Theβ-decay of100Y: Discovery of a very low lying 0+ state in100Zr

Theβ-decay of¹⁰⁰Y has been investigated at the gas filled recoil separator JOSEF by means ofγ-ray and conversion electron spectroscopy. Twoβ-decay modes, of half lives 0.94±0.03 s and 0.55±0.15 s, have been observed. Using Xγ-, Xce-, γγ- andγce-coincidences the level scheme of¹⁰⁰Zr has been constructed. An excited 0 ₂ ⁺ state at 331.3 keV has been discovered in this nucleus. Theβ-decay from the 0.55 s decay mode in¹⁰⁰Y shows a strong preference for the ground state compared to the 0 ₂ ⁺ state in¹⁰⁰Zr. The structure of¹⁰⁰Zr and the nature of the 0 ₂ ⁺ level is discussed in the light of the present results.     

A calibrated model of local food system of Hawaii: What are the economic implications of the state's food goals and policies?

We develop a fully calibrated positive mathematical programming model for Hawaii's local food systems—which captures the production and the consumer sides of the market. Then we use the model to assess two proposed policies—a general excise tax (GET) exemption on locally produced foods, and an investment in agricultural infrastructure. For the GET exemption case, our results indicate an economic gain of $118 per $100 cost. On the other hand, an investment in 1,200 acres of land injected to support local production may generate an economic gain of up to $357 per $100 annual cost of the investment. However, these estimates should be considered preliminary, and thus viewed with caution. Although the model is used to capture Hawaii's local food systems, we believe that our model is generalizable and can be adopted by other economies to assess their respective food localization policies. Recommendations for Resource Managers

• Local food policies need to be based on quantitative terms instead of mere armchair speculation because often their potential outcomes may vary significantly.

• The current modeling framework demonstrates the potential of using positive mathematical programming (PMP) in capturing the intricacies of local food systems. However, this exploratory exercise should be viewed as preliminary in nature and the ensuing results were taken with caution because many important factors such as labor availability may have been left out.

• Thus, further model refinements are necessary to better capture the complexities of local food systems such as farm heterogeneity, availability of farm labor, water availability, and interisland transportation of farm products in the case of Hawaii.

     

Simple and Convenient Synthesis of 21‐Thioalkylether Derivatives of Methyl 16‐Prednisolone Carboxylates

The antedrug approach for corticosteroids has been described as a fundamentally sound approach for the development of safer anti‐inflammatory and anti‐asthmatic therapy. However, the derivatization of prednisolone and its congeners have been considered to be major pitfalls, because their syntheses are complicated by the presence of numerous carboxylate esters and hydroxyl functions in the steroid nucleus. A simple and direct synthesis of 21‐thioalkylether derivatives of methyl 16‐prednisolonecarboxylates is described. The 21‐mesylate of the methyl 16‐prednisolonecarboxylate and 9‐fluoro‐17‐dehydro methyl 16‐prednisolonecarboxylate were reacted with Na‐thioalkoxides to furnish the desired thioethers in good yields. A previously published method for the methanolysis of 16‐cyanoprednisolone to methylcarboxylate has been reexamined, and the conditions are explained clearly. The reaction conditions for all these reactions were critical.     

Chiral Iodotriptycenes: Synthesis and Catalytic Applications

Invited for this month′s cover picture is the group of Thomas Wirth at Cardiff University (UK). The cover picture shows two structures of triptycenes. In each of these molecules all three aromatic rings are different with the rigid structure of the molecules making them chiral. The two sp³-carbons shown in red and green are the stereocentres with defined configuration. These molecules contain the crucial iodine functionality which are utilised to generate hypervalent iodine(III)-catalysts in situ . The authors acknowledge Dr. Yu Wang for the creation of the cover image. Read the full text of their Research Article at 10.1002/open.202200145 .     

Concurrent detection of cabozantinib as an anticancer agent and its major metabolites in human serum using fluorescence-coupled micellar liquid chromatography

A novel, highly sensitive, simple, and rapid strategy was designed and developed for simultaneous determination of cabozantinib (CBZ) as an anticancer agent and its main metabolites including monohydroxy sulfate (EXEL-1646), N-oxide (EXEL-5162(, amide cleavage product (EXEL-5366), and 6-desmethyl amide cleavage product sulfate) EXEL-1644). Measurements were done through a micellar liquid chromatography (MLC) method coupled with fluorescence detection. The high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was performed using a Kinetex C18 100 Å column as well as acetonitrile, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB; 0.2 mol.L^?1), and tris buffer (pH 8.5) solutions as the mobile phase at a 40:50:10 (v/v) ratio. The method’s linearity (20 to 700 ng.mL^?1), limit of detection (LOD; 2.11 to 3.69 ng.mL^?1), limit of quantification (LOQ; 20 to 30 ng.mL^?1), intra- and inter-day precisions (RSD < 4.00%), selectivity, recovery, and robustness were fully evaluated. According to the obtained results, the developed method can be used for simple and rapid (~35 min) quantification of CBZ as an anticancer drug and its major metabolites in human serum samples with high sensitivity and low cost.     

