Polymerization of N-carboxyanhydrides of various α-amino acids using secondary amines as initiator

In the polymerizations of alanine, γ-ethyl glutamate, and leucine N-carboxyanhydrides (NCA's) initiated by tertiary amines and some secondary amines such as N-methyl-L -alanine dialkylamide, a stereoselectivity was observed: the polymerization rates of L - and D -NCA's were identical to each other and larger than that of DL -NCA. However, this selectivity was not observed in the polymerizations of valine and isoleucine NCA's initiated by N-methyl-L -alanine dialkylamide. The stereoselective polymerizations of valine and isoleucine NCA's were induced only with tetriary amines such as tri-n-butylamine. N-Methyl-L -alanine di-alkylamide has been shown to initiate the polymerization of usual α-amino acid NCA according to the activated-NCA mechanism, but it initiated the polymerizations of valine and isoleucine NCA's according to the primary amine-type mechanism. This is because in the latter NCA's the N–H group is masked by the adjacent C^β-branched alkyl substituent against the approach of the secondary amine. Poly(DL -alanine)s produced in the stereoselective polymerization had higher viscosities and were more stereoblock-like than those produced without the stereoselectivity. These experimental results indicate that the stereoselective polymerization is possible only when the polymerization proceeds through the activated-NCA mechanism.     

Thalidomide induces apoptosis in undifferentiated human induced pluripotent stem cells

Thalidomide, which was formerly available commercially to control the symptoms of morning sickness, is a strong teratogen that causes fetal abnormalities. However, the mechanism of thalidomide teratogenicity is not fully understood; thalidomide toxicity is not apparent in rodents, and the use of human embryos is ethically and technically untenable. In this study, we designed an experimental system featuring human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) to investigate the effects of thalidomide. These cells exhibit the same characteristics as those of epiblasts originating from implanted fertilized ova, which give rise to the fetus. Therefore, theoretically, thalidomide exposure during hiPSC differentiation is equivalent to that in the human fetus. We examined the effects of thalidomide on undifferentiated hiPSCs and early-differentiated hiPSCs cultured in media containing bone morphogenetic protein-4, which correspond, respectively, to epiblast (future fetus) and trophoblast (future extra-embryonic tissue). We found that only the number of undifferentiated cells was reduced. In undifferentiated cells, application of thalidomide increased the number of apoptotic and dead cells at day 2 but not day 4. Application of thalidomide did not affect the cell cycle. Furthermore, immunostaining and flow cytometric analysis revealed that thalidomide exposure had no effect on the expression of specific markers of undifferentiated and early trophectodermal differentiated cells. These results suggest that the effect of thalidomide was successfully detected in our experimental system and that thalidomide eliminated a subpopulation of undifferentiated hiPSCs. This study may help to elucidate the mechanisms underlying thalidomide teratogenicity and reveal potential strategies for safely prescribing this drug to pregnant women.     

Effect of degree of polymerization and steric configuration of poly(2-vinylpyridine) as catalyst in the polymerization of phenylalanine NCA

Despite its being weaker base poly(2-vinylpyridine) polymerized DL -β-phenylalanine NCA at a much faster rate than pyridine and α-picoline. Poly(2-vinylpyridine) adsorbs NCA by hydrogen bonding with the cooperation of a few pyridine groups. This results in a high local concentration of NCA. The syndiotactic configuration of pyridine group seemed to be least suitable for the cooperative hydrogen bonding. Adsorbed NCA is activated to form an “activated” NCA which in turn reacts with an NCA adsorbed on the same polymer chain. Since the polymer chain is flexible, this intramolecular reaction takes place frequently, resulting in the acceleration of polymerization. The intramolecular reaction along the polymer chain is dependent on the degree of polymerization of polymer catalyst. A suitable model was proposed for the intramolecular reaction to explain the effect of degree of polymerization.     

The Purification and Some Properties of the UDP-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase from Pollen of Typha latifolia Linne

UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase from the pollen of Typha latifoliaLinné was purified to homogeneity as judged by polyacrylamidegel electrophoresis. Two affinity chromatographies with UDP-glucoseSepharose 6B and glucose-1-phosphate (G-l-P) Sepharose 6B wereused in the purification. The molecular weight of this enzyme was estimated to be about53,000 by gel filtration and 55,000 by SDS-polyacrylamide gelelectrophoresis, evidence that it consists of a single protein.It had a specific activity of 3,400, a molecular activity of180,000 and an equilibrium constant of 2.1 in the directionof UDP-glucose pyrophosphorolysis. Results of experiments on product inhibition and the initialvelocity of the reaction of the enzyme suggested an orderedBi Bi mechanism. (Received July 8, 1982; Accepted November 12, 1982)     

Novel route to preparation of high purity lysoplasmenylethanolamine

A rapid and simple method has been developed for the preparation of highly purified lysoplasmenylethanolamine. The starting material, a phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) sample that contained a mixture of the 1, 2 diacyl- and 1-O-alkenyl-2-acyl forms was subjected to mild alkaline methanolysis for 20 min at room temperature. Addition of chloroform and water with vigorous mixing, but without acidification at this point, led to a preferential retention of the lysoplasmenylethanolamine in the alkaline aqueous phase and complete separation of the methyl esters into the chloroform phase. Neutralization of the alkaline phase with dilute acetic acid, followed by addition of chloroform, allowed recovery of the lysoplasmenylethanolamine in the chloroform phase in very high yields (75-80% based on vinyl ether content of starting material). On the other hand, a preparation of cholineglycerophospholipids enriched in plasmenylcholine, treated in exactly the same manner, gave a lysoplasmenylcholine that was not retained in the alkaline phase, but partitioned primarily into the chloroform-rich phase together with the methyl esters. Characterization of the purified lysoplasmenylethanolamine was achieved by thin-layer chromatography and compositional analysis. In addition, fast atom bombardment mass spectral analysis of the intact lysoplasmenylethanolamine together with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the dimethyl acetals derived from the 1-O-alkenyl chains allowed further proof of the structure and an assessment of the purity of this compound.