A short and efficient synthesis of 2′-deoxybenzo- and pyridoimidazole C-nucleosides

A short route to a series of 2′-deoxy-C-nucleosides featuring substituted nucleobases has been developed. The key step is the formation of the cyclized products following Mukaiyama's type amide coupling and a simple dehydration, starting from readily accessible synthons. The epimerization of the C1′-stereogenic center was avoided under mild and controlled conditions.     

On the Origin of Primitive Cells: From Nutrient Intake to Elongation of Encapsulated Nucleotides

Recent major discoveries in membrane biophysics hold the key to a modern understanding of the origin of life on Earth. Membrane bilayer vesicles have been shown to provide a multifaceted microenvironment in which protometabolic reactions could have developed. Cell‐membrane‐like aggregates of amphiphilic molecules capable of retaining encapsulated oligonucleotides have been successfully created in the laboratory. Sophisticated laboratory studies on the origin of life now show that elongation of the DNA primer takes place inside fatty acid vesicles when activated nucleotide nutrients are added to the external medium. These studies demonstrate that cell‐like vesicles can be sufficiently permeable to allow for the intake of charged molecules such as activated nucleotides, which can then take part in copying templates in the protocell interior. In this Review we summarize recent experiments in this area and describe a possible scenario for the origin of primitive cells, with an emphasis on the elongation of encapsulated nucleotides.     

The [18]-N3O3 aza-oxa macrocycle: a selective receptor unit for primary ammonium cations

A comparative study of the complexes formed by three [18]-macrocyclic ligands indicates that the triaza-trioxa macrocycle [18]-N₃O₃,3 , displays by far the highest stability and selectivity for binding of primary ammonium cations.     

(o -Hydroxyphenyl)methylphosphonic Acids: Spectrophotometric determination of their pKa values and of the deprotonation sequence

UV/VIS Absorption spectra of nitrosubsituted (o-hydroxyphenyl)methylphosphonic acids (o-(phosphonomethyl)phenols) were measured as a function of pH at 25° in 0.1M NaClo₄ solutions. Computational treatment of the whole set of optical density data between 200 and 500 nm resulted in the determination of the dissociation constants of these polyacids and also of the individual electronic spectra of all the species involved in the deprotonation sequence. The spectral behavior gives information on the structure of the anions formed and consequently the order of the subsequent deprotonation steps could be deduced. For the (2-hydroxy-3-nitro(or 5-nitro)phenyl)methylphosphonic acid and the 2-hydroxy-5-nitro-1,3-phenylenebis(methylphosphonic acid), the phenolic proton dissociates in the last step, while, in the case of (2-hydroxy-3,5-dinitrophenyl)methylphosphonic acid, the last dissociating proton comes from a P? OH group. An intermediate situation is found for (3-chloro-2-hydroxy-5-nitrophenyl)methylphosphonic acid. Generally, the deprotonation sequence is governed by intramolecular H-bonds involving the phenolic OH group.     

Octahedral and tetrahedral configuration changes of nickel(II) chloro complexes from spectrophotometric studies in aprotic solvents

Four NiII chloro complexes were identified spectrophotometrically in aprotic media such as DMSO, DMF and propylene carbonate for the first time. An original multiwavelength numerical treatment, based on a Marquardt method, results in the determination of the individual electronic spectra of the mononuclear chloro complexes and of their stability constants, the values of which indicate the presence of rather weak complexes in DMSO and DMF, much stronger in the less solvating propylene carbonate solvent. The overall stability constants calculated for the NiII chloro complexes are: 1=52, 2=140, 3=160, 4=210 in DMSO, 1=60, 2=110, 3=900, 4=15000 in DMF, 1=1.6×109, 2=6.4×1015, 3=2.7×1021, 4= 5.1×1026 in PC.The solvent effect is discussed in terms of the quantitative results obtained from this spectrophotometric study and reveals that the stability of the complexes is an inverse function of the donor properties of the solvent. This result illustrates the general behavior of complex formation in dipolar aprotic solvents, i.e. the substitution of one solvent molecule in the inner coordination sphere by the ligand is easier if the solvation strength of the solvent is lower. The solvent effect is also described in terms of the variation of shifts of the calculated absorption maxima for the individual electronic spectra of the chloro complexes. This result is used to identify clearly at which step of coordination the octahedral configuration of the nickel ion changes to the tetrahedral configuration, by comparison with the well-known structural properties of these complexes in the solid state.     

Synthesis of Highly Fluorinated Di-O-alk(en)yl-glycerophospholipids and Evaluation of Their Biological Tolerance

The syntheses of various fluorocarbon/fluorocarbon and fluorocarbon/hydrocarbon rac-1,2- and 1,3-di-O-alk(en)ylglycerophosphocholines and rac-1,2-di-O-alkylglycerophosphoethanolamines (see Fig.2), which may be used as components for drug-carrier and delivery systems, are described together with some results concerning their biological tolerance. They were obtained by phosphorylation of perfluoroalkylated rac-di-O-alk(en)ylgly-cerols using POCl₃, then condensation with choline tosylate or N-Boc-ethanolamine (2-[(tert-butoxy)carbonyl-amino]ethanol) followed by Boc-deportection (Schemes 6–8). The fluorcarbon/fluorocarbon 1,2-di-O-alkylgly-cerols were prepared by O-alkylation of rac-1-O-benzylglycerol using perfluoroalkylated mesylates, then hydrogenolysis for benzyl deprotection (Scheme 1). The two different hydrophobic chains in the mixed fluorocarbon/fluorocarbon and fluorocarbon/hydrocarbon 1,2-di-O-alk(en)ylglycerols were introduced starting from 1,2-O-iso-propylidene- then O-trityl-protected glycerols or from 1,3-O-benzylidene-glycerol (Schemes 3 and 4). The perfluoroalkylated O-alkenylglycerols were obtained by O-alkylation of a glycerol derivative using an ω-unsaturated alkenyl reagent, the perfluoroalkyl segment being connected onto the double bond in a subsequent step (Schemes 1) and 3. The perfluoroalkylated symmetrical and mixed 1,3-di-O-alkylglycerols were synthesized by displacement of the Cl-atom in epichlorohydrin by perfluoroalkylated alcohols, then catalytic (SnCl₄) opening of the oxirane ring of the resulting alkyl glycidyl ethers in neat alcohols (Scheme 5). When injected intravenously into mice, acute maximum tolerated doses higher than 1500 and 2000 mg/kg body weight were observed for the fluorinated glycerophosphocholines, indicating a very promising in vivo tolerance.     

Functionalization of the Coordinated Cyclopentadienyl Ring by Transfer of Amino Groups on CpFe(PR3)(CO)X Derivatives - Role of the Phosphorus Ligand

Abstract

The action of LiNEt₂ on the iron derivative 1, which was expected to yield the acyclic phosphoranide 2, led in fact to 3, i.e. to the amination of the cyclopentadienyl ring, thus providing an easy and direct access to an aminofunctionalized cyclopentadienyl iron complex:     

(o-Hydroxyphenyl)methylphosphonic acids: Synthesis and potentiometric determinations of their pKa Values

(o-Hydroxyphenyl)methylphosphonic acids are readily obtained from o-(bromomethyl)- or o-(hydroxymethyl)phenols and trialkyl phosphites. Subsequent hydrolysis leads to the corresponding phosphonic acids. For a series of such compounds, the pK_a values have been determined by potentiometry. Their dependence on additional substituents in the aromatic ring is discussed in terms of electronic and steric effects.