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Sample records for large natural product

  1. Total synthesis and related studies of large, strained, and bioactive natural products

    Science.gov (United States)

    HIRAMA, Masahiro

    2016-01-01

    Our chemical syntheses and related scientific investigations of natural products with complex architectures and powerful biological activities are described, focusing on the very large 3 nm-long polycyclic ethers called the ciguatoxins, highly strained and labile chromoprotein antitumor antibiotics featuring nine-membered enediyne cores, and extremely potent anthelmintic macrolides called the avermectins. PMID:27725470

  2. An Overview of Some Natural Products with Two A-Level Science Club Natural Products Experiments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sosabowski, Michael Hal; Olivier, George W. J.; Jawad, Hala; Maatta, Sieja

    2017-01-01

    Natural products are ubiquitous in nature but do not form a large proportion of the A-level syllabuses in the UK. In this article we briefly discuss a small selection of natural products, focusing on alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, and alkaloids. We then outline two natural product experiments that are suitable for A-level chemistry clubs or…

  3. Production of baryons with large transverse momentum

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Landshoff, P.V.; Polkinghorne, J.C.; Scott, D.M.

    1975-01-01

    The multiple scattering of constituent quarks provides a natural mechanism for fairly copious production of large-transverse-momentum baryons in nucleon--nucleon collisions. The predicted scaling law agrees well with available data, and the mechanism provides a qualitative explanation of nuclear-target effects. In comparison with previous parton models, correlations are predicted to be qualitatively different, and large-p/sub T/ baryon production by meson beams is relatively suppressed

  4. A test trial irradiation of natural rubber latex on large scale for the production of examination gloves in a production scale

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Devendra, R.; Kulatunge, S.; Chandralal, H.N.K.K.; Kalyani, N.M.V.; Seneviratne, J.; Wellage, S.

    1996-01-01

    Radiation Vulcanization of natural rubber latex has been developed extensively through various research and development programme. During these investigations many data was collected and from these data it was proved that radiation vulcanized natural rubber latex (RVNRL) can be used as a new material for industry (RVNRL symposium 1989; Makuuchi IAEA report). This material has been extensively tested in making of dipped goods and extruded products. However these investigations were confined only to laboratory experiments and these experiments mainly reflected material properties of RVNRL and only a little was observed about its behavior in actual production scale operation. The present exercise was carried out mainly to study the behavior of the material in production scale by irradiating latex on a large scale and producing gloves in a production scale plant. It was found that RVNRL can be used in conventional glove plants without making major alteration to the plant. Quality of the gloves that were produced using RVNRL is acceptable. It was also found that the small deviation of vulcanization dose will affect the crosslinking density of films. This will drastically reduce the tensile strength of the film. Crosslinking density or pre-vulcanized relax modulus (PRM) at 100% is a reliable property to control the pre vulcanization of latex by radiation

  5. Marine actinobacteria: an important source of bioactive natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manivasagan, Panchanathan; Kang, Kyong-Hwa; Sivakumar, Kannan; Li-Chan, Eunice C Y; Oh, Hyun-Myung; Kim, Se-Kwon

    2014-07-01

    Marine environment is largely an untapped source for deriving actinobacteria, having potential to produce novel, bioactive natural products. Actinobacteria are the prolific producers of pharmaceutically active secondary metabolites, accounting for about 70% of the naturally derived compounds that are currently in clinical use. Among the various actinobacterial genera, Actinomadura, Actinoplanes, Amycolatopsis, Marinispora, Micromonospora, Nocardiopsis, Saccharopolyspora, Salinispora, Streptomyces and Verrucosispora are the major potential producers of commercially important bioactive natural products. In this respect, Streptomyces ranks first with a large number of bioactive natural products. Marine actinobacteria are unique enhancing quite different biological properties including antimicrobial, anticancer, antiviral, insecticidal and enzyme inhibitory activities. They have attracted global in the last ten years for their ability to produce pharmaceutically active compounds. In this review, we have focused attention on the bioactive natural products isolated from marine actinobacteria, possessing unique chemical structures that may form the basis for synthesis of novel drugs that could be used to combat resistant pathogenic microorganisms. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Culture-independent discovery of natural products from soil metagenomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katz, Micah; Hover, Bradley M; Brady, Sean F

    2016-03-01

    Bacterial natural products have proven to be invaluable starting points in the development of many currently used therapeutic agents. Unfortunately, traditional culture-based methods for natural product discovery have been deemphasized by pharmaceutical companies due in large part to high rediscovery rates. Culture-independent, or "metagenomic," methods, which rely on the heterologous expression of DNA extracted directly from environmental samples (eDNA), have the potential to provide access to metabolites encoded by a large fraction of the earth's microbial biosynthetic diversity. As soil is both ubiquitous and rich in bacterial diversity, it is an appealing starting point for culture-independent natural product discovery efforts. This review provides an overview of the history of soil metagenome-driven natural product discovery studies and elaborates on the recent development of new tools for sequence-based, high-throughput profiling of environmental samples used in discovering novel natural product biosynthetic gene clusters. We conclude with several examples of these new tools being employed to facilitate the recovery of novel secondary metabolite encoding gene clusters from soil metagenomes and the subsequent heterologous expression of these clusters to produce bioactive small molecules.

  7. Nephrotoxicity of Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nauffal, Mary; Gabardi, Steven

    2016-01-01

    The manufacture and sale of natural products constitute a multi-billion dollar industry. Nearly a third of the American population admit to using some form of complementary or alternative medicine, with many using them in addition to prescription medications. Most patients fail to inform their healthcare providers of their natural product use and physicians rarely inquire. Annually, thousands of natural product-induced adverse events are reported to Poison Control Centers nationwide. Natural product manufacturers are not responsible for proving safety and efficacy, as the FDA does not regulate them. However, concerns exist surrounding the safety of natural products. This review provides details on natural products that have been associated with renal dysfunction. We have focused on products that have been associated with direct renal injury, immune-mediated nephrotoxicity, nephrolithiasis, rhabdomyolysis with acute renal injury, hepatorenal syndrome, and common adulterants or contaminants that are associated with renal dysfunction. The potential for natural products to cause renal dysfunction is justifiable. It is imperative that natural product use be monitored closely in all patients. Healthcare practitioners must play an active role in identifying patients using natural products and provide appropriate patient education. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  8. Catalyst-controlled oligomerization for the collective synthesis of polypyrroloindoline natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jamison, Christopher R; Badillo, Joseph J; Lipshultz, Jeffrey M; Comito, Robert J; MacMillan, David W C

    2017-12-01

    In nature, many organisms generate large families of natural product metabolites that have related molecular structures as a means to increase functional diversity and gain an evolutionary advantage against competing systems within the same environment. One pathway commonly employed by living systems to generate these large classes of structurally related families is oligomerization, wherein a series of enzymatically catalysed reactions is employed to generate secondary metabolites by iteratively appending monomers to a growing serial oligomer chain. The polypyrroloindolines are an interesting class of oligomeric natural products that consist of multiple cyclotryptamine subunits. Herein we describe an iterative application of asymmetric copper catalysis towards the synthesis of six distinct oligomeric polypyrroloindoline natural products: hodgkinsine, hodgkinsine B, idiospermuline, quadrigemine H and isopsychotridine B and C. Given the customizable nature of the small-molecule catalysts employed, we demonstrate that this strategy is further amenable to the construction of quadrigemine H-type alkaloids not isolated previously from natural sources.

  9. World statistics on natural gas reserves, production and utilization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Raikaslehto, S.

    2001-01-01

    By reviewing the statistics of BP Amoco on natural gas reserves, production and usage, it is easy to see that Russia and USA, both being large natural gas producers, differ significantly from each other. The natural gas reserves of USA are 6th largest in the world, simultaneously the natural gas consumption and import are largest in the world. About one third of the known natural gas reserves of the world are in Russia. The known natural gas reserves of both USA and Canada have decreases, but they have potential gas reserves left. Known natural gas reserves of the USA have been calculated to be sufficient for 9 years consumption at present usage and those of Canada for 11 years. The reserves of Algeria correspond to the usage of 55 years, and the Russian reserves for are about 83 years. Annual production figures of both Russia and the USA are nearly the same. Russia is the largest exporter (125.5 billion m 3 ) of natural gas and the USA the largest importer (96 billion m 3 ). The natural gas reserves of the largest European producers, the Netherlands and Norway have been estimated to be sufficient for use of about 20 years, but those of Great Britain only for about 10 years. The annual production of Russia has varied in the 1990s between nearly 600 billion m 3 and present 550 billion m 3 , the minimum being in 1997 only about 532 billion m 3 . Ten largest natural gas consumers use 67% of the natural gas consumed annually in the world. USA consumes about 27% of the total natural gas produced in the world, the amount of Russia being 364 billion m 3 (16%). Other large natural gas consumers are Great Britain, Germany, Japan, Ukraine, Canada, Italy, Iran and Uzbekistan. The share of these countries of the total consumption varied in between 2-4%. Only Japan has no natural gas production of its own. The foreign trade between Japan and Indonesia is trade on LNG. On the other hand the natural gas consumption of the world's 10th largest producer Norway is nearly zero, so

  10. Structure-based synthesis from natural products to drug prototypes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hanessian, S.

    2009-01-01

    X-Ray crystallographic data available from complexes of natural and synthetic molecules with the enzyme thrombin has aided to the design and synthesis of truncated and hybrid molecules exhibiting excellent inhibition in vitro. The vital importance of natural products for the well-being of man has been known lor millennia. Their therapeutic benefits to alleviate pain or cure diseases continue to rank natural products among the primary sources of potential drugs. Great advances have been made in the methods of isolation, identification, and structure elucidation of some of the most complex natural products in recent years. The advent of molecular biology and genetic mapping has also aided in our understanding of the intriguing biosynthetic pathways leading to various classes of therapeutically relevant antibiotic, anticancer, and related natural products. Elegant and practical methodology has been developed leading to the total synthesis of virtually every class of medicinally important natural product. In some cases, natural products or their chemically modified congeners have been manufactured by total synthesis on an industrial level which is a testament to the ingenuity of process chemists. In spite of their potent activities HI enzymatic ox receptor-mediated assays, not all natural products are amenable to being developed as marketable drags. In many instances unfavorable pharmacological effects cannot be overcome without drastic structural and functional modifications, which may also result in altered efficacy. Structure modification through truncation, functional group variations, isosteric replacements, and skeletal rigidifications aided by molecular modeling, X ray crystallography of protein targets, or NMR data are valid objectives in the context of small molecule drug discovery starting with bioactive natural products. A large proportion of these pertain to chemotherapeutic agents against cancer

  11. Natural product-like virtual libraries: recursive atom-based enumeration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Melvin J

    2011-03-28

    A new molecular enumerator is described that allows chemically and architecturally diverse sets of natural product-like and drug-like structures to be generated from a core structure as simple as a single carbon atom or as complex as a polycyclic ring system. Integrated with a rudimentary machine-learning algorithm, the enumerator has the ability to assemble biased virtual libraries enriched in compounds predicted to meet target criteria. The ability to dynamically generate relatively small focused libraries in a recursive manner could reduce the computational time and infrastructure necessary to construct and manage extremely large static libraries. Depending on enumeration conditions, natural product-like structures can be produced with a wide range of heterocyclic and alicyclic ring assemblies. Because natural products represent a proven source of validated structures for identifying and designing new drug candidates, mimicking the structural and topological diversity found in nature with a dynamic set of virtual natural product-like compounds may facilitate the creation of new ideas for novel, biologically relevant lead structures in areas of uncharted chemical space.

  12. A roadmap for natural product discovery based on large-scale genomics and metabolomics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Actinobacteria encode a wealth of natural product biosynthetic gene clusters, whose systematic study is complicated by numerous repetitive motifs. By combining several metrics we developed a method for global classification of these gene clusters into families (GCFs) and analyzed the biosynthetic ca...

  13. Benchmarking of Processes for the Biosynthesis of Natural Products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Seita, Catarina Sanches

    putida GS1. (R)-perillic acid is a monoterpenoic acid with antimicrobial properties. It has a strong inhibitory effect on bacteria and fungus, which makes it an attractive compound to be used as a preservative for instance in cosmetic industry, but on the other hand makes the biosynthesis a complicated....... These biological activities can be of interest for use in different sectors of chemical industry, in particular pharmaceutical industry where several drugs are derived or inspired by natural products structure. However, the large scale production of natural products is hindered by its relatively poor abundance...... of the process in comparison with other sweeteners. The main benefit of this early-stage evaluation is putting the biosynthesis of natural products into context in relation to demands of an industrially feasible chemical process. Moreover, it can give very meaningful insight into process development and provides...

  14. Super Natural II--a database of natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Banerjee, Priyanka; Erehman, Jevgeni; Gohlke, Björn-Oliver; Wilhelm, Thomas; Preissner, Robert; Dunkel, Mathias

    2015-01-01

    Natural products play a significant role in drug discovery and development. Many topological pharmacophore patterns are common between natural products and commercial drugs. A better understanding of the specific physicochemical and structural features of natural products is important for corresponding drug development. Several encyclopedias of natural compounds have been composed, but the information remains scattered or not freely available. The first version of the Supernatural database containing ∼ 50,000 compounds was published in 2006 to face these challenges. Here we present a new, updated and expanded version of natural product database, Super Natural II (http://bioinformatics.charite.de/supernatural), comprising ∼ 326,000 molecules. It provides all corresponding 2D structures, the most important structural and physicochemical properties, the predicted toxicity class for ∼ 170,000 compounds and the vendor information for the vast majority of compounds. The new version allows a template-based search for similar compounds as well as a search for compound names, vendors, specific physical properties or any substructures. Super Natural II also provides information about the pathways associated with synthesis and degradation of the natural products, as well as their mechanism of action with respect to structurally similar drugs and their target proteins. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  15. Natural Products and HIV/AIDS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cary, Daniele C; Peterlin, B Matija

    2018-01-01

    The study of natural products in biomedical research is not a modern concept. Many of the most successful medical therapeutics are derived from natural products, including those studied in the field of HIV/AIDS. Biomedical research has a rich history of discovery based on screens of medicinal herbs and traditional medicine practices. Compounds derived from natural products, which repress HIV and those that activate latent HIV, have been reported. It is important to remember the tradition in medical research to derive therapies based on these natural products and to overcome the negative perception of natural products as an "alternative medicine."

  16. Antiplasmodial Natural Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cláudio R. Nogueira

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Malaria is a human infectious disease that is caused by four species of Plasmodium. It is responsible for more than 1 million deaths per year. Natural products contain a great variety of chemical structures and have been screened for antiplasmodial activity as potential sources of new antimalarial drugs. This review highlights studies on natural products with antimalarial and antiplasmodial activity reported in the literature from January 2009 to November 2010. A total of 360 antiplasmodial natural products comprised of terpenes, including iridoids, sesquiterpenes, diterpenes, terpenoid benzoquinones, steroids, quassinoids, limonoids, curcubitacins, and lanostanes; flavonoids; alkaloids; peptides; phenylalkanoids; xanthones; naphthopyrones; polyketides, including halenaquinones, peroxides, polyacetylenes, and resorcylic acids; depsidones; benzophenones; macrolides; and miscellaneous compounds, including halogenated compounds and chromenes are listed in this review.

  17. Combinatorial synthesis of natural products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, John

    2002-01-01

    Combinatorial syntheses allow production of compound libraries in an expeditious and organized manner immediately applicable for high-throughput screening. Natural products possess a pedigree to justify quality and appreciation in drug discovery and development. Currently, we are seeing a rapid...... increase in application of natural products in combinatorial chemistry and vice versa. The therapeutic areas of infectious disease and oncology still dominate but many new areas are emerging. Several complex natural products have now been synthesised by solid-phase methods and have created the foundation...... for preparation of combinatorial libraries. In other examples, natural products or intermediates have served as building blocks or scaffolds in the synthesis of complex natural products, bioactive analogues or designed hybrid molecules. Finally, structural motifs from the biologically active parent molecule have...

