Formation,preservation, and cleavage of the disulfide bond by vanadium

Reaction of the disulfide [HpicanS](2) (HpicanS is the carboxamide based on picolinate (pic) and o-mercaptoaniline (anS); the [] brackets are used to denote disulfides) with [VOCl(2)(thf)(2)] leads to reductive scission of the disulfide bond and formation of the mixed-valence (V(IV)/V(V)) complex anion [(OVpicanS)(2)mu-O](-) (1), with the dianionic ligand coordinating through the pyridine-N atom, the deprotonated amide-N atom, and thiophenolate-S atom. Reductive cleavage of the SbondS bond is also observed as [VCl(2)(tmeda)(2)] (tmeda=tetramethylethylenediamine) is treated with the disulfides [HsalanS](2) or [HvananS](2) (HsalanS and HvananS are the Schiff bases formed between o-mercaptoaniline and salicylaldehyde (Hsal) or vanillin (Hvan), respectively), yielding the V(III) complexes [VCl(tmeda)(salanS)] (2 a), or [VCl(tmeda)(vananS)] (2 b). The disulfide bond remains intact in the aerial reaction between [HsalanS](2) and [VCl(3)(thf)(3)] to yield the V(V) complex [VOCl[salanS](2)] (3), where (salanS)(2-) coordinates through the two phenolate and one of the imine functions. The S-S bond is also preserved as [VO(van)(2)] or [VO(nap)(2)] (Hnap=2-hydroxynaphthalene-1-carbaldehyde) is treated with bis(2-aminophenyl)disulfide, [anS](2), a reaction which is accompanied by condensation of the aldehyde and the diamine, and complexation of the resulting bis(Schiff bases) [HvananS](2) or [HnapanS](2) to form the complexes [VO[vananS](2)] (4 a) or [VO[napanS](2)] (4 b). In 4 a and 4 b, the phenolate and imine functions, and presumably also one of the disulfide-S atoms, coordinate to V(IV). 2-Mercaptophenyl-2'-pyridinecarboxamide (H(2)picanS) retains its identity in the presence of V(III); reaction between [VCl(3)(thf)(3)] and H(2)picanS yields [V[picanS](2)](-) (5). The dithiophenolate 2,6-bis(mercaptophenylthio)dimethylpyridine (6 a) is oxidized, mediated by VO(2+), to the bis(disulfide) octathiadiaza-cyclo-hexaeicosane 6 b. The relevance of these reactions for the speciation of vanadium under physiological conditions is addressed. [HNEt(3)]-1.0.5 NEt(3,) 3.3 CH(2)Cl(2), [HsalanS](2), [HNEt(3)]-5, and 6 b.4 THF have been characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis.     

Matrix-free analysis of aflatoxins in pistachio nuts using parallel factor modeling of liquid chromatography diode-array detection data

In the present study a second-order calibration strategy for high performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) has been developed using parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) and has been applied for simultaneous determination of aflatoxins B₁, B₂, G₁ and G₂ in pistachio nuts in the presence of matrix interferences. Sample preparation was based on solvent extraction (SE) followed by solid phase extraction (SPE) on Bond Elut C18 cartridges. Since the sample preparation procedure was not selective to the analytes of interest, exploiting second-order advantage to obtain concentrations of individual analytes in the presence of uncalibrated interfering compounds seemed necessary. Appropriate pre-processing steps have been applied to correct background signals and the effect of retention time shifts. Transferred calibration data set obtained from standardization of solvent based calibration data has been used in prediction step. The results of PARAFAC on a set of spiked and naturally contaminated pistachio nuts indicated that the four aflatoxins could be successfully determined. The method was validated and multivariate analytical figures of merit were calculated. The advantages of the proposed method are using a low-cost SPE step relative to standard method of aflatoxin analysis (immune affinity column assay), a unique and simple isocratic elution program for all samples and a calibration transfer for saving both chemicals and time of analysis. This study show that coupling of SPE-HPLC-DAD with PARAFAC as a powerful second-order calibration method can be considered as an alternative method for resolution and quantification of aflatoxins in the presence of unknown interferences obtained through analysis of highly complex matrix of pistachio samples and cost per analysis can be reduced significantly.     

