A convenient synthesis of 2β,3α-dihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid as a natural diastereoisomer of corosolic acid

2β,3α-Dihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid（6） is a naturally occurring diastereoisomer of corosolic acid with glycogen phosphorylase inhibitory activity.A new strategy for the semi-synthesis of 6 was developed.Using the commercially available ursolic acid（1） as the starting materials,6 was synthesized through five facile reactions with a high stereoselectivity and an overall yield of 47.3%.The structure of 6 was confirmed by optical rotation.ESI-MS,¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR data.     

K2CO3-Promoted Domino Reactions for Synthesis of Isocoumarins Under Microwave Irradiation

A small library of isocoumarin derivatives has been synthesized via K₂CO₃-catalyzed domino reactions of 2-carboxybenzaldehyde and ω-bromoacetophenones under microwave irradiation (MW). This strategy offers a simple, environmentally acceptable route to synthesize isocoumarin derivatives in moderate to excellent yields. All new compounds were characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, infrared, and high-resolution mass spectroscopic techniques.     

Efficient One-Pot Synthesis of Benzimidazoles Under Solvent-Free Conditions

A green, efficient method for the synthesis of various 2-aryl-benzimidazoles in the presence of hypervalent iodine as the oxidant at room temperature under solvent-free conditions is reported. The salient features of this method include mild conditions, short reaction times (3–5 min), excellent yields, and simple procedure.     

An Approximate Expression for the Degree of Counterion Binding of Dressed Micelles

A simple formula for calculating the degree of counterion binding of dressed micelles is presented. This approximate expression for the spherical micelle is derived from the extending Langmuir's method in the case of high surface potentials. It works quite well for the estimation of the degree of counterion binding of micelles. The simple form is very convenient for practical use.     

Crosslinked organosiloxane hybrid materials prepared by condensation of silanol and modified silica: Synthesis and characterization

Hybrid materials based on polymethylphenylsiloxane (PMPS) and organic functionalized silica were synthesized via condensation reaction between silanol and alkoxysilyl groups in the presence of quaternary ammonium hydroxide. The structure of prepared materials was investigated by FTIR and NMR, which indicate that the products have incorporated modified silica into the polymer matrix. The prepared hybrid materials show a satisfactory thermal resistance because the initial decomposition of typical product occurred at nearly 100 K higher than that of the pure polymer according to the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) results. Differential thermogravimetric analysis (DTGA) data confirm that the thermal degradation of prepared hybrid materials comprises of two steps, of which the first one could be controlled by adjusting the content of silica particles and the ratio of surface groups on the particles. The coating films obtained from hybrid products exhibit good thermal mechanical properties. Therefore, the materials are hoped to be used for the application in thermal resistant coating.     

Surface Performance and Cytocompatibility Evaluation of Acrylic Acid-Mediated Carboxymethyl Chitosan Coating on Poly(tetrafluoroethylene-co-hexafluoropropylene)

To improve the biocompatibility of poly(tetrafluoroethylene-co-hexafluoropropylene) (FEP) film, a technique based on Ar plasma pretreatment and UV-induced grafting polymerization was used to immobilize carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) on the FEP film surfaces. Initially Ar plasma was used to treat FEP film. Then, plasma treated FEP film was modified via UV-induced grafting polymerization with hydrophilic acrylic acid (AAc) monomer. The following immobilization of CMCS on the FEP-pAAc surface was carried out via an amidation reaction. The change of chemical composition and surface morphology of FEP film were characterized by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Results of water contact angles measurement showed that the hydrophilicity of the surface has improved significantly after surface modification. Furthermore, methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay and cell morphology analysis confirmed that mouse fibroblasts (L929 cells) attachment and proliferation were improved remarkably on the modified FEP surface. These results suggest that CMCS were successfully employed to surface engineering FEP film, and enhanced its cell biocompatibility. The approach presented here may be exploited for surface modification of biomaterials.     

A quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics study on the hydrolysis mechanism of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1

New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) has emerged as a major global threat to human health for its rapid rate of dissemination and ability to make pathogenic microbes resistant to almost all known β-lactam antibiotics. In addition, effective NDM-1 inhibitors have not been identified to date. In spite of the plethora of structural and kinetic data available, the accurate molecular characteristics of and details on the enzymatic reaction of NDM-1 hydrolyzing β-lactam antibiotics remain incompletely understood. In this study, a combined computational approach including molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations was performed to characterize the catalytic mechanism of meropenem catalyzed by NDM-1. The quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics results indicate that the ionized D124 is beneficial to the cleavage of the C–N bond within the β-lactam ring. Meanwhile, it is energetically favorable to form an intermediate if no water molecule coordinates to Zn2. Moreover, according to the molecular dynamics results, the conserved residue K211 plays a pivotal role in substrate binding and catalysis, which is quite consistent with previous mutagenesis data. Our study provides detailed insights into the catalytic mechanism of NDM-1 hydrolyzing meropenem β-lactam antibiotics and offers clues for the discovery of new antibiotics against NDM-1 positive strains in clinical studies.     

The ring-opening of chiral oxazoline involving pyrrolidone

Chiral N-[1-benzyl-2-hydroxyethyl]-3-[2-oxo-pyrrole]propionamide (C₁₆H₂₂N₂O₃) was obtained unexpectedly from the reaction of oxazoline involving pyrrolidone with copper acetate monohydrate, and the structure was characterized by NMR, IR, elemental analysis, and X-ray analysis.     

Transparent conducting Sn:ZnO films deposited from nanoparticles

Homogeneous transparent conducting Sn:ZnO films on fused silica substrates were prepared by dip-coating from nanoparticle dispersions, while the nanocrystalline Sn:ZnO particles with different dopant concentrations were synthesized by microwave-assisted non-aqueous sol–gel process using Sn(IV) tert-butoxide and Zn(II) acetate as precursors and benzyl alcohol as solvent. The dopant concentration had a great impact on the electrical properties of the films. A minimum resistivity of 20.3 Ω cm was obtained for a porous Sn:ZnO film with initial Sn concentration of 7.5 mol% after annealing in air and post-annealing in N₂ at 600 °C. The resistivity of this porous film could further be reduced to 2.6 and 0.6 Ω cm after densified in Sn:ZnO and Al:ZnO reaction solution, respectively. The average optical transmittance of a 400-nm-thick Sn:ZnO film densified with Sn:ZnO after the two annealing steps was 91%.