Microgravity-like Crystallization of Paramagnetic Species in Strong Magnetic Fields.

The crystallization of paramagnetic species in a magnetic field gradient under microgravity-like conditions is an area of interest for both fundamental and applied science. In this paper, a setup for the crystallization of paramagnetic species in the magnetic field up to 7 T generated by a superconducting magnet is described. The research includes calculations of the conditions necessary to compensate for the gravitational force for several types of paramagnetic substances using the magnetic field of superconducting magnets (4.

Heavily Gd-Doped Non-Toxic Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles for MRI Labelling of Stem Cells.

Recently, human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSc) have attracted a great deal of attention as potential therapeutic agents in the treatment of socially significant diseases. Despite substantial advances in stem-cell therapy, the biological mechanisms of hMSc action after transplantation remain unclear. The use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a non-invasive method for tracking stem cells in the body is very important for analysing their distribution in tissues and organs, as well as for ensuring control of their lifetime after injection.

Photochemically Induced Dynamic Nuclear Polarization of Heteronuclear Singlet Order.

Photochemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization (photo-CIDNP) is a method to hyperpolarize nuclear spins using light. In most cases, CIDNP experiments are performed in high magnetic fields and the sample is irradiated by light inside a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer. Here we demonstrate photo-CIDNP hyperpolarization generated in the Earth's magnetic field and under zero- to ultralow-field (ZULF) conditions.

Sequential assignment of NMR spectra of peptides at natural isotopic abundance with zero- and ultra-low-field total correlation spectroscopy (ZULF-TOCSY).

A novel method dubbed ZULF-TOCSY results from the combination of Zero and Ultra-Low Field (ZULF) with high-field, high-resolution NMR, leading to a generalization of the concept of total correlation spectroscopy (TOCSY). ZULF-TOCSY is a new building block for NMR methods, which has the unique property that the polarization is evenly distributed among all NMR-active nuclei such as 1H, 13C, 15N, 31P, etc., provided that they belong to the same coupling network, and provided that their relaxation is not too fast at low fields, as may occur in macromolecules.

Correlation of high-field and zero- to ultralow-field NMR properties using 2D spectroscopy.

The field of zero- to ultralow-field (ZULF) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is currently experiencing rapid growth, owing to progress in optical magnetometry and attractive features of ZULF-NMR such as low hardware cost and excellent spectral resolution achieved under ZULF conditions. In this work, an approach is proposed and demonstrated for simultaneous acquisition of ZULF-NMR spectra of individual C-containing isotopomers of chemical compounds in a complex mixture. The method makes use of fast field cycling such that the spin evolution takes place under ZULF conditions, whereas signal detection is performed in a high-field NMR spectrometer.

Exchange interaction in short-lived flavine adenine dinucleotide biradical in aqueous solution revisited by CIDNP (chemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization) and nuclear magnetic relaxation dispersion.

Flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) is an important cofactor in many light-sensitive enzymes. The role of the adenine moiety of FAD in light-induced electron transfer was obscured, because it involves an adenine radical, which is short-lived with a weak chromophore. However, an intramolecular electron transfer from adenine to flavin was revealed several years ago by Robert Kaptein by using chemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization (CIDNP).

Surprising absence of strong homonuclear coupling at low magnetic field explored by two-field nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Strong coupling of nuclear spins, which is achieved when their scalar coupling is greater than or comparable to the difference in their Larmor precession frequencies in an external magnetic field, gives rise to efficient coherent longitudinal polarization transfer. The strong coupling regime can be achieved when the external magnetic field is sufficiently low, as is reduced proportional to the field strength. In the present work, however, we demonstrate that in heteronuclear spin systems these simple arguments may not hold, since heteronuclear spin-spin interactions alter the value.

Total Correlation Spectroscopy across All NMR-Active Nuclei by Mixing at Zero Field.

Multidimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is based on a combination of well-established building blocks for polarization transfer. These blocks are used to design correlation experiments through one or a few chemical bonds or through space. Here, we introduce a building block that enables polarization transfer across all NMR-active nuclei in a coupled network of spins: isotropic mixing at zero and ultralow field (ZULF).

Assessment of heteronuclear long-lived states at ultralow magnetic fields.

A study of long-lived spin states in hetero-nuclear spin systems is presented. Since long-lived states are efficiently sustained only when the spins are "strongly coupled", this study necessitates going to "ultralow" magnetic fields, which are much lower than the Earth's field. To do so, we utilize a fast field-cycling device, which rapidly shuttles the sample between an NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) magnet and a magnetic shield with a very low field inside.

Field-cycling NMR experiments in an ultra-wide magnetic field range: relaxation and coherent polarization transfer.

An experimental method is described allowing fast field-cycling Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) experiments over a wide range of magnetic fields from 5 nT to 10 T. The method makes use of a hybrid technique: the high field range is covered by positioning the sample in the inhomogeneous stray field of the NMR spectrometer magnet. For fields below 2 mT a magnetic shield is mounted on top of the spectrometer; inside the shield the magnetic field is controlled by a specially designed coil system.