The Role of Aromaticity,Hybridization, Electrostatics,and Covalency in Resonance-Assisted Hydrogen Bonds of Adenine–Thymine (AT) Base Pairs and Their Mimics

Invited for this issues cover are Dr. Célia Fonseca Guerra from the VU University of Amsterdam and her collaborators at the University of Girona. The cover picture shows H-bonds in the adenine–thymine Watson–Crick base pair. An essential part of these H-bonds is their covalent component arising from donor–acceptor interactions between N or O lone pairs and the N−H antibonding σ* acceptor orbital. This charge-transfer interaction is represented by green figures walking on the pedestrian crossing, connecting the bases. This covalent component is the reason why H-bonds between DNA and/or unsaturated model bases are significantly stronger than those between analogous saturated bases. This contrasts sharply with the classical picture of predominantly electrostatic H-bonds which is not only incomplete in terms of a proper bonding mechanism, but also fails to explain the trend in stability. For more details, see the Full Paper on p. 318 ff.     

Solubility of Adenine and Kinetin in Water–Ethanol Solutions

We have measured the solubility of adenine and kinetin in water–ethanol solutions. Various models of cosolvency have been taken into account in the analysis of the experimental data. The results are interpreted in terms of hydrophobic interactions.     

The Enthalpies of Solution of L-cysteine, L-serine and L-asparagine in Aqueous Solutions of Some Alcohols at 298.15 K

Heats of solution, Δ_sol H _m , of L-cysteine, L-serine and L-asparagine amino acids have been measured at different concentrations of aqueous ethanol, propanol and 2-propanol at 298.15 K using solvation calorimetry. These data are compared with the results reported earlier for L-alanine in ethanol. The enthalpic coefficients, h _xy , of the solute-organic cosolvent pair interaction in water have been obtained from the McMillan-Mayer approach and the data have been interpreted in terms of various interactions and changes in solvent structure.     

Stability and Coordination Mode of Complexes of Polyphosphates and Polymetaphosphates with Copper(II) Ions in Aqueous Solution—Potentiometric,Spectral and Theoretical Studies

Complexes of copper(II) with a number of polyphosphate and polymetaphosphate anions have been studied in aqueous solutions by potentiometric, spectroscopic and theoretical methods. Stability constants of the complexes have been determined as well as their coordination modes. Results of the equilibrium studies provided evidence for the formation of ML, MHL and ML(OH) _x type complexes with the ligands studied. The length of the polyphosphate chain was found to affect the oxygen atom charge that is reflected in the stability constants of the ML type complexes. Moreover, the stability of the complex is also influenced by the spatial arrangement of the phosphate groups in phosphates and metaphosphates. The spectral parameters observed for certain complexes have permitted us to deduce the inner coordination sphere of the studied complexes.     

Thermal and quality evaluation of vegetable oils used in ruminant feed

Dairies add fat supplements to the diets of small ruminants to increase energy production and consequently the production and quality nutritional and sensorial of the milk. This study investigated the thermal and oxidative stability of babassu, castor, faveleira, and sesame oils by TG/DTA and PDSC. The profile of the fatty oils studied was determined by GC–MS as well as physicochemical characteristics. The thermogravimetric profile of the oils indicated that mass loss was caused by the decomposition or volatility of the triacylglycerides. Faveleira and sesame oils showed a high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially C18:2. From a nutritional standpoint, unsaturated oils are more suitable supplements for animals because they promote biochemical changes beneficial to human health.     

A Novel Photoproduct of Thymine in Phosphate-buffered Saline under Far UV Irradiation

The photolysis of thymine in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS, pH 8.0) under the irradiation of medium pressure mercury lamp (MPML) produces a novel compound C5H7N206P. The composition and structure of the compound have been identified by elemental analysis, EI-MS,UV, IR, ^1H, ^13C, ^31P-NMR.     

