Myrcia paivae O.Berg (Myrtaceae) Essential Oil,First Study of the Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Potential

The Myrtaceae family is one of the most representative in the Amazon. Several species have high added-value pharmacological potential. In order to contribute to the knowledge of the aromatic profile of Myrtaceae species from the Amazon, the present study presents the first report on the productivity, chemical composition, and antioxidant profile of the essential oil (EO) of Myrcia paivae. Dry leaves of the species were submitted to hydrodistillation to obtain their EO. The EO performance was calculated on a moisture-free basis and the analysis of the chemical profile was carried out by GC/MS. The determination of the antioxidant capacity was assessed by means of the antioxidant capacity equivalent to the inhibition Trolox of the ABTS^•+ and DPPH^• radicals. The results indicate that EO performance was equivalent to 1.69%. As for the chemical composition, hydrocarbon monoterpenes were predominant in the sample (>77%); terpinolene (14.70%), α-phellandrene (14.69%), γ-terpinene (9.64%), sylvestrene (7.62%), α-thujene (6.46%), and α-pinene (6.39%) were the constituents with higher content. Regarding the antioxidant capacity, the results show that the EO presented good results in the inhibition of ABTS^•+ (0.886 ± 0.226 mM L⁻¹) and DPPH^• (2.90 ± 0.083 mM L⁻¹), which can be attributed to the high monoterpene content in the sample.     

Cucurbit[7]uril Inhibits Islet Amyloid Polypeptide Aggregation by Targeting N Terminus Hot Segments and Attenuates Cytotoxicity

Two “hot segments” within an islet amyloid polypeptide are responsible for its self-assembly, which in turn is linked to the decline of β-cells in type 2 diabetes (T2D). A readily available water-soluble, macrocyclic host, cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]), effectively inhibits islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) aggregation through ion–dipole and hydrophobic interactions with different residues of the monomeric peptide in its random-coil conformation. A HSQC NMR study shows that CB[7] likely modulates IAPP self-assembly by interacting with and masking major residues present in the “hot segments” at the N terminus. CB[7] also prevents the formation of toxic oligomers and inhibits seed-catalyzed fibril proliferation. Importantly, CB[7] recovers rat insulinoma cells (RIN-m) from IAPP-assembly associated cytotoxicity.     

BCl3‐Mediated Ene Reaction of Sulfur Dioxide and Unfunctionalized Alkenes

The first ene reactions of SO₂ and unfunctionalized alkenes are reported. Calculations suggest that the endergonic ene reactions of SO₂ with alkenes can be used to generate β,γ‐unsaturated sulfinyl and sulfonyl compounds. Indeed, in the presence of one equivalent of BCl₃, the unstable sulfinic acid form stable sulfinic acid?BCl₃ complexes that can be reacted in situ with NCS to generate corresponding sulfonyl chlorides, or with a base to generate corresponding sulfinates. The latter can be reacted with electrophiles to generate sulfones, or with silyl chloride to form β,γ‐unsaturated silyl sulfinates. The sulfinic acid?BCl₃ complexes can be reacted with ethers that act as oxygen nucleophiles to produce corresponding sulfinic esters. Thus one‐pot, three‐component synthesis of β,γ‐unsaturated sulfonamides, sulfinyl esters and sulfones have been developed starting from alkenes and sulfur dioxide (reagent and solvent).     

Ultra-sensitive measurements of <Superscript>233</Superscript>U by accelerator mass spectrometry for national security applications

By making modifications to our previously established measurement setup, we increased our abundance sensitivity for ²³³U by three orders of magnitude and can now measure ²³³U/²³⁸U ratios as low as 10⁻¹³. Because ²³³U has separate production pathways than ²³⁶U, it can provide valuable information on the particular source of anthropogenic uranium in a sample. We demonstrated the utility of our improved capability by using ²³³U to distinguish separate sources of anthropogenic uranium in a set of samples collected from a contaminated site. In the future, we plan to apply our new capability to characterizing ²³³U in a wide range of uranium materials.     

