Chemistry Commons^™

The Analysis Of Experimental Error In Parity Violation Experiments With Polarized Neutrons, Jonathan Serpico

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Measurements of parity symmetry violation in nuclear reactions with polarized neutrons can provide valuable information on hadronic weak interaction. We have conducted an analysis of experimental error in the measurement of the parity violating eect in the n3He experiment. several experimental parameters have been optimized to minimize statistical error using numerical simulations. An analysis of systematic error due to diferential cross-section dependence on energy as well as on false parity conserving asymmetries was also conducted. Our results suggest that the proposed parameters of the experiment will suficiently suppress all sources of error under consideration. Furthermore, these approaches may be effectively …

Herbal And Holistic Medicine In Latin America, William H. Lyle

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

A variety of herbal and holistic remedies were used in pre-Columbian cultures, especially in Aztec and Incan cultures. Many different herbs were used to provide medical attention to patients directly, while other herbs were used to supplement shaman^[1] medicine, which was particularly common in Inca culture. While there is little scientific basis for shamanism, as a viable healing option in modern culture, most herbal remedies had active chemical ingredients that could be or are used today to treat similar symptoms, and, in some cases, are being applied in different scenarios as well. The methods of usage, active chemicals, and …

Analysis Of No And Noy In The Low Atmosphere At Mammoth Cave National Park, Jessica Hall

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxides of nitrogen (NO_y) are pollutants produced by automobiles and formed naturally from nitrate ions (NO₃^-). We are interested in the natural processes and anthroprogenic sources of NO and NO_y. To better understand NO and NO_y trends in the atmosphere, data from Mammoth Cave National Park (MCNP) was analyzed. The rural location of MCNP leads to the hypothesis that the natural sources of NO to be studied without anthropogenic sources significantly contributing to the overall levels. NO is correlated with factors such as solar radiance and precipitation. …

Glass Foundation Chemosensor Synthesis And Functionality Analysis, Justin D. Dancer

Master's Theses

Chemosensors are created through a series of reaction steps on controlled pore class (CPG) and terminate with a Cu²⁺ metal binding site. Each monolayer of reactant insures that the metal binding site exposed to solution would serve as an indicator displacement assay (IDA) sensor. The purpose of this research is to create a molecular sensor with a high density of terminal metal sites to quantify bidentate substrates. To accomplish this, each synthetic step of the sensor is examined in order to test the effects of new linkers, ligands, and variously sized dendrimers to see if small structural changes could …

New Metal-Nhc Complexes: Synthesis, Characterization, And Uses, Roy A. Kelly Iii

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

N-Heterocyclic Carbenes (NHC) present a viable alternative to traditional phosphine ligands in a variety of organometallic mediated catalytic reactions. Singlet ground-state carbenes are stabilized by the push-pull presence of two adjacent nitrogen atoms in an imidizolium 5-membered ring, allowing neutral electron donor properties. The ability to synthesize a variety of NHC ligands with differing steric and electronic properties is possible by changing the sustiuents on the nitrogen atoms of the imidizolium. Tunable characteristics and enhanced chemical and thermal stability give NHC’s an advantage over phosphines in many catalytic systems.

This dissertation focuses on the use N-Hetercyclic Carbenes in a variety …

Cu (Ii) Catalyzed Gateways In The Synthesis Of Acridine Derivatives And Their Biological Evaluation As Anti-Cancer Drugs, Rajesh Komati

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Telomeres are nucleoprotein complexes found at the ends of linear eukaryotic chromosomes. Telomeres consist of a short sequence of repetitive double stranded DNA, TTAGGG repeats in humans (and all mammals), and a complex of 6 proteins, termed the shelterin complex. The length of the telomeres varies greatly between species, from approximately 300 base pairs in yeast to many 10-15 kilo bases in humans, because of the end replication problem this length get shorten with each cell division and ultimately leads to cell death. However the immortal eukaryotic cells and some transformed human cells over come this incomplete end replication problem …

Design, Synthesis And Biological Evaluation Of Novel Compounds With Cns-Activity Targeting Cannabinoid And Biogenic Amine Receptors, Alexander M. Sherwood

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This work seeks to contribute to the discipline of neuropharmacology by way of structure activity relationship from the standpoint of an organic chemist. More specifically, we sought to develop robust synthetic methodology able to efficiently produce an array of compounds for the purpose of systematic evaluation of their interaction with specific sights within the central nervous system (CNS) in order to better understand the mind and to develop drugs that may have beneficial effects on neurological function.

