Surface behavior and peptide-lipid interactions of the cyclic neuropeptide melanin concentrating hormone

The kinetics and the thermodynamics of melanin concentrating hormone (MCH) adsorption, penetration, and mixing with membrane components are reported. MCH behaved as a surface active peptide, forming stable monolayers at a lipid-free air-water interface, with an equilibrium spreading pressure, a collapse pressure, and a minimal molecular area of 11 mN/m, 13 mN/m, and 140 A (2), respectively. Additional peptide interfacial stabilization was achieved in the presence of lipids, as evidenced by the expansion observed at pi > pi sp in monolayers containing premixtures of MCH with zwitterionic or charged lipids. The MCH-monolayer association and dissociation rate constants were 9.52 x 10 (-4) microM (-1) min (-1) and 8.83 x 10 (-4) min (-1), respectively. The binding of MCH to the dpPC-water interface had a K d = 930 nM at 10 mN/m. MCH penetration in lipid monolayers occurred even up to pi cutoff = 29-32 mN/m. The interaction stability, binding orientation, and miscibility of MCH in monolayers depended on the lipid type, the MCH molar fraction in the mixture, and the molecular packing of the monolayer. This predicted its heterogeneous distribution between different self-separated membrane domains. Our results demonstrated the ability of MCH to incorporate itself into biomembranes and supports the possibility that MCH affects the activity of mechanosensitive membrane proteins through mechanisms unrelated with binding to specific receptors.     

Surface activity of thymol: implications for an eventual pharmacological activity

In the present work, we studied the ability of thymol to affect the organization of model membranes and the activity of an intrinsic membrane protein, the GABA(A) receptor (GABA(A)-R). In this last aspect, we tried to elucidate if the action mechanism of this terpene at the molecular level, involves its binding to the receptor protein, changes in the organization of the receptor molecular environment, or both. The self-aggregation of thymol in water with a critical micellar concentration approximately = 4 microM and its ability to penetrate in monomolecular layers of soybean phosphatidylcholine (sPC) at the air-water interface, even at surface pressures above the equilibrium, lateral pressure of natural bilayers were demonstrated. Thymol affected the self-aggregation of Triton X-100 and the topology of sPC vesicles. It also increased the polarity of the membrane environment sensed by the electrochromic dye merocyanine. A dipolar moment of 1.341 Debye was calculated from its energy-minimized structure. Its effect on the binding of [3H]-flunitrazepam ([3H]-FNZ) to chick brain synaptosomal membranes changed qualitatively from a tendency to the inhibition to a clear activatory regime, up on changing the phase state of the terpene (from a monomeric to a self-aggregated state). Above its CMC, thymol increased the affinity of the binding of [3H]-FNZ (K(d-control)= 2.9, K(d-thymol)= 1.7 nM) without changing the receptor density (B(max-control)= 910, B(max-thymol)= 895 fmol/mg protein). The activatory effect of thymol on the binding of [ [3H]-FNZ was observed even in the presence of the allosteric activator gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) at a concentration of maximal activity, and was blocked by the GABA antagonist bicuculline. Changes in the dipolar arrangement and in the molecular packing of GABA(A)-R environment are discussed as possible mediators of the action mechanism of thymol.     

