Isothiourea-catalysed sequential kinetic resolution of acyclic (±)-1,2-diols

Authors thank the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Critical Resource Catalysis (CRITICAT, grant code EP/L016419/1, R.M.N.) for funding. We thank the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013) ERC grant agreement no. 279850 (A.D.S.). A.D.S. thanks the Royal Society for a Wolfson Research Merit Award.The isothiourea-catalysed acylative kinetic resolution of a range of acyclic (±)-1,2-diols using 1 mol% of catalyst under operationally simple conditions is reported. Significantly, the bifunctional nature of (±)-1,2-diols was exploited in a sequential double kinetic resolution, in which both kinetic resolutions operate synergistically to provide access to highly enantioenriched products. The principles that underpin this process are discussed, and selectivity factors for the individual kinetic resolution steps are reported in a model system.PostprintPeer reviewe

NHC-catalyzed enantioselective synthesis of β-trifluoromethyl-β-hydroxyamides

Authors acknowlege the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) ERC grant agreement no. 279850 (A.T.D.). We also thank the EPSRC UK National Mass Spectrometry Facility at Swansea University.The N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) catalyzed formal [2+2] cycloaddition between α-aroyloxyaldehydes and trifluoroacetophenones, followed by ring-opening with an amine or reducing agent is described. The resulting β-hydroxy-β-trifluoromethyl amide and alcohol products are produced with reasonable diastereocontrol (typically ~70:30 dr) and excellent enantioselectivity, and can be isolated in moderate to good yield as a single diastereoisomer.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Best practice considerations for using the selectivity factor, s, as a metric for the efficiency of kinetic resolutions

The research leading to these results has received funding from the ERC under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007--2013)/E.R.C. grant agreement 279850. J.E.T. thanks The Leverhulme Trust [Early Career Fellowship ECF-2014-005] for financial support. A.D.S. thanks the Royal Society for a Wolfson Merit Award.The suitability of using the selectivity factor, s, as a reaction metric for kinetic resolution reactions and the errors associated with its measurement are considered. Investigation of the analytical error associated with HPLC analysis of a kinetic resolution reveals that one of the largest potential sources of variation arises from the ability of a practitioner to integrate the peaks from a single analysis. The consequences of this error on the reliability of reported s values are discussed, and some general rules for good practice regarding the use and reporting of s as a metric are suggested.PostprintPeer reviewe

Topical Nutrients Promote Engraftment and Inhibit Wound Contraction of Cultured Skin Substitutes in Athymic Mice

Routine treatment of burns with cultured skin substitutes (CSS) has been limited by poor engraftment and by scarring. Hypothetically, topical application of essential nutrients and/or growth factors may support epithelial survival temporarily during graft vascularization, CSS, composed of human epidermal keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts attached to collagen-glycosaminoglycan substrates, were incubated for 19 d in media optimized for keratinocytes. CSS, human xenografts, murine autografts, or no grafts were applied orthotopically to full-thickness skin wounds (2 × 2 cm) in athymic mice. Wounds were irrigated for 14 d with 1 ml/d modified cell culture medium or with saline containing epidermal growth factor, or were treated with dry dressings. After 6 weeks, treated sites were scored for percentage original wound area (mean ± SEM) and percentage HLA- ABC-positive healed wounds [(number positive/n) × 100], and tested for significance (analysis of variance, p < 0.0001; Tukey test, p < 0.05). The data showed that CSS irrigated with nutrient medium were not statistically different in wound area (67.8 ± 5.1%) from murine autografts (63.3 ± 2.9%) but were statistically larger than human xenograft, no graft, or CSS treated with saline irrigation or dry dressings. HLA- ABC expression was 100% in CSS with nutrient irrigation, 86% in CSS with saline irrigation, 83% In CSS without irrigation, and 75% in xenografts with nutrient irrigation. These findings suggest that availability of essential nutrients supports keratinocyte viability during graft vascularization of CSS

