Nature Chemistry Contents March 2013 Volume 5 Number 3 pp147-246

TABLE OF CONTENTS March 2013 Volume 5, Issue 3 Thesis Books and Arts Research Highlights Blogroll News and Views Review Articles In Your Element Subscribe   Facebook   RSS   Recommend to library   Twitter   Advertisement New Nature Journals iPad app Read Nature anytime, anywhere. Subscribe to Nature on the iPad for only $35.99 Download the new app from the app store. *Apple exchange rates apply to international prices.   Thesis Top Tangible assets   pp147 - 148 Michelle Francl doi:10.1038/nchem.1585 Michelle Francl argues we should embrace molecular models, not tuck them away in the closet. Books and Arts Top Television: Chemistry at Christmas   p149 Jamie Gallagher doi:10.1038/nchem.1579 Research Highlights Top Ion-mobility spectroscopy: Crowning achievement | RNA cleavage: A radical solution | Ancient medicine: Two-millennia-old tablets | Biocatalysis: Promiscuous by nature Blogroll Top Blogroll: It's time to talk   p151 JessTheChemist  doi:10.1038/nchem.1584 News and Views Top Drug-protein interactions: Mechanisms of potency   pp152 - 153 Christopher M. Cheatum doi:10.1038/nchem.1586 Overcoming drug resistance requires drug-protein interactions that persist in spite of mutations, but such interactions are difficult to characterize. Two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy can reveal the dynamics of how key molecular groups interact, allowing new insights into how some drugs overcome resistance. See also: Article by Kuroda et al. DNA structure: Visualizing the quadruplex   pp153 - 155 Adam Siddiqui-Jain and Laurence H. Hurley doi:10.1038/nchem.1587 The direct observation and quantification of G-quadruplex structures formed from DNA in human cells during the cell cycle demonstrate the biological importance of these structures and point towards opportunities for targeting them with small-molecule drugs. See also: Article by Biffi et al. Analytical chemistry: Virulence caught green-handed   pp155 - 157 Laura M. Sanchez and Pieter C. Dorrestein doi:10.1038/nchem.1583 Many of us eat mushrooms, but few of us have probably ever thought about — let alone witnessed — the epic battle of kingdoms that can occur between this delicacy and its bacterial pathogens. Now, imaging mass spectrometry has enabled the identification of a bacterium's potent antifungal weapon of choice. Drug discovery: Diversifying complexity   pp157 - 158 Indrajeet Sharma and Derek S. Tan doi:10.1038/nchem.1581 A synthetic strategy that uses a series of simple reactions to distort the core architecture of complex natural products could provide libraries of stereochemically rich compounds that will help in the search for new biological probes and drugs. See also: Article by Huigens et al. Single-molecule fluorescence: Assembling nanoantennas   pp159 - 160 Gonzalo Cosa doi:10.1038/nchem.1582 Metallic nanoparticles enable the control of optical fields at the nanometre scale, enhancing the absorption and emission of local emitters. Now, using the self-assembling properties of DNA, functional nanoantennas have been developed that comprise a versatile and robust assembly of gold nanoparticles and emitters. Chemistry JOBS of the week Fully Funded 3-Year PhD Position in Chemistry University of Saarland, Bioorganic Chemistry (Prof. Claus Jacob) PhD in NMR and biological chemistry, Lyon, France Université de Lyon 1 Computational Chemistry and Biology Opportunities at D. E. Shaw Research D. E. Shaw Research Assistant Professor in Experimental Physical Chemistry University of Geneva Vice Chancellor-Marine Sciences / Director-Scripps Institution of Oceanography University of California, San Diego ( UCSD ) More Science jobs from Chemistry EVENT Drug Discovery Chemistry 04.06.13 San Diego, US More science events from Review Top Inhibition of α-helix-mediated protein-protein interactions using designed molecules   pp161 - 173 Valeria Azzarito, Kérya Long, Natasha S. Murphy and Andrew J. Wilson doi:10.1038/nchem.1568 α-Helix-mediated protein-protein interactions (PPIs) play a key role in the development of numerous infection and disease states. Modulating such interactions offers considerable therapeutic potential, however, identifying suitable inhibitors has proved challenging. This Review highlights recent and generic approaches for designing inhibitors of helix-mediated PPIs. Articles Top Snapshot of the equilibrium dynamics of a drug bound to HIV-1 reverse transcriptase    pp174 - 181 Daniel G. Kuroda, Joseph D. Bauman, J. Reddy Challa, Disha Patel, Thomas Troxler, Kalyan Das, Eddy Arnold and Robin M. Hochstrasser doi:10.1038/nchem.1559 Conformational changes are known to occur during binding of the anti-AIDS drug rilpivirine to HIV-1 reverse transcriptase, an essential enzyme for the replication of HIV. Vibrational spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography and simulations now show that water molecules play an essential role in this binding process, which may help it retain potency despite mutations within the binding pocket. See also: News and Views by Cheatum Quantitative visualization of DNA G-quadruplex structures in human cells   pp182 - 186 Giulia Biffi, David Tannahill, John McCafferty and Shankar Balasubramanian doi:10.1038/nchem.1548 A structure-specific antibody generated and employed to visualize DNA G-quadruplex structures in human cells shows that these structures are modulated during the cell cycle and can be stabilized by a small-molecule ligand. This provides substantive evidence for endogenous DNA G-quadruplex formation in mammalian cells. See also: News and Views by Siddiqui-Jain & Hurley