Carleson's counterexample and a scale of Lorentz-BMO spaces on the bitorus

We introduce a full scale of Lorentz-BMO spaces BMO _L ^p,q on the bidisk, and show that these spaces do not coincide for different values ofp andq. Our main tool is a detailed analysis of Carleson's construction in [C]. The first author gratefully acknowledges support by the LMS and Proyecto BFM2002-04013. The second author gratefully acknowledges support by EPSRC and by the Nuffield Foundation.     

Vibration analysis of quasi-symmetric structures

An efficient computational procedure is presented for the free vibration analysis of structures with unsymmetric geometry. The procedure is based on approximating the unsymmetric vibrational response of the structure by a linear combination of a few symmetric and antisymmetric modes (global approximation vectors), each obtained using approximately half the degrees of freedom of the original model. The three key elements of the procedure are: (a) use of mixed finite element models having independent shape functions for the internal forces (stress resultants) and generalized displacements, with the internal forces allowed to be discontinuous at interelement boundaries, (b) operator splitting, or additive decomposition of the different arrays in the governing finite element equations to delineate the contributions to the symmetric and antisymmetric response vectors, and (c) use of a reduction method through successive application of the finite element method and the classical Bubnov-Galerkin technique. The finite element method is first used to generate a few symmetric and antisymmetric global approximation response vectors. Then, the classical Bubnov-Galerkin technique is used to substantially reduce the size of the eigenvalue problem.

An initial set of global approximation vectors is selected to be a few symmetric and antisymmetric eigenvectors, and their various-order derivatives with respect to a tracing parameter identifying all the correction terms to the symmetric (and antisymmetric) eigenvectors. A modified (improved) set of approximation vectors is obtained by using the inverse iteration procedure. The effectiveness of the proposed procedure is demonstrated by means of a numerical example.     

In vitro anticancer activity of binuclear Ru(II) complexes with Schiff bases derived from 5-substituted salicylaldehyde and 2-aminopyridine with notably low IC50 values

The binuclear Ru(II) complexes with Schiff bases derived from 5-chlorosalicyladehyde and 2-aminopyridine and its 5-substituted salicylideneimine homologues were tested in vitro against cervical carcinoma (HeLa), metastatic colorectal adenocarcinoma (SW620), lung adenocarcinoma (A549), breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7), and human lung fibroblast (WI-38) cell lines. All compounds showed strong antiproliferative activity with extremely low IC₅₀ values. The compounds expressed strong activity against gram-positive bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis.     

Heteroleptic ruthenium bioflavonoid complexes: from synthesis to in vitro biological activity

Heteroleptic ruthenium(II) bioflavonoid complexes of quercetin, morin, chrysin, and 3-hydroxyflavone were prepared and their interaction with CT DNA and BSA along with antioxidant and in vitro anticancer and antimicrobial activities was investigated. The formulation and characterization of complexes were achieved through elemental and thermal analysis, mass spectrometry, ¹H NMR spectroscopy along with infrared, electronic absorption, and emission spectroscopy as well as square-wave voltammetry, and magnetic and conductivity measurements. Ruthenium(II) is octahedrally coordinated in cationic complex species to two bidentate diimine ligands (2,2′-bipyridine or 1,10-phenanthroline) and one bidentate monobasic flavonoid ligand through 3,4-site of quercetin, morin, and 3-hydroxyflavone or 4,5-site of chrysin. Complexes bind CT DNA by intercalation and binding constants comparable to ethidium bromide or 10 times higher. Binding constants of complexes to BSA were several times higher compared to ibuprofen and diazepam, and suggest that the complexes have a strong affinity to BSA. Antioxidant activity tests showed that the complexes are more potent in terms of radical inhibition compared to the parent flavonoids. Cytotoxic testing revealed that the Ru(II) complex of quercetin with 2,2′-bipyridine co-ligand has good selectivity to breast adenocarcinoma, while the complex of 3-hydroxyflavone with 2,2′-bipyridine co-ligand showed strong cytotoxicity toward all tested cell lines with IC₅₀ ～ 1 μM. All complexes showed moderate activity toward Acinetobacter baumannii, while the Ru(II) complex of 3-hydroxyflavone with 2,2′-bipyridine showed excellent activity toward MRSA and Candida albicans.     