Surface tensions in NaCl-water-air systems from MD simulations

Surface tensions for liquid-vapor (lv), solid-liquid (sl), and solid-vapor (sv) interfaces are calculated from molecular dynamics simulations of the NaCl-water-air system. Three distinct calculation techniques based on thermodynamic properties are used to describe the multicomponent mixtures. Simulations of each bulk phase (including a liquid saturated solution) and various interfaces are carried out at both NPT and NVT conditions. The thermodynamic relation for energy difference between interface and bulk phases provides an upper bound to the surface tension, while the energy-integral and test area methods provide direct estimates. At 1 atm and 300 K, the best predictions for surface tensions are sigmasv (NaCl-air) of 114 mN m(-1), sigmasl (NaCl- soln) of 63 mN m(-1), sigmalv (soln-air) of 82 mN m(-1), and sigmalv (water-air) of 66 mN m(-1). The calculated surface tensions from simulations have uncertainties between 5 and 10%, which are higher than measurements for the liquid interfaces and lower than the measurement uncertainty for the solid interfaces. The calculated upper bounds for surface tensions of liquid interfaces compare well with experimental results but provide no improvement over existing measurements. However, the bounding values for solid interfaces lower uncertainty by as much as a factor of 10 as compared to the indirect experimental measurements currently available. The energy-integral and test area methods appear to underestimate the surface tension of water by 10%, which is consistent with previous studies using similar model potentials. The calculated upper bounds of surface tension show a weakly positive correlation with pressure in the 0.1-100 atm range for liquid-solid, liquid-vapor, and solid-vapor interfaces.     

Construction of 3D layer-pillared homoligand coordination polymers from a 2D layered precursor

Herein, we present a new method for preparing homoligand 3D coordination polymers. First, a layered metal-organic framework Zn3(BDC)3(H2O)2 x 4DMF 1 (BDC is terephthalate, DMF is N,N-dimethylformamide) was fabricated from a H2BDC by liquid-liquid diffusion. Second, the layered product, 1, was used as a precursor to solvothermally react with further H2BDC at 140-180 degrees C, resulting in two products of BDC insertion into the layered structure. These are [Zn3(p-BDC)4] x 2HPIP, 2 (HPIP is partly protonated piperazine), and [Zn3(p-BDC)3(H2BDC)] x (C6H15NO) x H2O x 3DMF, 3 (C6H15NO is triethylamine N-oxide). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction shows that 2 possesses a layer-pillared structure of mu4-BDC, with 1D channels, while 3 has a layer-pillared structure of mu2-BDC, with 2D channels. N2-sorption experiments show 3 has a relatively high BET surface area of 750 m(2)/g. It is proposed that 2 follows the crystal growth mechanism of Ostwald ripening, whereas the crystal structure of 3 might be formed by an insertion mechanism.     

Molecular packing tunes the activity of Kluyveromyces lactis beta-galactosidase incorporated in Langmuir-Blodgett films

Functional consequences of constraining beta-Gal in bidimensional space were studied at defined molecular packing densities and constant topology. Langmuir-Blodgett films, LB15 and LB35 composed of dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine and K. lactis beta-Gal, were obtained by transferring Langmuir films (L) initially packed at 15 and 35 mN/m, respectively, to alkylated glasses. The beta-Gal-monolayer binding equilibrium, mainly the adsorption rate and affinity, depended on the initial monolayer's surface pressure (lower for higher pi i). At pi i = 15 and 35 mN/m, the surface excess (Gamma) followed downward parabolic and power-law tendencies, respectively, as a function of subphase protein concentration. Gamma values in L roughly reflected the protein surface density chemically determined in LBs (0-7.5 ng/mm2 at pi i = 0-35 mN/m and [beta-Gal] subphase = 0-100 microg/mL). The beta-Gal-catalyzed hydrolysis of o-nitrophenyl-galactopyranoside showed a Michaelian kinetics in solution as well as in LB15. KM, KM,LB15, Vmax, and Vmax,LB15 were 5.15 +/- 2.2 and 9.25 +/- 6 mM and 39.63 and 0.0096 +/- 0.0027 micromol/min/mg protein, respectively. The sigmoidal kinetics observed with LB35 was evaluated by Hill's model (K0.5 = 9.55 +/- 0.4 mM, Vmax,35 = 0.0021 micromol/min/mg protein, Hill coefficient n = 9) and Savageau's fractal model (fractal constant K f = 9.84 mM; reaction order for the substrate gs = 9.06 and for the enzyme ge = 0.62). Fractal reaction orders would reflect the fractal organization of the environment, demonstrated by AFM images, more than the molecularity of the reaction. Particular dynamics of the protein-lipid structural coupling in each molecular packing condition would have led to the different kinetic responses.     

