A new biochemical radiation dosimeter

Summary A bilirubin-chloroform solution was tested as a gamma-radiation dosimeter (SALPILL dosimeter) in the 0-100 Gy range, and at dose rates between 0.01 to 3.18 Gy ^. min^-1, which displayed certain advantages over the conventional Fricke, TLD and diode dosimeters when examined under identical experimental conditions. The principle of operation involved gamma-irradiation of micro-molar quantities of the unconjugated specimen with a ¹³⁷Cs source (662 keV gamma-rays), and measurement of the (degraded) bilirubin absorption at 453 nm. The relationship of bilirubin depletion and radiation dose was linear, which remained invariant with oxic and anoxic exposure, denoting excellent reproducibility under diverse experimental conditions. Further validation of performance was achieved by repeated in-air trials, which produced a reproducibility within ±2% (n = 5). Stringent comparative tests conducted against currently accepted gamma-radiation dosimeters favoured the SALPILL dosimeter in all the relevant areas. The merits of using chloroform as a solvent in place of water was considered. The SALPILL dosimeter has the following distinctive features: prolonged “shelf-life” (before and after irradiation), insensitive into oxygen, operational at relatively low dose rates, linear functionality at low doses (0-5 Gy), solvent stability, solute integrity, reliability, convenient and cost-effective. The drawbacks of SALPILL are minimal, which makes it a facile dosimeter for certain applications.     

Electrochemical DNA biosensor for the detection of TT and Hepatitis B virus from PCR amplified real samples by using methylene blue

DNA biosensors based on nucleic acid hybridization processes are rapidly being developed towards the goal of rapid and inexpensive diagnosis of genetic and infectious diseases. Electrochemical transducers are often being used for detecting the DNA hybridization event, due to their high sensitivity, small dimensions, low cost, and compatibility with microfabrication technology. In this study, an electrochemical biosensor for the voltammetric detection of DNA sequences related to the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and TT virus (TTV) from polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified real samples is described for the first time. The biosensor relies on the immobilization of the 21- or 24-mer single stranded oligonucleotides (probe) related to the HBV and TTV sequences and hybridization of these oligonucleotides with their complementary sequences (target) at carbon paste electrode (CPE). The extent of hybridization between the probe and target sequences was determined by using square wave voltammetry (SWV) with moving average baseline correction and methylene blue (MB) as the hybridization indicator. As a result of the interaction between MB and the bound guanine bases of hybrid at CPE surface, the MB signal decreased, when it was compared with the MB signal, which was observed with probe modified CPE. The difference between the MB signals, obtained from the hybrid modified and the probe modified CPE is used to detect the DNA sequences of the infectious diseases from PCR amplified real samples. Numerous factors affecting the target hybridization and indicator binding reactions are optimized to maximize the sensitivity.     

Existenz und Eindeutigkeit starker und klassischer Lösungen für inhomogene hyperbolische Differentialgleichungen im Hilbertraum

In dieser Arbeit befassen wir uns mit der inhomogenen Differentialgleichung:

$$\begin{aligned} u'(t)+A(t)u(t)+f(t)= & {} 0,\quad t\in (t_1,t_2)\\ u(t_1)= & {} \varphi \end{aligned}$$

im abstrakten Hilbertraum und weisen eindeutige starke Lösungen aus der Klasse der lipschitzstetigen Funktionen nach, falls f(t) von beschränkter Variation ist, sowie klassische Lösungen, falls f(t) zusätzlich stetig ist. Das bedeutet den Verzicht auf die bisher übliche Forderung der Lipschitzstetigkeit von f(t) für den direkten Nachweis der klassischen Lösbarkeit.

     

Experimental and theoretical study of some <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-pyridinium salt derivatives as corrosion inhibitors for mild-steel in acidic media

N-pyridinium salt derivatives (1–5) were prepared and investigated as corrosion inhibitors for mild steel in 1 M H₂SO₄ solution at 30°C for 24 h. The corrosion inhibiting action was studied using weight loss measurements. The results demonstrated that the corrosion rate decreases, inhibition efficiencies increase, and surface coverage degree increases with increasing inhibitor concentration. Inhibition efficiencies for prepared N-pyridinium salt derivatives have highest inhibiting efficiency for even low concentration. The values of ΔG_ads^° showed physisorption effect for all prepared compounds. Molecular modeling systems were achieved for suggested inhibitors 1–5. Theoretical calculations could be used as a useful tool to obtain information for explaining the mechanism and nature of interaction between the metal surface and the organic molecule as a corrosion inhibitor.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed stereoselective anti-Markovnikov-addition of thioamides to alkynes

A catalyst system generated in situ from bis(2-methallyl)-cycloocta-1,5-diene-ruthenium(II) and a phosphine was found to efficiently catalyze the addition of thioamides to terminal alkynes with exclusive formation of the anti-Markovnikov thioenamide products. The stereoselectivity of the addition is usually high and controlled by the choice of the phosphine ligand, whereas the (E)-isomers are predominantly formed in the presence of tri(n-octyl)phosphine, the use of bis(dicyclohexylphosphino)methane preferentially leads to the formation of the (Z)-configured thioenamides.     

