Virtual bond probe to study ordered and random coil conformations of nucleic acids

Recognition of the stereochemical features inherent to a nucleotide, viz., the preferred trans character of the two C? O bonds and the approximate chemical and conformational symmetry, has facilitated the representation of a nucleotide in terms of two nearly equal blocks or two virtual bonds spanning the atoms P to C4' on the 5' side and C4' to P on the 3' side. The scheme, by virtue of its unique ability to account for the main sources of flexibility and to incorporate their interdependence, could be effectively applied to probe ordered, as well as random coil conformations of polynucleotide chains. Using this scheme, conformations of nucleotide, dinucleotides, helices, and yeast tRNA^Phe have been characterized by virtual bond parameters. The two blocks of nucleotide have also been described in terms of two approximate planes similar to peptides. Unperturbed end-to-end dimensions and persistence lengths of random coil polynucleotides have been computed by considering short-range as well as near-neighbor bond long-range correlations and are in excellent agreement with the experimentally determined values. A striking finding of these studies is the relevation that random coils comprise of a large proportion of stacked A-type helical segments in sharp contrast to earlier interpretations which invoked a high fraction of unstacked extended conformations.     

Evaluation of long chain dithiocarbamates as photometric reagents for the determination of trace amounts of uranium

A highly sensitive extractive spectrophotometric method for the determination of U(VI) using octadecyldithiocarbamate (ODDTC) has been developed. The efficiency of ODDTC as a chelating agent is compared with that of hexadecyl, tetradecyl and dodecyl dithiocarbamates. U(VI) reacts with these dithiocarbamates in ethanol to form reddish-brown water-insoluble chelates capable of being extracted into CHCl₃. The molar absorptivities range from 1.16·10 to 4.91·10⁴l·mol^–1·cm^–1, the highest value being found for ODDTC. Suitable conditions for the extraction and the effect of foreign ions were investigated. The method can be used for the determination of trace amounts of U(VI) in water and sand. The results are comparable to ICP-AES method.     

Eco-friendly biopolymer electrolyte,pectin with magnesium nitrate salt,for application in electrochemical devices

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Current research on electrochemical device application focuses on the usage of biopolymers like chitosan, pectin, agar-agar, cellulose acetate, and...     

Sugarcane proteomics: Establishment of a protein extraction method for 2‐DE in stalk tissues and initiation of sugarcane proteome reference map

Sugarcane is an important commercial crop cultivated for its stalks and sugar is a prized commodity essential in human nutrition. Proteomics of sugarcane is in its infancy, especially when dealing with the stalk tissues, where there is no study to date. A systematic proteome analysis of stalk tissue yet remains to be investigated in sugarcane, wherein the stalk tissue is well known for its rigidity, fibrous nature, and the presence of oxidative enzymes, phenolic compounds and extreme levels of carbohydrates, thus making the protein extraction complicated. Here, we evaluated five different protein extraction methods in sugarcane stalk tissues. These methods are as follows: direct extraction using lysis buffer (LB), TCA/acetone precipitation followed by solubilization in LB, LB containing thiourea (LBT), and LBT containing tris, and phenol extraction. Both quantitative and qualitative protein analyses were performed for each method. 2‐DE analysis of extracted total proteins revealed distinct differences in protein patterns among the methods, which might be due to their physicochemical limitations. Based on the 2‐D gel protein profiles, TCA/acetone precipitation‐LBT and phenol extraction methods showed good results. The phenol method showed a shift in pI values of proteins on 2‐D gel, which was mostly overcome by the use of 2‐D cleanup kit after protein extraction. Among all the methods tested, 2‐D cleanup‐phenol method was found to be the most suitable for producing high number of good‐quality spots and reproducibility. In total, 30 and 12 protein spots commonly present in LB, LBT and phenol methods, and LBT method were selected and subjected to eLD‐IT‐TOF‐MS/MS and nESI‐LC‐MS/MS analyses, respectively, and a reference map has been established for sugarcane stalk tissue proteome. A total of 36 nonredundant proteins were identified. This is a very first basic study on sugarcane stalk proteome analysis and will promote the unexplored areas of sugarcane proteome research.     

