Sandwich-type flow-through fiber-optic cells for optical absorbance measurements

The sandwich cell described by Pavon et al. and a similar sandwich cell, except with angled (45 degrees, confocal) single strand optical fibers and a conventional Z-type cell of 6-mm path length have been studied with respect to their performance for absorbance detection. Both sandwich cells show less susceptibility by one order of magnitude to artifact absorbance signals from RI changes than the Z-cell. The light throughput in the sandwich cells increase by an order of magnitude when an inert metallized reflector is used and this improves S/N. The overall light throughput is substantially greater for the angled entrance single strand fiber optic cell rather than the cell with the bifurcated fiber optic. Attainable limits of detection with these cells appear to be related to the pathlength for the cell dimensions studied.     

Thermal characterization and thermal degradation of poly(norbornene-2,3-dicarboxylic acid dialkyl esters) synthesized by vinyl addition polymerization

The thermal properties and degradation behaviors of poly(norbornene-2,3-dicarboxylic acid dialkyl esters) (PNB-dialkyl esters) (alkyl = Me (PNB-Me), Et (PNB-Et), Pr (PNB-Pr), and Bu (PNB-Bu)) were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) in dynamic conditions and by infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The PNB-dialkyl esters show good thermal stability up to 350 °C, and the thermal stability decreases in the order Me > Et > Pr > Bu with the increase in size of side chain. The effect of side-chain size on the thermal degradation behaviors of PNB-dialkyl esters is evidenced by one-step thermal degradation profile for PNB-Me while two-step thermal degradation profile for PNB-Et, PNB-Pr, and PNB-Bu. Transformation is deduced to undergo β-hydrogen elimination and formation of anhydride group in the first stage of thermal degradation reaction according to TGA and IR results for PNB-Et, PNB-Pr, and PNB-Bu. The apparent activation energy and thermal degradation model of PNB-dialkyl esters are estimated by means of Ozawa-Flynn-wall method and Phadnis-Deshpande method, respectively.     

Electrochemical Detection of MS2 Phage Using a Bead‐based Immunoassay and a NanoIDA

A microbead based sandwich immunoassay for MS2 bacteriophage was developed using an interdigitated array (IDA) electrode with nanoscale dimensions (220 nm electrode width, 620 nm gap). The IDA was fabricated using an electron beam lithographic lift‐off technique. After an antibody‐assisted capture of MS2 using paramagnetic microbeads, a β‐galactosidase labeled secondary antibody was used to convert p‐aminophenyl‐β‐D ‐galactopyranoside (PAPG) into the redox active p‐aminophenol (PAP). Amperometric detection of PAP with IDA electrodes at +300 and ?200 mV vs. a Ag/AgCl reference electrode was used to measure the result, detecting MS2 concentrations as low as 10 ng/mL.     

Dexmedetomidine promotes the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma through hepatic stellate cell activation

Dexmedetomidine (DEX) is an anesthetic that is widely used in the clinic, and it has been reported to exhibit paradoxical effects in the progression of multiple solid tumors. In this study, we sought to explore the mechanism by which DEX regulates hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression underlying liver fibrosis. We determined the effects of DEX on tumor progression in an orthotopic HCC mouse model of fibrotic liver. A coculture system and a subcutaneous xenograft model involving coimplantation of mouse hepatoma cells (H22) and primary activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSCs) were used to study the effects of DEX on HCC progression. We found that in the preclinical mouse model of liver fibrosis, DEX treatment significantly shortened median survival time and promoted tumor growth, intrahepatic metastasis and pulmonary metastasis. The DEX receptor (ADRA2A) was mainly expressed in aHSCs but was barely detected in HCC cells. DEX dramatically reinforced HCC malignant behaviors in the presence of aHSCs in both the coculture system and the coimplantation mouse model, but DEX alone exerted no significant effects on the malignancy of HCC. Mechanistically, DEX induced IL-6 secretion from aHSCs and promoted HCC progression via STAT3 activation. Our findings provide evidence that the clinical application of DEX may cause undesirable side effects in HCC patients with liver fibrosis.Subject terms: Cancer microenvironment, Cell growth     

Carbonylation of Benzyl Halides Over Two-Phase Catalyst of Iron Pentacarbonyl

Carbonylation of benzyl halides to phenylacetic acid was studied in a two-phase system with iron pentacarbonyl as the catalyst precursor. The solutions consisted of a benzyl halide and iron pentacarbonyl in benzene and tetrabutylammonium hydrogen sulfate in aqueous sodium hydroxide. Stirring under carbon monoxide readily produced phenylacetic salts in aqueous phase which were then acidified and extracted with ether. The yields of phenylacetic acid from benzyl iodide and from benzyl bromide were similar at a evel of about 50percnt;, that of the latter being higher by 1%. The yield from benzyl chloride was far less, at a level of only 21%. The rate as studied with gas chromatography was found to decrease in the order benzyl iodide>benzyl bromide>benzyl chloride.     

