The zwitterionic detergent CHAPS, a derivative of the bile salts, is widely used in membrane protein solubilization. It is a "facial" detergent, having a hydrophilic side and a hydrophobic back. The objective of this work is to characterize the interaction of CHAPS with a cell membrane. To this aim, erythrocytes were incubated with a wide range of detergent concentrations in order to determine CHAPS partition behavior, and its effects on membrane lipid order, hemolytic effects, and the solubilization of membrane phospholipids and cholesterol. The results were compared with those obtained with the nonionic detergent Triton X-100. It was found that CHAPS has a low affinity for the erythrocyte membrane (partition coefficient K=0.06mM(-1)), and at sub-hemolytic concentrations it causes little effect on membrane lipid order. CHAPS hemolysis and phospholipid solubilization are closely correlated. On the other side, binding of Triton X-100 disorders the membrane at all levels, and has independent mechanisms for hemolysis and solubilization. Differential behavior was observed in the solubilization of phospholipids and cholesterol. Thus, the detergent resistant membranes (DRM) obtained with the two detergents will have different composition. The behaviors of the two detergents are related to the differences in their molecular structures, suggesting that CHAPS does not penetrate the lipid bilayer but binds in a flat position on the erythrocyte surface, both in intact and cholesterol depleted erythrocytes. A relevant result for Triton X-100 is that hemolysis is not directly correlated with the solubilization of membrane lipids, as it is usually assumed.

Radical anions of 3,4‐aryl disubstituted 1,2,5‐thiadiazole 1,1‐dioxide were obtained by chemical and electrochemical reduction of their substrates, and characterized by ESR spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. The radical anion of the phenanthro[9,10‐c]‐1,2,5‐thiadiazole 1,1‐dioxide was found to be very stable in an aprotic solvent solution and did not react readily when water was added to the aprotic solvent, or the solution was saturated with oxygen gas. The radical formation chemical reaction competed with nucleophilic addition to the CN bond of the thiadiazoles. A possible reaction mechanism, and a common reaction intermediate, supported by density functional theory calculations, is presented for the most stable radical. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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In order to evaluate the exchange interaction parameters for interaction between copper ions, we measured the angular variation in the gyromagnetic factor and the linewidth of the single electron paramagnetic resonance line of bis(L-leucinato)Cu(II) single crystals, at 9.7 and 33.6 GHz, and 300 K. We obtain lJl = 0.17 K and IJ'I = 0.23 K for the root mean square values of the exchange interaction of one copper with its six nearest copper neighbours and with its four non-equivalent copper neighbours, respectively. These results are analysed in terms of the chemical pathways for superexchange and compared with those obtained in other similar systems.

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