Synthesis, characterization, and electrochemical, and electrical measurements of novel 4,4′-isopropylidendioxydiphenyl bridged bis and cofacial bis-metallophthalocyanines (Zn, Co)

4,4′-Isopropylidendioxydiphenyl bridged bis-metallophthalocyanines Zn(II) (5) and Co(II) (6) were synthesized from the compound 4,4′-isopropylidendioxydiphthalonitrile (3) and 4,5-bis(hexylthio)phthalonitrile (4). The new cofacial bis-phthalocyanines Zn(II) (7) and Co(II) (8) were synthesized from the corresponding 3 which can be obtained by the reaction of 4,4′-isopropylidendiphenol (1) with 4-nitrophthalonitrile (2). These complexes have been characterized by elemental analysis, UV/Vis, FT-IR, ¹H NMR and MALDI-TOF mass spectroscopies. The electrochemical properties of the complexes were examined by cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry and controlled potential coulometry in nonaqueous media. Electrochemical results showed that while there is not any considerable interaction between the two phthalocyanine rings in bisphthalocyanine complexes 5 and 6, the splitting of the molecular orbitals occurs as a result of the strong interaction between the phthalocyanine rings in cofacial complexes 7 and 8.

Measurements of capacitance showed a well defined decrease with increasing frequency and an increase with increasing temperature at lower frequencies.     

Ti (IV) attached‐phosphonic acid functionalized capillary monolith as a stationary phase for in‐syringe‐type fast and robust enrichment of phosphopeptides

In this study, poly(vinylphosphonic acid‐co‐ethylene dimethacrylate), poly(VPA‐co‐EDMA) capillary monolith was synthesized as a starting material for obtaining a stationary phase for microscale enrichment of phosphopeptides. The chelation of active phosphonate groups with Ti (IV) ions gave a macroporous monolithic column with a mean pore size of 5.4 μm. The phosphopeptides from different sources were enriched on Ti (IV)‐attached poly(VPA‐co‐EDMA) monolith using a syringe‐pump. The monolithic capillary columns exhibited highly sensitive/selective enrichment performance with phosphoprotein concentrations as low as 1.0 fmol/mL. Six different phosphopeptides were detected with high intensity by the treatment of β‐casein digest with the concentration of 1.0 fmol/mL, using Ti (IV)@poly(VPA‐co‐EDMA) monolith. Highly selective enrichment of phosphopeptides was also successfully carried out even at trace amounts, in a complex mixture of digested proteins (molar ratio of β‐casein to bovine serum albumin, 1:1500) and three phosphopeptides were successfully detected. Four highly intense signals of phosphopeptides in human serum were also observed with high signal‐to‐noise ratio and a clear background after enrichment with Ti (IV)@poly(VPA‐co‐EDMA) monolith. It was concluded that the capillary microextraction system enabled fast, efficient and robust enrichment of phosphopeptides from microscale complex samples. The whole enrichment process was completed within 20 min, which was shorter than in the previously reported studies.     

Four New Triterpenes from Anchusa azurea var. azurea

Four new triterpene glycosides, named oleanazuroside 1 ( 1 ), oleanazuroside 2 ( 2 ), ursolazuroside 1 ( 3 ), and ursolazuroside 2 ( 4 ), together with the seven known compounds 5 – 11 , were isolated from the MeOH extract of the aerial parts of Anchusa azurea Miller var. azurea. Their structures were elucidated by means of spectroscopic evidence (UV, IR, MALDI‐MS, and 1D‐ and 2D‐NMR). The radical‐scavenging activities against 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) of the BuOH extract and of 8 and 10 were very strong (Table 5).     

Small molecule analysis using laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry on nano-coated silicon with self-assembled monolayers

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) is an emerging technique for the determination of the molecular weight of biomolecules and their non-covalent complexes without fragmentation. One problem with this technique is the use of excess amounts of matrices, which may produce intense fragment ions and/or clusters at low mass ranges between 1 and 800 Da. These fragments lead to interference, especially concerning the signals of small target molecules. Here, a simple, reusable, and quite inexpensive approach was demonstrated to improve the effectiveness of laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) analysis, especially for small molecules, without using matrix molecules. In this study, substrates with controllable morphologies and thicknesses were developed based on the self-assembly of silane molecules on silicon surfaces using N-(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl)diethylenetriamine (TPDA) and octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) molecules. Prepared substrates with nano-overlayers were successfully used in the analysis of different types of small target molecules, namely acrivastine, l-histidine, l-valine, l-phenylalanine, l-arginine, l-methionine and angiotensin I. Our substrates exhibited clear peaks almost without fragmentation for all target molecules, suggesting that these surfaces provide a number of important advantages for LDI-MS analysis, such as ease of preparation, costs, reusability, robustness, easy handling and preventing fragmentation.