Frontiers in 2D NMR of paramagnetic metalloproteins

The possibilities and the limitations of 2D NMR for the structural characterization of paramagnetic metalloproteins are reviewed. We survey the general strategies for 2D¹H NMR investigations of hyperfine shifted signals. Careful adaptation of classical 2D NMR experiments to fast relaxing systems results in the detection of previously not observed scalar and dipolar connectivities, thus leading to the specific assignment of selected resonances. The approach is of general applicability for paramagnetic metalloproteins. We report here on the application of the application of the method to an iron sulfur protein and a heme protein. In both cases specific assignment of several hyperfine shifted signals, corresponding to active site protons, were obtained; this allowed significant insight into the structure-function relationships of these metalloproteins.     

Analysis of platelet-activating factor by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry: low-energy electron impact of the corresponding 3-acetyl-2-tert.-butyldimethylsilyl derivative.

A method for the analysis of platelet-activating factor in platelets employing gas chromatography and selected-ion monitoring mass spectrometry with low-energy electron impact and stable isotope dilution was developed. The procedure involved Bligh and Dyer extraction of the sample followed by thin-layer chromatographic purification. Platelet-activating factor is successively hydrolysed to the corresponding 2-acetyl-1-O-alkylglycerol by digestion with phospholipase C, and the product is allowed to isomerize to the more thermodynamically stable 3-acetyl-1-O-alkylglycerol before column purification and derivatization of the free OH with tert.-butyldimethylchlorosaline-imidazole. This reagent is of common use in platelet-activating factor derivatization, but is made to react with 2-acetyl instead of 3-acetyl isomer. The advantages of using the latter for the final derivatization are discussed and this method is compared with others currently available for gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis of platelet-activating factor.     

5-vinylisoxazole

Cycloaddition of fulminic acid to 1-butyn-3-ol gave a mixture of 5-α-hydroxyethylisoxazole (I) and 4-α-hydroxyethylisoxazole (II) in the ratio 9:1. By the dehydration of 1, 5-vinylisoxazole (III) was obtained. Compound III has also been prepared by cyclization of 4-penten-2-ynal as well as its diethylacetal with hydroxylamine hydrochloride; in both instances no isomers have been obtained. Compound III spontaneously polymerizes even at room temperature yielding a polymer still containing isoxazole rings.     

4,5-Dihydroisoxazole and 4,5-dihydro-1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives from cycloaddition reactions of nitrile oxides to alkyl N-(diphenylmethylene)-α,β-dehydroamino acids

The alkyl N-(diphenylmethylene)-α,β-dehydroamino acids 1 have been submitted to 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions with nitrile oxides. The reactivity of these compounds depends on the type and on the stereochemistry of the β-substituents. With the unsubstituted terms 1a,b the reaction occurs on the C,C double bond, providing a good method for the synthesis of the 4,5-dihydroisoxazole derivatives 3a,b,c and for the gem-functionalized 4,5-dihydroisoxazoles amino carboxylic ester 5. The β-substituted compounds 1c,d,e , inert to 1,1-dimethylethylnitrile oxide, undergo the reaction to the N,C double bond, thus giving with 2a,b the 4,5-dihydro-1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives 4. All the reactions occur with high site- and regioselectivity.     

The stochastic Burgers Equation

We study Burgers Equation perturbed by a white noise in space and time. We prove the existence of solutions by showing that the Cole-Hopf transformation is meaningful also in the stochastic case. The problem is thus reduced to the anaylsis of a linear equation with multiplicativehalf white noise. An explicit solution of the latter is constructed through a generalized Feynman-Kac formula. Typical properties of the trajectories are then discussed. A technical result, concerning the regularizing effect of the convolution with the heat kernel, is proved for stochastic integrals.     

Solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography/mass spectrometry: a new method for species identification of truffles

This study describes a rapid method to identify different truffle species by analysis of their volatile compound fraction using static headspace solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were extracted using a new 2-cm 50/30 microm DVB/CAR/PDMS fiber placed for 10 min in the headspace of the truffle sample with the vial maintained at 20 degrees C (in a thermostatically controlled analysis room). The mass spectra of the VOC chromatograms were represented as 'fingerprints' of the analysed samples. Next, stepwise factorial discriminant analysis afforded a limited number of characteristic fragment ions that allowed a classification of the truffle species studied. This new method provides an effective approach to rapid quality control and identification of truffle species by analysis of their volatile fraction. Moreover, this method offers the advantage of minimizing thermal, mechanical, and chemical modifications of the truffles, thereby reducing the risk of analytical artifacts.     

