The formation of non-soluble complexes between polyethyleneimine-anions and their potential use to isolate enzymes

The aqueous solution behavior of polyethyleneimine (a synthetic cationic polymer) in the presence of anions with two or more electrical charges (citrate, phosphate, sulphate, malate, malonate and succinate) was studied by means of turbidimetry and light scattering. Polyethyleneimine forms non-soluble complexes with these anions, which behave as a pseudo-polyampholyte with an isoelectrical pH value dependent on the type of anion. The effect of pH, polymer concentration and ionic strength on the non-soluble complexes formation was examined. The complex precipitation pH range was between 3.5 and 8.0 and also depended on the type of anion. The complex formation was inhibited by the ionic strength in agreement with the electrostatic mechanism of the non-soluble complex formation. Model proteins with isoelectric pH from 1 to 10 were assayed in orden to be precipitated by these complexes. It was found that the non-soluble polyethyleneimine-anion complexes have the property to precipitate macromolecules charged with an opposite electrical charge.     

New dendronized polymers from acrylate Behera amine and their ability to produce visco-elastic structured fluids when mixed with CTAT worm-like micelles

Two new water soluble dendronized polymers (PLn) from acrylate Behera amine monomer of different molecular weights were successfully synthesized. The polymers were characterized by FTIR, NMR, GPC and DLS. Both GPC and DLS results indicated that these PLn have a remarkable tendency to form aggregates in solution that lead to apparent molecular weights that are much higher than their theoretical values, as well as large diameters in solution. However, the addition of any PLn to water did not cause any increase in viscosity up to concentrations of 1000 ppm. The possible interactions of PLn with the cationic surfactant CTAT were explored by solution rheometry. A synergistic viscosity enhancement was found by adding small amounts of dendronized PLn polymers to a CTAT solution composed of entangled worm-like micelles. The highest association tendency with CTAT was found for PL1 at the maximum polymer concentration before phase separation (i.e., 100 ppm). The solution viscosity at low-shear rates could be increased by an order of magnitude upon addition of 100 ppm of PL1 to a 20mM CTAT solution. For this mixture, the fluid obtained was highly structured and exhibited only shear thinning behavior from the smallest shear rates employed. These PL1/CTAT mixtures exhibited an improved elastic character (as determined by dynamic rheometry) that translated in a much longer value of the cross-over relaxation time and a pronounced thixotropic behavior which are indicative of a strong intermolecular interaction. In the case of the polymer with a higher theoretical molecular weight, PL2, its association with CTAT leads to an extraordinary doubling of solution viscosity with just 0.25 ppm polymer addition to a 20mM CTAT solution. However, such synergistic viscosity enhancement saturated at rather low concentrations (25 ppm) indicating an apparent lower solubility as compared to PL1, a fact that may be related to its higher molecular weight.     

Synthesis of chiral mesoporous silicas with oligo(saccharide) surfaces and their use in separation of stereoisomers

Novel chiral mesoporous silicas (SBA-15 motif) with chemically bonded oligo(saccharides) (1, 3, and 7 glucose units) were obtained through the cocondensation of organosilicon derivatives of the oligo(saccharides) and silica precursors in the presence of polymer surfactant template under mild acidic conditions. The pore order and structure of the materials prepared were characterized by transmission electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption. The direct application of the oligo(saccharide)-grafted SBA-15 stationary phases in the HPLC separations of stereoisomers was demonstrated for the first time.     

Synthesis and ring-chain-ring tautomerism of bisoxazolidines, thiazolidinyloxazolidines, and spirothiazolidines

The synthesis of fused heterocycles such as thiazolidinyl-oxazolidine 3 is described starting from Tris·HCl. The mercaptomethyl bisoxazolidine 8 was found to convert to the corresponding thiazolidinyloxazolidine 3 and the spiro-heterocycle 4 by a ring-chain-ring tautomerism, depending on the electronic nature of the ring substituents as well as the reaction conditions. This equilibration pathway is absent in the hydroxymethyl bisoxazolidines 2. Computational studies confirm that both kinetic and thermodynamic control features play a role in the product distribution.     

A delafossite-based copper catalyst for sustainable Cl2 production by HCl oxidation

A copper catalyst based on a delafossite precursor (CuAlO(2)) displays high activity and extraordinary lifetime in the gas-phase oxidation of HCl to Cl(2), representing a cost-effective alternative to RuO(2)-based catalysts for chlorine recycling.     

Hermitean (semi) lattices and Rolf��s lattice

We investigate the indexed Hermitean lattice of type 0 generated by a single element a subject to the relation ${a = a^\amalg \leq b = b^\amalg}$ . Although the lattice is infinite, we are able to recursively describe its subdirectly irreducible factors. We also give necessary and sufficient conditions about indices for this lattice to be finite.     

Shooting methods for a PT-symmetric periodic eigenvalue problem

We present a rigorous analysis of the performance of some one-step discretization schemes for a class of PT-symmetric singular boundary eigenvalue problem which encompasses a number of different problems whose investigation has been inspired by the 2003 article of Benilov et al. (J Fluid Mech 497:201–224, 2003). These discretization schemes are analyzed as initial value problems rather than as discrete boundary problems, since this is the setting which ties in most naturally with the formulation of the problem which one is forced to adopt due to the presence of an interior singularity. We also devise and analyze a variable step scheme for dealing with the singular points. Numerical results show better agreement between our results and those obtained from small-ϵ asymptotics than has been shown in results presented hitherto.     

Composite planar electrode for sensing electrochemical oxygen demand

This work reports on the development of a graphite-polystyrene composite electrode of planar configuration, containing silver(II) oxide and copper(II) oxide catalysts (AgO-CuO), for the measurement of electrochemical oxygen demand (EOD). Optimisation studies of the composite composition as well as conditions for its processing on planar substrates and generation of an appropriate electrochemical active area resulted in the scalable fabrication of robust composite electrodes. These were evaluated with glucose as target analyte. They showed competitive low limits of detection in a linear concentration range from 5 mg L⁻¹ to 1400 mg L⁻¹ of O₂. Besides, they were stable for at least one year. The determination of EOD in wastewater samples coming from production lines of parenteral food and winemaking was successfully carried out.     

Have women's voices lowered across time? A cross sectional study of Australian women's voices

Various aspects of our communication are well known to havechanged over time (1-3). This article describes a cross-sectional study that examined the acoustic characteristics of two groups of Australian women aged 18–25 years from recordings made in 1945 and 1993 and investigated the possible changes in the voice across generations. Archival recordings from 1945 which had been used in a longitudinal study (4) were compared to recordings made in 1993. The results of this study show that women in 1993 have significantly deeper voices than women of the same age recorded in 1945. The possible factors influencing this change are discussed.