Plasmonic properties of silver nanostructures coated with an amorphous silicon-carbon alloy and their applications for sensitive sensing of DNA hybridization

The use of an amorphous silicon-carbon alloy overcoating on silver nanostructures in a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) sensing platform allows for decreasing the detection limit by an order of magnitude as compared to sensors based on gold nanostructures deposited on glass. In addition, silver based multilayer structures show a distinct plasmonic behaviour as compared to gold based nanostructures, which provides the sensor with an increased short-range sensitivity and a decreased long-range sensitivity.     

Thiol–Yne Click Reactions on Alkynyl–Dopamine‐Modified Reduced Graphene Oxide

The large‐scale preparation of graphene is of great importance due to its potential applications in various fields. We report herein a simple method for the simultaneous exfoliation and reduction of graphene oxide (GO) to reduced GO (rGO) by using alkynyl‐terminated dopamine as the reducing agent. The reaction was performed under mild conditions to yield rGO functionalized with the dopamine derivative. The chemical reactivity of the alkynyl function was demonstrated by post‐functionalization with two thiolated precursors, namely 6‐(ferrocenyl)hexanethiol and 1H,1H,2H,2H‐perfluorodecanethiol. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV/Vis spectrophotometry, Raman spectroscopy, conductivity measurements, and cyclic voltammetry were used to characterize the resulting surfaces.     

Synthesis of Some New Quinazoline Derivatives Analogues to MKC-442 and TNK 561

A series of different acyclo quinazoline nucleosides 6 , 7 , 8 , 10 , 12 , 13 , and 14 have been synthesized. The site of glycosylation was confirmed by 1 H-NMR and 13 C-NMR spectroscopy.     

Synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of 6a,7-dihydro-6H,13H-pyrazino[1,2-a;4,5-a′]diindole analogs as melatonin receptor ligands

The synthesis of two melatonin-derived analogs of the novel 6a,7-dihydro-6H,13H-pyrazino[1,2-a;4,5-a′]diindole ring system is described. The non-methoxy and methoxy analogs, 4a and 4b were prepared in seven steps starting from indoline-2-carboxylic acid 5a and 5-methoxyindoline-2-carboxylic acid 5b, respectively. While 4a exhibited micromolar affinities for both melatonin receptors, the methoxy analog 4b displayed moderate affinity for MT₂ receptors (K_i=0.41 μM) being 4.4-fold higher than for the MT₁ subtype.     

Hidden electrochemistry in the thermal grafting of silicon surfaces from grignard reagents

Covalent grafting of alkyl chains on silicon can be obtained by thermal treatment in Grignard reagents. Alkyl halide present in the Grignard solution as an impurity appears to play a key role in the grafting process. Grafting efficiency is improved when the alkyl halide concentration is increased. It is also enhanced on n-type substrates as compared to p-type substrates and when alkyl bromides are present in solution rather than alkyl chlorides. The grafting reaction involves a zero-current electrochemical step. A reaction model in which simultaneous Grignard oxidation and alkyl halide reduction take place at the silicon surface accounts for all these observations. Alkyl halide reduction is the rate-determining step. Negative charging of the silicon surface lowers the energetic barrier for this reaction, allowing for efficient grafting on n-Si.     

Synthesis and characterization of a monomeric and a dihydroxo-bridged dimeric complexes of iron(III) with α-benzoinoxime

The reaction of α-benzoinoxime, H₂BNO with FeCl₃ in the presence of Et₃N as a base gives the mononuclear Fe(III) complex, Fe(HBNO)₃ (1). Treatment of 1 with a methanolic solution of KOH at room temperature leads to a dinuclear Fe(III)–Fe(III) complex, [Fe(HBNO)₂OH]₂ (2). The complexes were initially characterized on the basis of their elemental, mass and thermal analyses. The IR studies were useful in assigning the coordination mode of the benzoinoxime ligand to the iron metal. In addition, the presence of a hydroxo-bridge in the dimeric complex 2 is inferred from the IR spectral studies. Room-temperature Mössbauer studies indicated octahedral, high-spin iron(III). Variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements supported the existence of the μ-dihydroxo-bridging structure core, Fe^III(μ-OH)₂Fe^III in the dinuclear complex 2. Theoretical modelling of the magnetic data indicated a weak antiferromagnetic spin exchange between the iron(III) centers (J = −8.35 cm⁻¹, g = 2.01, ρ = 0.02 and TIP = 1.7 × 10⁻⁴ cm³ mol⁻¹ for H = −2JS₁ · S₂). The electronic spectra of the complexes revealed two bands due to d–d transitions and one band assignable to an oxygen (p_π) → Fe(d_π∗) LMCT transition observed in each complex. An additional charge-transfer transition, assignable to μ-hydroxo(p_π) → Fe(d_π∗), was observed for the dimeric complex 2. The structural and vibrational behaviors of these complexes have been elucidated with quantum mechanical methods.     

Excellent photocatalytic reduction of nitroarenes to aminoarenes by BiVO4 nanoparticles grafted on reduced graphene oxide (rGO/BiVO4)

A novel heterogeneous composite material based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) was prepared and characterized by various techniques such as powder XRD, HRTEM, EADX, UV–Vis‐DRS, FT‐IR, Raman, BET and XPS analyses. The characterization results reveal that the rGO well decorated by BiVO₄. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) shows the increasing of charge transfer of rGO/BiVO₄ in presence of light irradiation. In this research, the pure BiVO₄ and rGO/BiVO₄ composite have been explored for photocatalytic reduction of nitroarenes. Among the prepared nanocomposites, rGO loaded with 10% BiVO₄ catalyst (noted as rGO/BiVO₄–10%) shows the best performance for the photo‐reduction of various nitroaromatic molecules to their corresponding amine compounds under visible‐light irradiation at room temperature. The catalyst exhibited in particular excellent photocatalytic activity for the conversion of 1,4‐dinitrobenzene to 4‐nitroanilline (100% conversion) in 20 min, 4‐chloronitrobenzene to 4‐chloroaniline and 2‐nitrophenol to 2‐aminophenol (100% conversion) in only 30 min. In addition, the conversion of 4‐bromonitrobenzene, 4‐iodonitrobenzene to their corresponding amine compounds (100% conversion) was achieved in 60 min. The catalyst was recovered for several times and reused without decreasing of its efficiency.