Influence of calcium on the self-assembly of partially hydrolyzed alpha-lactalbumin

Self-assembly of alpha-lactalbumin after partial hydrolysis by a protease from Bacillus licheniformis can result in nanotubular structures, which show many similarities to microtubules. Calcium plays a crucial role in this process. The objective of this investigation was to study the role of calcium in more detail. The kinetics of the hydrolysis step and the self-assembly step were monitored by respectively liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and dynamic light scattering. The microstructure of the gels finally formed was investigated by transmission electron microscopy. This investigation demonstrates that calcium accelerated the kinetics of the self-assembly, but it had no effect on the hydrolysis kinetics. As a result of the accelerated self-assembly kinetics at a high calcium concentration, the time of gelation decreased as well. A minimum concentration of calcium needed to obtain the tubular alpha-lactalbumin structures was determined. Below R = 1.5 (mole calcium/mole alpha-lactalbumin), turbid gels with randomlike structure were obtained. Between R = 1.5 and R = 6, translucent gels with a fine stranded network of tubules were formed, while higher calcium concentrations had a negative effect on the tubule formation, resulting in amorphous structures. The optimum calcium concentration for alpha-lactalbumin nanotube formation seemed to be around R = 3.     

Determination of ammonia based on the electro-oxidation of hydroquinone in dimethylformamide or in the room temperature ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide

The results detail a novel methodology for the electrochemical determination of ammonia based on its interaction with hydroquinone in DMF. It has been shown that ammonia reversibly removes protons from the hydroquinone molecules, thus facilitating the oxidative process with the emergence of a new wave at less positive potentials. The analytical utility of the proposed methodology has been examined with a linear range from 10 to 95 ppm and corresponding limit-of-detection of 4.2 ppm achievable. Finally, the response of hydroquinone in the presence of ammonia has been examined in the room temperature ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluormethylsulfonyl)imide, [EMIM][N(Tf)₂]. Analogous voltammetric waveshapes to that observed in DMF were obtained, thereby confirming the viability of the method in either DMF or [EMIM][N(Tf)₂] as solvent.     

Costereosymmetric α-olefin copolymers

Copolymerization of propylene and 1-butene with highly stereospecific three-component coordination catalysts produced multiblock crystalline copolymers having stereo-regular sequences of both propylene and 1-butene. Copolymers containing from 3 to about 80% 1-butene had two DTA melting points which were attributable to polypropylene and poly-1-butene crystallinity. Those containing from 18 to about 70% 1-butene had x-ray diffraction patterns showing peaks characteristic of polypropylene and form I poly-1-butene, but form II poly-1-butene crystallinity was never observed. The multiblock copolymer structure observed is also supported by the fact that the product of the reactivity ratios is greater than unity. The composition distributions of low-conversion and continuously prepared copolymers were similar and relatively broad. For example, copolymers containing an average of 12% 1-butene had species containing from 5–30% 1-butene. High-conversion copolymers had an even broader composition distribution due to the gradual increase of the 1-butene concentration in the comonomer mixture as the copolymerization proceeded. The absence of homopolymers was demonstrated by fractionation. The ability to detect homopolymers was proved by the fact that a mixture of stereoregular polypropylene and poly-1-butene were readily separated. Increasing the amount of 1-butene tended to decrease those properties dependent upon crystallinity such as hardness, tensile strength, stiffness, density, and melting point, but tended to improve significantly the impact strength, low temperature properties, and clarity of molded objects. These duocrystalline copolymers retained a much higher level of properties than that observed for random copolymers prepared with less stereospecific coordination catalysts.     

Determination of the total nitrogen content of hard, semihard, and processed cheese by the Kjeldahl method: collaborative study

The objective of this collaborative study was to determine interlaboratory performance statistics for a modified and optimized version of AOAC Method 920.123 for the determination of the total nitrogen content of hard, semihard, and processed cheese by Kjeldahl analysis. Details included addressing the issues of material homogeneity, test portion size (1 g), quantitative transfer (weighing on to filter paper), ensuring system suitability (nitrogen recoveries), and using AOAC Method 991.20 as the basis for nitrogen analysis. Fifteen laboratories tested 18 pairs of blind duplicate cheese materials with a crude protein content between 18 and 36%. Materials represented hard, semihard, and processed commercial cheeses with a wide range of composition. Statistical performance parameters expressed as crude protein (nitrogen x 6.38), g/100 g, with invalid and outlier data removed were mean = 26.461, repeatability standard deviation (Sr) 0.111, reproducibility standard deviation (S(R)) = 0.153, repeatability relative standard deviation (RSDr) = 0.42%, reproducibility relative standard deviation (RSDR) = 0.58%, repeatability (r) = 0.312, and reproducibility (R) = 0.428. The interlaboratory study results were acceptable and comparable to those for the milk Kjeldahl nitrogen method on a relative nitrogen basis. The Study Directors recommend that this modified method for the determination of total nitrogen in hard, semihard, and processed cheese by Kjeldahl analysis be adopted First Action as an improved method to replace Method 920.123.     

Synthesis and solid-state structures of new cyclophane host molecules

Five new cyclophane host molecules (corrals) are prepared by linking together two α,α′-di(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,4-diisopropylbenzene or α,α′-di(3,5-dimethyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,4-diisopropylbenzene units with two permethylene spacers. Three small cyclophane hosts (boxes) are synthesized by cyclization of α,α′-di(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,4-diisopropylbenzene with di(bromomethyl)benzene compounds. Solid-state structures of one corral and one box are reported.     

