Chitosan nanocoatings N-acylated with decanoic anhydride: Hydrophobic, hygroscopic and structural properties.

Thin (ca. 340 nm) chitosan coatings were deposited onto glass substrates via dip-coating, then modified with the methanol solution of decanoic anhydride (0.17-56 mM).

Contrasting trophic transfer patterns of cadmium and mercury in the Arctic marine food web of east Hudson Bay, Canada.

We investigated trophic transfer of cadmium (Cd) through an Arctic marine food web in Hudson Bay and compared it with mercury (Hg), a metal known to strongly biomagnify. We evaluated blue mussel, sea urchin, common eider, sculpin, Arctic cod, and ringed seal for the influence of dietary and biological variables on variation in Cd and Hg concentrations. Age and size influenced metal concentrations among individuals within a vertebrate species.

The effects of two short-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) on northern leopard frog (Rana pipiens) tadpole development.

Short-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) have been detected in the environment globally. The presence and persistence of these compounds in the environment may lead to chronic wildlife exposure. We used northern leopard frog (Rana pipiens) tadpoles to investigate the chronic toxicity and the bioconcentration of two short-chain PFCAs, perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) and perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA).

Iron(II) Complexes of P -Chain Ligands: Structural Diversity.

Iron(II) complexes containing ligands with a R P-P-PR unit were synthesized by metathesis reactions. With R=tBu, a mixture of two isomers is formed; in one of them, the terminal phosphorus binds to the Fe center (ylidic structure), while in the other one, the central P atom is linked to Fe. Starting from differently functionalized parent triphosphanes and corresponding functionalized Fe complexes, the ratio of isomers does not change.

Amino-Termination of Silicon Carbide Nanoparticles.

Silicon carbide nanoparticles (SiC NPs) are promising inorganic molecular-sized fluorescent biomarkers. It is imperative to develop methods to functionalize SiC NPs for certain biological applications. One possible route is to form amino groups on the surface, which can be readily used to attach target biomolecules.

Meta-analysis shows environmental contaminants elevate cortisol levels in teleost fish - Effect sizes depend on contaminant class and duration of experimental exposure.

Glucocorticoid hormones (GCs) help vertebrates maintain homeostasis during and following challenging events. Short-term elevations in GC levels are necessary for survival, whereas longer-term changes can lead to reduced reproductive output and immunosuppression. Persistent environmental contaminants (ECs) are widespread globally.

Facile isolation and analysis of sporopollenin exine from bee pollen.

We present facile methods to obtain purified sporopollenin exine capsules, and provide mass balances for classical and novel purification procedures. An ionic liquid, tetrabutyl phosphonium hydroxide turned out to be the most effective in removing the intine wall. The sporopollenin capsules were investigated by fluorescent microscopy, AFM, solid-state NMR and infrared Raman spectroscopy.

Surface Layer Modification of Poly(d,l-lactic- co-glycolic acid) Nanoparticles with Targeting Peptide: A Convenient Synthetic Route for Pluronic F127-Tuftsin Conjugate.

Nanoparticles consisting of biodegradable poly(d,l-lactic- co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) are promising carriers for drug molecules to improve the treatment of tuberculosis. Surface modifiers, such as Pluronic F127, are essential for biocompatibility and for the protection against particle aggregation. This study demonstrates a successful approach to conjugate Pluronic F127 coated PLGA nanoparticles with Tuftsin, which has been reported as a macrophage-targeting peptide.

Effect of phosphorus precursors on the structure of bioactive calcium phosphate silicate systems.

The main aim of this work was to synthesize calcium phosphate silicate bioceramics by a low energy-consuming sol-gel method applying various phosphorous precursors (triethyl phosphate, phosphoric acid, and ammonium hydrogen phosphate). The investigations concentrated on the influence of phosphorous initial compounds on the bond and crystalline structures and the material quality. The application of the alkoxide and inorganic P-precursors results in considerably different textures.

