Coordination networks from a bifunctional molecule containing carboxyl and thioether groups

The bifunctional molecule tetrakis(methylthio)-1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid (TMBD) interacts with the increasingly harder metal ions of Cu (I), Cd (II), and Zn (II) to form the coordination networks of Cu 2TMBD, CdTMBD, and Zn 4O(H 2O) 3(TMBD) 3, where the carboxyl group consistently bonds to metal ions, while the softer methylthio group binds with preference to the softer metal ions (i.e., chelation to Cu (+), single-fold coordination to Cd (2+), and nonbonding to Zn (2+)). Diffuse-reflectance spectra show that the metal-thioether interaction is associated with smaller electronic band gaps of the solid-state networks.     

Primary and secondary phosphine complexes of iron porphyrins and ruthenium phthalocyanine: synthesis, structure, and P-H bond functionalization

Reduction of [Fe(III)(Por)Cl] (Por = porphyrinato dianion) with Na2S2O4 followed by reaction with excess PH2Ph, PH2Ad, or PHPh2 afforded [Fe(II)(F20-TPP)(PH2Ph)2] (1a), [Fe(II)(F20-TPP)(PH2Ad)2] (1b), [Fe(II)(F20-TPP)(PHPh2)2] (2a), and [Fe(II)(2,6-Cl2TPP)(PHPh2)2] (2b). Reaction of [Ru(II)(Pc)(DMSO)2] (Pc = phthalocyaninato dianion) with PH2Ph or PHPh2 gave [Ru(II)(Pc)(PH2Ph)2] (3a) and [Ru(II)(Pc)(PHPh2)2] (4). [Ru(II)(Pc)(PH2Ad)2] (3b) and [Ru(II)(Pc)(PH2Bu(t))2] (3c) were isolated by treating a mixture of [Ru(II)(Pc)(DMSO)2] and O=PCl2Ad or PCl2Bu(t) with LiAlH4. Hydrophosphination of CH2=CHR (R = CO2Et, CN) with [Ru(II)(F20-TPP)(PH2Ph)2] or [Ru(II)(F20-TPP)(PHPh2)2] in the presence of (t)BuOK led to the isolation of [Ru(II)(F20-TPP)(P(CH2CH2R)2Ph)2] (R = CO2Et, 5a; CN, 5b) and [Ru(II)(F20-TPP)(P(CH2CH2R)Ph2)2] (R = CO2Et, 6a; CN, 6b). Similar reaction of 3a with CH2=CHCN or MeI gave [Ru(II)(Pc)(P(CH2CH2CN)2Ph)2] (7) or [Ru(II)(Pc)(PMe2Ph)2] (8). The reactions of 4 with CH2=CHR (R = CO2Et, CN, C(O)Me, P(O)(OEt)2, S(O)2Ph), CH2=C(Me)CO2Me, CH(CO2Me)=CHCO2Me, MeI, BnCl, and RBr (R = (n)Bu, CH2=CHCH2, MeC[triple bond]CCH2, HC[triple bond]CCH2) in the presence of (t)BuOK afforded [Ru(II)(Pc)(P(CH2CH2R)Ph2)2] (R = CO2Et, 9a; CN, 9b; C(O)Me, 9c; P(O)(OEt)2, 9d; S(O)2Ph, 9e), [Ru(II)(Pc)(P(CH2CH(Me)CO2Me)Ph2)2] (9f), [Ru(II)(Pc)(P(CH(CO2Me)CH2CO2Me)Ph2)2] (9g), and [Ru(II)(Pc)(PRPh2)2] (R = Me, 10a; Bu(n), 10b; Bn, 10c; CH2CH=CH2, 10d; CH2C[triple bond]CMe, 10e; CH=C=CH2, 10f). X-ray crystal structure determinations revealed Fe-P distances of 2.2597(9) (1a) and 2.309(2) A (2bx 2 CH2Cl2) and Ru-P distances of 2.3707(13) (3b), 2.373(2) (3c), 2.3478(11) (4), and 2.3754(10) A (5b x 2 CH2Cl2). Both the crystal structures of 3b and 4 feature intermolecular C-H...pi interactions, which link the molecules into 3D and 2D networks, respectively.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed one-pot carbenoid N-H insertion reactions and diastereoselective synthesis of prolines

Aryl- and aliphatic-substituted 3-hydroxyprolines and various other amino esters are conveniently prepared by [RuCl2(p-cymene)]2-catalyzed one-pot intramolecular and intermolecular carbenoid N-H insertion reactions, respectively, and the prolines are formed with high diastereoselectivities. The catalytic reactions are tolerant toward air/moisture, and the product yields are insensitive to the organic solvents used.     

Gold-mediated bifunctional modification of oligosaccharides via a three-component coupling reaction

An efficient modular approach for single-site incorporation of two independent functionalities (amines and alkynes) into aldehyde-containing oligosaccharides concurrently by using a one-pot gold-mediated three-component coupling reaction in aqueous medium under mild conditions has been developed.     

Amidetriazole: a versatile building block for construction of oxyanion anion receptors

The design and synthesis of efficient receptors for tetrahedral oxyanions is an emerging field in supramolecular chemistry. Herein, we have developed a urea-like anion-recognizing motif, amidetriazole, which can be easily synthesized and derived and shows good solubility. A series of simple acyclic receptors were designed and synthesized to confirm the potential of amidetriazole for the construction of tetrahedral oxyanion receptors. This molecular platform can be used extensively for the construction of numerous receptor systems appended with functional groups, which opens the way to many applications in the field of supramolecular chemistry.     

