Carbonyl Diazide, OC(N(3))(2): Synthesis, Purification, and IR Spectrum

Carbonyl diazide (1), OC(N(3))(2), is prepared by reaction of triphosgene and tetra-n-butylammonium azide in a solution of diethyl ether or dimethyl ether. The advantage of this synthetic method, relative to other procedures, is that the use of triphosgene, OC(OCCl(3))(2), mitigates the need to use highly poisonous reagents such as phosgene, OCCl(2), or chlorofluorocarbonyl, OC(Cl)F. The identity and purity of OC(N(3))(2) are established by gas-phase IR spectroscopy, which reveals the presence of both syn-syn and anti-syn conformers. Computed anharmonic vibrational frequencies and infrared intensities of carbonyl diazide (1) display excellent agreement with experiment, and reveal the presence of strong Fermi resonances.     

Off-diagonal long-range order in solid 4He

Measurements of the moment of inertia by Kim and Chan have found that solid (4)He acts like a supersolid at low temperatures. To understand the order in solid 4(He), we have used path integral Monte Carlo simulations to calculate the off-diagonal long-range order (ODLRO) [equivalent to Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC)]. We do not find ODLRO in a defect-free hcp crystal of (4)He at the melting density. We discuss these results in relation to proposed quantum solid trial functions. We conclude that the solid (4)He wave function has correlations which suppress both vacancies and BEC.     

Numerical model for DNA loading in microdevices: stacking and autogating effects

Many electrophoresis-based DNA sequencing and genotyping microdevices rely on field-driven effects to load and preconcentrate the sample. A quantitative model is developed for a broad class of electrophoresis-based microfabricated sample injectors. Quantitative predictions of DNA preconcentration are compared with experimental data and are shown to qualitatively reproduce the detailed time-evolving sample distribution in the injector. The model provides practical guidance on device and protocol design, in order to optimize this critical aspect of microfluidic devices.     

Platinum group metallodrug-protein binding studies by capillary electrophoresis - inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry: a further insight into the reactivity of a novel antitumor ruthenium(III) complex toward human serum proteins

Biochemical speciation analysis has become a hot area of CE research due largely to growing emergence of inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-MS as a proper detection technique. A benefit of CE-ICP-MS coupling in species-selective analysis of anticancer metal-based drugs is the possibility of distinguishing the signals of the intact drug and its metabolites and hence of quantifying them independently. This advantage (over CE with UV-vis detection) was exploited here in order to gain better knowledge about the rate and degree of the transformation of indazolium [trans-tetrachlorobis(1H-indazole)ruthenate(III)] (KP1019), a promising tumor-inhibiting agent that successfully finished phase I clinical studies, upon its binding toward individual serum transport proteins. At increasing the KP1019/protein molar ratio, the reaction rate expressed by an evolving peak of the protein adduct became faster, with the equilibrium state being reached after about 40 and 60 min of incubation at 37 degrees C for transferrin and albumin, respectively. The binding reaction was shown to obey the first-order character that enabled for reliable calculation of the corresponding rate constants as (28.7 +/- 1.5) x 10(-4) and (10.6 +/- 0.7) x 10(-4)/s, respectively. When incubated with a ten-fold excess of KP1019, albumin and transferrin bound, respectively, up to 8 and 10 equiv. of ruthenium (Ru). Relative affinity of KP1019 toward different proteins under simulated physiological conditions was also characterized in terms of the overall binding constants (5600 and 10 600/M, respectively). To emphasize the difference in the protein-binding behavior, a competitive interaction of KP1019 was followed by CE-ICP-MS at the actual molar ratio of proteins in blood, i.e. a ten-fold excess of albumin over transferrin. The fact that KP1019 binds to albumin stronger than to transferrin was manifested by finding almost all ruthenium (98-99%) in the albumin fraction.     

Synthesis of a biotin-derived alkyne for pd-catalyzed coupling reactions

[reaction: see text] An efficient synthesis of a terminal alkyne derived from d-biotin was developed to provide an alternative for carboxyl-based biotinylation. This approach was illustrated by the preparation of alkyne- and alkene-linked phenylalanine derivatives using palladium-catalyzed Sonogashira and Oh methodology. (Strept)avidin binding was observed using soluble and immobilized receptors. These results demonstrate the applicability of carbon-linked biotin derivatives for use in affinity-based purification and bioanalytical applications.     

A solvent-stable nanocrystal-silica composite laser

We have developed a photostable nanocrystal-silica (NC-silica) laser that is robust under different chemical environments, making it suitable for integration with a microfluidic network. We demonstrate that the optical properties of this microscale laser can be a dynamic function of its local environment, thus providing a platform for potential applications such as nonlinear optical chemosensing on a miniaturized scale.     

