8,733 research outputs found
Zearalenone-malonyl-glucosides as phase II metabolites in plant cell suspension cultures
Background and objectives
Conjugation of mycotoxins in the phase II metabolism of plants results in modified mycotoxins such as glucosides and malonyl‐glucosides. However, malonyl‐glucosides have not yet been completely elucidated for zearalenone (ZEN). Thus, the aim of this study was to produce and isolate malonyl‐glucosides of ZEN for an unambiguous identification by NMR spectroscopy.
Findings
Zearalenone was incubated in plant cell suspension cultures of wheat, soy, and tobacco, and phase II metabolites were analyzed by using LC‐DAD‐MS, ‐HRMS, and NMR spectroscopy. Four main metabolites of ZEN were detected in the cell extracts and identified as two glucosides (attached in positions 14 and 16) and their 6´‐malonyl derivatives.
Conclusions
Zearalenone‐malonyl‐glucosides should be incorporated in future analyses of modified mycotoxins because of their potential relevance for food and feed safety.
Significance and novelty
For the first time, the structures of the two malonyl‐glucosides of ZEN were unambiguously identified by NMR spectroscopy after preparative isolation as 14‐O‐(6’‐O‐malonyl‐β‐D‐glucopyranosyl)ZEN and 16‐O‐(6’‐O‐malonyl‐β‐D‐glucopyranosyl)ZEN
Nonuniqueness and derivative discontinuities in density-functional theories for current-carrying and superconducting systems
Current-carrying and superconducting systems can be treated within
density-functional theory if suitable additional density variables (the current
density and the superconducting order parameter, respectively) are included in
the density-functional formalism. Here we show that the corresponding conjugate
potentials (vector and pair potentials, respectively) are {\it not} uniquely
determined by the densities. The Hohenberg-Kohn theorem of these generalized
density-functional theories is thus weaker than the original one. We give
explicit examples and explore some consequences.Comment: revised version (typos corrected, some discussion added) to appear in
Phys. Rev.
Density-functionals not based on the electron gas: Local-density approximation for a Luttinger liquid
By shifting the reference system for the local-density approximation (LDA)
from the electron gas to other model systems one obtains a new class of density
functionals, which by design account for the correlations present in the chosen
reference system. This strategy is illustrated by constructing an explicit LDA
for the one-dimensional Hubbard model. While the traditional {\it ab initio}
LDA is based on a Fermi liquid (the electron gas), this one is based on a
Luttinger liquid. First applications to inhomogeneous Hubbard models, including
one containing a localized impurity, are reported.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures (final version, contains additional applications
and discussion; accepted by Phys. Rev. Lett.
Theory of valley-orbit coupling in a Si/SiGe quantum dot
Electron states are studied for quantum dots in a strained Si quantum well,
taking into account both valley and orbital physics. Realistic geometries are
considered, including circular and elliptical dot shapes, parallel and
perpendicular magnetic fields, and (most importantly for valley coupling) the
small local tilt of the quantum well interface away from the crystallographic
axes. In absence of a tilt, valley splitting occurs only between pairs of
states with the same orbital quantum numbers. However, tilting is ubiquitous in
conventional silicon heterostructures, leading to valley-orbit coupling. In
this context, "valley splitting" is no longer a well defined concept, and the
quantity of merit for qubit applications becomes the ground state gap. For
typical dots used as qubits, a rich energy spectrum emerges, as a function of
magnetic field, tilt angle, and orbital quantum number. Numerical and
analytical solutions are obtained for the ground state gap and for the mixing
fraction between the ground and excited states. This mixing can lead to valley
scattering, decoherence, and leakage for Si spin qubits.Comment: 18 pages, including 4 figure
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Sex-specific roles of cellular inflammation and cardiometabolism in obesity-associated depressive symptomatology.
BackgroundObesity and depression are complex conditions with stronger comorbid relationships among women than men. Inflammation and cardiometabolic dysfunction are likely mechanistic candidates for increased depression risk, and their prevalence differs by sex. Whether these relationships extend to depressive symptoms is poorly understood. Therefore, we analyzed sex in associations between inflammation and metabolic syndrome (MetS) criteria on depressive symptomatology. Specifically, we examined whether sex positively moderates the relationship between depressive symptoms and inflammation among women, and whether MetS has parallel effects among men.MethodsDepressive symptoms, MetS, and inflammation were assessed in 129 otherwise healthy adults. Depressive symptoms were assessed using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-Ia). Monocyte inflammation regulation (BARIC) was quantified using flow cytometry measurement of TNF-α suppression by β-agonist. Moderation effects of sex on associations between BARIC, MetS criteria, and BDI were estimated using two-way ANOVA and linear regression, adjusting for BMI, and by sex subgroup analyses.ResultsObese individuals reported more depressive symptoms. Sex did not formally moderate this relationship, though BDI scores tended to differ by BMI among women, but not men, in subgroup analysis. Poorer inflammation control and higher MetS criteria were correlated with somatic depressive symptoms. Sex moderated associations between MetS criteria and somatic symptoms; among men, MetS criteria predicted somatic symptoms, not among women. Subgroup analysis further indicated that poorer inflammation control tended to be associated with higher somatic symptoms in women.ConclusionsThese results indicate that obesity-related inflammation and MetS factors have sex-specific effects on depressive symptoms in a non-clinical population. Although pathophysiological mechanisms underlying sex differences remain to be elucidated, our findings suggest that distinct vulnerabilities to depressive symptoms exist between women and men, and highlight the need to consider sex as a key biological variable in obesity-depression relationships. Future clinical studies on comorbid obesity and depression should account for sex, which may optimize therapeutic strategies
Efficient method for simulating quantum electron dynamics under the time dependent Kohn-Sham equation
A numerical scheme for solving the time-evolution of wave functions under the
time dependent Kohn-Sham equation has been developed. Since the effective
Hamiltonian depends on the wave functions, the wave functions and the effective
Hamiltonian should evolve consistently with each other. For this purpose, a
self-consistent loop is required at every time-step for solving the
time-evolution numerically, which is computationally expensive. However, in
this paper, we develop a different approach expressing a formal solution of the
TD-KS equation, and prove that it is possible to solve the TD-KS equation
efficiently and accurately by means of a simple numerical scheme without the
use of any self-consistent loops.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. Physical Review E, 2002, in pres
Time Dependent Floquet Theory and Absence of an Adiabatic Limit
Quantum systems subject to time periodic fields of finite amplitude, lambda,
have conventionally been handled either by low order perturbation theory, for
lambda not too large, or by exact diagonalization within a finite basis of N
states. An adiabatic limit, as lambda is switched on arbitrarily slowly, has
been assumed. But the validity of these procedures seems questionable in view
of the fact that, as N goes to infinity, the quasienergy spectrum becomes
dense, and numerical calculations show an increasing number of weakly avoided
crossings (related in perturbation theory to high order resonances). This paper
deals with the highly non-trivial behavior of the solutions in this limit. The
Floquet states, and the associated quasienergies, become highly irregular
functions of the amplitude, lambda. The mathematical radii of convergence of
perturbation theory in lambda approach zero. There is no adiabatic limit of the
wave functions when lambda is turned on arbitrarily slowly. However, the
quasienergy becomes independent of time in this limit. We introduce a
modification of the adiabatic theorem. We explain why, in spite of the
pervasive pathologies of the Floquet states in the limit N goes to infinity,
the conventional approaches are appropriate in almost all physically
interesting situations.Comment: 13 pages, Latex, plus 2 Postscript figure
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