The purpose of this investigation is threefold: (1) to examine in detail the cycloaddition of halogenated ketenes and carbonyl compounds, (2) to study the decarboxylation of the resulting halogenated 2-oxetanones,and (3) to investigate the effect of halogens in the halogenated 2-oxetanones on the nucleophilic addition reaction.

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This thesis describes the synthesis of a host of polynuclear iron complexes synthesised with phenolic oxime ligands, fundamentally developing the coordination chemistry of iron with these ligands. The metallic cores that occur within iron phenolic oxime clusters were found to contain almost exclusively oxo-centred triangles and oxo-centred tetrahedra. We found that we could alter the reaction conditions or derivatise the ligands and develop these basic building blocks into more elaborate arrays, exerting a degree of control over creating larger or smaller clusters. Chapter one describes the syntheses, structures and magnetic properties of new iron complexes alongside previously synthesised related complexes (4, 5, 8, 9 and 15) containing salicylaldoxime (saoH2) or derivatised salicylaldoximes (RsaoH2). These are [Fe3O(OMe)(Ph-sao)2Cl2(py)3]·2MeOH (1·2MeOH), [Fe3O(OMe)(Ph-sao)2Br2(py)3]·Et2O (2·Et2O), [Fe4(Ph-sao)4F4(py)4]·1.5MeOH (3·1.5MeOH), [Fe6O2(OH)2(Et-sao)2(Et-saoH)2(O2CPh)6] (4), [HNEt3]2[Fe6O2(OH)2(Et-sao)4(O2CPh(Me)2)6]·2MeCN (5·2MeCN), [Fe6O2(O2CPh)10(3-tBut-5-NO2-sao)2(H2O)2]·2MeCN (6·2MeCN), [Fe6O2(O2CCH2Ph)10(3-tBut-sao)2(H2O)2]·5MeCN (7·5MeCN), {[Fe6Na3O(OH)4(Me-sao)6(OMe)3(H2O)3(MeOH)6]·MeOH}n (8·MeOH) and [HNEt3]2[Fe12Na4O2(OH)8(sao)12(OMe)6(MeOH)10] (9). The predominant building block appears to be the triangular [Fe3O(R-sao)3]+ species which can self-assemble into more elaborate arrays depending on reaction conditions. The four hexanuclear and two octanuclear complexes of formulae [Fe8O2(OMe)4(Mesao) 6Br4(py)4]·2Et2O·MeOH (10·2Et2O·MeOH), [Fe8O2(OMe)3.85(N3)4.15(Mesao) 6(py)2] (11), [Fe6O2(O2CPh-4-NO2)4(Me-sao)2(OMe)4Cl2(py)2] (12), [Fe6O2(O2CPh-4-NO2)4(Et-sao)2(OMe)4Cl2(py)2]·2Et2O·MeOH (13·2Et2O·MeOH), [HNEt3]2[Fe6O2(Me-sao)4(SO4)2(OMe)4(MeOH)2] (14) and [HNEt3]2[Fe6O2(Etsao) 4(SO4)2(OMe)4(MeOH)2] (15) all are built from series of edge-sharing [Fe4( μ4- O)]10+ tetrahedra. Complexes 10 and 11 display a new μ4-coordination mode of the oxime ligand and join a small group of Fe-phenolic oxime complexes with nuclearity greater than six. Chapter three then introduces co-ligands to the reaction scheme to compete with the salicylaldoxime ligands for metal coordination sites. Five tetranuclear and two nononuclear complexes are stabilised with salicylaldoxime (saoH2) or derivatised salicylaldoximes (R-saoH2) in conjunction with either 1,4,7- triazocyclononane (tacn), 2-hydroxymethyl pyridine (hmpH) or 2,6-pyridine dimethanol (pdmH2), [Fe4O2(sao)4(tacn)2]·2MeOH (16·MeOH), [Fe4O2(Mesao) 4(tacn)2]·2MeCN (17·2MeCN), [Fe4O2(Et-sao)4(tacn)2]·MeOH (18·MeOH), [Fe9NaO4(Et-sao)6(hmp)8]·3MeCN·Et2O (19·3MeCN·Et2O), [Fe4 (Etsao) 4(hmp)4]·Et-saoH2 (20·Et-saoH2), [Fe4(Ph-sao)4(hmp)4]·2MeCN (21·2MeCN) [Fe9O3(sao)(pdm)6(N3)7(H2O)] (22). Chapter four straps two salicylaldoxime units together in the 3-position, using ligands with aliphatic a,W-aminomethyl links, allowing the assembly of the polynuclear complexes [Fe7O2(OH)6(H2L1)3(py)6](BF4)5·6H2O·14MeOH (23·6H2O·14MeOH), [Fe6O(OH)7(H2L2)3][(BF4)3]·4H2O·9MeOH (24·4H2O·9MeOH) and [Mn6O2(OH)2(H2L1)3(py)4(MeCN)2](BF4)5(NO3)·3MeCN·H2O·5py (25·3MeCN·H2O·5py). In each case the metallic skeleton of the cluster is based on a trigonal prism in which two [MIII 3O] triangles are tethered together via three helically twisted double-headed oximes. The latter are present as H2L2- in which the oximic and phenolic O-atoms are deprotonated and the amino N-atoms protonated, with the oxime moieties bridging across the edges of the metal triangles. Both the identity of the metal ion and the length of the straps connecting the salicylaldoxime units have a major impact on the nuclearity and topology of the resultant cage, with, perhaps counter-intuitively, the longer straps producing the “smallest” clusters.

