Patents and literature

Protein engineering and site-directed mutagenesis is becoming immensely important in both fundamental studies and commercial applications involving proteins and enzymes in biocatalysis. Protein engineering has become a powerful tool to help biochemists and molecular enzymologists elucidate structure-function relationships in enzymic active sites, to understand the intricacies of protein folding and denaturation, and to alter the selectivity of enzymatic catalysis. Commercial applications of engineered enzymes are being developed to increase protein stability, widen or narrow substrate specificity, and to develop novel approaches for use of enzymes in organic synthesis, drug design, and clinical applications. In addition to protein engineering, novel expression systems have been designed to prepare large quantities of genetically engineered proteins. Recent US patents and scientific literature on protein engineering, site-directed mutagenesis, and protein expression systems related to protein engineering are surveyed. Patent abstracts are summarized individually and a list of literature references are given.     

Synthesis,stereochemistry and pharmacological activity of rac.-cis-tetrahydro-6-hydroxy-7-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1,4-thiazepin-5(2H)-ones

Reaction of 2-aminoethanethiol ( 3 ) with trans-3-(p-methoxyplienyl)glycidate ( 4 ) gave the rac.-cis-1,4-thiazepinone 5 and a by-product 6 . The structure of 5 was proven by X-ray crystallography. The X-ray data revealed that this compound adopts the chair conformation in the solid state and the heterocyclic ring is sevenmembered. The structure of the by-product 6 was elucidated on the basis of spectral data. Compounds 9 and 10 were inactive as calcium channel blocking agents.     

51V magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy of Keggin anions [PVnW12-nO40](3+n)-: effect of countercation and vanadium substitution on fine structure constants

Vanadium environments in Keggin oxopolytungstates were characterized by (51)V solid-state MAS NMR spectroscopy. (C(4)H(9))(4)N(+)-, K(+)-, Cs(+)-, as well as mixed Na(+)/Cs(+)- salts of the mono-, di-, and trivanadium substituted oxotungstates, [VW(11)O(40)](4-), [V(2)W(10)O(40)](5-), and [V(3)W(9)O(40)](6-), have been prepared as microcrystalline and crystalline solids. Solid-state NMR spectra report on the local environment of the vanadium site in these Keggin ions via their anisotropic quadrupolar and chemical-shielding interactions. These (51)V fine structure constants in the solid state are determined by the number of vanadium atoms present in the oxoanion core. Surprisingly, the quadrupolar anisotropy tensors do not depend to any significant extent on the nature of the countercations. On the other hand, the chemical-shielding anisotropy tensors, as well as the isotropic chemical shifts, display large variations as a function of the cationic environment. This information can be used as a probe of the local cationic environment in the vanadium-substituted Keggin solids.     

Influence of the Lanthanide Ion and Solution Conditions on Formation of Lanthanide Wells–Dawson Polyoxotungstates

Lanthanide complexes of polyoxometalates, including the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand, have been pioneered by Michael T. Pope, to whom this paper is dedicated. Examination of the solid-state and solution behavior of lanthanide complexes of the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand are reported here to identify trends that will facilitate rational synthesis of hybrid organic lanthanide polyoxometalate complexes. Therefore, combining our data with that obtained by Pope and others a number of trends come into view. It is clear that there are two structural types for the 1:1 or 2:2 [Ln(H₂O)_X(α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁)]₂ ¹⁴⁻ species. The early lanthanides show a “cap to cap” structure that allows the Ln ion to be 9 coordinate and accommodates the longer bond lengths. The mid-late lanthanides show a “cap to belt” structure that allows the lanthanides to be 8 coordinate; this structural type is appropriate for the shorter bond lengths of the later lanthanides. The 1:1⇌1:2 equilibrium, that was observed by Pope for the Ce(III) analog is prevalent for the early- mid lanthanides. This equilibrium is slightly dependent on pH; however, cations have a major influence on this equilibrium. Larger, poorly hydrated cations appear to favor the 1:2 species for the early to mid lanthanides. Cations do not appear to influence the equilibrium for the later lanthanides; for all counterions, the 1:1 species was stable with no trace of the 1:2 species. Stability constants, K1 and K2, for the early to mid lanthanides were measured in this study by a competitive method and compared well with other published stability constant determinations. We suggest that the stability constants are not only dependent on the strength of interaction of the Ln with the α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ ligand, but are also significantly influenced by the medium. The medium may bias the equilibria of the early-mid lanthanides and later lanthanides. The log K₁/log K₂ ratios are very close, suggesting that it is difficult to separate the 1:1 and 1:2 Ln: α₂-P₂W₁₇O₆₁ ¹⁰⁻ species.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material for this article is available at and is accessible for authorized users.This paper is dedicated to Professor Michael T. Pope in honor of his substantial and sustained contributions to polyoxometalate chemistry and his inspiration to scientists working in the field.     

