Development and validation of an LC/MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of shionone and epi‐friedelinol in rat plasma for pharmacokinetic study after oral administration of Aster tataricus extract

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method was developed and validated using spinasterol as the internal standard (IS) for the simultaneous determination of shionone and epi‐friedelinol in rat plasma. Plasma samples were pretreated using liquid–liquid extraction with ethyl ether. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a C₁₈ column (100 × 2.1 mm, 5 μm) with an isocratic elution consisting of acetonitrile–0.1% formic acid water (75:25, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.30 mL/min. Detection was performed under the selected reaction monitoring scan using an electrospray ionization in the positive ion mode. The mass transitions were as follows: m/z 427.4 → 95.1 for shionone, m/z 411.4 → 205.2 for epi‐friedelinol and m/z 395.3 → 105.2 for IS. All calibration curves exhibited good linearity (r > 0.995) over the concentration range for both components. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions at three QC and lower limit of quantitation levels were both <10.21% in terms of relative standard deviation, and the accuracy ranged from ?7.13 to 8.02% in terms of relative error. The extraction recoveries of the compounds ranged from 82.07 to 89.81%. The developed method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of shionone and epi‐friedelinol after oral administration of Aster tataricus extract to rats. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

LC‐MS/MS determination of 1‐O‐acetylbritannilactone in rat plasma and its application to a preclinical pharmacokinetic study

A novel, rapid and sensitive LC‐MS/MS method for the determination of 1‐O‐Acetylbritannilactone (ABL), a sesquiterpene lactone abundant in Inula britannica, was developed and validated using heteroclitin D as internal standard. Separation was achieved on a reversed phase Hypersil Gold C₁₈ column (50 × 4.6 mm, i.d., 3.0 µm) using isocratic elution with methanol–5 mM ammonium acetate buffer aqueous solution (80:20, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. Calibration curve was linear (r > 0.99) in a concentration range of 1.60–800 ng/mL with the lower limit of quantification of 1.60 ng/mL. Intra‐ and inter‐day accuracy and precision were validated by relative error (RE) and relative standard deviation (RSD) values, respectively, which were both less than ±15%. The validated method has been successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of ABL in rats. The elimination half‐lives were 0.412 ± 0.068, 0.415 ± 0.092 and 0.453 ± 0.071 h after a single intravenous administration of 0.14, 0.42, and 1.26 mg/kg ABL, respectively. The area under the plasma concentration–time curve from time zero to the last quantifiable time point and from time zero to infinity and the plasma concentrations at 2 min were linearly related to the doses tested. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development and validation of a UPLC‐MS/MS method for the determination of cucurbitacin B in rat plasma and application to a pharmacokinetic study

Cucurbitacin B (CuB), one of the most abundant forms of cucurbitacins, is a promising natural anticancer drug candidate. Although the anticancer activity of CuB has been well demonstrated, information regarding the pharmacokinetics is limited. A rapid, selective and sensitive UPLC‐MS/MS for CuB was developed and validated using hemslecin A (HeA) as internal standard (IS). Plasma samples were pre‐treated by liquid–liquid extraction with dichloromethane. Separation was achieved on a reversed‐phase C₁₈ column (50 × 4.6 mm, 5 µm) at 35°C using isocratic elution with water–methanol (25:75, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. The analytes were monitored by a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer with positive electrospray ionization mode. The calibration curve was linear (r > 0.995) in a concentration range of 0.3–100 ng/mL with a limit of quantification of 0.3 ng/mL. Intra‐ and inter‐day accuracy and precision were validated by percentage relative error and relative standard deviation, respectively, which were both lower than the limit of 15%. This assay was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of CuB in Wistar rats. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

辛基羟肟酸浮选氟碳铈矿机制研究

采用纯矿物浮选的方法,以松醇油为起泡剂,研究了氟碳铈矿在辛基羟肟酸钠为捕收剂体系下的浮选行为,在p H=7~11范围内,氟碳铈矿回收率大于96%,尤其在p H=9附近,氟碳铈矿的可浮性最好,回收率接近100%;采用傅立叶红外光谱(FT-IR)和X射线光电子能谱(XPS)手段进行作用机制研究,红外光谱表明,辛基羟肟酸钠在氟碳铈矿表面发生了化学吸附;XPS结果表明,氟碳铈矿表面可能只存在-C=O-RE-O-N-一种五元环螯合物;结合La3+和Ce3+离子溶液化学和氟碳铈矿浮选行为,推测La(OH)2+,La(OH)2+,Ce(OH)2+和Ce(OH)2+是存在于氟碳铈矿表面的浮选活性点,并推测了辛基羟肟酸在氟碳铈矿表面作用的模型。     

Identification,characterization and evolution of non-local quasi-Lagrangian structures in turbulence

The recent progress on non-local Lagrangian and quasi-Lagrangian structures in turbulence is reviewed. The quasi-Lagrangian structures, e.g., vortex surfaces in vis-cous flow, gas-liquid interfaces in multi-phase flow, and flame fronts in premixed combustion, can show essential Lagrangian following properties, but they are able to have topological changes in the temporal evolution. In addition, they can represent or influence the turbulent flow field. The challenges for the investigation of the non-local structures include their identification, characterization, and evolution. The improving understanding of the quasi-Lagrangian struc-tures is expected to be helpful to elucidate crucial dynamics and develop structure-based predictive models in turbulence.     

