Metal‐based isatin‐bearing sulfonamides: their synthesis,characterization and biological properties

A new series of antibacterial and antifungal isatin bearing sulfonamides and their cobalt (II), copper (II), nickel (II) and zinc (II) metal complexes have been synthesized, characterized and screened for their in vitro antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus, Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Shigilla dysentriae and Staphylococcus aureus and for in vitro antifungal activity against Trichophyton schoenleinii, Candid glabrata, Pseudallescheria boydii, Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, Microsporum canis and Trichophyton mentagrophytes. The results of these studies revealed that all compounds showed moderate to significant antibacterial activity. The brine shrimp bioassay was also carried out to study their in vitro cytotoxic properties. Only three compounds, 2, 11 and 22 displayed potent cytotoxic activity as LD₅₀ = 1.56 × 10^?7, 1.59 × 10^?7 and 1.67 × 10^?7 M /ml respectively, against Artemia salina. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simulation in manufacturing and business: A review

This paper reports the results of a review of simulation applications published within peer-reviewed literature between 1997 and 2006 to provide an up-to-date picture of the role of simulation techniques within manufacturing and business. The review is characterised by three factors: wide coverage, broad scope of the simulation techniques, and a focus on real-world applications. A structured methodology was followed to narrow down the search from around 20,000 papers to 281. Results include interesting trends and patterns. For instance, although discrete event simulation is the most popular technique, it has lower stakeholder engagement than other techniques, such as system dynamics or gaming. This is highly correlated with modelling lead time and purpose. Considering application areas, modelling is mostly used in scheduling. Finally, this review shows an increasing interest in hybrid modelling as an approach to cope with complex enterprise-wide systems.     

Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS): A Promising Tool for Biological Research

Abstract

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is an important biophysical technique. FCS is currently being used in many areas of biology to solve several scientific problems. Its properties such as detection at the single molecular level, higher sensitivity, and use of lower sample volume make FCS a promising molecular diagnostic tool. The promising applications of FCS extend from DNA kinetics/dynamics studies to the comprehensive understanding of receptor–ligand interactions. In this article, we review various promising biological applications of FCS.     

Luminescence characteristics of K2Ca2(SO4)3:Eu,Tb micro- and nanocrystalline phosphor

K₂Ca₂(SO₄)₃ microcrystalline pure, doped with Eu, Tb and co-doped with Eu, Tb was prepared by solid-state diffusion method. Nanoparticles of these phosphors were also prepared by the chemical co-precipitation method. The formation of the compounds was confirmed by XRD. The particle size was calculated by broadening of the XRD peaks using Scherrer's formula. The particle size of nanocrystalline powder material was approximately found to be around 20 nm. Thermoluminescence and photoluminescence were studied to see the effect of co-doping and particle size. Tb³⁺ co-doping decreases the intensity in the Eu²⁺ doped phosphor due to the energy transfer and multiple de-excitations through various radiative and non-radiative processes. The sensitivity of K₂Ca₂(SO₄)₃:Eu,Tb microcrystalline phosphor was around 15 times more than LiF-TLD 100 and 7 times more than CaSO₄:Dy. A high temperature peak (615 K) was observed in case of the nanoparticles, which was attributed to a particle size induced phase transition. This was confirmed by differential scanning calormetry measurements. The decrease in the sensitivity in case of nanoparticles is attributed to the particle size effect i.e. volume to surface ratio. Theoretical analysis of the glow curves was done by glow curve convolution deconvolution method to calculate trapping parameters of various peaks.     

A unified framework for constructing globally convergent algorithms for multidimensional coefficient inverse problems

We present a unified framework for constructing the globally convergent algorithms for a broad class of multidimensional coefficient inverse problems arising in natural science and industry. Based on the convexification approach, the unified framework substantiates the numerical solution of the corresponding problem of nonconvex optimization. A globally convergent iterative algorithm for an inverse problem of diffuse optical mammography is constructed. It utilizes the contraction property of a nonlinear operator resulting from applying the convexification approach. The effectiveness of this algorithm is demonstrated in computational experiments.     

The biogenetic law

We develop one criterion for the selection of the content of a mathematics syllabus. We advocate the importance of the biogenetic law and stress the importance of a historical perspective in mathematical education.     

Enhancement of the electrical properties of carbon nanotubes with Ar–N2 plasma treatment

Optical emission spectroscopy and Langmuir probe are used to investigate the low pressure inductively coupled Ar–N₂ plasmas as function of rf power, filling pressure and Ar content in N₂ discharge. It is observed that the active species generation, dissociation fraction and electron temperature significantly depends on discharge parameters and may be used to optimize the plasma reactor. Mixture of SWCNTs and MWCNTs are treated for different treatment time (0–120 min) at optimum discharge conditions. Changes induced in the elemental composition, surface morphology, crystallographic structure, and structural disorder in the plasma irradiated CNTs are analyzed by EDX, FTIR, SEM, XRD and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. Ar–N₂ mixture plasma treatment of CNTs lead to a significant increase in the electrical conductivity, modify the microstructure and induce structural disorder and cause a transition of crystalline phase from well crystalline to an amorphous structure.     

Singular field decomposition based on path-independent integrals

A method is developed by which the field generated by a source (measured or numerically evaluated) is decomposed in a series of singular self-equilibrating linear elastic field components. These elementary sources form an elastic equivalent of the real source, the set of their magnitudes representing a ‘spectral decomposition’ of the investigated field. The decomposition is performed using path–independent interaction integrals computed through the field of interest, far from the source. The method may be used to investigate internal field sources, such as dislocations, as well as sources of field perturbation, such as crack tips or wedges. The method is applied to the analysis of the core structure of an edge dislocation in aluminium. The dislocation is represented in an atomistic simulation and a model core is sought in the form of a series of multipoles or elementary linear elastic field sources. The field of the dislocation is composed from the Volterra solution and higher–order components induced by the nonlinear behaviour of the material in the core region. The magnitude of the component elementary sources is determined from the numerically evaluated field far from the core. This expansion characterizes the core structure. Its variation associated with the core deformation as the dislocation is loaded against the Peierls barrier is investigated.     

Physical description of the impregnation mechanism of dye molecules in contact with porous electrodes

We propose and discuss two models that take into account the decreasing of the bulk density of dyes molecules in contact with a porous electrode. We show that the models based on the standard adsorption phenomenon have to be considered just as fitting models, of limited physical significance. A more physical model has to take into account the diffusion of dye molecules into the channels present in the porous electrode and also the adsorption of dye molecules on the lateral surfaces of these channels. The agreement between the theoretical prediction of such a model and the experimental data is reasonably good.