Gallium(III) protoporphyrin IX]2: a soluble diamagnetic model for malaria pigment

Gallium(III) protoporphyrin IX forms a dimeric propionate-bridged dimer, 2, that is a soluble diamagnetic analogue of hematin anhydride. The single-crystal structure of 2 corresponds to a nondisordered inversion-symmetric dimer similar to malaria pigment but, unlike it, has a six-coordinate metal and an intraporphyrin rather than an interporphyrin hydrogen bond. NMR NOE correlations demonstrate the presence of the propionate linkage in solutions with pyridine. Taken together, this is the first single-crystal X-ray diffraction study of a propionate-linked dimer as found in malaria pigment and the first evidence for its presence in solution.     

Hydrating the Bispropionate Notch in Malaria Pigment: A New Structural Motif in the Iron(III)(deuteroporphyrin) Dimer

Treating deuterohemin, chloro(deuteroporphyrinato)iron(III), with a non-coordinating base in DMSO/methanol allows for the isolation of [(deuteroporphyrinato)iron(III)]₂, deuterohematin anhydride (DHA), an analogue of malaria pigment, the natural product of heme detoxification by malaria. The structure of DHA obtained from this solvent system has been solved by X-ray powder diffraction analysis and displays many similarities, yet important structural differences, to malaria pigment. Most notably, a water molecule of solvation occupies a notch created by the propionate side chains and stabilizes a markedly bent propionate ligand coordinated with a long Fe−O bond, and a carboxylate cluster associated with water molecules is generated. Together, these features account for its increased solubility and more open structure, with an increased porphyrin–porphyrin separation. The IR spectroscopic signature associated with this structure also accounts for the strong IR band at 1587 cm⁻¹ seen for many amorphous preparations of synthetic malaria pigment, and it is proposed that stabilizing these structures may be a new objective for antimalarial drugs. The important role of the vinyl substituents in this biochemistry is further demonstrated by the structure of deuterohemin obtained by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis.     

Determination of arsenic compounds by high-pressure liquid chromatography–graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and thermospray mass spectrometry

Biologically important arsenic species such as arsenobetaine, arsenocholine iodide, tetramethylarsonium iodide, methylarsonic acid, and dimethylarsinic acid can be separated and quantitated by HPLC. The pH-sensitive separations on a weak anion-exchange column are described, as well as separations on a reverse-phase column with the aid of tetrabutylammonium nitrate or heptanesulfonic acid as ion-pairing agents. The thermospray mass spectra of these arsenicals in addition to those of sodium arsenate and an arsenosugar derivative are described. This technique is suitable for HPLC MS studies.     

Methylated antimony(V) compounds: Synthesis,hydride generation properties and implications for aquatic speciation

Reports in the literature that the compounds MeSb(O)(OH)₂ and Me₂Sb(O)(OH) are present in marine and fresh-waters need to be re-examined. The results of several synthetic strategies suggest that these methylantimony(V) compounds are either environmentally inaccessible or polymeric in nature. Pure samples of various di- and tri- methylated antimony(V) species were prepared and found to undergo molecular rearrangement reactions when subjected to hydride generation procedures typically used for aquatic speciation.     

A note on the Lie algebras g(m∞)

The algebras g(m) are interpreted as realisations of the infinite rank affine Lie algebras g.     

Catalytic stereoselective alkene aziridination with sulfonimidamides

Diastereoselective copper-catalyzed alkene aziridination has been investigated using chiral nitrenes generated from sulfonimidamides in the presence of an iodine(III) oxidant. Starting from a stoichiometric amount of the substrates, the corresponding aziridines were isolated with excellent yields of up to 96%. Good levels of asymmetric induction were obtained in the case of electron-poor olefins, with an optimal de of 94% being reached starting from tert-butyl acrylate. Matching and mismatching effects were also observed upon the use of chiral copper catalysts for the aziridination of styrene.