Screening Brazilian commercial gasoline quality by hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic fingerprintings and pattern-recognition multivariate chemometric analysis

The identification of gasoline adulteration by organic solvents is not an easy task, because compounds that constitute the solvents are already in gasoline composition. In this work, the combination of Hydrogen Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ((1)H NMR) spectroscopic fingerprintings with pattern-recognition multivariate Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) chemometric analysis provides an original and alternative approach to screening Brazilian commercial gasoline quality in a Monitoring Program for Quality Control of Automotive Fuels. SIMCA was performed on spectroscopic fingerprints to classify the quality of representative commercial gasoline samples selected by Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) and collected over a 6-month period from different gas stations in the São Paulo state, Brazil. Following optimized the (1)H NMR-SIMCA algorithm, it was possible to correctly classify 92.0% of commercial gasoline samples, which is considered acceptable. The chemometric method is recommended for routine applications in Quality-Control Monitoring Programs, since its measurements are fast and can be easily automated. Also, police laboratories could employ this method for rapid screening analysis to discourage adulteration practices. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Composition and screening of antifungal activity against Cladosporium sphaerospermum and Cladosporium cladosporioides of essential oils of leaves and fruits of Piper species

This study investigated the composition and antifungal activity against Cladosporium sphaerospermum and Cladosporium cladosporioides of essential oils of leaves of Piper cernuum, Piper diospyrifolium, Piper crassinervium, Piper solmsianum and Piper umbelata and fruits of P. cernuum and P. diospyrifolium. The essentials oils were analyzed by GC-MS and submitted of the antifungal activity tests. The essential oils of fruits from P. cernuum and leaves of P. crassinervium and P. solmsianum showed potential antifungal activity against C. sphaerospermum and C. cladosporioides. In addition, this is the first report of the composition of essential oils of fruits of P. cernuum and P. diospyrifolium.

Screening of Brazilian plants for antimicrobial and dnadamaging activities: I. Atlantic rain forest . Ecological station juréia-itatins

(Triagem de plantas nativas do Brasil para atividades antimicrobiana e de Danos no DNA I. Mata Atlântica . Estação Ecológica Juréia-Itatins). Oitenta e oito espécies nativas do estado de São Paulo foram coletadas numa região de Mata Atlântica e ensaiadas quanto a sua atividade antimicrobiana e capacidade de causar danos no DNA. Dos 114 extratos submetidos aos ensaios para atividade antibacteriana, apenas os extratos de folhas e galhos de Aspidosperma ramiflorum (Apocynaceae) apresentaram uma atividade fraca contra Escherichia coli. No ensaio antifúngico com Candida albicans, não foram observados extratos ativos. Por outro lado, no ensaio de bioautografia com Cladosporium sphaerospermum e C. cladosporioides 12% dos extratos apresentaram atividade. Contudo, nesse ensaio, somente o extrato dos ramos de Psychotria mapoureoides (Rubiaceae) inibiu fortemente o crescimento de ambas espécies do fungo. O ensaio para danos no DNA com cepas mutantes de Saccharomyces cerevisiae apresentou 17.5 % de extratos ativos. A maioria dos extratos ativos (55 %) apresentou resultados seletivos para danos dependentes da topoisomerase II como mecanismo de reparo do DNA e somente 20 % foram seletivos para o mecanismo da topoisomerase I.

Screening for antifungal, DNA-damaging and anticholinesterasic activities of Brazilian plants from the Atlantic Rainforest: Ilha do Cardoso State Park

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Screening Brazilian Commercial Gasoline Quality by ASTM D6733 GC and Pattern-Recognition Multivariate SIMCA Chemometric Analysis

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Screening of melon populations for resistance to Didymella bryoniae in greenhouse and plastic tunnel conditions

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Screening of filamentous fungi for production of enzymes of biotechnological interest

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Applications of the hexanic fraction of Agave sisalana Perrine ex Engelm (Asparagaceae): control of inflammation and pain screening

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Synthesis, spectroscopic characterization and X-ray crystallographic studies of trans-[PtCl2(PEt3)(PySOR)] complexes, where PySOR=(2-methylsulphinyl)-pyridine and (2-n-propylsulphinyl)pyridine

Alkylsulphinylpyridine ligands containing three potential donor centres: N, S and O atoms and two complexes of general formula trans-[PtCl2(PEt3)PySOR)] (R = Me and Pr-n) were prepared and characterized by elemental analysis, i.r. spectroscopy, H-1- and P-31-n.m.r. and X-ray crystallography. The ambidentate ligands act in both situations as monodentate ligands, bonded to the metal exclusively through the nitrogen atom. The crystal structures revealed the occurrence of discrete molecules and, in both complexes, the Pt atoms are coordinated in square planar arrangements by two chloride ions, in a trans configuration, by the pyridine nitrogen atom, and by the phosphine P atom. The oxygen atoms do not take part in the complexation scheme.

