bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Herbicidal action of 2‐hydroxy‐3‐alkyl‐1,4‐naphthoquinones
Authors: Jewess Philip J , Higgins James , Berry Kate J , Moss Stephen R , Boogaard Adrian B , Khambay Bhupinder P S
Published: January 2005

The main mode of herbicidal activity of 2‐hydroxy‐3‐alkyl‐1,4‐naphthoquinones is shown to be inhibition of photosystem II (PSII). The herbicidal andin vitroactivities have been measured and correlated with their (Log)octanol/water partition coefficients (LogKo/w). The length of the 3‐n‐alkyl substituent for optimal activity differed between herbicidal andin vitroactivity. The maximumin vitroactivity was given by the nonyl to dodecyl homologues (LogKo/wbetween 6.54 and 8.12), whereas herbicidal activity peaked with then‐hexyl compound (LogKo/w = 4.95). The effect of chain branching was also investigated using isomeric pentyl analogues substituted at position 3. All exhibited similar levels ofin vitroactivities but herbicidal activities differed, albeit moderately, with the exception of one analogue that was much less phytotoxic. Other modes of action were also investigated using two representative compounds. They did not show any activity on photosystem I or mitochondrial complex I, or generate toxic oxygen radicals by redox cycling reactions. Only moderate activity was found against mitochondrial complex III from plants, in contrast to much higher corresponding activity using an insect enzyme.

© 2002 Society of Chemical Industry
Cotton whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) resistance to organophosphate and pyrethroid insecticides in Pakistan
Authors: Ahmad Mushtaq , Arif M Iqbal , Ahmad Zahoor , Denholm Ian
Published: January 2005

Resistance to three organophosphate and four pyrethroid insecticides was monitored from 1992 to 2000 in field populations of adult whiteflies, Bemisia tabaci, from Pakistan using a leaf‐dip method. There was generally a very high resistance to dimethoate and deltamethrin, and a moderate resistance to monocrotophos during 1992 to 1996. From 1997 to 2000, resistance to these insecticides dropped to low levels because of less reliance on them for whitefly control, and introduction of new chemistries with novel modes of action that had no cross‐resistance to conventional insecticides. Concurrently, whitefly resistance to acephate, fenpropathrin, lambda‐cyhalothrin and bifenthrin mostly remained low. An insecticide resistance management strategy is recommended that particularly emphasizes the rotation of still‐effective insecticides from different chemical classes along with the use of novel chemicals and other tactics of integrated pest management.

© 2001 Society of Chemical Industry
Effect of cropping cycles and repeated herbicide applications on the degradation of diclofop‐methyl, bentazone, diuron, isoproturon and pendimethalin in soil
Authors: Piutti Séverine , Marchand Anne‐Laure , Lagacherie Bernard , Martin‐Laurent Fabrice , Soulas Guy
Published: January 2005

A greenhouse study was conducted to investigate the ability of four crops (wheat, corn, oilseed rape and soybean) to influence the degradation of bentazone, diclofop‐methyl, diuron, isoproturon and pendimethalin in soil. The present study showed that microbial biomass‐carbon was significantly higher in planted soils than in bulk soil, especially with wheat and corn, after several cropping cycles. The biomass in corn and soybean planted soils was adversely affected by bentazone but recovered after three cropping cycles. In wheat‐planted soils, diclofop‐methyl application resulted in persistent increase of the amount of microbial biomass. Bentazone did not show accelerated degradation even after five successive treatments, differing from diclofop‐methyl, for which two applications were sufficient to enhance significantly its rate of degradation. Enhanced degradation of diclofop‐methyl was even more pronounced in wheat‐planted soil. The rates of mineralisation of diuron, isoproturon and pendimethalin were not affected after the first cropping cycle, but were significantly increased in planted soils after five cropping cycles. The results confirm that plants may promote pesticide degradation in soil by stimulating biodegradation processes. In the case of diclofop‐methyl, stimulation of accelerated degradation was observed.

© 2002 Society of Chemical Industry
Adsorption–desorption studies of alachlor, metolachlor, EPTC, chlorothalonil and pirimiphos‐methyl in contrasting soils
Authors: Patakioutas Georgios , Albanis Triantafyllos A
Published: January 2005

Five soils with different organic matter contents ranging from 0.48 to 10.4% were used to study the adsorption and desorption of alachlor, metolachor, EPTC, chlorothalonil and pirimiphos‐methyl in batch experiments. The isotherm shapes according to Giles classification were S‐type for alachlor, metolachlor and chlorothalonil, changing to L‐type for the latter as the level of soil organic matter increased, and L‐type for EPTC and pirimiphos‐methyl. The adsorption isotherms fitted the Freundlich equation x/m = KfCe1/n. The Kf values increased with the increase of organic matter content. The amounts of pesticides adsorbed over a range of concentrations of 0.1–20 mg litre−1 reached 63.1% for alachlor, 69.2% for metolachlor, 89.3% for EPTC, 98.4% for chlorothalonil and 96.3% for pirimiphos‐methyl. The increase of the amounts desorbed with acetone indicated that the sorption of organic compounds onto organic matter occurred principally via weak London‐type induction forces, or dispersion forces which are characteristics of the physical adsorption process.

