Synthesis of Vinca Alkaloids and Related Compounds. LXV. Preparation of 7-Methoxytryptamine

7-Methoxytryptamine (6a) was prepared from cheap and easily available starting materials by using the Abramovitch-Shapiro method.     

Trace level triacetone-triperoxide identification with SPME–GC-MS in model systems

Triacetone-triperoxide is a high explosive mainly used by terrorist groups. With the spreading of the recipe on the Internet, increasing number of bomb attacks are being reported worldwide using triacetone-triperoxide. A simple identification method is described using 100 μm polydimethyl siloxane fibre solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography combined with spectrometry. The method was tested on various pre- and post-explosion models that can be collected in a house search or after a bomb attack. Sample preservation and stability was also examined. Identification of triacetone-triperoxide residues in post-explosion models was feasible 24 h after ignition, the detection limit being 5 ng.     

Design of online solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS/MS) hyphenated systems for quantitative analysis of small organic compounds in biological matrices

Three online solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS/MS) method examples are presented where two different types of chromatographic columns or solvent systems were coupled to meet specific analytical objectives: (i) SPE of target analytes by restricted access media from high ionic strength urine matrix was coupled with reversed phase LC-MS/MS conditions accommodating high ionization potentials of the analytes (urinary bisphenol A and other phenolic derivatives); (ii) strong cation exchange SPE of analytes of diverse polarity and pK(a) was coupled with reversed phase LC-MS/MS analysis (urinary atrazine metabolites); (iii) pre-concentration of low pg per sample analytes by weak anion exchange SPE was hyphenated with ion pair LC-MS analysis (intracellular nucleotide triphosphate analogs). With these examples we suggest a conductive generic work flow for the development of online SPE-LC-MS methods and show how advanced commercial LC devices and software allow for the design of complex yet highly versatile analytical separation systems suited to the unique physicochemical properties of the target analytes.     

Photoinduced Intracrystalline Chemical Changes in Solid [Cr(en)3]2(C2O4)3 · 3 H2O Possibility of the Utilization in Synthesis

In the course of irradiation of polycrystalline [Cr(en)₃]₂(C₂O₄)₃ · 3 H₂O at the LF-excited state wave length substitution of ethylenediamine by the anion presented in the crystal lattice (C₂O₄)^2? occurs and [Cr (en)₂ox][Cren(ox)₂] is formed. Besides products identification spectrophotometric method for the study of the reaction course in the solid state was worked up. Experimental conditions for the utilization of the photosubstitution in solid state in preparative scale were also found.     

Tests of quantum chromodynamics and a direct measurement of the strong coupling constant αs at √s=30 GeV

We report the measurement of the reaction e⁺ + e^? → hadronic jets at a center-of-mass energy √s=30 GeV using the MARK-J detector at PETRA. By measuring the energy and angular distribution of both neutrals and charged particles we were able to isolate unambiguously the three-jet events in a kinematic region where the backgrounds from q$\text{q}$ and phase space contributions and other processes are small. Various comparisons of the data with quantum chromodynamics were made. The relative yield of three-jet events and the shape distribution of the events enable us to determine α_s = 0.23 ± 0.02 (statistical error) with a systematic error of ± 0.04.     

In vitro study of antibiotic effect on bacterial adherence to acrylic intraocular lenses

Implantation of artificial intraocular lenses into the eye during ophthalmic surgical procedures ensures an unliving surface on which bacterial pathogens may attach and form biofilms. Despite antibiotic treatment bacteria growing in biofilms might cause inflammation and serious complications. In this study the adhesive ability of 7 Staphylococcus aureus and 11 coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CNS) strains to the surface of acrylic intraocular lenses had been examined by the ultrasonic method. In untreated cases adhesion of the S. aureus and CNS strains did not differ significantly. We could not demonstrate significant differences between the adhesive ability of the standard strains and the clinical isolates. In this study a single – 60 min long – antibiotic (ciprofloxacin and tobramycin) treatment had been applied, that correlate well with the single or intermittant antibiotic prophylaxis of patients. Ciprofloxacin administration was able to reduce significantly the number of attached cells on the surface of acrylic lenses both in the case of S. aureus and CNS strains. Dependence of the effect from concentration could also be demonstrated. Tobramycin treatment was able to inhibit significantly the attachment of S. aureus cells. Despite the debate on antibiotic prophylaxis we presented in our experiments that a single antibiotic administration can decrease the attachment of bacterial cells to the surface of acrylic intraocular lenses, and might be effective in the prevention of postoperative endophthalmitis, that is a rare but serious complication of ophthalmic surgery.     

Regularity of ultrafilters

If there arek ⁺⁺ eventually functions fromk ⁺ intok or if there arek ⁺⁺ eventually different functions fromk ⁺ then uniform ultrafilters onk ⁺ are (k, k ⁺)-regular. The research of the first author was supported in part by NSF grant. The second author is a Miller’s Fellow at the University of California in Berkeley.     

Simulations of petawatt-class few-cycle optical-parametric chirped-pulse amplification, including nonlinear refractive index effects

We present three-dimensional simulations of optical-parametric chirped-pulse amplification stages for a few-cycle petawatt-class laser. The simulations take into account the effects of depletion, diffraction, walk-off, quantum noise, and the nonlinear refractive index (n(2)). In the absence of n(2) effects, we show these stages can generate 3.67J pulses supporting 4fs transform-limited pulse durations. Adding the nonlinear refractive index to the simulation, the energy output is reduced by ~11% and the bandwidth narrows by ~129nm, increasing the Fourier limit by ~17.5%.