Tools for identifying gelator scaffolds and solvents.

Small molecule gelators are serendipitously discovered more often than they are designed. As a consequence, it has been challenging to develop applications based on the limited set of known materials. This synopsis highlights recent strategies to streamline the process of gelator discovery, with a focus on the role of unidirectional intermolecular interactions and solvation. We present these strategies as a series of tools that can be employed to help identify gelator scaffolds and solvents for gel formation. Overall, we suggest that this guided approach is more efficient than random derivatization and screening.

Modifying a known gelator scaffold for nitrite detection.

The process of selecting and modifying a known gelator scaffold to develop a new nitrite-based sensor is described. Five new azo-sulfonate gelators were discovered and characterized. The most promising scaffold exhibits a stable diazonium intermediate, proceeds in a high yield, and gels nitrite-spiked tap, river, and pond water.

Correction: Modifying a known gelator scaffold for nitrite detection.

Correction for 'Modifying a known gelator scaffold for nitrite detection' by Danielle M. Zurcher et al., Chem. Commun., 2014, 50, 7813-7816.

Efficient in vitro siRNA delivery and intramuscular gene silencing using PEG-modified PAMAM dendrimers.

Although siRNA techniques have been broadly applied as a tool for gene knockdown, substantial challenges remain in achieving efficient delivery and in vivo efficacy. In particular, the low efficiency of target gene silencing in vivo is a critical limiting step to the clinical application of siRNA therapies. Poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers are widely used as carriers for drug and gene delivery; however, in vivo siRNA delivery by PAMAM dendrimers remains to be carefully investigated. In this study, the effectiveness of G5 and G6 PAMAM dendrimers with 8% of their surface amines conjugated to MPEG-5000 was studied for siRNA delivery in vitro and for intramuscular in vivo delivery in mice. The results from the PEG-modified dendrimers were compared to the results from the parent dendrimers as well as Lipofectamine 2000 and INTERFERin. Both PEG-modifed dendrimers protect the siRNA from being digested by RNase and gave high transfection efficiency for FITC-labeled siRNA in the primary vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) and mouse peritoneal macrophages. The PEG-modified dendrimers achieved knockdown of both plasmid (293A cells) and adenovirus-mediated green fluorescence protein (GFP) expression (Cos7 cells) in vitro with efficiency similar to that shown for Lipofectamine 2000. We further demonstrated in vivo that intramuscular delivery of GFP-siRNA using PEG-modified dendrimer significantly suppressed GFP expression in both transiently adenovirus infected C57BL/6 mice and GFP transgenic mice.

Synthesis, characterization, and theoretical studies of metal complexes derived from the chiral tripyridyldiamine ligand Bn-CDPy3.

Synthesis and characterization of metal complexes of the chiral tripyridyldiamine ligand Bn-CDPy3 (1), derived from trans-1,2-diaminocyclohexane, are described, along with theoretical studies that support the experimental data. These studies confirm that a single coordination geometry, out of five possible, is favored for octahedral complexes of the type [M(Bn-CDPy3)Cl], where M equals Co(III), Fe(II), and Zn(II). A combination of X-ray crystallographic and NMR spectroscopic methods was used to define the structures of the complexes [Co(Bn-CDPy3)Cl]Cl(2) (5), [Fe(Bn-CDPy3)Cl]X (X = FeCl(4), Cl, ClO(4), 6-8), and [Zn(Bn-CDPy3)Cl](2)ZnCl(4) (9) in the solid state and in solution. Experimental and theoretical data indicate that the most stable coordination geometry for all complexes possesses the Cl group trans to a basic amine donor and three pyridyl donors adopting the mer geometry, with two pyridyl N-donors adopting a coplanar geometry with respect to the M-Cl bond and the third pyridyl donor perpendicular to that axis. Calculations indicate that the ability to favor a single geometry is born from the chiral ligand, which prefers to be in a single conformation in metal complexes due to steric interactions and electronic factors. Calculated structures of the complexes were used to locate key interactions among the various diastereomeric complexes that are proposed to create an energetic preference for the coordination geometry observed in the metal complexes of 1.