The focus of these studies has been toward the development of novel molecules, using a structure-activity relationship approach, that exhibit binding affinity at …

X-Ray Structure Analysis And Topological Charge Density Studies Of Gossypol Derivatives, Carlos Zelaya

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Gossypol and gossypol derivatives are natural byproducts of a variety of cotton plant species that poses interesting chemical, biological, and medicinal properties that are currently heavily researched. Supporting evidence suggest that gossypol and gossypol derivatives act on the Bcl-2 proteins that have been linked to certain cancers. Gossypol amine derivatives, specifically, are actively researched and a variety of amine derivatives have already been synthesized. However, gossypol and its derivatives are challenging compounds to work with because many of its derivatives tend to exist in various tautomeric forms. When analyzing gossypol and its derivatives it is the complex electron configuration that …

Carbon Sequestration In Tidal Salt Marshes And Mangrove Ecosystems, Carlos Eduardo Quintana-Alcantara

Master's Projects and Capstones

Wetlands are dynamic systems that provide support to vital environmental functions and services. Wetlands take part in the global carbon cycle by holding organic carbon in biomass, soils and sediments. In recent years, the wetland carbon sequestration capacity has been researched worldwide due to the increase of the concentrations of greenhouse gasses implicated in global warming and climate change. Although coastal wetlands release the greenhouse gasses carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, these ecosystems maintain high performance in offsetting significant amounts of atmospheric carbon. This paper investigated the carbon sequestration capacity of coastal wetland ecosystems summarizing the environmental conditions and …

Mobilization Of Toxic Elements From An Abandoned Manganese Mine In The Arid Metropolitan Las Vegas (Nv, Usa) Area, Ji Hye Park, Vernon Hodge, Shawn Gerstenberger, Krystyna Stave

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Research

Active and abandoned mines may present health risks, especially to children, from environmental exposure to airborne chemical elements, such as Pb, As, and Mn. X-ray fluorescence analysis of tailings at the Three Kids Mine show they contain high levels of: Pb (15,300 mg/kg), As (3690 mg/kg), and Mn (153,000 mg/kg). Soil was sampled along eight transects, radiating from the dried tailings ponds. Concentrations of Mn and Pb to the NE are at background concentrations at 4.8 km, and, As and Sr at 3.2 km from the mine. Going SW to the City of Henderson, all elements are at background at …

Co2 Reduction Under Periodic Illumination Of Zns, Ruixin Zhou, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The photoreduction of CO₂ to formate (HCOO^–) in sphalerite (ZnS) aqueous suspensions is systematically studied in the presence of Na₂S hole scavenger. A series of cut-on filters at λ_cut-on ≥ 280, 295, 305, 320, and 400 nm are used to measure the reaction rate of formate production. The dependence of the measured reaction rates on λ_cut-on indicates that a wavelength of λ = 345 nm is associated with the actual bandgap of the semiconductor nanocrystallites suspended in water. The results from apparent quantum yield measurements during periodic illumination experiments suggest that (1) valence-band …

Synthesis And Resolution Of A Substituted Dioxolane From Glycerol, Susannah Dawn Cox

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Glycerol (Figure 1) is one of the major byproducts in the manufacturing of biofuels. As the interest in biodiesel grows, production of glycerol will also increase. Investigating glycerol's potential as a chemical feedstock could lead to the discovery of new uses for this byproduct created from biofuel production. By developing pathways to use glycerol as a starting material and as a solvent we will be able to synthesize other chemically relevant compounds.

Characterization Of Suf Pathway For Fe-S Cluster Assembly In Escherichia Coli, Yuyuan Dai

Theses and Dissertations

Fe-S clusters are critical metallocofactors required for cell function. Because of the toxicity of ferrous iron and sulfide to the cell, in vivo Fe-S cluster assembly is carried out by multiprotein biosynthetic pathways. Escherichia coli contains a stress-responsive Fe-S cluster assembly system, the SufABCDSE pathway, working under iron starvation and oxidative stress conditions. The cysteine desulfurase SufS and its accessory protein SufE work together to mobilize persulfide from L-cysteine. We collaborated with Dr. Laura S. Busenlehner to use hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) to characterize SufS-SufE interactions and protein dynamics. HDX-MS analysis shows that SufE binds near the SufS active …

