Formulas for evaluation of expectation values of monoelectric operators with modified gaussian functions

Formulas are presented for the evaluation of the expectation values of various monoelectronic operators. The integrals are based on ?Hermite-Gausian”? or ?Modified Gaussian Functions”? and are expressed in suitable form for a computer programming. It is pointed out that the final expresions are simpler than the analogou omes obtained from the usual Gausian functions and can be written as linear combinations of a few baic integrals.     

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of D-amino acid oxidase activity.

A new procedure for the assay of D-amino acid oxidase activity has been developed. alpha-Ketoisovaleric acid, derived from D-valine, was estimated by high-performance liquid chromatography after reaction with o-phenylenediamine to give the corresponding quinoxalinol derivative. alpha-Ketovaleric acid was used as an internal standard to ensure the reproducibility of the method. As an example of application, kidney cortex homogenates were analyzed for their D-amino acid oxidase activity. The advantages of the presented procedure for the determination of the enzymatic activity in biological samples compared with previously reported procedures are discussed.     

Rheology of asphalts modified with glycidylmethacrylate functionalized polymers

Asphalt is known to be a colloidal suspension in which asphaltenes are covered by a stabilizing phase of polar resins and form complex micelles that are dispersed in the oily maltenic phase. In order to enhance its mechanical properties (e.g., in road paving), asphalts are often loaded with polymeric materials, thereby obtaining blends that can have different physical or chemical structures, depending on the composition of the added polymer. Asphalts modified by the addition of reactive ethylene terpolymers were prepared and their dielectric and rheological properties were measured both before and after a cure at high temperature. Even if it is not possible to determine the exact nature of the chemical interactions between asphalt and polymer, master curves obtained from dynamic data clearly show that during the cure the material tends to the behavior of a cross-linked network.     

A pH-Induced Reversible Conformational Switch Able to Control the Photocurrent Efficiency in a Peptide Supramolecular System

External stimuli are potent tools that Nature uses to control protein function and activity. For instance, during viral entry and exit, pH variations are known to trigger large protein conformational changes. In Nature, also the electron transfer (ET) properties of ET proteins are influenced by pH-induced conformational changes. In this work, a pH-controlled, reversible 3₁₀-helix to α-helix conversion (from acidic to highly basic pH values and vice versa) of a peptide supramolecular system built on a gold surface is described. The effect of pH on the ability of the peptide SAM to generate a photocurrent was investigated, with particular focus on the effect of the pH-induced conformational change on photocurrent efficiency. The films were characterized by electrochemical and spectroscopic techniques, and were found to be very stable over time, also in contact with a solution. They were also able to generate current under illumination, with an efficiency that is the highest recorded so far with biomolecular systems.     

Aggregation modes of the spin mono-labeled tylopeptin B and heptaibin peptaibiotics in frozen solutions of weak polarity as studied by PELDOR spectroscopy

The X band PELDOR spectroscopy was used to investigate the magnetic dipole-dipole interactions in glassy solutions of nitroxide mono-labeled tylopeptin B and heptaibin peptaibiotics at 77 K. Specifically, a study was performed of the tylopeptin B peptides labeled at either position 3, 8, or 13, denoted as T3, T8, and T13, respectively. The heptaibin analogs labeled at either position 2 or 14, denoted as H2 and H14, respectively, were also investigated. It was shown that in frozen glassy peptide solutions in methanol, the spin labels are randomly distributed over the solvent volume. This result points to the absence of specific dipolar interactions between the peptides under these conditions. However, peptide aggregation was detected in weakly polar methanol/toluene environments. To study the properties of the resulting aggregates, we examined the depth of modulation for the PELDOR traces as a function of the concentration of the peptides in solution and the distances between the spin labels in the aggregates. Based on the concentration dependencies, the number of peptide molecules in the aggregates was estimated. We find that this value ranges from 2 to 3, depending on the position of the spin label in the peptide sequence. The combined analysis of the distance spectra and the number of peptide molecules in the aggregates allows us to suggest that dimer formation is the prevailing mode of self-association. In the case of spin-labeled tylopeptin B, the molecules in the dimer are head-to-head oriented. In addition, the distance spectra of the aggregates show that the C-termini of the molecules in the tylopeptin B dimer are more mobile than the Ntermini. This phenomenon leads to an increase in the spread of the distances between the nitroxides as the label position is approaching the peptide C-terminus. For heptaibin, we show that two forms of dimerization (head-to-head and head-to-tail) occur. Finally, in addition to dimers, aggregates containing 3 or 4 peptide molecules, which give broad lines in the distance spectra, are seen in solution.     