6-Diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine (DON, 1) is a non-standard amino acid with proven antitumor activity found in soil bacteria of the genus Streptomyces. However, due to the considerable systemic toxicity manifested mainly in the gastrointestinal tract, DON alone is not a suitable clinical candidate for the treatment of cancer. One of the ways to solve the problem of its toxicity is the reversible structural modification of this molecule by protecting both its amino group and carboxyl functional group, by preparing the so-called prodrug of DON. The prepared prodrug may suitably alter the distribution of DON in the body and at the same time increase its permeability to brain tissue. Due to this structural modification, its side effects can be eliminated and a substance for the treatment of brain tumors, such as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), can potentially be formed. In my dissertation, five strategies for the specific delivery of DON to the brain using different types of its prodrugs are discussed. The new prodrugs are designed to be either capable of spontaneous penetration across the blood-brain barrier or of being a substrate for one of its influx transporters. At the same time, these prodrugs should be stable in other metabolically active organs and blood plasma in order to sufficiently reduce the...

Master of Science / Department of Chemistry / Ping Li / Biodegradable polyhydroxybutyrates (PHBs) produced by a wide range of bacteria have been considered as an ideal alternative to petroleum-based plastics. Two types of mechanistic probes have been synthesized in order to understand the mechanism of PHB synthases (PhaCs). The first type is oxo analogs in which the sulfur in the coenzyme A (CoA) thioester has been replaced with an oxygen atom. A series of 3-R-hydroxybutyryl oxo CoA analogs, (HB)[subscript]nOCoA (n = 1, 2 and 3), were synthesized chemoenzymatically in good yields. Two models involving covalent catalysis with Cys have been proposed for the chain elongation catalyzed by PhaCs. The first involves an active site composed of two monomers in which the growing hydroxybutyrate (HB) chain alternates between Cys on each monomer. The second involves noncovalent intermediates (HB)[subscript]nCoA (n ≥ 2). Here the substrate analog HBOCoA was successfully employed to trap the noncovalent intermediates in the reactions catalyzed by class III PhaC from Allochromatium Vinosum, which supports our preferred second mechanistic model. Furthermore, it is also the first time that a wild-type (wt) synthase was used to investigate the chain elongation models. The other type of mechanistic probes is 3-R-hydroxyalkyl CoA that was used to investigate the substrate specificity of PhaCs from different classes. Substrate availability has been a challenge to study PHB synthases in vitro. Starting with commercially available dimethyl S-malate, the intermediate S-ethyl 2-(oxiran-2-yl) acetate 23 was synthesized via a ring-opening reaction involving lactone 21 and trimethylsilyl iodide followed by an oxidation reaction involving silver oxide. The regiospecific ring-opening reaction of epoxide 23 with different organometallic reagents afforded a straightforward access to ethyl 3-R-hydroxybutanoates attached with a variety of side chains. The final CoA compounds were obtained through the thiotransesterification reaction between corresponding benzenethioesters and the thiol group in CoA. This synthetic approach provides a new avenue to modifications of alkyl groups in 3-R-hydroxyalkyl CoA in an efficient manner.

