Synthesis, Structural Characterization, and Oxidation-Reduction Behavior of the gamma-Isomer of the Dodecatungstosilicate Anion

The reaction of tungstate ions with the gamma-10-tungstosilicate in mixed water-ethanol (v/v) yields the corresponding isomer of the 12-tungstosilicate isolated as its tetrabutylammonium salt. It was characterized by means of (183)W NMR, infrared, Raman, and UV spectroscopies and was identified with the isomer resulting from the Keggin structure (alpha-isomer) by rotation of two tritungstic groups by pi/3. Cyclic voltammetry shows that the reducibility increases in the sequence alpha-beta-gamma as the number of rotated tritungstic groups. Whereas the gamma-12-tungstosilicate anion is unstable in pure aqueous solution whatever the pH value, it is stable in mixed aqueous-organic or pure organic solvents, even at boiling temperatures. In contrast, the two- and four-electron-reduced blue species are stable in aqueous media but not the one-electron-reduced blue. Study of the (183)W NMR spectrum of the two-electron-reduced species showed that the two spin-paired electrons are delocalized on all the W atoms on the NMR time scale but have a larger residency time on one group of four atoms.     

Synthesis of Enantiopure Primary Amines by Stereoselective Ring Opening of Chiral Octahydro-1,3-benzoxazines by Grignard and Organoaluminum Reagents

Chiral 1,3-perhydrobenzoxazines 1, 2, and 9-14, prepared by condensation of 8-(benzylamino)menthol with different aldehydes, react with alkylmagnesium bromides and trimethylaluminum leading to the open amino alcohols 3a-d, 4a-d, and 15-20 in excellent chemical yields and good to excellent diastereomeric excess. The sequential elimination of the menthol appendage by heating with P(2)O(5) and the benzyl group by hydrogenolysis lead to primary amines 7a-d, 8a-d, and 27-30 in excellent chemical yields and ee. The addition of the alkyl group from the Grignard derivatives and the methyl group from the trimethylaluminum occurs from opposite sides of the heterocycle, yielding the final primary amines with the same stereochemistry.     

Fluorescent, Siderophore-Based Chelators. Design and Synthesis of a Trispyrenyl Trishydroxamate Ligand, an Intramolecular Excimer-Forming Sensing Molecule Which Responds to Iron(III) and Gallium(III) Metal Cations

Two pyrene-labeled hydroxylamines, 5-Bn and 5-Bz, O-protected with the benzyl and the benzoyl group, respectively, have been prepared for the generation of siderophore-based new chelators incorporating both the pyrene chromophore and the hydroxamic acid functionality. 5-Bz formed the starting point toward the synthesis of the tripod-shaped trishydroxamate, 1. That trichromophoric ligand displays remarkable fluorescence emission properties (dual emission: "monomer" and excimer type) which are markedly and selectively modified by binding Fe(NO(3))(3) and Ga(NO(3))(3). Ferric ions induce a quasi total quenching of the pyrene fluorescence, whereas the nonquenching Ga(III) cations are observed to affect the value of the excimer-to-monomer fluorescence intensity ratio. Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) competition reactions yielded an estimated value of 3.8 for log K of the complex LFe in methanol/water (80/20 v/v), where K = ([LFe][H(+)](3))/([LH(3)][Fe(3+)]) and L is the ligand in its totally deprotonated form. Compound 1 is the prototype of a new class of photoresponsive molecular systems which could act as sensitive probes for metal cation detection and recognition.     

Novel Cleavage of Propargylamines by Reaction with Organolithium Compounds

Treatment of secondary aliphatic 2-bromoallylamines with an excess of an organolithium compound led to saturated amines in which the organic group of the organolithium compound is incorporated at the alpha carbon. On the other hand, the successive reaction of the former amines with BuLi and t-BuLi between -80 degrees C and rt gave 1,3-diamines or hexahydropyrimidines depending on the reaction time. The formation of these unexpected products involves initial generation of lithium propargylamides, which subsequently undergo cleavage of the C propargylic-C acetylenic bond induced by the organolithium present in each case in the reaction medium. A mechanism which takes into account all the different reaction products has been proposed and additionally supported by successful trapping of dilithium acetylide.     

