A PROXYL-Type Norbornene Polymer for High-Voltage Cathodes in Lithium Batteries

A newly designed radical polymer with a polynorbornene backbone and unsaturated derivative of tetramethylpyrrolidine 1-oxyl (PROXYL) as pendant groups displays reversible redox at 3.75 V (vs Li/Li⁺ ). The robust polymer design enables the high voltage while maintaining a promising cyclability (over 1000 cycles). The polymer is also beneficial as an additive to the regular lithium iron phosphate electrodes, where the quickly responding organic material facilitates the charging reactions catalytically.

TEMPO-Substituted Poly(ethylene sulfide) for Solid-State Electro-Chemical Charge Storage

A poly(ethylene sulfide) backbone is introduced as the main chain of a radical polymer. Anionic ring-opening polymerization of an episulfide monomer substituted with 2,2,6,6tetramethylpiperidin1oxyl (TEMPO), a robust nitroxide radical, yields the corresponding polythioether. Compared to the traditional poly(ethylene oxide) backbone, the new polymer shows a lower glass transition temperature (-10 °C), and about threefold higher solid-state ionic conductivity. The polythioether is also shown to improve the charge/discharge properties of a cathode in solid-state lithium-ion batteries.

Solubility of poly(methyl methacrylate) in ionic liquids in relation to solvent parameters

The solubility of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) in 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium ionic liquids (ILs) with different anionic structures has been explored. Nearly monodisperse PMMA-grafted silica nanoparticles (PMMA-g-NPs) were used as a measurement probe for evaluating the PMMA solubility in ILs. The hydrodynamic radius (Rh) of PMMA-g-NPs was measured in the ILs by dynamic light scattering (DLS). Changes in Rh and colloidal stability, that is, the PMMA-solubility change in the ILs, were observed depending on the ionic structures of the ILs. The solubility was mainly affected by the anionic structures of the ILs rather than by the alkyl chain length of the cationic structure. Solvent parameters, including Lewis basicity, solubility parameters, and a hydrophobicity parameter, were used to discuss the change in the PMMA solubility in ILs with different ionic structures. By considering the PMMA solubility in the ILs using these parameters, it was found that there is a good correlation between the PMMA solubility and the hydrophobicity parameter of the anions. Although the change in the PMMA solubility with different cationic structures was not remarkable, the hydrophobicity of the cations also played a role in the solvation of PMMA by providing a low-polarity environment adequate to dissolve PMMA.

Highly diastereoselective 1,4-addition of an organocuprate to methyl alpha-D-gluco-, alpha-D-manno-, or alpha-D-galactopyranosides tethering an alpha,beta-unsaturated ester. Novel asymmetric access to beta-C-substituted butanoic acids

The 1,4-addition of magnesium divinylcuprate prepared from vinylmagnesium bromide and cuprous bromide to some 4-O-crotonyl derivatives of methyl alpha-D-glucopyranoside proceeds with a high level of diastereochemical induction, providing the adduct in good-to-excellent yields. Other organocuprates also serve as effective carbon nucleophiles for the 1,4-addition. Removal of the carbohydrate moiety from each adduct afforded a variety of beta-C-substituted butanoic esters in remarkable enantiomeric excess. The 1,4-addition of the same cuprate to some methyl alpha-D-manno- or alpha-D-galactopyranosidic substrates in which a crotonyl group was incorporated, each at 3-OH, was also investigated. The reverse pi-facial attack of the cuprate was observed when some D-manno-type substrates were subjected to 1,4-addition conditions similar to those used for the D-gluco-type substrates. Furthermore, some D-galacto-type substrates provided 1,4-adducts with higher diastereoselectivities.

ATP-independent fatty acyl-coenzyme A synthesis from phospholipid: coenzyme A-dependent transacylation activity toward lysophosphatidic acid catalyzed by acyl-coenzyme A:lysophosphatidic acid acyltransferase

CoA-dependent transacylation activity in microsomes is known to catalyze the transfer of fatty acids between phospholipids and lysophospholipids in the presence of CoA without the generation of free fatty acids. We previously found a novel acyl-CoA synthetic pathway, ATP-independent acyl-CoA synthesis from phospholipids. We proposed that: 1) the ATP-independent acyl-CoA synthesis is due to the reverse reaction of acyl-CoA:lysophospholipid acyltransferases and 2) the reverse and forward reactions of acyltransferases can combine to form a CoA-dependent transacylation system. To test these proposals, we examined whether or not recombinant mouse acyl-CoA:1-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate (lysophosphatidic acid, LPA) acyltransferase (LPAAT) could catalyze ATP-independent acyl-CoA synthetic activity and CoA-dependent transacylation activity. ATP-independent acyl-CoA synthesis was indeed found in the membrane fraction from Escherichia coli cells expressing mouse LPAAT, whereas negligible activity was observed in mock-transfected cells. Phosphatidic acid (PA), but not free fatty acids, served as an acyl donor for the reaction, and LPA was formed from PA in a CoA-dependent manner during acyl-CoA synthesis. These results indicate that the ATP-independent acyl-CoA synthesis was due to the reverse reaction of LPAAT. In addition, bacterial membranes containing LPAAT catalyzed CoA-dependent acylation of LPA; PA but not free fatty acid served as an acyl donor. These results indicate that the CoA-dependent transacylation of LPA consists of 1) acyl-CoA synthesis from PA through the reverse action of LPAAT and 2) the transfer of the fatty acyl moiety of the newly formed acyl-CoA to LPA through the forward reaction of LPAAT.

