Towards the Development of a Selective Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Hydroformylation of Olefins

The ruthenium‐catalyzed hydroformylation of 1‐ and 2‐octene to give preferentially the corresponding linear aldehyde is reported. The catalyst system comprising of Ru₃(CO)₁₂ and an imidazole‐substituted monophosphine ligand allows for high chemo‐ and regioselectivity. The hydroformylation proceeds with unprecedented rates for a ruthenium‐based catalyst.     

Determination of petitgrain oils landmark parameters by using gas chromatography–combustion–isotope ratio mass spectrometry and enantioselective multidimensional gas chromatography

Gas chromatography–combustion–isotope mass spectrometry was employed for the assessment of the Carbon isotope ratios of volatiles in Italian mandarin and lemon petitgrain oils. In addition, the composition of the whole oil and the enantiomeric distribution of selected chiral compounds were determined for all the samples by using gas chromatography and by multidimensional and conventional enantioselective gas chromatography. The composition of the oils was compared with previous studies. The enantiomeric distribution of lemon petitgrain oils is here reported for the first time. On the composition of mandarin petitgrain oil, the information available in literature, to date, is relative only to one sample from Egypt. Carbon isotope ratio of several terpene hydrocarbons and of their oxygenated derivatives contained in petitgrains was compared with the δ ¹³C_VPDB values of the same compounds present in the corresponding genuine Italian Citrus peel oil. The results prove that the isotopic values obtained for lemon and mandarin petitgrain oils are very close to those relative to the corresponding peel oils determined in previous studies.     

Biosensor Based on Electrocodeposition of Carbon Nanotubes/Polypyrrole/Laccase for Neurotransmitter Detection

A new biosensor has been developed by a simple electrocodeposition of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), polypyrrole (PPy) and laccase (Lac) on the platinum (Pt) electrode surface. The neurotransmitter biosensor was applied to the detection of dopamine in urine samples using differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The Pt/MWCNT/PPy/Lac biosensor exhibited a detection limit of 0.14 µM, which is an adequate level for monitoring dopamine in urine. Reproducibility and repeatability values of 2.9 % and 1.7 %, respectively, were obtained compared to the conventional procedure. The proposed biosensor was successfully applied in the determination of dopamine in urine, and the obtained results were in full agreement with those from the HPLC procedure.     

Resonances in scattering by two magnetic fields at large separation and a complex scaling method

We study the quantum resonances in magnetic scattering in two dimensions. The scattering system consists of two obstacles by which the magnetic fields are completely shielded. The trajectories trapped between the two obstacles are shown to generate the resonances near the positive real axis, when the distance between the obstacles goes to infinity. The location is described in terms of the backward amplitudes for scattering by each obstacle. A difficulty arises from the fact that even if the supports of the magnetic fields are largely separated from each other, the corresponding vector potentials are not expected to be well separated. To overcome this, we make use of a gauge transformation and develop a new type of complex scaling method. We can cover the scattering by two solenoids at large separation as a special case. The obtained result heavily depends on the magnetic fluxes of the solenoids. This indicates that the Aharonov–Bohm effect influences the location of resonances.     

\ell ^p-Linear Independence of the System of Integer Translates

Various properties of the system \({\mathcal {B}}_{\psi }\) of integer translates of a square integrable function \(\psi \in L^2({\mathbb {R}})\) can be completely described in terms of the periodization function \(p_{\psi }(\xi )=\sum _{k\in {\mathbb {Z}}}|\widehat{\psi }(\xi +k)|^2\) . In this paper, we consider the problem of \(\ell ^p\) -linear independence, where \(p>2\) . The results we present include the method of construction for one type of counterexamples to several naturally taken conjectures, a new sufficient condition for \(\ell ^p\) -linear independence and a characterization theorem having an additional assumption on \({\mathcal {B}}_{\psi }\) . In the latter, we obtain the characterization in terms of the sets of multiplicity of Lebesgue measure zero.     

