Synthesis and study of block copolycondensates containing polysiloxane and unsaturated polyester blocks in the chain. I. Poly(unsaturated esters-b-siloxanes) with blocks linked by Si?O?C bonds

Block copolycondensates containing both unsaturated polyester and polysiloxane blocks have been prepared by copolycondensation of reactive oligomers; the bonds between the blocks are either Si? O? C or Si? C. This article is devoted to poly(ethylene adipate-co-maleate-b-siloxane) with Si? O? C bonds. The reactive oligomers are studied, before or after modification, by tonometry, end-group titration, GPC, and NMR. Contrary to the block copolycondensates of the same kind described in the literature, those reported in this work have high molecular weights (five block of each kind). These high-molecular-weight block polycondensates have been obtained by a careful study of the parameters of the polycondensation.     

Monitoring of ethanol during fermentation using a microbial biosensor with enhanced selectivity

The present study is concerning the construction of ferricyanide-mediated Gluconobacter oxydans cell ethanol biosensor. The size exclusion effect of a cellulose acetate membrane was used for elimination of glucose interferences during ethanol assays in real samples. A typical response time of the biosensor was 13 s with a high sensitivity of 3.5 microA mM(-1). The microbial biosensor exhibits a very low detection limit of 0.85 microM and a wide linear range from 2 to 270 microM. The operational stability was excellent. During 8.5 h of repetitive ethanol assays, no decrease in the sensor sensitivity was observed. The biosensor was successfully used in the off-line monitoring of ethanol fermentation with a good agreement with HPLC measurements (R(2)=0.998).     

Polymerase chain reaction techniques for food allergen detection

Food allergies represent an important health problem in industrialized countries. Undeclared allergenic foods as contaminants in food products pose a major risk for sensitized persons. Reliable detection and quantification methods for food allergens are necessary to ensure compliance with food labeling and improve consumer protection. The methods currently used for the detection of potential allergens in foods are to target either the allergen itself or a marker that indicates the presence of the offending food. As markers for the presence of potentially allergenic foods or ingredients, specific proteins or DNA fragments are targeted. In routine food analysis, the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the form of a real-time PCR or in combination with an ELISA have been used. The availability, the characteristics, and some future aspects of DNA-based methods in the rapid and sensitive detection of potentially allergenic food constituents or contaminations are discussed in this review.     

Der Stoffwechsel von Verbindungen mit Dreifachbindung. VI. Stoffwechselverhalten von Alkincarbonsäuren und Alkindicarbonsäuren

Metabolism of Acetylenic Monocarboxylic and Dicarboxylic Acids Feeding of acetylenic monoacids with chain length of 11 to 18 C-atoms to rats led to excretion of dicarboxylic acids with retained triple bonds. 10-Octadecynoic acid led to the formation of metabolites with even and odd number of C-atoms, suggesting in addition to established ω- and β-oxidation an α-oxidative pathway.     

Semiempirical local spin: Theory and implementation of the ZILSH method for predicting Heisenberg exchange constants of polynuclear transition metal complexes

The local spin formalism ( 3 ) for computing expectation values 〈S_A · S_B〉 that appear in the Heisenberg spin model has been extended to semiempirical single determinant wave functions. An alternative derivation of expectation values in restricted and unrestricted cases is given that takes advantage of the zero differential overlap (ZDO) approximation. A formal connection between single determinant wave functions (which are not in general spin eigenfunctions) and the Heisenberg spin model was established by demonstrating that energies of single determinants that are eigenfunctions of the local spin operators with eigenvalues corresponding to high‐spin radical centers are given by the same Heisenberg coupling constants {J_AB} that describe the true spin states of the system. Unrestricted single determinant wave functions for transition metal complexes are good approximations of local spin eigenfunctions when the metal d orbitals are local in character and all unpaired electrons on each metal have the same spin (although spins on different metals might be reversed). Good approximations of the coupling constants can then be extracted from local spin expectation values 〈S_A · S_B〉 energies of the single determinant wave functions. Once the coupling constants are obtained, diagonalization of the Heisenberg spin Hamiltonian provides predictions of the energies and compositions of the spin states. A computational method is presented for obtaining coupling constants and spin‐state energies in this way for polynuclear transition metal complexes using the intermediate neglect of differential overlap Hamiltonian parameterized for optical spectroscopy (INDO/S) in the ZINDO program. This method is referred to as ZILSH, derived from ZINDO, Davidson's local spin formalism, and the Heisenberg spin model. Coupling constants and spin ground states obtained for 10 iron complexes containing from 2 to 6 metals are found to agree well with experimental results in most cases. In the case of the complex [Fe₆O₃(OAc)₉(OEt)₂(bpy)₂]⁺, a priori predictions of the coupling constants yield a ground‐state spin of zero, in agreement with variable‐temperature magnetization data, and corroborate spin alignments proposed earlier on the basis of structural considerations. This demonstrates the potential of the ZILSH method to aid in understanding magnetic interactions in polynuclear transition metal complexes. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2003     

