RSC Advances Blog

Scientists from China have identified and characterised the elusive gold(I) hydrates that result from the common gold(I) pre-catalyst Ph₃PAuOTf.

Gold(I) complexes have been the subject of a great deal of attention in recent year due to their application in a broad range of chemical reactions and their excellent catalytic activity.  Their advantages over some other metal catalysts includes their insensitivity to moisture, therefore not requiring a completely ‘dry’ reaction environment and instead can even be used in reactions with water as the solvent. 

Amongst some of the ambiguous aspects of the catalytic species actually involved in these transformations, the exact role of water, and whether it reacts with the gold complexes, is uncertain.  This is important in order to gauge the impact water has on the catalytic activity and the turnover frequency.  In this work, Biao Yu and Yu Tang from the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, China, identified two gold(I) hydrates from the Ph₃PAuOTf pre-catalyst – [Ph₃PAu(OH₂)]⁺TfO⁻and [(Ph₃PAu)₂(OH)₂]²⁺(TfO⁻)₂, resulting in the disclosure of the equilibria between gold oxo species in wet solutions.  The results presented here help to explain further the stability of some gold complexes in water and the instability of others.

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Identification of (phosphine)gold(I) hydrates and their equilibria in wet solutions, Yu Tang and Biao Yu, RSC Adv., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2RA22282E

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This review article by Jean-Jacques Vasseur, François Morvan, Yann Chevolot and colleagues from France looks at the design and applications of DNA glycoclusters and DNA-based carbohydrate microarrays, combining the automated chemistry of DNA and “click” chemistry. 

The authors illustrate that DNA chemistry (phosphoramidite as well as H-phosphonate) can be used to synthesis glycomimetics via a very efficient copper(I) catalyzed azide alkyne cycloaddition (“click” chemistry). This gives quick access to a range of glycomimetics with different topologies, such as linear and crown-like.  Due to the DNA tag present, the glycomimetics can easily be immobilized on microarrays to analyse their interactions and binding-properties with lectins.  The authors demonstrate that DNA glycoarrays relying on DNA directed immobilization presents several advantages over conventional immobilization techniques.

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DNA glycoclusters and DNA-based carbohydrate microarrays: From design to applications, François Morvan, Sébastien Vidal, Eliane Souteyrand, Yann Chevolot and Jean-Jacques Vasseur, RSC Adv., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2RA21550K

This article is part of a web-themed issue accross RSC Advances, ChemComm and Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry ‘Nucleic acids: new life, new materials‘ dedicated to the memory of Professor Har Gobind Khorana (1922 – 2011), acknowledging his legacy to the nucleic acids community.  Read the collection so far here.

A straightforward route to synthesize pyrrolylBODIPY dyes, which can be used for fluorescent imaging, from acid chloride and excess pyrrole has been developed by scientists in China.

Pyrrolyldipyrromethenes contain the same core structure as the natural red pigment prodigiosin, and have received a lot of interest due to their broad range of biological activities.  When pyrrolyldipyrromethene is complexed with boron, the result is long wavelength absorbing and emitting fluorescent dyes.  In the synthesis of these dyes, the key step is the synthesis of the 2,2′-bipyrrole unit which often involves multiple steps and the use of expensive catalysts.

In this work, Erhong Hao, Lijuan Jiao and colleagues from Anhui Normal University, China, report that by reacting acyl chloride and excess pyrrole in dichloromethane under an oxygen atmosphere, to give the pyrrolylBODIPY dyes after about 10 hours. The application of these dyes to the fluorescent imaging of living-cells was then tested and the results suggested that the dyes were non-toxic and could easily be taken up by the cells. 

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One-pot efficient synthesis of pyrrolylBODIPY dyes from pyrrole and acyl chloride, Min Zhang, Erhong Hao, Yajun Xu, Shengzhou Zhang, Hongnian Zhu, Qi Wang, Changjiang Yu and Lijuan Jiao, RSC Adv., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2RA22203E

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There has recently been a lot of effort devoted to developing scaffolds that can mimic naturally occurring microenvironments to promote tissue regeneration.  These scaffolds need to provide not only a three-dimensional (3D) structural support but also nanotextured surfaces which comprise of a fibrous network for cell adhesion and signaling.

In this review article Shang-Tian Yang and colleagues from The Ohio State University, USA , look at the influence of 3D microstructures and nanotopographies on cellular functions – cell adhesion, proliferation, morphogenesis and differentiation.  The authors then discuss the recent developments in fabrication methods to produce 3D fibrous scaffolds and examples of their applications.

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Three-dimensional fibrous scaffolds with microstructures and nanotextures for tissue engineering, Robin Ng, Ru Zang, Kevin K. Yang, Ning Liu and Shang-Tian Yang, RSC Adv., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2RA21085A

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Hydrophobin proteins (also known as fungal adhesion proteins) adsorbed and formed a lubricating monolayer film on a stainless steel surface.

The use of water as a lubricant in certain applications holds several advantages due to its environmentally-safe and non-toxic nature, but employing it is challenging due to its low viscosity.  In this study, scientists from Finland and Germany led by Timo Hakala looked at using hydrophobin proteins to aid water lubrication between two stainless steel surfaces. 

The protein layer that was formed on the steel significantly reduced the friction and wear on the two steel surfaces.  A higher water content in the film could be achieved by attaching a carbohydrate moiety to the protein, which resulted in a decrease in the friction and wear on the steel.  The water content could be controlled by varying the conditions. 

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Adhesion and tribological properties of hydrophobin proteins in aqueous lubrication on stainless steel surfaces, Timo J. Hakala, Päivi Laaksonen, Vesa Saikko, Tiina Ahlroos, Aino Helle, Riitta Mahlberg, Hendrik Hähl, Karin Jacobs , Petri Kuosmanen, Markus B. Linder and Kenneth Holmberg, RSC Adv., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C2RA21018E

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