Hexacoordinate Ru-based olefin metathesis catalysts with pH-responsive N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) and N-donor ligands for ROMP reactions in non-aqueous, aqueous and emulsion conditions

Three new ruthenium alkylidene complexes (PCy3)Cl2(H2ITap)Ru=CHSPh (9), (DMAP)2Cl2(H2ITap)Ru=CHPh (11) and (DMAP)2Cl2(H2ITap)Ru=CHSPh (12) have been synthesized bearing the pH-responsive H2ITap ligand (H2ITap = 1,3-bis(2’,6’- dimethyl-4’-dimethylaminophenyl)-4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene). Catalysts 11 and 12 are additionally ligated by two pH-responsive DMAP ligands. The crystal structure was solved for complex 12 by X-ray diffraction. In organic, neutral solution, the catalysts are capable of performing standard ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) and ring closing metathesis (RCM) reactions with standard substrates. The ROMP with complex 11 is accelerated in the presence of two equiv of H3PO4, but is reduced as soon as the acid amount increased. The metathesis of phenylthiomethylidene catalysts 9 and 12 is sluggish at room temperature, but their ROMP can be dramatically accelerated at 60 °C. Complexes 11 and 12 are soluble in aqueous acid. They display the ability to perform RCM of diallylmalonic acid (DAMA), however, their conversions are very low amounting only to few turnovers before decomposition. However, both catalysts exhibit outstanding performance in the ROMP of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) and mixtures of DCPD with cyclooctene (COE) in acidic aqueous microemulsion. With loadings as low as 180 ppm, the catalysts afforded mostly quantitative conversions of these monomers while maintaining the size and shape of the droplets throughout the polymerization process. Furthermore, the coagulate content for all experiments staye

Relational Quantum Mechanics

I suggest that the common unease with taking quantum mechanics as a fundamental description of nature (the "measurement problem") could derive from the use of an incorrect notion, as the unease with the Lorentz transformations before Einstein derived from the notion of observer-independent time. I suggest that this incorrect notion is the notion of observer-independent state of a system (or observer-independent values of physical quantities). I reformulate the problem of the "interpretation of quantum mechanics" as the problem of deriving the formalism from a few simple physical postulates. I consider a reformulation of quantum mechanics in terms of information theory. All systems are assumed to be equivalent, there is no observer-observed distinction, and the theory describes only the information that systems have about each other; nevertheless, the theory is complete.Comment: Substantially revised version. LaTeX fil

Electronic Structure and Lattice Relaxation Related to Fe in Mgo

The electronic structure of Fe impurity in MgO was calculated by the linear muffin-tin orbital--full-potential method within the conventional local-density approximation (LDA) and making use of the LDA+$U$ formalism. The importance of introducing different potentials, depending on the screened Coulomb integral $U$, is emphasized for obtaining a physically reasonable ground state of the Fe$^{2+}$ ion configuration. The symmetry lowering of the ion electrostatic field leads to the observed Jahn--Teller effect; related ligand relaxation confined to tetragonal symmetry has been optimized based on the full-potential total energy results. The electronic structure of the Fe$^{3+}$ ion is also calculated and compared with that of Fe$^{2+}$.Comment: 13 pages + 4 PostScript figures, Revtex 3.0, SISSA-CM-94-00

Immunoblot analysis of the seroreactivity to recombinant Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato antigens, including VlsE, in the long-term course of treated patients with Erythema migrans

Objective: We evaluated whether immunoblotting is capable of substantiating the posttreatment clinical assessment of patients with erythema migrans ( EM), the hallmark of early Lyme borreliosis. Methods: In 50 patients, seroreactivity to different antigens of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato was analyzed by a recombinant immunoblot test (IB) in consecutive serum samples from a minimum follow-up period of 1 year. Antigens in the IgG test were decorin- binding protein A, internal fragment of p41 (p41i), outer surface protein C (OspC), p39, variable major protein-like sequence expressed (VlsE), p58 and p100; those in the IgM test were p41i, OspC and p39. Immune responses were correlated with clinical and treatment-related parameters. Results: Positive IB results were found in 50% before, in 57% directly after therapy and in 44% by the end of the follow-up for the IgG class, and in 36, 43 and 12% for the IgM class. In acute and convalescence phase sera, VlsE was most immunogenic on IgG testing 60 and 70%), and p41i (46 and 57%) and OspC (40 and 57%) for the IgM class. By the end of the follow-up, only the anti-p41i lgM response was significantly decreased to 24%. Conclusions: No correlation was found between IB results and treatment-related parameters. Thus, immunoblotting does not add to the clinical assessment of EM patients after treatment. Copyright (c) 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel

