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Saratoga Springs,
New York, 12866
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Collaborative Research (continued)
Skidmore students and their professors have worked together
on numerous research projects. This kind of high-level scholarship
does more than enhances a student's understanding in a given
disipline; the practical, hands-on experience and "real-world"
accomplishment also instill a sense of confidence that will
benefit a graduate in any career. Projects from recent years
appear below, arranged by academic area.
Project: Hydrolysis by Metal
Bound Clays Participants: Assistant Professor Steven T. Frey and Benjamin M.
Hutchins '01 Plan: The clay hectorite has been shown to bind transition
and lanthanide metals and to form thin films. These properties
make hectorite an attractive material to examine for a variety
of applications. We intend to investigate this clay with respect
to its ability to catalyze the hydrolysis of environmentally
hazardous compounds (such as pesticides), as a means of detoxifying
these substances. Specifically, we will prepare a variety of
metal-bound hectorites using lanthanide metals. Once prepared,
these materials will be tested for their ability to hydrolyze
phosphate ester-containing substrates (compounds analogous to
a class of pesticides known to be environmental toxins). Through
this study, we hope to identify catalytic systems and elucidate
some understanding of their role in hydrolysis reactions.
Project: Application of a New Method for Total Nitrogen
and Total Phosphorous Determination to a Study of Local Water
Supplies Participants: Associate Professor Judith Ann Halstead and Brian
LaFranchi '99 Plan: A procedure to determine the amount of total nitrogen
(TN) and total phosphorous (TP) in an aqueous sample by a single
persulfate digestion will be developed and used in a summer
study of fresh-water bodies in the area. Nitrogen and phosphorous
are the two main nutrients that contribute to eutrophication
of water bodies, a serious environmental problem. Previous work
has developed a method of TN analysis by ion chromatography
after a digestion, and its reliability was found to be comparable
to the classical Kjeldahl method. The determination of TP by
colorimetric analysis following the same digestion procedure
used in the TN work is currently being investigated. During
the summer of 1999, TN and TP will both be determined in local
water supplies using one digestion procedure for both TP and
TN. The reliability of the procedure for TP will be determined
by comparison of results with TP determination by ICP (inductively
coupled plasma).
Project: Investigation of the Oxidation of Fe(II) Coordinated
to DNA-bound Ru(bpy)2tpphz2+ Participants: Professor Steven A. Tysoe and Evan Walters,
'01 Plan: Dr. Tysoe's recently submitted manuscript to Inorganic
Chemistry deals with the complex Ru(bpy)2tpphz2+ and its interaction
with DNA. Upon addition of DNA to an aqueous solution of Ru(bpy)2tpphz2+,
the complex becomes highly luminescent, and thus serves as a
DNA probe. Furthermore, it was reported that the luminescence
property of this complex can be toggled on and off in a controllable
way using ions of varying types. Some metal ions, such as Cu(II)
and Fe(II), cause the luminescence of the complex to be turned
off. Others, such as Fe(III), are ineffective. One chemical
process that is important in biological systems involves the
oxidation of Fe(II) à Fe(III) We wish to use the DNA-bound Ru(bpy)2tpphz2+
complex to investigate the oxidation of Fe(II) à Fe(III), employing
a variety of oxidizing agents, in particular molecular O2. The
oxidation process will be tracked using luminescence spectroscopy
as the reporter of reaction progress.
Project: Synthetic Mod of Dinuclear Hydrolase Enzymes Participants: Assistant Professor Steven T. Frey and Michelle D.
Ritorto '99 Plan: We intend to complete a study of the reactivity
of a dicopper(II) complex with a series of phenylacetate derivative
substrates. This is an ongoing project that has been explored
over the past two semesters.
Project: A Novel Approach to Attachment of Organometallic
Probes to Nucleic Acids Participants: Professor Steven A. Tysoe and Roni Kopelman
'00 Plan: Several reports have appeared describing the binding
of ruthenium complexes to DNA as being characterized by a partial
intercalative interaction, where one blade of the propeller-shaped
molecules interacts by slipping between the base pairs of DNA.
To date, no studies have been performed that describe the attachment
of DNA probes from both sides of the helix. The goal is to design
and investigate a ruthenium complex capable of attaching to
DNA as a "molecular nut and bolt." Attachment of the "bolt"
portion of the molecule to DNA has recently been demonstrated
by Dr. Tysoe and Dieter Schelzig '98 during the 1997 summer
Collaborative Research Program. It is the team's desire to "attach
the nut" during the 10 weeks of the 1998 summer Collaborative
Research Program.
Creative Thought Matters.
Skidmore College · 815 North Broadway · Saratoga Springs, NY · 12866