Permeability and thermodynamics study of quaternary ammonium surfactants-phosphocholine vesicle system

Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) are recognized as membrane active agents widely used as biocides. The main purpose of this work was to investigate the influence of the QAC head group and acyl chain length on their permeability-perturbing power and on their affinity for lipidic membranes. Permeability perturbations were assessed by measuring the release of calcein entrapped inside vesicles. The affinity of QACs for bilayers was investigated by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). QACs bearing C(16) chain were found to be more efficient to decrease the membrane permeability than their C(12) analogues. On the other hand, the chemical nature of the ammonium head group has practically no influence on the permeability perturbations caused by QACs bearing C(16) chains. It was difficult to assess the partitioning of the QACs between the aqueous and lipid phases since the ITC signals could also be associated to morphological changes such as vesicle aggregation. For the systems for which reliable thermodynamic parameters could be obtained, the Gibbs energy of transfer was similar to that for the micellization. The entropy variation represented the main contribution to the Gibbs energy, indicating that the insertion of QACs inside lipidic bilayers is driven by hydrophobic interactions.     

改进QuEChERS法结合超高效液相色谱-串联质谱法同时测定冷冻食品中7种季铵盐化合物

近年来,季铵盐类消毒剂的广泛使用,导致其残留在食品或环境中,并经食物链进入人体,引起呼吸系统和生殖系统的不良反应,威胁人类身体健康。为此,建立了QuEChERS-超高效液相色谱-串联质谱(QuEChERS-UPLC-MS/MS)同时测定冷冻食品中6种常规季铵盐化合物和1种新型季铵盐化合物残留的分析方法。对样品前处理方法进行改良,色谱条件进行优化,样品经20 mL 90%甲醇水溶液(含0.5%甲酸)涡旋提取20 min后,超声10 min, 10000 r/min离心10 min,取1 mL上清液放入装有100 mg PSA净化剂的15 mL离心管中净化,涡旋1 min后,10000 r/min离心5 min,取上清液直接上机测定。以甲醇与5 mmol/L乙酸铵溶液作为流动相进行梯度洗脱,采用ACQUITY UPLC BEH C₈色谱柱(50 mm×2.1 mm, 1.7 μm)分离,在ESI⁺模式,多反应监测(MRM)方式下采集数据,基质匹配曲线外标法定量。结果表明,7种待测物在C₈色谱柱上完全基线分离,在0.1~100.0 μg/L的范围内线性关系良好,相关系数(r²)为0.9971~0.9983,该方法的检出限(LOD)为0.5~1.0 μg/kg,定量限(LOQ)为1.5~3.0 μg/kg。以阴性三文鱼、鸡肉为基质样品,在低、中、高3个水平(3.0、10.0、100.0 μg/kg)下进行加标回收试验,各待测物的平均回收率为65.4%~101%,相对标准偏差(RSD)为0.64%~16.8%。该检测方法灵敏度高,选择性强,稳定性好,结果准确可靠,适用于冷冻食品中7种季铵盐化合物的批量快速测定,同时,弥补了新型季铵盐化合物检测方法的空白。     

Quaternary ammonium compounds in roots and leaves of Capparis spinosa L. from Saudi Arabia and Italy: investigation by HPLC-MS and 1H NMR

Capparis spinosa L. is a perennial plant typical of the Mediterranean flora and a multipurpose plant used for curing various human ailments. Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs), as constituents of Capparaceae, play important roles in protecting against abiotic stress. Aim of this work was to determine QACs in root and leaves of caper from two proveniences. The presence of stachydrine, choline, glycine betaine and homo-stachydrine has been confirmed by high resolution MS, while ¹H NMR was applied to quantify the main QACs in the aqueous extracts. Stachydrine was quantified at 20.2 mg/g and 32.3 mg/g on dry leaves from South of Italy and Saudi Arabia, respectively, while a minor content was in dry roots (from 10.4 to 12.5 mg/g). Choline was considerably lower both in leaves and roots (from 0.3 to 1.2 mg/g). To our knowledge, this is the first report on the determination of QACs both in root and leaves of C. spinosa.     