Synthesis,structural characterization,and in vitro antimicrobial properties of salicylate and pyrazoline complexes of bismuth(III)

Displacement reactions of dichlorobismuth(III)pyrazolinates with oxygen donors such as sodium salicylate and acetate in 1?:?1 and 1?:?2 molar ratio in refluxing anhydrous benzene yields (C₁₂H₁₅N₂OX)Bi(C₆H₄O₃), (CH₃COO)BiCl(C₁₅H₁₂N₂OX), and (CH₃COO)₂Bi(C₁₅H₁₂N₂OX) [C₁₂H₁₅N₂OX?=?3(2′-hydroxyphenyl)-5-(4-X-substituted phenyl) pyrazoline X?=?H in 1,5,9, CH₃ in 2,6,10, OCH₃ in 3,7,11, and Cl in 4,8,12, respectively, (C₆H₄O₃)?=?salicylate and (CH₃COO)?=?acetate]. Newly synthesized derivatives are brown solids, soluble in organic solvents like benzene, chloroform, and acetone. The compounds have been characterized by elemental analyses (C, H, N, Cl, and Bi), molecular weight measurements, and spectral (IR, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR) studies. The (C₁₂H₁₅N₂OX) and (C₆H₄O₃) are bidentate while (CH₃COO) is monodentate to bismuth(III), leading to a distorted trigonal bipyramidal structure. The complexes were screened against different bacteria and fungi showing potential antibacterial and antifungal activities.     

Ultrasonic Velocities,Densities, and Refractive Indices of Binary Mixtures of Polyethylene Glycol 250 Dimethyl Ether with 1-Propanol and with 1-Butanol

Measurements of the ultrasonic velocity (u), density (ρ) and refractive index (n) for binary mixtures of polyethylene glycol 250 dimethyl ether with 1-propanol and 1-butanol have been made at three temperatures (T=293, 303 and 31 K) over the entire composition range in order to investigate the nature of intermolecular interactions between the components of these liquid mixtures. Various excess thermodynamic properties such as the excess ultrasonic velocity (Δu), deviation in isentropic compressibility (Δk _S ), excess intermolecular free length (L_f^E)(L_{\mathrm{f}}^{\mathrm{E}}), excess acoustic impedance (Z ^E), excess pseudo-Grüneisen parameter (Γ ^E), and molar refraction deviation (ΔR _m) were calculated using experimental values of the ultrasonic velocity, density and refractive index and were then represented with the Redlich-Kister polynomial equation. The observed excess deviation parameter values were explained on the basis of the strength of intermolecular interactions between the components of the mixtures. Estimations of the refractive index and ultrasonic velocity have also been made using various empirical relations and are discussed in terms of the average percentage deviations (APD).     

Volumetric Properties of Aqueous Solutions of L-Glutamic Acid and Magnesium-L-Glutamate

Densities of aqueous solutions of L-glutamic acid and magnesium-L-glutamate were determined from T=288.15 to 333.15 K at 5 K temperature intervals. The measured densities were used to evaluate the apparent molar volumes, V _2,φ (m,T), the cubic expansion coefficients, α(m,T), and the changes of isobaric heat capacities with respect to pressure, (∂ C _p /∂ p) _T,m . They were qualitatively correlated with changes in the structure of water that occur when L-glutamic acid or magnesium-L-glutamate are present.     

The characterisation and evaluation of activated carbon in a cigarette filter

Cigarette smoke is an ever changing and extremely complex mixture of over 5000 chemicals. When the cigarette burns, thousands of chemical substances are generated, and these are distributed between the gas phase and the particles which constitute the smoke aerosol. Activated carbon when used in a filter can selectively remove a number of the vapour phase compounds to varying degrees of efficiency. Carbons of different activities (50–60% CTC and 90–100% CTC) have been characterised using nitrogen adsorption and also the sorption of a number of different vapours with different properties, using a dynamic gravimetric adsorption technique. Surface areas, pore volumes, diffusivities and heats of adsorption were calculated using nitrogen, benzene, heptane, ethyl acetate and water as the probe molecules. Smoke chemistries were measured using a screening approach on the characterised carbons as filter additives. It was seen that the higher activity carbon results in increased retention in the majority of the measured vapour phase smoke constituents.     

Volumetric Properties of Some Aliphatic Mono- and Dicarboxylic Acids in Water at 298.15 K

The apparent molar volumes, V _φ , of two series of homologous aliphatic carboxylic acids, H(CH₂) _n COOH [n=0–5] and (CH₂) _n (COOH)₂ [n=0–5], were determined in dilute aqueous solutions by density measurements at T=298.15 K. Densities were measured using a vibrating-tube densimeter (DMA 5000, Anton Paar, Austria) at T=298.15 K. These results were used to calculate the apparent molar volumes of each solute over the concentration range 0.0050≤m/(mol⋅kg⁻¹)≤0.3000. Values of the apparent molar volumes of undissociated acids V_f(u)⁰V_{\phi (u)}^{0} were also calculated. The variation of V_f(u)⁰V_{\phi (u)}^{0} was determined as a function of the aliphatic chain length of the studied carboxylic acids.     

