We used neutron scattering and specific hydrogen-deuterium labeling to investigate the thermal dynamics of isotope-labeled amino acids and retinal, predominantly in the active core and extracellular moiety of bacteriorhodopsin (BR) in the purple membrane and the dynamical response to hydration. Measurements on two neutron spectrometers allowed two populations of motions ...

Here we report on the in vivo estrogenic effects of two fluorotelomer alcohols, such as 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctan-1-ol (6:2 FTOH) and 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecan-1-ol (8:2 FTOH), in male medaka (Oryzias latipes). An in vitro yeast two-hybrid assay indicated a significant, dose-dependent interaction between medaka estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) and coactivator TIF2 upon treatment with ...

The 42 amino acid amyloid-beta (Abeta) can exist in multiple physical states including oligomers and fibrils. This study shows that fibril formation is hastened by the biological buffers required to support the growth of mammalian cells, but is prevented if Abeta is maintained in water. Here we describe a method ...

The incorporation of chlorogenic acids (CGAs) and their subunits quinic and caffeic acids (QA and CA) in coffee brew melanoidins was studied. Fractions with different molecular weights, ionic charges, and ethanol solubilities were isolated from coffee brew. Fractions were saponified, and the released QA and CA were quantified. For all ...

Response surface methodology, which allows for rapid identification of important factors and optimization of them to enhance enzyme production, was employed here to optimize culture conditions for the production of cis-epoxysuccinic acid hydrolase from Bordetella sp. strain 1-3. In the first step, a Plackett-Burman design was used to evaluate the ...

Drosophila mojavensis is a cactophilic fly endemic to the northwestern deserts of North America. This species includes four genetically isolated cactus host races each individually specializing on the necrotic tissues of a different cactus species. The necrosis of each cactus species provides the resident D. mojavensis populations with a distinct ...

Polyaniline/magnetite nanocomposites consisting of polyaniline (PANI) nanorods surrounded by magnetite nanoparticles were prepared via an in situ self-assembly process in the presence of PANI nanorods. The synthesis is based on the well-known chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline in an acidic environment, with ammonium persulfate (APS) as the oxidant. An organic ...

Ultrathin nanoplates of beta-phase semiconductor In2S3 with the diameter of 50 - 80 nm and a thickness of 1.85 nm were synthesized via a simple hot injection solution method with Hexadecylamine (HDA) as ligand, and the nanoplates self-assembled into superlattices by face to face stacking during evaporation of the solvent. ...

Many pyrrolizidine alkaloid (PA)-adapted insects convert PAs sequestered from their larval host plants into "insect-PAs" in which the acid components of the alkaloids are replaced by small, branched aliphatic 2-hydroxy acids of insect origin. It has been proposed that insect-PAs are precursors of the pheromone hydroxydanaidal in male Estigmene acrea ...

Artemisinin, an endoperoxidized sesquiterpene originally extracted from the medicinal plant Artemisia annua L., is a potent malaria-killing agent. Due to the urgent demand and short supply of this new antimalarial drug, engineering enhanced production of artemisinin by genetically-modified or transgenic microbes is currently being explored. Cloning and expression of the ...

The immunomodulatory properties of peptidoglycan (PGN), a constituent of the bacterial cell wall, have been studied extensively but with contrasting results. Recent studies have demonstrated that the TLR2-mediated inflammatory responses elicited by Gram-positive PGN preparations are in fact a result of contaminating lipoproteins and lipoteichoic acid that can be removed ...

AIMS: To identify ascomycetous yeasts recovered from sound and damaged grapes by the presence of honeydew or sour rot. METHODS AND RESULTS: In sound grapes, the mean yeast counts ranged from 3.20 +/- 1.04 log CFU g(-1) to 5.87 +/- 0.64 log CFU g(-1). In honeydew grapes, the mean counts ...

Addition of germanic acid into the culture medium of the diatom Synedra acus subsp. radians (Kutz.) Skabitsch. had nearly no influence on the culture growth at the Ge/Si molar ratio 0.01, but stopped it at ratios 0.05 and higher. It was shown by mass-spectrometry that at the Ge/Si ratio 0.01 ...