Differential spectrophotometric determination of micro amounts of metal ions in mixtures

A differential spectrophotometric method is described for the simultaneous determinations of iron and molybdenum, iron and titanium, iron and uranium, molybdenum and titanium, and molybdenum and uranium in mixtures, in a single solution at room temperature. The general method consists in treating the mixture with 5 ml of 1 M sodium acetate and 1 ml of 1% pyrocatechol in 25-ml volumetric flasks. The optical density of color of mixed complexes is determined at the corresponding pair of wavelengths suggested. From the optical density and molar extinction coefficient, the concentration of each ion in mixtures has been calculated. By this procedure, the metal ions can be determined even if they differ by large ratios. Procedures have been extended for the analysis of mixtures containing iron, molybdenum, and titanium (or uranium). These procedures can be applied for the analysis of any type of materials, like minerals, rocks, ores, alloys, steels and refractory materials. Spectra of each complex and their Beer's law were studied in detail. Experiments were also made to show that the calculated and observed optical density of mixture complexes is the same, thereby the additive of optical density of mixtures at each pair of wavelengths suggested for individual determinations of ions have been verified.     

Microextraction-Colorimetric Determination of Quaternary Ammonium Compounds in Medicines and Disinfectants

Moscow University Chemistry Bulletin - We propose a method for the determination of quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) in medicines and disinfectants, based on dispersive liquid–liquid...     

Targeting the Integrated Stress Response Kinase GCN2 to Modulate Retroviral Integration

Multiple viral targets are now available in the clinic to fight HIV infection. Even if this targeted therapy is highly effective at suppressing viral replication, caregivers are facing growing therapeutic failures in patients due to resistance, with or without treatment-adherence glitches. Accordingly, it is important to better understand how HIV and other retroviruses replicate in order to propose alternative antiviral strategies. Recent studies have shown that multiple cellular factors are implicated during the integration step and, more specifically, that integrase can be regulated through post-translational modifications. We have shown that integrase is phosphorylated by GCN2, a cellular protein kinase of the integrated stress response, leading to a restriction of HIV replication. In addition, we found that this mechanism is conserved among other retroviruses. Accordingly, we developed an in vitro interaction assay, based on the AlphaLISA technology, to monitor the integrase-GCN2 interaction. From an initial library of 133 FDA-approved molecules, we identified nine compounds that either inhibited or stimulated the interaction between GCN2 and HIV integrase. In vitro characterization of these nine hits validated this pilot screen and demonstrated that the GCN2-integrase interaction could be a viable solution for targeting integrase out of its active site.     

Determination of alkyl benzyl and dialkyl dimethyl quaternary ammonium biocides in occupational hygiene and environmental media by liquid chromatography with electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry and tandem mass spectrometry

A new method for the simultaneous qualitative and quantitative determination of alkyl benzyl and dialkyl quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) has been developed. Analysis is by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry. QACs are extremely amenable to the electrospray ionisation technique (limit of detection of BAC C12 homologue 3 ng ml(-1)). The selectivity of mass spectrometric detection allows simultaneous determination of benzyl and dialkyl dimethyl ammonium compounds. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of real samples (occupational hygiene sampling devices, products and swimming pool water). Structural information was obtained by MS-MS and cone voltage ion dissociation techniques. Ion dissociation enabled the structural elucidation of an unknown quaternary ammonium compound present in a commercial formulation.     

Retrovirus-mediated transduction of a cytosine deaminase gene preserves the stemness of mesenchymal stem cells

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as attractive cellular vehicles to deliver therapeutic genes for ex-vivo therapy of diverse diseases; this is, in part, because they have the capability to migrate into tumor or lesion sites. Previously, we showed that MSCs could be utilized to deliver a bacterial cytosine deaminase (CD) suicide gene to brain tumors. Here we assessed whether transduction with a retroviral vector encoding CD gene altered the stem cell property of MSCs. MSCs were transduced at passage 1 and cultivated up to passage 11. We found that proliferation and differentiation potentials, chromosomal stability and surface antigenicity of MSCs were not altered by retroviral transduction. The results indicate that retroviral vectors can be safely utilized for delivery of suicide genes to MSCs for ex-vivo therapy. We also found that a single retroviral transduction was sufficient for sustainable expression up to passage 10. The persistent expression of the transduced gene indicates that transduced MSCs provide a tractable and manageable approach for potential use in allogeneic transplantation.     