© 2002 Society of Chemical Industry
Characterization of Polypeptide Antibiotics of the Polymyxin Series by Liquid Chromatography Electrospray Ionization Ion Trap Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Authors: Govaerts Cindy , Orwa Jennifer , Schepdael Ann Van , Roets Eugène , Hoogmartens Jos
Published: January 2005

A selective reversed phase liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MSn) method is described for the identification of related compounds in commercial polymyxin B samples. Mass spectral data for these polypeptide antibiotics were acquired on a LCQ ion trap mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray ionization probe operated in the positive ion mode. The LCQ ion trap is ideally suited for the identification of the related substances because it provides on‐line LC/MSn capability. The main advantage of this hyphenated LC/MSn technique is the characterization of novel related substances without time‐consuming isolation and purification procedures. Using this method six novel related substances were partially identified in a polymyxin B bulk sample. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Conformational investigations on glycosylated asparagine‐oligopeptides of increasing chain length
Authors: Biondi Laura , Filira Fernando , Gobbo Marina , Rocchi Raniero
Published: January 2005

Stepwise solution syntheses of the homo‐oligomers Boc‐(Asn)n‐NHCH3 (n = 1–5; I1–5), Boc‐{[GlcNAc(Ac)3β]Asn}n‐NHCH3 (n = 1–8; II1–8), and Boc‐[(GlcNAcβ)Asn]n‐NHCH3 (n = 1–8; III1–8) are described. Members of the series III were obtained by deacetylation of the corresponding members of the series II. The conformational preferences of the N‐protected homo‐peptides of the three series were investigated by spectroscopic techniques. 1H‐NMR measurements were carried out in various solvents; the CD spectra were recorded in water, aqueous SDS and TFE. The poor solubility of the oligomers of the three series prevented FT‐IR measurements in solution. NMR and IR measurements indicate the existence of unordered structures containing some γ‐turns in the carbohydrate‐free oligomers and the presence of β‐turns in the glycosylated oligopeptides, whether acetylated or not. The CD spectra do not indicate the presence of organized structures. The sugar moieties apparently do not have a structure‐inducing effect on the asparagine homo‐oligomer main chain. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Probing structural requirements of fMLP receptor: On the size of the hydrophobic pocket corresponding to residue 2 of the tripeptide
Authors: Spisani Susanna , Traniello Serena , Cavicchioni Giorgio , Formaggio Fernando , Crisma Marco , Toniolo Claudio
Published: January 2005

The conformationally constrained f‐L‐Met‐Acnc‐L‐Phe‐OMe (n = 4,9–12) tripeptides, analogues of the chemoattractant f‐L‐Met‐L‐Leu‐L‐Phe‐OH, were synthesized in solution by classical methods and fully characterized. These compounds and the published f‐L‐Met‐Xxx‐L‐Phe‐OMe (Xxx = Aib and Acnc where n = 3, 5–8) analogues were compared to determine the combined effect of backbone preferred conformation and side‐chain bulkiness at position 2 on the relation of 3D‐structure to biological activity. A conformational study of all the analogues was performed in solution by FT‐IR absorption and 1H‐NMR techniques. In parallel, each peptide was tested for its ability to induce chemotaxis, superoxide anion production and lysozyme secretion from human neutrophils. The biological and conformational data are discussed in relation to the proposed model of the chemotactic receptor on neutrophils, in particular of the hydrophobic pocket accommodating residue 2 of the tripeptide. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Structural motifs in the maturation process of peptide hormones. The somatostatin precursor. I. A CD conformational study
Authors: Simonetti Mario , Di Bello Carlo
Published: January 2005

Synthetic peptides reproducing both the native domain around the dibasic cleavage site of pro‐somatostatin, and mutated sequences thereof, previously assayed in site‐directed mutagenesis experiments, have been studied by CD in different solvent systems, such as water, TFE/H2O, MeCN/H2O and aqueous SDS, in order to ascertain the ability of each solvent to stabilize secondary structural motifs. A combination of deconvolution methods and empirical calculations, that allow subtraction of the contributions due to unordered structures from the spectra, suggests that mainly two distinct families of ordered conformers containing α‐helix and/or structurally different β‐turns are present in solution, the relative stability of the different conformers depending on the nature of the solvent. The presence of β‐turns is in line with a previous NMR study in DMSO and DMSO/H2O. Comparison of the CD spectra in aqueous SDS of peptides undergoing processing with a sequence not processed in vivo shows that only the latter possesses a stable and detectable α‐helix population. This observation suggests that the structuration involving β‐turns but no α‐helix, which was observed by CD both in SDS and organic solvent/H2O mixtures at high water contents, might be of biological significance. The similarity of this structuration to molecular models obtained from NMR data in DMSO and DMSO/H2O is discussed. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Intestinal Transport of the Lactokinin Ala‐Leu‐Pro‐Met‐His‐Ile‐Arg through a Caco‐2 Bbe Monolayer
Authors: Vermeirssen V. , Deplancke B. , Tappenden K. A. , Camp J. Van , Gaskins H. R. , Verstraete W.
Published: January 2005