The jasmonate family of phytohormones, as represented by 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid (OPDA), dinor-phytodienoic acid (dn-OPDA), and jasmonic acid in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), has been implicated in a vast array of different developmental processes and stress responses. Recent reports indicate that OPDA and dn-OPDA occur not only as free acids in Arabidopsis, ...

Sophorolipids are a class of glycolipids that can be obtained from fatty acids by simply treating them with yeast cells (Candida bombicola, ATCC 22214) and glucose. In this letter, we demonstrate the application of sophorolipids obtained from oleic acid as a capping agent for Co nanoparticles. Upon capping the nanoparticle ...

Glycation of a recombinant monoclonal IgG2 molecule, in sucrose containing liquid formulations, was studied using reversed-phase LC/MS analysis of the intact IgG, the F(ab')2 fragments and after complete tryptic digestion. The extent of glycation in sucrose containing formulations was monitored at different temperatures over a period of 21 months using ...

The leaf cuticular waxes of six Salix clones (one Salix miyabeana, one Salix dasyclados, one Salix eriocephala, two Salix purpurea, and one interspecific hybrid of Salix eriocephala x interior) with different biomass productivities were characterized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Total wax content ranged from 6.3 to 16.8 microg cm(-2), and ...

Newly isolated soil bacterium strain Jin1 was able to grow on both eugenol and isoeugenol each as sole source of carbon and energy. Based on bacterial 16S rDNA analysis, Jin1 belongs to Pseudomonas nitroreducens with a similarity of 98.92% (14/1297). P. nitroreducens Jin1 was found to biotransform eugenol and isoeugenol ...

An approach to synthesize the electrophilic fluorinating agent no-carrier-added (n.c.a.) [18F]perchloryl fluoride ([18F]FClO3) in superacidic media in the presence of KClO4 or anhydrous perchloric acid starting from [18F]fluoride was demonstrated in this study. However, the radiochemical yields were low (1-6%) and poorly reproducible. Fluorosulphonic acid proved to be an essential ...

A mature bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) was diagnosed with mycobacterial infection after being presented for an inability to fly, emaciation, and a swelling of the left tibiotarsal-tarso metatarsal joint. Results of a complete blood cell count revealed a persistent, marked leukocytosis, with heterophilia, monocytosis, and anemia. Radiographs revealed lysis of ...

The first anion inhibition study of the mitochondrial human carbonic anhydrase (hCA, EC 4.2.1.1) isoform hCA VB is reported. Fluoride, chloride, bromide, iodide, cyanate, thiocyanate, cyanide, azide, bicarbonate, carbonate, nitrate, nitrite, hydrogen sulfide, bisulfite, sulfate, sulfamide, sulfamic acid, phenylboronic acid and phenylarsonic acid were compared as inhibitors of the two ...

Bacillus mojavensis strain RO-H-1 produces a posttranslationally modified hexapeptide, the ComX(RO-H-1) pheromone, that stimulates natural genetic competence controlled by quorum sensing. LC/ESI-MS analysis of partially purification of the ComX(RO-H-1) pheromone suggested a precise modification in its tryptophan residue. The corresponding ComX(RO-H-1) pheromone prepared by solid-phase synthesis was identical to the ...

OBJECTIVE: Telomerase is an attractive molecular target because it is active in most malignant cells but undetectable in most normal somatic cells. Small, interfering ribonucleic acid segments have been shown to be effective tools for inhibiting the expression of a given gene within human cells. In the present study, we ...

Macroautophagy, an intracellular bulk degradation process in eukaryotes, is sensitive to nutrient supply and deprivation. Microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3), a mammalian homologue of yeast Atg8, plays an indispensable role in macroautophagy formation and is a suitable marker for this process. Through analysis of the subcellular distribution of ...

The development of nematicides targeting parasitic nematodes of animals and plants requires the identification of biochemical targets not found in host organisms. Recent studies suggest that Caenorhabditis elegans synthesizes phosphocholine through the action of PEAMT (S-adenosyl-L-methionine:phosphoethanolamine N-methyltransferases) that convert phosphoethanolamine into phosphocholine. Here, we examine the function of a PEAMT ...

