Electrochromic and magnetic ionic liquids

Ionic liquids can be made intrinsically electrochromic and magnetic through the appropriate combination of electrochromic and magnetic anions based on ethylenediaminetetraacetic metal complexes, combined with several organic cations. These novel and highly multi-functional materials encompass the peculiar properties of ionic liquids together with the characteristics of electrochromic and magnetic materials.     

Ag2WO4 nanoparticles radiolabeled with technetium-99m: a potential new tool for tumor identification and uptake

Silver tungstate nanoparticles have been presenting attractive characteristics that could allow its usage in the biomedical sciences. In this study, Ag₂WO₄ nanoparticles with an average size of 242 nm were obtained and radiolabeled with technetium-99m with high labeling-yield as well as high stability. Biodistribution studies were carried out in healthy and tumor-bearing mice to determine the nanoparticle’s in vivo behavior. The results revealed an important tumor-to-muscle ratio, reaching values above than 1.5, demonstrated the ability of this nanomaterial in accumulating preferentially in tumor tissue. All results together, converge to consider the Ag₂WO₄ nanoparticles as a potential system against cancer and a potential new radiolabeled probe for tumor identification and uptake.

     

Proportionally modular diophantine inequalities and their multiplicity

Let I be an interval of positive rational numbers. Then the set S （I） = T ∩ N, where T is the submonoid of （Q0＋, ＋） generated by T, is a numerical semigroup. These numerical semigroups are called proportionally modular and can be characterized as the set of integer solutions of a Diophantine inequality of the form ax rood b 〈 cx. In this paper we are interested in the study of the maximal intervals I subject to the condition that S （I） has a given multiplicity. We also characterize the numerical semigroups associated with these maximal intervals.     

Randomized Oblivious Transfer for Secure Multiparty Computation in the Quantum Setting

Secure computation is a powerful cryptographic tool that encompasses the evaluation of any multivariate function with arbitrary inputs from mutually distrusting parties. The oblivious transfer primitive serves is a basic building block for the general task of secure multi-party computation. Therefore, analyzing the security in the universal composability framework becomes mandatory when dealing with multi-party computation protocols composed of oblivious transfer subroutines. Furthermore, since the required number of oblivious transfer instances scales with the size of the circuits, oblivious transfer remains as a bottleneck for large-scale multi-party computation implementations. Techniques that allow one to extend a small number of oblivious transfers into a larger one in an efficient way make use of the oblivious transfer variant called randomized oblivious transfer. In this work, we present randomized versions of two known oblivious transfer protocols, one quantum and another post-quantum with ring learning with an error assumption. We then prove their security in the quantum universal composability framework, in a common reference string model.     

Systems of Inequalities and Numerical Semigroups

A one-to-one correspondence is described between the set S(m)of numerical semigroups with multiplicity m and the set of non-negativeinteger solutions of a system of linear Diophantine inequalities.This correspondence infers in S(m) a semigroup structure andthe resulting semigroup is isomorphic to a subsemigroup of N^m–1.Finally, this result is particularized to the symmetric case.     

Açai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) Seed Extract Induces ROS Production and Cell Death in MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cell Line

Euterpe oleracea Mart. (açai) is a native palm from the Amazon region. There are various chemical constituents of açai with bioactive properties. This study aimed to evaluate the chemical composition and cytotoxic effects of açai seed extract on breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). Global Natural Products Social Molecular Networking (GNPS) was applied to identify chemical compounds present in açai seed extract. LC-MS/MS and molecular networking were employed to detect the phenolic compounds of açai. The antioxidant activity of açai seed extract was measured by DPPH assay. MCF-7 breast cancer cell line viability was evaluated by MTT assay. Cell death was evaluated by flow cytometry and time-lapse microscopy. Autophagy was evaluated by orange acridin immunofluorescence assay. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was evaluated by DAF assay. From the molecular networking, fifteen compounds were identified, mainly phenolic compounds. The açai seed extract showed cytotoxic effects against MCF-7, induced morphologic changes in the cell line by autophagy and increased the ROS production pathway. The present study suggests that açai seed extract has a high cytotoxic capacity and may induce autophagy by increasing ROS production in breast cancer. Apart from its antioxidant activity, flavonoids with high radical scavenging activity present in açai also generated NO (nitric oxide), contributing to its cytotoxic effect and autophagy induction.     

A comparative study on absorption and selectivity of organic vapors by using ionic liquids based on imidazolium, quaternary ammonium, and guanidinium cations

A novel study on organic solute absorption from the vapor phase is reported. The organic solutes chosen for the absorption studies include 1,4-benzodioxane, biphenyl, xanthene, and menthol. A series of imidazolium, ammonium, and guanidinium-based ionic liquids (ILs) containing several types of anions were used as absorbents. Absorption of water vapor was also studied along with the organic solutes. Absorption studies of each organic solute were performed by using a specially devised glass apparatus at 50 degrees C. It was observed that the rate of absorption increases with time and is faster in the case of 1,4-benzodioxane (24 h). The absorption process for each organic solute with different classes of ionic liquids was studied and the results were compared with each other. Absorption values of more than 25,000 ppm were observed in some ionic liquids. Distribution ratios of organic solutes in an ionic liquid and in the vapor phase were measured and the selectivity was evaluated by using the distribution ratio values. A remarkable selectivity was observed for some ionic liquids towards a specific organic solute. Importantly, it was observed that the selectivity remained constant, even though a mixture of solute was used for the absorption study. Desorption of organic vapors from ionic liquids was successfully carried out by applying a vacuum. Further, it was observed that the same ionic liquid can be repeatedly reused several times for absorption. These studies reveal that, in future, a task-specific ionic liquid can be prepared and used for specific solute capture from the vapor phase.