Analysis of conjugated linoleic acids as 9-anthrylmethyl esters by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

A simple and highly sensitive method for determining the fatty acid composition of food lipids containing conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is described. The method is based on the separation of the 9-anthrylmethyl ester derivatives of saturated and unsaturated (conjugated and non-conjugated) fatty acids by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Just like the other fatty acids, CLA reacts readily with 9-anthryldiazomethane at room temperature to produce 9-anthrylmethyl esters without isomerization and decomposition of the conjugated double bonds. Clear resolution of the individual fatty acids as their 9-anthrylmethyl esters is achieved on a highly efficient octadecylsilylated silica column (150- x 3-mm i.d., 3-microm particle size) using a stepwise gradient elution with methanol-water. The method is standardized with commercially available CLA isomers (cis-9, trans-11 and trans-10, cis-12-octadecadienoic acids, and their cis,cis and trans,trans isomers) and applied for determination of the fatty acid compositions of milk and sdairy products.     

Fine structure of the (S(1)<--S(0)) band origins of phthalocyanine molecules in helium droplets

The laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) excitation spectra of free base phthalocyanine (Pc), Mg-Pc, and Zn-Pc molecules in superfluid helium droplets at T=0.38 K have been studied. The spectra reveal the rich vibronic structure of the S(1)<--S(0) electronic transitions. The band origins of the transitions consist of zero phonon lines accompanied by phonon wings, which originate from simultaneous electronic excitation of the molecule and excitation of the collective modes of the helium surrounding it. The phonon wings have discrete structures suggesting localization of some helium atoms in the neighborhood of the molecules. Zero phonon lines of Mg-Pc and Zn-Pc molecules are split into three components, which are separated by 0.2-0.4 cm(-1). Possible mechanism of splitting involves static or dynamic Jahn-Teller interaction of metal-phthalocyanine molecules in the twofold degenerate S(1)((1)E(u)) state with the helium shell.     

Improvement of culture conditions forl-proline production by a recombinant strain ofSerratia marcescens

Serratia marcescens SP511 was previously reported to be anl-proline-producing strain that harbors a recombinant plasmid carrying the mutant type of the proline operon. This strain produced 65 g/L ofl-proline in a medium containing 22% sucrose and urea after 5 d of incubation under the conventional culture conditions. We searched for more suitable culture conditions for more abundantl-proline production by SP511. To improve the supply of a nitrogen source to cells, ammonium was used instead of urea and fed to a culture under control of the pH of the medium. The concentrations of MgSO₄ and K₂HPO₄ were increased, and in addition, sucrose was continuously added to the culture at a final concentration of 32%. Under these conditions, the cell amount was increased twofold over that under the previous conditions andl-proline production reached a maximum of more than 100 g/L after 4 d of incubation.     

A study of molecular vibrational relaxation mechanism in condensed phase based upon mixed quantum-classical molecular dynamics. II. Noncollisional mechanism for the relaxation of a polar solute in supercritical water

Mixed quantum-classical molecular dynamics method has been applied to vibrational relaxation of a hydrophilic model NO in supercritical water at various densities along an isotherm above the critical temperature. The relaxation rate was determined based on Fermi's golden rule at each state point and showed an inverse S-shaped curve as a function of bulk density. The hydration number was also calculated as a function of bulk density based on the calculated radial distribution function, which showed a good correlation with the relaxation rate. Change of the survival probability of the solute vibrational state was analyzed as a function of time together with the trajectory of the solvent water and the interaction with it. We will show that the solvent molecule resides near the solute molecule for a while and the solvent contributes to the relaxation by the random-noiselike Coulombic interaction only when it stays near the solute. After the solvent leaves the solute, it shows no contribution to the relaxation. The relaxation mechanism for this system is significantly different from the collisional one found for a nonpolar solute in nonpolar solvent in Paper I. Then, the relaxation rate is determined, on average, by the hydration number or local density of the solvent. Thus, the density dependence of the relaxation rate for the polar solute in supercritical water is apparently similar to that found for the nonpolar solute in nonpolar solvent, although the molecular process is quite different from each other.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of penicillins by postcolumn degradation with sodium hypochlorite using an hollow-fibre membrane reactor

A sensitive, high-performance liquid chromatographic method involving postcolumn degradation with sodium hypochlorite and using a hollow-fibre membrane as a reactor is described for the determination of penicillins. Penicillins were separated on a C18 column followed by postcolumn reaction with sodium hypochlorite and sodium hydroxide using aminated and sulphonated hollow-fibre membrane reactors immersed in each solution, and detected at 270-280 nm based on the UV absorbances of the degradation products. At penicillin concentrations of 2 micrograms/ml, the precisions (relative standard deviation) were 2.28-4.78%. The detection limits of the proposed method were 2.5-25 ng for each penicillin at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3. Ampicillin and its metabolites [(5R,6R)-ampicilloic acid, the (5S,6R)-epimer and (2R)-pierazine-2',5'-dione] in human serum and urine were simultaneously determined by this method.     

