Spectroscopic characterization of peroxynitrous acid in cis-perp configurations

This paper presents experimental evidence, supported by two-dimensional theoretical calculations, that HOONO can be observed in cis-perp (cp) configurations in a pulsed supersonic expansion. The spectral properties (transition frequency, rotational constants, and transition type) of OH overtone transitions originating from a state with predominately cp character are predicted theoretically and compared with those associated with a weak feature at 6996.2 cm(-1) observed experimentally using infrared action spectroscopy. This spectral feature is attributed to HOONO in cp configurations based on its vibrational frequency, rotational band contour, and resultant OH product state distribution.     

Kinetic and calorimetric study of the adsorption of dyes on mesoporous activated carbon prepared from coconut coir dust

Mesoporous activated carbon has been prepared from coconut coir dust as support for adsorption of some model dye molecules from aqueous solutions. The methylene blue (MB) and remazol yellow (RY) molecules were chosen for study of the adsorption capacity of cationic and anionic dyes onto prepared activated carbon. The adsorption kinetics was studied with the Lagergren first- and pseudo-second-order kinetic models as well as the intraparticle diffusion model. The results for both dyes suggested a multimechanism sorption process. The adsorption mechanisms in the systems dyes/AC follow pseudo-second-order kinetics with a significant contribution of intraparticle diffusion. The samples simultaneously present acidic and basic sites able to act as anchoring sites for basic and acidic dyes, respectively. Calorimetric studies reveal that dyes/AC interaction forces are correlated with the pH of the solution, which can be related to the charge distribution on the AC surface. These AC samples also exhibited very short equilibrium times for the adsorption of both dyes, which is an economically favorable requisite for the activated carbon described in this work, in addition to the local abundance of the raw material.     

Measurement of cation binding to immobilized vanillin by isothermal calorimetry

Isothermal calorimetry was used to determine enthalpy changes for interaction of divalent cobalt, nickel, copper, and zinc chlorides with silica gel functionalized with vanillin, Sil-Van. The thermal effect, Q(int), and the corresponding amount of cation that interacts, n(int), were obtained in the same experiment. Langmuir expressions for adsorption isotherms were applied to determine the maximum adsorption capacity to form a monolayer, N(mon), and the energy of interaction for a saturated monolayer per gram of Sil-Van, Q(mon). From knowledge of N(mon) and Q(mon), the molar enthalpy of interaction for formation of a monolayer of anchored cations per gram of Sil-Van, Delta(mon)H(m), was determined. Interactions between the Lewis-acidic cations and the donor atom attached to silica are reflected by Delta(mon)Hm values in the order Ni2+ > Cu2+ > Zn2+ congruent with Co2+.     

Dual metamaterial structures generated from an one-step fabrication using stencil lithography

The flexibility to deposit metallic structures on any substrates without the need of lift-off or etching process are the main reasons for the recent popularity of using stencil lithography for plasmonic applications. In this work, we fabricate nanoholes on a Si₃N₄ membrane and deposit metal–dielectric layers and such approach allows us to have a perforated fishnet metamaterial structure on the membrane as well as its complementary pillar structure on a quartz substrate. We then studied and compared their optical properties from both experiment and simulation results.     

Application of reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection for simultaneous assessment of global DNA and total RNA methylation in Lepidium sativum: effect of plant exposure to Cd(II) and Se(IV)

In the present work, application of the previously established reversed-phase liquid chromatography procedure based on fluorescent labeling of cytosine and methylcytosine moieties with 2-bromoacetophenone (HPLC-FLD) is presented for simultaneous evaluation of global DNA and total RNA methylation at cytosine carbon 5. The need for such analysis was comprehended from the recent advances in the field of epigenetics that highlight the importance of non-coding RNAs in DNA methylation and suggest that RNA methylation might play a similar role in the modulation of genetic information, as previously demonstrated for DNA. In order to adopt HPLC-FLD procedure for DNA and RNA methylation analysis in a single biomass extract, two extraction procedures with different selectivity toward nucleic acids were examined, and a simplified calibration was designed allowing for evaluation of methylation percentage based on the ratio of chromatographic peak areas: cytidine/5-methylcytidine for RNA and 2´-deoxycytidine/5-methyl-2′-deoxycytidine for DNA. As a proof of concept, global DNA and total RNA methylation were determined in Lepidium sativum hydroponically grown in the presence of different Cd(II) or Se(IV) concentrations, expecting that plant exposure to abiotic stress might affect not only global DNA but also total RNA methylation. The results obtained showed the increase of DNA methylation in the treated plants up to concentration levels 2 mg?L^?1 Cd and 1 mg?L^?1 Se in the growth medium. For higher stressors’ concentration, global DNA methylation tended to decrease. Most importantly, an inverse correlation was found between DNA and RNA methylation levels (r?=??0.6788, p?=?0.031), calling for further studies of this particular modification of nucleic acids in epigenetic context.     

