Using ultra-weak photon emission to determine the effect of oligomeric proanthocyanidins on oxidative stress of human skin

Exposure of skin to ultraviolet (UV) radiation triggers oxidative stress in skin tissue that can lead to erythema, early skin aging or even cancer. It is suggested that oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs), phytonutrients that belong to the polyphenol family have an anti-oxidant/anti-inflammatory activity on the skin. Measuring ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is a non-invasive, fairly-sensitive and convenient technique for continuously monitoring oxidative stress. The present study was undertaken to confirm anti-oxidant activity of the specific OPCs cream formulation in human skin by measuring UPE of skin. In the present study 25 healthy female subjects participated. As a baseline measurement of skin, UPE was recorded from the dorsal surface of the subjects’ hands before (spontaneous UPE) and after exposure to UV (UV-induced UPE). The effects of the OPCs cream on spontaneous and UV-induced UPE were measured using a fractionated UV exposure protocol. UV exposure resulted in an increase in UPE from both hands. Repeat UV exposure also resulted in a long-term increase of spontaneous UPE. This is likely due to depletion of anti-oxidant capacity of skin resulting in sensitization of skin to UV. It was assessed by measuring spontaneous UPE at 80 min after each UV exposure. Application of the OPCs cream immediately after UV exposure resulted in a significant (approx. 30%) decrease in UV-induced UPE. Topical OPCs cream application also reduced sensitization of skin to UV following repeated UV exposure (i.e., reduced long-term increase in spontaneous UPE). This study indicates that the specific OPCs cream formulation significantly decreases UV-induced oxidative stress in human skin based on UPE measurement. It therefore suggests that regular use of this OPCs cream might protect skin from harmful effects of UV.     

Application of charge-coupled device technology for measurement of laser light and fluorescence distribution in tumors for photodynamic therapy

Laser and fluorescence light distributions with applications for photodynamic therapy were measured in mouse tumors using a non-invasive electronic optical imaging system. The system consists of a liquid-nitrogen-cooled, charge-coupled-device (CCD) array camera under computer control with 576 x 384 detection elements having dimensions of 23 microns x 23 microns. The available dynamic range of the array is approx. 10(3), and the effective wavelength range is 400-1000 nm. An interstitially placed cylindrical diffusing optical fiber was used to provide tumor illumination. The light distribution pattern from the fiber was determined by immersing the cylindrical diffusing tip in a fluorescing solution and recording the emission image. Fluorescence imaging facilitates an accurate measurement of light intensity distribution while avoiding problems associated with the directional nature of other detection methods used with diffusing fibers. Radiation-induced fibrosarcoma tumors on C3H mice were grown to about 1 cm diameter for in vivo recording of light distribution from the tumor volume and for determination of effective light penetration distance at 18 wavelengths in the range 458-995 nm. Endogenous tumor fluorescence and Photofrin II fluorescence intensity were measured over the wavelength range 585-725 nm to investigate the possible application of CCD imaging technology for drug distribution measurements. Model experiments were begun to evaluate the relative importance of potential distortions of light distribution measurements using this approach.     

Ultra-weak photon emission from human hand: influence of temperature and oxygen concentration on emission

We have studied ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) from living organisms. We report here some features of the UPE from human hand by means of photon counting techniques. The intensity of the UPE depended on the position of human hand; nail>finger>palm. As the temperature declined, the intensity of the UPE from the palm decreased. Further, as oxygen concentration around the palm was lowered, the intensity of the UPE from the palm decreased. These results show the UPE from the palm partly contains emissions based on oxidation reaction on skin surface as a potential. When we used mineral oil between the photomultiplier tube and the palm, the intensity of the UPE increased twice as much, which indicates the UPE from the inside of the skin certainly exists. The fact may be explained by refractive index matching. As mentioned above, we considered the generation mechanism of photons emitted from the human hand.     

外源性羟基自由基(·OH)的注入对人血清超弱发光的影响

人血清能发射出极其微弱的光子流,每秒每平方厘米有几十至上百个光子发射,这些光子主要分布在可见光区。现已证实,血液中不断进行的脂质过氧化反应是该种发光的能量基质。     

ULTRAWEAK LIGHT EMISSION FROM RAT LIVER NUCLEI

Abstract–An extremely weak native light emission from rat liver nuclei was detected and studied using a highly sensitive single photon counting system. This emission is oxygen dependent and we attribute it to (per) oxidative processes. The effects of deuterium oxide and l,4-diazabicyclo-[2.2.2] octane on the light emission suggests the possible involvement of singlet oxygen. The kinetic features of the underlying reactions including biphasic response to both oxygen and temperature changes, could be clearly discerned. Further study of this light emission can serve as a useful adjunct to biochemical investigations of oxidative processes which play an important role in mutation, carcinogenesis and aging.     