Pharmacophore generation of 2-substituted benzothiazoles as AdeABC efflux pump inhibitors in A. baumannii

RND family efflux pumps are important for multidrug resistance in Gram-negative bacteria. To date no efflux pump inhibitors for clinical use have been found, so developing the specific inhibitors of this pump system will be beneficial for the treatment of infections caused by these multidrug-resistant pathogens. A set of BSN-coded 2-substituted benzothiazoles were tested alone and in combination with ciprofloxacin (CIP) against the RND family efflux pump AdeABC overexpressor Acinetobacter baumannii SbMox-2 strain. The results indicated that the BSN compounds did not have antimicrobial activity when tested alone. However, if they were applied in combination with CIP, it was observed that the antibiotic had antimicrobial activity against the tested pathogen, possessing a minimum inhibitory concentration value that could be utilized in clinical treatment. A 3D-common features pharmacophore model was applied by using the HipHop method and the generated pharmacophore hypothesis revealed that the hydrogen bond acceptor property of nitrogen in the thiazole ring and the oxygen of the amide substituted at the second position of the benzothiazole ring system were significant for binding to the target protein. Moreover, three hydrophobic aromatic features were found to be essential for inhibitory activity.     

Milk Proteins—Their Biological Activities and Use in Cosmetics and Dermatology

Milk and colostrum have high biological potential, and due to their natural origin and non-toxicity, they have many uses in cosmetics and dermatology. Research is ongoing on their potential application in other fields of medicine, but there are still few results; most of the published ones are included in this review. These natural products are especially rich in proteins, such as casein, β-lactoglobulin, α-lactalbumin, lactoferrin, immunoglobulins, lactoperoxidase, lysozyme, and growth factors, and possess various antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antioxidant, immunomodulatory properties, etc. This review describes the physico-chemical properties of milk and colostrum proteins and the natural functions they perform in the body and compares their composition between animal species (cows, goats, and sheep). The milk- and colostrum-based products can be used in dietary supplementation and for performing immunomodulatory functions; they can enhance the effects of certain drugs and can have a lethal effect on pathogenic microorganisms. Milk products are widely used in the treatment of dermatological diseases for promoting the healing of chronic wounds, hastening tissue regeneration, and the treatment of acne vulgaris or plaque psoriasis. They are also increasingly regarded as active ingredients that can improve the condition of the skin by reducing the number of acne lesions and blackheads, regulating sebum secretion, ameliorating inflammatory changes as well as bestowing a range of moisturizing, protective, toning, smoothing, anti-irritation, whitening, soothing, and antiaging effects.     

Synthesis and biological properties of gemini quaternary ammonium compounds, 5,5'-[2,2'-(alpha,omega-polymethylnedicarbonyldioxy)diethyl]bis-(3-alkyl-4-methylthiazolium iodide) and 5,5'-[2,2'-(p-phenylenedicarbonyldioxy)diethyl]bis(3-alkyl-4-methylthiazolium bromide)

We synthesized gemini quaternary ammonium compounds (gemini QACs) having two thiazolium moieties in a molecule, 5,5'-[2,2'-(alpha,omega-polymethylnedicarbonyldioxy)diethyl]bis(3-alkyl-4-methylthiazolium iodide) (5DEBT-m,n), on which the carbon number of the methylene chain linking the two thiazoles (m) is 2, 6 or 8 and that of the alkyl group (n) is 8, 10, 12, 14 or 16. 5,5'-[2,2'-(p-Phenylenedicarbonyldioxy)diethyl]bis(3-alkyl-4-methylthiazolium bromide) (5DEBT-P,n) was then synthesized, which is composed of a p-phenylene as the methylene spacer. For five gemini QAC series, in addition to the previously described 5DEBT-4,n to the four new compound series, their antimicrobial activities were determined. 5DEBT-m,10 and -P,10 exhibited a wide and strong bacteriostatic activity against gram-negative and -positive bacteria, fungi and then yeast in comparison with N-tetradecyl-5-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4-methylthiazolium iodide as a mono-QAC. The bactericidal activity of the 5DEBT series against Escherichia coli IFO 12713 and Staphylococcus aureus IFO 12732 was investigated on the basis of the effects of their alkyl chain length and their molecular hydrophobicity. It was found that the effect of theses factors on their activity significantly changes by the difference between the gram-negative and -positive bacteria. Although against the gram-negative bacterium, the change in the activity due to extension of the alkyl group for each compound affected the kind of methylene spacer, against the gram-positive bacterium, it was almost equal in spite of the methylene spacer. This result could be responsible for the bactericidal mechanism of the gemini QACs being influenced by the diversity of the steric structure participating in the methylene chain length and by the bacterium cell surface hydrophobicity.     