ACE inhibitory peptides are biologically active peptides that play a role in blood pressure regulation. When derived from food proteins during food processing or gastrointestinal digestion, these peptides could function as efficient agents in treating and preventing hypertension. However, in order to exert an antihypertensive effect by inhibition of the ACE enzyme, they have to reach the bloodstream intact. The aim of this research was to assess if the known ACE inhibitory peptide Ala‐Leu‐Pro‐Met‐His‐Ile‐Arg, derived from a tryptic digest of β‐lactoglobulin, could be absorbed through a Caco‐2 Bbe cell monolayer in an Ussing chamber and reach the serosal side undegraded. Samples of the mucosal compartment showed high ACE inhibitory activity. No or only little ACE inhibitory activity was detected in the serosal compartment. However, when the serosal sample was concentrated three‐fold, a substantial ACE inhibitory activity was registered. Concomitantly, HPLC and MS clearly showed the presence of Ala‐Leu‐Pro‐Met‐His‐Ile‐Arg in the mucosal compartment, whereas in the serosal compartment only MS was able to detect the heptapeptide. In conclusion, under the observed experimental conditions, the ACE inhibitory peptide Ala‐Leu‐Pro‐Met‐His‐Ile‐Arg was transported intact through the Caco‐2 Bbe monolayer, but in concentrations too low to exert an ACE inhibitory activity. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Purification of Angularin, A Novel Antifungal Peptide from Adzuki Beans
Authors: Ye X. Y. , Ng T. B.
Published: January 2005

An antifungal peptide was isolated from the adzuki bean with a procedure involving affinity chromatography on Affi‐gel blue gel and ion exchange chromatography on CM‐Sepharose. The protein designated angularin was adsorbed on both types of chromatographic media and possessed a molecular weight of 8 kDa. Angularin exhibited antifungal activity against a variety of fungal species including Mycospharella arachidiocola and Botrytis cinerea. It inhibited mycelial growth in B. cinerea with an IC50 of 14.3 µM. Fusarium oxysporum and Rhizoctonia solani were not inhibited. Angularin demonstrated inhibitory activity on translation in the rabbit reticulocyte lysate system (IC50 = 8.0 µM) but did not affect proliferation of splenocytes. The activity of HIV‐1 reverse transcriptase was inhibited in the presence of angularin. Its N‐terminal sequence was GEPGQKE. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Peptide based vaccine design: Synthesis and immunological characterization of branched polypeptide conjugates comprising the 276–284 immunodominant epitope of HSV‐1 glycoprotein D
Authors: Mező Gábor , Dalmadi Balázs , Mucsi Ilona , Bősze Szilvia , Rajnavölgyi Éva , Hudecz Ferenc
Published: January 2005

The importance of the length and conjugation site of a protective epitope peptide (276SALLEDPVG284) from glycoprotein D of herpes simplex virus in branched polypeptide conjugates has been investigated. A new set of peptides, with a single attachment site and truncated sequences, was prepared. The immunogenicity of conjugates and the specificity of antibody responses elicited were investigated in BALB/c, C57/Bl/6 and CBA mice. It was found that the covalent coupling of the peptide comprising the 276–284 sequence of gD through its Asp residue at position 281 did not influence the immunogenic properties of the epitope, while involvement of the side chain of Glu at position 280 almost completely abolished immunogenicity. These results clearly indicated that the conjugation site of the epitope peptide influenced the intensity and specificity of antibody responses. Comparison of the immunological properties of conjugates containing truncated gD peptides revealed the presence of two epitopes within the 276–284 region. One of the proposed epitopes is situated at the N‐terminal (276–281) region, while the other is located at the C‐terminal end of the sequence (279–284). Binding data demonstrated that some of the peptides comprising these epitopes induced gD‐specific responses in their conjugated form and also elicited an immune response that conferred protection against lethal HSV‐1 infection. The correlation of peptide‐ and gD‐specific antibody responses with the protective effect of the immune response is discussed. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The production of anti‐hexapeptide antibodies which recognize the S7, L6 and L13 ribosomal proteins of Escherichia coli
Authors: Metaxas Aristomenis , Tzartos Socrates , Liakopoulou‐Kyriakides Maria
Published: January 2005

Here we report the synthesis of the N‐terminal hexapeptide H‐Pro‐Arg‐Arg‐Arg‐Val‐Ile‐OH of the E. coli ribosomal protein S7, the C‐terminal hexapeptide H‐Lys‐Glu‐Ala‐Lys‐Lys‐Lys‐OH of L6 and the C‐terminal hexapeptide H‐Pro‐Gln‐Val‐Leu‐Asp‐Ile‐OH of L13. All peptides were prepared by SPPS following the Fmoc‐strategy, using DIC/HOBt and/or HBTU as coupling reagents and 2‐chlorotrityl chloride resin as the solid support. The carrier linked synthetic peptides were injected into rabbits and elicited an anti‐peptide response. These anti‐hexapeptide antibodies were found to recognize the corresponding peptides and proteins. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A colorimetric enzyme‐linked on‐bead assay for identification of synthetic substrates of protein tyrosine kinases
Authors: Martin Scott E. , Peterson Blake R.
Published: January 2005

Protein tyrosine kinases play key roles in the progression of numerous human diseases including several types of cancers. We report here a simple colorimetric assay for tyrosine kinase activity employing synthetic peptide substrates prepared on Tentagel synthesis beads. Phosphorylation of compounds on beads was detected with an antiphosphotyrosine antibody complexed with a secondary antibody–alkaline phosphatase conjugate. This assay may prove useful for the identification and characterization of synthetic substrates of this important class of enzymes. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Effect of C‐Terminal Helix Stabilization on Specific DNA Binding by Monomeric GCN4 Peptides
Authors: Zhang Min , Wu Bing , Zhao Hong , Taylor John W.
Published: January 2005

