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At least 37 records · Page 2

Sequence dependent N-terminal rearrangement and degradation of peptide nucleic acid (PNA) in aqueous solution

The stability of the PNA (peptide nucleic acid) thymine monomer inverted question markN-[2-(thymin-1-ylacetyl)]-N-(2-aminoaminoethyl)glycine inverted question mark and those of various PNA oligomers (5-8-mers) have been measured at room temperature (20 degrees C) as a function of pH. The thymine monomer undergoes N-acyl transfer rearrangement with a half-life of 34 days at pH 11 as analyzed by 1H NMR; and two reactions, the N-acyl transfer and a sequential degradation, are found by HPLC analysis to occur at measurable rates for the oligomers at pH 9 or above. Dependent on the amino-terminal sequence, half-lives of 350 h to 163 days were found at pH 9. At pH 12 the half-lives ranged from 1.5 h to 21 days. The results are discussed in terms of PNA as a gene therapeutic drug as well as a possible prebiotic genetic material.

Non-NASA Center↗

Partial purification and characterization of indol-3-ylacetylglucose:myo-inositol indol-3-ylacetyltransferase (indoleacetic acid-inositol synthase)

A procedure is described for the purification of the enzyme indol-3-ylacetylglucose:myo-inositol indol-3-ylacetyltransferase (IAA-myo-inositol synthase). This enzyme catalyzes the transfer of indol-3-ylacetate from 1-0-indol-3-ylacetyl-beta-d-glucose to myo-inositol to form indol-3-ylacetyl-myo-inositol and glucose. A hexokinase or glucose oxidase based assay system is described. The enzyme has been purified approximately 16,000-fold, has an isoelectric point of pH 6.1 and yields three catalytically inactive bands upon acrylamide gel electrophoresis of the native protein. The enzyme shows maximum transferase activity with myo-inositol but shows some transferase activity with scyllo-inositol and myo-inosose-2. No transfer of IAA occurs with myo-inositol-d-galactopyranose, cyclohexanol, mannitol, or glycerol as acyl acceptor. The affinity of the enzyme for 1-0-indol-3-ylacetyl-beta-d-glucose is, Km = 30 micromolar, and for myo-inositol is, Km = 4 millimolar. The enzyme does not catalyze the exchange incorporation of glucose into IAA-glucose indicating the reaction mechanism involves binding of IAA glucose to the enzyme with subsequent hydrolytic cleavage of the acyl moiety by the hydroxyl of myo-inositol to form IAA myo-inositol ester.

NASA Program Space Biology↗

New methods for preparing N,N-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides

The customary preparative methods for N,N-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides involve the acylation of an amine by trifluoroacetic acid or its derivatives. The synthesis of N,N-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides by reacting trifluoroacetic anhydride or acid with disubstituted formamides and acetamides is discussed. These reactions were interpreted with the aid of gas chromatographic analysis. Different reaction mechanisms are proposed for the reactions of formamides and acetamides with trifluoroacetic anhydride or acid. The use of the proposed reaction mechanisms for the synthesis of other fluorinated compounds is discussed.

Hsu, L.↗

New methods for preparing n, n-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides

The customary preparative methods for N,N-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides involve the acylation of an amine by trifluoroacetic acid or its derivatives. In this report the synthesis of N,N-dialkyltrifluoroacetamides by reacting trifluoroacetic anhydride or acid with disubstituted formamides and acetamides is discussed. These reactions are interpreted with the aid of gas chromatographic analysis. Different reaction mechanisms are proposed for the reactions of formamides and acetamides with trifluoroacetic anhydride or acid. The use of the proposed reaction mechanisms for the synthesis of other fluorinated compounds is discussed.

Hsu, L.↗

An investigation of the preparation of high molecular weight perfluorocarbon polyethers

High molecular weight perfluorocarbon polyether gums were obtained by photolysis of perfluorodienes and discyl fluorides containing a perfluorocarbon polyether backbond. The materials obtained are represented by chemical formulas. A method was developed whereby reactive acyl fluoride and trifluorovinyl end groups are converted into inert structures. In order to investigate the possible preparation of difunctional molecules which may be useful in polymer synthesis, the reactions of hexafluoropropene oxide (HFPO) with Grignard and organolithium reagents have been studied. Reactions of various nucleophilic reagents with HFPO were also investigated.

