Comparative GC-EAD Responses of A Specialist (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Microplitis croceipes</Emphasis>) and A Generalist (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cotesia marginiventris</Emphasis>) Parasitoid to Cotton Volatiles Induced by Two Caterpillar Species

Plants emit volatile blends that may be quantitatively and/or qualitatively different in response to attack by different herbivores. These differences may convey herbivore-specific information to parasitoids, and are predicted to play a role in mediating host specificity in specialist parasitoids. Here, we tested the above prediction by using as models two parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) of cotton caterpillars with different degree of host specificity: Microplitis croceipes, a specialist parasitoid of Heliothis spp., and Cotesia marginiventris, a generalist parasitoid of caterpillars of several genera including Heliothis spp. and Spodoptera spp. We compared GC-EAD (coupled gas chromatography electroantennogram detection) responses of both parasitoid species to headspace volatiles of cotton plants damaged by H. virescens (a host species for both parasitoids) vs. S. exigua (a host species for C. marginiventris). Based on a recent study in which we reported differences in the EAG responses of both parasitoids to different types of host related volatiles, we hypothesized that M. croceipes (specialist) would show relatively greater GC-EAD responses to the herbivore-induced plant volatile (HIPV) components of cotton headspace, whereas C. marginiventris (generalist) would show greater response to the green leaf volatile (GLV) components. Thirty volatile components were emitted by cotton plants in response to feeding by either of the two caterpillars, however, 18 components were significantly elevated in the headspace of H. virescens damaged plants. Sixteen consistently elicited GC-EAD responses in both parasitoids. As predicted, C. marginiventris showed significantly greater GC-EAD responses than M. croceipes to most GLV components, whereas several HIPV components elicited comparatively greater responses in M. croceipes. These results suggest that differences in the ratios of identical volatile compounds between similar volatile blends may be used by specialist parasitoids to discriminate between host-plant and non-host-plant complexes.     

Effect of layered silicates on fibril formation and properties of PCL/PLA microfibrillar composites

The study deals with improvement of poly(?‐caprolactone) (PCL) parameters by in situ forming of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) fibrils. This structure is achieved by preparation of the melt‐drawn microfibrillar composite (MFC) from the PCL/PLA 80/20 blend containing the organophilized montmorillonite (oMMT) added using various mixing protocols. Improved mechanical behavior corresponds to the micron‐sized fibrils formation and reinforcement of both polymer components by oMMT, and to increased crystalline phase content in the fibrillar PLA phase. Effective melt drawing is only possible after the rheological parameters of the polymer components have been modified by oMMT where the clay addition method and content are of primary importance. From the results obtained, it follows that the role of oMMT in MFC is quite complex, numerous clay‐induced effects may be contradictory and must be harmonized to achieve PCL‐based biodegradable MFCs with improved parameters. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43061.     

Oxidative stability of stripped and nonstripped borage and evening primrose oils and their emulsions in water

Oxidative stability of stripped and nonstripped borage and evening primrose oils and their emulsions in water was evaluated. The results indicated that column chromatographic techniques provide an effective means for stripping vegetable oils of their minor components. However, some minor components may be retained in the stripped oils. The minor components in borage and evening primrose oils significantly (P<0.05) influenced their oxidative stability in the dark. In contrast, the behavior of endogenous antioxidants in borage and evening primrose oil-in-water emulsions, according to the “polar paradox” theory, was difficult to evaluate. Correlations existed between peroxide value (PV) and conjugated dienes (CD) (P<0.05) as well as 2-thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) and hexanal content (P<0.01) for most oils and emulsion systems. Therefore, CD and TBARS may generally be used to assess the oxidative stability of borage and evening primrose oils and their oil-in-water emulsions in addition to or in place of PV and headspace volatiles, respectively.     

