Structural Consequences of S → Se Substitution in some Symmetrical [M(S2CNR2)3] Complexes

The consequences of replacement of the symmetrically chelate ligands in [M(E₂CNR₂)₃] (E = S, Se) complexes of potential 32 symmetry by analogous mixed S,Se unsymmetrical chelates are explored for both small (M = Co) and large (M = In) metal atoms, and R = primary (Et) and secondary (ⁱPr) alkyl substituents by way of low‐temperature single crystal X‐ray studies of [(Co(SSeCNEt₂)₃] ([Co(Se₂CNEt₂)₃] also determined as datum), and [In(SSeCNR₂)₃], R = Et, ⁱPr. The structure of [(ⁱPr₂N·CS·Se)₂] is also recorded.     

Chimeric (alpha/beta + alpha)-peptide ligands for the BH3-recognition cleft of Bcl-XL: critical role of the molecular scaffold in protein surface recognition

Molecules that bind to specific surface sites on proteins are of great interest from both fundamental and practical perspectives. We are exploring a ligand development strategy that is based on oligomers with discrete folding propensities ("foldamers"); we target a specific cleft on the cancer-associated protein Bcl-xL because this system is well characterized structurally. In vivo, this cleft binds to alpha-helical segments (BH3 domains) of other proteins. We evaluated several types of helical foldamer, built entirely from beta-amino acid residues or from mixtures of alpha- and beta-amino acid residues, and ultimately identified foldamers in the latter class that bind very tightly to Bcl-xL. Our results suggest that combining different types of foldamer backbones will be an effective and general strategy for creating high-affinity and specific ligands for protein surface sites.     

Evaluation of Poisson solvation models using a hybrid explicit/implicit solvent method

Implicit solvent methods have become popular tools in the field of protein dynamics simulations, yet evaluation of their validity has been primarily limited to comparisons with experimental and theoretical data for small molecules. In this paper, we use a recently developed hybrid explicit/implicit solvent methodology to evaluate the accuracy of several Poisson-based implicit solvent models. Specifically, we focus on the calculation of electrostatic solvation free energies of various fixed conformations for two proteins. We show that, among various dielectric boundary definitions, the Lee-Richards molecular surface has the best agreement with hybrid solvent results. Furthermore, certain modifications of the molecular surface Poisson protocol provide varied results. For instance, simple modifications of atomic radii on charged residues generally improve absolute errors but do not significantly reduce relative errors among conformations. On the other hand, using a water-probe radius of 1.0 A, as opposed to the standard value of 1.4 A, to generate the molecular surface, moderately improves both absolute and relative results.     

Phase separation of the reaction system induced by CO2 and conversion enhancement for the esterification of acetic acid with ethanol in ionic liquid

The effect of CO2 on the phase behavior of the reaction system and equilibrium conversion for esterification of acetic acid and ethanol in ionic liquid (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate, [bmim][HSO4]) was studied at 60.0 degrees C up to 15 MPa. It was demonstrated that there was only one phase in the reaction system in the absence of CO2. The reaction system underwent two-phase-->three-phase-->two-phase transitions with increasing pressure. The pressure of CO2 or the phase behavior of the system affected the equilibrium conversion of the reaction markedly. As the pressure was less than 3.5 MPa, there were two phases in the system, and the equilibrium conversion increased as pressure was increased. In the pressure range of 3.5-9.5 MPa, there existed three phases, and the equilibrium conversion increased more rapidly with increasing pressure. As the pressure was higher than 9.5 MPa, the reaction system entered another two-phase region and the equilibrium conversion was nearly independent of pressure. The total equilibrium conversion was 64% without CO2 and could be as high as 80% as pressure was higher than 9.0 MPa. The apparent equilibrium constants (K(x)) in different phases were also determined, showing that the K(x) in the middle phase or top phase was much greater than that in the bottom phase.     

