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Fischdiabietane A ( 1 ), a novel asymmetric diterpenoid dimer with a unique nonacyclic 6/6/6/5/7/6/6/6/6 ring system possessing unprecedented 2-oxaspiro[4.5]decane-1-one and 2-oxabicyclo[3.2.2]nonane frameworks in D/E/F rings, was isolated from the roots of Euphorbia fischeriana . Its structure was determined by spectroscopic techniques, electronic circular dichroism calculations, and X-ray diffraction experiments. Notably, 1 is the first abietane-type [4 + 2] Diels-Alder dimer identified from nature. The IC 50 of 1 against T47D cells was about sixfold higher than that of cisplatin (the positive control). Furthermore, 1 induced apoptosis in T47D cells through the activation of caspase-3 and the degradation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase.

Electrically activated soft actuators capable of large deformation are powerful and broadly applicable in multiple fields. However, designing soft actuators that can withstand a high strain, provide a large actuation displacement, and exhibit stable reversibility are still the main challenges toward their practical application. Here, for the first time, we report a two-dimensional (2D) conductive metal-organic framework (MOF) based electrochemical actuator, which consists of vertically oriented and hierarchical Ni-CAT NWAs/CNF electrodes through the use of a facile one-step in situ hydrothermal growth method. The soft actuator prepared in this study demonstrated improvements in actuation performance and benefits from both the intrinsically ordered porous architecture and efficient transfer pathways for fast ion and electron transport; furthermore, this actuator facilitated a considerably high diffusion rate and low interfacial resistance. In particular, the actuator demonstrated a rapid response (<19 s) at a 3 V DC input, large actuation displacement (12.1 mm), and a correspondingly high strain of 0.36% under a square-wave AC voltage of ±3 V. Specifically, the actuator achieved a broad-band frequency response (0.1-20 Hz) and long-term cyclability in air (10000 cycles) with a negligible degradation in actuation performance. Our work demonstrates new opportunities for bioinspired artificial actuators and overcomes current limitations in electrode materials for soft robotics and bionics.

Three novel sesterterpenes, peniroquesines A-C, possessing an 5-6-5-6-5-fused pentacyclic ring system, were isolated from the fungus Penicillium roqueforti YJ-14 by solid fermentation. Their structures were initially investigated in detail by NMR spectra and HR-ESI-MS and were further confirmed by chemical reaction experiments as well as by X-ray analysis. Furthermore, a plausible biosynthetic pathway was investigated by isotope-labeling experiments.

Herein we describe that oxidation reactions of the dimeric cyclophosphazanes, [{P(μ-NR)} 2 (μ-NR)] 2 , R = t Bu (1), to produce a series of diagonally dioxidized products P 4 (μ-N t Bu) 6 E 2 [E = O (2), S (3), and Se (4)] and tetraoxidized frameworks. The latter display an unexpected C-N bond activation and cleavage to produce a series of novel phosphazane macrocyclic arrangements containing newly formed N-H bonds. Macromolecules P 4 (μ-N t Bu) 4 (μ-NH) 2 O 4 (5) and P 4 (μ-N t Bu) 3 (μ-NH) 3 E 4 , E = S (6) and Se (7), dicleaved and tricleaved products, respectively, are rare examples of dimeric macrocycles containing NH bridging groups. Our theoretical and experimental studies illustrate that the extent to which these C-N bonds are cleaved can be controlled by modification of steric parameters in their synthesis, by adjusting either the steric bulk of the substituents in the parent framework or the size of the chalcogen element introduced during the oxidation process. Our findings represent new synthetic pathways for the synthesis of otherwise-elusive macrocycle arrangements within the phosphazane family.