DNA binding by a 29‐residue, monomeric, GCN4 basic region peptide, GCN4br, as well as by peptide br‐C, a monomeric basic‐region analogue that is helix stabilized at its C‐terminal end by a Lys25, Asp29 side‐chain lactam‐bridged alanine‐rich sequence, was studied at 25°C in an aqueous buffer containing 100 mM NaCl. Mixing of both peptides with duplex DNA containing the cAMP‐responsive element (CRE) was accompanied by significant helix stabilization in the peptides, whereas mixing of the peptides with duplex DNA containing a scrambled CRE site was not. Peptide NBD‐br‐C was synthesized as a fluorescent probe to evaluate these peptide–DNA interactions further. Quantitative analysis of the fluorescence quenching of peptide NBD‐br‐C by CRE half‐site DNA indicated the formation of a 1 : 1 complex with a dissociation constant of 1.41 ± 0.22 µM. Competitive displacement fluorescence assays of CRE half‐site binding gave dissociation constants of 0.65 ± 0.09 µM for peptide br‐C and 3.9 ± 0.5 µM for GCN4br, which corresponds to a free energy difference of 1.1 kcal/mol that is attributed to the helix stabilization achieved in peptide br‐C. This result indicates that helix initiation by the α‐helical leucine zipper dimerization motif in native bzip proteins, such as GCN4, contributes significantly to the affinity of basic region peptides for their recognition sites on DNA. Our fluorescence assay should also prove useful for determining dissociation constants for CRE binding by other GCN4 basic region analogues under equilibrium conditions and physiological salt concentrations. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An efficient gel‐phase synthesis of peptides on a high capacity flexible crosslinked polystyrene support: comparison with Merrifield resin
Authors: Krishna Kumar I. M. , Rajasekharan Pillai V. N. , Mathew Beena
Published: January 2005

A highly solvating copolymer was prepared in high yield by introducing a flexible crosslinker, 1,4‐butanedioldimethacrylate, into the polystyrene matrix by a free radical aqueous suspension polymerization. A 2 mol% crosslinked resin showed rigidity and mechanical characteristics comparable to those of divinylbenzene‐crosslinked polystyrene (Merrifield resin, DVB‐PS) support. Swelling and solvation characteristics of the new resin, BDDMA‐PS, were much higher than DVB‐PS support in all solvents used for solid phase peptide synthesis. The diacrylate crosslinks in the resin network were found to be highly stable even after 48 h treatment with neat TFA, 6 N HCl and 6 N KOH at 110°C. To demonstrate the usefulness of the new resin in high capacity peptide synthesis, a typical difficult peptide, acyl carrier protein (ACP) fragment (65–74), was synthesized on commercially available 1 mol% crosslinked DVB‐PS and 2 mol% crosslinked BDDMA‐PS resins under identical conditions. A protocol using NMP/DMSO mediated coupling was employed for chain assembly. The yield and purity of the product from BDDMA‐PS resin was higher than when the DVB‐PS resin was used. The mechanistic reason behind the synthetic efficiency of the new resin was found to be its ability to induce random coil conformation to the growing peptide chains. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Conformational solution studies of neuropeptide γ using CD and NMR spectroscopy
Authors: Rodziewicz‐Motowidło Sylwia , Brzozowski Krzysztof , Łęgowska Anna , Liwo Adam , Silbering Jerzy , Smoluch Marek , Rolka Krzysztof
Published: January 2005

Neuropeptide γ is one of the largest members of the tachykinin family of peptides, exhibiting strong agonistic activity towards the NK‐2 tachykinin receptor. This peptide was synthesized by the solid‐phase method using the Fmoc chemistry. Circular‐dichroism spectroscopy (CD) investigations of this peptide were performed in phosphate buffer, in the presence of sodium dodecylsulphate (SDS) micelles and trifluoroethanol (TFE) solutions and in DMSO‐d6 using the 2D NMR technique in conjunction with two different theoretical approaches. The first assumes multiconformational equilibrium of the peptide studied characterized by the values of statistical weights of low‐energy conformations. These calculations were performed using three different force fields ECEPP/3, AMBER4.1 and CHARMM (implemented in the X‐PLOR program). The second method incorporates interproton distance and dihedral angle constraints into the starting conformation using the Simulated Annealing algorithm (X‐PLOR program). The CD experiments revealed that although the peptide studied is flexible in polar solvents, a tendency to adopt a helical structure was observed in the hydrophobic environment. The NMR data (NOE effects) indicate a helical or reverse structure in the Ile7–His12 fragment of the peptide studied in DMSO‐d6 solution. The results obtained cannot be interpreted in terms of a single conformation. Most of the conformations obtained with the ECEPP/3 force field possess a high content of a helical structure. None of the conformers, obtained with the AMBER4.1 and CHARMM force fields, can be considered as the dominant one. In all conformations several β‐turns were detected and in some cases γ‐turns were also found. But in fact, it is rather difficult to select the position of the secondary element(s) present in the structure of NPγ in solution. All conformers calculated with the X‐PLOR program (with using NMR derived distance and torsion angle constraints) are stabilized by several β‐turns. Common structural motives are a type IV β‐turn in the Gln6–His12 fragment. All conformations obtained using two approaches adopt very similar turn shapes in the middle region of molecule and a random structure on the N‐ and C‐terminal fragments. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Synthesis of heterotrimeric collagen peptides containing the α1β1 integrin recognition site of collagen type IV
Authors: Saccá Barbara , Moroder Luis
Published: January 2005

