The liquid-crystalline properties of bis[N-[[4-[4-(alkoxy)benzoyloxy]2-hydroxyphenyl]methylene]alkanamino] complexes of Cu(II), Pd(II) and Ni(II). A general view

The thermotropic liquid-crystalline phase behaviour of a homologous set of bis[N-[[4-[4-(alkoxy)benzoyloxy]2-hydroxyphenyl]methylene]alkanamino] copper(II) complexes is examined. New data are reported and taken into account in addition to those previously reported in this Journal. The influence of alkoxy and alkanamine groups on the nature and stability of the mesophase is underlined. As a general trend, with some notable exception, smectic (C type) mesomorphism is favoured by longer alkoxy and alkanamine chains. Data concerning some Pd(II) and Ni(II) homologous complexes are also reported. The mesophase stability (nematic phase) is higher for palladium and nickel complexes than for the copper containing homologues.     

ICP-MS for elemental speciation studies

The use of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) coupled with separation techniques for the purpose of elemental speciation has recently gained a lot of attention. Much of this is due to ever improving separation capabilities of Chromatographic techniques, the high sensitivity of ICP-MS, and the continuing development of better interface techniques. Additionally, there is a growing awareness of the need to monitor various species of an analyte, rather than just total analyte concentrations, due to their often varying natures. For the sake of learning from different elemental speciation approaches, this review brings together some selected types of elemental speciation which have been recently seen in literature. These include separations using various forms of liquid chromatography, such as reversed phase, reversed phase ion pairing, micelle, ion exchange, and size exclusion. Elemental speciation employing gas Chromatographie separations and supercritical fluid separations are discussed as well as elemental speciation using capillary electrophoresis.     

Unveiling the Hidden Therapeutic Potential of Carnosine,a Molecule with a Multimodal Mechanism of Action: A Position Paper

Carnosine (β-alanyl-L-histidine) is a naturally occurring endogenous dipeptide and an over-the-counter food supplement with a well-demonstrated multimodal mechanism of action that includes the detoxification of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, the down-regulation of the production of pro-inflammatory mediators, the inhibition of aberrant protein formation, and the modulation of cells in the peripheral (macrophages) and brain (microglia) immune systems. Since its discovery more than 100 years ago, a plethora of in vivo preclinical studies have been carried out; however, there is still substantial heterogeneity regarding the route of administration, the dosage, the duration of the treatment, and the animal model selected, underlining the urgent need for “coordinated/aligned” preclinical studies laying the foundations for well-defined future clinical trials. The main aim of the present position paper is to critically and concisely consider these key points and open a discussion on the possible “alignment” for future studies, with the goal of validating the full therapeutic potential of this intriguing molecule.     

Blood oxygenation monitoring using hyperspectral imaging after flap surgery

In this paper, we present a new method for the assessment of skin flap perfusion based on the non-invasive monitoring of skin blood oxygenation using hyperspectral imaging. This method consists of generation of oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin maps in skin flap from hyperspectral image using an analytic model based on Beer–Lambert law. The results obtained on a fasciocutaneous sural flap have revealed that the oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin maps facilitate the visualization of some differences between different areas of the flap, an aspect that clinical examination fails to do. In conclusion, the proposed method could provide a new option for a more accurate assessment of flap survival.     

Two-dimensional spectroscopic imaging for pretreatment evaluation of prostate cancer: comparison with the step-section histology after radical prostatectomy

Purpose

To minimize user and vendor dependence of the spectrum processing of prostate spectra, to measure the ratio of choline (Cho) plus creatine (Cr) to citrate (Cit) in the prostate tissue of normal volunteers and cancer patients, and to compare the results with pathologic findings after radical prostatectomy.

