Ether Precipitation Research Articles

Noncovalent Protection for Direct Synthesis of α-Amino-ω-hydroxyl Poly(ethylene oxide)

The synthesis of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with amino end group, a key functionality for PEGylation, is a long-standing challenge. Multistep routes based on postmodification or covalent protection have been adopted to circumvent ethoxylation of the amino group by ethylene oxide (EO). Here, we report a noncovalent protection strategy for one-step synthesis of PEO amine. An amino (di)alcohol is mixed with a small amount of mild phosphazene base and excess triethylborane (Et3B) before addition of EO. The complexation of the amino group with Et3B guarantees that polymerization of EO occurs selectively from the hydroxyl group through the bicomponent metal-free catalysis. Simply by precipitation in diethyl ether, the protective Et3B as well as the catalyst can be removed to afford α-amino-ω-hydroxyl PEO with controlled molar mass, low dispersity, and complete end functionality. The effect of initiator structure and retention of Et3B on the storage (oxidative) stability of PEO amine is also revealed.

53 Synthesis of a novel protein-friendly amphiphilic material and its application in protein drug delivery

Objectives We synthesized an environmentally friendly amphiphilic material PK3-PEI with good mechanical properties, pH sensitivity and biocompatibility, aiming at improving the acidic microenvironment produced by the degradation of polyester compounds and poor mechanical properties of PK3. PK3-PEI spontaneously forms micelles in pH 7.4 PBS and rapidly degrades into non-toxic small molecules in acidic conditions. Surface PEI with large positive charges effectively promotes cell targeting and accelerates the release of drug after entering the cells. Methods PK3 and PEI were linked using a connection molecule. Activation of –OH groups on PK3 (0.46 g) was accomplished using HMDI (50-fold) in chloroform at 80°C for 4 hours. The intermediate was precipitated with diethyl ether and incubated with PEI (Mw 2000 kDa, linear, 0.46 g) in chloroform at 80°C for 4 hours. PK3-PEI was collected through repeated precipitation in diethyl ether. For the preparation of PK3-PEI micelles, 100 μL of BSA solution (40 mg/mL) and 40 mg of PK3-PEI were dispersed in chloroform in dialysis bags. The PK3-PEI micelles were obtained by dialysis against pH 7.4 PBS. Results The connection ratio of PK3 and PEI was 1:1. The particle size and ζ potential of micelles were 50.3 nm and 25.7 mV, respectively.The in vitro release profile showed PK3-PEI had a shorter hydrolysis cycle and higher pH sensitivity than PK3. The MTT assay showed blank PK3-PEI micelles had lower cytotoxicity (4.6%) than free PEI (18.7%). Cellular uptake indicated PK3-PEI micelles had higher uptake efficiency than PK3 (p? Conclusions PK3-PEI micelles have a better degradation curve and targeting effect for the delivery of antitumor drugs and can be used as a promising carrier in cancer treatment.

Study on Prevalence of Fascioliasis in Ruminants in Dasht Room County in Spring and Summer of 2013

Fasciola spp is one of the liver bile ducts and gallbladder Trematodes in Ruminants. In the life cycle of the worm, snails are intermediate hosts and parasitic infection is happened by eating aquatic vegetables contaminated with Metacercaria. Humans also can be infected with this worm. Thus, Finding the contaminated villages where high infection in animals is reported, can help to control diseases. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of Fascioliasis in Ruminants in 2013 in Dasht Room area, a rural district in Yasuj prevalence. This cross - sectional study, a total of 600 stool samples from Ruminants, including sheep, goat and cattle were collected from six villages in Dasht Room region. The stool samples were transported to the Parasitology laboratory and tested by standard Acid - Ether precipitation method (Thelman method). Sediments were studied with an optical microscope at magnifications of ×10. 174 out of 600 stool samples (29%) were positive for Fasciola spp eggs, including 63 sheep (26/03%), 40 goats (23/3%) and 71 cattle (37/9%), respectively. Significant differences between the infection rates of live stocks were not observed in spring and summer season. The most contamination was observed in cattle and the least in goat. Statistically significant difference was observed between them in summer season (P <0/05). Considering to high contamination in the present study (29%), Dasht Room County is a high risk area for Fasciolosis in Ruminants.

2-Methoxy-4-methylsulfinylbenzyl: a backbone amide safety-catch protecting group for the synthesis and purification of difficult peptide sequences.

