The application of high-resolution mass spectrometry-based data-mining tools in tandem to metabolite profiling of a triple drug combination in humans

Patients are usually exposed to multiple drugs, and metabolite profiling of each drug in complex biological matrices is a big challenge. This study presented a new application of an improved high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS)-based data-mining tools in tandem to fast and comprehensive metabolite identification of combination drugs in human. The model drug combination was metronidazole-pantoprazole-clarithromycin (MET-PAN-CLAR), which is widely used in clinic to treat ulcers caused by Helicobacter pylori. First, mass defect filter (MDF), as a targeted data processing tool, was able to recover all relevant metabolites of MET-PAN-CLAR in human plasma and urine from the full-scan MS dataset when appropriate MDF templates for each drug were defined. Second, the accurate mass-based background subtraction (BS), as an untargeted data-mining tool, worked effectively except for several trace metabolites, which were buried in the remaining background signals. Third, an integrated strategy, i.e., untargeted BS followed by improved MDF, was effective for metabolite identification of MET-PAN-CLAR. Most metabolites except for trace ones were found in the first step of BS-processed datasets, and the results led to the setup of appropriate metabolite MDF template for the subsequent MDF data processing. Trace metabolites were further recovered by MDF, which used both common MDF templates and the novel metabolite-based MDF templates. As a result, a total of 44 metabolites or related components were found for MET-PAN-CLAR in human plasma and urine using the integrated strategy. New metabolic pathways such as N-glucuronidation of PAN and dehydrogenation of CLAR were found. This study demonstrated that the combination of accurate mass-based multiple data-mining techniques in tandem, i.e., untargeted background subtraction followed by targeted mass defect filtering, can be a valuable tool for rapid metabolite profiling of combination drugs in vivo.     

High resolution mass spectrometry based profiling of diet-related deoxyribonucleic acid adducts

Exposure of DNA to endo- and exogenous DNA binding chemicals can result in the formation of DNA adducts and is believed to be the first step in chemically induced carcinogenesis. DNA adductomics is a relatively new field of research which studies the formation of known and unknown DNA adducts in DNA due to exposure to genotoxic chemicals. In this study, a new UHPLC-HRMS(/MS)-based DNA adduct detection method was developed and validated. Four targeted DNA adducts, which all have been linked to dietary genotoxicity, were included in the described method; O⁶-methylguanine (O⁶-MeG), O⁶-carboxymethylguanine (O⁶-CMG), pyrimidopurinone (M1G) and methylhydroxypropanoguanine (CroG). As a supplementary tool for DNA adductomics, a DNA adduct database, which currently contains 123 different diet-related DNA adducts, was constructed. By means of the newly developed method and database, all 4 targeted DNA adducts and 32 untargeted DNA adducts could be detected in different DNA samples. The obtained results clearly demonstrate the merit of the described method for both targeted and untargeted DNA adduct detection in vitro and in vivo, whilst the diet-related DNA adduct database can distinctly facilitate data interpretation.     

High‐temperature superconductivity and long‐range order in strongly correlated electronic systems

A selective review of the question of how repulsive electron correlations might give rise to off‐diagonal long‐range order (ODLRO) in high‐temperature superconductors is presented. The article makes detailed explanations of the relevance to superconductivity of reduced electronic density matrices and how these can be used to understand whether ODLRO might arise from Coulombic repulsions in strongly correlated electronic systems. Time‐reversed electron pairs on alternant Cuprate and the iron‐based pnictide and chalcogenide lattices may have a weak long‐range attractive tail and much stronger short‐range repulsive Coulomb interaction. The long‐range attractive tail may find its origin in one of the many suggested proposals for high‐T_c superconductivity and thus has an uncertain origin. A phenomenological Hamiltonian is invoked whose model parameters are obtained by fitting to experimental data. A detailed summary is given of the arguments that such interacting electrons can cooperate to produce a superconducting state in which time‐reversed pairs of electrons effectively avoid the repulsive hard‐core of the Coulomb interaction but reside on average in the attractive well of the long‐range potential. Thus, the pairing of electrons itself provides an enhanced screening mechanism. The alternant lattice structure is the key to achieving robust high‐temperature superconductivity with dx²‐y² or sign alternating s‐wave or s± condensate symmetries in cuprates and iron‐based compounds. Some attention is also given to the question first raised by Leggett as to where the Coulombic energy is saved in the superconducting transition in cuprates. A mean‐field‐type model in which the condensate density serves as an order parameter is discussed. Many of the observed trends in the thermal properties of cuprate superconductors are reproduced giving strong support for the proposed model for high‐temperature superconductivity in such strongly correlated electronic systems. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Dependency of dynamic interlaminar shear strength of composites on test technique used

Studies are presented on dependency of dynamic interlaminar shear (ILS) strength on the experimental technique used for a typical plain weave E-glass/epoxy composite. Dynamic ILS strength was determined based on two experimental techniques, namely torsional split Hopkinson bar (TSHB) apparatus using thin walled tubular specimens and compressive split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) apparatus using single lap specimens. The results obtained from these techniques are compared. In general, it is observed that dynamic ILS strength for composites obtained by TSHB testing using thin walled tubular specimens is lower than the dynamic ILS strength obtained using single lap specimens in compressive SHPB. The issues involved in TSHB testing of thin walled tubular specimens made of composites are discussed and the reasons for reduced dynamic ILS strength using thin walled tubular specimens are highlighted. Finite element analysis (FEA) of thin walled tubular specimens made of composite and resin subjected to quasi-static torsional loading is presented. Using FEA results, the reasons for lower ILS strength of composite thin walled tubular specimens are substantiated.     