  18. A Natural Love of Natural Products

    OpenAIRE

    Kingston, David G. I.

    2008-01-01

    Recent research on the chemistry of natural products from the author?s group that led to the receipt of the ACS Ernest Guenther Award in the Chemistry of Natural Products is reviewed. REDOR NMR and synthetic studies established the T-taxol conformation as the bioactive tubulin-binding conformation, and these results were confirmed by the synthesis of compounds which clearly owed their activity or lack of activity to whether or not they could adopt the T-taxol conformation. Similar studies wit...

  19. Nature is the best source of anti-inflammatory drugs: indexing natural products for their anti-inflammatory bioactivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aswad, Miran; Rayan, Mahmoud; Abu-Lafi, Saleh; Falah, Mizied; Raiyn, Jamal; Abdallah, Ziyad; Rayan, Anwar

    2018-01-01

    The aim was to index natural products for less expensive preventive or curative anti-inflammatory therapeutic drugs. A set of 441 anti-inflammatory drugs representing the active domain and 2892 natural products representing the inactive domain was used to construct a predictive model for bioactivity-indexing purposes. The model for indexing the natural products for potential anti-inflammatory activity was constructed using the iterative stochastic elimination algorithm (ISE). ISE is capable of differentiating between active and inactive anti-inflammatory molecules. By applying the prediction model to a mix set of (active/inactive) substances, we managed to capture 38% of the anti-inflammatory drugs in the top 1% of the screened set of chemicals, yielding enrichment factor of 38. Ten natural products that scored highly as potential anti-inflammatory drug candidates are disclosed. Searching the PubMed revealed that only three molecules (Moupinamide, Capsaicin, and Hypaphorine) out of the ten were tested and reported as anti-inflammatory. The other seven phytochemicals await evaluation for their anti-inflammatory activity in wet lab. The proposed anti-inflammatory model can be utilized for the virtual screening of large chemical databases and for indexing natural products for potential anti-inflammatory activity.

  20. Natural gas productive capacity for the lower 48 states, 1982--1993

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    The purpose of this report is to analyze monthly natural gas wellhead productive capacity and project this capacity for 1992 and 1993, based upon historical production data through 1991. Productive capacity is the volume of gas that can be produced from a well, reservoir, or field during a given period of time against a certain wellhead back-pressure under actual reservoir conditions excluding restrictions imposed by pipeline capacity, contracts, or regulatory bodies. For decades, natural gas supplies and productive capacity have been adequate, although in the 1970's the capacity surplus was small because of market structure (both interstate and intrastate), increasing demand, and insufficient drilling. In the early 1980's, lower demand together with increased drilling led to a large surplus of natural gas capacity. After 1986, this large surplus began to decline as demand for gas increased, gas prices dropped, and gas well completions dropped sharply. In late December 1989, this surplus decline, accompanied by exceptionally high demand and temporary weather-related production losses, led to concerns about the adequacy of monthly productive capacity for natural gas. This study indicates that monthly productive capacity will drop sharply during the 1992-1993 period. In the low gas price, low drilling case, gas productive capacity and estimated production demand will be roughly equal in December 1993. In base and high drilling cases, monthly productive capacity should be able to meet normal production demands through 1993 in the lower 48 States. Exceptionally high peak-day or peak-week production demand might not be met because of physical limitations. Beyond 1993, as the capacity of currently producing wells declines, a sufficient number of wells and/or imports must be added each year in order to ensure an adequate gas supply

  1. NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery: A Publicly-Accessible Library of Natural Product Fractions for High-Throughput Screening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thornburg, Christopher C; Britt, John R; Evans, Jason R; Akee, Rhone K; Whitt, James A; Trinh, Spencer K; Harris, Matthew J; Thompson, Jerell R; Ewing, Teresa L; Shipley, Suzanne M; Grothaus, Paul G; Newman, David J; Schneider, Joel P; Grkovic, Tanja; O'Keefe, Barry R

    2018-06-13

    The US National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Natural Product Repository is one of the world's largest, most diverse collections of natural products containing over 230,000 unique extracts derived from plant, marine, and microbial organisms that have been collected from biodiverse regions throughout the world. Importantly, this national resource is available to the research community for the screening of extracts and the isolation of bioactive natural products. However, despite the success of natural products in drug discovery, compatibility issues that make extracts challenging for liquid handling systems, extended timelines that complicate natural product-based drug discovery efforts and the presence of pan-assay interfering compounds have reduced enthusiasm for the high-throughput screening (HTS) of crude natural product extract libraries in targeted assay systems. To address these limitations, the NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery (NPNPD), a newly launched, national program to advance natural product discovery technologies and facilitate the discovery of structurally defined, validated lead molecules ready for translation will create a prefractionated library from over 125,000 natural product extracts with the aim of producing a publicly-accessible, HTS-amenable library of >1,000,000 fractions. This library, representing perhaps the largest accumulation of natural-product based fractions in the world, will be made available free of charge in 384-well plates for screening against all disease states in an effort to reinvigorate natural product-based drug discovery.

  2. Knowledge based decision making: perspective on natural gas production

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ydstie, B. Erik; Stuland, Kjetil M.

    2009-07-01

    Conclusions (drawn by the author): Decarbonization of energy sources - From coal to renewable. Natural Gas Abundantly available - Norway is no. 3 exporter. Natural gas important as - Hydrogen source for chemicals; - Electricity; - End consumer usage (heating etc). Large potential for application of model based decision making; - Where and when to install platforms and drill wells - How to operate platforms and pipeline systems; - How to operate and optimize chemical production; - Optimization of electricity generation systems. (author)

  3. The utility of N-15 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for the study of natural products

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Randall, E.W.

    1978-01-01

    The utility of 15 N NMR spectroscopy for the study of natural products and the difficulties which must be overcome arte discussed. The widespread use of pulse Fourier techniques, decouplings, larger magnetic fields and large tube sizes allows a large number of 15 N studies of natural products, the more recent and important of these being peptides, nucleosides and nucleotides. Sites of protonation, tautomerism, sites of nitrosation and proton exchange behaviour for some of these natrual products have been studied. (A.G.)

  4. Marine natural products: a new wave of drugs?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montaser, Rana; Luesch, Hendrik

    2011-01-01

    The largely unexplored marine world that presumably harbors the most biodiversity may be the vastest resource to discover novel ‘validated’ structures with novel modes of action that cover biologically relevant chemical space. Several challenges, including the supply problem and target identification, need to be met for successful drug development of these often complex molecules; however, approaches are available to overcome the hurdles. Advances in technologies such as sampling strategies, nanoscale NMR for structure determination, total chemical synthesis, fermentation and biotechnology are all crucial to the success of marine natural products as drug leads. We illustrate the high degree of innovation in the field of marine natural products, which in our view will lead to a new wave of drugs that flow into the market and pharmacies in the future. PMID:21882941

  5. Automated genome mining of ribosomal peptide natural products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mohimani, Hosein; Kersten, Roland; Liu, Wei; Wang, Mingxun; Purvine, Samuel O.; Wu, Si; Brewer, Heather M.; Pasa-Tolic, Ljiljana; Bandeira, Nuno; Moore, Bradley S.; Pevzner, Pavel A.; Dorrestein, Pieter C.

    2014-07-31

    Ribosomally synthesized and posttranslationally modified peptides (RiPPs), especially from microbial sources, are a large group of bioactive natural products that are a promising source of new (bio)chemistry and bioactivity (1). In light of exponentially increasing microbial genome databases and improved mass spectrometry (MS)-based metabolomic platforms, there is a need for computational tools that connect natural product genotypes predicted from microbial genome sequences with their corresponding chemotypes from metabolomic datasets. Here, we introduce RiPPquest, a tandem mass spectrometry database search tool for identification of microbial RiPPs and apply it for lanthipeptide discovery. RiPPquest uses genomics to limit search space to the vicinity of RiPP biosynthetic genes and proteomics to analyze extensive peptide modifications and compute p-values of peptide-spectrum matches (PSMs). We highlight RiPPquest by connection of multiple RiPPs from extracts of Streptomyces to their gene clusters and by the discovery of a new class III lanthipeptide, informatipeptin, from Streptomyces viridochromogenes DSM 40736 as the first natural product to be identified in an automated fashion by genome mining. The presented tool is available at cy-clo.ucsd.edu.

  6. LC-NMR: profiling and dereplication of natural product extracts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Urban, Sylvia

    2006-01-01

    Natural products have served as a major source of drugs for centuries, with over half of the pharmaceuticals in use today derived from natural origins. Natural products continue to play a dominant role in the discovery of leads for the development of drugs for the treatment of human diseases. Much remains to be explored, particularly the marine and microbial environments, from which a host of novel bioactive chemical entities await discovery. The search for new drugs from natural origins (either terrestrial or marine) involves screening of extracts for the presence of novel compounds and an investigation of their biological activities. Suspected novel or bioactive compounds are usually isolated to elucidate the structure and for further biological and toxicological testing. The path that leads from the intact terrestrial or marine organism to the pure constituents is long, involving work that might last from weeks to years. Recognition of natural products at the earliest possible stage of separation is known as dereplication and is essential to avoid the time-consuming isolation of common constituents and nuisance compounds. In the search for new natural products, crude extracts are typically subjected to multi-step work-up and isolation procedures, which include various separation methods, in order to obtain pure compounds whose structure is then elucidated using off-line spectroscopic methods such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectroscopy (MS). The characterisation of a natural product can be summarised by the information obtained from each of the individual spectroscopic techniques. With the application of one or more of these individual techniques a dereplication by partial characterisation is possible. As natural product extracts often contain a large number of closely related, and thus difficult to separate, compounds, this classical approach may become very tedious and time-consuming. The characterisation of natural products in complex

  7. Recent Advances in Substrate-Controlled Asymmetric Cyclization for Natural Product Synthesis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jeyun Jo

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Asymmetric synthesis of naturally occurring diverse ring systems is an ongoing and challenging research topic. A large variety of remarkable reactions utilizing chiral substrates, auxiliaries, reagents, and catalysts have been intensively investigated. This review specifically describes recent advances in successful asymmetric cyclization reactions to generate cyclic architectures of various natural products in a substrate-controlled manner.

  8. Natural products used for diabetes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shapiro, Karen; Gong, William C

    2002-01-01

    To review the efficacy and safety of natural products commonly used for diabetes. English and Spanish-language journals retrieved through a MEDLINE search of articles published between 1960 and December 2001 using these index terms: Opuntia, karela, gymnema, tecoma, alpha lipoic acid, thioctic acid, ginseng, panaxans, and diabetes. Natural products have long been used in traditional systems of medicine for diabetes. Products in common use include nopal (prickly pear cactus), fenu-greek, karela (bitter melon), gymnema, ginseng, tronadora, chromium, and alpha-lipoic acid. The popularity of these products varies among people of different ethnicities. Nopal is the most commonly used herbal hypoglycemic among persons of Mexican descent. Karela is more commonly used by persons from Asian countries. Some of these agents have gained universal appeal. For a select number of products, studies have revealed single or multiple mechanisms of action. For several of these, high soluble fiber content is a contributing factor. Based on the available evidence, several natural products in common use can lower blood glucose in patients with diabetes. Commonly used natural products often have a long history of traditional use, and pharmacists who have a stronger understanding of these products are better positioned to counsel patients on their appropriate use.

  9. Defining "natural product" between public health and business, 17th to 21st centuries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanziani, Alessandro

    2008-07-01

    The historical definition of a natural product stands at the crossroads of business, health, and the symbolic order of things. Until the end of the 19th century, "natural product" was a synonym of perishable. The emergency of organic chemistry made perishability be replaced with "toxicity". Nowadays, genetics is provoking a radical change in the notion and practises of "natural product". However, these concerns are never entirely opposed to "naturality" as a synonym for sacred and symbolic order. Traceability is largely based upon kosher practices and the association between organic and good for health is hardly based upon sound scientific arguments.

  10. Natural gas production from underground nuclear explosions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1965-01-01

    A remote location in Rio Arriba County, NW. New Mexico, is being considered as the site for an experiment in the use of a nuclear explosive to increase production from a natural gas field. A feasibility study has been conducted by the El Paso Natural Gas Co., the U.S. Atomic Energy commission, and the U.S. Bureau of Mines. As presently conceived, a nuclear explosive would be set in an emplacement hole and detonated. The explosion would create a cylinder or ''chimney'' of collapsed rock, and a network of fractures extending beyond the chimney. The fractures are the key effect. These would consist of new fractures, enlargement of existing ones, and movement along planes where strata overlap. In addition, there are a number of intangible but important benefits that could accrue from the stimulating effect. Among these are the great increase in recoverable reserves and the deliverability of large volumes of gas during the periods of high demand. It is believed that this type of well stimulation may increase the total gas production of these low permeability natural gas fields by about 7 times the amounts now attainable.

  11. Construction of a 3D-shaped, natural product like fragment library by fragmentation and diversification of natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prescher, Horst; Koch, Guido; Schuhmann, Tim; Ertl, Peter; Bussenault, Alex; Glick, Meir; Dix, Ina; Petersen, Frank; Lizos, Dimitrios E

    2017-02-01

    A fragment library consisting of 3D-shaped, natural product-like fragments was assembled. Library construction was mainly performed by natural product degradation and natural product diversification reactions and was complemented by the identification of 3D-shaped, natural product like fragments available from commercial sources. In addition, during the course of these studies, novel rearrangements were discovered for Massarigenin C and Cytochalasin E. The obtained fragment library has an excellent 3D-shape and natural product likeness, covering a novel, unexplored and underrepresented chemical space in fragment based drug discovery (FBDD). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Management of natural health products in pediatrics: a provider-focused quality improvement project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gutierrez, Emily; Silbert-Flagg, JoAnne; Vohra, Sunita

    2015-01-01

    The use of natural health products by pediatric patients is common, yet health care providers often do not provide management guidance. The purpose of this project was to improve management of natural health products by pediatric nurse practitioners. Pediatric nurse practitioners from large metropolitan city were recruited (n = 32). A paired pretest-posttest design was used. Study participants were engaged to improve knowledge of natural health products, and a management toolkit was created and tested. Mean knowledge scores increased from 59.19 to 76.3 (p improved with regard to patient guidance (p product use (p = .51) and drug/herb interactions (p = .35) were not significant. This investigation is the first known study to improve knowledge and management of natural health products in pediatric clinical practice. Copyright © 2015 National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Large-scale enzymatic production of natural flavour esters in organic solvent with continuous water removal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gubicza, L; Kabiri-Badr, A; Keoves, E; Belafi-Bako, K

    2001-11-30

    A new, large-scale process was developed for the enzymatic production of low molecular weight flavour esters in organic solvent. Solutions for the elimination of substrate and product inhibitions are presented. The excess water produced during the process was continuously removed by hetero-azeotropic distillation and esters were produced at yields of over 90%.

  14. Expanding Canadian natural gas production will strengthen growth of LP-gas industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hawkins, D.J.

