Paraquat induces oxidative stress, neuronal loss in substantia nigra region and Parkinsonism in adult rats: Neuroprotection and amelioration of symptoms by water-soluble formulation of Coenzyme Q10

Background  

Parkinson's disease, for which currently there is no cure, develops as a result of progressive loss of dopamine neurons in the brain; thus, identification of any potential therapeutic intervention for disease management is of a great importance.     

First-principles study of the optical properties of BeO in its ambient and high-pressure phases

Optical properties such as the dynamic dielectric function, reflectance, and energy-loss function of beryllium oxide (BeO) in its ambient and high-pressure phases are reported for a wide energy range of 0-50 eV. The calculations of optical properties employ first-principles methods based on all-electron density functional theory together with sum over states and finite-field methods. Our results show subtle differences in the calculated optical properties of the wurtzite, zincblende, rocksalt and CsCl phases of BeO, which may be attributed to the higher symmetry and packing density of these phases. For the wurtzite phase, the calculated band gap of 10.4 eV corresponds well with the experimental value of 10.6 eV and the calculated (average) index of refraction of 1.70 shows excellent agreement with the experimental value of 1.72.     

Bacteriorhodopsin--novel biomolecule for nano devices

The aim of this article is to provide insight on the use of a biological molecule--bacteriorhodopsin (bR) having all the basic properties necessary for the assembly of nanoscale electronic devices. Recent developments made during last decade supported by key references are reviewed in this contribution. Major emphasis on bR-based observations conducted in our laboratory has been elaborated. Important issues concerning structure, widely accepted photocycle of bR has been summarized. The possibility of nano-devices emanating from this biomolecule is briefly presented.     

Covalent immobilization of cholesterol esterase and cholesterol oxidase on polyaniline films for application to cholesterol biosensor

Cholesterol esterase (ChEt) and cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) have been covalently immobilized on electrochemically prepared polyaniline (PANI) films. These PANI/ChEt/ChOx enzyme films have been characterized using UV-visible, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Electrochemical behavior of these films has been studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and amperometric techniques, respectively. The PANI/ChEt/ChOx enzyme films show broad oxidation peak from 0.2 to 0.5 V. These PANI/ChEt/ChOx biosensing electrodes have a response time of about 40s, linearity from 50 to 500 mg/dl of cholesterol oleate concentration. These PANI/ChEt/ChOx films are thermally stable up to 46 degrees C. This polyaniline based cholesterol biosensor has optimum pH in the range of 6.5-7.5, sensitivity as 7.5x10(-4) nA/mg dl and a lifetime of about 6 weeks.     

Approximate Controllability of a Neutral Stochastic Fractional Integro-Differential Inclusion with Nonlocal Conditions

This paper discusses the approximate controllability of a neutral functional integro-differential inclusion involving Caputo fractional derivative in a Hilbert space under the assumptions that the corresponding linear system is approximately controllable. A new set of sufficient conditions for approximate controllability of neutral fractional stochastic functional integro-differential inclusions are formulated and established by utilizing stochastic analysis theory, fractional calculus and the technique of fixed point theorem with analytic compact resolvent operator. An example is also considered for illustrating the discussed theory.     

FTIR structural investigation of gamma irradiated BaO–Na2O–B2O3–SiO2 glasses

Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra of xBaO–15Na₂O–(70−x)B₂O₃–15SiO₂ glass system with x=0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 (mol%) has been measured in the spectral range 400–4000 cm⁻¹ at room temperature in order to understand the characteristic frequencies of the chemical bonds and bonding mechanisms, which are susceptible to the structural and spectral changes. The effect of gamma irradiation in the dose range 0.1 kGy–60 kGy on the infrared absorption spectra of these glasses is also reported. The change in the glass structure due to the effect of composition is also discussed. It has been observed that irradiation of the glasses with the gamma rays increases the BO₃ groups and the non bridging oxygens which make the network loose.     

Implication of local moment at Ti and Fe sites for the electrical and magneto-transport properties of degenerate semiconducting Ti?-xFexO?-d epitaxial films

We have investigated the effect of local magnetic moment on the electrical and magneto-transport properties of thin films of the degenerate semiconductor Ti(1-x)Fe(x)O(2-d) (x = 0,0.04). The electrical measurements of these films reveal high temperature metallic behavior and resistivity minima. The behavior below the resistivity minimum temperature is ascribed to Kondo like scattering. The coupling between the local moment and the charge carriers is reflected in the magnetoresistance measurements in these films. This work indicates competition between the magnetic ordering mechanism by J(RKKY) and the moment screening mechanism by J(Kondo). Accordingly the role of carrier density in achieving the magnetic ordering in such materials either by defect engineering or by transition metal doping is discussed.     

Electronic structure calculations of substitutional and interstitial hydrogen in Nb

We report the results of a theoretical study on the effects of substitutional and interstitial hydrogen atoms in niobium. We confirm that any contaminated hydrogen will occupy the interstitial site over the substitutional site in niobium. For interstitial hydrogens, the lattice deformation increases with the percentage content of hydrogen, though it is negligible at low concentrations. Substitutional hydrogens are found to prefer off-center sites in the host lattice.     

Brownian dynamics of rigid body by fluctuating hydrodynamic equations

In this work, Brownian dynamics of rigid body in an incompressible fluid with fluctuating hydrodynamic equations is presented. To demonstrate the Brownian motion of rigid body, fluctuating hydrodynamic equations have been coupled with equations of motion of rigid body. Thermal fluctuation is included in the fluid equations via random stress terms unlike the random terms in the conventional Brownian dynamics type approach. Calculation of random stress terms in the fluid is easier in comparison to the random terms in the particle motion. Direct numerical simulation for the Brownian motion of rigid body with a meshfree framework is analysed. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Thermal expansion coefficient of ternary liquid mixture using hard sphere models and Flory’s statistical theory

The coefficients of thermal expansion (α) of ternary liquid mixtures of heterocyclic compounds viz., pyridine/quinoline with phenol in benzene have been evaluated at 308.15, 318.15 and 328.15 K, respectively. A comparative study of thermal expansivity using different models for hard sphere equation of state and Flory’s statistical theory has been made. The computed values of thermal expansivity are compared with the experimental results. The excess values of thermal expansivity have also been computed and utilized to discuss the existence and strength of intermolecular interactions in the ternary liquid system under investigation.