Screening and confirmation of PAHs in vegetable oil samples by use of supercritical fluid extraction in conjunction with liquid chromatography and fluorimetric detection

A fast, simple, non-destructive method for the direct screening of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in vegetable oil samples is proposed. The method uses a supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) system coupled on-line with a fluorimetric detector to determine PAHs. This special assembly avoids the main problems encountered in the determination of PAHs in complex matrices such as vegetable oils. PAHs are selectively extracted by using silica gel in the thimble and cleaned up by passage through a C18 column. Interferences are preferentially retained by the silica gel during the SFE process while PAHs are adsorbed in the C18 column and the remainder of the matrix is sent to waste. Finally, the C18 column is purged to remove residual CO2 gas and adsorbed PAHs are recovered by desorption with a solvent. The extracts from positive samples are subsequently analyzed by liquid chromatography (LC) with fluorescence detection. The proposed method allows the confirmation of vegetable oil safety and hence provides a new tool for consumer protection. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Crystallographic and pre-steady-state kinetics studies on binding of NADH to wild-type and isoniazid-resistant enoyl-ACP(CoA) reductase enzymes from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

An understanding of isoniazid (INH) drug resistance mechanism in Mycobacterium tuberculosis should provide significant insight for the development of newer anti-tubercular agents able to control INH-resistant tuberculosis (TB). The inhA-encoded 2-trans enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase enzyme (InhA) has been shown through biochemical and genetic studies to be the primary target for INH. In agreement with these results, mutations in the inhA structural gene have been found in INH-resistant clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis, the causative agent of TB. In addition, the InhA mutants were shown to have higher dissociation constant values for NADH and lower values for the apparent first-order rate constant for INH inactivation as compared to wild-type InhA. Here, in trying to identify structural changes between wild-type and INH-resistant InhA enzymes, we have solved the crystal structures of wild-type and of S94A, I47T and I21V InhA proteins in complex with NADH to resolutions of, respectively, 2.3 angstrom, 2.2 angstrom, 2.0 angstrom, and 1.9 angstrom. The more prominent structural differences are located in, and appear to indirectly affect, the dinucleotide binding loop structure. Moreover, studies on pre-steady-state kinetics of NADH binding have been carried out. The results showed that the limiting rate constant values for NADH dissociation from the InhA-NADH binary complexes (k(off)) were eleven, five, and tenfold higher for, respectively, I21V, I47T and S94A INH-resistant mutants of InhA as compared to INH-sensitive wildtype InhA. Accordingly, these results are proposed to be able to account for the reduction in affinity for NADH for the INH-resistant InhA enzymes. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Screening of supports for the immobilization of pectinmethylesterase from acerola (Malpighia glabra L)

A partially purified extract of pectinmethylesterase (PME) from acerola fruit was immobilized on various supports: glass, celite, chrysotile, agarose, concanavalin A Sepharose 4B, egg shell, polyacrylamide and gelatin. In addition, reticulation with glutaraldehyde was assessed, as well as the use of gelatin in the presence of celite, glass and silica. The highest immobilization yields were obtained when the pectinmethylesterase was immobilized in concanavalin A Sepharose 4B (81.7%) and in gelatin-water (78.0%). (C) 2004 Society of Chemical Industry.

mer-[RuCl3(P-P)H2O] (P-P=dppb or diop) as a starting material for the synthesis of binuclear complexes. Crystallographic structures of [(dppb)ClRu-mu(Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] and [(eta(6)-C6H6)Ru-mu(Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)]. Imine hydrogenation using mono- and binuclear ruthenium complexes

The reactivity of the mer-[RuCl3(dppb)H2O] complex (1) with di-hydrogen shows that the products formed depend on the conditions of the reaction, i.e., solvents and presence or absence of a base. The new mixed-valence complexes [(diop)ClRu-(h-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (3), [(binap)CIRu-(p-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (4), [(PPh3)(2)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (6), [(dppn)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (7), [(P-ptol(3))(2)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (8), [(SbPh3)(2)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (9), [(eta(6)-C6H6)Ru-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (11) and the known mixed-valence [(dppb)CIRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (5) and [(diop)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(diop)] (10) were synthesized from complexes (1) or (2) using a methodology developed in our research group. The known complexes [(dppb)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(2)-RuCl(dppb)] (12), [(dppb)(CO)Ru-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (13) and [H2NEt2][(dppb)ClRu-(mu-Cl)(3)-RuCl(dppb)] (14) were synthesized by changing the reaction conditions between mer-[RuCl3(dppb)H2O] (1) and dihydrogen. The crystal structures of (5) and (11) were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Some of the complexes described here are effective pre-catalysts for the hydrogenation of imines. Preliminary results on the homogeneous hydrogenation of the imines Ph-CH2-N=CH-Ph and Ph-N=CH-Ph are presented. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.