Ir(III) and Ru(II) Complexes in Photoredox Catalysis and Photodynamic Therapy: A New Paradigm towards Anticancer Applications

Individually, photoredox catalysis (PC) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) are well-established concepts that have experienced a remarkable resurgence in recent years, leading to significant progress in organic synthesis for PC and clinical approval of anticancer drugs for PDT. But, very recently, new photoredox catalyst systems based on Ir(III) and Ru(II) complexes have garnered significant interest because they can simultaneously be used as PDT agents apart from their demonstrated PC activity. This highlight discusses the unique PC behavior of emerging Ir(III)- and Ru(II)-based systems while also examining their potential PDT activity in cancer treatment.     

Brönsted方程动力学模型研究ZSM-5催化乙烯齐聚及芳构化活性和酸强度分布之间的定量关系

乙烯催化齐聚和芳构化是烯烃高值化和合成液体燃料的关键过程，采用NH₃-TPD谱图分析计算方法得到的探针分子脱附活化能作为催化剂的酸位点强度分布的参数，结合线性自由能理论在Br?nsted方程中引入酸强度对反应的影响因子γ作为动力学方程参数关联探针分子脱附活化能与反应活化能，明确固体酸酸强度的基准在催化动力学方程中的物理意义。建立同为MFI拓扑结构 Si /Al摩尔比为12.5、19、25、60、70的ZSM-5分子筛催化剂上不同酸强度位和乙烯齐聚及芳构化中氢转移、齐聚、芳构化各单元步骤以及对应的烷烃、低碳烯烃和芳烃产物分布的定量关系。根据拟合得到动力学参数γ可以发现不同强度的酸位点对乙烯齐聚及芳构化具有不同的作用系数。氨脱附活化能(DAE)为90 kJ·mol^-1的酸位点是氢转移反应的主要活性位点，而对于乙烯齐聚反应中主要的活性酸位点为DAE 90 kJ·mol^-1和124 kJ·mol^-1，DAE为150 kJ·mol^-1的酸位点是芳构化反应的主要活性位点。     

Evaluation of the degree of rate control via automatic differentiation

The degree of rate control (DRC) quantitatively identifies the kinetically relevant (sometimes known as rate-limiting) steps of a complex reaction network. This concept relies on derivatives which are commonly implemented numerically, for example, with finite differences (FDs). Numerical derivatives are tedious to implement, and can be problematic, and unstable or unreliable. In this study, we demonstrate the use of automatic differentiation (AD) in the evaluation of the DRC. AD libraries are increasingly available through modern machine learning frameworks. Compared with the FDs, AD provides solutions with higher accuracy with lower computational cost. We demonstrate applications in steady-state and transient kinetics. Furthermore, we illustrate a hybrid local-global sensitivity analysis method, the distributed evaluation of local sensitivity analysis, to assess the importance of kinetic parameters over an uncertain space. This method also benefits from AD to obtain high-quality results efficiently.     

Alteration of the Route to Menaquinone towards Isochorismate-Derived Metabolites

Chorismate and isochorismate constitute branch-point intermediates in the biosynthesis of many aromatic metabolites in microorganisms and plants. To obtain unnatural compounds, we modified the route to menaquinone in Escherichia coli. We propose a model for the binding of isochorismate to the active site of MenD ((1R,2S, 5S,6S)-2-succinyl-5-enolpyruvyl-6-hydroxycyclohex-3-ene-1-carboxylate (SEPHCHC) synthase) that explains the outcome of the native reaction with α-ketoglutarate. We have rationally designed variants of MenD for the conversion of several isochorismate analogues. The double-variant Asn117Arg–Leu478Thr preferentially converts (5S,6S)-5,6-dihydroxycyclohexa-1,3-diene-1-carboxylate (2,3-trans-CHD), the hydrolysis product of isochorismate, with a >70-fold higher ratio than that for the wild type. The single-variant Arg107Ile uses (5S,6S)-6-amino-5-hydroxycyclohexa-1,3-diene-1-carboxylate (2,3-trans-CHA) as substrate with >6-fold conversion compared to wild-type MenD. The novel compounds have been made accessible in vivo (up to 5.3 g L⁻¹). Unexpectedly, as the identified residues such as Arg107 are highly conserved (>94 %), some of the designed variations can be found in wild-type SEPHCHC synthases from other bacteria (Arg107Lys, 0.3 %). This raises the question for the possible natural occurrence of as yet unexplored branches of the shikimate pathway.     

油页岩矿物质催化半焦燃烧特性及机理

利用微型流化床反应分析仪（MFBRA）研究了油页岩矿物质催化半焦燃烧特性，重点考察了半焦内部矿物质和外部页岩灰床料对半焦燃烧的催化作用，揭示了流化床反应器中半焦燃烧过程和机理。结果表明：内部矿物质和外部床料对半焦燃烧均具有明显催化作用，而两者共同催化效果最为显著。矿物质中CaO和Fe₂O₃对半焦燃烧具有催化活性，CaO催化作用强于Fe₂O₃。油页岩半焦燃烧反应活化能在60.41~78.97 kJ/mol之间，矿物质的催化作用会明显降低反应活化能。流化床反应器中，矿物质对半焦燃烧的催化作用主要表现在四个反应，即：挥发分裂解和燃烧、半焦表面炭燃烧、半焦内部炭燃烧以及一氧化碳燃烧。     

铜基化合物的可见光催化研究进展

与传统贵金属光催化剂相比，铜基光催化剂具有价格低廉、绿色环保、反应条件温和、光催化活性可调节等优势，受到合成化学家们广泛关注。本文简述了铜基催化剂的光催化历史，回顾了近五年来铜基化合物在可见光催化领域的研究成果与进展，总结了铜基催化剂的独立光催化机理与协同光催化机理；简要阐述了铜催化剂在不同类型反应中的应用，重点讨论了铜(Ⅰ)催化剂在烯烃官能化、碳-碳偶联、碳-杂偶联、原位催化等反应中的应用研究，表明铜基化合物在光催化合成领域具有很大的应用潜力。对未来的研究工作进行了展望，指出拓展催化剂的反应适用性、探索催化剂的氧化还原能力、进一步开发催化剂在手性合成中的应用将是该领域的研究重点。