Expression ofAscaris suum malic enzyme in a mutantEscherichia coli allows production of succinic acid from glucose

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - The malic enzyme gene ofAscaris suum was cloned into the vector pTRC99a in two forms encoding alternative arnino-termini. The resulting plasmids, pMEAl and...     

Collision-induced and infrared multiphoton dissociation studies on M(acetone)2 + (M=Al,Fe, Co,Cu, ScO) in the gas phase

In this paper we report an extension of our earlier study on the structure of Alfacetone)₂ ⁺ Collision-induced dissociation (CID) on MfacetoneXacetone-d₆)⁺ for M = Al, Fe, Co, and Cu yields primarily, if not exclusively, nearly equal amounts of acetone and acetone-d₆. Likewise, infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD) at 10.6 μm yields, exclusively, nearly equal losses of the labeled and unlabeled acetones. These results suggest that the two acetone ligands bind in an equivalent fashion. Sc⁺ was also studied, which proved to be the most interesting. Sc⁺ reacts with acetone to form primarily ScO⁺, which undergoes higher order reactions leading to several products including ScO(acetone)₂ ⁺. IRMPD on this ion produces ScO(acetone-d₆)(CD₂CO)⁺, while its perdeuterated analog also produces ScO(acetone-d₆)⁺ in addition to ScO(acetone-d₆(CD₂CO)⁺. The IRMPD results are supplemented by studying the primary and higher order reactions of Sc⁺ with acetone, as well as the CID of ScO(acetone)₂ ⁺. Finally, a qualitative assessment of the infrared photodissociation cross sections is given. It is found that the relative photodissociation cross sections follow the orders Co(acetone-d₆)₂ ⁺ > Co(acetone)(acetone-d₆) > Co(acetone)₂ ⁺ and Co(acetone-d₆)⁺ > Co(acetone)⁺.     

Monolayers as models for supported catalysts: zirconium phosphonate films containing manganese(III) porphyrins

Organized monolayer films of a manganese tetraphenylporphyrin have been prepared and used as supported oxidation catalysts. Manganese 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(tetrafluorophenyl-4'-octadecyloxyphosphonic acid) porphyrin (1) has been immobilized as a monolayer film by a combination of Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) and self-assembled monolayer techniques that use zirconium phosphonate linkages to bind the molecule to the surface. Analysis by FTIR, XPS, UV-vis and polarized optical spectroscopy show that the films consist of noninteracting molecules effectively anchored and oriented nearly parallel to the surface. The monolayer films are stable to the solvent and temperature conditions needed to explore organic oxidations. The activity of films of 1 toward the epoxidation of cyclooctene using iodosylbenzene as the oxidant was compared to that of Manganese 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl) porphyrin (2) and 1 under equivalent homogeneous conditions. The immobilized porphyrin 1 shows an enhanced activity relative to either homogeneous reaction. The main difference between 1 and 2 is the four alkyl phosphonate arms in 1 designed to incorporate the porphyrin within the films. The increased activity of immobilized 1 is a combination of the porphyrin structure, which prohibits the formation of mu-oxo dimers even in solution, and a change in conformation when anchored to the surface. The study demonstrates that careful monolayer studies can provide useful models for the design and study of supported molecular catalyst systems.     

New Group 6 metal carbonyl derivatives of 2-(2'(-pyridyl)benzimidazole: synthesis and spectroscopic studies

Reaction of Cr(CO)(6) with 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazole (pbiH) under reduced pressure resulted in the formation of the dinuclear complex [Cr(2)(CO)(6)(pbiH)(2)]. Infra-red (IR) spectroscopy revealed the presence of terminal and bridge Cr-CO bonds. Interaction of M(CO)(6), M=Cr, Mo and W, with pbiH in the presence of 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) gave the tetracarbonyl complexes [M(CO)(4)(pbiH)].bpy. Spectroscopic studies of the complexes indicated the presence of hydrogen bonding between the bpy nitrogen and the NH group of pbiH. Reactions of M(CO)(6) with pbiH in the presence of PPh(3) gave the tricarbonyl monosubstituted derivatives [M(CO)(3)(PPh(3))(pbiH)]. The spectroscopic studies of the complexes suggested the proposed structures.     

ITSTUDIES ON THE EFFECT OF UREA ON THE COMPATIBILITY OF PMMA/PVC MIXTURES IN DMF BY A DILUTE- SOLUTION VISCOMETRY METHOD

The interaction between poly(methymethacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) has been studied indilute urea solutions of dimethylformamide (DMF) at 28℃ using a dilute solution viscometry method. The results show thatthe polymer mixtures are compatible in DMF solution in the absence of urea. The influence of urea addition on the degree ofcompatibility of the polymer mixtures has been studied in terms of the compatibility parameters (△b_m and △[η]_m). It wasfound that the compatibility of the polymer mixtures is decreased with increasing urea addition, passing through a minimumat 0.5 M urea.     

