Combined anion-exchange separation and spectrophotometric determination of traces of titanium in sea water

Summary Traces of titanium in sea water have been preconcentrated by anion-exchange from acidified samples in the presence of thiocyanate. Titanium adsorbs strongly on a column of Amberlite CG 400 (SCN^–) and can be stripped easily by elution with 2 M hydrochloric acid — 1.5% hydrogen peroxide solution. Titanium in the effluent is determined spectrophotometrically with diantipyrylmethane as colour reagent. The combined method allows to determine traces of titanium very selectively and sensitively in sea water as well as non-saline water on a 41 sample basis. The method yields a coefficient of variation of 7% at a titanium level of 0.4 g per l.

---

Kombinierte Anionenaustauscher-Trennung und spektralphotometrische Bestimmung von Titanspuren in Meerwasser

Zusammenfassung Titanspuren wurden in Gegenwart von Thiocyanat durch Anionenaustausch aus der angesäuerten Probe angereichert. Titan wird an Amberlite CG 400 (SCN^–) stark adsorbiert und kann durch Elution mit 2M HCl — 1,5% H₂O₂ leicht abgelöst werden. Im Eluat wird es spektralphotometrisch mit Diantipyrylmethan bestimmt. Die kombinierte Methode gestattet eine selektive und empfindliche Bestimmung in einer 41-Probe von Meer- oder auch Süßwasser. Für einen Gehalt von 0,4 g Ti/l beträgt der Variationskoeffizient 7%.

     

Thermoluminescence from extended-chain crystals of polyethylene

Thermoluminescence (TL) has been observed in γ-irradiated extended-chain crystals of polyethylene above room temperature. The TL curve, which exhibits four peaks at 50, 90, 120, and 140°C, is different from that given by folded-chain crystals, in both shape and intensity. In particular, a shape, strong glow peak is observed at 140°C, corresponding to the melting temperature of the extended chain crystals. These results are discussed in relation to independent measurements by differential scanning calorimetry and electron spin resonance.     

The [2,3]Wittig rearrangement of 2-alkenyloxyacetic acids and its applications to the stereocontrolled synthesis of β, γ-unsaturated aldehydes and conjugated dienoic acids

Dianions generated from 2-alkenyloxyacetic acids readily undergo the [2,3]sigmatropic rearrangement uhich can constitute the versatile synthetic sequences for the stereocontrolled synthesis of β,γ-unsaturated aldehydes and conjugated dienoic acids.     

Narrow line cooling: finite photon recoil dynamics

We present an extensive study of the unique thermal and mechanical dynamics for narrow-line cooling on the 1S0-3P1 88Sr transition. For negative detuning, trap dynamics reveal a transition from the semiclassical regime to the photon-recoil-dominated quantum regime, yielding an absolute minima in the equilibrium temperature below the single-photon-recoil limit. For positive detuning, the cloud divides into discrete momentum packets whose alignment mimics lattice points on a face-centered-cubic crystal. This novel behavior arises from velocity selection and "positive feedback" acceleration due to a finite number of photon recoils. Cooling is also achieved with blue-detuned light around a velocity where gravity balances the radiative force.     

Vibrationally resolved fluorescence from organic molecules near metal surfaces in a scanning tunneling microscope

Intrinsic molecular fluorescence from porphyrin molecules on Au(100) has been realized by using a nanoscale multimonolayer decoupling approach with nanoprobe excitation in the tunneling regime. The molecular origin of luminescence is established by the observed well-defined vibrationally resolved fluorescence spectra. The molecules fluoresce at low "turn-on" voltages for both bias polarities, suggesting an excitation mechanism via hot electron injection from either tip or substrate. The excited molecules decay radiatively through Franck-Condon pi(*)-pi transitions.     

Identification of Arabidopsis genes regulated by high light-stress using cDNA microarray

In plants, excess light has the potential to damage the photosynthetic apparatus. The damage is caused in part by reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by electrons leaking from the photosynthetic electron transport system. To investigate the mechanisms equipped in higher plants to reduce high light (HL) stress, we surveyed the response of 7000 Arabidopsis genes to HL, taking advantage of the recently developed microarray technology. Our analysis revealed that 110 genes had a positive response to a 3 h treatment at a light intensity of 150 W m(-2). In addition to the scavenging enzymes of ROS, the genes involved in biosynthesis of lignins and flavonoids are activated by HL and actually resulted in increased accumulation of lignins and anthocyanins. Comparing the HL-responsive genes with drought-inducible genes identified with the same microarray system revealed a dense overlap between HL- and drought-inducible genes. In addition, we have identified 10 genes that showed upregulation by HL, drought, cold and also salt stress. These genes include RD29A, ERD7, ERD10, KIN1, LEA14 and COR15a, most of which are thought to be involved in the protection of cellular components.     