Synthesis of novel 1,4‐dihydropyrido[3′,2′:5,6]thiopyrano[4,3‐c]‐pyrazoles and 5H‐pyrido[3′,2′:5,6]thiopyrano[4,3‐d]pyrimidines as potential antiproliferative agents

The synthesis of new planar derivatives characterized by the presence of a pyridothiopyranopyrazole or pyridothiopyranopyrimidine nucleus, carrying a substituted aryl group, is reported. The novel 1,4‐dihydropyrido[3′,2′:5,6]thiopyrano[4,3‐c]pyrazole derivatives were obtained by condensation of 2,3‐dihydro‐3‐hydroxymethylenethiopyrano[2,3‐b]pyridin‐4(4H)‐ones with appropriate hydrazines. The preparation of 2‐substituted pyrido[3′,2′:5,6]thiopyrano[4,3‐d]pyrimidines was accomplished from the intermediate 2,3‐dihy‐dro‐3‐dimethylaminomethylenethiopyrano[2,3‐b]pyridin‐4(4H)‐ones by reaction with the appropriate binucleophile amidines. The antiproliferative activity of some new products was tested by an in vitro assay on human tumour cell lines (HL‐60 and HeLa), but none of them showed any significant effects in the tests performed. Accordingly, linear flow dichroism measurements indicated their inability to form a molecular complex with DNA.     

Investigation on the thermal degradation of acrylic polymers with fluorinated side-chains

The thermal degradation of poly-2,2′,3,3′,4,4′,5,5′,6,6′,7,7′,7″-tridecafluoroheptylacrylate and poly-2,2′,3,3′,4,4′,5,5′,6,6′,7,7′-dodecafluoroheptylmethacrylate has been studied in isothermal conditions at 450-750 °C using pyrolysis-gas chromatography. The type and composition of the pyrolysis products give useful information about mechanism of thermal degradation. It was shown that the main thermal degradation process for both polymers is random main-chain scission. The major degradation products for fluorinated polyacrylate are monomer, dimer, saturated diester, trimer, and corresponding methacrylate. The fluorinated polymethacrylate gives monomer as the main product of thermal destruction. As a result of side-chain reaction, the thermal degradation of the fluorinated polyacrylate also produces remarkable amounts of alcohol. On the other hand, the respective alcohol is only a minor component among the pyrolysis products of the fluorinated polymethacrylate. For both polymers, the main nontrivial degradation product coming from the alkyl ester decomposition is the corresponding fluorinated cyclohexane. The formation of the fluorinated cyclohexanes may be accounted for a nucleophilic bimolecular substitution pathway.     

Electron beam irradiated textile cellulose fibres.: ESR studies and derivatisation with glycidyl methacrylate (GMA)

Powdered samples of cotton, flax and viscose from textile fibres were subjected to electron beam irradiation (20-400 KGy). ESR signals were observed after irradiation. The intensity of the signals depended on the administered dose and exhibited an exponential decay with time. The ESR spectra, whose pattern depended drastically on the crystallinity of the samples, indicated the simultaneous presence of at least three carbon-centred radical species. When the whole irradiated textile fibres were quenched in a solution of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) a significant increase of the weight was observed, the increase being strongly dependent on the administered dose and on the time interval elapsed between irradiation and quenching. Spectroscopic characterisation evidenced that GMA acted as cellulose radicals scavenger on the unsubstituted carbon of the double bond and was covalently linked to the fibre through a new C-C bond while maintaining unaltered the ester and the epoxide groups, available for further derivatisations. Because irradiation of the whole textile fibres in the range 20-200 KGy does not result in significant degradation of the material, GMA quenching of fibres irradiated in this dose range may represent an attractive route to their functionalisation.     

A method for C(alpha) direct-detection in protonless NMR

Attempts are made to efficiently decouple (13)C nuclei without significant loss of coherence during the application of the decoupling package. Such attempts are based on the S(3)E spin-state selection method. A newly developed double S(3)E (DS(3)E) is particularly efficient for C(alpha) detection for proteins as large as 480 kDa.