Optimization of the separation of flavonoids using solvent-modified micellar electrokinetic chromatography

In this work the separation of eighteen flavonoids was attempted using reduced-flow micellar elektrokinetic chromatography (RF-MEKC) electrolytes modified by selected solvents with differing properties: methanol (MeOH), acetonitrile (ACN) and tetrahydrofuran (THF). Structural aspects such as unsaturation of the C ring, number and position of OH groups, methylation and glycosylation as well as solvent effects and their impact on the electrophoretic behavior of flavonoids were addressed. By evaluating the electropherograms obtained from mixture-designed electrolytes and searching for changes in the critical pairs, a favorable separation condition was achieved using 20 mmol/L phosphate buffer at pH 2.5 containing 50 mmol/L sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), 15% ACN and 5% THF (one critical pair) in less than 12 min with 1.5% coefficient of variation (CV) for retention factor and 3% CV for peak area (n = 5). The applicability of the proposed separation condition was demonstrated by the inspection of flavonoids in herbal extracts of Neem.     

Proton radioactivity: The case for <Superscript>53m</Superscript>Co proton-emitter isomer

The partial proton emission half-life for ^53mCo unstable isomer is re-examined in the framework of a semiempirical model based on tunneling through a Coulomb-plus-centrifugal-plus-overlapping potential barrier within the spherical nucleus approximation. It is shown that the known measured half-life value of 17s is compatible with a large prolate shape for ^53mCo proton emitter and a high angular momentum ℓ = 11 assigned to the proton transition to the ground state of ⁵²Fe .     

Effect of salt identity on the phase diagram for a globular protein in aqueous electrolyte solution

Monte Carlo simulations are used to establish the potential of mean force between two globular proteins in an aqueous electrolyte solution. This potential includes nonelectrostatic contributions arising from dispersion forces first, between the globular proteins, and second, between ions in solution and between each ion and the globular protein. These latter contributions are missing from standard models. The potential of mean force, obtained from simulation, is fitted to an analytic equation. Using our analytic potential of mean force and Barker-Henderson perturbation theory, we obtain phase diagrams for lysozyme solutions that include stable and metastable fluid-fluid and solid-fluid phases when the electrolyte is 0.2 M NaSCN or NaI or NaCl. The nature of the electrolyte has a significant effect on the phase diagram.     

A Bahri–Lions theorem revisited

In 1988, A. Bahri and P.L. Lions [A. Bahri, P.L. Lions, Morse-index of some min–max critical points. I. Application to multiplicity results, Comm. Pure Appl. Math. 41 (1988) 1027–1037] studied the following elliptic problem:

where Ω is a bounded smooth domain of , 2<p<(2N−2)/(N−2) and f(x,u) is not assumed to be odd in u. They proved the existence of infinitely many solutions under an appropriate growth restriction on f. In the present paper, we improve this result by showing that under the same growth assumption on f the problem admits in fact infinitely many sign-changing solutions. In addition we derive an estimate on the number of their nodal domains. We also deal with the corresponding fourth order equation Δ²u=|u|^p−2u+f(x,u) with both Dirichlet and Navier boundary conditions, as well as with strongly coupled elliptic systems.     

Development of a sensor for calcium based on quartz crystal microbalance

A new sensor for calcium based on a piezoelectric quartz crystal is presented. The selectivity depends on the ratio lipophilic salt/ionophore of the composition of the coating of the quartz crystal. A crystal coated with a THF solution of PVC (34.5% w/w), DOS (62.1% w/w) and 10,19-bis[(octadecylcarbamoyl) methoxyacetyl]-1,4,7,13,16-pentaoxa-10,19-diaza cycloheneicosane (3.4% w/w) and a salt/ionophore molar proportion of 60%, corresponding to a frequency decrease of the dry crystal of 6.0 kHz, showed a detection limit to calcium of 2.2 mg/L. Both a standard calcium chloride solution and a commercially balanced salt solution for tissue culture were analyzed subsequent to ion chromatographic separation. The results obtained with the sensor developed were compared with those obtained with a conductivity detector. Although the results from both detectors agreed for the standard solution, only the quartz crystal sensor was able to give reliable results for the tissue culture solution.     

In memoriam Jenö Paulik

In memoriam Jen? Paulik     

Solution of sparse quasi-square rectangular systems by Gaussian elimination

We present a general method for the linear least-squares solutionof overdetermined and underdetermined systems. The method isparticularly efficient when the coefficient matrix is quasi-square,that is when the number of rows and number of columns is almostthe same. The numerical methods for linear least-squares problemsand minimum-norm solutions do not generally take account ofthis special characteristic. The proposed method is based onLU factorization of the original quasi-square matrix A, assumingthat A has full rank. In the overdetermined case, the LU factorsare used to compute a basis for the null space of A^T. The right-handside vector b is then projected onto this subspace and the least-squaressolution is obtained from the solution of this reduced problem.In the case of underdetermined systems, the desired solutionis again obtained through the solution of a reduced system.The use of this method may lead to important savings in computationaltime for both dense and sparse matrices. It is also shown inthe paper that, even in cases where the matrices are quite small,sparse solvers perform better than dense solvers. Some practicalexamples that illustrate the use of the method are included.