Nitrogen physiological properties

The physical properties of commercial alkoxysilanes are provided in Table 1. Two classes of silane esters have very distinct properties and are generally considered apart from alkoxysilanes. Sdatranes are compounds derived from trialkanolamines and have siHcon—nitrogen coordination. These are generally hydrolytically stable and have unique physiological properties (3). A second special class of monomeric esters are cycHc diesters of polyethyleneoxide glycols designated sila-crowns, which have appHcation as catalysts (4). Neither silatranes nor sila-crowns are considered herein. 

Alkaloids are extremely difficult to define because they do not represent a homogeneous group of compounds from either the chemical, biochemical or physiological viewpoint. All do occur in plants, but some are found in animals, and practically all have been reproduced in the laboratory by chemical synthesis. Most possess basic properties due to the presence of an amino nitrogen, and many, specially thoses pertinent to pharmacy and medicine, possess marked physiological activity. 

Properties of the air pollutants sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, peroxyacyl nitrates, and ozone have been considered from chemical, biochemical, and physiological points of view. Physiological observations cannot demonstrate the chemical mode of toxicity. Chemical and in vitro biochemical studies may be irrelevant at the physiological level. Consideration of all three approaches indicates which hypotheses of toxicity are more plausible and suggests new areas of investigation. 

Table I also shows the great diversity of organisms in which iron—sulfur proteins have been detected. Thus far there is no organism which when appropriately examined has not contained an iron-sulfur protein, either in the soluble or membrane-bound form. Iron-sulfur proteins catalyze reactions of physiological importance in obligate anaerobic bacteria, such as hydrogen uptake and evolution, ATP formation, pyruvate metabolism, nitrogen fixation, and photosynthetic electron transport. These properties and reactions can be considered primitive and thus make iron-sulfur proteins a good place to start the study of evolution. These key reactions are also important in higher organisms. Other reactions catalyzed by iron-sulfur proteins can be added such as hydroxylation, nitrate and nitrite reduction, sulfite reduction, NADH oxidation, xanthine oxidation, and many other reactions (Table II).

---