    1994-01-01

    In 1992, over 86% of Canadian propane and 70% of Canadian butane production originated in gas plants. Propane and butane production not recovered at gas plants is recovered in other processing facilities, primarily refineries and heavy oil upgraders. As a result, supplies of both products are largely tied to natural gas production, and the outlook for natural gas therefore provides the basis for any discussion on the outlook for gas processing and NGL industry infrastructure. The paper discusses gas processing, economies of scale, NGL supply, expected declines, industry structure and infrastructure, the two major centers of the Canadian NGL industry, new shippers, and required pipeline expansion

  15. Natural gas productive capacity for the lower 48 States, 1980 through 1995

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1994-01-01

    The purpose of this report is to analyze monthly natural gas wellhead productive capacity in the lower 48 States from 1980 through 1992 and project this capacity from 1993 through 1995. For decades, natural gas supplies and productive capacity have been adequate to meet demand. In the 1970's the capacity surplus was small because of market structure (split between interstate and intrastate), increasing demand, and insufficient drilling. In the early 1980's, lower demand, together with increased drilling, led to a large surplus capacity as new productive capacity came on line. After 1986, this large surplus began to decline as demand for gas increased, gas prices fell, and gas well completions dropped sharply. In late December 1989, the decline in this surplus, accompanied by exceptionally high demand and temporary weather-related production losses, led to concerns about the adequacy of monthly productive capacity for natural gas. These concerns should have been moderated by the gas system's performance during the unusually severe winter weather in March 1993 and January 1994. The declining trend in wellhead productive capacity is expected to be reversed in 1994 if natural gas prices and drilling meet or exceed the base case assumption. This study indicates that in the low, base, and high drilling cases, monthly productive capacity should be able to meet normal production demands through 1995 in the lower 48 States (Figure ES1). Exceptionally high peak-day or peak-week production demand might not be met because of physical limitations such as pipeline capacity. Beyond 1995, as the capacity of currently producing wells declines, a sufficient number of wells and/or imports must be added each year in order to ensure an adequate gas supply

  16. Production of bio-synthetic natural gas in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hacatoglu, Kevork; McLellan, P James; Layzell, David B

    2010-03-15

    Large-scale production of renewable synthetic natural gas from biomass (bioSNG) in Canada was assessed for its ability to mitigate energy security and climate change risks. The land area within 100 km of Canada's network of natural gas pipelines was estimated to be capable of producing 67-210 Mt of dry lignocellulosic biomass per year with minimal adverse impacts on food and fiber production. Biomass gasification and subsequent methanation and upgrading were estimated to yield 16,000-61,000 Mm(3) of pipeline-quality gas (equivalent to 16-63% of Canada's current gas use). Life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of bioSNG-based electricity were calculated to be only 8.2-10% of the emissions from coal-fired power. Although predicted production costs ($17-21 GJ(-1)) were much higher than current energy prices, a value for low-carbon energy would narrow the price differential. A bioSNG sector could infuse Canada's rural economy with $41-130 billion of investments and create 410,000-1,300,000 jobs while developing a nation-wide low-carbon energy system.

  17. Alternative Fuels Data Center: Conventional Natural Gas Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conventional Natural Gas Production to someone by E-mail Share Alternative Fuels Data Center : Conventional Natural Gas Production on Facebook Tweet about Alternative Fuels Data Center: Conventional Natural Gas Production on Twitter Bookmark Alternative Fuels Data Center: Conventional Natural Gas Production

  18. Synthesis of Polycyclic Natural Products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nguyen, Tuan Hoang [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    2003-01-01

    With the continuous advancements in molecular biology and modern medicine, organic synthesis has become vital to the support and extension of those discoveries. The isolations of new natural products allow for the understanding of their biological activities and therapeutic value. Organic synthesis is employed to aid in the determination of the relationship between structure and function of these natural products. The development of synthetic methodologies in the course of total syntheses is imperative for the expansion of this highly interdisciplinary field of science. In addition to the practical applications of total syntheses, the structural complexity of natural products represents a worthwhile challenge in itself. The pursuit of concise and efficient syntheses of complex molecules is both gratifying and enjoyable.

  19. How does increased corn-ethanol production affect US natural gas prices?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Whistance, Jarrett; Thompson, Wyatt

    2010-01-01

    In recent years, there has been a push to increase biofuel production in the United States. The biofuel of choice, so far, has been ethanol produced from corn. The effects of increased corn-ethanol production on the consumer prices of food and energy continue to be studied and debated. This study examines, in particular, the effects of increased corn-ethanol production on US natural gas prices. A structural model of the natural gas market is developed and estimated using two stage least squares. A baseline projection for the period 2007-2018 is determined, and two scenarios are simulated. In the first scenario, current biofuel policies including EISA mandates, tariffs, and tax credits are removed. In the second scenario, we hold ethanol production to the level required only for largely obligatory additive use. The results indicate that the increased level of corn-ethanol production occurring as a result of the current US biofuel policies may lead to natural gas prices that are as much as 0.25% higher, on average, than if no biofuel policies were in place. A similar comparison between the baseline and second scenario indicates natural gas prices could be as much as 0.5% higher, on average, for the same period.

  20. Large-scale distribution of tritium in a commercial product

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Combs, F.; Doda, R.J.

    1979-01-01

    Tritium enters the environment from various sources including nuclear reactor operations, weapons testing, natural production, and from the manufacture, use and ultimate disposal of commercial products containing tritium. A recent commercial application of tritium in the United States of America involves the backlighting of liquid crystal displays (LCD) in digital electronic watches. These watches are distributed through normal commercial channels to the general public. One million curies (MCi) of tritium were distributed in 1977 in this product. This is a significant quantity of tritium compared with power reactor-produced tritium (3MCi yearly) or with naturally produced tritium (6MCi yearly). This is the single largest commercial application involving tritium to date. The final disposition of tritium from large quantities of this product, after its useful life, must be estimated by considering the means of disposal and the possibility of dispersal of tritium concurrent with disposal. The most likely method of final disposition of this product will be disposal in solid refuse; this includes burial in land fills and incineration. Burial in land fills will probably contain the tritium for its effective lifetime, whereas incineration will release all the tritium gas (as the oxide) to the atmosphere. The use and disposal of this product will be studied as part of an environmental study that is at present being prepared for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. (author)

  1. The water-food nexus of natural rubber production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiarelli, D. D.; Rosa, L.; Rulli, M. C.; D'Odorico, P.

    2017-12-01

    The increasing global demand for natural rubber (100% increase in the last 15 years) is for most part met by Malaysia and Indonesia, and - to a lesser extent - other countries in south-east Asia and Africa. The consequent expansion of rubber plantation has often occurred at the expenses of agricultural land for staple food, particularly in southeast Asia, where most of the land suitable for agriculture is already harvested for food crops or other uses. Here we investigate the extent to which the ongoing increase in rubber production is competing with the food system and affecting the livelihoods of rural communities in the areas of production and their appropriation of natural resources, such as water. We also investigate to what extent the expansion of rubber plantations is taking place through large scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) and evaluate the impacts on rural communities. Our results show how rubber production has strong environmental, social and economic impacts. Despite their ability to bring employment and increase the average income of economically disadvantaged areas, rubber plantations may threaten the local water and food security and induce a loss of rural livelihoods, particularly when the new plantations result from LSLAs that displace semi-subsistence forms of production thereby forcing the local populations to depend on global markets.

  2. Incorporating Real-time Earthquake Information into Large Enrollment Natural Disaster Course Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Furlong, K. P.; Benz, H.; Hayes, G. P.; Villasenor, A.

    2010-12-01

    Although most would agree that the occurrence of natural disaster events such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods can provide effective learning opportunities for natural hazards-based courses, implementing compelling materials into the large-enrollment classroom environment can be difficult. These natural hazard events derive much of their learning potential from their real-time nature, and in the modern 24/7 news-cycle where all but the most devastating events are quickly out of the public eye, the shelf life for an event is quite limited. To maximize the learning potential of these events requires that both authoritative information be available and course materials be generated as the event unfolds. Although many events such as hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic eruptions provide some precursory warnings, and thus one can prepare background materials to place the main event into context, earthquakes present a particularly confounding situation of providing no warning, but where context is critical to student learning. Attempting to implement real-time materials into large enrollment classes faces the additional hindrance of limited internet access (for students) in most lecture classrooms. In Earth 101 Natural Disasters: Hollywood vs Reality, taught as a large enrollment (150+ students) general education course at Penn State, we are collaborating with the USGS’s National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC) to develop efficient means to incorporate their real-time products into learning activities in the lecture hall environment. Over time (and numerous events) we have developed a template for presenting USGS-produced real-time information in lecture mode. The event-specific materials can be quickly incorporated and updated, along with key contextual materials, to provide students with up-to-the-minute current information. In addition, we have also developed in-class activities, such as student determination of population exposure to severe ground

  3. Bioactive natural products from novel microbial sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Challinor, Victoria L; Bode, Helge B

    2015-09-01

    Despite the importance of microbial natural products for human health, only a few bacterial genera have been mined for the new natural products needed to overcome the urgent threat of antibiotic resistance. This is surprising, given that genome sequencing projects have revealed that the capability to produce natural products is not a rare feature among bacteria. Even the bacteria occurring in the human microbiome produce potent antibiotics, and thus potentially are an untapped resource for novel compounds, potentially with new activities. This review highlights examples of bacteria that should be considered new sources of natural products, including anaerobes, pathogens, and symbionts of humans, insects, and nematodes. Exploitation of these producer strains, combined with advances in modern natural product research methodology, has the potential to open the way for a new golden age of microbial therapeutics. © 2015 New York Academy of Sciences.

  4. Engineering microbial cell factories for the production of plant natural products: from design principles to industrial-scale production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Xiaonan; Ding, Wentao; Jiang, Huifeng

    2017-07-19

    Plant natural products (PNPs) are widely used as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, seasonings, pigments, etc., with a huge commercial value on the global market. However, most of these PNPs are still being extracted from plants. A resource-conserving and environment-friendly synthesis route for PNPs that utilizes microbial cell factories has attracted increasing attention since the 1940s. However, at the present only a handful of PNPs are being produced by microbial cell factories at an industrial scale, and there are still many challenges in their large-scale application. One of the challenges is that most biosynthetic pathways of PNPs are still unknown, which largely limits the number of candidate PNPs for heterologous microbial production. Another challenge is that the metabolic fluxes toward the target products in microbial hosts are often hindered by poor precursor supply, low catalytic activity of enzymes and obstructed product transport. Consequently, despite intensive studies on the metabolic engineering of microbial hosts, the fermentation costs of most heterologously produced PNPs are still too high for industrial-scale production. In this paper, we review several aspects of PNP production in microbial cell factories, including important design principles and recent progress in pathway mining and metabolic engineering. In addition, implemented cases of industrial-scale production of PNPs in microbial cell factories are also highlighted.

  5. Novel fermentation processes for manufacturing plant natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Jingwen; Du, Guocheng; Chen, Jian

    2014-02-01

    Microbial production of plant natural products (PNPs), such as terpenoids, flavonoids from renewable carbohydrate feedstocks offers sustainable and economically attractive alternatives to their petroleum-based production. Rapid development of metabolic engineering and synthetic biology of microorganisms shows many advantages to replace the current extraction of these useful high price chemicals from plants. Although few of them were actually applied on a large scale for PNPs production, continuous research on these high-price chemicals and the rapid growing global market of them, show the promising future for the production of these PNPs by microorganisms with a more economic and environmental friendly way. Introduction of novel pathways and optimization of the native cellular processes by metabolic engineering of microorganisms for PNPs production are rapidly expanding its range of cell-factory applications. Here we review recent progress in metabolic engineering of microorganisms for the production of PNPs. Besides, factors restricting the yield improvement and application of lab-scale achievements to industrial applications have also been discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Natural products as photoprotection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saewan, Nisakorn; Jimtaisong, Ampa

    2015-03-01

    The rise in solar ultraviolet radiation on the earth's surface has led to a depletion of stratospheric ozone over recent decades, thus accelerating the need to protect human skin against the harmful effects of UV radiation such as erythema, edema, hyperpigmentation, photoaging, and skin cancer. There are many different ways to protect skin against UV radiation's harmful effects. The most popular way to reduce the amount of UV radiation penetrating the skin is topical application of sunscreen products that contain UV absorbing or reflecting active molecules. Based on their protection mechanism, the active molecules in sunscreens are broadly divided into inorganic and organic agents. Inorganic sunscreens reflect and scatter UV and visible radiation, while organic sunscreens absorb UV radiation and then re-emit energy as heat or light. These synthetic molecules have limited concentration according to regulation concern. Several natural compounds with UV absorption property have been used to substitute for or to reduce the quantity of synthetic sunscreen agents. In addition to UV absorption property, most natural compounds were found to act as antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory agents, which provide further protection against the damaging effects of UV radiation exposure. Compounds derived from natural sources have gained considerable attention for use in sunscreen products and have bolstered the market trend toward natural cosmetics. This adds to the importance of there being a wide selection of active molecules in sunscreen formulations. This paper summarizes a number of natural products derived from propolis, plants, algae, and lichens that have shown potential photoprotection properties against UV radiation exposure-induced skin damage. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. Comparative analysis of chemical similarity methods for modular natural products with a hypothetical structure enumeration algorithm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skinnider, Michael A; Dejong, Chris A; Franczak, Brian C; McNicholas, Paul D; Magarvey, Nathan A

    2017-08-16

    Natural products represent a prominent source of pharmaceutically and industrially important agents. Calculating the chemical similarity of two molecules is a central task in cheminformatics, with applications at multiple stages of the drug discovery pipeline. Quantifying the similarity of natural products is a particularly important problem, as the biological activities of these molecules have been extensively optimized by natural selection. The large and structurally complex scaffolds of natural products distinguish their physical and chemical properties from those of synthetic compounds. However, no analysis of the performance of existing methods for molecular similarity calculation specific to natural products has been reported to date. Here, we present LEMONS, an algorithm for the enumeration of hypothetical modular natural product structures. We leverage this algorithm to conduct a comparative analysis of molecular similarity methods within the unique chemical space occupied by modular natural products using controlled synthetic data, and comprehensively investigate the impact of diverse biosynthetic parameters on similarity search. We additionally investigate a recently described algorithm for natural product retrobiosynthesis and alignment, and find that when rule-based retrobiosynthesis can be applied, this approach outperforms conventional two-dimensional fingerprints, suggesting it may represent a valuable approach for the targeted exploration of natural product chemical space and microbial genome mining. Our open-source algorithm is an extensible method of enumerating hypothetical natural product structures with diverse potential applications in bioinformatics.

  8. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    SERIES I ARTICLE. Learning Organic Chemistry. Through Natural Products. 2. Determination of Absolute Stereochemistry. N R Krishnaswamy was initiated into the world of natural products by T R. Seshadri at University of. Delhi and has carried on the glorious traditions of his mentor. He has taught at Bangalore University,.

  9. The Canadian Natural Health Products (NHP) regulations: industry compliance motivations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laeeque, Hina; Boon, Heather; Kachan, Natasha; Cohen, Jillian Clare; D'Cruz, Joseph

    2007-06-01

    This qualitative study explores corporations' motivations to comply with new natural health products (NHP) Regulations in Canada. Interviews were conducted with representatives from 20 Canadian NHP companies. Findings show that the rationale for compliance differs for large compared to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Large firms are motivated to comply with the regulations because of the deterrent fear of negative media coverage, social motivations, ability to comply and maintaining a competitive market advantage. In contrast, SMEs are motivated to comply due to the deterrent fear of legal prosecution and a sense of duty.

  10. Natural gas product and strategic analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Layne, A.W.; Duda, J.R.; Zammerilli, A.M.

    1993-12-31

    Product and strategic analysis at the Department of Energy (DOE)/Morgantown Energy Technology Center (METC) crosscuts all sectors of the natural gas industry. This includes the supply, transportation, and end-use sectors of the natural-gas market. Projects in the Natural Gas Resource and Extraction supply program have been integrated into a new product focus. Product development facilitates commercialization and technology transfer through DOE/industry cost-shared research, development, and demonstration (RD&D). Four products under the Resource and Extraction program include Resource and Reserves; Low Permeability Formations; Drilling, Completion, and Stimulation: and Natural Gas Upgrading. Engineering process analyses have been performed for the Slant Hole Completion Test project. These analyses focused on evaluation of horizontal-well recovery potential and applications of slant-hole technology. Figures 2 and 3 depict slant-well in situ stress conditions and hydraulic fracture configurations. Figure 4 presents Paludal Formation coal-gas production curves used to optimize the hydraulic fracture design for the slant well. Economic analyses have utilized data generated from vertical test wells to evaluate the profitability of horizontal technology for low-permeability formations in Yuma County, Colorado, and Maverick County, Texas.

