Organically preserved microbial endoliths from the late Proterozoic of East Greenland

Diverse microorganisms ranging from cyanobacteria to eukaryotic algae and fungi live endolithically within ooids, hardgrounds and invertebrate shells on the present-day sea floor. These organisms are involved in the mechanical destruction of carbonates, and are useful ecological indicators of water depth and pollution. The Phanerozoic history of microbial endoliths has been elucidated through the study of microborings (the trace fossils of endolithic microorganisms) and rare cellularly preserved individuals, but nothing was known of the possible Precambrian evolution of comparable microorganisms until Campbell documented the occurrence of microborings in late Proterozoic ooids from central East Greenland. We now report the discovery of large populations of organically preserved endolithic microorganisms in silicified pisolites from 700-800-Myr-old Limestone-Dolomite Series of East Greenland. This fossil assemblage is significant for three reasons: (1) It confirms the prediction that oolites, pisolites and hardgrounds--the substrates for pre-Phanerozoic endoliths--provide a hitherto poorly explored but rewarding set of environments into which the search for early microfossils must be broadened; (2) the assemblage is diverse, containing about 12 taxa of morphologically distinct and previously unknown endolithic cyanobacteria, plus associated epilithic and interstitial populations; and (3) at least six of the fossil populations are indistinguishable in morphology, pattern of development, reproductive biology and inferred ecology from distinctive cyanobacterial species that bore ooids today in the Bahama Banks.     

均相催化(中)

1,3-二烯烃的齐聚本章将讨论过渡会属催化反应机理的研究方法,并以1,3-二烯烃的镍和钯的络合物作为催化剂为例,如丁二烯的环化三聚、丁二烯的环化二聚和丁二烯与甲醇的调聚。机理研究至少要依据三个方面的信息: 1.产物分析不仅要根据其组成,而且要考虑产物的立体化学。 2,动力学数据由此可提供催化循环中反应速度控制步骤的信息。但是,在均相催化中,反应物(如烯烃)往往与金属有轻度的络合。 3.模型络合物的研究模型络合物应该要和有关的催化反应具有同样的     

Amperometric detection of catecholamines with liquid chromatography at a novelly constructed prussian blue chemically modified electrode

A novel Prussian blue chemically modified electrode (CME) was constructed and characterized for liquid chromatography electrochemical detection (LCEC) of catecholamines. Both anodic and cathodic peaks could be obtained by monitoring at constant applied potential at anodic and slightly cathodic potential ranges (0.3-0.7 and -0.2-0.1 V vs. SCE), respectively. When arranged in a series configuration, using the modified electrodes as generating and collecting detectors, extremely high effective collection efficiencies of 0.91 (for norepinephrine) and 0.58 (for dihydroxyphenylacetic acid) were achieved in dual-electrode LCEC for catecholamines; and a linear response range over 3 orders of magnitude and a detection limit of 10 pg were obtained with a downstream CME as the indicating detector.     

Terminally functionalized polyisobutylene oligomers as soluble supports in catalysis

A new phase selective hydrocarbon soluble polymer support is described.     

S=N versus S+-N-: an experimental and theoretical charge density study

To elucidate the bonding situation in the widely discussed hypervalent sulfur nitrogen species, the charge density distributions rho(r) and related properties of four representative compounds, methyl(diimido)sulfinic acid H(NtBu)(2)SMe (1), methylene-bis(triimido)sulfonic acid H(2)C[S(NtBu)(2) (NHtBu)](2) (2), sulfurdiimide S(NtBu)(2) (3), and sulfurtriimide S(NtBu)(3) (4), were determined experimentally by high-resolution low-temperature X-ray diffraction experiments (T = 100 K). This set of molecules represents an ideal frame of reference for the comparison of SN bonding modes, because they contain short formal S=N double bonds as well as long S-N single bonds, some of them influenced by inter- or intramolecular hydrogen bonds. For comparison, the gas-phase ab initio calculations of the four model compounds, H(NMe)(2)SMe, H(2)C[S(NMe)(2)(NHMe)](2), S(NMe)(2), and S(NMe)(3), were performed. The topological features were found to be not particularly sensitive with respect to different substituents R (R = H, Me, tBu). In this paper, it is documented that theory and experiment differ in the eigenvalues of the Hessian matrix because of systematically differing positions of the bond critical points but agree very well concerning the spatial Laplacian distribution and the distinct polarization of all investigated sulfur-nitrogen bonds. Both recommend the S(+)-N(-) formulation of sulfur nitrogen bonds in 1 and 2 since all nitrogen atoms are found to be sp(3) hybridized. The planar SNx (x = 2, 3) units in the diimide 3 and the triimide 4 reveal characteristics of m-center-n-electron systems. For none of the investigated S-N bonds, a classical double bond formulation can be supported. This is further substantiated by the NBO/NRT approach. Valence expansion to more than eight electrons at the sulfur atom can definitely be excluded to explain the bonding.     

