Extended resonant feedback technique for controlling unstable periodic orbits of chaotic system

An improvement of the recently described resonant chaos control method is suggested. Negative feedback loop containing a notch-rejection filter, tuned to the main harmonic of the unstable periodic orbit, is supplemented with a set of notch filters tuned to the higher harmonics. The extended method is applied to an electrical circuit representing the Duffing–Holmes type non-autonomous two-well chaotic oscillator. Stabilization of the period-1 orbit is achieved with very small control force. The residual control signal is about 1% compared to the main variable. Mathematical model based on a two-well piecewise parabolic potential is presented and numerical simulation is performed. Numerical results are confirmed by hardware experiments.     

DFt study of the regioselectivity of addition of sulfenylchloride to ethenes

The electrophilic addition reactions of methylsulfenyl chloride to the double bonds of functionalized ethenes have been studied theoretically. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been applied for starting species and ethene‐based sulfonium intermediates bearing substitutes at α‐carbon atom to study geometrical parameters and electronic states of plausible intermediate forms. The quantum chemical optimizations of intermediates indicate that the episulfonium ion is the most likely methyl‐ or carboxyl‐substituted ethane‐based intermediate. However, with phenyl substituents the intermediate is more like a carbonium than an episulfonium ion. The role of sulfur appears to be that of directing the stereochemistry of the addition reaction of chloride, forming the trans product upon nucleophilic attack on the C—C bond of the episulfonium ion. The regioselectivity features of the opening of the episulfonium ion by the chloride anion depend on the LUMO and LUMO+1 of the episulfonium ion and the approaching HOMO of chlorine. The results of the theoretical investigations are in agreement with experiment. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 18:695–703, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/hc.20378     

Features of charge carrier concentration and mobility in π-conjugated polymers

We show the possibilities of experimental investigation of charge carrier mobility and concentration features by extraction methods of equilibrium, photoexcited and injected charge carriers in π-conjugated polymers, where, due to relatively high conductivity, the classic time-of-flight method is inappropriate.     

Specificity of Dnmt1 for methylation of hemimethylated CpG sites resides in its catalytic domain

The maintenance methylation of hemimethylated CpG sites by the DNA methyltransferase Dnmt1 is the molecular basis of the inheritance of DNA methylation patterns. Based on structural data and kinetics obtained with a truncated form of Dnmt1, an autoinhibition model for the specificity of Dnmt1 was proposed in which unmethylated DNA binds to Dnmt1's CXXC domain, which prevents its methylation. We have prepared CXXC domain variants that lost DNA binding. Corresponding full-length Dnmt1 variants did not display a reduction in specificity, indicating that the autoinhibition model does not apply in full-length Dnmt1. Furthermore, we show that the Dnmt1 M1235S variant, which carries an exchange in the catalytic domain of the enzyme, has a marked reduction in specificity, indicating that the recognition of the hemimethylated state of target sites resides within the catalytic domain.     

Fluorescence and amplified spontaneous emission of glass forming compounds containing styryl-4H-pyran-4-ylidene fragment

Potential of glassy films of newly synthesised low molecular weight organic molecules for light amplification and lasing applications has been investigated by analysing fluorescence, transient differential absorption and amplified spontaneous emission properties. These non-symmetric and symmetric molecules contain styryl-4H-pyran-4-ylidene fragment with three different electron acceptor groups: dicyanomethylene, barbituric acid, indene-1,3-dione. Fluorescence quantum yields of the investigated compounds in solutions are between 0.32 and 0.54, while they drop down by an order of magnitude in thin solid films. Incorporation of bulky side groups reduced excitonic interactions enabling manifestation of amplified spontaneous emission in the neat films of the investigated derivatives.     

Two-terminal feedback circuit for suppressing synchrony of the FitzHugh–Nagumo oscillators

An extremely simple analog technique for desynchronization of neuronal FitzHugh–Nagumo-type oscillators is described. Two-terminal feedback circuit has been developed. The feedback circuit, when coupled to a network of oscillators, nullifies the voltage at the coupling node and thus effectively decouples the individual oscillators. Both numerical simulations and hardware experiments have been performed. The results for an array of three mean-field coupled FitzHugh–Nagumo-type oscillators are presented.     

Bioamperometric Systems with Fructose Dehydrogenase From Gluconobacter japonicus for D-Tagatose Monitoring

D-Tagatose is a rare natural sugar, which is promising alternative for popular dietary sweeteners. To optimize and make D-tagatose production more cost-effective, a portable (bio)sensor would be beneficial for D-tagatose quantification in bioreactor media during D-tagatose (bio)synthesis. In this study, a pilot study of D-tagatose quantification by a bioamperometric system is reported. A key feature of the system is usage of fructose dehydrogenase from Gluconobacter japonicus, widely known as a highly fructose-specific enzyme, and 2-arylamino-1,4-benzoquinone derivatives, as electron transfer mediators from the enzyme to carbon electrodes. The system has been validated as biosensor for D-tagatose quantification in the fermentation medium.