Application of time- and space-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy to the distribution of guest species into micrometer-sized zeolite crystals

We measured the fluorescence decays and spectra of perylene adsorbed from solution into zeolite X crystals of 2-3 microm in diameter at the level of individual crystals by the application of a microscopy method coupled with a single photon counting apparatus and a multichannel spectrophotometer. We found that both decays and spectra are particle-dependent, i.e. a particle-to-particle difference was observed for the fluorescence decay curves at a fixed loading level along with a particle-dependent spectral change due to the various contribution of excimer emission band relative to those of three monomers. These findings are due to a non-homogeneous distribution which is confirmed by the various emission intensities of perylene-loaded zeolite crystals observed by fluorescence microscopy. Previously, a homogeneous distribution of the guest between zeolite crystals has been just taken for granted and not justified by experiment. The present result suggests that commonly employed collective measurements such as UV-VIS absorption and emission spectroscopies, IR and Raman spectroscopies, and NMR of bulk zeolite powders provide only averaged results and may sometimes suffer from acquiring precise molecular level pictures.     

Photon, Electron and Secondary Ion Emission from Single C(60) keV Impacts

This paper presents the first observation of coincidental emission of photons, electrons and secondary ions from individual C(60) keV impacts. An increase in photon, electron and secondary ion yields is observed as a function of C(60) projectile energy. The effect of target structure/composition on photon and electron emissions at the nanometer level is shown for a CsI target. The time-resolved photon emission may be characterized by a fast component emission in the UV-Vis range with a short decay time, while the electron and secondary ion emission follow a Poisson distribution.     

Separation of polyesters by gradient reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography on a 1.5 microm non-porous column

Efficient separation of polyesters composed of a large number of individual oligomers was achieved on a 1.5 microm "non-porous" octadecylsilyl (ODS) silica support by gradient high-performance reversed-phase liquid chromatography (gRP-HPLC) with a mobile phase of acetonitrile, aqueous trifluoroacetic acid (0.2%) and tetrahydrofuran at ambient temperature and signal monitoring by UV absorption at 280 nm. Substantial signal splitting of oligomers in the low molecular weight (Mr) region is indicative that separation not only occurs with respect to molecular weight distribution (MWD) but also to chemical composition distribution (CCD) and functionality type distribution (FTD). Although separation according to CCD and FTD decreases with increasing number of oligomers, co-elution of species with identical number of repeat units but differing in either structure of repeat units or end-groups can be assumed from the relatively broad signals succeeding the aforementioned peaks showing at least partial resolution. Despite the observation that high Mr oligomers elute as sharp signals, the preceding observations suggest that each of these peaks presumably composes of more than one individual component. The polyester oligomers are eluted in the range of increasing Mr and therefore, either separation according to MWD or CCD/FTD was at least achieved for the low Mr sample constituents. Some principal mechanistic aspects of separation are discussed and adsorption seems to play the dominant role. The detection limit, defined as that sample amount yielding an unequivocal recognition on the base of its characteristic chromatographic fingerprint pattern was about 5,000 ppm for the pair Alftalat 3258 - Alftalat 3352 and 10,000 ppm for the pair Crylcoat 430 - Crylcoat 801.     

New method of anatomic localization of scintigram of various organs by simultaneous combination of emission scanning and transmission scanning]

When the photoscintillo-roentgenography is used for relating the scintigram of internal organs to the anatomic structures, this method is found to have some defects--the difference of magnification between the emission scan and the roentgenogram, the inaccuracy due to the geometric distortion of the X-ray image, the impossibility of the simultaneous photographing of the scan and the X-rays, etc. Then, to diminish the influence of these defects we improved on the photographic recording system of a dual-heal scanner, and made use of the transmission scanning method. That is, we combined the recording parts, Ch1 and Ch2, into one system, using Ch1 for the light source of transmission scan and Ch2 for that of emission scan. In this way, we managed to make the two incident rays from those light sources converge into a focus upon a film. Thus we could perform a simultaneous emission-transmission scanning, by moving, at the same time in the same direction, the scanning detector over the patient and the small radioactive source (241Am) under him. This method can be applied to any radioactive nuclide to be used in transmission scanning and emission scanning. As the result of applying this method clinically in our department, the method has proved to be very useful for anatomic localization.     

