Ketene-forming eliminations from C4H3(S)CH2C(O)O-C6H3-2-X-4-NO2 (1) promoted by R2NH in MeCN have been studied kinetically. The reactions are second-order and exhibit Bronsted β =0.51-0.62 and |βlg|= 0.47-0.53. Hence, an E2 mechanism is evident. The Bronsted β increased from 0.33 to 0.53 and |βlg| remained nearly the same by the change of the base-solvent from Bz(i-Pr)NH/Bz(i-Pr)NH2+ in 70 mol% MeCN(aq) to Bz(i-Pr)NH-MeCN, indicating a change to a more symmetrical transition state with similar extents of Cβ -H and Cα -OAr bond cleavage. When the β-aryl group was changed from thienyl to phenyl in MeCN, the β value increased from 0.53 to 0.73 and |βlg| decreased from 0.53 to 0.43. This indicates that the transition state became skewed toward more Cβ -H bond breaking with less Cα-OAr bond cleavage. Noteworthy is the greater double bond stabilizing ability of the thienyl group in the ketene-forming transition state.

Three different phosphonated trisbipyridine ruthenium complexes, [(4-CH3-4'-CH2PO(OH)2-2,2'-bipyridine)- (bpy)2Ru]·(PF6)2 (Ru-P1), [(4-CH3-4'-CH2PO(OH)2-2,2'-bipyridine)3Ru]·(PF6)2 (Ru-P2), and [(4,4'-CH2PO- (OH)2-2,2'-bipyridine)3Ru]·(PF6)2 (Ru-P3) were synthesized and their photochemical and electrochemical properties were studied. These ruthenium complexes were strongly adsorbed on the surface of the layered metal oxide semiconductor K4Nb6O17 that was partially acid-exchanged and sensitized up to pH 10, while the carboxylated ruthenium complex, (4,4'-COOH-2,2'-bipyridine)3Ru·Cl2 (Ru-C) that was previously studied was sensitized only below pH 4. The visible light water reduction at K4Nb6O17 that was internally platinized and sensitized by these phosphonated Ru-complexes was comparatively studied using a reversible electron donor iodide.

The objective of this study was to develop a rapid, simple, and qualitative acetylcholinesterase (AChE)- detection kit, based on a modification of the Ellman and ELISA methods, for the detection of organophosphorus (OP) and carbamate (CB) pesticide. The developed kits were used to screen a large number of agricultural samples (spiked and real) for OP and CB pesticide residues. AChE was extracted from the heads of honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) using Triton X-100, and was purified through 3 steps: diethylaminoethylcellulose chromatography (DEAE), affinity chromatography and membrane filtering, and Mono-Q column chromatography. Epoxy-activated Sepharose 6B affinity chromatography was used for large-scale purification. The presence of OP and CB pesticide residues in agricultural samples was assayed on the basis of AchE inhibition value. The presence (6 bands) or absence of some colored bands on the test line indicated a negative or positive result, respectively. The limits of detection for measured organophosphorus (OP) and carbamates (CB) pesticide residues in standard pesticide solutions and fortified samples were ranged from 0.50 to 2.50 ppm and 0.50 to 4.75 ppm, respectively.

The aminolyses of diphenyl phosphinic chloride (1) with substituted anilines in acetonitrile at 55.0 oC are investigated kinetically. Large Hammett ρ X (ρnuc = ?4.78) and Bronsted β X (βnuc = 1.69) values suggest extensive bond formation in the transition state. The primary normal kinetic isotope effects (kH/kD = 1.42-1.82) involving deuterated aniline (XC6H4ND2) nucleophiles indicate that hydrogen bonding results in partial deprotonation of the aniline nucleophile in the rate-limiting step. The faster rate of diphenyl phosphinic chloride (1) than diphenyl chlorophosphate (2) is rationalized by the large proportion of a frontside attack in the reaction of 1. These results are consistent with a concerted mechanism involving a partial frontside nucleophilic attack through a hydrogen-bonded, four-center type transition state.