Interfacial energetics of protein adsorption from aqueous buffer to surfaces with varying hydrophilicity

Adsorption isotherms constructed from time-and-concentration-dependent advancing contact angles thetaa show that the profound biochemical diversity among ten different blood proteins with molecular weight spanning 10-1000 kDa has little discernible effect on the amount adsorbed from aqueous phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution after 1 h contact with a particular test surface selected from the full range of observable water wettability (as quantified by PBS adhesion tension tauoa=gammaolv cos thetaoa; where gammaolv is the liquid-vapor interfacial tension and thetaoa is the advancing PBS contact angle). The maximum advancing spreading pressure, Pimaxa, determined from adsorption isotherms decreases systematically with tauoa for methyl-terminated self-assembled monolayers (CH3 SAM, tauo=-15 mN/m), polystyrene spun-coated onto electronic-grade SiOx wafers (PS, tauo=7.2 mN/m), aminopropyltriethoxysilane-treated SiOx surfaces (APTES, tauo = 42 mN/m), and fully water wettable SiOx (tauo=72 mN/m). Likewise, the apparent Gibbs' surface excess [Gammasl-Gammasv], which measures the difference in the amount of protein adsorbed Gamma (mol/cm2) at solid-vapor (SV) and solid-liquid (SL) interfaces, decreases with tauo from maximal values measured on the CH3 SAM surface through zero (no protein adsorption in excess of bulk solution concentration) near tauo=30 mN/m (thetaa=65 degrees). These latter results corroborate the conclusion drawn from independent studies that water is too strongly bound to surfaces with tauo>or=30 mN/m to be displaced by adsorbing protein and that, as a consequence, protein does not accumulate within the interfacial region of such surfaces at concentrations exceeding that of bulk solution ([Gammasl-Gammasv]=0 at tauo=30 mN/m). Results are collectively interpreted to mean that water controls protein adsorption to surfaces and that the mechanism of protein adsorption can be understood from this perspective for a diverse set of proteins with very different amino acid compositions.     

Surface behavior and molecular recognition in DNA microarrays from N,N-dimethylacrylamide terpolymers with activated esters as linking groups

A series of terpolymers made of DMA, NAS and MAPS were synthesized by free radical copolymerization and used as functional coatings for the fabrication of glass slide DNA microarrays. The surface properties of coated glass slides were investigated through contact angle measurements, ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy. The terpolymer molecular weight showed a moderate effect on surface tension (gamma(s) = 56-62 mN x m(-1)), but no clear effect on polymeric layer thickness (5-8 nm) and roughness. Hybridization experiments with amine-functionalized oligonucleotides gave the best fluorescence intensity results for microarrays coated with intermediate-molecular-weight terpolymers. Finally, an accelerated ageing test of the microarray in a humidity chamber showed a nice relationship between decay curves of contact angle against water and fluorescence intensity.     

Miscibility of gramicidin A-ethyl nonadecanoate in langmuir monolayers in the presence of salts dissolved in the subphase

The behavior of binary mixed Langmuir monolayers from gramicidin A (GA) and ethyl nonadecanoate (EN), spread on aqueous subphases containing NaCl and CaCl2, was investigated on the basis of the analysis of surface pressure-average area per molecule (pi-A) isotherms complemented with Brewster angle microscopy (BAM) images. Compression modulus versus surface pressure (C(S-1)-pi) curves indicate the existence of interactions in the GA-EN mixed monolayers at low surface pressures (below 5 mN m(-1)). However, for mixtures in which the ester is the predominant component, both GA and EN are miscible within regions from fully expanded to collapse. To examine the interactions between both components in the studied system, values of the mean molecular area per molecule (A12) were plotted as a function of molar fraction of gramicidin A (X(GA)). A12-X(GA) plots exhibit negative deviations from ideality at high surface pressures, wherein beta-helices of GA are vertically oriented in respect to the interface. However, at surface pressures below the plateau transition, which is due to reorientation of GA, the binary system obeys the additive rule. Brewster angle microscopy (BAM) was applied for a direct visualization of the monolayers morphologies. The obtained images prove that for molar ratios of GA > or = 0.3 and at surface pressures above 5 mN m(-1), both components are immiscible at the interface. The observed negative deviations from the additively rule were attributed to the formation of a three-dimensional phase in the mixed film, which provokes its contraction at the interface.     

