Mono- and di-substituted urea derivatives of cyclodiphosphazane: [ClP(μ-NBu)2PN(Me)CON(H)Me] and [Me(H)NCON(Me)P(μ-NBu)]2

The reaction of cis-[ClP(μ-N^tBu)]₂ with N,N′-dimethylurea leads to the formation of both mono- and di-substituted derivatives [ClP(μ-N^tBu)₂P(NMeCON(H)Me)] and [(μ-N^tBu)P(NMeCON(H)Me)]₂, instead of monomeric, dimeric or higher oligomeric macrocycles. The structure of [ClP(μ-N^tBu)₂P(NMeCON(H)Me)] shows rare non-bonded P?Cl and intermolecular hydrogen bonding interactions leading to a 2D-sheet like structure.     

Biosynthesis of TiO2 Nanoparticles Using Edible Mushroom (Pleurotus djamor) Extract: Mosquito Larvicidal,Histopathological, Antibacterial and Anticancer Effect

Journal of Cluster Science - The titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) were synthesized by the aqueous extract from P. djamor. The UV–Vis spectrum of TiO2NPs showed maximum absorption at...     

CeO2/Pd Nanoparticles Incorporated Fly Ash Zeolite: An Efficient and Recyclable Catalyst for Csp2-Csp2 Bond Formation Reactions

The catalytic activity of CeO₂ and palladium nanoparticles supported fly ash zeolite (CeO₂/Pd@FAZ) for C_sp²-C_sp² bond formation was studied. CeO₂/Pd@FAZ was characterized by FTIR, XRD, EDAX and TEM studies. In the Suzuki-Miyauracross-coupling reaction, biphenyl derivatives with excellent yields were obtained, and the reaction conditions were optimized. The catalytic activity was explored using a wide variety of diversely substituted aryl bromides and chlorides with aryl boronic acid under optimized reaction conditions. The recyclability of the catalyst was established for three cycles, with the conversion rate from 99 to 40%, which gained the advantage of heterogeneous catalysis.     

Biological Applications of Synthesized ZnO Nanoparticles Using Pleurotus djamor Against Mosquito Larvicidal,Histopathology, Antibacterial,Antioxidant and Anticancer Effect

The present study pertained to biosynthesis, characterization and biomedical application (larvicidal, histopathology, antibacterial, antioxidant and anticancer activity) of Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) from Pleurotus djamor. The synthesized NPs were characterized using spectral and microscopic analyses and further confirmed by UV–Visible spectrophotometer with apeak of 350 nm. The ZnONPs showed strong antioxidant property (DPPH, H₂O₂ and ABTS⁺ radical assay) and expressed good larval toxicity against Ae. aegypti and Cx. quinquefasciatus (IVth instar larvae) with the least LC₅₀ and LC₉₀ values (10.1, 25.6 and 14.4, 31.7 mg/l) after 24 h treatment, respectively. We noticed the morphological changes (damaged anal papillae area and the cuticle layers) in the treated larvae. For the antibacterial assay, the highest growth inhibition zone was recorded in C. diphteriae (28.6?±?0.3 mm), followed by P. fluorescens (27?±?0.5 mm) and S. aureus (26.6?±?1.5 mm). The in vitro cytotoxicity assay depicted a significant level of cytotoxic effects (LC₅₀ values 42.26 μg/ml) of ZnONPs against the A549 lung cancer cells, even at low dose. The overall findings of the study suggest that P. djamor had the ability for the biosynthesis of ZnONPs and could act as an alternative biomedical agent for future therapeutic applications in medical avenues.

     

Gravity-free hydraulic jumps and metal femtoliter cups

Hydraulic jumps created by gravity are seen everyday in the kitchen sink. We show that at small scales a circular hydraulic jump can be created in the absence of gravity by surface tension. The theory is motivated by our experimental finding of a height discontinuity in spreading submicron molten metal droplets created by pulsed-laser ablation. By careful control of initial conditions, this leads to solid femtoliter cups of gold, silver, copper, niobium, and tin.     

