Rhodium-Catalyzed Synthesis of Trifluoromethyl-Containing Allylic Alcohols Via -Alkenyl Transfer with High Stereochemistry Retention.

Herein, we report the rhodium-catalyzed -alkenyl transfer from tertiary allylic alcohols to aryl trifluoromethyl ketones, which provided an efficient way of preparation of trifluoromethyl-containing -allylic alcohols via β--alkenyl elimination. The key -alkenyl-rhodium species were generated with a high degree of stereochemical retention. This reaction featured a broad substrate scope and good functional tolerance and would offer a fascinating approach for the synthesis of -alkenes.

Causal relationship between basal metabolic rate and intervertebral disc degeneration: a Mendelian randomization study.

Background: The role of basal metabolic rate (BMR) in intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is still uncertain. To address this gap, we conducted a Mendelian randomization (MR) study to comprehensively explore the causal relationship between BMR and IVDD.

Methods: BMR data were obtained from a large genome-wide association study (GWAS) database, while IVDD data were derived from the FinnGen project.

Case Report: Technical description and clinical evaluation of three cases of unilateral biportal endoscopic decompression for symptomatic spinal epidural lipomatosis.

Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of three patients with symptomatic Spinal epidural lipomatosis (SEL) treated using Unilateral Biportal Endoscopic (UBE) surgery.

Methods: This report retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of three patients with SEL admitted to our hospital. The analysis covers onset characteristics, clinical manifestations, and the most recent radiologic grading system of neural compression (Manjila classification).

Rhodium(III)-catalyzed three-component C(sp)-H activation for the synthesis of amines.

Rhodium-catalyzed three-component C-H bond activation of aromatics with amides and aldehydes to synthesize amines was established. The addition of copper was found to be essential to ensure the high reactivity. The mechanistic studies indicated that key intermediates formed by the transmetallization between rhodium and copper could further promote the addition between 2-(pyridin-2-yl)-phenyl-metal species and imines.

Deaminative Addition of Alkylpyridinium Salt to Aldehyde.

Here we show that a primary amine can engage in the nucleophilic addition to an aldehyde to synthesize an alcohol following preactivation of the amine. The enabling reagent for this radical-polar crossover process is CrCl. This reaction is selective for aldehydes and compatible with numerous functional groups, which are not tolerated under classical Grignard-type conditions.

Nano-Coprecipitation Route Synthesis of Highly-Efficient Submicron (Sr,Ba)SiO:Eu Phosphors with Enhanced Thermal Stability for MicroLED Color Conversion.

As the size of MicroLED chips shrinks below 50 μm, the emergence of quantum dots (QDs)-based color conversion with narrow-band emission and nanoscale size properties has become one of the powerful full-color solutions for MicroLED displays. However, the stability and toxicity of quantum dots limit their application in full-color MicroLEDs. The phosphor-based conversion has the prominent features of high thermal and chemical stability relative to those of QD-based conversion.

Amide Skeletal Elongation via Amino Acid Insertion.

Amide derivatization is useful to access valuable organic compounds considering the ready availability of molecules containing amide functionality. Current methods to derivatize amide mainly focus on the synthesis of carbonyl-containing compounds and amines. Incorporating both parts of the initial amide into the new derivatives is rare.

Tremendous Acceleration of Plant Growth by Applying a New Sunlight Converter Sr Al Ga O :Mn Breaking Parity Forbidden Transition.

Majority of Mn activated oxide phosphors have the wavelength of excitation and emission suitable for acceleration of plant growth as light converter from sunlight to deep red. Here, it is observed that 60% increase of red emission of Sr Al O :0.01Mn is found by substituting 0.

Clinical Features and Outcomes of Spinal Tuberculosis in Central China.

Purpose: The appropriate management of spinal tuberculosis (TB) is challenging for clinicians and the key to treat spinal TB. Surgery and long course anti-TB chemotherapy may not be necessary to all situations. This study aimed to characterize the clinical features and factors affecting treatment outcomes.

Sulfonylation of Propargyl Alcohols with Sulfinamides for the Synthesis of Allenyl Sulfones.

A regio- and chemoselective sulfonylation of propargyl alcohols with sulfinamides in 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) was developed. It provided straightforward and mild access to multi-substituted allenyl sulfones by using sulfinamides as the sulfonyl sources. This transformation was promoted by HFIP and did not require any catalysts or oxidants, which allowed for the successful conversion of various tertiary and secondary propargyl alcohols into allenyl sulfones in high yields.

Ruthenium-Catalyzed 1,3-Aryl Redox Isomerization of Allylic Alcohols.

The isomerization of allylic alcohols to the corresponding carbonyl compounds is a well-established reaction in organic synthesis. However, 1,3-carbon migration is a quite challenging field, and thus transformation has remained elusive until now. Herein, we present the ruthenium-catalyzed intramolecular 1,3-aryl migrative isomerization, which provides a mild and environmentally friendly method to synthesize various ketones with high step- and atom-economy and broad substrate scope.

Cp*Co-catalyzed formal [4 + 2] cycloaddition of 2-phenyl-1-imidazoles to afford imidazo[1,2-]quinazoline derivatives.

A synthetic protocol based on Cp*Co-catalyzed C-H amidation/annulation of 2-aryl-1-imidazoles with 1,4,2-dioxazol-5-ones was developed to give imidazo[1,2-]quinazoline derivatives with broad substrate scope in moderate to good yields. The method has good prospects of application in the synthesis of imidazo[1,2-]quinazoline drugs.

1,1,1,3,3,3-Hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP)-Assisted Catalyst-Free Sulfonation of Allylic Alcohols with Sulfinyl Amides.

A highly regioselective and catalyst-free sulfonation of allylic alcohols with sulfinyl amides has been realized. Such a mix-and-go procedure provides a convenient approach to synthetically various allylic sulfones under mild reaction conditions. Furthermore, this novel reaction shows ample substrate scope and outstanding functional group tolerance and could also be scaled-up.

Numerical simulation research of catenary tip-insulator-metal structure for nano-lithography.

Catenary optics has attracted much interest due to its unique properties in wave-front manipulation, field enhancement, and dispersion engineering. In this paper, the applications of catenary optics in the near-field lithography are studied. The catenary shaped nanostructures and tip-insulator-metal (TIM) structures are simultaneously utilized to increase the contrast ratio of the focal plane and to give rise to a sharp focusing focal spot with high intensity.

"Cre/loxP plus BAC": a strategy for direct cloning of large DNA fragment and its applications in Photorhabdus luminescens and Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

Heterologous expression has been proven to be a valid strategy for elucidating the natural products produced by gene clusters uncovered by genome sequencing projects. Efforts have been made to efficiently clone gene clusters directly from genomic DNA and several approaches have been developed. Here, we present an alternative strategy based on the site-specific recombinase system Cre/loxP for direct cloning gene clusters.

A rifampicin-resistant (rpoB) mutation in Pseudomonas protegens Pf-5 strain leads to improved antifungal activity and elevated production of secondary metabolites.

Ribosome engineering has proven to be a practical method for increasing antibiotic production, and is extensively applied to strain improvement in antibiotic production and activation of silent genes in several prokaryotes. In this study, ribosome engineering was used to improve production of bioactive secondary metabolites produced by Pseudomonas protegens Pf-5. Rifampicin-resistant mutants that bear the H531N in the β-subunit of RNA polymerase showed improved antifungal activity and morphological changes.

Efficient Construction of Large Genomic Deletion in Agrobacterium tumefaciens by Combination of Cre/loxP System and Triple Recombineering.

In order to develop an efficient system for deleting genomic segment in Agrobacterium tumefaciens to analyze gene functions and construct marker gene-free recombinant strains, a Cre recombinase expression plasmid was constructed by placing its encoding gene under the control of Ptet promoter and cloning into the plasmid replicable in both A. tumefaciens and E. coli.

PirB-Cry2Aa hybrid protein exhibits enhanced insecticidal activity against Spodoptera exigua larvae.

Previous study revealed that the N-terminal region of PirB toxin from Photorhabdus luminescens showed 20.5% identity and 41.5% similarity to the domain I of Cry2A toxin of Bacillus thuringiensis.

Photorhabdus luminescens PirAB-fusion protein exhibits both cytotoxicity and insecticidal activity.

The binary toxin 'Photorhabdus insect-related' proteins (PirAB) produced by Photorhabdus luminescens have been reported to possess both injectable and oral activities against a range of insects. Here, PirAB-fusion protein was constructed by linking pirA and pirB genes with the flexible linker (Gly4 Ser)3 DNA encoding sequence and then efficiently expressed in Escherichia coli. To better understand the role of PirAB toxin played in the process of invasion, its cytotoxicity against insect midgut CF-203 cells was investigated.