UPLC-UV-MSE analysis for quantification and identification of major carotenoid and chlorophyll species in algae

A fast method for quantification and identification of carotenoid and chlorophyll species utilizing liquid chromatography coupled with UV detection and mass spectrometry has been demonstrated and validated for the analysis of algae samples. This method allows quantification of targeted pigments and identification of unexpected compounds, providing isomers separation, UV detection, accurate mass measurements, and study of fragment ions for structural elucidation in a single run. This is possible using parallel alternating low- and high-energy collision spectral acquisition modes, which provide accurate mass full scan chromatograms and accurate mass high-energy chromatograms. Here, it is shown how this approach can be used to confirm carotenoid and chlorophyll species by identification of key diagnostic fragmentations during high-energy mode. The developed method was successfully applied for the analysis of Dunaliella salina samples during defined red LED lighting growth conditions, identifying 37 pigments including 19 carotenoid species and 18 chlorophyll species, and providing quantification of 7 targeted compounds. Limit of detections for targeted pigments ranged from 0.01?ng/mL for lutein to 0.24?ng/mL for chlorophyll a. Inter-run precision ranged for of 3 to 24 (RSD%) while inter-run inaccuracy ranged from ?17 to 11.

Complete partitions of graphs

A complete partition of a graph G is a partition of its vertex set in which any two distinct classes are connected by an edge. Let cp(G) denote the maximum number of classes in a complete partition of G. This measure was defined in 1969 by Gupta [19], and is known to be NP-hard to compute for several classes of graphs. We obtain essentially tight lower and upper bounds on the approximability of this problem. We show that there is a randomized polynomial-time algorithm that given a graph G with n vertices, produces a complete partition of size Ω(cp(G)/√lgn). This algorithm can be derandomized. We show that the upper bound is essentially tight: there is a constant C > 1, such that if there is a randomized polynomial-time algorithm that for all large n, when given a graph G with n vertices produces a complete partition into at least C·cp(G)/√lgn classes, then NP ⊆ RTime(n ^{O(lg lg n)}). The problem of finding a complete partition of a graph is thus the first natural problem whose approximation threshold has been determined to be of the form Θ((lgn) ^c ) for some constant c strictly between 0 and 1. The work reported here is a merger of the results reported in [30] and [21].     

几种有机溶剂中15冠5及苯并15冠5与Mg~(2+)配合的NMR研究

本文用一维及二维NMR方法研究了溶剂对15冠5(15C5)和苯并15冠5(B15C5)与Mg~(2+)配合的影响。结果表明,在丙酮,乙腈,硝基甲烷,四氢呋喃以及氯仿中,冠醚与Mg~(2+)形成稳定的1:1配合物,且配合态与自由态冠醚间的化学交换在NMR标尺上为慢交换过程;而在二甲亚砜,二甲基甲酰胺,二甲基乙酰胺和吡啶中,由于溶剂对Mg~(2+)的竞争作用而使冠醚未能与Mg~(2+)有效配合。     

Approximating maximum independent sets by excluding subgraphs

An approximation algorithm for the maximum independent set problem is given, improving the best performance guarantee known toO(n/(logn)²). We also obtain the same performance guarantee for graph coloring. The results can be combined into a surprisingly strongsimultaneous performance guarantee for the clique and coloring problems.The framework ofsubgraph-excluding algorithms is presented. We survey the known approximation algorithms for the independent set (clique), coloring, and vertex cover problems and show how almost all fit into that framework. We show that among subgraph-excluding algorithms, the ones presented achieve the optimal asymptotic performance guarantees.A preliminary version of this paper appeared in [9].Supported in part by National Science Foundation Grant CCR-8902522 and PYI Award CCR-9057488.Research done at Rutgers University. Supported in part by Center for Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science (DIMACS) fellowship.     

Complex analytic cones

Mathematische Annalen -     

All-fiber comb filter with tunable free spectral range

We demonstrate a new class of all-fiber frequency comb filter that exhibits unprecedented capabilities for tuning the comb's free spectral range (FSR). The filter exploits a spectral Talbot-like effect in a sampled chirped fiber Bragg grating. The FSR is tailored by application of a linear strain gradient to modify the relative phase between the samples. The FSR can be tuned in discrete steps that correspond to the nominal value of the FSR of the sampled unchirped grating divided by integer factors. In this demonstration the FSR is varied from 51 to 3.9 GHz.     

Synthesis of Air-stable,Odorless Thiophenol Surrogates via Ni-Catalyzed C−S Cross-Coupling

Thiophenols are versatile synthetic intermediates whose practical appeal is marred by their air sensitivity, toxicity and extreme malodor. Herein we report an efficient catalytic method for the preparation of S-aryl isothiouronium salts, and demonstrate that these air-stable, odorless solids serve as user-friendly sources of thiophenols in synthesis. Diverse isothiouronium salts featuring synthetically useful functionality are readily accessible by nickel-catalyzed C−S cross-coupling of (hetero)aryl iodides and thiourea. Convenient, chromatography-free isolation of these salts is achieved by precipitation, allowing the methodology to be applied directly to large scales. Thiophenols are liberated from the corresponding isothiouronium salts upon treatment with a weak base, enabling an in situ release/S-functionalization strategy that entirely negates the need to isolate, purify or manipulate these noxious reagents.