Publications by authors named "M Hopkinson"

Article Synopsis
  • Ectopic lymphoid structures in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) joints contribute to autoimmunity by sustaining responses against specific autoantigens, particularly targeting fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) with newly identified monoclonal antibodies.
  • Among these antibodies, some specifically recognize HSP60 and show limited cross-reactivity with other proteins, but not with citrullinated fibrinogen.
  • The study highlights that HSP60 antibodies are more prevalent in RA patients compared to those with osteoarthritis, suggesting the possibility of using these autoantibodies to improve patient classification and predict responses to therapies like B cell depletion.
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Background: Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can result in lifelong disabilities known as foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and is associated with childhood growth deficiencies and increased bone fracture risk. However, the effects of PAE on the adult skeleton remain unclear and any potential sexual dimorphism is undetermined. Therefore, we utilised a murine model to examine sex differences with PAE on in vitro bone formation, and in the juvenile and adult skeleton.

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2-(Trifluoromethylthio)benzothiazolium triflate (BT-SCF) was used as deoxyfluorinating reagent for the synthesis of versatile acyl fluorides directly from the corresponding carboxylic acids. These acyl fluorides were reacted with amines in a one-pot protocol to form different amides, including dipeptides, under mild and operationally simple conditions in high yields. Mechanistic studies suggest that BT-SCF can generate acyl fluorides from carboxylic acids via two distinct pathways, which allows the deoxyfluorinating reagent to be employed in sub-stoichiometric amounts.

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C-F Insertion reactions, where an organic fragment formally inserts into a carbon-fluorine bond in a substrate, are highly attractive, yet largely unexplored, methods to prepare valuable fluorinated molecules. The inherent strength of C-F bonds and the resulting need for a large thermodynamic driving force to initiate C-F cleavage often leads to sequestering of the released fluoride in an unreactive by-product. Recently, however, several groups have succeeded in overcoming this challenge, opening up the study of C-F insertion as an efficient and highly atom-economical approach to prepare fluorinated compounds.

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Radical trifluoromethoxylation is an attractive approach to prepare compounds featuring the important OCF group, however most existing methods have focused on aromatic substrates. Here, we report novel methodologies with alkenyl substrates employing bis(trifluoromethyl)peroxide (BTMP) as a practical and comparatively atom economical trifluoromethoxylating reagent. With silyl enol ether substrates, switching reaction solvent allows for the synthesis of either α-(trifluoromethoxy)ketone products or unprecedented alkenyl-OCF species.

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