Isospin- and momentum-dependent interaction in isospin-dependent quantum molecular dynamics

An isospin-dependent quantum molecular dynamical model (IQMD) is developed, with the isospin degree of freedom in the momentum-dependent interaction(MDI) included in IQMD, to obtain an isospin- and momentum-dependent interaction (IMDI) in IQMD. We investigate the effect of IMDI on the isospin fractionation ratio and its dynamical mechanism in the intermediate energy heavy ion collisions. It is found that the IMDI induces the significant reductions in the isospin fractionation ratio for all of beam energies, impact parameters, neutron-proton ratios and mass number of colliding systems. However, the strong dependence of isospin fractionation ratio on the symmetrical potential is preserved, with the isospin degree of freedom included in the MDI, i.e. the isospin fractionation ratio is still a good probe for extracting the information about the equation of state of isospin asymmetrical nuclear matter.

Oddball Y(4140) as the molecular cousin of Y(3930)

In my talk, we present the dynamical study of Y(4140) and Y(3930) under the D-s*(D) over bar (s)* and D*(D) over bar* molecular assignments respectively The importance to theoretically and experimentally study their open-charm decay, hidden-charm decay, radiative decay and double-photon decay is proposed combing with the theoretical calculation of the decay behavior of Y(4140) and Y(3930) According to the recent new experimental progress made by Belle, we further indicate the reasonability of molecular explanation to Y(4140) Another event cluster around 4270 MeV in the J/psi Phi invariant mass spectrum of B -> KJ/psi Phi can provide us more hints to reveal the creation mechanism of molecular structure in B meson decay, which will be helpful to clarify the underlying structure of Y(4140) and Y(3930)

Enzymatic reaction of the immobilized enzyme on porous silicon studied by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry

Desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry (DIOS-MS) is a matrix-free technique that allows for the direct desorption/ionization of low-molecular-weight compounds with little or no fragmentation of analytes. This technique has a relatively high tolerance for contaminants commonly found in biological samples. DIOS-MS has been applied to determine the activity of immobilized enzymes on the porous silicon surface. Enzyme activities were also monitored with the addition of a competitive inhibitor in the substrate solution. It is demonstrated that this method can be applied to the screening of enzyme inhibitors. Furthermore, a method for peptide mapping analysis by in situ digestion of proteins on the porous silicon surface modified by trypsin, combined with matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight-MS has been developed.

Mass resolved MPI spectra of methyl iodide in the 430-490 nm region

The mass resolved multiphoton ionization (MPI) spectra of methyl iodide were obtained in the 430-490 nm region using a time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer. They have the same vibrational structure, which testifies that the fragment species, in the wavelength region under study, are from the photodissociation of multiphoton ionized molecular parent ions. Some features in the spectra are identified as three-photon excitations to 6p and 7s Rydberg states of methyl iodide. Two new vibrational structures of some Rydberg states are observed. The mechanism of ionization and dissociation is also discussed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry using porous silicon and silica gel as matrix

Porous silicon powder and silica gel particles have been applied as inorganic matrices for the analysis of small molecules in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS). In contrast to conventional MALDI-TOFMS, the signal interference of low-molecular analytes by the matrix has been eliminated. Almost no fragmentations of the analytes were observed. Effects of various factors, such as the particle and pore size, the suspending solution, and sample preparation procedures, on the intensity of mass spectra have been investigated. The pore structure of the inorganic matrix and penetration of the analytes into the pores must be optimized for effective desorption and ionization of the analytes. Matrices (DHB and HCCA) were covalently bound to silica gel for improvement of spectrum intensity. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Studies on the Biotransformation of Arctigenin Using Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry

To study the biotransformation of arctigenin, arctigenin was anaerobically incubated with Eubacterium sp. ARC-2 of human intestinal bacteria in vitro. Arctigenin formed a molecular ion [M-H](-) in negative ion mode. The arctigenin and its metabolites were investigated directly by the electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry ion trap and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance. Arctigenin was transformed to 4',4 ''-dihydroxylenterolactone by E sp. ARC-2 through 3 types of demethylation products.

