Cage‐like Copper(II) Silsesquioxanes: Transmetalation Reactions and Structural,Quantum Chemical,and Catalytic Studies

The transmetalation of bimetallic copper–sodium silsesquioxane cages, namely, [(PhSiO_1.5)₁₀(CuO)₂(NaO_0.5)₂] (“Cooling Tower”; 1 ), [(PhSiO_1.5)₁₂(CuO)₄(NaO_0.5)₄] (“Globule”; 2 ), and [(PhSiO_1.5)₆(CuO)₄(NaO_0.5)₄(PhSiO_1.5)₆] (“Sandwich”; 3 ), resulted in the generation of three types of hexanuclear cylinder‐like copper silsesqui‐ oxanes, [(PhSiO_1.5)₁₂(CuO)₆(C₄H₉OH)₂(C₂H₅OH)₆] ( 4 ), [(PhSiO_1.5)₁₂(CuO)₆(C₄H₈O₂)₄(PhCN)₂(MeOH)₄] ( 5 ), and [(PhSiO_1.5)₁₂(CuO)₆(NaCl)(C₄H₈O₂)₁₂(H₂O)₂] ( 6 ). The products show a prominent “solvating system–structure” dependency, as determined by X‐ray diffraction. Topological analysis of cages 1 – 6 was also performed. In addition, DFT theory was used to examine the structures of the Cooling Tower and Cylinder compounds, as well as the spin density distributions. Compounds 1 , 2 , and 5 were applied as catalysts for the direct oxidation of alcohols and amines into the corresponding amides. Compound 6 is an excellent catalyst in the oxidation reactions of benzene and alcohols.     

Synthesis, molecular structure, and catalytic potential of the tetrairon complex [Fe4(N3O2-L)4(mu-O)2]4+ (L = 1-carboxymethyl-4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane)

The reaction of iron sulfate with 1-carboxymethyl-4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane (L) and hydrogen peroxide in aqueous ethanol gives a brown dinuclear complex considered to be [Fe2(N3O-L)2(mu-O)(mu-OOCCH3)] + (1), which converts upon standing in acetonitrile solution into the green tetranuclear complex [Fe4(N3O2-L)4(mu-O)2]4+ (2). A single-crystal X-ray structure analysis of [2][PF6]4.5MeCN reveals 2 to contain four iron(III) centers, each of which is coordinated to three nitrogen atoms of a triazacyclononane ligand and is bridged by one oxo and two carboxylato bridges, a structural feature known from the active center of methane monooxygenase. Accordingly, complex 2 was found to catalyze the oxidative functionalization of methane with hydrogen peroxide in aqueous solution to give methanol, methyl hydroperoxide, and formic acid; the total turnover numbers attain 24 catalytic cycles within 4 h. To gain more insight into the catalytic process, the catalytic potential of 2 was also studied for the oxidation of higher alkanes, cycloalkanes, and isopropanol in acetonitrile, as well as in aqueous solution. The bond selectivities of the oxidation of linear and branched alkanes suggest a ferroxy radical pathway.     

Dinuclear manganese complexes containing chiral 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-derived ligands and their catalytic potential for the oxidation of olefins, alkanes, and alcohols

