Thermophysical properties of dimethyl sulfoxide + cyclic and linear ethers at 308.15 K: Application of an extended cell model

Excess molar enthalpies and heat capacities of dimethyl sulfoxide + 1,4-dioxane, dimethyl sulfoxide + 1,3-dioxolane, dimethyl sulfoxide + tetrahydropyran, dimethyl sulfoxide + tetrahydrofuran, dimethyl sulfoxide + 1,2-dimethoxyethane, and dimethyl sulfoxide + 1,2-diethoxyethane have been measured at 308.15 K and at atmospheric pressure using an LKB micro-calorimeter and a Perkin-Elmer differential scanning calorimeter. Heat capacities of pure components were determined in the range (293.15 < T/K < 423.15). The results of excess molar enthalpies were fitted to the Redlich-Kister polynomial equation to derive the adjustable parameters and standard deviations, and were used to study the nature of the molecular interactions in the mixtures. Results of excess molar enthalpy were interpreted by an extended modified cell model.     

Thermal and kinetic study of dehydration and decomposition processes for copper intercalated γ-zirconium and γ-titanium phosphates

Thermal dehydration and decomposition processes of some intercalation compounds were studied by simultaneous TG/DSC and evolved gas analysis (EGA). γ-Zirconium and γ-titanium phosphates were intercalated with 1,10-phenanthroline and subsequently reacted with copper ions to form the complex in situ. Reaction mechanisms for thermal decomposition of all the materials were investigated and proposed according to the mass losses recorded by TG and confirmed by EGA (TG-FTIR). The Ozawa-Flynn-Wall isoconversional method provided dependencies of activation energy on the degree of conversion. A “single point” model-free method was also applied using Kissinger equation and the derived results were compared to those of the former method.     

Measurements of the Molar Heat Capacities and Excess Molar Heat Capacities for Acetonitrile + Diethylamine or sec-Butylamine Mixtures at Various Temperatures and Atmospheric Pressure

As a continuation of our studies of the excess functions of binary systems containing acetonitrile (1−x)–amines (x) mixtures, the molar heat capacity, Cp, and excess molar heat capacity, Cp ^E, of acetonitrile + diethylamine or sec-butylamine mixtures have been determined as a function of composition at 288.15, 293.15, 298.15 and 303.15 K at atmospheric pressure using a modified 1455 PARR solution calorimeter. The excess heat capacity data are positive for both systems over the whole composition range. The experimental data on the excess molar heat capacity are discussed in terms of the influence of the magnitude of the experimental excess molar enthalpy, H ^E, over the curve shaped for the experimental Cp ^E data, molecular interactions in the mixtures, isomeric effect of the amines and modeling of Cp ^E data.     

Arsenic‐Containing Phosphatidylcholines: A New Group of Arsenolipids Discovered in Herring Caviar

A new group of arsenolipids based on cell‐membrane phosphatidylcholines has been discovered in herring caviar (fish roe). A combination of HPLC with elemental and molecular mass spectrometry was used to identify five arsenic‐containing phosphatidylcholines; the same technique applied to salmon caviar identified an arsenic‐containing phosphatidylethanolamine. The arsenic group in these membrane lipids might impart particular properties to the molecules not displayed by their non‐arsenic analogues. Additionally, the new compounds have human health implications according to recent results showing high cytotoxicity for some arsenolipids.     

31P magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy of paramagnetic rare-earth-substituted Keggin and Wells-Dawson solids

Paramagnetic rare-earth elements have been examined as NMR structural probes in polyoxoanionic solids, which have a variety of applications as luminescent materials that are usually disordered and therefore intractable by traditional structural methods. Thirteen Keggin and Wells-Dawson polyoxotungstates containing substitutions with lanthanides of different effective magnetic moments have been examined by 31P magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy. The electron-nuclear dipolar interaction dominating the spinning sideband envelopes is determined by the lanthanide's magnetic moment and was found to be a sensitive probe of the nature of the polyoxoanion, of the positional isomerism, and of the ion stoichiometry. Electron-nuclear dipolar anisotropies computed based on the point-dipole approximation are generally in good agreement with the experimental results. The choice of a specific lanthanide as a structural probe can be tailored to the desired distance range between the phosphorus atoms and the paramagnetic centers to be probed. This approach is expected to be particularly useful in the paramagnetic polyoxoanionic materials lacking long-range order.     

Development of a new ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of digoxin and digitoxin in plasma: Comparison with a clinical immunoassay

Cardiac glycosides digoxin and digitoxin are used in therapy for the treatment of congestive heart failure. Moreover, these compounds can be responsible for intoxication cases caused by fortuitous ingestion of leaves of Digitalis. Due to the narrow therapeutic range of these drugs, therapeutic drug monitoring is recommended in the clinical practice. In this context, immunoassays-based methods are generally employed but digoxin- and digitoxin-like compounds can interfere with the analysis. The aim of this study was to develop and validate an original UPLC–MS/MS method for the determination of digoxin and digitoxin in plasma. The method shows adequate sensitivity and selectivity with acceptable matrix effects and very good linearity, accuracy, precision, and recovery. A simple liquid–liquid extraction procedure was used for sample clean-up. The method was applied for the analysis of n = 220 plasma samples collected in two different clinical chemistry laboratories and previously tested by the same immunoassay. The statistical comparison showed a relevant negative bias of the UPLC–MS/MS method versus the immunoassay. These results are consistent with an immunoassay overestimation of digoxin plasmatic levels due to cross-reaction events with endogenous digoxin-like substances.     

Molecular Recognition of Disaccharides in Water: Preorganized Macrocyclic or Adaptive Acyclic?

When facing the dilemma of following a preorganized or adaptive design approach in conceiving the architecture of new biomimetic receptors for carbohydrates, shape-persistent macrocyclic structures were most often chosen to achieve effective recognition of neutral saccharides in water. In contrast, acyclic architectures have seldom been explored, even though potentially simpler and more easily accessible. In this work, comparison of the binding properties of two structurally related diaminocarbazolic receptors, featuring a macrocyclic and an acyclic tweezer-shaped architecture, highlighted the advantages provided by the acyclic receptor in terms of selectivity in the recognition of 1,4-disaccharides of biological interest. Selective recognition of GlcNAc₂, the core fragment of N-glycans exposed on the surface of enveloped viruses, stands as an emblematic example. NMR spectroscopic data and molecular modeling calculations were used to ascertain the differences in binding mode and to shed light on the origin of recognition efficacy and selectivity.     

Determination of arsenic species: a critical review of methods and applications, 2000-2003

We review recent research in the field of arsenic speciation analysis with the emphasis on significant advances, novel applications and current uncertainties.