Efficient Use of Carbon Fibers as Heating Elements for Curing of Epoxy Matrix Composites

The aim of this study is to achieve a fully cured thermoset matrix that is heated by a direct electric current passing through the reinforcement fibers i.e., the Joule heating effect. Two types of fibers were used as heating elements for curing the epoxy resins. Kanthal resistance fibers were used as reference heating elements and subsequently, they were replaced by a Torayca Carbon Tow of the same radius. The specimens were cured by the heat produced by a direct electric current passing through the fibers and achieving temperatures of 50 °C and 70 °C. Specimens cured in a conventional oven were also manufactured, to compare the resistance heating method to the conventional one. Next, all specimens were mechanically characterized in a quasi-static three-point bending mode of loading and experimental results were compared to derive useful conclusions concerning the applicability of the technique to polymer/composite materials mass production. Finally, a preliminary economical study concerning power consumption needed for the application of both the traditional oven curing and the carbon fibers heating elements use for the manufacturing of the same amounts of materials is presented, showing a maximum financial benefit that can be achieved, on the order of 68%.     

Thermally activated delayed fluorescence molecules and their new applications aside from OLEDs

Thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) organic molecules feature with long-lived delayed fluorescence, because they can undergo not only efficient intersystem crossing (ISC), but also efficient reverse intersystem crossing (RISC) at room temperature. As a new type of luminescent molecules, they have exhibited successful applications in organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). Aside from OLEDs, they are also found to have potential applications in time-resolved luminescence imaging based on long-lived fluorescence property. Meanwhile, due to their excited triplet characteristic originated from efficient ISC, they were found to be applied in triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion (TTA-UC), photodynamic therapy (PDT) and organic photocatalytic synthesis. This review briefly summarizes the characteristics and excellent photophysical properties of TADF organic compounds, then covers their applications to date aside from OLEDs based on their highly efficient ISC ability and RISC ability at room temperature.     

金属有机骨架材料应用于二氧化碳环加成反应的研究进展

化石燃料的燃烧产生大量二氧化碳,引起了包括温室效应在内的诸多生态环境问题。二氧化碳作为一种重要的碳资源,也可用于制备多种重要的化工原料。环氧化合物与二氧化碳环加成是二氧化碳资源化利用的重要方向,并且产物环状碳酸酯在工业上能得到广泛利用。但二氧化碳具有惰性,不易被活化,因此寻求高效且稳定的催化剂成为实现二氧化碳快速转化的关键。金属有机骨架(MOFs)因具有不饱和金属位点、多孔性等优点而被应用到各类催化反应中。又因其具有路易斯酸碱位点,对二氧化碳与环氧化物环加成反应有着突出的催化效果,所以在该反应体系中也有着出色的表现,但其反应条件比较苛刻。环氧化物的活化是在环加成反应中的重要环节,卤化物对环氧化物的活化有很好的效果,但是存在难回收的问题;卤化物阴离子还会引起含铁金属的腐蚀,在一定程度上限制了大规模工业使用。很多研究人员致力于寻找减少使用该类助剂的方法,改进催化体系,于是催生出了关于MOFs改性的各类方法。本文列举了在催化二氧化碳与环氧化物环加成反应过程中关于MOFs的利用以及改性方法,并展望了MOFs材料在催化领域的发展前景。     

Dipolar and Scalar Couplings in Solid State NMR of Quadrupolar Nuclei

Summary.  Most NMR-active nuclei found in the periodic table have a quadrupole moment. In combination with a nonsymmetric electron distribution a strong NMR-active interaction results, which very often overshadows the dipolar and scalar couplings. This article aims at reviewing how these interactions manifest themselves in quadrupolar NMR and how they can be exploited for resonance assignment and structure elucidation, in spite of the presence of a strong quadrupolar interaction. E-mail: alexej.jerschow@nyu.edu Received April 16, 2002; accepted May 15, 2002     