Characterization of Lipid Components in Two Microalgae for Biofuel Application

A full characterization of lipid components is critical for selecting the most suitable microalgae and for downstream processing for biofuel production. This study demonstrates extraction, quantification, and diversity of lipid components from two microalgae of different types. For total lipid quantification, three extraction methods were compared and the method of pre-drying, dry ice-assisted grinding, and sequential solvent extraction gave the highest total lipid recovery. For lipid class composition determination, the photosynthetic Nannochloropsis contained 37.0% polar lipids, 41.1% triacylglycerols, and 12.5% unsaponifiable matter, whereas, the heterotrophic Schizochytrium had much less polar lipids and unsaponifiable matter. Further separation and quantification showed that Nannochloropsis contained more glycolipids (37.1% of total polar lipids) than that in Schizochytrium (14.3%), while Schizochytrium contained much more phospholipids (85.7%) than that in Nannochloropsis (44.7%). The major components in unsaponifiable matter of Nannochloropsis were hydrocarbon and cholesterol (55.8 and 37.7% of the total GC quantifiable matter), which only accounted for 29.3% of total unsaponifiable matter. For Schizochytrium, 15.4% squalene, 28.9% cholesterol, and 43.2% stigmasta-4,7,22-trien-3-ol were found in its GC quantifiable matter, and the total quantified hydrocarbon and sterols accounted for 50.5% of unsaponifiable matter. The lipid compositions of the two types of microalgae are very different, therefore, processing performance, such as lipid extraction and conversion to biodiesel may be different. Similar lipid characterization for other biofuel types of microalgae needs to be made to ensure optimal biofuel processing and fuel quality.     

Analytische Differenz-IR-Spektrometrie von Mehrkomponentenkunststoffen und Copolymeren. I. Identifizierung der Komponenten in Polymergemischen

The introduction of computer-assisted IR and FTIR spectrometers has greatly enlarged the possibilities of qualitative and quantitative analysis of macromolecular multi-component systems. By using the digitally stored standard spectra of the components of a system the composition of this system can be evaluated under the condition that spectral superposition is valid. Since this condition is frequently invalid it is preferable, for the analysis of a system with n spectroscopically defined components, to choose n compositions within an optimal range within the (n — 1) dimensional Gibbs diagram. In real polymer blends with crystallizable components the degree of crystallinity of these components will be lower than in the unmixed polymers. This is probably due to the mutual interpenetration of the noncrystalline ranges of the different polymers. Highly filled materials can be identified quite reliably when the filler or reinforcing material is monodisperse. This ist the case, e.g., with dental cements (fillings). Organically filled construction materials with low concentrations of binder (e.g., fiber board) can be identified by difference spectrometry when the characteristic absorptions of the binder will not coincide with strong bands of the filler. — Artefacts may falsify a difference spectrum. Origins and consequences of artefacts will be discussed.     

Nitrogen-Containing Compounds in the Scent Gland Secretions of European Cladonychiid Harvestmen (Opiliones,Laniatores, Travunioidea)

The exocrine secretions from prominently developed prosomal scent glands in four species of the European laniatorean harvestman genus Holoscotolemon (Laniatores, Travunioidea, Cladonychiidae) were analyzed by gas chromatography – mass spectrometry. Two major alkaloidal compounds were detected: Nicotine accounted for more than 97% of the secretion in Holoscotolemon jaqueti and H. oreophilum, whereas the chemically related nicotinoid alkaloid anabaseine was the major compound in H. lessiniense. In addition, a series of minor nitrogen-containing components was found, namely 3-(1-methyl-2-piperidinyl)-pyridine and anabasine, in H. jaqueti and H. oreophilum, and anabasine together with 2,3′-bipyridyl in H. lessiniense. By contrast, extracts of adult H. unicolor did not show any components. In one juvenile specimen of H. unicolor, however, low amounts of alkyl pyrazines (dimethyl-isobutyl- and dimethyl-isopentylpyrazines) were detected. Nitrogen-containing components previously were found in Sclerobunus robustus (an American travunioid harvestman), so scent gland-derived alkaloids may be widespread or even common in the Travunioidea. Alkaloids have not been reported for other opilionid scent gland secretions outside the Travunioidea, and we hypothesize that they may be the phylogenetically ancestral allomones in the Laniatores, having been reduced and replaced by a phenol- and benzoquinone-rich chemistry in the more derived grassatorean taxa.     

Pheromone Components from Body Scales of Female <Emphasis Type="Italic">Anarsia lineatella</Emphasis> Induce Contacts by Conspecific Males

Pheromonal communication of adult peach twig borers, Anarsia lineatella Zeller (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), was reinvestigated based on recent findings that virgin female-baited traps were more attractive to mate-seeking males than a two-component synthetic sex pheromone consisting of (E)-5-decen-1-yl acetate (1000 μg) and (E)-5-decen-1-ol (100 μg), suggesting that females use additional pheromone components. Hypothesizing that these additional components may be released from body parts other than abdominal sex pheromone glands, we extracted female body scales and analyzed aliquots by coupled gas chromatographic–electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) and GC–mass spectrometry. Eight straight-chain and four methylated aliphatic hydrocarbons, as well as two acetates, all elicited responses from excised male antennae. In laboratory experiments with synthetic candidate pheromone components, a combination of octadecyl acetate, (R)-11-methyltricosane, and (S)-11-methyltricosane in the presence of gland-derived sex pheromone components were shown to elicit contact of female decoys by males. However, body pheromone components did not enhance attractiveness of sex pheromone components in field trapping experiments, suggesting that they are effective only at close range and that other stimuli are responsible for superior attractiveness of female-baited traps.     

