Highly conjugated p-quinonoid pi-extended tetrathiafulvalene derivatives: a class of highly distorted electron donors

A new class of pi-extended TTF-type electron donors (11 a-c) has been synthesized by Wittig-Horner olefination of bianthrone (9) with 1,3-dithiole phosphonate esters (10 a-c). In cyclic voltammetry experiments, donors 11 a-c reveal a single, electrochemically irreversible oxidation-yielding the corresponding dicationic products-at relatively low oxidation potentials (approximately 0.7-0.8 V). Theoretical calculations, performed at the DFT level (B3 P86/6-31 G*), predict a highly-folded C(2h) structure for 11 a. In the ground state, the molecule adopts a double saddle-like conformation to compensate the steric hindrance. The calculations suggest that the intramolecular charge transfer associated with the HOMO-->LUMO transition is responsible for an absorption band observed above 400 nm. While the radical cation 11 a*+ retains the folded C(2h) structure predicted for the neutral molecule as the most stable conformation, the dication 11 a(2+) has a fully aromatic D(2) structure, formed by an orthogonal 9,9'-bianthryl central unit to which two singly-charged dithiole rings are attached. The drastic conformational changes that compounds 11 undergo upon oxidation account for their electrochemical properties. By means of pulse radiolysis measurements, radical-induced one-electron oxidation of 11 a-c was shown to lead to the radical cation species (11 a-c*+), which were found to disproportionate with generation of the respective dication species (11 a-c(2+)) and the neutral molecules (11 a-c).     

Comparison of the Hartree-Fock,Møller-Plesset,and Hartree-Fock-Slater method with respect to electrostatic properties of small molecules

Summary The results of various quantum chemical calculations, the Hartree-Fock (HF) method, the Møller-Plesset perturbation theory (MP2), and the Hartree-Fock-Slater (HFS) method are compared. Atomic charges, dipole moments, topological properties of the electron density distribution and polarizabilities, and first hyperpolarizabilities are calculated. Atomic charges obtained with the HFS method are found to be very close to those calculated with the MP2 method, from which we conclude that the HFS method describes to some extent electron correlation effects. Performing an MP2 calculation after an HF calculation improves the molecular dipole moments considerably, yielding values close to the experimental ones. HFS calculations are computationally less demanding than MP2 and yield comparable results for the electron density distributions, dipole moments and polarizabilities.     

Molekül- und Kristallstruktur des 1,4-Bis[tris(tetrahydrofuran)lithium]-octaphenyltetrasilans

Molecular and Crystal Structure of 1,4-Bis[tris(tetrahydrofuran)lithium]-octaphenyltetrasilane 1,4-Dilithium-octaphenyltetrasilane prepared from octaphenyl-cyclo-tetrasilane and lithium in tetrahydrofuran (THF) [4], can be isolated from tetrahydrofuran/n-pentane as an adduct with six molecules of tetrahydrofuran per formula unit. The orange-red compound crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1 {a = 1159.6(3); b = 1268.4(2); c = 1367.8(3) pm; α = 92,23(2)° β = 113.79(2)° γ = 111.62(2)° at ?5 ± 3°C; Z = 1}. An x-ray structure determination (R_w = 0.046) shows the existence of a centrosymmetric molecule with an extended planar Li? Si₄? Li unit; either lithium atom is bound to silicon and to the oxygen atoms of three molecules of tetrahydrofuran. Characteristic bond lengths and angles are: Li? Si 271; Si? Si 241 and 243; Si? C 190 to 192 pm; Li? Si? Si 126°; Si? Si? Si 127°. ²⁹Si and ⁷Li n.m.r. measurements at low temperatures indicate the presence of three different adducts.     

Addition reaction of azido-exTTFs to C60: synthesis of fullerotriazoline and azafulleroid electroactive dyads

[structure: see text] The addition reaction of azido-exTTFs to C(60) affords electroactive fullerotriazoline and azafulleroid dyads, which behave as amphoteric redox systems. Fluorescence experiments and transient absorption spectroscopy reveal that excitation of the fullerene moiety leads to radical pair lifetimes that are 2 orders of magnitude higher than those previously reported for related fullerotriazolines.     

Functional organization of the outer membrane of escherichia coli: phage and colicin receptors as components of iron uptake systems.