Thermal expansion behavior of solar cell encapsulation materials

The object of this paper is to determine the thermal expansion behavior of nine different encapsulants in order to identify possible deficiencies in production processes and allow for the optimization of the process parameters. High dimensional stability of the encapsulant is of great importance in photovoltaic (PV) module production to avoid problems during lamination and/or in application. For this purpose, the samples were heated twice in a thermo-mechanical analyzer (TMA) in tensile mode, and the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) over temperature was evaluated. To get additional information about transition temperatures of the encapsulants, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements were made. The TMA results for most samples showed anisotropic behavior which was eliminated after the first heating run. Three samples showed shrinkage with subsequent increased thermal expansion as well as anisotropic behavior. It could be shown that knowing the thermal expansion behavior of the solar cell encapsulants is highly relevant for the PV module lamination process, and Thermo-Mechanical Analysis proved to be a suitable method to evaluate and also for quality control of solar cell encapsulation films.     

The free retraction of natural rubber: A momentum-based model

The free retraction of vulcanised strips of natural rubber released from simple uniaxial deformation is studied using high speed cinematography in the context of a simple momentum theory. Good agreement between the theory and experiment is observed when vulcanisates are released from stresses below 1 MPa, which corresponds to tensile strains rates below 1 × 10³ s⁻¹. Above this critical stress and corresponding strain rate value, an increasing dispersion is observed in the form of slowing down of the characteristic retraction pulse, and also by a relaxation of strain ahead of the pulse front (a dispersion of the pulse). Holding samples at high strains for an extended period of time prior to releasing results in a further, significant retardation of the retraction pulse velocity. These effects are related to the increasing non-linearity of high strain rate retraction stress–strain behaviour. Energy balance arguments show that the dispersion of the retraction pulse is a prerequisite for pulse propagation, and that its magnitude underpins the deviation from the momentum model outlined in this paper.     

The behavior of benzene confined in a single wall carbon nanotube

We present the molecular dynamics study of benzene molecules confined into the single wall carbon nanotube. The local structure and orientational ordering of benzene molecules are investigated. It is found that the molecules mostly group in the middle distance from the axis of the tube to the wall. The molecules located in the vicinity of the wall demonstrate some deviation from planar shape. There is a tilted orientational ordering of the molecules which depends on the location of the molecule. It is shown that the diffusion coefficient of the benzene molecules is very small at the conditions we report here. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

预裂化理论研究:基质表面酸性位类型及不同类型酸性位接触顺序对裂化过程小分子烯烃收率的影响

在区分氢负离子转移反应与氢转移反应、非选择性氢转移反应与总的氢转移反应的情况下,通过合成物性相近但酸性不同的氧化铝,用以作为裂化催化剂基质材料,在固定床反应器上考察了催化裂化过程,基质酸性位类型及基质表面Lewis及Brönsted酸性位接触顺序对小分子烯烃(丙烯、丁烯)收率的影响。结果表明,催化裂化生成小分子烯烃过程中,分子筛与基质所呈现出的反应特点存在较大的区别,前者活性虽高,但总的氢转移反应活性过强。基质材料裂化活性虽低但其表面以氢负离子转移反应为主,反应路径角度更有利于小分子烯烃收率的提高。另外,基质表面存在Brönsted酸性位,或原料油首先与基质表面Lewis酸性位相接触再与Brönsted酸性位反应的预裂化过程,会在促进裂化反应发生的同时抑制总的氢转移反应,更有利于小分子烯烃收率的提高。     

Measurement of Large Dipolar Couplings of a Liquid Crystal with Terminal Phenyl Rings and Estimation of the Order Parameters

NMR spectroscopy is a powerful means of studying liquid‐crystalline systems at atomic resolutions. Of the many parameters that can provide information on the dynamics and order of the systems, ¹H–¹³C dipolar couplings are an important means of obtaining such information. Depending on the details of the molecular structure and the magnitude of the order parameters, the dipolar couplings can vary over a wide range of values. Thus the method employed to estimate the dipolar couplings should be capable of estimating both large and small dipolar couplings at the same time. For this purpose, we consider here a two‐dimensional NMR experiment that works similar to the insensitive nuclei enhanced by polarization transfer (INEPT) experiment in solution. With the incorporation of a modification proposed earlier for experiments with low radio frequency power, the scheme is observed to enable a wide range of dipolar couplings to be estimated at the same time. We utilized this approach to obtain dipolar couplings in a liquid crystal with phenyl rings attached to either end of the molecule, and estimated its local order parameters.     

High‐performance liquid chromatographic column packings with different particle sizes: Chromatographic behavior for the quality analysis of HuanglianShangqing pill

The chromatographic separation of traditional Chinese medicines is still a highly challenging task in analytical science with respect to its hundreds and thousands of chemical compounds, while increase of separation efficiency can greatly improve the separation power of chromatographic column for traditional Chinese medicine. In this study, 13 bioactive components in HuanglianShangqing pill were selected as an index to optimize the separation conditions and evaluate the system suitability of three commercially available columns packed with 1.8, 3.5, and 5.0 μm particles. The chromatographic separations were obtained by the most appropriate Eclipse Plus C₁₈ column (100 × 2.1 mm, 3.5 μm) within 45 min using gradient elution with aqueous‐ammonium acetate (10 mmol/L, pH 5.0) and acetonitrile, at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min and an operating temperature of 30°C. The quality of HuanglianShangqing pill was assessed through combining simultaneous quantification of 13 compounds with fingerprint analysis. For the qualitative analysis, mass spectrometry was used to confirm the 13 compounds. All the validation data conformed to the acceptable requirements. For the fingerprint analysis, 32 peaks were selected as the common peaks at 254 nm to evaluate the similarities among HuanglianShangqing pills obtained from ten manufacturers.