Non‐isocyanate synthesis and application of telechelic polyurethanes via polycondensation of diurethanes obtained from ethylene carbonate and diamines

Aliphatic polyurethanes could be obtained in high yield via a non‐isocyanate method based on the self‐polycondensation of dihydroxyurethanes obtained by the reaction of diamines and ethylene carbonate. The polycondensation under a N₂ atmosphere yielded [6,2]polyurethane with a M_n value of 5300 in 87% yield. Two‐step polycondensation, consisting of the polycondensation under a N₂ atmosphere followed by that under reduced pressure, was effective to improve the yield and the molecular weight up to 90% and 10,000, respectively. Although the second polycondensation step at 180 °C was accompanied by formation of urea groups, this side reaction was relatively suppressed at 150 °C. The resulting polyurethane having hydroxyl groups at both of the end groups was converted to polyurethane methacrylate via a reaction with glycidyl methacrylate, and the polyurethane methacrylate served as a crosslinker for radical polymerization of methyl acrylate. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2013     

Optimal harvesting policy of an inland fishery resource under incomplete information

A new mathematical model for finding the optimal harvesting policy of an inland fishery resource under incomplete information is proposed in this paper. The model is based on a stochastic control formalism in a regime‐switching environment. The incompleteness of information is due to uncertainties involved in the body growth rate of the fishery resource: a key biological parameter. Finding the most cost‐effective harvesting policy of the fishery resource ultimately reduces to solving a terminal and boundary value problem of a Hamilton‐Jacobi‐Bellman equation: a nonlinear and degenerate parabolic partial differential equation. A simple finite difference scheme for solving the equation is then presented, which turns out to be convergent and generates numerical solutions that comply with certain theoretical upper and lower bounds. The model is finally applied to the management of Plecoglossus altivelis, a major inland fishery resource in Japan. The regime switching in this case is due to the temporal dynamics of benthic algae, the main food of the fish. Model parameter values are identified from field measurement results in 2017. Our computational results clearly show the dependence of the optimal harvesting policy on the river environmental and biological conditions. The proposed model would serve as a mathematical tool for fishery resource management under uncertainties.     

Contribution of atmospheric nitrate to stream‐water nitrate in Japanese coniferous forests revealed by the oxygen isotope ratio of nitrate

Evaluation of the openness of the nitrogen (N) cycle in forest ecosystems is important in efforts to improve forest management because the N supply often limits primary production. The use of the oxygen isotope ratio (δ¹⁸O) of nitrate is a promising approach to determine how effectively atmospheric nitrate can be retained in a forest ecosystem. We investigated the δ¹⁸O of nitrate in stream water in order to estimate the contribution of atmospheric NO in stream‐water NO (f_atm) from 26 watersheds with different stand ages (1–87 years) in Japan. The stream‐water nitrate concentrations were high in young forests whereas, in contrast, old forests discharged low‐nitrate stream water. These results implied a low f_atm and a closed N cycle in older forests. However, the δ¹⁸O values of nitrate in stream water revealed that f_atm values were higher in older forests than in younger forests. These results indicated that even in old forests, where the discharged N loss was small, atmospheric nitrate was not retained effectively. The steep slopes of the studied watersheds (>40°) which hinder the capturing of atmospheric nitrate by plants and microbes might be responsible for the inefficient utilization of atmospheric nitrate. Moreover, the unprocessed fraction of atmospheric nitrate in the stream‐water nitrate in the forest (f_unprocessed) was high in the young forest (78%), although f_unprocessed was stable and low for other forests (5–13%). This high f_unprocessed of the young forest indicated that the young forest retained neither atmospheric NO nor soil NO effectively, engendering high stream‐water NO concentrations. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preparation of Mg–Al layered double hydroxides intercalated with alkyl sulfates and investigation of their capacity to take up N,N-dimethylaniline from aqueous solutions

