Synthesis and preparation of nanoparticles composed of amphiphilic poly(γ-glutamic acid) with different hydrophobic side chains and their potential of membrane disruptive activity

In the development of nanoparticle-based vaccine adjuvants, the interaction between nanoparticles (NPs) and the cells is a key factor. To control them, we focused on the relationship between the hydrophobicity of the side chains and the cell membrane. In this study, amphiphilic poly(γ-glutamic acid) (γ-PGA), using various types of hydrophobic side chains, was synthesized and used to prepare NPs for evaluating the membrane disruptive activity. When leucine ethyl ester (Leu), methionine ethyl ester (Met), or tryptophan ethyl ester (Trp) was grafted, each polymer formed monodispersed NPs at physiological conditions. Significantly, NPs composed of Leu and Trp showed a membrane disruptive activity at the endosomal environment (pH 5–6.5), while NPs composed of Met did not show. This might be due to the weak hydrophobicity of Met compared to that of Leu and Trp, which demonstrated that the interaction between NPs and cells could be controlled by designing the polymer compositions.     

Synthesis of Pr<Superscript>3+</Superscript> doped or Tb<Superscript>3+</Superscript>–Mg codoped CaSnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> perovskite phosphor by the polymerized complex method

Pr³⁺ doped or Tb³⁺–Mg codoped CaSnO₃ phosphor powder with perovskite structure was synthesized by the polymerized complex method. Powder samples crystallized into the perovskite phase at approximately 600 °C, which is 400 °C lower than the crystallization temperature for the solid-state reaction method. Uniform-sized powders with average particle sizes of 1–2 μm were obtained after heat treatment at 1,400 °C. Although the samples heat-treated at 600 °C did not exhibit photoluminescence, white photoluminescence of Pr³⁺ doped CaSnO₃ or green photoluminescence of Tb³⁺–Mg codoped CaSnO₃ was observed from the sample heat-treated above 800 °C. The intensity of the photoluminescence increased with increase of the heat-treatment temperature and reached a maximum for heat treatment at 1,400 °C. The maximum photoluminescence intensity for the samples prepared by the polymerized complex method was larger than those prepared by solid-state reaction method, which is probably due to the homogeneous mixing of the doped rare earth ions.     

BINOL Aza Macrocycle Derivatives: Synthesis of Dinaphthosulfone Aza Macrocycles Using p-Toluenesulfonic Acid (p-TsOH) in Methanol as an Efficient Route and Evaluation of Their 1H NMR Spectra

Dinaphthosulfone aza macrocycles were synthesized from the reaction of diamines and dinaphthosulfone diester (1,1′-sulfoxobis-(2-naphthoxy(2-methyl acetate))) in methanol in the presence of catalytic amounts of para toluenesulfonic acid (p-TsOH). Dinaphthosulfone diester (1,1′-sulfoxobis-(2-naphthoxy(2-methyl acetate))) was synthesized from the corresponding dinaphthosulfide diester and hydrogen peroxide in formic acid at room temperature. Dinaphthosulfide diester was prepared from initial dinaphtholsulfide diol (1,1′-thio bis(2-hydroxy naphthalene)) and methylchloroacetate. ¹H NMR spectroscopy showed the unusual splittings for these dinaphthosulfone aza macrocycles, and this finding could be proposed as the role of tetrahedral structure of sulfone functional group, hydrogen bonding in the cavity and size of macrocycle.     

Photoreactivating Enzyme for (6–4) Photoproducts in Cultured Goldfish Cells

We previously reported that when cultured goldfish cells are illuminated with fluorescent light, photorepair ability for both cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers and (6–4) photoproducts increased. In the present study, it was found that the duration of the induced photorepair ability for cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers was longer than that for (6–4) photoproducts, suggesting the presence of different photolyases for repair of these two major forms of DNA damage. A gel shift assay was then performed to show the presence of protein(s) binding to (6–4) photoproducts and its dissociation from (6–4) photoproducts under fluorescent light illumination. In addition, at 8 h after fluorescent light illumination of the cell, the binding of pro-tein(s) to (6–4) photoproducts increased. The restriction enzymes that have recognition sites containing TT or TC sequences failed to digest the UV-irradiated DNA pho-toreactivated by using Escherichia coli photolyase for cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers, indicating that restriction enzymes could not function because (6–4) photoproducts remained in recognition sites. But, when UV-irradiated DNA depleted of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers was incubated with extract of cultured goldfish cells under fluorescent light illumination, it was digested with those restriction enzymes. These results suggested the presence of (6–4) photolyase in cultured goldfish cells as in Dro-sophila, Xenopus and Crotalus.     

A Straightforward Method for the Synthesis of Functionalized Trisubstituted Alkenes through Na2S/Al2O3 Catalyzed Knoevenagel Condensation

Na₂S/Al₂O₃ catalyzed the Knoevenagel condensation between an aldehyde and an active methylene compound to yield various trisubstituted alkenes.     

Unique oxidative metal-metal bond formation of linearly aligned tetranuclear Rh-Mo-Mo-Rh clusters

Reaction of Mo2(pyphos)4 (1) with [RhCl(CO)2]2 followed by treatment of excess amounts of tBuNC resulted in the clean formation of [Mo2Rh2(tBuNC)4(pyphos)4](X)2 (4a; X = Cl). The X-ray diffraction study as well as spectroscopic analyses of 4c (X = BPh4) implied that there is no direct sigma-bonding interaction between each Rh(I) atom and the Mo2 core. Each Rh(I) atom in 4 can be oxidized concurrently by 2 equiv of [Cp2Fe]PF6 to afford [Mo2Rh2(Cl)2(tBuNC)4(pyphos)4](PF6)2 (5) along with the formation of two Mo-Rh(II) single bonds and the reduction of the bond orders of the Mo-Mo moiety.     

Superon-quintet and graviton model for supersymmetric spacetime and matter

By using the irreducible representation of N = 10 extended Super-Poincaré algebra, an attempt to interpret the quarks, the leptons and the gauge bosons except the graviton as the composites of more fundamental objects with spin 1/2, superon quintet, is presented. All the local gauge interactions of GUTs are investigated systematically by using the superon diagrams. The stability of the proton and the suppression of the flavour changing neutral currents are understood naturally in the superon pictures of GUTs. The fundamental action of the model is proposed and the uniqueness of the model is pointed out. Received: 5 June 1998 / Published online: 2 November 1998