Mechano-chemical coupling of molecular motors revealed by single molecule measurements

Single molecule measurements have allowed series of kinetic events of biomolecules to be monitored without interruption. The stepwise movement of molecular motors was measured and analyzed in relation to the hydrolysis reaction of ATP. In the case of kinesin, forward and backward steps occurred stochastically at the same chemical state. The directional movement was explained by the asymmetric potential created by the interaction between kinesin and microtubules. Similarly thermal Brownian movement of myosin during the hydrolysis of single ATP molecules was biased through an asymmetric potential, resulting in directional movement. Thus, single molecule measurements have provided new approaches to analyze the function of molecular motors which often consist of several different events.     

13C NMR spectra of p- and m-substituted phenyl N-methyl- and phenyl N,N-dimethyl-carbamates

¹³C NMR spectra of p- and m-substituted phenyl N-methylcarbamates, phenyl N,N-dimethylcarbamates and p- and m-substituted phenyl propionates were recorded, and their para ¹³C SCS (substituent chemical shifts) were analysed by DSP (dual substituent parameters) and DSP-NLR (non-linear resonance) equations. It was found that the fixed substituent Y, ? OCONHCH₃, ? OCON(CH₃)₂ and ? OCOC₂H₅, were all mild in the sense that DSP analysis gave a good correlation, leaving little room for improvement by the DSP-NLR treatment. Further, the three series of compounds gave similar ρ_I and ρ_R values (para derivatives, 3.2–3.3 and 17.7–18.0; meta derivatives, 5.1–5.2 and 21.8–22.0). Examination of the corresponding analyses of similar compounds indicated that the ρ_I and ρ_R values and, hence, their ratio ρ_R/ρ_R = λ, depended primarily on the nature of the atom through which the fixed substituent Y (e.g. α-C, α-N and α-O) was bonded to the aromatic ring when the Y substituents are mild. The extent of this tendency for compounds with active fixed substituents is also discussed.     

Magnetic quenching of the emission intensities of HPO and SnH in hydrogen—oxygen flames

The effects of a magnetic field on the emission intensities of some excited species in hydrogen—oxygen flames have been studied. The emission intensities of HPO and SnH were partially quenched by an external magnetic field below 1.8 T, while those of CuH, CuCl, S₂, Se₂ and Te₂ were not changed by the field.     

Evaluation of weak ion association between tetraalkylammonium ions and inorganic anions in aqueous solutions by capillary zone electrophoresis

The evaluation of weak ion association between eleven (11) inorganic anions (charge -1 to -3) and five n-tetraalkylammonium ions, R4N+ (R: methyl, Me; ethyl, Et; propyl, Pr; butyl, Bu; pentyl, Am) in aqueous media at 25 degrees C was studied. The analysis of ion association equilibria was carried out under acidic condition (formate buffer, pH 3.5) at low separating potential (-10 kV) using a coated capillary with suppressed electroosmotic flow (micro = 4 x 10(-5) cm2 V(-1) s(-1)). Direct UV detection was done at anode (lambda = 220 nm). The combination of the aforementioned conditions ensured that ion association constants, Kass, between n-tetraalkylammonium ion and the small inorganic anions were reliably determined after a non-linear least squares (NLLS) treatment of the measured anion's mobility. Like their larger counterparts, small anions showed increased interaction with an increase in size of pairing ions. Moreover, for a specific cation, the interaction of small anions increased with an increase in size of the hydrated anions as reflected by the relationship between the Kass and the Stokes' radius. A favourable comparison exists between the results presented in this work and those previously documented from other analytical techniques like conductometry. Qualitatively, the mobility of the anions appeared to obey the Hückel's model more closely than the more elaborate Zwanzig and Hubbard-Onsager models.     

Conformational change of H+-ATPase beta monomer revealed on segmental isotope labeling NMR spectroscopy

F1-ATPase has been shown to be a stepwise molecular motor. Its rotation mechanism has been explained by the interaction of the gamma axis with the open and closed forms of the beta subunit. Although NMR should be a powerful method for elucidating its mechanism, its molecular size (473 amino acid residues, 52 kDa) is a major obstacle. We have applied segmental labeling based on intein ligation to the beta subunit, and succeeded in assigning 89% of the NH (402/451), 89% of the Calpha (417/473), 83% of the Cbeta (357/431), and 90% of the CO (425/473) signals of the beta subunit monomer. The secondary structures predicted from the chemical shifts of the main chain atoms and the relative orientations determined from residual dipolar couplings indicated that the subunit beta monomer takes on the open form in the absence of nucleotide. Furthermore, the chemical shift perturbation and the residual-dipolar-coupling changes induced by nucleotide binding show that conformational change from the open to the closed form takes place on nucleotide binding. The intrinsic conformational change of the beta subunit monomer induced by nucleotide binding must be one of the essential driving forces for the rotation of F1-ATPase.     

Direct measurement of the parapositronium lifetime in alpha-SiO2

The mean lifetime of delocalized parapositronium in alpha-SiO2 has been determined directly for the first time using a newly developed positron lifetime spectrometer based on BaF2 scintillators and a fast digital oscilloscope. The lifetime is found to be 156+/-4 ps, which is much longer than its intrinsic lifetime of 125 ps. This indicates clearly that the primary many-body effect on positronium in alpha-SiO2 is the screening of the Coulomb interaction between the constituent particles by electrons of the medium and that the average distance between the electron and positron in positronium becomes larger than its vacuum value.     

Nonlinear features and response mechanisms of a PtO2 mask layer for optical data storage with a superresolution near-field structure

Optical features of a PtO2 mask layer in a superresolution near-field structure are investigated in detail by use of the Z-scan technique. The high photothermal stability of the PtO2 mask is revealed, and a phenomenon in which laser-irradiated PtO2 decomposes to yield Pt particles is confirmed. We also find a physical change in the mask layer that accompanies the chemical decomposition. Microscopic observations and atomic force microscope studies support the theory that the physical deformation is induced by the decomposition of PtO2. It is clear that the optical nonlinear responses of the PtO2 mask layer result from two mechanisms.