Dielectrically controlled resolution (DCR) of 3-aminopiperidine via diastereomeric salt formation with N-tosyl-(S)-phenylalanine

A useful key intermediate for the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, 3-aminopiperidine 1, was successfully resolved with an enantiomerically pure resolving agent, N-tosyl-(S)-phenylalanine 2, to give both stereoisomers (R)-1 and (S)-1 as a less-soluble diastereomeric salt with (S)-2, via a dielectrically controlled resolution (DCR) phenomenon.     

Synthesis of end‐functionalized polyethers by phosphazene base‐catalyzed ring‐opening polymerization of 1,2‐butylene oxide and glycidyl ether

For the living ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of epoxy monomers, the catalytic activity of organic superbases, tert‐butylimino‐tris(dimethylamino)phosphorane, 1‐tert‐butyl‐2,2,4,4,4‐pentakis(dimethylamino)‐2Λ⁵,4Λ⁵‐catenadi(phosphazene), 2,8,9‐triisobutyl‐2,5,8,9‐tetraaza‐1‐phosphabicyclo[3.3.3]undecane, and 1‐tert‐butyl‐4,4,4‐tris(dimethylamino)‐2,2‐bis[tris(dimethylamino)phosphoranylidenamino]‐2Λ⁵,4Λ⁵‐catenadi(phosphazene) (t‐Bu‐P₄), was confirmed. Among these superbases, only t‐Bu‐P₄ showed catalytic activity for the ROP of 1,2‐butylene oxide (BO) to afford poly(1,2‐butylene oxide) (PBO) with predicted molecular weight and narrow molecular weight distribution. The results of the kinetic, post‐polymerization experiments, and MALDI‐TOF MS measurement revealed that the t‐Bu‐P₄‐catalyzed ROP of BO proceeded in a living manner in which the alcohol acted as the initiator. This alcohol/t‐Bu‐P₄ system was applicable to the glycidol derivatives, such as benzyl glycidyl ether (BnGE) and t‐butyl glycidyl ether, to afford well‐defined protected polyglycidols. The α‐functionalized polyethers could be obtained using different functionalized initiators, such as 4‐vinylbenzyl alcohol, 5‐hexen‐1‐ol, and 6‐azide‐1‐hexanol. In addition, the well‐defined cyclic‐PBO and PBnGE were successfully synthesized using the combination of t‐Bu‐P₄‐catalyzed ROP and click cyclization. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

A variant of Shelah's characterization of Strong Chang's Conjecture

Shelah considered a certain version of Strong Chang's Conjecture which we denote , and proved that it is equivalent to several statements, including the assertion that Namba forcing is semiproper. We introduce an apparently weaker version, denoted , and prove an analogous characterization of it. In particular, is equivalent to the assertion that the the Friedman‐Krueger poset is semiproper. This strengthens and sharpens results by Cox and sheds some light on problems posed by Usuba, Torres‐Perez and Wu.     

Decomposition of Insoluble and Hard-to-Degrade Animal Proteins by Enzyme E77 and Its Potential Applications

Insoluble and hard-to-degrade animal proteins are group of troublesome proteins, such as collagen, elastin, keratin, and prion proteins that are largely generated by the meat industry and ultimately converted to industrial wastes. We analyzed the ability of the abnormal prion protein-degrading enzyme E77 to degrade insoluble and hard-to-degrade animal proteins including keratin, collagen, and elastin. The results indicate that E77 has a much higher keratinolytic activity than proteinase K and subtilisin. Maximal E77 keratinolytic activity was observed at pH 12.0 and 65 °C. E77 was also adsorbed by keratin in a pH-independent manner. E77 showed lower collagenolytic and elastinolytic specificities than proteinase K and subtilisin. Moreover, E77 treatment did not damage collagens in ovine small intestines but did almost completely remove the muscles. We consider that E77 has the potential ability for application in the processing of animal feedstuffs and sausages.     

A novel supramolecular graft copolymer via cucurbit[8]uril-based complexation and its self-assembly

A novel supramolecular graft copolymer（SGP） composed of viologen-containing copolymer（P（DMA-co-diEV）） as the main chain and Np ended PNIPAM（Np-PN1PAm） as the grafts is prepared（DMA:N,N- dimethylacryamide,diEV:ethylviologen dimer,Np:naphthalene,PNIPAM:poly（N-isopropylacrylamide））. The grafting is based on the triple complexation among a host of cucurbit[8]uril（CB[8]）and two guests of diEV and Np,which is characterized by UV-vis spectra and ITC.Temperature sensitive property of PNIPAm moiety allows SGP to self-assemble into non-covalently connected micelle（NCCM） at high temperature. The micelles are sensitive to reducing agents,for example Na₂S₂O₃,which breaks the current inclusion complex pair and induces aggregation.     

Bleaching effect of a 405-nm diode laser irradiation used with titanium dioxide and 3.5% hydrogen peroxide

A 405-nm diode laser has recently been developed for soft tissue problems in dentistry. A new in-office bleaching agent consisting of a titanium dioxide photocatalyst and 3.5% hydrogen peroxide has proven to react well with light irradiated at a wavelength of around 400 nm. In this study, we evaluated the bleaching efficacy of a newly developed 405-nm diode laser on bovine teeth treated with a bleaching agent composed of titanium dioxide and 3.5% hydrogen peroxide. Sixteen bovine incisors were randomly divided into two groups: Group A, irradiated by the 405-nm diode laser at 200 mW; Group B, irradiated by the 405-nm diode laser at 400 mW. The bleaching agent with titanium dioxide and 3.5% hydrogen peroxide was applied to bovine enamel and irradiated for 1 min. The specimens were then washed and dried, and the same procedure was repeated nine more times. After irradiation, we assessed the effects of bleaching on the enamel by measuring the color of the specimens with a spectrophotometer and examining the enamel surfaces with a scanning electron microscope. L* rose to a high score, reaching a significantly higher post-treatment level in comparison to pretreatment. In a comparison of the color difference (ΔE) between Group A and Group B, the specimens in Group B showed significantly higher values after 10 min of irradiation for the post-treatment. No remarkable differences in the enamel surface morphology were found between the unbleached and bleached enamel. The use of a 405-nm diode laser in combination with a bleaching agent of titanium dioxide and 3.5% hydrogen peroxide may be an effective method for bleaching teeth without the risk of tooth damage.