Collagen type IV provides a biomechanically stable scaffold into which the other constituents of basement membranes are incorporated, but it also plays an important role in cell adhesion. This occurs with collagen type IV mainly via the α1β1 integrin, and the proposed epitope involved in this type of collagen/integrin interaction corresponds to a non‐sequential R/Xaa/D motif, where the arginine and aspartate residues are provided by the α2 and α1 chains of the collagen molecule, respectively. Since the stagger of the three α chains in native collagen type IV is still unknown and different alignments of the chains lead to different spatial epitopes, two heterotrimeric collagen peptides containing the natural 457–469 sequences of the cell adhesion site were synthesized in which the single chains were assembled via disulfide bonds into the two most plausible α1α2α1′ and α2α1α1′ registers. The differentiated triple‐helical stabilities of the two heterotrimers suggest a significant structural role of the chain register in collagen, although the binding to α1β1 integrin is apparently less affected as indicated by preliminary experiments. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Conformation‐dependent side reactions in interstrand‐disulfide bridging of trimeric collagenous peptides by regioselective cysteine chemistry
Authors: Saccá Barbara , Barth Dirk , Musiol Hans‐Jürgen , Moroder Luis
Published: January 2005

Conversion of single‐chain or disulfide‐bridged dimeric collagenous peptides into Cys(Npys) derivatives as activated species for subsequent regioselective thiol/disulfide exchange reactions leads to side products whose origin and nature was determined by HPLC and ESI‐MS. In both cases the high tendency of the educts to self‐associate into triple‐helical homotrimers, as assessed by their dichroic properties in the reaction media, is responsible for the failure of this well established cysteine chemistry. Only by optimizing the synthetic strategy or by exploiting a kinetic control of the reaction, could these conformation‐dependent limitations be more or less efficiently bypassed for the regioselective assembly of heterotrimeric collagen model peptides crosslinked with artificial cystine knots. Copyright © 2002 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dielectric properties of Na0.25K0.25Bi0.5TiO3 lead‐free ceramics
Authors: Zhao Suchuan , Zhang Lina , Li Guorong , Wang Tianbao , Ding Aili
Published: January 2005

Na0.25K0.25Bi0.5TiO3 (NKBT50) lead‐free ceramics were prepared by solid‐state reaction. The dielectric property of the ceramics was investigated from room temperature to 400 °C. There exists a dielectric anomaly between room temperature and 150 °C for the unpoled ceramics sintered in air atmosphere while the anomaly disappears after the ceramic were poled or sintered in oxygen. It is believed that the dielectric anomaly is caused by defect dipoles related to oxygen vacancies due to the volatility of the bismuth component and the effect of poling to it is discussed. The materials undergo a ferroelectric‐antiferroelectric phase transition at 225 °C and the dielectric anomaly corresponding to this phase transition also is affected by oxygen vacancies. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Preface: phys. stat. sol. (b) 242/2
Authors: Szopa Marek , Mierzejewski Marcin , Lisowski Mariusz
Published: January 2005

This issue contains the Proceedings of the 28th International Conference of Theoretical Physics, ICTP2004 – Electron Correlations in Nano‐ and Macrosystems, which was held in Ustroń, Poland, from 2–7 September 2004. ICTP2004 followed the series of conferences organized by the Institute of Physics of the University of Silesia in Katowice, devoted biannually to the physics of condensed matter.

The main objective of the Conference was to bring together specialists working on the physics of electron correlations in nano‐ and macro‐regimes, with the intention of enhancing their mutual understanding and cooperation. The Conference was an international forum for the presentation and discussion of novel scientific ideas and experimental results. The programme of the conference consisted of 25 invited lectures, 11 contributed lectures and 27 papers presented during poster session. The contributions were devoted to problems related to the following subjects:

• Transport in low dimensional systems

• Carbon nanotubes and fullerenes

• Non Fermi liquid systems

• Superconductivity and Magnetism

• Quantum phase transitions

• New materials in magnetoelectronics

Among the participants were 88 scientists from 10 countries and 3 continents. The invited talks were presented by distinguished physicists: Hélène Bouchiat, Liviu Chibotaru, Ulrich Eckern, Klaus Ensslin, Jim Freericks, Raymond Frésard, Peter Hänggi, Heike Herper, Carsten Honerkamp, Helmut Keiter, Stefan Krompiewski, Tadeusz Lulek, Kazumi Maki, Nina Marković, Roman Micnas, Volker Meden, Andrzej M. Oleś, Thomas Pruschke, Marek Przybylski, Ken‐ichi Sasaki, Uri Sivan, Józef Spałek, Frank Steglich, Michael Thorwart and Roland Zeyher.

The Organizing Committee would like to express our gratitude to the International Scientific Committee and to all the speakers and contributors for their talks and posters. Special thanks are addressed to all the participants for their valuable discussions and stimulating atmosphere of the meeting. We express our thanks to the referees. Their work improved significantly the quality of papers presented in this issue. We are also indebted to the editorial staff of physica status solidi for their help. Our cooperation was smooth and efficient. Last but not least, we thank all the sponsors of the conference (see list).

