Effect of time and mode of depuration on tissue copper concentrations of the earthworms Eisenia andrei, Lumbricus rubellus and Lumbricus terrestris

Eisenia andrei, Lumbricus rubellus and Lumbricus terrestris were exposed to 250, 250 and 350 mg kg(-1) Cu respectively in Cu(NO3)(2(aq)) amended soil for 28 d. Earthworms were then depurated for 24 to 72 h, digested and analysed for Cu and Ti or, subsequent to depuration were dissected to remove any remaining soil particles from the alimentary canal and then digested and analysed. This latter treatment proved impossible for E. andrei due to its small size. Regardless of depuration time, soil particles were retained in the alimentary canal of L. rubellus and L. terrestris. Tissue concentration determinations indicate that E. andrei should be depurated for 24 h, L. rubellus for 48 h and L. terrestris should be dissected. Ti was bioaccumulated and therefore could not be used as an inert tracer to determine mass of retained soil. Calculations indicate that after 28 d earthworms were still absorbing Cu from soil. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The two-dimensional anharmonic oscillator III: the CCC bending mode of C3O2

Newly observed data on the rotational constants of carbon suboxide in excited vibrational states of the low-wavenumber bending vibration ν7 have been successfully interpreted in terms of the two-dimensional anharmonic oscillator wavefunctions associated with this vibration. By combining these results with published infrared and Raman spectra the vibrational assignment has been extended and a refined bending potential for ν7 has been derived: this has a minimum at a bending angle of about 24° at the central C atom, with an energy maximum at the linear configuration some 23 cm−1 above the minimum. From similar data on the combination and hot bands of ν7 with ν4 (1587 cm−1) and ν2 (786 cm−1) the effective ν7 bending potential has also been determined in the one-quantum excited states of ν4 and ν2. The effective ν7 potential shows significant changes from the ground vibrational state; the central hump in the ν7 potential surface is increased to about 50 cm−1 in the v4 = 1 state, and decreased to about 1 cm−1 in the v2 = 1 state. In the light of these results vibrational assignments are suggested for most of the observed bands in the infrared and Raman spectra of C3O2.

Reactions of artemisinin and arteether with acid: Implications for stability and mode of antimalarial action

The currently accepted mechanism of trioxane antimalarial action involves generation of free radicals within or near susceptible sites probably arising from the production of distonic radical anions. An alternative mechanistic proposal involving the ionic scission of the peroxide group and consequent generation of a carbocation at C-4 has been suggested to account for antimalarial activity. We have investigated this latter mechanism using DFT (B3LYP/6-31+G* level) and established the preferred Lewis acid protonation sites (artemisinin O5a >> O4a approximate to O3a > O2a > O1a; arteether O4a >= O3a > O5b >> O2a > O1a; Figure 3) and the consequent decomposition pathways and hydrolysis sites. In neither molecule is protonation likely to occur on the peroxide bond O1-O2 and therefore lead to scission. Therefore, the alternative radical pathway remains the likeliest explanation for antimalarial action.

Titanocene anticancer complexes and their binding mode of action to human serum albumin: a computational study

Due to the pivotal role played by human serum albumin (HSA) in the transport and cytotoxicity of titanocene complexes, a docking study has been performed on a selected set of titanocene complexes to aid in the current understanding of the potential mode of action of these titanocenes upon binding HSA. Analysis of the docking results has revealed potential binding at the known drug binding sites in HSA and has provided some explanation for the specificity and subsequent cytotoxicity of these titanocenes. Additionally, a new alternative binding site for these titanocenes has been postulated.

Using the significant dust deposition event on the glaciers of Mt. Elbrus, Caucasus Mountains, Russia on 5 May 2009 to develop a method for dating and provenancing of desert dust events recorded in snow pack.

A significant desert dust deposition event occurred on Mt. Elbrus, Caucasus Mountains, Russia on 5 May 2009, where the deposited dust later appeared as a brown layer in the snow pack. An examination of dust transportation history and analysis of chemical and physical properties of the deposited dust were used to develop a new approach for high-resolution provenancing of dust deposition events recorded in snow pack using multiple independent techniques. A combination of SEVIRI red-green-blue composite imagery, MODIS atmospheric optical depth fields derived using the Deep Blue algorithm, air mass trajectories derived with HYSPLIT model and analysis of meteorological data enabled identification of dust source regions with high temporal (hours) and spatial (ca. 100 km) resolution. Dust, deposited on 5 May 2009, originated in the foothills of the Djebel Akhdar in eastern Libya where dust sources were activated by the intrusion of cold air from the Mediterranean Sea and Saharan low pressure system and transported to the Caucasus along the eastern Mediterranean coast, Syria and Turkey. Particles with an average diameter below 8 μm accounted for 90% of the measured particles in the sample with a mean of 3.58 μm, median 2.48 μm and the dominant mode of 0.60 μm. The chemical signature of this long-travelled dust was significantly different from the locally-produced dust and close to that of soils collected in a palaeolake in the source region, in concentrations of hematite and oxides of aluminium, manganese, and magnesium. Potential addition of dust from a secondary source in northern Mesopotamia introduced uncertainty in the provenancing of dust from this event. Nevertheless, the approach adopted here enables other dust horizons in the snowpack to be linked to specific dust transport events recorded in remote sensing and meteorological data archives.