Light Leads (light + lead)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


LIGHT REGULATION OF PHYCOBILISOME BIOSYNTHESIS AND CONTROL BY A PHYTOCHROME-LIKE PHOTORECEPTOR

JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 2000
K. Terauchi
Ambient light quality changes dramatically affect the composition of light harvesting structures, the phycobilisomes, in many cyanobacterial species. In the cyanobacterium Fremyella diplosiphon, shifts in the ratio of red to green light lead to transcriptional changes and altered synthesis of several phycobilisome components. This process is called complementary chromatic adaptation (CCA). These two colors have opposite effects: red light activates an operon encoding the biliprotein phycocyanin (PC) and inactivates the operon encoding phycoerythrin (PE), whereas green light activates PE synthesis and shuts down PC synthesis. The effects of red and green light on CCA are photoreversible. Thus, CCA is similar to transcriptional processes that are controlled by phytochromes, a family of eukaryotic red/far red photoreversible photoreceptors. We are using molecular genetics to determine the mechanisms by which F. diplosiphon senses changes in the color of light of its environment. Initial mutant generation and complementation lead to the discovery of three CCA regulatory components that are part of a complex two component system. The most interesting of these is RcaE (regulator of chromatic adaptation), a histidine kinase-class protein containing a region in its amino-terminal half with similarity to the chromophore binding domains of phytochromes. Within this region, RcaE contains a cysteine residue in a similar location as that used for covalent attachment of the open-chain tetrapyrrole chromophore in phytochromes. We will present recent data characterizing RcaE, including in vivo analysis of the chromophore that is attached to RcaE, as well as results from our recent isolation of a new CCA regulatory component. [source]


Effects of singlet oxygen on membrane sterols in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

FEBS JOURNAL, Issue 6 2000
Till Böcking
Photodynamic treatment of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae with the singlet oxygen sensitizer toluidine blue and visible light leads to rapid oxidation of ergosterol and accumulation of oxidized ergosterol derivatives in the plasma membrane. The predominant oxidation product accumulated was identified as 5,,6,-epoxy-(22E)-ergosta-8,22-dien-3,,7,-diol (8-DED). 9(11)-dehydroergosterol (DHE) was identified as a minor oxidation product. In heat inactivated cells ergosterol is photooxidized to ergosterol epidioxide (EEP) and DHE. Disrupted cell preparations of S. cerevisiae convert EEP to 8-DED, and this activity is abolished in a boiled control indicating the presence of a membrane associated enzyme with an EEP isomerase activity. Yeast selectively mobilizes ergosterol from the intracellular sterol ester pool to replenish the level of free ergosterol in the plasma membrane during singlet oxygen oxidation. The following reaction pathway is proposed: singlet oxygen-mediated oxidation of ergosterol leads to mainly the formation of EEP, which is enzymatically rearranged to 8-DED. Ergosterol 7-hydroperoxide, a known minor product of the reaction of singlet oxygen with ergosterol, is formed at a much lower rate and decomposes to give DHE. Changes of physical properties of the plasma membrane are induced by depletion of ergosterol and accumulation of polar derivatives. Subsequent permeation of photosensitizer through the plasma membrane into the cell leads to events including impairment of mitochondrial function and cell inactivation. [source]


Protective effects of quercetin on ultraviolet A light-induced oxidative stress in the blood of rat

JOURNAL OF APPLIED TOXICOLOGY, Issue 5 2002
Ahmet Kahraman
Abstract The oxidative effects of ultraviolet A (UVA) light (320,400 nm) and the antioxidant effects of quercetin were examined in rat blood. For this purpose, rats were divided into three groups: control, ultraviolet (UV) and ultraviolet + quercetin (UV + Q). The UV and UV + Q groups were irradiated for 4 h a day with UVA light (1.25 mW cm2) during periods of 3, 6 and 9 days. Quercetin (50 mg kg,1 body wt.) was administered intraperitoneally in the UV + Q group rats before irradiation periods. Blood was taken 3, 6 and 9 days post-treatment. Plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) levels significantly increased after 9 days of daily exposure to UVA. Whole blood glutathione (GSH) levels significantly declined after 3,9 days of irradiation. Glutathione peroxidase activity on days 6 and 9 and glutathione reductase activities on days 3, 6 and 9 post-irradiation were diminished significantly. Superoxide dismutase and catalase activities decreased significantly 3,9 days post-irradiation. The administration of quercetin before the 9-day period of irradiation significantly reduced the increase in plasma MDA value. Whole blood GSH levels significantly decreased with the administration of quercetin on all days. Quercetin significantly increased antioxidant enzymes diminished by UVA irradiation. Exposure of rats to UVA light leads to oxidative stress, reflected by increased MDA and reduced antioxidant enzyme levels. The administration of quercetin appears to be a useful approach to reduce the damage produced by UVA radiation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Photochromism of dihydroindolizines part VII: multiaddressable photophysical properties of new photochromic dihydroindolizines bearing substituted benzo[i]phenanthridine as a fluorescing moiety,

JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 8 2007
Saleh Abdel-Mgeed Ahmed
Abstract Sixteen benzo[i]phenanthridine derivatives 8a-p were prepared via photocyclization of cis-trans substituted 4-styrylquinolines in low-to-moderate yields. The chemical structure of the photocyclized benzo[i]phenanthridine derivatives was unambiguously elucidated by means of both spectral and analytical tools. The photochromic (PC) dihydroindolizines (DHIs) 8a-p based on benzo[i]phenanthridines were prepared in 19,57% yields via nucleophilic addition of benzo[i]phenanthridines 4a-p to spirocyclopropenes 5. The 1D, 2D, NOESY NMR spectra, mass spectrometry, and elemental analysis were used for characterization of the chemical structures of the newly synthesized DHIs 8a-p. Developing and tuning of the photophysical properties of the synthesized compounds by substituents in the base part have been achieved. The absorption maxima (,max) and the half-lives (t1/2) of the colored zwitterionic forms 7a-p were detected in all cases by flash-photolysis measurements due to the fast 1,5-electrocyclization back to the DHI system. Irradiation of DHI 8a-p in'CH2Cl2 solution with polychromatic light leads to the formation of green to green,blue colored betaines 7a-p after cooling with liquid nitrogen. The kinetics of the fast bleaching process of betaines 7a-p to DHIs 8a-p, studied by flash photolysis as well as low temperature FT-UV/VIS, were found to take place in the millisecond range (432,2675,ms) in dichloromethane solution and fitted well a first-order thermal back reaction. The fluorescence spectra as well as the fluorescence quantum yield were studied. Noticeable bathochromic and hypsochromic shifts in the emission spectra by changing the substituents in the base part were monitored. Interestingly, the photo-fatigue resistance of some studied betaines 7a-p showed a higher t30 -value than the standard one (dicyanopyridazine DHI). Large solvatochromic effects on the absorption maxima (,max) as well as a substantial increase in the half-lives (t1/2) with solvent polarity of betaines 7a-p were also observed. The multiaddressable PC properties of DHIs 8a-p will help these compounds to find applications. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Photooxidation and Photoconductivity of Polyferrocenylsilane Thin Films

MACROMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS, Issue 7 2003
Paul W. Cyr
Abstract Irradiation of thin films of poly(ferrocenylmethylphenylsilane) ([Fe(,5 -C5H4)2SiMePh]n) cast from chloroform solution with UV light leads to photooxidation of ferrocene centers in the polymer main chain. The extent of the polymer oxidation can be controlled in the range ca. 0,5% by the duration of the irradiation exposure and by the concentration of chloroform. The photooxidized polyferrocenylsilane material is conductive, with an increased conductivity of greater than three orders of magnitude relative to the unoxidized material. In addition, the photooxidized polymers have been found to be photoconductive. The photooxidation process can be reversed by means of chemical reduction using hydrazine or decamethylferrocene, leading to the regeneration of the neutral polymers. However, substantial molecular weight decline was detected during the photooxidation/reduction process, presumably as a result of chain cleavage reactions induced by the anionic or radical chlorinated photoproducts. Methylation of the cyclopentadienyl rings of the ferrocene moiety in the polymer was found to lead to materials which are significantly more stable. Time trace of the current at constant applied voltage of 100 V for a PFS film upon illumination. The ON and OFF states were created by using a mechanical shutter. [source]


Efficacy of 308-nm excimer light for Japanese patients with psoriasis

THE JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 11 2009
Yusuke NIWA
Abstract Ultraviolet irradiation therapy, including psoralen and ultraviolet A therapy and narrow-band ultraviolet B (310,312 nm) therapy, is a widely used and highly efficient treatment modality for psoriasis. Therapy with 308-nm excimer light has been reported to be effective for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris. To evaluate the efficacy of 308-nm excimer light therapy for Japanese psoriasis patients, seven patients (six men and one woman) with plaque-type psoriasis were treated with 308-nm excimer light at 7,14-day intervals. The Psoriasis Severity Index (PSI) was calculated for individual plaques in order to assess the effectiveness of the therapy. A 74.9% mean improvement in the PSI was observed after 10 treatment sessions. These results suggested that targeted irradiation with 308-nm excimer light leads to rapid and selective improvement in plaque-type psoriatic lesions without unnecessary radiation exposure to the surrounding unaffected skin. [source]


Acceleration of Suzuki,Miyaura- and Stille-type Coupling Reactions by Irradiation with Near-UV-A Light

CHEMSUSCHEM CHEMISTRY AND SUSTAINABILITY, ENERGY & MATERIALS, Issue 12 2008
Giovanni Imperato Dr.
Abstract Irradiation of a palladium catalyst bearing UV-A-absorbing phosphine ligands with low-intensity UV-A light leads to higher conversions of reactants at lower temperatures and an increased selectivity towards the cross-coupling product in Suzuki,Miyaura- and Stille-type reactions. The examples studied illustrate that a selective energy input into the catalyst by irradiation leads to more selective conversions under milder reaction conditions. With the availability of affordable and energy-efficient UV-A LED light sources, selective heating of the catalyst by light can be envisaged as a general strategy to increase the performance of a catalyst. [source]