Hydroflux Synthesis: A New And Effective Technique For Exploratory Crystal Growth, Michael William Chance

Theses and Dissertations

Exploratory crystal growth is the best way to discover new phases with potentially improved properties or new crystal structures that could lead to new properties. As time goes on and researchers explore the synthetic techniques in the literature, diminishing returns will be met. Innovation in the synthetic tools used for synthesis is necessary to keep the field of materials chemistry advancing at its current pace and to allow us to reach more shallow minima of phase space. By combining wet hydroxide flux synthesis and hydrothermal synthesis, a hybrid technique for crystal growth has been created.

Using hydroxide hydrofluxes, a number …

Suzuki-Miyaura Reactions Are Used To Synthesize Z-Alkenes From Cyclic Boronic Half-Acids, Daniel Lee French

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Cis-Alkenes provide the basic structure and reactivity for a variety of compounds, from the common chemicals found in any organic laboratory to advanced drugs used to treat cancer or suppress the immune system (Littke & Fu, 2002). Synthetically, alkenes are also of use in that they serve as a site for further chemistry. Historically, Z-alkenes have been more difficult to synthesize than their E-counterparts (McNulty et al., 2010; Siau, Zhang, & Zhao, 2012). Furthermore, in many reactions, a mixture of E- and Z- conformations of the alkene is produced. Such differences may seem trivial upon first inspection, but because there …

Homogeneous And Heterogeneous Noncovalent Dimers Of Formaldehyde And Thioformaldehyde: Structures, Energetics, And Vibrational Frequencies, Eric Van Dornshuld, Christina M. Holy, Gregory S. Tschumper

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

This work provides the first characterization of five stationary points of the homogeneous thioformaldehyde dimer, (CH₂S)₂, and seven stationary points of the heterogeneous formaldehyde/thioformaldehyde dimer, CH₂O/CH₂S, with correlated ab initio electronic structure methods. Full geometry optimizations and corresponding harmonic vibrational frequencies were computed with second-order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory (MP2) and 13 different density functionals in conjunction with triple-ζ basis sets augmented with diffuse and multiple sets of polarization functions. The MP2 results indicate that the three stationary points of (CH₂S)₂ and four of CH₂O/CH₂S are …

The Dimerization Domain In Dape Enzymes Is Required For Catalysis, Boguslaw Nocek, Anna Starus, Magdalena Makowska-Grzyska, Blanca Gutierrez, Stephen Sanchez, Robert Jedrzejczak, Jamey C. Mack, Kenneth W. Olsen, Andzrej Joachimiak, Richard C. Holz

Chemistry Faculty Research and Publications

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains underscores the importance of identifying new drug targets and developing new antimicrobial compounds. Lysine and meso-diaminopimelic acid are essential for protein production and bacterial peptidoglycan cell wall remodeling and are synthesized in bacteria by enzymes encoded within dap operon. Therefore dap enzymes may serve as excellent targets for developing a new class of antimicrobial agents. The dapE-encoded N-succinyl-L,L-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase (DapE) converts N-succinyl-L,L-diaminopimelic acid to L,Ldiaminopimelic acid and succinate. The enzyme is composed of catalytic and dimerization domains, and belongs to the M20 peptidase family. To understand the specific role …

Candy Flavorings In Tobacco, Jessica E. Brown, Wentai Luo, Lorne M. Isabelle, James F. Pankow

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Professor James F. Pankow reveals striking similarities between the patterns in the flavoring chemicals used in flavored tobacco products and those in popular candy and Kool-Aid products. The authors analyzed 12 artificially flavored candy and fruit drink products and compared them to 15 widely-available flavored tobacco products. They found significant overlap in the chemical signatures of the flavor chemicals. Several of the tobacco products contained flavor chemicals at much higher concentrations than in the non-tobacco products.

