Synthesis of 1-beta-D-(5-deoxy-5-iodoarabinofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole (beta-IAZA): a novel marker of tissue hypoxia

The present work describes the synthesis of the beta-isomer of 1-alpha-D-(5-deoxy-5-iodoarabinofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole (IAZA). Radioiodinated IAZA ((123)I-IAZA) has been extensively studied as a radiopharmaceutical for the diagnosis of regional and/or focal tissue hypoxia in a variety of clinical pathologies. The beta-anomer of IAZA, 1-beta-D-(5-deoxy-5-iodoarabinofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole (beta-IAZA, 1), was synthesized via an unconventional route starting from 1-beta-D-(ribofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole (AZR), with a change of configuration at the C-2'-position to afford 1-beta-D-(arabinofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole (beta-AZA, 7). Nucleophilic iodination of the 5'-O-toluenesulfonyl-2',3'-di-O-acetyl precursor of beta-AZA, 9, followed by deprotection, afforded 1 in satisfactory yield. beta-IAZA (1) was also synthesized from 7 using molecular iodine and triphenylphosphine.     

Optical Spectroscopy as a Method for Skin Cancer Risk Assessment

Skin cancer is the most prevalent cancer, and its assessment remains a challenge for physicians. This study reports the application of an optical sensing method, elastic scattering spectroscopy (ESS), coupled with a classifier that was developed with machine learning, to assist in the discrimination of skin lesions that are concerning for malignancy. The method requires no special skin preparation, is non‐invasive, easy to administer with minimal training, and allows rapid lesion classification. This novel approach was tested for all common forms of skin cancer. ESS spectra from a total of 1307 lesions were analyzed in a multi‐center, non‐randomized clinical trial. The classification algorithm was developed on a 950‐lesion training dataset, and its diagnostic performance was evaluated against a 357‐lesion testing dataset that was independent of the training dataset. The observed sensitivity was 100% (14/14) for melanoma and 94% (105/112) for non‐melanoma skin cancer. The overall observed specificity was 36% (84/231). ESS has potential, as an adjunctive assessment tool, to assist physicians to differentiate between common benign and malignant skin lesions.     

Editor’s Introduction to Jean van Heijenoort, Historical Development of Modern Logic

Van Heijenoort??s account of the historical development of modern logic was composed in 1974 and first published in 1992 with an introduction by his former student. What follows is a new edition with a revised and expanded introduction and additional notes.     

Physicochemical and Graph Theoretical Descriptors in Developmental Toxicity SAR: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Chemical insults to the developing fetus can lead to growth retardation, malformation, death, and functional deficits. The present study seeks to determine if physicochemical and/or graph theoretical parameters can be used to determine a structure-activity relationship (SAR) for developmental toxicity, and if consistency is observed among the selected features. The biological data utilized consists of a diverse series of compounds evaluated within the Chernoff-Kavlock in vivo mouse assay. Physicochemical parameters calculated correspond to electronic, steric, and transport properties. Graph theoretical parameters calculated include the simple, valence, and kappa indices. Both sets of parameters were independently applied to derive SARs in order to compare the quality of the respective models. Multiple random sampling, without replacement, was utilized to obtain ten training/test partitions. Models were built by linear discriminant analysis, decision trees, and neural networks respectively. Comparisons on identical sets of data were carried out to determine if any of the model building procedures had a significant advantage in terms of predictive performance. Furthermore, comparison of the features selected within and across the model building processes led to the determination of model consistency. Our results indicate that consistent features related to developmental toxicity are observed and that both physicochemical and graph theoretical parameters have equal utility.     

Phenanthrene‐Fused‐Quinoxaline as a Key Building Block for Highly Efficient and Stable Sensitizers in Copper‐Electrolyte‐Based Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

Dye‐sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) based on Cu^II/I bipyridyl or phenanthroline complexes as redox shuttles have achieved very high open‐circuit voltages (V_OC, more than 1 V). However, their short‐circuit photocurrent density (J_SC) has remained modest. Increasing the J_SC is expected to extend the spectral response of sensitizers to the red or NIR region while maintaining efficient electron injection in the mesoscopic TiO₂ film and fast regeneration by the Cu^I complex. Herein, we report two new D‐A‐π‐A‐featured sensitizers termed HY63 and HY64 , which employ benzothiadiazole (BT) or phenanthrene‐fused‐quinoxaline (PFQ), respectively, as the auxiliary electron‐withdrawing acceptor moiety. Despite their very similar energy levels and absorption onsets, HY64 ‐based DSSCs outperform their HY63 counterparts, achieving a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 12.5 %. PFQ is superior to BT in reducing charge recombination resulting in the near‐quantitative collection of photogenerated charge carriers.     

Spatial resonances and superposition patterns in a reaction-diffusion model with interacting Turing modes

Spatial resonances leading to superlattice hexagonal patterns, known as "black-eyes," and superposition patterns combining stripes and/or spots are studied in a reaction-diffusion model of two interacting Turing modes with different wavelengths. A three-phase oscillatory interlacing hexagonal lattice pattern is also found, and its appearance is attributed to resonance between a Turing mode and its subharmonic.