Conformational Changes of the Troponin—Tropomyosin Complex on F-Actin Observed by Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer Measurements

Contraction of vertebrate striated muscle is regulated by the strong Ca²⁺-dependent interaction among troponin (Tn), tropomyosin (Tm), and actin on the thin filament. Using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), the interactions between Tm and the Tn complex or between Tm and the Tn subunit, TnI or TnC, with or without other troponin subunits, were characterized in the presence or absence of F-actin and Ca²⁺ ions. Cys-190 of Tm was selectively labeled with the acceptor probe, 4-dimethylaminophenylazophenyl 4-maleimide. Troponin was selectively labeled at position 9 or 133 of TnI and position 98 of TnC with a donor probe, 5-(2-iodoacetylaminoethyl)aminonaphtha lene 1-sulfonic acid. FRET measurements indicate that the interaction between TnI and Tm alone is very weak, but that in the presence of F-actin, TnI binds to the proper binding site on Tm even in the absence of TnT. The distances between Cys-190 of Tm on F-actin and Cys-9 or Cys-133 of Tnl or Cys-98 of TnC in the reconstituted Tn were determined to be 52.8, 53.7, Å and 56.5 Å, respectively, in the absence of Ca²⁺, indicating that the Tnl—TnC complex, the globular portion of Tn, is located near Cys-190 of Tm on the reconstituted thin filaments. Upon binding of Ca²⁺ to TnC, these distances increased by 5.6 and 1.4 Å or decreased by 5.4 Å, respectively. These Ca²⁺-induced changes in Tn—Tm seem to occur only when F-actin is present, suggesting that the stable complex formation of TnI with the outer domain of F-actin upon removal of Ca²⁺ is a very important event during inhibition.     

Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy as a novel tool for crystallographic analysis in cellulose: cellulose I to cellulose II,tracing the structural changes under chemical treatment

Cellulose - Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) has expanded possibilities in cellulose crystallography research, as THz radiation detects most intermolecular vibrations and responds to...     

Forward and Backward Bellman Equations Improve the Efficiency of the EM Algorithm for DEC-POMDP

Decentralized partially observable Markov decision process (DEC-POMDP) models sequential decision making problems by a team of agents. Since the planning of DEC-POMDP can be interpreted as the maximum likelihood estimation for the latent variable model, DEC-POMDP can be solved by the EM algorithm. However, in EM for DEC-POMDP, the forward–backward algorithm needs to be calculated up to the infinite horizon, which impairs the computational efficiency. In this paper, we propose the Bellman EM algorithm (BEM) and the modified Bellman EM algorithm (MBEM) by introducing the forward and backward Bellman equations into EM. BEM can be more efficient than EM because BEM calculates the forward and backward Bellman equations instead of the forward–backward algorithm up to the infinite horizon. However, BEM cannot always be more efficient than EM when the size of problems is large because BEM calculates an inverse matrix. We circumvent this shortcoming in MBEM by calculating the forward and backward Bellman equations without the inverse matrix. Our numerical experiments demonstrate that the convergence of MBEM is faster than that of EM.     

Imidazolinium-based Multiblock Amphiphile as Transmembrane Anion Transporter

Transmembrane anion transport is an important biological process in maintaining cellular functions. Thus, synthetic anion transporters are widely developed for their biological applications. Imidazolinium was introduced as anion recognition site to a multiblock amphiphilic structure that consists of octa(ethylene glycol) and aromatic units. Ion transport assay using halide-sensitive lucigenin and pH-sensitive 8-hydroxypyrene-1,3,6-trisulfonate (HPTS) revealed that imidazolinium-based multiblock amphiphile ( IMA ) transports anions and showed high selectivity for nitrate, which plays crucial roles in many biological events. Temperature-dependent ion transport assay using 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) indicated that IMA works as a mobile carrier. ¹H NMR titration experiments indicated that the C2 proton of the imidazolinium ring recognizes anions via a (C−H)⁺⋅⋅⋅X⁻ hydrogen bond. Furthermore, all-atom molecular dynamics simulations revealed a dynamic feature of IMA within the membranes during ion transportation.