Study on quench effects in liquid scintillation counting during tritium measurements

Quench effects can cause a serious reduction in counting efficiency for a given sample/cocktail mixture in liquid scintillation counting (LSC) experiments. This paper presents a simple experiment performed in order to test the influence of quenching on the LSC efficiency of ³H. The aim of this study was to investigate the behavior of several quench agents with different quench strengths (nitromethane, nitric acid, acetone, dimethyl-sulfoxide) added in different amounts to tritiated water in order to obtain standard sets for quench calibration curves. The OptiPhase HiSafe 2 and OptiPhase HiSafe 3 scintillation cocktails were used in this study in order to compare their quench resistance. Measurements were performed using a low-level LS counter (Wallac, Quantulus 1220).     

A Mathematical Model of Oxidative Deamination of Amino Acid Catalyzed by Two d-Amino Acid Oxidases and Influence of Aeration on Enzyme Stability

Two d-amino acid oxidases (DAAO) from different sources (Arthrobacter protophormiae and porcine kidney) were used to oxidatively deaminate d-methionine in the batch reactor. A mathematical model of the process was developed and validated by the experiments carried out without and with oxygen supply by aeration. Kinetic parameters of the model were estimated from the initial reaction rate experiments. Aeration increased the reaction rate in the initial part of the reaction and reduced the time necessary to achieve the final substrate conversion. However, it had a negative influence on the operational stability of enzymes. Operational stability decay rate constants estimated from the experimental data increased with the airflow rate, which indicated lower operational stability of enzymes. It was found that oxygen concentration significantly influenced the stability of DAAO from porcine kidney. Enzyme from microbial source had better operational stability and one order of magnitude lower values of decay rate constants.     

Inclusion complexes of sulfanilamide with β-cyclodextrin and 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin

Sulfanilamide belongs to the group of drugs that have a bacteriostatic effect on different pathogenic microorganisms. This activity originates from the competitive antagonism with p-aminobenzoic acid, which is an integral part of folic acid. The safe use of sulfanilamide is limited due to poor solubility in the aqueous medium. Therefore, the aim of this paper is the synthesis of sulfanilamide, as well as preparing and structural characterization of its inclusion complexes with cyclodextrins. The crude sulfanilamide was obtained in the synthesis between acetanilide and chlorosulfonic acid according to the standard procedure. The synthesized sulfanilamide was recrystallized from water in order to obtain the satisfactory purity of the substance. Sufanilamide was complexed with β-cyclodextrin and 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin by the co-precipitation method. A molecular encapsulation of sulfanilamide was confirmed by using FTIR, ¹H-NMR, XRD and DSC methods. Phase-solubility techniques were used to assess the formation of the inclusion complex between sulfanilamide and cyclodextrins. The photostability of sulfanilamide and its inclusion complexes was estimated by UVB irradiation in a photochemical reactor by applying the UV–Vis method. Based on the UV–Vis analysis, sulfanilamide:2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin complex was presented as more photostable than sulfanilamide:β-cyclodextrin complex and sulfanilamide. The obtained results enable the potential use of these inclusion complexes for the preparation of oral formulations due to the enhanced solubility of sulfanilamide.     

Highly Functionalized and Potent Antiviral Cyclopentane Derivatives Formed by a Tandem Process Consisting of Organometallic,Transition‐Metal‐Catalyzed,and Radical Reaction Steps

A simple modular tandem approach to multiply substituted cyclopentane derivatives is reported, which succeeds by joining organometallic addition, conjugate addition, radical cyclization, and oxygenation steps. The key steps enabling this tandem process are the thus far rarely used isomerization of allylic alkoxides to enolates and single‐electron transfer to merge the organometallic step with the radical and oxygenation chemistry. This controlled lineup of multiple electronically contrasting reactive intermediates provides versatile access to highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives from very simple and readily available commodity precursors. The antiviral activity of the synthesized compounds was screened and a number of compounds showed potent activity against hepatitis C and dengue viruses.