On behalf of the organizers of ICTP2004
Antiulcerogenic activity of crude ethanol extract and some fractions obtained from aerial parts of Artemisia annua L.
Authors: Dias Patrícia Corrêa , Foglio Mary Ann , Possenti Ana , Christian Fachim Nogueira Débora , Ernesto de Carvalho João
Published: January 2005

The resulting enriched sesquiterpene lactone fraction and the crude ethanol extract of Artemisia annua L. aerial parts, showed antiulcerogenic activity when administered orally, on the indomethacin induced ulcer in rats. The sesquiterpene lactone fraction yielded three different polarity fractions on column chromatography as follows: non‐polar, medium polarity and polar fraction, When submitted to the same indomethacin‐induced ulcer in rats they resulted in different levels of inhibition of the ulcerative lesion index. The participation of nitric oxide was evaluated on an ethanol‐induced ulcer model which had a previous administration of L‐NAME, a NO‐synthase inhibitor. Under these conditions, the medium polarity fraction maintained the antiulcerogenic activity, suggesting that nitric oxide could not be involved in the antiulcerogenic activity. When the animal groups were treated with N‐ethylmaleimide, an alkylator of sulphhydryl groups, using the same experimental model, the medium polarity fraction maintained its antiulcerogenic activity, suggesting that the pharmacological mechanism is not related to non‐protein sulphydryl compounds. On the ethanol‐induced ulcer with previous indomethacin treatment, the medium polarity fraction lost its antiulcerogenic activity indicating that the active compounds of Artemisia annua L. increase the prostaglandin levels in the gastric mucosa. This hypothesis was reinforced by an increase of adherent mucus production by the gastric mucosa, produced by the medium polarity fraction on the hypothermic restraint stress induced ulcer model. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The effect of Phyllanthus amarus aqueous extract on blood glucose in non‐insulin dependent diabetic patients
Authors: Moshi Mainen J. , Lutale Janet J. K. , Rimoy Gerald H. , Abbas Zulfikar G. , Josiah Robert M. , Swai Andrew B. M.
Published: January 2005

The glycaemic response to 124.5 ± 9.3 (mean ± SD) g of pancakes was monitored in 21 non‐insulin dependent diabetic (NIDDM) patients while on oral hypoglycaemics, after a 1‐week washout period and after a 1‐week twice daily treatment with 100 mL of an aqueous extract from 12.5 g of powdered aerial parts of Phyllanthus amarus. After the 1‐week washout period, the fasting blood glucose (FBG) and postprandial blood glucose increased significantly compared with treatment on oral hypoglycaemics ( p < 0.05). After a 1‐week herbal treatment no hypoglycaemic activity was observed. Both FBG and postprandial blood glucose remained very similar to that recorded after the washout period ( p > 0.05). Both liver and renal functions based on alanine transaminase (ALAT) and serum creatinine, respectively, were not significantly affected by the use of the extract. Although the lymphocyte and monocyte levels were significantly decreased ( p < 0.05) and the granulocyte level was significantly increased after treatment ( p < 0.05) the overall total white blood cell (WBC) count and haemoglobin (Hb) were not significantly affected by the 1 week herbal treatment. We conclude that 1 week treatment with the aqueous extract of Phyllanthus amarus was incapable of lowering both FBG and postprandial blood glucose in untreated NIDDM patients. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The presence of antiamoebic constituents in Psyllium husk
Authors: Zaman Viqar , Manzoor Syed Munazza , Zaki Mehreen , Aziz Nauman , Gilani Anwar‐ul‐Hassan
Published: January 2005

The crude extract of psyllium husk (ispaghula) and its active constituent (petroleum fraction) caused varying degrees of growth inhibition in three different species of Entamoeba, i.e. Entamoeba histolytica, E. invadens and E. dispar. The inhibitory effect of the crude extract was in the dose range of 1–10 mg/mL, whereas a similar inhibitory effect was obtained with the petroleum fraction at a much lower dose (0.1–1.0 mg/mL), indicating that the active chemical(s) is/are concentrated in the petroleum fraction. These data support the traditional use of psyllium husk in amoebic dysentery. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Packaging handling evaluation methods in the grocery retail industry
Authors: Saghir Mazen , Jönson Gunilla
Published: January 2005

The grocery retail industry, with its large product volumes, low margins and fierce competition, is constantly seeking efficiency improvements in its supply chain. The grocery retail industry uses an immense amount of packaging and is directly affected by packaging logistics activities. There is, therefore, a potential for efficiency improvements in the grocery retail supply chain through the integration and development of new systems of packaging and logistics. Packaging handling is identified as one of the main activities that has a strong impact on the overall logistical cost of a grocery chain. This research article investigates packaging handling evaluation methods and discusses how these are employed to benefit the industry. Case studies, involving six major companies from the Swedish grocery retail industry, have been used to evaluate packaging and logistics activities. This work, together with a literature review, was used to identify the need for evaluative methods and the present availability of such methods. The results indicated a lack of sufficient and usable packaging handling evaluation methods in today's grocery and packaging industry especially from a logistical point of view. The paper also highlights the lack of systematization among the few methods used and discusses how these can be used to build a systematic and multifunctional evaluation model in order to utilize the information from different studies to build a knowledge base for the future. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of package size and temperature on the volume expansion of flexible permeable packages of Kimchi, a Korean fermented vegetable
Authors: Lim Jeewon , Park Eun Sook , Cheigh Hong Sik , Lee Dong Sun
Published: January 2005