Application of high-resolution magic-angle spinning NMR spectroscopy to define the cell uptake of MRI contrast agents

A new method, based on proton high-resolution magic-angle spinning ((1)H HR-MAS) NMR spectroscopy, has been employed to study the cell uptake of magnetic resonance imaging contrast agents (MRI-CAs). The method was tested on human red blood cells (HRBC) and white blood cells (HWBC) by using three gadolinium complexes, widely used in diagnostics, Gd-BOPTA, Gd-DTPA, and Gd-DOTA, and the analogous complexes obtained by replacing Gd(III) with Dy(III), Nd(III), and Tb(III) (i.e., complexes isostructural to the ones of gadolinium but acting as shift agents). The method is based on the evaluation of the magnetic effects, line broadening, or induced lanthanide shift (LIS) caused by these complexes on NMR signals of intra- and extracellular water. Since magnetic effects are directly linked to permeability, this method is direct. In all the tests, these magnetic effects were detected for the extracellular water signal only, providing a direct proof that these complexes are not able to cross the cell membrane. Line broadening effects (i.e., the use of gadolinium complexes) only allow qualitative evaluations. On the contrary, LIS effects can be measured with high precision and they can be related to the concentration of the paramagnetic species in the cellular compartments. This is possible because the HR-MAS technique provides the complete elimination of bulk magnetic susceptibility (BMS) shift and the differentiation of extra- and intracellular water signals. Thus with this method, the rapid quantification of the MRI-CA amount inside and outside the cells is actually feasible.     

Isoelectric focusing in polyacrylamide gel carried out with a simple device for power regulation. Application to mammalian growth hormones

A unit is described to regulate the electrical power delivered to an isoelectric focusing cell. The device consists in a resistance set, in series with a power supply, which can be adjusted to a suitable resistance value in order to permit only minor changes in wattage. Simultanoeus monitoring of voltage and current is also carried out with a pen-recorder adaptor. The improvements in operative conditions achieved by these means are tested by the fractionation of mammalian growth hormones.     

HPLC determination of plasma taurine

Summary The taurine content in plasma was determined by high performance liquid chromatographic analysis of its dansyl derivative with fluorometric detection. After the reaction with dansyl chloride, the derivative was extracted from an aqueous mixture by using tetrabutylammonium as a counter-ion. The influences of different tetrabutylammonium salts and of the eluent mixture composition were studied. Omotaurine, added as the internal standard to the plasma samples, assured good reproducibility. The procedure was applied to the determination of taurine in specimens from different mammalian species.     

Progress in drug delivery to the central nervous system by the prodrug approach

This review describes specific strategies for targeting to the central nervous system (CNS). Systemically administered drugs can reach the brain by crossing one of two physiological barriers resistant to free diffusion of most molecules from blood to CNS: the endothelial blood-brain barrier or the epithelial blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier. These tissues constitute both transport and enzymatic barriers. The most common strategy for designing effective prodrugs relies on the increase of parent drug lipophilicity. However, increasing lipophilicity without a concomitant increase in rate and selectivity of prodrug bioconversion in the brain will result in failure. In these regards, consideration of the enzymes present in brain tissue and in the barriers is essential for a successful approach. Nasal administration of lipophilic prodrugs can be a promising alternative non-invasive route to improve brain targeting of the parent drugs due to fast absorption and rapid onset of drug action. The carrier-mediated absorption of drugs and prodrugs across epithelial and endothelial barriers is emerging as another novel trend in biotherapeutics. Several specific transporters have been identified in boundary tissues between blood and CNS compartments. Some of them are involved in the active supply of nutrients and have been used to explore prodrug approaches with improved brain delivery. The feasibility of CNS uptake of appropriately designed prodrugs via these transporters is described in detail.