Low viscosity DNA sieving matrices for capillary electrophoresis

The rapid development of DNA capillary electrophoresis (CE) technology has increased the demand of new low viscosity sieving matrices with high separation capacity. The high throughput, resolution and automatic operation of CE systems have stimulated the application of the technique to different kinds of DNA analysis, including DNA sequencing, separation of restriction fragments, PCR products and synthetic oligonucleotides. In addition specific methods for PCR-based mutation assays for the study of known and unknown point mutations have been developed for use in CE. The key component for a large scale application of CE to DNA analysis is the availability of appropriate sieving matrices. This article gives an overview of the linear polymers used as DNA separation matrices with particular emphasis on the polymers that combine high sieving capacity, low viscosity and chemical resistance.     

BIPHASIC ENERGY CONVERSION KINETICS AND ABSORBANCE DIFFERENCE SPECTRA OF PHOTOSYSTEM II OF CHLOROPLASTS. EVIDENCE FOR TWO DIFFERENT PHOTOSYSTEM II REACTION CENTERS

Abstract— The continuous illumination induced kinetics of photochemical energy conversion at system II have been measured with isolated and 3-(3, 4-dichlorophenyl)-l, l-dimethylurea (DCMU) poisoned chloroplasts by means of absorbance difference spectroscopy in the UV and by the area growth over the fluorescence induction curve at room temperature. An optimal set of conditions was found in order to isolate absorbance changes caused by the reduction of the primary electron acceptor Q of PS II by suppressing other electron transfer processes. The light induced kinetics of Q- accumulation in the absorbance change measurements were found to be biphasic and strictly correlated with the kinetics of the area growth measured under the same conditions. From the resolution of the biphasic kinetics at different wavelengths in the UV region of the spectrum, it was found that both kinetic components in the system II photochemistry involve the reduction of a plastoquinone molecule to its plastosemiquinone anion. From the two kinetic components one was fast and non-exponential and the other relatively slow with an exponential time course. The initial rate difference in the kinetics of the two components was by a factor of approximately 3. A difference by a factor of about three was also found in the flash saturation curves of the two kinetic components.
The results are explained by the hypothesis that in higher plant chloroplasts there are system II reaction centers embedded in a large pigment matrix with statistical energy transfer, and system II reaction centers embedded in separate, in terms of excitation energy transfer, units. The effective absorption cross section per reaction center for the centers in the statistical pigment bed is approximately 3 times larger than that of the reaction centers in the separate system II units. The two types of system II reaction centers have different yields of excitation trapping and charge stabilization properties.     

Metalation reactions. : IV. Metalation of o-alkyl- and o,o′-dialkyl-substituted alkylthiobenzenes

Metalation of o-alkyl- and o,o′-dialkylsubstituted alkylthiobenzenes with n-butyllithium, in the presence and absence of TMEDA, has been investigated. The results showed that metalation at the thioalkyl carbon probably occurs by direct attack of the organolithium reagent, although a transmetalation reaction cannot be excluded in some cases. It has also been found that benzylic, thio-methylic, and ring metalation occurs in ether alone, whereas mainly thio-methylic or ring metalation occurs in the presence of TMEDA.     

X-ray structural investigation on a series of polyesteramides

The crystal structures of three polyesteramides of the type conventionally referred to as nNTm, i.e. 6NT6, 12NT6 and 12NT12, were investigated by X-ray diffraction methods. The copolymers crystallize with triclinic symmetry and the repeat distances along the chain axis are 31.78(8), 39.27(20) and 46.77(15) Å, respectively. In 6NT6, the crystal structure of which was studied in more detail, the conformation of the molecular chain displays some departure from the fully extended form, particularly by rotation of the amide and the ester groups (about 26 and 15°, respectively) away from the plane of the benzene ring. Layers of chains, linked together by intermolecular hydrogen bonds, are formed. For the other two copolymers. evidence was obtained for a rather close isomorphism. A model of a structural disorder is proposed and discussed for the 6NT6 copolymer.     

Lifetime of bubble rafts: cooperativity and avalanches

We have studied the collapse of pseudo-bi-dimensional foams. These foams are made of uniformly sized soap bubbles packed in an hexagonal lattice sitting at the top of a liquid surface. The collapse process follows the sequence: (1) rupture of a first bubble, driven by thermal fluctuations and (2) a cascade of bursting bubbles. We present a simple numerical model which captures the main characteristics of the dynamics of foam collapse. We show that in a certain range of viscosities of the foaming solutions, the size distribution of the avalanches follows power laws as in self-organized criticality processes.     

Determination of sertraline in rat plasma by HPLC and fluorescence detection and its application to in vivo pharmacokinetic studies

A simple, rapid, and sensitive HPLC method based on 9H‐fluoren‐9‐ylmethyl chloroformate derivatization for the quantification of sertraline in rat plasma has been developed, requiring a plasma sample of only 0.1 mL, which was deproteinized and derivatized for 5 min in two single steps. The obtained derivative was stable at room temperature and was determined by HPLC using a fluorescence detector. The analytical column was a C(18) column and the mobile phase was acetonitrile and water (80:20, v/v). Calibration curves were linear in the range of 10–500 ng/mL. The limit of detection was approximately 3 ng/mL, and the lower limit of quantification was established at 10 ng/mL. The bias of the method was lower than 10%, and the within day as well as between day, relative standard deviations were lower than 12%. This analytical method was successfully applied to characterize sertraline pharmacokinetics in rats following intravenous (t_1/2 = 213 ± 48 min, Cl = 43.1 ± 8.7 mL/min, V_d = 11560 ± 1861 mL) and oral (C_max = 156 ± 76 ng/mL, t_max = 63.8 ± 16.3 min) administration of 2 and 5 mg, respectively.