Studies on oxidation of ergot alkaloids: oxidation and desaturation of dihydrolysergol—stereochemical requirements

A new method for the oxidation of ergoline alcohols to aldehydes was found (TFFA-DMSO, −78 °C, then DIPEA). Structural features of ergolines required for successful C7-C8 double bond introduction via Polonovski-Potier reaction of respective 6-N-oxides were defined and experimentally confirmed: (i) the presence of electron-withdrawing group at C-8; (ii) trans-diaxial orientation of N6-O and C7-H bonds (both requirements are fulfilled for dihydrolyserg-17-al and its 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazone prepared in this work).     

Effective manipulation of the electronic effects and its influence on the emission of 5-substituted tris(8-quinolinolate) aluminum(III) complexes

The unique electron-transport and emissive properties of tris(8-quinolinolate) aluminum(III) (Alq(3)) have resulted in extensive use of this material for small molecular organic light-emitting diode (OLED) fabrication. So far, efforts to prepare stable and easy-to-process red/green/blue (RGB)-emitting Alq(3) derivatives have met with only a limited success. In this paper, we describe how the electronic nature of various substituents, projected via an arylethynyl or aryl spacer to the position of the highest HOMO density (C5), may be used for effective emission tuning to obtain blue-, green-, and red-emitting materials. The synthetic strategy consists of four different pathways for the attachment of electron-donating and electron-withdrawing aryl or arylethynyl substituents to the 5-position of the quinolinolate ring. Successful tuning of the emission color covering the whole visible spectrum (lambda=450-800 nm) was achieved. In addition, the photophysical properties of the luminophores were found to correlate with the Hammett constant of the respective substituents, providing a powerful strategy with which to predict the optical properties of new materials. We also demonstrate that the electronic nature of the substituent affects the emission properties of the resulting complex through effective modification of the HOMO levels of the quinolinolate ligand.     

1H‐, 13C‐, and 15N‐NMR chemical shifts for selected glucosides and ribosides of aromatic cytokinins

The ¹H and ¹³C NMR resonances of 16 purine glucosides were assigned by a combination of one‐ and two‐dimensional NMR experiments, including gs‐COSY, gs‐HSQC, and gs‐HMBC, in order to characterize the effect of substituent and the position of glucose unit on the NMR chemical shifts. In addition, ¹⁵N NMR chemical shifts for selected derivatives were investigated by using ¹H? ¹⁵N chemical shift correlation techniques. To map the influence of sugar moiety on the directly bonded nitrogen atom, selected N⁹‐glucosides and their ribose analogs were compared. Characteristic long‐range ¹H? ¹⁵N coupling constants, measured by using ¹H? ¹⁵N gradient‐selected single‐quantum multiple bond correlation (GSQMBC), are also reported and discussed. All compounds investigated here belong to cytokinins, an important group of plant hormones. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mesoionic dimethyl derivatives of some 1,2,4-triazinones. The course of the reaction of 3,5-dimethoxy, 3-methoxy-5-methylthio, 5-methoxy-3- methylthio and 3,5-bis(methylthio)-1,2,4-triazine with methyl iodide

Treatment of 3,5-dimethoxy-1,2,4-triazine ( 1a ) with methyl iodide was found to give depending on the reaction time triazinium iodide 2a , triaziniumolates 4a and 6a as well as methoxytriazinones 7a and 8a . Thermolysis of 2a gave triaziniumolates 4a and 6a . Reaction of 2a , 4a or methoxytriazinone 9a with methyl iodide in acetonitrile yielded as the sole product 6a . Reaction of 3-methoxy-5-methylthio-1,2,4-tri-azine (1b ) with methyl iodide gave triazinium iodide 2b and methylthio triazinone 7b . Hydrolysis of 2a,b afforded 4a . Reaction of 5-methoxy-3-methylthio-1,2,4-triazine ( 1c ) with methyl iodide gave triazinium iodide 2c , triaziniumolate 4b , triazinium iodide 5b and triazinone 8b . Hydrolysis of 2c yielded 4b and its thermolysis gave a mixture of 4b and 5b . Reaction of 2c , 4b and triazinone 9b with methyl iodide afforded 5b . Treatment of 3,5-bis(methylthio)-1,2,4-triazine ( 1d ) with methyl iodide was found to give a mixture of N1 and N2 methiodides 2d and 3d which gave on hydrolysis 4b and 8b , respectively. Methylation of 6-methyl derivatives 1c-g gave analogous results, however the proportions of N1 methylated products were lower and the reaction rates higher in comparison to their respective lower homologues 1a,c,d . The structures of the mesoionic dimethyl derivatives were assigned from uv, ir, ¹H nmr and electron impact mass spectra. The structural assignments were eventually confirmed by quantum chemical calculations of net charge distributions, bond lengths and ipso angles of the C5?O bonds.     

NMR determination of pKa values of indoloquinoline alkaloids

Malaria is one of the most serious global health problems. Isolating new therapeutic agents with potential antimalarial activity from natural sources or preparing such agents either semisynthetically or synthetically is one strategy for solving the problem of resistance constantly evolving to the drugs currently in use. For alkaloids, the acid–base dissociation constant, pK_a, is an important characteristic, thought to be associated with biological activity. In this contribution, pK_a values for several indoloquinoline alkaloids were determined by using ¹H NMR spectroscopy in a mixture of solvents. The data were recalculated for water solutions using the correction factors reported previously. The structural dependence of the pK_a values for cryptolepine and its isomers neocryptolepine, isocryptolepine and isoneocryptolepine as well as some substituted neocryptolepine derivatives is discussed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Collagen-grafted ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene for biomedical applications

A novel material for hard tissue implants has been prepared. The ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was grafted with collagen I, to improve its biocompatibility with soft tissue in case of its usage in bone engineering. Before collagen immobilization, commercial grade UHMWPE was treated with air plasma to introduce hydroperoxides onto the surface and subsequently grafted with carboxylic acid to functionalize the surface. Acrylic acid and itaconic acid were used for surface functionalization. After graft polymerization of carboxylic acids, collagen was immobilized covalently through the amide bonds between residual amino and carboxyl groups in the presence of water-soluble carbodiimide/hydroxysuccinimide cross-linking system. Each step of modification was characterized using spectroscopic (EPR, ATR-FTIR, and XPS), microscopic (SEM and CLSM), and contact angle measurement methods. The experimental results showed that plasma treatment led to a generation of free radicals on the UHMWPE surface resulting in the formation of unstable hydroperoxides. These reactive species were used to graft unsaturated carboxylic acids onto UHMWPE. Consequently, collagen was grafted via the-NH₂ and-COOH reaction. The obtained experimental data along with microscopic observations confirmed the success of graft poly-merization of itaconic as well as of acrylic acid and collagen immobilization onto the UHMWPE surface. Presented at the 1st Bratislava Young Polymer Scientists Workshop, Bratislava, 20–23 August, 2007.