Protein-directed assembly of binary monolayers at the interface and surface patterns of protein on the monolayers

Ferritin-directed assembly of binary monolayers of zwitterionic dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine and cationic dioctadecyldimethylammonium bromide (DOMA) at the interface and surface patterns of ferritin on the monolayers have been investigated using a combination of infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, surface plasmon resonance, and atomic force microscopy. Ferritin binding to the binary monolayers at the air-water interface at the surface pressure 30 mN/m, primarily driven by the electrostatic interaction, gives rise to a change in tilt angle of hydrocarbon chains from 15 degrees +/- 1 degrees to 10 degrees +/- 1 degrees with respect to the normal of the monolayer at the mole fraction of DOMA (XDOMA) of 0.1. The chains at XDOMA = 0.3 are oriented vertical to the water surface before and after protein binding. A new mechanism for protein binding to the binary monolayers is proposed. The secondary structures of the adsorbed ferritin are prevented from changing to some extent due to the existence of the monolayers. The amounts of the bound protein on the monolayers at the air-water interface are increased in comparison with those on the pre-immobilized monolayers at low XDOMA. The increased amounts and different patterns of the adsorbed protein at the monolayers are mostly attributed to the formation of multiple binding sites available for ferritin, which is due to the lateral reorganization of the lipid components in the monolayers induced by the protein in the subphase. The created multiple binding sites on the monolayer surfaces through the protein-directed assembly can be preserved for subsequent protein binding.     

Monolayer behavior of binary systems of betulinic acid and cardiolipin: thermodynamic analyses of Langmuir monolayers and AFM study of Langmuir-Blodgett monolayers

Betulinic acid (BA, a natural pentacyclic triterpene) can induce mitochondrial membrane damage and trigger the mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis in tumor cells. The monolayer behavior of binary systems of BA and cardiolipin (CL, a unique phospholipid found only in mitochondria membrane in animals) was studied by surface pressure-area (π-A) measurements and analyses and Atomic force microscopy (AFM) observation. The miscibility analysis presents that in mixed monolayers BA takes both tilted and nearly perpendicular orientations at surface pressure below 30 mN/m but only nearly perpendicular orientation at 30 mN/m. The thermodynamic stability analysis indicates that phase separation and repulsion occur in mixed BA/CL monolayers. The compressibility analysis shows that at 30 mN/m, 20% addition of BA does markedly translate the liquid-condensed CL monolayer to mixed BA/CL monolayer with the coexistence of liquid-condensed and liquid-expanded phases. The AFM images of supported monolayers give direct evidence of the conclusions obtained from the analyses of π-A isotherms. These results confirm that at high surface pressure near to real biologic situations, BA orients nearly perpendicularly with hydroxyl group toward water, causes phase separation and changes the permeability of CL film, which correlates with the mitochondrial membrane damage induced by BA.     

