STUDIES ON HUMAN LENS: I. ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF FLUORESCENT PIGMENTS

Abstract
Fluorescence spectra of normal mature human lenses have been measured and at least eight species with distinct emission characteristics identified. To determine the specific photochemical and photophysical processes responsible for the origin and development of these fluorophores, emission behavior of the products generated by successive irradiation of young human lenses (3–6 y old) as well as of L-tryptophan solution have been systematically monitored. Fluorescent products that resulted from this irradiation were comparable to many of the fluorophores detected in aged lenses, indicating that light plays a major role in the development of these pigments. In addition to photogenerated species, there are other compounds in human lenses, presumably advanced glycosylated end products, with marked fluorescence properties.
Several oxidation products of tryptophan including N -formylkynurenine or its derivatives, β-carboline or its derivatives, and anthranilic acid have been identified in the mature human lens. The development of several photoproducts also was attributed to endogenous ascorbate-mediated Maillard reaction products, which undergo photoconversion by the visible light. Although some of these chromophores could act as photosensitaizers, the sensitizing efficiency of many are low. Conversely, the near-UV filtering capability of these colored compounds conceivably could protect the vitreous and retina from development of any photochemical lesion.     

Theoretical Study on the Isomerization Mechanism of Enol Ester from 2-Acyl-1, 3-cyclohexanediones

The present paper employed density function theory to investigate two reaction pathways for isomerization of enol ester proposed by Yang(path a) and the present authors(path a), respectively. The base catalytic effects of solvent triethylamine on these two reactions were also evaluated. It is demonstrated that path B is more preferable than path a due to low barrier height for the rate-determining step.     

THE 'OPSIN SHIFT' IN BACTERIORHODOPSIN: STUDIES WITH ARTIFICIAL BACTERIORHODOPSINS

Abstract— The difference (in cm⁻¹) in absorption maxima between the protonated Schiff base of retinals and the pigment derived therefrom has been defined as the opsin shift. It represents the influence of the opsin binding site on the chromophore. The analysis of the opsin shifts of a series of dihydrobacteriorhodopsins has led to the external point-charge model, which in addition to a counter anion near the Schiff base ammonium, carries another negative charge in the vicinity of the β-ionone ring. This is in striking contrast to the external point-charge model proposed earlier for the bovine visual pigment. The absorption maxima of rhodopsins formed from bromo- and phenyl retinals support the two models. A retinal carrying a photoaffinity label has yielded a nonbleachable bacteriorhodopsin.     

Ionic liquid–modified cellulosic hydrogels for loading and sustained release of selenourea: an ensuing inhibition of tyrosinase activity

Cellulose-based hydrogel materials were prepared and modified with tannic acid and l-methionine using ionic liquid as the solvent. The gels were prepared to develop a sustained release medium for selenourea (SeU). The drug delivery characteristics of selenourea-loaded cellulose (CSeU), selenourea-loaded tannic acid-modified cellulose (CTSeU), and selenourea-loaded L-methionine-modified cellulose (CMSeU) were investigated in aqueous media and simulated gastric fluid (SGF) media. This modified gel beads have been characterized using field emission scanning electron microscope, X-ray energy-dispersive spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis and swelling properties and compared with those of the unmodified ones. We also investigated the inhibitory effects of SeU released from these gels on the activity of mushroom tyrosinase. Out of all the gel materials, CTSeU showed maximum SeU release both in water and SGF media. However, tyrosinase inhibitory action in PBS medium was comparable for all the three gel materials.     

链酚胺型配体锌(Ⅱ)配合物模拟碳酸酐酶研究

合成了酚胺型链状配体,N,N'-二(2-羟基苄基)丙二胺(H~2L)及其Zn(Ⅱ)配合物(ZnL),通过元素分析、IR和^1HNRM等手段进行了表征。采用pH电位滴定法,在25℃±0.1℃,I=0.1mol·dm^-^3(KNO~3)条件下,测定了配体的质子化常数以及配体与金属离子Zn(Ⅱ)配位反应平衡常数。讨论了配体与金属离子Zn(Ⅱ)的配位情况,得到了配位酚羟基的解离常数。运用分光光度法,在25℃±0.1℃,I=0.1mol·dm^-^3(KNO~3)条件下,在pH=5.5～9.0(50mmol·dm^-^3缓冲溶液)范围内,研究了配合物作为碳酸酐酶模拟物催化对-硝基苯酚乙酸酯(NA)水解动力学,得到了NA酯水解的配合物催化速率常数k~N~P。实验结果表明,ZnHL^+的配位酚羟基的解离常数pK~a为6.83;催化速率常数k~N~P与pH之间不存在Sigmoidal型曲线关系,而是在pH值中性附近有最大值,ZnHL^+对NA酯水解有很好的催化效果,并且采取双重催化机理,是碳酸酐酶很好的模拟物。     

基于5-芳基乙内酰脲类化合物的CoMFA和HQSAR研究

用CoMFA和HQSAR两种QSAR方法研究了50个乙内酰脲类分子的定量构效关系.本研究从构象搜索所得的低能结构出发构建化合物分子的构象, 建立CoMFA模型,并进行了全空间搜索. HQSAR本质上是一种二维的QSAR方法,与CoMFA方法相比,该方法在数据处理方面,比CoMFA方法快捷,并且可重复性好.两种方法均得到了较好分析结果, CoMFA的交叉验证相关系数q2 值为0.815, HQSAR的q2值为0.893.这些方程有力地说明了该类分子在(R,R)-N-3,5-dinitrobenzoyl-1,2-diamine型手性固定相上拆分过程中的影响因素,对今后类似拆分的实验研究提供了理论支持.     

