Stereoselective synthesis of (+)-1-deoxyaltronojirimycin

A stereocontrolled, facile and high-yield approach for producing (+)-altroDNJ, has been developed starting from the inexpensive commercial cis 2-butene-1,4-diol. Sharpless epoxidation and a subsequent dihydroxylation were used for the introduction of all stereocentres; finally, the ring closure under basic conditions afforded the piperidine heterocycle.     

Pressure induced friction collapse of rare gas boundary layers sliding over metal surfaces

In this Letter we show that friction of anticorrugating systems can be dramatically decreased by applying an external load. The counterintuitive behavior that deviates from the macroscopic Amonton law is dictated by quantum mechanical effects that induce a transformation from anticorrugation to corrugation in the near-surface region. We describe the load-driven modifications occurring in the potential energy surface of different rare gas-metal adsorbate systems, namely, Ar, Kr, Xe on Cu(111), and Xe on Ag(111), and we calculate the consequent friction drop for the commensurate Xe/Cu system by means of combined ab initio and classical molecular dynamics simulations.     

Resonant Raman spectroscopy of graphene grown on copper substrates

A study of resonant Raman spectroscopy of the as-grown graphene on copper foils is presented. Different laser energies have been used to excite the sample, in order to obtain the dependence of the Raman features (intensities, frequencies and line widths) on the laser energy. We show that the normalised spectra acquired using green laser lines are more intense, with a maximum around 2.3 eV. Moreover, the results show a broader 2D (or G′) band when a UV laser is used to excite the sample, which is explained by the manifestation of the trigonal warping effect in the dispersion of electrons and phonons around the Dirac point.     

Steric distortion of planar NiP<Subscript>2</Subscript>N<Subscript>2</Subscript> chromophores: a spectral,cyclic voltammetric and single crystal X-ray structural study

The complexes trans-[Ni(4-MP)₂(NCS)₂]·MeCN (1) and trans-[Ni(3-MP)₂(NCS)₂] (2) (4-MP = tri(4-methylphenyl)phosphine, 3-MP = tri(3-methylphenyl)phosphine) were prepared and characterized by IR, UV–visible, NMR spectra, CV, TGA and single crystal X-ray crystallography. Both the complexes have planar geometry and are diamagnetic. The Ni–P distances in both complexes are relatively short as a result of strong back donation from nickel to phosphorus. The phenyl rings in the 3-MP analogue (2) show increased pitching with reference to the plane formed by the ipso carbons due to increased steric effects. For complex (2), the N–Ni–N and P–Ni–P angles are significantly lower than the almost linear N–Ni–N and N–Ni–P angles observed for both complex (1) and trans-[Ni(PPh₃)₂(NCS)₂]. This observation indicates that the 3-methylphosphine ligand forces complex (2) to distort towards a tetrahedral geometry. IR spectra of both complexes show strong bands around 2,090 cm⁻¹ due to N-coordinated thiocyanate, while the electronic spectra contain d–d transitions around 452 nm. Cyclic voltammograms show that the irreversible one-electron reduction potentials increase in the following order: trans- [Ni(PPh₃)₂(NCS)₂] < trans- [Ni(3-MP)₂(NCS)₂] < trans-[Ni(4-MP)₂(NCS)₂], revealing the electron releasing effect of the methyl groups. The planar complexes exhibit interallogony in coordinating solvents.     

Trans influence of triphenylphosphines and pseudohalogens on Ni-S bonds: Synthesis, spectral and single crystal X-ray structural studies on NiS2PN and NiS2PC chromophores

Trans influence of triphenylphosphines and pseudohalogens on Ni-S bonds of NiS₂PN and NiS₂PC chromophores has been investigated by synthesizing and characterizing them. The complexes show the characteristic thioureide IR band at ∼ 1530 cm⁻¹. Electronic spectrum of the cyanide analogue shows a strong blue shift relative to others. X-ray structures of [Ni(pipdtc)(4-MP)(NCS)] (1), [Ni(pipdtc)(PPh₃)(NCS)] (2) and [Ni(pipdtc)(PPh₃)(CN)] (3) (pipdtc = piperidinecarbodithioate anion, 4-MP = tri(4-methylphenyl)phopshine) are reported. Ni-S bond distance trans to 4-MP(1) is longer than the distances in (2) and (3) and Ni-S bond distances trans to Ni-NCS/CN decrease as follows: (3) > (2) > (1). Particularly, 4-MP shows a highly significant trans influence than triphenylphosphine on Ni-S bond. Similarly, CN⁻ exerts a marginally significant trans influence compared to NCS-. Thioureide C-N distances are relatively very short due to the drift of electron density towards the metal. The Ni-N-C angle (163.5(2)°) observed in (2) indicates deviation from linearity to a larger extent compared to that in (1) (176.3(3)°) due to the steric effect of the 4-methyl group. The reduction potentials (CV) for the mixed ligand complexes are much less compared to that of the parent NiS₄ chromophore due to the π-acidic phosphines.      

Electrospinning of Gelatin/PEO Blends: Influence of Process Parameters in the Nanofiber Properties

Summary: Results of electrospinning of gelatin/PEO blends from aqueous solutions are presented. The effects of applied electric field (15–25 kV), flow rate (0.25–0.75 mL/h) and gelatin concentration in the final fiber diameter were studied. It was observed that the resulting fiber system presented high polydispersity, where fiber diameters ranged from 150 nm to 1.3 µm. In some cases an adequate fibrous system were not obtained. It was observed that the average diameter decreased mainly when the flow rate and gelatin concentration decreased.     

Direct, regioselective, and chemoselective preparation of novel boronated tryptophans by Friedel-Crafts alkylation

A facile synthetic approach to the direct preparation of various novel unnatural boronated protected tryptophans using a regio- and chemoselective electrophilic substitution of 4- and 5-boronated indoles with N-protected dehydroalanine is described. The gram-scale synthesis of two free tryptophan boronic acids is also reported.     

A highly regioselective azidolysis of 2,3-epoxy amines: an unexpected [Ti(O-i-Pr)2(N3)2] mediated C-2 opening

The Lewis acid-catalysed regioselective azidolysis of 2,3-epoxy amines has been investigated. The results obtained demonstrated that using TMSN₃ as a source of azide, the appropriate choice of Lewis acid allowed to direct the regiochemistry of the ring opening. The present methodologies provide a powerful tool in organic synthesis for the preparation of diaminoalcohol moieties.     

Reaction of allylzinc reagents and zinc enolates of ketones with alpha-amidoalkylphenyl sulfones

Alpha-amidoalkylphenyl sulfones behave as N-acylimino equivalents in the reaction with functionalized allylzinc reagents. The addition products obtained using the zinc derivative of ethyl 2-(bromomethyl)acrylate can be readily transformed into alpha-methylene-gamma-lactams using different cyclization procedures. The allylzinc reagent obtained from 3-bromo-1-acetoxy-1-propene directly affords protected 1,2-amino alcohols with a preference for the anti stereoisomer, regardless of the structure of the alpha-amidoalkylphenyl sulfone employed. This procedure can be extended to the use of zinc enolates obtained from alpha-bromo ketones and leads to the synthesis of N-protected beta-amino ketones.     

Highly efficient stereoselective synthesis of d-erythro-sphingosine and d-lyxo-phytosphingosine

Starting from a single suitable functionalised epoxide, a highly efficient stereoselective synthesis of d-erythro-sphingosine and d-lyxo-phytosphingosine is described. The approach allows the formal preparation of all stereoisomers of these sphingoid structures.