Fine structure of the (S(1)<--S(0)) band origins of phthalocyanine molecules in helium droplets

The laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) excitation spectra of free base phthalocyanine (Pc), Mg-Pc, and Zn-Pc molecules in superfluid helium droplets at T=0.38 K have been studied. The spectra reveal the rich vibronic structure of the S(1)<--S(0) electronic transitions. The band origins of the transitions consist of zero phonon lines accompanied by phonon wings, which originate from simultaneous electronic excitation of the molecule and excitation of the collective modes of the helium surrounding it. The phonon wings have discrete structures suggesting localization of some helium atoms in the neighborhood of the molecules. Zero phonon lines of Mg-Pc and Zn-Pc molecules are split into three components, which are separated by 0.2-0.4 cm(-1). Possible mechanism of splitting involves static or dynamic Jahn-Teller interaction of metal-phthalocyanine molecules in the twofold degenerate S(1)((1)E(u)) state with the helium shell.     

Structural variations of N-acetylneuraminic acid,part 19: Synthesis of both epimeric pairs of the 4-C-methyl- and 4-deoxy-4-C-methyl- as well as of the β-methylketoside of 4-deoxy-4-C-methylene-N-acetylneuraminic acid

Summary While the reaction of the 4-oxo-Neu 5 Ac derivative2 a with tributoxy methyl zirconate led exclusively to equatorial 4-C-methyl derivative3 a, the analogous reaction with tetramethyl zirconate yielded a 3:2 mixture of both diastereoisomeres3 a and4 a. After removal of protecting groups the 5-acetamido-3,4-dideoxy-4-C-methyl-D-glycero-D-galacto-2-nonulosonic acid5 a and 5-acetamido-3,4-dideoxy-4-C-methyl-D-glycero-D-talo-2-nonulosonic acid6 a were obtained. The 4-C-methylene derivative was prepared by treatment of the same 4-oxo-derivative with CH₂I₂/Zn/Cp ₂ZrCl₂. Subsequent hydrogenation led to both epimeric 4-deoxy-4-C-methyl derivatives8 a and9 a. Final removal of protecting groups gave the 5-acetamido-3,4,5-trideoxy-4-C-methyl-D-glycero-D-galacto-2-nonulosonic acid10 a respectively the 5-acetamido-2,7-anhydro-4-C-methyl-3,4,5-trideoxy-D-glycero-D-talo-2-nonulosonic acid11 a. The -methylketosides of the 4-deoxy-4-C-methyl- (16) and 4-C-methylene-Neu 5 Ac (15) were prepared via the peracetylated derivatives to obtain modell substrates for enzymatic studies. Thus all free acids were tested for inhibition of CMP-sialate synthease. Only the 4-C-methylene compound15 showed most unexpectedly a strong competitive inhibition of this enzyme.

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Strukturelle Abwandlungen an N-Acetylneuraminsäure, 19. Mitt.: Synthese der beiden Epimerenpaare der 4-C-Methyl- und 4-Deoxy-4-C-methyl- sowie des -Methylketosids der 4-Deoxy-4-C-methylen-N-acetylneuraminsäure. Verhalten gegenüber CMP-Sialat-Synthase

Zusammenfassung Während die Umsetzung des 4-Oxoderivates2 a mit (BuO)₃ MeZr ausschließlich zur equatorialen 4-C-Methylverbindung3 a führt, wurde bei der Reaktion mitMe ₄Zr ein 3:2-Gemisch der beiden Diastereomeren3 a und4 a erhalten. Das 4-C-Methylenderivat7 a wurde durch Reaktion derselben 4-Oxoverbindung mit CH₂I₂/Zn/Cp ₂ZrCl₂ erhalten. Eine anschließende Hydrierung (H₂-Pd/C) führte zu einem trennbaren Germisch der beiden 4-Deoxy-4-C-methylderivative8 a und9 a. Diese Verbindungen konnten durch das Entfernen der Schutzgruppen einerseits in die 5-Acetamido-3,4,5-trideoxy-4-C-methyl-D-glycero-D-galacto-2-nonulosonsäure10 a und 5-Acetamido-2,7-anhydro-4-C-methyl-3,4,5-tridoxy-D-glycero-D-talo-2-nonulosonsäure11 a umgewandelt werden. Die Verbindungen Methyl-5-acetamido-4-C-methylen-3,4,5-trideoxy--D-manno-2-nonulopyranosidonat (15) und Methyl-5-acetemido-4-C-methyl-3,4,5-tridoxy--D-glycero-D-talo-2-nonulopyranosidonat (16) wurden als Modellverbindungen für enzymatische Untersuchungen über peracetylierte Zwischenstufen hergestellt. Überraschenderweise zeigte nur die 4-C-Methylenverbindung15 eine starke kompetitive Hemmung gegenüber CMP-Sialat-Synthase.

