Ions in water: the microscopic structure of concentrated hydroxide solutions

Neutron-diffraction data on aqueous solutions of hydroxides, at solute concentrations ranging from 1 solute per 12 water molecules to 1 solute per 3 water molecules, are analyzed by means of a Monte Carlo simulation (empirical potential structure refinement), in order to determine the hydration shell of the OH- in the presence of the smaller alkali metal ions. It is demonstrated that the symmetry argument between H+ and OH- cannot be used, at least in the liquid phase at such high concentrations, for determining the hydroxide hydration shell. Water molecules in the hydration shell of K+ orient their dipole moment at about 45 degrees from the K+-water oxygen director, instead of radially as in the case of the Li+ and Na+ hydration shells. The K+-water oxygen radial distribution function shows a shallower first minimum compared to the other cation-water oxygen functions. The influence of the solutes on the water-water radial distribution functions is shown to have an effect on the water structure equivalent to an increase in the pressure of the water, depending on both ion concentration and ionic radius. The changes of the water structure in the presence of charged solutes and the differences among the hydration shells of the different cations are used to present a qualitative explanation of the observed cation mobility.     

Analysis of protein phosphorylation by mass spectrometry

Phosphorylation is one of the most frequently occurring post-translational modifications in proteins. In eukaryotic cells, protein phosphorylation on serine, threonine and tyrosine residues plays a crucial role as a modulator of protein function. A comprehensive analysis of protein phosphorylation involves the identification of the phosphoproteins, the exact localization of the residues that are phosphorylated and the quantitation of phosphorylation. In this short review we will summarize and discuss the methodologies currently available for the analysis and full characterization of phosphoproteins with special attention at mass spectrometry-based techniques. In particular, we will discuss affinity-based purification of phosphopeptides coupled to MALDI-TOF analysis, their detection using mass mapping and precursor ion scan, identification of modified sites by MS/MS and quantitation analysis     

Clioquinol, a drug for Alzheimer's disease specifically interfering with brain metal metabolism: structural characterization of its zinc(II) and copper(II) complexes

Clioquinol, a 8-hydroxyquinoline derivative, is producing very encouraging results in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Its biological effects are most likely ascribed to complexation of specific metal ions, such as copper(II) and zinc(II), critically associated with protein aggregation and degeneration processes in the brain. We report here, for the first time, a structural characterization of the zinc(II) and copper(II) complexes of clioquinol. A ligand to metal stoichiometry of 2:1 is found in both cases, though in the presence of quite different coordination polyhedra. The present findings are discussed in the frame of modern approaches to AD treatment.     

Tricyclic heteroaromatic systems. 1,2,4-triazolo[1,5-a]quinoxaline

The parent 1,2,4-triazolo[1,5-a]quinoxaline was prepared by a few-step reaction from ethyl N¹-(2-nitrophenyl)-N³-ethoxalyloxamidrazonate, which afforded the key intermediate diethyl 1-(2-nitrophenyl)-1,2,4-triazole-3,5-dicarboxylate in satisfactory yield. The latter was cyclized, hydrolyzed, decarboxylated, reduced and dehydrogenated to yield the title compound.     

Transport properties of an hydrophobic-hydrophilic copolymer

Sorption and diffusion properties of a copolymer composed by hydrophilic and hydrophobic blocks have been analyzed. The material, obtained as a film by moulding the powders under pressure, was submitted to thermal treatments, and the structural organization of the samples was investigated using water vapour and dichloromethane as permeants. The polar solvent (water) has been useful to investigate the hydrophilic amorphous regions, while the apolar one (methylene chloride) gave information about the organization of the hydrophobic amorphous phases.     

Solvent-induced crystallization of syndiotactic polystyrene in toluene

The diffusion of toluene in glassy syndiotactic polystyrene was analyzed for films with different thickness. It was found that the reduced sorption curves superimpose, denoting that the diffusion follows a Fickian behaviour. The intensity of transmitted light in a polarizing microscope was followed during swelling, and it was found that there is development of order and it is strongly diffusion-controlled. Films dried after immersion in toluene show a crystalline wide angle X-ray pattern, while in the swollen state the possibility of a liquid-crystalline-like state can be suggested.     

Solvent induced structural transitions in a liquid crystalline polyester

Quenched nematic films of a liquid crystalline polyester were crystallized either thermally or by solvent induced crystallization, and their structural organization was analyzed. All techniques show that the thermal crystallization transforms part of the nematic phase into a crystalline one, the remaining part leaving unchanged. By contrast, the solvent induced crystallization does transform a part of the nematic phase into a crystalline phase, leaving the residual part in a much more disordered state resembling the amorphous state.     

Recognition of the syndiotactic polypropylene polymorphs via dynamic-mechanical analysis

Three syndiotactic polypropylene samples were crystallized under different conditions in order to obtain different polymorphs. A first sample was crystallized at high temperature, obtaining the helical form I; a second was crystallized from the melt at 0°C for many days obtaining the trans-planar mesophase; a third sample was obtained by solvent induced crystallization followed by annaeling of the trans-planar mesophase, leading to a mixture of both the helical forms I and II. In the dynamic-mechanical analysis the helical form I showed only one peak of tan δ corresponding to the amorphous glass transition. The other polymorphs also showed this transition centered at about the same temperature. Beside the peak corresponding to the Tg, the trans-planar mesophase was characterized by a peak appearing at 70°C, and the helical form II by a peak at 100°C. These peaks, unambiguously associated to transitions of the different forms, can be considered a distinctive evidence for the polymorphs obtained in different processing conditions.