Lamp‐based wavelength‐resolved fluorescence detection for protein capillary electrophoresis: Setup and detector performance

A lamp‐based fluorescence detection (Flu) system for CE was extended with a wavelength‐resolved (WR) detector to allow recording of full protein emission spectra. WRFlu was achieved using a fluorescence cell that employs optical fibres to lead excitation light from a Xe‐Hg lamp to the capillary window and protein fluorescence emission to a spectrograph equipped with a CCD. A 280 nm band pass filter etc. together with a 300 nm short pass cut‐off filter was used for excitation. A capillary cartridge was modified to hold the detection cell in a commercial CE instrument enabling WRFlu in routine CE. The performance of the WRFlu detection was evaluated and optimised using lysozyme as model protein. Based on reference spectral data, a signal‐intensity adjustment was introduced to correct for transmission losses in the detector optics that occurred for lower protein emission wavelengths. CE‐WRFlu of lysozyme was performed using BGEs of 50 mM sodium phosphate (pH 6.5 or 3.0) and a charged‐polymer coated capillary. Using the 3‐D data set, signal averaging over time and emission‐wavelength intervals was carried out to improve the S/N of emission spectra and electropherograms. The detection limit for lysozyme was 21 nM, providing sufficient sensitivity to obtain spectral information on protein impurities.     

Einsatz von rechenanlagen in der emissions-spektrochemie : II Teil. Aufstellung,Bewertung und Linearisierung der analytischen Eichgeraden

The Use of Computers in Emission Spectroscopy. Part 2. Establishment, Evaluation and Linearization of Analytical Calibration CurvesThe problems of establishing optimum linear calibration plots for atomic emission spectrometry are described, particularly when photographic recording techniques are employed. The calculation procedure, based on the least-squares method, generates additional statistical values which permit linearity to be checked. As the desired linearity is not always achieved at the first attempt, the process is repeated after exclusion of unreliable input data.     

Study of quality control and metal distribution in urban airborne particulates

In this investigation, results of 33 elements in airborne samples collected continuously over nine urban locations are discussed. Inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry technique was used for determining concentration of metals. Quality control was established prior to analysis of real air samples. The guidelines followed are based on USEPA Compendium Method IO-3.4. Uncertainty in analysis was also established. Based on the concentration of metals in airborne particulates, we attempted to study the metal distribution characteristics in ambient air at various urban locations. Metals such as Al, Ca, Fe were comparatively at higher concentrations than the other elements under study at most of the locations. The city vehicles operate on lead-free fuels; however, concentration of lead in urban dust was observed in the concentration range of 0.33–6.24 μg/m³. Soil samples were also collected from sites close to the air sampling locations. Soil samples were also analysed for metal content. Enrichment factor was determined for elements measured at nine urban locations. The data supports interpretation of results in terms of contribution of metals in airborne particulates from anthropogenic and noncrustal origin.     

Sub‐cycle Dynamics of High Harmonic Generation of Ne Atoms Excited by Attosecond Pulses and Driven by Near‐infrared Laser Fields: A Self‐Interaction‐Free TDDFT Approach

In the framework of the self‐interaction‐free time‐dependent density‐functional theory (TDDFT), we have performed three‐dimensional ab initio calculations of Ne atoms in near‐infrared (NIR) laser fields subject to excitation by a single extreme ultraviolet (XUV) attosecond pulse (SAP). The TDDFT equations are solved accurately and efficiently by means of the time‐dependent generalized pseudo spectral (TDGPS) method. We have explored the transient dynamical behavior of the sub‐cycle high harmonic generation (HHG) for transitions from the excited states to the ground state and found oscillation structures with respect to the time delay between the SAP and NIR fields. We investigate the harmonic emission spectrum from singly excited state 2p3s, 2p4s, 2p3d, 2p5s, 2p4d and 2p6s, 2p5d and the virtual states 2p3p‐, 2p4f‐ and 2p4p+ as the function of time delay. We explore the sub‐cycle Stark shift phenomenon in NIR fields and its influence on the photon emission process. Our analysis reveals several novel features of the sub‐cycle transient HHG dynamics and spectra, the quantum interference pattern between different multiphoton excitation pathways, and we identify the mechanisms responsible for the observed peak splitting in the photon emission spectra.     

