Electrochemical Synthesis of Unnatural Amino Acids Embedding 5- and 6-Membered Heteroaromatics.

Using a commercially available potentiostat, the electrochemical synthesis of unnatural amino acids bearing heteroaromatics on the lateral chain has been accomplished. This strategy exploits the side-chain decarboxylative arylation of aspartic/glutamic acid, a reaction that becomes challenging with electron-rich coupling partners such as 5- and 6-membered heteroaromatics. These rings are underrepresented in unnatural amino acids, therefore allowing a wider exploration of the chemical space, given the abundance of the aryl bromides employable in this reaction.

Phasor-FLIM-guided unraveling of ATRA supramolecular organization in liposomal nanoformulations.

Here we use fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) to study the supramolecular organization of nanoencapsulated liposomal all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), exploiting ATRA's intrinsic fluorescence as a source of signal and phasor transformation as a fit-free analytical approach to lifetime data. Our non-invasive method is suitable for checking for the presence of a fraction of ATRA molecules interacting with liposomal membranes. The results are validated by independent small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and nano-differential scanning calorimetry (NanoDSC) measurements, probing ATRA's putative position on the membrane and effect on membrane organization. Besides the insights on the specific case-study proposed, the present results confirm the effectiveness of Phasor-FLIM analysis in elucidating the nanoscale supramolecular organization of fluorescent drugs in pharmaceutical formulations. This underscores the importance of leveraging advanced imaging techniques to deepen our understanding and optimize drugs' performance in delivery applications.

Optimization of M3 Antagonist-PDE4 Inhibitor (MAPI) Dual Pharmacology Molecules for the Treatment of COPD.

Aiming at the inhaled treatment of pulmonary diseases, the optimization process of the previously reported MAPI compound 92a is herein described. The project was focused on overcoming the chemical stability issue and achieving a balanced bronchodilator/anti-inflammatory profile in rats in order to be confident in a clinical effect without having to overdose at one of the biological targets. The chemical strategy was based on fine-tuning of the substitution pattern in the muscarinic and PDE4 structural portions of the dual pharmacology compounds, also making use of the analysis of a proprietary crystal structure in the PDE4 catalytic site. Compound 10f was identified as a chemically stable, potent, and in vivo balanced MAPI lead compound, as assessed in bronchoconstriction and inflammation assays in rats after intratracheal administration. After the in-depth investigation of the pharmacological and solid-state profile, 10f proved to be safe and suitable for development.

Solid-State Dynamics and High-Pressure Studies of a Supramolecular Spiral Gear.

The structures and solid-state dynamics of the supramolecular salts of the general formula [(12-crown-4)2 ⋅DABCOH2 ](X)2 (where DABCO=1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane, X=BF4 , ClO4 ) have been investigated as a function of temperature (from 100 to 360 K) and pressure (up to 3.4 GPa), through the combination of variable-temperature and variable-pressure XRD techniques and variable-temperature solid-state NMR spectroscopy. The two salts are isomorphous and crystallize in the enantiomeric space groups P32 21 and P31 21 . All building blocks composing the supramolecular complex display dynamic processes at ambient temperature and pressure. It has been demonstrated that the motion of the crown ethers is maintained on lowering the temperature (down to 100 K) or on increasing the pressure (up to 1.5 GPa) thanks to the correlation between neighboring molecules, which mesh and rotate in a concerted manner similar to spiral gears. Above 1.55 GPa, a collapse-type transition to a lower-symmetry ordered structure, not attainable at a temperature of 100 K, takes place, proving, thus, that the pressure acts as the means to couple and decouple the gears. The relationship between temperature and pressure effects on molecular motion in the solid state has also been discussed.

Precessional Motion in Crystalline Solid Solutions of Ionic Rotors.

The order-disorder phase transition associated with the uprise of reorientational motion in (DABCOH2)2+ , in the supramolecular salts of general formula [1⋅(DABCOH2 )]X2 (where 1=12-crown-4, DABCO=1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane, and X=Cl- or Br- ), has been investigated by variable temperature X-ray diffraction on single crystals and powder samples, as well as by DSC and solid-state NMR spectroscopy (SSNMR). The two compounds undergo a reversible phase change at 292 and 290 K, respectively. The two crystalline materials form solid solutions [1⋅(DABCOH2 )]Cl2x Br2(1-x) in the whole composition range (0 < x<1), with a decrease in the temperature of transition to a minimum of ca 280 K, corresponding to x=0.5. Activation energy values for the dynamic processes, evaluated by variable-temperature 13 C magic-angle spinning (MAS) SSNMR and line-shape analysis are ca. 50 kJ mol-1 in all cases. Combined diffraction and spectroscopic evidence has allowed the detection of a novel dynamic process for the (DABCOH2 )2+ dications, based on a room temperature precessional motion that is frozen out below the disorder-order transition; to the best of the authors' knowledge this phenomenon has never been observed before.