May GSH and L-His contribute to intracellular binding of zinc? Thermodynamic and solution structural study of a ternary complex

GSH and L-His are abundant biomolecules and likely biological ligands for Zn(II) under certain conditions. Potentiometric titrations provide evidence of formation of ternary Zn(II) complexes with GSH and L-His or D-His with slight stereoselectivity in favour of L-His (ca. 1 log unit of stability constant). The solution structure of the ZnH(GSH)(L-His)(H2O) complex at pH 6.8, determined by NMR, includes tridentate L-His, monodentate (sulfur) GSH, and weak interligand interactions. Calculations of competitivity of this complex for Zn(II) binding at pH 7.4 indicate that it is likely to be formed in vivo under conditions of GSH depletion. Otherwise, GSH alone emerges as a likely Zn(II) carrier.     

Simultaneous Hydrogen Generation and Exciplex Stimulated Emission in Photobasic Carbon Dots

Photocatalytic water splitting is a promising approach to generating sustainable hydrogen. However, the transport of photoelectrons to the catalyst sites, usually within ps-to-ns timescales, is much faster than proton delivery (∼μs), which limits the activity. Therefore, the acceleration of abstraction of protons from water molecules towards the catalytic sites to keep up with the electron transfer rate can significantly promote hydrogen production. The photobasic effect that is the increase in proton affinity upon excitation offers means to achieve this objective. Herein, we design photobasic carbon dots and identify that internal pyridinic N sites are intrinsically photobasic. This is supported by steady-state and ultrafast spectroscopic measurements that demonstrate proton abstraction within a few picoseconds of excitation. Furthermore, we show that in water, they form a unique four-level lasing scheme with optical gain and stimulated emission. The latter competes with photocatalysis, revealing a rather unique mechanism for efficiency loss, such that the stimulated emission can act as a toggle for photocatalytic activity. This provides additional means of controlling the photocatalytic process and helps the rational design of photocatalytic materials.     

In Situ Spectroscopic Detection of Large-Scale Reorientations of Transmembrane Helices During Influenza A M2 Channel Opening**

Viroporins are small ion channels in membranes of enveloped viruses that play key roles during viral life cycles. To use viroporins as drug targets against viral infection requires in-depth mechanistic understanding and, with that, methods that enable investigations under in situ conditions. Here, we apply surface-enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA) spectroscopy to Influenza A M2 reconstituted within a solid-supported membrane, to shed light on the mechanics of its viroporin function. M2 is a paradigm of pH-activated proton channels and controls the proton flux into the viral interior during viral infection. We use SEIRA to track the large-scale reorientation of M2’s transmembrane α-helices in situ during pH-activated channel opening. We quantify this event as a helical tilt from 26° to 40° by correlating the experimental results with solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance-informed computational spectroscopy. This mechanical motion is impeded upon addition of the inhibitor rimantadine, giving a direct spectroscopic marker to test antiviral activity. The presented approach provides a spectroscopic tool to quantify large-scale structural changes and to track the function and inhibition of the growing number of viroporins from pathogenic viruses in future studies.     

Spectroscopic and theoretical investigation of molecular complexes of 2,4,6-trinitropyridine-1-oxide with some pyridine derivatives

Summary Stability constants and enthalpies of formation were determined forEDA complexes of 2,4,6-trinitropyridine-1-oxide (TNPO) with some pyridine bases. Energies of transition,hv _CT , calculated by the SCF MO CI-1 PPP method fit well the corresponding experimental data. Based on these results, geometries for the systems under study are proposed.

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Spektroskopische und theoretische Untersuchung von molekularen Komplexen des 2,4,6-Trinitropyridin-1-oxids mit einigen Pyridinderivaten

Zusammenfassung Es wurden Stabilitätskonstanten und Bildungsenthalpiewerte einigerEDA-Komplexe von 2,4,6-Trinitropyridin-1-oxid mit ausgewählten Pyridinbasen bestimmt. Dabei wurde eine gute Übereinstimnmung zwischen den Anregungsenergienhv _CT aus den UV-VIS-Spektren und den mit der SCF-MO-CI-1 PPP-Methode errechneten Werten gefunden. Es werden für die untersuchten Komplexe entsprechende Strukturen vorgeschlagen.

     

纳米晶枝CuAu合金催化剂对二氧化碳电催化还原性能的研究

利用可再生清洁能源将CO2转化为CO和其他小分子是合成含碳燃料的可观方法之一.间歇性可再生能源存储的重要策略之一是将二氧化碳进行电化学还原.选择具有高活性和稳定性的电催化剂对于电化学还原CO2至关重要.在这项研究中,我们使用简单的电沉积方法合成了具有纳米晶枝状结构的CuAu合金电极.各项表征显示原子比约为1∶1的CuA...     

Delamination of sodium montmorillonite in PA6 in the presence of melamine polyphosphate

This study describes the influence of melamine polyphosphate (MPP) flame retardant addition on layered structure of virgin sodium montmorillonite (MMT) in PA6/MMT system obtained in extrusion process. It was found that the extrusion of the PA6/MMT binary system in co‐rotating twin screw extruder gives intercalated clay nanocomposites, while during extrusion of ternary PA6/MMT/MPP composite, full exfoliation of clay was obtained in the system. Structure of the composites was proved utilizing wide angle X‐ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Exfoliation of MMT in ternary PA6/MMT/MPP system was also confirmed by rheological studies (viscosity and creep measurements) which were carried out using rotational rheometer. Young's modulus of PA6/MMT/MPP was found to be ~25% greater comparing to PA6/MPP of the same filling level. Cone calorimetry experiments proved decrease of heat release rate peak of PA6/MMT/MPP by ~55% comparing to PA6/MPP with the same total filling level. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of crown-ether surfactants on flame atomic absorption and flame emission signals of some monovalent cations

Two surface-active and one surface-inactive 18-crown-6 derivatives were synthesized and evaluated for their abilities to enhance flame atomic absorption and flame emission signals of monovalent cations. Enhancement of potassium signals were noted for the surface-active compounds but not for the surface-inactive compound. The critical micelle concentration was determined and compared to the degree of enhancement. Surfactant-induced signal enhancements are not due to the slight or moderate decrease in the size of the aerosol first produced in the nebulizing chamber. Additional mechanistic considerations are discussed.     

Stoffwechselprodukte von Mikroorganismen. 237. Mitteilung. (2S, 3R, 4R, 6R)-2,3,4-Trihydroxy-6-methylcyclohexanon aus zwei Actinomyceten-Stämmen

(2S, 3R, 4R, 6R)-2,3,4-Trihydroxy-6-methylcyclohexanone from Two Strains of Actinomycetes A tetrazolium-blue positive compound was isolated from two strains of acinomycetes. Its constitution and relative configuration 1 were determined by spectroscopic methods, and the absolute configuration by degradation to (+)-(R)-methylsuccinic acid.