Effects of high hydrostatic pressure on secondary structure and emulsifying behavior of sweet potato protein

In this study, secondary structures of sweet potato protein (SPP) after high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment (200–600?MPa) were evaluated and emulsifying properties of emulsions with HHP-treated SPP solutions in different pH values (3, 6, and 9) were investigated. Circular dichroism analysis confirmed the modification of the SPP secondary structure. Surface hydrophobicity increased at pH 3 and decreased at 6 and 9. Emulsifying activity index at pH 6 increased with an increase in pressure, whereas emulsifying stability index increased at pH 6 and 9. Oil droplet sizes decreased, while volume frequency distribution of the smaller droplets increased at pH 3 and 6 with the HHP treatment. Emulsion viscosity increased at pH 6 and 9 and pseudo-plastic flow behaviors were not altered for all emulsions produced with HHP-treated SPP. These results suggested that HHP could modify the SPP structure for better emulsifying properties, which could increase the use of SPP emulsion in the food industry.     

Chromophore and spectrum of the glycogen–iodine complex

The experimental UV-vis spectrum of the glycogen-iodine (GI) complex shows certain features remarkably similar to that of the amylopectin-iodine (API) complex [J. Polymer. Chem. 32, 2257 (1994)], suggesting a strong similarity between the API and the GI structures. As in the API complex, a nearly linear polyiodine unit, I₄, at an interiodine distance of around 3 Å is expected to exist within the helix of 11 anhydroglucose units (AGUs). There are several other spectral features that suggest the presence of another similar but more loosely bound iodine species with a longer interiodine distance of 3.1 Å. These findings suggest the involvement of two different types of glycogen chains in binding iodine molecules. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Phase Transition Energy of the Short Period Basic Polytypes of CdI2

The CdI₂ material grown under similar thermodynamic conditions exhibits several polytypes (phases). Out of these the basic phases are thermodynamically independent and grow with their minimum free (potential) energy. In the present paper we have calculated the Madelung constants cohesive (potential) and the phase transformation energy for the basic phases viz. 2H → 4 H.     

Characterisation of Flavour Attributes in Egg White Protein Using HS-GC-IMS Combined with E-Nose and E-Tongue: Effect of High-Voltage Cold Plasma Treatment Time

Egg white protein (EWP) is susceptible to denaturation and coagulation when exposed to high temperatures, adversely affecting its flavour, thereby influencing consumers’ decisions. Here, we employ high-voltage cold plasma (HVCP) as a novel nonthermal technique to investigate its influence on the EWP’s flavour attributes using E-nose, E-tongue, and headspace gas-chromatography-ion-mobilisation spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) due to their rapidness and high sensitivity in identifying flavour fingerprints in foods. The EWP was investigated at 0, 60, 120, 180, 240, and 300 s of HVCP treatment time. The results revealed that HVCP significantly influences the odour and taste attributes of the EWP across all treatments, with a more significant influence at 60 and 120 s of HVCP treatment. Principal component analyses of the E-nose and E-tongue clearly distinguish the odour and taste sensors’ responses. The HS-GC-IMS analysis identified 65 volatile compounds across the treatments. The volatile compounds’ concentrations increased as the HVCP treatment time was increased from 0 to 300 s. The significant compounds contributing to EWP characterisation include heptanal, ethylbenzene, ethanol, acetic acid, nonanal, heptacosane, 5-octadecanal, decanal, p-xylene, and octanal. Thus, this study shows that HVCP could be utilised to modify and improve the EWP flavour attributes.     

Alkaloids and Colon Cancer: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications for Cell Cycle Arrest

Cancer is the second most fatal disease worldwide, with colon cancer being the third most prevalent and fatal form of cancer in several Western countries. The risk of acquisition of resistance to chemotherapy remains a significant hurdle in the management of various types of cancer, especially colon cancer. Therefore, it is essential to develop alternative treatment modalities. Naturally occurring alkaloids have been shown to regulate various mechanistic pathways linked to cell proliferation, cell cycle, and metastasis. This review aims to shed light on the potential of alkaloids as anti-colon-cancer chemotherapy agents that can modulate or arrest the cell cycle. Preclinical investigated alkaloids have shown anti-colon cancer activities and inhibition of cancer cell proliferation via cell cycle arrest at different stages, suggesting that alkaloids may have the potential to act as anticancer molecules.