  11. Using Genomics for Natural Product Structure Elucidation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tietz, Jonathan I; Mitchell, Douglas A

    2016-01-01

    Natural products (NPs) are the most historically bountiful source of chemical matter for drug development-especially for anti-infectives. With insights gleaned from genome mining, interest in natural product discovery has been reinvigorated. An essential stage in NP discovery is structural elucidation, which sheds light not only on the chemical composition of a molecule but also its novelty, properties, and derivatization potential. The history of structure elucidation is replete with techniquebased revolutions: combustion analysis, crystallography, UV, IR, MS, and NMR have each provided game-changing advances; the latest such advance is genomics. All natural products have a genetic basis, and the ability to obtain and interpret genomic information for structure elucidation is increasingly available at low cost to non-specialists. In this review, we describe the value of genomics as a structural elucidation technique, especially from the perspective of the natural product chemist approaching an unknown metabolite. Herein we first introduce the databases and programs of interest to the natural products chemist, with an emphasis on those currently most suited for general usability. We describe strategies for linking observed natural product-linked phenotypes to their corresponding gene clusters. We then discuss techniques for extracting structural information from genes, illustrated with numerous case examples. We also provide an analysis of the biases and limitations of the field with recommendations for future development. Our overview is not only aimed at biologically-oriented researchers already at ease with bioinformatic techniques, but also, in particular, at natural product, organic, and/or medicinal chemists not previously familiar with genomic techniques.

  12. Teaching 'natural product chemistry' in Tanzania | Buchanan ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Natural products 'historically' and 'today' have vast importance. This article describes the course 'Natural Product Chemistry', a new course in the 2011/2012 academic year in the Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences at St. John's University of Tanzania. It reveals how the course has been applied to the African and ...

  13. In silico Design of "Un-Natural" Natural Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zucko; J. ...(et al.

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available Polyketides and non-ribosomal peptides represent a large class of structurally diverse natural products much studied over recent years because the enzymes that synthesise them, the modular polyketide synthases (PKSs and the non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs, share striking architectural similarities that can be exploited to generate "un-natural" natural products. PKS and NRPS proteins are multifunctional, composed of a co-linear arrangement of discrete protein domains representing each enzymic activity needed for chain elongation using either carboxylic acid or amino acid building blocks. Each domain is housed within larger modules which form the complex. Polyketide and peptide antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, cytostatics, immunosuppressants, antihypertensives, antidiabetics, antimalarials and anticholesterolemics are in clinical use. Of commercial importance are also polyketide and peptide antiparasitics, coccidiostatics,animal growth promoters and natural insecticides.Polyketides are assembled through serial condensations of activated coenzyme-A thioester monomers derived from simple organic acids such as acetate, propionate and butyrate. The choice of organic acid allows the introduction of different chiral centres into the polyketide backbone. The active sites required for condensation include an acyltransferase (AT, an acyl carrier protein (ACP and a ß-ketoacylsynthase (KS. Each condensation results in a ß-keto group that undergoes all, some or none of a series of processing steps. Active sites that perform these reactions are contained within the following domains; ketoreductase (KR, dehydratase (DH and an enoylreductase (ER. The absence of any ß-keto processing results in the incorporation of a ketone group into the growing polyketide chain, a KR alone gives rise to a hydroxyl moiety, a KR and DH produce an alkene, while the combination of KR, DH and ER domains lead to complete reduction to an alkane. Most often, the last

  14. Biosynthesis of therapeutic natural products using synthetic biology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Awan, Ali R; Shaw, William M; Ellis, Tom

    2016-10-01

    Natural products are a group of bioactive structurally diverse chemicals produced by microorganisms and plants. These molecules and their derivatives have contributed to over a third of the therapeutic drugs produced in the last century. However, over the last few decades traditional drug discovery pipelines from natural products have become far less productive and far more expensive. One recent development with promise to combat this trend is the application of synthetic biology to therapeutic natural product biosynthesis. Synthetic biology is a young discipline with roots in systems biology, genetic engineering, and metabolic engineering. In this review, we discuss the use of synthetic biology to engineer improved yields of existing therapeutic natural products. We further describe the use of synthetic biology to combine and express natural product biosynthetic genes in unprecedented ways, and how this holds promise for opening up completely new avenues for drug discovery and production. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Natural product synthesis at the interface of chemistry and biology

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Nature has evolved to produce unique and diverse natural products that possess high target affinity and specificity. Natural products have been the richest sources for novel modulators of biomolecular function. Since the chemical synthesis of urea by Wöhler, organic chemists have been intrigued by natural products, leading to the evolution of the field of natural product synthesis over the past two centuries. Natural product synthesis has enabled natural products to play an essential role in drug discovery and chemical biology. With the introduction of novel, innovative concepts and strategies for synthetic efficiency, natural product synthesis in the 21st century is well poised to address the challenges and complexities faced by natural product chemistry and will remain essential to progress in biomedical sciences. PMID:25043880

  16. Natural radioactivity and estimated dose in Brazilian tobacco products

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oliveira, Aline S.G.R. de; Damatto, Sandra R.

    2017-01-01

    Tobacco products contain significant concentrations of natural radionuclides from 238 U and 232 Th series. The consumption of these products increases the internal dose of radiation due to the inhalation of the natural radionuclides. Studies from literature emphasize that tobacco products have measurable concentrations of 210 Po and 210 Pb, and may contribute significantly to the increase of internal radiation dose and a large number of lung cancer in smokers. The objectives of this work were to determine the concentrations (Bq/kg) of the radionuclides 226 Ra, 228 Ra, 210 Pb and 210 Po and calculate the internal doses of radiation due to the consumption of these products. In the present work 71 samples were analyzed, consisting of cigars, unflavored and flavored cigarettes, straw cigarettes, cigars and roll smoke. The samples were purchased in Brazilian popular commercial establishments. The analytical techniques employed were the gross alpha and beta measurement after radiochemical separation for the radionuclides 226 Ra, 228 Ra, 210 Pb and alpha spectrometry for 210 Po. The internal radiation doses were calculated with the activity concentrations determined and using the ICRP Publication 119 dose coefficients. An annual consumption of 3,650 kg of tobacco products was considered. The inhalation rates of each radionuclide followed the rates of the current literature. The estimated mean annual dose varied from 76 to 263μSv/y for the tobacco product studied in this work. (author)

  17. Natural radioactivity and estimated dose in Brazilian tobacco products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oliveira, Aline S.G.R. de; Damatto, Sandra R., E-mail: aline.oliveira@ipen.br, E-mail: damatto@ipen.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), São Paulo, SP (Brazil)

    2017-07-01

    Tobacco products contain significant concentrations of natural radionuclides from {sup 238}U and {sup 232}Th series. The consumption of these products increases the internal dose of radiation due to the inhalation of the natural radionuclides. Studies from literature emphasize that tobacco products have measurable concentrations of {sup 210}Po and {sup 210}Pb, and may contribute significantly to the increase of internal radiation dose and a large number of lung cancer in smokers. The objectives of this work were to determine the concentrations (Bq/kg) of the radionuclides {sup 226}Ra, {sup 228}Ra, {sup 210}Pb and {sup 210}Po and calculate the internal doses of radiation due to the consumption of these products. In the present work 71 samples were analyzed, consisting of cigars, unflavored and flavored cigarettes, straw cigarettes, cigars and roll smoke. The samples were purchased in Brazilian popular commercial establishments. The analytical techniques employed were the gross alpha and beta measurement after radiochemical separation for the radionuclides {sup 226}Ra, {sup 228}Ra, {sup 210}Pb and alpha spectrometry for {sup 210}Po. The internal radiation doses were calculated with the activity concentrations determined and using the ICRP Publication 119 dose coefficients. An annual consumption of 3,650 kg of tobacco products was considered. The inhalation rates of each radionuclide followed the rates of the current literature. The estimated mean annual dose varied from 76 to 263μSv/y for the tobacco product studied in this work. (author)

  18. Natural Connections on Riemannian Product Manifolds

    OpenAIRE

    Gribacheva, Dobrinka

    2011-01-01

    A Riemannian almost product manifold with integrable almost product structure is called a Riemannian product manifold. In the present paper the natural connections on such manifolds are studied, i.e. the linear connections preserving the almost product structure and the Riemannian metric.

  19. Nature tourism: a sustainable tourism product

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Violante Martínez Quintana

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Nature tourism has emerged in the tourism field as a result of a logical evolution in line with public policies and academic research. After negative outcomes from traditional models first raised the alarm, the entire sector has tried to foster local development based on models of responsibility and sustainability. This article revises key concepts of nature – based tourism and shows new tendencies and the perception of cultural landscapes that are seen as tourism products. Finally, it concludes by analysing new tendencies to foster alternative nature – based tourism. It also presents a planning proposal based on a responsible and sustainable tourism model to guarantee a sustainable tourism product within the natural and cultural heritage context.

  20. New Synthetic Methods for Hypericum Natural Products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jeon, Insik [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    2006-01-01

    Organic chemistry has served as a solid foundation for interdisciplinary research areas, such as molecular biology and medicinal chemistry. An understanding of the biological activities and structural elucidations of natural products can lead to the development of clinically valuable therapeutic options. The advancements of modern synthetic methodologies allow for more elaborate and concise natural product syntheses. The theme of this study centers on the synthesis of natural products with particularly challenging structures and interesting biological activities. The synthetic expertise developed here will be applicable to analog syntheses and to other research problems.

  1. An innovative model for regulating supplement products: Natural health products in Canada

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nestmann, Earle R.; Harwood, Melody; Martyres, Stephanie

    2006-01-01

    On 1 January 2004, Health Canada officially added a new term to the global list of synonyms for dietary supplements: natural health products (NHP). Developed with the intent of providing Canadian consumers with ready access to NHP that are safe, effective, and of high quality, the Natural Health Products Regulations (the NHP regulations) are applicable to the sale, manufacture, packaging, labelling, importation, distribution, and storage of NHP, and are administered by the recently formed Natural Health Products Directorate (NHPD) within Health Canada. This paper provides an overview of the process for regulating supplement products in Canada

  2. Bioengineering natural product biosynthetic pathways for therapeutic applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Ming-Cheng; Law, Brian; Wilkinson, Barrie; Micklefield, Jason

    2012-12-01

    With the advent of next-generation DNA sequencing technologies, the number of microbial genome sequences has increased dramatically, revealing a vast array of new biosynthetic gene clusters. Genomics data provide a tremendous opportunity to discover new natural products, and also to guide the bioengineering of new and existing natural product scaffolds for therapeutic applications. Notably, it is apparent that the vast majority of biosynthetic gene clusters are either silent or produce very low quantities of the corresponding natural products. It is imperative therefore to devise methods for activating unproductive biosynthetic pathways to provide the quantities of natural products needed for further development. Moreover, on the basis of our expanding mechanistic and structural knowledge of biosynthetic assembly-line enzymes, new strategies for re-programming biosynthetic pathways have emerged, resulting in focused libraries of modified products with potentially improved biological properties. In this review we will focus on the latest bioengineering approaches that have been utilised to optimise yields and increase the structural diversity of natural product scaffolds for future clinical applications. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Nigerian Journal of Natural Products and Medicine

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Nigerian Journal of Natural Products and Medicine is published by the Nigerian Society of Pharmacognosy, a non profit organisation established in 1982 dedicated to the promotion of Pharmacognosy, Natural Products and Traditional Medicine. It has a current circulation of about 500 to scientists in Nigeria and abroad.

  4. Natural Products in the Discovery of Agrochemicals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loiseleur, Olivier

    2017-12-01

    Natural products have a long history of being used as, or serving as inspiration for, novel crop protection agents. Many of the discoveries in agrochemical research in the last decades have their origin in a wide range of natural products from a variety of sources. In light of the continuing need for new tools to address an ever-changing array of fungal, weed and insect pests, new agricultural practices and evolving regulatory requirements, the needs for new agrochemical tools remains as critical as ever. In that respect, nature continues to be an important source for novel chemical structures and biological mechanisms to be applied for the development of pest control agents. Here we review several of the natural products and their derivatives which contributed to shape crop protection research in past and present.

  5. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Higher Learning. ... The Series on "learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products". Nature is a remarkable ... skeletal structure to the interior electronic configu- ration ... Among the advantages of this approach are the fact that unlike the.

  6. Large amounts of antiproton production by heavy ion collision

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takahashi, Hiroshi; Powell, J.

    1987-01-01

    To produce large amounts of antiprotons, on the order of several grams/year, use of machines to produce nuclear collisions are studied. These can be of either proton-proton, proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus in nature. To achieve high luminosity colliding beams, on the order of 10 41 m/cm 2 , a self-colliding machine is required, rather than a conventional circular colliding type. The self-colliding machine can produce additional antiprotons through successive collisions of secondary particles, such as spectator nucleons. A key problem is how to collect the produced antiprotons without capture by beam nuclei in the collision zone. Production costs for anti-matter are projected for various energy source options and technology levels. Dedicated facilities using heavy ion collisions could produce antiproton at substantially less than 1 million $/milligram. With co-production of other valuable products, e.g., nuclear fuel for power reactors, antiproton costs could be reduced to even lower values

  7. Large amounts of antiproton production by heavy ion collision

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Takahashi, Hiroshi; Powell, J.

    1987-01-01

    To produce large amounts of antiprotons, on the order of several grams/year, use of machines to produce nuclear collisions are studied. These can be of either proton-proton, proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus in nature. To achieve high luminosity colliding beams, on the order of 10/sup 41/ m/cm/sup 2/, a self-colliding machine is required, rather than a conventional circular colliding type. The self-colliding machine can produce additional antiprotons through successive collisions of secondary particles, such as spectator nucleons. A key problem is how to collect the produced antiprotons without capture by beam nuclei in the collision zone. Production costs for anti-matter are projected for various energy source options and technology levels. Dedicated facilities using heavy ion collisions could produce antiproton at substantially less than 1 million $/milligram. With co-production of other valuable products, e.g., nuclear fuel for power reactors, antiproton costs could be reduced to even lower values.

  8. Scaffold architecture and pharmacophoric properties of natural products and trade drugs: application in the design of natural product-based combinatorial libraries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, M L; Schneider, G

    2001-01-01

    Natural products were analyzed to determine whether they contain appealing novel scaffold architectures for potential use in combinatorial chemistry. Ring systems were extracted and clustered on the basis of structural similarity. Several such potential scaffolds for combinatorial chemistry were identified that are not present in current trade drugs. For one of these scaffolds a virtual combinatorial library was generated. Pharmacophoric properties of natural products, trade drugs, and the virtual combinatorial library were assessed using a self-organizing map. Obviously, current trade drugs and natural products have several topological pharmacophore patterns in common. These features can be systematically explored with selected combinatorial libraries based on a combination of natural product-derived and synthetic molecular building blocks.