published_or_final_version / Chemistry / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Copper(II) and oxovanadium(IV) ions resemble one another magnetically in having one unpaired electron in their complexes irrespective of their geometrical structures and bond types involved. Copper(II) complexes with antiferromagnetic exchange are well known. On the contrary, antiferromagnetic exchange in oxovanadium(IV) complexes is rather new and not well established. Very few oxovanadium(IV) complexes have been reported to have this anomalous magnetic property. In the investigation of the magnetic properties of oxovanadium(IV) complexes, we have successfully prepared two series of new oxovanadium(IV) complexes with N-salicylideneamino acids.

In nature, transition metal containing enzymes display many biologically important, attractive and efficient catalytic oxidation reactions. Many transition metal catalysts have been designed to mimic the predominant oxidation catalysts in nature, namely, the cytochrome P450 enzymes. Ruthenium porphyrin complexes have been the center of this research and have successfully been utilized, as catalysts, in major oxidation reactions, such as the hydroxylation of alkanes. The present work focuses on photocatalytic studies of aerobic oxidation reactions with well characterized ruthenium porphyrin complexes. The photocatalytic studies of aerobic oxidation reactions of hydrocarbons The photocatalytic studies of aerobic oxidation reactions of hydrocarbons catalyzed by a bis-porphyrin-ruthenium(IV) μ-oxo dimer using atmospheric oxygen as the oxygen source in the absence of co-reductants were investigated. The ruthenium(IV) μ-oxo bisporphyrin (3a-d) was found to catalyze aerobic oxidation of a variety of organic substrates efficiently. By comparison, 3d was found to be a more efficient photocatalyst than the well-known 3a under identical conditions. A KIE at 298K was found to be larger than those observed in autoxidation processes, suggesting a nonradical mechanism that involved the intermediacy of ruthenium(V)-oxo species as postulated. The reactivity order in the series of ruthenium(IV) μ-oxo bisporphyrin complexes follows TPFPP>4- CF3TPP>TPP, and is consistent with expectations based on the electrophilic nature of the ruthenium(IV) μ-oxo bisporphyrin species. The trans-dioxoruthenium(VI) porphyrins have been among the best characterized metal-oxo intermediates and their involvement as the active oxidant in the hydrocarbon oxidation have been extensively studied. In addition to the well-known chemical methods, we developed a novel approach for generation of trans-dioxoruthenium( VI) porphyrins with visible light by extension of the known photoinduced ligand cleavage reactions. A series of trans-dioxoruthenium(VI) porphyrin complexes (6a-d) were photochemically synthesized and spectroscopically characterized by UV-vis, and 1H-NMR.

1. FVP of arylmethylazides (33b¡B34b) via 3,3-sigmatropic rearrangement gave nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds (2b¡B4b). FVP of 35 gave 3-benzyl-2-thiophenecarbaldehyde (65) by 1,2 H shift of nitrene 32 followed by hydrolysis. 2. FVP of benzoic 3-(1-propenyl)-2-thiophenecarboxylic anhydride (67) gave 7-hydroxybenzo[b]thiophene (70) and cyclopenteno[b]thiophene (71). Compound 71 is difficult to synthesize by normal organic synthetic methods. The formation of 7-hydroxybenzo[b]thiophene (70) suggesting the existence of 68. 3. FVP of arylimine gave phenanthridine (3)¡B3-methylpyrrolo[2,3-c] quinoline (69) and thieno[2,3-c]quinoline (134). Such a method can synthesize tricyclic products in one step. On the other hand, photolytic study of arylimine gave compounds 156¡B184¡B164¡B180¡B185 and 186.

Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam. / Met samenvattingen in het Frans, Nederlands en Spaans.