Determination of blood glucose parameter from human blood serum by using a quartz crystal microbalance sensor coated with phthalocyanines compounds

Determining the blood glucose level is important for the prevention and treatment of diabetes mellitus. We developed a sensor system using Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) to determine the blood glucose level from human blood serum. This study consists of two experimental stages: artificial glucose/pure water solution tests and human blood serum tests. In the first stage of the study, the QCM sensor with the highest performance was identified using artificial glucose solution concentrations. In the second stage of the study, human blood serum measurements were performed using QCM to determine blood glucose levels. QCM sensors were coated with phthalocyanines (Pcs) by jet spray method. The blood glucose values of 96 volunteers, which ranged from 71 mg/dL to 329 mg/dL, were recorded. As a result of the study, human glucose values were determined with an average error of 3.25%.     

Variations of Plasma Parameters and Sheath Thickness Due to the Extraction of Ion and Electron Flux in a Double Plasma Device

Influence of charged particle extraction on plasma parameters and on ion sheath has been investigated in a double plasma device. When ions are extracted from the plasma, the plasma density as well as the positive ion flux into the sheath increases. As a result a sheath contraction takes place. Again, in case of electron extraction, it is found that the plasma density as well as the positive ion flux into the sheath decreases. As a result a sheath expansion takes place. Furthermore, it is observed that the floating potential of a plate can be controlled by extracting charged particles from the plasma. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A facile noncatalytic pathway for the nitrene transfer process: expeditious access to aziridines

A fast and efficient method has been developed for generation of sulfonyl nitrene from N,N-dibromo-p-toluenesulfonamide (TsNBr(2)) in the presence of a base without any catalyst. This method was applied to produce aziridines from different kinds of olefins within a short time in high yields.     

Why vanadium complexes perform poorly in comparison to related molybdenum complexes in the catalytic reduction of dinitrogen to ammonia (Schrock cycle): a theoretical study

Energetics and mechanistic details for the conversion of dinitrogen to ammonia mediated by vanadium triamidoamine has been studied theoretically involving various mechanistic possibilities. For most of the cases, protonation at the amido nitrogen atom is more favorable compared to the terminal one. Further, the most important steps of the mechanism were compared with the well established chemistry of nitrogen fixation mediated by molybdenum. Such a comparison helps in understanding why vanadium triamidoamine complex performs poorly compared to molybdenum. The main factors responsible for the poor performance of the vanadium complex toward NH(3) production are identified as low exergonic cleavage of the N-N bond and limitation of the ligand exchange step via a dissociative mechanism at the end of the cycle to only one possible pathway. A major aspect of the failure of the vanadium complex to mediate the reduction of N(2) to ammonia is the fact that the protonation steps involve major barriers, which cannot be surmounted thermally. Moreover, unlike molybdenum, the associative mechanism with vanadium triamidoamine complex is not likely to operate during the NH(3)/N(2) exchange step.     

Catalytic effect of molecular iodine in Diels–Alder reaction: a density functional theory study

We explore here the feasibility of employing molecular iodine as Lewis acid catalyst for Diels–Alder (DA) reaction using conceptual density functional theory (DFT) based reactivity indices and transition state analysis at the DFT (B3LYP)/6-31G(d) level of theory. Catalytic effect of iodine is probed using reactivity indices considering six different substituents for the diene at the 2-position and five different substituents at the 1-position of the olefinic dienophile. Comparison of HOMO diene–LUMO dienophile gap between the catalyzed and uncatalyzed processes confirms catalytic effect of iodine in DA reaction. Mechanistic details of both the uncatalyzed and the iodine catalyzed processes is achieved through transition state analysis for four possible stereoisomeric reactive channels with respect to isoprene–acrolein model reaction. A significant cutback in activation barrier is observed in presence of iodine. Influence of iodine on regioselectivity of the reaction and asynchronicity of bond formation is analyzed using local version of the HSAB principle and philicity index.     

Probing the Potential of Hitherto Unexplored Base-Stabilized Borylenes in Dinitrogen Binding

Computational investigations were carried out to probe the potential of several dicoordinate, singly base-stabilized borylenes of the form [L→BR] (L=neutral Lewis base) in dinitrogen binding. The calculated reaction free energies and activation barriers associated with the formation of mono- and diborylene-N₂ adducts suggest the presence of thermally surmountable kinetic barriers towards their possible isolation. Our results show that the exergonicity of dinitrogen activation and fixation is linearly dependent on the natural charge at the boron center, which can be tuned to design novel boron-based compounds with potential applications to small-molecule activation. EDA-NOCV analysis reveals strong binding of dinitrogen to these base-stabilized borylenes.     

Synthesis of unit-B of cryptophycin-24 via Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation

A synthetic pathway for the synthesis of unit-B of cryptophycin-24 has been developed using Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation as the key step. This study shows that direct azidation of α-hydroxy acid ester using diphenylphosphoryl azide is beneficial to asymmetric synthesis of α-amino acid without the loss of chirality during the transformation.     

A qualocation method for parabolic partial differential equations

In this paper a qualocation method is analysed for parabolicpartial differential equations in one space dimension. Thismethod may be described as a discrete H¹-Galerkin method inwhich the discretization is achieved by approximating the integralsby a composite Gauss quadrature rule. An O (h^4-i) rate of convergencein the W^i.p norm for i = 0, 1 and 1 p is derived for a semidiscretescheme without any quasi-uniformity assumption on the finiteelement mesh. Further, an optimal error estimate in the H² normis also proved. Finally, the linearized backward Euler methodand extrapolated Crank-Nicolson scheme are examined and analysed.     

Sensitive determination of hydrazine using poly(phenolphthalein), Au nanoparticles and multiwalled carbon nanotubes modified glassy carbon electrode

This study reports a detailed analysis of an electrode material containing poly(phenolphthalein), carbon nanotubes and gold nanoparticles which shows superior catalytic effect towards to hydrazine oxidation in Britton–Robinson buffer (pH 10.0). Glassy carbon electrode was modified by electropolymerization of phenolphthalein (PP) monomer (poly(PP)/GCE) and the multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) was dropped on the surface. This modified surface was electrodeposited with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs/CNT/poly(PP)/GCE). The fabricated electrode was analysed the determination of hydrazine using cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry and amperometry. The peak potential of hydrazine oxidation on bare GCE, poly(PP)/GCE, CNT/GCE, CNT/poly(PP)/GCE, and AuNPs/CNT/poly(PP)/GCE were observed at 596 mV, 342 mV, 320 mV, 313 mV, and 27 mV, respectively. A shift in the overpotential to more negative direction and an enhancement in the peak current indicated that the AuNPs/CNT/poly(PP)/GC electrode presented an efficient electrocatalytic activity toward oxidation of hydrazine. Modified electrodes were characterized with High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Amperometric current responses in the low hydrazine concentration range of 0.25–13 µM at the AuNPs/CNT/poly(PP)/GCE. The limit of detection (LOD) value was obtained to be 0.083 µM. A modified electrode was applied to naturel samples for hydrazine determination.