Structural, thermal and electrical properties of PVA-LiCF3SO3 polymer electrolyte

The development of polymeric systems with high ionic conductivity is one of the main objectives in Li rechargeable battery. In the present study, the different composition of PVA-LiCF₃SO₃ polymer electrolyte has been prepared by solution cast technique using DMSO as solvent. The FTIR study confirms the polymer-salt complex formation. The amorphous nature of the polymer has been confirmed by XRD analysis. DSC measurements show decrease in T_g with increasing salt concentration. The temperature dependent conductivity obeys Arrhenius relationship. The maximum conductivity has been observed in the order of 7 × 10^− 4 S cm^− 1 for 25 mol% of LiCF₃SO₃. The activation energy has been found to be 0.16 eV. The two peaks have been observed in the dielectric loss spectrum which shows two types of relaxation α and β.     

Multi-band phase shifter design using modified slotline configuration

In this paper, an analog multiband phase shifter using slotline configuration is proposed. To implement the design, a pair of modified Split Ring Resonator (SRR) is employed. The periodic property of SRR provides multiband characteristics, whether the coupling slot gives the phase variations over the bands. The operation is well explained with an equivalent circuit model and its characteristics have been studied both in simulation and measurement. The prototype operates in 1.77–2.16, 3.5–3.97, 5.08–5.33, 6.43–6.93, and 8.01–8.59 GHz frequency bands which can be utilized for GSM, GPS, WLAN, C-band, and X-band applications, respectively.     

An easily accessible Re-based catalyst for the selective conversion of methanol: evidence for an unprecedented active site structure through combined operando techniques

Heterogeneous Re/SiO(2) catalysts prepared using a one pot sol-gel synthesis were found to display high activity in the direct, selective methanol conversion to methylal, which is correlated to an unprecedented rhenium oxide structure.     

A Spectrophotometric Study on Complex Formation of Chromium (VI) with Glycine Thymol Blue

The composition and stability of the complex formed between chromium (VI) and Glycine Thymol Blue (G. T. B.) has been investigated using a spectrophotometric method. The chelate is reddish brown in colour and has λ_max 570 nm against a reagent blank. The composition has been determined by different methods as 1: 1. The chelate gives maximum absorbance between pH 6.5 and 7.0. The values of log K as determined by two different methods are 5.21±0.1 and 5.24±0.1 and the values of ΔG° are ?7.08±0.1 and ?7.12±0.1 Kcal respectively at pH 6.8 and at 25°C.     

Bismuth Oxyiodide Nanoflakes Showed Toxicity Against the Malaria Vector <Emphasis Type="Italic">Anopheles stephensi</Emphasis> and In Vivo Antiplasmodial Activity

Anopheles stephensi is a mosquito vector of malaria, which is still considered a relevant public health problem due to increasing outdoor transmission, growing resistance to insecticides used to target vectors, and antiplasmodial drugs as well. Thus, there is a vital need to explore novel sources of effective compounds. In this study, the hydrothermal method was used for the synthesis of bismuth oxyiodide (BiOI) nanoflakes. Furthermore, the toxicity of BiOI nanoflakes was evaluated for the first time on A. stephensi, as well as in vivo against the malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei. The synthesis of BiOI nanoflakes was confirmed by various characterization techniques, including X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). LC₅₀ of BiOI nanoflakes on A. stephensi were 2.263 ppm (larva I), 3.414 ppm (II), 4.956 ppm (III), 6.983 ppm (IV) and 8.605 ppm (pupae). In vivo antiplasmodial experiments conducted on P. berghei infecting albino mice showed 27.2% of chemosuppression after 4 days of treatment with 300 mg/kg/day of BiOI, a lower performance if compared to chloroquine. Overall, our results suggested that hydrothermal synthesis of BiOI nanoflakes may be considered to develop newer and safer tools for malaria vector control.