  9. Natural product-based nanomedicine: recent advances and issues

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watkins, Rebekah; Wu, Ling; Zhang, Chenming; Davis, Richey M; Xu, Bin

    2015-01-01

    Natural products have been used in medicine for many years. Many top-selling pharmaceuticals are natural compounds or their derivatives. These plant- or microorganism-derived compounds have shown potential as therapeutic agents against cancer, microbial infection, inflammation, and other disease conditions. However, their success in clinical trials has been less impressive, partly due to the compounds’ low bioavailability. The incorporation of nanoparticles into a delivery system for natural products would be a major advance in the efforts to increase their therapeutic effects. Recently, advances have been made showing that nanoparticles can significantly increase the bioavailability of natural products both in vitro and in vivo. Nanotechnology has demonstrated its capability to manipulate particles in order to target specific areas of the body and control the release of drugs. Although there are many benefits to applying nanotechnology for better delivery of natural products, it is not without issues. Drug targeting remains a challenge and potential nanoparticle toxicity needs to be further investigated, especially if these systems are to be used to treat chronic human diseases. This review aims to summarize recent progress in several key areas relevant to natural products in nanoparticle delivery systems for biomedical applications. PMID:26451111

  10. Natural product mode of action (MOA) studies: a link between natural and synthetic worlds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    La Clair, James J

    2010-07-01

    In our understanding of matter, natural products deliver plots that would stun even the best productions of the legendary filmmaker, Sergio Leone. While every decade heralds a new genre of film (as well as avenues of small-molecule discovery), natural products and their "untamed prehistoric" plots continue to dazzle the fields of biotechnology, drug discovery, fragrances, food additives and agrochemistry. This review provides an abridged synopsis of the modes of natural product action discovered within the last decade and the tools and methods used in their discovery. Their stories are united in a common theme that unveils one of the more vital aspects of chemical biological research:understanding the global activity of Nature's arsenal of secondary metabolites.

  11. Fragment-Based Screening of a Natural Product Library against 62 Potential Malaria Drug Targets Employing Native Mass Spectrometry

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-01-01

    Natural products are well known for their biological relevance, high degree of three-dimensionality, and access to areas of largely unexplored chemical space. To shape our understanding of the interaction between natural products and protein targets in the postgenomic era, we have used native mass spectrometry to investigate 62 potential protein targets for malaria using a natural-product-based fragment library. We reveal here 96 low-molecular-weight natural products identified as binding partners of 32 of the putative malarial targets. Seventy-nine (79) fragments have direct growth inhibition on Plasmodium falciparum at concentrations that are promising for the development of fragment hits against these protein targets. This adds a fragment library to the published HTS active libraries in the public domain. PMID:29436819

  12. Natural Products from Mangrove Actinomycetes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Dong-Bo; Ye, Wan-Wan; Han, Ying; Deng, Zi-Xin; Hong, Kui

    2014-01-01

    Mangroves are woody plants located in tropical and subtropical intertidal coastal regions. The mangrove ecosystem is becoming a hot spot for natural product discovery and bioactivity survey. Diverse mangrove actinomycetes as promising and productive sources are worth being explored and uncovered. At the time of writing, we report 73 novel compounds and 49 known compounds isolated from mangrove actinomycetes including alkaloids, benzene derivatives, cyclopentenone derivatives, dilactones, macrolides, 2-pyranones and sesquiterpenes. Attractive structures such as salinosporamides, xiamycins and novel indolocarbazoles are highlighted. Many exciting compounds have been proven as potential new antibiotics, antitumor and antiviral agents, anti-fibrotic agents and antioxidants. Furthermore, some of their biosynthetic pathways have also been revealed. This review is an attempt to consolidate and summarize the past and the latest studies on mangrove actinomycetes natural product discovery and to draw attention to their immense potential as novel and bioactive compounds for marine drugs discovery. PMID:24798926

  13. Separation process design for isolation and purification of natural products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Malwade, Chandrakant R.

    Natural products are defined as secondary metabolites produced by plants and form a vast pool of compounds with unlimited chemical and functional diversity. Many of these secondary metabolites are high value added chemicals that are frequently used as ingredients in food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals...... and other consumer products. Therefore, process technology towards industrial scale production of such high value chemicals from plants has significant value. Natural products can be obtained in pure form via synthetic or semi-synthetic route, but due to their complicated nature these methods have not been...... developed to the extent of industrial production for majority of natural products. Thus, isolation and purification of such natural products from plants is the most viable way to obtain natural products in pure form. This PhD project is mainly concerned with the design of separation process to isolate...

  14. Natural gas and production of electricity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Defago, E.

    2005-01-01

    The forthcoming power supply shortage in Switzerland due to increasing consumption is discussed, as are the possibilities for securing the future supply. Today, the main sources are hydroelectric (roughly 55 %) and nuclear (40 %) power. The share of electricity from natural gas amounts to only 1.4 %. The possibilities of further economic production of hydropower are practically exhausted. Therefore, further electric power has to be either imported or generated from other energy sources (renewable, nuclear, fossil) in the country itself. Due to the low acceptance of nuclear energy and the limited potential of renewable energy sources, natural gas is the most favoured candidate. The advantages of distributed production in cogeneration plants are compared with the centralized production in larger plants using combined cycles. Finally, a project currently under development is presented: an existing thermal power plant fueled with heavy fuel oil shall be refurbished and converted to natural gas as the new fuel

  15. Phenomenology of a pseudo-scalar inflaton: naturally large nongaussianity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barnaby, Neil; Namba, Ryo; Peloso, Marco

    2011-01-01

    Many controlled realizations of chaotic inflation employ pseudo-scalar axions. Pseudo-scalars φ are naturally coupled to gauge fields through cφF F-tilde . In the presence of this coupling, gauge field quanta are copiously produced by the rolling inflaton. The produced gauge quanta, in turn, source inflaton fluctuations via inverse decay. These new cosmological perturbations add incoherently with the ''vacuum'' perturbations, and are highly nongaussian. This provides a natural mechanism to generate large nongaussianity in single or multi field slow-roll inflation. The resulting phenomenological signatures are highly distinctive: large nongaussianity of (nearly) equilateral shape, in addition to detectably large values of both the scalar spectral tilt and tensor-to-scalar ratio (both being typical of large field inflation). The WMAP bound on nongaussianity implies that the coupling c of the pseudo-scalar inflaton to any gauge field must be smaller than about 10 2 M p −1

  16. Natural Products from Mangrove Actinomycetes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dong-Bo Xu

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Mangroves are woody plants located in tropical and subtropical intertidal coastal regions. The mangrove ecosystem is becoming a hot spot for natural product discovery and bioactivity survey. Diverse mangrove actinomycetes as promising and productive sources are worth being explored and uncovered. At the time of writing, we report 73 novel compounds and 49 known compounds isolated from mangrove actinomycetes including alkaloids, benzene derivatives, cyclopentenone derivatives, dilactones, macrolides, 2-pyranones and sesquiterpenes. Attractive structures such as salinosporamides, xiamycins and novel indolocarbazoles are highlighted. Many exciting compounds have been proven as potential new antibiotics, antitumor and antiviral agents, anti-fibrotic agents and antioxidants. Furthermore, some of their biosynthetic pathways have also been revealed. This review is an attempt to consolidate and summarize the past and the latest studies on mangrove actinomycetes natural product discovery and to draw attention to their immense potential as novel and bioactive compounds for marine drugs discovery.

  17. Bioactive activities of natural products against herpesvirus infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Son, Myoungki; Lee, Minjung; Sung, Gi-Ho; Lee, Taeho; Shin, Yu Su; Cho, Hyosun; Lieberman, Paul M; Kang, Hyojeung

    2013-10-01

    More than 90% of adults have been infected with at least one human herpesvirus, which establish long-term latent infection for the life of the host. While anti-viral drugs exist that limit herpesvirus replication, many of these are ineffective against latent infection. Moreover, drug-resistant strains of herpesvirus emerge following chemotherapeutic treatment. For example, resistance to acyclovir and related nucleoside analogues can occur when mutations arise in either HSV thymidine kinase or DNA polymerases. Thus, there exists an unmet medical need to develop new anti-herpesvirus agents with different mechanisms of action. In this Review, we discuss the promise of anti-herpetic substances derived from natural products including extracts and pure compounds from potential herbal medicines. One example is Glycyrrhizic acid isolated from licorice that shows promising antiviral activity towards human gammaherpesviruses. Secondly, we discuss anti-herpetic mechanisms utilized by several natural products in molecular level. While nucleoside analogues inhibit replicating herpesviruses in lytic replication, some natural products can disrupt the herpesvirus latent infection in the host cell. In addition, natural products can stimulate immune responses against herpesviral infection. These findings suggest that natural products could be one of the best choices for development of new treatments for latent herpesvirus infection, and may provide synergistic anti-viral activity when supplemented with nucleoside analogues. Therefore, it is important to identify which natural products are more efficacious anti-herpetic agents, and to understand the molecular mechanism in detail for further advance in the anti-viral therapies.

  18. Plants as natural antioxidants for meat products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomović, V.; Jokanović, M.; Šojić, B.; Škaljac, S.; Ivić, M.

    2017-09-01

    The meat industry is demanding antioxidants from natural sources to replace synthetic antioxidants because of the negative health consequences or beliefs regarding some synthetic ones. Plants materials provide good alternatives. Spices and herbs, generally used for their flavouring characteristics, can be added to meat products in various forms: whole, ground, or as isolates from their extracts. These natural antioxidants contain some active compounds, which exert antioxidative potential in meat products. This antioxidant activity is most often due to phenolic acids, phenolic diterpenes, flavonoids and volatile oils. Each of these compounds often has strong H-donating activity, thus making them extremely effective antioxidants; some compounds can chelate metals and donate H to oxygen radicals, thus slowing oxidation via two mechanisms. Numerous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of natural antioxidants when used in meat products. Based on this literature review, it can be concluded that natural antioxidants are added to fresh and processed meat and meat products to delay, retard, or prevent lipid oxidation, retard development of off-flavours (rancidity), improve colour stability, improve microbiological quality and extend shelf-life, without any damage to the sensory or nutritional properties.

  19. Alternative solvents for natural products extraction

    CERN Document Server

    Chemat, Farid

    2014-01-01

    This book presents a complete picture of the current state-of-the-art in alternative and green solvents used for laboratory and industrial natural product extraction in terms of the latest innovations, original methods and safe products. It provides the necessary theoretical background and details on extraction, techniques, mechanisms, protocols, industrial applications, safety precautions and environmental impacts. This book is aimed at professionals from industry, academicians engaged in extraction engineering or natural product chemistry research, and graduate level students. The individual chapters complement one another, were written by respected international researchers and recognized professionals from the industry, and address the latest efforts in the field. It is also the first sourcebook to focus on the rapid developments in this field.

  20. Linking neuroethology to the chemical biology of natural products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olivera, Baldomero M.; Raghuraman, Shrinivasan; Schmidt, Eric W.

    2017-01-01

    From a biological perspective, a natural product can be defined as a compound evolved by an organism for chemical interactions with another organism including prey, predator, competitor, pathogen, symbiont or host. Natural products hold tremendous potential as drug leads and have been extensively...... a better understanding of the evolution, biology and biochemistry of natural products will facilitate both neuroscience and the potential for drug leads. The larger goal is to establish a new sub-discipline in the broader field of neuroethology that we refer to as “Chemical Neuroethology”, linking...... the substantial work carried out by chemists on natural products with accelerating advances in neuroethology....

  1. Emissions of CH4 from natural gas production in the United States using aircraft-based observations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweeney, Colm; Karion, Anna; Petron, Gabrielle; Ryerson, Thomas; Peischl, Jeff; Trainer, Michael; Rella, Chris; Hardesty, Michael; Crosson, Eric; Montzka, Stephen; Tans, Pieter; Shepson, Paul; Kort, Eric

    2014-05-01

    New extraction technologies are making natural gas from shale and tight sand gas reservoirs in the United States (US) more accessible. As a result, the US has become the largest producer of natural gas in the world. This growth in natural gas production may result in increased leakage of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, offsetting the climate benefits of natural gas relative to other fossil fuels. Methane emissions from natural gas production are not well quantified because of the large variety of potential sources, the variability in production and operating practices, the uneven distribution of emitters, and a lack of verification of emission inventories with direct atmospheric measurements. Researchers at the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) have used simple mass balance approaches in combination with isotopes and light alkanes to estimate emissions of CH4 from several natural gas and oil plays across the US. We will summarize the results of the available aircraft and ground-based atmospheric emissions estimates to better understand the spatial and temporal distribution of these emissions in the US.

  2. Natural Product Biosynthetic Diversity and Comparative Genomics of the Cyanobacteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dittmann, Elke; Gugger, Muriel; Sivonen, Kaarina; Fewer, David P

    2015-10-01

    Cyanobacteria are an ancient lineage of slow-growing photosynthetic bacteria and a prolific source of natural products with intricate chemical structures and potent biological activities. The bulk of these natural products are known from just a handful of genera. Recent efforts have elucidated the mechanisms underpinning the biosynthesis of a diverse array of natural products from cyanobacteria. Many of the biosynthetic mechanisms are unique to cyanobacteria or rarely described from other organisms. Advances in genome sequence technology have precipitated a deluge of genome sequences for cyanobacteria. This makes it possible to link known natural products to biosynthetic gene clusters but also accelerates the discovery of new natural products through genome mining. These studies demonstrate that cyanobacteria encode a huge variety of cryptic gene clusters for the production of natural products, and the known chemical diversity is likely to be just a fraction of the true biosynthetic capabilities of this fascinating and ancient group of organisms. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  3. Recreational drug discovery: natural products as lead structures for the synthesis of smart drugs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Appendino, Giovanni; Minassi, Alberto; Taglialatela-Scafati, Orazio

    2014-07-01

    Covering: up to December 2013. Over the past decade, there has been a growing transition in recreational drugs from natural materials (marijuana, hashish, opium), natural products (morphine, cocaine), or their simple derivatives (heroin), to synthetic agents more potent than their natural prototypes, which are sometimes less harmful in the short term, or that combine properties from different classes of recreational prototypes. These agents have been named smart drugs, and have become popular both for personal consumption and for collective intoxication at rave parties. The reasons for this transition are varied, but are mainly regulatory and commercial. New analogues of known illegal intoxicants are invisible to most forensic detection techniques, while the alleged natural status and the lack of avert acute toxicity make them appealing to a wide range of users. On the other hand, the advent of the internet has made possible the quick dispersal of information among users and the on-line purchase of these agents and/or the precursors for their synthesis. Unlike their natural products chemotypes (ephedrine, mescaline, cathinone, psilocybin, THC), most new drugs of abuse are largely unfamiliar to the organic chemistry community as well as to health care providers. To raise awareness of the growing plague of smart drugs we have surveyed, in a medicinal chemistry fashion, their development from natural products leads, their current methods of production, and the role that clandestine home laboratories and underground chemists have played in the surge of popularity of these drugs.