Synthetic studies directed toward the assembly of the C-glycoside fragment of the telomerase inhibitor D8646-2-6

[reaction: see text] Construction and characterization of the C-glycosidic moiety of telomerase inhibitor D8646-2-6 (1) are described. This is the first example of the C-glycosylation using electron-poor aromatics, 4-hydroxypyrone, as a glycosyl acceptor. The glycosylation reaction and base-promoted isomerization affords desired beta-C-glycoside in a 61% overall yield.     

Endo- and aminopeptidase activities of rat cathepsin H.

Employing soluble denatured protein substrates and their derivatives, the proteolytic activity of rat cathepsin H was investigated. The enzyme showed aminopeptidase activity which sequentially released amino acid from the N-terminal of the substrate. The aminopeptidase activity did not act on N alpha-acetylated peptides and showed moderate ionic-strength dependence when methionyl-methylcoumarylamide was employed as a substrate. These results indicate that the activity essentially requires an N-terminal free amino group of the substrate and recognizes it electrostatically to some extent. On the other hand, the enzyme was also indicated to exhibit endopeptidase activity by employing appropriate N alpha-acetylated peptide substrates. In contrast to the aminopeptidase activity, the endopeptidase activity showed rather strict specificity, preferring hydrophobic residues at P2 and P3 sites. Because of the broad specificity and high efficiency of the aminopeptidase activity, it was difficult to directly observe endopeptidase activity in the digestion of large peptide substrates with a free alpha-amino terminal. Thus, this is the first experimental evidence that indicates endopeptidase activity by assigning internal peptide bonds cleaved by this activity. From this data, we proposed a model of the binding site of this enzyme.     

Structural assignment of isomeric 2-aminopyridine-derivatized oligosaccharides using negative-ion MSn spectral matching

To investigate the possibility of structural assignment based on negative-ion MS2 spectral matching, three isomeric pairs of 2-aminopyridine (PA)-derivatized non-fucosylated, fucosylated, and sialylated oligosaccharides (complex type N-glycans) were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry (HPLC/ITMS) with a sonic-spray ionization (SSI) source. In the SSI negative-ion mode the deprotonated molecule [M-2H]2- becomes prominent. Negative-ion MS2 spectra derived from such ions contain many fragment types (B and Y, C and Z, A, and D) and therefore are more informative than the positive-ion MS2 spectra derived from [M+H+Na]2+ ions, which usually consist mainly of B and Y fragment ions. In particular the internal ions (D- and E-type ions) provided useful information about the alpha1-6 branching patterns and the bisecting GlcNAc residue. Spectral matching based on the correlation coefficients between negative-ion MS2 spectra was performed in a manner similar to the positive-ion MS2 spectral matching previously reported. It was demonstrated that negative-ion MS2 spectral matching is as useful and applicable to the structural assignment of relatively large non-fucosylated, fucosylated, and sialylated PA-oligosaccharide isomers as its positive-ion counterpart.     

Nucleic acid related compounds. 116. Nonaqueous diazotization of aminopurine nucleosides. Mechanistic considerations and efficient procedures with tert-butyl nitrite or sodium nitrite

Nonaqueous diazotization-dediazoniation of two types of aminopurine nucleoside derivatives has been investigated. Treatment of 9-(2,3,5-tri-O-acetyl-beta-D-ribofuranosyl)-2-amino-6-chloropurine (1) with SbCl(3)/CH(2)Cl(2) was examined with benzyltriethylammonium (BTEA) chloride as a soluble halide source and tert-butyl nitrite (TBN) or sodium nitrite as the diazotization reagent. Optimized yields (>80%) of the 2,6-dichloropurine derivative were obtained with SbCl(3). Combinations with SbBr(3)/CH(2)Br(2) gave the 2-bromo-6-chloropurine product (>60%), and SbI(3)/CH(2)I(2)/THF gave the 2-iodo-6-chloropurine derivative (>45%). Antimony trihalide catalysis was highly beneficial. Mixed combinations (SbX(3)/CH(2)X'(2); X/X' = Br/Cl) gave mixtures of 2-(bromo, chloro, and hydro)-6-chloropurine derivatives that were dependent on reaction conditions. Addition of iodoacetic acid (IAA) resulted in diversion of purine radical species into a 2-iodo-6-chloropurine derivative with commensurate loss of other radical-derived products. This allowed evaluation of the efficiency of SbX(3)-promoted cation-derived dediazoniations relative to radical-derived reactions. Efficient conversions of adenosine, 2'-deoxyadenosine, and related adenine nucleosides into 6-halopurine derivatives of current interest were developed with analogous combinations.     

Application and limitation of a mathematical distortion model of an absorbance signal in electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

A distortion model of instrumental function is described, based on the response signal. Its limitations are investigated by using quasi-signals generated by an oscillator and a moving carbon rod.