Dependency of control parameters on a rate coefficient giving the potential curvature in a reaction cascade model

Many chemical reactions in vivo are self-controlled by fluxes of chemical energy and matter through biological systems, so the induction of such reactions can be governed by changes in the control parameters of the rate equation. A potential of a system is assumed to be given by Gibbs' functionG(T, P, x), which is continuously differentiable, and the rate equation can be derived from the differential (–G/x) of Taylor's expansion ofG _(T,P)(x) for the order parameterx, which corresponds to the product number, at around the critical pointC(T _C, P_C). The equation is described bydx/dt=(x)–k₁x–k₂x³, andk ₂>0. In this equation,k ₁ andk ₂ are functions of the control parameters, temperatureT and pressureP, andk ₁ is allowed to have a positive or negative values as (T, P). Thenk ₁ is an important factor that decides the induction conditions of the reactions with a phase transition in the steady statex=0. Because bothk ₁ (the transition parameter) andG are the quantity of state, they are given by the total differential, and functions that decideG andk ₁ are related to a mutual inverse function. From the above relation, the rate of change ink ₁ by G, which corresponds to the reaction energy of the system, is uniquely determined by a function ofk ₁, [f(k ₁ ^± )] andf(k ₁ ^± ) is described approximately by ±₁ k ₁ ^± in the transient process thatk ₁ approaches zero, where ₁ implies 1/RT. These results indicate that internal driving forces caused by a stimulus in a system are proportional tok ₁ ^± and that the system is regulated by competition of the forces. an approximate function fork ₁ in the transient process is described by tanh (G/RT) and Arrhenius' law is elucidated from this theory.Decreased January 19, 1992     

Synthesis of a Sialic Acid Containing Complex‐Type N‐Glycan on a Solid Support

On solid ground : A new solid‐phase synthesis of N‐linked glycans featuring 1) highly stereoselective β‐mannosylation and microfluidic α‐sialylation and 2) efficient glycosylation of the N‐phenyltrifluoroacetimidate units on JandaJel resin is reported. Reagent concentration effects by a fluorous solvent are effectively applied, and the use of these methods results in the first synthesis of a sialic acid containing complex‐type N‐glycan on a solid support.

     

Lipid bilayers on polyacrylamide brushes for inclusion of membrane proteins

The ability of neutral polymer cushions to support neutral lipid bilayers for the incorporation of mobile transmembrane proteins was investigated. Polyacrylamide brush layers were grown on fused silica using atom-transfer radical polymerization to provide polymer layers of 2.5-, 5- and 10-nm thickness. Lipid bilayers composed of POPC (1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) were formed by vesicle fusion onto bare fused silica and onto each of the polyacrylamide layers. Bilayer fluidity was assessed by the diffusion of a probe, NBD-labeled phosphatidylcholine, using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching. A transmembrane protein, the human delta-opioid receptor, was inserted into each lipid bilayer, and its ability to bind a synthetic ligand, DPDPE, cyclic[2-d-penicillamine, 5-d-penicillamine]enkephalin, was detected using single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy by labeling this ligand with a rhodamine dye. The transmembrane protein was observed to bind the ligand for all bilayers tested. The protein's electrophoretic mobility was probed by monitoring the fluorescence from the bound ligand. The 5-nm polyacrylamide thickness gave the fastest diffusion for the fluorescent lipid probe (D(1) = 2.0(+/-1.2) x 10(-7) and D(2) = 1.2(+/-0.5) x 10(-6) cm(2)/s) and also the largest electrophoretic mobility for the transmembrane protein (3 x 10(-8) cm(2)/V.s). The optimum in polymer thickness is suggested to be a tradeoff between decoupling from the substrate and increasing roughness of the polymer surface.     

