Untersuchungen über den Einfluß der Wasserstoffionenkonzentration auf die Spezifität der TTC-Reaktion

Zusammenfassung Die Abhängigkeit der Formazanbildung von p_H-Wert und Puffersubstanzen wurde untersucht. Durch Zusatz von Methanol ließ sich die Reaktion unterhalb p_H 12,0 mit verschiedenen Stoffen quantitativ durchführen und durch Erniedrigung des p_H-Wertes eine weitgehende Spezifität erreichen.

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Summary A study was made of the influence of p_H and buffers on the formation of formazan. If methanol is added the reaction can be conducted quantitatively with various materials at p_H below 12; marked specificity is attained by lowering the p_H-value.

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Résumé On a étudié le dépendance de la formation du formazan en fonction de la valeur du p_H et des substances-tampons. En ajoutant du méthanol, on peut effectuer quantitativement la réaction avec des substances variées au-dessous de p_H 12,0, et atteindre une spécificité plus poussée en diminuant la valeur du p_H.

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Total Synthesis of an Exceptional Brominated 4‐Pyrone Derivative of Algal Origin: An Exercise in Gold Catalysis and Alkyne Metathesis

A concise approach to the algal metabolite 1 is described, which also determines the previously unknown stereostructure of this natural product. Compound 1 is distinguished by a rare brominated 4‐pyrone nucleus linked as a ketene–acetal to a polyunsaturated macrocyclic scaffold comprising an extra homoallylic bromide entity. The synthesis of 1 is based on the elaboration and selective functionalization of the linear precursor 23 endowed with no less than six different sites of unsaturation including the highly enolized oxo‐alkanoate function. Key to success was the formation of the 2‐alkoxy‐4‐pyrone ring by a novel gold‐catalyzed transformation which engages only the acetylenic β‐ketoester substructure of 23 but leaves all other π‐bonds untouched. The synthesis was completed by a ring‐closing alkyne metathesis to forge the signature cycloalkyne motif of 1 followed by selective bromination of the ketene–acetal site in the resulting product 27 without touching the skipped diene–yne substructure resident within the macrocyclic tether.     

A one-pot chemoenzymatic synthesis for the universal precursor of antidiabetes and antiviral bis-indolylquinones

Bis-indolylquinones represent a class of fungal natural products that display antiretroviral, antidiabetes, or cytotoxic bioactivities. Recent advances in Aspergillus genomic mining efforts have led to the discovery of the tdiA-E-gene cluster, which is the first genetic locus dedicated to bis-indolylquinone biosynthesis. We have now genetically and biochemically characterized the enzymes TdiA (bis-indolylquinone synthetase) and TdiD (L-tryptophan:phenylpyruvate aminotransferase), which, together, confer biosynthetic abilities for didemethylasterriquinone D to Aspergillus nidulans. This compound is the universal intermediate for all bis-indolylquinones. In this biochemical study of a bis-indolylquinone synthetase and a fungal natural product transaminase, we present a one-pot chemoenzymatic protocol to generate didemethylasterriquinone D in vitro. As TdiA resembles a nonribosomal peptide synthetase, yet catalyzes carbon-carbon-bond formation, we discuss the implications for peptide synthetase chemistry.     

Two sequence elements of glycosyltransferases involved in urdamycin biosynthesis are responsible for substrate specificity and enzymatic activity.

BACKGROUND: Two deoxysugar glycosyltransferases (GTs), UrdGT1b and UrdGT1c, involved in urdamycin biosynthesis share 91% identical amino acids. However, the two GTs show different specificities for both nucleotide sugar and acceptor substrate. Generally, it is proposed that GTs are two-domain proteins with a nucleotide binding domain and an acceptor substrate site with the catalytic center in an interface cleft between these domains. Our work aimed at finding out the region responsible for determination of substrate specificities of these two urdamycin GTs. RESULTS: A series of 10 chimeric GT genes were constructed consisting of differently sized and positioned portions of urdGT1b and urdGT1c. Gene expression experiments in host strains Streptomyces fradiae Ax and XTC show that nine of 10 chimeric GTs are still functional, with either UrdGT1b- or UrdGT1c-like activity. A 31 amino acid region (aa 52-82) located close to the N-terminus of these enzymes, which differs in 18 residues, was identified to control both sugar donor and acceptor substrate specificity. Only one chimeric gene product of the 10 was not functional. Targeted stepwise alterations of glycine 226 (G226R, G226S, G226SR) were made to reintroduce residues conserved among streptomycete GTs. Alterations G226S and G226R restored a weak activity, whereas G226SR showed an activity comparable with other functional chimeras. CONCLUSIONS: A nucleotide sugar binding motif is present in the C-terminal moiety of UrdGT1b and UrdGT1c from S. fradiae. We could demonstrate that it is an N-terminal section that determines specificity for the nucleotide sugar and also the acceptor substrate. This finding directs the way towards engineering this class of streptomycete enzymes for antibiotic derivatization applications. Amino acids 226 and 227, located outside the putative substrate binding site, might be part of a larger protein structure, perhaps a solvent channel to the catalytic center. Therefore, they could play a role in substrate accessibility to it.     

Engineering the interface energetics of solar cells by grafting molecular properties onto semiconductors

The electronic properties of semiconductor surfaces can be controlled by binding tailor-made ligands to them. Here we demonstrate that deposition of a conducting phase on the treated surface enables control of the performance of the resulting device. We describe the characteristics of the free surface of single crystals and of polycrystalline thin films of semiconductors that serve as absorbers in thin film polycrystalline, heterojunction solar cells, and report first data for actual cell structures obtained by chemical bath deposition of CdS as the window semiconductor. The trend of the characteristics observed by systematically varying the ligands suggests changes in work function rather than in band bending at the free surface, and implies that changes in band line-up, which appear to cause changes in band bending, rather than direct, ligand-induced band bending changes, dominate.     

Simulation of the chipping behavior of coated abrasives by cooperating cellular automata

During the production of high-grade wooden components often the conditioning with coated abrasives composes the end of the process train. The chipping process and the resulting wood surface are depending of the scatter pattern parameters (particle size and distribution, …) and their time depending variations. Till now, no models exist concerning the interaction of the scatter pattern with the grinding process, the work piece surface and the clogging. The developed model is based on cooperating cellular automata. One is describing the sandpaper, the other one the work piece. These two automata interacts witch each other. Update rules are designed by physical laws and measurements. The paper shows surprising results with respect of surface structures which are the result of self-organization effects in the boundary layer of wood and sandpaper. (© 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)