Covalent Organic Framework (COF-1) under High Pressure

COF-1 has a structure with rigid 2D layers composed of benzene and B₃O₃ rings and weak van der Waals bonding between the layers. The as-synthesized COF-1 structure contains pores occupied by solvent molecules. A high surface area empty-pore structure is obtained after vacuum annealing. High-pressure XRD and Raman experiments with mesitylene-filled (COF-1-M) and empty-pore COF-1 demonstrate partial amorphization and collapse of the framework structure above 12–15 GPa. The ambient pressure structure of COF-1-M can be reversibly recovered after compression up to 10–15 GPa. Remarkable stability of highly porous COF-1 structure at pressures at least up to 10 GPa is found even for the empty-pore structure. The bulk modulus of the COF-1 structure (11.2(5) GPa) and linear incompressibilities (k_[100]=111(5) GPa, k_[001]=15.0(5) GPa) were evaluated from the analysis of XRD data and cross-checked against first-principles calculations.     

Enhancing vibration mitigation in a Jeffcott rotor with active magnetic bearings through parametric excitation

Nonlinear Dynamics - In previous studies of linear rotary systems with active magnetic bearings, parametric excitation was introduced as an open-loop control strategy. The parametric excitation was...     

Valued difference fields and NTP2

We show that the theory of the non-standard Frobenius automorphism, acting on an algebraically closed valued field of equal characteristic 0, is NTP₂. More generally, in the contractive as well as in the isometric case, we prove that a σ-Henselian valued difference field of equicharacteristic 0 is NTP₂, provided both the residue difference field and the value group (as an ordered difference group) are NTP₂.     

Metal—Organic Frameworks in Asymmetric Catalysis: Recent Advances

Russian Journal of Organic Chemistry - The review summarizes recent advances in the use of homochiral metal—organic frameworks (MOFs) in asymmetric catalysis of organic reactions.     

Reaction of secondary phosphines with elemental sulfur and hydrazine: atom-economic synthesis of dithiophosphinates

Russian Journal of General Chemistry -     

CuI COMPLEXES BASED ON DI(2-PYRIDYL) (2-AROYLETHENYL)PHOSPHINE OXIDES: SYNTHESIS,STRUCTURE, AND DARK RED PHOTOLUMINESCENCE

Journal of Structural Chemistry - By the interaction of CuI with bis(2-pyridyl)phosphine oxides (2-Py)2RP(O) containing E-1-phenyl-2-aroylethenyl–C(Ph)=CHC(O)R′...     

Floating boundary particle swarm optimization algorithm

A new modification to the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is proposed aiming to make the algorithm less sensitive to selection of the initial search domain. To achieve this goal, we release the boundaries of the search domain and enable each boundary to drift independently, guided by the number of collisions with particles involved in the optimization process. The gradual modification of the active search domain range enables us to prevent particles from revisiting less promising regions of the search domain and also to explore the areas located outside the initial search domain. With time, the search domain shrinks around a region holding a global extremum. This helps improve the quality of the final solution obtained. It also makes the algorithm less sensitive to initial choice of the search domain ranges. The effectiveness of the proposed Floating Boundary PSO (FBPSO) is demonstrated using a set of standard test functions. To control the performance of the algorithm, new parameters are introduced. Their optimal values are determined through numerical examples.     

MALDI-TOF MS as a label-free approach to rapid inhibitor screening

Mass Spectrometry (MS) has been widely reported for measuring the conversion of substrates to products for enzyme assays. These measurements are typically performed by time-consuming LC-MS to eliminate buffer salts that interfere with electrospray ionization MS. However, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization, time-of-flight MS (MALDI-TOF MS) offers a label-free and direct readout of substrate and product, a fast sampling rate, and is tolerant of many buffer salts, reagents, and compounds that are typically found in enzyme reaction mixtures. In this report, a demonstration of how MALDI-TOF MS can be used to directly measure ratios of substrates and products to produce IC(50) curves for rapid enzyme assays and compound screening is provided. Typical reproducibility parameters were <7% RSD-a value comparable to ESI MS quantitative assays and well within the acceptable limits for screening assays. The speed of the MALDI readout is currently about 10 s per sample, thus allowing for over 7500 samples/day. From a simplicity standpoint, the enzymatic reaction mixtures are prepared by liquid handling robots, the reactions are stopped by addition of a 10 times volume of acidic matrix solution, and the samples are simultaneously transferred to MALDI target plate for analysis. Importantly, the ratios of substrate to product are of sufficient reproducibility to eliminate the need for internal standards and, thus, minimize the cost and increasing the speed of assay development.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of aromatic analogues of conduritol F, L-chiro-inositol, and dihydroconduritol F structurally related to the amaryllidaceae anticancer constituents

Pancratistatin is a potent anticancer natural product, whose clinical evaluation is hampered by the limited natural abundance and the stereochemically complex structure undermining practical chemical preparation. Fifteen aromatic analogues of conduritol F, l-chiro-inositol, and dihydroconduritol F that possess four of the six pancratistatin stereocenters have been synthesized and evaluated for anticancer activity. These compounds serve as truncated pancratistatin analogues lacking the lactam ring B, but retaining the crucial C10a-C10b bond with the correct stereochemistry. The lack of activity of these compounds provides further insight into pancratistatin's minimum structural requirements for cytotoxicity, particularly the criticality of the intact phenanthridone skeleton. Significantly, these series provide rare examples of simple aromatic conduritol and inositol analogues and, therefore, this study expands the chemistry and biology of these important classes of compounds.