Pentagonal two-loop ring interferometer

Results of work on the assembly and adjustment of an original pentagonal, two-loop interferometer are reported; the interferometer is a passive version of a compact laser gravitational wave detector. It is shown that the correlative automatic noise-compensation system developed for the project is capable of lowering the phase noise level in the resultant signal channel of the detector by two orders of magnitude. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 121–125 (May 1998)     

Specifics of radical polymerization of styrene and methyl methacrylate in the presence of ruthenium carborane complexes

The specifics of the radical polymerization of styrene and methyl methacrylate in the presence of ruthenium closo- and exo-nido-carborane complexes with phosphine and diphosphine ligands were investigated. It was shown that, depending on a coinitiator, the polymerization proceeds through the atom transfer radical mechanism or the reverse atom transfer radical mechanism to high conversions without gelation to yield macromolecules with a low polydispersity. The influence of the ligand environment, the oxidation state of ruthenium atoms in the carborane complexes, and the temperature conditions on the specific features of the polymer synthesis was established.     

Ruthenium carborane complexes in the controlled radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate

New initiators based on closo-and exo-nido-ruthenacarboranes with phosphine and diphosphine ligands were proposed as chain growth regulators. They allow conducting the controlled synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate) under radical initiation conditions. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 85–89, January, 2006.     

Facile formation of exo-nido→closo-rearrangement products upon the replacement of PPh3 ligands with bis(diphenylphosphino)alkanes in “three-bridge” ruthenacarborane 5,6,10-[RuCl(PPh3)2]-5,6,10-(μ-H)3-10-H-exo-nido-7,8-C2B9H8

The replacement of the PPh₃ ligands in “three-bridge” exo-nido-ruthenacarborane 5,6,10-[RuCl(PPh₃)₂]-5,6,10-(μ-H)₃-10-H-exo-nido-7,8-C₂B₉H₈ with diphosphines, viz., 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane (dppp) or 1,4-bis(diphenylphosphino)butane (dppb) dramatically decreases the barrier to the thermal exo-nido→closo rearrangement affording the chelate closo-complexes 3,3-[Ph₂P(CH₂)_nPPh₂]-3-H-3-Cl-closo-3,1,2-RuC₂B₉H₁₁ (n = 3 or 4) under mild conditions. In the reaction with dppp, the rearrangement is accompanied by the formation of 17-electron paramagnetic closo-ruthenacarborane 3,3-[Ph₂P(CH₂)₃PPh₂]-3-Cl-closo-3,1,2-RuC₂B₉H₁₁, which could be isolated as the main product when the reaction was carried out at 80 °C. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2455–2459, November, 2005.     

A secretory phospholipase A2-mediated neuroprotection and anti-apoptosis

Background  

Phospholipase A₂ liberates free fatty acids and lysophospholipids upon hydrolysis of phospholipids and these products are often associated with detrimental effects such as inflammation and cerebral ischemia. The neuroprotective effect of neutral phospholipase from snake venom has been investigated.     

Facile method for the synthesis of ruthenacarboranes, diamagnetic 3,3-[Ph2P(CH2)nPPh2]-3-H-3-Cl-closo-3,1,2-RuC2B9H11 (n = 3 or 4) and paramagnetic 3,3-[Ph2P(CH2)nPPh2]-3-Cl-closo-3,1,2-RuC2B9H11 (n = 2 or 3), as efficient initiators of controlled radical polymerization of vinyl monomers

A facile preparative procedure was developed for the synthesis of 17-and 18-electron closo-(diphosphine)ruthenacarborane complexes. This method is based on the replacement of PPh₃ ligands with bis(diphenylphosphino)alkanes Ph₂P(CH₂)_nPPh₂ (n = 2—4) in ruthenacarborane 3,3-(PPh₃)₂-3-Cl-3-H-closo-3,1,2-RuC₂B₉H₁₁. The resulting complexes exhibit high activity in controlled radical polymerization of vinyl monomers.     

Stable exo-nido-metallacarboranes (M = Os(IV)) that incorporate meta-carborane-based dicarbollide ligands

Reactions of the [K]+ salts of the [nido-7,9-C2B9H12]- anion (2) and its C-phenylated derivative [7-Ph-nido-7,9-C2B9H11]- (4) with [OsCl2(PPh3)3] (3) proceed in benzene at ambient temperature with the formation of 16-electron chlorohydrido-Os(IV) exo-nido complexes, [exo-nido-10,11-{(Ph3P)2OsHCl}-10,11-(mu-H)2-7-R-7,9-C2B9H8] (5: R = H; 6: R = Ph), along with the small amounts of the charge-compensated nido-carboranes [nido-7,9-C2B9H11PPh3] (7) and [7-Ph-nido-7,9-C2B9H10PPh3] (8) as byproducts. However, when carried out under mild heating in ethanol, the reaction of 2 with 3 selectively afforded a 16-electron dihydrido-Os(IV) exo-nido complex [exo-nido-10,11-{(Ph3P)2OsH2}-10,11-(mu-H)2-7,9-C2B9H9] (9). Structures of both complexes 5 and 9 have been confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies, which revealed that nido-carboranes in these species function as a bidentate dicarbollide ligands [7-R-nido-7,9-C2B9H10]2- linked to the Os(IV) center via two B-H...Os bonds involving adjacent B-H vertices in the upper CBCBB belt of the carborane cage. Thus, compounds 5 and 9 represent the first structurally characterized exo-nido-metallacarboranes based on meta-dicarbollide-type ligands. Variable-temperature 1H and 31P{1H} NMR experiments indicate that complex 9 is fluxional in solution and shows an unusual exchange between terminal Os-(H)2 and bridging {B-H}2...Os hydrogen atoms. Upon heating in d8-THF at 65 degrees C, complex 9 converts irreversibly to its closo isomer [2,2-(PPh3)2-2,2-H2-closo-2,1,7-OsC2B9H11] (13), which could thus be obtained as a pure crystalline solid. The structure of 13 has been established on the basis of analytical and multinuclear NMR data and a single-crystal X-ray diffraction study.