     

PHOTO-CIDNP STUDY OF PYRIMIDINE DIMER SPLITTING II: REACTIONS INVOLVING PYRIMIDINE RADICAL ANION INTERMEDIATES

A series of photo-CIDNP (chemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization) experiments were performed on pyrimidine monomers and dimers, using the electron-donor Nα-acetyltryptophan (AcTrp) as a photosensitizer. The CIDNP spectra give evidence for the existence of both the dimer radical anion, which is formed by electron transfer from the excited AcTrp* to the dimer, and its dissociation product, the monomer radical anion. The AcTrp spectra are completely different from those obtained with an oxidizing sensitizer like anthraquinone-2-sulfonate, because of different unpaired electron spin density distributions in pyrimidine radical anion and cation. In the spectra of the anti (1,3-dimethyluracil) dimers, polarization is detected that originates from a spin-sorting process in the dimer radical pair, pointing to a relatively long lifetime of the dimer radical anions involved. Although the dimer radical anions of the 1,1′-trimethylene-bridged pyrimidines may have a relatively long lifetime as well, their protons have only very weak hyperfine interaction, which explains why no polarization originating from the dimer radical pair is detected. In the spectra of the bridged pyrimidines, polarized dimer protons are observed as a result of spin sorting in the monomer radical pair, from which it follows that the dissociation of dimer radical anion into monomer radical anion is reversible. A study of CIDNP intensities as a function of pH shows that a pH between 3 and 4 is optimal for observing monomer polarization that originates from spin-sorting in the monomer radical pair. At higher pH the geminate recombination polarization is partly cancelled by escape polarization arising in the same product.     

Photocontrol of DNA binding specificity of a miniature engrailed homeodomain

Control of DNA binding of HDH-3, a 18-residue polypeptide based on the recognition helix of the Q50K engrailed homeodomain, has been achieved. HDH-3 was linked to an azobenzene cross-linker through two cysteine residues in an i, i + 11 spacing. For the thermodynamically stable trans configuration of the cross-linker, the dark-adapted peptide (dad-HDH-3) adopted a mainly alpha-helical structure as judged by circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. After irradiation with light of 360 nm, the helical content of the peptide (irrad-HDH-3) was reduced significantly and the CD spectrum of the irradiated peptide resembled that of the largely unstructured, unalkylated peptide. Despite lacking helices-1 and -2 and the N-terminal arm of Q50K engrailed, dad-HDH-3 bound to its natural DNA target sequence TAATCC (QRE) with high affinity (K(D) = 7.5 +/- 1.3 nM). The binding affinity for the mutant DNA sequence, TAATTA (ERE), was reduced significantly (K(D) = 140 +/- 11 nM). Unlike irrad-HDH-3, which like the unalkylated parent peptide displayed only marginal DNA binding specificity, dad-HDH-3 specified base pairs 5 and 6 of QRE with an accuracy rivaling that of the intact wild-type Q50K engrailed homeodomain, making dad-HDH-3 the most specific designed DNA binding miniature homeodomain reported to date. Moreover, DNA binding affinity and specificity of HDH-3 could be controlled externally by irradiation with light.     

Controlling the DNA binding specificity of bHLH proteins through intramolecular interactions

Reversible control of the conformation of proteins was employed to probe the relationship between flexibility and specificity of the basic helix-loop-helix protein MyoD. A fusion protein (apaMyoD) was designed where the basic DNA binding helix of MyoD was stablized by an amino-terminal extension with a sequence derived from the bee venom peptide apamin. The disulfide-stabilized helix from apamin served as a nucleus for a helix that extended for a further ten residues, thereby holding apaMyoD's DNA recognition helix in a predominantly alpha-helical conformation. The thermal stability of the DNA complexes of apaMyoD was increased by 13 degrees C relative to MyoD-bHLH. Measurements of the fluorescence anisotropy change on DNA binding indicated that apaMyoD bound to E-box-containing DNA sequences with enhanced affinity relative to MyoD-bHLH. Consequently, the DNA binding specificity of apaMyoD was increased 10-fold.     