VOLUME-BASED THERMODYNAMICS GLOBAL PHASE STABILITY ANALYSIS

In this study we propose a method for phase stability analysis at pressure and temperature specifications, in the frame of a “volume-based” thermodynamics. The formulation of the tangent plane distance (TPD) criterion in terms of the Helmholtz free energy is used in this work for testing phase thermodynamic stability at p-T conditions, using component molar densities as primary variables. The phase stability problem is non-convex; the TPD function may exhibit multiple local minima and saddle points, the use of global optimization methods for its minimization being appropriate. For the unconstrained minimization of the TPD function we use the tunneling global optimization method, which has shown its ability in efficiently solving difficult non-convex, highly nonlinear problems. The method is tested for a variety of mixtures ranging from binaries to mixtures with many components, with emphasis on difficult conditions. The proposed method proved to be an efficient and reliable tool for phase stability analysis.     

High-Performance Liquid Chromatographic Analysis of an Ancient Tyrian Purple Dyeing Vat from Israel

The high-performance liquid chromatographic technique is utilized to analyze the dye components of crude “Tyrian Purple” residues obtained from modern Murex (Trunculariopsis) trunculus sea snails and from an archaeological source. This is the first time that this technique has been used to analyze these raw pigments. Previously, chromatographic analyses of cloth stains and textile vat dyeings produced from contemporary snails were published. The modern purple pigment analyzed in this study was produced from excised hypobranchial glands of trunculus snails, and the archaeological purple residue investigated was found on the interior of a potsherd from Tel Kabri, Israel. The two pigments studied showed nearly identical chromatographic fingerprints: The pigments consisted of the same four indigoid components and with matching compositions. The dyes found were indigotin, monobromoindigotin, dibromoindigotin, and a fourth colorant that may be dibromoindirubin. The following conclusions can be made regarding the archaeological sample: (1) the ancient potsherd bearing the purple pigment was from an ancient dyeing vat; (2) the biological provenance of the archaeological dyestuff was most probably Murex trunculus mollusks; and (3) the Mediterranean snails used for the vat were likely collected at or near the Akhziv beach area in Israel. This study indicates that a biological and geographical chromatographic mapping of the dye components of porphyra snails can be developed to assist in provenance determinations of archaeological purple pigments.     

Water slug injection containing n polymers in porous media

Injection of water containing dissolved chemicals is an efficient oil recovery technique. One of the problems of this method is the loss of the chemical components due to interactions between rock and fluid. In polymer injection, adsorption may happen and lead to low process efficiency. The interaction between rock and fluid is governed by the adsorption isotherm, which relates the polymer concentration in water with the adsorbed amount on the rock. In this paper the problem of oil displacement by a water slug containing n chemical components that may be adsorbed is analyzed. The system of conservation laws is solved and the structure of the solution for the case of Henry's adsorption isotherm is completely described. The concentration profile of each component and the chromatographic cycle is calculated through simple expressions. The complete and detailed solution for the case of slug injection containing three chemical components is presented. The general solution developed can be used to model several Enhanced Oil Recovery techniques, in which the chemical components adsorb in porous media following Henry's adsorption isotherm.     

Double-bond location in monounsaturated fatty acids by dimethyl disulfide derivatization and mass spectrometry: Application to analysis of fatty acids in pheromone glands of four lepidoptera

A rapid analytical procedure for the determination of the position of double bonds in mixtures of monounsaturated fatty acid methyl esters has been developed. The method is based on direct capillary GC-MS-EI analysis of dimethyl disulfide adducts. The procedure was applied to mixtures of monounsaturated fatty esters from pheromone gland extracts of three tortricids from theChoristoneura genus,C. fumiferana, C. occidentalis, andC. pinus pinus, and one noctuid from the Plusiinae subfamily,Plusia chalcites. A correlation was found between the known major pheromone components in the four species with the corresponding fatty acids. Some of the additional fatty acids may be precursors to as yet unidentified minor pheromone components, present in extremely small quantities, in these species.On sabbatical leave from the Institute of Plant Protection, Volcani Center, Bet Dagan 50 250, Israel.     

