Chemistry Commons^™

Nanomaterials For Biological Applications: Drug Delivery And Bio-Sensing, Hui Ma

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The idea of utilizing nanomaterials in bio-related applications has been extensively practiced during the recent decades. Magnetic nanoparticles (MPs), especially superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles have been demonstrated as promising candidates for biomedicine. A protective coating process with biocompatible materials is commonly performed on MPs to further enhance their colloidal and chemical stability in the physiological environment. Mesoporous hollow silica is another class of important nanomaterials that are extensively studied in drug delivery area for their ability to carry significant amount of guest molecules and release in a controlled manner.

In this study, different synthetic approaches that are able to produce …

Synthesis And Antifungal Evaluation Of Barbiturate Saponins And Progress Towards Cysteinyl Metal Peptides, Monika Madhav

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Invasive fungal infections are a major threat to immune-compromised patients. There is a critical need to develop new antifungal agents because of increasing resistance to the common antifungal drugs.

In the first part of this dissertation, methods for preparation of novel barbiturate saponin as antifungals and their biological activities would be described. Barbiturates and steroidal saponins have shown remarkable antifungal activity in the biological assays. Therefore, attempts were directed to combine the barbiturate with the steroid to give novel antifungal agents. The need for extensive SAR studies and to better understand these compounds efforts were directed to synthesize novel saponin …

Abuse Of Spice, Bath Salts, And Steroids, Rebecca Coburn

Honors Theses

The abuse of three different drugs and whether or not they should continue to be banned in the United States is looked at. These three drugs are spice, bath salts, and steroids. In conclusion, spice and bath salts should continue to be banned in the United States due to the little knowledge known on the drugs and how they affect the body. Steroids on the other hand should only be banned in the use of sports, due to the unfair advantage that it gives users. For individuals not in sports, steroids should be legal since it is their choice to …

Synthesis And Immunological Evaluation Of Type I, Type Ii, And Gamma Delta Nkt Cell Antigens, Brian L. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the immune system is to protect our bodies from infection. One way it accomplishes this task is through the presentation of foreign pathogens to NKT cells. After an antigen is presented to the T cell receptor, activated NKT cells quickly release soluble chemical signals, termed chemokines and cytokines, that modulate the response of the immune system. Due to the immunological relevance of NKT cell activation, we developed and synthesised non-natural analogs of immunostimulatory type I, II, and gamma delta NKT cell antigens. The immunological evaluations of these analogs resulted in identification of sulfatide as a gamma delta …

Label-Free Detection Of Low Protein Concentration In Solution Using A Novel Colorimetric Assay, Molla R. Islam, Michael J. Serpe

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Dual pH and temperature sensitive microgel-based etalons were fabricated by sandwiching a “monolithic” microgel layer between two semitransparent, Au layers. The devices exhibit visual color and multipeak reflectance spectra, both of which primarily depend on the distance between the Au surfaces mediated by the microgel diameter. We found that a polycationic polyelectrolyte can penetrate through the Au overlayer to interact with negatively charged microgel confined between Au overlayers. In this submission we report that biotinylated polycationic polymer can penetrate through the Au overlayer of a poly (N-isopropylacrylamide)-co-acrylic acid (pNIPAm-co-AAc) microgel-based etalon and cause the microgel layer to collapse. The collapse …

Why Do Molecules Echo Atomic Periodicity?, Ray Hefferlin, Jonathan Sackett, Jeremy Tatum

Faculty Works

Franck–Condon factors are investigated for sequences of free

main-group diatomic molecules. Theory-based Condon loci

(parabolas) and Morse-potential loci are plotted on Deslandres

tables to verify if they, indeed, follow the largest Franck–Condon

factors. Then, the inclination angles of the Condon loci

are determined. Thus, entire band systems are quantified by

one variable, the angle. For all available isoelectronic sequences,

this angle increases from a central minimum toward

magic-number molecular boundaries. The theory for the Condon

locus gives the angle in terms of the ratio of the upperstate

to the lower-state force constants. It is concluded that

the periodicity is caused …

Ab Initio Quantum Chemistry Calculations Of Phosphorous Oxide Caged Cluster Compounds., Brian Rich

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The objective of my thesis was to add to a catalogue of molecular structures that is being compiled as a part of the Standoff Detection Project. The optimized geometry of P8O20 and P20O20 were calculated using restricted Hartree-Fock Theory, using the standard quantum mechanics and computational chemistry programs ECCÈ and NWChem. Unfortunately, due to the extremely time consuming nature of these calculations there was not enough time to complete the calculations for P24O48 and P24O60.

