On the Stability of a Forward–Backward Heat Equation

In this paper we examine spectral properties of a family of periodic singular Sturm?CLiouville problems which are highly non-self-adjoint but have purely real spectrum. The problem originated from the study of the lubrication approximation of a viscous fluid film in the inner surface of a rotating cylinder and has received a substantial amount of attention in recent years. Our main focus will be the determination of Schatten class inclusions for the resolvent operator and regularity properties of the associated evolution equation.     

AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN THE FLUORESCENCE OF MELANIN and LIPOFUSCIN GRANULES OF THE RETINAL PIGMENT EPITHELIUM: A TIME-RESOLVED FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY STUDY

The photophysical properties of purified populations of melanin and lipofuscin granules from human retinal pigment epithelium, and their changes with donor age, have been investigated using high-sensitivity time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy techniques with picosecond gating capabilities. The overall fluorescence intensity of both melanin and lipofuscin granules clearly increased with increasing donor age, the increase being most marked for melanin. In all granule populations the fluorescence decays were multiexponential with subnanosecond and nanosecond decay components. The resultant time-integrated and time-gated spectra also exhibited marked age-variations for each type of granule. Young melanin showed spectral patterns similar to those of bovine melanin, while a yellow-orange fluorescence band appeared in melanin samples from older age groups. Lipofuscin granules exhibited a blue, a yellow and an orange band whose relative amounts were age-related. The results demonstrate the potential of time-resolved techniques for discriminating fluorophores in vitro and in situ, and have confirmed results previously obtained using extraction techniques. Furthermore, the ability of this technique to identify and quantify individual fluorophores within granules may provide an important insight into the origin and development of lipofuscin within the retinal pigment epithelium and ultimately into the mechanisms of age-related retinal diseases.     

Experimental determination of the gas phase proton affinities of the conjugate base anions of 2-iodoxybenzoic acid (IBX) and 2-iodosobenzoic acid (IBA)

The gas phase anion proton affinities of the periodinane anions IBX- and IBA- were examined using mass spectrometry-based experiments, and estimated as 1300 +/- 25 and 1390 +/- 10 kJ mol(-1), respectively. The experimental results were supported by theoretical calculations, which yielded proton affinities of 1336 and 1392 kJ mol(-1) for IBX- and IBA- respectively, at the B3LYP/aug-cc-PVDZ level of theory.     

The Future of Sol-Gel Science and Technology

This paper addresses the future prospects for sol-gel processing. It includes responses from nearly two dozen leading practitioners of the sol-gel art, who were kind enough to answer a questionnaire about the present state and future directions of the field. Overall, the prospects appear quite bright; but achievement of anything like the full potential of the method will require greatly increased interaction between sol-gel specialists and device technologists.     

Cytotoxicity of All‐Trans‐Retinal Increases Upon Photodegradation†

All‐trans‐retinal (AtRal) can accumulate in the retina as a result of excessive exposure to light. The purpose of this study was to compare cytotoxicity of AtRal and photodegraded AtRal (dAtRal) on cultured human retinal pigment epithelial cells in dark and upon exposure to visible light. AtRal was degraded by exposure to visible light. Cytotoxicity was monitored by imaging of cell morphology, propidium iodide staining of cells with permeable plasma membrane and measurements of reductive activity of cells. Generation of singlet oxygen photosensitized by AtRal and dAtRal was monitored by time‐resolved measurements of characteristic singlet oxygen phosphorescence. Photodegradation of AtRal resulted in a decrease in absorption of visible light and accumulation of the degradation products with absorption maximum at ～330 nm. Toxicity of dAtRal was concentration‐dependent and was greater during irradiation with visible light than in dark. DAtRal was more cytotoxic than AtRal both in dark and during exposure to visible light. Photochemical properties of dAtRal indicate that it may be responsible for the maximum in the action spectra of retinal photodamage recorded in animals. In conclusion, photodegradation products of AtRal may impose a significant threat to the retina and therefore their roles in retinal pathology need to be explored.     

Retinal photodamage.

The retina represents a paradox, in that, while light and oxygen are essential for vision, these conditions also favour the formation of reactive oxygen species leading to photochemical damage to the retina. Such light damage seems to be multi-factorial and is dependent on the photoreactivity of a variety of chromophores (e.g., vitamin A metabolites, lipofuscin, melanin, flavins, porphyrins, carotenoids) endogenous to the retina. The aim of this article is to provide a detailed review of our current understanding of the photochemistry and photobiology of these chromophores and to consider how they may contribute to retinal ageing and pathology.     

Limiting set of second order spectra

Let be a self-adjoint operator acting on a Hilbert space . A complex number is in the second order spectrum of relative to a finite-dimensional subspace iff the truncation to of is not invertible. This definition was first introduced in Davies, 1998, and according to the results of Levin and Shargorodsky in 2004, these sets provide a method for estimating eigenvalues free from the problems of spectral pollution. In this paper we investigate various aspects related to the issue of approximation using second order spectra. Our main result shows that under fairly mild hypothesis on the uniform limit of these sets, as increases towards , contain the isolated eigenvalues of of finite multiplicity. Therefore, unlike the majority of the standard methods, second order spectra combine nonpollution and approximation at a very high level of generality.

     

Applications of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy to structural problems—XXXIV: Partial bond fixation in bicyclic heteroaromatic compounds

NMR spectral parameters are reported for benzofurazan, 1,2,3- and 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole, and 1-methyl- and 2-methyl-benzotriazole. The coupling constants are discussed in connection with the aromaticity of these compounds and the occurrence of partial bond fixation.