Studies on the Fast Atom Bombardment Mass Spectrometry Fragmentation of Amino Sugars Using Synthetic Derivatives of the Trisaccharide Unit β-D-Glucopyranosyl-(1-3)-O-2-deoxy-2-amino-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1-4)-O-d-glucopyranose

Abstract

N-Phthaloyl, N-acetyl, N-benzyl, N-acetyl-N-methyl, N,N-dimethyl, N-benzoyl, and N,N-dibenzoyl derivatives of the trisaccharide β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-3)-O-(2-deoxy-2-amino-β-D-glucopyranosyl)-(1-4)-O-β-D-glucopyranose were synthesized and analyzed by FAB MS. The intensity ratios of the peaks resulting from cleavage of the anomeric bond of the glucosamine residue and the respective molecular ion peaks turned out to be high for the N-acyl derivatives and up to two orders of magnitude lower for the N-alkyl compounds. These results show that fragmentation at the anomeric carbon of the amino sugar may be assisted by the carbonyl group and the resulting cation is stabilized by delocalization of the positive charge.     

Cadmium determination in biological samples by direct solid sampling flame atomic absorption spectrometry

A direct solid sampling flame atomic absorption spectrometric procedure for trace determination of cadmium in biological samples has been developed. Test samples (0.05–2.00 mg) were ground and weighed into small polyethylene vials, which were connected to the device for solid sample introduction into a conventional air/acetylene flame. Test samples were carried as a dry aerosol to a quartz cell, placed between the burner and the optical path, which had a perpendicular entrance and a slit in the upper part. The atomic vapor generated in the flame produced a transient signal that was totally integrated within 1 s. The effect of operating conditions and the extent of grinding on the analytical signal were evaluated. Background signals were always low and a characteristic mass of 0.29 ng Cd was obtained. Calibration was performed using different masses of solid certified reference materials. Results obtained for certified and in-house reference materials were typically within the 95% confidence interval of the certified and/or reference value, and the precision, expressed as relative standard deviation, was between 3.8 and 6.7%. The proposed system is simple and it might be adapted to conventional atomic absorption spectrometers allowing the determination of Cd in more than 80 test samples per hour, excluding weighing.     

Slicing the Oppenheimer-Snyder Collapse: Harmonic versus Maximal Slicing

In continuing our studies of temporal slicings of spacetimes, we consider the collapse from rest of an initially homogeneous dust sphere, known as Oppenheimer-Snyder collapse. It is shown that in the case of harmonic slicing the whole spacetime becomes covered by slices extending to spatial infinity in contrast to maximal slicing. The behavior of the lapse function is discussed, especially for various data on the initial slice, and it is demonstrated that not every choice of the initial lapse leads to meaningful slicings.     

An α/β-HSQC-α/β Experiment for Spin-State Selective Editing of IS Cross Peaks

A generalized version of the TROSY experiment allows the spin-state selective editing of the four multiplet components of¹⁵N–¹H cross peaks of amide groups in proteins into four different subspectra, with no penalty in sensitivity. An improvement by in sensitivity results, if only two of the four multiplet components are selected. Use of the experiment for the measurement of¹J_HNcoupling constants is discussed. A water flip-back version of the experiment is demonstrated with a 45 kDa fragment of¹⁵N/²H labeledStaphylococcus aureusgyrase B.     

Investigation of copolymers of styrene and ethyl methacrylate by size exclusion chromatography and gradient HPLC

Summary Copolymers of styrene and ethyl methacrylate have been separated according to composition by gradient HPLC on silica columns or CN bonded phase columns. This mode of separation according to composition was applied to fractions obtained by size exclusion chromatography (SEC). From viscosity and molecular mass data of copolymers with a styrene content ranging from 7.5 to 95.3 mass-% it can be concluded that SEC separates mainly by molecular mass even in this copolymer system. Thus, chromatographic cross-fractionation is possible by prefractionation by SEC and subsequent separation according to composition by gradient HPLC.

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Untersuchung von Copolymeren von Styrol und Ethylmethacrylat durch Ausschluß-Chromatographie und Gradienten-HPLC

     

Influence of variable selection on partial least squares discriminant analysis models for explosive residue classification

Using a series of thirteen organic materials that includes novel high-nitrogen energetic materials, conventional organic military explosives, and benign organic materials, we have demonstrated the importance of variable selection for maximizing residue discrimination with partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). We built several PLS-DA models using different variable sets based on laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) spectra of the organic residues on an aluminum substrate under an argon atmosphere. The model classification results for each sample are presented and the influence of the variables on these results is discussed. We found that using the whole spectra as the data input for the PLS-DA model gave the best results. However, variables due to the surrounding atmosphere and the substrate contribute to discrimination when the whole spectra are used, indicating this may not be the most robust model. Further iterative testing with additional validation data sets is necessary to determine the most robust model.