Analytical Chemistry Commons^™

Analysis Of Drug Interactions With Lipoproteins By High Performance Affinity Chromatography, Matthew R. Sobansky

Department of Chemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

High density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) are lipoproteins previously shown to bind many basic and neutral hydrophobic drugs in serum. These interactions impact the distribution, delivery, metabolism, and excretion of drugs and are important in determining drug activity, pharmacokinetics, and toxicity in the human body. Information about drug-lipoprotein interactions and the strength of these interactions can be useful in determining the distribution of drugs following administration.

The research presented in this dissertation uses high performance affinity chromatography (HPAC) and packed columns to study binding of the drug propranolol to immobilized lipoproteins such …

Syntheses Of Aminyl Diradicals And Nitroxide Tetra- And Octaradicals, Arnon Olankitwanit

Department of Chemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation comprises of two main research projects: aminyl diradicals and calix[4]arene nitroxide tetra- and octaradicals. The design, multi-step synthesis and characterization, including NMR, EPR spectroscopy, magnetic measurements and X-ray crystallography of precursors and target compounds will be discussed.

Aminyl radicals, nitrogen-centered radicals, are typically short-lived and considered as reactive intermediates. Because of their unique magnetic properties, aminyls are attractive building blocks for high-spin di-and polyradicals. The challenge is in the design and synthesis of aminyls with increased stability. In this chapter, we have prepared triplet (S = 1) ground state aminyl diradicals, which are derivatives of aza-m …

Iterative Assembly Of Two Separate Polyketide Chains By The Same Single-Module Bacterial Polyketide Synthase In The Biosynthesis Of Hsaf, Yaoyao Li, Haotong Chen, Yanjiao Ding, Yunxuan Xie, Haoxin Wang, Ronald Cerny, Yuemao Shen, Liangcheng Du

Ronald Cerny Publications

HSAF (1) was isolated from the biocontrol agent Lysobacter enzymogenes (Figure 1).^[1-4]

This bacterial metabolite belongs to polycyclic tetramate macrolactams (PTM) that are

emerging as a new class of natural products with distinct structural features. ^{[5, 6]} HSAF

exhibits a potent antifungal activity and shows a novel mode of action.^[1-4] The HSAF

biosynthetic gene cluster contains only a single-module hybrid polyketide synthasenonribosomal

peptide synthetase (PKS-NRPS), although the PTM scaffold is apparently

derived from two separate hexaketide chains and an ornithine residue.^[1-4] This suggests that

the same PKS module would act not only iteratively, but also …

Van Der Waals Trilayers And Superlattices: Modification Of Electronic Structures Of Mos2 By Intercalation, Ning Lu, Hongyan Guo, Lu Wang, Xiaojun Wu, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

We perform a comprehensive first-principles study of the electronic properties of van der Waals (vdW) trilayers via intercalating a twodimensional (2D) monolayer (ML = BN, MoSe₂, WS₂, orWSe₂) between a MoS₂ bilayer to form various MoS₂/ML/MoS₂ sandwich trilayers. We find that the BN monolayer is themost effective sheet to decouple the interlayer vdW coupling of the MoS₂ bilayer, and the resulting sandwich trilayer can recover the electronic structures of the MoS₂ monolayer, particularly the direct-gap character. Further study of the MoS₂/BN superlattices confirms the effectiveness of …

Spontaneous Formation Of One-Dimensional Hydrogen Gas Hydrate In Carbon Nanotubes, Wenhui Zhao, Lu Wang, Jaeil Bai, Joseph S. Francisco, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

We present molecular dynamics simulation evidence of spontaneous formation of quasi-one-dimensional (Q1D) hydrogen gas hydrates within single-walled carbon nanotubes (SW-CNTs) of nanometer-sized diameter (1−1.3 nm) near ambient temperature. Contrary to conventional 3D gas hydrates in which the guest molecules are typically contained in individual and isolated cages in the host lattice, the guest H₂ molecules in the Q1D gas hydrates are contained within a 1D nanochannel in which the H₂ molecules form a molecule wire. In particular, we show that in the (15,0) zigzag SW-CNT, the hexagonal H₂ hydrate tends to form, with one H₂ molecule …

Three-Dimensional Periodic Graphene Nanostructures, Peter M. Wilson, Gilbert N. Mbah, Thomas G. Smith, Daniel Schmidt, Rebecca Y. Lai, Tino Hofmann, Alexander Sinitskii