The use of 2-methoxy-4-methylsulfinylbenzyl (Mmsb) as a new backbone amide-protecting group that acts as a safety-catch structure is proposed. Mmsb, which is stable during the elongation of the sequence and trifluoroacetic acid-mediated cleavage from the resin, improves the synthetic process as well as the properties of the quasi-unprotected peptide. Mmsb offers the possibility of purifying and characterizing complex peptide sequences, and renders the target peptide after NH4 I/TFA treatment and subsequent ether precipitation to remove the cleaved Mmsb moiety. First, the "difficult peptide" sequence H-(Ala)10-NH2 was selected as a model to optimize the new protecting group strategy. Second, the complex, bioactive Ac-(RADA)4-NH2 sequence was chosen to validate this methodology. The improvements in solid-phase peptide synthesis combined with the enhanced solubility of the quasi-unprotected peptides, as compared with standard sequences, made it possible to obtain purified Ac-(RADA)4-NH2. To extend the scope of the approach, the challenging Aβ(1-42) peptide was synthesized and purified in a similar manner. The proposed Mmsb strategy opens up the possibility of synthesizing other challenging small proteins.

ChemInform Abstract: Enantioselective Quaternization of 4‐Substituted Oxazol‐5‐(4H)‐ones Using Recoverable Cinchona‐Derived Dimeric Ammonium Salts as Phase‐Transfer Organocatalysts.

Abstract Dimeric anthracenyldimethyl-derived Cinchona ammonium salts are used as chiral organocatalysts (5 mol %) for the enantioselective 4-alkylation of 4-substituted azlactones. The corresponding adducts bearing a new quaternary center were obtained with up to 80% ee when using a dimeric ammonium salt derived from cinchonidine, and are precursors of α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids. The catalysts can be recovered almost quantitatively by precipitation in ether and reused without loss of activity.

Enantioselective quaternization of 4-substituted oxazol-5-(4H)-ones using recoverable Cinchona-derived dimeric ammonium salts as phase-transfer organocatalysts

Dimeric anthracenyldimethyl-derived Cinchona ammonium salts are used as chiral organocatalysts (5mol%) for the enantioselective 4-alkylation of 4-substituted azlactones. The corresponding adducts bearing a new quaternary center were obtained with up to 80% ee when using a dimeric ammonium salt derived from cinchonidine, and are precursors of α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids. The catalysts can be recovered almost quantitatively by precipitation in ether and reused without loss of activity.

Preparation of amphiphilic poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐polystyrene macrocycles via glaser coupling reaction under CuBr/pyridine system

AbstractThe amphiphilic cyclic poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐polystyrene [c‐(PEO‐b‐PS)] was synthesized by cyclization of propargyl‐telechelic poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐polystyrene‐block‐poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO‐b‐PS‐b‐PEO) via the Glaser coupling. The hydroxyl‐telechelic ABA triblock PEO‐b‐PS‐b‐PEO was first prepared by successive living anionic polymerization of styrene and ring‐opening polymerization of ethylene oxide, and then the hydroxyl ends were reacted with propargyl bromide to obtain linear precursors with propargyl terminals. Finally, the intramolecular cyclization was conducted in pyridine under high dilution by Glaser coupling of propargyl ends in the presence of CuBr under ambient temperature, and the c‐(PEO‐b‐PS) was directly obtained by precipitation in petroleum ether with high efficiency. The cyclic products and their corresponding linear precursor PEO‐b‐PS‐b‐PEO were characterized by means of GPC, 1H NMR, and FTIR. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011

Simple Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using Poly-β-amino Esters As the Non-viral Gene Delivery System

Reprogramming of somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be achieved by the delivery of a combination of transcription factors, including Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc. Retroviral and lentiviral vectors are commonly used to express these four reprogramming factors separately and obtain reprogrammed iPS cells. Although efficient and reproducible, these approaches involve the time-consuming and labor-intensive production of retroviral or lentiviral particles together with a high risk of working with potentially harmful viruses overexpressing potent oncogenes, such as c-Myc. Here, we describe a simple method to produce bona fide iPS cells from human fibroblasts using poly-β-amino esters as the transfection reagent for the delivery of a single CAG-driven polycistronic plasmid expressing Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Myc, and a GFP reporter gene (OSKMG). We demonstrate for the first time that poly-β-amino esters can be used to deliver a single polycistronic reprogramming vector into human fibroblasts, achieving significantly higher transfection efficiency than with conventional transfection reagents. After a protocol of serial transfections using poly-β-amino esters, we report a simple methodology to generate human iPS cells from human fibroblasts avoiding the use of viral vectors.

