Molecular and supramolecular helicity induction in trityl group-containing compounds: The case of chiral 3,3,3-triphenylpropionic acid derivatives

The process of dynamic chirality transmission from permanent chirality element to stereodynamic triphenylmethyl group placed in the distance of 4 bonds, has been studied for series of optically active 3,3,3-triphenylpropionic acid derivatives. Structural analysis, carried out with the use of complementary methods and supported by theoretical calculations, enabled us to determine the mechanism of chirality transmission. The observed chirality transfer phenomenon, demonstrated unequivocally as raising of non-zero Cotton effects in the region of UV absorption of trityl group, is a cascade process driven by weak intramolecular interactions. Despite the much larger inductor-effector distance, the sensitivity in chirogenesis is comparable to other stereodynamic probes reported so far. In the crystalline phase, the combination of trityl group with amino acid moiety results in the formation of helical superstructures, where individual molecules are held together by hydrogen bonding cascades. The proper combination of functionalities in the molecule skeleton allows, to some extent, the control over the association process and authorizes determination of the trityl group as the supramolecular synthon.     

Peptidomics and proteomics based on CE‐MS as a robust tool in clinical application: The past,the present,and the future

Capillary electrophoresis combined with mass spectrometry (CE‐MS) has been used for several years for the investigation of proteins and peptides as biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis of diseases. In addition, the technology has recently been introduced to support the stratification of patients in clinical trials and in large clinical studies. In this review, we aim at presenting the development of CE‐MS over the last 20 years, by focusing on the clinical potential of proteome and peptidome analysis and highlighting some of the key technical issues and advancements that have been made in this context towards implementation. Based on the reviewed literature, it has become evident that CE‐MS is now an accepted tool in clinical application in several disease areas. Apart from a critical overview on the current state‐of‐the‐art in CE‐MS, we also indicate the expected developments for potential future use.     

Heterolepic β-Ketoiminate Zinc Phenoxide Complexes as Efficient Catalysts for the Ring Opening Polymerization of Lactide

Zinc phenoxide complexes L¹ZnOAr 1 – 4 (L¹=Me₂NC₂H₄NC(Me)CHC(Me)O) and L²ZnOAr 5 – 8 (L²=Me₂NC₃H₆NC(Me)CHC(Me)O) with donor-functionalized β-ketoiminate ligands (L^1/2) and OAr substituents (Ar=Ph 1 , 5 ; 2,6-Me₂-C₆H₃ 2 , 6 ; 3,5-Me₂-C₆H₃ 3 , 7 ; 4-Bu-C₆H₄ 4 , 8 ) with tuneable electronic and steric properties were synthesized and characterized. 1 – 8 adopt binuclear structures in the solid state except for 5 , while they are monomeric in CDCl₃ solution. 1 – 8 are active catalysts for the ring opening polymerization (ROP) of lactide (LA) in CH₂Cl₂ at ambient temperature and the catalytic activity is controlled by the electronic and steric properties of the OAr substituent, yielding polymers with high average molecular weight (M_n) and moderately controlled molecular weight distribution (MWDs). 1 and 5 showed a living polymerization character and kinetic studies on the ROP of L–LA with 1 and 5 proved first order dependencies on the monomer concentration. Homonuclear decoupled ¹H-NMR analyses of polylactic acid (PLA) formed with rac-LA proved isotactic enrichment of the PLA microstructure.     

Amplification of changes of a thin film's macromolecular structure into macroscopic reaction-diffusion patterns

A reaction-diffusion process induced from a micronetwork geometry amplifies changes in the molecular structure of a thin gel film into macroscopic readout patterns. When the gel undergoes a helix-to-coil phase transition, the patterns formed by RD switch from symmetry-broken to symmetric ones. Theoretical analysis explains how the system reconfigures internally in response to mass transfer between the applied network and the probed film.     

