Ginkgo biloba extract preserves pyruvate and enhances ascorbate in the cortex of gerbils during focal cerebral ischemia. A microdialysis-liquid chromatography study

The aim of this study was to evaluate dynamic changes in energy-related metabolites in the cortex of gerbils subjected to focal cerebral ischemia after pretreatment with Ginkgo biloba extract. Focal cerebral ischemia was induced by occlusion of the right common carotid artery and the right middle cerebral artery for 60 min in anesthetized gerbils. A microdialysis probe was inserted into the cortex to monitor extracellular lactate. pyruvate and ascorbate during ischemia and reperfusion. The present study demonstrated a dynamic decrease in pyruvate (25% of baseline) and increases in lactate (160% of baseline) and asorbate (300% of baseline) and a 5-fold increase in the lactate:pyruvate (L:P) ratio during cerebral ischemia in the control group. However. pyruvate levels were preserved and ascorbate levels were enhanced with a chronic pretreatment of Ginkgo biloba extract for 8 days (i.p., 100 mg kg(-1) day(-1)). Preservation of pyruvate and enhancement of ascorbate observed in this study may be associated with the neuroprotective effects of Ginkgo biloba extract.     

Electrochemical study on the keto-enol tautomerization of p-hydroxyphenylpyruvic acid in aqueous solution

The keto-enol tautomerization of p-hydroxyphenylpyruvic acid (pHPP) in aqueous solutions and the complexation reaction between enolic pHPP and boric acid have been studied by electrochemical techniques including linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), pulse voltammetry, and cyclic voltammetry (CV), combining with UV spectrometry. Electrochemical techniques reveal that in aqueous solution, there are two tautomers of pHPP: enolic form and ketonic form; the former exists mainly in freshly prepared pHPP solution, and the latter exists mainly in equilibrium solution. Both enolic and ketonic pHPP are electroactive. The electrochemical oxidation of enolic pHPP gives rise to two anodic waves, I(a) and II(a), while the electrochemical oxidation of ketonic pHPP only results in the observation of the second wave II(a). The oxidation process I(a) is revealed to be associated with the quasi-reversible, two-electron two-proton oxidation of "C=C"group at the side chain of enolic pHPP, and the oxidation process II(a) is proposed to result from the irreversible oxidation of phenolic hydroxyl group. It is observed that in aqueous solution, enolic pHPP can quickly complex with boric acid to yield enol-borate complex that can also oxidize at a glassy carbon electrode to yield an anodic wave.     

Determination of proteins at nanogram levels by a resonance light-scattering technique with tetra-substituted sulphonated aluminum phthalocyanine

This is the first report on the determination of proteins with tetra-substituted sulphonated aluminum phthalocyanine (AlS₄Pc) by resonance light-scattering (RLS). At pH 3.0, the weak RLS of AlS₄Pc can be enhanced by the addition of proteins. Based on this, a novel quantitative method has been developed for the determination of proteins in aqueous solutions. Under optimal conditions, the linear ranges of the calibration curves were 0.050–2.0 μg ml⁻¹ for both human serum albumin (HSA) and human r-IgG. The detection limits were 12.7 ng ml⁻¹ for HSA and 16.1 ng ml⁻¹ for human r-IgG. The method has been applied to the analysis of total protein in human serum samples collected from the hospital and the results were in good agreement with those reported by the hospital, which indicates that the method presented here is not only sensitive, simple, but also reliable and suitable for practical applications.     

二氧化碳溶剂浮选光度法测定高碘蛋总碘量

浮选法是二氧化碳气氛中,以溴化十六烷基三甲基铵(CTMAB)为捕收剂,用溶剂浮选吸光光度法对离子缔合物(CTMA~ I_3~-)的组成进行测定。试验表明,方法有较高的灵敏度,较好的准确性和重现性。     

C(2×2)S/Fe(001)吸附体系的SCF-Xa-MS研究

采用SCF-X_α-MS方法, 对于C(2×2)S/Fe(001)吸附体系, 选择Fe_5S和Fe_9S两种原子簇模型, 研究了该吸附体系的电子结构、吸附成键特征及其相互作用图象。结果表明, S吸附于Fe(001)单晶表面具有较强的定域性质, S原子与底物Fe原子之间的吸附相互作用主要表现为S(3p)-Fe(4s,3d)之间的轨道相互作用。通过对表面吸附键长的优化, 其结果与X.S.Zhang等的ARPEFS的实验结果一致。     

Prediction of retention indexes. I. Structure-retention index relationship on apolar columns

A simple method is reported for predicting the retention index (RI) of a chemical compound from the number of carbon and carbon equivalent atoms in the molecule, the RI increment for atom addition and the group retention factors (GRFs) for substituents and functional groups. Atoms other than carbon such as oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, chlorine, bromine and iodine are assigned carbon atom equivalency of approximately 1, 1, 2, 2, 3 and 4, respectively and are counted for their contribution towards RI prediction. The GRFs of substituents and functional groups are derived from the RIs of reference compounds and series of homologues. Ring structures, ring fusion, ring connection, iso- and neo-carbons, chain branching and unsaturation are also assigned GRFs. The predicted RIs of a number of alicyclic, aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, primary, secondary and tertiary alcohols, phenols, aliphatic amines, aromatic amines, heterocyclics, carboxylic acids, acid esters, aldehydes, ketones, and halogenated compounds, are found to be within +/- 3% of the observed values. The structure-retention index relationship thus developed is extremely useful in the tentative identification of radioactive side products formed in tritium labeling by radiation-induced methods.     

