On the Double Salt Formation in the Systems Rb2SeO4=ZnSeO4=H2O andCs2SeO4=ZnSeO4=H2O at 25°C

Summary.  The solubilities in the systems Rb₂SeO₄=ZnSeO₄=H₂O and Cs₂SeO₄=ZnSeO₄=H₂O at 25°C were studied by the method of isothermal decrease of supersaturation. Comparatively wide crystallization fields of the double salts Rb₂Zn(SeO₄)₂ċ6H₂O and Cs₂Zn(SeO₄)₂ċ6H₂O are observed in the solubility diagrams. The double salts form monoclinic crystals which are isostructural with those of the corresponding rubidium and cesium zinc sulfate hexahydrates. TG and TDA measurements indicate that the double salts lose their crystallization water in one step in the temperature intervals of 50–160°C (rubidium salt) and 70–150°C (cesium salt). Received March 14, 2000. Accepted (revised) June 5, 2000     

Quasi-Kähler Manifolds with a Pair of Norden Metrics

The basic class of the non-integrable almost complex manifolds with a pair of Norden metrics are considered. The interconnections between corresponding quantities at the transformation between the two Levi-Civita connections are given. A 4-parametric family of 4-dimensional quasi-K?hler manifolds with Norden metric is characterized with respect to the associated Levi-Civita connection.     

Substrate specificity of NovM: implications for novobiocin biosynthesis and glycorandomization

[reaction: see text] In an effort to expand the scope of natural product in vitro glycorandomization (IVG), the substrate specificity of NovM was investigated. A test of four aglycon analogues and over 40 nucleotide sugars revealed NovM has a surprisingly stringent substrate specificity and provided only three new "unnatural" natural products. On the basis of the determined substrate specificity, an alternative to the sugar nucleotide biosynthetic dogma and a cautionary note for the general applicability of IVG are introduced.     

Conformationally restricted goniofufurone mimics with halogen,azido or benzoyloxy groups at the C-7 position: Design,synthesis and antiproliferative activity

A series of new conformationally restricted goniofufurone mimics, bearing an additional 1,3-dioxan ring and a halogen, azido or benzoyloxy functionality at the C-7 position has been designed and synthesized. The Appel reaction was used for replacement of 7-OH group with Cl or Br functions in tricyclic lactone (3). 7-Iodo derivative (3d) was prepared by using the Ph₃P/I₂/2,6-lutidine reagent system. 7-Fluoro group was introduced by treatment of 3 with DAST, while the corresponding 7-azido and 7-benzoyloxy derivatives have been prepared by multistep sequences. Synthesized products were evaluated for their ability to inhibit growth of selected human malignant cell lines. Structure-activity relationships demonstrated that the nature of a substituent at the C-7 position could enhance the antiproliferative activity of the analogues. The preliminary study on the mechanisms indicated that all synthesized compounds induced apoptosis in 61–77% of K562?cells.     

Turbid media optical properties derived from the characteristics of propagating laser radiation beams

The possibility is studied to develop a straightforward analytical approach to the determination of the optical properties of liquid turbid media having forward-peaked scattering indicatrices. The approach is based on investigating the in-depth behavior of the radius and the axial intensity of a laser radiation beam propagating through the turbid medium. Based on the small-angle approximation, the detected forward-propagating light power spatial distribution, at relatively small or large optical depths along the beam axis, is obtained asymptotically in analytical form allowing one to derive relatively simple expressions of the extinction, reduced-scattering and absorption coefficients and the anisotropy factor of the medium through the characteristics of the propagating light beam. Preliminary experiments have also been performed, using Intralipid dilutions of different relatively low concentrations and measuring the cross-sectional radial distribution of the detected light power at different depths along the beam axis. The corresponding on-axis detected light power profiles have been measured independently as well. The experimental results are consistent with the analytical expressions obtained that allow one to estimate the optical coefficients and the anisotropy factor of the investigated media on the basis of the measured beam characteristics. The values obtained are near those predicted by other researchers.     

Conformal Riemannian P-manifolds with connections whose curvature tensors are Riemannian P-tensors

The largest class of Riemannian almost product manifolds, which is closed with respect to the group of the conformal transformations of the Riemannian metric, is the class of the conformal Riemannian P-manifolds. This class is an analogue of the class of the conformal Kähler manifolds in almost Hermitian geometry. The main aim of this work is to obtain properties of manifolds of this class with connections, whose curvature tensors have similar properties as the Kähler tensors in Hermitian geometry.     

Influence of ThO<Subscript>2</Subscript> on the photocatalytic activity of TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript>

Microcomposites consisting of TiO₂ (or Ce-doped TiO₂) and ThO₂ (0.5–2% of the TiO₂ mass) are produced by sol-gel synthesis of TiO₂ in presence of ThO₂. X-ray diffraction study reveals the effects of ThO₂ (compared to the ThO₂-free TiO₂, obtained by the same method) on the anatase interplanar distances, crystallites size and phase composition. The photocatalytic tests in presence of the composites under UV irradiation reveal an increase of the Malachite Green degradation rate constant. The effect depends on the Th relative content, temperature of annealing of the catalyst and addition of other doping agent. The highest photocatalytic activity is observed for TiO₂ obtained at 550°C and containing 1% ThO₂. The composite exhibits activity in dark, also. The presence of Ce⁴⁺ ions is not an obligatory requirement for the realization of the ThO₂ effect. The reported results suggest that the radioactivity of the Th and/or its decay products is one of the main factors responsible for the increased photocatalytic activity of TiO₂.