Determination of bisphenol A in human breast milk by HPLC with column-switching and fluorescence detection

A highly sensitive HPLC method was developed for the determination of xenoestrogenic compound, bisphenol A (BPA) in human breast milk samples. After a two-step liquid-liquid extraction, BPA was derivatized with fluorescent labeling reagent, 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)benzoyl chloride (DIB-Cl). The excess fluorescent reagent could be removed effectively using a column-switching system. The separation of DIB-BPA from endogenous materials in milk was carried out on two C(18) columns and fluorescence intensity was monitored at 475 nm with the excitation of 350 nm. A good linearity (r = 0.994) was observed of BPA in the concentration range of 0.2-5.0 ng mL(-1) in breast milk, and the detection limit was 0.11 ng mL(-1) at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3. Intra- and inter-day precision (RSD, %) were less than 8.7 and 10.4, respectively. Twenty-three breast milk samples of healthy lactating women were analyzed for the BPA concentration; the mean value was 0.61 +/- 0.20 ng mL(-1), with no correlation to the lipid content of milk samples.     

Preparation and characterization of individual peptide-wrapped single-walled carbon nanotubes

Two challenges for effectively exploiting the remarkable properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are the isolation of intact individual nanotubes from the raw material and the assembly of these isolated SWNTs into useful structures. In this study, we present atomic force microscopy (AFM) evidence that we can isolate individual peptide-wrapped SWNTs, possibly connected end-to-end into long fibrillar structures, using an amphiphilic alpha-helical peptide, termed nano-1. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and well-resolved absorption spectral features further corroborate nano-1's ability to debundle SWNTs in aqueous solution. Peptide-assisted assembly of SWNT structures, specifically in the form of Y-, X-, and intraloop junctions, was observed in the AFM and TEM images.     

Study of Si(0 0 1)4 × 2-Ga structure by scanning tunneling microscopy and ab initio calculation

We have studied Si(0 0 1)-Ga surface structures formed at Ga coverages of slightly above 0.50 monolayer (ML) at 250 °C by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). 4 × 2-, 5 × 2-, and 6 × 2-Ga structures were observed in a local area on the surface. The 4 × 2-Ga structure consists of three protrusions, as observed in filled- and empty-state STM images. The characters of these structures are clearly different from those of other Si(0 0 1)-Ga structures. We also performed an ab initio calculation of the energetics for several possible models for the 4 × 2-Ga structure, and clarified that the three-orthogonal-Ga-dimer model is the most stable. Also, the results of comparing the simulated STM images and observation images at various bias voltages indicate that this structural model is the most favorable.     

Asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic amino acids with quaternary stereocenters by a phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation strategy

[Reaction: see text] Practical asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives possessing quaternary stereocenters has been achieved by the phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation of 2 or 3 using chiral quaternary ammonium bromide 1 as catalyst. Subsequent reduction and alkylation of the 3-keto carbonyl moiety of 4 proceeded with complete diastereochemical control to afford the corresponding beta-hydroxy aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives having stereochemically defined consecutive quaternary carbon centers.     

Syntheses and characterizations of 4-(3,17beta-dihydroxyestra-1,3,5(10)-trien-6alpha- and 6beta-yl)amino-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazoles as fluorescent probes.

4-(3,17Beta-dihydroxyestra-1,3,5(10)-trien-6alpha- and 6beta-yl)amino-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazoles have been synthesized and characterized as fluorescent probes for use in a receptor assay and/or a homogeneous immunoassay for estradiol. The fluorescence intensities are strongly dependent upon the solvent polarity used. The intensities in water were reduced to less than 1% of those in ethyl acetate, and a blue shift was also observed in polar solvents. The quenched fluorescence in aqueous solution was recovered by adding bovine serum albumin or an anti-estradiol antibody. Adding intact estradiol inhibited the fluorescence recovered by the antibody.     

Electrical characteristics of Mg-doped GaN activated with Ni catalysts

Electrical characteristics of Mg-doped p-GaN activated with Ni catalytic layers have been investigated by means of temperature-dependent Hall effect measurements. It has been revealed that the Ni layer on GaN enhances activation of the acceptor in the whole annealing temperature range. This enhancement is remarkable especially at temperatures below 500 °C and can be attributed to the catalytic effect for the hydrogen desorption. We have found that the donor concentrations in the samples activated with the Ni catalysts are also higher than those activated without Ni. This is probably due to the catalytic effect of Ni for the nitrogen desorption. In addition, it has been found that the ionization energies of the Mg acceptors in GaN activated with the Ni layer are decreased from 170 to 118 meV as the acceptor concentration increases.     

Metal-Support Interaction Which Controls the Oxidation State, Structure and Catalysis of Pd

A metal-support interaction between Pd and various kinds of zeolite and metal oxide supports was studied, which were active in the catalytic combustion and selective reduction of NO. The acid-base properties of supports affected the oxidation state, structure and catalytic activity of Pd. The acid sites of zeolite played the role to anchor the dispersed PdO as evidenced by the dynamic structural change of Pd. It was found that the metal-support interaction is an important factor, affecting the oxidation state, structure and catalytic performance of Pd.     

Symmetrization of Nonsymmetric Macdonald Polynomials and Macdonald's Inner Product Identities

We study the Macdonald polynomials that give eigenstates of some quantum many-body system with long-range interactions. Scalar products of the nonsymmetric Macdonald polynomials are algebraically evaluated through their Rodrigues-type formulas. We present a new proof of Macdonald's inner product identities without recourse to the shift operators; that is, we calculate square norms of the Macdonald polynomials through Weyl-symmetrization of those of the nonsymmetric Macdonald polynomials.