Organometallic neptunium complexes; synthesis, structure and reduction chemistry

The aim of the work described in this thesis was to develop a more extensive knowledge of the chemistry of neptunium compounds by making rare, air- and moisture sensitive, low formal oxidation state neptunium compounds with full structural and synthetic characterization. The thesis contains three results chapters. Chapter one introduces neptunium chemistry as a background to the results presented. The first review on the molecular non-aqueous neptunium chemistry is provided and the literature reports to date discussed in the context of this. Chapter two describes exploratory synthetic and structural investigations of the organoneptunium complexes supported by the cyclopentadienyl anion, Cp = (C5H5)-, and the (trimethylsilyl)cyclopentadienyl anion, Cp' = (C5H4[Si(CH3)3])-. The syntheses of [Np(Cp)3]n and Np(Cp')3 complexes are detailed and the effect of the trimethylsilyl group of the ligand on the structure and reactivity have been investigated. Complexes were characterized by single crystal X-ray diffractometry, NMR and ATR(IR) spectroscopy. Both organoneptunium complexes were studied in reactions designed to expand the neptunium redox envelope. Notably, the complex Np(Cp')3 is reduced by KC8 in the presence of 2.2.2-cryptand to afford a product assigned as neptunium(II) complex, K(2.2.2-cryptand)[Np(Cp')3] that is thermally very unstable above approx. -10 ºC, in direct analogy to previously reported uranium, thorium and lanthanide complexes of the general formula, K(2.2.2-cryptand)[M(Cp')3]. The reaction between Np(Cp)3Cl and KCp in THF afforded the unanticipated K[NpIII(Cp)4] product as a result of a single-electron reduction presumably arising from Np–C σ-bond homolysis reactivity. This behaviour appears to be unique amongst the actinides for the An(IV)/An(III) redox couple. Chapter three focuses on oxo-bridged homo and heterometallic complexes. The reaction of NpCp3 with dioxygen afforded not only the simple oxide, (μ-O)[An(Cp)3]2, but also a small quantity of the unexpected new trinuclear oxo- neptunium(IV) compound [{(Cp3Np)(μ-O)}2{Np(Cp)2}], which interestingly contains the rare C2v-symetric [An(Cp)2]2+ structural moiety. This oxo-bridged environment is not paralleled in uranium chemistry. The two isostructural oxides, (μ-O)[An(Cp)3]2 (An = U, Np), allow a comparative study of the magnetic exchange phenomena between the two actinide centres demonstrating an exceedingly strong antiferromagnetic coupling, which is largely independent of the communicated Kramers NpIV (5f3, 4I9/2) or non-Kramers UIV (5f2, 3H4) ions. To design heterobimetallic systems, the uranyl(VI) complexes, [(UVIO2)(THF)(H2L)], supported by the calix[4]pyrrole Schiff base macrocycles, H4LOct and H4LEt, were singly-reduced to uranyl(V) with either of the actinide complexes Np(Cp)3 or U(Cp)3, affording isostructural [(Cp3)AnIVOUVO(THF)(H2L)]. Preliminary investigations of the magnetism of the AnIV-O-UV are reported, although their analysis gave counterintuitive results. Chapter four explores the redox chemistry and molecular and electronic structure of neptunium(III) complexes of the doubly deprotonated trans-calix[2]benzene[2]pyrrole, H2(LAr), macrocycle which has a unique π-bonding potential and conformational flexibility. Interestingly, the reactions with neptunium(IV) chloride yielded mono- and dinuclear neptunium(III) complexes, [(LAr)NpCl] and [(LAr)Np2Cl4(THF)3], with a subsequent elimination of the ligand radical; both complexes adopted η6:κ1:η6:κ1 bis(arene) sandwiched structural motif. In a direct analogy to the redox behaviour occurring in the salt metathesis between Np(Cp)3Cl and KCp, the spontaneous reduction derives from the favourable Np(IV)/Np(III) redox system. The reduction of complex [(LAr)NpCl] with NaK3 in DME produces near-black solutions consistent with [NpII(LAr)(DME)] that in the absence of excess NaK3 gradually convert to the metallated (LAr-H)3- neptunium(III) complex, [K(DME)(LAr-H)NpIII(OMe)]2, featuring the actinide centre bound with a ‘metallocene-type’ geometry provided by the two η5-bound pyrrolides of the ligand. The neptunium(III) compounds were characterized in the solid state by single crystal X-ray diffractometry, ATR(IR) spectroscopy and in a solution by NMR and UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy

Thymus-derived regulatory T cells control tolerance to commensal microbiota

Peripheral mechanisms preventing autoimmunity and maintaining tolerance to commensal microbiota involve CD4+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells1,2 generated in the thymus (tTregs) or extrathymically by induction of naive CD4+Foxp3− T cells (iTregs). Prior studies suggested that the T cell receptor (TCR) repertoires of tTregs and iTregs are biased towards self and non-self antigens, respectively 3–6 but their relative contribution in controlling immunopathology, e.g. colitis and other untoward inflammatory responses triggered by different types of antigens, remains unresolved 7. The intestine, and especially the colon, is a particularly suitable organ to study this question, given the variety of self-, microbiota- and food-derived antigens to which Tregs and other T cell populations are exposed. Intestinal environments can enhance conversion to a regulatory lineage 8,9 and favor tolerogenic presentation of antigens to naive CD4+ T cells 10,11, suggesting that intestinal homeostasis depends on microbiota-specific iTregs 12–15. Here, to identify the origin and antigen-specificity of intestinal Tregs, we performed single cell as well as high-throughput (HT) sequencing of the TCR repertoires of CD4+Foxp3+ and CD4+Foxp3− T cells and analyzed their reactivity against specific commensal species. We show that tTregs constitute the majority of Tregs in all lymphoid and intestinal organs, including colon, where their repertoire is heavily influenced by the composition of the microbiota. Our results suggest that tTregs, and not iTregs, dominantly mediate tolerance to antigens produced by intestinal commensals

The SST-1M project for the Cherenkov Telescope Array

The SST-1M project, run by a Consortium of institutes from Czech Republic, Poland and Switzerland, has been proposed as a solution for implementing the small-size telescope array of the southern site of the Cherenkov Telescope Array. The technology is a pathfinder for efficient production of cost-effective imaging air Cherenkov telescopes. We report on the main system features and recent upgrades, the performances validation and the operation campaign carried out in 2018

Two-particle correlations in azimuthal angle and pseudorapidity in inelastic p + p interactions at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron

Results on two-particle ΔηΔϕ correlations in inelastic p + p interactions at 20, 31, 40, 80, and 158 GeV/c are presented. The measurements were performed using the large acceptance NA61/SHINE hadron spectrometer at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron. The data show structures which can be attributed mainly to effects of resonance decays, momentum conservation, and quantum statistics. The results are compared with the Epos and UrQMD models.ISSN:1434-6044ISSN:1434-605

Role of economic evaluation in decision-making of innovative health technologies

The aim of this article is to show the general possibility of application of chosen economic evaluation to assess innovative health technologies. The focus will be on the advantages related to use of HTA in decision making. It seems that the most important consequence of using economic evaluation is an opportunity to direct comparisons of the cost effectiveness and health benefits generated by innovative technologies which are financed from public sources

C16orf57, a gene mutated in poikiloderma with neutropenia, encodes a putative phosphodiesterase responsible for the U6 snRNA 3′ end modification.

C16orf57 encodes a human protein of unknown function, and mutations in the gene occur in poikiloderma with neutropenia (PN), which is a rare, autosomal recessive disease. Interestingly, mutations in C16orf57 were also observed among patients diagnosed with Rothmund-Thomson syndrome (RTS) and dyskeratosis congenita (DC), which are caused by mutations in genes involved in DNA repair and telomere maintenance. A genetic screen in Saccharomyces cerevisiae revealed that the yeast ortholog of C16orf57, USB1 (YLR132C), is essential for U6 small nuclear RNA (snRNA) biogenesis and cell viability. Usb1 depletion destabilized U6 snRNA, leading to splicing defects and cell growth defects, which was suppressed by the presence of multiple copies of the U6 snRNA gene SNR6. Moreover, Usb1 is essential for the generation of a unique feature of U6 snRNA; namely, the 3'-terminal phosphate. RNAi experiments in human cells followed by biochemical and functional analyses confirmed that, similar to yeast, C16orf57 encodes a protein involved in the 2',3'-cyclic phosphate formation at the 3' end of U6 snRNA. Advanced bioinformatics predicted that C16orf57 encodes a phosphodiesterase whose putative catalytic activity is essential for its function in vivo. Our results predict an unexpected molecular basis for PN, DC, and RTS and provide insight into U6 snRNA 3' end formation

Solid-state structure of tris-cyclopentadienide Uranium(III) and Plutonium(III)

The organometallic tris-cyclopentadienide actinide(III) (AnCp3) complexes have been reported first about 50 years ago. Up to now however only the NpCp3 solid state structure has been studied. Here we report on the solid state structures of UCp3 and PuCp3 which are isostructural to their Np analogue. The structural models are supported by theoretical calculations. Analyses of bond lengths and angles indicate increased covalency in the bonding in the tris-cyclopentadienide actinide(iii) complexes (AnCp3) compared to their lanthanide homologues.JRC.G.I.5-Advanced Nuclear Knowledg