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Decay scheme of 126La isomers.

The beta+/EC decay of 126La produced by the 94Mo(36Ar, 3pn) reaction has been studied using the on-line isotope separator connected to an AVF cyclotron. Gamma-ray singles, gamma-gamma angular correlation and internal conversion electron measurements were carried out. From analysis of these data, 33 new levels in 126Ba were found and the decay scheme containing 137 gamma-rays and 50 excited states was constructed. The probable spin and parity of the two beta-decaying states in 126La were found to be 4+/-, 5+/- for the high-spin isomer with a half-life of 54(2) s and 0-, 1+/-, 2- for the low-spin isomer with a half-life shorter than 50 s.

Journal Article↗

The transitional process of retirement for nurses.

Retirement exemplifies one of the most important transitions in life. A job provides structure to daily life, adds to a sense of self-worth and self-esteem, and is a means of self-expression, all of which define and identify the person. This work activity links individuals to a society and to a social network. When an individual retires, there is a loss of one role and a beginning of a new one. The purpose of this research was to explore the preretirement period of nurses to better understand the transitional process. A qualitative approach was chosen to enable the researchers to explore in-depth perceptions and opinions of this subjective experience. Interview questions were developed from the literature to determine the perceptions of preparation, barriers, and facilitators in the process, losses, gains, and coping strategies that were helpful. A purposive sample of female nurses from academic institutions and hospitals were invited to participate in one of three focus groups. All were invited to a fourth focus group session during which the findings from the researchers were presented and the participants verified the results. Of the 19 participants, 11 had retired, whereas 8 were in the preretirement phase. Four nurses had accepted an incentive retirement offered at their institution. The conversations were taped, transcribed, and analyzed. Thematic analysis identified both positive and negative aspects of the experience with concerns related to finances, timing of retirement, discretionary time, and relationships. Participants frequently expressed feelings of inadequacy with the numerous decisions related to finances and wished the institution had provided more information. They perceived the most enjoyable gain to be the time to enjoy and do the things they wished. The prevalent feeling among the groups was that the loss of work friends was very difficult. Old relationships would need to be fostered and new ones developed in the retiree role. Based on the findings, support services, including advisers and counselors, are recommended to ease the movement through this transitional process. The assumption is that if individuals have a better understanding of the retirement process and their new role, they will prepare and adjust better.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Bifunctional labeling reagent for oligosaccharides to incorporate both chromophore and biotin groups.

We have developed a convenient and effective method for biotinylation of oligosaccharides at their reducing ends. A novel biotin hydrazide having a phenyl group produced the biotin adduct of N-acetyllactosamine (LacNAc) by simple incubation at 90 degrees C for 1 h. Although the biotin adduct was obtained as a mixture of several stereoisomers, one of the isomers, cyclic beta-glycoside, became predominant upon letting the reaction mixture stand in a weakly acidic state (pH 3.5). This conversion may be very advantageous for functional analysis of oligosaccharides because natural N-linked oligosaccharides exist in the cyclic beta form. The limit of detection of labeled LacNAc in reversed-phase chromatography was 330 fmol and showed good linearity in the range from 330 fmol to 261 pmol. When this procedure was applied to complex type and high mannose type N-linked oligosaccharides, the labeled oligosaccharides were easily detected and separated by reversed-phase, gel filtration, and anion exchange chromatographies. Furthermore, these labeled oligosaccharides were able to be immobilized onto the solid phase using avidin-biotin technology and were stable enough to allow the binding assay to be performed repeatedly and under the conditions for in situ exoglycosidase digestion. These results suggest that this derivatization technique might be useful for both separation and functional analysis of oligosaccharides.

Biosensing Techniques↗

Molecular movements in the actomyosin complex: F-actin-promoted internal cross-linking of the 25- and 20-kDa heavy chain fragments of skeletal myosin subfragment.

We describe, for the first time, the F-actin-promoted changes in the spatial relationship of strands in the NH2-terminal 25-kDa and COOH-terminal 20-kDa heavy chain fragments of the skeletal myosin subfragment 1 (S-1), detected by their exclusive chemical cross-linking in the rigor F-actin-S-1 complex with m-maleimidobenzoic acid N-hydroxysuccinimide ester (MBS). Quantitative electrophoretic analysis of the reaction products showed extensive conversion of the 95-kDa heavy chain of the actin-bound S-1 into a new species with an apparent mass of 135 kDa (yield = 50-60%), whereas the heavy chain mobility remained unaffected when actin was omitted. The 135-kDa entity retained the fluorescence of AEDANS-S-1 but not of AEDANS-actin, indicating that it was not a cross-linked acto-heavy chain adduct. Its extent of production depended markedly on the S-1: actin molar ratio and was maximum near a ratio of 1:4. The MBS treatment of acto-S-1 led also to some covalent actin-actin oligomers which could be suppressed by using trypsin-truncated F-actin lacking Cys-374, without altering the generation of the 135-kDa heavy chain derivative.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Actins↗

Evaluation of the influence of compound structure on stacked-dimer formation in the DNA minor groove.