Morphology and electric conductivity controlling of in situ polymerized poly(decamethylene dodecanoamide)/polyaniline composites

In situ polymerization was proved to be an effective method to prepare composites with combined properties of two intrinsic different components. In this study, poly(decamethylene dodecanoamide) (polyamide 1012, PA1012) powders with controlled morphologies and crystal forms were obtained by antisolvent precipitation, whose morphology and crystal forms were strongly dependent on the types and temperatures of antisolvents. PA1012/polyaniline (PA1012/PANI) composites with different morphologies were manufactured through in situ polymerization. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy results revealed a strong interaction between PA1012 and PANI components. PANI components were in situ polymerized from aniline monomers on the surface of PA1012 powders, forming a composite aggregates in solution. The conductivity of different PA1012/PANI composite powders was about 10⁻⁵–10⁻³ S/cm, which could successfully meet the requirement of antistatic coating. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47041.     

Synthetic routes and lipase-inhibiting activity of long-chain α-keto amides

Synthetic routes to primary and N-alkyl α-keto amides are presented in this paper. Primary α-keto amides may be prepared by using an aldehyde as starting material. Commercially available α-keto acids may be coupled in high yield with primary amines by the mixed carbonic anhydride method affording N-alkyl α-keto amides. Alternatively, N-alkyl α-keto amides may be prepared by coupling long-chain α-hydroxy acids with amino components, followed by oxidation with pyridinium dichromate or NaOCl in the presence of 4-acetamido-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy free radical. The α-keto amide derivatives prepared according to these procedures were tested for their ability to form stable monomolecular films at the air/water interface. The inhibition of porcine pancreatic lipase by the α-keto amides, spread as mixed films with 1,2-dicaprin, was studied with the monolayet technique. Among the compounds tested in this study, methyl 2-[(2-ketododecanoyl)aminol]hexadecanoate was shown to be the most potent inhibitor, causing a 50% decrease in lipase activity at a 0.09 molar fraction.     

Rust-red grain beetle,Cryptolestes ferrugineus,and flat grain beetle,Cryptolestes pusillus: Antennal and behavioral responses to synthetic components of their aggregation pheromones

Antennal and behavioral responses of the rust-red grain beetle,Cryptolestes ferrugineus, and the flat grain beetle,C. pusillus, to synthetic samples of the macrocyclic lactones reported to comprise their aggregation pheromones were investigated. Electroantennogram (EAG) recordings were obtained successfully from both species for the first time. Females of both species showed larger EAGs than males. The EAGs ofC. ferrugineus showed a high degree of specificity for conspecific aggregation pheromone components;C. pusillus showed much less specificity. Behavioral tests were conducted using two-choice pitfall bioassays. Separation of the results into the two effects of activity stimulation and direction finding showed that both effects contributed to the overall response, although sometimes to different extents. The strain ofC. pusillus studied responded equally well to both components of its pheromone, whereas it had been reported previously that only one was active, the other acting as a Synergist and eliciting no response when tested alone. With both species, behavioral response was elicited with a single lactone, suggesting that it might not be necessary to use both components for field use. Particularly surprising was thatC. pusillus showed a greater response to the pheromone components ofC. ferrugineus than to its own. Aeration of the two species and thermal desorption of the collected volatiles confirmed production of the expected lactones, and aeration of authentic lactones showed that the response was not due to the C.ferrugineus pheromone components being markedly more volatile. This response, which seems to be an actual preference, is the first to be discovered among the cucujid beetles and encourages optimism that a practical lure for various species may not need to be as complex as originally feared.     

Novel type of sex pheromone structure identified fromStigmella malella (Stainton) (Lepidoptera: Nepticulidae)

Short-chain unsaturated chiral methyl carbinols are identified as a new class of lepidopteran pheromone components. The natural female-produced pheromone of the banded apple pigmyStigmella malella (=Nepticula malella) (Stainton) (Lepidoptera: Nepticulidae) was identified to be a mixture of (S)-(E)-6,8-nonadien-2-ol and (S)-(Z)-6,8-nonadien-2-ol. For monitoring traps, a 10:3E:Z blend at 100–1000 µg is recommended. It is suggested that pheromones with similar structures may be specific to Nepticulidae and other related microlepidopteran families.     

An extrapolation procedure for determining solubilities of mixtures

Summary Successive extractions of mixtures are used to determine the percentage of the more soluble components present. A plot of the amount extractedvs. the extraction number results in a section of a hyperbola, which is then extrapolated to the limiting value. The solubility thus obtained is independent of arbitrary ratios of weights of solute to solvent. The method is applied to the determination of the alcohol-soluble fraction of sugar cane wax, and a laboratory extractor operating at constant temperature is described. Also the method may be used to analyze other extraction data,e.g., extraction with the Soxhlet extractor, to determine the amount of soluble material left unextracted after a given time.     

