A fast and simple high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the simultaneous determination of four pesticides having fungicide properties has been proposed for Panax ginseng, C. A. Meyer grown for 4, 5, or 6 years. Analytical separation was performed on C18 columns using ultraviolet detector under gradient conditions. Spiked blank samples were used as standards to counteract the matrix effect observed in the chromatographic determination. The HPLC response for all pesticides was linear, with determination coefficients > 0.9986. The average rate of recovery for pesticides spiked with 2 fortification levels was > 72% with relative standard deviations < 9%. The limits of quantification (LOQ) ranged from 0.03 to 0.16 ppm. These LOQs were lower than the respective maximum residue limits (MRL) established by the Korean Food and Drug Administration (KFDA), except for cyazofamid. The proposed method was used to determine pesticide residue levels in samples of ginseng obtained from Jeonnam Province (Republic of Korea). None of the pesticides were found in ginseng samples grown for 4, 5, or 6 years.

A micro organism Agrobacterium tumifacient as an immobilized cell on a solid support was presented as a new biosorbent in a simple and sensitive spectrophotometry determination of Ni(II) in various samples using 4-hydroxy benzaldehyde-4-bromophenyl hydrazone as a color developing agent (λmax 497 nm) at pH 4.0 ± 0.2. Beer's law was obeyed over the range of 0.01-0.1 μg L-1. The molar absorptivity and Sandell's sensitivity were 1.285 × 105 L mol-1cm-1 and 0.007245 μg cm-2 respectively. Under these conditions, the preconcentration factor obtained was 82, and the detection limit achieved was 0.05 μg L-1. The detailed study of various interfering ions made the method more sensitive and selective. The recovery of Ni(II) from various samples range from 97.75 to 99.35%. The present method was successfully applied for the determination of Ni(II) in spiked, natural water and alloy samples. The proposed method was compared with reported methods in terms of Student's ‘t'-test and Variance ratio ‘f'-test which indicates that there is no significant difference between proposed and literature method at 95% confidence level.

Receptor-oriented pharmacophore-based in silico screening is a powerful tool for rapidly screening large number of compounds for interactions with a given protein. Inhibition of the enzyme catechol-Omethyltransferase (COMT) offers a novel possibility for treating Parkinson's disease. Bisubstrate inhibitors of COMT containing the adenine of S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and a catechol moiety are a new class of potent and selective inhibitor. In the present study, we used receptor-oriented pharmacophore-based in silico screening to examine the interactions between the active site of human COMT and bisubstrate inhibitors. We generated 20 pharmacophore maps, of which 4 maps reproduced the docking model of hCOMT and a bisubstrate inhibitor. Only one of these four, pharmacophore map I, effectively described the common features of a series of bisubstrate inhibitors. Pharmacophore map I consisted of one hydrogen bond acceptor (to Mg2+), three hydrogen bond donors (to Glu199, Glu90, and Gln120), and one hydrophobic feature (an active site region surrounded by several aromatic and hydrophobic residues). This map represented the most essential pharmacophore for explaining interactions between hCOMT and a bisubstrate inhibitor. These results revealed a pharmacophore that should help in the development of new drugs for treating Parkinson's disease.

By use of a simple two-point extrapolation scheme estimating the correlation energies of the molecules along with the basis sets specifically targeted for extrapolation, we have shown that the MP2 basis set limit binding energies of large hydrogen-bonded complexes can be accurately predicted with relatively small amount of computational cost. The basis sets employed for computation and extrapolation consist of the smallest correlation consistent basis set cc-pVDZ and another basis set made of the cc-pVDZ set plus highest angular momentum polarization functions from the cc-pVTZ set, both of which were then augmented by diffuse functions centered on the heavy atoms except hydrogen in the complex. The correlation energy extrapolation formula takes the (X+1)-3 form with X corresponding to 2.0 for the cc-pVDZ set and 2.3 for the other basis set. The estimated MP2 basis set limit binding energies for water hexamer, hydrogen fluoride pentamer, alaninewater, phenol-water, and guanine-cytosine base pair complexes of nucleic acid by this method are 45.2(45.9), 36.1(37.5), 10.9(10.7), 7.1(6.9), and 27.6(27.7) kcal/mol, respectively, with the values in parentheses representing the reference basis set limit values. A comparison with the DFT results by B3LYP method clearly manifests the effectiveness and accuracy of this method in the study of large hydrogen-bonded complexes.

The three-dimensional structure of an inorganic crystal, CaMoO4 (space group I 41/a, a = 5.198(69) A and c = 11.458(41) A), was determined by electron crystallography utilizing a high voltage electron microscope. An initial structure of CaMoO4 was determined with 3-D electron diffraction patterns. This structure was refined by crystallographic image processing of high resolution TEM images. X-ray crystallography of the same material was performed to evaluate the accuracy of the TEM structure determination. The cell parameters of CaMoO4 determined by electron crystallography coincide with the X-ray crystallography result to within 0.033-0.040 A, while the atomic coordinates were determined to within 0.072 A.