Partial Molar Volume,Ionization, Viscosity and Structure of Glycine Betaine in Aqueous Solutions

Densities, partial molar volumes, and viscosities of aqueous solutions of betaine have been measured at 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 37, and 45 °C over the concentration range 0.05 to 5.0 mol⋅L⁻¹. The partial molar volumes show that betaine exists partly as a monohydrate and partly in its anhydrous form. The proportion of the anhydrous form increases with increasing temperature. Also, an associated form of betaine appears in concentrated betaine solutions, possibly with water as a bridging group. The significance of the viscosity B-coefficient is discussed. The signs of B _st, the increment of the viscosity B-coefficients arising from structural changes of water, are negative and the signs of dB/dT, the temperature derivative of B, are positive. These results show that betaine is a water structure breaker especially at lower temperatures, and this effect decreases to insignificance at higher temperatures. The ionization equilibria of betaine were investigated in aqueous 0.5 mol⋅L⁻¹ and 1.0 mol⋅L⁻¹ NaNO₃ at 5, 15, 25, and 37 °C by a potentiometric method. Using the least-square computer program SUPERQUAD, the complex forms are deduced to be betanium BH, bis(betanium) BHB, and bis(betaine) B₂ or bis(betaine)hydrate BH₂OB.     

Enthalpies of Dilution of N,N′-hexamethylenebisacetamide in Pure Water and Aqueous Solutions of Alkali Halide at 298.15 K

Enthalpies of dilution of N,N′-hexamethylenebisacetamide in water and aqueous alkali halide solutions at the concentration of 0.150 mol⋅kg⁻¹ (approximately the concentration of physiological saline) have been determined by isothermal titration microcalorimetry at 298.15 K. The enthalpic interaction coefficients in the solutions have been calculated according to the excess enthalpy concept based on the calorimetric data. The values of enthalpic pair-wise interaction coefficients (h ₂) of the solute in aqueous solutions of different salts were discussed in terms of the different alkali salt ions and weak interactions of the diluted component with coexistent species as well as the change in solvent structure caused by ions.     

Synthesis,characterization, and in vitro antibacterial and antifungal studies of tin(IV) thiohydrazide complexes

Reaction of tin dichloride and tin tetrachloride with cyclohexylamine-N-thiohydrazide (ChaThz) [L¹] and 1,3-propanediamine-N-thiohydrazide (PdaThz) [L²] results in [Sn(ChaThz)₂] (1), Sn(ChaThz)₂Cl₂] (2), [Sn(PdaThz)₂] (3), and [Sn(PdaThz)₂Cl₂] (4), in which the thiohydrazide coordinates to tin through imine nitrogen and thioamide sulfur. The ratio metal?:?ligand was 1?:?2 for all complexes. The tin(IV) thiohydrazide complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, IR, UV-Vis, ¹H-NMR, ¹¹⁹Sn NMR, and mass spectral studies. Using the disc diffusion method, the ligands and metal complexes were screened for in vitro antibacterial activities against four pathogenic bacteria, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, P. aeruginosa, and Bacillus cereus and for antifungal activities against Aspergillus flavus, A. carbonarius, A. niger, and A. fumigatus. While the tin(IV) complexes exhibited moderate antifungal activities, their parent ligands showed much higher and long-lasting broad spectrum of bioactivity against fungal growth. This was particularly the case for L¹ whose fungal inhibitory activity by the end of the experimental period was comparable and, for the most part, more pronounced than that of AmB. This higher activity of L¹ was maintained specifically against S. Aureus but in general, bacteria were more susceptible to complexes than ligands.     

Synthesis Characterization and Viscosity Studies of Homopolymer of Methyl Methacrylate and Copolymer of Methyl Methacrylate and Styrene

A homopolymer of methyl methacrylate (MMA) and its copolymer with styrene at different compositions were synthesized and characterized. Viscosity measurements of the synthesized homopolymer and the copolymers in toluene solutions were performed at 313 K. Different equations were used to calculate the intrinsic viscosity, viscometric constants values, and molecular weight of the synthesized polymers. The values of intrinsic viscosity and viscosity average molecular weight obtained by the two methods (single point determination and graphical extrapolation) were compared in order to verify the validity of the single point determination for the polymers. Viscometric properties derived included the specific viscosity (it determines the contribution of the solute to the viscosity of the solution), the reduced viscosity (that provides a measure of the polymer capacity for increasing the solution viscosity), and the intrinsic viscosity.     

