Optical glucose detection across the visible spectrum using anionic fluorescent dyes and a viologen quencher in a two-component saccharide sensing system

A very general system is described in which anionic fluorescent dyes possessing a wide range of absorbance and emission wavelengths are used in combination with a boronic acid-modified viologen quencher to sense glucose at pH 7.4 in buffered aqueous solution. The present study demonstrates this capability with the use of eleven anionic fluorescent dyes of various structural types. Signal modulation occurs as the monosaccharide binds to the viologen quencher and alters its efficiency in quenching the fluorescence of the anionic dyes. The degree of quenching and the magnitude of the glucose signal were found to correlate roughly with the number of anionic groups on the dye. Optimal quencher : dye ratios were determined for each dye to provide a fairly linear signal in response to changes in glucose concentration across the physiological range.     

Determination of "net carbohydrates" using high-performance anion exchange chromatography

For labeling purposes, the carbohydrate content of foods has traditionally been determined by difference. This value includes sugars, starches, fiber, dextrins, sugar alcohols, polydextrose, and various other organic compounds. In some cases, the current method may lack sufficient specificity, precision, and accuracy. These are subsequently quantitated by high performance anion exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection and expressed as total nonfiber saccharides or percent "net carbohydrates." In this research, a new method was developed to address this need. The method consists of enzyme digestions to convert starches, dextrins, sugars, and polysaccharides to their respective monosaccharide components. These are subsequently quantified by high-performance anion exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detector and expressed as total nonfiber saccharides or percent "net carbohydrates." Hydrolyzed end products of various novel fibers and similar carbohydrates have been evaluated to ensure that they do not register as false positives in the new test method. The data generated using the "net carbohydrate" method were, in many cases, significantly different than the values produced using the traditional methodology. The recoveries obtained in a fortified drink matrix ranged from 94.9 to 105%. The coefficient of variation was 3.3%.     

Phase separation in AlxGa1-xAs nanowhiskers grown by the solution-liquid-solid mechanism.

Low-temperature growth of AlxGa1-xAs by the solution-liquid-solid mechanism affords nanowhiskers having two specific overall compositions: x = 0.1 and 0.8. Intermediate compositions (0.1 < x < 0.8) are inaccessible by the method employed. Examination of the nanowhiskers by transmission electron microscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and annealing studies indicates that they possess compositionally modulated nanostructures. The observed compositional modulation consists of alternating comparatively Al-rich and Ga-rich AlxGa1-xAs domains with dimensions of 3-20 nm. The spontaneous phase separation, which occurs during growth, appears to be kinetically driven, and the resulting phase-separated nanostructures appear to be, therefore, metastable rather than stable. Spontaneous phase separation in AlxGa1-xAs, which strongly influences its photoemission behavior, is not well understood theoretically.     

Note on generalizing theorems in algebraically closed fields

The generalization properties of algebraically closed fields of characteristic and of characteristic 0 are investigated in the sequent calculus with blocks of quantifiers. It is shown that admits finite term bases, and admits term bases with primality constraints. From these results the analogs of Kreisel's Conjecture for these theories follow: If for some , ( 1's) is provable in steps, then is provable. Received: February 1, 1996     

High throughput screening of low temperature CO oxidation catalysts using IR thermography

The catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide is an important process used in several areas such as respiratory protection, industrial air purification, automotive emissions control, CO clean-up of flue gases and fuel cells. Research in this area has mainly focused on the improvement of catalytic activity at low temperatures. Numerous catalyst systems have been proposed, including those based on Pt, Pd, Rh, Ru, Au, Ag, and Cu, supported on refractory or reducible carriers or dispersed in perovskites. Well known commercial catalyst formulations for room temperature CO oxidation are based on CuMn2O4 (hopcalite) and CuCoAgMnOx mixed oxides. We have applied high-throughput and combinatorial methodologies to the discovery of more efficient catalysts for low temperature CO oxidation. The screening approach was based on a hierarchy of qualitative and semi-quantitative primary screens for the discovery of hits, and quantitative secondary screens for hit confirmation, lead optimization and scale-up. Parallel IR thermography was the primary screen, allowing one wafer-formatted library of 256 catalysts to be screened in approximately 1 hour. Multi-channel fixed bed reactors equipped with imaging reflection FTIR spectroscopy or GC were used for secondary screening. Novel RuCoCe compositions were discovered and optimized for CO oxidation and the effect of doping was investigated for supported and bulk mixed oxide catalysts. Another family of active hits that compare favorably with the Pt/Al2O3 benchmark is based on RuSn, where Sn can be used as a dopant (e.g. RuSn/SiO2) and/or as a high surface area carrier (e.g., SnO2 or Sn containing mixed metal oxides). Also, RuCu binary compositions were found to be active after a reduction pretreatment with hydrogen.     

Photon Counting Histogram Analysis for Two‐Dimensional Systems

Photon counting statistics in 3D photon counting histogram analysis for one‐photon excitation is a function of the number of molecules of particular brightness in the excitation‐detection volume of a confocal microscope. In mathematical form that volume is approximated by a three‐dimensional Gaussian function which is embedded in the PCH theoretical equations. PCH theory assumes that a molecule can be found anywhere inside the excitation‐detection volume with equal probability. However, one can easily imagine systems in which this assumption is violated because molecules are constrained by the geometry of the sample. For example, molecules on a surface or in a membrane would be constrained to two dimensions. To enable the analysis of such systems by PCH, the theoretical framework requires modification. Herein, we present an extension of the PCH analysis to systems where molecules exist in thin structures that are effectively two‐dimensional. The method, aptly called two‐dimensional photon counting histogram (2D PCH), recovers the number of fluorescent particles per unit area and their molecular brightness. Both theoretical background and experimental results are presented. The theory was tested using computer‐simulated and experimental 2D PCHs obtained from confocal experiments. We demonstrate that this modification of the theoretical framework provides a tool to extract data that reveal states of aggregation, surface photophysics, and reactivity.     

Minimizing error in the logarithmic decrement method through uncertainty propagation

Logarithmic decrement is a well known approach for estimating the damping ratio from a time history. This paper uses uncertainty propagation to unveil how uncertainties in different quantities can impact damping ratio estimates. More specifically, the trade-off between the number of periods N between the first and final peaks and measurement noise is addressed. The insights gained from this analysis are condensed into a single graphic or guide which provides the ideal number of periods N to use for a common range of measurement uncertainties and damping ratios. The guide is then applied to experimental data derived from image processing to estimate the damping ratio.     

Arithmetic toric varieties

We study toric varieties over a field k that split in a Galois extension using Galois cohomology with coefficients in the toric automorphism group. Part of this Galois cohomology fits into an exact sequence induced by the presentation of the class group of the toric variety. This perspective helps to compute the Galois cohomology, particularly for cyclic Galois groups. We use Galois cohomology to classify k‐forms of projective spaces when is cyclic, and we also study k‐forms of surfaces.     

Fiber four-wave mixing source for coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy

We present a fiber-format picosecond light source for coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy. Pulses from a Yb-doped fiber amplifier are frequency converted by four-wave mixing (FWM) in normal-dispersion photonic crystal fiber to produce a synchronized two-color picosecond pulse train. We show that seeding the FWM process overcomes the deleterious effects of group-velocity mismatch and allows efficient conversion into narrow frequency bands. The source generates more than 160 mW of nearly transform-limited pulses tunable from 775 to 815 nm. High-quality coherent Raman images of animal tissues and cells acquired with this source are presented.