Health Beneficial Properties of Grapevine Seed Extract and Its Influence on Selected Biochemical Markers in the Blood,Liver and Kidneys of Rattus norvegicus

Cadmium (Cd) is a heavy metal that occurs in all areas of the environment, including the food chain. In the body, it causes oxidative stress by producing free radicals that are harmful to the cells. Grape seed extract (GSE) contains a wide range of biologically active components that help to neutralize the adverse effects of free radicals. In this study, the effects of GSE prepared form semi-resistant grapevine cultivar Cerason, which is rich in phenolics, on biochemical markers of brown rats exposed to the effects of cadmium were monitored. GSE increased the plasma antioxidant activity and, in the kidneys and the liver, Cd content was significantly lowered by GSE co-administration. Accordingly, the increase in creatinine content and alanine aminotransferase activity and the decrease of catalase and superoxide dismutase activities caused by cadmium were slowed down by GSE co-administration. The results of this work reveal that grape seed extract offers a protective effect against the intake of heavy metals into the organism.     

Path integrals for the continuous spontaneous localization theory

Path integral expressions are given for the wave function and for the density matrix in a theory which describes state vector reduction. The magnitude of the contribution of each classical path to the propagator is not unity, as in ordinary quantum theory, but depends upon the path.     

Atomic-Scale Studies of Fe3O4(001) and TiO2(110) Surfaces Following Immersion in CO2-Acidified Water

Difficulties associated with the integration of liquids into a UHV environment make surface-science style studies of mineral dissolution particularly challenging. Recently, we developed a novel experimental setup for the UHV-compatible dosing of ultrapure liquid water and studied its interaction with TiO₂ and Fe₃O₄ surfaces. Herein, we describe a simple approach to vary the pH through the partial pressure of CO₂ ( ) in the surrounding vacuum chamber and use this to study how these surfaces react to an acidic solution. The TiO₂(110) surface is unaffected by the acidic solution, except for a small amount of carbonaceous contamination. The Fe₃O₄(001)-( × )R45° surface begins to dissolve at a pH 4.0–3.9 ( =0.8–1 bar) and, although it is significantly roughened, the atomic-scale structure of the Fe₃O₄(001) surface layer remains visible in scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals that the surface is chemically reduced and contains a significant accumulation of bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻) species. These observations are consistent with Fe(II) being extracted by bicarbonate ions, leading to dissolved iron bicarbonate complexes (Fe(HCO₃)₂), which precipitate onto the surface when the water evaporates.     

Use of iterative natural orbital method for calculating energy barrier to predissociation of the first excited states of NH3 (3s1,3 A″2)

The barrier to predissociation of the first excited states of NH₃ (3s^1,3 A) is computed from a truncated first-order wave function using the iterative natural orbital method. The results show that the barrier is lower than when calculated with RHF and the CI wave functions, where single and double replacements to a truncated virtual space are carried out. These findings are used to interpret experimental data.     

Voltammetric Determination of 3‐Nitrofluoranthene and 3‐Aminofluoranthene at Boron Doped Diamond Thin‐Film Electrode

The voltammetric behavior of 3‐nitrofluoranthene and 3‐aminofluoranthene was investigated in mixed methanol‐water solutions by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) at boron doped diamond thin‐film electrode (BDDE). Optimum conditions have been found for determination of 3‐nitrofluoranthene in the concentration range of 2×10^?8–1×10^?6 mol L^?1, and for determination 3‐aminofluorathnene in the concentration range of 2×10^?7–1×10^?5 mol L^?1, respectively. Limits of determination were 3×10^?8 mol L^?1 (3‐nitrofluoranthene) and 2×10^?7 mol L^?1 (3‐aminofluoranthene).     

Steric Effects on Reaction Rates. VI. Application of a New MM2 Force-Field for Carbenium Ions to Solvolysis Rates of Secondary p-Toluenesulfonates

An empirical force-field for carbenium ions has been incorporated in Allinger's MM2 programme. Structural parameters of secondary carbenium ions calculated by this method are compared with those obtained with Schleyer's BIGSTRN calculations. The strain changes occurring upon solvolysis of secondary p-toluenesulfonates are evaluated by means of this force-field and correlated with the rate constants for solvolysis. The equation for correlation of acetolysis, relative to cyclohexyl p-toluenesulfonate, of 28 k_c substrates is ΔG = 0.67 ΔE_st - 0.20 (r = 0.958).     

The Photochemical Synthesis and Denitrogenation of 8,9-diazadibenzo[c,e]isobullvalene

Starting from dibenzo[a, c]cyclooctene (4) and 4-methyl-3H-1,2,4-triazol-3,5(4H)-dione (MTAD), the strained skeleton of the title azo compound 1 is assembled in a tandem photo-Diels-Alder addition/di-π-methane rearrangement sequence. The synthesis is completed by a stepwise hydrolytic oxidation of the ensuing triazolidine-dione 2 with nickel peroxide. Thermolysis of 1 in benzene solution is shown to be governed by an initial 1,3-dipolar cycloreversion which leads, via an intermediate diazo compound 11 , to cyclobuta[1]phenanthrene 8 and two further carbene-derived C₁₆H₁₂ products. Photolysis of 1 at 350 nm leads in modest yield (12%), via a diazenyl diradical, to an unstable bridged bicyclobutane 10 (dibenzooctavalene). MNDO calculations suggest the latter to have a rapidly inverting, twisted structure of C₂ symmetry.     

Fluorine core esca linewidths in CH3F and CF4

Ab initio calculations within the Hartree-Fock formation have been carried out on potential energy surfaces of the ground and the F_1s hole states of CH₃F and CF₄ in order to investigate linewidths of their ESCA spectra. The calculations show that potential energy surfaces of both hole states have dissociative character and can be approximated by straight lines in the region of interest. A simple formula for the ESCA fwhm linewidth is derived which yields results in good agreement with experiment. Theoretically derived relaxation and Koopmans' energies have been investigated as a function of geometry.