Bacillus halodurans O-methyltransferase (BhOMT) is a S-adenosylmethionine (SAM or AdoMet) dependent methyltransferase. Three dimensional structure of the BhOMT bound to S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine (SAH or AdoHcy) has been determined by comparative homology modeling. BhOMT has 40% sequence identity with caffeoyl-CoA 3-O-methyltransferase (CCoAOMT) from alfalfa. Based on x-ray structure of CCoAOMT, three dimensional structure of BhOMT was determined using MODELLER. The substrate binding sites of these two proteins showed slight differences, but these differences were important to characterize the substrate of BhOMT. Automated docking study showed that four flavonoids, quercetin, fisetin, myricetin, and luteolin which have two hydroxyl groups simultaneously at 3'- and 4'-position in the B-ring and structural rigidity of Cring resulting from the double bond characters between C2 and C3, were well docked as ligands of BhOMT. These flavonoids form stable hydrogen bondings with K211, R170, and hydroxyl group at 3'-position in the Bring has stable electrostatic interaction with Ca2+ ion in BhOMT. This study will be helpful to understand the biochemical function of BhOMT as an O-methyltransferase for flavonoids.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a pathogen responsible for 2-3 million deaths every year worldwide. The emergence of drug-resistant and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis has increased the need to identify new antituberculosis targets. Acetohydroxy acid synthase, (AHAS, EC 2.2.1.6), an enzyme involved in branched-chain amino acid synthesis, has recently been identified as a potential anti-tuberculosis target. To assist in the search for new inhibitors and “receptor-based” design of effective inhibitors of tubercular AHAS (TbAHAS), we constructed four different structural models of TbAHAS and used one of the models as a target for virtual screening of potential inhibitors. The quality of each model was assessed stereochemically by PROCHECK and found to be reliable. Up to 89% of the amino acid residues in the structural models were located in the most favored regions of the Ramachandran plot, which indicates that the conformation of each residue in the models is good. In the models, residues at the herbicide-binding site were highly conserved across 39 AHAS sequences. The binding mode of TbAHAS with a sulfonylurea herbicide was characterized by 32 hydrophobic interactions, the majority of which were contributed by residue Trp516. The model based on the highest resolution X-ray structure of yeast AHAS was used as the target for virtual screening of a chemical database containing 8300 molecules with a heterocyclic ring. We developed a short list of molecules that were predicted to bind with high scores to TbAHAS in a conformation similar to that of sulfonylurea derivatives. Five sulfonylurea herbicides that were calculated to efficiently bind TbAHAS were experimentally verified and found to inhibit enzyme activity at micromolar concentrations. The data suggest that this time-saving and costeffective computational approach can be used to discover new TbAHAS inhibitors. The list of chemicals studied in this work is supplied to facilitate independent experimental verification of the computational approach.

Anchoring quantum dots (QDs) onto thermodynamically stable, large band gap oxide semiconductors is a very important strategy to enhance their quantum yields for solar energy conversion in both visible and near-IR regions. We describe a general procedure for anchoring a few chalcogenide QDs onto the titanium oxide layer. To anchor the colloidal QDs onto a mesoporous TiO2 layer, linker molecules containing both carboxylate and thiol functional groups were initially attached to TiO2 layers and subsequently used to capture dispersed QDs with the thiol group. Employing the procedure, we exploited cadmium selenide (CdSe) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) quantum dots (QDs) as inorganic sensitizers for a large band gap TiO2 layer of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Their attachment was confirmed by naked eyes, absorption spectra, and photovoltaic effects. A few QD-TiO2 systems thus obtained have been characterized for photoelectrochemical solar energy conversion.

The benzene complexes with dimethyl sulfur (DMS) and fluorinated DMS (FDMS) have been investigated using ab initio calculations. The natural bond orbital (NBO) charge population on S atom varies remarkably for different conformations of DMS and FDMS, which determines the possible binding modes for their benzene complexes. The electronegative substituent at the methyl group of DMS causes a significant change in the molecular electrostatic potential around the sulfur atom and changes the interaction mode with aromatic ring. It was found that the sulfur…π interaction mode does not occur in the DMS-benzene complex, while it does in the FDMS-benzene complex. Both B3LYP and MP2 methods provide reliable structures, while the interaction energy obtained by B3LYP is unreliable.

The spectral properties, namely the circular dichroism, electric absorption and luminescence properties, of Λ- and Δ-[Ru(II)(1,10-phenanthroline)2benzodipyrido[b:3,2-h:2',3'-j]phenazine]2+ ([Ru(phen)2BDPPZ]2+) in the presence and absence of single stranded poly(dA) and poly(dT) were compared in this work. In the presence of single stranded DNAs, hypochromism in the absorption spectrum and significant changes in the circular dichroism spectrum in the ligand absorption band were apparent, indicating the strong interaction of the [Ru(phen)2BDPPZ]2+ complex with the single stranded DNAs. The luminescence intensity of the Ru(II) complex decreased stoichiometrically with increasing concentrations of the single stranded DNAs. All of these spectral changes were independent of the configuration of the Ru(II) complex and the nature of the DNA bases. Therefore, it is conceivable that both enantiomers of the [Ru(phen)2BDPPZ]2+ complex interact electrostatically with the negatively charged phosphate groups of DNA. However, the spectral properties of [Ru(II)(1,10-phenanthroline)3]2+ were not altered even in the presence of single stranded DNAs. Therefore, the size of the ligand involved in the interaction of the metal complex with the phosphate group of DNA may play an important role, even when the nature of the interaction is electrostatic.

