From single‐chain folding to polymer nanoparticles via intramolecular quadruple hydrogen‐bonding interaction

Single‐chain folding via intramolecular noncovalent interaction is regarded as a facile mimicry of biomacromolecules. Single‐chain folding and intramolecular crosslinking is also an effective method to prepare polymer nanoparticles. In this study, poly(methyl methacrylate‐co?2‐ureido‐5‐deazapterines functionalized ethylene methacrylate) (P(MMA‐co‐EMA‐DeAP)) is synthesized via free radical polymerization. The single‐chain folding of P(MMA‐co‐EMA‐DeAP) and the formation of the nanoparticles in diluted solution (concentration <0.005 mg/mL) are achieved via supramolecular interaction and intramolecular collapsing during the disruption‐reformation process of the hydrogen bonding triggered by water. The size and the morphology of the nanoparticles are characterized by dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscope, and atomic force microscope. The results show that the size of the nanoparticles depends on the molecular weight of the polymer and the loading of 2‐ureido‐5‐deazapterines functionalized ethylene methacrylate (EMA‐DeAP) on the polymer backbone. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1832–1840     

Nature of the water/aromatic parallel alignment interactions

The water/aromatic parallel alignment interactions are interactions where the water molecule or one of its O? H bonds is parallel to the aromatic ring plane. The calculated energies of the interactions are significant, up to ΔE_{CCSD(T)(limit)} = ?2.45 kcal mol^?1 at large horizontal displacement, out of benzene ring and CH bond region. These interactions are stronger than CH···O water/benzene interactions, but weaker than OH···π interactions. To investigate the nature of water/aromatic parallel alignment interactions, energy decomposition methods, symmetry‐adapted perturbation theory, and extended transition state‐natural orbitals for chemical valence (NOCV), were used. The calculations have shown that, for the complexes at large horizontal displacements, major contribution to interaction energy comes from electrostatic interactions between monomers, and for the complexes at small horizontal displacements, dispersion interactions are dominant binding force. The NOCV‐based analysis has shown that in structures with strong interaction energies charge transfer of the type π → σ*(O? H) between the monomers also exists. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Chiral Separations in Normal‐phase Liquid Chromatography: Updating a Screening Strategy with a Chlorine‐containing Polysaccharide‐based Selector

The screening conditions of an existing column and mobile phase selection strategy for chiral compounds in normal‐phase high performance liquid chromatography (NP‐HPLC) were tested for their applicability on Chiralpak IC, which is a chiral stationary phase (CSP) made by immobilising cellulosic tris (3,5‐dichlorophenyl‐carbamate) on silica gel. In this study, the applicability of the optimization steps of the existing separation strategy was examined using 36 compounds representing the three possible resolution situations that occur after screening. The cumulative number of separated compounds is 27 (75.0 %), and the cumulative number of baseline separated compounds is 19 (52.8 %).     

The Convenient Synthesis of 11‐Methyl‐3,8‐disubstituted‐12‐aryl‐3,4,7,8,9,12‐hexahydro‐1H‐chromeno[2,3‐b]quinoline‐1,10(2H)‐dione Derivatives

The 2‐arylidene‐3‐oxobutanenitrile derivatives 2 were prepared by the Knoevenagel condensation between aldehydes and 3‐oxobutanenitrile 1 , which was obtained by acid hydrolysis of β‐aminocrotononitrile. 3‐Acetyl‐2‐amino‐4H‐chromen‐5(6H)‐one derivatives 3 were synthesized by reaction of 2‐arylidene‐3‐oxobutanenitrile 2 and 5‐substituted‐1,3‐cyclohexanedione in ethylene glycol. The 11‐methyl‐3,8‐disubstituted‐12‐aryl‐3,4,7,8,9,12‐hexahydro‐1H‐chromeno[2,3‐b]quinoline‐1,10(2H)‐dione derivatives 4 were obtained by Friedländer reaction of compounds 3 with 5‐substituted‐1,3‐cyclohexanedione, using p‐toluenesulfonic acid monohydrate as catalyst. The structures of all novel compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, IR, MS, and ¹H NMR spectra. The crystal and molecular structure of compound 4f has been determined by single crystal XRD analysis.     

