Novel 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives as efficient sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells: A combined experimental and computational study

We have synthesized and characterized donor–π–spacer–acceptor type molecules in which 1,3,4-oxadiazoles are π-spacers, triphenylamines are the donors and cyanoacetic acid are the acceptors for use as sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Detailed absorption, emission, electrochemical, photoelectrochemical and computational studies have been carried out on five novel derivatives. The dyes have an absorption range of 377–388 nm, and an emission in the range of 494–540 nm. There is a large charge transfer from the donor side to the acceptor side on excitation. The propeller shape of the triphenylamine and the bulky substituents on it help in reducing the dye-aggregation on TiO₂ surface. The dyes exhibited good overall conversion efficiency (2.79–3.21%). Plane wave calculations indicate that the dye has a reasonably strong binding to the TiO₂ surface and the generated DOS picture shows an overlap of the molecular orbitals of the dye and the TiO₂ bands. We conclude that the dyes have a promising role as sensitizers in DSSC.     

Influence of Microstructure and Surface Activation of Dual‐Phase Membrane Ce0.8Gd0.2O2−δ–FeCo2O4 on Oxygen Permeation

Dual‐phase oxygen transport membranes are fast‐growing research interest for application in oxyfuel combustion process. One such potential candidate is CGO‐FCO (60 wt% Ce_0.8Gd_0.2O_2?δ–40 wt% FeCo₂O₄) identified to provide good oxygen permeation flux with substantial stability in harsh atmosphere. Dense CGO‐FCO membranes of 1 mm thickness were fabricated by sintering dry pellets pressed from powders synthesized by one‐pot method (modified Pechini process) at 1200°C for 10 h. Microstructure analysis indicates presence of a third orthorhombic perovskite phase in the sintered composite. It was also identified that the spinel phase tends to form an oxygen deficient phase at the grain boundary of spinel and CGO phases. Surface exchange limitation of the membranes was overcome by La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3?δ (LSCF) porous layer coating over the composite. The oxygen permeation flux of the CGO‐FCO screen printed with a porous layer of 10 μm thick LSCF is 0.11 mL/cm² per minute at 850°C with argon as sweep and air as feed gas at the rates of 50 and 250 mL/min.     

Electrical and Dielectric Properties of Non-magnetic Al<Superscript>3+</Superscript> Substituted Ni–Zn Nano Ferrites for High Frequency Applications

The effect of Al substitution on electrical and dielectric parameters of Ni–Zn ferrite has been discussed in the present work. The phase identification, surface morphology was studied using X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), respectively. The XRD patterns confirm the single-phase formation of these ferrites. With Al³⁺, substitution lattice parameter decreases due to smaller Al³⁺ ions replacing Fe³⁺ ions. The average grain size obtained from SEM results are in the range of 390–27 nm. The DC resistivity was observed to increase with increasing Al³⁺ ions concentration due to the unavailability of Fe³⁺ ions. Dielectric constant (\(\upvarepsilon ^{\prime }\)) and dielectric loss tangent (tan δ) have been studied as a function of frequency (1 kHz–10 MHz) and temperature (50–300 °C). The observed results are explained on the basis of interfacial polarization as predicted by Maxwell and Wagner.     

Investigation of Subthreshold Characteristics of Negative Capacitance Single-Active Layer Double-Gate (NC-SALDG) Thin-Film Transistor (TFT)

Silicon - In this paper, for the first time, the performance evaluation of negative capacitance single-active layer double-gate (NC-SALDG) TFT is presented. In the proposed NC-SALDG TFT, amorphous...     

Lymphatic Transport of α-Linolenic Acid and Its Conversion to Long Chain n-3 Fatty Acids in Rats Fed Microemulsions of Linseed Oil

In the present study we evaluated the uptake of ALA and its conversion to EPA + DHA in rats given linseed oil (LSO) in native form or as a microemulsion in whey protein or in lipoid. In a single oral dose study in which rats maintained on rodent pellets deficient in ω-3 fatty acids were intubated with 0.35 g LSO in lipoid, the amount of ALA present in lymph was increased reaching a maximum concentration of 16.23 mg/ml at 2.5 h. The amount of ALA present in lymph was increased to a maximum level of 10.95 mg/ml at 4 h in rats given LSO as a microemulsion in whey protein. When LSO was given without emulsification, the amount of ALA present in lymph was found to reach a maximum level of 7.08 mg/ml at 6 h. A similar result was observed when weaning rats were intubated with 0.15 g of LSO per day for a period of 60 days. Higher levels of ALA by 41 and 103 % were observed in lymph lipids of rats given microemulsions of LSO in whey protein and in lipoid respectively as compared to rats given LSO without pre-emulsification. Very little conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA was observed in lymph lipids but higher amounts of EPA + DHA was observed in liver and serum of rats given LSO in microemulsion form. This study indicated that ALA concentration in lymph lipids was increased when LSO was given in microemulsion form in lipoid and further conversion to EPA and DHA was facilitated in liver and serum.     

