Fluorescein Based Three-channel Probe for the Selective and Sensitive Detection of CO32− Ions in an Aqueous Environment and Real Water Samples

Journal of Fluorescence - We have constructed a novel fluorescein-based fluorescent chemosensor, FL-In, functionalised with an indole moiety and capable of sensing by both the optical...     

The new facial tripod ligand 3,3-bis(1-methylimidazol-2-yl)propionic acid and carbonyl complexes thereof containing manganese and rhenium

The new facially coordinating tripod ligand 3,3-bis(1-methylimidazol-2-yl)propionate (bmip) has been studied. A synthetic route to sodium 3,3-bis(1-methylimidazol-2-yl)propionate (Na[bmip], 2a) and its hydrochloride (Hbmip · 2HCl, 2b) is reported. The electronic properties of Hbmip were calculated by DFT methods and are compared to those of structurally similar bis(pyrazol-1-yl)acetic acids. The ligand was applied in the synthesis of the two tricarbonyl complexes [Re(bmip)(CO)₃] (3) and [Mn(bmip)(CO)₃] (4). Methyl 3,3-bis(1-methylimidazol-2-yl)propionate (bmipme) (1), which is the precursor of Hbmip, and the complexes [Re(bmip)(CO)₃] (3) and [Mn(bmip)(CO)₃] (4) were characterised by single crystal X-ray analysis.     

The charge delocalised beta,beta-carotene dication--preparation, structure elucidation by NMR and reactions with nucleophiles

The reaction between beta,beta-carotene and BF3-etherates has been investigated, leading to structural elucidation of the blue product, formed in appropriate organic solvents, as a symmetrical charge delocalised dication (lambda(max) 985 nm at room temperature in CHCl3) with considerable stability. The reaction, monitored by EPR studies at -25 degrees C, occurred via free radical intermediates. A C40H56BF3 intermediate was captured by EIMS. The detailed structure of the dication was established by COSY, HSQC, HMBC and 1D and 2D ROESY NMR techniques (600 MHz, CDCl3, -20 degrees C) leading to complete assignments of 1H and 13C chemical shifts and 3J(H,H) coupling constants. The effects of the two delocalised charges on chemical shift (charge distribution) and bond distance (3J(H,H)) were considered. The results are consistent with charge delocalisation mainly in the C-5-C-9 and C-5'-C-9' regions and with bond inversion to retro shifted double bonds in the central C-13-C-13' region. A convention for denoting the charge delocalisation and bond types is presented. The experimental results are discussed relative to previous theoretical calculations of the beta,beta-carotene dication structure. (All-E) and (15-Z)-beta,beta-carotene provided the same dication. The NIR spectra and stability of dications prepared in the same manner from the related carotenes 20,20'-dinor-beta,beta-carotene, heptapreno-beta,beta-carotene and nonapreno-beta,beta-carotene were examined for comparison. Reactions of the beta,beta-carotene dication with selected nucleophiles provided products including isocryptoxanthin, isocarotene and mutatochrome with H2O as nucleophile, and isocryptoxanthin methyl ether, 8-methoxy-7,8-dihydro-beta,beta-carotene and isocarotene with CH3ONa as nucleophile. The formation of these products is rationalised from the structure assigned to the dication.     

Nucleophilic reactions of charge delocalised carotenoid mono- and dications

In the present study insight was gained on the larger complexity of cationic mixtures of diaryl (phi,phi-carotene, isorenieratene) and aliphatic (psi,psi-carotene, lycopene) carotenes, prepared by reaction with BF3-etherate, compared with beta,beta-carotene. Chemical reactions of the mono- and dications prepared in situ from the allylic carotenols beta,beta-caroten-4-ol (isocryptoxanthin) and beta,beta-carotene-4,4'-diol (isozeaxanthin), and from isorenieratene and lycopene were investigated using selected O, N and S nucleophiles; water, methanol, azide and thioacetate. In total 22, including 18 new, neutral carotenoid products were isolated and identified by VIS, MS and NMR (in part) spectroscopy. Their structures were compatible with the structures of the cationic intermediates. The formal addition of hydride to the various dications, required to rationalise minor reaction products, is discussed in terms of more likely hydrogen radical or proton transfer in cationic reactions. Extensive E/Z isomerisation was observed for all quenching products. The potential use of carotenoid cations for the synthesis of 4,(4')-substituted beta,beta-carotenes and 7-oxabicyclo[2,2,1]heptane derivatives is discussed.     

Preservation of the Pt(100) surface reconstruction after growth of a continuous layer of graphene

Scanning tunneling microscopy shows that a layer of graphene can be grown on the hex-reconstructed Pt(100) surface and that the reconstruction is preserved after growth. A continuous sheet of graphene can be grown across domain boundaries and step edges without loss of periodicity or change in direction. Density functional theory calculations on a simple model system support the observation that the graphene can have different rotation angles relative to the hex-reconstructed Pt surface. The graphene sheet direction can be changed by incorporating pentagon-heptagon defects giving rise to accommodation of edge dislocations. The defect formation energy and the induced buckling of the graphene have been characterized by DFT calculations.     

Improved DNA fragment length estimation in capillary electrophoresis

In CE the charged DNA strands are fractionated according to fragment lengths as they migrate through the capillary, since shorter DNA fragments pass through the sieving matrix faster. Multiplexed internal size standards are used to estimate the size of unknown DNA fragments. In the literature there are statements about migration abnormalities for the 250 and 340 bp fragments in the GeneScan-500 (GS500) internal size standards. Such anomalous migration of size standards could obviously introduce errors in the estimation of unknown fragments. Therefore, a number of analysis programs simply exclude some of these fragments. In the present work we first evaluate the effect of excluding each of the fragments in the internal size standards used in CE. Next, a method which is based on estimating the true values of the anomalous fragments is presented. The results obtained by the new method indicate a significant improvement compared to results obtained when one (or both) of the anomalous fragments in GS500 is (are) excluded or included when estimating the size of unknown DNA fragments. In the higher-molecular-weight region, the average error is reduced from 1.91 bp in ABI GeneMapper (excluding 250 bp) to 0.15 bp in the new method (using the estimated values for 250 and 340 bp). In the lower-molecular-weight region, excluding both fragments will improve the results by an average of 0.74 bp compared to ABI GeneMapper.     

Cayley-hamilton theorem,vector bundles and divisors of commuting operators

We construct a complete system of unitary invariants for some classes of commuting operators which include finite matrices, integral and differential operators. These invariants closely connected with the theory of determinantal curves and related vector bundles.     

What is a particle from the standpoint of systems theory?

Our theory of collective motions of open system [2,3] is generalized to the case of systems distributed inm-dimensional space. We propose a rigorous definition of a particle in terms of systems theory. A concrete image of a particle, conceived as a localized collective entity in Space, is obtained. It turns out that wave-corpuscle duality is nothing else but a simple consequence of general equations of collective motions: particles appear at the output as collective manifestations of inner states, and waves appear at the input as guiding waves of particles.The David and Helena Zlotowski chair in Operator Theory and Systems Theory.     

Determination of selenium in a nickel alloy by flame atomic absorption spectrometry after electrochemical preconcentration

The nickel alloy is dissolved in nitric/hydrochloric/phosphoric acid mixture, and selenium is electrodeposited onto a platinum loop at ?0.4 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). Selenium is atomized from the electrode in an argon/hydrogen flame with simultaneous electrothermal heating of the loop. For the NBS standard nickel-based high-temperature alloy (SRM 899), the mean value found was 9.7 μg g^?1 with a standard deviation of 0.4 μg g^?1 (certified value 9.5 ± 0.1).