Domino Hydroformylation-Wittig Reactions

Methallyl and homomethallyl alcohols can undergo stereoselective hydroformylation-Wittig and hydroformylation-Wittig-hydrogenation reactions in one-pot domino processes. This sequential transformation allows the formation of C−C bonds and the generation of a new stereogenic center, and gives preparatively interesting compounds [Eq. (a)]. The reaction products are obtained in satisfactory to good yields and in diastereoselectivities of 90:10 to >98:2. CDG=catalyst-directing group; R′=H; R″=OEt, Me.     

Selective Alkene Oxidation with H2O2 and a Heterogenized Mn Catalyst: Epoxidation and a New Entry to Vicinal cis-Diols

Covalent anchoring of 1,4-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane on silica gel is the first step in the preparation of a heterogenized Mn catalyst. When H₂O₂ is used as the oxidant, this material can catalyze the vicinal cis-dihydroxylation of disubstituted olefins, as shown schematically here. Both enantiomers of the product are obtained.     

Memory of Chirality in Electron Transfer Mediated Benzylic Umpolung Reactions of Arene–Cr(CO)3 Complexes

As density functional calculations suggest , Cr(CO)₃-complexed benzylic radicals (such as 2 ) exhibit a significant degree of configurational stablility. This was exploited in an efficient method for the electron transfer mediated transformations of readily available 1-arylalkanol–Cr(CO)₃ derivatives 1 to afford alkylated products 3 in good yields and with a high degree of stereochemical retention.     

Tension and mobility of a DNA fragment in the lakes-straits model

We consider numerically, in the framework of the lakes-straits model, the mobility of a DNA chain under field-inversion gel-electrophoresis (FIGE). Here we investigate the role of the gel's structure on the mobility. We consider two situations: (i) a DNA chain fragment is bounded by two straits (narrow gateways) at a fixed distance, but is otherwise free, and (ii) the fragment is, in addition, confined with in a closed volume (pore). We calculate the tension on the DNA fragment in the two cases. For Gaussian chains we evaluate the corresponding statistical weights exactly, using a cellular automation algorithm. We find that the resulting tension differs drastically in the two models considered. Nonetheless this difference influences only weakly the overall FIGE mobility.