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) glycoprotein E (gE) is required for VZV infection. Although gE is well conserved among alphaherpesviruses, the amino terminus of VZV gE is unique. Previously, we showed that gE interacts with insulin-degrading enzyme (IDE) and facilitates VZV infection and cell-to-cell spread of the virus. Here we define the ...

Natural polymorphisms in the heterogeneous human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) envelope glycoprotein may have an impact on both sensitivity to entry inhibitors and viral replicative fitness. Of significant interest is variation in the V3 crown due to its involvement in direct engagement with the coreceptor. Two positions in the ...

An analog of pyrazinamide (PZA), 5-chloropyrazinamide (5-Cl-PZA), has previously been shown to inhibit mycobacterial fatty acid synthase I (FASI). FASI has been purified from a recombinant strain of M. smegmatis (M. smegmatis Deltafas1 attB::M. tuberculosis fas1). Following purification, FASI activity and inhibition were assessed spectrophotometrically by monitoring NADPH oxidation. The ...

The objective of this study was to investigate the occurrence of sublethal injury after the pulsed-electric-field (PEF) treatment of two yeasts, Dekkera bruxellensis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, as well as the relation of sublethal injury to the inactivating effect of the combination of PEF and sorbic acid. PEF caused sublethal injury ...

Directed evolution of 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogalactonate (KDPGal) aldolase for microbial synthesis of shikimate pathway products provides an alternate strategy to circumvent the competition for phosphoenolpyruvate between 3-deoxy-D-arabino-heptulosonic acid 7-phosphate (DAHP) synthase and the phosphoenolpyruvate:carbohydrate phosphotransferase system in Escherichia coli. E. coli KDPGal aldolase was evolved using a combination of error-prone polymerase chain ...

Streptomyces and other bacterial actinomycete species produce many important natural products, including the majority of known antibiotics, and cytochrome P450 (P450) enzymes catalyze important biosynthetic steps. Relatively few electron transport pathways to P450s have been characterized in bacteria, particularly streptomycete species. One of the 18 P450s in Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2), ...

Brown-rot fungus Fomitopsis palustris grows vigorously at high concentrations of oxalic acid (OA), which is fungal metabolite during wood decay. We isolated a cDNA FpTRP26 from F. palustris by functional screening of yeast transformants with cDNAs grown on plates containing OA. FpTRP26 conferred a specific resistance to OA on the ...

Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) are widely used anthropogenic chelating agents for control of metal speciation and are ubiquitous in natural waters and wastewaters. This is the first report of systematic measurement of the growth yields of a mixed culture (BNC1-BNC2) on EDTA and its biodegradation intermediates, and ...

Degradation of various membrane proteins in the lumen of the vacuole/lysosome requires their prior sorting into the multivesicular body (MVB) pathway. In this process, ubiquitin serves as a sorting signal for most cargoes. The yeast ubiquitin hydrolase Doa4 acts late in the MVB pathway. It's role is to catalyze deubiquitination ...

The production of proteolytic enzymes by several strains of ectomycorrhizal fungi i.e., Amanita muscaria (16-3), Laccaria laccata (9-12), L. laccata (9-1), Suillus bovinus (15-4), Suillus bovinus (15-3), Suillus luteus (14-7) on mycelia of Trichoderma harzianum, Trichoderma virens and Mucor hiemalis and sodium caseinate, yeast extract was evaluated. The strains of ...

Sterile cultured isolates of lichen-forming ascomycetes have not yet been used to investigate mycobiont-mineral substrate interactions under controlled conditions. In this study Candelariella vitellina, Xanthoparmelia tinctina and Lecanora rupicola mycobionts were isolated and inoculated with chrysotile fibres in the laboratory, in order to verify whether physical and chemical weathering processes, ...

AIMS: Optimization of 6-aminopenicillanic acid (6-APA) production using cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEA) of Bacillus badius penicillin G acylase (PAC). METHODS AND RESULTS: CLEA-PAC was prepared using purified/partially purified PAC with phenylacetic acid as active-site blocking agent and glutaraldehyde as cross-linker. Conversion of penicillin G to 6-APA by CLEA-PAC was optimized ...

Mitochondria are indispensable for aerobic respiration, but many microbial eukaryotes have lost this function through reductive evolution. Their modified mitochondria are known as hydrogenosomes or mitosomes depending on whether or not they produce molecular hydrogen. The intestinal parasite Entamoeba histolytica contains mitosomes whose role in cellular metabolism is unclear. Only ...