Protein adsorption in fused-silica and polyacrylamide-coated capillaries

The model proteins cytochrome c, myoglobin, ovalbumin, and beta-lactoglobulin were investigated with regard to their adsorption properties on capillaries for electrophoresis. The model compounds were selected to cover a wide range of properties. Cytochrome c is a basic protein (isoelectric point (pI): 9.6; M(r): 11.7 kDa), beta-lactoglobulin is rather acidic (pI: 5.4, M(r): 18.4 kDa), myoglobin was chosen as a neutral reference protein (pI: 6.8-7.4, M(r): 17.8 kDa), and ovalbumin (pI: 5.1, M(r): 45.0 kDa) was selected as a relatively larger analyte. First, the pH dependence of adsorption was investigated for the bare fused silica. A clear correlation to the respective pIs was noted. For myoglobin and ovalbumin, none or negligible adsorption was found above the pI, whereas strong adsorption was noted just below this parameter. Cytochrome c and beta-lactoglobulin already showed distinct adsorption above their pIs. However, none of the proteins showed any significant adsorption more than one pH unit above the pIs. For linear polyacrylamide-coated capillaries, a decreased but not a complete lack of adsorption was observed. Here, pH-dependent adsorption was noted as well. Regeneration of the capillaries by rinsing with buffers containing 200 mM SDS was also investigated. This method was completely successful for myoglobin, but that too for only freshly-adsorbed protein. After a storage time of 24 h and due to the aging of the adsorbate, a sufficient regeneration was no longer possible.     

Steroids and sexual hormones. Synthetic experiments in the limonin series lV. A new Westphalen-Lettré rearrangement in the 4,4-dimethyl-steroid series]

Applying the HgCl₂/ClCH₂SCH₃-reaction 1. to 4,4-dimethyl-Δ⁵-7-oxo-19-hydroxy-androstene (9) one observes an intramolecular rearrangement of the «Westphalen-Lettré»-type (→11). A related rearrangement is observed by treating 3-oxo-4,4-dimethyl-17β-acetoxy-Δ⁵-androstene (12) with HgCl₂/ClCH₂SCH₃-reagent (→13). Reaction of 3β, 17β-diacetoxy-4,4-dimethyl-19-(methoxymethyl)-Δ⁵-androstene (7) with hydrogenfluoride/urea-reagent gives rise to a similar rearranged product (→15).     

Steroids and sex hormones. 241. The partial synthesis of 3-methoxy--3-, 9- -oxido-7- hydroxy-11- -acetoxy-5- steroids

The preparation of the title compounds 11 , 37 , and 39 is described. 37 will serve as starting material for a partial synthesis of the steroidal alkaloid batrachotoxinin A ( 1 ).     

Steroids and sex hormones. Quassinoid bitter principles. I. 1-oxo-2-methoxy-4 alpha-methyl-17 beta-hydroxy-delta2-5 alpha-androstene as a model for the ring a structure of quassine]

Starting from 3-oxo-17β-hydroxy-Δ¹-5α-androstene (2b) the preparation of 1-oxo-2-methoxy-4α-methyl-17β-hydroxy-Δ²-5α-androstene (9), a compound with the ring A structure of quassine (1) is described. The key problem of the reaction sequence is shown to be the monomethylation at C(4).     

Angular correlations and the tau-neutrino mass

Effects of a nonzero mass for the tau neutrinov _τ as well as a right-handed charged-current contribution to the τ?v _τ coupling are discussed. Angular correlations of the decay products of τ⁺τ^? ine ⁺ e ^? annihilation are calculated as functions of \(m_{v_\tau } \) and the relative amount of right-handed τ?v _τ coupling.