The Human Genome Project as well as sequencing of the genomes of other organisms offers a wealth of DNA targets for both therapeutic and diagnostic applications, and it is important to develop additional DNA binding motifs to fully exploit the potential of this new information. We have recently found that an aromatic dication, DB293, with an amidine-phenyl-furan-benzimidazole-amidine structure can recognize specific sequences of DNA by binding in the minor groove as a dimer [Wang, L., Bailly, C., Kumar, A., Ding, D., Bajic, M., Boykin, D. W., and Wilson, W. D. (2000) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 97, 12-16]. The dimer binding is strong, highly cooperative and, in contrast to many closely related heterocyclic dications, has both GC and AT base pairs in the minor groove binding site. The aromatic heterocycle stacked dimer is quite different in structure from the polyamide-lexitropsin type compounds, and it is a dication while all lexitropsin dimers are monocations. The heterocyclic dimer represents only the second small molecule class that can recognize mixed sequences of DNA. To test the structural limits on the new type of complex, it is important to probe the influence of compound charge, chemical groups, and structural features. The effects of these compound molecular variations on DNA complex formation with several DNA sequences were evaluated by DNase I footprinting, CD and UV spectroscopy, thermal melting, and quantitative analysis with surface plasmon resonance biosensor methods. Conversion of the amidines to guanidinium groups does permit the cooperative dimer to form but removal of one amidine or addition of an alkyl group to the amidine strongly inhibited dimer formation. Changing the phenyl of DB293 to a benzimidazole or the benzimidazole to a phenyl or benzofuran also inhibited dimer formation. The results show that formation of the minor groove stacked-dimer complex is very sensitive to compound structure. The discovery of the aromatic dimer mode offers new opportunities to enhance the specificity and expand the range of applications of the compounds that target DNA.

Amidines↗

Combination of Single Bead FTIR and Chemometrics in Combinatorial Chemistry: Application of the Multivariate Calibration Method in Monitoring Solid-Phase Organic Synthesis.

The single bead FTIR method has been used in quantitative analyses of solid-phase organic synthesis (SPOS) such as the determination of reaction kinetics and conversion yield. These studies rely on data analysis methods to extract quantitative information from IR spectra. However, the IR spectrum of a solid-phase sample contains vibrational bands from the starting material, product, and the polymer support itself. The coexistence of multiple chemical components causes severe spectral overlaps and sometimes makes quantitative analysis extremely difficult. In some cases, it is impossible to extract qualitative and quantitative information from overlapped IR spectra. In this paper, we use partial least squares (PLS), a chemometrics method, to achieve qualitative and quantitative analysis of samples that generate severely overlapped IR spectra. The primary loading factor obtained from a PLS calculation only displays those spectral features that have undergone changes during a SPOS reaction. Disappearing and emerging organic functional groups generate negative and positive signals, respectively, in the primary loading factor, thus allowing qualitative analysis of the reaction with improved precision. The scores of the primary loading factors of spectra taken at various times during a reaction provide quantitative information allowing the study of the reaction kinetics directly on solid support. On the basis of the analysis of three diverse SPOS reactions, the PLS method has demonstrated the unique capability of extracting quantitative and qualitative information from the overlapped IR spectra. It is a powerful data analysis tool for the monitoring of SPOS reactions in combinatorial chemistry.

Journal Article↗

New caged coumarin fluorophores with extraordinary uncaging cross sections suitable for biological imaging applications.