Materials and methods

Four healthy volunteers and 13 patients with prostate cancer were measured. Measurements were performed using two-dimensional magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) and endorectal coil. A standard vendor's spectrum processing approach has been modified. An original feature of this methodology was the combination of vendor-optimized and user-independent spectrum preprocessing in the scanner and user-independent quantitation in the environment of an MRUI software package. (Cho+Cr)/Cit ratio was used for the classification of prostate tissue. Results were compared with histopathology after radical prostatectomy.

Results

Eight of 13 cancer patients were classified as suspicious or very suspicious for cancer at spectroscopy, three were ambiguous for cancer and two patients were evaluated as false negative. A considerable overlap of metabolite ratios at various Gleason score was found.

Conclusion

The proposed spectrum processing has the potential to improve the accuracy and user independency of the (Cho+Cr)/Cit quantitation. This study confirmed the previous results that a considerable overlap of (Cho+Cr)/Cit ratios exists at various Gleason score levels.     

Photo-induced site-specific nitridation of plasma-deposited B10C2Hx films: A new pathway toward post-deposition doping of semiconducting boron carbides

We show that dopant impurities can be introduced in a controlled, site-specific manner into pre-deposited semiconducting boron carbide films. B―N bond formation has been characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for semiconducting B₁₀C₂H_x films exposed to vacuum ultraviolet photons in the presence of NH₃. Core level photoemission data indicate that B―NH₂ bonds are formed at B sites bonded to other boron atoms (B―B), and not at boron atoms adjacent to carbon atoms (B―C) or at carbon atom sites. Nitridation obeys diffusion-limited kinetics. These results indicate that dopant species can be introduced in a controlled, site-specific manner into pre-deposited boron carbide films, as opposed to currently required dopant incorporation during the deposition process.     

Visualization of industrial engineering data in Augmented Reality

This paper presents an innovative application of Augmented Reality (AR) techniques in the field of industrial engineering in which the user explores data from numerical simulations or the results of measurements and experiments, superimposed to the real object that they refer to. The user observes the object through a tablet PC, used as a video see-through handheld display. Data are visualized superimposed to the real object that represents a spatial reference relative to which the user can refer to, so the exploration is more natural compared to a traditional visualization software. Moreover, we have developed a new framework, called VTK4AR, that provides a set of useful software classes for the rapid development of AR applications for scientific visualization. VTK4AR is built on top of VTK (an open source API for scientific visualization), so it will be possible to employ a wide range of visualization techniques in many application fields, and moreover, it is possible to interactively manipulate data-sets in order to achieve a more effective way of visualization.     

Interface effects in spin-polarized metal/insulator layered structures

Recent advances in thin-film deposition techniques, such as molecular beam epitaxy and pulsed laser deposition, have allowed for the manufacture of heterostructures with nearly atomically abrupt interfaces. Although the bulk properties of the individual heterostructure components may be well-known, often the heterostructures exhibit novel and sometimes unexpected properties due to interface effects. At heterostructure interfaces, lattice structure, stoichiometry, interface electronic structure (bonding, interface states, etc.), and symmetry all conspire to produce behavior different from the bulk constituents. This review discusses why knowledge of the electronic structure and composition at the interfaces is pivotal to the understanding of the properties of heterostructures, particularly the (spin polarized) electronic transport in (magnetic) tunnel junctions.     

Selective Benzoylation of 1-(β-D-Xylopyranosyl)-3,5-dimethylpyrazole

Abstract

Selective benzoylation of l-(β-d-xylopyranosyl)-3,5-dimethylpyrazole (1) has been performed to give 2,3,4-tri- (2), 3,4-di- (3), 2,4-di- (4), 3- (5) and 4-benzoate (6). The O-acetyl derivatives of compounds 3 and 4 (7, 8), di-O-acetyl of 5 and 6 (9, 10) and O-methanesulphonyl of 3 and 4 (11, 12) have been obtained. The relative reactivity of the hydroxyl groups of 1 was HO-4 ≥ HO-3 ? HO-2. The analysis of ¹ H NMR and ¹³C NMR spectra of 1-12 is presented.