The functional interaction of outer membrane proteins of E. coli can be studied using phage and colicin receptors which are essential components of penetration systems. The uptake of ferric iron in the form of the ferrichrome complex requires the ton A and ton B functions in the outer membrane of E. coli. The ton A gene product is the receptor protein for phage T5 and is required together with the ton B function by the phages T1 and ?80 to infect cells and by colicin M and the antibiotic albomycin, a structural analogue of ferrichrome, to kill cells. The ton B function is necessary for the uptake of ferric iron complexed by citrate. Iron complexed by enterochelin is only transported in the presence of the ton B and feu functions. Cells which have lost the feu function are resistant to the colicins B, I or V while ton B mutants are resistant to all 3 colicins. The interaction of the ton A, ton B, and feu functions apparently permits quite different "substrates" to overcome the permeability barrier of the outer membrane. It was shown for ferrichrome dependent iron uptake that the complexing agent was not altered and could be used repeatedly. Only very low amounts of 3H-labeled ferrichrome were found in the cell. It is possible that the iron is mobilized in the membrane and that desferri-ferrichrome is released into the medium without having entered the cytoplasm. Growth on ferrichrome as the sole iron source was used to select revertants of T5 resistant ton A mutants. All revertants exhibited wild-type properties with the exception of partial revertants. In these 4 strains, as in the ton A mutants, the ton A protein was not detectable by SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoreses of outer membranes. Albomycin resistant mutants were selected and shown to fall into 5 categories: 1) ton A; 2) ton B mutants; 3) mutants with no iron transport defects and normal ton A/ton B functions, which might be target site mutants; 4) mutants which were deficient in ferrichrome-mediated iron uptake but had normal ton A/ton B functions. We tentatively consider that the defect might be located in the active transport system of the cytoplasmic membrane; 5) a variety of mutants with the following general properties: most of them were resistant to colicin M, transported iron poorly, and, like ton B mutants, contained additional proteins in the outer membrane. The outer membrane protein patterns of wild-type and ton B mutant strains were compared by slab gel electrophoresis in an attempt to identify a ton B protein. It was observed that under most growth conditions, ton B mutants overproduced 3 proteins of molecular weights 74,000-83,000. In extracted, iron-deficient medium, both the wild-type and ton B mutant strains had similar large amounts of these proteins in their outer membranes. The appearance of these proteins was suppressed by excess iron in both wild-type and mutant. From this evidence it is apparent that the proteins appear as a response to low intracellular iron rather than being controlled by the ton B gene...     

Factors affecting gas-phase deuterium scrambling in peptide ions and their implications for protein structure determination

In this report, we evaluate the validity of using hydrogen/deuterium exchange in combination with collision-induced dissociation mass spectrometry (CID MS) for the detailed structural and conformational investigation of peptides and proteins. This methodology, in which partly deuterated peptide ions are subjected to collision-induced dissociation in the vacuum of a mass spectrometer, has emerged as a useful tool in structural biology. It may potentially provide quantitatively the extent of deuterium incorporation per individual amino acid in peptides and proteins, thus providing detailed structural information related to protein structure and folding. We report that this general methodology has limitations caused by the fact that the incorporated deuterium atoms migrate prior or during the CID MS analysis. Our data are focused on a variety of transmembrane peptides, incorporated in a lipid bilayer, in which the near-terminal amino acids that anchor at the lipid-water interface are systematically varied. Our findings suggest that, under the experimental conditions we use, the extent of intramolecular hydrogen scrambling is strongly influenced by experimental factors, such as the exact amino acid sequence of the peptide, the nature of the charge carrier, and therefore most likely by the gas-phase structure of the peptide ion. Moreover, the observed scrambling seems to be independent of the nature of the peptide fragment ions (i.e., protonated B and Y' ' ions, and sodiated A and Y' ions). Our results strongly suggest that scrambling may be reduced by using alkali metal cationization instead of protonation in the ionization process.     

Influence of initial oxygen coverage and magnetic moment on the NO decomposition on rhodium (111)

In this study, density functional theory calculations were performed to investigate the influence of oxygen preoccupation on the nitrogen oxide decomposition on rhodium. Besides gauging the coverage dependence of the adsorption energy of NO on the (111) rhodium facet, the influence of the initial oxygen coverage on the kinetics and thermodynamics of the nitrogen oxide decomposition reaction was also studied. The results are discussed with respect to a novel NOx decomposition catalyst. Furthermore, the influence of spin effects on the adsorption geometry as well as the adsorption energy is examined. It will be addressed why spin effects only have a minor influence on the behavior of NO on a rhodium surface.     

Serum estradiol measurement by solid-phase chemiluminescence immunoassay and direct radioimmunoassay

Estradiol017β is determined in serum extracts by solid-phase chemiluminescence immunoassay. The results are compared with those obtained from unextracted serum in routine conditions with a commercial radioimmunoassay (r.i.a.) kit. For the chemiluminescence procedure, a purified monoclonal antibody to estradiol-6-carboxymethyloxime/bovine serum albumin and the homologous chemiluminescent marker conjugate estradiol-6-carboxymethyloxime aminobutylethylisoluminol are used. Bound and free ligand are separated by washing and simple centrifugation. Results obtained by the chemiluminescence assay (y) and by r.i.a. (x) on 170 serum specimens from women during ovulation induction showed good correlation (y = 1.01x ? 16 with r = 0.95). The methods are similar in selectivity, detection limit (ca. 10 ng l^?1) and precision (interassay relative standard deviation, 8–13%).     

Quantification of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in the picogram/liter range in water of the river Elbe

Sampling and determination of dissolved and particlebound PCBs and HCB in the river Elbe are described. A new filtration/adsorption unit for sampling of dissolved lipophilic contaminants was developed. The detection limit for dissolved PCBs and HCB was 5 pg/l. The data show that more than 98% of the PCBs and of HCB in the water of the river Elbe are particle-bound.     

Functional Polyoxometalate Thin Films via Electrostatic Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly

Polyoxometalates (POMs) comprise a structurally diverse class of inorganic transition metal oxygen clusters which—owing to their unique electronic properties—hold promise for a host of technological applications such as electrochromic windows, sensors, or heterogeneous catalysts, prototypic examples of which will be briefly exemplified. The integration of POMs into functional architectures and devices, however, necessitates the development of general methods that allow positioning these clusters in well-defined supramolecular architectures, thin films, or mesophases. This short review highlights recent advances in the preparation of composite multilayers fabricated by electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly (ELSA) of POMs and a variety of water-soluble cationic species, including transition metal complexes, cationic surfactants, polycations and bipolar pyridine.