Photocaged fluorescent molecules are important research tools for tracking molecular dynamics with high spatiotemporal resolution in biological systems. We have designed and synthesized a new class of caged coumarin fluorophores. These coumarin cages displayed more than 200-fold fluorescence enhancement after UV photolysis. Remarkably, the uncaging cross section of a 1-(2-nitrophenyl)ethyl (NPE)-caged coumarin is 6600 at wavelength of 365 nm, about 2 orders of magnitude higher than previously described caged fluorophores. Product analysis of the photolytic reaction showed clean conversion of NPE-caged coumarin to 2-nitrosoacetophenone and the parent coumarin, suggesting that the mechanism of the photolysis follows the known photochemical reaction pathway of the 2-nitrobenzyl group. We have also measured the two-photon uncaging cross sections of NPE-caged coumarins 2a and 5 at 740 nm to be near 1 Goeppert-Mayer (GM). The mechanistic study, together with the two-photon uncaging data, suggested that the coumarin moiety serves as an antenna to enhance the light harvesting efficiency of the coumarin cage and that the photonic energy absorbed by coumarin was utilized efficiently to photolyze the NPE group. Future explorations of this type of "substrate-assisted photolysis" may yield other cages of high uncaging cross sections. For cellular imaging applications, we prepared a cell permeable and caged coumarin fluorophore, NPE-HCCC2/AM (10), which can be loaded into fully intact cells to high concentrations. Initial tests of this probe in a number of cultured mammalian cells showed desired properties for the in vivo imaging applications. The combined advantages of robust fluorescence contrast enhancement, remarkably high uncaging cross sections, noninvasive cellular delivery, and flexible chemistry for bioconjugations should generate broad applications of these caged coumarins in biochemical and biological research.

Coumarins↗

Changing selectivity of DNA oxidation from deoxyribose to Guanine by ligand design and a new binuclear copper complex.

A dinuclear copper complex [CuII2(PD'O)(H2O)2]3+ (1) (where PD'OH is a pyridylalkylamine containing binucleating ligand) promotes guanine oxidation in single-stranded DNA in the presence of 3-mercaptopropionic acid and dioxygen. This reaction is detected after subsequent piperidine treatment. Little spontaneous strand scission indicative of deoxyribose oxidation is observed in contrast to the results known for other copper complexes. Chemical characterization and nanospray ionization mass spectrometry analysis of oligodeoxynucleotides treated with 1 suggest conversion of guanine residues to their 2,6-diamino-5-formamidino-4-hydroxypyrimidine (+18 amu) and possibly 5,8-dihydroxy-7,8-dihydroguanine (+34 amu) derivatives. The selectivity toward nucleobase rather than deoxyribose oxidation is discussed in terms of the specific nature of the dicopper (hydro)peroxo species formed with the PD'OH ligand versus the intermediates formed in the presence of other binucleating ligands.

Copper↗

TDP-mycaminose biosynthetic pathway revised and conversion of desosamine pathway to mycaminose pathway with one gene.

Analysis of the tylosin gene cluster in Streptomyces fradiae uncovered an ORF, tyl1a, homologous to a hexose 3,4-isomerase found in Aneurinibacillus thermoaerophilus. Inclusion of the tyl1a gene along with other mycaminose biosynthetic genes (tylB, tylM1, tylM2, tylM3) identified in previous studies in an in vivo expression system successfully reconstituted the mycaminose pathway. Expression of tyl1a alone in the S venezuelae KdesI mutant converted a desosamine pathway to a mycaminose pathway. These results strongly support the role of Tyl1a as a TDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-d-glucose 3,4-isomerase.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Development of a Second Generation Coenzyme A Analogue Synthon.

We have previously reported a general synthetic approach to analogues of coenzyme A (CoA) which involves enzymatic synthesis of a general CoA analogue synthon having a thioester linkage in place of the amide bond nearest the thiol group (Martin et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1994, 116, 4660). We report here the synthesis of a second CoA analogue synthon 1c which has the amide bond more distant from the thiol group replaced with a thioester. This analogue was prepared by nonenzymatic synthesis of a racemic phosphopantetheine analogue followed by enzymatic conversion to the corresponding CoA analogue. Stereochemical analysis showed that the natural enantiomer of the phosphopantetheine analogue was selectively converted to product by the enzyme phosphopantetheine adenylyltansferase, yielding a product that possessed the desired stereoconfiguration. Reaction of the new synthon 1c with a primary amine results in amide bond formation to form the CoA analogue of interest. This new methodology provides access to an even broader array of CoA analogues modified in the beta-alanylcysteamine moiety. This has been demonstrated in the synthesis of an analogue having an extra methylene group in the beta-alanine moiety and two analogues in which the amide bond nearest the thiol group is replaced with a pair of methylene groups.

Journal Article↗

Significant efficiency improvement of the black dye-sensitized solar cell through protonation of TiO2 films.

