Flow injection determination of trace amounts of copper based on its catalytic effect on the oxidation of 3, 3′, 5, 5′-tetramethylbenzidine by cumene hydroperoxide

A sensitive and selective flow-injection method has been developed for the catalytic determination of copper(II). The method is based on the oxidation of 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine by cumene hydroperoxide as an organic oxidant in an acidic medium. A highly sensitivity has been achieved by adding 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline as an activator and benzyldimethyltetradecylammonium chloride (zephiramine) as a surfactant. The reaction was spectrophotometrically monitored by measuring the increase in absorbance of oxidation product of 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine at 650 nm. The calibration curve was linear over the range of 0.5–3.0 ng mL^?1 at a rate of 30 samples h^?1. Most of the diverse ions did not interfere with the determination of copper up to at least 50-fold excess. The serious interference by iron(III) was eliminated by addition of fluoride. The method was successfully applied to the determination of copper in water samples.     

Synthesis of 3-substituted 3H-indol-3-ols by the reaction of 2-isocyanophenyl ketones with Grignard reagents

A facile method for the synthesis of 3-substituted 3H-indol-3-ols has been developed. Thus, 2-isocyanophenyl ketones are allowed to react with various Grignard reagents to give the corresponding desired indolol derivatives in generally fair to good yields. The formation of 3-aryl-2,3-dimethylindolin-3-ols by the reaction of 2-isocyanobenzophenones with 2 M amounts of methylmagnesium bromide is also reported.     

Click Chemistry for the Identification of G‐Quadruplex Structures: Discovery of a DNA–RNA G‐Quadruplex

A trap that closes with a “click” : The copper‐catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition can occur in different G‐quadruplex structures (see scheme). The species trapped by the click reaction can then be separated and analyzed. By using this approach, a DNA–RNA hybrid‐type G‐quadruplex structure formed by human telomeric DNA and RNA sequences was detected.

     

Direct Catalytic Asymmetric Mannich‐Type Reaction of Thioamides

Taking the reins : The title transformation of thioamides and N‐diphenylphosphinoyl imines is described. By harnessing the power of cooperative catalysis between a soft Lewis acid and a hard Brønsted base, thioamide carbon pronucleophiles can furnish Mannich products (see scheme). Divergent transformation of the thioamide functionality highlights the utility of this methodology.

     

Helical Oligoenes: Conformations,Bond Alternation,and Competing Through‐Bond and Through‐Space Transmission

There is a consensus that long‐range electron transfer/transport occurs by a through‐bond rather than through‐space mechanism. In helical all‐Z, all‐s‐cis oligoenes, one can set up an interesting competition in the medium‐separation regime between a closer (in distance) through‐space path and a more distant through‐bond one. Although such oligoene conformations/isomers are unstable (by around 4 kcal mol^?1 per double bond relative to all‐E, all‐s‐trans isomers), recent synthetic efforts on truncated helicenes and oligothiophenes have provided related molecules. On the way to transmission calculations with electrodes attached to the termini of helical oligoenes, we uncover an interesting conformational ambiguity in all‐Z, all‐s‐cis oligoenes, the existence of a broad conformational minimum for helical compression, with hints of end‐to‐end frontier‐orbital‐caused stabilization. There is relationship between helical oligoene structures and the corresponding substructure of a helicene, but there are also significant differences in the number of olefin subunits per helix turn. In Hückel transport calculations, the role of TB or TS mechanisms is obscured to an extent by variations in bond alternation and dihedral angle along the oligomer chain. However, the operation of a dominant through bond mechanism emerges clearly in local transmission plots. In moving the electrodes to carbon position related by quantum interference, it is possible to uncover a through space mechanism.     

Asymmetric Total Synthesis of Heronamides A–C: Stereochemical Confirmation and Impact of Long‐Range Stereochemical Communication on the Biological Activity

Heronamides are biosynthetically related metabolites isolated from marine‐derived actinomycetes. Heronamide C shows potent antifungal activity by targeting membrane phospholipids possessing saturated hydrocarbon chains with as‐yet‐unrevealed modes of action. In spite of their curious hypothesized biosynthesis and fascinating biological activities, there have been conflicts in regard to the reported stereochemistries of heronamides. Here, we describe the asymmetric total synthesis of the originally proposed and revised structures of heronamide C, which unambiguously confirmed the chemical structure of this molecule. We also demonstrated nonenzymatic synthesis of heronamides A and B from heronamide C, which not only proved the postulated biosynthesis, but also confirmed the correct structures of heronamides A and B. Investigation of the structure–activity relationship of synthetic and natural heronamides revealed the importance of both long‐range stereochemical communication and the 20‐membered macrolactam ring for the biological activity of these compounds.     

Chemo‐ and Regioselective Rhodium(I)‐Catalyzed [2+2+2] Cycloaddition of Allenynes with Alkynes

A highly chemo‐ and regioselective partially intramolecular rhodium(I)‐catalyzed [2+2+2] cycloaddition of allenynes with alkynes is described. A range of diverse polysubstituted benzene derivatives could be synthesized in good to excellent yields, in which the allenynes served as synthetic equivalent to the diynes. A high regioselectivity could be observed when allenynes were treated with unsymmetrical alkynes.     

Promotion of Double‐Duplex Invasion of Peptide Nucleic Acids through Conjugation with Nuclear Localization Signal Peptide

Pseudo‐complementary peptide nucleic acid (pcPNA), as one of the most widely used synthetic DNA analogues, invades double‐stranded DNA according to Watson–Crick rules to form invasion complexes. This unique mode of DNA recognition induces structural changes at the invasion site and can be used for a range of applications. In this paper, pcPNA is conjugated with a nuclear localization signal (NLS) peptide, and its invading activity is notably promoted both thermodynamically and kinetically. Thus, the double‐duplex invasion complex is formed promptly at low pcPNA concentrations under high salt conditions, where the invasion otherwise never occurs. Furthermore, NLS‐modified pcPNA is successfully employed for site‐selective DNA scission, and the targeted DNA is selectively cleaved under conditions that are not conducive for DNA cutters using unmodified pcPNAs. This strategy of pcPNA modification is expected to be advantageous and promising for a range of in vitro and in vivo applications.