Determination of peptides by high-performance liquid chromatography with laser-induced fluorescence detection

Peptides were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with laser-induced fluorescence detection. Detection was based on pre-column fluorescence derivatization of peptides with 4-fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole (NBD-F) in acetonitrile (MeCN)-0.1 M borate buffer (pH 8.0) at 40 degrees C for 10 min. The peptide derivatives were separated on a reversed-phase column with trifluoroacetic acid-MeCN and determined fluorometrically at 530 nm with excitation at 470 nm. The method was applied to the determination of enkephalins in rat brain and to a degradation study of bradykinin in human plasma. Optimization of the reaction conditions and the use of a semi-micro-column (100 x 2 mm I.D., 2 microns) made the detection limit of the peptides as low as 5-10 fmol. The detection limits of enkephalin and bradykinin were 20 and 5 fmol, respectively, using HPLC with laser-induced fluorescence detection. The method was sensitive enough to permit the quantitative determination of opioid peptides and bradykinin in tissue and plasma samples.

Inhibition of UDP-glucuronosyltransferase activity by fatty acyl-CoA. Kinetic studies and structure-activity relationship

We previously identified and purified UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) isoforms as targets of protein acylation from rat liver microsomes (Yamashita et al., Biochem J 312: 301-308, 1995). The acylation of UGT isoforms occurred upon incubation with acyl-CoA without another protein acyltransferase, suggesting that it was autoacylation. The study revealed the interaction of UGT isoforms with acyl-CoA. In the present study, the effects of fatty acyl-CoA on UGT activities were examined thoroughly, using a rat liver microsomal and purified enzyme fractions. The UGT activities of both fractions were inhibited by acyl-CoA in a concentration-dependent manner. The effect of acyl-CoA was observed on the activities toward various substrates, suggesting that the effect shows the wide spectrum of the isoforms of UGT. To assess the mechanism underlying the inhibition of UGT activity by acyl-CoA, the relationship of the inhibition, acyl-CoA binding to the proteins, and changes in the tertiary structure of the enzyme were examined. The kinetics of these phenomena were related closely with each other. Furthermore, the inhibition of UGT activity was specified for acyl-CoA, though a structurally related compound, acyl-3-dephosphoCoA, had no inhibitory effect. The results suggested that the specific binding of acyl-CoA to UGT isoforms induced conformational changes of the enzymes and resultant inhibition of UGT activity.

Genomic organization of the Klebsiella pneumoniae cps region responsible for serotype K2 capsular polysaccharide synthesis in the virulent strain Chedid

The genomic organization of the chromosomal cps region that is responsible for capsular polysaccharide synthesis in Klebsiella pneumoniae Chedid (O1:K2) was investigated. Deletion analyses and Southern hybridization studies suggested that the central region of the cloned 29-kb BamHI fragment is indispensable for K2 capsular polysaccharide synthesis. The 24,329-bp nucleotide sequence of the Klebsiella cps region was determined and deposited in the EMBL and GenBank databases through DDBJ and assigned accession number D21242. Nineteen possible open reading frames (ORFs) were identified in the sequenced area. Among them, 13 ORFs are very close to each other. Six of the 19 ORFs show considerable nucleotide sequence similarities to Salmonella typhimurium cpsG, cpsB, rfbP, and orf2.8, Escherichia coli gnd, and Haemophilus influenzae bexD, respectively. Moreover, the deduced amino acid sequence of the ORF10 product demonstrated a highly hydrophobic profile and showed putative membrane topology similarity to Rickettsia prowazekii ATP/ADP translocase. Nucleotide sequence similar to the sigma 54-dependent promoter, as well as the usual -35 and -10 sequences, were identified just upstream of ORF3, which is the first ORF in the polycistronic structure. Furthermore, a sequence (GGGCGGTAGCGT) found just downstream of the sigma 54-dependent promoter-like sequence was generally conserved among gene clusters implicated in cell surface polysaccharide synthesis, such as Salmonella rfb and viaB and E. coli kpsMT and rfaQPG. A possible transcriptional terminator with a hairpin loop structure found just downstream of ORF15 that is a homolog of E. coli gnd. K2 capsular polsaccharide biosynthesis in E. coli K-12 depends on cpsB (mannose-1-phosphate guanyltransferase gene), and Klebsiella cpsB, found in the downstream region of the polycistronic structure, was able to complement cpsB of E. coli. Results of transposon insertion and promoter-cloning analyses were consistent with the results of nucleotide sequence analysis.