Simultaneous separation of common mono- and divalent cations on a zirconium-modified silica gel column by ion chromatography with non-suppressed conductimetric detection and tartaric acid–15-crown-5 as eluent

The application of laboratory-made zirconium-modified silica gels (Zr-silicas) as cation-exchange stationary phases to ion chromatography with conductimetric detection (IC–CD) for common mono- and divalent cations (Li⁺, Na⁺, NH₄⁺, K⁺, Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺) was carried out. Zr-silicas were prepared by the reaction of the silanol group on the surface of silica gel with zirconium tetrabutoxide (Zr(OCH₂CH₂CH₂CH₃)₄) in ethanol. Zr-silica adsorbed on 10 mg zirconium g⁻¹ silica gel was a suitable cation-exchange stationary phase in IC–CD for the separation of these mono- and divalent cations. Excellent simultaneous separation and highly sensitive detection for these cations were achieved in 10 min by IC–CD using a Zr-silica column (150×4.6 mm I.D.) and 10 mM tartaric acid containing 10 mM 15-crown-5 (1,4,7,10,13-pentaoxacyclopentadecane) as the eluent. The proposed IC–CD method was successfully applied to the determination of major mono- and divalent cations in natural water samples.     

Physicochemical and electrochemical hydriding–dehydriding characteristics of amorphous MgNi x (x=1.0, 1.5, 2.0) alloys prepared by mechanical alloying

 Physicochemical and electrochemical hydriding-dehydriding characteristics of amorphous MgNi _x (x=1.0, 1.5, 2.0) alloys prepared by mechanical alloying have been investigated. It was found that the increase of Ni content in the alloys resulted in greatly enhanced kinetics for both absorption and desorption of hydrogen, while the saturation capacity showed the reverse tendency. Charge–discharge tests showed that the increase in Ni content lead to a significant enhancement in cycle performance of MgNi _x alloy electrodes. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic and X-ray excited Auger electron spectroscopic investigations indicated the existence of a significantly thicker Ni-enriched layer for the MgNi_1.5 and MgNi_2.0 alloys than for the MgNi alloy. These results reveal that excess of Ni in MgNi _x alloys may improve the cycle performance of alloy electrodes by suppressing the segregation of Mg during electrochemical cycling, and the Ni in the topmost surface layer is mainly responsible for the improvement in the kinetics of hydrogen absorption. Received: 28 August 1999 / Accepted: 23 November 1999     

Observation of rat hind limb skeletal muscle during arterial occlusion and reperfusion by 31P MRS and 1H MRI

31P NMR spectra and 1H MR T1- and T2-weighted spin-echo images were concurrently observed in rat hind limb during arterial occlusion and following reperfusion. With arterial occlusion, phosphocreatine level decreased and inorganic phosphate (Pi) level increased in 31P NMR spectra. Intracellular pH's dropped as a function of time. Beta-ATP started to decrease in three hours. In six hours after the occlusion, any peaks other than Pi were scarcely detected. The signal intensities in the 1H MR images increased homogeneously in both T1- and T2-weighted conditions, but the changes were more profound with T2-weighted images. After the release of the arterial occlusion, the 31P NMR spectra recovered to the preischemic state in several hours. The 1H MR images during reperfusion showed characteristic heterogenous pattern. The signal intensities in the anterior tibial muscle and the gastrocnemius muscle remained high in T1-weighted condition and the intensities further increased in T2-weighted condition, while those in other parts returned to the preischemic level. These changes were found to be irreversible even 12 hr after the release. The high signal intensities suggested the increase of water in the extracellular compartment induced by so-called reperfusion injury. Multinuclear analysis using in vivo NMR was valuable to consecutively detect time-dependent and location-specific response in skeletal muscle during ischemia and reperfusion.     

Stereoselective synthesis of β-fluoroallyl alcohols

β-Fluoroallyl alcohols ($\text{6}$) were obtained with high stereoselectivity by the LiA1H₄ reduction of 1-acetoxy-3-alkyl-2,2-difluorocyclopropanes ($\text{5}$).     