Rotation and inversion in nitrosamines

Geometry optimizations of the ground states as well as of the transition states for internal rotation and inversion have been performed by the semiempirical MNDO method for dimethyl nitrosamine (1), perfluordimethyl nitrosamine (2), N-nitroso aziridine (3), and N-nitroso azetidine (4). It was found that the potential barrier to internal rotation about the N-N bond is always of lower energy than that to inversion on the nitroso nitrogen.While the ground states tend to adopt structures which enable mesomerism, the lowest transition state is characterized by a pyramidal sp³-hybridized amino nitrogen. In accordance with experimental results the low barriers to rotation of 2 (7.96 kcal mol^?1), 3 (3.38 kcal mol^?1) and 4 (9.97 kcal mol^?1) in comparison with 1 (12.54 kcal mol^?1) indicate that in donor-acceptor molecules the transfer of charge can be limited by electronic and stereochemical effects. In particular, the equivalence of the α-methylene hydrogens which was observed in the NMR-spectrum of 3 is due to unhindered rotation and ring inveirsion.     

Isolation of phytosterols of Dalbergia ecastophyllum (L.) Taub. (Leguminosae) and modulation of antibiotic resistance by a possible membrane effect

Globally there are a larger number of strains of microorganisms resistant to multiple drugs mainly due to misuse and indiscriminate, resulting in increased morbidity, costs inherent benefits of health care, as well as mortality rates for infections. As a result of this a large number of researches have been conducted emphasizing the antimicrobial properties of plant products. In this study, the ethanol extract and hexane fraction of Dalbergia ecastophyllum (L.) Taub. (Leguminosae) have been used to evaluate the antibacterial and antifungal activity and for modulating the resistance of antimicrobials against bacterial strains of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans and fungal strains of Candida krusei, Candida tropicalis. The antibacterial and modulatory activity was determined by microdilution. Inhibition of the growth of bacteria and fungi tested extract was ?1024. The activity was enhanced when aminoglycosides were associated with sub-inhibitory concentrations of the ethanol extract and hexane fraction of Dalbergia ecastophyllum. Therefore, it is suggested that the ethanol extract and hexane fraction of Dalbergia ecastophyllum (L.) Taub. (Leguminosae) can be used as a source of natural products with a view to changing the resistance of these microorganisms to antimicrobials.     

Recent Advances in the Metal‐Catalyzed Activation of Amide Bonds

The amide functional group is commonly found in peptides, proteins, pharmaceutical compounds, natural products, and polymers. The synthesis of amides is typically performed by using classical approaches that involve the reaction between a carboxylic acid and an amine in the presence of an activator. Amides are thought to be an inert functional group, because they are unsusceptible to nucleophile attack, owing to their low electrophilicity. The reason for this resistance is clear: the resonance stability of the amide bond. However, transition metal catalysis can circumvent this stability by selectively rupturing the N?C bond of the amide, thereby facilitating further cross‐coupling or other reactions. In this Focus Review, we discuss the recent advances in this area and present a summary of methods that have been developed for activating the amide N?C bond by using precious and non‐precious metals.     

微量量热法研究大肠杆菌对粉防己碱和粉防己总生物碱的耐药性

微量量热法研究大肠杆菌对粉防己碱和粉防己总生物碱的耐药性;粉防己碱;粉防己总生物碱;耐药性;大肠杆菌;微量量热法     

电化学阻抗谱在质子交换膜燃料电池动态的先导应用

通过分析电化学阻抗（EIS）在质子交换膜燃料电池（PEMFC）动态应用,本文指出制约EIS 工具发展的瓶颈问题. EIS 高频电阻确定电池内阻已成普遍方法,但仅在小电流电池可以应用;低频分析因涉及物质传输仍是难点和重点;EIS 改进型Randles 等效电路分析已初步建立,并深入至物质传输-反应、电池操作/衰减、高温电池研究;EIS 正发展为电堆分析工具、电动汽车控制核心. 然而多学科交叉的暂态EIS 发展,仍是前沿突破难点.