This study examined the effect of the interlayer spacing of a Mg–Al layered double hydroxide (Mg–Al LDH) on the ability of the Mg–Al LDH to take up a nonionic organic material. Mg–Al LDHs, intercalated with 1-propanesulfonate (PS^?), 1-hexanesulfonate (HS^?), and 1-dodecanesulfonate (DS^?), were prepared by coprecipitation, yielding PS·Mg–Al LDH, HS·Mg–Al LDH, and DS·Mg–Al LDH, respectively. The increase in the alkyl chain lengths of the Mg–Al LDHs (PS^? < HS^? < DS^?) resulted in the perpendicular orientation of the organic acid anions in the interlayer of Mg–Al LDH, which in turn resulted in more organic acid anions being accommodated in the interlayer space. An organic acid anion with a large molecular length was more easily intercalated in the interlayer of Mg–Al LDH than one with a small molecular length. This was attributed to the hydrophobic interaction between the alkyl chains, affecting the intercalation of the organic acid anions. The uptake of N,N-dimethylaniline (DMA) by Mg–Al LDHs increased in the order PS·Mg–Al LDH < HS·Mg–Al LDH < DS·Mg–Al LDH. The uptake was attributed to the hydrophobic interactions between DMA and the intercalated PS^?, HS^?, and DS^?. Thus, Mg–Al LDH, which has a lot of large interlayer spacings when intercalated with organic acid anions, can take up a large number of DMA molecules from an aqueous solution.     

Nitration reactions of astaxanthin and β-carotene by peroxynitrite

The in vitro reactivities of astaxanthin and β-carotene toward peroxynitrite were investigated and the reaction products after scavenging with peroxynitrite were analyzed. A series of carotenoids substituted with nitro group, 14′-s-cis-15′-nitroastaxanthin, 10′-s-cis-11′-cis-11′-nitroastaxanthin, 14′-s-cis-15′-nitro-β-carotene and 10′-s-cis-11′-cis-11′-nitro-β-carotene, were isolated from the reaction products of carotenoids with peroxynitrite. Carotenoids with nitro derivatives were reported for the first time. These results indicated that astaxanthin and β-carotene could catch peroxynitrite or nitrogen dioxide radical (NO₂) in their molecule to form nitrocarotenoids.     

Structural assignment of isomeric 2-aminopyridine-derivatized monosialylated biantennary N-linked oligosaccharides using negative-ion multistage tandem mass spectral matching

To investigate the possibility of structural assignment based on negative-ion tandem multistage (MSn) mass spectral matching, four isomers of 2-aminopyridine (PA)-derivatized monosialylated oligosaccharides (i.e., complex-type N-glycans with an alpha2-3- or alpha2-6-linked sialic acid on alpha1-6 or alpha1-3 antennae) were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-IT-TOFMS). The negative ion [M-2H]2- is observed predominantly in the MS1 spectra without the loss of a sialic acid. The MS2 spectra derived from it are sufficiently reproducible that MS2 spectral matching based on correlation coefficients can be applied to the assignment of these isomers. The isomers containing a sialic acid on alpha1-6 or alpha1-3 antennae can be distinguished by MS2 spectral matching, but the alpha2-3 and alpha2-6 linkage types of sialic acid cannot be distinguished by their MS2 spectra. However, MS3 spectra derived from fragment ions containing a sialic acid (i.e., C4- and D-type ions) clearly differentiate the alpha2-3 and alpha2-6 linkage types of sialic acid in their MS3 spectral patterns. This difference might be rationalized in terms of a proton transfer from the reducing-end mannose to the negatively charged sialic acid. These two moieties are very close in the structural conformations of the precursor C4-type fragment ions of alpha2-6 linkage type, as predicted by molecular mechanics calculations. Thus, negative-ion MSn (n = 2, 3) spectral matching was demonstrated to be useful for the structural assignment of these four monosialylated PA N-glycan isomers.     

Interlaboratory evaluation of two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits for the detection of egg, milk, wheat, buckwheat, and peanut in foods

The labeling of 5 major allergenic ingredients (egg, milk, wheat, buckwheat, and peanut) is mandatory in Japan, and 2 series of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits have been established as official screening methods. However, these official methods have not provided the necessary sensitivity, due in part to poor extraction efficiency. To address this need, 2 novel ELISA kits have been developed: the FASTKIT ELISA Ver. II Series and the FASPEK Allergenic Substances Detection Kit. The new kit systems use an improved extraction buffer that can extract insoluble proteins produced by processing and feature new antibodies that bind to the denatured proteins extracted with the new extraction buffer. The analytical performances of the 2 new ELISA kit series were evaluated in an interlaboratory study. Ten laboratories participated in the study and determined the major allergenic ingredients contained in 5 types of model processed food. The 2 ELISAs displayed fairly good reproducibility and sufficient recovery.