On data-guided optimal control simulation of human motion

This work investigates the combination of optical motion capturing data with optimal control simulations of human motion, which can be important in a wide range of applications in the professional as well as the private sector, ranging from health and ergonomics over human-machine-interaction to sports and games [1–3]. There are methodically very different approaches to include optical measurement data in the simulation of human motion, see e.g. [4–6]. Two different approaches to combine data and simulation are investigated in this work. Either we use a soft constraints approach, where the difference of simulated and measured marker positions is part of the objective function (1), or we formulate an hard constraints approach with nonlinear constraints that set an upper bound on this difference (2), while the objective function is purely physiologically motivated. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Variational multirate integration in multi-body dynamics

For systems that contain slow and fast dynamics, variational multirate integration schemes are used. These schemes split the system into parts which are simulated using two time grids consisting of micro and macro nodes. This formulation can be extended for multi-body systems. The rigid multi-body system is described by the so called director formulation and constraints describing the joints connecting the bodies. With the Lagrange multiplier method, the constraints are introduced into the equations of motion. A way to implement the null space method into the variational multirate framework is shown and the influence on the number of unknowns is investigated. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A validated stability-indicating LC method for simultaneous determination of quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide in pharmaceutical samples

A stability-indicating liquid chromatographic method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide in drug substances and dosage forms. Chromatographic separation of quinapril, hydrochlorothiazide and its degradation products was achieved on a RP-18 column, using acetonitrile and phosphate buffer (pH 4.6) as mobile phase in a gradient mode and detection at 216 nm. Stress testing was performed under hydrolytic, oxidative, thermal and photolytic conditions. The degradation products were well resolved from main peaks, proving the stability-indicating power of the method. The assay was linear for quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide concentrations of 40–200 µg mL^?1 and 25–125 µg mL^?1, respectively. The developed method was selective, accurate and precise for quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide determination. This method was used to quantify both drugs in combined commercial tablets. The results showed that the proposed method was found to be suitable for quantitative determination and the stability study of quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide in pharmaceutical samples.      

Mapping Multivalency and Differential Affinities within Large Intrinsically Disordered Protein Complexes with Segmental Motion Analysis

Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) can bind to multiple interaction partners. Numerous binding regions in the IDP that act in concert through complex cooperative effects facilitate such interactions, but complicate studying IDP complexes. To address this challenge we developed a combined fluorescence correlation and time‐resolved polarization spectroscopy approach to study the binding properties of the IDP nucleoporin153 (Nup153) to nuclear transport receptors (NTRs). The detection of segmental backbone mobility of Nup153 within the unperturbed complex provided a readout of local, region‐specific binding properties that are usually masked in measurements of the whole IDP. The binding affinities of functionally and structurally diverse NTRs to distinct regions of Nup153 can differ by orders of magnitudes—a result with implications for the diversity of transport routes in nucleocytoplasmic transport.     

Contribution of Cytosine‐Containing Cyclobutane Dimers to DNA Damage Produced by Photosensitized Triplet–Triplet Energy Transfer

Mutagenic cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs) can be induced in DNA through either direct excitation or photosensitized triplet–triplet energy transfer (TTET). In the latter pathway, thymines are expected to receive the excitation energy from the photosensitizer and react with adjacent pyrimidines. By using state‐of‐the art analytical tools, we provide herein additional information on the formation of cytosine‐containing CPDs. We thus determined the yield of all possible CPDs upon TTET in a series of natural DNAs with various base compositions. We show that the distribution of CPDs cannot be explained only by excitation of individual thymines. We propose that the mechanism for TTET involves at least dinucleotides as the minimal targets. The observation of the formation of cytosine–cytosine CPDs also suggests that additional pathways are involved in this photosensitized reaction.     

Heterogeneous platinum catalytic aerobic oxidation of cyclopentane-1,2-diols to cyclopentane-1,2-diones

A method for the aerobic oxidation of cyclopentane-1,2-diols to the corresponding diketones over a commercial heterogeneous Pt/C catalyst is described. Unsubstituted and 3- or 4-substituted cyclopentane-1,2-diols are oxidized to 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds in good yields under the reported optimized reaction conditions (atmospheric air, 1 mol % of catalyst, 1 equiv of LiOH, aqueous solvents and 60 °C temperature). The method is applicable for producing cyclopentane-1,2-diketones in a scalable manner.     

Γ-convergence of Variational Integrators for Constrained Systems

For a physical system described by a motion in an energy landscape under holonomic constraints, we study the Γ-convergence of variational integrators to the corresponding continuum action functional and the convergence properties of solutions of the discrete Euler–Lagrange equations to stationary points of the continuum problem. This extends the results in Müller and Ortiz (J. Nonlinear Sci. 14:279–296, 2004) to constrained systems. The convergence result is illustrated with examples of mass point systems and flexible multibody dynamics.      

Microscopic growth mechanisms for carbon and boron-nitride nanotubes

Received: 27 November 1998 / Accepted: 18 December 1998