Watts, R. O.↗

Amino acid analysis

The process and apparatus for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the amino acid content of a biological sample are presented. The sample is deposited on a cation exchange resin and then is washed with suitable solvents. The amino acids and various cations and organic material with a basic function remain on the resin. The resin is eluted with an acid eluant, and the eluate containing the amino acids is transferred to a reaction vessel where the eluant is removed. Final analysis of the purified acylated amino acid esters is accomplished by gas-liquid chromatographic techniques.

Winitz, M.↗

Utilization of oxygen difluoride for syntheses of fluoropolymers

The reaction oxygen difluoride, OF2, with ethylenically unsaturated fluorocarbon compounds is examined. Depending upon the fluorocarbon material and reaction conditions, OF2 can chain extend fluoropolyenes, convert functional perfluorovinyl groups to acyl fluoride and/or epoxide groups, and act as a monomer for an addition type copolymerization with diolefins.

Toy, M. S.↗

Aminoacyl transfer from an adenylate anhydride to polyribonucleotides

Imidazole catalysis of phenylalanyl transfer from phenylalanine adenylate to hydroxyl groups of homopolyribonucleotides is studied as a possible chemical model of biochemical aminoacylation of transfer RNA (tRNA). The effect of pH on imidazole-catalyzed transfer of phenylalanyl residues to poly(U) and poly(A) double helix strands, the number of peptide linkages and their lability to base and neutral hydroxylamine, and the nature of adenylate condensation products are investigated. The chemical model entertained exhibits a constraint by not acylating the hydroxyl groups of polyribonucleotides in a double helix. The constraint is consistent with selective biochemical aminoacylation at the tRNA terminus. Interest in imidazole as a model of histidine residue in protoenzymes participating in prebiotic aminoacyl transfer to polyribonucleotides, and in rendering the tRNA a more efficient adaptor, is indicated.

Weber, A. L.↗

Enhancement of peptide bond formation by polyribonucleotides on clay surfaces in fluctuating environments

The selective effects of polyribonucleotides on the formation of glycine peptide bonds in glycine on clay surfaces are investigated as a model for a template mechanism for the effects of polynucleotides on peptide bond formation. Free oligoglycine yields were determined for the cycling reaction of glycine in the presence and absence of clay and polyribonucleotides or polydeoxyribonucleotides. The polyribonucleotides are observed to lead to increases of up to fourfold increases in oligoglycine formed, with greater enhancements for poly-G nucleotides than for poly-A, poly-U and poly-C, indicating a codonic bias. Polydeoxyribonucleotides are found to provide no enhancement in peptide formation rates, and yields were also greatly reduced in the absence of clay. A mechanism for peptide synthesis is proposed which involves the activation of glycine on the clay surface, followed by the formation of esters between glycine and the 2-prime OH groups of the polyribonucleotide and peptide bonds between adjacent amino acyl esters. It is pointed out that if this mechanism is correct, it may provide a basis for a direct template translation process, which would produce a singlet genetic code.

White, D. H.↗

Reactivity of pyrylium salts toward basic reactants

The reactivity of some N-acyl and N-sulfonyl-hydrazines 2-4, 10a-10g, 12, 13, 16a, 16b and of hydrazones 18, benzyldihydrazone 21 towards pyrylium salts 1 was examined. By reaction of 2,4,6-trimethyl-pyrylium salt 1 with substituted hydrazines some pyridinium salts were obtained. Relationships between basicity and reactivity were discussed.

Neidlein, R.↗

Stereoselective aminoacylation of a dinucleoside monophosphate by the imidazolides of DL-alanine and N-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-DL-alanine

The aminoacylation of diinosine monophosphate was studied experimentally. When the acylating agent was the imidazolide of N-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-DL-alanine, a 40 percent enantiomeric excess of the isomer was incorporated at the 2' site and the positions of equilibrium for the reversible 2'-3' migration reaction differed for the D and L enantiomers. The reactivity of the nucleoside hydroxyl groups was found to decrease on the order 2'(3') less than internal 2' and less than 5', and the extent of the reaction was affected by the concentration of the imidazole buffer. Reaction of IpI with imidazolide of unprotected DL-alanine, by contrast, led to an excess of the D isomer at the internal 2' site. Finally, reaction with the N-carboxy anhydride of DL-alanine occurred without stereoselection. These results are found to be relevant to the study of the evolution of optical chemical activity and the origin of genetically directed protein synthesis.

