Enrichment Procedure (enrichment + procedure)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Screening, Characterization and Application of Cyanide-resistant Nitrile Hydratases

ENGINEERING IN LIFE SCIENCES (ELECTRONIC), Issue 6 2004
T. Gerasimova
Abstract Two new bacterial strains, Pseudomonas marginales MA32 and Pseudomonas putida MA113, containing nitrile hydratases resistant to cyanide were isolated from soil samples by an enrichment procedure. In contrast to known nitrile hydratases, which rapidly lose activity at low to moderate cyanide concentrations, the enzymes described in this paper tolerate up to 50 mM cyanide. They show a broad substrate spectrum including not only small substrates like acrylonitrile but also nitriles with longer side chains and even nitriles with quarternary alpha-carbon atoms. Both characteristics are essential for the transformation of ketone cyanohydrins, which are much more instable and therefore releasing much higher amounts of prussic acid than cyanohydrins formed from aldehydes. P. marginales MA32 was used as a whole cell biocatalyst for the hydration of acetone cyanohydrin to ,-Hydroxyisobutyramide, which is a precursor of methacrylamide, an important pre-polymer. After optimization of the process conditions a maximum amide concentration of more than 1.6 M could be reached within 5 hours with 5,g/L biocatalyst referred to cell dry weight. [source]


eXtended Stochastic Finite Element Method for the numerical simulation of heterogeneous materials with random material interfaces

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 10 2010
A. Nouy
Abstract An eXtended Stochastic Finite Element Method has been recently proposed for the numerical solution of partial differential equations defined on random domains. This method is based on a marriage between the eXtended Finite Element Method and spectral stochastic methods. In this article, we propose an extension of this method for the numerical simulation of random multi-phased materials. The random geometry of material interfaces is described implicitly by using random level set functions. A fixed deterministic finite element mesh, which is not conforming to the random interfaces, is then introduced in order to approximate the geometry and the solution. Classical spectral stochastic finite element approximation spaces are not able to capture the irregularities of the solution field with respect to spatial and stochastic variables, which leads to a deterioration of the accuracy and convergence properties of the approximate solution. In order to recover optimal convergence properties of the approximation, we propose an extension of the partition of unity method to the spectral stochastic framework. This technique allows the enrichment of approximation spaces with suitable functions based on an a priori knowledge of the irregularities in the solution. Numerical examples illustrate the efficiency of the proposed method and demonstrate the relevance of the enrichment procedure. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Characterization of Pantoea dispersa UQ68J: producer of a highly efficient sucrose isomerase for isomaltulose biosynthesis

JOURNAL OF APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 1 2004
L. Wu
Abstract Aims:, Isolation, identification and characterization of a highly efficient isomaltulose producer. Methods and Results:, After an enrichment procedure for bacteria likely to metabolize isomaltulose in sucrose-rich environments, 578 isolates were screened for efficient isomaltulose biosynthesis using an aniline/diphenylamine assay and capillary electrophoresis. An isolate designated UQ68J was exceptionally efficient in sucrose isomerase activity. Conversion of sucrose into isomaltulose by UQ68J (enzyme activity of 90,100 U mg,1 DW) was much faster than the current industrial strain Protaminobacter rubrum CBS574.77 (41,66 U mg,1 DW) or a reference strain of Erwinia rhapontici (0·3,0·9 U mg,1 DW). Maximum yield of isomaltulose at 78,80% of supplied sucrose was achieved in less than half the reaction time needed by CBS574.77, and the amount of contaminating trehalulose (4%) was the lowest recorded from an isomaltulose-producing microbe. UQ68J is a Gram negative, facultatively anaerobic, motile, noncapsulate, straight rod-shaped bacterium producing acid but no gas from glucose. Based on 16S rDNA analysis UQ68J is closest to Klebsiella oxytoca, but it differs from Klebsiella in defining characteristics and most closely resembles Pantoea dispersa in phenotype. Significance and Impact of Study:, This organism is likely to have substantial advantage over previously characterized sucrose isomerase producers for the industrial production of isomaltulose. [source]