The first metal-based paullone derivative with high antiproliferative activity in vitro

9-Bromo-7,12-dihydroindolo[3,2-d][1]benzazepin-6(5H)-one, kenpaullone, which displays similarities in the activity profile to flavopiridol, was modified by chemical transformations at the lactam unit to provide a peripheral binding site able to accommodate metal ions. The first metal-based paullone has been prepared and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction methods, solid-state cross-polarization magic angle spinning 13C NMR spectroscopy, electrospray ionization mass spectra, and electronic spectra. The gallium complex [GaL2]Cl.2.5H2O, the metal-free ligand (HL), and the starting compound used for the preparation of HL were assessed in vitro for their cytotoxicity in a panel of human tumor cell lines. The gallium complex was found to be 1.5-18-fold more cytotoxic than HL, with an average IC50 value of 2.0 microM.     

Functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes "on water"

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are exfoliated and functionalized into small bundles and individuals by vigorous stirring "on water" in the presence of a substituted aniline and an oxidizing agent. This is an example of an "on water" reaction that leads to functionalized SWNTs, and it represents a "green", or environmentally friendly, process. A variety of reaction conditions were explored. The products were analyzed with Raman, UV-vis-NIR, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies, atomic force and transmission electron microscopies, and thermogravimetric analysis.     

Synthetic, electrochemical, and theoretical studies of tetrairidium clusters bearing mono- and bis[60]fullerene ligands

Heating a mixture of Ir(4)(CO)(9)(PPh(3))(3) (1) and 2 equiv of C(60) in refluxing chlorobenzene (CB) affords a "butterfly" tetrairidium-C(60) complex Ir(4)(CO)(6){mu(3)-kappa(3)-PPh(2)(o-C(6)H(4))P(o-C(6)H(4))PPh(eta(1)-o-C(6)H(4))}(mu(3)-eta(2):eta(2):eta(2)-C(60)) (3, 36%). Brief thermolysis of 1 in refluxing chlorobenzene (CB) gives a "butterfly" complex Ir(4)(CO)(8){mu-k(2)-PPh(2)(o-C(6)H(4))PPh}{mu(3)-PPh(2)(eta(1):eta(2)-o-C(6)H(4))} (2, 64%) that is both ortho-phosphorylated and ortho-metalated. Interestingly, reaction of 2 with 2 equiv of C(60) in refluxing CB produces 3 (41%) by C(60)-assisted ortho-phosphorylation, indicating that 2 is the reaction intermediate for the final product 3. On the other hand, reaction of Ir(4)(CO)(8)(PMe(3))(4) (4) with excess (4 equiv) C(60) in refluxing 1,2-dichlorobenzene, followed by treatment with CNCH(2)Ph at 70 degrees C, affords a square-planar complex with two C(60) ligands and a face-capping methylidyne ligand, Ir(4)(CO)(3)(mu(4)-CH)(PMe(3))(2)(mu-PMe(2))(CNCH(2)Ph)(mu-eta(2):eta(2)-C(60))(mu(4)-eta(1):eta(1):eta(2):eta(2)-C(60)) (5, 13%) as the major product. Compounds 2, 3, and 5 have been characterized by spectroscopic and microanalytical methods, as well as by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Cyclic voltammetry has been used to examine the electrochemical properties of 2, 3, 5, and a related known "butterfly" complex Ir(4)(CO)(6)(mu-CO){mu(3)-k(2)-PPh(2)(o-C(6)H(4))P(eta(1)-o-C(6)H(4))}(mu(3)-eta(2):eta(2):eta(2)-C(60)) (6). These cyclic voltammetry data suggest that a C(60)-mediated electron transfer to the iridium cluster center takes place for the species 3(3)(-) and 6(2)(-) in compounds 3 and 6. The cyclic voltammogram of 5 exhibits six well-separated reversible, one-electron redox waves due to the strong electronic communication between two C(60) cages through a tetrairidium metal cluster spacer. The electrochemical properties of 3, 5, and 6 have been rationalized by molecular orbital calculations using density functional theory and by charge distribution studies employing the Mulliken and Hirshfeld population analyses.     

Parallel acquisition of two-dimensional NMR spectra of several nuclear species

We show that two or more two-dimensional NMR correlation spectra can be recorded in a single shot, using a multicoil radio-frequency probe and receiver system designed for simultaneous parallel acquisition of signals from different nuclear species such as 1H, 13C, and 15N. Dubbed PANSY (parallel acquisition NMR spectroscopy), this new technique shows promise for recording several multidimensional NMR spectra of different nuclear species in a very short time.