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Experimental Conditions Used (experimental + condition_used)
Selected AbstractsElectrochemical Investigation of Heavy Metal Ion Transfer Across the Water/1,2-Dichloroethane Interface Assisted by 9-Ethyl-3-Carbazolecarboxaldehyde-ThiosemicarbazoneELECTROANALYSIS, Issue 12 2007Haluk Bingol Abstract The transfer of heavy metal ions across the polarized water/1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCE) interface assisted by 9-ethyl-3-carbazolecarboxaldehyde-thiosemicarbazone (ECCAT) in the 1,2-DCE phase has been studied by cyclic voltammetry. Voltammetric waves of Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions were reversible and quasi-reversible, respectively, whereas that of Hg(II) and Zn(II) ion were irreversible. The voltammogram of Cu(II) ion showed a two-step wave, however the nature of the transfer could not be satisfactorily evaluated by analyzing the cyclic voltammetric data. When Ni(II) and Co(II) was used no peak was visible under the experimental conditions used in this study. The dependence of the half-wave potentials of Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions on the ligand concentration reveals that their ion-transfer is assisted by the formation of 1:3 metal-ECCAT complex in 1,2-DCE. The over-all association constants of [Pb(ECCAT)3]2+ and [Cd(ECCAT)3]2+ complexes in DCE-phase have been determined to be log ,=14.03 and log ,=15.44, respectively. [source] Multiple polypeptide forms observed in two-dimensional gels of Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath) polypeptides are generated during the separation procedureELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 4 2003Frode S. Berven Abstract We have examined two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) gel maps of polypeptides from the Gram-negative bacterium Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath) and found the same widespread trains of spots as often reported in 2-DE gels of polypeptides of other Gram-negative bacteria. Some of the trains of polypeptides, both from the outer membrane and soluble protein fraction, were shown to be generated during the separation procedure of 2-DE, and not by covalent post-translational modifications. The trains were found to be regenerated when rerunning individual polypeptide spots. The polypeptides analysed giving this type of trains were all found to be classified as stable polypeptides according to the instability index of Guruprasad et al. (Protein Eng. 1990, 4, 155,161). The phenomenon most likely reflects conformational equilibria of polypeptides arising from the experimental conditions used, and is a clear drawback of the standard 2-DE procedure, making the gel picture unnecessarily complex to analyse. [source] Biochemical characterization of MI-ENG1, a family 5 endoglucanase secreted by the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognitaFEBS JOURNAL, Issue 11 2000Christel Béra-Maillet A ,-1,4-endoglucanase named MI-ENG1, homologous to the family 5 glycoside hydrolases, was previously isolated from the plant parasitic root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita. We describe here the detection of the enzyme in the nematode homogenate and secretion and its complete biochemical characterization. This study is the first comparison of the enzymatic properties of an animal glycoside hydrolase with plant and microbial enzymes. MI-ENG1 shares many enzymatic properties with known endoglucanases from plants, free-living or rumen-associated microorganisms and phytopathogens. In spite of the presence of a cellulose-binding domain at the C-terminus, the ability of MI-ENG1 to bind cellulose could not be demonstrated, whatever the experimental conditions used. The biochemical characterization of the enzyme is a first step towards the understanding of the molecular events taking place during the plant,nematode interaction. [source] Viability of Listeria monocytogenes in co-culture with Acanthamoeba spp.FEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2009Alisha Akya Abstract Listeria monocytogenes is a human pathogen, ubiquitous in the environment, and can grow and survive under a wide range of environmental conditions. It contaminates foods via raw materials or food-processing environments. However, the current knowledge of its ecology and, in particular, the mode of environmental survival and transmission of this intracellular pathogen remains limited. Research has shown that several intracellular pathogens are able to survive or replicate within free-living amoebae. To examine the viability of L. monocytogenes in interaction with Acanthamoeba spp., bacteria were co-cultured with three freshly isolated amoebae, namely Acanthamoeba polyphaga, Acanthamoeba castellanii and Acanthamoeba lenticulata. The survival of bacteria and amoebae was determined using culture techniques and microscopy. Under the experimental conditions used, all amoebae were able to eliminate bacteria irrespective of the hly gene. Bacteria did not survive or replicate within amoeba cells. However, extra-amoebic bacteria grew saprophytically on materials released from