Synthesis of dityrosine cross-linked peptide dimers using the Miyaura-Suzuki reaction

[reaction: see text] Since peroxidase-catalyzed dityrosine formation is inefficient for peptides, we have developed alternative conditions for intermolecular dityrosine formation using the Miyaura-Suzuki reaction. A one-pot reaction is effective for cross-linking short peptides, but longer peptides inhibit the Suzuki step, mandating a traditional two-step procedure using potassium acetate for the Miyaura reaction and potassium carbonate for the Suzuki coupling. These palladium-based methods are complementary to the well-established peroxidase-catalyzed oxidative phenolic coupling of full-length proteins.     

Spontaneous Liquid/Liquid Displacement in a Capillary

When a two-phase column consisting of paraffin oil and silicon oil is placed in an otherwise air-filled, horizontal glass capillary, the column starts moving spontaneously. Silicon oil displaces paraffin oil, which in its turn displaces air at atmospheric conditions; a stable film of silicon oil is left at the receding silicon oil/air meniscus. The driving force for the motion is the difference in capillary pressure at the free interfaces. However, the column moves considerably more slowly than predicted by the driving forces; it appears that the forces resisting the motion at the moving liquid/liquid/solid line are much larger than one would expect on the basis of the interfacial tension and the viscosities of the two phase system. Some considerations are made on the relationship of the theory of Fowkes to our system. Also, a method for measuring low interfacial tensions between immiscible liquids is proposed.     

Cumulated double bond systems as ligands : X. N-sulfinylaniline complexes of rhodium(I) and iridium(I) of the type [MCl(PR3)2L] in which L is coordinated via the π-NS and via the sulfur atom respectively; crystal and molecular structure of [RhCl(P-i-Pr3)2(4-MeC6H4NSO)]; determination of the 1J(103Rh15N) by 15N NMR spectroscopy

Each of the compounds [MCl(Pr₃)₂(ArylNSO)] (M = Rh^I, Ir^I; R = i-Pr, Cy: Aryl = C₆H₅, 4-MeC₆H₄, 4-ClC₆H₄, 2,4,6-Me₃C₆H₂ appears to exist as two isomers both in the solid state and in solution. The molecular and single crystal structure of one of the isomers of [RhCl(P-i-Pr)₃)₂(4-Me₆H₄NSO)] shows that the N-sulfinylaniline ligand is in the cis-configuration and coordinated to the rhodium atom via the sulfur-atom. The ligand lies in a plane which includes the rhodium atom and is in agreement with the Rh-S distance of 2.10 Å. IR results of the compounds (solid and solutions), ²¹P NMR data and ¹⁵N NMR of a ¹⁵N labelled compound, which yielded a ¹⁰³Rh¹⁵N coupling constant of 15.5 Hz, show that in the second isomer the N-sulfinylaniline ligand is probably bonded to the metal atom via the π-NS bond.The ratio of the metal-π-NS bonded isomer and the metal-S bonded isomer decreases in the order Aryl = 4-ClC₆H₄ > C₆H₅ > 4-MeC₆H₄; R = i-Pr > Cy and M = Rh > Ir. The interconversion of the two isomers is intramolecular and becomes observable on the ³¹P NMR time scale at about 40° C for M = Rh.In the case of [Ir(P-i-Pr₃)₂(4-MeC₆H₄NSO)], cyclometallation of the sul- finylaniline is observed via the ortho-carbon atom, whereas cyclometallation via P-i-Pr₃ is observed when the ortho-positions are blocked by methyl groups, e.g. when L = 2,4,6-Me₃C₆H₂NSO.     

Study of the State of Water and Oil in Frozen Emulsions Using Time Domain NMR

Here T(1) and T(2)(*) relaxation time measurements by low-field NMR have been used to quantify the state of oil and water in frozen emulsions. Water-in-oil and oil-in-water emulsions have been studied. A discrete method (NLREG program) and a continuous method (CONTIN program) have been used to analyze the FID and inversion-recovery relaxation curves. The FID signal (T(2)(*)) analysis allowed us to calculate the global solid-intermediate-liquid ratio, and the state of the solid and liquid phases was determined by the T(1) values. Thus we have been able to show that the major part of water ( approximately 99%) is in a solid state in such emulsions (average droplet diameter of about 1.5 &mgr;m). This result was confirmed by the study of a solid paraffin-Span 80-water emulsion and a heavy water-caseinate-triolein emulsion. These first results have shown the interest of this new method for the study of the state of water and oil in frozen emulsions. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Determination of Organochlorine Pesticides in Sediments from Authie Bay Using Microwave Assisted Solvent Extraction

The aim of this study was to develop an analytical method to determine the organochlorine concentrations in sediments. Combination of Microwave assisted Solvent Extraction (MASE) and capillary gas chromatography with specific detection (electron capture detector) was a viable approach for the determination of pesticides in solid matrixes. In this study, MASE development was focused on the selection of a suitable extraction solvent for all the target analytes. MASE procedure was validated by comparison with conventional methods such as Soxhlet and sonication extraction. The proposed method was then applied to determine the organochlorine insecticides concentrations in samples from Authie Bay (France). Environmental water samples were analysed and five target analytes were detected in concentrations from 0.03 to 0.56 ng/g of dry sediment. These investigations showed the accumulation and the persistency of these products in sediments in spite of the fact they were banned a few decades ago.     

Systematic computer-aided interpretation of vibrational spectra

The diagnostic value of an interpretation system for vibrational spectra has been investigated in relation to the number of structural units the system can cope with. For five structural units the correlated wavenumber intervals are derived from three infrared and three Raman files by the CRISE program. The interpretative value of each interval in relation to the intensity threshold is discussed. For most intervals a decrease is found on increasing the number of structural units.     

The lowest triplet state of benzene: Differences in electronic structure in two crystalline modifications of a cyclohexane host

Microwave induced delayed phosphorescence (MIDP) measurements have been performed in the 00 bands of the phosphorescence spectrum of benzene dissolved in two phases of cyclohexane. From the relative radiative rates for decay of the three zero-field levels it is concluded that on the average the symmetry of the electronic structure is lower than D_2h. In the monoclinic low temperature stable phase of cyclohexane (phase II) the structure is approximately antiquinoidal, and in the metastable phase III it is approximately quinoidal.     

DNA electrophoresis in agarose gels: a simple relation describing the length dependence of mobility

Electrophoretic mobilities of DNA molecules ranging in length from 100 to 10 000 base pairs (bp) were measured in gels of eleven concentrations of agarose from 0.5 to 1.5%. Excellent fits of the dependence of mobility on DNA length were obtained with the relationship [equation: see text] showing an e(-L/gamma) crossover, where L is the length of a DNA fragment and gamma is a crossover length ranging from 8000 to 12000 bp. The other parameters in the fit are mu(s) the mobility of short DNA with unit charge in the limit as length is extrapolated to zero, and muI, the mobility of long DNA as length is extrapolated to infinity. This exponential relationship should be a useful interpolation function for determining DNA lengths over a wide range. The simplicity of this relationship may be of more fundamental significance and suggests that some common feature dominates the electrophoresis of double stranded DNA fragments in agarose gels, regardless of length.