Interaction of m-nitrophenylfluorone-Mo(VI) complex as a probe with human serum albumin: a fluorescence quenching study

In this paper, the binding characteristics of human serum albumin (HSA) and m-nitrophenylfluorone (m-NPF)-molybdenum (Mo(VI)) complex have been studied by fluorophotometry. The binding constants are measured at different temperature. Based on the theory of Forster energy transfer, the binding distance and the energy transfer efficiency between m-nitrophenylfluorone-Mo(VI) complex and protein are obtained. According to the thermodynamic parameters, the main sort of binding force can be judged. The results indicate that HSA and m-NPF-Mo(VI) complex have strong interactions. The mechanism of quenching belongs to static quenching and the main sort of binding force is electrostatic gravitation.     

A novel CNT@SnO2 core–sheath nanocomposite as a stabilizing support for catalysts of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Mesoporous SnO₂ coated carbon nanotube (CNT) core–sheath nanocomposite, CNT@SnO₂, was prepared by a hydrothermal method and proposed as a catalyst support for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The CNT@SnO₂ and its supported Pt catalyst, Pt/(CNT@SnO₂), were characterized by TEM, XRD, cyclic voltammetry, and polarization curves. The CNT@SnO₂ composite showed a much lower anodic current than the CNT, especially at high potentials, indicating the CNT@SnO₂ was more corrosion resistant. The Pt/(CNT@SnO₂) catalyst was electrochemically active and exhibited comparable activity for the oxygen reduction reaction to the CNT supported catalyst (Pt/CNT). More importantly, the long-term stability of the Pt/(CNT@SnO₂) catalyst was significantly higher than that of the Pt/CNT catalyst, which might be mainly due to the fact that the CNT@SnO₂ was more corrosion resistant and mesoporous SnO₂ was beneficial to restrict the Pt migration and aggregation. Consequently, the CNT@SnO₂ would be a promising durable catalyst support for PEMFCs.     

The Antimony‐Based Type I Clathrate Compounds Cs8Cd18Sb28 and Cs8Zn18Sb28

In phase : The title compounds lie in a new region of phase space for such a structure, and have stoichiometries in accord with a classical Zintl phase formulation. The small semiconductor gaps indicated by DFT calculations are also supported by their diamagnetic susceptibilities.

     

New nor-oleanane triterpenoids from the fruits of Stauntonia brachyanthera with potential anti-inflammation activity

Abstract

The continuing studies on the fruits of Stauntonia brachyanthera led to the isolations of 6 normal and nor-oleanane triterpenoids, including two new compounds, brachyantheoraside B10 (1) and brachyantheraside C1 (2). Compounds 1–3 showed inhibitory activity on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 macrophages with the IC₅₀ values of 27.04, 26.22, and 21.41?μM, respectively, which were all stronger than that of indomethacin. The study not only revealed a new type of nor-oleanane triterpenoids, but also confirmed the anti-inflammation abilities of three type nor-oleanane triterpenoids as the inhibitors of NO production.     

Adsorption property of congo red from aqueous solution by Cu-BTC/SiO 2 composite

The adsorption behavior of congo red from aqueous solution on Cu-BTC/SiO2 was investigated. Cu-BTC/SiO2 with mesoporous structure and large surface area was prepared by loading Cu-BTC into the mesoporous silica using in-situ synthesis method. The X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and nitrogen adsorption–desorption analysis were used to characterize the structure and morphology of the prepared materials. The adsorption studies showed that the adsorption isotherm of congo red on Cu-BTC/SiO2 fitted well with Freundlich adsorption model and congo red is easy to be adsorbed by Cu-BTC/SiO2. The thermodynamic study showed that the adsorption behavior of congo red on Cu-BTC/SiO2 is an exothermic process at temperature under investigation.