Validated ion-exclusion chromatographic method for citrate and acetate in medical fluids

In this paper we describe the development and validation of a solid-phase extraction procedure, followed by ion-exclusion chromatographic determination of citrate and acetate in medical fluids. The medical fluids contained trace levels of non-polar compounds, which were not of interest for the purposes of assay requirements, but due to their strong affinity towards the ion-exclusion chromatography column necessitated a 180-min long runtime to elute. The developed SPE procedure, based on trapping the hydrophobic compounds, on a reversed-phase material, while allowing analytes of interest elute off unretained, shortened the runtime to 35 min. The procedure is simple since it has only two steps, conditioning of the SPE cartridge with acetonitrile and treating the sample. The SPE procedure followed by ion-exclusion chromatographic determination was successfully validated per the International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) guidelines in terms of specificity, accuracy as recovery versus untreated sample, precision, range, linearity of response, ruggedness, stability of treated samples, and robustness. The validation data showed that the method is specific, accurate, precise, rugged, and robust. The validated method has been routinely used in the manufacturing environment.     

Introduction of heteroatom-based substituents into 1,4-dihydropyridines by means of a halogen-mediated, oxidative protocol: diamination, sulfonylation, sulfinylation, bis-sulfanylation, and halo-phosphonylation processes

The natural tendency of 1,4-dihydropyridines to undergo "biomimetic" oxidation to afford pyridinium salts can be switched off and, through the use of reagents that interact electrophilically with the enamine moiety present in the heterocyclic system, it is possible to promote alternative oxidations. In this way, efficient regio- and stereocontrolled synthetic methods have been developed that lead to diversely substituted di- and tetrahydropyridines. These include iodoazidation, diamination, bis-sulfonamidation, sulfonylation, sulfinylation, thiocyanation, sulfanylation, bis-sulfanylation, and halo-phosphonylation processes.     

Indirect laser photoacoustic detection for trace samples on membranes

An indirect laser photoacoustic technique is described. The basic principle, the experimental set-up and the influencing factors are discussed in detail. This method was used to quantify phenylamine, arginine and methylene blue on membranes. The linear ranges of the calibration curve are up to two orders of magnitude. With 1 microliter of sample solution, the detection limits are 0.25, 1.52 and 0.14 pmol for phenylamine, arginine and methylene blue, respectively.     

Asymmetry and magnetism in bis(oximato)-bridged heterobimetallic compounds: a computational approach

A density functional study of exchange coupling was carried out for a series of heterobinuclear oximato-bridged transition metal complexes. Model calculations were used to examine the influence of the electronic configuration of the metal atoms on the coupling constants. This analysis was complemented by a study of the variation of the coupling constant with the most usual structural distortions within this family of compounds. The influence of the nature of the terminal ligands as well as that of the symmetry on the bridge were also investigated.     

Aerosol formation and reaction pathways of atmospheric oxidation of dimethylsulfide

This paper concerns with three series of experiments about dimethylsulfide gas phase oxidation, carried out at increasing NOx level (< 20 ppb, 1 ppm, 10 ppm) to show the relation between the amounts of nitrogen oxides and the molar yields of sulfur containing products. DMSO, DMSO2, HCHO, HCOOH and SO2 were found as main reaction products. From these experiments and from preceding studies, a sensitive decrease in the quantity of total sulfur products in aerosol phase is underlined. This result derives from the reaction of NOx with CH3S(O)O2 and CH3S(O)OO radicals, which leads to stable intermediates as methylsulphonylperoxynitrate, MSPN, with a characteristic PAN-like structure.