D-Alanylgriseoluteic acid (AGA) is a potent antimicrobial phenazine compound produced by Pantoea agglomerans (Erwinia herbicola) Eh1087. Susceptibility tests against a range of microbes indicated that AGA had a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity and was particularly active against Gram-positive pathogens. Comparison of the in vitro efficacy of AGA with eight ...

PYP-phytochrome (Ppr) is a unique photoreceptor that contains a blue light-absorbing photoactive yellow protein (PYP) domain, a red light-absorbing phytochrome domain, and a histidine kinase domain. This chapter describes overexpression of Ppr in a strain of Escherichia coli that allows covalent attachment of substoichiometric amounts of biliverdin in vivo. Ppr ...

An in situ reduction approach to synthesizing gold and silver nanoparticles by using a series of newly designed, redox-active amphiphiles at basic pH is described. These amphiphiles are the conjugates of a fatty acid (e.g., oleic acid, stearic acid, and lauric acid) and a redox-active amino acid (e.g., tryptophan or ...

The native three-dimensional structure of a single protein is determined by the physicochemical nature of its constituent amino acids. The 20 different types of amino acids, depending on their physicochemical properties, can be grouped into three major classes: hydrophobic, hydrophilic, and charged. The anatomy of the weighted and unweighted networks ...

A bacterial strain 1-3 capable of enantioselectively hydrolyzing cis-epoxysuccinic acid to D(-)-tartaric acid was isolated from soil. Phenotypic characteristics, Biolog GN test and phylogenetic analysis of strain 1-3 indicated that it belongs to the genus Bordetella. cis-Epoxysuccinic acid could be used as a carbon source and inducer for production of ...

Development of simple and efficient protocol for the synthesis of Ni nanoparticles in aqueous media and their subsequent phase transfer to organic media is reported. The synthesis of nickel nanoparticles in aqueous medium is accomplished by reducing the nickel nitrate with sodium borohydride in presence of oleic acid. It results ...

Maturation of molybdoenzyme TorA involves chaperone TorD. This study shows that TorD is also required to protect apoTorA against proteolysis when the molybdenum cofactor is limiting in Escherichia coli. The absence of TorD leads to a complete loss of apoTorA during molybdenum cofactor deficiency whereas the presence of TorD maintains ...

We evaluated the transfer of Pb from shot to meat during the preparation of breasts of quails with 0, 1, 2 or 4 embedded Pb shot. A traditional Spanish recipe was used which utilizes vinegar during cooking to enhance the long-term preservation of the meat. The effect of the acidic ...

General procedures of N-chloroacetylation of the representative 1-aminoalkylphosphonic acids (Gly(P), Ala(P), Val(P), Pgly(P) and Phe(P)) are described. These 1-(N-chloroacetylamino)-alkylphosphonic acids were converted into the corresponding glycylphosphonodipeptides (Gly-AA(P)) and/or related N-alkylglycylphosphonodipeptides (Me(n)Gly-AA(P)) in the course of ammonolysis/aminolysis. Physico-chemical properties of synthesized 1-(N-chloroacetylamino)-alkylphosphonic acids and phosphonodipeptides are characterized.

Understanding the functions of the widely expressed PCs (prohormone/proprotein convertases), including PC5/6, furin and PACE4 (paired basic amino acid cleaving enzyme 4), in animal models is difficult since individual knockouts of these PCs in mice exhibit early embryonic lethality. To investigate the roles of PC5/6 in processing pro-CART (pro-cocaine- and ...

Cryptococcus neoformans melanizes in the environment and in mammalian tissues, but the process of melanization in either venue is mysterious given that this microbe produces melanin only from exogenous substrates. Understanding the process of melanization is important because melanization is believed to protect against various stresses in the environment, including ...

We describe an 11-year-old Saudi boy who had an encephalopathy suggestive of mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with lactic acidosis and strokelike episodes (MELAS). We screened his entire mitochondrial DNA coding region and detected one novel transversion point mutation at nt-12299 A > C in the transfer ribonucleic acid for leucine 2 (CUN) ...