Although gold is the subject of one of the most ancient themes of investigation in science, its renaissance now leads to an exponentially increasing number of publications, especially in the context of emerging nanoscience and nanotechnology with nanoparticles and self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). We will limit the present review to gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), also called gold colloids. AuNPs are the most stable metal nanoparticles, and they present fascinating aspects such as their assembly of multiple types involving materials science, the behavior of the individual particles, size-related electronic, magnetic and optical properties (quantum size effect), and their applications to catalysis and biology. Their promises are in these fields as well as in the bottom-up approach of nanotechnology, and they will be key materials and building block in the 21st century. Whereas the extraction of gold started in the 5th millennium B.C. near Varna (Bulgaria) and reached 10 tons per year in Egypt around 1200-1300 B.C. when the marvelous statue of Touthankamon was constructed, it is probable that “soluble” gold appeared around the 5th or 4th century B.C. in Egypt and China. In antiquity, materials were used in an ecological sense for both aesthetic and curative purposes. Colloidal gold was used to make ruby glass 293 Chem. Rev. 2004, 104, 293−346

Gold nanoparticles: assembly, supramolecular chemistry, quantum-size-related properties, and applications toward biology, catalysis, and nanotechnology.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2019/NP/C8NP00092A

Marine natural products.

Size- and support-dependency in the catalysis of gold

Supported metal nanostructures are the most widely used type of heterogeneous catalyst in industrial processes. The size of metal particles is a key factor in determining the performance of such catalysts. In particular, because low-coordinated metal atoms often function as the catalytically active sites, the specific activity per metal atom usually increases with decreasing size of the metal particles. However, the surface free energy of metals increases significantly with decreasing particle size, promoting aggregation of small clusters. Using an appropriate support material that strongly interacts with the metal species prevents this aggregation, creating stable, finely dispersed metal clusters with a high catalytic activity, an approach industry has used for a long time. Nevertheless, practical supported metal catalysts are inhomogeneous and usually consist of a mixture of sizes from nanoparticles to subnanometer clusters. Such heterogeneity not only reduces the metal atom efficiency but also frequent...

Single-atom catalysts: a new frontier in heterogeneous catalysis.

Interest in catalysis by metal nanoparticles (NPs) is increasing dramatically, as reflected by the large number of publications in the last five years. This field, "semi-heterogeneous catalysis", is at the frontier between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, and progress has been made in the efficiency and selectivity of reactions and recovery and recyclability of the catalytic materials. Usually NP catalysts are prepared from a metal salt, a reducing agent, and a stabilizer and are supported on an oxide, charcoal, or a zeolite. Besides the polymers and oxides that used to be employed as standard, innovative stabilizers, media, and supports have appeared, such as dendrimers, specific ligands, ionic liquids, surfactants, membranes, carbon nanotubes, and a variety of oxides. Ligand-free procedures have provided remarkable results with extremely low metal loading. The Review presents the recent developments and the use of NP catalysis in organic synthesis, for example, in hydrogenation and C--C coupling reactions, and the heterogeneous oxidation of CO on gold NPs.

Nanoparticles as Recyclable Catalysts: The Frontier between Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Catalysis

A variety of gold catalysts can be used to catalyze the oxidation of carbon monoxide at temperatures as low as −70 °C and are stable in a moistened gas atmosphere. The novel catalysts, prepared by coprecipitation, are composed of ultra-fine gold particles and one of the oxides of 3d transition metals of group VIII, namely, Fe, Co, and Ni.

Novel Gold Catalysts for the Oxidation of Carbon Monoxide at a Temperature far Below 0 °C

Novel Gold Catalysts for the Oxidation of Carbon Monoxide at a Temperature Far Below 0°C.

Tributylstannyl alkyl or aryl sulfide and bis(tributylstannyl) sulfide were found to be useful to prepare aryl sulfides in good yields under the usual conditions of the palladium-catalyzed reaction with aryl bromides.

Palladium-catalyzed Reaction of Stannyl Sulfide with Aryl Bromide. Preparation of Aryl Sulfide

A new inhibitor of protein kinase C (PKC), UCN-01, was isolated from the culture broth of Streptomyces sp. N-126. We have found that this strain also produces UCN-02 which is a stereoisomer of UCN-01. The inhibitors have the molecular formula C28H26N4O4 and have an indolo[2,3-alpha]carbazole chromophore. Their structures have been elucidated by mass and NMR spectra. UCN-01 has been shown to inhibit PKC and protein kinase A (PKA) with IC50 values of 0.0041 and 0.042 microM, respectively, and UCN-02 has been shown to inhibit PKC and PKA with IC50 values of 0.062 and 0.25 microM, respectively. UCN-01 and UCN-02 also showed the cytotoxic effect on the growth of HeLa S3 cells.

UCN-01 and UCN-02, new selective inhibitors of protein kinase C. II. Purification, physico-chemical properties, structural determination and biological activities.

Hiroshi Sano

Papers

Novel Gold Catalysts for the Oxidation of Carbon Monoxide at a Temperature far Below 0 °C

Novel Gold Catalysts for the Oxidation of Carbon Monoxide at a Temperature Far Below 0°C.

Palladium-catalyzed Reaction of Stannyl Sulfide with Aryl Bromide. Preparation of Aryl Sulfide

UCN-01 and UCN-02, new selective inhibitors of protein kinase C. II. Purification, physico-chemical properties, structural determination and biological activities.

Distribution of betaine lipids in marine algae