Total internal reflection-based biochip utilizing a polymer-filled cavity with a micromirror sidewall

A total internal reflection (TIR)-based biochip utilizing a polymer-filled cavity with a micromirror sidewall has been designed and fabricated. The implementation of the micromirror sidewall cavity facilitates precise alignment of the excitation light beam into the system. The incident angle of illumination can be easily modified by selecting polymers of different indices of refraction while optical losses are minimized. The design enables the hybrid, vertical integration of a laser diode and a CCD camera, resulting in a compact optical system. Brownian motion of fluorescent microspheres and real-time photobleaching of rhodamine 6G molecules is demonstrated. The proposed TIR-based chip simplifies current TIR optical configurations and could potentially be used as an optical-microfluidic platform for an integrated lab-on-a-chip microsystem.     

Mixed Cationic‐nonionic Surfactants and pH Adjustment Route to Synthesize High‐quality MCM‐48

Using the mixture of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and p‐Octyl polyethylene glycol phenyl ether (OP‐10) as templates, siliceous MCM‐48 materials can be synthesized with low molar ratio of CTAB to silica (0.139:1) and low concentration of mixed surfactants (ca.5%) and within a wide range of OP‐10/CTAB ratio (0.08?0.25). The materials were characterized by X‐ray powder diffraction, N₂ adsorption/desorption isotherm, TEM, TG‐DSC and ²⁹Si MAS NMR. Measurements indicated that the use of mixed surfactants allowed better condensation and higher ordering of the cubic mesostructure; at the same time, some properties of these materials were sensitive to the OP‐10/CTAB ratio. It was also found that the reduced pH of the gel which had been crystallized for a certain time gave a highly reproducible synthesis with a high silica yield (about 95%). Furthermore, the reaction mechanism of the synthesis is discussed in detail.     

Process improvement in acetone-butanol production from hardwood by simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation

The acetone-butanol production by simultaneous saccharification and extractive fermentation (SSEF) was investigated. In the SSEF employing cellulase enzymes andClostridium acetobutylicum, both glucan and xylan fractions of pretreated aspen are concurrently converted into acetone and butanol. Continuous removal of the fermentation products from the bioreactor by extraction was an important factor that allowed long-term fed-batch operation. The use of membrane extraction prevented the problems of phase separation and extractant loss. Increase in substrate feeding as well as reduction of nutrient supply was found to be beneficial in suppressing the acid production, thereby improving the solvent yield. Because of prolonged low growth conditions prevalent in the fed-batch operation, the butanol-to-acetone ratio in the product was significantly higher at 2.6–2.8 compared to the typical value of two.     

The effect of the steric hindrance on metallic cation conduction in polymer electrolytes

2,6-Di-t-butylphenol and oligo(ethylene oxide) bound covalently to polyisocyanate were synthesized and characterized. The ionic conductivities of their Li, Na, and K phenolates were studied at various temperatures. The conductivities were in the range of 10^?7?10^?5 S/cm at 30°C. The conductivity of Na and K salts was approximately 10² greater than that of the Li salts. The t-butyl groups serve to dissociate K and Na ions from the phenoxide. The cations, therefore, are more mobile as a result increasing the conductivity. The temperature dependence of ionic conductivity suggests that the migration of ions is controlled by segmental motion of the polymer, shown by linear curves obtained in Vogel–Tammann–Fulchere plots. The polyisocyanate backbone is a rather stiff structure, however, a flexible oligo(ethylene oxide) side chain forms complexes with metal ion. Since the ion transport is associated with the local movement of polymer segments, the rigidity of the polymer backbone does not have much influence on the ion mobility.     

CoAPO-11分子筛的合成、表征和催化性能： 1-己烯异构化反应

水热法合成了钴取代磷铝酸盐分子筛CoAPO-11，并采用了X射线衍射、扫描电子显微镜、红外光谱、紫外可见光谱以及氮气吸脱附等表征手段对合成的样品进行表征，并在合成的分子筛上进行1-己烯异构化反应评价，并考查了温度和空速对反应的影响。结果表明，在反应温度300℃及空速为2.4h－1CoAPO-11分子筛对1-己烯异构化反应具有较好的催化性能。