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Franks Schaefer posted an update 6 months ago
Anion vacancy migration in the orthorhombic Pnma phase of the lead-halide perovskite CsPbBr3 under hydrostatic pressure is studied computationally. Density functional theory calculations are used to determine transition states, activation enthalpies, and attempt frequencies for vacancies to hop between nearby lattice sites, under pressure in the range 0.0-2.0 GPa. The resulting data are used to parametrize a kinetic model of vacancy migration under the influence of an electric field, which is solved in the steady state to determine the anion vacancy mobility tensor as a function of pressure. It is found that the mobility tensor becomes increasingly anisotropic with increasing pressure, such that at 2.0 GPa, the mobility within the (010) lattice plane is 3 orders of magnitude greater than the mobility normal to it. The results demonstrate the potentially significant influence of pressure, and by extension, other forms of stress, on defect migration in lead-halide perovskites.The hydrophobic core of the lipid bilayer is conventionally considered a barrier to the translocation of charged species such that the translocation of even single ions occurs on long time scales. In contrast, experiments have revealed that some materials, including peptides, proteins, and nanoparticles, can translocate multiple charged moieties across the bilayer on experimentally relevant time scales. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying this behavior is challenging because resolving corresponding free-energy landscapes with molecular simulation techniques is computationally expensive. To address this challenge, we use atomistic molecular dynamics simulations with the swarms-of-trajectories (SOT) string method to analyze charge translocation pathways across single-component lipid bilayers as a function of multiple collective variables. We first demonstrate that the SOT string method can reproduce the free-energy barrier for the translocation of a charged lysine amino acid analogue in good agreement with the literature. We then obtain minimum free-energy pathways for the translocation, or flipping, of charged peptide loops across the lipid bilayer by utilizing trajectories from prior temperature-accelerated molecular dynamics (TAMD) simulations as initial configurations. The corresponding potential of mean force calculations reveal that the protonation of a central membrane-exposed aspartate residue substantially reduces the free-energy barrier for flipping charged loops by modulating the water content of the bilayer. These results provide new insight into the thermodynamics underlying loop-flipping processes and highlight how the combination of TAMD and the SOT string method can be used to understand complex charge translocation mechanisms.A novel approach for the formation of anomeric carbon-functionalized furanoside systems was accomplished through the employment of an oxo-rhenium catalyst. The transformation boasts a broad range of nucleophiles including allylsilanes, enol ethers, and aromatics in addition to sulfur, nitrogen, and hydride donors, able to react with an oxocarbenium ion intermediate derived from furanosidic structures. The excellent stereoselectivities observed followed the Woerpel model, ultimately providing 1,3-cis-1,4-trans systems. In the case of electron-rich aromatic nucleophiles, an equilibration occurs at the anomeric center with the selective formation of 1,3-trans-1,4-cis systems. This anomalous result was rationalized through density functional theory calculations. Different oxocarbenium ions such as those derived from dihydroisobenzofuran, pyrrolidine, and oxazolidine heterocycles can also be used as a substrate for the oxo-Re-mediated allylation reaction.A facile and metal-free method for the direct C(sp3)-H bond alkoxylation of 3-methylfuranocoumarins with alcohols has been disclosed. Selectfluor enabled the (hetero)benzylic C-H etherification by tuning the reaction temperature and solvent. Various alcohols were compatible in this transformation with suitable yields. The mechanistic studies revealed that the reaction might undergo the double addition process of alcohols, as well as the departure of a fluoride anion and the formation of an oxonium ion.Breast cancer (BC) is a common cause of morbidity and mortality, particularly in women. Moreover, the discovery of diagnostic biomarkers for early BC remains a challenging task. Previously, we demonstrated a targeted metabolic profiling approach capable of identifying metabolite marker candidates that could enable highly sensitive and specific detection of BC. However, the coverage of this targeted method was limited and exhibited suboptimal classification of early BC (EBC). To expand the metabolome coverage and articulate a better panel of metabolites or mass spectral features for classification of EBC, we evaluated untargeted liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF-MS) data, both individually as well as in conjunction with previously published targeted LC-triple quadruple (QQQ)-MS data. Variable importance in projection scores were used to refine the biomarker panel, whereas orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant ane to the disease. The combination of untargeted and targeted metabolomics platforms has provided a highly predictive and accurate method for BC and EBC diagnosis from plasma samples. Furthermore, such a complementary approach yielded critical information regarding potential pathogenic mechanisms underlying EBC that, although critical to improved prognosis and enhanced survival, are understudied in the current literature. All mass spectrometry data and deidentified subject metadata analyzed in this study have been deposited to Mendeley Data and are publicly available (DOI 10.17632/kcjg8ybk45.1).Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has recently received much attention as a safe and clean energy carrier for hydrogen molecules. In this study, based on direct ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) calculations, we demonstrated that H2O2 is directly formed via the photoelectron detachment of O-(H2O)n (n = 1-6) (water clusters of an oxygen radical anion). Three electronic states of oxygen atoms were examined in the calculations O(X)(H2O)n (X = 3P, 1D, and 1S states). After the photoelectron detachment of O-(H2O)n (n = 1) to the 1S state, a complex comprising O(1S) and H2O, O(1S)-OH2, was formed. A hydrogen atom of H2O immediately transferred to O(1S) during an intracluster reaction to form H2O2 as the final product. Simulations were run to obtain a total of 33 trajectories for n = 1 that all led to the formation of H2O2. The average reaction time of H2O2 formation was calculated to be 57.7 fs in the case of n = 1, indicating that the reaction was completed within 100 fs of electron detachment. All the reaction systems O(1S)(H2O)n (n = 1-6) indicated the formation of H2O2 by the same mechanism.