Reclaiming The Efficacy Of Β-Lactam–Β-Lactamase Inhibitor Combinations: Avibactam Restores The Susceptibility Of Cmy-2-Producing Escherichia Coli To Ceftazidime, Krisztina M. Papp-Wallace, Marisa L. Winkler, Julian A. Gatta, Magdalena A. Taracila, Sujatha Chilakala, Yan Xu, J. Kristie Johnson, Robert A. Bonomo

Chemistry Faculty Publications

CMY-2 is a plasmid-encoded Ambler class C cephalosporinase that is widely disseminated in Enterobacteriaceae and is responsible for expanded-spectrum cephalosporin resistance. As a result of resistance to both ceftazidime and β-lactamase inhibitors in strains carrying blaCMY, novel β-lactam–β-lactamase inhibitor combinations are sought to combat this significant threat to β-lactam therapy. Avibactam is a bridged diazabicyclo [3.2.1]octanone non-β-lactam β-lactamase inhibitor in clinical development that reversibly inactivates serine β-lactamases. To define the spectrum of activity of ceftazidime-avibactam, we tested the susceptibilities of Escherichia coli clinical isolates that carry blaCMY-2 or blaCMY-69 and investigated the inactivation kinetics of CMY-2. Our analysis showed that …

2-Acylamido Analogues Of N-Acetylglucosamine Prime Formation Of Chitin Oligosaccharides By Yeast Chitin Synthase 2, Jacob Gyore, Archana Parameswar, Carleigh Hebbard, Younghoon Oh, Erfei Bi, Alexei Demchenko, Neil Price, Peter Orlean

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Works

Chitin, a homopolymer of β1,4-linked N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) residues, is a key component of the cell walls of fungi and the exoskeletons of arthropods. Chitin synthases transfer GlcNAc from UDP-GlcNAc to preexisting chitin chains in reactions that are typically stimulated by free GlcNAc. The effect of GlcNAc was probed by using a yeast strain expressing a single chitin synthase, Chs2, by examining formation of chitin oligosaccharides (COs) and insoluble chitin, and by replacing GlcNAc with 2-acylamido analogues of GlcNAc. Synthesis of COs was strongly dependent on inclusion of GlcNAc in chitin synthase incubations, and N,N′-diacetylchitobiose (GlcNAc2) was the major reaction product. …

Synthesis And Characterization Of A Copper(I)-Phenyl Complex, Max Cushner, Thabiso Kunene

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

Compounds or complexes combining an organic species and a copper ion are amongst the most widely used organometallic reagents in synthetic organic chemistry. However, the chemistry for such organocopper compounds is underdeveloped including that for copper(I)-arene complexes, which are quite rare. Nonetheless, once the chemical properties of such copper-arene complexes are better understood, it will be easier to find uses for them, for instance as catalysts. Previous work on this project has produced evidence that copper(I)-arene complexes bearing phenyl and naphthyl groups behave differently from one another in arene replacement reactions. Thus, the phenyl does not seem to bind as …

Molecular Modeling Of Biological Carbon Fixation, William Lin, Andrew Kim, Scott Hansen

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

Biological carbon fixation is primarily catalyzed by one enzyme: ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase. We use molecular modeling to explore and elucidate the origin of slow kinetics and poor specificity in this enzyme. We present primary results of correlated motion between the enzyme and the active site.

Cyanide Toxicokinetics: The Behavior Of Cyanide, Thiocyanate And 2-Amino-2-Thiazoline-4-Carboxylic Acid In Multiple Animal Models, Raj K. Bhandari, Robert P. Oda, Ilona Petrikovics, David E. Thompson, Matthew Brenner, Sari B. Mahon, Vikhyat S. Bebarta, Gary A. Rockwood, Brian A. Logue

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Cyanide causes toxic effects by inhibiting cytochrome c oxidase, resulting in cellular hypoxia and cytotoxic anoxia, and can eventually lead to death. Cyanide exposure can be verified by direct analysis of cyanide concentrations or analyzing its metabolites, including thiocyanate (SCN⁻) and 2-amino-2-thiazoline-4-carboxylic acid (ATCA) in blood. To determine the behavior of these markers following cyanide exposure, a toxicokinetics study was performed in three animal models: (i) rats (250–300 g), (ii) rabbits (3.5–4.2 kg) and (iii) swine (47–54 kg). Cyanide reached a maximum in blood and declined rapidly in each animal model as it was absorbed, distributed, metabolized and …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Some Thallium Salt Complexes, Levi Dopierala

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Research into conductive organic and organometallic polymers began in 1977 when Heeger, Macdiarmid, and Shirakawa first doped polyacteylene with Iodine. They found that this doping granted the polymer metallic properties increasing conductivity by 11 orders of magnitude.[1] Unfortunately, polyacteylene is highly air-sensitive making it difficult to work with and limiting its applications. Therefore, current research is focused on synthesizing new organic and organometallic conductive polymers. The drive to discover these new polymers stems from their application flexibility and their low production cost.

