics of self-lubricating bearing cage: effects of cage pocket shape

34,354,966 active cases and 460,787 deaths because of COVID-19 pandemic were recorded on November 06, 2021, in India. To end this ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need to implement multiple population-wide policies like social distancing, testing more people and contact tracing. To predict the course of the pandemic and come up with a strategy to control it effectively, a compartmental model has been established. The following six stages of infection are taken into consideration: susceptible (S), asymptomatic infected (A), clinically ill or symptomatic infected (I), quarantine (Q), isolation (J) and recovered (R), collectively termed as SAIQJR. The qualitative behavior of the model and the stability of biologically realistic equilibrium points are investigated in terms of the basic reproduction number. We performed sensitivity analysis with respect to the basic reproduction number and obtained that the disease transmission rate has an impact in mitigating the spread of diseases. Moreover, considering the non-pharmaceutical and pharmaceutical intervention strategies as control functions, an optimal control problem is implemented to mitigate the disease fatality. To reduce the infected individuals and to minimize the cost of the controls, an objective functional has been constructed and solved with the aid of Pontryagin’s maximum principle. The implementation of optimal control strategy at the start of a pandemic tends to decrease the intensity of epidemic peaks, spreading the maximal impact of an epidemic over an extended time period. Extensive numerical simulations show that the implementation of intervention strategy has an impact in controlling the transmission dynamics of COVID-19 epidemic. Further, our numerical solutions exhibit that the combination of three controls are more influential when compared with the combination of two controls as well as single control. Therefore, the implementation of all the three control strategies may help to mitigate novel coronavirus disease transmission at this present epidemic scenario.