Blockade of inflammatory responses by a small-molecule inhibitor of the Rac activator DOCK2

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Highlights? CPYPP binds to DOCK2 DHR-2 domain and inhibits its catalytic activity ? CPYPP inhibits DOCK2-mediated Rac activation in cells ? The structural features of CPYPP required for its inhibitory effect were revealed ? CPYPP inhibits lymphocyte migration and activation in vitro and in vivo     

Facile fabrication of colored superhydrophobic coatings by spraying a pigment nanoparticle suspension

Superhydrophobic coatings were prepared by spraying a pigment nanoparticle suspension. By changing the type of pigment nanoparticles, the colors of the coating could be controlled. The particle size of the pigments, which determines the surface structure of the coatings, played an important role in exhibiting superhydrophobicity. The spray-coating process is applicable to a variety of materials (e.g., copper, glass, paper, coiled wire, and tied thread), and the superhydrophobicity was repairable.     

Regioselective hydrosilylations of propiolate esters with tris(trimethylsilyl)silane

Lewis acid and substituent dependency on the regioselectivity of hydrosilylation of propiolate esters 1a-c with tris(trimethylsilyl)silane (2a) was found. The reaction of methyl and ethyl propiolate esters and 2a without Lewis acid and in the presence of EtAlCl2 and Et2AlCl gave beta-silicon-substituted Z-alkenes 3 selectively. On the other hand, reaction in the presence of AlCl3 in dichloromethane gave alpha-silicon-substituted alkenes 4. In the case of trifluoroethyl propiolate ester 1c, reaction with aluminum chloride-based Lewis acids gave alpha-silicon-substituted alkenes 4 exclusively. Two competitive mechanisms, free-radical and ionic, are proposed as the source of the complementary regioselectivity displayed in these reactions. A transition state of the radical-forming step was obtained computationally. The reaction of various reactive acetylene substrates and 2a without Lewis acid and without solvent at room temperature gave beta-silicon-substituted Z-alkenes 3 selectively.     

Analytical investigations of the behavior of silole-core dendrimers with peripheral globotriaose in water and acetone/water mixed solvent

A new compound having a 2,3,4,5-tetraphenylsilole derivative on the center silicon of Dumbbell(1)6Gb3; Silole-Dumbbell(1)6Gb3 (1) was previously reported. It was found that 1 exhibited strongly increased fluorescence both in water and in a 96% acetone/water mixed solvent. The physical behavior of 1 in water and in the 96% acetone/water mixed solvent was investigated, and analyses including fluorescence quantum yields, dynamic-light-scattering (DLS), atomic-force-microscopy (AFM), and fluorescence microscopy were carried out. It was clarified that 1 dynamically formed different types of aggregates in water and in higher acetone concentrations to yield high aggregation-induced emission (AIE) effects due to the formation of micelle-like particles in water and inversion-type micelles in the acetone/water mixed solvent, respectively.     

Control of Chromophore Symmetry by Positional Isomerism of Peripheral Substituents

The first example of the control of porphyrinoid chromophore symmetry based on the positional isomerism of peripheral substituents has been achieved by preparing tetraazaporphyrins (TAPs) with C_4h, D_2h, C_2v, and C_s symmetry due to the relative arrangement of peripheral tert‐butylamino and cyano groups as push and pull substituents, respectively. The four structural isomers were successfully isolated and characterized by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and X‐ray crystallography. The band morphology in the Q‐band region varies depending on the molecular symmetry due to the significant perturbation introduced into the chromophore by the push and pull substituents. The C_4h and C_2v isomers exhibit a single Q band, whereas the Q bands of the D_2h and C_s isomers show a marked splitting. The magnetic circular dichroism spectra indicate that the push–pull TAPs retain the properties of the 16‐membered 18π‐electron perimeter generally observed for porphyrinoids. Theoretical calculations have demonstrated that the perturbation introduced by the substituents lowers the D_4h symmetry of the parent TAP π‐conjugated system, and this results in significant spectral changes. A novel approach to the fine‐tuning of the spectral properties of porphyrinoids based on changes in the chromophore symmetry is described.     

A photocleavable rapamycin conjugate for spatiotemporal control of small GTPase activity

We developed a novel method to spatiotemporally control the activity of signaling molecules. A newly synthesized photocaged rapamycin derivative induced rapid dimerization of FKBP (FK-506 binding protein) and FRB (FKBP-rapamycin binding protein) upon UV irradiation. With this system and the spatially confined UV irradiation, we achieved subcellularly localized activation of Rac, a member of small GTPases. Our technique offers a powerful approach to studies of dynamic intracellular signaling events.     