Flexible metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted great interest for their dynamically structural transformability in response to external stimuli. Herein, we report a switchable "breathing" or "gate-opening" behavior associated with the phase transformation between a narrow pore (np) and a large pore (lp) in a flexible pillared-layered MOF, denoted as MOF-1 as, which is also confirmed by SCXRD and PXRD. The desolvated phase (MOF-1 des) features a unique stepwise adsorption isotherm for N 2 coupled with a pronounced negative gas adsorption pressure. For comparison, however, no appreciable CO 2 adsorption and gate-opening phenomenon with stepwise sorption can be observed. Furthermore, the polar micropore walls decorated with thiophene groups in MOF-1 des reveals the selective sorption of toluene over benzene and p-xylene associated with self-structural adjustment in spite of the markedly similar physicochemical properties of these vapor molecules.

Reaction of 4-CN-PhOH with [ClP(μ-N(t)Bu)]2 (1) (2:1 ratio) in the presence of Et3N produced the functionalized cyclodiphosph(III/III)azane [(4-CN-PhO)P(μ-N(t)Bu)]2 (2). Oxidation of 2 produced cyclodiphosph(V/V)azanes [(4-CN-PhO)(E)P(μ-N(t)Bu)]2 [E = O (3), S (4), and Se (5)]. This is the first example of a series of cyclodiphosph(V/V)azane derivatives obtained from a single cyclophosph(III/III)azane precursor where all the accessible chalcogen oxidized products are air-stable over prolonged periods of time.

A novel series of 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives containing a 5-phenyl-2-furan moiety were synthesized from the intermediates diacylhydrazine 3 and acylhydrazone 5 via an efficient approach under microwave irradiation in good yields. Their structures were characterized by IR, (1)H NMR, and elemental analysis. The antifungal tests indicated that the title compounds showed in vivo fungicidal activity against Botrytis cinerea and Rhizoctonia solanii at 500 μg/mL obviously. Some tested compounds even had a superiority effect over the commercial fungicides 40% Pyrimethanil SC and 3% Validamycin AS. The activity between the title compound and their precursors diacylhydrazine 3 and acylhydrazone 5 was also compared and discussed.

A series of trifluoromethyl-substituted 1,2,4-triazole Mannich base 6 and bis(1,2,4-triazole) Mannich base 7 containing pyrimidinylpiperazine rings via the Mannich reaction were synthesized and characterized by infrared (IR), (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and elemental analysis. The fungicidal tests indicated that most of compounds 6 and 7 possessed excellent fungicidal activity. Among 19 novel compounds, some showed superiority over commercial fungicides Dimethomorph, Thiophanate-methyl, Iprodione, and Zhongshengmycin. Some compounds also exhibited favorable herbicidal activity in the preliminary studies. On the basis of the comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA), five novel compounds were subsequently synthesized, their activities were estimated fairly accurately, and compounds 6-A1 and 7-A2 displayed good fungicidal activity against Pseudoperonospora cubensis (96.9 and 84.9%) as 6h and 7c, respectively.

Chitin, a major structural component of insect cuticle and fungus cell wall but absent in plants and vertebrates, is regarded as a safe and selective target for pest control agents. Chitin synthesis inhibitors (CSIs) have been well-known as insect growth regulators (IGRs) but rarely found as fungicides in agriculture. To find novel CSIs with good activity, benzoylphenylurea, a typical kind of CSIs, was chosen as the lead compound and 26 novel aryl carbamic acid-5-aryl-2-furanmethyl esters were designed by converting the urea linkages of benzoylphenylureas to carbamic acid esters and changing the aniline parts into furanmethyl groups. The title compounds were synthesized and their structures confirmed by IR, (1)H NMR, and elemental analysis. Preliminary insecticidal and fungicidal bioassays were carried out. The results indicated that the title compounds had no insecticidal effect on Culex pipiens pallens and Plutella xylostella Linnaeus , but most compounds exhibited good fungicidal activities against Corynespora cassiicola , Thanatephorus cucumeris , Botrytis cinerea , and Fusarium oxysporum . In particular, compounds V-4, V-6, V-7, and V-8 showed better activities against the four strains than those of the commercialized fungicides. The morphologic result suggested that compound V-21 had disturbed the cell wall formation of C. cassiicola. The results indicated that modification on the urea linkage of benzoylphenylurea was an effective way to discover new candidates for fungicides.