Preparation and characterization of Cu (II) supported on poly(8‐hydroxyquinoline‐p‐styrene sulphonate) and its application as catalyst for the synthesis of hexahydroquinolines

Cu ( II ) supported on poly(8‐hydroxyquinoline‐p‐styrenesulfonate) (Cu ( II )@PHQSS) was prepared and fully characterized by the different techniques including fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), differential thermal gravimetric (DTG), differential thermal analysis (DTA), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X‐ray analysis (EDS). Afterward, the Cu ( II )@PHQSS as nanostructured catalyst was used as catalyst for the synthesis of hexahydroquinolines.     

Vector and Cell Line Engineering Technologies Toward Recombinant Protein Expression in Mammalian Cell Lines

The rapid growth of global biopharmaceutical market in the recent years has been a good indication of its significance in biotechnology industry. During a long period of time in recombinant protein production from 1980s, optimizations in both upstream and downstream processes were launched. In this regard, one of the most promising strategies is expression vector engineering technology based on incorporation of DNA opening elements found in the chromatin border regions of vectors as well as targeting gene integration. Along with these approaches, cell line engineering has revealed convenient outcomes in isolating high-producing clones. According to the fact that more than 50% of the approved therapeutic proteins is being manufactured in mammalian cell lines, in this review, we focus on several approaches and developments in vector and cell line engineering technologies in mammalian cell culture.     

Health-based pharmaceutical pay-for-performance risk-sharing agreements

Many new drugs, such as biologics and cancer drugs, are very costly. However, their effectiveness outside of clinical trial settings is often uncertain at the time they gain market approval. This uncertainty may reflect a lack of real-world outcomes data, as opposed to clinical trials data, for a typical patient population. A risk-sharing agreement is a contract between a drug manufacturer and a healthcare payer to help manage uncertainties regarding the cost and effectiveness of those drugs. In this paper, we model a risk-sharing agreement in which a proportion of total sales is rebated. We model disease progression using a continuous time Markov chain with uncertain transition rates. We examine the performance of this risk-sharing agreement from the manufacturer’s perspective and investigate the conditions under which the manufacturer will make a profit. We illustrate with a numerical model parameterized using data from a Phase 2 clinical trial of an oncology drug that was subjected to a risk-sharing agreement in the UK.     

A new direction in design and manufacture of co-sensitized dye solar cells: Toward concurrent optimization of power conversion efficiency and durability

A novel methodology was implemented in the present study to concurrently control power conversion efficiency (η) and durability (D) of co-sensitized dye solar cells. Applying response surface methodology (RSM) and Desirability Function (DF), the main influential assembling (dye volume ratio and anti-aggregation agent concentration) and operational (performance temperature) parameters were systematically changed to probe their main and interactive effects on the η and D responses. Individual optimization based on RSM elucidated that D can be solely controlled by changing the ratio of vat-based organic photosensitizers, whereas η takes both effects of dye volume ratio and anti-aggregation concentration into account. Among the studied factors, the performance temperature played the most vital role in η and D regulation. In particular, however, multi-objective optimization by DF explored the degree to which one should be careful about manipulation of assembling and operational parameters in the way maximization of performance of a co-sensitized dye solar cell.     

SOLVENT-FREE CONVERSION OF OXIRANES TO THIIRANES WITH THIOUREA

A simple and efficient method for the conversion of various oxiranes to the corresponding thiiranes using thiourea under solvent free conditions is described.     

Low Temperature Preparation of 3D Solid and Hollow ZnS Nanosphere Self-Assembled from Nanoparticles by Varying Sulfur Source

In this work, we report a facile hydrothermal method for the preparation of three dimensional hollow ZnS nanostructures, using Zinc bis(salicyle aldehitato), Zn(Sal)₂, thioacetamide (TAA) and thioglycolic acid (TGA) as Zn²⁺, sulfur source and capping agent, respectively. The ZnS solid and hollow sphere was produced from the self-assembly of nanoparticles with diameters of 11 ± 2 nm with TGA and TGA, TAA, respectively. Furthermore, with changing zinc precursor from Zn(Sal)₂ to zinc acetate [Zn(OAC)₂], ZnS nanorods were obtained. The products were characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, selected area electron diffraction, and FT-IR spectra. The influence of surfactant (Polyethylene glycol) on the morphology of the products was also investigated. Possible formation mechanism and optical properties of these architectures were also reported.     

Sonochemical Synthesis and Photocatalytic Properties of Metal Hydroxide and Carbonate (M:Mg, Ca, Sr or Ba) Nanoparticles

In this work Mg(OH)₂, Ca(OH)₂, CaCO₃, SrCO₃ and BaCO₃ nanoparticles were synthesized via a simple sonochemical reaction at room temperature. Nanoparticles were synthesized via a surfactant-free reaction solvent water. Nanostructures materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The photocatalytic behavior of nanoparticles was evaluated using the degradation of a methyl orange aqueous solution under ultraviolet light irradiation. The results show that metal hydroxide and metal carbonate nanoparticles are promising materials with excellent performance in photocatalytic applications.     

A Facile One-Pot Synthesis of Highly-Functionalized Stable Heterocyclic Phosphorus Ylides in Aqueous Media

Phthalimide or succinimide undergo a reaction with dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylates and triphenylphosphine to produce highly-functionalized stable heterocyclic phosphorus ylides in good yields in water-tetrahydrofuran (6:1). This methodology is of interest because of the use of water as solvent, thus minimizing the cost, operational hazards, and environmental pollution.     

A quantile-based Time at Risk: A new approach for assessing risk in financial markets

In this paper, we provide a new measure for evaluation of risk in financial markets. This measure is based on the return interval of critical events in financial markets or other investment situations. Our main goal was to devise a model like Value at Risk (VaR). As VaR, for a given financial asset, probability level and time horizon, gives a critical value such that the likelihood of loss on the asset over the time horizon exceeds this value is equal to the given probability level, our concept of Time at Risk (TaR), using a probability distribution function of return intervals, provides a critical time such that the probability that the return interval of a critical event exceeds this time equals the given probability level. As an empirical application, we applied our model to data from the Tehran Stock Exchange Price Index (TEPIX) as a financial asset (market portfolio) and reported the results.