Blends of starch with ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymers: effect of water,glycerol, and amino acids as plasticizers

Blends of thermoplastic starch with poly(ethylene‐co‐vinyl alcohol) copolymer (EVOH) were melt extruded with water/glycerol as plasticizer and a series of amino acid additives. The biggest factor in end‐use mechanical properties proved to be the relative humidity (RH) during storage. Plasticized starch‐EVOH blends stored at 0 and 50% RH changed significantly over time, with, for example, the tensile strength (TS) of the glycerol‐plasticized blend increasing from 4.7 to 26.3 MPa over 8 weeks when maintained at 0% RH. In contrast, the TS of this same sample stored at 75% RH remained unchanged for 8 weeks. Amino acids provided relatively minor, but significant changes in mechanical properties with time. Based on TS, elongation‐to‐break, and modulus, it may be concluded that β‐alanine, sarcosine, and L ‐proline were more effective than glycerol at maintaining strong flexible blends. Increases in crystallinity and changes in morphology with time, as described by modulated DSC were correlated to these changes in mechanical properties. Published in 2007 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conformational studies of basic poly (α-amino acid)s in reversed micelles

The conformation of various basic poly (-amino acid)s was investigated by CD measurements in aqueous solutions containing bis (2-ethylhexyl)sodium sulfosuccinate (AOT) as well as in the AOT reversed micelles. The addition of AOT into an aqueous solution of poly(L-lysine) induces the conformational transition from coil to ordered structure, followed by aggregation. On the other hand, poly(L-lysine) assumes-structure in the reversed micelles at low w_ovalue (w_o=[H₂O]/[AOT]). Similarly to poly(L-lysine), poly(L-ornithine) takes an ordered structure in the aqueous solution containing AOT and-structure in the reversed micelles. In this case, however, these ordered structures are not so stable, compared with that of poly(L-lysine). Poly(L-arginine) undergoes the conformational transition from coil to helix by addition of AOT into the aqueous solution. Further addition of AOT allows transformation into-structure. Copoly(L-lysyl-L-leucine) with 63% leucine residue was shown to take a stable helical conformation even in pure water. In the reversed micelles, however, this ordered structure is significantly changed probably because the hydrophobic interaction among the leucyl residues is lowered in the reversed micelles.     

Synchrotron radiation circular dichroism spectroscopy of ribose and deoxyribose sugars, adenosine, AMP and dAMP nucleotides.

Synchrotron radiation circular dichroism (SRCD) spectra of ribose and deoxyribose sugars, adenosine, AMP and dAMP nucleotides and cyclic derivatives were measured in the vacuum ultraviolet region (down to 168 nm for sugars and 175 nm for adenine derivatives) and at different pH values (3, 6-7, 9-10) and temperatures (between 5 and 45 degrees C). The information content in the VUV region is important since the CD bands strongly depend on the chemical structure of the sugar, the presence and orientation of a phosphate group and the protonation state of adenine. On the other hand, single or double deprotonation of the phosphoric acid group has no influence on the spectra. We assign the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) CD bands of the nucleoside and nucleotides to be due mainly to n-->pi* transitions in the adenine nucleobase based on a comparison with the absorption spectra. The CD bands of the sugars are due to n(O -->sigma*) transitions and are much smaller than the CD signal from the nucleotides in the VUV region. Bands are assigned to both pyranose and open-chain forms.     

A study on the electronic effect of <Emphasis Type="Italic">para</Emphasis> substituents in the aryloxy ring of the hydrazone ligands on the vanadium centre in a family of mixed-ligand [V<Superscript>V</Superscript>O(ONO)(OO)] complexes

[V^IVO(acac)₂] reacts with the methanolic solutions of tridentate dibasic ONO donor hydrazone ligands derived from the condensation of benzoyl hydrazine with either 2-hydroxyacetophenone (H₂L¹) or its para-substituted derivatives (H₂L^2–4) (general abbreviation H₂L), in the presence of vanillin (Hvan) in equimolar ratio under aerobic conditions generating the mixed-ligand oxovanadium(V) complexes of the type [V^VO(L)(van)], (1)–(4) in good yield. All the complexes are diamagnetic and exhibit only ligand-to-metal charge transfer (l.m.c.t.) band near 510 nm in addition to intra-ligand (π → π*) transition band near 330 nm in CH₂Cl₂ solution. ¹H-n.m.r. spectra of the complexes in CDCl₃ solution indicate the presence of two isomeric forms [(1A), (1B); (2A), (2B); (3A), (3B) and (4A), (4B)] in different ratios, which is explained by the interchange of the two binding sites of van⁻ motif between its coordinated equatorial and axial positions. Complexes display two quasi-reversible one electron reduction peaks near +0.10 V and near +0.30 V versus s.c.e. in CH₂Cl₂ solution which are attributed to the successive reduction of V^V→ V^IV and the V^IV→ V^III motifs, respectively. λ_max (for l.m.c.t. transition), and the two reduction potential values (E _1/2)^I (average of the first step anodic and first step cathodic peak potentials) and (E _1/2)^II (average of the second step anodic and second step cathodic peak potentials) of the complexes, are found to be linearly related to the Hammett constants (σ) of the substituents in the aryloxy ring of the hydrazone ligands. λ_max, (E _1/2)^I and (E _1/2)^II values show large dependence: dλ_max/dσ = 37.29 nm, d(E _1/2)^I/dσ = 0.21 V and d(E _1/2)^II/dσ = 0.21 V, respectively, on σ.