A simple LC‐MS method for determination of cyasterone in rat plasma: application to a pilot pharmacokinetic study

A simple, specific, and sensitive liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC‐MS) method for determination of cyasterone in rat plasma was developed in our laboratory. Cucurbitacin B was used as an internal standard (IS). After protein precipitation with twofold volume of acetonitrile, the analyte and IS were separated on a Luna C₁₈ column (100 × 4.6 mm, i.d., 3.0 µm; Phenomenex) by isocratic elution with acetonitrile–water (80:20, v/v) as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. An electrospray ionization source was applied and operated in the positive ion mode; selected ion monitoring scan mode was used for quantification, and the target ions m/z 543.3 for cyasterone and m/z 581.3 for IS were chosen. Good linearity was observed in the concentration range of 0.40–400 ng/mL for cyasterone in rat plasma. Intra‐day and inter‐day precision were both <7.4%. This method was proved to be suitable for pharmacokinetic studies after oral (5.0 mg/kg) or intravenous (0.5 mg/kg) administration of cyasterone in rats. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Turbulence modelling and role of compressibility on oil spilling from a damaged double hull tank

The viscosity plays an important role, and a multiphase solver is necessary to numerically simulate the oil spilling from a damaged double hull tank (DHT). However, it is uncertain whether turbulence modelling is necessary, which turbulence model is suitable; and what the role of compressibility of the fluids is. This paper presents experimental and numerical investigations to address these issues for various cases representing different scenarios of the oil spilling, including grounding and collision. In the numerical investigations, various approaches to model the turbulence, including the large eddy simulation (LES), direct numerical simulation and the Reynolds average Navier–Stokes equation (RANS) with different turbulence models, are employed. Based on the investigations, it is suggested that the effective Reynolds numbers corresponding to both oil outflow and water inflow shall be considered when classifying the significance of the turbulence and selecting the appropriate turbulence models. This is confirmed by new lab tests considering the axial offset between the internal and the external holes on two hulls of the DHT. The investigations conclude for numerically simulating oil spilling from a damaged DHT that when the effective Re is smaller the RANS approaches should not be used and LES modelling should be employed; while when the effective Reynolds numbers is large, the RANS models may be used as they can give similar results to LES in terms of the height of the mixture in the ballast tank and discharge but costing much less CPU time. The investigation on the role of the compressibility of the fluid reveals that the compressibility of the fluid may be considerable in a small temporal‐spatial scale but plays an insignificant role on macroscopic process of the oil spilling. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

99Tc NMR as a promising technique for structural investigation of biomolecules: theoretical studies on the solvent and thermal effects of phenylbenzothiazole complex

The phenylbenzothiazole compounds show antitumor properties and are highly selective. In this paper, the ⁹⁹Tc chemical shifts based on the (^99mTc)(CO)₃(NNO) complex conjugated to the antitumor agent 2‐(4′‐aminophenyl)benzothiazole are reported. Thermal and solvent effects were studied computationally by quantum‐chemical methods, using the density functional theory (DFT) (DFT level BPW91/aug‐cc‐pVTZ for the Tc and BPW91/IGLO‐II for the other atoms) to compute the NMR parameters for the complex. We have calculated the ⁹⁹Tc NMR chemical shifts of the complex in gas phase and solution using different solvation models (polarizable continuum model and explicit solvation). To evaluate the thermal effect, molecular dynamics simulations were carried, using the atom‐centered density matrix propagation method at the DFT level (BP86/LanL2dz). The results highlight that the ⁹⁹Tc NMR spectroscopy can be a promising technique for structural investigation of biomolecules, at the molecular level, in different environments. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

初中化学青年教师常态课教学课例研究* ——基于弗兰德斯互动分析系统

弗兰德斯互动分析系统可以量化课堂教学中的语言行为。以初中化学一节常态课为研究课例,基于弗兰德斯互动分析系统,结合教师他评和自评,从教学目标、教学内容、教学过程和教学效果等4方面进行了全面的分析与评价,并根据评价结果,针对教学目标制订、有效提问、科学的课堂语言结构的营造以及实验探究的实施等提出了可行性的有效策略,从而为青年教师通过教学实践来促进个人专业发展提供依据。     

Development of low concentrated solar photovoltaic system with lead acid battery as storage device

Energy storage system powered by renewable energies is a viable option to meet energy requirement without addition of carbon footprints to the environment. This study involves development of theoretical and computational models for a solar photovoltaic (PV) system coupled with a lead acid battery. The study commenced with selection of most appropriate lead acid battery and PV system for installation in a representative location in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Various technical and economic parameters were assessed and calculated by computational approach. The optimized lead acid battery was integrated with low concentration solar PV panels (CPV) followed by a feasibility study. Theoretical model was developed for the integrated system to calculate various parameters of the CPV and lead acid battery. Technical and economic assessment of this coupled unit was calculated using a theoretical approach. The developed model was then subjected to computational approach for verification and validation analysis of the integrated system. The detailed assessment of batteries and integrated system show the applicability of this system in Riyadh region. The research will be extended to develop energy storage systems for remote areas using lead acid batteries.