Absolute stereochemistries and total synthesis of (+)-arisugacins A and B, potent, orally bioactive and selective inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase

In the current studies, we used the Kakisawa-Kashman modification of the Mosher NMR method to determine the complete absolute stereochemistry of arisugacins. We also report the convergent total synthesis of (+)-arisugacins A and B by a sequence including (i) ruthenium complex-catalyzed asymmetric reduction of the cyclohexenone derivative; (ii) stereoselective construction of the arisugacin skeleton by a Knoevenagel-type reaction of an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde derivative with production of a 4-hydroxy-2-pyrone derivative as a key reaction; and (iii) stereoselective dihydroxylation to give the diol derivative, followed by deoxygenation. Accordingly, we defined the absolute structures of arisugacins A and B as 4a-(R),6a-(R),12a-(R), and 12b-(S). Finally, we characterized the bioactivities of the synthetic intermediates to understand the structure-activity relationships of the arisugacins.     

Photopolymerization of cyclohexene oxide by use of o-nitrobenzyl triphenylsilyl ether/aluminum compound catalyst. Dependence of catalyst activity on the structure of the silyl ether

o-Nitrobenzyl triphenylsilyl ehther/aluminum compound has been previously shown by the authors to act as catalyst in the photopolymerization of epoxides. The dependence of the structure of the silyl ether on the catalyst activity was examined. There were two steps in the photopolymerization. The first step (“Step 1”) is photodecomposition of the silyl ether to silanol. The second step (“Step 2”) is the initiation of polymerization by silanol and the aluminum compound. The introduction of an electron withdrawing group, Cl, CF₃, on the benzene ring bonded to Si made the quantum yield of Step 1 low, however, the rate of Step 2 was increased. The low quantum yield of Step 1 was explained in terms of the rate of electron transfer that is controlled by the relative electron density between the CH₂ and NO₂ in the o-nitrobenzyl group. The acceleration of Step 2 was explained in terms of an increase in silanol acidity that was promoted by the introduction of an electron withdrawing group. The overall rate of the photopolymerizatiol depends to a greater degree on the rate of Step 2 than on that of Step 1.     

exo- and enantioselective cycloaddition of azomethine ylides generated from N-alkylidene glycine esters using chiral phosphine-copper complexes

High diastereo- and enantioselectivities were obtained for the asymmetric 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides generated from N-alkylideneglycine esters with dipolarophiles using chiral phosphine-copper complexes as catalysts. Whereas the cycloaddition of azomethine ylides catalyzed by metal salts generally afforded endo-adducts as the predominant product, the present method is the first example of an exo-selective cycloaddition. [reaction: see text]     

Slurry sampling techniques for the determination of lead in Bangladeshi fish samples by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with a metal tube atomizer

Ultrasonic slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with a metal tube atomizer has been applied to the determination of lead in Bangladeshi fish samples. The slurry sampling conditions, such as slurry stabilizing agent, slurry concentration, pyrolysis temperature for the slurried fish samples, particle size and ultrasonic agitation time, were optimized for electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with the Mo tube atomizer. Thiourea was used as the chemical modifier for the interference of matrix elements. The detection limit was 53 fg (3S/N). The determined amount of lead in Bangladeshi fish samples was consistent with those measured in the dissolved acid-digested samples. The advantages of the proposed methods are easy calibration, simplicity, low cost and rapid analysis.     

Hydrogen Effect on Coke Removal and Catalytic Performance in Pre-Carburization and Methane Dehydro-Aromatization Reaction on Mo/HZSM-5

1. Introduction As an effective utilization of methane, the methane dehydro-aromatization was focused in the last decade [1-28]. Over the Mo/HZSM-5 bi- functional catalyst at high reaction temperature, methane can be converted into light aromatics (ben- zene and naphthalene) and hydrogen. Mo active species can activate the C—H bond of methane; and HZSM-5 supplies the acid sites for the oligomeriza- tion and cyclization of hydrocarbons to form aromat- ics, and suppresses the deeper condens…     

Isolation and structure determination of six glucocerebrosides from the starfish Luidia maculata

Two new glucocerebrosides, luidiacerebroside A (2) and B (6), were isolated from the cerebroside molecular species obtained from the less polar fraction of the CHCl3/MeOH extract of the starfish Luidia maculata using HPLC. Four known cerebrosides, CE-2b (1), astrocerebroside B (3), acanthacerebroside B (4), and CE-3-2 (5) have also been isolated and characterized. The structures of these cerebrosides were determined on the basis of chemical and spectroscopic evidence. Mass spectrometry of dimethyl disulfide derivatives was useful for the determination of the double-bond position in the long-chain base.     