Enantioselective N-heterocyclic carbene catalyzed formal [3+2] cycloaddition using α-aroyloxyaldehydes and oxaziridines

We thank the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Critical Resource Catalysis (CRITICAT, grant code EP/L016419/1) (R.W.F.K.) for funding. The European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013) ERC Grant Agreement No. 279850 is also acknowledged. A.D.S. thanks the Royal Society for a Wolfson Research Merit Award.An enantioselective N-heterocyclic carbene catalysed formal [3+2] cycloaddition has been developed for the synthesis of oxazolindin-4-one products. The reaction of oxaziridines and α-aroyloxyaldehydes under N-heterocyclic carbene catalysis provides the formal cycloaddition products with excellent control of the diastereo- and enantioselectivity (12 examples, up to >95:5 dr, >99:1 er). A matched-mismatched effect between the enantiomer of the catalyst and oxaziridine was identified, and preliminary mechanistic studies have allowed the proposal of a model to explain these observations.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Isothiourea-catalysed regioselective acylative kinetic resolution of axially chiral biaryl diols

The research leading to these results has received funding from the ERC under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013)/E.R.C. grant agreement n° 279850. The Chinese Scholarship Scheme and University of St Andrews are thanked for a CSC Scholarship (S.Q.). A.D.S. thanks the Royal Society for a Wolfson Research Merit Award.An operationally‐simple isothiourea‐catalyzed acylative kinetic resolution of unprotected 1,1′‐biaryl‐2,2′‐diol derivatives has been developed to allow access to axially chiral compounds in highly enantioenriched form (s values up to 190). Investigation of the reaction scope and limitations provided three key observations: i) the diol motif of the substrate was essential for good conversion and high s values; ii) the use of an α,α‐disubstituted mixed anhydride (2,2‐diphenylacetic pivalic anhydride) was critical to minimize diacylation and give high selectivity; iii) the presence of substituents in the 3,3′‐positions of the diol hindered effective acylation. This final observation was exploited for the highly regioselective acylative kinetic resolution of unsymmetrical biaryl diol substrates bearing a single 3‐substituent. Based on the key observations identified, acylation transition state models have been proposed to explain the atropselectivity of this kinetic resolution.PostprintPeer reviewe

Acylative kinetic resolution of alcohols using a recyclable polymer-supported isothiourea catalyst in batch and flow

The authors thank the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Critical Resource Catalysis (CRITICAT, grant code EP/L016419/1, R.M.N.P.) for funding. Financial support from the EPSRC (EP/K000411/1) is gratefully acknowledged (R.C.). The European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) ERC Grant Agreement No. 279850 is also acknowledged. A.D.S. thanks the Royal Society for a Wolfson Research Merit Award. C.R.-E. and M.A.P. acknowledge the financial support from CERCA Pro-gramme/Generalitat de Catalunya, MINECO (CTQ2015-69136-R, AEI/MINECO/FEDER, UE and Severo Ochoa Excellence Ac-creditation 2014–2018, SEV-2013-0319) and DEC Generalitat de Catalunya (Grant 2014SGR827).A polystyrene-supported isothiourea catalyst, based on the homogeneous catalyst HyperBTM, has been prepared and used for the acylative kinetic resolution of secondary alcohols. A wide range of alcohols, including benzylic, allylic and propargylic alcohols, cycloalkanol derivatives and a 1,2-diol, has been resolved using either propionic or isobutyric anhydride with good to excellent selectivity factors obtained (28 examples, s up to 622). The catalyst can be recovered and reused by a simple filtration and washing sequence, with no special precautions needed. The recyclability of the catalyst was demonstrated (15 cycles) with no significant loss in either activity or selectivity. The recyclable catalyst was also used for the sequential resolution of 10 different alcohols us-ing different anhydrides with no cross-contamination between cycles. Finally, successful application in a continuous flow process demonstrated the first example of an immobilized Lewis base catalyst used for the kinetic resolution of alcohols in flow.PostprintPeer reviewe

