| Sheena Joseph | GREEN
PROCESSES: Synthesis of Higher Oxygenates Using Transition Metal Catalysts in
Aqueous Phase Biomass can be converted to useful fuels and chemicals by two methods: biological and thermochemical. Certain microorganisms that process simple sugars as a carbon source mediate the biological route, seen in the well-established fermentation pathway to ethanol. The thermochemical route is a two-step process that involves biomass gasification to yield synthesis gas (or syngas), a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen and catalytic conversion of syngas into higher oxygenates. This pathway requires development of highly efficient catalysts to achieve total carbon utility and produce biofuels economically. Since methanol can be produced selectively and in high yield by catalyzed reaction of syngas at low temperatures, catalysts that efficiently convert methanol into C2+ oxygenates are being investigated. A supported catalyst, Rh/Al2O3, was evaluated at 200°C for activity because Rh-based catalysts are known to promote methanol homologation (carbon-carbon coupling) into ethanol at 200°C. However, in the present work, Rh/Al2O3 was observed to yield dimethyl ether at 200°C. A ruthenium catalyst operating in an aqueous phase under moderate conditions was also evaluated. The reactions were conducted in a 300 mL Parr batch reactor fitted with gas and liquid sampling ports. The fate of the catalysts was monitored in situ using gas chromatography and infrared spectroscopy. The ruthenium catalyst, Ru3(CO)12, was also observed to yield dimethyl ether at 200°C. Dimethyl ether is currently considered an attractive replacement for diesel fuel. More work is underway to further study these systems for biomass to fuels conversion. |
| Leanne Piscitelli | Combined
Effects of Divalent Cations and Magnetic Fields on Lysozyme Crystals This project used several different metal salts with differing magnetic properties to examine the effects of magnetic fields on protein crystals. The effects of both paramagnetic and divalent salts were studied using NiCl2, CuCl2, MgCl2 and NaCl. It was found that the protein crystals aligned with the field when grown within a 1.7T magnetic field only when the paramagnetic salts were used as the crystallizing agent. This effect had only been observed when extremely strong magnetic fields of 10T were applied and NiCl2, MgCl2 and NaCl were the salts used. Using x-ray diffraction and subsequent analysis, it was found that the divalent cations were incorporated into the protein crystals and may even be coordinated with them. Further analysis will be required to determine if the magnetic field had an impact on internal crystal quality. This work was supported by the Battelle Summer Research Program, and by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institute of Health under agreement GM-0080. The National Synchrotron Light Source, Brookhaven National Laboratory is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy under contract No.DE-AC02-98CH10886. |
| Josh Seidman | Using
Cyberinfrastructure to Promote Science & Education The website, www.scientificlongislander.com (SLI), was created to promote a greater understanding about science and technology among the communities of Long Island, New York. This feat is being accomplished by compiling information about several Long Island-based scientific institutions into one easily accessible location, SLI. Initially, SLI was going to serve as a sister site to the MARIACHI project's main website, http://www-mariachi.physics.sunysb.edu/wiki/index.php/Main_Page. However, while reporting and editing the MARIACHI page under the heading, "Summer Science Season 2007," the idea of SLI grew. At the MARIACHI Summer 2007 Workshop; multiple contacts were made with representatives from various scientific organizations including Friends of Science East, Montauk Observatory, Custer Institute, the Long Island Physics Teachers Association, and Physical Review. Once the support of these institutions had been established, it became critical to obtain a general knowledge of Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and various other browser scripting applications. Using multiple tutorials from the website, www.w3schools.com, and a basic WordPad, SLI began to form. Over a dozen pages were built on local computers prior to signing SLI up with a server and becoming open to the public. After these pages were complete, SLI joined a server from the website, www.micfo.com. The server runs on a Linux operating system, and on the Unix 1.3.37 version of Apache. SLI employs HTML, Cascading Style Sheets, and JavaScript to update the aforementioned group's news and events on the website. The next phase of SLI is two-fold. These phases are to continue developing the webpage using the SLI cPanel, and to have a plethora of the Long Island school districts link to SLI from their district websites to further promote scientific awareness and understanding on Long Island. |
Diana Shusturovich
| Age
and diet-related changes of striatal Dopamine D2R receptor (D2R) binding in obese
(Ob) (fa/fa) and lean (Le) Zucker rats revealed by positron emission tomography
(µPET) and autoradiography (ARG) Part III (1 - 24 months) Dopamine (DA), a brain chemical associated with addiction to cocaine, alcohol, and other drugs of abuse, has also been implicated to play an important role in obesity. In a previous study we showed that obese individuals have lower D2R binding availability compared to lean controls and that there exists an inverse correlation between the Body Mass Index (BMI) and D2R (Wang et al. 2001). This study is the third and final part of a series of studies examining age and diet-related changes in D2R binding in obese (Ob) and lean (Le) Zucker rats. In part I (Thanos et al. 2007), we showed that Ob rats have lower in-vitro D2R binding and in-vivo D2R availability levels compared to Le rats, as well as a distinct DA profile that responds uniquely to acute fasting under different chronic feeding regiments. We also showed that in-vitro D2R binding levels and in-vivo D2R availability decreased with age from 1 to 4 months in both Ob and Le ad-libitum fed rats. However, rats that were food restricted during this time showed a lower decline in D2R. In part II (Michaelides et al. 2006), we showed that 13 month old Ob and Le rats showed further decreases in in-vitro D2R binding compared to 4 months of age, but surprisingly, in-vivo D2R availability at 13 months of age was found to be increased and was actually comparable to 1 month old levels in all groups. These findings led us to suggest that the increased in-vivo D2R availability measures observed at 13 months were the result of decreases in radioligand-DA competition, thereby suggesting that along with D2R, DA levels in these rats were lower at 13 months compared to 1 and 4 months. In the present study we characterized differences in D2R binding between Ob and Le rats under different feeding regiments and we also assessed the influence of age (1-24 months) on striatal D2R. We used male Zucker Ob and Le rats, divided into the following 8 groups: 1) Ob U & Le U (rats fed an unrestricted amount of food), Ob R & Le R (rats fed 70% of the U rat diet) 2) Ob PU & Le PU (rats previously U (1 to 6 months) and then R (6 to 24 months)), Ob PR & Le PR (rats previously R (1 to 6 months) and then U (6 to 24 months)). Rats were scanned in-vivo with µPET for D2R availability at 1, 4, 13, 18 and 24 months of age using [11C]-raclopride. In addition, rats were sacrificed at each of the above time-points for D2R in-vitro autoradiography binding using [3H]-spiperone. In addition, all rats were examined for differences in body weight, food intake, locomotor activity, and blood insulin and leptin levels. These results will provide greater insight in understanding the mechanism and contribution of food restriction, DA and its receptors on obesity and aging. |