Five new 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-derived compounds, sodium 3-(4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononan-1-yl)propionate (Na[LMe2R']) as well as the enantiopure derivatives (S)-1-(2-methylbutyl)-4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane (S-LMe2R'), SS-trans-2,5,8-trimethyl-2,5,8-triazabicyclo[7.4.01,9]tridecane (SS-LBMe3), (S)-1-(2-hydroxypropyl)-4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane (S-LMe2R), and (R)-1-(2-hydroxypropyl)-4,7-dimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane (R-LMe2R), have been synthesized. Reaction of manganese dichloride with the chiral macrocycles S-LMe2R and R-LMe2R in aqueous ethanol gives, upon oxidation with hydrogen peroxide, the brown dinuclear Mn(III)-Mn(IV) complexes which are enantiomers, [Mn2(S-LMe2R)2(mu-O)2]3+ (S,S-1) and [Mn2(R-LMe2R)2(mu-O)2]3+ (R,R-1). The single-crystal X-ray structure analyses of [S,S-1][PF6]3.0.5(CH3)2CO and [R,R-1][PF6]3.0.5(CH3)2CO show both enantiomers to contain Mn(III) and Mn(IV) centers, each of which being coordinated to three nitrogen atoms of a triazacyclononane ligand and each of which being bridged by two oxo and by two chiral hydroxypropyl pendent arms of the macrocycle. The enantiomeric complexes S,S-1 and R,R-1 were found to catalyze the oxidation of olefins, alkanes, and alcohols with hydrogen peroxide. In the epoxidation of indene the enantiomeric excess values attain 13%. The bond selectivities of the oxidation of linear and branched alkanes suggest the crucial step in this process to be the attack of a sterically hindered high-valent manganese-oxo species on the C-H bond.     

Novel Oxidovanadium Complexes with Redox-Active R-Mian and R-Bian Ligands: Synthesis,Structure, Redox and Catalytic Properties

A new monoiminoacenaphthenone 3,5-(CF₃)₂C₆H₃-mian (complex 2) was synthesized and further exploited, along with the already known monoiminoacenaphthenone dpp-mian, to obtain oxidovanadium(IV) complexes [VOCl₂(dpp-mian)(CH₃CN)] (3) and [VOCl(3,5-(CF₃)₂C₆H₃-bian)(H₂O)][VOCl₃(3,5-(CF₃)₂C₆H₃-bian)]·2.85DME (4) from [VOCl₂(CH₃CN)₂(H₂O)] (1) or [VCl₃(THF)₃]. The structure of all compounds was determined using X-ray structural analysis. The vanadium atom in these structures has an octahedral coordination environment. Complex 4 has an unexpected structure. Firstly, it contains 3,5-(CF₃)₂C₆H₃-bian instead of 3,5-(CF₃)₂C₆H₃-mian. Secondly, it has a binuclear structure, in contrast to 3, in which two oxovanadium parts are linked to each other through V=O···V interaction. This interaction is non-covalent in origin, according to DFT calculations. In structures 2 and 3, non-covalent π-π staking interactions between acenaphthene moieties of the neighboring molecules (distances are 3.36–3.40 Å) with an estimated energy of 3 kcal/mol were also found. The redox properties of the obtained compounds were studied using cyclic voltammetry in solution. In all cases, the reduction processes initiated by the redox-active nature of the mian or bian ligand were identified. The paramagnetic nature of complexes 3 and 4 has been proven by EPR spectroscopy. Complexes 3 and 4 exhibited high catalytic activity in the oxidation of alkanes and alcohols with peroxides. The yields of products of cyclohexane oxidation were 43% (complex 3) and 27% (complex 4). Based on the data regarding the study of regio- and bond-selectivity, it was concluded that hydroxyl radicals play the most crucial role in the reaction. The initial products in the reactions with alkanes are alkyl hydroperoxides, which are easily reduced to their corresponding alcohols by the action of triphenylphosphine (PPh₃). According to the DFT calculations, the difference in the catalytic activity of 3 and 4 is most likely associated with a different mechanism for the generation of ^●OH radicals. For complex 4 with electron-withdrawing CF₃ substituents at the diimine ligand, an alternative mechanism, different from Fenton’s and involving a redox-active ligand, is assumed.     