Identification of Phenylethanoid Glycosides in Plant Extract of Plantago asiatica L. by Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry

The present work describes a liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) method for rapid identification of phenylethanoid glycosides in plant extract from Plantago asiatica L. By using a binary mobile phase system consisting of 0.2% acetic acid and acetonitrile under gradient conditions, a good separation was achieved on a reversed-phase C-18 column. The [M-H](-) ions, the molecular weights, and the fragment ions of phenylethanoid glycosides were obtained in the negative ion mode using LC-ESI-MS. The identification of the phenylethanoid glycosides (peaks 1-3) in the extract of P. asiatica L. was based on matching their retention time, the detection of molecular ions, and the fragment ions obtained by collision-induced dissociation (CID) experiments with those of the authentic standards and data reported in the literature.

Bimolecular quadruplexes and their transitions to higher-order molecular structures detected by ESI-FTICR-MS

Four individual quadruplexes, which are self-assembled in ammonium acetate solution from telomeric sequences of closely related DNA strands - d(G(4)T(4)G(4)), d(G(3)T(4)G(4)), d(G(3)T(4)G(3)), and d(G(4)T(4)G(3)) - have been detected in the gas phase using electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI-FTICR-MS). The bimolecular quadruplexes associate with the same number of NH4+ in the gas phase as NMR shows that they do in solution. The quadruplex structures formed in solution are maintained in the gas phase. Furthermore, the mass spectra show that the bimolecular quadruplexes generated by the strands d(G(3)T(4)G(3)) and d(G(4)T(4)G(3)) are unstable, being converted into trimolecular and tetramolecular structures with increasing concentrations of NH4+ in the solution. Circular dichroism (CD) spectra reveal structural changes during the process of strand stoichiometric transitions, in which the relative orientation of strands in the quadruplexes changes from an antiparallel to a parallel arrangement. Such changes were observed for the strand d(G(4)T(4)G(3)), but not for the strand d(G(3)T(4)G(3)). The present work provides a significant insight into the formation of various DNA quadruplexes, especially the higher-order species.

Studies on the non-covalent complexes between oleanolic acid and cyclodextrins using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

Non-covalent inclusion complexes formed between an anti-inflammatory drug, oleanolic acid (OA), and alpha-, beta- and gamma-cyclodextrins (CDs) were investigated by means of solubility studies and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn). The order of calculated association constants (K-1:1) of complexes between OA and different CDs in solution is in good agreement with the order of their relative peak intensities and the relative CID energies of the complexes under the same ESI-MSn conditions. These results indicate a direct correlation between the behaviors of solution- and gas-phase complexes. ESI-MS can thus be used to evaluate solution-phase non-covalent complexes successfully. The experimental results show that the most stable 1:1 inclusion complexes between three CDs and OA can be formed, but 2:1 CD-OA complexes can be formed with beta- and gamma-CDs. Multi-component complexes of alpha-CD-OA-beta-CD (1:1:1), alpha-CD-OA-gamma-CD (1:1:1) and beta-CD-OA-gamma-CD (1:1:1) were found in equimolar CD mixtures with excess OA. The formation of 2:1 and multi-component 1:1:1 non-covalent CD-OA complexes indicates that beta- and gamma-CD are able to form sandwich-type inclusion non-covalent complexes with OA. The above results can be partly supported by the relative sizes of OA and CD cavities by molecular modeling calculations.

Acid effects on protein molecular weight determination

The acid effects of some proteins on measuring their molecular weights were studied using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry ( MALDI-TOF-MS) and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). It was found that the signal intensity was enhanced through adjusting the acid concentration in some protein samples. In this paper, both MALDI-MS and ESI-MS was applied to examine the molecular weights of several standard proteins. And the proper acid concentration was detected in these spectra. In the meanwhile, it demonstrates that some associations of proteins in solution can be preserved into the gas phase and observed by the "soft ionization" mass spectrometry.

