AUTOMATED MECHANICAL STIMULATION AND MEASUREMENT OF BIOLUMINESCENCE IN MARINE DINOFLAGELLATES

A new integrated system for reproducible, automated mechanical stimulation and measurement of bioluminescence (BL) in multiple samples of marine dinoflagellate cell suspensions is described. The system was designed to allow the application of standardized experimental routines to parallel test vials for the purpose of toxicity testing. A sample tray delivered test vials to the position of mechanical stimulation and BL measurement. Mechanical stimulation of BL was applied as sharp rotation-onset of the test vial about its vertical axis. Thus, any direct chemical or physical perturbation of the cell suspension was avoided. A silicon photovoltaic cell measured the emitted light. Stimulation, measurement and recording of BL were integrated and controlled by specially developed software, which runs on a personal computer in the graphic environment of MS-Windows. Precise scheduling, flexible programming and identical repetition of experimental routines are possible in practice. For Gonyaulax polyedra, details of BL, as stimulated and measured with the new system, are presented and discussed. We conclude that the system exhibits specific features that offer wide potential of application in several fields of research on dinoflagellate BL, particularly for toxicity testing.     

N-1 Substituted ethyl 4-pyrazolecarboxylates: Synthesis and spectroscopic investigations

The synthesis of various N-1 substituted ethyl 4-pyrazolecarboxylates via reaction of ethyl 2-formyl-3-oxo-propionate (= ethoxycarbonylmalondialdehyde) with appropriately substituted hydrazines is described. Moreover, detailed nmr-spectroscopic investigations with the title compounds are presented.     

Polyethylene compounds with antimicrobial surface properties

The present study aims at antimicrobial polyethylene surfaces. To achieve this, LLDPE was compounded with the polymeric biocide poly(2-tert-butylaminoethyl) methacrylate TBAM (bulk modification with 1.5-5.0 wt.% of TBAM). Surfaces of these polymer compounds were then subjected to microbial assays. Using standard methods the colony forming units (CFU) for Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were determined on these surfaces. In all cases, polyethylene surfaces with highly antimicrobial properties were achieved. An average reduction of 10⁴ CFU ml⁻¹ compared to neat LLDPE was achieved. The surfaces of these LLDPE/TBAM compounds were assessed by electrokinetic (zeta potential) measurements. The results indicate a relation between the antimicrobial activity and the zeta-potential of the polymer compounds. Moreover, the antimicrobial compounds were investigated towards biofilm formation. Compared to pristine LLDPE, the surfaces of the polymer compounds showed less adhering biofilm after a testing period of 16 weeks.     

Bifurcation for a semilinear elliptic equation on ℛN with radially symmetric coefficients

We consider the semilinear eigenvalue problem on ^N (N 2) (N2) and investigate the question under which conditions on the radially symmetric function q, =0 is a bifurcation point for this equation in H¹, In H² and in L^p for 2p+.     

Infinite time optimal control and periodicity

For smooth nonlinear systems

Goodisman's correction of the Thomas-Fermi-von Weizsäcker theory of atoms

Summary Following a suggestion of J. Goodisman, we substitute the therm by in the Thomas-Fermi-von Weizsäcker energy functional for atoms.f _z³ [0,1] is a function depending on the nuclear chargez.We establish conditions for the functionsf _z such that the ratio of this modified TFW-energyE _kz ^/TFWG (z) (kz is the total number of electrons) and the exact quantum mechanical energy converges to 1 asz. Moreover, we prove thatE _kz ^/TFWG (z)=E _kz ^/TFW (z)+Dz ²+o(z ²) (z) and determineD. Here,E _kz ^/TFW (z) is the unmodified TFW energy.

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Zusammenfassung Einem Vorschlag J. Goodismans folgend, ersetzen wir in dem Thomas-Fermi-von Weizsäcker Energiefunktional für Atome den Term durch .f _z³ [0,1] ist hierbei eine Funktion, die von der Kernladungszahlz abhängt.Wir geben dann Bedingungen für die Funktionenf _z an, unter denen der Quotient der so modifizierten TFW-energieE _kz ^/TFWG (z) (kz=Anzahl der Elektronen) und der exakten quantenmechanischen Energie fürz gegen 1 konvergiert. Darüber hinaus beweisen wir, daßE _kz ^/TFWG (z)=E _kz ^/TFW (z)+D·o(itz) ² (z) gilt und bestimmmenD. E _kz ^/TFW (z) ist hierbei die nicht-modifizierte TFW-Energie.

     

XPS investigations of ink‐jet printed paper

Different ink‐jet printed paper materials were investigated using X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) yielding the elemental composition of the near‐surface region of the papers. We found significant differences with respect to the detected elements and their atomic concentrations in the different inks studied here. Two different groups of inks could be identified by means of a lower ratio of the O and C atomic concentrations and lower concentrations in specific trace elements like Mg, Na and Si. High‐resolution spectra of C 1s and O 1s core levels allowed a detailed determination of the chemical state of the respective elements. On the basis of a detailed deconvolution of these XPS signals, significant differences between all the investigated ink‐jet printed papers were found, thereby allowing their discrimination. The applicability of the measurements and, more generally, the XPS technique for forensic investigations of paper are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fluorescence quenching by excimer formation: quenching constant approximations for excimer formation-dissociation by classical potential models

Fluorescence quenching by excimer formation is studied on the assumption that the excimer formation and dissociation can be modeled as overdamped motion in an attractive potential (classical potential models). An approach to the zeroth-order, concentration-independent quenching constants is proposed which starts from a mean reaction-time ansatz and reduces the calculation essentially to the solution of the eigenvalue problem for the Smoluchowski operator which describes the excimer equilibration. For a square-well potential model it is shown that a quenching constant expansion in terms of relaxation modes, truncated at the kinetic level, gives a satisfactory approximation of the recently obtained exact zeroth-order result under defined conditions. It is demonstrated how this two-mode approach can be applied for a quenching constant estimation if the excimer formation and dissociation are modeled by more realistic interaction potentials, as for instance, Morse- or Gaussian-type ones.