Azolo[1,5-a]pyrimidines and Their Condensed Analogs with Anticoagulant Activity

Hypercytokinemia, or cytokine storm, is one of the severe complications of viral and bacterial infections, involving the release of abnormal amounts of cytokines, resulting in a massive inflammatory response. Cytokine storm is associated with COVID-19 and sepsis high mortality rate by developing epithelial dysfunction and coagulopathy, leading to thromboembolism and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Anticoagulant therapy is an important tactic to prevent thrombosis in sepsis and COVID-19, but recent data show the incompatibility of modern direct oral anticoagulants and antiviral agents. It seems relevant to develop dual-action drugs with antiviral and anticoagulant properties. At the same time, it was shown that azolo[1,5-a]pyrimidines are heterocycles with a broad spectrum of antiviral activity. We have synthesized a new family of azolo[1,5-a]pyrimidines and their condensed polycyclic analogs by cyclocondensation reactions and direct CH-functionalization and studied their anticoagulant properties. Five compounds among 1,2,4-triazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidin-7-ones and 5-alkyl-1,3,4-thiadiazolo[3,2-a]purin-8-ones demonstrated higher anticoagulant activity than the reference drug, dabigatran etexilate. Antithrombin activity of most active compounds was confirmed using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated blood to mimic the conditions of cytokine release syndrome. The studied compounds affected only the thrombin time value, reliably increasing it 6.5–15.2 times as compared to LPS-treated blood.     

Novel benzanthrone aminoderivatives for membrane studies

The potential of novel benzanthrone aminoderivatives to trace the changes in physicochemical properties of lipid bilayer has been evaluated. Binding of the dyes to the lipid bilayers composed of zwitterionic phospholipid phosphatidylcholine (PC) and its mixtures with anionic phospholipid cardiolipin (CL) and cholesterol (Chol) was followed by significant quantum yield increase with small blue shift of emission maximum. Analysis of partition coefficients of the dyes under study showed that all aminobenzanthrones possess high lipid-associating ability. The dyes A8 and AM2 proved to be sensitive to the variations in membrane chemical composition responding to the changes in bilayer hydration induced by CL and Chol.     

Conducting boron-doped single-crystal diamond films for high pressure research

Epitaxial boron-doped diamond films were grown by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition for application as heating elements in high pressure diamond anvil cell devices. To a mixture of hydrogen, methane and oxygen, diborane concentrations of 240–1200 parts per million were added to prepare five diamond thin-film samples. Surface morphology has been observed to change depending on the amount of diborane added to the feed gas mixture. Single-crystal diamond film with a lowest room temperature resistivity of 18 mΩ cm was fabricated and temperature variation of resistivity was studied to a low temperature of 12 K. The observed minima in resistivity values with temperature for these samples have been attributed to a change in conduction mechanism from band conduction to hopping conduction. We also present a novel fabrication methodology for monocrystalline electrically conducting channels in diamond and present preliminary heating data with a boron-doped designer diamond anvil to 620 K at ambient pressure.     

Magnetic ordering temperatures in rare earth metal dysprosium under ultrahigh pressures

Magnetic ordering temperatures in heavy rare earth metal dysprosium (Dy) have been studied using an ultrasensitive electrical transport measurement technique in a designer diamond anvil cell to a pressure of 69 GPa and a temperature of 10 K. Previous studies using magnetic susceptibility measurements at high pressures were able to track magnetic ordering temperature only till 7 GPa in the hexagonal close packed (hcp) phase of Dy. Our studies indicate that the magnetic ordering temperature shows an abrupt drop of 80 K at the hcp-Sm phase transition followed by a gradual decrease that continues till 17 GPa. This is followed by a rapid increase in the magnetic ordering temperatures in the double hcp phase and finally leveling off in the distorted face centered cubic phase of Dy. Our studies reaffirm that 4f-shell remains localized in Dy and there is no loss of magnetic moment or 4f-shell delocalization for pressures up to 69 GPa.     

Boundary Non-crossing Probabilities of Gaussian Processes: Sharp Bounds and Asymptotics

Journal of Theoretical Probability - We study boundary non-crossing probabilities $$\begin{aligned} P_{f,u} := \mathrm {P}\big (\forall t\in {\mathbb {T}}\ X_t + f(t)\le u(t)\big ) \end{aligned}$$...