Restenosis after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) continues to be a serious problem in clinical cardiology. To solve this problem, drug eluting stents (DES) with antiproliferative agents have been developed. Variable local drug delivery systems in the context of stenting require the development of stent manufacture, drug pharmacology and coating technology. We have worked on a system that integrates electrophoretic deposition (EPD) technology with the polymeric nanoparticles in DES for local drug delivery and a controlled release system. The surface morphology and drug loading amount of DES by EPD have been investigated under different operational conditions, such as operation time, voltage and the composition of media. We prepared poly-D,L-lactide-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles embedded with curcumin, which was done by a modified spontaneous emulsification method and used polyacrylic acid (PAA) as a surfactant because its carboxylic group contribute negative charge to the surface of CPNPs (?53.5 ± 5.8 mV). In the process of ‘trial and error' endeavors, we found that it is easy to control the drug loading amount deposited onto the stent while keeping uniform surface morphology. Accordingly, stent coating by EPD has a wide application to the modification of DES using various kinds of nanoparticles and drugs.

The anodic degradation of benzoquinone(BQ), a model compound for wastewater treatment was carried out using a home-made flow-through electrochemical cell with carbon fibers. To optimize the controlled current electrolysis condition of an aqueous BQ solution, the experimental variables affecting the degradation of BQ, such as the applying current, pH, reaction time, and flow rate of the BQ solution were examined. The degradation products of the oxidation reaction were identified by High Performance Liquid Chromatography and Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometer. Low molecular weight aliphatic acids, and CO2 were the major products in this experiment. The removal efficiency of BQ from the solution increased with the applying current and time. 99.23% of 1.0 × 10-2 M BQ was degraded to aliphatic acids and CO2 when the applying current is 175 mA in a 12 hr electrolysis.

Combining the analytical transfer matrix method with supersymmetry algebra, a new quantization condition is suggested. To demonstrate the efficiency of the new quantization condition, the eigenenergies of the Coulomb potential are analytically derived. The scattering-led phase shifts are also determined and they are the same for all Coulomb potential states. It is found that the new quantization condition is mathematically simple and exact.

The adsorption and surface reactions of NO on a VO/V(110) surface have been investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure, and temperature programmed desorption (TPD) technique. NO is molecularly adsorbed on VO/V(110) at 80 K. As the surface coverage of NO increases, the NO dimer is formed on the surface at 80 K. Both NO and (NO)2 are adsorbed on the surface with the N-O bond perpendicular to the surface. (NO)2 decomposes at ~100 K and the reaction product is desorbed as N2O. Decomposition of NO takes place when the surface temperature is higher than 273 K.

Mononuclear mixed-anions Mn complex of TPAMn(η2-NO3)(η-ClO4), where TPA is tris(2-pyridylmethyl)-amine, has been synthesized and characterized. The neutral TPAMn(η2-NO3)(η-ClO4) was obtained from the reaction between Mn(NO3)2·4H2O and [H3TPA](ClO4)3 in MeOH. X-ray crystallographic structure of mononuclear TPAMn(η2-NO3)(η-ClO4) complex showed a seven-coordinated geometry with a tripodal tetradentate TPA, a terminal perchlorate and an η2-bound nitrate.

A linking ligand containing sulfur donor atoms in the terminal thiophene rings, 1,2-bis(thiophen-2-ylmethylene) hydrazine (L), was prepared by Schiff-base condensation. Ligand L reacted with [PdCl2(NCPh)2] to produce a molecular Pd compound [PdL2Cl2] (1). On the other hand, it reacted with AgNO3 and AgClO4 to produce a 2-D network [AgL0.5(NO3)] (2) and a 1-D polymer [AgL]ClO4 (3), respectively, whose structures are based on secondary intermolecular forces such as H-bonding, van der Waals interaction, and π-π stacking. Polymer 2 exhibited photoluminescence at room temperature in the solid state.

In order to gain insight into the molecular changes at the protein level in plants exposed to low temperature for a long period of time (vernalization), proteome analyses of vernalization-treated Arabidopsis thaliana have been carried out by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis followed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Fourteen proteins including ATP binding/GTP binding/translation elongation factor and glycine-rich RNA-binding protein 7 (GRP7) showed differential expression in vernalization-treated Arabidopsis thaliana. GRP7 showed the most dramatic increase in expression suggesting its involvement in response to vernalization treatment.

