A Substituted Tetraazaporphyrinogen as an Electroactive Component for a Polymeric Membrane Anion-Selective Electrode

A novel anion-selective electrode has been prepared by usingtetraazaporphyrinogen as the electroactive component and o-nitrophenyloctylether as the plasticizer. The electrode exhibits almost Nernstian responsecharacteristics for Pic^-, ReO ₄ ^- ,SCN^-, ClO ₄ ^- and TPB^-. The linearresponse ranges towards the above-mentioned anions are 10^-6 10^-2, 10^-5 10^-2,10^-5 10^-2, 10^-5 10^-1, and 10^-5 10^-2mol/Land the corresponding slopes are -56.8, -57.1, -56.3, -56.1, and -59.9mV/decade with correlation coefficients of -0.99978, -0.99987, -0.99999,-0.99998, and -0.99998, respectively. The electrode shows an anti-Hofmeisterselectivity sequence: Pic^- > SCN^- >ReO ₄ ^- > ClO ₄ ^- > I^- >Br^- > BF ₄ ^- > Sal^->NO ₃ ^- > Cl^-. The unusual responsemechanism of the novel anion-selective electrode was investigated byexperimental observations and calculation with the MNDO method. Theelectrode was used as a TPB^- and a Pic^-sensitiveelectrode, respectively, and applied to the assay of levamisolehydrochloride tablets by potentiometric titration and Gran's methods. Theresults obtained are in excellent agreement with that determined by thestandard pharmacopoeia method based on nonaqueous titration.     

Theoretical studies on vibrational spectra of some halides of Group IIB elements

The vibrational spectra of Group IIB elements halides MX2 and their dimers M2X4 (M=Zn(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II); X=F, Cl, Br and I) have been systematically investigated by ab initio RHF and B3LYP methods with LanL2MB, LanL2DZ and SDD basis sets. The optimized geometries, calculated vibrational frequencies are evaluated via comparison with the experimental data. The vibrational frequencies, calculated by these methods with different basis sets, are compared to each other too. The best results can be obtained by RHF/SDD method, with this method, the deviations for MX2 and Hg2X4 are <7%. Some vibrational frequencies of M2X4 that have not been experimentally reported are also predicted.     

On an inhomogeneous deformation of a generalized Neo-Hookean material

We study the inhomogeneous deformation of a wedge of an incompressible generalized power-law Neo-Hookean material. We find solutions which have a boundary layer structure, in the sense that adjacent to the boundary the solution is inhomogeneous, while in the core region the solution is homogeneous. It is found that such solutions have an associated pressure field that is bounded. Inhomogeneous solutions are also possible when the pressure varies logarithmically with the radial coordinate. We also establish explicit exact solutions for specific values of the parameter. The results reduce to the Neo-Hookean solution when the power law exponent is set to unity.     

Synthesis, Structure and Conductivity of the New Charge-transfer Salt (ET)_2(CH_2=CH-CH_2-SO_3)·H_2O

ET is one of the most famous electron-donor molecules, which forms charge-transfer complexes (abbr. CT-complexes) with various types of counterions. These complexes have received intense attention because a wide range of physical properties such as conductivity and superconductivity1, ferromagnetism2-4 and nonlinear optical properties5 was found in these materials. Although the majority of the ET-based CT-complexes were prepared by combining with inorganic counterions, CT-complexes with o…     

Andrographolide Inhibits Biofilm and Virulence in Listeria monocytogenes as a Quorum-Sensing Inhibitor

Listeria monocytogenes is a major foodborne pathogen that can cause listeriosis in humans and animals. Andrographolide is known as a natural antibiotic and exhibits good antibacterial activity. We aimed to investigate the effect of andrographolide on two quorum-sensing (QS) systems, LuxS/AI-2 and Agr/AIP of L. monocytogenes, as well as QS-controlled phenotypes in this study. Our results showed that neither luxS expression nor AI-2 production was affected by andrographolide. Nevertheless, andrographolide significantly reduced the expression levels of the agr genes and the activity of the agr promoter P₂. Results from the crystal violet staining method, confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) demonstrated that andrographolide remarkably inhibited the biofilm-forming ability of L. monocytogenes 10403S. The preformed biofilms were eradicated when exposed to andrographolide, and reduced surviving cells were also observed in treated biofilms. L. monocytogenes treated with andrographolide exhibited decreased ability to secrete LLO and adhere to and invade Caco-2 cells. Therefore, andrographolide is a potential QS inhibitor by targeting the Agr QS system to reduce biofilm formation and virulence of L. monocytogenes.     

The Antibacterial Activity Mode of Action of Plantaricin YKX against Staphylococcus aureus

We aimed to evaluate the inhibitory effect and mechanism of plantaricin YKX on S. aureus. The mode of action of plantaricin YKX against the cells of S. aureus indicated that plantaricin YKX was able to cause the leakage of cellular content and damage the structure of the cell membranes. Additionally, plantaricin YKX was also able to inhibit the formation of S. aureus biofilms. As the concentration of plantaricin YKX reached 3/4 MIC, the percentage of biofilm formation inhibition was over 50%. Fluorescent dye labeling combined with fluorescence microscopy confirmed the results. Finally, the effect of plantaricin YKX on the AI-2/LuxS QS system was investigated. Molecular docking predicted that the binding energy of AI-2 and plantaricin YKX was −4.7 kcal/mol and the binding energy of bacteriocin and luxS protein was −183.701 kcal/mol. The expression of the luxS gene increased significantly after being cocultured with plantaricin YKX, suggesting that plantaricin YKX can affect the QS system of S. aureus.