Recoverable Cinchona ammonium salts as organocatalysts in the enantioselective Michael addition of β-keto esters

Several dimeric Cinchona-alkaloid anthracenyldimethyl-derived ammonium salts, are used as organocatalysts in the enantioselective Michael addition reaction of cyclic β-keto esters to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds, in the presence of diisopropylethylamine as a base (30 mol %), for the generation of enantiomerically enriched adducts bearing quaternary stereocenters. Quinine and quinidine-derived dimeric ammonium salts (1–10 mol %) afford the opposite and higher enantioselectivities of the corresponding adducts (up to 94% ee) in good yields (up to 98%). Substituted 2-alkoxycarbonyl-1-indanones are used as nucleophile precursors, as well as ethyl 2-oxocyclopentanecarboxylate and tert-butyl 2,5-dioxo-1-phenylpyrrolidine-3-carboxylate. These organocatalysts can be recovered at the end of the reaction by precipitation in ether and reused without any loss of activity.

Enantioselective Michael reaction of β-keto esters organocatalyzed by recoverable Cinchona-derived dimeric ammonium salts

Dimeric anthracenyldimethyl-derived Cinchona ammonium salts are used as chiral organocatalysts in 1–10 mol % for the enantioselective conjugate addition of 2-alkoxycarbonyl-1-indanones to β-unsubstituted Michael acceptors. The corresponding adducts bearing a new all-carbon quaternary center were usually obtained in high yield and with up to 94% ee when using ammonium salts derived from quinidine and its pseudoenantiomer quinine as organocatalysts. These catalysts can be almost recovered quantitatively by precipitation in ether and reused.

Targeting Glioma Cells in Vitro with Ascorbate-Conjugated Pharmaceutical Nanocarriers

6-Ascorbate-PEG-1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (6-ascorbate-PEG-PE) was synthesized according to a two-step procedure: (1) activation of ascorbic acid with bromine, and (2) synthesis of 6-ascorbate-PEG-PE by reacting 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N-[amino (poly(ethylene glycol))-2000] with an excess of 6-Br-ascorbic acid. The 6-ascorbate-PEG-PE was recovered by precipitation in diethyl ether and purified by gel permeation chromatography. The analysis of the product by 1H NMR and UV-vis spectroscopy confirmed the identity of the conjugate. Liposomes and PEG-PE-based lipid-core micelles were prepared by thin film hydration technique incorporating 6-ascorbate-PEG-PE as targeting moiety. The targeting properties of the ascorbate-decorated nanosystems were tested by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis and fluorescent microscopy on a panel of tumor cell lines preliminary selected for their ability to express the SVCT2 ascorbate transporter. Cell lines had been selected on the basis of the immunological properties assessed by FACS, which showed that two glioma cell lines, C6 and F98, and fibroblasts NIH/3T3 express plasma membrane-associated SVCT2 transporter for reduced ascorbic acid. Ascorbate-decorated pharmaceutical nanocarriers were endowed with selective targeting properties toward the SVCT2 transporter expressed in glioma cell models. This study shows that SVCT2 transporter for ascorbic acid expressed both in peculiar epithelial cells of the choroid plexus responsible for the filtering of vitamin C into the central nervous system (CNS) and, in some brain tumor cell lines, can be conceivably exploited as a potential target for delivery of drug-loaded pharmaceutical nanocarriers to the brain.

Structural and Biochemical Characterization of the Oxidoreductase NmDsbA3 from Neisseria meningitidis

DsbA is an enzyme found in the periplasm of Gram-negative bacteria that catalyzes the formation of disulfide bonds in a diverse array of protein substrates, many of which are involved in bacterial pathogenesis. Although most bacteria possess only a single essential DsbA, Neisseria meningitidis is unusual in that it possesses three DsbAs, although the reason for this additional redundancy is unclear. Two of these N. meningitidis enzymes (NmDsbA1 and NmDsbA2) play an important role in meningococcal attachment to human epithelial cells, whereas NmDsbA3 is considered to have a narrow substrate repertoire. To begin to address the role of DsbAs in the pathogenesis of N. meningitidis, we have determined the structure of NmDsbA3 to 2.3-A resolution. Although the sequence identity between NmDsbA3 and other DsbAs is low, the NmDsbA3 structure adopted a DsbA-like fold. Consistent with this finding, we demonstrated that NmDsbA3 acts as a thiol-disulfide oxidoreductase in vitro and is reoxidized by Escherichia coli DsbB (EcDsbB). However, pronounced differences in the structures between DsbA3 and EcDsbA, which are clustered around the active site of the enzyme, suggested a structural basis for the unusual substrate specificity that is observed for NmDsbA3.