A novel pulse scheme for multiple quantum excitation, SFAM to enhance the sensitivity of MQMAS experiments.

The basic MQMAS sequence consists of two hard pulses, one excites the equilibrium population to MQ (Multiple Quantum) coherence, and the other converts back to detectable coherence after some evolution time t1 (Medek et al., 1995). Unfortunately the MQ excitation and conversion processes are very inefficient due to the nonlinear nature of MQ processes.

An alternative solution for computer controlled tuning and matching of existing NMR probes.

Tuning and matching of NMR probes is necessary for many fields of NMR application including temperature dependent NMR, thermoporometry and cryoporometry, or when significantly different types of samples are measured in automation using sample changers. Mismatch of the probe is an especially critical issue in the case of high magnetic fields, polar or ionic solvents, or extreme thermal conditions. Careful tuning is particularly important for quantitative NMR measurements.

PIC microcontroller based external fast analog to digital converter to acquire wide-lined solid NMR spectra by BRUKER DRX and Avance-I spectrometers.

Concerning many former liquid or hybrid liquid/solid NMR consoles, the built in Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADCs) are incapable of digitizing the fids at sampling rates in the MHz range. Regarding both strong anisotropic interactions in the solid state and wide chemical shift dispersion nuclei in solution phase such as (195)Pt, (119)Sn, (207)Pb etc., the spectrum range of interest might be in the MHz range.

Fast calculation of DNMR spectra on CUDA-enabled graphics card.

During the past few years, general-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) have become rather popular in the high performance computing community. In this study, we present an implementation of the simulation of dynamic nuclear magnetic resonance (DNMR) spectra. The algorithm is based on the kinetic Monte Carlo method and therefore can benefit from the multithreaded architecture of the GPGPU.

Structural characterization of gel-derived calcium silicate systems.

The main aim of this study is to synthesize calcium silicate ceramics that exhibit suitable properties to be used for biomedical applications. In the present work, attention was paid to the understanding of processing-structure relationships. A particular effort was made to clarify the identification of Ca-O-Si bonds by means of spectroscopy.

Simulation of DNMR spectra using propagator formalism and Monte Carlo method.

A new program-ProMoCS-is presented for the simulation of dynamic nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. Its algorithm is based on the Monte Carlo method as the one of the previously introduced MC-DNMR but the theory of ProMoCS is explained by using the statistical approach of propagator formalism. Our new program is suitable for the calculation of dynamic NMR spectra of spin systems up to 12 1/2 spin nuclei, several conformers and any type of exchange between them.

Monte Carlo simulation of DNMR spectra of coupled spin systems.

A new program MC-DNMR is presented for the simulation of dynamic nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. The algorithm is a Monte Carlo type method based on the extension of single spin vector model to coupled spin systems. This extension is explained in detail and the theory is justified by examples.

Hardware modification of a 7 mm MAS NMR probe to a single-crystal goniometer.

Tensorial terms of the Hamiltonian can be measured by solid-state single-crystal nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy which requires a goniometer NMR probehead. Goniometer probes; however, are not standard parts of solid NMR spectrometers and are available only at a much higher price than magic-angle spinning (MAS) probeheads widely used in research. Due to requirements of MAS experiments, modern probeheads are designed for small ceramic rotors, which are 1-4 mm in diameter, to reach very high angular frequencies, so there are several older 7 mm MAS probeheads used rarely todays in NMR laboratories.

N-substituted trimethylsilylcarbamates as silylating and/or methoxime derivatizing reagents for gas chromatographic analysis.

N-Substituted trimethylsilylcarbamates were tested as derivatizing reagents for gas chromatographic analysis. N,N-Dimethyltrimethylsilylcarbamate was found to be a suitable agent for direct trimethylsilylation of the salts of alkaloids without previous liberation of the bases. N-Methoxy-N,O-bistrimethylsilylcarbamate was found to react simultaneously and quantitatively with the hydroxy and keto groups of steroids, resulting in the corresponding methoxime trimethylsilyl derivatives.