Determination of biologically active substances in roasted coffees using a diode-array HPLC system.

We studied the simultaneous quantitative analysis of biologically active substances, such as nicotinic acid, trigonelline, caffeine, qunolinic acid and tannic acid and pyrogallic acid, in several roasted coffees by an HPLC/diode-array system with a home-made sol-gel and ODS-2 columns. A simple method for simultaneous quantitative analysis of biologically active substances in the coffee brew became feasible by an HPLC/diode-array system with a sol-gel column at a single wavelength of 210 nm. The most efficient condition of the Rs value was above 1.05 when two sol-gel columns were connected. In addition, the elution behavior of nicotinic acid in brew extracted from commercially available coffee beans suggests the thermal decomposition process during roasting, and indicated the maximum value for full city roasted coffee.     

Synthetic studies on β-lactam antibiotics. Part 16. synthesis of 1-carba-2-penem-3-carboxylic acid esters from penicillins utilizing a carbon-carbon coupling reaction

Allylazetidinones $\text{9}$, $\text{10}$, prepared by coupling of allylcoppers $\text{8}$ with chloroazetidinones $\text{6}$, $\text{7}$, were converted into carbapenem esters $\text{16}$, $\text{28}$–$\text{31}$ using an Emmons-Horner reaction to introduce the 6-side chain and an intramolecular Wittig reaction to form the carbapenem ring system.     

A novel anthracene-based fluorescent colorimetric sensor for the simple naked-eye diagnosis of methylmalonic aciduria

A novel molecular sensor using anthracene bearing two amidopyridines emits blue fluorescence in the presence of succinic acid and green fluorescence in the presence of malonic acid, and its fluorescence intensity increased upon binding. Using this molecular sensor, we succeeded in detecting the difference of one carbon atom between succinic acid and malonic acid with the naked-eye. Furthermore, when methylmalonic acid was dissolved in urine to provide a model system for methylmalonic aciduria, the fluorescence changed from blue to green, and methylmalonic acid was successfully detected with the naked-eye.     

Novel hydrogen peroxide sensors based on peroxidase-carrying poly[pyrrole-co-[4-(3-pyrrolyl)butanesulfonate]] copolymer films.

Amperometric hydrogen peroxide biosensors were fabricated by incorporating horseradish peroxidase (HRP) into poly[pyrrole-co-[4-(3-pyrrolyl)butanesulfonate]] (Py-PS) copolymer films deposited on an SnO2 electrode surface by electropolymerization. The HRP/Py-PS electrodes exhibited an extended dynamic range and a markedly improved operational and storage stability, compared with HRP-incorporated polypyrrole (PPy) electrodes prepared under similar conditions. The linear range was expanded from 10(-7)-10(-4) M to 10(-7)-10(-3) M H2O2. In about 80 measurements over three weeks, the HRP/Py-PS electrode retained 60% of its initial response, while the HRP/PPy electrode almost completely lost activity. The influence of the electrodeposition solution pH on the sensor response was also investigated. Our results suggest that an expansion of the linear range and an enhancement of lifetime are due to electrostatic interactions of HRP with a negatively-charged Py-PS copolymer.     

Developmental changes of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase expression in Sarcophaga peregrina

To elucidate the physiological role of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), we studied the levels of PARP mRNA and protein during the developmental stages of Sarcophaga peregrina. PARP mRNA expression changed remarkably throughout the developmental stages. The level of PARP mRNA (the molecular ratio of PARP mRNA to the total RNA) was highest in unfertilized eggs and that of PARP protein (the molecular ratio of PARP protein to the total protein of the crude extract) was high in unfertilized and fertilized eggs and in 1st instar larvae. During the embryogenesis period, the levels of PARP mRNA and protein gradually decreased. The levels of PARP mRNA during larval and pupal periods became less than about 5% of that in unfertilized eggs. After the emergence of adult flies, the levels of PARP mRNA and protein increased both in female and male flies. PARP activity normalized with the total amount of protein in the crude extract changed in parallel to the level of PARP protein throughout the developmental stages. The biological significance of the drastic change of mRNA and protein levels of PARP still remains to be clarified.     

Preparation of telechelic oligomers by thermal degradation of propylene copolymers

The reactive end groups of nonvolatile oligomers obtained by controlled thermal degradation of poly(propylene-ran-ethylene) and poly(propylene-ran-1-butene) were determined by ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. The molar ratio of unsaturated to saturated end groups was found to be about 9:1. The average number of unsaturated end groups per molecule was between 1.6 and 1.8, indicating that 60–80 mol% of the oligomer molecules were telechelic, having two terminal unsaturated end groups. These oligomers had a lower polydispersity than the raw material, despite their lower molecular weight and melting temperature. Although the end groups resulting from each monomer unit could be detected by ¹³C NMR, the end group composition differed from that of the main chains of the raw materials. The end group composition was satisfactorily explained by the differences in bond dissociation energy and activation energy of elementary reactions that occurred during thermal degradation, based on the monomer composition of the raw materials.     