For the development of novel hepatoprotective agents, C11, C28, C2,3,23 or C2,23,28 functional groups on asiatic acid were modified, and their hepatoprotective effects were evaluated. Most of the prepared compounds displayed potent hepatoprotective activities against CCl4- and galactosamine (GaIN)-induced hepatotoxicity. Especially, compounds 16 and 20 showed the most significant hepatoprotective effects against GaIN-induced hepatotoxicity (54.2% and 46.4% protection at 50 mM, respectively).

For the development of novel hepatoprotective agents, C2, C3, C23 and C28 functional groups on asiatic acid were modified, and the prepared compounds were evaluated for their hepatoprotective effects. Among the prepared compounds, 9, 13 and 16 showed significant hepatoprotective activities against CCl4- and galactosamine (GaIN)-induced hepatotoxicity. Especially, compound 9 showed the most significant hepatoprotective effects against GaIN-induced hepatotoxicity (66.4% protection at 50 μM) and moderate hepatoprotective activities against CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity (20.7% protection at 50 μM).

Azobenzene-cored dendrons having the photoisomerizable azobenzene core and terminal vinyl groups have been prepared. Absorption bands of azobenzene-cored dendrons are similar except more intense 280 nm band in higher generation azobenzene dendron. All three azobenzene-cored dendrons show reversible photoisomerization similar to simple azobenzene, irrespective of the generation of dendron. On 350 nm irradiation, absorption band around 344 nm decreases and 436 nm band increases. Photoisomerization reactions are very fast for all three azobenzene-cored dendron and the reaction efficiency is dependent of its generation and solvent. In the dark, slow thermal reversion to original absorption spectrum is observed.

Bioassay-guided fractionation of the MeOH extract from the sponge Discodermia calyx collected off the coast of Jeju Island, South Korea, led to the isolation of a polyketide, icadamide C (1), along with previously reported theopederin K (3). Structure elucidation was performed by a combination of high resolution mass and 2D-NMR (principally COSY, HMBC, HSQC, and NOESY) spectroscopy. Stereochemistry of compound 1 was determined as 2R*, 3R*, 6R*, 10S*, 11S*, 12R*, 13S*, 15R* and 2'S by NMR data and Marfey analysis. Isolated metabolites displayed potent cytotoxic activity against a small panel of five human solid tumor cell lines with ED50 values of less than 0.1 μg/mL.

Pentacene moiety has been widely studied in Organic Thin-Film Transistor (OTFT) device as a channel layer because of high carrier mobility. In this study, we have fabricated vertical type Organic Static Induction Transistors (SITs) using pentacene, 6,13-Dinaphthalen-1-ly-Pentacene (1-DNP, 3), and 6,13-Dinaphthalen-2- ly-Pentacene (2-DNP, 4). 1-DNP and 2-DNP have same naphtyl group with pentacene, but different linked position and spatial arrangement. We have checked the static characteristics of materials in vertical type SITs device. We found that pentacene has as on/off ratio of 14.56, 1-DNP and 2-DNP shows as on/off ratio of 36.58 and 6.61 at VDS = 2V in SIT, respectively.

Spherical porous silica supports modified with titanium or zirconium alkoxides were prepared, and allyl groups were chemically attached to the titanized or zirconized silica supports, and the product was cross-polymerized with a double bond containing cellulose derivative to yield new CSPs (chiral stationary phases). Magic angle spinning 13C solid state NMR and elemental analysis were used to characterize the CSPs. The performances of the chiral stationary phases were examined in comparison with a conventional chiral stationary phase. Spherical porous silica particles modified with 3,5-dimethylphenylcarbamate of cellulose were prepared and used as the conventional chiral stationary phase. Chromatographic data were collected for a few pairs of enantionmers in heptane/2-propanol mixed solvents of various compositions with the three chiral columns and the results were comparatively studied. The separation performance of the chrial phase made of the titanized silica was better than the others, and the separation performance of the chiral phase of the zirconized silica was comparable to that of the conventional chiral phase. The superiority of titanized silica over bare or zirconized silica in chiral separation seemed to be owing to the better yield of crosslinking (monitored by increase of carbon load) for titanized silica than for the others.

Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) is a potent chemoattractant for leukocytes and considered to be an inflammatory mediator. Human BLT2 (hBLT2) is a low-affinity G-protein coupled receptor for LTB4 and mediates pertussis toxin-sensitive chemotactic cell movement. Here, we dissected the interaction between hBLT2 and G-protein alpha subunits using GST fusion proteins containing intracellular regions of hBLT2 and various Gα protein including Gα i1, Gα i2, Gα i3, Gα s1, Gα o1, and Gα z. Among the tested Gα subunits, Gα i3 showed the highest binding to the third intracellular loop region of hBLT2 with a dissociation constant (KD) of 5.0 × 10?6 M. These results suggest that Gα i3 has the highest affinity to hBLT2, and the third intracellular loop region of hBLT2 is the major component for the interaction with Gα i3.

M1 RNA is the catalytic component of RNase P, a tRNA-processing enzyme in Escherichia coli. M1 RNA is produced in the cell by transcription of the rnpB gene and subsequent processing at the 3' end. The 3' flanking region of rnpB contains repeated sets of overlapping sequences coding for small proteins. The issue of whether these proteins are expressed remains to be established. In this study, we showed the expression of a small protein encoded by the first repeat within the 3' flanking region of rnpB. Interestingly, protein expression was increased at lower temperatures. The termination efficiency of rnpB terminators was decreased at lower temperatures, suggesting that antitermination is responsible for enhanced protein expression. Moreover, the purified small protein contained M1 RNA, implying a role as a specific RNA-binding protein.

A simple approach to prepare arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles by using Au-loaded block copolymers as templates combined with a sol-gel process is described. The organic-inorganic hybrid films with closely packed inorganic nanodomains in organic matrix are produced by spin coating the mixtures of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO)/HAuCl4 solution and sol-gel precursor solution. After removal of the organic matrix with deep UV irradiation, arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles with different compositions or particle sizes can be easily produced. Different photoluminescence (PL) emission spectra from an organic-inorganic hybrid film and arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles indicate that TiO2 and Au components exist as separate state in the initial hybrid film and form composite nanoparticles after the removal of the block copolymer matrix.

The effects of the creamide III (CER3) and cholesterol (CHOL) on the structure of a non-hydrous distearoyl phosphatidylcholine (DSPC)-based lamellar liquid crystal (LC) hydrated by only propylene glycol (PG) without water were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffractions (XRDs), and polarized microscope (PM). As soon as CER3 was incorporated into the lamellar phase, the characteristic LPP was appeared as well as the characteristic SPP, and the formation of separated CER3 crystalline phase was observed depending upon the increase of CER3 content by XRDs. Also, by DSC, it was shown that the increase of CER3 made the monotectic thermal transition be changed to the eutectic thermal transition which indicates the formation of separated CER3 crystalline phases and the main transition temperatures (Tc1) to be gradually decreased and the enthalpy change (ΔH) to be linearly increased. Incorporating CHOL, the formation of LPP and SPP showed almost similar behaviors to CER3, but incorporating small amounts of CHOL showed the characteristic peaks of CHOL which meant the existence of crystalline CHOL phase due to the immiscibility of CHOL with DSPC swollen by PG differently from CER3, and increasing CHOL made the intensity of the 1st order diffraction for LPP weakened as well as the intensities of the characteristic diffractions for DSPC. Also, in the results of DSC, it showed more complex thermal behaviors having several Tc than CER3 due to its bulky chemical structure. In the present study, the inducement of CER3 and CHOL as other lipids present in human stratum corneum (SC) into a non-hydrous lamellar phase is discussed in terms of the influence on their structural and thermal transition.

The R- and Z-substituent effects for the gas-phase thermal decompositions of carbamates, R2NC(=O)- OCH2CH2Z, have been investigated theoretically at B3LYP level with 6-31G(d) and 6-31++G(d,p) basis sets. Both the Z- and R-substituent effects on reactivity (ΔH≠) were well consistent with experimental results, although the R-substituent effect was underestimated theoretically. No correlations were found between activation enthalpies and reaction enthalpies. The substituent effects on reactivity seemed to be complicated at a glance, but were understandable by concurrent electronic and steric factors. Variations of bond lengths at TS structures were well correlated with the Taft's σ* values and the TS structures became tighter as the Zsubstituent became a stronger electron-acceptor (δσ* > 0). However the effects of R-substituents on the TS structures were much smaller when compared to those of Z-substituents.