Enrichment and low-level determination of glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid and glufosinate in drinking water after cleanup by cation exchange resin

JOURNAL OF SEPARATION SCIENCE, JSS, Issue 8 2010
Markus Küsters
Abstract For the determination of glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid and glufosinate in drinking water, different procedures of enrichment and cleanup were examined using anion exchange or SPE. In many cases interactions of, e.g. alkaline earth metal ions especially calcium could be observed during enrichment and cleanup resulting in loss of analytes. For that reason, a novel cleanup and enrichment procedure for the determination of these phosphonic acid herbicides has been developed in drinking water using cation-exchange resin. In summary, the cleanup procedure with cation-exchange resin developed in this study avoids interactions as described above and is applicable to calcium-rich drinking water samples. After derivatization with 9-fluorenylmethylchloroformate followed by LC with fluorescence detection, LOD of 12, 14 and 12,ng/L and mean recoveries from real-world drinking water samples of 98±9, 100±16 and 101±11% were obtained for glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid and glufosinate, respectively. The low LODs and the high precision permit the analysis of these phosphonic acid herbicides according to the guidelines of the European Commission. [source]


Polymorphic microsatellite markers, isolated using a simple enrichment procedure, in the threatened smooth snake (Coronella austriaca)

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES, Issue 1 2005
J. M. BOND
Abstract The smooth snake, Coronella austriaca, is particularly rare within the UK and little is known about the genetic variability within the species. Here we report the isolation of 16 polymorphic microsatellite markers in the smooth snake, using a simple enrichment procedure. Despite screening individuals from a potentially isolated population, levels of polymorphism were high. These microsatellite markers will prove very useful in investigating population parameters, which will lead to effective conservation and management plans for this rare species. [source]


Isolation of polymorphic microsatellite markers for British Euphrasia L.

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES, Issue 4 2003
G. C. French
Abstract Euphrasia species in Britain attract a large amount of conservation attention due to the recognition of numerous endemic taxa in what is essentially a species-poor flora. To develop a set of research tools to investigate the evolutionary processes underlying this diversification, a membrane enrichment procedure has been used to isolate five polymorphic microsatellite loci from Euphrasia nemorosa (Pers.) Wallr. These loci amplify polymorphic products in several other British Euphrasia species. [source]


Characterization of microsatellite markers in Fagus sylvatica L. and Fagus orientalis Lipsky

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES, Issue 1 2003
R. Pastorelli
Abstract Using an enrichment procedure, we cloned microsatellite repeats from European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and developed primers for the amplification of microsatellite markers. Six polymorphic loci were characterized which produced 3,21 alleles in 70 individuals from one Italian population, with an observed heterozygosity between 0.58 and 0.85. All six loci amplified fragments which were polymorphic in the closely related species, Fagus orientalis, also. Owing to their very high degree of variation, these markers should be very useful in gene flow studies of these species. [source]


Polymorphic microsatellite markers in the spider Pholcus phalangioides isolated from a library enriched for CA repeats

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES, Issue 4 2001
K. B. Rütten
Abstract Unravelling the factors that determine mating success in natural populations is highly important to the understanding of evolution of mating systems. To this aim, microsatellite loci were isolated and characterized from Pholcus phalangioides, a cosmopolitan spider. We modified a highly efficient enrichment procedure (Fischer & Bachman see below) which has several advantages compared to conventional methods. Fourteen polymorphic microsatellite loci are presented. The number of alleles per locus in 11,27 individuals screened range from 3 to 11. These are the first microsatellite loci reported from a spider. [source]


Treatment of self-injury correlated with mechanical restraints

BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS, Issue 2 2001
SungWoo Kahng
Mechanical arm restraints were used to decrease hand-to-head self-injurious behavior (SIB) exhibited by a 16-year-old female with severe mental retardation. Although mechanical restraints reduced hand-to-head SIB, they were correlated with an increase in other topographies of SIB (e.g., head banging). These other topographies were not significantly affected by the addition of an environmental enrichment procedure, but were immediately and almost completely suppressed when contingent exercise was added. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]