Oxygen permeability of surfactant/polymer composite films with multibilayer and inverted hexagonal structure

The permeability of oxygen through horizontally oriented multibilayer films of polyion complexes prepared from quaternary ammonium-type surfactants [CH₃(CH₂)_n-1]₂N⁺(CH₃)₂Br^?(n = 14, 16, 18), and poly(p-styrenesulfonate) or poly[2-(acrylamido)-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonate], was measured in water using an oxygen electrode. The permeability depended mainly on the phase of the multibilayers. Thus, it increased abruptly (about 10-fold) near each phase transition temperature because of the fluidity enhancement of the multibilayer. Inverted hexagonal type nonbilayer films prepared from the polyion complexes and cholesterol had greater permeability (2–20-fold) than the multibilayer films in both phases. The large permeability of the nonbilayer films was attributed to the lack of a barrier such as the bilayer and lower crystallinity of the films. It was associated neither with an increase in thermal movement of the lipid surfactant molecules nor with an increase in the water content of the films by the addition of cholesterol. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Recognition and elimination of diversified pathogens in insect defense systems

Summary The elimination of infectious non-self by the host defense systems of multicellular organisms requires a variety of recognition and effector molecules. The diversity is generated in somatic cells or encoded in the germ-line. In adaptive immunity in jawed vertebrates, the diversity of immunoglobulins and antigen receptors is generated by gene rearrangements in somatic cells. In innate immunity, various effector molecules and pattern recognition receptors, such as antimicrobial peptides and peptidoglycan recognition proteins, are encoded in the germ-line of multicellular organisms, including insects and jawed vertebrates. In the present review, we discuss how insect host defense systems recognize and eliminate a multitude of microbes via germ-line-encoded molecules, including recent findings that a Drosophila member of the immunoglobulin superfamily is extensively diversified by alternative splicing in somatic immune cells and participates in the elimination of bacteria.     

Preparation of pH-sensitive liposomes retaining SOD mimic and their anticancer effect

We prepared an anticancer drug based on a pH-sensitive liposome retaining Fe-porphyrin as an SOD mimic. The liposomes contained cationic/anionic lipid combinations and were composed of Fe-porphyrin, 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine, dimethylditetradecylammonium bromide, sodium oleate, and Tween-80. The Fe-porphyrin was released from the liposome at low pH, and the cytotoxicity for cancer cells by the liposome depended on the acidic environments of the endosomes in the cells. Furthermore, although the liposome exhibited an excellent anticancer effect on a gastric cancer cell line, the SOD activity of Fe-porphyrin was shown to have a significant influence on the cytotoxicity toward cancer cells. These findings suggest that the pH-sensitive liposome retaining the Fe-porphyrin as an SOD mimic promises to be a novel anticancer drug for endosomal escape.     

Preparation and mechanical properties of bacterial cellulose nanocomposites loaded with silica nanoparticles

Bacterial cellulose (BC), which is produced by Gluconacetobacter xylinus (Ga. xylinus) in culture, is made up of a three-dimensional network of ribbon-shaped bundles of cellulose microfibrils. In the current studies, we used two processes to prepare nanocomposites of BC filled with silica particles. In Process I, Ga. xylinus was incubated in medium containing silica sol Snowtex 0 (ST 0, pH 2–4) or Snowtex 20 (ST 20, pH 9.5–10.0). The elastic modulus at 20 °C was improved by keeping the amount of silica in the nanocomposites below 4% when ST 20 was used and below 8.7% when ST 0 was used. This process allowed incorporation of 50% silica in BC. Inclusion of higher amounts of silica reduced the modulus at 20 °C and the strength of the nanocomposites below that of BC. X-ray diffraction measurements revealed that the silica particles disturb the formation of ribbon-shaped fibrils and affect the preferential orientation of the ( ) plane. We also produced BC-silica nanocomposites by Process II, wherein the BC hydrogel was immersed in different concentrations of silica sols, allowing silica particles to diffuse into the BC hydrogel and lodge in the spaces between the ribbon-shaped fibrils. This method increased the modulus at 20°C and the strength compared to the BC matrix, but it was difficult to load the BC with more than 10% silica in this way.