  4. Natural Products Combating Neurodegeneration: Parkinson's Disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Solayman, Md; Islam, Md Asiful; Alam, Fahmida; Khalil, Md Ibrahim; Kamal, Mohammad Amjad; Gan, Siew Hua

    2017-01-01

    Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by neurodegeneration and a progressive functional impairment of the midbrain nigral dopaminergic neurons. The cause remains unknown; however, several pathological processes and central factors, such as protein aggregation, mitochondrial dysfunction, iron accumulation, neuroinflammation and oxidative stress, have been reported. The current treatment method primarily targets symptoms by using anti-Parkinson drugs such as levodopa, carbidopa, dopamine (DA) agonists, monoamine oxidase type B inhibitors and anticholinergics to replace DA. When drug therapy is not satisfactory, surgical treatments are recommended. Unfortunately, the existing conventional strategies that target PD are associated with numerous side effects and possess an economic burden. Therefore, novel therapeutic approaches that regulate the pathways leading to neuronal death and dysfunction are necessary. For many years, nature has provided the primary resource for the discovery of potential therapeutic agents. Remarkably, many natural products from medicinal plants, fruits and vegetables have been demonstrated to be efficacious anti-Parkinson agents. These products possess neuroprotective properties as a result of not only their wellrecognized anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities but also their inhibitory roles regarding iron accumulation, protein misfolding and the maintenance of proteasomal degradation, as well as mitochondrial homeostasis. The aim of this review is to report the available anti-Parkinson agents based on natural products and delineate their therapeutic actions, which act on various pathways. Overall, this review emphasizes the types of natural products that are potential future resources in the treatment of PD as novel regimens or supplementary agents. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  5. Natural product-based nanomedicine: recent advances and issues

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Watkins R

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Rebekah Watkins,1,2,* Ling Wu,1,* Chenming Zhang,3–5 Richey M Davis,3,5,6 Bin Xu1,3 1Department of Biochemistry, 2Program in Nanoscience, 3Center for Drug Discovery, 4Department of Biological Systems Engineering, 5Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science, 6Department of Chemical Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, USA *These authors contributed equally to this work Abstract: Natural products have been used in medicine for many years. Many top-selling pharmaceuticals are natural compounds or their derivatives. These plant- or microorganism-derived compounds have shown potential as therapeutic agents against cancer, microbial infection, inflammation, and other disease conditions. However, their success in clinical trials has been less impressive, partly due to the compounds’ low bioavailability. The incorporation of nanoparticles into a delivery system for natural products would be a major advance in the efforts to increase their therapeutic effects. Recently, advances have been made showing that nanoparticles can significantly increase the bioavailability of natural products both in vitro and in vivo. Nanotechnology has demonstrated its capability to manipulate particles in order to target specific areas of the body and control the release of drugs. Although there are many benefits to applying nanotechnology for better delivery of natural products, it is not without issues. Drug targeting remains a challenge and potential nanoparticle toxicity needs to be further investigated, especially if these systems are to be used to treat chronic human diseases. This review aims to summarize recent progress in several key areas relevant to natural products in nanoparticle delivery systems for biomedical applications. Keywords: natural products, nanomedicine, drug delivery, bioavailability, targeting, controlled release

  6. Harnessing natural product assembly lines: structure, promiscuity, and engineering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ladner, Christopher C; Williams, Gavin J

    2016-03-01

    Many therapeutically relevant natural products are biosynthesized by the action of giant mega-enzyme assembly lines. By leveraging the specificity, promiscuity, and modularity of assembly lines, a variety of strategies has been developed that enables the biosynthesis of modified natural products. This review briefly summarizes recent structural advances related to natural product assembly lines, discusses chemical approaches to probing assembly line structures in the absence of traditional biophysical data, and surveys efforts that harness the inherent or engineered promiscuity of assembly lines for the synthesis of non-natural polyketides and non-ribosomal peptide analogues.

  7. Production of hydrogen by thermocatalytic cracking of natural gas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Muradov, N. [Florida Solar Energy Center, Cocoa, FL (United States)

    1996-10-01

    The conventional methods of hydrogen production from natural gas (for example, steam reforming and partial oxidation) are complex, multi-step processes that produce large quantities of CO{sub 2}. The main goal of this project is to develop a technologically simple process for hydrogen production from natural gas (NG) and other hydrocarbon fuels via single-step decomposition of hydrocarbons. This approach eliminates or significantly reduces CO{sub 2} emission. Carbon is a valuable by-product of this process, whereas conventional methods of hydrogen production from NG produce no useful by-products. This approach is based on the use of special catalysts that reduce the maximum temperature of the process from 1400-1500{degrees}C (thermal non-catalytic decomposition of methane) to 500-900{degrees}C. Transition metal based catalysts and various forms of carbon are among the candidate catalysts for the process. This approach can advantageously be used for the development of compact NG reformers for on-site production of hydrogen-methane blends at refueling stations and, also, for the production of hydrogen-rich gas for fuel cell applications. The author extended the search for active methane decomposition catalysts to various modifications of Ni-, Fe-, Mo- and Co-based catalysts. Variation in the operational parameters makes it possible to produce H{sub 2}-CH{sub 4} blends with a wide range of hydrogen concentrations that vary from 15 to 98% by volume. The author found that Ni-based catalysts are more effective at temperatures below 750{degrees}C, whereas Fe-based catalysts are effective at temperatures above 800{degrees}C for the production of hydrogen with purity of 95% v. or higher. The catalytic pyrolysis of liquid hydrocarbons (pentane, gasoline) over Fe-based catalyst was conducted. The author observed the production of a hydrogen-rich gas (hydrogen concentration up to 97% by volume) at a rate of approximately 1L/min.mL of hydrocarbon fuel.

  8. The Impact of an Extensive Usage of Controlled Natural Ventilation in the Residential Sector on Large-Scale Energy Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Oropeza-Perez, Ivan

    The energy situation in the world is becoming alarming. The demand of electricity continues to grow whereas the means of production remain limited. In addition, the electricity generation in the world is mostly based on fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. Only a small share of the total...... to the atmosphere. On the other hand, the efficiency of the end-use energy consumption is also fundamental to decrease the electricity production thus to lower the emission of greenhouse gases. Thereby, the building sector is a very important target because it consumes approximately one quarter of the total annual...... be reflected in the reduction of the electricity production. The objective of the thesis is to show realistic benefits of utilizing natural ventilation at an extensive manner onto large-scale scenarios such as a national scenario by using a model of natural ventilation developed here. To do so, a building...

  9. Production and efficiency of large wildland fire suppression effort: A stochastic frontier analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katuwal, Hari; Calkin, David E; Hand, Michael S

    2016-01-15

    This study examines the production and efficiency of wildland fire suppression effort. We estimate the effectiveness of suppression resource inputs to produce controlled fire lines that contain large wildland fires using stochastic frontier analysis. Determinants of inefficiency are identified and the effects of these determinants on the daily production of controlled fire line are examined. Results indicate that the use of bulldozers and fire engines increase the production of controlled fire line, while firefighter crews do not tend to contribute to controlled fire line production. Production of controlled fire line is more efficient if it occurs along natural or built breaks, such as rivers and roads, and within areas previously burned by wildfires. However, results also indicate that productivity and efficiency of the controlled fire line are sensitive to weather, landscape and fire characteristics. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. An analysis of FDA-approved drugs: natural products and their derivatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patridge, Eric; Gareiss, Peter; Kinch, Michael S; Hoyer, Denton

    2016-02-01

    Natural products contribute greatly to the history and landscape of new molecular entities (NMEs). An assessment of all FDA-approved NMEs reveals that natural products and their derivatives represent over one-third of all NMEs. Nearly one-half of these are derived from mammals, one-quarter from microbes and one-quarter from plants. Since the 1930s, the total fraction of natural products has diminished, whereas semisynthetic and synthetic natural product derivatives have increased. Over time, this fraction has also become enriched with microbial natural products, which represent a significant portion of approved antibiotics, including more than two-thirds of all antibacterial NMEs. In recent years, the declining focus on natural products has impacted the pipeline of NMEs from specific classes, and this trend is likely to continue without specific investment in the pursuit of natural products. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. The Traditional Medicine and Modern Medicine from Natural Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Haidan Yuan

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Natural products and traditional medicines are of great importance. Such forms of medicine as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Kampo, traditional Korean medicine, and Unani have been practiced in some areas of the world and have blossomed into orderly-regulated systems of medicine. This study aims to review the literature on the relationship among natural products, traditional medicines, and modern medicine, and to explore the possible concepts and methodologies from natural products and traditional medicines to further develop drug discovery. The unique characteristics of theory, application, current role or status, and modern research of eight kinds of traditional medicine systems are summarized in this study. Although only a tiny fraction of the existing plant species have been scientifically researched for bioactivities since 1805, when the first pharmacologically-active compound morphine was isolated from opium, natural products and traditional medicines have already made fruitful contributions for modern medicine. When used to develop new drugs, natural products and traditional medicines have their incomparable advantages, such as abundant clinical experiences, and their unique diversity of chemical structures and biological activities.

  12. The Traditional Medicine and Modern Medicine from Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuan, Haidan; Ma, Qianqian; Ye, Li; Piao, Guangchun

    2016-04-29

    Natural products and traditional medicines are of great importance. Such forms of medicine as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Kampo, traditional Korean medicine, and Unani have been practiced in some areas of the world and have blossomed into orderly-regulated systems of medicine. This study aims to review the literature on the relationship among natural products, traditional medicines, and modern medicine, and to explore the possible concepts and methodologies from natural products and traditional medicines to further develop drug discovery. The unique characteristics of theory, application, current role or status, and modern research of eight kinds of traditional medicine systems are summarized in this study. Although only a tiny fraction of the existing plant species have been scientifically researched for bioactivities since 1805, when the first pharmacologically-active compound morphine was isolated from opium, natural products and traditional medicines have already made fruitful contributions for modern medicine. When used to develop new drugs, natural products and traditional medicines have their incomparable advantages, such as abundant clinical experiences, and their unique diversity of chemical structures and biological activities.

  13. Phylogeny-guided (meta)genome mining approach for the targeted discovery of new microbial natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Hahk-Soo

    2017-02-01

    Genomics-based methods are now commonplace in natural products research. A phylogeny-guided mining approach provides a means to quickly screen a large number of microbial genomes or metagenomes in search of new biosynthetic gene clusters of interest. In this approach, biosynthetic genes serve as molecular markers, and phylogenetic trees built with known and unknown marker gene sequences are used to quickly prioritize biosynthetic gene clusters for their metabolites characterization. An increase in the use of this approach has been observed for the last couple of years along with the emergence of low cost sequencing technologies. The aim of this review is to discuss the basic concept of a phylogeny-guided mining approach, and also to provide examples in which this approach was successfully applied to discover new natural products from microbial genomes and metagenomes. I believe that the phylogeny-guided mining approach will continue to play an important role in genomics-based natural products research.

  14. Biomarkers in natural fish populations indicate adverse biological effects of offshore oil production.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lennart Balk

    Full Text Available Despite the growing awareness of the necessity of a sustainable development, the global economy continues to depend largely on the consumption of non-renewable energy resources. One such energy resource is fossil oil extracted from the seabed at offshore oil platforms. This type of oil production causes continuous environmental pollution from drilling waste, discharge of large amounts of produced water, and accidental spills.Samples from natural populations of haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus and Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua in two North Sea areas with extensive oil production were investigated. Exposure to and uptake of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs were demonstrated, and biomarker analyses revealed adverse biological effects, including induction of biotransformation enzymes, oxidative stress, altered fatty acid composition, and genotoxicity. Genotoxicity was reflected by a hepatic DNA adduct pattern typical for exposure to a mixture of PAHs. Control material was collected from a North Sea area without oil production and from remote Icelandic waters. The difference between the two control areas indicates significant background pollution in the North Sea.It is most remarkable to obtain biomarker responses in natural fish populations in the open sea that are similar to the biomarker responses in fish from highly polluted areas close to a point source. Risk assessment of various threats to the marine fish populations in the North Sea, such as overfishing, global warming, and eutrophication, should also take into account the ecologically relevant impact of offshore oil production.

  15. Emissions of CH4 from natural gas production in the United States using aircraft-based observations (Invited)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweeney, C.; Ryerson, T. B.; Karion, A.; Peischl, J.; Petron, G.; Schnell, R. C.; Tsai, T.; Crosson, E.; Rella, C.; Trainer, M.; Frost, G. J.; Hardesty, R. M.; Montzka, S. A.; Dlugokencky, E. J.; Tans, P. P.

    2013-12-01

    New extraction technologies are making natural gas from shale and tight sand gas reservoirs in the United States (US) more accessible. As a result, the US has become the largest producer of natural gas in the world. This growth in natural gas production may result in increased leakage of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, offsetting the climate benefits of natural gas relative to other fossil fuels. Methane emissions from natural gas production are not well quantified because of the large variety of potential sources, the variability in production and operating practices, the uneven distribution of emitters, and a lack of verification of emission inventories with direct atmospheric measurements. Researchers at the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) have used simple mass balance approaches to estimate emissions of CH4 from several natural gas and oil plays across the US. We will summarize the results of the available aircraft and ground-based atmospheric emissions estimates to better understand the spatial and temporal distribution of these emissions in the US.

  16. Applications of natural products in the control of mosquito ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Applications of natural products in the control of mosquito-transmitted ... African Journal of Biotechnology ... Ultimately, a paradigm shift in research that evaluates natural products in a comparative manner will help to produce new materials for ...

  17. Review: Natural products from Genus Selaginella (Selaginellaceae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    AHMAD DWI SETYAWAN

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Setyawan AD. 2011. Natural products from Genus Selaginella (Selaginellaceae. Nusantara Bioscience 3: 44-58. Selaginella is a potent medicinal-stuff, which contains diverse of natural products such as alkaloid, phenolic (flavonoid, and terpenoid. This species is traditionally used to cure several diseases especially for wound, after childbirth, and menstrual disorder. Biflavonoid, a dimeric form of flavonoids, is the most valuable natural products of Selaginella, which constituted at least 13 compounds, namely amentoflavone, 2',8''-biapigenin, delicaflavone, ginkgetin, heveaflavone, hinokiflavone, isocryptomerin, kayaflavone, ochnaflavone, podocarpusflavone A, robustaflavone, sumaflavone, and taiwaniaflavone. Ecologically, plants use biflavonoid to response environmental condition such as defense against pests, diseases, herbivory, and competitions; while human medically use biflavonoid especially for antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti carcinogenic. Selaginella also contains valuable disaccharide, namely trehalose that has long been known for protecting from desiccation and allows surviving severe environmental stress. The compound has very prospects as molecular stabilizer in the industries based bioresources.

  18. Aminobenzoates as building blocks for natural product assembly lines.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Christopher T; Haynes, Stuart W; Ames, Brian D

    2012-01-01

    The ortho-, meta-, and para- regioisomers of aminobenzoate are building blocks for a wide range of microbial natural products. Both the ortho-isomer (anthranilate) and PABA derive from the central shikimate pathway metabolite chorismate while the meta-isomer is not available by that route and starts from UDP-3-aminoglucose. PABA is largely funnelled into folate biosynthesis while anthranilate is the scaffold for biosynthetic elaboration into many natural heterocycles, most notably with its role in indole formation for tryptophan biosynthesis. Anthranilate is also converted to benzodiazepinones, fumiquinazolines, quinoxalines, phenoxazines, benzoxazolinates, quinolones, and phenazines, often with redox enzyme participation. The 5-hydroxy form of 3-aminobenzaote is the starter unit for ansa-bridged rifamycins, ansamitocins, and geldanamycins, whereas regioisomers 2-hydroxy, 4-hydroxy and 2,4-dihydroxy-3-aminobenzoate are key components of antimycin, grixazone, and platencin and platensimycin biosynthesis, respectively. The enzymatic mechanisms for generation of the aminobenzoate regioisomers and their subsequent utilization for diverse heterocycle and macrocycle construction are examined.

  19. Natural personal care products-analysis of ingredient lists and legal situation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klaschka, Ursula

    2016-01-01

    Many natural substances are classified as dangerous substances according to the European regulation on classification and labelling. Are they used in natural personal care products today? One hundred ingredient lists were analyzed to find this out. All products with natural substances contained dangerous natural substances or they contained natural substances, for which the information about their classification as dangerous substances is not available. 54 natural substances quoted in the ingredient lists were found to be classified, with 37 substances being classified due to hazardous effects for skin and eyes. However, the most frequently used natural substances are not classified as dangerous. Natural substances are multi-constituent compounds, leading to two main problems in personal care products: the potential interactions of a multitude of substances and the fact that dangerous constituents are not disclosed in the ingredient lists. For example, the fragrance allergens citral, farnesol, limonene, and linalool are frequent components of the natural substances employed. In addition, 82 products listed allergenic fragrance ingredients as single substances in their ingredient lists. Recommendations for sensitive skin in a product's name do not imply that the '26 fragrance allergens' are omitted. Furthermore, 80 products listed 'parfum'/'aroma', and 50 products listed ethanol. The data show that the loopholes for natural substances and for personal care products in the present European chemical legislation (e.g. the exception for classification and labelling of cosmetic products and the exception for information transfer in the supply chain) are not in line with an adequate consumer and environmental protection.

