Ethylene polymerization by novel Ziegler–Natta‐type catalysts obtained in situ by the oxidative addition of 8‐hydroxyquinoline‐based ligands to bis(1,5‐cyclooctadiene)nickel(0) and methylaluminoxane

Novel catalytic systems, prepared in situ by the oxidative addition of 8‐hydroxyquinoline ligands to bis(1,5‐cyclooctadiene)nickel(0) and activated by methylaluminoxane, were studied in ethylene polymerization. When 8‐hydroxyquinoline was employed, only oligomeric products were obtained. On the contrary, 5,7‐dinitro‐8‐hydroxyquinoline gave linear polyethylene (PE), but with a modest activity. For the catalyst based on 5‐nitro‐8‐hydroxyquinoline, the productivity was largely dependent on the content of free trimethylaluminum (TMA) present in the commercial aluminoxane. The progressive optimization of the TMA/oligomeric methylaluminoxane ratio increased the productivity, which reached 700 kg of PE/(mol of Ni × h), by an order of magnitude. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 200–206, 2006     

Automated method, based on micro-sequential injection, for the study of enzyme kinetics and inhibition.

A micro-reactor system with continual spectrophotometric detection has been operated in Sequential Injection lab-on-valve (SI-LOV) mode and applied to enzyme kinetics and inhibition studies, using acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) as model systems. With the advantages of automation, real-time kinetic measurement, and thorough mixing, the SI-LOV micro-reactor system allows for the monitoring of initial reaction rates and determination of reactant concentrations in the reaction mixture, both of which are essential for the determination of kinetic constants for enzymes and inhibitors. Enzyme, substrate, and inhibitor are precisely metered by the syringe pump and delivered to a stirred micro-reactor, followed by a reference scan that establishes the baseline for the following reaction rate measurement. Michaelis constants (Km) for AChE and ACE were determined to be 0.16 mM and 0.30 mM, respectively, which are consistent with literature values. The type of inhibition (competitive, uncompetitive, or mixed), the dissociation constants for the inhibitors, and the inhibitor dose-response curves were also determined.     

Oligonucleotide Analogues with Integrated Bases and Backbone. Part 14

The self‐complementary tetrameric propargyl triols 8, 14, 18 , and 21 were synthesized to investigate the duplex formation of self‐complementary, ethynylene‐linked UUAA, AAUU, UAUA, and AUAU analogues with integrated bases and backbone (ONIBs). The linear synthesis is based on repetitive Sonogashira couplings and C‐desilylations (34–72% yield), starting from the monomeric propargyl alcohols 9 and 15 and the iodinated nucleosides 3, 7, 11 , and 13 . Strongly persistent intramolecular H‐bonds from the propargylic OH groups to N(3) of the adenosine units prevent the gg‐type orientation of the ethynyl groups at C(5′). As such, an orientation is required for the formation of cyclic duplexes, this H‐bond prevents the formation of duplexes connected by all four base pairs. However, the central units of the UAUA and AAUU analogues 18 and 14 associate in CDCl₃/(D₆)DMSO 10 : 1 to form a cyclic duplex characterized by reverse Hoogsteen base pairing. The UUAA tetramer 8 forms a cyclic UU homoduplex, while the AUAU tetramer 21 forms only linear associates. Duplex formation of the O‐silylated UUAA and AAUU tetramers is no longer prevented. The self‐complementary UUAA tetramer 22 forms Watson–Crick‐ and Hoogsteen‐type base‐paired cyclic duplexes more readily than the sequence‐isomeric AAUU tetramer 23 , further illustrating the sequence selectivity of duplex formation.     

Activation analysis of high-purity silicon

³²P was separated from the irradiated silicon matrix as ammonium phosphomolybdate and the activity was measured with a GM tube or on a plastic scintillator. The second-order interference was taken into consideration. Research associate of the N.F.W.O.     

Wavelength independence of Eu quantum yields

A quantitative comparison between the excitation and absorption spectra of Eu³⁺ in aqueous solution is given which leads to the conclusion that fluorescence quantum yields are independent of the excitation wavelength. Use is made therefore of the series of homologous lines ⁵D₃, ⁵D₂, ⁵D₁, ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₁.