Cu2+/+ cation coordination to adenine--thymine base pair. Effects on intermolecular proton-transfer processes

Intermolecular proton-transfer processes in the Watson & Crick adenine-thymine Cu+ and Cu2+ cationized base pairs have been studied using the density functional theory (DFT) methods. Cationized systems subject to study are those resulting from cation coordination to the main basic sites of the base pair, N7 and N3 of adenine and O2 of thymine. For Cu+ coordinated to N7 or N3 of adenine, only the double proton-transferred product is found to be stable, similarly to the neutral system. However, when Cu+ interacts with thymine, through the O2 carbonyl atom, the single proton transfer from thymine to adenine becomes thermodynamically spontaneous, and thus rare forms of the DNA bases may spontaneously appear. For Cu2+ cation, important effects on proton-transfer processes appear due to oxidation of the base pair, which stabilizes the different single proton-transfer products. Results for hydrated systems show that the presence of the water molecules interacting with the metal cation (and their mode of coordination) can strongly influence the ability of Cu2+ to induce oxidation on the base pair.     

Effect of microwave heating in the asymmetric addition of dimethylzinc to aldehydes

Microwave-heated enantioselective additions of dimethylzinc to various aldehydes are reported. Dramatically reduced reaction times and lower catalyst loadings (5%), compared with conventionally used conditions, can be achieved, with excellent yields and just small loss of enantioselectivity (up to 83% enantioselectivity is achieved). In the reaction with aliphatic aldehydes the same enantioselectivity has been achieved for microwave-heated and conventional room temperature conditions.     

Is there any bona fide example of O-H...F-C bond in solution? The cases of HOC(CF3)2(4-X-2,6-C6H2(CF3)2) (X = Si(i-Pr)3, CF3)

The reinvestigation of the title compounds, which are the only examples reported to show experimentally (by NMR) O-H...F-C bonds in solution proves that the NMR data were misinterpreted and the restrictions to rotation of one CF(3) group are due to crowding, not to intramolecular O-H...F-C bond.     

Alkynylisocyanide gold mesogens as precursors of gold nanoparticles

Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have been synthesized using simple thermolysis, whether from the mesophase or from toluene solutions, of mesogenic alkynyl-isocyanide gold complexes [Au(C≡C-C(6)H(4)-C(m)H(2m+1))(C≡N-C(6)H(4)-O-C(n)H(2n+1))]. The thermal decomposition from the mesophase is much slower than from solution and produces a more heterogeneous size distribution of the nanoparticles. Working in toluene solution, the size of nanoparticles can be modulated from ~2 to ~20 nm by tuning the chain lengths of the ligands present in the precursor. Different experimental conditions have been analyzed to reveal the processes governing the formation of the gold nanoparticles. Experiments on the effect of adding ligands or bubbling oxygen support that the thermal decomposition is a bimolecular process that starts by decoordination of the isocyanide ligand, producing an oxidative coupling of the akynyl group to [R-C≡C-C≡C-R] and reduction of gold(I) to gold(0) as nanoparticles. The nanoparticles obtained behave as a catalyst in the oxidation of isocyanide (CNR) to isocyanate (OCNR), which in turn cooperates to catalyze the decomposition.     

Fluorene-based stannylated polymers and their use as recyclable reagents in the Stille reaction

Stannylated polymers based on the polyfluorene backbone have been synthesized and used in the Stille reaction as recyclable reagents, minimizing the generation of toxic tin residues.     

Mechanistic insights into ring-closing enyne metathesis with the second-generation Grubbs-Hoveyda catalyst: a DFT study

The full catalytic process (precatalyst activation, propagating cycle and active-species interconversion) of the ring-closing enyne metathesis (RCEYM) reaction of 1-allyloxy-2-propyne with the Grubbs-Hoveyda complex as catalyst was studied by B3LYP density functional theory. Both the ene-then-yne and yne-then-ene pathways are considered and, for the productive catalytic cycle, the feasibility of the endo-yne-then-ene route is also explored. Calculations predict that the ene-then-yne and yne-then-ene pathways proceed through equivalent steps, the only major difference being the order in which they take place. In this way, all alkene metathesis processes studied here involve four steps: olefin coordination, cycloaddition, cycloreversion and olefin decoordination. Among them, the two more energetically demanding ones are the olefin coordination and decoordination steps. The reaction of the alkyne fragment consists of two steps: alkyne coordination and alkyne skeletal reorganization, the latter of which has the highest Gibbs energy barrier. Comparison between the ene-then-yne and yne-then-ene pathways shows that there is no clear energetic preference for either of the two processes, and thus both should be operative when unsubstituted enynes are involved. In addition, although the endo orientation is computed to be slightly disfavored, it is not ruled out for 1-allyloxy-2-propyne, and thus calculations seem to indicate that the exo versus endo selectivity is strongly influenced by the presence of substituents in the reagent.     

Strong metallophilic interactions in the palladium arylation by gold aryls

It's the second step that counts: arylation of Pd by Au takes place through transition states and intermediates featuring strong Au???Pd metallophilic interactions. However, the aryl transfer from [AuArL] to [PdArClL(2)] is thermodynamically disfavored and will not occur unless an irreversible Ar-Ar coupling from [PdAr(2)L(2)] follows.     

Influence of ionization on the conformational preferences of peptide models. Ramachandran surfaces of N‐formyl‐glycine amide and N‐formyl‐alanine amide radical cations

Ramachandran maps of neutral and ionized HCO–Gly–NH₂ and HCO–Ala–NH₂ peptide models have been built at the B3LYP/6‐31++G(d,p) level of calculation. Direct optimizations using B3LYP and the recently developed MPWB1K functional have also been carried out, as well as single‐point calculations at the CCSD(T) level of theory with the 6‐311++G(2df,2p) basis set. Results indicate that for both peptide models ionization can cause drastic changes in the shape of the PES in such a way that highly disallowed regions in neutral PES become low‐energy regions in the radical cation surface. The structures localized in such regions, and are highly stabilized due to the formation of 2‐centre‐3‐electron interactions between the two carbonyl oxygens. Inclusion of solvent effects by the conductor‐like polarizable continuum model (CPCM) shows that the solute‐solvent interaction energy plays an important role in determining the stability order. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 2009