Mushroom Polysaccharides and Lipids Synthesized in Liquid Agitated and Static Cultures. Part I: Screening Various Mushroom Species

The effect of four synthetic media containing glucose (initial concentration 30?g?l^?1) on mycelial growth, exopolysaccharides (EPS) and cellular lipids production was examined in 11 mushroom species after 12 and 16?days of culture in static- and shake-flasks. Fatty acid analysis of cellular lipids produced was also performed. Agitation had a positive effect on biomass production, glucose consumption and lipid biosynthesis. Media that favoured the production of biomass were not suitable for EPS biosynthesis and vice versa. Biomass values varied from ??1.0?g?l^?1 (Lentinula edodes) to ??19?g?l^?1 (Pleurotus ostreatus), while the highest EPS quantity achieved ranged between 1.6 and 1.8?g?l^?1 (for Ganoderma lucidum and L. edodes, respectively). Quantities of total cellular lipids varied between 2.5 and 18.5?% w/w, in dry mycelial mass for the fungi tested. Lipid in dry weight values were influenced by the medium composition. Cellular lipids presented noticeable quantities of poly-unsaturated fatty acids like linoleic acid. Compared to most of the mushrooms tested, lipids of Volvariella volvacea were more saturated. The ability of several mushroom species of our study to produce in notable quantities the above-mentioned added-value compounds renders these fungi worthy for further investigations.     

Complex Salts of Lanthanide(III) Nitrates from Di­pyridylamine: Preparation,Structural, and Thermoanalytical ­Investigation

The reaction of a lanthanide(III) nitrate (Ln = Pr, Nd) with the base 2, 2′‐dipyridylamine (dpamH) afforded two very stable microcrystalline compounds. These compounds were characterized as complex salts with the general formula [Ln(NO₃)₆] · 3[dpamH‐H⁺] · H₂O, where the dpamH ligand is not coordinated, but exists in its protonated form serving as counterion (dipyridylammonium cation), as it was revealed by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction studies. Each one of the nitrate ions is coordinated, however, in a bidentate manner with the lanthanide(III) ion, which obtains coordination number twelve. All organic dpamH‐H⁺ cations are arranged in two columns parallel to the a axis of the cell forming pairs of almost parallel cationic molecules at a distance of about 3.5 Å. Inside each pair the molecules interact by strong π–π interactions. The water molecules, arranged between the inorganic anions [Ln(NO₃)₆]^3–, bridge them by strong hydrogen bonds, involving the water proton and one nitrate oxygen. The lattice can be described as made from successive organic and inorganic alternating parallel columns interacting between them with strong hydrogen bonds. The thermal stability and decomposition mode of the two lanthanide compounds were studied by the simultaneous TG/DTG‐DTA technique and compared with the starting hexahydrate lanthanide(III) salts and the dipyridylamine.     

Comparative study of perturbative methods for computing electron transfer tunneling matrix elements with a nonorthogonal basis set

The authors consider the problem of computing tunneling matrix elements for bridge-mediated electron transfer reactions using the Lowdin [J. Math. Phys. 3, 969 (1962); J. Mol. Spectrosc. 13, 326 (1964)] projection-iteration technique with a nonorthogonal basis set. They compare the convergence properties of two different Lowdin projections, one containing the overlap matrix S and the other containing the inverse S-1 in the projected Hamiltonian. It was suggested in the literature that the projected Hamiltonian with S-1 has better convergence properties compared to the projected Hamiltonian with S. The authors test this proposal using a simple analytical model, and ab initio Hartree-Fock calculations on different molecules with several types of basis sets. Their calculations show that, for Gaussian-type basis sets, the projected Hamiltonian containing S has the best convergence properties, especially for diffuse basis sets and in the strong coupling limit. The limit of diffuse basis sets is relevant to tunneling matrix element calculations involving excited states and anionic electron transfer.