Exoelectron emission during oxidation of Cs films

During oxidation of thin Cs films, a nonadiabatic surface reaction manifests itself in the emission of electrons. This effect was investigated in detail by combining measurements of the current and of energy distributions of these exoelectrons with studies on the electronic properties of the surface by means of ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and metastable deexcitation spectroscopy. Exoelectron emission occurs via Auger deexcitation of the empty state derived from the O2 affinity level. This process is confined to the stage Cs2O2→CsO2 in which resonance ionization of the affinity level of the impinging O2 molecule upon crossing the Fermi level EF is efficiently suppressed due to the absence of metallic states near EF. A kinetic model based on the successive steps involved in the oxidation of Cs is developed which describes qualitatively well all the experimental findings

Singlet-to-triplet conversion of metastable He atoms at alkali-metal overlayers

Energy distributions of electrons emitted from alkali-metal surfaces by impact of metastable He atoms reveal that there is a high probability for transformation of singlet atoms (excitation energy E*=20.6 eV) into triplet atoms (E*=19.8 eV) prior to deexcitation into the ground state. The conversion probability (as expressed by the ratio R of the intensities of valence-band emission due to triplet and singlet He* deexcitation, respectively) increases with increasing alkali-metal coverage on a Ru(0001) substrate, and in turn decreases with increasing oxygen exposure at a fixed alkali coverage. These findings indicate that R is a qualitative measure for the degree of ‘‘metallization’’ of the adlayer. R also increases with temperature due to broadening of the nearest-neighbor distribution whereby, on the average, a larger part of the adlayer becomes metalliclike. For Cs overlayers exhibiting work functions *− (1s12s2) formation as reflected by the R data as well as by the widths of the electron spectra

Emission of exoelectrons during oxidation of Cs via thermal activation of a metastable O^-₂ surface species

Exposure of Cs surfaces to O2 causes the emission of exoelectrons. With a Cs monolayer on Ru(0001) the maximum yield is observed with an already partly oxidized surface on which a metastable O-2 species could be identified. Thermally activated transformation (with an activation energy of 0.8 eV) of this phase leads to dissociation accompanied by exoelectron emission via Auger deexcitation

An Unprecedented Role Reversal: Ground Beetle Larvae (Coleoptera: Carabidae) Lure Amphibians and Prey upon Them

Amphibians often feed on beetle larvae, including those of ground beetles (Carabidae). Preliminary reports have detailed an unusual trophic interaction in which, in contrast, larvae of the ground beetle Epomis prey upon juvenile and adult amphibians. While it is known that these larvae feed exclusively on amphibians, how the predator-prey encounter occurs to the advantage of the beetle larvae had been unknown to date. Using laboratory observations and controlled experiments, we recorded the feeding behavior of Epomis larvae, as well as the behavior of their amphibian prey. Here we reveal that larvae of two species of Epomis (E. circumscriptus and E. dejeani) lure their potential predator, taking advantage of the amphibian's predation behavior. The Epomis larva combines a sit-and-wait strategy with unique movements of its antennae and mandibles to draw the attention of the amphibian to the presence of a potential prey. The intensity of this enticement increases with decreasing distance between the larva and the amphibian. When the amphibian attacks, the larva almost always manages to avoid the predator's protracted tongue, exploiting the opportunity to attach itself to the amphibian's body and initiate feeding. Our findings suggest that the trophic interaction between Epomis larvae and amphibians is one of the only natural cases of obligatory predator-prey role reversal. Moreover, this interaction involves a small insect larva that successfully lures and preys on a larger vertebrate. Such role reversal is exceptional in the animal world, extending our perspective of co-evolution in the arms race between predator and prey, and suggesting that counterattack defense behavior has evolved into predator-prey role reversal

In-vitro activity of fleroxacin against isolates causing complicated urinary tract infections and concentrations in seminal and prostatic fluid and in prostatic adenoma tissue

Fleroxacin is a new fluoroquinolone with a broad antibacterial spectrum and a serum half-life of about 8-12 h. Eighty percent of 400 isolates from complicated or hospital-acquired urinary tract infections were inhibited by a concentration of 1 mg/l and 95% by 4 mg/l. As with other quinolones, fleroxacin is less active in acid urine (pH 5.4) than in Mueller-Hinton broth (pH 7.4). In 12 healthy volunteers the concentrations of fleroxacin were measured in plasma and seminal and prostatic fluid 2, 4 and 12 h after an oral dose of 400 mg. The mean plasma concentrations of three or four volunteers at each time were 4.2, 3.6 and 1.2 mg/l, respectively. The corresponding prostatic fluid/plasma ratios were 0.30, 0.27 and 1.96, respectively. By concomittant administration of ioxitalamic acid it could be demonstrated that in samples obtained 12 h after administration urinary contamination must be considered. Fleroxacin is concentrated in seminal fluid by a median ratio of 1.7. In 13 elderly patients the prostatic fluid and prostatic adenoma tissue concentrations were determined one to four hours following oral administration of 400 mg. The concentrations in prostatic fluid were similar to those of volunteers. The tissue concentrations exceeded plasma concentrations by only about 10% (median). Fleroxacin is very active against isolates causing complicated UTI. Concentrations in seminal and prostatic fluid and prostatic adenoma tissue are sufficiently high to treat bacterial prostatitis or vesiculitis caused by susceptible bacterial strains

Untersuchungen zur Bioverfügbarkeit von Doxycy [The bioavailability of doxycycline]

The bioavailability of doxycycline (Doxy-Diolan 100 tablets, test, active substances: 100 mg doxycyclin per tablet) was compared with that of another commercially available tablet-formulation containing the same active substance (reference). In a cross-over study, 16 young healthy male volunteers were administered in fasting state orally by one tablet containing 100 mg active substance. The concentrations of doxycycline were determined in plasma and saliva by a high-performance liquid chromatographic assay. Mean maximum plasma concentration (cmax +/- standard deviation) of doxycycline were 1.57 +/- 0.40 micrograms/ml (test) and 1.59 +/- 0.38 micrograms/ml (reference), respectively, and were reached 1.47 +/- 0.55 h and 1.66 +/- 0.57 h after administration. Plasma half-lives were 16.6 +/- 2.9 h and 16.8 +/- 3.0 h, the areas under the plasma concentration-time curves (AUC0-00) 29.3 +/- 4.5 mg/l.h and 29.7 +/- 4.4 mg/l.h. The concentration of doxycycline in saliva were low, median maximum concentrations of 50 ng/ml were measured 1-2 h after administration. The statistical evaluation revealed bioequivalence between both drugs