STUDIES OF ADHESION OF METAL PARTICLES TO SILICA PARTICLES BASED ON ZETA POTENTIAL MEASUREMENTS

The zeta-potentials of silica, copper, platinum and gold particles have been measured as a function of pH. The isoelectric points were found to be at pH 3.0, 5.8, 3.0 and 3.5, respectively. In the pH range 3.0 to 5.8 copper and silica particles are oppositely charged and accordingly the coating of silica with copper particles could be demonstrated. In the case of gold and platinum the sign of the charge is such that direct adhesion to silica particles cannot be expected and this was also demonstrated in the case of platinum.     

A biosynthetic proposal for ring formation in the antitumor agent halichomycin. Asymmetric synthesis of the AB-carbon backbone of halichomycin

[reaction: see text] A biosynthetic proposal for ring formation in the antitumor agent halichomycin is presented in which macrocyclization of the putative prehalichomycin intermediate 1 is the first step. Compound 2 then undergoes dehydration to the alpha-keto N-acylimine 3 followed by tandem nucleophilic addition of the C(16)-hydroxyl to form the hemimacrolactam. A stereospecific Michael ring closure and enol protonation complete C-ring assembly. So far, synthetic efforts toward 1 have resulted in 8.     

Magnetic form factor of alpha-Ce: towards understanding the magnetism of cerium

A favored interpretation of the gamma <--> alpha phase transition in cerium postulates the transformation of the localized 4f state in gamma-Ce to a weakly correlated itinerant 4f band in alpha-Ce. However, results of high-energy neutron inelastic scattering measurements, presented here, show clearly that the magnetic susceptibility response from alpha-Ce follows the Ce3+ form factor despite the large, 30-fold, increase in its spectral width relative to that in gamma-Ce. This observation provides, for the first time, indisputable evidence for the localized character of the 4f state in the alpha phase. The present findings appear consistent with recent calculations combining dynamical mean-field theory with the local density approximation that indicate a strongly correlated 4f state in alpha-Ce. The localized 4f state is also fundamental to the Kondo volume collapse theories for the gamma <--> alpha phase transition in cerium.     

Dynamic anisotropy and heterogeneity of polystyrene thin films as studied by inelastic neutron scattering

We studied the dynamic anisotropy and heterogeniety of polystyrene thin films in glassy state with inelastic neutorn scattering. Adjusting the scattering vector to the directions parallel and perpendicular to the film surface, we observed the elastic scattering intensities as a function of temperature. It was found for the 200 A film that the elastic intesity decreased with increasing temperature more rapidly in the perpendicular direction than in the pararell direction, showing the higher mobility in the perpendicular direction. However, such dynamical anisotropy was not observed in the 1000 A film. The decrease in the mobility was observed with the film thickness in both the directions. These results were explained in terms of an interface hard layer. We also evelauated the dynamical heterogeniety from the non-Gaussian parameter A0, which increased with decreasing the film thickness, showing the increase in the dynamical heterogeneity. Assuming a simple bi-layer model consisting of the interface hard layer and the bulk-like layer, we analyzed the thickness dependence of the non-Gaussian parameter A0 and the mean square displacement (u2) to find that the hard layer has a thickness of approximately 130 A and a mean square displacement of approximately 0.018 A2 at 230 K.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-arachidonoyl glycine,an abundant endogenous lipid,potently drives directed cellular migration through GPR18, the putative abnormal cannabidiol receptor

Background  

Microglia provide continuous immune surveillance of the CNS and upon activation rapidly change phenotype to express receptors that respond to chemoattractants during CNS damage or infection. These activated microglia undergo directed migration towards affected tissue. Importantly, the molecular species of chemoattractant encountered determines if microglia respond with pro- or anti-inflammatory behaviour, yet the signaling molecules that trigger migration remain poorly understood. The endogenous cannabinoid system regulates microglial migration via CB₂ receptors and an as yet unidentified GPCR termed the 'abnormal cannabidiol' (Abn-CBD) receptor. Abn-CBD is a synthetic isomer of the phytocannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) and is inactive at CB₁ or CB₂ receptors, but functions as a selective agonist at this G_i/o-coupled GPCR. N-arachidonoyl glycine (NAGly) is an endogenous metabolite of the endocannabinoid anandamide and acts as an efficacious agonist at GPR18. Here, we investigate the relationship between NAGly, Abn-CBD, the unidentified 'Abn-CBD' receptor, GPR18, and BV-2 microglial migration.