Molecular modeling and mutagenesis reveals a tetradentate binding site for Zn2+ in GABA(A) alphabeta receptors and provides a structural basis for the modulating effect of the gamma subunit

Gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptors (GABA(A)-R) containing alpha1beta2gamma2 subunits are weakly inhibited by Zn2+, whereas receptors containing only the alpha1beta2 subunits are strongly inhibited. We built homology models of the ion pores of alpha1beta2 and alpha1beta2gamma2 GABA(A)-R using coordinates of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor as a template. Threading the GABA(A)-R beta2 sequence onto this template placed the 17' histidine and the 20' glutamate residues at adjacent locations in the mouth of the pore, such that a nearly ideal tetradentate site for Zn2+ was formed from two histidine and two glutamate residues between adjacent beta subunits in the alpha1beta2 GABA(A)-R. Following optimization with CHARMM, the distance between the alpha-carbons of the adjacent histidine residues was approximately 9.2 A, close to the ideal distance for a Zn2+ binding site. Loss of inhibition by Zn2+ in alpha1beta2gamma2 GABA(A)-R can be explained by the geometry of these residues in the arrangement alpha1beta2gamma2alpha1beta2, in which the nearest C-alpha-C-alpha distance between the histidine residues is 15.5 A, too far apart for an energetically optimal Zn2+ binding site. We then mutated the gamma subunit at the 17' and/or 20' positions. Zn2+ inhibition was not restored in alpha1beta2gamma2 (I282H) receptors. A novel finding is that the modeling shows the native 20' lysine in gamma2 can compete with Zn2+ for binding to the inserted 17' histidine. Sensitivity to Zn2+ was restored in the double mutant receptor, alpha1beta2gamma2 (I282H; K285E), in which the competition with lysine was removed and a more favorable Zn2+ binding site was formed.     

Effects of surface pressure on the structure of the monolayer formed at the air/water interface by a non-ionic surfactant

The monolayer formed at an air/water interface by the synthetic non-ionic surfactant, 1,2-di-O-octadecyl-rac-glyceryl-3-(omega-methoxydodecakis (ethylene glycol)) (2C18E12) has been characterized using Langmuir trough measurements, Brewster angle microscopy (BAM), and neutron reflectometry. The BAM and reflectometry studies were performed at four different surface pressures (pi) in the range 15-40 mN/m. The BAM studies (which give information on the in-plane organisation of the surfactant layer) demonstrate that the 2C18E12 molecules are arranged on the water surface to form distinct, approximately circular, 5 microm diameter domains. As the surface pressure is increased these domains retain their size and shape but are made progressively more close-packed, such that the monolayer is made more or less complete at pi=40 mN/m. The neutron reflectometry measurements were made to determine the structure of the interfacial surfactant layer at pi=15, 28, 34 and 40 mN/m, providing information on the thickness of the 2C18E12 alkyl chains', head groups' and associated solvent distributions (measured along the surface normal), along with the separations between these distributions, and the effective interfacial area per molecule. Partial structure factor analyses of the reflectivity data show that the effective interfacial area occupied decreases from 217 A2 per 2C18E12 molecule at pi=15 mN/m down to 102 A2 at pi=40 mN/m. There are concomitant increases in the widths of the surfactant's alkyl chains' and head groups' distributions (modelled as Gaussians), with the former rising from 12 A (at pi=15 mN/m) up to 19 A (at pi=40 mN/m) and the latter rising from 13 A (at pi=15 mN/m) up to 24 A (at pi=40 mN/m). The compression of the monolayer is also shown to give rise to an increased surface roughness, some of which is due to the thermal roughness caused by capillary waves, but with a significant contribution also coming from the intrinsic/structural disorder in the monolayer. At all surface pressures studied, the alkyl chains and head groups of the 2C18E12 are found to exhibit a significant overlap, and this increases with increasing pi. Given the various trends noted on how the structure of the 2C18E12 monolayer changes as a function of pi, we extrapolate to consider the structure of the monolayer at pi>40 mN/m (making comparison with its single chain (CnEm) counterparts) and then relate these findings to the observations recorded on the structure and solute entrapment efficiency of 2C18E12 vesicles.     

