Single Photon Counting With Synchronously Pumped Dye Laser Excitation

ABSTRACT

This article reviews the advances that have been made in the technique of pulse fluorometry with time-correlated single photon counting detection brought about by the introduction of mode-locked synchronously pumped dye laser excitation. High repetition rates and small pulse width permit high data collection rates and excellent time-resolution. A modern pulse fluorometer which allows efficient measurement of fluorescence decay curves as well as automated measurement of time-resolved fluorescence spectra and of fluorescence anisotropy decays is described in detail.     

Segmentbrücke aus textilbewehrtem Beton: Konstruktion,Fertigung, numerische Berechnung

Segmental Textile Reinrorced Concrete Bridge Design, Manufacturing and Numerical Simulation Concrete provides a brought variety of construction and design possibilities. The low tensile capacity of concrete is taken by reinforcement of steel, short fibres or textile fabrics. Textile reinforced concrete (TRC) is a high performance composite in which technical textiles made of high performance fibers are embedded in a fine‐grained concrete matrix. Because of the corrosion resistance of the textile materials, thick concrete covers as known in ordinary reinforced concrete are no longer needed. Slender new concrete elements extend concrete application to completely new fields and gives architects and engineers more design possibilities. Design, reinforcement concept, production, approval tests, and numerical simulations considering uncertain data are demonstrated for the first bridge made of textile reinforced concrete. It is shown that application of this new, sophisticated composite material is already possible, although more research is needed.     

Implications of sequential use of UV and ozone for drinking water quality

The formation of bromate levels exceeding the drinking water standard of 10 microg L-1 may impose the reduction of ozone doses used in the treatment of drinking water. This paper illustrates the procedure of evaluating the use of reduced ozone doses while implementing an additional UV disinfection step for an actual drinking water treatment plant. Ozonation was performed at low ozone doses in bench-scale experiments with a pretreated river water from the Paris area (France). At the low ozone dose of 0.5 mg L-1, bromate formation could be kept below 0.4 microg L-1, while inactivation of vegetative bacteria and UV-resistant viruses was calculated to exceed 5 log units, and a substantial decoloration (31% of the absorption at lambda=254 nm) was achieved. Based on the measured transient ozone and OH radical concentrations, the oxidation of micropollutants was calculated. Fast reacting micropollutants containing phenol, amine or double bond moieties, such as sulfamethoxazole, diclofenac and 17-alpha-ethinylestradiol, were completely oxidized. Slow-reacting synthetic micropollutants, e.g., atrazine, iopromide and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), were oxidized by only 20%, 20% and 10%, respectively, and the taste and odor compounds 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) and geosmin by 40% and 50%, respectively. The addition of an UV treatment step to the existing treatment train, which should guarantee disinfection of ozone-resistant pathogenic microorganisms, including Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts, has negligible effects on water matrix components but may induce significant transformation of micropollutants. Overall, the combination of ozonation at reduced doses and UV treatment leads to an improved water quality with regard to disinfection, oxidation of micropollutants and minimization of bromate.     

Selective Oxidation of Alcohols to Carbonyl Compounds Mediated by Fluorous‐Tagged TEMPO Radicals

Oxidation of primary, benzylic and secondary alcohols into their corresponding aldehydes and ketones with safe, inexpensive oxidants was achieved in good yields under mild conditions in the presence of catalytic amounts of 2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidine‐1‐oxyl (TEMPO) radicals bearing perfluoroalkyl substituents. These “fluorous‐tagged” TEMPOs were readily isolated from the reaction products by liquid‐liquid or solid‐phase extraction, considerably simplifying the purification step. Their recyclability was strongly influenced by the nature of the oxidizing system. The best results were obtained using either [bis(acetoxy)iodo]benzene (BAIB) or aqueous NaOCl as the primary oxidants. Fluorous TEMPO 10 could be reused up to six times in the BAIB oxidation of 1‐octanol with only minor loss of catalytic activity.     

Chronic Hyperkaliemia in Chronic Kidney Disease: An Old Concern with New Answers

Increasing potassium intake ameliorates blood pressure (BP) and cardiovascular (CV) prognoses in the general population; therefore the World Health Organization recommends a high-potassium diet (90–120 mEq/day). Hyperkalaemia is a rare condition in healthy individuals due to the ability of the kidneys to effectively excrete dietary potassium load in urine, while an increase in serum K⁺ is prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Hyperkalaemia prevalence increases in more advanced CKD stages, and is associated with a poor prognosis. This scenario generates controversy on the correct nutritional approach to hyperkalaemia in CKD patients, considering the unproven link between potassium intake and serum K⁺ levels. Another concern is that drug-induced hyperkalaemia leads to the down-titration or withdrawal of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASI) and mineralocorticoids receptors antagonists (MRA) in patients with CKD, depriving these patients of central therapeutic interventions aimed at delaying CKD progression and decreasing CV mortality. The new K⁺-binder drugs (Patiromer and Sodium-Zirconium Cyclosilicate) have proven to be adequate and safe therapeutic options to control serum K⁺ in CKD patients, enabling RASI and MRA therapy, and possibly, a more liberal intake of fruit and vegetables.     

Fibrosis of Peritoneal Membrane as Target of New Therapies in Peritoneal Dialysis

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is an efficient renal replacement therapy for patients with end-stage renal disease. Even if it ensures an outcome equivalent to hemodialysis and a better quality of life, in the long-term, PD is associated with the development of peritoneal fibrosis and the consequents patient morbidity and PD technique failure. This unfavorable effect is mostly due to the bio-incompatibility of PD solution (mainly based on high glucose concentration). In the present review, we described the mechanisms and the signaling pathway that governs peritoneal fibrosis, epithelial to mesenchymal transition of mesothelial cells, and angiogenesis. Lastly, we summarize the present and future strategies for developing more biocompatible PD solutions.     

The [1,2,4]Triazolo[4,3-a]pyridine as a New Player in the Field of IDO1 Catalytic Holo-Inhibitors

Inhibitors of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) are considered a promising strategy in cancer immunotherapy as they are able to boost the immune response and to work in synergy with other immunotherapeutic agents. Despite the fact that no IDO1 inhibitor has been approved so far, recent studies have shed light on the additional roles that IDO1 mediates beyond its catalytic activity, conferring new life to the field. Here we present a novel class of compounds originated from a structure-based virtual screening made on IDO1 active site. The starting hit compound is a novel chemotype based on a [1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a]pyridine scaffold, so far underexploited among the heme binding moieties. Thanks to the rational and in silico-guided design of analogues, an improvement of the potency to sub-micromolar levels has been achieved, with excellent in vitro metabolic stability and exquisite selectivity with respect to other heme-containing enzymes.     

Evaluation of SIMCA and PLS algorithms to detect adulterants in canola oil by FT-IR

Adulteration of canola oil with four potential edible oils was analysed using FT-IR and chemometric methods. The adulterants (corn, peanut, soya bean and sunflower oils) were studied in four different proportions (canola oil + adulterant oils: 90 + 10, 95 + 5, 98 + 2 and 99 + 1 in volume). Excellent classification results were obtained when multi-class approaches were performed with a maximum error of 3%, using 1630 or 16 wavenumbers as variables. In the case of one-class approaches, the selection of variables (16 wavenumbers) was necessary, improving the classification error to 5%. The differences observed using the different methods were related to the nature of each model depending on how the boundaries are set in each of them, responding either to a PCA-based or PLS-based algorithm.