This paper describes the influence of acid pretreatment ofTiO2 mesoporous films prior to dye sensitization on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells based on [(C4H9)4N]3[Ru(Htcterpy)(NCS)3] (tcterpy = 4,4',4"-tricarboxy- 2,2',2"-terpyridine), the so-called black dye. The HCl pretreatment caused an increase in overall efficiency by 8%, with a major contribution from photocurrent improvement. It is speculated, from the analysis of incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency, UV-vis absorption spectra, redox properties of the dye and TiO2, and the impedance spectra of the dye-sensitized solar cells, that photocurrent enhancement is attributed to the increases in electron injection and/or charge collection efficiency besides the improvement of light harvesting efficiency upon HCl pretreatment. Open-circuit photovoltage (V(oc)) remained almost unchanged in the case of significant positive shift of flat band potential for TiO2 upon HCl pretreatment. The suppression of electron transfer from conduction band electrons to the I3- ions in the electrolyte upon HCl pretreatment, reflected by the increased resistance at the TiO2/dye/electrolyte interface and reduced dark current, resulted in a V(oc) gain, which compensated the V(oc) loss due to the positive shift of the flat band. Using the HCl pretreatment approach, 10.5% of overall efficiency with the black dye was obtained under illumination of simulated AM 1.5 solar light (100 mW cm(-2)) using an antireflection film on the cell surface.

Letter↗

New halogenated marine prostanoids with cytotoxic activity from the Okinawan soft coral Clavularia viridis.

Five new halogenated prostanoids 1-4 and 6 were isolated from the Okinawan soft coral Clavularia viridis. The gross structure of 1 was elucidated mainly on the basis of NMR spectral data. The relative and absolute configurations were determined by analysis of NOESY and CD data, chemical conversion, and the modified Mosher's method. The structures of 2-4 and 6 were deduced by comparison of their spectral data with those of 1. Compound 1 demonstrated cytotoxic activity.

Algorithms↗

Cytotoxic styryl-lactones from the leaves and twigs of Polyalthia crassa.

Four new styryl-lactones, crassalactones A-D (1-4), were isolated from a cytotoxic ethyl acetate-soluble extract of the leaves and twigs of Polyalthia crassa, together with seven known compounds, (+)-3-acetylaltholactone, (+)-altholactone, aristolactam AII, cinnamic acid, (+)-goniofufurone, (+)-goniopypyrone, and (+)-howiinol A. Their structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic methods. The absolute configuration of 1-3 was established by chemical conversions. Single-crystal X-ray analysis and the Mosher ester method were used to confirm the absolute stereochemistry of 4. Cytotoxic evaluation against several mammalian cancer cell lines was performed on all new isolates, aristolactam AII, and the modified (+)-tricinnamate derivative 11 obtained from 1.

Animals↗

The parkinsonian neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP(+)) mediates release of l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (l-DOPA) and inhibition of l-DOPA decarboxylase in the rat striatum: a microdialysis study.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS), particularly peroxynitrite, have been implicated as key participants in the dopaminergic neurotoxicity of 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP(+)). However, on the basis of available information, it is not clear whether the MPP(+)-induced overproduction of ROS and RNS occurs in the intraneuronal and/or extracellular compartment. Early steps in the neurotoxic mechanism evoked by MPP(+) include a profound dopaminergic energy impairment, which mediates a massive release of dopamine (DA), glutathione (GSH), and cysteine (CySH). In the event that MPP(+) mediates extracellular generation of ROS (such as superoxide and/or hydroxyl radicals) and/or peroxynitrite, released DA, GSH, and CySH should be oxidized forming thioethers of DA and disulfides. Using microdialysis experiments in which MPP(+) was perfused into the striatum of awake rats, the present study was unable to detect the presence of such biomarkers of extracellular ROS and/or RNS generation. However, MPP(+) induced a transient, concentration-dependent rise of extracellular l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (l-DOPA), identified on the basis of dialysate analysis using several HPLC methods and its conversion to DA by purified l-DOPA decarboxylase (DDC). Methamphetamine (30 mg/kg, i.p.) similarly caused a significant but transient rise of l-DOPA in the rat striatum. Antioxidants such as salicylate and mannitol had no effect on the MPP(+)-mediated elevation of extracellular l-DOPA, suggesting that it is not formed by nonenzymatic hydroxylation of l-tyrosine by ROS or RNS. Rather, in vivo, but not in vitro, MPP(+) caused rapid inhibition of DDC, which appears to result in intraneuronal accumulation and subsequent release of l-DOPA. Because l-DOPA can mediate l-glutamate release, as well as be an excitotoxin, the possibility is raised that l-DOPA may play a role in the dopaminergic neurotoxicity of MPP(+).

1-Methyl-4-phenylpyridinium↗

Conversion of hydrophilic tubulin into a hydrophobic compound. Evidence for the involvement of membrane proteins.