Optical emission of a molecular nanoantenna pair

The optical emission from a pair of nanoantennas is investigated within the theoretical framework of quantum electrodynamics. The analysis of fluorescent emission from a pair of molecular antenna species in close proximity is prompted by experimental work on oriented semiconductor polymer nanostructures. Each physically different possibility for separation-dependent features in photon emission by any such pair is explored in detail, leading to the identification of three distinct mechanisms: emission from a pair-delocalized exciton state, emission that engages electrodynamic coupling through quantum interference, and correlated photon emission from the two components of the pair. Although each mechanism produces a damped oscillatory dependence on the pair separation, each of the corresponding results exhibits an analytically different form. Significant differences in the associated spatial frequencies enable an apparent ambiguity in the interpretation of experiments to be resolved. Other major differences are found in the requisite conditions, the associated selection rules, and the variation with angular disposition of the emitters, together offering grounds for experimental discrimination between the coupling mechanisms. The analysis paves the way for investigations of pair-wise coupling effects in the emission from nanoantenna arrays.     

Spatially-resolved observation of glow discharge plasma for atomic emission spectrometry.

An imaging spectrograph equipped with a CCD detector was employed to measure two-dimensional emission images from a glow discharge plasma in atomic emission spectrometry. The emission images at Zn I 334.50 nm for a zinc sample and at Cu I 324.75 nm for a copper sample could be obtained. Their emission intensities were not uniform in the radial direction of the plasma region but became weaker at larger distance from the central zone. The two-dimensional distribution would result from a spatial variation in the excitation efficiency of the plasma and thus provide useful information for understanding the excitation processes occurring in the plasma.     

Energy-resolved X-ray imaging

An investigation method of spatial distribution of separate chemical elements, contained in samples complex chemical composition, using an X-ray CCD-camera is considered. The camera records a fluorescence of the chemical elements of the sample, excited by a radiation of a static X-ray tube. An image is built at a CCD matrix with a pinhole camera. The CCD-camera operates in a regime of a multi-frame spectral recording of separate photons, in which it is possible to identify both the energy of the incident quanta, and the coordinate of the point of incidence in each frame. Analysis of the formed data array makes it possible to obtain the spatial distribution of the elements, contained in the sample discretely on Z (atomic number). Investigation results of the CCD-camera characteristics, algorithms of the computer software of the data processing, and examples of the obtained images are presented in the paper. It is shown that using this method it is possible to get distribution patterns of the chemical elements in the multi-component samples with the spatial distribution up to ≈ 15–20 μm.     

Multivariate statistical interpretation of coastal sediment monitoring data

Multivariate statistical analysis of sediment data (input matrix 122 x 15) collected from 122 sampling sites from the western coastline of the USA and analyzed for 15 analytes indicates that the data structure could be explained by four latent factors. These factors are conditionally named "anthropogenic", "organic", "natural", and "hot spots". They explain over 85% of the total variance of the data system, which is an acceptable value for the PCA model. The receptor models obtained after regression of the mass on the absolute principal components scores ensures reliable estimation of the contribution of each possible natural or anthropogenic source to the mass of each chemical component. It can be concluded that the region of interest reveals a different pattern of pollution compared with the eastern coastline treated statistically in a previous study.     

Simultaneous Deconvolution of Molecular Weight Distribution and Chemical Composition Distribution of Ethylene/1-Olefin Copolymers Synthesized with Multiple-Site-Type Catalytic Systems

Summary: Ethylene/1-olefin copolymers synthesized with multiple-site-type catalytic systems typically exhibit broad molecular weight distribution (MWD) and chemical composition distribution (CCD). These microstrucral characteristics can be described by the presence of several active site types, each of which produces chains with distinct chain microstructures. In this work, a new approach to identify the number of active site types and chain microstructures produced on each active site type was developed based on simultaneous deconvolution of the bivariate MWD/CCD information. Chain microstructures produced on each active site type are assumed to follow Stockmayer's bivariate distribution. The proposed approach was validated with simulated data of model ethylene/1-butene and ethylene/1-octene copolymers.     

Cover Picture: Electrophoresis 6'2010

Issue no. 6 is a regular issue consisting of 18 full research papers. The first paper is a “Fast Track” contribution involving microchip electrophoresis of Alu elements for gender determination and inference of human ethnic origin. The remaining 17 papers are distributed over 5 different parts: Part I is on some trends in CEC; Part II deals with enantioseparations; Part III describes some novel detection approaches; Part IV has investigations on proteomics and proteins; Part V tackles the subjects related to pathogens, bacteria and the binding of aptamers to small solutes.     

Diffusion in glassy polymers. III

The diffusion studies of several solvents in epoxy polymer reported by Kewi and Zupko in Part I of this series are explained with the solution obtained from the generalized diffusion equation which includes the internal stress contribution. The rate of permeation of a penetrant through a polymer film and the time lag needed to reach steady state are also given for the generalized diffusion equation.