Polarized near-edge x-ray-absorption fine structure spectroscopy of C60-functionalized 11-amino-1-undecane thiol self-assembled monolayer: molecular orientation and evidence for C60 aggregation

Near-edge x-ray-absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy was adopted to probe the unoccupied electronic states of C60 anchored onto an organized assembly of 11-amino-1-undecane thiol on Au(111). The polarization dependence of the intensity of pi* resonance associated with C60 pi network revealed the self-assembled monolayer (SAM) system to be oriented with an average molecular tilt angle of 57 degrees with respect to the surface normal. Invoking the absence of solid-state band dispersion effects and in comparison to solid C60 and /or 1-ML C60/Au(111), the electronic structure of the resulting assembly was found dominated by spectral position shift and linewidth and intensity changes of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO), LUMO+1, and LUMO+2 orbitals. The latter implied hybridization between N Pz of -NH2 group of thiolate SAM and pi levels of C60, resulting in a nucleophilic addition with a change in the symmetry of C60 from Ih to C1 in the SAM. Occurrence of a new feature at 285.3 eV in the NEXAFS spectrum, assigned previously to pi* graphitic LUMO, signified the formation of aggregated clusters, (C60)n of C60 monomer. Low tunneling current scanning tunneling microscopy confirmed them to be spherical and stable aggregates with n approximately 5.     

Theoretical designs of singlet localized 1,3-diradicals

Spin preference and S-T gaps of localized 1,3-diradicals were studied by an orbital phase theory and theoretical calculations. The orbital phase theory was applied to rationalize thermodynamic and kinetic stabilities of diradicals. We theoretically designed some singlet localized 1,3-diradicals, substituted trimethylenes, which are more stable than the lowest triplets. Some diradicals with the four-membered rings, 2,4-disilacyclobutane-1,3-diyls, were designed and shown to have singlet ground states and to be more stable than the sigma-bonded isomers, 2,4-disilabicyclo[1.1.0]butanes. The ab initio calculations supported predictions of the stable carbon-centered localized singlet 1,3-diradicals.     

Dynamics of order formation by colloidal adsorption onto a substrate studied with Brownian dynamics

Colloidal adsorption and spontaneous ordering of adsorbed particles on a substrate was simulated using a three-dimensional simulation model for colloidal dispersion system with an adsorptive surface under a specified bulk concentration, where the particle-particle and particle-substrate interactions were modeled on the DLVO theory. The key process for order formation is considered to be the adsorption of a particle that induces the transition from incomplete order to perfect order, and is found to involve a stochastic nature due to an energy barrier which must be overcome for the system to reach ordered state. Also, a model was developed to predict the energy barrier for order formation based on direct observation of the key process. Further, a model to describe the stochastic nature of the process was developed and its quantitative validity was demonstrated. Through the examination of the key process, it is concluded that the mechanism of the order formation is composed of two successive processes and the rate-determining step varies depending on the ionic strength.     

Temperature effect on the vapor-phase exciplexes of cyano-substituted anthracenes

The emission spectra and lifetimes of the vapor-phase exciplexes of four cyano-substituted anthracenes with N,N-dimethylaniline (DMA) as a donor are examined over a wide temperature range. The activation energies associated with the exciplex dissociation are calculated to be of the order of 10 kcal/mol. The entropy change in forming the exciplexes is discussed in relation to the efficiency of the exciplex formation. For various donors other than DMA, preliminary results on how they interact with excited 9,10-dicyanoanthracene are also given.