  20. Psychoactive natural products: overview of recent developments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    István Ujváry

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Natural psychoactive substances have fascinated the curious mind of shamans, artists, scholars and laymen since antiquity. During the twentieth century, the chemical composition of the most important psychoactive drugs, that is opium, cannabis, coca and "magic mushrooms", has been fully elucidated. The mode of action of the principal ingredients has also been deciphered at the molecular level. In the past two decades, the use of herbal drugs, such as kava, kratom and Salvia divinorum, began to spread beyond their traditional geographical and cultural boundaries. The aim of the present paper is to briefly summarize recent findings on the psychopharmacology of the most prominent psychoactive natural products. Current knowledge on a few lesser-known drugs, including bufotenine, glaucine, kava, betel, pituri, lettuce opium and kanna is also reviewed. In addition, selected cases of alleged natural (or semi-natural products are also mentioned.

  1. Planning of optimum production from a natural gas field

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Van Dam, J

    1968-03-01

    The design of an optimum development plan for a natural gas field always depends on the typical characteristics of the producing field, as well as those of the market to be served by this field. Therefore, a good knowledge of the field parameters, such as the total natural gas reserves, the well productivity, and the dependence of production rates on pipeline pressure and depletion of natural gas reserves, is required prior to designing the development scheme of the field, which in fact depends on the gas-sales contract to be concluded in order to commit the natural gas reserves to the market. In this paper these various technical parameters are discussed in some detail, and on this basis a theoretical/economical analysis of natural gas production is given. For this purpose a simplified economical/mathematical model for the field is proposed, from which optimum production rates at various future dates can be calculated. The results of these calculations are represented in a dimensionless diagram which may serve as an aid in designing optimum development plans for a natural gas field. The use of these graphs is illustrated in a few examples.

  2. Large-scale dynamic compaction of natural salt

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hansen, F.D.; Ahrens, E.H.

    1996-01-01

    A large-scale dynamic compaction demonstration of natural salt was successfully completed. About 40 m 3 of salt were compacted in three, 2-m lifts by dropping a 9,000-kg weight from a height of 15 m in a systematic pattern to achieve desired compaction energy. To enhance compaction, 1 wt% water was added to the relatively dry mine-run salt. The average compacted mass fractional density was 0.90 of natural intact salt, and in situ nitrogen permeabilities averaged 9X10 -14 m 2 . This established viability of dynamic compacting for placing salt shaft seal components. The demonstration also provided compacted salt parameters needed for shaft seal system design and performance assessments of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

  3. Marine Natural Products as Models to Circumvent Multidrug Resistance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Solida Long

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Multidrug resistance (MDR to anticancer drugs is a serious health problem that in many cases leads to cancer treatment failure. The ATP binding cassette (ABC transporter P-glycoprotein (P-gp, which leads to premature efflux of drugs from cancer cells, is often responsible for MDR. On the other hand, a strategy to search for modulators from natural products to overcome MDR had been in place during the last decades. However, Nature limits the amount of some natural products, which has led to the development of synthetic strategies to increase their availability. This review summarizes the research findings on marine natural products and derivatives, mainly alkaloids, polyoxygenated sterols, polyketides, terpenoids, diketopiperazines, and peptides, with P-gp inhibitory activity highlighting the established structure-activity relationships. The synthetic pathways for the total synthesis of the most promising members and analogs are also presented. It is expected that the data gathered during the last decades concerning their synthesis and MDR-inhibiting activities will help medicinal chemists develop potential drug candidates using marine natural products as models which can deliver new ABC transporter inhibitor scaffolds.

  4. Management and Treatment of Dengue and Chikungunya - Natural Products to the Rescue.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suroowan, Shanoo; Mahomoodally, Fawzi; Ragoo, Luxcha

    2016-01-01

    Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) flourish mostly in impoverished developing nations of the world. It is estimated that NTDs plague up to 1 billion people every year thereby inducing a massive economic and health burden worldwide. Following explosive outbreaks mostly in Asia, Latin America, Europe and the Indian Ocean, two common NTDs namely, Chikungunya and Dengue both transmitted by an infected mosquito vector principally Aedes aegypti have emerged as a major public health threat. Given the limitations of conventional medicine in specifically targeting the Chikungunya and Dengue virus (CHIKV and DENV), natural products present an interesting avenue to explore in the quest of developing novel anti; mosquito, CHIKV and DENV agents. In this endeavor, a number of plant extracts, isolated phytochemicals, essential oils and seaweeds have shown promising larvicidal and insecticidal activity against some mosquito vectors as well as anti CHIKV and DENV activity invitro. Other natural products that have depicted good potential against these diseases include; the symbiotic bacterial genus Wolbachia which can largely reduce the life span and infectivity of mosquito vectors and the marine Cyanobacterium Trichodesmium erythraeum which has shown anti- CHIKV activity at minimal cytotoxic level. The impetus of modern drug discovery approaches such as high throughput screening, drug repositioning, synthesis and computer-aided drug design will undeniably enhance the process of developing more stable lead molecules from natural products which have shown promising antiviral activity in-vitro.

  5. Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibitors (MMPIs from Marine Natural Products: the Current Situation and Future Prospects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Se-Kwon Kim

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs are a family of more than twenty five secreted and membrane-bound zinc-endopeptidases which can degrade extracellular matrix (ECM components. They also play important roles in a variety of biological and pathological processes. Matrix metalloproteinase inhibitors (MMPIs have been identified as potential therapeutic candidates for metastasis, arthritis, chronic inflammation and wrinkle formation. Up to present, more than 20,000 new compounds have been isolated from marine organisms, where considerable numbers of these naturally occurring derivatives are developed as potential candidates for pharmaceutical application. Eventhough the quantity of marine derived MMPIs is less when compare with the MMPIs derived from terrestrial materials, huge potential for bioactivity of these marine derived MMPIs has lead to large number of researches. Saccharoids, flavonoids and polyphones, fatty acids are the most important groups of MMPIs derived from marine natural products. In this review we focus on the progress of MMPIs from marine natural products.

  6. Natural or Induced: Identifying Natural and Induced Swarms from Pre-production and Co-production Microseismic Catalogs at the Coso Geothermal Field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schoenball, Martin; Kaven, Joern; Glen, Jonathan M. G.; Davatzes, Nicholas C.

    2015-01-01

    Increased levels of seismicity coinciding with injection of reservoir fluids have prompted interest in methods to distinguish induced from natural seismicity. Discrimination between induced and natural seismicity is especially difficult in areas that have high levels of natural seismicity, such as the geothermal fields at the Salton Sea and Coso, both in California. Both areas show swarm-like sequences that could be related to natural, deep fluid migration as part of the natural hydrothermal system. Therefore, swarms often have spatio-temporal patterns that resemble fluid-induced seismicity, and might possibly share other characteristics. The Coso Geothermal Field and its surroundings is one of the most seismically active areas in California with a large proportion of its activity occurring as seismic swarms. Here we analyze clustered seismicity in and surrounding the currently produced reservoir comparatively for pre-production and co-production periods. We perform a cluster analysis, based on the inter-event distance in a space-time-energy domain to identify notable earthquake sequences. For each event j, the closest previous event i is identified and their relationship categorized. If this nearest neighbor’s distance is below a threshold based on the local minimum of the bimodal distribution of nearest neighbor distances, then the event j is included in the cluster as a child to this parent event i. If it is above the threshold, event j begins a new cluster. This process identifies subsets of events whose nearest neighbor distances and relative timing qualify as a cluster as well as a characterizing the parent-child relationships among events in the cluster. We apply this method to three different catalogs: (1) a two-year microseismic survey of the Coso geothermal area that was acquired before exploration drilling in the area began; (2) the HYS_catalog_2013 that contains 52,000 double-difference relocated events and covers the years 1981 to 2013; and (3) a

  7. Wood and natural gas as fuels for tunnel kilns in the clay-product industry; Serragem e gas natural como fontes energeticas em fornos tuneis na industria ceramica vermelha

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Santos, Gabriel M. dos; Bazzo, Edson; Nicolau, Vicente de P.; Oliveira, Amir A.M. [Santa Catarina Univ., Florianopolis, SC (Brazil). Dept. de Engenharia Mecanica]. E-mails: mann@emc.ufsc.br; ebazzo@emc.ufsc.br; vicente@lmpt.ufsc.br; amirol@emc.ufsc.br

    2000-07-01

    The clay-product industry is responsible to large part of the thermal energy consumption, especially on drying and burning process. In spite of the success obtained with the burning of wood like principal fuel for tunnel kilns, the clay-product industries of Santa Catarina have looked for alternatives to substitute it. The interest appears especially due to imminent shortage of the wood on the market and due to possibility of use natural gas as a good and environmentally favorable alternative to reduce the energy specific consumption of the kilns, to increase the production and to improve the quality of the ceramic products. Nowadays, the natural gas is more expensive when compared with the wood. However, we believe that additional studies can place this fuel as a viable alternative to the clay-product industries. (author)

  8. Anti-Enterovirus 71 Agents of Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Liyan; Wang, Junfeng; Wang, Lishu; Ma, Shurong; Liu, Yonghong

    2015-09-09

    This review, with 42 references, presents the fascinating area of anti-enterovirus 71 natural products over the last three decades for the first time. It covers literature published from 2005-2015 and refers to compounds isolated from biogenic sources. In total, 58 naturally-occurring anti-EV71 compounds are recorded.

  9. Naturally occurring radionuclides in agricultural products: An overview

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hanlon, E.A.

    1994-01-01

    Low levels of naturally occurring radionuclides exist in phosphatic clays, a by-product of phosphatic mining and beneficiation processes. Concerns about these radionuclides entering the human food chain were an immediate research priority before the phosphate clays could be reclaimed for intensive agricultural purposes. Efforts included the assembly of a large body of data from both sons and plants, part of which were produced by the Polk County (Florida) Mined Lands Agricultural Research/Demonstration Project MLAR/DP. Additional detailed studies involving dairy and beef cattle (Bos taurus) were conducted by researchers working with the MLAR/DP. A national symposium was conducted in which data concerning the MLAR/DP work and other research projects also dealing with naturally occurring radionuclides in agriculture could be discussed. The symposium included invited review papers dealing with the identification of radionuclide geological origins, the geochemistry and movement of radionuclides within the environment, mechanisms of plant uptake, entry points into the food chain, and evaluation of dose and risk assessment to the consumer of low levels of radionuclides. The risk to human health of an individual obtaining 0.1 of his or her dietary intake from crops produced on phosphatic clays increased by 1 in 5 x 10 6 /yr above a control individual consuming no food grown on phosphatic clays. Leaf tissues were found to be generally higher than fruit, grain, or root tissues. The natural range in radionuclide content among various food types was greater than the difference in radionuclides content between the same food produced on phosphatic clays vs. natural soils. 19 refs

  10. Exposures from consumption of agricultural and semi-natural products

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Strand, P.; Skuterud, L.; Balonov, M.; Travnikova, I.; Hove, K.; Howard, B.; Prister, B.S.; Ratnikov, A.

    1996-01-01

    The importance of food from different production systems to the internal dose from radiocesium, was investigated in selected study sites in Ukraine and Russia. Food products from semi-natural ecosystems are major contributors to the individual internal dose to rural population in areas affected by the Chernobyl accident. At the selected study sites it is estimated in 1995 that foods from private farms and forests contribute on average 35% to 60%, to the individual internal dose, variation relating to soil types and implemented countermeasures. The importance of food products from private farms and particularly forest products increases with time since Cs concentration in some of the natural food products have longer ecological half life than food products from agricultural systems. A significant relationship was observed between consumption of mushrooms and whole body content of radiocesium in rural people. The contribution to the collective dose of food products produced in the semi-natural ecosystems is less than the contribution to the individual internal dose for the local rural population

  11. Preliminary report on the commercial viability of gas production from natural gas hydrates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, M.R.; Hancock, S.H.; Wilson, S.J.; Patil, S.L.; Moridis, G.J.; Boswell, R.; Collett, T.S.; Koh, C.A.; Sloan, E.D.

    2009-01-01

    Economic studies on simulated gas hydrate reservoirs have been compiled to estimate the price of natural gas that may lead to economically viable production from the most promising gas hydrate accumulations. As a first estimate, $CDN2005 12/Mscf is the lowest gas price that would allow economically viable production from gas hydrates in the absence of associated free gas, while an underlying gas deposit will reduce the viability price estimate to $CDN2005 7.50/Mscf. Results from a recent analysis of the simulated production of natural gas from marine hydrate deposits are also considered in this report; on an IROR basis, it is $US2008 3.50-4.00/Mscf more expensive to produce marine hydrates than conventional marine gas assuming the existence of sufficiently large marine hydrate accumulations. While these prices represent the best available estimates, the economic evaluation of a specific project is highly dependent on the producibility of the target zone, the amount of gas in place, the associated geologic and depositional environment, existing pipeline infrastructure, and local tariffs and taxes. ?? 2009 Elsevier B.V.

  12. Covalent attachment of the plant natural product naringenin to small glass and ceramic beads

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Grotewold Erich

    2005-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Natural products have numerous medicinal applications and play important roles in the biology of the organisms that accumulate them. Few methods are currently available for identifying proteins that bind to small molecules, therefore the discovery of cellular targets for natural products with pharmacological activity continues to pose a significant challenge in drug validation. Similarly, the identification of enzymes that participate in the biosynthesis or modification of natural products remains a formidable bottleneck for metabolic engineering. Flavonoids are one large group of natural products with a diverse number of functions in plants and in human health. The coupling of flavonoids to small ceramic and glass beads provides a first step in the development of high-throughput, solid-support base approaches to screen complex libraries to identify proteins that bind natural products. Results The utilization of small glass and ceramic beads as solid supports for the coupling of small molecules was explored. Initial characterization of the beads indicated uniform and high capacity loading of amino groups. Once the beads were deemed adequate for the linking of small molecules by the coupling of NHS-fluorescein followed by microscopy, chemical hydrolysis and fluorometry, the flavonoid naringenin was modified with 1,4-dibromobutane, followed by the attachment of aminopropyltriethoxysilane. After NMR structural confirmation, the resulting 7-(4-(3-(triethoxysilylpropylaminobutoxy naringenin was attached to the ceramic beads. Conclusion Our results demonstrate that ceramic and glass beads provide convenient solid supports for the efficient and facile coupling of small molecules. We succeeded in generating naringenin-coupled ceramic and glass beads. We also developed a convenient series of steps that can be applied for the solid-support coupling of other related flavonoids. The availability of solid-support coupled naringenin opens

  13. Regulation of natural health products in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Alysyn; Jogalekar, Sumedha; Gibson, Adam

    2014-12-02

    In Canada, all natural health products (NHPs) are regulated by Health Canada (HC) under the Food and Drugs Act and the Natural Health Product Regulations. All authorized products undergo pre-market assessment for safety, efficacy and quality and the degree of pre-market oversight varies depending on the risk of the product. In Canada, over 70,000 products have been authorized for sale and over 2000 sites have been licensed to produce NHPs. In the management of NHPs on the Canadian market, HC employs a number of active and collaborative methods to address the most common issues such as contamination, adulteration and deceptive or misleading advertising practices. HC is currently evolving its approaches to NHPs to recognize them as part of the larger group of health products available without a prescription. As such, the regulatory responsibility for all over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, including non-prescription drugs and NHPs, has been transferred to a single federal division. As a result of this transition a number of benefits are being realized with respect to government efficiency, clarity for industry, support for new innovations and consolidated government interactions with the Canadian market. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Natural products: the new engine for African trade growth

    OpenAIRE

    Bennett, Ben

    2006-01-01

    This report was to further develop the trade component of the Natural Resources Enterprise Programme (NATPRO). The field work was undertaken in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Namibia, the Republic of South Africa and the United Kingdom between 9th January and 25th February 2006. The work concentrated on ten countries in Southern Africa with potential to export significant quantities of natural products. These products are defined by the project as follows: being plant derived, occurring naturally, wild ha...