Profy, A. T.↗

The lipid composition and its alteration during the growth stage in pathogenic fungus, epidermophyton floccosum

Qualitative and quantitative changes of lipid components during the growth stages were studied in E. floccosum. The acyl group components of total lipids of Trichophyton rubrum and Microsporum cookei were also examined. The lipids of E. floccosum amounted to approximately 4% of the dry cell weight. Neutral lipids mainly consisted of triglycerides and sterols, and major polar lipids were phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, and an unknown lipid X. The fatty acids in tryglycerides and phospholipids were palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic acids. The unknown polar lipid X which appeared between phosphatidylethanolamine and cardiolipin on thin layer chromatography plates contained no phosphorus. There was no significant change in the fatty acid components of E. floccosum and T. rubrum during the cell growth, whereas profound changes occurred in M. cookei. The sterol components of E. floccosum showed striking changes depending on the growth stage.

Yamada, T.↗

Further work on sodium montmorillonite as catalyst for the polymerization of activated amino acids

When the polycondensation of amino acid acylates was catalyzed with Na-montmorillonite, the polypeptides were consistently found to exhibit a distribution of discrete molecular weights, for as yet undiscovered reasons. One possible explanation was connected to the stepwise mode of monomer addition. New experiments have eliminated this possibility, so that there is the general assumption that this discreteness is the result of a preference of shorter oligomers to add to others of the same length, a feature that could be attributed to some structure of the platelet aggregates of the montmorillonite. The production of optical stereoisomers is anticipated when D,L-amino acids are polymerized on montmorillonite. Having used an optically active surface, the essence of the results lies not only in the occurrence of optically active oligomers and polymers, but also in the fact that the latter exhibit the same molecular weight characteristics as the D,L-polymers. Preparatory to work contemplated on a parallel synthesis of amino acid and nucleotide oligomers, studies were continued on the co-adsorption of amino acids, nucleotides, and amino acid-nucleotides on montmorillonite.

Eirich, F. R.↗

A comparative study of prebiotic and present day translational models

It is generally recognized that the understanding of the molecular basis of primitive translation is a fundamental step in developing a theory of the origin of life. However, even in modern molecular biology, the mechanism for the decoding of messenger RNA triplet codons into an amino acid sequence of a protein on the ribosome is understood incompletely. Most of the proposed models for prebiotic translation lack, not only experimental support, but also a careful theoretical scrutiny of their compatibility with well understood stereochemical and energetic principles of nucleic acid structure, molecular recognition principles, and the chemistry of peptide bond formation. Present studies are concerned with comparative structural modelling and mechanistic simulation of the decoding apparatus ranging from those proposed for prebiotic conditions to the ones involved in modern biology. Any primitive decoding machinery based on nucleic acids and proteins, and most likely the modern day system, has to satisfy certain geometrical constraints. The charged amino acyl and the peptidyl termini of successive adaptors have to be adjacent in space in order to satisfy the stereochemical requirements for amide bond formation. Simultaneously, the same adaptors have to recognize successive codons on the messenger. This translational complex has to be realized by components that obey nucleic acid conformational principles, stabilities, and specificities. This generalized condition greatly restricts the number of acceptable adaptor structures.

Rein, R.↗

Chirally selective, intramolecular interaction observed in an aminoacyl adenylate anhydride

The interaction between amino acids and nucleotide bases is studied. The proton NMR spectrum of N-acetylphenylalanyl-AMP-anhydride is analyzed H8 and H2 signals, two upfield signals of equal size, and five phenylalanine ring proton signals are observed in the spectrum; the upfield movement of the proton and the racemization of the N-acetyl L-phenylalanine material are examined. The differences in the position of the signals due to the diastereoisomers are investigated. The separation of the D and L amino acyl adenylates using HPLC is described. H-1 NMR spectra of the isomers are examined in order to determine which isomer displays the strongest interaction between the phenyl ring and the adenine ring. The spectra reveal that the L isomer shows the highest upfield change of both H8 and H2 signals. It is noted that the phenyl ring lies over C2 of the adenine ring with the phenyl meta and para protons extended past the adenine ring and the phenyl ortho protons.

Lacey, J. C., Jr.↗

Fire-Resistant Polyamides Containing Phosphorus

Flammability and weight loss reduced. Fire-resistant polymers obtained from 1-{(dialkoxyphosphonyl) methyl}-2, 4- and -2, 6-diaminobenzenes by reaction with acyl or diacyl halides of higher functionality. Incorporation of compounds containing phosphorus into certain polymers shown previously to increase fire retardance. Discovery adds new class of polyamides to group of such polymers.

Kourtides, Demetrius A.↗