Enforceable undertakings : a new mechanism for minimum labour standards’ enforcement

Regulatory commentators have identified the need for more responsive regulation to allow enforcement agencies to respond to different types and degrees of non-compliance. One tool considered to support responsive enforcement is the Enforceable Undertaking (EU). EUs are used extensively by Australian regulators in decisions that forego litigation in exchange for offenders promising to (amongst other things) correct behaviour and comply in the future. This arguably allows regulatory agencies greater flexibility in how they obtain compliance with regulations. EUs became an additional enforcement tool for the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) under the Fair Work Act 2009. This paper is a preliminary exploration of the comparative use of EUs by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the FWO to assess their effectiveness for the minimum labour standards' environment.

A New Mechanism For Ferromagnetism In C-60-TDAE

Based on the topology of C-60 and the resulting non-disjoint nature of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals, Ne propose a new model for ferromagnetic exchange in C-60-TDAE. Within the Hubbard model, we find that the ferromagnetic exchange integral is stabilized to first order in the inter-ball transfer integral, while the antiferromagnetic coupling is stabilized only to second order. This difference is adequate to counter the larger phase space available for stabilizing the antiferromagnetic state. Thus, the ground state is found to be ferromagnetic for reasonable inter-ball transfer integrals.

Titanium promoted reduction of imines with Grignards, silanes, and zinc: identification of a new mechanism with silanes

Aldimines react with reducing agents, such as Grignards, phenylsilane or zinc in the presence of titanium(IV) isopropoxide to form amines and reductively coupled imines (diamines). Using deuterium labeled reagents, the mechanism of reduction to form amines is described. Reducing agents, such as the Grignard and zinc result in the formation of low valent titanium (LVT), which in turn reduces the imine. On the other hand, phenylsilane reacts by a distinctly different mechanism and where a hydrogen atom from silicon is directly transferred to the titanium coordinated imine. (c) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

NADPH oxidase-mediated generation of reactive oxygen species: A new mechanism for X-ray-induced HeLa cell death

Oxidative damage is an important mechanism in X-ray-induced cell death. Radiolysis of water molecules is a source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that contribute to X-ray-induced cell death. In this study, we showed by ROS detection and a cell survival assay that NADPH oxidase has a very important role in X-ray-induced cell death. Under X-ray irradiation, the upregulation of the expression of NADPH oxidase membrane Subunit gp91(phox) was dose-dependent. Meanwhile, the cytoplasmic subunit p47(phox) was translocated to the cell membrane and localized with p22(phox) and gp91(phox) to form reactive NADPH oxidase. Our data Suggest, for the first time, that NADPH oxidase-mediated generation of ROS is an important contributor to X-ray-induced cell death. This suggests a new target for combined gene transfer and radiotherapy.

The Role of Water and Adsorbed Hydroxyls on Ethanol Electrochemistry on Pd: New Mechanism, Active Centers and Energetics for Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell Running in Alkaline Medium

First principles calculations with molecular dynamics are
utilized to simulate a simplified electrical double layer formed in the
active electric potential region during the electrocatalytic oxidation of
ethanol on Pd electrodes running in an alkaline electrolyte. Our
simulations provide an atomic level insight into how ethanol oxidation
occurs in fuel cells: New mechanisms in the presence of the simplified
electrical double layer are found to be different from the traditional
ones; through concerted-like dehydrogenation paths, both acetaldehyde
and acetate are produced in such a way as to avoid a variety of
intermediates, which is consistent with the experimental data obtained
from in situ FTIR spectroscopy. Our work shows that adsorbed OH on
the Pd electrode rather than Pd atoms is the active center for the
reactions; the dissociation of the C−H bond is facilitated by the
adsorption of an OH− anion on the surface, resulting in the formation
of water. Our calculations demonstrate that water dissociation rather than H desorption is the main channel through which
electrical current is generated on the Pd electrode. The effects of the inner Helmholtz layer and the outer Helmholtz layer are
decoupled, with only the inner Helmholtz layer being found to have a significant impact on the mechanistics of the reaction. Our
results provide atomic level insight into the significance of the simplified electrical double layer in electrocatalysis, which may be
of general importance.

A New Mechanism for Hydroxyl Radical Production in Irradiated Nanoparticle Solutions

The absolute yield of hydroxyl radicals per unit of deposited X-ray energy is determined for the first time for irradiated aqueous solutions containing metal nanoparticles based on a “reference” protocol. Measurements are made as a function of dose rate and nanoparticle concentration. Possible mechanisms for hydroxyl radical production are considered in turn: energy deposition in the nanoparticles followed by its transport into the surrounding environment is unable to account for observed yield whereas energy deposition in the water followed by a catalytic-like reaction at the water-nanoparticle interface can account for the total yield and its dependence on dose rate and nanoparticle concentration. This finding is important because current models used to account for nanoparticle enhancement to radiobiological damage only consider the primary interaction with the nanoparticle, not with the surrounding media. Nothing about the new mechanism appears to be specific to gold, the main requirements being the formation of a structured water layer in the vicinity of the nanoparticle possibly through the interaction of its charge and the water dipoles. The massive hydroxyl radical production is relevant to a number of application fields, particularly nanomedicine since the hydroxyl radical is responsible for the majority of radiation-induced DNA damage.

Global iron-dependent gene regulation in Escherichia coli - A new mechanism for iron homeostasis

Organisms generally respond to iron deficiency by increasing their capacity to take up iron and by consuming intracellular iron stores. Escherichia coli, in which iron metabolism is particularly well understood, contains at least 7 iron-acquisition systems encoded by 35 iron-repressed genes. This Fe-dependent repression is mediated by a transcriptional repressor, Fur ( ferric uptake regulation), which also controls genes involved in other processes such as iron storage, the Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle, pathogenicity, and redox-stress resistance. Our macroarray-based global analysis of iron- and Fur-dependent gene expression in E. coli has revealed several novel Fur-repressed genes likely to specify at least three additional iron- transport pathways. Interestingly, a large group of energy metabolism genes was found to be iron and Fur induced. Many of these genes encode iron- rich respiratory complexes. This iron- and Fur-dependent regulation appears to represent a novel iron-homeostatic mechanism whereby the synthesis of many iron- containing proteins is repressed under iron- restricted conditions. This mechanism thus accounts for the low iron contents of fur mutants and explains how E. coli can modulate its iron requirements. Analysis of Fe-55-labeled E. coli proteins revealed a marked decrease in iron- protein composition for the fur mutant, and visible and EPR spectroscopy showed major reductions in cytochrome b and d levels, and in iron- sulfur cluster contents for the chelator-treated wild-type and/or fur mutant, correlating well with the array and quantitative RT-PCR data. In combination, the results provide compelling evidence for the regulation of intracellular iron consumption by the Fe2+-Fur complex.