Reported here is the synthesis of novel organometallic polymer precursors. Lead by Dr. Chad Snyder a library of …

Green's Functions Of Discrete Fractional Calculus Boundary Value Problems And An Application Of Discrete Fractional Calculus To A Pharmacokinetic Model, Sutthirut Charoenphon

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Fractional calculus has been used as a research tool in the fields of pharmacology, biology, chemistry, and other areas [3]. The main purpose of this thesis is to calculate Green's functions of fractional difference equations, and to model problems in pharmacokinetics. We claim that the discrete fractional calculus yields the best prediction performance compared to the continuous fractional calculus in the application of a one-compartmental model of drug concentration. In Chapter 1, the Gamma function and its properties are discussed to establish a theoretical basis. Additionally, the basics of discrete fractional calculus are discussed using particular examples for further calculations. …

Functionalization And Modification Of Naphthaquinone Analogs As Her2 Kinase Inhibitors, Divya Jyothi Lella

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

HER2 overexpression in breast cancer tumors predicts lower overall survival. Because of the aggressive nature of HER2 tumors and the association with metastatic disease, the HER2 receptor holds great promise as a therapeutic target in metastatic breast cancer. We are developing small molecule inhibitors that bind to the ATP binding site of the tyrosine kinase domain in order to inhibit tyrosine auto-phosphorylation. This process controls biological pathways that mediate the cell growth. In normal cells this process is highly controlled. We are targeting the modification of the side chain of the hydroxy methyl group of 2-Hydroxy methyl-5,8-dimethoxy-1,4-naphthaquinone. These compounds should …

Tetracyclines In Swine Waste, Natalie Kaye Jones

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Antibiotics are added to animal feeds as prophylactic agents and to encourage weight gain in livestock. However, there is concern that the widespread use of antibiotics in animal agriculture encourages for the selection of resistance genes and has contributed to the rise of multiply antibiotic resistant strains of pathogenic bacteria. For this reason, there is interest in quantifying antibiotics in environmental samples. The determination of three antibiotics in swine waste, namely chlortetracycline, tetracycline and oxytetracycline, using LC-MS with electrospray ionization is presented here in. Antibiotics from swine waste were quantified across the lifespan of the swine. Trends were present in …

Comparative Studies On Standard And Fire-Rated Gypsum Wallboards., Harika Javangula

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The long term goal of this research is to improve the fire resistance of gypsum wallboard (GWB). Gypsum wallboard consists mainly of gypsum, i.e. calcium sulfate dihydrate, CaSO₄•2H₂O. In buildings, the chemical, mechanical and thermal properties of gypsum wallboard play an important role in delaying the spread of fire. To build a fire resistant GWB, it is very important to study the thermal, mechanical, physical and chemical properties of regular GWB and various types of fire-resistant wallboards available commercially in the market. Various fire-resistant GWBs have been compared and contrasted with reference to a standard wallboard …

Electrically Controlled Formation And Release Of Admicelles For Solid Phase Extraction, Sukyeon Lee

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Solid phase extraction is one of the most widely used methods to concentrate diluted compounds in a solution. Substances can be extracted into admicelles and hemimicelles, which are surface adsorbed micelles and surfactant monolayers, respectively. Investigations of the electrical control of surfactants on surfaces for the purpose of analyte preconcentration prior to chromatographic analysis are presented. The surfactant layer serves as the “stationary phase” in a solid phase extraction sorbent scenario. Analytes are adsorbed on this layer, and then released from the solid phase via surfactant removal. The attachment and removal of the surfactant are controlled by means of an …

Enhancing The Photovoltaic Performance Of P3ht/Pdib Silsesquioxane Donor-Acceptor System Using Spray Deposition Fabrication Technique, Venkata Ramana Manda

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In the past few years, the solution-processed organic based solar cells gained more importance by meeting the demands for cost effective photovoltaic devices. To date, the focus of the organic photovoltaic devices has been on the optimization of the processing the materials to improve photo conversion efficiency and also by modifying the active components of the organic materials. Recently, it has been recognized that the deposition techniques also plays a major role in enhancing the power conversion efficiencies. Currently, though the most common deposition technique for organic solar cells is spin coating, which does not allow scaling up of the …