Homolytic reactions of polyfluoroaromatic compounds Part VIII. The decomposition of benzoyl peroxide in hexafluorobenzene

The decomposition of benzoyl peroxide in hexafluorobenzene proceeds by a spontaneous first-order process accompanied by an induced decomposition showing 1.5-order dependence upon the concentration of the peroxide. The induced decomposition is associated with the formation of 2,2′,3,4,5,6-hexafluorobiphenyl and benzoic acid. 2,3,4,5,6-Pentafluorobiphenyl is the main product at all concentrations of peroxide; small amounts of other compounds are formed, together with a high-boiling residue probably containing isomeric dodecafluorotetrahydroquaterphenyls. The mechanism is discussed.     

Validation of three rapid screening methods for detection of verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli in foods: interlaboratory study

An interlaboratory study was conducted for the validation of 3 methods for the detection of all verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) in foods. The methods were a multi-analyte 1-step lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for detection of E. coli O157 and verotoxin (VT); an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay targeted against VT1, VT2, and VT2c (VT-ELISA); and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method for detection of VT genes (VT-PCR). Aliquots (25 g or 25 mL) of 4 food types (raw minced [ground] beef, unpasteurized milk, unpasteurized apple juice [cider], and salami) were individually inoculated with low numbers (<9 to 375 cells/25 g) of 6 test strains of E. coli (serogroups O26, O103, O111, O145, and O157) with differing VT-producing capabilities. Five replicates for each test strain and 5 uninoculated samples were prepared for each food type. Fourteen participating laboratories analyzed samples using the LFIA, 9 analyzed the samples by ELISA, and 9 by PCR. The LFIA for O157 and VT had a specificity (correct identification of negative samples) of 92 and 94%, respectively, and a sensitivity (correct identification of positive samples) of 94 and 55%, respectively. The VT-ELISA and VT-PCR had a specificity of 98 and 99%, respectively, and a sensitivity of 89 and 72%, respectively.     

EFFECT OF PHOTOCROSSLINKING ON ESCHERICHIA COLI tRNA STRUCTURE

Abstract— The effect of photocrosslinking s ⁴ U ₈ with C ₁₃ on the structure of E. coli tRNA has been examined by high resolution NMR. Photocrosslinking affects both the structure and the enzymatic acylation of tRNA. The NMR measurements demonstrate that except for the s ⁴ U ₈.A₁₄ base pair, there is no evidence that photocrosslinking perturbs any of the common tertiary structure interactions. However, this modification does perturb several resonances which are assigned to the secondary structure base pairs of the hU stem and the terminal base pair of the acceptor stem. The variable effect of photocrosslinking on the extent and rate of enzymatic acylation of different tRNA is attributed to different recognition sites for tRNA by the cognate synthetases.     

Higher Singularities and the Twistor Fibration π: CP3 → S4

We use the Klein correspondences to write down an explicit relationship between two holomorphic curves, namely the directrix curve and the twistor lift, associated to a superminimal map from a Riemann surface to the 4-sphere. We also explain how the singularities of the corresponding osculating curves are related and show that they occur at the branch points or the umbilics of the corresponding superminimal map.