Fast preparation of hydroxyapatite/superhydrophilic vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanotube composites for bioactive application

A method for the electrodeposition of hydroxyapatite films on superhydrophilic vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes is presented. The formation of a thin homogeneous film with high crystallinity was observed without any thermal treatment and with bioactivity properties that accelerate the in vitro biomineralization process and osteoblast adhesion.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography: an application for the simultaneous determination of suspected fragrance allergens in rinse-off products

The feasibility of microwave-accelerated derivatization for capillary electrophoresis (CE) with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection was evaluated. The derivatization reaction was performed in a domestic microwave oven. Histidine (His), 1-methylhistidine (1-MH) and 3-methylhistidine (3-MH) were selected as test analytes and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) was chosen as a fluorescent derivatizing reagent. Parameters that may affect the derivatization reaction and/or subsequent CE separation were systematically investigated. Under optimized conditions, the microwave-accelerated derivatization reaction was successfully completed within 150 s, compared to 4-24 h in a conventional water-bath derivatization process. This will remarkably reduce the overall analysis time and increase sample throughput of CE-LIF. The detection limits of this method were found to be 0.023 ng/mL for His, 0.023 ng/mL for 1-MH, and 0.034 ng/mL for 3-MH, respectively, comparable to those obtained using traditional derivatization protocols. The proposed method was characterized in terms of precision, linearity, accuracy and successfully applied for rapid and sensitive determination of these analytes in human urine.     

Rapid access to structured triacylglycerols acylated with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for nutritional applications

In order to better understand the metabolic fate of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), an efficient access to symmetrical and unsymmetrical triacylglycerols (TGs), esterified with PUFAs, with known high purity, is required. In this context, we optimized the esterification of a mixture of glycerols protected as dioxane and dioxolane with PUFAs. The kinetics of this reaction depends on various factors, such as the fatty acid chain length and the stereochemistry of the dioxane. Then, one-pot acetal hydrolysis and esterification of hydroxyl groups led to the desired structured TGs without either double bond isomerization or acyl migration (except when symmetrical TGs are acylated with long-chain saturated fatty acids in external positions). PUFAs location on the glycerol backbone was assayed by NMR, HPLC and pancreatic lipase hydrolysis.     

Parallel Detection of Different DNA Sequences on One Gold Electrode

Motivated by the potential of electrochemical techniques to analyze hybridization events fast and in a simple and cost‐effective way we present here a detection system allowing a parallel electrochemical DNA analysis. For this purpose different probe DNA strands have been immobilized on one electrode. By the use of two different target DNA sequences, both marked with the redox active methylene blue, we can show that hybridization with the complementary probe sh“NA strands can occur without steric hindrance. Each target has been recognized down to 3nM with a very high specificity of the sensor. In addition, we can detect two different ssDNA targets labeled with different redox active molecules, methylene blue and ferrocene, on one sensor surface simultaneously.     

On Ultrasmall Nanocrystals

Ultrasmall nanocrystals are a growing sub-class of traditional nanocrystals that exhibit new properties at diameters typically below 2 nm. In this review, we define what constitutes an ultrasmall nanoparticle while distinguishing between ultrasmall and magic-size nanoparticles. After a brief overview of ultrasmall nanoparticles, including ultrasmall gold clusters, our recent work is presented covering the optical properties, structure, and application of ultrasmall CdSe nanocrystals. This unique material has potential application in solid state lighting due to its balanced white emission. This section is followed by a discussion on the blurring boundary between what can be considered a nanoparticle and a molecule.