Anticancer cyclometalated [Au(III)m(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)mL]n+ compounds: Synthesis and cytotoxic properties

A series of cyclometalated gold(III) compounds [Au(m)(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)mL]n+ (m = 1-3; n = 0-3; HC(wedge)N(wedge)CH = 2,6-diphenylpyridine) was prepared by ligand substitution reaction of L with N-donor or phosphine ligands. The [Au(m)(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)mL]n+ compounds are stable in solution in the presence of glutathione. Crystal structures of the gold(III) compounds containing bridging bi- and tridentate phosphino ligands reveal the presence of weak intramolecular pi pi stacking between the [Au(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)]+ units. Results of MTT assays demonstrated that the [Au(m)(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)mL]n+ compounds containing nontoxic N-donor auxiliary ligands (2) exert anticancer potency comparable to that of cisplatin, with IC50 values ranging from 1.5 to 84 microM. The use of [Au(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)(1-methylimidazole)]+ (2 a) as a model compound revealed that the gold(III)-induced cytotoxicity occurs through an apoptotic cell-death pathway. The cell-free interaction of 2 a with double-stranded DNA was also examined. Absorption titration showed that 2 a binds to calf-thymus DNA (ctDNA) with a binding constant of 4.5 x 10(5) dm3 mol(-1) at 298 K. Evidence from gel-mobility-shift assays and viscosity measurements supports an intercalating binding mode for the 2 a-DNA interaction. Cell-cycle analysis revealed that 2 a causes S-phase cell arrest after incubation for 24 and 48 hours. The cytotoxicity of 3 b-g toward cancer cells (IC50 = 0.04-4.3 microM) correlates to that of the metal-free phosphine ligands (IC50 = 0.1-38.0 microM), with [Au2(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)2(mu-dppp)]2+ (3 d) and dppp (dppp = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane) being the most cytotoxic gold(III) and metal-free compounds, respectively. Compound 3 d shows a cytotoxicity at least ten-fold higher than the other gold(III) analogues; in vitro cellular-uptake experiments reveal similar absorptions for all the gold(III) compounds into nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells (SUNE1) (1.18-3.81 ng/cell; c.f., 3 d = 2.04 ng/cell), suggesting the presence of non-gold-mediated cytotoxicity. Unlike 2 a, both gold(III) compounds [Au(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)(PPh3)]+ (3 a) (PPh3 = triphenylphosphine) and [Au2(C(wedge)N(wedge)C)2(mu-dppp)]2+ (3 d) interact only weakly with ctDNA and do not arrest the cell cycle.     

Arsenic trioxide targets Hsp60, triggering degradation of p53 and survivin

The mechanisms of action of arsenic trioxide (ATO), a clinically used drug for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), have been actively studied mainly through characterization of individual putative protein targets. There appear to be no studies at a system level. Herein, we integrate metalloproteomics through a newly developed organoarsenic probe, As-AC (C₂₀H₁₇AsN₄O₃S₂) with quantitative proteomics, allowing 37 arsenic binding and 250 arsenic regulated proteins to be identified in NB4, a human APL cell line. Bioinformatics analysis reveals that ATO disrupts multiple physiological processes, in particular, chaperone-related protein folding and cellular response to stress. Furthermore, we discover heat shock protein 60 (Hsp60) as a vital target of ATO. Through biophysical and cell-based assays, we demonstrate that ATO binds to Hsp60, leading to abolishment of Hsp60 refolding capability. Significantly, the binding of ATO to Hsp60 disrupts the formation of Hsp60-p53 and Hsp60-survivin complexes, resulting in degradation of p53 and survivin. This study provides significant insights into the mechanism of action of ATO at a systemic perspective, and serves as guidance for the rational design of metal-based anticancer drugs.

A highly selective organoarsenic fluorescent probe As-AC and quantitative proteomics were employed to track arsenic-binding and regulating proteins in live leukemia cells. Hsp60 was validated as a new target of ATO.     

Canonical representation of conditionally specified multivariate discrete distributions

Most work on conditionally specified distributions has focused on approaches that operate on the probability space, and the constraints on the probability space often make the study of their properties challenging. We propose decomposing both the joint and conditional discrete distributions into characterizing sets of canonical interactions, and we prove that certain interactions of a joint distribution are shared with its conditional distributions. This invariance opens the door for checking the compatibility between conditional distributions involving the same set of variables. We formulate necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence and uniqueness of discrete conditional models, and we show how a joint distribution can be easily computed from the pool of interactions collected from the conditional distributions. Hence, the methods can be used to calculate the exact distribution of a Gibbs sampler. Furthermore, issues such as how near compatibility can be reconciled are also discussed. Using mixed parametrization, we show that the proposed approach is based on the canonical parameters, while the conventional approaches are based on the mean parameters. Our advantage is partly due to the invariance that holds only for the canonical parameters.     

Real-time AFM study of lamellar growth of semi-crystalline polymers

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been used to study the lamellar development during the crystallization and melting processes of poly(bisphenol A-co-alkyl ether) (BA-Cn) films. High-resolution and real-time AFM phase imaging enables us to observe the detailed growth process of the lamellae. At the early stage of the lamellar growth, embryos appeared firstly and some disappeared on the film surface after a period of time. The stable embryo developed into a single lamella. Then the lamella developed into a lamellar sheaf through branching and splaying. Our results revealed that the branches of the lamellae were formed by induced nucleation and it was also dependent on the crystallization temperature. Real-time AFM study of the melting, recrystallization and remelting processes of lamellae indicated that the thermal stability of different segments of a single lamella is different and that the thermal stability of the different lamellae is also different even if they develop at the same annealing temperature. The orientation and the development of the lamellae at the characteristic eyes and boundaries of the spherulites are observed in details.