Molecular structure and vibrational spectra of 1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane by quantum chemical calculations

The experimental and theoretical study on the structures and vibrations of 1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane are presented. The FT-IR and Raman spectra of molecule have been measured. The optimized geometric bond lengths have been obtained by DFT show the best agreements with experimental values. The harmonic vibrational frequencies were calculated and scaled values have been compared with experimental FT-IR and FT-Raman spectra. Majority of the computed wavenumbers were found to be in good agreement with experimental observations. A complete assignment of the fundamentals was proposed based on the total energy distribution (TED) calculation.     

Anticarcinogenic and antimitotic effects of Turkish propolis and mitomycin-C on tissue cultures of bladder cancer

The in vitro anticarcinogenic and antimitotic effects of propolis and mitomycin-C (MMC) on transitional carcinoma cell cultures were investigated. Tissue samples were obtained from 22 patients with bladder carcinomas, which were exposed to propolis (0.1 mL) and MMC (1.6 microL). The mean MI rates for control, propolis and MMC were 8.327 +/- 0.624, 6.990 +/- 0.519 and 5.423 +/- 0.479, respectively. The differences between the control and exposed cells were significant (p < 0.05). We conclude that exposure to propolis can decrease cell division and it may be used as an antimitotic and anticarcinogenic agent.     

Finite difference method combined with differential quadrature method for numerical computation of the modified equal width wave equation

The aim of this study is to improve the numerical solution of the modified equal width wave equation. For this purpose, finite difference method combined with differential quadrature method with Rubin and Graves linearizing technique has been used. Modified cubic B‐spline base functions are used as base function. By the combination of two numerical methods and effective linearizing technique high accurate numerical algorithm is obtained. Three main test problems are solved for various values of the coefficients. To observe the performance of the present method, the error norms of the single soliton problem which has analytical solution are calculated. Besides these error norms, three invariants are reported. Comparison of the results displays that our algorithm produces superior results than those given in the literature.     

Effect of multi-walled carbon nanotubes incorporation into benzyl methacrylate monolithic columns in capillary liquid chromatography

This work describes the preparation of polymer based monolithic materials and their use as stationary phases in capillary liquid chromatography. Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) were incorporated into a mixture containing benzyl methacrylate (BMA) and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) as co-monomers. The optimized porogenic mixture was a ternary solution composed of cyclohexanol, 1,4-butandiol and butanol which resulted in a stable and homogeneous suspension. Six capillary columns with increasing amounts of MWCNT, from 0 to 0.4 mg mL(-1), were prepared by thermal polymerization in 0.32 mm (i.d.) and 150 mm length fused silica tubing. The chromatographic evaluation showed that the synthesized monolithic beds were mechanically stable while their porosity and permeability increased with the MWCNT content. The prepared capillary columns were tested for the separation of mixtures of ketones and phenols at an optimum flow rate of 2 μL min(-1). The results showed that incorporation of MWCNT slightly affected the retention while it enhanced the column efficiency by increasing the column efficiency by a factor of up to 9. This effect corresponded also to an improved resolution and full separation of the solutes.     

Diazonium salt-derived 4-(dimethylamino)phenyl groups as hydrogen donors in surface-confined radical photopolymerization for bioactive poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) grafts

In this paper we describe a novel methodology for grafting polymers via radical photopolymerization initiated on gold surfaces by aryl layers from diazonium salt precursors. The parent 4-(dimethylamino)benzenediazonium salt was electroreduced on a gold surface to provide 4-(dimethylamino)phenyl (DMA) hydrogen donor layers; free benzophenone in solution was used as a photosensitizer to strip hydrogen from the grafted DMA. This system permitted efficient surface initiation of photopolymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate. The resulting poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) grafts were found to be very adherent to the surface as they resist total failure after being soaked in the well-known paint stripper methyl ethyl ketone. The PHEMA grafts were reacted with 1,1'-carbonyldiimidazole to yield carbamate groups that are able to react readily with amino groups from proteins. The final surface consisted of protein-functionalized PHEMA grafts where bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein is specifically linked to the grafts by covalent bonds. We used X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to monitor the chemical changes at the gold surface all along the process from the neat gold to the end-protein-functionalized polymer grafts: the PHEMA graft thickness ranged from 7 to 27 nm, and the activation by 1,1'-carbonyldiimidazole reached 37% of the OH groups, which was sufficient for 90% surface coverage of the grafts by BSA. This work conclusively provides a new approach for bridging reactive and functional polymers to surfaces via aryl diazonium salts in a simple, fast, and efficient approach of importance in biomedical and other applications.     

