The interactions of surfactant viologens with cyclodextrins

N-ethyl-N-hexadecyl-4,4-bipyridinium bromide (C₁₆VBr₂) andN-ethyl-N-octadecyl-4,4-bipyridinium bromide (C₁₈VBr₂) were used as electroactive probes to assess the interactions between surfactants and cyclodextrins. Cyclic voltammetry, visible spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy and surface tension techniques were used to detect the formation of complexes between the surfactant viologen probes and- and-cyclodextrins. The voltammetric results suggest the formation of inclusion compounds in which the hydrophobic tail of the surfactant viologens penetrate the cyclodextrin cavity. The dimerization of the viologen cation radicals is essentially suppressed by the presence of-cyclodextrin (ACD) while no effects are observed in the presence of-cyclodextrin (BCD). The observed results are best explained by the relative solubility in aqueous media of each of the inclusion complexes in the several accessible viologen oxidation states.     

On-line electrochemical preconcentration and flame atomic absorption spectrometric determination of manganese in urine samples

A sensitive and selective method was developed for the determination of traces of manganese in urine using on-line electrochemical preconcentration followed by flame atomic absorption spectrometry detection. A home made flow-through polypropylene cell (4.5 cm long × 0.8 cm diameter filled with glass marbles) with an effective inner volume of 0.5 ml containing a working and a counter electrode, both of glassy carbon and a Pt pseudo reference electrode was located in a flow injection manifold specially designed for the purpose of this work. The manganese was deposited from buffer solution of NH₃/NH₄Cl at pH 9.00 through an oxidizing process at a current of 400 mA during 7 min. A flow of HCl 0.1 mol l⁻¹ at 4 ml min⁻¹ through the cell, chemically dissolved the deposit. A small portion (15 μl) of the concentrate was introduced in a continuously flowing system by means of a timing device and was then carried to the detector for the manganese quantification. All electrochemical and spectroscopic variables as well as possible interferences in both systems were systematically studied. The relative standard deviations for ten consecutive measurements of manganese solutions of 2.0 and 20 μg l⁻¹ were of 2.3 and 1.5%, respectively, while for a sample processed five times was less then 5%. The accuracy of the developed procedure was evaluated by adding known amounts of manganese standard to urine samples and following the whole procedure. Recoveries within the range 97.2-102.8% were obtained. To further prove the accuracy, a Seronorm Trace Elements in Urine, Batch 403125 sample with a reported concentration of 13 μg Mn l⁻¹ was also analyzed. The experimental value obtained was of 12.7 ± 0.1 μg l⁻¹, which does not differ significantly from the reported amount (p < 0.05). A preconcentration factor of 40, a linear range between 0.015 and 60 μg l⁻¹ and a limit of detection of 15 ng l⁻¹ permitted the determination of manganese in real urine samples from non-exposed subjects in the range 0.5-2.8 μg l⁻¹.     

Thiolate ligands for synthesis of water-soluble gold clusters

Water-soluble monolayer-protected gold clusters (MPCs) have been an object of investigation by many research groups since their first syntheses were reported in 1998 and 1999. The basic requirements for a ligand to form a monolayer protecting a gold cluster were established some time ago for alkanethiolate MPCs, but there has been no such information published for water-soluble MPCs. We identify 6 new ligands capable of forming water-soluble MPCs, as well as 22 water-soluble ligands that fail to form MPCs. Our findings contribute not only to the definition of the requirements for MPC formation but also to the variety of MPCs available for applications in chemistry and biology.     

First-principles analyses and predictions on the reactivity of barrier layers of Ta and TaN toward organometallic precursors for deposition of copper films

We present theoretical studies based on first-principles density functional theory calculations on the mechanisms of chemical vapor deposition of Cu-hexafluoracetylacetonato-trimethylvinylsilane (Cu(hfac)(tmvs)) on tantalum surfaces. This process has been used in the past to grow copper films via a disproportionation reaction and was found to exhibit adhesion problems. We show that the Ta surfaces are highly reactive and that the organic ligands in a copper precursor would undergo spontaneous decomposition upon contact with the Ta substrates. This may lead to contamination of the metal surfaces caused by the formation of carbide, fluoride, oxide species, or other fragments of the copper precursor on the barrier layer. We propose a practical solution for these adhesion problems caused by the CVD process by passivating the metal surfaces with N(2) to reduce their activity toward the precursor. Our extensive first-principles molecular dynamics simulations under typical deposition conditions predict that, for properly passivated TaN surfaces, only the copper atoms are firmly adsorbed on the surface, with loose Cu-ligand bonds. The ligands are sufficiently stable on these passivated surfaces, remaining slightly above the surface due to the repulsion between the electron-rich N-layer and the electron-rich ligand groups, and subsequently liberated upon the disproportionation reaction.     

Voltammetric determination of alkaline phosphatase and horseradish peroxidase activity using 3-indoxyl phosphate as substrate Application to enzyme immunoassay

The use of 3-indoxyl phosphate (3-IP) as an electrochemical substrate for ELISAs with voltammetric detection was investigated. Indirect measurements of alkaline phosphatase (AP) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) activity in solution were carried out. Picomolar levels of both enzymes can be detected, which enables the design of electrochemical immunoassays using this substrate. The enzymatic turnover of the substrate gives indigo blue, insoluble in aqueous solutions. This product is easily converted into its soluble parent compound, indigo carmine (IC), by addition of fuming sulphuric acid to the reaction media. IC shows a reversible voltammetric peak at the formal potential of −0.15 V (versus Ag pseudo-reference electrode) when a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE) is used. The peak current of this process constitutes the analytical signal. Using this approach an ELISA assay to quantify pneumolysin (PLY, a toxin related to respiratory infections) was carried out using AP or HRP as enzymatic label. Calibration plots obtained are reported. 3-IP is demonstrated to be the first suitable substrate for the two most common enzyme labels used in immunoassays.     