Dual-phase gas-permeation flow-injection thermometric analysis for the determination of carbon dioxide

A flow-injection configuration based on a dual-phase gas-permeation system from a liquid donor to a gas acceptor stream with a thermistor flow-through detector is proposed for the direct analysis of the gas in the acceptor. This system was applied for the determination of carbon dioxide (in the form of carbonate) using the following chemical reaction: CO(2)(g)+2NH(3)(g)+H(2)O(g)=(NH(4))(2)CO(3)(s), with a linear response from 1x10(-3) to 50x10(-3) mol l(-1) of CO(3)(2-). Carbon dioxide was produced in the liquid donor and permeated into the gaseous acceptor stream of air/water vapor. The detection limit is 1x10(-3) mol l(-1) of carbonate, and a sampling frequency of 60 h(-1) is achieved with a relative standard deviation of 4.1% for replicate injections. The dual-phase gas-permeation flow-injection manifold, along with the membrane and phase separations, as well as the chemical reaction, provides enhanced selectivity when compared with the system employing a liquid acceptor stream, as serious interferents in this system, for instance, acetate and formate, among others, do not interfere in the proposed system.     

对称三唑Schif碱和氯化铜配合物的研究

本文介绍水杨配合与４－氨基－３，５－二乙基－１，２，４－三唑缩合而成对称三唑Ｓｃｈｉｆ碱（ＳＡＥＴＺ）与氯化铜（ＣｕＣｌ２）形成一种新的配合物Ｃｕ（ＳＡＥＴＺ）２（ＳＡＥＴＺ＝４－（邻羟苯基亚甲基）－亚胺－３，５－二乙基－１，２，４－三唑）。配合物的晶体结构表明，分子中两个偶氮甲碱的Ｎ原子及两个酚氧原子与中心Ｃｕ原子形成规则的平面配位结构。晶体属单斜晶系，空间群Ｐ２１／ｎ，ａ＝８．６８８（２），ｂ＝９．３１４（１），ｃ＝１６．５１５（４），β＝９４．３４（２）。，Ｖ＝１３３２．５（７）３，Ｚ＝２。     

NRET from naphthalene labels in multilayer shell wall on melamine formaldehyde microparticles fabricated with layer-by-layer self-assembly to pyrene-labeled polyelectrolyte in solution

Core-shell colloidal particles were prepared with the core of monodisperse melamine formaldehyde particles (MF) with a diameter of 3.5 μm. The shell deposited on the core by the layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly was made with a copolymer ANp3 of 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonate sodium (AMPS) and 3 mol% naphthalene label monomer and poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PD). Nonradiative energy transfer (NRET) from the naphthalene labels deposited on the MF particles to pyrene labels at a polyelectrolyte APy3, a copolymer of AMPS and 3 mol% pyrene label monomer, or to an ionic pyrene probe 1-pyrenemethylamine hydrochloride (PyMeA · HCl) in water was observed. The NRET efficiency was expressed as the emission intensity ratio I/I₀ of naphthalene with and without existence of pyrene in the surrounding solution. With increasing pyrene concentration, I/I₀ decreased down to about 0.2 and the mechanism for this NRET from the inner naphthalene label to the pyrene labels in solution is still ambiguous.     

Crystallization behavior and biodegradation of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) and poly(ethylene glycol) multiblock copolymers

Block copolymerization by using isocyanates is an effective method for incorporating PHB and PEG because it can prepare copolymers with good properties, such as toughness, strength, and so on. In this study, we adopted soil suspension system to estimate the biodegradability of a series of PHB/PEG multiblock copolymers with different compositions and block lengths. In the degradation process, the changes in weight loss, molecular weight, and tensile strength were periodically measured to determine the biodegradability, and the surface morphology was also observed by SEM. In contrast to pure PHB, the weight loss of the copolymer was relatively lower. On the other hand, the tensile strength and molecular weight experienced apparent decrease, and for BHG1000-3-1, they reached 46.7% and 77.7% of the initial value, respectively. SEM observation showed that the surface was covered with numerous erosion pits. All these indicate that the degradation indeed took place and long-chain molecules have been hydrolyzed into shorter ones. The crystallization behavior was also investigated by DSC and WAXD. The results showed that both the segments, PEG and PHB, can form crystalline phases at lower PHB contents ranging from 29% to 44%, and when PHB component was more than 60%, only PHB phase can crystallize.     

Spectrophotometric determination of lead in vegetables with dibromo-p-methyl-carboxysulfonazo

A new highly sensitive and selective chromogenic reagent dibromo-p-methyl-carboxysulfonazo (DBMCSA) was synthesized and studied for the spectrophotometric determination of lead in detail. In 0.25 M phosphoric acid medium, which greatly increases the selectivity, lead reacts with DBMCSA to form a 1:2 blue complex, having a sensitive absorption peak at 648 nm. Under the optimal conditions, Beer's law is obeyed over the range from 0 to 0.8 μg ml⁻¹ Pb(II) and the apparent molar absorptivity is 1.04×10⁵ l mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹. The detection limit and the variation coefficient were found to be 2.14 ng ml⁻¹ and 1.0%, respectively. It is found that, except for Ca(II) and Ba(II), all foreign ions studied do not interfere with determination. The interference caused by Ca(II) and Ba(II) can be easily eliminated by prior extraction with potassium iodide-methylisobutylketone. The method has been applied to the determination of lead in vegetables with satisfactory results.