Radiation-induced polymerization of cyclohexene sulfide in the solid state

Radiation-induced solid-state polymerization of cyclohexene sulfide has been investigated. Differential thermal analysis shows that this compound has a phase transition point at ?74°C and behaves as a plastic crystal in the temperature range from ?74 to ?20°C (melting point). By rapid cooling, this plastic crystal was easily supercooled, and below ?166°C a glassy crystal, i.e., a supercooled nonequilibrium state of plastic crystal, was obtained. In-source polymerization proceeded in the plastic crystalline state. Postpolymerization of glassy crystalline monomer irradiated at ?196°C occurred above ?166°C (glass transition point) during subsequent heating.     

A synthesis of 2-substituted 2-aminoethanol derivatives having inhibitory activity against protein kinase C.

A series of 2-aminoethanol derivatives was synthesized and their inhibitory activities against protein kinase C were investigated. Among these compounds, 2-endo-hexadecylamino-5-norbornene-2- exo-methanol (4h) and 2-endo-hexadecylamino-5-norbornene-2,3-exo-dimethanol (4i) inhibited protein kinase C at the IC50 values of 2 x 10(-5) and 1 x 10(-5) M, respectively, but not protein kinase A at a concentration of 1 x 10(-3) M. The structure-activity relationships are discussed.     

Synthesis,structure, and dynamic behavior of cyclopentadienyl-lithium, -sodium,and -potassium annelated with bicyclo[2.2.2]octene units: a systematic study on site exchange of alkali metals on a cyclopentadienyl ring in tetrahydrofuran

Novel cyclopentadienyl (Cp)-alkali metal complexes 1-M and 2-M (M = Li, Na, K), in which the Cp ring is annelated with two bicyclo[2.2.2]octene units and substituted with a phenyl group for 1 and a tert-butyl group for 2, were synthesized, and their structures and dynamic behaviors were investigated by means of X-ray crystallography, dynamic (13)C NMR, and DFT calculations. The X-ray crystallography results indicated that 1-Li, 1-Na, and 2-Na form monomeric contact ion pairs (CIP) with three THF molecules coordinated to the metal atom. Also, in THF-d(8), all of the 1-M and 2-M form monomeric CIP in the ground state. However, variable-temperature (13)C NMR measurements of 1-M and 2-M in THF-d(8) demonstrated dynamic behavior in which the metal ion exchanges positions between the upper and lower faces of the Cp ring. From a study of the concentration dependence of the dynamic behavior, the exchange was found to proceed principally as an intramolecular process at concentration ranges lower than 0.2 M. The experimentally observed deltaG values for the intramolecular exchange process for all the 1-M and 2-M (except for 2-Li, whose intramolecular process was too slow to observe) were found to be quite similar in THF-d(8) solution and to fall within the range of 12-14 kcal mol(-)(1). Within this range, a tendency was observed for the deltaG values to increase as the size of the metal decreased. Theoretical calculations (B3LYP/6-31G(d)) afforded considerably large values as the gas-phase dissociation energy for 1-M (162.7 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Li; 131.6 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Na; 110.9 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = K) and for 2-M (170.0 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Li; 137.5 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Na; 115.4 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = K). These values should be compensated for by a decrease in the solvation energies for the metal ions with increasing size, as exemplified by the calculated solvation energy for M(+)(Me(2)O)(4), which serves as a model for metal ions solvated with four molecules of THF (-122.9 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Li; -94.7 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = Na; -67.7 kcal mol(-)(1) for M = K). This compensation results in a small difference in the overall energy for dissociation of 1-M or 2-M in ethereal solutions, thus supporting the similar deltaG values observed for the intramolecular metal exchange.     

Cation binding properties of crown ether-modified polyethylenimines

Crown ether-modified polyethylenimines (PEI-CR) were prepared to elucidate their cation binding efficiency and selectivity by liquid-liquid and solid-liquid extraction methods. With alkali metal cations it was found that polyethylenimines containing benzo-15-crown-5 moieties (Ia and Ib) extracted all cations examined more efficiently than their monomeric analogs, especially in the cases of K⁺ and Rb⁺ cations. The solid-liquid extraction revealed clearly that the polymers complexed with K⁺ and Rb⁺ cations according to a 1:2 cation-to-crown stoichiometry. The high selectivities of the polymers for K⁺ and Rb⁺ were interpreted in terms of the favourable conformation of the polymer chain for the formation of intramolecular 1:2 complexes. On the contrary, these polymers bound alkali earth cations less effectively with low selectivities.