Designing Optimal Algorithms for Solving Banded Triangular Systems on Rings

Parallel complexity results for designing banded triangular solvers are provided. In particular, several lower bounds based on data layout and communication along a ring are derived based on solving such systems using substitution. Lastly, a near-optimal solver for a ring is discussed and provided.     

Tuning smart microgel swelling and responsive behavior through strong and weak polyelectrolyte pair assembly

The layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of polyelectrolyte pairs on temperature and pH-sensitive cross-linked poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-co-(methacrylic acid), poly(NIPAAm-co-MAA), microgels enabled a fine-tuning of the gel swelling and responsive behavior according to the mobility of the assembled polyelectrolyte (PE) pair and the composition of the outermost layer. Microbeads with well-defined morphology were initially prepared by synthesis in supercritical carbon dioxide. Upon LbL assembly of polyelectrolytes, interactions between the multilayers and the soft porous microgel led to differences in swelling and thermoresponsive behavior. For the weak PE pairs, namely poly(L-lysine)/poly(L-glutamic acid) and poly(allylamine hydrochloride)/poly(acrylic acid), polycation-terminated microgels were less swollen and more thermoresponsive than native microgel, whereas polyanion-terminated microgels were more swollen and not significantly responsive to temperature, in a quasi-reversible process with consecutive PE assembly. For the strong PE pair, poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride)/poly(sodium styrene sulfonate), the differences among polycation and polyanion-terminated microgels are not sustained after the first PE bilayer due to extensive ionic cross-linking between the polyelectrolytes. The tendencies across the explored systems became less noteworthy in solutions with larger ionic strength due to overall charge shielding of the polyelectrolytes and microgel. ATR FT-IR studies correlated the swelling and responsive behavior after LbL assembly on the microgels with the extent of H-bonding and alternating charge distribution within the gel. Thus, the proposed LbL strategy may be a simple and flexible way to engineer smart microgels in terms of size, surface chemistry, overall charge and permeability.     

Coibanoles, a new class of meroterpenoids produced by Pycnoporus sanguineus

Three new terpenoids of mixed biosynthetic origin were isolated from the culture filtrate of the endophytic fungus Pycnoporus sanguineus. Their structures were determined by extensive spectroscopic analyses. We have named these tricyclic and tetracyclic metabolites ‘coibanoles A-C’ in reference to Coiba Island and Coiba National Park, Panamá, from which the plant and endophyte were collected. The extract was inactive to the human parasites Trypanosoma cruzi, Leishmania donovani, and Plasmodium falciparum at a test concentration of 10 μg/mL.     

Development of micro-flow devices by direct-milling on poly(methyl methacrylate) substrates with integrated optical detection

The development of micro-flow devices by direct-milling on poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) substrates and incorporating the optic detector into the same structure is presented, evaluated and applied to the determination of chlorhexidine. Hydrodynamic characteristics of the developed devices were compared against those obtained from flow systems based on classic Teflon reactors. The optical detector integrated in the PMMA substrate is composed of a light emitting diode (λ?=?627 nm) and light dependence resistance as light source and light detector, respectively. The performance of the optical detector was evaluated and optimized. The applicability of the fluidic device was assessed in the determination of chlorhexidine through its colorimetric reaction with bromocresol green. Micro-pumps were used as propulsion units. Results obtained in real sample analysis were in good agreement with those obtained by the reference procedure.