Amphiphilic siloxane phosphonate macromolecule monolayers at the air/water interface: effects of structure and temperature

A comprehensive study is reported of Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films (spread at the air/water interface using the Langmuir balance technique) composed of surface active, nonionic, and OH-free amphiphilic siloxane phosphonate ester macromolecules. Analysis is made on three molecular structures in the form of linear polymer poly(diethylphosphono-benzyl-alphabeta-ethyl methylsiloxane) (PPEMS), cyclic oligomer methylphosphonobenzyl-alphabeta-ethyl cyclosiloxane (MPECS), and copolymer poly(PEMS-co-DMS). The surface pressure-surface area (pi -A) isotherms of homopolymer at 3-40 degrees C show a clear temperature-induced phase transition (plateaus at pit approximately 17-19 mN/m) below 10 degrees C. The magnitude of the transition substantially increases upon lowering the temperature (partial differential DeltaAt/ partial differential T approximately -0.1 nm2 unit(-1) deg(-1) and partial differential pi t / partial differential T approximately -0.25 mN m(-1) deg(-1)). The positive entropy and enthalpy gain infers that strong coupling with the subphase and excess hydration attributed to hydrogen bonding between the P=O bond and the subphase prevails at low temperatures. The cyclic oligomer MPECS forms a condensed monolayer at the air/water interface that does not display a similar transition in the experimental temperature range. The temperature sensitivity of MPECS film is observed only in the collapsed region. The nature of the interaction with the subphase is similar for MPECS and PPEMS, indicating that the size and thermal mobility are the controlling factors in these processes. The elasticity plot reveals two distinct states (above and below transition). This observation is supported by BAM images that show irregular spiral structures below 10 degrees C. The transition occurring in the copolymer at 20 degrees C is due to relaxation of the PDMS component. The two maxima shown in the elasticity plot indicate additive fractions of PPEMS and PDMS. The surface areas of these macromolecules in the relaxed (1.48 nm2/unit) and packed (0.45 nm2/unit) forms obtained by PM3 modeling agree well with the experimental data and seem to indicate that the siloxane chain is being lifted off the subphase by the hydrophobic phenylic part of the molecule.     

Studies of Langmuir-Blodgett films of an ion pair metal complex containing Eu(III)-Ru(II) dual chromophores

A surfactant ion-pair complex, [Ru(bpy)(2)L][Eu(NTA)(4)](2) (in which L = 1-docosyl-2-(2- pyridyl)benzimidazole, bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine, and NTA = 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-naphthyl)-1,3-butanedionato) has been synthesized. The surface pressure-area isotherm measurements show that the complex forms a stable Langmuir film at the air-water interface without adding any electrolytes into the subphase. The monolayers formed at the surface pressures of 5 mN m(-1) and 20 mN m(-1), have been successfully transferred onto glass and quartz substrates with the transfer ratios close to unity. The Langmuir-Blodgett films were studied by UV-visible, infrared, and emission spectroscopies, atomic force microscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The optical, redox, and morphology properties of the LB films were found to be significantly affected by the target surface pressures used for the film depositions.     

Interaction of the neurotransmitter, neuropeptide Y, with phospholipid membranes: film balance and fluorescence microscopy studies

The association of neuropeptide Y (NPY) with air-water interfaces and with phospholipid monolayers on water subphases and on physiological buffer has been investigated. Surface pressure (pi) versus molecular area (A) relations of the peptide at water surfaces depend on the concentration of the spreading solutions. Independent of that concentration, they show a transition from a low-density state to a high-density state at pi approximately 12 mN/m. Similar features are observed in the NPY adsorption to preformed monolayers (Deltapi(t --> infinity) as a function of pii = pi (t = 0) where t = 0 signifies the time of peptide injection). The transition is also observed in cospread lipid-NPY monolayers and is interpreted as the exclusion of the peptide from the surface layer. The reproducibility of the isotherms after expansion suggests that cospread lipid-peptide monolayers are thermodynamically stable and that the peptide remains associated with the monolayer after exclusion from the lipid surface. A comparison of NPY association with zwitterionic and with anionic lipids as well as a comparison of the interactions on pure water and on physiological buffer suggest that electrostatic attraction plays a major role in the energetics of peptide binding to the membrane surface. Dual label fluorescence microscopy demonstrates that the peptide associates preferentially with the disordered, liquid condensed monolayer phase and also suggests that it self-aggregates upon exceeding a critical surface concentration. A NPY variant with a distorted alpha-helix interacts with the surface as strongly as the natural NPY but expands the monolayers more. This suggests that the helix motif in the peptide is more important for the interaction with the receptor than for binding of the peptide to the membrane surface. In context, these observations attribute a specific role to the membrane in funneling the signal peptide to its membrane receptor.     