Spectroscopic and structural characterization of pure and FeCl<Subscript>3</Subscript>-containing tri-<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-butyl phosphate

The spectroscopic properties and liquid structure of pure tri-n-butyl phosphate (TBP) and FeCl₃/TBP solutions have been investigated by Uv–Vis and Raman spectroscopies, X-ray diffraction and conductometry. Uv–Vis and Raman spectra, supported by conductometric measurements, consistently indicate that the solubilized salt is present mostly as TBP _n [FeCl_3???n ] ⁿ⁺ and FeCl₄ ^? complex ions due to specific interaction with the TBP phosphate group. Thanks to this interaction, a high amount of salt (up to 13 % w/w) can be dissolved despite the relatively low dielectric constant of TBP. The X-ray diffractogram of pure TBP has been interpreted in terms of three main contributions which can be attributed to spatial pair correlations between atoms of interacting TBP molecules. In the presence of increasing FeCl₃ amounts, it has been observed a progressive structuring effect, exerted by the dissolved salt, on the layers of opportunely oriented TBP molecules due to the formation of the complex ionic species. By simple treatment with NaBH₄, the synthesis of Fe nanoparticles has been achieved. The absence of water, the easiness of preparation, the high amount of salt which can be suspended and the peculiar physico-chemical properties of such systems are all elements worth of note for the fields of nanoparticle synthesis and for specialized technological applications.     

Routes to new hafnium(IV) tetraaryl porphyrins and crystal structures of unusual phosphate-, sulfate-, and peroxide-bridged dimers

New routes for the synthesis of mono tetraaryl porphyrinato hafnium(IV) complexes, Hf(IV)Por(L)(2), are reported, where the secondary ligands, L, are determined by the method of purification. These synthetic routes cater to the solubility of the macrocycles and provide access to Hf(IV) complexes of meso tetraaryl porphyrins bearing diverse functional groups such as phenyl, tolyl, pyridyl, pentafluorophenyl, and carboxyphenyl. The latter three derivatives significantly expand the repertoire of hafnium porphyrinates. One route refluxes the porphyrin with HfCl(4) in 1-chloronaphthalene or in a mixed solvent of 1-chloronaphthalene and o-cresol. A second, solventless method is also reported wherein the porphyrin is mixed with Hf(cp)(2)Cl(2) and heated to give the metalated porphyrin in good yields. Simultaneous purification and formation of stable porphyrinato hafnium(IV) diacetate complexes, Hf(Por)OAc(2), is accomplished by elution over silica gel using 3-5% acetic acid in the eluent. Exchange of the acetate ligands for other oxo-bearing ligands can be nearly quantitative, such as p-aminobenzoate (PABA), pentanoate (pent), or octanoate (oct). Notably, we find that two to three of a variety of small multitopic dianions such as peroxo (O(2)(-2)), SO(4)(-2), and HPO(4)(-2) serve to bridge between two Hf(Por) moieties to form stable dimers. The crystal structures of this library of Hf(Por) complexes are reported, and we note that careful analysis of crystallography data reveals (Por)Hf(micro-eta(2)-O(2))(2)Hf(Por) rather than four bridging oxo or hydroxy ions.     

51V magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy of six-coordinate Lindqvist oxoanions: a sensitive probe for the electronic environment in vanadium-containing polyoxometalates. Counterions dictate the 51V fine structure constants in polyoxometalate solids

Geometric and electronic environments of vanadium have been addressed by (51)V magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy of six-coordinated polyoxometalate solids. (C(4)H(9))(4)N(+) and mixed Na(+)/Cs(+) salts of the Lindqvist-type mono- and divanadium-substituted oxotungstates, [VW(5)O(19)](3-) and [V(2)W(4)O(19)](4-), have been prepared as microcrystalline and crystalline solids. The solid-state NMR spectra reflect the details of the local environment of the vanadium site in these hexametalate solids via the anisotropic quadrupolar and chemical shielding interactions. Remarkably, these (51)V fine structure constants in the solid state are dictated by the nature and geometry of the countercations. Electrostatic calculations of the electric field gradients at the vanadium atoms have been performed. Experimental trends are well reproduced with the simple electrostatic model, and explain the sensitivity of the anisotropic NMR parameters to the changes in the cationic environment at the vanadium site.     

Room temperature single-photon sources based on single colloidal nanocrystals in microcavities

Direct lithography of resist blends, embedding semiconductor colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) is an innovative way to achieve nanopositioning of NCs in quantum-confined optical resonators. In this work, we show a new appealing approach for the fabrication of single-photon sources operating at room temperature by localizing semiconductor colloidal NCs into vertical planar microcavities with lithographic techniques.