Exploring Freshmen College Students' Self-Efficacy, Attitudes, And Intentions Toward Chemistry, Amanda F. Cook

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This study examined the self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes towards general chemistry, and intentions to take future chemistry courses in a sample of (n = 1,126) first-time, first-year freshmen from a large comprehensive university in the Mid-South. The main purpose of the study was to determine the amount of variance in students’ intentions which could be predicted by self-efficacy, attitudes, and other known influences (past performance, past experience and choice of major). Findings from a standard multiple regression indicate that self-efficacy (β = 0.07, p < .05) and attitude (β = 0.50, p < .001) are both significant and predict 29.3% of the variance in intentions, with attitudes making a larger unique contribution. Using a hierarchical regression to control for other known factors, self-efficacy and attitudes were still able to predict 23.5% of the variance in intentions. Overall, the five independent variables were able to predict 31.7% of the variance in intentions. Implications for secondary and postsecondary science educators and STEM administrators are discussed.

A New Class Of Gold Nanoantibotics - Direct Coating Of Ampicillin On Gold Nanoparticles, Dillon S. Pender

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Need for novel, innovative strategies for developing antibiotics is becoming a necessity due to an increasing number of rapidly evolving micro-organismal threats. Antibiotic encapsulated gold nanoparticles (GNPs) are one such strategy showing promise. We report the development of ampicillin encapsulated gold nanoparticles (Amp-GNPs) that possess highly effective, dose dependant antibacterial activity. In this method, ampicillin molecules have been coated on individual GNPs which can then serve as drug carrier devices. Our method for synthesizing Amp-GNPs is an entirely ecofriendly, single step reaction taking place in an aqueous buffer. Following characterization of Amp-GNPs, we find them to be ~15 nm in …

Differential Hydrogen Bonding In Human Cyp17 Dictates Hydroxylation Versus Lyase Chemistry, Michael Gregory, Piotr J. Mak, Stephen G. Sligar, James R. Kincaid

Chemistry Faculty Research and Publications

Consequences of alternative H-bonding: Raman spectra of oxygenated intermediates of Nanodisc-incorporated human CYP17 in the presence of natural substrates (pregnenolone and progesterone) directly confirm that substrate structure effectively alters hydrogen-bonding interactions with the critical Fe–O–O fragment and dictates its predisposition for one of two alternative reaction pathways. Such substrate control has profound physiological implications.

Training An Asymmetric Signal Perceptron In An Artificial Chemistry, Peter Banda

Student Research Symposium

Autonomous learning implemented purely by means of a synthetic chemical system has not been previously realized. Learning promotes reusability, and minimizes the system design to simple input-output specification. In this poster, I present a simulated chemical system, the first full-featured implementation of a perceptron in an artificial (simulated) chemistry, which can successfully learn all 14 linearly separable logic functions. A perceptron is the simplest system capable of learning inspired by the functioning of a biological neuron. My newest model called the asymmetric signal perceptron (ASP) is, as opposed to its predecessors such as the weight-race perceptron (WRP), substantially simpler by …

An Alternative Ribozyme For The Rna Hypercycle, Ishak Elkhal

Student Research Symposium

In the quest to forward understanding of the prebiotic world (specifically, the RNA World Hypothesis), one of the most interesting paradigms to consider is the potential for cooperative networks that may have driven molecular evolution forward. Such a network may exist as an RNA hypercycle, as proposed by Eigen (1977). Much progress has been made towards an RNA hypercycle-like system, especially using the Azoarcus ribozyme system demonstrated by Vaidya et al. (2012). The current work is dedicated to constructing a second model as a cooperative RNA network, utilizing a group I intron from Coxiella burnetii (Cbu1917). The intron was constructed …

Microglial Activation By Amyloid-Beta, Geeta Subhash Paranjape

Dissertations

Paranjape, Geeta S.,Ph.D.,University of Missouri-Saint Louis, May 2012. Aβ(1-42) Protofibrils But Not Fibrils Activate Microglia. Major Professor: Michael R. Nichols. One of the hallmark features of the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) brain is the extracellular deposition of amyloid-β protein (Aβ) in both fibrillar (senile plaques) and diffuse forms. Significant proinflammatory markers including activated microglia and cytokines have been detected surrounding the plaques but are absent in diffuse areas suggesting that microglial activation is sensitive to Aβ structure. Since Aβ displays structural polymorphism in vitro, we sought to determine the relationship between Aβ aggregation state and microglial proinflammatory response. Size exclusion chromatography …

