New Prenylated Flavones from the Roots of Ficus Beecheyana

Two new prenylated flavanones, ficubee A and ficubee B, respectively, as 7,8‐(2,2‐dimethylpyrano)‐6‐prenyl‐5,3′,4′‐trihydroxyflavone and 6,7‐(2,2‐dimethylpyrano)‐8‐prenyl‐5,3′,4′‐trihydroxyflavone were isolated from the roots of Ficus beecheyana together with twelve known compounds: β‐sitosterol, 5‐stigmasten‐3β,7α‐diol, 5‐stigmasten‐3β,7β‐diol, 3β‐hydroxystigmast‐5‐en‐7‐one, 4‐hydroxybenzaldehyde, 4‐hydroxy‐3‐methoxybenzaldehyde, 1‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐ethanone, 4‐hydroxy‐3‐methoxybenzoic acid, 4‐hydroxy‐cinnamic acid, seseline, xanthyletin, and psoralene. The structures of these secondary metabolites were determined by spectroscopic means and in comparison with published data.     

Isolation of palm tocols using supercritical fluid chromatography

Crude palm oil contains 600 to 1000 ppm of tocols in the form of tocopherols and tocotrienols. These palm tocols have been isolated and analyzed in the past by various chromatographic techniques such as open column chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, as well as thin-layer chromatography. Supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) has emerged as a more advanced chromatographic technique in recent years. The tocols present in palm oil are successfully isolated using SFC. Identification of these tocols is supported by various spectroscopic techniques such as 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and mass spectrometry.     

A three-dimensional coordination polymer featuring effective ferrimagnetic hydroxide-bridged manganese(II) chains

A three-dimensional coordination polymer, [Mn3(OH)2Na2(3-cnba)6]n (1) (3-Hcnba = 3-cyanobenzoic acid), has been synthesized by the reaction of MnCl2, NaN3, and 3-Hcnba in water. Its crystal structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Magnetic studies show that the complex behaves as a three-dimensional metamagnet built from effective ferrimagnetic Mn(II) chains in which spin moments are linked by interactions in an AF-F-AF (F = ferromagnetic and AF = antiferromagnetic) sequence in the triangular magnetic repeating unit.     

Palladium complexes of bidentate pyridine N‐heterocyclic carbenes: Optical resolution,antimicrobial and cytotoxicity studies

A series of bidentate pyridine‐functionalized palladium N‐heterocyclic carbene (Pd NHC) complexes with various wingtip substituents (R = methyl, phenyl and tert‐butyl) have been synthesized and evaluated for their potential biomedical applications as antimicrobials and antiproliferative drug candidates. The obtained Pd NHC complexes were applied in a standard broth microdilution assay for determination of their antimicrobial activities against thirteen strains of pathogenic microorganisms. In addition to that, cytotoxic activities of the Pd NHC complexes were also evaluated against three human cancer cell lines, namely breast (MCF‐7), colon (HCT116) and oral (H103) cancer cells, using a standard MTT assay. Upon coordination to palladium, the Pd NHC complexes show significant antimicrobial activities with minimum inhibitory concentrations in the micromolar range, and they are cytotoxic to the tested carcinomas with IC₅₀ ranging from 13 to 38 μM. Evidences for influence of both wingtip substituents and optical isomerism on the biological activities of the complexes have been found.     

Triple shape memory effect in multiple crystalline polyurethanes

Remembering more than one permanent shape is an attractive research topic for shape memory materials (SMMs). In this paper, multiple crystalline shape memory polyurethanes (SMPUs) are prepared with PCL10000 and PTMG2900 by a three‐step polymerization method. DSC and WAXD results show that the obtained polyurethane contains, simultaneously and independently, two kinds of crystals. In addition, it is confirmed through DMA analysis that reversible soft phase and hard domains are formed in the PCL‐PTMG based SMPU system; and two‐step modulus decreases at low temperature range can be obtained in the SMPU with suitable mass proportion of PCL to PTMG, e.g., 1:7. Thus, shape memory effect (SME) can be achieved in this system. Moreover, it is found that the PTMG soft segment dominates the shape memory effect when the PCL mass is lower than that of PTMG; while the PCL soft segment dominates the SME when PCL mass is higher than that of PTMG; and a two‐step programing shape recovery can be achieved when the mass proportion of PCL/PTMG reaches a balance value, e.g., 3:5. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A facile chemical approach for preparing a SERS active silver substrate

This communication describes a new surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) active silver substrate prepared by iodination of the evaporated silver foil. After iodination, the morphology of the silver substrate undergoes a self-evolution process in which it displays accordingly the UV-vis absorption shift as well as the AFM topological test. Rhodamine 6G (R6G) is used as the probe molecule to evaluate the enhancement efficiency of the silver substrate at different self-evolution time intervals. The SERS intensity of R6G increases up to ～29-fold and reaches a maximum after the substrate evolved for 24 h. This method is feasible for the production of an efficient SERS silver substrate.