Thermoheliox: effect on the functional hemodynamics of the human brain

A kinetic study of the effect of thermoheliox (inhalation of a helium and oxygen mixture, 70 °C) on the functional hemodynamics of the human brain by functional magnetic resonance imaging was carried out. The dynamic responses of the BOLD signal were found to be biphasic. An empirical equation describing the first phase of the hemodynamic response to visual stimulus was proposed. It was shown that preliminary inhalation of thermoheliox stimulates the hemodynamic responses by slowing down the vasoconstriction.

     

Measurement of the differential cross section and of the tensor and vector analyzing powers for the fragmentation of 4.5-GeV/c deuterons on beryllium in the reaction involving proton emission at an angle of 80 mrad

The invariant differential cross section, the tensor analyzing power A _yy , and the vector analyzing power A _y for the reaction ⁹Be(d, p)X are measured at an initial deuteron momentum of 4.5 GeV/c and a proton detection angle of about 80 mrad. The data obtained for the differential cross section are consistent with the results of measurements at 3.5 and 5.78 GeV/c and a proton emission angle of 2.5°. The values found for the tensor analyzing power A _yy are compared with similar data obtained previously for the deuteron-fragmentation process occurring on a carbon target at various values of the initial deuteron momentum and leading to proton emission at zero angle. The data on the differential cross section for the reaction ⁹Be(d, p)X can be satisfactorily described within the relativistic impulse approximation by using standard deuteron wave functions; however, the approach based on this conceptual framework proves to be inadequate in dealing with data on the tensor analyzing power. These results indicate that it is necessary either to change the method for describing the relativistic deuteron or to take into account additional mechanisms.     

Effect of maltodextrins on the surface activity of small-molecule surfactants

We report on the effect of commercially important polysaccharides (maltodextrins with variable dextrose equivalent (Paselli SA-2, MD-6 and MD-10) on the surface activity at the air–water interface of small-molecule surfactants (sms), possessing different hydrophobic–lipophilic balance ((SSL (Na⁺), the main component is a sodium salt of stearol–lactoyl lactic acid, and PGE (080), polyglycerol ester of C18 fatty acid), and widely used in food products. A marked change of the surface activity of sms was found in the presence of maltodextrins by tensiometry. The combined data of laser multiangle light scattering and mixing calorimetry have suggested that this result is governed by specific complex formation between maltodextrins and sms in aqueous medium. Measurements have been made of the molar mass, the second virial coefficient and the enthalpy of intermolecular interactions in aqueous solutions. The implication of a degree of polymerization of maltodextrins in this phenomenon was shown. The interrelation between the molecular parameters of the formed complexes and their surface activity at the air–water interface has been revealed and discussed.     

Direct observation of charge-carrier capture in an array of self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots

In this work, charge-carrier capture by an array of self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots was directly observed for the first time by capacitance recharge. It is proposed to process the obtained transient-capture data by a similar method to that used for emission, by the box-car method. The capture activation energies are determined and compared with the emission activation energies.     

On lattices embeddable into subsemigroup lattices. V. Trees

We prove that the class of finite lattices embeddable into the subsemilattice lattices of semilattices which are (n-ary) trees can be axiomatized by identities within the class of finite lattices, whence it forms a pseudovariety.     

Platinum metallodrug-protein binding studies by capillary electrophoresis-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry: characterization of interactions between Pt(II) complexes and human serum albumin

Characterizing how platinum metallocomplexes bind to human serum albumin (HSA) is essential in evaluating anticancer drug candidates. Using cisplatin as a reference complex, the application of capillary electrophoresis (CE) to reliably assess drug/HSA interactions was validated. Since this complex is small compared to the size of the protein, the binding response could only be recognized when applying CE coupled to a (platinum) metal-specific mode of detection, namely inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). This coupling allowed for confirmation of a specific affinity of cisplatin and novel Pt complexes to HSA, measurement of the kinetics of binding reactions, and determination of the number of drug molecules attached to the protein. As the cisplatin/HSA molar ratio increased, the reaction rate became faster with a maximum on the kinetic curve appearing at about 50 h of incubation at 20 times excess of cisplatin. The reaction was characterized as a pseudo-first order reaction with the rate constant k = 0.003 min(-1) at 37 degrees C. When incubated with a 20-fold excess of cisplatin, HSA bound up to 10 mol of Pt per mol of the protein. This is indicative for a strong metal-protein coordination occurring at several HSA sites other than the only protein cysteine residue. Structural analogs of cisplatin, bearing aminoalcohol ligands, showed comparable protein binding reactivity and stoichiometry but a common equilibrium was not reached even after one week of incubation. Also apparent was a two-step mechanism of the binding reaction. Results demonstrated the suitability of CE-ICP-MS as a rapid assay for high-throughput studying of drug/HSA interactions.     

Behavior of protein-like N-vinylcaprolactam and N-vinylimidazole copolymers in aqueous solutions

The free-radical copolymerization of N-vinylcaprolactam and N-vinylimidazole (at an initial comonomer ratio of 85: 15, mol/mol) initiated by a persulfate-tertiary amine redox system in 10% aqueous DMSO at 25 and 65°C (at temperatures below and above the temperature of phase separation in the reaction system, respectively) yielded macromolecular products that were subsequently separated into thermally precipitating and nonprecipitating fractions. Investigations of these fractions by capillary viscometry, static and dynamic laser light scattering, and high-sensitivity DSC showed that macromolecules of both types of copolymers are strongly associated in aqueous solutions. Upon heating of solutions of thermally nonprecipitating fractions, additional aggregation takes place and this phenomenon is accompanied by a decrease in the size of particles without loss in their solubility until at least 70°C is reached. As for the set of properties exhibited in aqueous solutions, the thermally nonprecipitating fraction of the copolymer synthesized at 65°C may be assigned to protein-like macromolecules.     

Thermodynamic characteristics of thermal dissociation of platinum tetrachloride

The pressure of thermal dissociation of platinum tetrachloride by the first step PtCl₄(s) = PtCl₃(s) + 0.5 Cl₂(g) was measured by the static method with a quartz membrane-gauge zero-pressure manometer. An approximating equation for the dissociation pressure vs. temperature was found. The enthalpy (52160±880 J mol⁻¹) and entropy (72.1±1.6 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹) of dissociation were calculated. The heat of formation found for platinum tetrachloride (−246.3±1.3 kJ mol⁻¹) at 298.15 K agrees well with the value obtained by the calorimetric method (−245.6±1.9 kJ mol⁻¹).__________Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 10, pp. 2028–2031, October, 2004.