Simultaneous Post-cysteine(S-Acm) Group Removal Quenching of Iodine and Isolation of Peptide by One Step Ether Precipitation

The S-acetamidomethyl (Acm) protecting group is widely used in the chemical synthesis of peptides that contain one or more disulfide bonds. Treatment of peptides containing S-Acm protecting group with iodine results in simultaneous removal of the sulfhydryl protecting group and disulfide formation. However, the excess iodine needs to be quenched or adsorbed as quickly as possible after completion of the disulfide bond formation in order to minimize side reactions that are often associated with the iodination step. We report a simple method for simultaneous post-cysteine (Acm) group removal quenching of iodination and isolation. Use of large volumes of diethyl ether for direct precipitation action of the oxidized peptide from the 90 or 95% aqueous acetic acid solution affords nearly quantitative recovery of largely iodine-free peptide ready for direct purification. It was successfully applied to the synthesis of various peptides including human insulin-like peptide 3 analogues. Although recovery yields were comparable to the traditionally used ascorbic acid quenching method, this new approach offers significant advantages such as more simple utility, minimal side reactions, and greater cost effectiveness.

Synthesis of methacrylate derivatives oligomers by dithiobenzoate‐RAFT‐mediated polymerization

AbstractReversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) was used to synthesize methacrylic acid oligomers and oligo(methacrylic acid)‐b‐poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMAA‐b‐PMMA) with targeted degree of polymerization ≈ 10. Characterization is by size‐exclusion chromatography (SEC) and electrospray mass‐spectrometry. SEC data are presented as hydrodynamic volume distributions (HVDs), the only proper means to present comparative and meaningful SEC data when there is no unique relationship between size and molecular weight. The RAFT agent, (4‐cyanopentanoic acid)‐4‐dithiobenzoate (CPADB), produced dithiobenzoic acid as a side product during the polymerization of methacrylate derivatives. Precipitation in diethyl ether proved to be an easy way to remove this impurity from the PMAA‐RAFT oligomers. Both unpurified and purified macro‐RAFT agent were used to prepare amphiphilic PMAA‐b‐PMMA copolymers. Diblock copolymer prepared from the purified PMAA homopolymer had a narrower HVD in comparison to those obtained from the equivalent unpurified macro‐RAFT agent. This work shows that while cyanoisopropyl‐dithiobenzoate or CPADB are good RAFT agents for methacrylate derivatives, they exhibit some instability under typical polymerization conditions, and thus when oligomers are targeted, optimal control requires checking for the degradation product and appropriate purification steps when necessary (the same effect is present for larger polymers but is unimportant). © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 2277–2289, 2008

Determination of the Substrate Specificity of Tripeptidyl-peptidase I Using Combinatorial Peptide Libraries and Development of Improved Fluorogenic Substrates

Classical late-infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis is a fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by mutations in CLN2, the gene encoding the lysosomal protease tripeptidyl-peptidase I (TPP I). The natural substrates for TPP I and the pathophysiological processes associated with lysosomal storage and disease progression are not well understood. Detailed characterization of TPP I substrate specificity should provide insights into these issues and also aid in the development of improved clinical and biochemical assays. To this end, we constructed fluorogenic and standard combinatorial peptide libraries and analyzed them using fluorescence and mass spectrometry-based activity assays. The fluorogenic group 7-amino-4-carbamoylmethylcoumarin was incorporated into a series of 7-amino-4-carbamoylmethylcoumarin tripeptide libraries using a design strategy that allowed systematic evaluation of the P1, P2, and P3 positions. TPP I digestion of these substrates liberates the fluorescence group and results in a large increase in fluorescence that can be used to calculate kinetic parameters and to derive the substrate specificity constant kcat/KM. In addition, we implemented a mass spectrometry-based assay to measure the hydrolysis of individual peptides in peptide pools and thus expand the scope of the analysis. Nonfluorogenic tetrapeptide and pentapeptide libraries were synthesized and analyzed to evaluate P1' and P2' residues. Together, this analysis allowed us to predict the relative specificity of TPP I toward a wide range of potential biological substrates. In addition, we evaluated a variety of new fluorogenic peptides with a P3 Arg residue, and we demonstrated their superiority compared with the widely used substrate Ala-Ala-Phe-AMC for selectively measuring TPP I activity in biological specimens.

