Radiotracer studies of the antitumor metallocene molybdocene dichloride with biomolecules

Neutron irradiation of Cp₂MoCl₂ for 24 h afforded the radiotracer Cp₂⁹⁹MoCl₂ which was characterised by UV–Vis spectroscopy and thin layer chromatography. Binding experiments with the thiol containing protein human serum albumin (HSA) or calf thymus DNA, were monitored for ⁹⁹Mo using a gamma counter. Under the conditions investigated, molar ratios of binding of 0.2:1 (Cp₂MoCl₂:DNA) and 9.4:1 (Cp₂MoCl₂:HSA) were calculated. The results are consistent with in vitro coordination studies that have shown strong preferential interaction of Cp₂MoCl₂ with thiols versus other donor sites in biomolecules including DNA.     

Bringing the balance function into focus

Charge balance functions provide important insight concerning hadronization and charge transport in heavy ion collisions at RHIC. Unfortunately, this observable is clouded by several effects. One of these effects is resonance production. Here, we present a simple thermal model where resonance production is included via a Monte Carlo technique based on the canonical ensemble. Resonance production is not found to have a large effect on the width.     

A new luciferase reporter gene assay for the detection of androgenic and antiandrogenic effects based on a human prostate specific antigen promoter and PC3/AR human prostate cancer cells.

We developed a new mammalian cell-based luciferase reporter gene assay for androgenic and antiandrogenic activities of chemicals and environmental samples. Environmental samples usually have a complex matrix that may contain the constituents acting as androgen receptor (AR) agonists, AR antagonists or aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonists. AhR agonists are known to elicit the antiandrogenic effect through cross-talk between AR and AhR signal transduction pathways. In this study, PC3/AR human prostate carcinoma cells were transiently transfected with a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) promoter-driven luciferase expression plasmid. The cells were treated with a test compound or an environmental sample for 24 h at 37 degrees C and then measured for luciferase activity. The luciferase activity was induced by dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in a concentration-dependent manner in a concentration range from 10 fM to 1 nM. R1881, a synthetic androgen receptor agonist, induced luciferase activity and its inductive effects was additive to that of DHT. The luciferase activity was not induced by cortisol, a glucocorticoid, progesterone, a progestin, and 17beta-estradiol, an estrogen in a concentration range of up to 1 microM. DHT-induced luciferase activity was reduced by bicalutamide and cyproterone acetate, AR antagonists, and also by benzo[a]pyrene, an aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonist, through AhR-mediated pathways. All of these findings indicate that the present assay system correctly responds to AR agonists, AR antagonists and AhR agonist and, therefore, it is a powerful tool for the sensitive and selective screening of chemicals and environmental samples for their androgenic and antiandrogenic activities. We developed the first assay system, in which the expression of luciferase was driven by the promoter of a prostate-specific antigen gene, a typical human androgen-regulated gene.     

Hund’s Case (a)-case (b) transition in the singlet-triplet absorption spectrum of pyrazine in a supersonic jet

An analytic expression is derived for calculating the intensities of individual spin-rovibronic lines in the fully resolved gas phase electronic spectrum of a polyatomic molecule, in which one of the zero-order electronic states is a triplet state. The expression is employed to calculate the effect of fine structure splitting on the singlet-triplet absorption spectrum of pyrazine using the parameters available from experiment. A transition from Hund’s coupling Case (a) to Case (b) on going from low J to high J rotational levels is predicted to occur at a moderate resolution of a few hundred MHz. The effect is more pronounced in pyrazine-d ₄ and the pyrazine-argon van der Waals complex owing to their larger mass. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 114, 63–90 (July 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Reproduced here with stylistic changes by the Translation Editor.