Microbial transformation of mestranol by Cunninghamella elegans

The microbial transformation of an oral contraceptive, mestranol (1) by Cunninghamella elegans yielded two hydroxylated metabolites, 6beta-hydroxymestranol (2) and 6beta,12beta-dihydroxymestranol (3). Metabolite 3 was found to be a new compound. These metabolites were structurally characterized on the basis of spectroscopic techniques.     

Correlations of fission fragment angular momentum with collective and intrinsic degrees of freedom

In the present work angular momenta of the fragments corresponding to¹³²I^m,g have been deduced from the radiochemically determined independent isomeric yield ratios and statistical model based analysis in neutron induced fission of²³⁵U,²³⁹Pu and²⁴⁵Cm and spontaneous fission of²⁵²Cf. These data along with similar data on¹³⁴I, reported earlier from this laboratory, bring out the effects of deformed 66n and spherical 82n shells on fragment angular momentum showing also an inverse correlation of the latter with elemental yields. Quantitative estimates of fragment scission point deformation and the coefficient of change of fragment angular momentum with kinetic/excitation energy have been deduced and are seen to be in good agreement with the expected theoretical estimates.     

Direct measurements of interactions between polypeptides and carbon nanotubes

The interactions of various polypeptides with individual carbon nanotubes (CNTs), both multiwall (MW) and single wall (SW), were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). While adhesion forces arising from electrostatic attraction interactions between the protonated amine groups of polylysine and carboxylic groups on the acid-oxidized multi-wall carbon nanotubes (Ox-MWCNTs) dominate the interaction at a low pH, weaker adhesion forces via the hydrogen bonding between the neutral -NH2 groups of polylysine and -COO- groups of the Ox-MWCNTs were detected at a high pH. The adhesion force was further found to increase with the oxidation time for Ox-MWCNTs and to be negligible for oxidized single-wall carbon nanotubes (Ox-SWCNTs) because carboxylate groups were only attached onto the nanotube tips in the latter whereas onto both the nanotube tips and sidewall in the former. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that proteins containing aromatic moieties, such as polytryptophan, showed a stronger adhesion force with Ox-MWCNTs than that of polylysine because of the additional pi-pi stacking interaction between the polytryptophan chains and CNTs.     

Dielectron widths of the Gamma(1S,2S,3S) resonances

We determine the dielectron widths of the Gamma(1S), Gamma(2S), and Gamma(3S) resonances with better than 2% precision by integrating the cross section of e+e- -->Gamma over the e+e- center-of-mass energy. Using e+e- energy scans of the Gamma resonances at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring and measuring Gamma production with the CLEO detector, we find dielectron widths of 1.252+/-0.004(sigma(stat))+/-0.019(sigma(syst)) keV, 0.581+/-0.004+/-0.009 keV, and 0.413+/-0.004+/-0.006 keV for the Gamma(1S), Gamma(2S), and Gamma(3S), respectively.     

Observation of psi(3770) --> pi pi J/psi and measurement of Gamma ee[psi(2S)

We observe signals for the decays psi(3770) --> XJ/psi from data acquired with the CLEO detector operating at the CESR e+ e- collider with square root of s = 3773 MeV. We measure the following branching fractions Beta(psi(3770) --> XJ/psi and significances: (189 +/- 20 +/- 20) x 10(-5) (11.6sigma) for X = pi+ pi-, (80 +/- 25 +/- 16) x 10(-5) (3.4sigma) for X = pi0 pi0, and (87 +/- 33 +/- 22) x 10(-5) (3.5sigma) for X = eta, where the errors are statistical and systematic, respectively. The radiative return process e+ e- --> gamma psi(2S) populates the same event sample and is used to measure Gamma ee[psi(2S)] = (2.54 +/- 0.03 +/- 0.11) keV.     