The effect of package size and temperature on package volume expansion was investigated when P71197, a high CO2 permeability film of amorphous nylon laminate structure, was applied to packaging kimchi, a Korean ethnic fermented vegetable. The volume expansion, after an initial lag period, rapidly reached a maximum and then either decreased or stayed constant. A higher temperature and a larger package caused greater volume expansion within the experimental time span. Based on the criterion of ≤0.8 ml/g as a tolerable volume change, the appropriate window of package size and temperature has been suggested. The expanded volume was found to consist mainly of CO2 produced from kimchi, resulting in higher CO2 concentrations for higher temperatures and larger package sizes. The effect of package size on the volume expansion and gas composition can be explained by the differences in the ratio of surface area to filled weight among the packages. The effect of storage temperature can be explained by the difference in activation energy between CO2 production from the kimchi and gas permeation through the film. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Introduction of flexible packaging systems for toiletry products
Authors: Ikeda Yuji , Sasaki Haruo
Published: January 2005

Flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) are rapidly gaining in importance for manufacturers throughout the industrialized world. Lion Corporation is no exception in its need of FMS because of the great variety of toiletry and household products it produces. Toiletry products, such as toothpaste, detergent and shampoo, are our mainstay products, which account for 75% of our total sales. On our production lines, therefore, it is essential that they can be changed flexibly for the manufacture of ever‐changing products. Introduced in this report are some of our flexible packaging systems, which use carriers, robots, standardized shampoo bottles, etc., without relying on special tools or new parts for line change. Innovation of our flexible packaging systems for greater flexibility and cost reduction will continue in the future. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Characterization of the excited states of ethylene by MRCI
Authors: Yamamoto Shigeyoshi , Tatewaki Hiroshi , Diercksen Geerd H. F.
Published: January 2005

The excited states of ethylene are systematically analyzed and characterized according to the natural orbitals (NOs) resulting from multireference configuration interaction singles and doubles (MRCISD) calculations. By comparing the shapes and nodal structures of the NOs with those of hydrogen atomic orbitals, the Rydberg series can be classified. Two or three different types of Rydberg series appear within five excited states for each symmetry of D2h. For example, in the 1Ag symmetry there are three series having np and two nf hydrogen‐like atomic orbitals. Electronic correlation effects for the (π→π*) V state are also discussed on the basis of a complete active space self‐consistent field (CASSCF) calculation, showing that electron correlation effects merely within the valence space cannot explain contraction of the V state. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2005
Electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometric study of hydrogen‐bonding interactions of some disaccharides with lysine
Authors: Nagaveni V. , Prabhakar S. , Vairamani M.
Published: January 2005

The efficiency of formation of protonated heterotrimers of lysine with underivatised sugars (mono‐, di‐, and trisaccharides) and N‐acetylglucosamine (N‐AcGlc) was studied under electrospray ionisation conditions. The collision induced dissociation spectra of [Lys + sugar + NAcGlc + H]+ resulted in [Lys + NAcGlc + H]+ and [Lys + sugar + H]+ as the major product ions. Relative abundances of these two fragments reflect the extent of adduct formation of protonated lysine plus sugar, with reference to the reference compound NAcGlc. This relative abundance ratio was found to be characteristic of the sugar structure. In this way it was observed that the ability of lysine to form a protonated heterodimer with neutral sugars increases with an increase in the number of acetal oxygens. Lactose showed an anomalously high affinity for protonated Lys, possibly reflecting the axial hydroxyl at C4. The postulated involvement of the ϵ‐NH2 group of lysine in the formation of protonated heterodimers with sugars was supported by similar results of similar experiments with NH3 in place of lysine. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Proton mobility and main fragmentation pathways of protonated lysylglycine
Authors: Csonka István Pál , Paizs Béla , Lendvay György , Suhai Sándor
Published: January 2005

Theoretical model calculations were performed to validate the ‘mobile proton’ model for protonated lysylglycine (KG). Detailed scans carried out at various quantum chemical levels of the potential energy surface (PES) of protonated KG resulted in a large number of minima belonging to various protonation sites and conformers. Transition structures corresponding to proton transfer reactions between different protonation sites were determined, to obtain some energetic and structural insight into the atomic details of these processes. The rate coefficients of the proton transfer reactions between the isomers were calculated using the Rice‐Ramsperger‐Kassel‐Marcus (RRKM) method in order to obtain a quantitative measure of the time‐scale of these processes. Our results clearly indicate that the added proton is less mobile for protonated KG than for peptides lacking a basic amino acid residue. However, the energy needed to reach the energetically less favorable but–from the point of view of backbone fragmentation–critical amide nitrogen protonation sites is available in tandem mass spectrometers operated under low‐energy collision conditions. Using the results of our scan of the PES of protonated KG, the dissociation pathways corresponding to the main fragmentation channels for protonated KG were also determined. Such pathways include loss of ammonia and formation of a protonated α‐amino‐ϵ‐caprolactam. The results of our theoretical modeling, which revealed all the atomic details of these processes, are in agreement with the available experimental results. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Monitoring organic reactions with on‐line atmospheric pressure ionization mass spectrometry: the hydrolysis of isatin
Authors: Brum Jeffrey , Dell'Orco Philip , Lapka Sara , Muske Kenneth , Sisko Joseph
Published: January 2005

