Dark‐grown cell suspension cultures of parsley, Petroselinum hortense, produce furanocoumarins after treatment with elicitor preparations of either Phytophthora megasperma f.sp. glycinea (Pmg elicitor) or Alternaria carthami Chowdhury (Ac elicitor). The linear furanocoumarins, psoralen and xanthotoxin, and the benzodipyrandione, graveolone, are the major products synthesized in response to Pmg elicitor, besides small amounts of the furanocomarin bergapten. Treatment with Ac elicitor induces predominantly the formation of bergapten and the furanocoumarin isopimpinellin, as well as small amounts of graveolone. While Pmg elicitor leads to cell death within a few days, cell mass increased for at least 6 days after treatment with Ac elicitor. Brefeldin A, a phytotoxin produced by A. carthami, inhibits growth of parsley cell suspension cultures considerably at a concentration of 0.01 mM and growth of the cells ceased at a concentration of 0.1 mM toxin. Concomitantly, furanocoumarin biosynthesis was suppressed in our system by a concentration of brefeldin A within 0.01–0.1 mM.

NMR spectrometry, hitherto a powerful tool in organic chemistry for elucidating the structures of chemical compounds, has been improved during recent years to become a method suitable for detection of normal and abnormal metabolites in physiologic media. We have investigated native urinary specimens from patients known to suffer from different inherited metabolic disorders using a 250 MHz FT-NMR spectrometer and were able to confirm the diagnosis in every case. Chemical shift values of a variety of appropriate metabolites, run at pH 2.5, are presented here. It is concluded, that NMR spectrometry is an excellent method with which to screen for inborn errors of metabolism provided that high-field instruments with the best available specifications are applied.

From the aerial parts of Pluchea symphytifolia, four known and two new caffeoylquinic acids, 1,3,4,5-tetra-O-caffeoylquinic acid and 1,3-di-O-[3,4,-bis-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-cyclobutane-1,2-dicarbonyl]- 4,5-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid, and two flavonols were isolated and their structures elucidated by mass and NMR spectroscopy and by chemical degradation. The aqueous extract had weak antibacterial and weak antisecretory effects; the lipophilic extract showed a modest anthelmintic activity. The higher caffeoylated quinic acids participated in the antibacterial and anthelmintic effect of the extracts.

No abstract

"One-pot" substitution of the twenty hydrogen atoms in pentagonal dodecahedrane (C(20)H(20)) by OH, F, Cl, and Br atoms is explored. Electrophilic insertion of oxygen atoms with DMDO and TFMDO as oxidizing reagents ended, far off the desired C(20)(OH)(20), in complex polyol mixtures (up to C(20)H(10)(OH)(10) decols, a trace of C(20)H(OH)(19)?). Perfluorination was successful in a NaF matrix but (nearly pure) C(20)F(20) could be secured only in very low yield. "Brute-force" photochlorination (heat, light, pressure, time) provided a mixture of hydrogen-free, barely soluble C(20)Cl(16) dienes in high yield and C(20)Cl(20) as a trace component. Upon electron-impact ionization of the C(20)Cl(16) material sequential loss of the chlorine atoms was the major fragmentation pathway furnishing, however, only minor amounts of chlorine-free C(20) (+) ions. "Brute-force" photobrominations delivered an extremely complex mixture of polybromides with C(20)HBr(13) trienes as the highest masses. The MS spectra exhibited exclusive loss of the Br substituents ending in rather intense singly, doubly, and triply charged C(20)H(4-0) (+(2+)(3+)) ions. The insoluble approximately C(20)HBr(13) fraction (C(20)Br(14) trienes as highest masses) obtained along a modified bromination protocol, ultimately allowed the neat mass selection of C(20) (-) ions. The C(20)Cl(16) dienes and C(20)H(0-3)Br(14-12) tri-/tetraenes, in spite of their very high olefinic pyramidalization, proved resistant to oxygen and dimerization (polymerization) but added CH(2)N(2) smoothly. Dehalogenation of the respective cycloaddition products through electron-impact ionization resulted in C(22-24)H(4-8) (+(2+)) ions possibly constituting bis-/tris-/tetrakis-methano-C(20) fullerenes or partly hydrogenated C(22), C(23), and C(24) cages.

No abstract

Rigid NN/NN (diazene/diazene) systems (F) consisting of more or less alkylated DBH and DBO chromophoric units (1, 2, X‐ray structures), with very short π,π distances [d = 2.849 (1a, av.), 2.822 Å (2)] and almost perfect syn‐periplanar π,π alignments [ω = 168.6 (1a), 174.2° (2)] as well as the more flexible, less “proximate” metathesis isomers (3a,c, 27a,c, d >4.6 Å, ω = 90‐100°) have been synthesized. Homoconjugate π,π interaction (in 1, 2, not in 3, 27) is deduced from UV spectroscopic measurements [π → π* maxima at 239 (234) nm (sh, 260)], while PE analyses furnished only small interaction parameters (1a: <0.3 eV). The potential of the novel syn‐periplanar NN/NN motif in 1 and 2 for the synthesis of somewhat exotic polyheterocycles has been explored by calculation (B3LYP) as well as experimentally: i.a. kinetically stabilized, all‐cis‐peralkylated tetrazolidines (38, 44) and perhydro‐1,2,4,5‐tetrazines (41, 47) have become accessible (i.a. via novel azomethine/diazene and azomethine/azomethine cycloadditions). In 1a with its unreactive DBO chromophoric subunits, in the “buttressed” derivatives 1b‐d, as well as in the DBH/DBO combination 2, and likewise in more ‘distant’ 27 (differently from the analogous CC/CC and NN/CC systems), irrespective of the excitation conditions employed (light of λ ≥≥ 280, 254 nm, low temperature matrix irradiation, acetone sensitization) no [2+2]photocycloaddition was observed. Instead exclusively N2‐elimination took place. It is argued that unproductive NN/NN photocycloaddition would have become observable through metathesis isomerization of the respective tetrazetidines.

No abstract