Mass spectrometry study on snake venoms and enzymes

In this paper, three kinds of snake venoms and lour kinds of enzymes (phospholipase A(2), fibrinolytic enzyme, arginine esterase and L-amino acid oxidase) isolated from the snake venom were analyzed. As the snake venom was different, the MALDI/TOF/MS showed difference, The MALDI/TOF/MS determination results could be affected Ly the concentrations of snake venom enzymes, And the mechanisms of desorption and ionization was also given in this study, By using MALDI/TOF/MS we obtained the accurate molecular weights and homogeneities of the enzymes. The apparent characteristics of the positive MALDI/TOF/MS of enzymes composed by two subunits were also given out, The results showed that MALDI/TOF/MS is an effective analytic method for discovering new components from snake venom complexes. And it is reliable to use this method to determine the molecular weights and purifies of protein molecules.

Studies on negative electrospray ionization mass spectrometry on saponins

Two kinds of saponins have been investigated by negative electrospray ionization (NESI) mass spectrometry. Under ESI conditions, the [M - H](-) ions of saponins were observed which provide the molecular weights of saponins. The fragment pathways of [M - H](-) ions of these two saponins depend on their structures. For steroidic saponins, [M - H](-) ion only produces the fragment ions by the losses of sugar units. For oleanolic saponins, [M - H](-) ion yields the cross-ring ions as well as the fragment ions by the losses of sugar units. Moreover, the abundance of the former is higher than that of the latter. The characteristic fragments are used to provide the sequence and some linkage information of sugar moieties of saponins. Especially, their fragment difference strongly depends on the linkage between the aglycone and the sugar moieties.

Preparation and mass spectrometric study of egg yolk antibody (IgY) against rabies virus

Rabies virus was used as the antigen to immunize laying chickens. Anti-rabies virus immunoglobulin Y(IgY) was isolated from yolks of the eggs laid by these chickens using a two-step salt precipitation and one-step gel filtration protocol. The purified IgY was reduced with dithiothreitol, and heavy chains (HC) and light chains (LC) were obtained. In addition, the purified IgY was digested with pepsin and the fragment with specific antigen binding properties (Fab) was produced. Using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS), the average molecular weights of IgY, HC, LC, and Fab were determined as 167 250, 65 105, 18 660, and 45,359 Da, respectively. IgY has two structural differences compared with mammalian IgGs. First, the molecular weight of the heavy chain of IgY is larger than that of its mammalian counterpart, while the molecular weight of the light chain of IgY is smaller. Second, upon pepsin digestion, anti-rabies virus IgY is degraded into Feb, in contrast to mammalian IgG, which has been reported to be degraded into F(ab')(2) under the same conditions. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Studies on the nature of the macromolecular condensed state of "nascent" ultra high molar mass polyethylene

Ultra high molar mass polyethylene (UHPE) powder as polymerized in a slurry process has been studied, in its nascent state, after recrystallization on rapid cooling from the melt and after hot compression molding to a film, by DSC, effect of annealing the recrystallized specimen at 120 similar to 130 degreesC, morphology by polarizing optical microscopy and small angle X-ray scattering. Based on the experimental results obtained the macromolecular condensed state of the nascent UHPE powder is a rare case of a multi-chain condensed state of non-interpenetrating chains, involving interlaced extended chain crystalline layers and relaxed parallel chain amorphous layers. On melting, a nematic rubbery state of nanometer size domain resulted. The nematic-isotropic transition temperature was judged from literature data to be at least 220 degreesC, possibly higher than 300 degreesC, the exact temperature is however not sue because of chain degradation at such high temperatures. The recrystallization process from the melt is a crystallization from a nematic rubbery state. The drop of remelting peak temperature by 10 K of the specimen recrystallized from its melt as compared to the nascent state has its origin in the decrease both of the crystalline chain stem length and of the degree of crystallinity. The remelting peak temperature could be returned close to that of the nascent state by annealing at 120 similar to 130 degreesC.