Electrosynthesis and characterization of a poly(paraphenylene) deriving from p-fluoroanisole

The electrochemical oxidation of p-fluoroanisole ( p-FA) in the solvent acetonitrile leads to oligomers and polymers of poly(paraphenylene) type. The electropolymerization process involves coupling reactions of the cation radicals intermediates. The obtained polymers are separated according to their chain length by selective precipitation in cyclohexane and ether. The corresponding structures are characterized by NMR, MS, FTIR, UV and XR diffraction. A preliminary physical study shows that the polymers are photoluminescent with a maximum emission in the near infrared.

Isarfelin, a peptide with antifungal and insecticidal activities from Isariafelina

Isarfelin, a peptide with inhibitory activity on mycelial growth in Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and insecticidal activity toward Leucania separata, was isolated from the mycelia of Isaria felina. The IC 50 value of its antifungal activity against R. solani was 3.1 μg mL −1. However, it was devoid of activity toward several bacterial species including Bacillus subtilis, E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The isolation procedure involved ethanol extraction, adsorption on YPR II macropore adsorption resin, ethyl acetate extraction, petroleum ether precipitation and recrystallization from ethyl acetate.

Extraction of oxytocin and arginine–vasopressin from serum and plasma for radioimmunoassay and surface-enhanced laser desorption–ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Oxytocin and arginine–vasopressin (AVP) are secreted into the blood in low concentrations. To analyze these peptides, we investigated two common extraction procedures, acetone–ether precipitation and C 18-SepPak columns. Recovery from both procedures approached 70–80% of the spiked amount, though the SepPak columns were more efficient. C 18-SepPak columns were used to sequentially separate oxytocin from AVP by eluting oxytocin first with 98% acetone followed by elution of AVP with 80% acetonitrile. Surface-enhanced laser desorption–ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS) was used to analyze oxytocin and AVP extracted with C 18-SepPak columns from an autistic patient’s plasma sample. We conclude that C 18-SepPaks provide more consistent and efficient peptide extraction from serum or plasma that augments both quantitative and qualitative analysis by radioimmunoassay and SELDI-TOF MS.

Solid-phase precipitation and extraction, a new separation process applied to the isolation of synthetic peptides.

A new method for separation and purification is described. The process, referred to as solid-phase precipitation and extraction (SPPE), was developed and applied to postcleavage isolation of synthetic peptides. The technique uses normal approaches of chromatography and solid-phase extraction sorbents with a precipitation or drying procedure so that the sorbent becomes a support matrix for thin-film deposition of the compounds of interest. This procedure causes precipitated compounds of interest to be trapped on the large surface area or in the pores of the matrix so that by-products and impurities can be removed by strong wash solvents. In application to solid-phase peptide synthesis chemistry, by-products from the cleavage and deprotection are selectively extracted from the crude sample mixture under mild conditions. In comparison to the ether precipitation method used in peptide chemistry, the SPPE process provides isolated products that are 14-17% (w/w) higher purity.

Fractionation and characterization of ball-milled and enzyme lignins from abaca fibre

An Erratum has been published for this article in Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 79(15) 1999, 2122. Ball-milled and enzyme lignins were produced from abaca fibre via ball milling for 6 days followed by cellulase treatment for 3 days. The crude lignin preparations were fractionated into milled lignin (ML), enzyme lignin (EL), hemicellulose-rich milled lignin (HRML), and lignin-rich enzyme lignin (LREL) fractions using a two-step precipitation method instead of a traditional ether precipitation procedure. The yield and chemical composition of the resulting lignin samples are reported. The ML and EL fractions contained low amounts of associated neutral sugars (2.0–3.3%) and uronic acids (1.4–1.5%), and showed relatively low average molecular weights (2500–2660), while the LREL and HRML fractions contained large amounts of bound polysaccharides (35.6–38.3%), and showed high molecular weights (8800–25000). The four lignin fractions are composed of a large proportion of syringyl units with fewer guaiacyl and p-hydroxyphenyl units. The ML is mainly composed of β–O–4 ether bonds between the lignin structural units. The less common β–β, β–5 and 5–5′ carbon–carbon linkages are also present in the lignin molecules. It was found that uronic acids and 41–63% of p-coumaric acids are esterified to lignin in the three lignin-rich fractions of ML, EL and LREL. This level increased to over 90% in the hemicellulose-rich fraction of HRML. For ferulic acids, 92–97% were found to be etherified to lignin in the three lignin-rich fractions of ML, EL and LREL, while in the hemicellulose-rich fraction of HRML this reduced to only 13%, suggesting that a majority of the ferulic acids are esterified to hemicelluloses or lignin in this fraction. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry