Reaction of pyrroles with ethyl 2-nitroso- and 2-azo-propenoates, and with ethyl cyanoformate N-oxide: a comparison of the reaction pathways

The reaction of ethyl 2-nitrosopropenoate 2a with 1 -methylpyrrole, 2.5-dimethylpyrrole and 2.5- diphenylpyrrole has been investigated. In every case the products result from highly regioselective attack at C-2 of the pyrrole by the electrophile. The azopropenoate esters 2b and 2c react similarly with pyrroles, to the extent that even 1 -(triisopropylsilyl)pyrrole is attacked exclusively at the 2-position by the azo ester 2b. In contrast, the nitrile oxide ethyl cyanoformate N-oxide 12 reacts at the 3-position of 2.5- dimethyl- and of 2,5-diphenyl-pyrrole. The reactions of the nitroso and azo esters with pyrroles are interpreted as Diels-Alder cycloadditions with inverse electron demand

Azabicyclo[3.2.0]heptan-7-ones (carbapenams) from pyrrole

The azabicyclo[3.2.0]heptan-7-ones 4, 10, 16 and 24 have been prepared from pyrrole. The same general approach has been used for all these derivatives; namely, substitution of pyrrole at the 2- and 5-carbon atoms, catalytic hydrogenation to produce pyrrolidine-2-acetic acid derivatives, and cyclisation using tris(1,3-dihydro-2-oxobenzoxazol-3-yl)phosphine oxide 6. The catalytic hydrogenation of 2,5-disubstituted pyrroles gives only the corresponding cis-2,5-disubstituted pyrrolidines. The hydrogenation proceeds more easily when the nitrogen atom bears a tert-butoxycarbonyl substituent. The N-tert-butoxycarbonylpyrroles 8 and 21 bearing an á-substituent in the acetate side chain were hydrogenated with a high degree of facial stereoselectivity. This allowed the 6-phthalimidoazabicyclo- [3.2.0]heptan-7-one 24 to be isolated as a single diastereoisomer. The X-ray crystal structure of a precursor, the triester, 22a, has been obtained

Reactions of azoalkenes derived from hydrazones of ethyl bromopyruvate with electron rich alkenes and heterocycles

Three hydrazones of ethyl bromopyruvate, the dinitrophenylhydrazone 2a, the toluene-4-sulphonylhydrazone 2b and the t-butoxycarbonylhydrazone 2c, have been reacted with a series of nucleophilic alkenes and heterocycles in the presence of sodium carbonate. Azoalkenes 3 are presumed as intermediates and adducts have been isolated. The azoalkenes derived from hydrazones 2a and 2c are found to be useful electrophiles and electrophilic dienes

Diels–alder reactions of alkyl 2H-azirine-3-carboxylates with furans

Methyl 2-(2,6-dichlorophenyl)-2H-azirine-3-carboxylate 1 and furan give the aziridine 2 by a Diels–Alder cycloaddition reaction. The hydrolysis of compound 2 leads to a dihydrofuranol 11 by cleavage of a C–N bond. X-Ray crystal structures of compounds 2 and 11 have been determined. Compound 2 reacts with alcohols in a similar way to give 2-alkoxy-2,5-dihydrofurans as mixtures of cis and trans isomers. The structures of these compounds have been determined from an X-ray crystal structure of one of the methyl ethers, the trans isomer 13. The reaction of the azirine 1 with 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran leads to the formation of two isomeric 1 : 1 adducts that have been identified as the products of endo and exo cycloaddition, 3 and 4. The endo isomer 3 is converted into the exo isomer 4 by heat. Similar Diels–Alder reactions have been carried out between furans and benzyl 2H-azirine-3-carboxylate 6. Hydrolysis of the adduct 7 formed with furan again produces a dihydrofuranol 25 as the major product together with three minor products, two of which are 1-azabicyclo[4.1.0]hept-3-ene-2,5-diols 27 and 28 that result from C–O bond cleavage. Protection of the mixture of alcohols with TBS triflate gives the bis(TBS) ether 31 of the trans-1-azabicyclo[4.1.0]hept-3-ene-2,5-diol as the major product, showing that this ring system can be produced from the dihydrofuranol 25. The bis(TBS) ether 30 of the cis-2,5-diol is a minor product and its structure has been established by independent synthesis through a Diels–Alder reaction between the azirine 6 and 1,4-bis(tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)butadiene 32.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia - POCTI/32723/QUI/2000. FEDER. EPSRC

Amphiregulin cooperates with bone morphogenetic protein 15 to increase oocyte developmental competence by gap junction-mediated enhanced metabolite supply

This study assessed the participation of amphiregulin (AREG) and bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15) during maturation of bovine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs) on cumulus cell function and their impact on subsequent embryo development. AREG treatment of COCs enhanced blastocyst formation and quality only when in the presence of BMP15. Expression of hyaluronan synthase 2 was enhanced by follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) but not by AREG, which was reflected in the level of cumulus expansion. Although both FSH and AREG stimulated glycolysis, AREG treated COCs had higher glucose consumption, lactate production and ratio of lactate production to glucose uptake. Autofluorescence levels in oocytes, indicative of NAD(P)H and FAD++, were increased with combined AREG and BMP15 treatment of COCs. In contrast, these treatments did not alter autoflouresence levels when cumulus cells were removed from oocytes, even in the presence of other COCs, suggesting oocyte-cumulus gap-junctional communication (GJC) is required. FSH contributed to maintaining GJC for an extended period of time. Remarkably, BMP15 was equally effective at maintaining GJC even in the presence of AREG. Hence, AREG stimulation of COC glycolysis and BMP15 preservation of GJC may facilitate efficient transfer of metabolites from cumulus cells to the oocyte thereby enhancing oocyte developmental competence. These results have implications for improving in vitro oocyte maturation systems.Satoshi Sugimura, Lesley J Ritter, Melanie L Sutton-McDowall, David G Mottershead, Jeremy G Thompson and Robert B Gilchris

Shifting attention in viewer- and object-based reference frames after unilateral brain injury

The aims of the present study were to investigate the respective roles that object- and viewer-based reference frames play in reorienting visual attention, and to assess their influence after unilateral brain injury. To do so, we studied 16 right hemisphere injured (RHI) and 13 left hemisphere injured (LHI) patients. We used a cueing design that manipulates the location of cues and targets relative to a display comprised of two rectangles (i.e., objects). Unlike previous studies with patients, we presented all cues at midline rather than in the left or right visual fields. Thus, in the critical conditions in which targets were presented laterally, reorienting of attention was always from a midline cue. Performance was measured for lateralized target detection as a function of viewer-based (contra- and ipsilesional sides) and object-based (requiring reorienting within or between objects) reference frames. As expected, contralesional detection was slower than ipsilesional detection for the patients. More importantly, objects influenced target detection differently in the contralesional and ipsilesional fields. Contralesionally, reorienting to a target within the cued object took longer than reorienting to a target in the same location but in the uncued object. This finding is consistent with object-based neglect. Ipsilesionally, the means were in the opposite direction. Furthermore, no significant difference was found in object-based influences between the patient groups (RHI vs. LHI). These findings are discussed in the context of reference frames used in reorienting attention for target detection

An Open-System Quantum Simulator with Trapped Ions

The control of quantum systems is of fundamental scientific interest and promises powerful applications and technologies. Impressive progress has been achieved in isolating the systems from the environment and coherently controlling their dynamics, as demonstrated by the creation and manipulation of entanglement in various physical systems. However, for open quantum systems, engineering the dynamics of many particles by a controlled coupling to an environment remains largely unexplored. Here we report the first realization of a toolbox for simulating an open quantum system with up to five qubits. Using a quantum computing architecture with trapped ions, we combine multi-qubit gates with optical pumping to implement coherent operations and dissipative processes. We illustrate this engineering by the dissipative preparation of entangled states, the simulation of coherent many-body spin interactions and the quantum non-demolition measurement of multi-qubit observables. By adding controlled dissipation to coherent operations, this work offers novel prospects for open-system quantum simulation and computation.Comment: Pre-review submission to Nature. For an updated and final version see publication. Manuscript + Supplementary Informatio

Regulation of sheep oocyte maturation using cAMP modulators

Physical removal of mammalian cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) from ovarian follicles results in spontaneous resumption of meiosis, largely because of a decrease in cAMP concentrations, causing asynchrony between cytoplasmic and nuclear maturation and decreased oocyte developmental competence. The aim of this study was to modulate cAMP concentrations within ovine COCs to delay spontaneous nuclear maturation and improve developmental competence. Abattoir-derived sheep COCs were cultured for 2 hours (pre-IVM) in 100 μM forskolin (FSK) plus 500 μM 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX). Pre-IVM (100 μM FSK and 500 μM IBMX) culture increased COC cAMP concentrations 10-fold compared with controls (P < 0.05). With regard to nuclear maturation, with FSK and IBMX and/or with FSH and cilostamide delayed completion of meiosis (metaphase II) by 3 to 4 hours compared with standard IVM (FSH-stimulated induction of meiosis). In this study, pre-IVM (with FSK and IBMX) followed by IVM (with FSH and cilostamide), increased ovine COC cAMP concentrations and delayed, but did not inhibit, completion of nuclear maturation. This did not affect embryo development rates, but increased total cell number of blastocysts compared with IVM with FSH alone (103 ± 6 vs. 66 ± 4 cells, respectively; mean ± SEM; P < 0.05). We inferred that regulation of ovine oocyte cAMP concentrations during IVM improved embryo quality compared with embryos produced by standard IVM methods.Ryan D. Rose, Robert B. Gilchrist, Jennifer M. Kelly, Jeremy G. Thompson, Melanie L. Sutton-McDowal

Patient Access to U.S. Physicians Who Conduct Internet or E-mail Consults

BACKGROUND: E-mail communication has the potential to improve communication between patients and doctors. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study is to describe the access of patients to physicians who conduct e-mail consults. METHODS: We analyzed data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS), a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of office-based physician visits, in 2001, 2002, and 2003. The main outcome measure was the percentage of visits to a provider who reported doing internet or e-mail consults. RESULTS: There was fewer than 1 in 10 outpatient visits in 2001 (9.2%) to physicians who reported doing internet or e-mail consults, and this did not increase in 2002 (5.8%) or 2003 (5.5%). Access to these physicians was greater among patients who were male, nonminority, lived in the Western United States, seen for pre-/postoperative care, seen by a primary care provider, and not seen by a nurse during their visit. Access to physicians who conducted internet or e-mail consults was independent of other patient (e.g., chronic conditions), provider (e.g., office setting), and visit (e.g., medications prescribed) characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: Access to physicians who do internet or e-mail consults is generally low and did not increase between 2001 and 2003, despite growth in internet access and in other internet-related activities

Investigating associations between blood metabolites, later life brain imaging measures, and genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease

BACKGROUND: Identifying blood-based signatures of brain health and preclinical pathology may offer insights into early disease mechanisms and highlight avenues for intervention. Here, we systematically profiled associations between blood metabolites and whole-brain volume, hippocampal volume, and amyloid-β status among participants of Insight 46-the neuroscience sub-study of the National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD). We additionally explored whether key metabolites were associated with polygenic risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHODS: Following quality control, levels of 1019 metabolites-detected with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-were available for 1740 participants at age 60-64. Metabolite data were subsequently clustered into modules of co-expressed metabolites using weighted coexpression network analysis. Accompanying MRI and amyloid-PET imaging data were present for 437 participants (age 69-71). Regression analyses tested relationships between metabolite measures-modules and hub metabolites-and imaging outcomes. Hub metabolites were defined as metabolites that were highly connected within significant (pFDR < 0.05) modules or were identified as a hub in a previous analysis on cognitive function in the same cohort. Regression models included adjustments for age, sex, APOE genotype, lipid medication use, childhood cognitive ability, and social factors. Finally, associations were tested between AD polygenic risk scores (PRS), including and excluding the APOE region, and metabolites and modules that significantly associated (pFDR < 0.05) with an imaging outcome (N = 1638). RESULTS: In the fully adjusted model, three lipid modules were associated with a brain volume measure (pFDR < 0.05): one enriched in sphingolipids (hippocampal volume: ß = 0.14, 95% CI = [0.055,0.23]), one in several fatty acid pathways (whole-brain volume: ß =  - 0.072, 95%CI = [- 0.12, - 0.026]), and another in diacylglycerols and phosphatidylethanolamines (whole-brain volume: ß =  - 0.066, 95% CI = [- 0.11, - 0.020]). Twenty-two hub metabolites were associated (pFDR < 0.05) with an imaging outcome (whole-brain volume: 22; hippocampal volume: 4). Some nominal associations were reported for amyloid-β, and with an AD PRS in our genetic analysis, but none survived multiple testing correction. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings highlight key metabolites, with functions in membrane integrity and cell signalling, that associated with structural brain measures in later life. Future research should focus on replicating this work and interrogating causality