Forward and reverse product decompositions of depolarizing Mueller matrices

Because of the noncommutativity of the matrix product, the three factors into which a depolarizing Mueller matrix is decomposed, i.e., the diattenuator, the retarder, and the depolarizer, form six possible products grouped into two families, as already pointed out [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A13, 1106 (1996); Opt. Lett.29, 2234 (2004)]. We show that, apart from the generalized polar decomposition generating the first family of products, there exists a dual decomposition belonging to the second family. The mathematical procedure for this dual decomposition is given, and the symmetry existing between the two decompositions is pointed out. The choice of the most appropriate decomposition for a given practical optical arrangement is likewise discussed and illustrated by simple examples.     

Dissymmetry effects on the laser spectroscopy of supersonically expanded rare gas/chiral arene heteroclusters

The R2PI-TOF spectra of supersonically expanded rare gas/chiral arene heteroclusters have been rationalized in terms of the distortion of the pi-electron density reflecting the different dipole and quadrupole momenta induced in the rare gas atoms by interaction with the opposite pi-faces of the chiral arene itself.     

Thiophene based europium β-diketonate complexes: effect of the ligand structure on the emission quantum yield

The synthesis and the molecular and photophysical characterization, together with solid state and solution structure analysis, of a series of europium complexes based on β-diketonate ligands are reported. The Eu(III) complex emission, specifically its photoluminescence quantum yield (PL-QY), can be tuned by changing ligands which finely modifies the environment of the metal ion. Steady-state and time-resolved emission spectroscopy and overall PL-QY measurements are reported and related to geometrical features observed in crystal structures of some selected compounds. Moreover, paramagnetic NMR, based on the analogous complexes with other lanthanides, are use to demonstrate that there is a significant structural reorganization upon dissolution, which justifies the observed differences in the emission properties between solid and solution states. The energy of the triplet levels of the ligands and the occurrence of nonradiative deactivation processes clearly account for the luminescence efficiencies of the complexes in the series.     

Application of 3 μm particle-based amylose-derived chiral stationary phases for the enantioseparation of potential histone deacetylase inhibitors

In this work, we report on the difference in performance of the two 3 μm particle-based Chiralpak IA-3 and Chiralpak AD-3 chiral stationary phases (CSPs) in the direct resolution of four racemic cinnamyl 2-aminoanilides, endowed with histone deacetylase inhibitory activity. The 3 μm CSPs were explored to determine if they could provide an effective resolution of enantiomers in presence of alcoholic eluents such as pure methanol, ethanol and 2-propanol. Temperature variable enantioselective HPLC and subsequent van't Hoff analysis were performed. In most of cases the van't Hoff plots were found to show a non-linear behaviour. The knowledge of the enantiomeric elution order associated with the data coming from enantioselective HPLC permitted to advance some hypothesis about the groups involved in chiral recognition mechanism.     

Synthesis, crystal structures and magnetic properties of dinuclear copper(II) compounds with NNO tridentate Schiff base ligands and bridging aliphatic diamine and aromatic diimine linkers

The synthesis and the characterization of new dinuclear copper(II) compounds of general formula [(L(a-d))(2)Cu(2)(μ-N-N)](ClO(4))(2) (1-6) with either neutral aliphatic diamine (N-N = piperazine, pip) or aromatic diimine (N-N = 4,4'-bipyridine, 4,4'-bipy) linker are reported. The copper ligands L(-) (L(a-) = (E)-2-((2-aminoethylimino)methyl)phenolate, L(b-) = (E)-2-((2-aminopropylimino)methyl)-phenolate, L(c-) = (E)-2-((2-aminoethylimino)methyl)4-nitrophenolate, L(d-) = (E)-2-((2-aminoethylimino)methyl)4-methoxyphenolate) are NNO tridentate Schiff bases derived from the monocondensation of a substituted salicylaldehyde 5-G-salH (G = NO(2), H, OMe) with ethylenediamine, en, or 1,3-propylenediamine, tn. The crystal structures of compounds [(L(a))(2)Cu(2)(MeOH)(2)(μ-4,4'-bipy)](ClO(4))(2) (1·2MeOH), [(L(b))(2)Cu(2)(MeOH)(2)(μ-4,4'-bipy)](ClO(4))(2) (2·2MeOH), [(L(d))(2)Cu(2)(μ-4,4'-bipy)](ClO(4))(2) (4), [(L(a))(2)Cu(2)(μ-pip)](ClO(4))(2) (5) and [(L(b))(2)Cu(2)(μ-pip)](ClO(4))(2) (6) have been determined, revealing the preferred (e-e)-chair conformation of the bridging piperazine in compounds 5 and 6. The presence of hydrogen-bond-mediated intermolecular interactions, that involve the methanol molecules, yields dimers of dinuclear units for 1·2MeOH, and infinite zig-zag chains for 2·2MeOH. The temperature dependences of the magnetic susceptibilities χ(M)(T) for all compounds were measured, indicating the presence of antiferromagnetic Cu-Cu exchange. For the compounds 2-4 with 4,4'-bipy, the coupling constants J are around -1 cm(-1), while in compound 1 no interaction could be detected. The compounds 5 and 6 with piperazine display higher Cu-Cu magnetic interactions through the σ-bonding backbone of the bridging molecule, with J around -8 cm(-1), and the coupling is favoured by the (e-e)-chair conformation of the diamine ring. The non-aromatic, but shorter, linker piperazine gives rise to stronger Cu-Cu antiferromagnetic couplings than the aromatic, but longer, 4,4'-bipyridine. In the latter case, the rotation along the C-C bond between the two pyridyl rings and the consequent non co-planarity of the two copper coordination planes play an important role in determining the magnetic communication. EPR studies reveal that the dinuclear species are not stable in solution, yielding the solvated [(L)Cu(MeOH)](+) and the mononuclear [(L)Cu(N-N)](+) species; it appears that the limited solubility of the dinuclear compounds is responsible for their isolation in the solid state.     