An overview of historical and contemporary concrete shells, their construction and factors in their general disappearance

Only through understanding why concrete shells’ loss in popularity over the course of modern history can designers be equipped with the skills to create and apply this type of construction. Through modifications to design processes, construction stages, material understanding and relevant formwork improvements will architects and designers be able to meet the demands of the 21st century and beyond. To understand why concrete shells are no longer commonly built is to understand its construction process. An amorphous material, the fundamental relationship between formwork and the resultant concrete shell needs to be raised, appreciated, understood and analyzed for a holistic understanding of concrete shells. Through understanding this, issues and factors affecting concrete shells can be tackled and designed out in reviving this type of structures because they can be efficient in structural performance, economical in cost and provide high aesthetic value. This paper discusses concrete shells as an architectural solution by asking the question to what constituted their popularity and factors that led to their demise in the modern age of technological advancement, construction process and environmental concerns. This paper presents a cultural perspective and an overview of seminal, historical and contemporary concrete shells so as to bring about a renaissance of such structures in our built environment once again because of all the benefits it can offer.</p

Holoprosencephaly

Holoprosencephaly (HPE) is a complex brain malformation resulting from incomplete cleavage of the prosencephalon, occurring between the 18th and the 28th day of gestation and affecting both the forebrain and the face. It is estimated to occur in 1/16,000 live births and 1/250 conceptuses. Three ranges of increasing severity are described: lobar, semi-lobar and alobar HPE. Another milder subtype of HPE called middle interhemispheric variant (MIHF) or syntelencephaly is also reported. In most of the cases, facial anomalies are observed in HPE, like cyclopia, proboscis, median or bilateral cleft lip/palate in severe forms, ocular hypotelorism or solitary median maxillary central incisor in minor forms. These latter midline defects can occur without the cerebral malformations and then are called microforms. Children with HPE have many medical problems: developmental delay and feeding difficulties, epilepsy, instability of temperature, heart rate and respiration. Endocrine disorders like diabetes insipidus, adrenal hypoplasia, hypogonadism, thyroid hypoplasia and growth hormone deficiency are frequent. To date, seven genes have been positively implicated in HPE: Sonic hedgehog (SHH), ZIC2, SIX3, TGIF, PTCH, GLI2 and TDGF1. A molecular diagnosis can be performed by gene sequencing and allele quantification for the four main genes SHH, ZIC2, SIX3 and TGIF. Major rearrangements of the subtelomeres can also be identified by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). Nevertheless, in about 70% of cases, the molecular basis of the disease remains unknown, suggesting the existence of several other candidate genes or environmental factors. Consequently, a "multiple-hit hypothesis" of genetic and/or environmental factors (like maternal diabetes) has been proposed to account for the extreme clinical variability. In a practical approach, prenatal diagnosis is based on ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) rather than on molecular diagnosis. Treatment is symptomatic and supportive, and requires a multidisciplinary management. Child outcome depends on the HPE severity and the medical and neurological complications associated. Severely affected children have a very poor prognosis. Mildly affected children may exhibit few symptoms and may live a normal life

Integrating transposable elements in the 3D genome

Chromosome organisation is increasingly recognised as an essential component of genome regulation, cell fate and cell health. Within the realm of transposable elements (TEs) however, the spatial information of how genomes are folded is still only rarely integrated in experimental studies or accounted for in modelling. Whilst polymer physics is recognised as an important tool to understand the mechanisms of genome folding, in this commentary we discuss its potential applicability to aspects of TE biology. Based on recent works on the relationship between genome organisation and TE integration, we argue that existing polymer models may be extended to create a predictive framework for the study of TE integration patterns. We suggest that these models may offer orthogonal and generic insights into the integration profiles (or "topography") of TEs across organisms. In addition, we provide simple polymer physics arguments and preliminary molecular dynamics simulations of TEs inserting into heterogeneously flexible polymers. By considering this simple model, we show how polymer folding and local flexibility may generically affect TE integration patterns. The preliminary discussion reported in this commentary is aimed to lay the foundations for a large-scale analysis of TE integration dynamics and topography as a function of the three-dimensional host genome