Environmentally important phthalic esters have been analyzed by GC-MS in terms of individual phthalic esters or total phthalic esters directly or after derivatization. Derivatization improves the chromatographic characteristics of the highly polar phthalic esters. This study focused on the GC-MS determination of the total phthalic esters and the individual phthalic esters simultaneously. The phthalic esters were hydrolyzed to phthalate and corresponding alcohols in 1 M NaOH solution at 90 oC for 30 min followed by extraction with ethyl acetate after acidifcation. The phthalic acid and alcohols were simultaneously silyl derivatized using bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) to their corresponding silyl ester and ethers in the mixture of 60% acetone and 40% ethyl acetate at room temperature within 30 min. Because of the high reactivity of BSTFA with the phthalic acid and alcohols effective silyl derivatization was possible simultaneously. GC-MS analysis of the silyl derivatives of phthalic acid and alcohols was performed. The total phthalic ester content was estimated from the analytical result of phthalic silyl ester, while the individual phthalic ester was quantified from the analytical results of alcoholic silyl ethers. This technique was applied to spiked tab water and real seawater samples from the Lake Shihwa in Korea. The results were checked against the results from the direct GC-MS analysis of the phthalic esters and reasonable recoveries with high sensitivity were achieved. The recoveries were higher than 75% with low relative standard deviation (below 10%).

A solid state Hg(Au)/HgO reference electrode was prepared utilizing gold amalgam solid particles. Solid fine powder of the gold amalgam was prepared by chemical reduction of Au(III) with NaBH4 followed by reduction of Hg(II) in the presence of gold fine particles. The solid content in the suspension of the gold amalgam particles and fine mercury oxide particles in DMF containing PVC was precipitated by the addition of a large amount of water to give solid Hg(Au)/HgO/PVC mixture. After drying, the mixture was pressure-molded to a physically stable Hg(Au)/HgO composite reference electrode material. The electrochemical characteristics of the electrode as a reference electrode were very similar to an ordinary Hg/HgO reference electrode. The electrode material can be molded and fabricated in any desired shape and size. The surface can be renewed by a simple polishing process whenever contaminated or deactivated. The applicability of the electrode in the electrochemical detection of carbohydrates after anion exchange separation was evaluated.

The novel blue light emitting material, 9,10-bis(3',5'-diphenylphenyl)anthracene (BDA) was synthesized by Suzuki coupling reaction and characterized by the measurements of 1H NMR, 13C NMR and FT-IR. The new anthracene derivative, which contains anthracene as a main core unit and 3',5'-diphenylphenyl group derivative as wings, has high fluorescence yield, good thermal stability, and high glass transition temperature at 188 oC. With the newly non-doped blue emitting material in the multilayer device structure, it was possible to achieve the current efficiency of 3.0 cd/A. The EL spectrum of the ITO/CuPc/α-NPD/BDA/Alq3/LiF/Al device showed a maximum wavelength (λmax) at 440 nm. The emitting color of device showed the blue emission (x,y) = (0.18,0.19) at 10 mA/cm2 in CIE (Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage) chromaticity coordinates.

Trap effects on the formation of space-charge field (SCF) associated with the photorefractivity of nonlinear optical polymers were studied by the Monte Carlo simulation using modified Gaussian disorder model. The charge transport dynamics influenced by the presence of trap molecules controls the formation of SCF via the charge distribution. Temporal behavior of SCF formation and SCF dependence on the trap depth are discussed in terms of the concentration and distribution of charges (holes and ionized acceptors) developed following illumination of light. The correlation of the trap depth and the energetic disorder is presented for an optimal efficiency for the SCF formation.

Tetraazamacrocyclic ion exchangers tethered to Merrifield peptide resin (DTDM, TTTM) were prepared and the ion exchange capacity of these was characterized. The isotope separation of lithium was determined using breakthrough method of column chromatography. The isotope separation coefficient was strongly dependent on the ligand structure by Glueckauf's theory. We found that the isotope separation coefficients were increased as the values of distribution coefficients were increased. In this experiment the lighter isotope, 6Li was enriched in the resin phase, while the heavier isotope, 7Li in the solution phase. The ion radius of lighter isotope, 6Li was shorter than the heavier isotope, 7Li. The hydration number of lithium ion with the same charge became small as mass number was decreased. Because 6Li was more strongly retained in the resin than 7Li, the isotopes of lithium were separated with subsequent enrichment in the resin phase.

Amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) can readily be prepared using ethanol as the reaction medium and ammonium carbonate as the source of carbon dioxide. Other additives, or any elaborate pH control are not needed to form the initial calcium carbonate precipitate. Ammonia generated from ammonium carbonate maintains the reaction medium in a neutral or weakly basic condition, retarding the crystallization of ACC, while ethanol itself inhibits the dissolution of ACC. The ACC prepared in this way provides a rare opportunity to fabricate molded biomimetic crystals in vitro, but the ACC is too fragile to be fabricated into proper shapes. The malleability of ACC is, however, greatly enhanced by incorporating poly(ethylenimine) (PEI). The ACC/PEI composite can then be fabricated, using a proper mold or template, into mechanically durable biomimetic crystals of definite shape. The ACC in the ACC/PEI composite can further be transformed into vaterite by heating under N2 atmosphere, while the native ACC simply converts into calcite.