Nonspecific interactions of a carboxylate-substituted PPE with proteins. A cautionary tale for biosensor applications

Two carboxylate-substituted, fluorescent (Phi = 0.08), water-soluble poly(p-phenyleneethynylene)s (PPE) and a water-soluble model compound were exposed to a series of proteins and bovine serum. While the anionic PPEs do not have any specific binding sites, they form stable complexes with histone, lysozyme, myoglobin, and hemoglobin. The complex formation was evidenced by fluorescence quenching. Bovine serum albumin does not quench the fluorescence of the PPEs but enhances it, probably due to its surfactant character. These results imply that the use of charged conjugated polymers as biosensors, while an attractive proposition, has to take into account strong nonspecific interactions between conjugated polymers and the host of proteins that is found in cells and complex biological fluids.     

High performance liquid chromatographic separation of dipeptide and tripeptide enantiomers using a chiral crown ether stationary phase

A chiral stationary phase (CSP) based on (-)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid was evaluated for the direct resolution of the enantiomers of dipeptides and tripeptides. The type and concentration of the acid and the methanol content were optimized with regard to retention time and resolution using Ala-Phe as model peptide. A mobile phase consisting of 10 mM sulfuric acid in 70% aqueous methanol was applied to the separation of a set of 16 structurally diverse dipeptides and tripeptides. Generally, the configuration of the amino acid at the N-terminus determined the enantiomer elution order. With a few exceptions the LL- and LD-enantiomers interacted stronger with the CSP compared to the corresponding DD- or DL-enantiomers. The experimental conditions also allowed the simultaneous separation of all four stereoisomers of Ala-Phe. Addition of ammonium sulfate generally reduced retention times and enantiomer resolution. Addition of triethylamine as modifier led to an overall increase of the retention times while the resolution did not show a general trend, increasing in the case of Ala-Ala but decreasing in the case of Ala-Phe.     

Zur Reaktion von Hydrazinen mit Fluorsilanen und lithiierten Aminen

Lithium salts of hydrazines react with fluorosilanes under formation of fluorosilylhydrazines and LiF. Five membered rings are obtained in the reaction of bis(fluorosilyl)-hydrazines with lithiated amines. The mass,¹H-and¹⁹F-nmr spectra of the compounds are reported.

     

Determination of telmisartan in human blood plasma: Part I: Immunoassay development

Telmisartan is an angiotensin II receptor antagonist and a known drug against high blood pressure. In this report, the development of a new and rapid analytical technique, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the determination of telmisartan in human blood plasma is described. The immunoassay is based on a conversion of 4-(N-methylhydrazino)-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzooxadiazole (MNBDH) to 4-(N-methylamino)-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzooxadiazole (MNBDA), which is detected by fluorescence spectroscopy. The limit of detection was 0.1 ng/mL, the limit of quantification was 0.3 ng/mL and the working range extended from 0.3 ng/mL to 300 ng/mL.     

Determination of estrogenic steroids in surface water and wastewater by liquid chromatography-electrospray tandem mass spectrometry

An analytical method is presented which permits trace level determination of 17alpha-ethynylestradiol (EE2), 17beta-estradiol (E2), and estrone (E1). Using this method, the estrogenic steroids were analyzed in drinking water, surface water, and wastewater (sewage influents and effluents) at concentrations down to 0.1 ng/L. Sample volumes between 100 and 500 mL are concentrated using automated solid-phase extraction. Analysis is performed by liquid chromatography with detection by tandem mass spectrometry. Applying simple clean-up procedures and internal standard calibration, recovery losses resulting from matrix-dependent ion suppression during electrospray ionization could be compensated for all of the investigated compounds. Recoveries around 100% were obtained for all analytes after correction using the internal standards. Limits of quantification (LOQ) were between 0.1 and 0.4 ng/L for purified sewage, surface, ground, and drinking water and between 1 and 2 ng/L in the case of raw sewage. Water treatment by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) or by a surface water treatment plant affected the removal of all estrogenic steroids. Thus, E1, E2, and EE2 were removed in the municipal WWTPs to the extent of 93%, 93%, and 80%, respectively. In the effluents of the WWTP in Ruhleben (Berlin, Germany), E1, E2, and EE2 were detected at the low ng/L level. E2 and EE2 were, however, not present in the Berlin surface water above the LOQ (0.2 ng/L). E1 was the only compound that could be detected in surface water samples. After additional surface water treatment it was still detectable but only at trace-level concentrations with a mean value of 0.16 ng/L.     

The ground-state energy of the ±J sping glass. A comparison of various biologically motivated algorithms

We compare various evlutionary strategies to determine the ground-state energy of the ±J spin glass. We show that the choice of different evolution laws is less important than a suitable treatment of the free spins of the system At least one combination of these strategies does not give the correct results, but the ground states of the other different strategies coincide. Therefore we are able to extrapolate the infinit-size ground-state energy for the square lattice to –1.401±0.0015 and for the simple cubic lattice to –1.786±0.004.     

Non-Gaussian corrections to higgs mass in autonomousλφ 3+1 4

Recent calculations in one-loop and Gaussian approximation, using the so-called autonomous renormalization scheme, indicate a comparatively massive, narrow Higgs excitation at about 2 TeV. Here I show that this result persists in the framework of a post-Gaussian variational approximation for the pureO(N)-symmetric ⁴-theory forN>1. The method is based on nonlinear transformations of path-integral variables, and the optimization amounts to a Schwinger-Dyson-type summation of diagrams. In the case ofO(4), for example, I findM _Higgs=2.3 TeV, compared with 1.9 TeV and 2.1 TeV in one-loop and Gaussian approximation, respectively. My results are also consistent with the Consoli-Stevenson conjecture that the Gaussian and one-loop results forN=1 are exact and may even hold for generalN.     

Development of a very low energy μ+ beam at PSI

At PSI we are investigating the technique of decelerating an existing very intense secondary beam of surface ⁺ (4 MeV) to an energy of 10 eV using appropriate moderators. These ⁺ can then be used as a source of a tertiary beam of low energy muons with tunable kinetic energy between 10 eV and 10 keV.With a 1000 A layer of solid Argon deposited on an Al substrate we obtain a moderation efficiency (with respect to the number of incoming surface ⁺) of the order of 10^–4.Results of our investigations and the present status of the project are presented together with future plans and possibilities.