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

Graphene is a basic building block for many known and emerging carbon-based materials whose properties largely depend on the way how graphene is structured at the nanoscale. Synthesis of novel threedimensional (3D) nanostructures of graphene would be an important advance for fundamental research and various applications. In this paper, we discuss the possibility of fabricating complex 3D graphene nanostructures by growing graphene on pre-synthesized nanostructured metal templates by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and then etching away the metal. In the proof-of-concept experiments, we study this idea using two types of metal nanostructures, inverse opals and slanted nanopillar arrays grown by …

Metallurgical And Corrosion Assessment Of Submerged Tanker S.S. Montebello, Dana Medlin, James D. Carr, Donald L. Johnson, David L. Conlin

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

The Union Oil Tanker S.S. Montebello was torpedoed and sunk six miles (9.7 km) off the coast of Cambria, California by a Japanese submarine on December 23, 1941, two weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor. With close proximity to the National Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary, concern about possible crude oil contamination led to the most recent expedition to the site in October 2011. Assessment of the shell plate found that the average corrosion rate was very low and the structure will remain stable for many decades.

Advances In Chemical And Structural Characterization Of Concretion With Implications For Modeling Marine Corrosion, Donald L. Johnson, Robert J. Deangelis, Dana J. Medlin, James D. Carr, David L. Conlin

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

The Weinsnumber model and concretion equivalent corrosion rate methodology were developed as potential minimum-impact, cost-effective techniques to determine corrosion damage on submerged steel structures. To apply the full potential of these technologies, a detailed chemical and structural characterization of the concretion (hard biofouling) that transforms into iron bearing minerals is required. The fractions of existing compounds and the quantitative chemistries are difficult to determine from x-ray diffraction. Environmental scanning electron microscopy was used to present chemical compositions by means of energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). EDS demonstrates the chemical data in mapping format or in point or selected area chemistries. Selectedarea EDS …

Highly Selective Gas Sensor Arrays Based On Thermally Reduced Graphene Oxide, Alexey Lipatov, Alexey Varezhnikov, Peter Wilson, Victor Sysoev, Andrei Kolmakov, Alexander Sinitskii

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

The electrical properties of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) have been previously shown to be very sensitive to surface adsorbates, thus making rGO a very promising platform for highly sensitive gas sensors. However, poor selectivity of rGO-based gas sensors remains a major problem for their practical use. In this paper, we address the selectivity problem by employing an array of rGO-based integrated sensors instead of focusing on the performance of a single sensing element. Each rGO-based device in such an array has a unique sensor response due to the irregular structure of rGO films at different levels of organization, ranging from …

Mos2/Mx2 Heterobilayers: Bandgap Engineering Via Tensile Strain Or External Electrical Field, Ning Lu, Hongyan Guo, Lei Li, Jun Dai, Lu Wang, Wai-Ning Mei, Xiaojun Wu, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

We have performed a comprehensive first-principles study of the electronic and magnetic properties of two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) heterobilayers MX₂/MoS₂ (M = Mo, Cr, W, Fe, V; X = S, Se). For M = Mo, Cr, W; X = S, Se, all heterobilayers show semiconducting characteristics with an indirect bandgap with the exception of the WSe2/MoS2 heterobilayer which retains the directbandgap character of the constituent monolayer. For M = Fe, V; X = S, Se, the MX₂/MoS₂ heterobilayers exhibit metallic characters. Particular attention of this study has been focused on engineering the bandgap …

Unraveling Crystalline Structure Of High-Pressure Phase Of Silicon Carbonate, Rulong Zhou, Bingyan Qu, Jun Dai, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Although CO₂ and SiO₂ both belong to group-IV oxides, they exhibit remarkably different bonding characteristics and phase behavior at ambient conditions. At room temperature, CO₂ is a gas, whereas SiO₂ is a covalent solid with rich polymorphs. A recent successful synthesis of the silicon-carbonate solid from the reaction between CO₂ and SiO₂ under high pressure [M. Santoro et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 108, 7689 (2011)] has resolved a long-standing puzzle regarding whether a Si_xC_1−xO₂ compound between CO₂ and SiO₂ exists in nature. Nevertheless, the detailed …

Analogues Of (-)-Picropodophyllin, Synthesis And Uses Thereof, David B. Berkowitz, Sylvain Broussy

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

Analogs of (-)-Picropodophyllin, synthesis thereof, and uses in pharmaceuticals as inhibitors of IGF1RK.