Molecular Cloning,Characterization, and Expression Analysis of Lignin Genes from Sugarcane Genotypes Varying in Lignin Content

Sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) is one of the highest biomass-producing plant and the best lignocellulosic feedstock for ethanol production. To achieve more efficient conversion of biomass to ethanol, a better understanding of the main factors affecting biomass recalcitrance is needed. Therefore, with this objective, here, we report a systematic study on lignin content, deposition, identification, and cloning of genes involved in lignin biosynthesis and their differential expression in five sugarcane clones, EC11003, EC11010, IK 76-91, IK 76-99, and Co 86032. Lignin content among the clones varied from 26.87 to 23.19 % with the highest in the clone EC11010 and the lowest in high sugar Co86032. Lignin deposition studied through phloroglucinol staining of the cell walls implied that the sclerenchyma cells of the energy canes (EC11010 and EC11003) have more lignin deposition followed by the Erianthus (IK 76-91 and IK 76-99) clones whereas Co86032 has the minimum amount of lignin deposition. We cloned partial coding regions of important genes of lignification COMT (650 bp), CCR (332 bp), and PAL (650 bp) from Erianthus, wild relative of sugarcane followed by the expression analysis through real-time PCR. Differential expression analysis showed high level of expression for the three genes in the energy cane EC11010.     

Preparation and application of rifamycin-capped (3-(2-O-β-cyclodextrin)-2-hydroxypropoxy)-propylsilyl-appended silica particles as chiral stationary phase for high-performance liquid chromatography

Rifamycin-capped (3-(2-O-β-cyclodextrin)-2-hydroxypropoxy)-propylsilyl-appended silica particles (RCD-HPS), a new type of substituted β-cyclodextrin-bonded chiral stationary phase (CSP) for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), have been synthesized by the treatment of bromoacetate-substituted-(3-(2-O-β-cyclodextrin)-2-hydroxypropoxy)-propylsilyl-appended silica particles (BACD-HPS) with rifamycin SV in anhydrous acetonitrile. The stationary phase is characterized by means of elemental analysis and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. This new CSP has a chiral selector with two recognition sites: rifamycin and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD). The chromatographic behavior of RCD-HPS was studied with several disubstituted benzenes and some chiral drug compounds under reversed-phase HPLC mobile phase conditions. The results show that RCD-HPS has excellent selectivity for the separation of aromatic positional isomers and enantiomers of chiral compounds due to the cooperative functioning of rifamycin and β-CD.     

Application of bromoacetate‐substituted β‐CD‐bonded silica particles as chiral stationary phase for HPLC

Bromoacetate‐substituted [3‐(2‐O‐β‐cyclodextrin)‐2‐hydroxypropoxy]propylsilyl‐appended silica particles (BACD‐HPS), an important and useful synthetic intermediate for preparation of novel types of macrocycles‐capped β‐CD‐bonded silica particles including crown ether/cyclam/calix[4]arene‐capped β‐CD‐bonded silica particles, have been prepared and used as chiral stationary phase for HPLC. This synthetic stationary phase is characterized by means of elemental analysis. For the first time, the chromatographic behavior of BACD‐HPS was systematically evaluated with several disubstituted benzenes and some chiral drug compounds under both normal and RP conditions in HPLC. The results show that BACD‐HPS has excellent selectivity for the separation of aromatic positional isomers and chiral isomers of some drug compounds when used as stationary phase in HPLC.     

Development of Vancomycin-Capped β-CD-Bonded Silica Particles as Chiral Stationary Phase for LC

Vancomycin-capped (3-(2-O-β-cyclodextrin)-2-hydroxypropoxy)-propylsilyl-appended silica particles (VCD-HPS), a new type of substituted β-cyclodextrin-bonded chiral stationary phase (CSP) for liquid chromatography (LC), have been synthesized by treatment of bromoacetate-substituted-(3-(2-O-β-cyclodextrin)-2-hydroxypropoxy)-propylsilyl-appended silica particles (BACD-HPS) with vancomycin in anhydrous methanol. The stationary phase is characterized by elemental analysis. This new CSP has a chiral selector with two recognition sites: vancomycin and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), which can provide multiple interactions with the solutes. The chromatographic performance of VCD-HPS was studied with several disubstituted benzenes and some chiral drug compounds as solutes in reversed-phase LC. The results show that VCD-HPS has excellent selectivity for the separation of aromatic positional isomers and enantiomers of chiral compounds.     

Dark matter results from 100 live days of XENON100 data

We present results from the direct search for dark matter with the XENON100 detector, installed underground at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso of INFN, Italy. XENON100 is a two-phase time-projection chamber with a 62 kg liquid xenon target. Interaction vertex reconstruction in three dimensions with millimeter precision allows the selection of only the innermost 48 kg as the ultralow background fiducial target. In 100.9 live days of data, acquired between January and June 2010, no evidence for dark matter is found. Three candidate events were observed in the signal region with an expected background of (1.8 ± 0.6) events. This leads to the most stringent limit on dark matter interactions today, excluding spin-independent elastic weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) nucleon scattering cross sections above 7.0 × 10(-45) cm(2) for a WIMP mass of 50 GeV/c(2) at 90% confidence level.