Application of the Redox-Transmetalation Procedure to Access Divalent Lanthanide and Alkaline-Earth NHC Complexes**

Divalent lanthanide and alkaline-earth complexes supported by N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands have been accessed by redox-transmetalation between air-stable NHC-AgI complexes and the corresponding metals. By using the small ligand 1,3-dimethylimidazol-2-ylidene (IMe), two series of isostructural complexes were obtained: the tetra-NHC complexes [LnI₂(IMe)₄] (Ln=Eu and Sm) and the bis-NHC complexes [MI₂(IMe)₂(THF)₂] (M=Yb, Ca and Sr). In the former, distortions in the NHC coordination were found to originate from intermolecular repulsions in the solid state. Application of the redox-transmetalation strategy with the bulkier 1,3-dimesitylimidazol-2-ylidene (IMes) ligand yielded [SrI₂(IMes)(THF)₃], while using a similar procedure with Ca metal led to [CaI₂(THF)₄] and uncoordinated IMes. DFT calculations were performed to rationalise the selective formation of the bis-NHC adduct in [SrI₂(IMe)₂(THF)₂] and the tetra-NHC adduct in [SmI₂(IMe)₄]. Since the results in the gas phase point towards preferential formation of the tetra-NHC complexes for both metal centres, the differences between both arrangements are a result of solid-state effects such as slightly different packing forces.     

Simultaneous determination of free-radical propagation and transfer rates from a novel type of PLP-SEC experiment

A novel type of pulsed laser polymerization (PLP)-size exclusion chromatography (SEC) experiment is presented in which laser pulse sequences are applied at considerable dark time intervals between each pulse package. The pulse sequences give rise to the characteristically structured molecular weight distribution (MWD) from which k_p may be derived. Polymer produced during the extended dark time intervals determines the MWD at high molecular weights and allows for the measurement of chain transfer rates. The method by which propagation and transfer rates are accessible from one experiment is illustrated by simulations using the program package PREDICI.     

Pd‐Catalyzed Selective Carbonylation of gem‐Difluoroalkenes: A Practical Synthesis of Difluoromethylated Esters

The first catalyst for the alkoxycarbonylation of gem‐difluoroalkenes is described. This novel catalytic transformation proceeds in the presence of Pd(acac)₂/1,2‐bis((di‐tert‐butylphosphan‐yl)methyl)benzene (btbpx) ( L4 ) and allows for an efficient and straightforward access to a range of difluoromethylated esters in high yields and regioselectivities. The synthetic utility of the protocol is showcased in the practical synthesis of a Cyclandelate analogue using this methodology as the key step.     

Fermentation of a skim milk concentrate with Streptococcus thermophilus and chymosin: structure, viscoelasticity and syneresis of gels

Fermentation of a reconstituted skim milk concentrate (8% protein) was investigated to elucidate the effects of various fermentation parameters on the structural, rheological and visual (wheying-off) properties of the resulting gels (pH 4.60). Fermentation trials were performed with non-exocellular polysaccharide-producing strains of Streptococcus thermophilus at various fermentation temperatures and at various chymosin levels. Oscillatory vane rheometry carried out on the intact gels (at 4 °C) showed that the level of chymosin had a significant impact on the gel strength (storage modulus G′). This can be explained by the arrangement of casein micelles into more compact aggregates and the enhanced fusion of aggregated casein micelles as revealed by transmission electron microscopy for the gels fermented with chymosin. Wheying-off of the stirred gels as measured by a centrifugation test (at 4 °C) and pore size of the intact gel structures investigated by scanning electron microscopy both increased with increasing level of chymosin and increasing fermentation temperature (resulting in an increase in acidification rate). A higher level of syneresis (wheying-off) is explained by the larger pore size, since larger pores present a lower resistance to the outflow of whey from the gel.     

Through-shell alkyllithium additions and borane reductions

The through-shell borane reduction and methyllithium addition to benzaldehyde (1), benzocyclobutenone (2), and benzocyclobutenedione (3) incarcerated inside a hemicarcerand (4) with four tetramethylenedioxy bridges are reported. All guests could be reduced and methylated. Selective monoreduction and monomethylation were observed for 3. In the methyllithium addition to 4[symbol: see text]3, the initially formed lithium alcoholate underwent a Moore rearrangement. The reactivity of the incarcerated guests toward methyllithium increased in the order 1 < 2 < 3 and toward borane in the order 1 < 2 approximately equal 3. Guest reactivity was correlated with the inner-phase location of the reacting carbonyl group in the preferred guest inner-phase orientation. The latter was determined from the X-ray structures of 4[symbol: see text]1, 4[symbol: see text]2, and 4[symbol: see text]3, from molecular mechanical calculations, and from the hemicarcerand-induced upfield shift of the guest proton resonances. In the methyllithium and n-butyllithium addition to 4[symbol: see text]1 and 4[symbol: see text]3 at elevated temperatures, selective cleavage of a host's spanner or tetramethylenedioxy bridge, respectively, was observed. The cleavage of one spanner also took place in the methyllithium addition to the 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone hemicarceplex. These scission reactions are initiated by the initially formed lithium alcoholates, which show enhanced basicity and nucleophilicity in the inner phase as compared to the bulk phase. Mechanisms for the host scission reactions are discussed.     

Basal Histamine H4 Receptor Activation: Agonist Mimicry by the Diphenylalanine Motif

Histamine H₄ receptor (H₄R) orthologues are G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that exhibit species-dependent basal activity. In contrast to the basally inactive mouse H₄R (mH₄R), human H₄R (hH₄R) shows a high degree of basal activity. We have performed long-timescale molecular dynamics simulations and rigidity analyses on wild-type hH₄R, the experimentally characterized hH₄R variants S179M, F169V, F169V+S179M, F168A, and on mH₄R to investigate the molecular nature of the differential basal activity. H₄R variant-dependent differences between essential motifs of GPCR activation and structural stabilities correlate with experimentally determined basal activities and provide a molecular explanation for the differences in basal activation. Strikingly, during the MD simulations, F169^45.55 dips into the orthosteric binding pocket only in the case of hH₄R, thus adopting the role of an agonist and contributing to the stabilization of the active state. The results shed new light on the molecular mechanism of basal H₄R activation that are of importance for other GPCRs.