On Linear Configurations in Subsets of Compact Abelian Groups,and Invariant Measurable Hypergraphs

We prove an arithmetic removal result for all compact abelian groups, generalizing a finitary removal result of Král’, Serra, and the third author. To this end, we consider infinite measurable hypergraphs that are invariant under certain group actions, and for these hypergraphs we prove a symmetry-preserving removal lemma, which extends a finitary result of the same name by the second author. We deduce our arithmetic removal result by applying this lemma to a specific type of invariant measurable hypergraph. As a direct consequence of our removal result, we obtain the following generalization of Szemerédi’s theorem: for any compact abelian group G, any measurable set \({A \subseteq G}\) with Haar probability \({\mu(A) \geq \alpha > 0}\) satisfies \({\int_{G}\int_{G}1_{A}(x)1_{A}(x+r)...1_{A}(x+(k-1)r)\, {\rm d} \mu(x)\, {\rm d} \mu(r) \geq c}\), where the constant \({c=c(\alpha, k) > 0}\) is valid uniformly for all G. This result is shown to hold more generally for any translationinvariant system of r linear equations given by an integer matrix with coprime \({r \times r}\) minors.     

A simplified calculation procedure for mass isotopomer distribution analysis (MIDA) based on multiple linear regression

We have developed a novel, rapid and easy calculation procedure for Mass Isotopomer Distribution Analysis based on multiple linear regression which allows the simultaneous calculation of the precursor pool enrichment and the fraction of newly synthesized labelled proteins (fractional synthesis) using linear algebra. To test this approach, we used the peptide RGGGLK as a model tryptic peptide containing three subunits of glycine. We selected glycine labelled in two ¹³C atoms (¹³C₂‐glycine) as labelled amino acid to demonstrate that spectral overlap is not a problem in the proposed methodology. The developed methodology was tested first in vitro by changing the precursor pool enrichment from 10 to 40% of ¹³C₂‐glycine. Secondly, a simulated in vivo synthesis of proteins was designed by combining the natural abundance RGGGLK peptide and 10 or 20% ¹³C₂‐glycine at 1 : 1, 1 : 3 and 3 : 1 ratios. Precursor pool enrichments and fractional synthesis values were calculated with satisfactory precision and accuracy using a simple spreadsheet. This novel approach can provide a relatively rapid and easy means to measure protein turnover based on stable isotope tracers. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthetic Receptors for the High‐Affinity Recognition of O‐GlcNAc Derivatives

The combination of a pyrenyl tetraamine with an isophthaloyl spacer has led to two new water‐soluble carbohydrate receptors (“synthetic lectins”). Both systems show outstanding affinities for derivatives of N‐acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) in aqueous solution. One receptor binds the methyl glycoside GlcNAc‐β‐OMe with K_a≈20 000 m ^?1, whereas the other one binds an O‐GlcNAcylated peptide with K_a≈70 000 m ^?1. These values substantially exceed those usually measured for GlcNAc‐binding lectins. Slow exchange on the NMR timescale enabled structural determinations for several complexes. As expected, the carbohydrate units are sandwiched between the pyrenes, with the alkoxy and NHAc groups emerging at the sides. The high affinity of the GlcNAcyl–peptide complex can be explained by extra‐cavity interactions, raising the possibility of a family of complementary receptors for O‐GlcNAc in different contexts.     

Hydrogen‐Bond Cooperativity in Formamide2–Water: A Model for Water‐Mediated Interactions

The rotational spectrum of formamide₂–H₂O formed in a supersonic jet has been characterized by Fourier‐transform microwave spectroscopy. This adduct provides a simple model of water‐mediated interaction involving the amide linkages, as occur in protein folding or amide‐association processes, showing the interplay between self‐association and solvation. Mono‐substituted ¹³C, ¹⁵N, ¹⁸O, and ²H isotopologues have been observed and their data used to investigate the structure. The adduct forms an almost planar three‐body sequential cycle. The two formamide molecules link on one side through an N?H???O hydrogen bond and on the other side through a water‐mediated interaction with the formation of C=O???H?O and O???H?N hydrogen bonds. The analysis of the quadrupole coupling effects of two ¹⁴N‐nuclei reveals the subtle inductive forces associated to cooperative hydrogen bonding. These forces are involved in the changes in the C=O and C?N bond lengths with respect to pure formamide.     

Discrete Silver(I)‐Palladium(II)‐Oxo Nanoclusters, {Ag4Pd13} and {Ag5Pd15}, and the Role of Metal–Metal Bonding Induced by Cation Confinement

We introduce the class of discrete silver(I)‐palladium(II)‐oxo nanoclusters with the preparation of {Ag₄Pd₁₃} and {Ag₅Pd₁₅}. Both polyanions represent the first examples of noble metal‐capped polyoxo‐noble‐metalates in a fully inorganic assembly, featuring an unprecedented host–guest mode containing hetero‐ and homometallic Ag–Pd and Ag–Ag bonding interactions. Comprehensive theoretical calculations suggest that the Ag–Pd metallic bonds originate partially from surface confinement of Ag^I guest ions onto the anionic polyoxopalladate host that is induced by strong electrostatic forces. This work opens the field of fully inorganic silver‐palladium‐oxo nanoclusters, which can be considered as discrete mixed noble metal precursors for the formation of monodisperse core–shell nanoparticles, with high relevance for catalysis.