Metal components analysis of metallothionein-III in the brain sections of metallothionein-I and metallothionein-II null mice exposed to mercury vapor with HPLC/ICP-MS

Mercury vapor is effectively absorbed via inhalation and easily passes through the blood–brain barrier; therefore, mercury poisoning with primarily central nervous system symptoms occurs. Metallothionein (MT) is a cysteine-rich metal-binding protein and plays a protective role in heavy-metal poisoning and it is associated with the metabolism of trace elements. Two MT isoforms, MT-I and MT-II, are expressed coordinately in all mammalian tissues, whereas MT-III is a brain-specific member of the MT family. MT-III binds zinc and copper physiologically and is seemed to have important neurophysiological and neuromodulatory functions. The MT functions and metal components of MTs in the brain after mercury vapor exposure are of much interest; however, until now they have not been fully examined. In this study, the influences of the lack of MT-I and MT-II on mercury accumulation in the brain and the changes of zinc and copper concentrations and metal components of MTs were examined after mercury vapor exposure by using MT-I, II null mice and 129/Sv (wild-type) mice as experimental animals. MT-I, II null mice and wild-type mice were exposed to mercury vapor or an air stream for 2 h and were killed 24 h later. The brain was dissected into the cerebral cortex, the cerebellum, and the hippocampus. The concentrations of mercury in each brain section were determined by cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry. The concentrations of mercury, copper, and zinc in each brain section were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The mercury accumulated in brains after mercury vapor exposure for MT-I, II null mice and wild-type mice. The mercury levels of MT-I, II null mice in each brain section were significantly higher than those of wild-type mice after mercury vapor exposure. A significant change of zinc concentrations with the following mercury vapor exposure for MT-I, II null mice was observed only in the cerebellum analyzed by two-way analysis of variance. As for zinc, the copper concentrations only changed significantly in the cerebellum. Metal components of metal-binding proteins of soluble fractions in the brain sections were analyzed by size-exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) connected with ICP-MS. From the results of HPLC/ICP-MS analyses, it was concluded that the mercury components of MT-III and high molecular weight metal-binding proteins in the cerebellum of MT-I, II null mice were much higher than those of wild-type mice. It was suggested that MT-III is associated with the storage of mercury in conditions lacking MT-I, and MT-II. It was also suggested that the physiological role of MT-III and some kind of high molecular weight proteins might be impaired by exposure to mercury vapor and lack of MT-I and MT-II.     

Carbon deposition on a Ni/α-Al2O3 catalyst

The kinetics of carbon deposition over a Ni/α-Al₂O₃ commercial catalyst, has been studied using CH₄−H₂ gas mixtures in the range of 748–873 K. A Hougen-Watson type model gives good agreement with the experimental rates.     

Underpotential deposition of tin(II) on a gold disc electrode and determination of tin in a tin plate sample

This work describes a study of the underpotential deposition (UPD) of Sn²⁺ on a polycrystalline gold disc electrode using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronocoulometry (CC). Sn²⁺ ions showed well-defined peaks from UPD and UPD stripping (UPD-S) in 1 mol/L HCl solutions, while bulk deposition (BD) and BD stripping (BD-S) of the ions were also observed. The measured UPD shifts, E_UPD, between the UPD-S and the BD-S peaks were more than 200 mV. The UPD charge and the surface coverage of tin were measured by CC. A new method for determining Sn²⁺ was therefore developed, based on the excellent electrochemical properties of the Au/Sn UPD system. A plot of the UPD-DPASV (differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry) signal versus the Sn(II) concentration was obtained for [Sn(II)] of 1.98×10^–7 to 3.64×10^–5 M. The method developed here has been applied to determine the tin in a tin plate sample.     

Characterization of some essential oils and their key components: Thermoanalytical techniques

The present study was aimed at determining the kinetics of evaporation and establishing vapor pressure curves for both single and multi-component systems by thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Essential oils (e.g. lavender oil, orange oil, clove oil and eucalyptus oil, etc.) are typically multi-component systems consisting of various volatile pure components (e.g. linalyl acetate, limonene, cinnamaldehyde, etc.) which resemble single component systems. In this study linalyl acetate was taken as the calibration compound for TG. The vapor pressure curves for the pure substances were plotted using TG and vapor pressure plots for clove oil and eucalyptus oil were constructed using DSC. The thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of the pure compounds were compared to that of the multi-component systems to quantitatively and qualitatively measure the influence of different compounds on each other. The k-value from the vapor pressure data for linalyl acetate was calculated as 112006 Pa kg^0.5mol^0.5s^-1 m^-2 K^-0.5. The vapor pressure values were used to determine the Antoine constants using the SPSS 10.0 software.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Process study of thermal plasma chemical vapor deposition of diamond,part II: Pressure dependence and effect of substrate pretreatment