Regioselective Synthesis of Mixed Indole 2,3-Bis(sulfides). A Study of the Mechanism of the Second Sulfenylation of Indole

Sulfenylation of indole using sulfenyl chlorides leads to the initial formation of a 3-indolyl sulfide, while excess reagent introduces a second sulfide at the 2-position of the ring. The mechanism of this second sulfenylation has not, to date, been rigorously elucidated. The development of the first, regioselective synthesis of mixed indole 2,3-bis(sulfides) has allowed the study of the sulfenylation of 3-indolyl sulfides using a different sulfenyl chloride. Our results afford evidence that the reaction proceeds via an intermediate 3,3-disulfenylated indolenine species, with subsequent migration of one of the sulfide groups to the 2-position.     

Asymmetric Pauson-Khand Reaction. Cobalt-Mediated Cycloisomerization of 1,6-Enynes in Carbohydrate Templates: Synthesis of Bis-Heteroannulated Pyranosides

The Pauson-Khand reaction on the carbohydrate derived precursors 1-6 is reported. We have described for the first time the cobalt-mediated cyclization of some O-branched chain 1,6-enynes in carbohydrate templates. The resulting bis-heteroannulated pyranosides 17-22 have been obtained in diastereomerically pure form, in moderate to good yield, and in one, simple synthetic operation. These enantiomerically pure, densely functionalized carbocycles are attractive advanced intermediates for the synthesis of complex natural products.     

Thermodynamics of alpha-Cyclodextrin-p-Nitrophenyl Glycoside Complexes. A Simple System To Understand the Energetics of Carbohydrate Interactions in Water

Thermodynamic studies of the binding of a series of p-nitrophenyl glycosides (PNPGly) of varying stereochemistry to alpha-cyclodextrin (alpha-CD) were performed at three different temperatures (25, 35, and 42 degrees C) using a microcalorimetric technique. The system p-nitrophenol (PNP) at pH = 3 and alpha-CD was also studied for the sake of comparison. All these complexes were found to be enthalpy driven with a favorable enthalpic term clearly dominant over an unfavorable entropic term. A clear enthalpy-entropy compensation effect was observed at all the temperatures, with a slope close to unity (alpha = 1.02) and an intercept TDeltaS degrees (o) = 2.91 kcal mol(-)(1). This thermodynamic pattern is in agreement with those usually found for lectin-carbohydrate associations and for the binding processes of several host-guest systems. This pattern is explained in terms of the contribution of primarily two driving forces: the van der Waals interactions between the host and the guest, and the solvation/desolvation processes which accompany the association reaction. The presence of the carbohydrate molecule in the PNP ring causes a slight destabilization of the complex at 25 degrees C with respect to the alpha-CD-PNP (pH = 3) complex, although a different behavior has been observed depending on the axial/equatorial configuration of the glycoside and the temperature. This behavior is modulated by the stereochemistry of the glycoside. Differences were observed between the deoxy-derivatives (LAra and LFuc) and those derivatives with a hydroxymethyl group (Glc, Gal, Man). DeltaC(p) degrees values were obtained from the dependency of DeltaH degrees on temperature (=( partial differentialDeltaH degrees / partial differentialT)(p)). These values are small and negative except for alphaMan complex. For the latter complex, discrepancy between the calorimetric and the calculated van't Hoff enthalpies was observed. Parallels are drawn between the thermodynamics of our model and those proposed for carbohydrate-protein associations.     

Effects of Aqueous and Organic Solvents on the Conformational Properties of the Helix-Forming alpha-Methyl-beta-L-aspartamyl Residue

The conformational preferences of N-acetyl-N'-methyl-alpha-methyl-beta-L-aspartamide, which is the model compound for helical poly(beta-L-aspartate)s, have been determined by ab initio SCF-MO computations. Two driving patterns have been found for the existing 13 minimum energy conformations: (i) intramolecular hydrogen bonding interactions of both amide-amide and amide-ester type; and (ii) repulsive interactions between the four oxygen atoms contained in the molecule. Self-consistent reaction-field (SCRF) calculations based on the method proposed by Miertus, Scrocco, and Tomasi have been performed in order to evaluate the effect of the solvent on the conformational preferences of the compound subject of study. Water and carbon tetrachloride were the solvents chosen for this purpose, and results have been discussed and interpreted on the basis of their electronic structures. The conclusions drawn from this study are of assistance to understand some features of the conformational transitions experimentally found in poly(beta-L-aspartate)s.