Neutrophil infiltration to the brain is platelet-dependent, and is reversed by blockade of platelet GPIbα

Neutrophils are key components of the innate immune response, providing host defence against infection and being recruited to non-microbial injury sites. Platelets act as a trigger for neutrophil extravasation to inflammatory sites but mechanisms and tissue-specific aspects of these interactions are currently unclear. Here, we use bacterial endotoxin in mice to trigger an innate inflammatory response in different tissues and measure neutrophil invasion with or without platelet reduction. We show that platelets are essential for neutrophil infiltration to the brain, peritoneum and skin. Neutrophil numbers do not rise above basal levels in the peritoneum and skin and are decreased (~60%) in the brain when platelet numbers are reduced. In contrast neutrophil infiltration in the lung is unaffected by platelet reduction, up-regulation of CXCL-1 (2.4-fold) and CCL5 (1.4-fold) acting as a compensatory mechanism in platelet-reduced mice during lung inflammation. In brain inflammation targeting platelet receptor GPIbalpha results in a significant decrease (44%) in platelet-mediated neutrophil invasion, while maintaining platelet numbers in the circulation. These results suggest that therapeutic blockade of platelet GPIbalpha could limit the harmful effects of excessive inflammation while minimizing haemorrhagic complications of platelet reduction in the brain. The data also demonstrate the ability to target damaging brain inflammation in stroke and related disorders without compromising lung immunity and hence risk of pneumonia, a major complication post stroke. In summary, our data reveal an important role for platelets in neutrophil infiltration to various tissues, including the brain, and so implicate platelets as a key, targetable component of cerebrovascular inflammatory disease or injury

Docosahexaenoic acid-containing choline phospholipid modulates LPS-induced neuroinflammation in vivo and in microglia in vitro

BACKGROUND: Neuroinflammatory processes are considered a double-edged sword, having both protective and detrimental effects in the brain. Microglia, the brain's resident innate immune cells, are a key component of neuroinflammatory response. There is a growing interest in developing drugs to target microglia and control neuroinflammatory processes. In this regard, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the brain's n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, is a promising molecule to regulate pro-inflammatory microglia and cytokine production. Several works reported that the bioavailability of DHA to the brain is higher when DHA is acylated to phospholipid. In this work, we analyzed the anti-inflammatory activity of DHA-phospholipid, either acetylated at the sn-1 position (AceDoPC, a stable form thought to have superior access to the brain) or acylated with palmitic acid at the sn-1 position (PC-DHA) using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced neuroinflammation model both in vitro and in vivo. METHODS: In vivo, adult C57Bl6/J mice were injected intravenously (i.v.) with either AceDoPC or PC-DHA 24 h prior to LPS (i.p.). For in vitro studies, immortalized murine microglia cells BV-2 were co-incubated with DHA forms and LPS. AceDoPC and PC-DHA effect on brain or BV-2 PUFA content was assessed by gas chromatography. LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin IL-1β, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α production were measured by quantitative PCR (qPCR) or multiplex. IL-6 receptors and associated signaling pathway STAT3 were assessed by FACS analysis and western-blot in vitro. RESULTS: In vivo, a single injection of AceDoPC or PC-DHA decreased LPS-induced IL-6 production in the hippocampus of mice. This effect could be linked to their direct effect on microglia, as revealed in vitro. In addition, AceDoPC or PC-DHA reduced IL-6 receptor while only AceDoPC decreased IL-6-induced STAT3 phosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS: These results highlight the potency of administered DHA-acetylated to phospholipids-to rapidly regulate LPS-induced neuroinflammatory processes through their effect on microglia. In particular, both IL-6 production and signaling are targeted by AceDoPC in microglia.Metabolism in human of a structured phospholipid from marine origin and neural effec

Informing the design of a national screening and treatment programme for chronic viral hepatitis in primary care: qualitative study of at-risk immigrant communities and healthcare professionals

n Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise statedThis paper presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under the Programme Grants for Applied Research programme (RP-PG-1209-10038).