Fine characterization of the ethylene and ethane sorption in poly(amide 12-block-tetramethylenoxide) copolymer/AgBF4 membranes

Ethylene/ethane sorption characteristics were determined for dry Pebax™ (poly(amide 12-block-tetramethylenoxide) copolymer)/AgBF₄ membranes by using an electronic microbalance. The membranes containing 0.7 and 22 wt.% AgBF₄ showed a dual-mode sorption isotherm. The ethane isotherms for all the membranes were of the Henry-type, which is the normal sorption for gases in rubbery polymers. The abnormal presence of Langmuir sorption sites only for ethylene in the rubbery copolymer, never reported sofar, is attributed to the silver-based specific complexation sites. The silver salt which dissolved in limited amounts in the rubbery copolymer had a much smaller Langmuir sorption capacity than the salt that crystallized in the copolymer. The sorption kinetics indicate that the crystallized salt did adsorb slowly ethylene according to a zeroth-order kinetics, but not ethane. The gas uptake kinetics resulting from a step of the pressure surrounding the copolymer exhibited one stage for ethane but two stages for ethylene. For the latter, there was first a fast Fickian sorption stage, then a drift of the zeroth-order sorption of ethylene on salt crystals, which contributes for a large part to the total uptake. The zeroth-order sorption suggests that the sorbed ethylene amount in the second-stage is independent of the crystal-surface coverage. The value of the Fickian diffusion coefficient calculated by fitting the kinetics with a solution of the second Fick’s law was 5 × 10⁻¹² m²/s for both ethylene (the first stage) and ethane, and is typical for small organic compounds in a rubbery material.     

Factors controlling the efficiencies of photoinduced electron-transfer reactions

The overall efficiencies of photoinduced electron transfer reactions in polar solvents are usually determined by the efficiency with which separated radical ions are formed from the initially formed geminate radical-ion pairs. These separation efficiencies are determined by the competition between retum electron transfer and separation within the geminate pairs. A method is described for determining whether variations in the quantum yields for formation of separated radical ions are due to changes in the reorganization parameters for the return electron transfer reactions, or to other factors. The use of the method is illustrated in studies of the effects of varying steric bulk and molecular size of the donors, and also in studies of the effect of using a charged sensitizer.     

Preparation and properties of composites made from rice straw and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC)

Rice straw was employed for the preparation of lignocellulosic‐poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) composites. The effect of pretreatment of rice straw, concentration of PVC, pressure as well as pressing temperature on the mechanical properties and water absorption was studied. Also, the effect of lignin as coupling agent on the mechanical properties and water absorption of composite was studied. Composites of rice straw comprising both PVC and a coupling agent offer superior properties compared to those made from only rice straw and PVC. The extent of improvement in the mechanical properties and dimensional stability of composites depended not only on the pretreatment of rice straw, concentration of PVC and lignin but also on pressure and pressing temperature. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of 2beta-carbomethoxy-3beta-(4-fluorophenyl)-N-(3-iodo-E-allyl)nortropane in rat plasma. II. Pharmacokinetic profile in male and female Sprague-Dawley rats evaluated by capillary electrophoresis

This paper describes a pharmacokinetic study performed in Sprague-Dawley rats after i.v. administration of a single 6-mg/kg dose of 2beta-carbomethoxy-3beta-(4-fluorophenyl)-N-(3-iodo-E-allyl)nortropane (Altropane). Plasma samples were collected from the retro-orbital sinus at times up to 3 h after drug administration, extracted by solid-phase extraction, and the drug levels determined by capillary electrophoresis (CE). Pharmacokinetic parameters were determined by a standard noncompartmental model using WinNonlin version 1.5. The maximum plasma concentrations, clearances of the drug, and areas under the curve for male and female rats were 5.74 and 7.26 microg/ml, 135.7 and 98.5 ml/kg x min, and 44.23 and 60.92 microg x min/ml, respectively. The drug was cleared very rapidly from the systemic circulation, with a terminal t(1/2) of 7 to 10 min and a mean residence time of about 11 min for both sexes. The volume of distribution was approximately 1 l/kg. No metabolites were detected when the samples were analyzed individually. However, after samples were pooled and concentrated, traces of two unknown peaks that may represent metabolites were detected in concentrates from the last two timepoints. Part I of this work [J. Chromatogr. A, 895 (2000) 87] describes validation of CE methods for the analysis of aqueous and plasma samples of Altropane, including its solid-phase extraction from rat plasma.