Ordered arrays of organometallic iridium complexes with long alkyl chains on graphite

Iridium(III) fac-tris(2-phenylpyridine) fac-[Ir(ppy)3] complexes equipped with long alkyl chains were prepared to examine their capability to form organized arrays on the surface of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). The molecules form lamellar arrays at the 1-phenyloctane/HOPG interface. From the analysis of the STM images, it was concluded that the molecules align with alkyl chains being interdigitated. Similar lamellar arrays were also obtained at the air/HOPG interface upon drop-casting of toluene solutions. The lamellar structure at the molecular level leads to rectangular two-dimensional crystalline domains a few hundred nanometers long (nanoslips). Infrared external reflection spectroscopy suggested that the adsorbed alkyl chains adopt the trans-zigzag conformation in the nanoslip, although the orientations of the zigzag plane of the alkyl groups are mixed. Cyclic voltammetry indicates fast electron transfer between the adsorbed molecules and the substrate and significant intermolecular electronic interactions. It was found that annealing at high temperatures is an effective method to prepare ordered assemblies more than a few micrometer scale (microslips). The orientations of the nanoslips prepared from the racemic mixture exhibited an apparent 12-fold symmetry, while its optically active enantiomer resulted in more irregular domains with a six-fold symmetry, implying an important role of chirality on packing at the molecular level and on the orientation of the domains at larger scales. When drop-cast from more concentrated solutions than a few hundreds of micromolar, multilayers were obtained, in which the alkyl chains in the molecules are more or less perpendicular to the surface. This structure can be transformed into the nanoslips upon standing.     

New Laser Speckle Flowgraphy System Using CCD Camera

A new technique is developed to visualize the blood flow map of the human retina using laser speckle phenomena. Despite use of an ordinary CCD camera as the detector, the performance of laser speckle flowgraphy system for the analysis of ocular blood circulation is greatly improved to achieve higher resolution and a wider field of view for blood flow mapping. It is shown that the quality of the blood flow map is influenced by the sampling format of the pixel points in the space- and time-varying speckle field.     

Lactone cleavage reaction kinetics of rhodamine dye at liquid/liquid interfaces studied by micro-two-phase sheath flow/two-photon excitation fluorescence microscopy

Two-photon excitation fluorescence microscopy was combined with the two-phase microflow system in order to measure the fast interfacial reaction rate at liquid/liquid interfaces. The lactone cleavage kinetics of octadecylrhodamine B (C(18)RB) at the toluene/water and heptane/water interfaces was studied by this new method. The organic solution containing the nonfluorescent lactone of C(18)RB was made to flow as an inner flow with an aqueous outer sheath flow. The diameter of the inner flow was <20 microm. A focused fundamental beam of a Ti:sapphire pulse laser of 780 nm was irradiated to the interface, and emitted fluorescence from the fluorescent product was detected by a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera or a streakscope. The increase in the concentration of the fluorescent form of C(18)RB was measured along the interface of the inner flow of the toluene/water and heptane/water systems for 80 micros just after the contact of two phases. The analysis made by the time-dependent Langmuir adsorption model with the aid of the digital simulation method gave the cleavage reaction rate constants of the lactone form of C(18)RB at the liquid/liquid interfaces.     

High-speed driving of multi-color LED panel for subjective super-resolution display

Optical Review - We have developed a new high-speed driving circuit of a multi-color LED panel by the use of FPGA for subjective super-resolution display. In the subjective super-resolution...     

New deprotection method of the 2,2,2-trichloroethoxycarbonyl (Troc) group with (Bu3Sn)2

The 2,2,2-trichloroethoxycarbonyl (Troc) group was efficiently removed in high yields with (Bu₃Sn)₂ in DMF under microwave heating. The present method was applied to deprotection of the Troc group on solid support.     

Adsorption of fluoride ions onto carbonaceous materials

The characteristics of fluoride ion adsorption onto carbonaceous materials were derived as adsorption isotherms at different temperatures and in different pH solutions. The fluoride ion was adsorbed into pores in carbonaceous materials produced from wood; the larger the specific surface area, the more fluoride ions adsorbed. Bone char was the most effective adsorbent. The composition of bone char includes calcium phosphate, calcium carbonate, and so on. This suggests that the phosphate ion in bone char was exchanged with a fluoride ion. Moreover, the mechanism of fluoride ion adsorption onto bone char is clearly chemical in nature because the amount of fluoride ion adsorbed onto bone char increased with increasing temperature and decreasing pH. The amount of fluoride ion adsorbed onto bone char was also shown to depend on the concentration of sodium chloride in solution because of the "salting-out" effect. The adsorption of fluoride ion onto bone char is endothermic. Bone char can be utilized to remove fluoride ions from drinking water.     

Improvement of apparent resolution by subjective super-resolution display for aerial display using AIRR

Optical Review - AIRR (Aerial imaging by retro-reflection) can form a large aerial image in mid-air for digital signage. Resolution of the aerial image formed with AIRR is determined mainly by the...