Structure and Magnetic Properties of a Novel Two‐Dimensional Complex from 1, 3, 5‐Benzenetricarboxylate and Neodymium(III) — {[Nd(1, 3, 5‐benzenetricarboxylate)(H2O)4] · H2O}n

A unique neodymium(III) complex, {[Nd(BTC)(H₂O)₄] · H₂O}_n (BTC = 1, 3, 5‐benzenetricarboxylate), was obtained from the reaction between Nd(ClO₄)₃ · xH₂O and Na₃BTC. Coordination bonds, hydrogen bonds, and π‐π stacking form a supramolecular structure with a novel, two‐dimensional framework. The temperature‐dependent magnetic susceptibilities were analyzed by the Curie‐Weiss law; the following values were found C = 1.32, θ = —18.3 K, respectively.     

Structural and Magnetic Study of N2, NO,NO2, and SO2 Adsorbed within a Flexible Single‐Crystal Adsorbent of [Rh2(bza)4(pyz)]n

The crystalline one‐dimensional compound, [Rh^II₂(bza)₄(pyz)]_n ( 1 ) (bza=benzoate, pyz=pyrazine) demonstrates gas adsorbency for N₂, NO, NO₂, and SO₂. These gas‐inclusion crystal structures were characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray crystallography as 1 ?1.5 N₂ (298 K), 1 ?2.5 N₂ (90 K), and 1 ?1.95 NO (90 K) under forcible adsorption conditions and 1 ?2 NO₂ (90 K) and 1 ?3 SO₂ (90 K) under ambient pressure. Crystal‐phase transition to the P space group that correlates with gas adsorption was observed under N₂, NO, and SO₂ conditions. The C2/c space group was observed under NO₂ conditions without phase transition. All adsorbed gases were stabilized by the host lattice. In the N₂, NO, and SO₂ inclusion crystals at 90 K, short interatomic distances within van der Waals contacts were found among the neighboring guest molecules along the channel. The adsorbed NO molecules generated the trans‐NO???NO associated dimer with short intermolecular contacts but without the conventional chemical bond. The magnetic susceptibility of the NO inclusion crystal indicated antiferromagnetic interaction between the NO molecules and paramagnetism arising from the NO monomer. The NO₂ inclusion crystal structure revealed that the gas molecules were adsorbed in the crystal in dimeric form, N₂O₄.     

Synthesis and Kinetic Study on the Chromium(III) Complex [Cr(ASA)(en)2]Cl·2H2O

In order to explore the transfer mechanism of chromium(III) in mammals, a novel complex [Cr(ASA)(en)₂]Cl· 2H₂O, bis(ethylenediamine‐ κ ² N,N′)(4‐aminosalicylic acid‐ κ ² O,O′) chromium(III) monochloride dihydrate was synthesized (4‐aminosalicylic acid=H₂ASA, ethylenediamine=en). The crystal structure belongs to orthorhombic system with the space group P2₁2₁2₁ by means of X‐ray diffraction. The characteristic for transfer of Cr³⁺ from the compound to the low‐molecular‐mass chelator EDTA and the iron‐binding protein apoovotransferrin (apoOTf) was followed by UV‐visible (UV‐Vis) and fluorescence spectra in 0.01 mol·L^?1 Hepes at pH 7.4. The second order rate constants were calculated. Those spectra in conjunction were used to obtain more accurate information about the interaction of chromium complex with apoOTf. The experimental results indicate that Cr³⁺ can be transferred from the complex to apoOTf with the retention of the 4‐aminosalicylic acid acting as a synergistic anion.     

Effect of the Secondary Reduction on the Enantioselectivity and Function of Additives in the Chiral Oxazaborolidine‐Catalyzed Asymmetric Borane Reduction of Ketones

The secondary reduction in the direct and oxazaborolidine‐catalyzed asymmetric borane reduction of ketones was investigated by the use of GC/MS tracing titration and control experiments. The results indicate that the secondary reduction affects the enantioselectivity only in noncoordinated solvents at low temperature and not under the usual catalytic reduction conditions because the intermediate alkoxyborane is unstable and quickly converts to borane and dialkoxyborane. The function of an alcohol additive in the asymmetric borane reduction of ketones is to consume excess borane in the reduction system thus inhibiting noncatalytic reduction, which leads to increased enantioselectivity in the catalytic reduction.