Xanthophyll pigments lutein and zeaxanthin in lipid multibilayers formed with dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine

This paper reports the research on the effect of two main carotenoid pigments present in the membranes of macula lutea of the vision apparatus of primates, including humans, lutein and zeaxanthin, on the structure of model membranes formed with dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC). The effects observed in DMPC are compared to the effects observed in the membranes formed with other phosphatidylcholines (PC): egg yolk PC (EYPC), and dipalmitoyl-PC (DPPC). The analysis has been focused, in particular, on the following aspects of the organization of lipid-carotenoid membranes: aggregation state of pigments, an effect on a thickness of the bilayer and pigment orientation within the membranes. These problems have been addressed with the application of UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, linear dichroism measurements and the diffractometric technique. (1) Both lutein and zeaxanthin appear in a partially aggregated form in the oriented DMPC multibilayers, even at molar fractions as low as 2 mol.% with respect to lipid. (2) Orientation of the transition dipole of both xanthophylls with respect to the axis normal to the plane of DMPC membrane is different in the case of a monomeric form (34+/-3 degrees in the case of lutein and 26+/-3 degrees in the case of zeaxanthin) but essentially the same in the case of aggregated forms of both pigments (42+/-3 degrees in the case of lutein and 40+/-5 degrees in the case of zeaxanthin). It was found that only lutein has an effect on the increase in the thickness of the DMPC membranes (by about 3 A at 25 degrees C). A similar effect was observed also in the case of DPPC at the same temperatures despite the differences in the physical state of both membrane systems. The differences between the effects of lutein and zeaxanthin observed are interpreted in terms of differences of stereochemical structure of both xanthophylls leading to the different localization in the lipid phase. The results demonstrate significant differences in the behavior of lutein and zeaxanthin in model membranes, which may contribute to their different physiological functions and different efficacy as membrane antioxidants.     

Electrochemical studies of blocking properties of solid supported tethered lipid membranes on gold

The insulating properties of self-assembled thiolipid monolayers and tethered lipid bilayers on polycrystalline gold electrodes were studied by means of cyclic voltammetry (CV). These films were formed by two-step self-assembly processes. Electrochemical measurements of the heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant of different redox couples such as potassium ferrocyanide (K(4)[Fe(CN)(6)]) and dopamine (DP) were used to examine the molecular integrity and structural defects and pinholes within the monolayers. We demonstrate by means of cyclic voltammetry that the bilayer lipid membranes tethered to the gold surface are blocking, stable, yet retaining their dynamic properties and can be used as a model of the cell membrane.     

Hydrogen bonds seal single-molecule capsules

In the presence of methanol the tetrakis(benzoxazines) complex tetramethylammonium cation within the cavity, and the cavity is completely sealed by two intramolecular hydrogen bonds between amide groups. The Cl(-) anion is found external to the cavity. In CHCl(3), Me(4)N(+) is complexed within the cavity, but the Cl(-) anion acts as a stopper in the upper rim of the cavity, hydrogen-bonded to the amide groups. The solution results are supported by single-crystal X-ray structural studies of both the single-molecule molecular capsules, and those stoppered by Cl(-).     

Inverse sodium hydride: a theoretical study

A recent experimental investigation in which a salt containing the unusual charge distribution H(+) and Na(-) was synthesized and characterized prompted us to undertake an ab initio theoretical investigation. In the salt synthesized, the H(+) is bound to the nitrogen center of an amine and the Na(-) alkalide is "blocked" from approaching the protonated amine site by steric constraints of a cage structure. Although one expects that the Na(-) would deprotonate an unprotected R(3)N-H(+) cation, we decided to further explore this issue. Using extended atomic orbital basis sets and M?ller-Plesset and coupled-cluster treatments of electron correlation, we examined the relative stabilities of the prototype (Me)(3)N + NaH, (Me)(3)N + Na(+) + H(-), (Me)(3)N-H(+) + Na(-), and (Me)(3)N-Na(+) + H(-) as well as the ion pair complexes (Me)(3)N-H(+).Na(-) and (Me)(3)N-Na(+).H(-). The primary focus of this effort was to determine whether the high-energy (Me)(3)N-H(+).Na(-) ion pair, which is the analogue of what the earlier workers termed "inverse sodium hydride", might be stable with respect to proton abstraction under any reasonable solvation conditions (which we treated within the polarized continuum model). Indeed, we find that such ion pairs are metastable (i.e., locally geometrically stable with a barrier to dissociation) for solvents having dielectric constants below approximately 2 but spontaneously decompose into their constituent ions for solvents with higher dielectric constants. We suggest that amines with large proton affinities and/or metals with weaker MH bond strengths should be explored experimentally.