C-Glucosylflavonoid biosynthesis from 2-hydroxynaringenin by Desmodium uncinatum (Jacq.) (Fabaceae)

[2′,3′,5′,6′-²H₄]-2-Hydroxynaringenin is synthesised and incubated with commercially available UDP-glucose and the crude protein extract from Desmoduim uncinatum leaves. The organic extract produces isotopically labelled [2′,3′,5′,6′-²H₄]-vitexin and [2′,3′,5′,6′-²H₄]-isovitexin. Repeating the experiment with denatured protein or replacing the 2-hydroxynaringenin with [2′,3′,5′,6′-²H₄]-apigenin or [2′,3′,5′,6′-²H₄]-naringenin results in no observable incorporation. 2-Hydroxynaringenin is therefore the substrate for C-glucosylflavonoid biosynthesis in D. uncinatum.     

Collective Band Structures and Identification of One-Phonon and Two-Phonon γ-Vibrational Bands in 109Tc

The high spin states of the neutron-rich 109Tc nucleus are reinvestigated by observing prompt γ-rays from the spontaneous fission of 252 Cf. The previously known yrast band based on the 7/2＋ state is updated. A side band built on the 11/2＋ state is expanded and a new band based on the 15/2＋ state is identified. Band crossing in the yrast band occurs around fω≈ 0.36 MeV. This band crossing is associated with the alignment of two h11/2 neutrons according to the cranked shell model calculations. The band based on the 11/2＋ state is proposed as a candidate for the one-phonon γ-vibrational band, and the band built on the 15/2＋ state is proposed as a candidate for the two-phonon γ-vibrational band. Other characteristics for the observed bands are discussed.     

Optical feedback cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy (OF-CEAS) in a ring cavity

Optical feedback cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy (OF-CEAS) has been demonstrated by coupling a distributed feedback diode laser to a ring cavity. Frequency-selected light decaying from the ring cavity is retro-reflected, inducing a counter-propagating intra-cavity beam, and providing optical feedback to the laser. At specific laser-to-cavity distances, all cavity mode frequencies return to the diode laser with the same phase, allowing spectra to be accumulated across the range of frequencies of the current-tuned laser. OF-CEAS has been used to measure very weak oxygen isotopologue (¹⁶O¹⁸O and ¹⁶O¹⁷O) absorptions in ambient air at wavelengths near 762 nm using the electric-dipole forbidden O₂ A-band. A bandwidth reduced minimum detectable absorption coefficient of 2.2×10⁻⁹ cm⁻¹ Hz^−1/2 is demonstrated.     

Energy scaling-up of stable single filament

The influence of the input pulse chirp and energy on the filamentation process is studied. Output beam profiles, spectra and energies were systematically measured by changing the pulse chirp for different input energies. A map of the different energy-chirp regions was compiled. It shows that high-energy stable single filament can be obtained by using chirped input pulses, allowing the scaling-up of the energy throughput in the filament. Moreover, under high-energy regimes nonlinear effects induced by chirped pulses could produce pulse post-compression.     

Room temperature photoluminescence of BCT prepared by Complex Polymerization Method

It was used the Complex Polymerization Method to synthesize barium calcium titanate powders (BCT). Crystalline Ba_0.8Ca_0.2TiO₃ perovskite-type phase could be identified by X-ray diffraction and confirmed by Raman spectroscopy in the powders heat treated at 600 °C. Inherent defects, linked to structural disorder, facilitate the photoluminescence emission. The photoluminescent emission peak maximum was around of 533 nm (2.33 eV) for the Ba_0.8Ca_0.2TiO₃. The photoluminescence process and the band emission energy photon showed dependence of both the structural order–disorder and the thermal treatment history. The results revealed that Ba_0.8Ca_0.2TiO₃ (BCT20) is a highly promising candidate material for optical applications.     

Stopping rules in <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis>-adaptive global random search algorithms

In this paper we develop a methodology for defining stopping rules in a general class of global random search algorithms that are based on the use of statistical procedures. To build these stopping rules we reach a compromise between the expected increase in precision of the statistical procedures and the expected waiting time for this increase in precision to occur.