Shenqu xiaoshi oral solution enhances digestive function and stabilizes the gastrointestinal microbiota of juvenile rats with infantile anorexia.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Massa Medicata Fermentata ("Shenqu") has long been applied in the treatment of indigestion in China; in fact, it is the active ingredient in the medicine Shenqu xiaoshi oral solution (SQXSOS). Based on robust clinical evidence, SQXSOS has shown efficacy in treating infantile anorexia (IFA).

Aim Of The Study: To investigate the underlying mechanisms by which SQXSOS treats IFA.

Late-Stage Modification of Oligopeptides by Nickel-Catalyzed Stereoselective Radical Addition to Dehydroalanine.

Radical addition to dehydroalanine (Dha) represents an appealing, modular strategy to access non-canonical peptide analogues for drug discovery. Prior studies on radical addition to the Dha residue of peptides and proteins have demonstrated outstanding functional group compatibility, but the lack of stereoselectivity has limited the synthetic utility of this approach. Herein, we address this challenge by employing chiral nickel catalysts to control the stereoselectivity of radical addition to Dha on oligopeptides.

Nickel-Catalyzed Dicarbofunctionalization of Alkenes.

1,2-Dicarbofunctionalization of alkenes has emerged as an efficient synthetic strategy for preparing substituted molecules by coupling readily available alkenes with electrophiles and/or nucleophiles. Nickel complexes serve as effective catalysts owing to their tendency to undergo facile oxidative addition and slow -hydride elimination, and their capability to access both two-electron and radical pathways. Two-component alkene functionalization reactions have achieved high chemo-, regio-, and stereoselectivities by tethering one of the coupling partners to the alkene substrate.

Palladium(II)-Catalyzed Enantioselective Azidation of Unactivated Alkenes.

The first Pd-catalyzed enantioselective azidation of unactivated alkenes has been established by using readily accessible 1-azido-1,2-benziodoxol-3(1H)-one (ABX) as an azidating reagent, which affords a wide variety of structurally diverse 3-N -substituted piperidines in good yields with excellent enantioselectivity. The reaction features good functional-group compatibility and mild reaction conditions. Notably, both an electrophilic azidating reagent and the sterically bulky chiral pyridinyl-oxazoline (Pyox) ligand are crucial to the successful reaction.

Enantioselective Pd(II)-Catalyzed Intramolecular Oxidative 6- endo Aminoacetoxylation of Unactivated Alkenes.

A novel asymmetric 6-endo aminoacetoxylation of unactivated alkenes by palladium catalysis, which yields chiral β-acetoxylated piperidines with excellent chemo-, regio- and enantioselectivities under very mild reaction conditions, has been established herein by employing a new designed pyridine-oxazoline (Pyox) ligand. Importantly, introducing a sterically bulky group into the C-6 position of Pyox is crucial to enhance the reactivity of the aminoacetoxylation of alkenes.

Intermolecular Palladium-Catalyzed Oxidative Fluorocarbonylation of Unactivated Alkenes: Efficient Access to β-Fluorocarboxylic Esters.

A novel palladium-catalyzed intermolecular oxidative fluorocarbonylation of alkenes has been developed, in which employment of a cooperative process with electrophilic ArIF -meidated alkenes activation and palladium-catalyzed carbonylation is crucial for the successful catalytic transformation. The current transformation presents the first convenient method to generate β-fluorinated carboxylic acid derivatives under mild reaction conditions from simple alkenes with excellent regioselectivity.

Catalytic Oxidative Trifluoromethoxylation of Allylic C-H Bonds Using a Palladium Catalyst.

A catalytic intermolecular allylic C-H trifluoromethoxylation reaction of alkenes has been developed based on the use of a palladium catalyst, CsOCF as the trifluoromethoxide source, and benzoquinone as the oxidant. This reaction provides an efficient route for directly accessing allylic trifluoromethoxy derivatives with excellent regioselectivities from terminal alkenes via an allylic C-H bond activation process.

A Cooperative Strategy for the Highly Selective Intermolecular Oxycarbonylation Reaction of Alkenes using a Palladium Catalyst.

A novel method for intermolecular functionalization of terminal and internal alkenes has been designed. The electrophilic reagent, hypervalent iodine, plays a key role in this process by activating the alkene C=C bond for nucleophilic addition of the palladium catalyst. This process generates an iodonium-containing palladium species which undergoes CO insertion.

Palladium-catalyzed intermolecular aminocarbonylation of alkenes: efficient access of β-amino acid derivatives.

A novel palladium-catalyzed intermolecular aminocarbonylation of alkenes has been developed in which the employment of hypervalent iodine reagent can accelerate the intermolecular aminopalladation, which thus provides the successful catalytic transformation. The current transformation presents one of the most convenient methods to generate β-amino acid derivatives from simple alkenes.

Copper-catalyzed intermolecular trifluoromethylazidation of alkenes: convenient access to CF3 -containing alkyl azides.

A novel copper-catalyzed intermolecular trifluoromethylazidation of alkenes has been developed under mild reaction conditions. A variety of CF3 -containing organoazides were directly synthesized from a wide range of olefins, including activated and unactivated alkenes, and the resulting products can be easily transformed into the corresponding CF3 -containing amine derivatives.

Contrast ultrasound-guided photothermal therapy using gold nanoshelled microcapsules in breast cancer.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to test whether dual functional gold nano-shelled microcapsules (GNS-MCs) can be used as an ultrasound imaging enhancer and as an optical absorber for photothermal therapy (PTT) in a rodent model of breast cancer.

Methods: GNS-MCs were fabricated with an inner air and outer gold nanoshell spherical structure. Photothermal cytotoxicity of GNS-MCs was tested with BT474 cancer cells in vitro and non-obese diabetes-SCID (NOD/SCID) mice with breast cancer.