Circadian rhythms of serotonin and the electrical activity of the frontal ganglion of the cockroach,Periplaneta americana

Summary Rhythmic circadian variations in the spontaneous electrical activity of the frontal ganglion (FG) of the cockroach,Periplaneta americana, have been shown, and the neurotransmitter (NT) involved in this activity has been identified as serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT). During the 24-h day, the diurnal variations in the electrical activity and the levels of 5-HT and its immediate metabolite 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) were maximal at 24.00 h and minimal at 12.00 h.     

Photodegradable formulations of DDT

Summary The incorporation of diphenylamine and diethylaniline in commercial DDT-WDP formulations sprayed onPhaseolus aureus andTabernaemontana coronaria revealed that both these chemicals enhanced the initial rate of loss of DDT. Both these sensitizers exhibited no immediate adverse effect on the storage stability, pH, sieve requirement and colour of the formulations and introduced no phytotoxicity. Diphenylamine addition, however, had some adverse effects on the suspensibility.Contribution No. 103.     

Structure of rat atrial natriuretic factor precursor deduced from cDNA sequence

The atrium of the heart contains peptides, termed atrial natriuretic factors ( ANFs ), diuretic and smooth-muscle-relaxing activities. In view of its potent effects on salt metabolism in the kidney and on vascular smooth muscle, ANF is considered to play an important part in the control of fluid volume and vascular function. Several different ANF peptides varying in size have been isolated and their amino acid sequences determined. Analysis of the sequences of the peptides suggests that they are derived by proteolysis from the same precursor. To examine this hypothesis, we have cloned cDNAs of the ANF precursor using rat atrial mRNA, determined its nucleotide sequence and deduced its amino acid sequence. The ANF precursor consists of 152 amino acid residues including a putative signal peptide sequence. This sequence contains the amino acid sequences of all the ANF peptides reported to date.     

Microstructure studies of air-plasma-spray-deposited CoNiCrAlY coatings before and after thermal cyclic loading for high-temperature application

In the present study, bond-coats for thermal barrier coatings were deposited via air plasma spraying (APS) techniques onto Inconel 800 and Hastelloy C-276 alloy substrates. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to investigate the phases and microstructure of the as-sprayed, APS-deposited CoNiCrAlY bond-coatings. The aim of this work was to study the suitability of the bond-coat materials for high temperature applications. Confirmation of nanoscale grains of the γ/γ′-phase was obtained by TEM, high-resolution TEM, and AFM. We concluded that these changes result from the plastic deformation of the bond-coat during the deposition, resulting in CoNiCrAlY bond-coatings with excellent thermal cyclic resistance suitable for use in high-temperature applications. Cyclic oxidative stability was observed to also depend on the underlying metallic alloy substrate.     

Influence of particle size and temperature on the dielectric properties of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles

The objective of this study was to establish the dielectric properties of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles with particle sizes that varied from 28.6 to 5.8 nm. CoFe2O4 nanoparticles were synthesized using a chemical coprecipitation method. The particle sizes were calculated accord-ing to the Scherrer formula using X-ray diffraction （XRD） peaks, and the particle size distribution curves were constructed by using field-emission scanning electron microscopy （FESEM） images. The dielectric permittivity and loss tangents of the samples were determined in the frequency range of 1 kHz to 1 MHz and in the temperature range of 300 to 10 K. Both the dielectric permittivity and the loss tangent were found to decrease with increasing frequency and decreasing temperature. For the smallest CoFe2O4 nanoparticle size, the dielectric per-mittivity and loss tangent exhibited their highest and lowest values, respectively. This behavior is very useful for materials used in devices that operate in the microwave or radio frequency ranges.     

Synthesis of Novel Nanocomposites of Silica and Guar Gum:Efficient Zinc Ion Binder

1 Results Adsorption using commercial activated carbon (CAC)[1] can remove heavy metals from wastewater[2-4].However,CAC remains an expensive material for heavy metal removal.Ion exchange techniques are also used but it generates volumetric sludge and increases the cost[5].Using naturally occurring seed polysaccharides can solve these problems but their solubility in water limits its application as an adsorbent.Guar gum is a commercially available,industrially important[6-7] polysaccharide material havi...     

Photodegradable formulatins of DDT.

The incorporation of diphenylamine and diethylaniline in commercial DDT-WDP formulations sprayed on Phaseolus aureus and Tabernaemontana coronaria revealed that both these chemicals enhanced the initial rate of loss of DDT. Both these sensitizers exhibited no immediate adverse effect on the storage stability, pH, sieve requirement and colour of the formulations and introduced no phytotoxicity. Diphenylamine addition, however, had some adverse effects on the suspensibility.