A Note on a Practical Technique for Solving Elliptic Equations

In this paper, we propose a new method which is the SOR methodwithout the knowledge of the optimum accelerating factor, andthis method is compared with the optimum SOR method concernedwith the convergence rate.     

ULTRAVIOLET RESONANCE RAMAN SPECTRA OF PHYTOCHROME: A COMPARISON OF THE ENVIRONMENTS OF TRYPTOPHAN SIDE CHAINS BETWEEN RED LIGHT-ABSORBING AND FAR-RED LIGHT-ABSORBING FORMS

Ultraviolet resonance Raman spectra of phytochrome in the red light-absorbing form (Pr) and the far-red light-absorbing form (Pfr) are reported. The spectra excited at 240-nm provide structural information about the protein part of phytochrome. The protein contains only a very small amount of β-sheet structure and most of the tyrosine side chains are located in hydrophobic environments. Indole rings of tryptophan (Trp) interact with neighboring groups in the Pr form and these interactions become weaker with the conversion from Pr to Pfr. Some Trp side chains of Pfr are surrounded by aliphatic groups but such is not the case in Pr. These changes in the environment occur at the same time as changes in orientation of Trp side chains. Our observations suggest that interactions between Trp residues and the tetrapyrrolic chromophore occur in the Pr form and that the strength of these interactions diminishes in the Pfr form.     

Experimental determination of molecular polarizability anisotropy of nematogens by depolarized Rayleigh light scattering

The anisotropy of molecular polarizability Δα of several nematogens has been determined by depolarized Rayleigh light scattering. The experimentally determined values were found to be noticeably smaller than those obtained by MOPAC calculation. Δα values determined from order parameter S and refractive indices show reasonably good agreement with those determined in the present experiment. This result warns us that Δα calculated by MOPAC, particularly at a finite wavelength, may be larger than the true value.