Dimerization of HNO in aqueous solution: an interplay of solvation effects, fast acid-base equilibria, and intramolecular hydrogen bonding?

The recent unraveling of the rather complex acid-base equilibrium of nitroxyl (HNO) has stimulated a renewed interest in the significance of HNO for biology and pharmacy. HNO plays an important role in enzymatic mechanisms and is discussed as a potential therapeutic agent against heart failure. A cumbersome property for studying HNO reactions, its fast dimerization leading to the rapid formation of N(2)O, is surprisingly far from being well understood.

A precise high-resolution near infrared continuous wave cavity ringdown spectrometer using a Fourier transform based wavelength calibration.

A wavelength calibration technique is described, which is based on a combination of a Fourier transform wavelength meter and a distributed feedback laser locked to a molecular transition as a frequency marker in the spectrum. The technique provides a reliable wavelength scale to be used in high resolution continuous wave cavity ringdown spectroscopy without need for stabilization of the probe laser and accurately known molecular transitions in the scanned wavelength range. Due to a continuous reference measurement, ambient influences on the laser sources are effectively suppressed.

A double blind, randomised, parallel group study to investigate the dose equivalence of Dysport and Botox in the treatment of cervical dystonia.

Objective: This study was designed to establish whether a ratio of three units of Dysport is equivalent to one unit of Botox for the treatment of cervical dystonia.

Methods: Patients with predominantly rotational cervical dystonia, and a minimum of four previous Botox treatments, were randomised to receive either the clinically indicated dose of Botox or three times that dose in Dysport units. Study botulinum toxin was administered in a double blind fashion, to one or more clinically indicated muscles, at one or more sites per muscle.