双奇核中πi_(13/2)νi_(13/2)2-准粒子转动带旋称反转研究

利用重离子熔合蒸发反应和在束γ谱学实验方法研究了双奇核176,178Ir和182 Au的高自旋态结构 ,在这 3个双奇核中观测到了基于πi13 2 νi13 2 准粒子组态下的转动带 .以能级间隔系统学为判据 ,对184Au核中πi13 2 νi13 2 转动带能级自旋进行了指定 .指出176,178Ir和182 ,184Au 4个双奇核的πi13 2 νi13 2 转动带在低自旋区均出现旋称反转 .对πi13 2 νi13 2 转动带旋称反转现象进行了定性的讨论 .用推转壳模型对πh9 2 νi13 2 带和πi13 2 νi13 2 带能级结构进行了理论研究 ,发现当采用形变和对力自洽计算后 ,从理论上可以定性地解释两个半退耦带出现的旋称反转现象     

Cloning and characterization of the gene cluster encoding arthrofactin synthetase from Pseudomonas sp. MIS38

Arthrofactin is a potent cyclic lipopeptide-type biosurfactant produced by Pseudomonas sp. MIS38. In this work, an arthrofactin synthetase gene cluster (arf) spanning 38.7 kb was cloned and characterized. Three genes termed arfA, arfB, and arfC encode ArfA, ArfB, and ArfC, containing two, four, and five functional modules, respectively. Each module bears condensation, adenylation, and thiolation domains, like other nonribosomal peptide synthetases. However, unlike most of them, none of the 11 modules possess the epimerization domain responsible for the conversion of amino acid residues from L to D form. Possible L- and D-Leu adenylation domains specifically recognized only L-Leu. Moreover, two thioesterase domains are tandemly located at the C-terminal end of ArfC. These results suggest that ArfA, ArfB, and ArfC assemble to form a unique structure. Gene disruption of arfB impaired arthrofactin production, reduced swarming activity, and enhanced biofilm formation.     

Pharmacological activities of synthetic human cholecystokinin-33 of which tyrosine was sulfated by arylsulfotransferase

The pharmacological activities of synthetic human CCK-33, in which a tyrosine molecule was sulfated by arylsulfotransferase, were investigated in the rat and the guinea-pig. The activities were compared with those of non-sulfated CCK-33 (CCK-33NS), CCK-8 and CCK-4. CCK-33 was about 100 fold more potent than non-sulfated CCK-33(CCK-33NS) but was about 20 fold less potent than CCK-8 in the contraction of the isolated gallbladder of the guinea-pig. In rat pancreatic secretion, intravenous CCK-33 and CCK-8 showed almost the same activity. The potency of each was about 1000 fold more than the individual potency of CCK-33NS, non-sulfated CCK-8 (CCK-8NS) and CCK4. There were no significant differences in gastric acid stimulatory activities among CCK-33, CCK-8, CCK-4, but the activities of CCK-33NS and CCK-8NS were less than those of CCK-33 and CCK-8, respectively. CCK-33 and CCK-8 produced a reduction in the intake of powder chow in doses of 10(-8) and 3 x 10(-8) mol/kg i.p., but CCK-33NS, CCK-8NS and CCK-4 did not. In conclusion, the activities of synthetic human CCK-33 are almost the same as those of CCK-8 on exocrine pancreatic secretion, gastric acid secretion and food intake, but less than CCK-8 on isolated gallbladder contraction.     

Biochemical, molecular genetic, and structural analyses of the staphylococcal nucleoid.

The nucleoid structure of an important human pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus, was dissected by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The nucleoids dispersed on a cover glass consisted of fibrous units with two different widths of 40 and 80 nm, a feature shared with those of Escherichia coli. On the other hand, cells exposed to an oxidative stress exhibited clogged nucleoids. A knock-out of mrgA (metallo regulated genes A) encoding a staphylococcal homolog of the nucleoid compaction factor (E. coli Dps) eliminated the compaction response to the oxidative stress and reduced the susceptibilities to H2O2 and UV irradiation. We also observed that the negative supercoiling of plasmids is increased by the oxidative stress. A possible interrelation between the helical density and the nucleoid compaction is discussed in relation to the oxidative stress response.