Allylation of exocyclic N-Acyliminium ions generated from chiral N-[1-(phenylsulfonyl)alkyl]oxazolidin-2-ones

N-[1-(Phenylsulfonyl)alkyl]oxazolidin-2-ones are successfully prepared by condensation of the corresponding optically active oxazolidin-2-ones with aldehydes and benzenesulfinic acid. At low temperature, in the presence of titanium tetrachloride, these sulfones are converted into N-acyliminium ions, which react with allyltrimethylsilane with a variable degree of stereoselectivity. The best results are obtained with (R)-5,5-dimethyl-4-phenyloxazolidin-2-one as a chiral auxiliary. Cleavage of the oxazolidin-2-one ring with lithium/ammonia affords the corresponding homoallylamines, which reveal an absolute configuration opposite that expected on the basis of the usual steric effects. A complexation of the Lewis acid with the N-acyliminium ion may be responsible of this rather unusual stereochemical outcome.     

Metal ion catalysis in the beta-elimination reactions of N-[2-(4-pyridyl)ethyl]quinuclidinium and N-[2-(2-pyridyl)ethyl]quinuclidinium in aqueous solution

Catalysis of the beta-elimination reaction of N-[2-(4-pyridyl)ethyl]quinuclidinium (1) and N-[2-(2-pyridyl)ethyl]quinuclidinium (2) by Zn(2+) and Cd(2+) in OH(-)/H(2)O (pH = 5.20-6.35, 50 degrees C, and mu = 1 M KCl) has been studied. In the presence of Zn(2+), the elimination reactions of both isomers occur from the Zn(2+)-complexed substrates (C). The equilibrium constants for the dissociation of the Zn(2+)-complexes are as follows: K(d) = 0.012 +/- 0.003 M (isomer 1) and K(d) = 0.065 +/- 0.020 M (isomer 2). The value of k(C)(H2O) for isomer 1 is 4.81 x 10(-6) s(-1). For isomer 2 both the rate constants for the "water" and OH(-)-induced reaction of the Zn(2+)-complexed substrate could be measured, despite the low concentration of OH(-) in the investigated reaction mixture [k(C)H2O)= 1.97 x 10(-6) s(-1) and k(C)(OH-)= 21.9 M(-1) s(-1), respectively]. The measured metal activating factor (MetAF), i.e., the reactivity ratio between the complexed and the uncomplexed substrate, is 8.1 x 10(4) for the OH(-)-induced elimination of 2. This high MetAF can be compared with the corresponding proton activating factor (Alunni, S.; Conti, A.; Palmizio Errico, R. J. Chem. Soc., Perkin Trans. 2 2000, 453), PAF = 1.5 x 10(6) and is in agreement with an E1cb irreversible mechanism (A(xh)D(E)* + D(N)) (Guthrie, R. D.; Jencks, W. P. Acc. Chem. Res. 1989, 22, 343). A value of k(C)(H2O)>or= 23 x 10(-7) s(-1) is estimated for the Cd(2+)-complexed isomer 2, while catalysis by Cd(2+) has not been observed for isomer 1.     

HPLC-ESI-MS and MS/MS structural characterization of multifucosylated N-glycoforms of the basic proline-rich protein IB-8a CON1+ in human saliva

This study describes the characterization of the glycan moieties and the peptide backbone of six glycoforms of IB-8a CON1(+), a basic proline-rich protein present in human saliva. MS analyses on the intact glycoproteins before and after N-deglycosylation with PNGase F and high-resolution MS/MS sequencing by LTQ Orbitrap XL of peptides and glycopeptides from tryptic digests allowed the structural characterization of the glycan moieties and the polypeptide backbone, as well as to establish the glycosylation site at the asparagine residue at 98th position. Five of the glycoforms carry a biantennary N-linked glycan fucosylated in the innermost N-acetylglucosamine of the core and showing from zero to four additional fucoses in the antennal region. The sixth glycoform carries a monoantennary monofucosylated oligosaccharide. The glycoform cluster was detected on 28 of 71 adult saliva specimens. Level of fucosylation showed interindividual variability with the major relative abundance for the trifucosylated glycoform. Nonglycosylated IB-8a CON1(+) and the variant IB-8a CON1(-), lacking of the glycosylation site, have been also detected in human saliva.     

Biopolymers and biomaterials based on elastomeric proteins

Elastomeric proteins represent a very interesting subject of investigation, not only for their molecular mechanism(s) of elasticity, but also for their great potential as novel biomaterials. This review is intended to give an overview of the properties of the main elastic proteins, with particular focus on elastin and, at the same time, a report on the most recent acquisitions in the field of elastomeric biomaterials.

TEM image of poly(OrnGlyGlyOrnGly) after crosslinking reaction with GTA. The bar represents 100 nm.     

Steric and Electronic Effects on the Configurational Stability of Residual Chiral Phosphorus‐Centered Three‐Bladed Propellers: Tris‐aryl Phosphane Oxides

A series of tris‐aryl phosphane oxides existing as residual enantiomers or diastereoisomers with substituents on the aryl rings differing in size and electronic properties were synthesized and characterized. Their electronic properties were evaluated on the basis of their electrochemical oxidation and reduction potentials together with those of the corresponding “blade bromides” (i.e., the naphthalene derivatives displaying the same substitution pattern of the tris‐naphthyl phosphane oxide blades, with a bromo substituent where the phosphorus atom is located) determined by CV. The residual stereoisomeric phosphane oxides were isolated in a stereochemically pure state and were found to be highly configurationally stable at room temperature (stereoisomerization barriers of about 27 kcal mol^?1). The chiroptical properties of the residual stereoisomers and the assignments of absolute configuration are discussed. The configurational stability of residual tris‐aryl phosphane oxides was found to be scarcely influenced by the electronic properties of the substituents present on the aromatic rings constituting the blades, while steric effects play the most relevant role. Detailed theoretical calculations are in agreement with the experimental results and also contribute to a rational interpretation of the stereodynamics of these systems.     

Structural Properties Governing Retention Mechanisms on Immobilized Artificial Membrane (IAM) HPLC Columns

The aims of this study were to investigate whether three commercially available immobilized artificial membrane (IAM) HPLC columns yield collinear data for neutral compounds, and whether IAM scales are distinct from the log P_oct (partition coefficient in the octanol/H₂O system) scale. With these objectives, the retention mechanisms on the IAM HPLC columns were analysed by linear solvation free‐energy relationships (LSERs). A set of 68 neutral model compounds with known solvatochromic parameters and log P_oct values was investigated, allowing a regular and broad exploration of property space. The resulting solvatochromic equations clearly indicate that the three IAM stationary phases retain small neutral solutes by a balance of intermolecular forces closely resembling those underlying partitioning in octanol/H₂O and retention on a reversed‐phase LC‐ABZ HPLC column. For all systems, the solute's size and hydrogen‐bond‐acceptor basicity are the two predominant factors, whereas dipolarity/polarisability and hydrogen‐bond‐donor acidity play only minor roles.