New measurements of Cabibbo-suppressed decays of mesons with the CLEO-c detector

Using of data collected with the CLEO-c detector, we report on first observations and measurements of Cabibbo-suppressed decays of D mesons in the following six decay modes: pi+ pi- pi0 pi0, pi+ pi+ pi- pi- pi0, pi+ pi0 pi0, pi+ pi+ pi- pi0, eta pi0, and omega pi+ pi-. Improved branching fraction measurements in eight other multipion decay modes are also presented. The measured D --> pi pi rates allow us to extract the ratio of isospin amplitudes A(DeltaI = (3/2) / A(DeltaI = (1/2)) = 0.420 +/- 0.014(stat) +/- 0.016(syst) and the strong phase shift of delta1 = (86.4 +/- 2.8 +/- 3.3) degrees, which is quite large and now more precisely determined.     

Experimental limits on weak annihilation contributions to decays

We present the first experimental limits on high-q2 contributions to charmless semileptonic decays of the form expected from the weak annihilation (WA) decay mechanism. Such contributions could bias determinations of /Vub/ from inclusive measurements of B-->Xulupsilon. Using a wide range of models based on available theoretical input we set a limit of GammaWA/Gammab-->u<7.4% (90% confidence level) on the WA fraction, and assess the impact on previous inclusive determinations of /Vub/.     

Design of medium energy beam transport line between the RFQ and the Linac in the radioactive ion beam facility at VECC,Kolkata

The design of a medium energy beam transport (MEBT) line comprising of a re-buncher and four quadrupoles, two upstream and the other two downstream of the re-buncher, has been presented. The design was done to ensure almost 100% transport of heavy-ion beams of about 99 keV/u energy from RFQ having a q/A not less than 1/14 through the re-buncher and then through IH Linac of about 0.6 m length in which beam would be accelerated to about 185 keV/u. The re-buncher has been designed to operate at 37.8 MHz, the resonating frequency of both the RFQ and the IH Linac. The entire beam line has been installed and recently O⁵⁺ beam from RFQ has been transported through the re-buncher and subsequently accelerated in the IH Linac successfully.     

A novel technique for measurement of self-generated magnetic fields and the plasma density in laser produced plasmas from the Faraday rotation using two color probes

Diagnostic information about the self-generated magnetic fields (SGMF) generated in laser produced plasmas is normally obtained by measuring the Faraday rotation angle (FRA) of a linearly polarized laser probe beam passing through the plasma. Simultaneous recording of the corresponding interferogram is required to get the density information necessary for estimating the magnetic field. The problem with this method is that the visibility of the fringes in the interferogram can be poor, and the SGMF cannot be calculated in the regions where the interference fringes are not observable. In this paper, we propose a new method to obtain the density distribution and the SGMF from two simultaneous measurements of FRA using two probe beams of different colors, which allows one to calculate the SGMF without the need of interferometry.     

Removal of Brilliant Green from wastewater using conventional and ultrasonically prepared poly(acrylic acid) hydrogel loaded with kaolin clay: A comparative study

The present work deals with the removal of Brilliant Green dye from wastewater using a poly(acrylic acid) hydrogel composite (PAA-K hydrogel) prepared by incorporation of kaoline clay. The composite has been synthesized using ultrasound assisted polymerization process as well as the conventional process, with an objective of showing the better effectiveness of ultrasound assisted synthesis. It has been observed that the hydrogel prepared by ultrasound assisted polymerization process showed better results. The optimum conditions for the removal of dye are pH of 7, temperature of 35 °C, initial dye concentration of 30 mg/L and hydrogel loading of 1 g. The extent of removal of dye increased with an increase in the contact time and initial dye concentration. A pseudo-second-order kinetic model has been developed to explain the adsorption kinetics of dye on the PAA-K hydrogel. Thermodynamic and kinetic parameters indicate that the adsorption process is spontaneous in nature and the PAA-K hydrogel prepared by ultrasound process is a promising adsorbent compared to conventional process. The obtained adsorption data has also been fitted into commonly used adsorption isotherms and it has been found that Freundlich as well as Langmuir adsorption isotherm models fits well to the experimental results.