Charged and metallic molecular monolayers through surface-induced aromatic stabilization   pp187 - 194 G. Heimel, S. Duhm, I. Salzmann, A. Gerlach, A. Strozecka, J. Niederhausen, C. Bürker, T. Hosokai, I. Fernandez-Torrente, G. Schulze, S. Winkler, A. Wilke, R. Schlesinger, J. Frisch, B. Bröker, A. Vollmer, B. Detlefs, J. Pflaum, S. Kera, K. J. Franke, N. Ueno, J. I. Pascual, F. Schreiber and N. Koch doi:10.1038/nchem.1572 When monolayers of π-conjugated organic semiconductors interact with metal surfaces, most remain semiconducting. In some cases, however, the metallic character of the substrate is seen to extend onto the molecules. A mechanism for this intriguing phenomenon is now suggested and new strategies for chemical surface engineering are proposed. A ring-distortion strategy to construct stereochemically complex and structurally diverse compounds from natural products   pp195 - 202 Robert W. Huigens III, Karen C. Morrison, Robert W. Hicklin, Timothy A. Flood Jr, Michelle F. Richter and Paul J. Hergenrother doi:10.1038/nchem.1549 An approach for the construction of complex and diverse compound libraries is described, whereby natural products are altered through a series of ring system distortion reactions. The compounds produced have markedly different physiochemical properties from those in standard screening collections and thus could offer advantages in the search for lead molecules that can be developed into drug candidates. Chemical compounds See also: News and Views by Sharma & Tan A spray-drying strategy for synthesis of nanoscale metal–organic frameworks and their assembly into hollow superstructures   pp203 - 211 Arnau Carné-Sánchez, Inhar Imaz, Mary Cano-Sarabia and Daniel Maspoch doi:10.1038/nchem.1569 Metal–organic framework (MOF) nanoparticles and their assembly into three-dimensional superstructures are attracting attention in various fields. Now, a general spray-drying method has been developed to create more complex hollow spherical MOF superstructures and entrap guest species within them, thereby providing new routes to capsules, reactors and composite materials. Volume-conserving trans–cis isomerization pathways in photoactive yellow protein visualized by picosecond X-ray crystallography   pp212 - 220 Yang Ouk Jung, Jae Hyuk Lee, Joonghan Kim, Marius Schmidt, Keith Moffat, Vukica Šrajer and Hyotcherl Ihee doi:10.1038/nchem.1565 Time-resolved X-ray crystallography on photoactive yellow protein shows the existence of a short-lived, highly distorted intermediate whose reaction trajectory bifurcates along ‘bicycle-pedal’ and ‘hula-twist’ pathways. The bifurcating reaction pathways can be controlled by weakening the hydrogen bond between the chromophore and an adjacent residue, which switches off the bicycle-pedal pathway. A heparin-mimicking polymer conjugate stabilizes basic fibroblast growth factor    pp221 - 227 Thi H. Nguyen, Sung-Hye Kim, Caitlin G. Decker, Darice Y. Wong, Joseph A. Loo and Heather D. Maynard doi:10.1038/nchem.1573 Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is crucial for a range of diverse cellular processes, from wound healing to bone regeneration, yet is inherently unstable. This important biologic has now been covalently linked to a polymer that mimics the polysaccharide heparin to produce a conjugate that shows remarkable stability to a wide range of therapeutically and environmentally relevant stressors. An iron complex with pendent amines as a molecular electrocatalyst for oxidation of hydrogen    pp228 - 233 Tianbiao Liu, Daniel L. DuBois and R. Morris Bullock doi:10.1038/nchem.1571 Electricity can be produced by the oxidation of hydrogen in fuel cells, but the best catalyst for this is platinum, a precious metal of low abundance. Now a molecular complex of iron, a very abundant, inexpensive metal, has been rationally designed for the oxidation of H2 at room temperature. Chemical compounds Molecular tweezers modulate 14-3-3 protein–protein interactions   pp234 - 239 David Bier, Rolf Rose, Kenny Bravo-Rodriguez, Maria Bartel, Juan Manuel Ramirez-Anguita, Som Dutt, Constanze Wilch, Frank-Gerrit Klärner, Elsa Sanchez-Garcia, Thomas Schrader and Christian Ottmann doi:10.1038/nchem.1570 A molecular tweezer has been shown to bind to the surface of a 14-3-3 protein through a particular lysine residue. This interaction — characterized in detail by protein crystallography and computational modelling — disrupts the protein's binding with partner proteins. These findings ascertain supramolecular chemistry as an enticing tool in chemical biology, here towards modulating protein functions. Phase-transfer-catalysed asymmetric synthesis of tetrasubstituted allenes   pp240 - 244 Takuya Hashimoto, Kazuki Sakata, Fumiko Tamakuni, Mark J. Dutton and Keiji Maruoka doi:10.1038/nchem.1567 Substituted allenes with axial chirality are of great utility in organic chemistry owing to their unique structure and reactivity, but synthetic methods to access them are limited. Here, a catalytic asymmetric synthesis of tetrasubstituted allenes is described that builds on the use of phase-transfer-catalysed asymmetric functionalization of 1-alkylallene-1,3-dicarboxylates. Chemical compounds In Your Element Top Enigmatic astatine   p246 D. Scott Wilbur doi:10.1038/nchem.1580 D. Scott Wilbur points out the difficulty in studying the transient element astatine, and the need to understand its basic chemical nature to help in the development of targeted radiotherapy agents. Top Advertisement Subscribe to Nature Chemistry Make sure you receive your own personal copy of Nature Chemistry. 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