Characteristics and Novel Features of Thermostable α-Amylase Produced by Bacillus licheniformis M27 under Solid State Fermentation

The purified α-amylase from Bacillus licheniformis M27, produced under solid state fermentation technique, showed novel characteristics as compared to those reported by other workers for the purified α-amylases from B. licheniformis obtained by submerged fermentation process. Some of the novel features of the characteristics of the enzyme from B. licheniformis M27 include two peaks for pH optima at 6.5–7.0 and 8.5–9.0, gradual loss of activity to about 86% between pH 7.0–7.5 followed by rise to full activity between 7.5–8.5, temperature optimum at 85–90°C at pH 7.0 and 9.0, sharp fall in stability at acidic pH values and the thermostability response which is more similar to the enzyme from other species of Bacillus. The moleculuar weight of the enzyme was found to be 19,500 ± 500 and 56,000 ± 2,000 when determined by gel filtration and SDS PAGE, respectively. The activation energy is 20.4 times lower than that reported for the enzyme from another strain of B. licheniformis. It also showed differences in the contents of amino acids such as serine, proline and methionine.     

Role of Post-translational Modifications in Alzheimer's Disease

The global burden of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is growing. Valiant efforts to develop clinical candidates for treatment have continuously met with failure. Currently available palliative treatments are temporary and there is a constant need to search for reliable disease pathways, biomarkers and drug targets for developing diagnostic and therapeutic tools to address the unmet medical needs of AD. Challenges in drug-discovery efforts raise further questions about the strategies of current conventional diagnosis; drug design; and understanding of disease pathways, biomarkers and targets. In this context, post-translational modifications (PTMs) regulate protein trafficking, function and degradation, and their in-depth study plays a significant role in the identification of novel biomarkers and drug targets. Aberrant PTMs of disease-relevant proteins could trigger pathological pathways, leading to disease progression. Advancements in proteomics enable the generation of patterns or signatures of such modifications, and thus, provide a versatile platform to develop biomarkers based on PTMs. In addition, understanding and targeting the aberrant PTMs of various proteins provide viable avenues for addressing AD drug-discovery challenges. This review highlights numerous PTMs of proteins relevant to AD and provides an overview of their adverse effects on the protein structure, function and aggregation propensity that contribute to the disease pathology. A critical discussion offers suggestions of methods to develop PTM signatures and interfere with aberrant PTMs to develop viable diagnostic and therapeutic interventions in AD.     

Inhibition of lipase from rice (Oryza sativa) by diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate

The inhibition of rice bran lipase (RBL) by diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate was studied with reference to kinetics, nature of inhibition and also elucidate the effect of the inhibitor on the structure—function of the enzyme. Enzyme activity measurements shows that the inhibitor is more effective at 0.050 mM concentration of diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate and the activity is 50% at this level of inhibitor concentration. The affinity of substrate for the enzyme was observed by the increase in the velocity of the reaction with increase in the substrate concentrations and double reciprocal plot indicates that the inhibition followed a competitive in nature and inhibition constant K _i is found to be 0.016 mM at pH 7.0. The decrease in apparent thermal denaturation temperature to 4 °C compared to control indicates the destabilization of enzyme in the presence of inhibitor. Fluorescence spectral measurements suggests that pronounced quenching of fluorescence intensity of RBL occurs at higher concentrations of diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate and ‘K _a’ value was found to be 2.4 × 10⁴ M⁻¹ with free energy change ΔG^o—26 kJ/mol at 30 °C suggesting strong binding between the enzyme and the inhibitor with microenvironmental changes occur at the active site or in the neighbourhood of active site. The far UV-CD data suggest that there is no significant changes in the conformation of the enzyme as a result of binding of diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate. These results indicate that diethyl-p-nitrophenyl phosphate is a inhibitor of RBL and binds to the enzyme in brining about inhibition without any structural alterations.     

Changes in endocrine profile and reproductive organs during puberty in the male marmoset monkey (Callithrix jacchus)

Data on pubertal maturation in male marmoset, a model for human reproduction, are scant and conflicting. We collected data on novel parameters to characterize puberty. Twenty-five marmoset monkeys were assigned to five age groups by weeks (wk): 21 (pre-pubertal), 43 (onset of puberty), 52 (fully pubertal), 70 (mature), and 116 (fully adult). Serum and intratesticular testosterone and pituitary bioactive chorionic gonadotropin (bioCG) were measured. Testicular development was assessed by ultrasonography, histology, and flow cytometry. Three consecutive blood samples revealed extreme fluctuations in testosterone concentrations, suggesting an erratic secretion. Age-related changes in serum testosterone and pituitary bioCG concentrations were observed. Intratesticular androgens (ITAs) showed high fluctuations within groups at all ages and were high in some animals by 21 wk. Unexpectedly, no correlation between pituitary bioCG and serum testosterone or ITAs was found, but these parameters significantly correlated with testicular weight and volume. These observations were consistent a dependence on the testis growth on bioCG. Unfortunately, the low serum levels of bioCG were not measurable in this study. At 43 wk, the animals reached puberty. At 52 wk of age, animals attained maximum body and epididymal weights and qualitatively normal spermatogenesis, but testes continued growing, reaching a maximum of all parameters at 70 wk of age, without further major changes at the age of 116 wk. It is concluded that (1) gonadal activation is evident at wk 21, (2) the male marmoset reaches the pubertal threshold around 43 wk of age, attains qualitative parameters at 52 wk, matures further to sexual maturity at 70 wk, and (3) serum testosterone and ITAs are highly variable without any identifiable correlation with pituitary bioCG.