Binding Energies And Solvation Of Organic Molecular Ions, Reactions Of Transition Metal Ions With, And Plasma Discharge Ionization Of Molecular Clusters, Isaac Kwame Attah

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, different approaches have been employed to address the quest of understanding the formation and growth mechanisms of carbon-containing molecular ions with relevance to astrochemistry. Ion mobility mass spectrometry and DFT computations were used to investigate how a second nitrogen in the pyrimidine ring will affect the formation of a covalent bond between the benzene radical cation and the neutral pyrimidine molecule, after it was shown that a stable covalent adduct can be formed between benzene radical cation and the neutral pyridine. Evidence for the formation of a more stable covalent adduct between the benzene radical cation and …

Microwave Synthesis And Reactions Of Cpru(Dppe)Cl With Sulfur Containing Ligands, Srikanth Muthyala

Student Theses and Dissertations

The microwave synthesis of CpRu(dppe)Cl and CpRu(PPh3)(P(OMe)3)Cl were investigated. A new preparative method using microwave irradiation was found for CpRu(dppe)Cl and CpRu(PPh3)(P(OMe)3)Cl. Attempts to prepare CpRu(P(OMe)3)2Cl failed. Reactions of CpRu(dppe)Cl and CpRu(PPh3)(P(OMe)3)Cl with cyclothioether ligands were attempted. Pentamethylene sulfide (pms), tetrahydrothiophene (tht), and thietane (thie) were the ligands considered. The dppe-dithiooxamide complex {(µ-dtoxa)[CpRudppe]2}(BF4)2 was isolated and the structure was determined using X-ray diffraction techniques: space group P 21 21 21, a = 14.120 (7) Å, b = 16.099 Å, c = 30.917 Å. α = β = ϒ = 90O, V Å3 = 7028 (6), R(F), Rw (F) = 0.0531 …

Basecol2012: A Collisional Database Repository And Web Service Within The Virtual Atomic And Molecular Data Centre (Vamdc), M.-L Duberne, M. H. Alexander, Y. A. Ba, N. Balakrishnan, C. Balança, C. Ceccarelli, J. Cernicharo, F. Daniel, F. Dayou, M. Doronin, F. Dumouchel, A. Faure, N. Feautrier, D. R. Flower, A. Grosjean, P. Halvick, J. Kłos, F. Lique, G. C. Mcbane, S. Marinakis, N. Moreau, R. Moszynsk, D. A. Neufeld, E. Roueff, P Schilke, A. Spielfiedel, P. C. Stancil, T. Stoecklin, J. Tennyson, B. Yang, A.-M. Vasserot, L. Wiesenfeld

Peer Reviewed Articles

The BASECOL2012 database is a repository of collisional data and a web service within the Virtual Atomic and Molecular Data Centre (VAMDC, http://www.vamdc.eu). It contains rate coefficients for the collisional excitation of rotational, ro-vibrational, vibrational, fine, and hyperfine levels of molecules by atoms, molecules, and electrons, as well as fine-structure excitation of some atoms that are relevant to interstellar and circumstellar astrophysical applications. Submissions of new published collisional rate coefficients sets are welcome, and they will be critically evaluated before inclusion in the database. In addition, BASECOL2012 provides spectroscopic data queried dynamically from various spectroscopic databases using the VAMDC technology. …

I. Stereochemical Control Of Chiral Assembly And Liquid Crystal Phase Formation Of Nonamphiphilic Molecules In Water Ii. Control Bacterial Quorum Sensing And Quorum Sensing-Mediated Activities Using Small Unnatural Molecules, Sijie Yang

Chemistry - Dissertations

The primary goal of this research is to utilize organic synthesis as a tool to prepare small molecules that find potential application in different areas including colloidal and material science, biological chemistry, and medicinal chemistry.

Chapter 1 describes the interpretation of the conformation of nonamphiphilic mesogen disodium cromoglycate (5´DSCG) when it exists as part of an assembly in water. The study of thermodynamic incompatibility and miscibility suggest that a previously proposed model for the assembly of 5´DSCG may be applicable to nonamphiphilic organic dyes and other mesogens.

