Visualisation of interlaboratory comparison results in PomPlots

In this work a novel graphical method is applied to the presentation of intercomparison results. This is demonstrated with the results of a recent intercomparison in measuring the ¹³⁷Cs, ⁴⁰K, and ⁹⁰Sr activity concentration in milk powder. The “PomPlot”, an intuitive graphical method, is used for producing a summary overview of the participants’ results of a common measurand. The “PomPlot” displays (relative) deviations of individual results from the reference value on the horizontal axis and (relative) uncertainties on the vertical axis.     

Multiplexed hybridizations of positively charge-tagged peptide nucleic acids detected by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is a novel class of DNA analogues in which the entire sugar-phosphate backbone is replaced by a pseudopeptide counterpart. Owing to its neutral character and the consequent lack of electrostatic repulsion, PNA exhibits very stable heteroduplex formation with complementary nucleic acid that is essentially ionic strength independent and enables hybridization under minimum salt conditions. This feature as well as its superior ion stability and easy ionization compared to DNA renders PNA very attractive for hybridization-based matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS) applications. We have developed an approach to DNA characterization that takes advantage of multiplexed PNA hybridizations analyzed by MALDI-TOFMS. Our motivation was the further development of oligonucleotide fingerprinting, an efficient technique for cDNA and genomic DNA library characterization. Through positive 'charge-tagging' of PNA the efficiency of detection in MALDI-TOFMS was considerably enhanced permitting an unparalleled degree of multiplexing. Results from the simultaneous hybridization of 21 charge-tagged PNA hexamer oligonucleotides showed that genomic DNA and cDNA clones are successfully characterized on the basis of their hybridization profiles. The degree of multiplexing achieved may render a significant increase in throughput and hence efficiency of oligonucleotide fingerprinting possible.     

High-resolution Mn EXAFS of the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II: structural implications for the Mn4Ca cluster

The biological generation of oxygen by the oxygen-evolving complex in photosystem II (PS II) is one of nature's most important reactions. The recent X-ray crystal structures, while limited by resolutions of 3.2-3.5 A, have located the electron density associated with the Mn4Ca cluster within the multiprotein PS II complex. Detailed structures critically depend on input from spectroscopic techniques, such as EXAFS and EPR/ENDOR, as the XRD resolution does not allow for accurate determination of the position of Mn/Ca or the bridging and terminal ligand atoms. The number and distances of Mn-Mn/Ca/ligand interactions determined from EXAFS provide important constraints for the structure of the Mn4Ca cluster. Here, we present data from a high-resolution EXAFS method using a novel multicrystal monochromator that show three short Mn-Mn distances between 2.7 and 2.8 A and, hence, the presence of three di-mu-oxo-bridged units in the Mn4Ca cluster. This result imposes clear limitations on the proposed structures based on spectroscopic and diffraction data and provides input for refining such structures.     

Pb2(OH)2[p‐O2C‐C6H4‐CO2]: Synthese und Kristallstruktur

Pb₂(OH)₂[p‐O₂C‐C₆H₄‐CO₂]: Synthesis and Crystal Structure Single crystals of Pb₂(OH)₂[p‐O₂C‐C₆H₄‐CO₂] ( 1 ) were obtained by hydrothermal reaction of terephthalic acid and PbCO₃ at 180 °C (10 days). 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2₁/c with Z = 2 (a = 1115.6(2) pm, b = 380.10(4) pm, c = 1141.3(2) pm, β = 93.39(1)°, V = 0.4831(1) nm³). The crystal structure is characterized by ladder‐type Pb(OH)_3/3 double chains, which are connected to a three‐dimensional framework by terephthalate dianions.     

Ethylene tetramerization: a new route to produce 1-octene in exceptionally high selectivities

Linear alpha-olefins, such as 1-hexene and 1-octene, are important comonomers in the production of linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE). The conventional method of producing 1-hexene and 1-octene is by oligomerization of ethylene, which yields a wide spectrum of linear alpha-olefins (LAOs). While there exists several processes for producing 1-hexene via ethylene trimerization, a similar route for the selective production of 1-octene has so far been elusive. We now, for the first time, report an unprecedented ethylene tetramerization reaction that produces 1-octene in selectivities exceeding 70%, using an aluminoxane-activated chromium/((R2)2P)2NR1 catalyst system.     

Synthesis and structural revision of naturally occurring ayapin derivatives

The synthesis of three highly oxygenated naturally occurring coumarins, 8-methoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin, 5-methoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin and 5,8-dimethoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin is described for the first time, together with a new method for the preparation of ayapin (6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin). Comparison of the spectroscopic data of the synthetic tetraoxygenated coumarin 5,8-dimethoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin with literature reports resulted in the structural revision of several natural coumarins. Two coumarins, both identified as 5,8-dimethoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin must have other structures, while the structure of another coumarin, described as the isomeric 7,8-dimethoxy-5,6-methylenedioxycoumarin has to be revised to 5,8-dimethoxy-6,7-methylenedioxycoumarin.     

Thermodynamic analysis of lysozyme adsorbed to silica

The structural stability of hen egg white lysozyme in solution and adsorbed to small colloidal silica particles at various surface concentrations was investigated using hydrogen-deuterium (H/D) exchange in combination with mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The combination of HDX-MS and DSC allows a full thermodynamic analysis of the lysozyme structure as both the enthalpy and the Gibbs free energy can be derived from the various measurements. Moreover, both HDX-MS and DSC provide information on the relative structural heterogeneity of lysozyme in the adsorbed state compared to that in solution. Results demonstrated that at high surface coverage, the structural stability of lysozyme was only marginally affected by adsorption to silica particles whereas the unfolding enthalpy decreased by more than 10%, meaning that the entropy of lysozyme increased with a similar value upon adsorption. Furthermore, the structural heterogeneity increased considerably. At lower surface concentrations, the structural heterogeneity increased further whereas the enthalpy of unfolding decreased. Further analyses of the HDX-MS experiments clearly indicated that folding/unfolding of lysozyme occurs through a two-domain process. These two domains had a similar amount of structural elements and a difference in stabilization energy of 8 kJ/mol, regardless if lysozyme was in solution or adsorbed to silica.     

Synthesis and structures of cis- and trans-bis(alkyneselenolato)platinum(II) complexes

The reaction of 2 equiv of LiSeCC-n-C(5)H(11) (1) with cis-PtCl(2)(Ph(3)P)(2) (2) gives a mixture of the cis and trans isomers of Pt(Ph(3)P)(2)(SeCC-n-C(5)H(11))(2) (3), which slowly isomerizes in CH(2)Cl(2) to the preferred trans form trans-3. The closely related cis-[Pt(dppf)(2)(SeCC-n-C(5)H(11))(2)] (4) (dppf = bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene) was prepared by a similar metathetical reaction using the platinum chloride complex of the chelating dppf to impose the cis geometry. The structures of the cis and trans complexes have been investigated in solution by heteronuclear NMR ((31)P, (77)Se, and (195)Pt) and, in the cases of trans-3 and 4, characterized in the solid state by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Changing the coordination geometry from cis to trans induces significant changes in the structural and spectroscopic parameters, which do not comply with the previously anticipated donor-acceptor properties of selenolate ligands.