Crystal Structure of Catena-poly-[2,2'-bisbenzimidazole Mn(Ⅱ)-μ-Benzene-1,3-dicarboxylato]

The title complex,[(BBI)Mn(BDC)]n 1(BBI = 2,2'-bisbenzimidazole(C14H10N4),BDC=benzene-1,3-dicarboxylate dianion(C8H10O4)),crystallizes in the monoclinic system,space group C2/c,with a=17.822(8),b=16.181(7),c=13.355(6),β=92.112(5)°,V=3848.67(304)3,Z=8,C22H14MnN4O4,Mr=453.31,Dc=1.565 g/cm3,F(000)=1848,μ=0.725 mm-1,S=1.000,the final R=0.0310 and wR=0.0589.1 contains hydrogen bonds and π-π stacking interactions between the neighboring aryl-ring of BBI's,which helps to form a three-dimensional crystal structure.     

Hydrogenation reactions of ethylene on neutral vanadium sulfide clusters: experimental and theoretical studies

The reactions of C(2)H(4) with H(2) on neutral vanadium sulfide clusters in a fast flow reactor are investigated by time-of-flight mass spectrometry employing 118 nm (10.5 eV) single photon ionization. The experimental products of these reactions are V(m)S(n)C(2)H(x) (m=1, n=1-3; m=2, n=1-5, and x=4-6). Observation of these products indicates that these V(m)S(n) clusters have high catalytic activity for hydrogenation reactions of C(2)H(4). Density functional theory calculations at the BPW91/TZVP level are carried out to explore the geometric and electronic structures of the V(m)S(n) clusters and to determine reaction intermediates and transition states, as well as reaction mechanisms. All reactions are estimated as overall barrierless or with only a small barrier (0.1 eV), and are thermodynamically favorable processes at room temperature. The ethylene molecule is predicted to connect with active V atoms through its π-orbital or form a σ-bond with active V atoms of catalytic V(m)S(n) clusters. The S atoms bonding with active V atoms play an important role in the dissociation of the H(2) molecule; H atoms transfer to the C(2)H(4) (one after another) following breaking of the H-H bond. A catalytic cycle for C(2)H(4) hydrogenation reactions on a vanadium sulfide catalyst surface is suggested based on our experimental and theoretical investigations.     

Cadmium（Ⅱ） Nitrite Complex Based on the Bis（2-benzimidazole） and Aromatic Carboxylate Ligands

A new cadmium(Ⅱ) nitrite complex Cd2(H2C3PIm)2(BDC)(NO2)2(1,H2C3PIm = 2,2'-(1,3-propanediyl)bis(1H-benzimidazole),H2BDC = 1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid) has been synthesized by solvothermal reaction in formamide,and its structure(C42H36Cd2N10O8,Mr = 1033.61) was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis.The crystal belongs to the monoclinic system,space group P21/n with a = 0.9859(5),b = 0.8936(5),c = 2.3188(5) nm,β = 97.576(5)°,V = 2.025(16) nm3,Z = 2,Dc = 1.695 g/cm3,μ(MoKα) = 1.118 mm-1,F(000) = 1036,S = 1.017,the final R = 0.0304 and wR = 0.0752 for 3761 reflections with I > 2σ(I).The centrosymmetric complex 1 contains a dimer in which two distorted octahedral Cd(II) centers are bridged by BDC ligand and chelated by H2C3PIm.The units of the complex are linked via weak N-H···O hydrogen bonds between the nitrito and the BDC ligands,leading to the formation of a 1D zigzag chain along the b axis.The π-π packing interactions contribute to the formation of a three-dimensional supramolecular architecture.The complex exhibits strong photoluminescence at room temperature.     