Brain membranes contain tubulin that can be isolated as a hydrophobic compound by partitioning into Triton X-114. We have previously postulated: (a) that this kind of tubulin is a peripheral membrane protein that arises from microtubules that in vivo interact with membranes and (b) that the hydrophobic behaviour is due to the interaction of tubulin with a membrane component. Here we report the in vitro conversion of hydrophilic into hydrophobic tubulin by incubating microtubule associated proteins (MAPs) free taxol-stabilized microtubules with Triton X-100 solubilized membranes. After incubation, the microtubules were sedimented, depolymerized and subjected to partition into Triton X-114. Part of the tubulin was isolated in the detergent phase and contained, as observed in native membranes, a high proportion of the acetylated isotype. Because of the high proportion of acetylated tubulin the 'in vitro' conversion resembles the 'in vivo' interaction. Electrophoretic analysis of the detergent phase shows, besides tubulin, two major protein bands of 29 and 100 kDa molecular mass. The ability of the solubilized membranes to convert hydrophilic into hydrophobic tubulin is greatly diminished if the solubilized membrane preparation is preincubated in the presence of trypsin or heated at 90 degrees C for 5 min, indicating that the membrane component that confers the hydrophobic behaviour to tubulin is of proteinaceous nature.

Acetylation↗

Loneliness and patterns of self-disclosure.

The first study in this paper examined the hypothesis that feeling lonely is related to a self-perceived lack of self-disclosure to significant others. Thirty-seven male and 38 female undergraduates rated themselves on the UCLA Loneliness Scale and the Jourard Self-Disclosure Questionnaire. Analyses showed that for males and females, loneliness was significantly and linearly related to a self-perceived lack of intimate disclosure to opposite-sex friends. For females, loneliness was also associated with a perceived lack of self-disclosure to same-sex friends. The second study investigated the relationship between loneliness and actual disclosure behavior. Twenty-four lonely subjects and 23 nonlonely subjects were paired with nonlonely partners in a structured acquaintanceship exercise. Both opposite-sex pairs and same-sex pairs were included in the design. Postexercise ratings by partners indicated that lonely subjects were less effective than nonlonely subjects in making themselves known. Analysis of the intimacy level in the conversations showed that lonely subjects had significantly different patterns of disclosure than nonlonely subjects. We suggest that the self-disclosure style of the lonely person impairs the normal development of social relationships.

Female↗

Respiration activity of Escherichia coli entrapped in a cone-shaped microwell and cylindrical micropore monitored by scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM).

The metabolic activity of E. coli cells embedded in collagen gel microstructures in a cone-shaped well and in a cylindrical micropore was investigated using scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM), based on the oxygen consumption rate and the conversion rate from ferrocyanide to ferricyanide. The analysis of the concentration profiles for oxygen and ferrocyanide afforded the oxygen consumption rate and the ferrocyanide production rate. A comparison indicated that the ferrocyanide production rates were larger than the oxygen consumption rate, and also that the rates observed in the cylindrical micropore were larger than those observed in the cone-shaped well. The ferrocyanide production rate of a single E. coli cell was calculated to be (5.4 +/- 2.6) x 10(-19) mol s(-1), using a cylindrical micropore system.

Electrochemistry↗

Raman spectroscopic monitoring of droplet polymerization in a microfluidic device.

Microfluidic methodologies are becoming increasingly important for rapid formulation and screening of materials, and development of analytical tools for multiple sample screening is a critical step in achieving a combinatorial 'lab on a chip' approach. This work demonstrates the application of Raman spectroscopy for analysis of monomer composition and degree of conversion of methacrylate-based droplets in a microfluidic device. Droplet formation was conducted by flow focusing on the devices, and a gradient of component composition was created by varying the flow rates of the droplet-phase fluids into the microchannels. Raman data were collected using a fiber optic probe from a stationary array of the droplets/particles on the device, followed by partial least squares (PLS) calibration of the first derivative (1600 cm(-1) to 1550 cm(-1)) allowing successful measurement of monomer composition with a standard error of calibration (SEC) of +/-1.95% by volume. Following photopolymerization, the percentage of double bond conversion of the individual particles was calculated from the depletion of the normalized intensity of the C[double bond, length as m-dash]C stretching vibration at 1605 cm(-1). Raman data allowed accurate measurement of the decrease in double bond conversion as a function of increasing crosslinker concentration. The results from the research demonstrate that Raman spectroscopy is an effective, on-chip analytical tool for screening polymeric materials on the micrometre scale.

Journal Article↗