Time‐resolved electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS) is a powerful tool for interrogating solution‐phase reaction systems. Both mechanistic and kinetic information can be obtained using this technique. The title reaction offers the opportunity to examine the effects of different ionization scenarios with regard to monitoring reactant consumption and product formation. The hydrolysis of isatin was monitored in real time using a variety of ESI schemes: positive ion ([M + H]+, [M + Li]+, [M + Na]+) and negative ion [M − H]−. The utility of each ionization approach, with respect to the spectral features afforded for reaction tracking was examined. A comparison of first‐order hydrolysis kinetics data obtained using negative ion mass spectrometry is made with data acquired via an optical technique. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Immobilized artificial membrane chromatography with mass spectrometric detection: a rapid method for screening drug‐membrane interactions
Authors: Liu Hanlan , Carter Guy T. , Tischler Mark
Published: January 2005

A high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry method for measuring drug‐membrane interactions was developed using immobilized artificial membrane (IAM) fast‐screening mini‐columns. The HPLC mobile phase consisted of phosphate‐buffered saline (i.e., 5.0 mM phosphate buffer at pH 7.4, 1.35 mM KCl, and 68.5 mM NaCl) and acetonitrile. This method facilitated the measurement of IAM retention time of over ten compounds in one experiment, significantly reducing analysis time compared with the earlier IAM‐HPLC method. The particular electrospray source used demonstrated the ability to tolerate the high salt‐containing nonvolatile buffer used for retention time measurement. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Characterization of ammonium nitrate by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry
Authors: Zhao Xiaoming , Yinon Jehuda
Published: January 2005

Mass spectra of ammonium nitrate were recorded in both positive‐ and negative‐ion mode by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS) and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry with collision‐induced dissociation (ESI‐MS/MS‐CID). Characterization of ammonium nitrate by a series of typical cluster ions was further confirmed by using isotopically labeled ammonium nitrate (ammonium‐15N, nitrate‐15N, nitrate‐18O) and deuterated water. It was found that, at heated capillary temperatures in the range 55–150 °C, in the positive‐ion mode, cluster ions of the type [(NH4NO3)nNH4]+(n = 1–3) were dominant in the mass spectrum, which enables the characterization and identification of the integral ammonium nitrate molecule. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Resonant dissociation of polyatomic surface molecules by hyperthermal ions
Authors: Komarov V. V. , Popova A. M. , Stureiko I. O. , Schmidt L. , Jungclas H.
Published: January 2005

A theoretical approach is suggested for the fragmentation of polyatomic surface molecules by scattering of hyperthermal atomic and molecular ions. It is assumed that the surface molecules contain chains of identical diatomic valence groups as substructures. These chains can accumulate collective vibrational excitations (excimols), leading to subsequent nonstatistical molecular fragmentation. Low‐energy incident ions at any incident angle are assumed to be reflected from the surface at atomic distances by the Coulomb potential, which acts for only a short period of time (10−13–10−12s). During this reflection period, the component of ion velocity normal to the surface is negligible, so ions move across the surface in a process that can be considered as a grazing collision. Analytical expressions are obtained for the fragmentation probabilities of surface molecules in grazing collisions with atomic and molecular ions. The probability of these processes strongly depends on the molecular structure and the incident ion velocity. The interaction between hyperthermal ions and molecules forming the outermost surface layer yields fragment molecules as a result of the mutual excitation processes. The experimental data on fragments generated from a fluorinated surface by action of incident ions are analyzed within the framework of the suggested model. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Sequence verification of oligonucleotides by electrospray quadrupole time‐of flight mass spectrometry
Authors: Ni Jinsong , Chan Kelvin
Published: January 2005

The combination of electrospray ionization (ESI) and quadrupole time‐of‐flight (Q‐Tof) mass spectrometry presents a powerful tool to verify/determine the sequence of oligonucleotides. An ESI‐Q‐Tof instrument provides better sensitivity and much higher resolution compared with either ESI‐triple quadrupole or ESI‐ion trap devices. With high‐resolution capability, the quadrupole time‐of‐flight instrument can provide an isotope pattern to support the charge state assignment. This will improve the reliability of the assignments of sequence‐related w or a‐Base series ions and lead to accurate determination of the oligonucleotide sequence. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A rapid, automated approach to optimisation of multiple reaction monitoring conditions for quantitative bioanalytical mass spectrometry
Authors: Higton David M.
Published: January 2005

An improvement to the procedure for the rapid optimisation of mass spectrometry (PROMS), for the development of multiple reaction methods (MRM) for quantitative bioanalytical liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS), is presented. PROMS is an automated protocol that uses flow‐injection analysis (FIA) and AppleScripts™ to create methods and acquire the data for optimisation. The protocol determines the optimum orifice potential, the MRM conditions for each compound, and finally creates the MRM methods needed for sample analysis. The sensitivitiesof the MRM methods created by PROMS approach those created manually. MRM method development using PROMS currently takes less than three minutes per compound compared to at least fifteen minutes manually. To further enhance throughput, approaches to MRM optimisation using one injection per compound, two injections per pool of five compounds and one injection per pool of five compounds have been investigated. No significant difference in the optimised instrumental parameters for MRM methods were found between the original PROMS approach and these new methods, which are up to ten times faster. The time taken for an AppleScript to determine the optimum conditions and build the MRM methods is the same with all approaches. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.