Synthesis and structures of cis- and trans-bis(alkyneselenolato)platinum(II) complexes

The reaction of 2 equiv of LiSeCC-n-C(5)H(11) (1) with cis-PtCl(2)(Ph(3)P)(2) (2) gives a mixture of the cis and trans isomers of Pt(Ph(3)P)(2)(SeCC-n-C(5)H(11))(2) (3), which slowly isomerizes in CH(2)Cl(2) to the preferred trans form trans-3. The closely related cis-[Pt(dppf)(2)(SeCC-n-C(5)H(11))(2)] (4) (dppf = bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene) was prepared by a similar metathetical reaction using the platinum chloride complex of the chelating dppf to impose the cis geometry. The structures of the cis and trans complexes have been investigated in solution by heteronuclear NMR ((31)P, (77)Se, and (195)Pt) and, in the cases of trans-3 and 4, characterized in the solid state by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Changing the coordination geometry from cis to trans induces significant changes in the structural and spectroscopic parameters, which do not comply with the previously anticipated donor-acceptor properties of selenolate ligands.     

Determination of hydrazine, monomethylhydrazine, 1,1-dimethylhydrazine, and 1,2-dimethylhydrazine by nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis with amperometric detection

The present study is concerned with the application of nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis (NACE) with electrochemical detection (ED) to the separation and quantitative determination of hydrazine (Hy) and its methyl derivatives. The best performance of NACE-ED was found when using 4 mM sodium acetate/10 mM acetic acid/methanol: acetonitrile = 1:2 as the running buffer, with a bare platinum working electrode set at +1.0 V in an end-column amperometric detection cell. The choice and ratio of suitable solvents for the separation and injection media played an essential role for the performance characteristics of the method. The limits of detection for Hy, methylhydrazine, symmetrical dimethylhydrazine, and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine were 5, 2, 12, and 1 ng/mL, respectively. This is between one and two orders of magnitude lower than that achieved by previously reported CE-ED methods in aqueous buffer systems in conjunction with various types of chemically modified electrodes. The practical utility of the new NACE-ED methodology is demonstrated in terms of the determination of traces of Hys in spiked environmental samples containing a wide range of explosives and related compounds.     

Beitrag zur Asphaltanalytik bei Braunkohlenteeren und Hydrierprodukten

Zusammenfassung Das Studium der Fällungsbedingungen für Asphalte aus Teeren und Hydrierprodukten hat zur Entwicklung einer Bestimmungsmethodik mit Vorfällung des Asphaltes durch Erdölschmieröle geführt. Die Verwendung des Schmieröles ermöglicht die Abscheidung der Asphaltstoffe in einer für die nachfolgende Extraktion sehr günstigen, großoberflächigen, pulvrigen Form, wenn man dafür sorgt, daß ein Schmelzen oder Klebrigwerden durch zu hohe Temperaturen beim Fällungsvorgang vermieden wird. Die Dispergierung des zu fällenden Produktes wird durch die gute Lösefähigkeit des Erdölschmieröles für die Nichtasphaltstoffe sehr gefördert und ermöglicht eine gute Verteilung. Auf die Zusammensetzung der Teer- bzw. Entschlammungsasphalte wird näher eingegangen und ihre Bedeutung für die Weiterverarbeitung kurz gestreift.Herrn Professor Dr. A. Kurtenacker zum 70. Geburtstag gewidmet.Herrn Friedrich Ganteför und Fräulein Reiher sei an dieser Stelle für die umfangreiche Mitarbeit bei der praktischen Durchführung der Versuche herzlichst gedankt.     

Novel method for bulk resistance evaluation in conductivity measurement for high-purity water

A major issue with the electrolytic conductivity measurement for pure water is the lack of standard or reference methods. A primary method traceable to SI and suitable for pure-water conductivity measurement was developed at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Germany, as the base for the calibration method for the conductivity measuring devices at the low conductivity level. This paper provides a novel method to calculate the bulk resistance of pure water using impedance measured at a single frequency, which is one of the key procedures for the primary methods.