Infrared spectra of the OCS trimer

Infrared spectra of the barrel-shaped trimer (OCS)(3), previously known from its microwave spectrum, are reported for the first time. The observations are carried out in a supersonic slit-jet expansion of a He+OCS gas mixture which is probed with a tunable diode laser. Three rotationally resolved bands associated with the nu(1) fundamental vibration of OCS (2062.20 cm(-1)) are observed, at about 2047, 2053, and 2077 cm(-1). Small perturbations are noted in the 2077 cm(-1) band and may also be present in the 2053 cm(-1) band, which is weak and hence more difficult to analyze precisely. Employing a variety of evidence, we suggest a plausible assignment for the nature of the OCS vibrations in each of the three bands.     

Theoretical Model for Surface Forces between Cytosine and CNT(6,6-6) Nanotube: Geometry Optimization,Molecular Structure,Intermolecular Hydrogen Bond,Spectroscopic (NMR,UV/Vis,Excited State), FMO,MEP, and HOMO–LUMO Investigations

Russian Journal of Physical Chemistry A - In the present work, the adsorption of the molecule cytosine on carbon nanotube [CNT] (6,6-6) was investigated for the first time using density functional...     

Construction of an Artificial Ferrimagnetic Lattice by Lithium Ion Insertion into a Neutral Donor/Acceptor Metal–Organic Framework

Construction of a molecular system in which the magnetic lattice exhibits long‐range order is one of the fundamental goals in materials science. In this study, we demonstrate the artificial construction of a ferrimagnetic lattice by doping electrons into acceptor sites of a neutral donor/acceptor metal–organic framework (D/A‐MOF). This doping was achieved by the insertion of Li‐ions into the D/A‐MOF, which was used as the cathode of a Li‐ion battery cell. The neutral D/A‐MOF is a layered system composed of a carboxylate‐bridged paddlewheel‐type diruthenium(II,II) complex as the donor and a TCNQ derivative as the acceptor. The ground state of the neutral form was a magnetically disordered paramagnetic state. Upon discharge of the cell, spontaneous magnetization was induced; the transition temperature was variable. The stability of the magnetically ordered lattice depended on the equilibrium electric potential of the D/A‐MOF cathode, which reflected the electron‐filling level.     

Enhanced Bioethanol Production from Potato Peel Waste Via Consolidated Bioprocessing with Statistically Optimized Medium

In this study, an extensive screening was undertaken to isolate some amylolytic microorganisms capable of producing bioethanol from starchy biomass through Consolidated Bioprocessing (CBP). A total of 28 amylolytic microorganisms were isolated, from which 5 isolates were selected based on high α-amylase and glucoamylase activities and identified as Candida wangnamkhiaoensis, Hyphopichia pseudoburtonii (2 isolates), Wickerhamia sp., and Streptomyces drozdowiczii based on 26S rDNA and 16S rDNA sequencing. Wickerhamia sp. showed the highest ethanol production (30.4 g/L) with fermentation yield of 0.3 g ethanol/g starch. Then, a low cost starchy waste, potato peel waste (PPW) was used as a carbon source to produce ethanol by Wickerhamia sp. Finally, in order to obtain maximum ethanol production from PPW, a fermentation medium was statistically designed. The effect of various medium ingredients was evaluated initially by Plackett-Burman design (PBD), where malt extracts, tryptone, and KH₂PO₄ showed significantly positive effect (p value < 0.05). Using Response Surface Modeling (RSM), 40 g/L (dry basis) PPW and 25 g/L malt extract were found optimum and yielded 21.7 g/L ethanol. This study strongly suggests Wickerhamia sp. as a promising candidate for bioethanol production from starchy biomass, in particular, PPW through CBP.