The effect of pressure during thermal plasma chemical vapor deposition of diamond films has been investigated for a pressure range from 100 to 760 Torr. The maximum growth rate in our experiments occurs at 270 Torr for substrate temperatures around 1000°C. The existence of an optimum pressure for diamond deposition may he related to the balance between generation and recombination of atomic hydrogen and carbon-containing active species in front of the substrate. To estimate the concentrations of atomic hydrogen and methyl radicals under thermal plasma conditions, calculations based on thermodynamic equilibrium have been performed. This approximate evaluation provides useful guidelines because rapid diffusion results in a near frozen chemistry within the boundary layer. The effect of substrate pretreatment on diamond deposition depends on the type of substrate used. Two growth modes have been observed-layer growth and island growth of diamond crystals on various substrates. Screw dislocations have been observed in diamond deposition in thermal plasmas, and defects such as secondary nucleations are more concentrated along (III) directions than along (100) directions.     

一个新颖三维配位聚合物Pb(1，4-napdc)(DMF)的合成、结构及热稳定性研究

A novel 3D metal-organic coordination polymer Pb(1,4-napdc)(DMF) (1,4-napdc=naphthalene-1,4-dicarboxylate) was synthesized at room temperature using slow vapor diffusion method to grow single crystal that has been analyzed by X-ray diffraction. The crystal belongs to orthorhombic with space group P2₁2₁2₁. The unit cell parameters are as fellows: a=0.701 3(2) nm, b=1.407 6(3) nm, c=1.521 5(4) nm, V=1.501 8(6) nm³ and Z=4. In the crystal structure of Pb(1,4-napdc)(DMF), the square grids constructed with paddle-wheel units of Pb(Ⅱ) and 1,4-napdc links stack over each other to generate infinite 3D network, which has square apertures (1.158×1.158 nm²) along the crystallographic a-axis. The thermal stability of compound was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. CCDC: 293617.     

Vapor pressure,speciation, and chemical activities in highly concentrated sodium borate solutions at 277 and 317°C

The system H₂O-B₂O₃-Na₂O has been studied experimentally at 277 and 317°C. The activities of water and boric acid have been determined at mole ratios Na/B from 0 to 1.5, and total dissolved solids 3 to 80 weight percent. The activity of boric acid has been fitted to within experimental error using a speciation model with eight complex species. This model is consistent with the model previously published by Mesmer et al. The electrolyte properties of the liquid are modeled using the Pitzer-Simonson model of very concentrated electrolyte solutions. The calculated values of water activity agree with experiment, and the activity of NaOH and pOH have also been calculated. The potassium borate system also was briefly studied at 317°C, and is adequately described by a model with five complex species. The potassium borate liquid is more alkaline at K/B= 1 than a sodium borate liquid at the same mole ratio, but pOH in the two systems is the same at lower mole ratios.     

Adsorption Isotherm of Water Vapor and Its Large Hysteresis on Highly Ordered Mesoporous Silica

The first and second adsorption–desorption isotherms of water vapor on a new mesoporous material derived from kanemite have been measured. The isotherms show unusual type V isotherms and large hysteresis. The type V isotherms, which have never been observed for the other adsorbates, suggest that the mesoporous material has a hydrophobic surface, although the hydrophobicity decreased after treatment with water vapor because of rehydration of the surface. The significantly large hysteresis could be explained by the difference in contact angle between adsorption and desorption.     

Deposition of Oral Bacteria and Polystyrene Particles to Quartz and Dental Enamel in a Parallel Plate and Stagnation Point Flow Chamber

The aim of this paper is to determine to what extent (i) deposition of oral bacteria and polystyrene particles, (ii) onto quartz and dental enamel with and without a salivary conditioning film, (iii) in a parallel plate (PP) and stagnation point (SP) flow chamber and at common Peclet numbers are comparable. All three bacterial strains showed different adhesion behaviors, and even Streptococcus mitis BMS, possessing a similar cell surface hydrophobicity as polystyrene particles, did not mimic polystyrene particles in its adhesion behavior, possibly as a result of the more negative ζ potentials of the polystyrene particles. The stationary endpoint adhesion of all strains, including polystyrene particles, was lower in the presence of a salivary conditioning film, while also desorption probabilities under flow were higher in the presence of a conditioning film than in its absence. Deposition onto quartz and enamel surfaces was different, but without a consistent trend valid for all strains and polystyrene particles. It is concluded that differences in experimental results exist, and the process of bacterial deposition to enamel surfaces cannot be modeled by using polystyrene particles and quartz collector surfaces.