Time‐Resolved Synchrotron Radiation Excited Optical Luminescence: Light‐Emission Properties of Silicon‐Based Nanostructures

The recent advances in the study of light emission from matter induced by synchrotron radiation: X‐ray excited optical luminescence (XEOL) in the energy domain and time‐resolved X‐ray excited optical luminescence (TRXEOL) are described. The development of these element (absorption edge) selective, synchrotron X‐ray photons in, optical photons out techniques with time gating coincide with advances in third‐generation, insertion device based, synchrotron light sources. Electron bunches circulating in a storage ring emit very bright, widely energy tunable, short light pulses (<100 ps), which are used as the excitation source for investigation of light‐emitting materials. Luminescence from silicon nanostructures (porous silicon, silicon nanowires, and Si–CdSe heterostructures) is used to illustrate the applicability of these techniques and their great potential in future applications.     

Grafting of monosaccharide derivatives to cellulose acetate

Grafting of 1,2-O-isopropylidene-α-D -xylofuranose to commercial cellulose diacetate has been accomplished by using a boron trifluoride catalyst. The reaction proceeds quickly at 25 and 40°C, resulting in degrees of molar substitution (MS) of 0.37 and 0.34, respectively. If monomer and catalyst are added over an extended period of time to maintain low concentrations, MS values as high as 0.89 and 0.85 are obtained at 25 and 40°C, respectively. Major side reactions are depolymerization of the cellulose acetate backbone and grafted D -xylose and the homopolymerization of the monomer. These side reactions may be minimized by conducting the reaction at 40°C for a short time or by adding monomer and catalyst over an extended period of time. Grafting has also been accomplished by using D -xylose derivatives with various reactive groups at the anomeric carbon atom. The grafted material of MS greater than 0.7 is insoluble in acetone and after deacetylation is soluble in water under alkaline, neutral and acidic conditions. Oxalic acid hydrolysis of the deacetylated material indicates that most of the grafted D -xylose units are in the furanose form. Methylation and hydrolysis of the methylated material shows that 75% of the D -xylose residues are terminal units and indicates the presence of many singly grafted D -xylose residues and a few di-and trisaccharide grafts.     

Substitution reactions of [Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)](2-) with Bu(t)NC or Et(2)NCS(2)(-): trapping intermediates and detecting new pathways

Kinetic studies on the substitution reaction between [Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)](2-) and Bu(t)NC or Et(2)NCS(2)(-) are reported. The binding of small molecules and ions to Fe-S clusters is a fundamental step in substitution reactions but can be difficult to follow directly because these reactions are rapid and often associated with small spectroscopic changes. A novel kinetic method is reported which allows the time course of molecule and ion binding to Fe-S clusters to be followed by monitoring the lability of the cluster. Using a stopped-flow, sequential-mix apparatus, [Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)](2-) and L (L = Et(2)NCS(2)(-) or Bu(t)NC) are rapidly mixed, and after a known time (delta) the resulting solution is mixed with a solution of PhS(-). The thiolate substitutes for the chloro ligands on the cluster, in a reaction which is easy to follow because of the large change in the visible absorption spectrum. The rate of this substitution is extremely sensitive to whether L is bound to the cluster or not. By correlation of delta with the rate of the reaction with PhS(-), the time course of the reaction between [Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)](2-) and L can be mapped out. In studies where L = Bu(t)NC this technique has allowed the detection of an intermediate ([Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)(CNBu(t))](2-)) which cannot be detected spectrophotometrically. In further studies, the substitution reactions of [Fe(4)S(4)Cl(4)](2-) with PhS(-), Et(2)NCS(2)(-), or Bu(t)NC are all perturbed by the addition of Cl(-). In all cases a common pathway for substitution is evident, but with Et(2)NCS(2)(-) an additional, slower pathway becomes apparent under conditions where the common pathway is completely inhibited by Cl(-).     

Chemistry and the near-sighted nature of the one-electron density matrix

Two different macrospopic pieces of copper have different external potentials and, because of the unique functional relationship between the electron density and the external potential as demanded by density functional theory, should possess different electron density distributions. Experimentally, however, an atom in the bulk exhibits the same electron density in both samples and they possess identical sets of intensive properties. Density functional theory does not account for the fundamental observation underlying the theory of atoms in molecules: that what are apparently identical distributions of charge can be observed for an atom or a grouping of atoms in systems with different external potentials and that these atoms contribute essentially identical amounts to the energies and all other properties of the systems in which they occur. It is shown that, unlike the external potential, the kinetic energy density and the potential energy density, defined by the virial of the Ehrenfest force acting on electron density, are short-range functions. As recorded in the first article on atoms in molecules, they exhibit a local dependence on the electron density that causes them to faithfully mimic the transferability of the atomic charge distributions from one system to another. The electron, the kinetic energy, and the virial densities are all determined directly by the one-electron density matrix, a function termed near-sighted by Professor Kohn. It is this near-sighted property of the one-matrix that underlies the working hypothesis of chemistry—that of a functional group exhibiting a characteristic set of properties. The observations obtained from the theory of atoms in molecules and the atomic theorems it determines demonstrate the existence of a local relationship between the electron density and all properties of a system. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Crystal structure of the 2:1 acetonitrile complex of 18-crown-6

Single crystal X-ray analysis of the 2:1 acetonitrile complex of 18-crown-6 is reported. Crystals of the complex are monoclinic,P2₁/n, witha=9.123(3),b=8.524(3),c=13.676(4) Å, =104.68(3)°, andD _c =1.118 g cm^–3 forZ=2. The complex lies on a center of symmetry, with the crown in theD _3d conformation. Methyl groups of the acetonitrile molecules have weak interactions with the crown oxygen atoms, and are tilted 31.7° from the host's threefold axis. Methyl hydrogen atoms are rotationally disordered about the acetonitrile axis. Supplementary Data relating to this article are deposited with the British Library as Supplementary Publication No. SUP 82057 (12 pages).