Heavy atom free singlet oxygen generation: doubly substituted configurations dominate S1 states of bis-BODIPYs

S(0), S(1), and T(1) states of various orthogonal 8,8' and 8,2'-bis-boradiaza-s-indacene (BODIPY) dyes, recently (Angew. Chem., Int. Ed.2011, 50, 11937) proposed as heavy atom free photosensitizers for O(2)((1)Δ(g)) generation, were studied by multireference quantum chemical approaches. S(0)→S(1) excitation characteristics of certain bis-BODIPYs are shown to be drastically different than the parent BODIPY chromophore. Whereas a simple HOMO→LUMO-type single substitution perfectly accounts for the BODIPY core, S(1) states of certain orthogonal bis-BODIPYs are described as linear combinations of doubly substituted (DS) configurations which overall yield four electrons in four singly occupied orbitals. Computed DS character of S(1), strongly correlated with facile (1)O(2) production, was presumed to occur via S(1)→T(1) intersystem crossing (ISC) of the sensitizer. Further confirmation of this relation was provided by newly synthesized BODIPY derivatives and comparison of spectroscopic properties of their dimers and monomers. Near-IR absorption, desired for potential photodynamic therapy applications, was not pursuable for bis-chromophores by the standard strategy of π-extension, as DS singlet states are destabilized. Decreased exchange coupling in π-extended cases appears to be responsible for this destabilization. Comparisons with iodine incorporated bis-BODIPYs suggest that the dynamics of (1)O(2) generation via DS S(1) states are qualitatively different from that via ISC originating from heavy atom spin-orbit coupling. Although red-shifting the absorption wavelength to enter the therapeutic window does not seem attainable for orthogonal bis-BODIPYs with DS S(1) states, modifications in the chromophore cores are shown to be promising in fine-tuning the excitation characteristics.     

Modified theory of the physical-optics approach to the impedance wedge problem

The problem of a wedge with equal face impedances is examined with a modified theory of physical optics. The surface integral is constructed by use of the impedance boundary condition. The aperture equivalent current is estimated from the behavior of the reflected diffracted field. The integrals obtained are evaluated asymptotically and compared with the exact solution numerically.     

Effects of anionic and cationic micelles on the oxidation of d-dextrose by diperiodatoargentate(III)

The oxidative behavior of d-dextrose toward diperiodatoargentate(III) (DPA) has been studied in the absence and presence of anionic and cationic micelles of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), respectively. The kinetics is based on the reduction of silver(III) to silver(I) by d-dextrose under pseudo-first-order conditions. The monoperiodatoargentate(III) ions act as active oxidants in comparison to that of DPA. The reactions are first- and fractional-order dependence with respect to [DPA] and [d-dextrose], respectively. The reaction rates decrease with [H⁺] and [periodate]. The premicellar environment of SDS and CTAB strongly inhibits the reaction rate. Inhibition is due to favorable thermodynamic/electrostatic binding between the Ag(III) complex and CTAB monomer aggregates. A suitable mechanism involving a one-electron transfer (rate-determining step) from d-dextrose to the silver(III) species has been proposed. Activation parameters have been evaluated and discussed.     

On the limiting case for boundedness of the B-Riesz potential in B-Morrey spaces

We consider the generalized shift operator associated with the Laplace-Bessel differential operator $$ \Delta _B = \sum\limits_{i = 1}^n {\frac{{\partial ^2 }} {{\partial x_j^2 }}} + \sum\limits_{i = 1}^k {\frac{{\gamma _i }} {{x_i }}\frac{\partial } {{\partial x_i }}} $$ , and study the modified B-Riesz potential ? _{α, β} generated by the generalized shift operator acting in the B-Morrey space in the limiting case. We prove that the operator ? _{α, β}, 0 < α < n + |γ|, is bounded from the B-Morrey space L _{(n+|γ|?λ)/α,λ,γ} (? _k,+ ⁿ ) to the B-BMO space BMO _γ (? _k,+ ⁿ ).     

Evidence of a core–shell structure in the antiferromagnetic La0.2Ce0.8CrO3 nanoparticles by neutron scattering

We report the evidence of a core?Cshell structure in the antiferromagnetic La_0.2Ce_0.8CrO₃ nanoparticles by using a combination of neutron diffraction, polarized neutron small angle scattering (SANSPOL), and dc magnetization techniques. The neutron diffraction study establishes that the present nanoparticles are antiferromagnetic in nature. The magnetic scattering in the SANSPOL study arises from the shell part of the nanoparticles due to the disordered surface spins. The analysis of the SANSPOL data shows that these nanoparticles have a mean core diameter of 12.3±1.1?nm, and a shell thickness of 2.8±0.4?nm, giving a core?Cshell structure with an antiferromagnetic core, and a shell with a net magnetic moment under an applied magnetic field.