amoebae, which may play an important role in the survival of bacteria under extreme environmental conditions. [source] Suicide gene therapy on LNCaP human prostate cancer cellsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UROLOGY, Issue 7 2001Ichiro Yoshimura Two types of plasmid vectors with the HSV-TK gene were constructed. A constitutive chicken ,-actin promoter drove one and a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) promoter drove the other. Similarly, a pair of plasmids with the CD gene under a cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter and the PSA promoter was also constructed. LNCaP cells were transfected in vitro with either or both of those plasmids using a cationic lipid reagent. Transfected cells were treated with GCV and/or 5-FC. The percentage of viable LNCaP cells 7 days after treatment with HSV-TK/GCV or CD/5-FC under a constitutive promoter was 40% and 41% of controls, respectively. The cell viability when two suicide genes were combined was 23%. The cell viabilities after four days with PSA promoter-HSV-TK vectors, CD vectors and a combination of both were 79%, 88% and 88%, respectively. Suicide gene therapy using either HSV-TK/GCV, CD/5-FC, or both, was effective in the LNCaP model. An additive effect was observed when the two suicide genes were used together. The PSA promoter did not seem to be effective enough to elicit cytotoxicity under the experimental conditions used here. [source] Volatile fatty acid production during anaerobic mesophilic digestion of solid potato wasteJOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 7 2004Wilson Parawira Abstract The production of volatile fatty acids by anaerobic digestion of solid potato waste was investigated using a batch solid waste reactor with a working capacity of 2 dm,3 at 37°C. Solid potato waste was packed into the digester and the organic content of the waste was released by microbial activity by circulating water over the bed, using batch loads of 500 g or 1000 g potato waste. The sequence of appearance of the volatile fatty acids was (acetic, propionic); (n -butyric); (n -valeric, iso-valeric, caproic); (iso-butyric). After 300 h digestion of potato waste on a small scale, the fermentation products were chiefly (mg g,1 total VFAs): acetic acid (420), butyric acid (310), propionic acid (140) and caproic acid (90), with insignificant amounts of iso-butyric acid, n -valeric and iso-valeric acids. When the load of potato solids was increased, the volatile fatty acid content was similar, but butyric acid constituted 110 mg g,1 and lactic acid 400 mg g,1 of the total volatile fatty acids. The maximum soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) achieved under the experimental conditions used was 27 and 37 g COD dm,3 at low and high loadings of potato solids, respectively. The total volatile fatty acids reached 19 g dm,3 of leachate at both loads of potato solid waste. Gas production was negligible, indicating that methanogenic activity was effectively inhibited. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Activated carbon surface modifications by adsorption of bacteria and their effect on aqueous lead adsorptionJOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 12 2001J Rivera-Utrilla Abstract The adsorption of Escherichia coli on different activated carbons has been studied. The activated carbon samples used have been characterized, determining their surface area, pore size distribution, elemental analysis, mineral matter analysis and pH of the point of zero charge. The adsorption capacity of these carbons increased with their hydrophobicity and macropore volume. The number of bacteria adsorbed on the demineralized activated carbon in a solution of pH value equal to the iso-electric point of the carbon was negligible. However, in the presence of cations the proportions of bacterial cells adsorbed were 87.8% (Fe3+), 54.7% (Ca2+) and 24.8% (Mg2+) respectively. This increase in adsorption capacity in the presence of electrolytes has been explained on the basis of both the reduction in electrostatic free energy and the increase in cell surface hydrophobicity due to the metal bound by some compounds of the cell membrane. When the solution pH was intermediate between the pH values of the point of zero charge of the carbon and bacteria the number of bacteria adsorbed increased due to the attractive interactions between the carbon and bacteria. The adsorption of bacteria on activated carbons decreased the porosity and increased the negative charge density of the latter. Depending on the experimental conditions used, the presence of bacteria can enhance the capacity of activated carbons to adsorb lead. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Antibody responses to Porphyromonas gingivalis infection in a murine abscess model , involvement of gingipains and responses to re-infectionJOURNAL OF PERIODONTAL RESEARCH, Issue 6 2003Masahiro Yoneda Background:,Porphyromonas gingivalis is one of the most important periodontopathogens. It produces cysteine proteinases named gingipains. We previously examined the effect of gingipains on abscess formation in a murine model. The rgpA rgpB double and kgp mutants induced smaller abscesses than the wild type. Moreover, the rgpA rgpB kgp triple (gingipain-null) mutant hardly showed lesion formation at all under the experimental conditions used, indicating that genes encoding gingipains are important for P. gingivalis virulence. Objectives:, Here, we further report the humoral immune responses induced by P. gingivalis strains. Methods:, After the lesions were apparently cured, sera were collected from the mice and immunoglobulin G (IgG) responses against the whole cell antigens of wild-type P. gingivalis were measured. Results:, Wild-type strain was found to induce a strong antibody reaction. On the other hand, the rgpA rgpB kgp triple and kgp mutants induced significantly lower antibody responses compared to the wild type. Western blotting analysis confirmed the differences in antibody production. Next, these mice were re-infected with wild-type strain. Mice that were first infected with wild-type strain showed significantly smaller lesion formation than control mice that were first infected with medium only. On the other hand, mice that were first infected with mutant strains devoid of gingipain activities did not show resistance to re-infection and immunoglobulins directed against gingipains may be protective. Conclusions:, These results suggest that gingipains play an important role in abscess formation in mice, and humoral immune responses seem to be partly responsible for the resistance to re-infection by P. gingivalis. [source] Aggregation kinetics of recombinant human FVIII (rFVIII)JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES, Issue 9 2005Karthik Ramani Abstract The physical phenomenon of aggregation can have profound impact on the stability of therapeutic proteins. This study focuses on the aggregation behavior of recombinant human FVIII (rFVIII), a multi-domain protein used as the first line of therapy for hemophilia A, a bleeding disorder caused by the deficiency or dysfunction of factor VIII (FVIII). Thermal denaturation of rFVIII was investigated using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The dependence of unfolding on heating rate indicated that the thermal denaturation of the protein was at least partly under kinetic control. The data was interpreted in terms of a simple two-state kinetic model, , where k is a first-order kinetic constant that changes with temperature, as given by the Arrhenius equation. Analysis of the data in terms of the above scheme suggested that under the experimental conditions used in this study, the rate-controlling step in the aggregation of rFVIII may be a unimolecular reaction involving conformational changes. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 94:2023,2029, 2005 [source] Hydroxyl-terminated hyperbranched aromatic poly(ether-ester)s: Synthesis, characterization, end-group modification, and optical propertiesJOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE (IN TWO SECTIONS), Issue 16 2008Thiyagarajan Shanmugam Abstract Novel AB2 -type monomers such as 3,5-bis(4-methylolphenoxy)benzoic acid (monomer 1), methyl 3,5-bis(4-methylolphenoxy) benzoate (monomer 2), and 3,5-bis(4-methylolphenoxy)benzoyl chloride (monomer 3) were synthesized. Solution polymerization and melt self-polycondensation of these monomers yielded hydroxyl-terminated hyperbranched aromatic poly(ether-ester)s. The structure of these polymers was established using FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopy. The molecular weights (Mw) of the polymers were found to vary from 2.0 × 103 to 1.49 × 104 depending on the polymerization techniques and the experimental conditions used. Suitable model compounds that mimic exactly the dendritic, linear, and terminal units present in the hyperbranched polymer were synthesized for the calculation of degree of branching (DB) and the values ranged from 52 to 93%. The thermal stability of the polymers was evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis, which showed no virtual weight loss up to 200 °C. The inherent viscosities of the polymers in DMF ranged from 0.010 to 0.120 dL/g. End-group modification of the hyperbranched polymer was carried out with phenyl isocyanate, 4-(decyloxy)benzoic acid and methyl red dye. The end-capping groups were found to change the thermal properties of the polymers such as Tg. The optical properties of hyperbranched polymer and the dye-capped hyperbranched polymer were investigated using ultraviolet-absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 5414,5430, 2008 [source] Correlation between antiradical activity and stability of betanine from Beta vulgaris L roots under different pH, temperature and light conditionsJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 7 2001A Pedreño Abstract When the antiradical activity and stability of betanine were studied at pH values of 3.5 and 8.5 and temperatures of 25, 50 and 75,°C, the results showed that the antiradical activity was greater at acidic pH and lower at higher temperatures. At basic pH the activity of betanine correlated well with its stability at the three temperatures assayed, suggesting that the degradation products, betalamic acid (BA) and cyclo DOPA 5- O -,- D -glucoside (CDG), did not contribute to this activity under the experimental conditions used. However, at acidic pH the degradation product, CDG, did seem to contribute to the antiradical activity. Furthermore, at pH 3.5, betanine stability was so great that light conditions had no effect on the antiradical activity. At basic pH, too, light had no effect on betanine activity owing to the high instability of the pigment. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Evaluation of the environmental fate of thymol and phenethyl propionate in the laboratoryPEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE (FORMERLY: PESTICIDE SCIENCE), Issue 7 2008Dingfei Hu Abstract BACKGROUND: The natural monoterpenoid pesticides thymol and phenethyl propionate (PEP) are used indoors and outdoors, but their fate in the environment has not been reported. In order better to understand their impact on the environment, water metabolism and soil metabolism studies were conducted with thymol and PEP at a concentration of 10 µg g,1 in water and in soil under laboratory conditions. RESULTS: Dissipation half-lives of thymol and PEP were 16 and 5 days in water and 5 and 4 days in soil. 2-Phenylethanol and 2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethanol were detected as primary degradation products of PEP. Over time, a considerable volatilization loss of thymol, but not of phenethyl propionate, was found in the 1 month study under the experimental conditions used. Less than 6% of thymol and PEP were detected as bound residues, and less than 3% were mineralized during the 30 day study. CONCLUSION: In order to maximize the pesticidal effect, more attention should be paid to the temperature for thymol than for PEP when they are being applied, owing to the high volatility of the former. Thymol and PEP pose low risks to the ecosystem because of their rapid dissipation and low bound residues in the environment. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Mineralogical Characteristics and Cationic Exchange Properties of a Zeolite Mineral from Romana, NW Sardinia, ItalyRESOURCE GEOLOGY, Issue 1 2009Maria L. Fercia Abstract An investigation was conducted into the Tertiary ignimbrite formations in the Romana area in NW Sardinia. Scanning electron microscopy,energy-dispersive spectrometry indicated the presence of clinoptilolite and subordinate smectite, quartz, mordenite and calcite. Laboratory analyses of representative samples collected from the deposit indicated a cation exchange capacity ranging from 85 to 135 mEq per 100 g. Ion exchange experiments conducted in flasks containing different initial cation concentrations and in columns supplied with solution having constant cation concentration, showed different selectivity towards the cations examined, in the order: NH4+> Pb2+> Cd2+> Cu2+> Zn2+> Mn2+> Ni2+. Compared to the untreated material, under the experimental conditions used and considering the eluate, and the Italian regulatory limits for discharge into surface waters, the zeolite treated with a 1-N NaCl solution yielded a 1.3,5-fold increase in the volume of treated water, depending on the cation examined. The experimental results obtained show that the cationic exchange properties of the zeolite rock from the Romana deposit are comparable with the average quality of zeolites currently imported into Italy from non-European countries. [source] Metal Ion Coordination to Azole NucleosidesCHEMISTRY - A EUROPEAN JOURNAL, Issue 21 2005Jens Müller Dr. Abstract To evaluate the possibility of introducing azole nucleosides as building blocks for metal-mediated base pairs in artificial oligonucleotides, imidazole nucleoside, 1,2,4-triazole nucleoside and tetrazole nucleoside have been synthesized and characterized. The X-ray crystal structures of p -toluoyl-protected 1,2,4-triazole and tetrazole nucleosides are reported. Contrary to the situation primarily found for deoxyribonucleosides, the sugar moieties adopt C3,- endo conformations. The acidity of the , nucleosides increases with increasing number of nitrogen ring atoms, giving pKa values of 6.01±0.05, 1.32±0.05 and <,3, respectively. This decrease in basicity results in a decreasing ability to form 2:1 complexes with linearly coordinating metal ions such as Ag+ and Hg2+. In all cases, the Ag+ complexes are of higher stability than the corresponding Hg2+ complexes. Whereas imidazole nucleoside forms highly stable 2:1 complexes with both metal ions (estimated log ,2 values of >10), only Ag+ is able to reach this coordination pattern in the case of triazole nucleoside (log ,2 = 4.3±0.1). Tetrazole nucleoside does not form 2:1 complexes at all under the experimental conditions used. These data suggest that imidazole nucleoside, and to a lesser extent 1,2,4-triazole nucleoside, are likely candidates for successful incorporation as ligands in oligonucleotides based on metal-mediated base pairs. DFT calculations further corroborate this idea, providing model complexes for such base pairs with glycosidic bond distances (10.8,11.0 Å) resembling those in idealized B-DNA (10.85 Å). [source] | ||||||||||||||||