Diffusion and phase equilibria of binary fluids in mesopores

The formation of adsorption hysteresis in mesoporous material with random pore structure may be interrelated with different distributions of the fluid density attained along different paths of the system preparation. To access microscopic details of these distributions, in addition to the main sorptive liquid, distribution of which along the pore space of Vycor porous glass was of interest, a small amount of a probe liquid with a substantially lower vapor pressure has been added. Molecular diffusivities of both liquids then have been traced using pulsed field gradient NMR. Due to different vapor pressures, the two molecular species explore different spaces occupied by the capillary-condensed (accessible for both species) and gaseous (accessible only for the molecules of the main sorptive) phases. Comparative analysis of the diffusion properties obtained at different states along the adsorption isotherm revealed further insight into peculiarities of the fluid distribution and mass transfer of binary fluids in pores.     

Influence of Europium speciation on its accumulation in Brassica napus and over-expressing BnTR1 lines

This study aimed at influence of europium speciation on its accumulation in Brassica napus (CK) and over-expressing BnTR1 lines (OE), and the kinetics of Eu uptake were investigated. These results indicated that the uptake in the roots of OE was higher than that of CK at high concentrations of europium and even the enrichment in the roots of OE was as high as 20,000 mg/kg at 328.9 μΜ Eu, this suggested that OE might have better resistance to uranium than CK. The time kinetics in plants showed that there had the similar trend between CK and OE. The formation of Eu³⁺at pH 5 in deionized water was beneficial to plants enrichment Eu and carbonate could reduce the adsorption of Eu in two group and phosphate almost completely impress the adsorption of Eu in two group, but citric acid could enhance europium root-to-shoot translocation in two group. These results would help understanding the mechanism of Eu uptake in Brassica napus (CK) and over-expressing BnTR1 lines (OE), therefore properly developing efficient europium/americium phytoremediation.     

The 2-Amino Group of 8-Aza-7-deaza-7-bromopurine-2,6-diamine and Purine-2,6-diamine as Stabilizer for the Adenine–Thymine Base Pair in Heterochiral DNA with Strands in Anomeric Configuration

Stabilization of DNA is beneficial for many applications in the fields of DNA therapeutics, diagnostics, and materials science. Now, this phenomenon is studied on heterochiral DNA, an autonomous DNA recognition system with complementary strands in α-D and β-D configuration showing parallel strand orientation. The 12-mer heterochiral duplexes were constructed from anomeric (α/β-D) oligonucleotide single-strands. Purine-2,6-diamine and 8-aza-7-deaza-7-bromopurine-2,6-diamine 2′-deoxyribonucleosides having the capability to form tridentate base pairs with dT were used to strengthen the stability of the dA–dT base pair. T_m data and thermodynamic values obtained from UV melting profiles indicated that the 8-aza-7-deaza 2′-deoxyribonucleoside decorated with a bromo substituent is so far the most efficient stabilizer for heterochiral DNA. Compared with that, the stabilizing effect of the purine-2,6-diamine 2′-deoxyribonucleoside is low. Global changes of helix structures were identified by circular dichroism (CD) spectra during melting.     

The Volumetric and Thermochemical Properties of Dipropylsulfoxide in Water

Volumetric and thermal properties of aqueous solutions of dipropylsulfoxide (DPSO) have been studied. Densities of binary mixtures of DPSO with water were measured over the full range of compositions at temperatures from 298.15 K to 338.15 K by means of a vibrating-tube densimeter. We also investigated the thermal properties of the [DPSO + water] system using differential scanning calorimetry at a low heating/cooling rate (2 K⋅min⁻¹). The results obtained are compared with those of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and diethylsulfoxide (DESO) aqueous solutions.     

Acoustic and Thermodynamic Properties of Binary Liquid Mixtures of Benzaldehyde in Hexane and Cyclohexane

Densities and ultrasonic speeds of binary mixtures of benzaldehyde with n-hexane and cyclohexane at 30 °C were measured over the entire composition range. From these experimental data, the adiabatic compressibility (K _S ), intermolecular free length (L _f), acoustic impedance (Z), relative association (R _a) and relaxation strength (r) were calculated. Also, the excess adiabatic compressibility (K _S ^E), intermolecular free length (L _f^E), acoustic impedance (Z ^E), and ultrasonic velocity (U ^E) were calculated. The observed variation of these parameters helps in understanding the nature of interactions in these mixtures. Further, theoretical values of the ultrasonic speed were evaluated using theories and empirical relations. The relative merits of these theories and relations were discussed.