Chapter 2 presents a study of stereochemical control on assembly and liquid crystal …

Synthesis Of Rhenium And Manganese Pyridazoal Complexes, Jesse Evans

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Pyridazines are a heterocyclic aromatic compound containing a characteristic N-N bond that are utilized in many fields, including medicine and electronics. It is this latter field that Dr. Snyder's research group is focused upon. Organometallic compounds are a better conducting material than the current inorganic compounds used in electronics due to better conductance of electricity, lower production cost, and the ability to be formed into thin films. With this in mind, Dr. Snyder's research group has set out to synthesize organometallic compounds for this purpose. Following procedures set forth by Snyder etc, and altered to form an off-metal route, we …

Reactions Of Platinum(Ii) Compounds With Selenium Containing Amino Acids, Stephanie Robey

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Platinum(II) anticancer medications essentially react with DNA forming kinks in
the double helix of DNA and causing apoptosis. It has also been noted that these
anticancer medications react with methionine and cysteine in the body. With the new discoveries of selenium containing amino acids including selenomethionine and selenocysteine, new research is ongoing to see what types of products can be formed from these amino acids. Our research reacts [Pt(Met-S,N)Cl₂] ²⁺ with selenomethionine to determine what types of products are produced. Monochelates including [Pt(SeMet-Se,N)Cl₂] ²⁺ have formed two isomers, …

Comparison Of Liquid-Liquid Extraction And Solid Phase Extraction Of Mephedrone, Brittany Simone Love

Master's Theses

Legal high drugs are modified scheduled drugs. As with any new drug, researchers have to conduct studies to gather information about the drug. The problem with obtaining accurate information on new drugs is that by the time information is gathered, drug abusers and street chemists have developed new ones. Comparing designer drugs to their illegal counterparts is often helpful in that it can provide a starting point. Mephedrone is a new designer drug that has become a problem over the past few years. Often marketed as bath salts and plant food, mephedrone has become the knockoff replacement for amphetamines. This …

Effect Of Leaving Ligands Of Platinum(Ii) Diamine Complexes On Dna And Protein Residues, Ramya Kolli

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Platinum compounds are widely used drugs in cancer treatments. Although DNA is the biological target, reaction of platinum compounds with proteins is also potentially significant. Our objective is to study the effects of leaving ligands on the relative reactivity between 5'-GMP (guanosine 5' phosphate), a key DNA target, and N-Acetyl - L-Methionine (N-AcMet), a key protein target. We have used NMR spectroscopy to monitor reactions with N-AcMet and 5'-GMP added to a platinum complex to see which products are formed preferentially. Previous research showed that both a non-bulky complex such as [Pt(en)(D₂O)₂]²⁺ [en=ethylenediamine], and a …

Effects Of Cisplatin Analog Size On The Reaction With Dna Bases, Swathi Nandala

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Cisplatin is one of the well-known anti-cancer agents used to treat testicular and ovarian cancers. It mainly binds to the DNA bases, which leads to cell death. The cytotoxic activity of the cisplatin analogs is due to the interaction of platinum with nucleotides like adenine at N₇ or N₁ position and guanine at N₇ position. Guanine is the primary target for cisplatin analogs whereas adenine is the secondary target. Cisplatin analogs, [Pt(Me₅dien)(D₂O)]²⁺[Me₅dien = N,N,N’,N’,N’’-pentamethyl diethylene triamine] and …

The Role Of Type-2 Cannabinoid Receptors In Calcification Of Atherosclerotic Lesions., Kaitlyn Hinshaw

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Introduction: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by the buildup of cholesterol, fat and other debris within arterial walls. Atherosclerotic lesions undergo a calcification process with similarities to bone remodeling. In mice, the type-2 cannabinoid receptor (CB2) is known to regulate bone remodeling processes and has also been shown to alter atherosclerotic lesion characteristics. However, the role of CB2 in lesion calcification is still unclear. CB2 modulates bone remodeling by affecting differentiation of osteogenic precursor cells; thus we hypothesize that CB2 alters lesion calcification by altering osteoblastogenesis and osteoclastogenesis of precursor cells of vascular origin. To test this hypothesis, …

Sensing Of Carboxylate Drugs In Urine By A Supramolecular Sensor Array, Yuanli Liu, Tsuyoshi Minami, Ryuhei Nishiyabu, Zhuo Wang, Pavel Anzenbacher Jr.