The scarab beetleAnomala albopilosa sakishimana utilizes the same sex pheromone blend as a closely related and geographically isolated species,Anomala cuprea

Two components were identified in the sex pheromone system of the green chafter,Anomala albopilosa sakishimana Nomura: (R,Z)-5-(–)-(oct-1-enyl)oxacyclopentan-2-one (buibuilactone) and (R,Z)-5-(–)-(dec-1-enyl)oxyacyclopentan-2-one (japonilure), which have been previously identified as sex pheromone constituents ofA. cuprea andA. octiescostata. A female-specific minor component, (R,E)-5-(–)-(oct-1-enyl)oxacyclopentan-2-one, did not seem to be involved in pheromonal communication because it was not EAD active, but its role remained unclear. A synthetic blend of the two components captured significantly more beetles than any other treatments. Nevertheless, the fact that both the synthetic sex pheromone and field-captured female beetles were weak lures convinced us that the sex pheromone system may be only part of a complex communication system, probably involving plant volatiles. Although the sex pheromone was released during both the scotophase and photophase, there was an increase of 60% in the photophase.     

Estimation of solubility parameter components of solutes and polymers using heat of vaporization and heat of sorption of solutes

In a recent study, a two‐dimensional solubility parameter model was used to correlate the heat of solution for solutes ranging from n‐alkanes to alcohols, dissolved in isotatic polypropylene (PP), poly(ethyl ethylene) (PEE), and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). When literature data of solubility parameter components of solutes were used, the correlation had some scattering for solutes with low values of cohesive energy density. In this study, the components of solubility parameters of solutes and polymers were estimated from cohesive energy and heat of sorption of solutes. Good correlation was obtained for the specific heat of sorption (ΔU_sorp/V) for solutes ranging from n‐alkanes to alcohols, and PDMS had a polar component as previously estimated. Free volume effect in solution process may be the source of a small systematic deviation from the model. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

One-step analysis of major bile components in human bile using 1H NMR spectroscopy

Human gallbladder bile dissolved in dimethyl-sulfoxide provides sharp and resolved signals for major bile components in ¹H NMR spectra. Characteristic well-resolved marker signals that invariably appear in ¹H NMR spectra of bile were identified for cholesterol (H18 methyl signal at 0.643 ppm), lipids (glycerol CH signal at 5.064 ppm), total bile acids (H18 signals in the range 0.520–0.626 ppm), total glycine conjugated bile acids (NH signal at 6.958 ppm), total taurine conjugated bile acids (NH signal at 7.646 ppm), and urea (NH₂ signal near 5.48 ppm), which enabled their rapid and accurate analysis. Excellent linearity and precision of quantitative analysis was observed for all the identified bile components (R ²>0.99 for all). The method was demonstrated on gallbladder bile from 19 patients with gallbladder diseases. Urea in bile was identified by NMR for the first time and its quantitative analysis, along with several other bile components, is presented. The majority of the bile components could be analyzed in a single step. Accurate and rapid quantification of several bile components noninvasively by using the method presented herein may have far-reaching implications in the study of bile acid metabolism and pathophysiology of various hepatobiliary and gastrointestinal diseases.     

Weighted‐Covariance Factor Decomposition of Varma Models Applied to Forecasting Quarterly U.S. Real GDP at Monthly Intervals

Suppose a vector autoregressive moving‐average model is estimated for m observed variables of primary interest for an application and n–m observed secondary variables to aid in the application. An application indicates the variables of primary interest but usually only broadly suggests secondary variables that may or may not be useful. Often, one has many potential secondary variables to choose from but is unsure which ones to include in or exclude from the application. The article proposes a method called weighted‐covariance factor decomposition (WCFD), comparable to Stock and Watson's method here called principle‐components factor decomposition (PCFD), for reducing the secondary variables to fewer factors to obtain a parsimonious estimated model that is more effective in an application. The WCFD method is illustrated in the article by forecasting quarterly observed U.S. real GDP at monthly intervals using monthly observed four coincident and eight leading indicators from the Conference Board ( http://www.conference‐board.org ). The results show that root mean‐squared errors of GDP forecasts of PCFD‐factor models are 0.9–11.3% higher than those of WCFD‐factor models especially as estimation‐forecasting periods pass from the pre‐2007 Great Moderation through the 2007–2009 Great Recession to the 2009–2016 Slow Recovery.