Multidimensional potential of boron-containing molecules in functional materials

Synthesis and Structures of Lead(II) Complexes with Hydroxy-Substituted Closo-Decaborate Anions

Mixed-ligand lead(II) complexes with 2,2′-bipyridyl and [B10H9OH]2− or monosubstituted hydroxy-substituted closo-decaborate anions with a pendant hydroxy group, separated from the boron cage by an alkoxylic spacer of different lengths [B10H9O(CH2)xO(CH2)2OH]]2− (x = 2 or 5) have been synthesized. Compounds have been characterized by IR and multinuclear NMR spectroscopies. The structures of binuclear complex [Pb(bipy)2[B10H9OH]]2·CH3CN (1·CH3CN), mononuclear complex [Pb(bipy)2[B10H9O(CH2)2O(CH2)2OH]]·0.5bipy·CH3CN (2·0.5bipy·CH3CN), and polymeric complex [Pb(bipy)[B10H9O(CH2)5O(CH2)2OH]]n (3) have been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In all three compounds, the co-ordination polyhedra of lead(II) are formed by N atoms from two bipy molecules, O atoms of the substituent attached to the boron cage, and BH groups of the boron cage.

High yielding preparation of dicarba-closo-dodecaboranes using a silver(I) mediated dehydrogenative alkyne-insertion reaction

The synthesis of 1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaboranes (ortho-carboranes) is often low yielding which is a critical issue given the increasing use of boron clusters in material science and medicinal chemistry. To address this barrier, a series of Cu, Ag, and Au salts were screened to identify compounds that would enhance the yields of ortho-caboranes produced when treating alkynes with B10H12(CH3CN)2. Using a variety of functionalized ligands including mono- and polyfunctional internal and terminal alkynes, significant increases in yield were observed when AgNO3 was used in catalytic amounts. AgNO3 appears to prevent unwanted reduction/hydroboration of the alkyne prior to carborane formation, and the process is compatible with aryl, halo, hydroxy, nitrile, carbamate, and carbonyl functionalized alkynes.

Density functional theoretical investigation of the aromatic nature of BN substituted benzene and four ring polyaromatic hydrocarbons

We have studied the topological and local aromaticity of BN-substituted benzene, pyrene, chrysene, triphenylene and tetracene molecules. The nucleus-independent chemical shielding (NICS), harmonic oscillator model of aromaticity (HOMA), para-delocalization index (PDI) and aromatic fluctuation index (FLU) have been calculated to quantify aromaticity in terms of magnetic and structural criteria. We find that charge separations due to the introduction of heteroatoms largely affect both the local and topological aromaticity of these molecules. Our studies show that the presence of any kind of heteroatom in the ring not only reduces the local delocalization in the six membered ring, but also affects strongly the topological aromaticity. In fact, the relative orders of the topological and local aromaticity depend strongly on the position of the heteroatoms in the structure. In general, more ring shared BN containing molecules are less aromatic than the less ring shared BN molecules. In addition our results provide evidence that the structural stability of the molecule is dominated by the σ bond rather than the π bond.

Nanoscale materials for tackling brain cancer: recent progress and outlook

This article reports on recent progress in the development of advanced nanoscale photoreactive, magnetic and multifunctional materials applicable to brain cancer diagnostics, imaging, and therapy, with an emphasis on the latest contributions and the novelty of the approach, along with the most promising emergent trends.