Chemistry Faculty Publications

A supramolecular sensor array consisting of eight chemosensors embedded in a hydrogel matrix was used to sense carboxylate drugs. The discriminatory power of the array has been evaluated using principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis. The eight-member sensor array has been shown to accurately identify 14 carboxylates in water with 100% classification accuracy. To demonstrate the potential for practical utility in the physiological environment, analysis of carboxylate drugs in human urine was also performed achieving 100% correct classification. In addition, the array performance in semiquantitative identification of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs has been investigated, and the results show that the …

I. Norbornene As Organocatalyst: Unusual: Amination Ii. Stereoselective Synthesis Of 3, 4 Di-Substituted Β-Lactams; Classical Vs Microwave Method, Ravi Reddaboyna

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

I. Amine functionality is important in the preparation of biologically active and industrially useful molecules. Many approaches to form C―N bonds provide access to fine chemical building blocks, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and surfactants. Microwave irradiation is a highly recommended ecofriendly approach for the synthesis of medicinally important compounds. Organic catalysis is important segment in the field of organic chemistry, for the synthesis of many complex molecules by providing a number of advantages.

II. Cancer refers to a large group of diseases characterized by uncontrolled cell multiplication and the ability of these cells to enter other tissues and spread to other parts …

Section Abstracts: Chemistry

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Chemistry Section for the 91st Annual Virginia Journal of Science Meeting, May 2013

Fused Arenes-Based Molecular And Polymeric Materials For Organic Field Effect Transistors, Harista Irugulapati

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In the past decade, tremendous progress has been made in organic field effect
transistors. Fused oligothiophenes and anthracene molecules are fascinating
macromolecules having unique optoelectronic properties. These compounds are successfully employed as active components in optoelectronic devices including field effect transistors. Our goal is to design and synthesize conjugated molecular materials, which are highly functionalized through structural modifications in order to enhance their electronic, photonic, and morphological properties. The main desire is to synthesize novel organic fused-arenes having efficient charge carrier mobilities, as well as to optimize optical properties for organic field effect transistors (OFETs). Novel series of fused arene …

Electrospinning Nanofibers For Controlled Drug Release, Indrani Banik

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Electrospinning is the most widely studied technique for the synthesis of nanofibers. Electrospinning is considered as one of the technologies that can produce nanosized drugs incorporated in polymeric nanofibers. In vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that the release rates of drugs from these nanofiber formulations are enhanced compared to those from original drug substance. This technology has the potential for enhancing the oral delivery of poorly soluble drugs [1]. The electrospun mats were made using Polycaprolactone/PCL, Poly(DL-lactide)/PDL 05 and Poly(DL-lactide-co-glycolide)/PLGA. The drugs incorporated in the electrospun fibers were 5-Fluorouracil and Rapamycin. The evidence of the drugs being embedded …

Study Of Immobilizing Cadmium Selenide Quantum Dots In Selected Polymers For Application In Peroxyoxalate Chemiluminescence Flow Injection Analysis, Christopher S. Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Two batches of CdSe QDs with different sizes were synthesized for immobilizing in polyisoprene (PI), polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). The combinations of QDs and polymer substrates were evaluated for their analytical fit-for-use in applicable immunoassays. Hydrogen peroxide standards were injected into the flow injection analyzer (FIA) constructed to simulate enzyme-generated hydrogen peroxide reacting with bis-(2,4,6-trichlorophenyl) oxalate.

Linear correlations between hydrogen peroxide and chemilumenscent intensities yielded regression values greater than 0.9750 for hydrogen peroxide concentrations between 1.0 x 10^-4 M and 1.0 x 10^-1 M. The developed technique’s LOD was approximately 10 ppm. Variability of the prepared …

Impedance Analysis Of Dielectric Nanoparticles Enabled Via A Self-Assembled Monolayer, Sasidhar Siddabattuni, Thomas P. Schuman, Vladimir Petrovsky, Fatih Dogan

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Impedance spectroscopy has been shown to be a powerful tool to investigate the dielectric characteristics of powders suspended in suitable liquids. The electrical and dielectrical contributions of different components of the slurry can be extracted from the impedance spectra through measurement of frequency-dependent relaxations. However, for ferroelectric powders that possess innate surface conductivity, such as BaTiO₃, nanoparticles have sufficient conductivity to exclude low frequency fields that preclude impedance characterization of the particle core. In this work, the slurry technique is shown to be effective for dielectric characterization of not only micrometer-sized particles through equivalent circuit modeling but also …