Engineered cells as biosensing systems in biomedical analysis

Over the past two decades there have been great advances in biotechnology, including use of nucleic acids, proteins, and whole cells to develop a variety of molecular analytical tools for diagnostic, screening, and pharmaceutical applications. Through manipulation of bacterial plasmids and genomes, bacterial whole-cell sensing systems have been engineered that can serve as novel methods for analyte detection and characterization, and as more efficient and cost-effective alternatives to traditional analytical techniques. Bacterial cell-based sensing systems are typically sensitive, specific and selective, rapid, easy to use, low-cost, and amenable to multiplexing, high-throughput, and miniaturization for incorporation into portable devices. This critical review is intended to provide an overview of available bacterial whole-cell sensing systems for assessment of a variety of clinically relevant analytes. Specifically, we examine whole-cell sensing systems for detection of bacterial quorum sensing molecules, organic and inorganic toxic compounds, and drugs, and for screening of antibacterial compounds for identification of their mechanisms of action. Methods used in the design and development of whole-cell sensing systems are also reviewed.     

Histone deacetylase inhibitors: structure-based modeling and isoform-selectivity prediction

An enhanced version of comparative binding energy (COMBINE) analysis, named COMBINEr, based on both ligand-based and structure-based alignments has been used to build several 3-D QSAR models for the eleven human zinc-based histone deacetylases (HDACs). When faced with an abundance of data from diverse structure-activity sources, choosing the best paradigm for an integrative analysis is difficult. A common example from studies on enzyme-inhibitors is the abundance of crystal structures characterized by diverse ligands complexed with different enzyme isoforms. A novel comprehensive tool for data mining on such inhomogeneous set of structure-activity data was developed based on the original approach of Ortiz, Gago, and Wade, and applied to predict HDAC inhibitors' isoform selectivity. The COMBINEr approach (apart from the AMBER programs) has been developed to use only software freely available to academics.     

Parity doubling and SU(2)LxSU(2)R restoration in the hadron spectrum

We construct the most general nonlinear representation of chiral SU(2)LxSU(2)R broken down spontaneously to the isospin SU(2), on a pair of hadrons of same spin and isospin and opposite parity. We show that any such representation is equivalent, through a hadron field transformation, to two irreducible representations on two hadrons of opposite parity with different masses and axial-vector couplings. This implies that chiral symmetry realized in the Nambu-Goldstone mode does not predict the existence of degenerate multiplets of hadrons of opposite parity nor any relations between their couplings or masses.     

Asymmetric AZA-BODIPY with Optical Gain in the Near-Infrared Region

In recent years, there has been a lot of interest in the development of organic compounds emitting in the near-infrared (NIR) region due to their stimulating applications, such as biosensing and light detection and ranging (LiDAR). Moreover, a lot of effort has been devoted to finding organic emitters with optical gain in the NIR region for lasing applications. In this paper, we present the ultrafast spectroscopy of an asymmetric AZA-BODIPY molecule that shows relevant photophysical changes moving from a diluted solution to a concentrated solution and to a spin-coated film. The diluted solution and the spin-coated film show a bleaching band and a stimulated emission band in the visible region, while the very concentrated solution displays a broad (150 nm) and long-living (more than 400 ps) optical gain band in the NIR region, centered at 900 nm. Our results pave the way for a new organic laser system in a near-infrared spectral region.     

Interaction of H2@C60 and Nitroxide through Conformationally Constrained Peptide Bridges

We synthesized two molecular systems, in which an endofullerene C₆₀, incarcerating one hydrogen molecule (H₂@C₆₀) and a nitroxide radical are connected by a folded 3₁₀‐helical peptide. The difference between the two molecules is the direction of the peptide orientation. The nuclear spin relaxation rates and the para → ortho conversion rate of the incarcerated hydrogen molecule were determined by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The experimental results were analyzed using DFT‐optimized molecular models. The relaxation rates and the conversion rates of the two peptides fall in the expected distance range. One of the two peptides is particularly rigid and thus ideal to keep the H₂@C₆₀/nitroxide separation, r, as large and controlled as possible, which results in particularly low relaxation and conversion rates. Despite the very similar optimized distance, however, the rates measured with the other peptide are considerably higher and thus are compatible with a shorter effective distance. The results strengthen the outcome of previous investigations that while the para → ortho conversion rates satisfactorily obey the Wigner's theory, the nuclear spin relaxation rates are in excellent agreement with the Solomon–Bloembergen equation predicting a 1/r⁶ dependence.