Approach to knowledge of the interaction between the constituents of contact lenses and ocular tears: mixed monolayers of poly(methyl methacrylate) and dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl choline

Mixed monolayers of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), the main component of hard contact lenses, and dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl choline (DPPC), a characteristic phospholipidic constituent of ocular tear films, were selected as an in vitro model in order to observe the behavior of contact lenses on the eye. Using Langmuir monolayer and Brewster angle microscopy (BAM) techniques, the interaction between both components was analyzed from the data of surface pressure-area isotherms, compressional modulus-surface pressure, and relative film thickness versus time elapsed from the beginning of compression, together with BAM images. Regardless of the surface pressure at which the molecular/monomer areas (A(m)) were recorded, the A(m) mole fractions of PMMA (X(PMMA)) plots show that the experimental results match the theoretical values calculated from additivity rule A(m) = X(PMMA)A(PMMA) + X(DPPC)A(DPPC). The application of the Crisp phase rule to the phase diagram of the PMMA-DPPC system can explain the existence of a mixed monolayer made up of miscible components with ideal behavior at surface pressures below 25 mN/m. However, at very high surface pressures, when collapse is reached (at 60 mN/m), the single collapsed components are segregated into two independent phases. These results allows us to argue that PMMA hard contact lenses in the eye do not alter the structural characteristics of the phospholipid (DPPC) in tears.     

Ellipsometry and Infrared Reflection Absorption Spectroscopy of Adsorbed Layers of Soluble Surfactants at the Air-Water Interface

Optical techniques play an increasingly important role in the characterization of microstructure and surface densities of thin films at various interfaces. In this study, ellipsometry and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS) were used for determining the surface densities of adsorbed layers of cationic surfactants in situ at the air-water interface. The surfactants were N(alpha)-lauroyl-arginine methyl ester (LAM) and N(alpha), N(omega)-bis(N(alpha)-lauroyl-arginine)-alpha,omega-alkylidenediamide (C(6)(LA)(2)). In ellipsometry, the ellipsometric phase angle Delta was obtained at various surfactant concentrations and was referenced to that of the solvent. Three algorithms were used for analyzing the data. The surface densities are 3.3+/-0.3x10(-6) mol/m(2) at 1 mM for LAM and 1.5+/-0.3x10(-6) mol/m(2) at 0.1 mM for C(6)(LA)(2) by using an algorithm for which the monolayer thickness was estimated from molecular modeling. The corresponding surface densities from literature surface tension data and the Gibbs adsorption isotherm procedure are 2.2+/-0.4x10(-6) mol/m(2) and 1.2+/-0.2x10(-6) mol/m(2), respectively. In addition, IRRAS spectra were obtained from monolayers of LAM and C(6)(LA)(2) at the air-water interface. The frequencies of the methylene stretching vibration bands indicate that the monolayers are liquid-like. The surface densities were determined from the reflectance-absorbance data by using the model of either an isotropic film or an anisotropic film on the aqueous subphase. The IRRAS-based surface densities from either model, by using DPPC monolayers for calibration, are 2.4+/-0.7x10(-6) mol/m(2) at 1 mM for LAM and 1.5+/-0.6x10(-6) mol/m(2) at 0.1 mM for C(6)(LA)(2), which are in fair agreement with the ellipsometry- and the surface-tension-based surface densities. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.