Compounds consisting of the catechol group con­ nected to an amino acid or a small peptide only re­ cently have been the subject of few papers concern­ ing their structure-activity relationship. A number of 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid amides such as polyamine derivatives: parabactin [1 ], agrobactin [2], vibriobactin [3], or amino acid derivatives: glycine [4], lysine [5], serine [6 ], and threon...

Catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT) plays a key role in the degradation of brain dopamine (DA). Specifically, low COMT activity results in higher DA levels in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), thereby reducing the vulnerability for attentional and cognitive deficits in both psychotic and healthy individuals. COMT activity is markedly reduced by a non-synonymous single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) ...

[Structure: see text] Palladium(II) catalyzes the oxidative coupling of allyl tosylamides with butyl vinyl ether and various styrene derivatives to produce 2,4-substituted pyrrolidine products at room temperature. Molecular oxygen together with a copper(II) cocatalyst mediates reoxidation of the palladium catalyst. The reactions with styrene substrates can be performed in an open flask with amb...

A novel oxidative dimer was isolated as a major product from a reaction mixture of methyl protocatechuate and DPPH radical in methanol. Its unusual benzobicyclo[3.2.1]octane structure was elucidated by extensive spectral analysis. This result suggests that the regeneration of catechol structures by the nucleophilic addition of an alcohol molecule on o-quinones and subsequent dimerization is one...

Synthesis of 11C-labeled capsaicin ([11C]-2) was accomplished by O-[11C]methylation with [11C]methyl iodide to a corresponding catechol precursor (1). In vivo whole-body distribution of [11C]-2 in rats was investigated by positron emission tomography after intravenous injection. The results showed that [11C]-2 accumulated in the brain and body surface, which was closely associated with the expr...

Various pharmacological approaches to potentiate the therapeutic actions of levodopa and reduce side-effects are reviewed. Of currently available drugs, anticholinergic agents and amantadine have been studied extensively. Inhibition of extracerebral decarboxylase appears to be the most promising new area of investigation, though experience is at present limited. Other methods discussed include ...

SUMMARY Strains of two bacteria, a Pseudomonas and an Achromobacter, which grow with toluene, benzene or certain other related aromatic compounds as sole carbon source were isolated from soil. The use of aromatic compounds by these bacteria was an induced phenomenon. Toluene-grown organisms oxidized without lag toluene, benzene, catechol, &methyl-catechol, benzyl alcohol and, more slowly, o-and...