Structural Dynamics Of A Single-Stranded Rna–Helix Junction Using Nmr, Catherine D. Eichhorn, Hashim M. Al-Hashimi

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

Many regulatory RNAs contain long single strands (ssRNA) that adjoin secondary structural elements. Here, we use NMR spectroscopy to study the dynamic properties of a 12-nucleotide (nt) ssRNA tail derived from the prequeuosine riboswitch linked to the 3′ end of a 48-nt hairpin. Analysis of chemical shifts, NOE connectivity, ¹³C spin relaxation, and residual dipolar coupling data suggests that the first two residues (A25 and U26) in the ssRNA tail stack onto the adjacent helix and assume an ordered conformation. The following U26-A27 step marks the beginning of an A₆-tract and forms an acute pivot point for …

Ferroelectric Hexagonal And Rhombic Monolayer Ice Phases, Wen-Hui Zhao, Jaeil Bai, Lan-Feng Yuan, Jinlong Yang, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Two new phases of water, the mid-density hexagonal monolayer ice and the high-density flat rhombic monolayer ice, are observed in our molecular dynamics simulations of monolayer water confined between two smooth hydrophobic walls. These are in addition to the two monolayer ices reported previously, namely, the low-density 4∙8² monolayer ice and the high-density puckered rhombic monolayer ice (HD-pRMI). Stabilities of the structures are confirmed by ab initio computation. Importantly, both new phases and the HD-pRMI are predicted to be ferroelectric. An in-plane external electric field can further stabilize these ferroelectric monolayer ices.

A Photoelectron Spectroscopy And Ab Initio Study Of The Structures And Chemical Bonding Of The B25 − Cluster, Zachary A Piazza, Ivan H. Popov, Wei-Li Li, Rhitankar Pal, Xiao Cheng Zeng, Alexander I. Boldyrev, Lai-Sheng Wang

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Photoelectron spectroscopy and ab initio calculations are used to investigate the structures and chemical bonding of the B₂₅ − cluster. Global minimum searches reveal a dense potential energy landscape with 13 quasi-planar structures within 10 kcal/mol at the CCSD(T)/6-311+G(d) level of theory. Three quasi-planar isomers (I, II, and III) are lowest in energy and nearly degenerate at the CCSD(T) level of theory, with II and III being 0.8 and 0.9 kcal/mol higher, respectively, whereas at two density functional levels of theory isomer III is the lowest in energy (8.4 kcal/mol more stable than I at PBE0/6-311+G(2df) level). Comparison with …

Mvapack: A Complete Data Handling Package For Nmr Metabolomics, Bradley Worley, Robert Powers

Robert Powers Publications

Data handling in the field of NMR metabolomics has historically been reliant on either in-house mathematical routines or long chains of expensive commercial software. Thus, while the relatively simple biochemical protocols of metabolomics maintain a low barrier to entry, new practitioners of metabolomics experiments are forced to either purchase expensive software packages or craft their own data handling solutions from scratch. This inevitably complicates the standardization and communication of data handling protocols in the field. We report a newly developed open-source platform for complete NMR metabolomics data handling, MVAPACK, and describe its application on an example metabolic fingerprinting data set.

Bulk Properties Of Solution-Synthesized Chevron-Like Graphene Nanoribbons, Timothy H. Vo, Mikhail Shekhirev, Alexey Lipatov, Rafal A. Korlacki, Alexander Sinitskii

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) have received a great deal of attention due to their promise for electronic and optoelectronic applications. Several recent studies have focused on the synthesis of GNRs by the bottom-up approaches that could yield very narrow GNRs with atomically precise edges. One type of GNRs that has received a considerable attention is the chevron-like GNR with a very distinct periodic structure. Surface-assisted and solution-based synthetic approaches for the chevron-like GNRs have been developed, but their electronic properties have not been reported yet. In this work, we synthesized chevron-like GNRs in bulk by a solution-based method, characterized them by …

Structure And Function Of Preq1 Riboswitches, Catherine D. Eichhorn, Mijeong Kang, Juli Feigon

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

PreQ₁ riboswitches help regulate the biosynthesis and transport of PreQ₁ (7-aminomethyl-7- deazaguanine), a precursor of the hypermodified guanine nucleotide queuosine (Q), in a number of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Fusobacteria. Queuosine is almost universally found at the wobble position of the anticodon in asparaginyl, tyrosyl, histidyl and aspartyl tRNAs, where it contributes to translational fidelity. Two classes of PreQ₁ riboswitches have been identified (PreQ₁-I and PreQ₁-II), and structures of examples from both classes have been determined. Both classes form H-type pseudoknots upon PreQ₁ binding, each of which has distinct unusual features and modes …