  15. Electromagnetic surface waves for large-area RF plasma productions between large-area planar electrodes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nonaka, S.

    1992-01-01

    Recently, large-area plasma production has been tested by means of a 13.56 MHz radio-frequency (RF) discharge between a pair of large-area planar electrodes, approximately 0.5 m x 1.4 m, as one of the semiconductor technologies for fabrication of large-area amorphous silicon solar cells in the ''Sunshine Project'' of the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology in Japan. We also confirmed long plasma production between a pair of long electrodes. In this paper, normal electromagnetic (EM) waves propagating in a region between a planar waveguide with one plasma and two dielectric layers are analyzed in order to study the feasibility of large-area plasma productions by EM wave-discharges between a pair of large-area RF electrodes larger than the half-wavelength of RF wave. In conclusion, plasmas higher than an electron plasma frequency will be produced by an odd TMoo surface mode. (author) 4 refs., 3 figs

  16. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 16; Issue 12. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products - Architectural Designs in Molecular Constructions. N R Krishnaswamy. Volume 16 Issue 12 December 2011 pp 1287-1293 ...

  17. Anti-Enterovirus 71 Agents of Natural Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liyan Wang

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available This review, with 42 references, presents the fascinating area of anti-enterovirus 71 natural products over the last three decades for the first time. It covers literature published from 2005–2015 and refers to compounds isolated from biogenic sources. In total, 58 naturally-occurring anti-EV71 compounds are recorded.

  18. Natural products in soil microbe interactions and evolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Traxler, Matthew F; Kolter, Roberto

    2015-07-01

    In recent years, bacterial interspecies interactions mediated by small molecule natural products have been found to give rise to a surprising array of phenotypes in soil-dwelling bacteria, especially among Streptomyces and Bacillus species. This review examines these interspecies interactions, and the natural products involved, as they have been presented in literature stemming from four disciplines: soil science, interspecies microbiology, ecology, and evolutionary biology. We also consider how these interactions fit into accepted paradigms of signaling, cueing, and coercion.

  19. Antifouling Activity of Marine Natural Products

    KAUST Repository

    Qian, Pei-Yuan; Xu, Sharon Ying

    2012-01-01

    for marine industries. Marine natural products have been considered as one of the most promising sources of antifouling compounds in recent years. In antifouling compound screening processes, bioassay systems often play most critical/vital roles in screening

  20. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 2. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products Determination of Absolute Stereochemistry. N R Krishnaswamy. Series Article Volume 1 Issue 2 February 1996 pp 40-46 ...

  1. Flavin-catalyzed redox tailoring reactions in natural product biosynthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teufel, Robin

    2017-10-15

    Natural products are distinct and often highly complex organic molecules that constitute not only an important drug source, but have also pushed the field of organic chemistry by providing intricate targets for total synthesis. How the astonishing structural diversity of natural products is enzymatically generated in biosynthetic pathways remains a challenging research area, which requires detailed and sophisticated approaches to elucidate the underlying catalytic mechanisms. Commonly, the diversification of precursor molecules into distinct natural products relies on the action of pathway-specific tailoring enzymes that catalyze, e.g., acylations, glycosylations, or redox reactions. This review highlights a selection of tailoring enzymes that employ riboflavin (vitamin B2)-derived cofactors (FAD and FMN) to facilitate unusual redox catalysis and steer the formation of complex natural product pharmacophores. Remarkably, several such recently reported flavin-dependent tailoring enzymes expand the classical paradigms of flavin biochemistry leading, e.g., to the discovery of the flavin-N5-oxide - a novel flavin redox state and oxygenating species. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. The potential of natural gas use including cogeneration in large-sized industry and commercial sector in Peru

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzales Palomino, Raul; Nebra, Silvia A.

    2012-01-01

    In recent years there have been several discussions on a greater use of natural gas nationwide. Moreover, there have been several announcements by the private and public sectors regarding the construction of new pipelines to supply natural gas to the Peruvian southern and central-north markets. This paper presents future scenarios for the use of natural gas in the large-sized industrial and commercial sectors of the country based on different hypotheses on developments in the natural gas industry, national economic growth, energy prices, technological changes and investment decisions. First, the paper estimates the market potential and characterizes the energy consumption. Then it makes a selection of technological alternatives for the use of natural gas, and it makes an energetic and economic analysis and economic feasibility. Finally, the potential use of natural gas is calculated through nine different scenarios. The natural gas use in cogeneration systems is presented as an alternative to contribute to the installed power capacity of the country. Considering the introduction of the cogeneration in the optimistic–advanced scenario and assuming that all of their conditions would be put into practice, in 2020, the share of the cogeneration in electricity production in Peru would be 9.9%. - Highlights: ► This paper presents future scenarios for the use of natural gas in the large-sized industrial and commercial sectors of Peru. ► The potential use of natural gas is calculated through nine different scenarios.► The scenarios were based on different hypotheses on developments in the natural gas industry, national economic growth, energy prices, technological changes and investment decisions. ► We estimated the market potential and characterized the energy consumption, and made a selection of technological alternatives for the use of natural gas.

  3. α-Haloaldehydes: versatile building blocks for natural product synthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Britton, Robert; Kang, Baldip

    2013-02-01

    The diastereoselective addition of organometallic reagents to α-chloroaldehydes was first reported in 1959 and occupies a historically significant role as the prototypical reaction for Cornforth's model of stereoinduction. Despite clear synthetic potential for these reagents, difficulties associated with producing enantiomerically enriched α-haloaldehydes limited their use in natural product synthesis through the latter half of the 20th century. In recent years, however, a variety of robust, organocatalytic processes have been reported that now provide direct access to optically enriched α-haloaldehydes and have motivated renewed interest in their use as building blocks for natural product synthesis. This Highlight summarizes the methods available for the enantioselective preparation of α-haloaldehydes and their stereoselective conversion into natural products.

  4. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 10. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products Architectural Designs in Molecular Constructions. N R Krishnaswamy. Series Article Volume 1 Issue 10 October 1996 pp 37-43 ...

  5. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 7. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural engine Products - Structure and Biological Functions. N R Krishnaswamy. Series Article Volume 1 Issue 7 July 1996 pp 23-30 ...

  6. Pharmaceuticals from natural products: current trends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    PETER R. SEIDL

    2002-03-01

    Full Text Available The use of products extracted from plants for medicinal purposes can be traced to the beginnings of civilization and up until the end of the nineteenth century natural products were the principal source of medicines. Since then their relative importance has oscillated according to the strategies of large pharmaceutical companies. Now that these strategies are changing, there are new opportunities for countries like Brazil, in which a large proportion of the world's biodiversity is located. There are, however, new circumstances that must be taken into consideration: material must be collected by groups which are formally authorized to do so and under the conditions of the Convention of Biological Diversity, the discovery process is being successively outsourced to smaller specialized firms and there is a growing integration with producers of cosmetics and phytomedicines.O uso de produtos extraídos de plantas para fins medicinais pode ser tracejado aos inícios da civilização e até o fim do século XIX, os produtos naturais constituíram a principal fonte de medicamentos. Desde então, a importância relativa dos produtos naturais tem oscilado de acordo com as estratégias de grandes companhias farmacêuticas. Agora que estas estratégias vêm mudando, há novas oportunidades para países como o Brasil, no qual está localizada uma vasta proporção da biodiversidade mundial. Há, entretanto, novas circunstâncias que devem ser levadas em consideração: o material deve ser coletado por grupos que estão formalmente autorizados para tal, com a coleta sendo feita sob as condições da Convenção de Diversidade Biológica, o processo de descoberta está sendo sucessivamente terceirizado no sentido de firmas especializadas menores e há uma integração crescente como produtores de cosméticos e fitomedicamentos.

  7. The limited contribution of large trees to annual biomass production in an old-growth tropical forest.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ligot, Gauthier; Gourlet-Fleury, Sylvie; Ouédraogo, Dakis-Yaoba; Morin, Xavier; Bauwens, Sébastien; Baya, Fidele; Brostaux, Yves; Doucet, Jean-Louis; Fayolle, Adeline

    2018-04-16

    Although the importance of large trees regarding biodiversity and carbon stock in old-growth forests is undeniable, their annual contribution to biomass production and carbon uptake remains poorly studied at the stand level. To clarify the role of large trees in biomass production, we used data of tree growth, mortality, and recruitment monitored during 20 yr in 10 4-ha plots in a species-rich tropical forest (Central African Republic). Using a random block design, three different silvicultural treatments, control, logged, and logged + thinned, were applied in the 10 plots. Annual biomass gains and losses were analyzed in relation to the relative biomass abundance of large trees and by tree size classes using a spatial bootstrap procedure. Although large trees had high individual growth rates and constituted a substantial amount of biomass, stand-level biomass production decreased with the abundance of large trees in all treatments and plots. The contribution of large trees to annual stand-level biomass production appeared limited in comparison to that of small trees. This pattern did not only originate from differences in abundance of small vs. large trees or differences in initial biomass stocks among tree size classes, but also from a reduced relative growth rate of large trees and a relatively constant mortality rate among tree size classes. In a context in which large trees are increasingly gaining attention as being a valuable and a key structural characteristic of natural forests, the present study brought key insights to better gauge the relatively limited role of large trees in annual stand-level biomass production. In terms of carbon uptake, these results suggest, as already demonstrated, a low net carbon uptake of old-growth forests in comparison to that of logged forests. Tropical forests that reach a successional stage with relatively high density of large trees progressively cease to be carbon sinks as large trees contribute sparsely or even

  8. Deposits of naturally occurring radioactivity in production of oil and natural gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Strand, T.; Lysebo, I.; Kristensen, D.; Birovljev, A.

    1997-01-01

    Deposits of naturally occurring radioactive materials is an increasing problem in Norwegian oil and gas production. Activity concentration in solid-state samples and production water, and doses to workers involved in different operations off-shore, have been measured. The report also includes a discussion of different methods of monitoring and alternatives for final disposal of wastes. 154 refs

  9. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 5. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products From Molecular and Electronic Structures to Reactivity. N R Krishnaswamy. Series Article Volume 1 Issue 5 May 1996 pp 12-18 ...

  10. Remote methods of indicating oil products in natural waters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shlyakhova, L A

    1981-01-01

    A survey is made of domestic and foreign publications covering remote methods of monitoring film petroleum products and oil in natural waters. The given methods are realized in practice with the use of different sections of the electromagnetic spectrum. Remote quality control of the natural waters at the modern level may be an indicator of water pollution with film petroleum products.

  11. Bioactive natural products from Chinese marine flora and fauna.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Zhen-Fang; Guo, Yue-Wei

    2012-09-01

    In recent decades, the pharmaceutical application potential of marine natural products has attracted much interest from both natural product chemists and pharmacologists. Our group has long been engaged in the search for bioactive natural products from Chinese marine flora (such as mangroves and algae) and fauna (including sponges, soft corals, and mollusks), resulting in the isolation and characterization of numerous novel secondary metabolites spanning a wide range of structural classes and various biosynthetic origins. Of particular interest is the fact that many of these compounds show promising biological activities, including cytotoxic, antibacterial, and enzyme inhibitory effects. By describing representative studies, this review presents a comprehensive summary regarding the achievements and progress made by our group in the past decade. Several interesting examples are discussed in detail.

  12. Development and design of plants for high-pressure extraction of natural products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eggers, R; Tschiersch, R [Thyssen Industrie A.G., Witten (Germany, F.R.)

    1979-06-01

    Criteria underlying the design of plant for recovery of carrier material or extract are reviewed, particularly in relation to the extraction of natural products with supercritical CO/sub 2/. The parameters to be determined in the planning of a large-scale plant are outlined and as an example of a typical process, the extraction of spices is discussed in detail. The plant components and equipment are presented together with their particular process and construction characteristics. Finally, the thermodynamic aspects are analyzed and methods of optimizing a large-scale plant and of reducing the power consumption are outlined. Particular attention is paid to the question of optimization with regard to the most economic method of operation of such a plant to be applied in the future.

  13. [Elaboration of Pseudo-natural Products Using Artificial In Vitro Biosynthesis Systems].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goto, Yuki

    2018-01-01

     Peptidic natural products often consist of not only proteinogenic building blocks but also unique non-proteinogenic structures such as macrocyclic scaffolds and N-methylated backbones. Since such non-proteinogenic structures are important structural motifs that contribute to diverse bioactivity, we have proposed that peptides with non-proteinogenic structures should be attractive candidates as artificial bioactive peptides mimicking natural products, or so-called pseudo-natural products. We previously devised an engineered translation system for pseudo-natural peptides, referred to as the flexible in vitro translation (FIT) system. This system enabled "one-pot" synthesis of highly diverse pseudo-natural peptide libraries, which can be rapidly screened by mRNA display technology for the discovery of pseudo-natural peptides with diverse bioactivities.

  14. Constructing a Spatially Resolved Methane Emission Inventory of Natural Gas Production and Distribution over Contiguous United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, X.; Omara, M.; Adams, P. J.; Presto, A. A.

    2017-12-01

    Methane is the second most powerful greenhouse gas after Carbon Dioxide. The natural gas production and distribution accounts for 23% of the total anthropogenic methane emissions in the United States. The boost of natural gas production in U.S. in recent years poses a potential concern of increased methane emissions from natural gas production and distribution. The Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (Edgar) v4.2 and the EPA Greenhouse Gas Inventory (GHGI) are currently the most commonly used methane emission inventories. However, recent studies suggested that both Edgar v4.2 and the EPA GHGI largely underestimated the methane emission from natural gas production and distribution in U.S. constrained by both ground and satellite measurements. In this work, we built a gridded (0.1° Latitude ×0.1° Longitude) methane emission inventory of natural gas production and distribution over the contiguous U.S. using emission factors measured by our mobile lab in the Marcellus Shale, the Denver-Julesburg Basin, and the Uintah Basin, and emission factors reported from other recent field studies for other natural gas production regions. The activity data (well location and count) are mostly obtained from the Drillinginfo, the EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Results show that the methane emission from natural gas production and distribution estimated by our inventory is about 20% higher than the EPA GHGI, and in some major natural gas production regions, methane emissions estimated by the EPA GHGI are significantly lower than our inventory. For example, in the Marcellus Shale, our estimated annual methane emission in 2015 is 600 Gg higher than the EPA GHGI. We also ran the GEOS-Chem methane simulation to estimate the methane concentration in the atmosphere with our built inventory, the EPA GHGI and the Edgar v4.2 over the nested North American Domain. These simulation results showed differences in

  15. Synthesis and Biological Investigation of Antioxidant Pyrrolomorpholine Spiroketal Natural Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verano, Alyssa Leigh

    The pyrrolomorpholine spiroketal natural product family is comprised of epimeric furanose and pyranose isomers. These compounds were isolated from diverse plant species, all of which are used as traditional Chinese medicines for the treatment of a variety of diseases. Notably, the spiroketal natural products acortatarins A and B exhibit antioxidant activity in a diabetic renal cell model, significantly attenuating hyperglycemia-induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), a hallmark of diabetic nephropathy. The xylapyrrosides, additional members of the family, also inhibit t-butyl hydroperoxide-induced cytotoxicity in rat vascular smooth muscle cells. Accordingly, these natural products have therapeutic potential for the treatment of oxidative stress-related pathologies, and synthetic access would provide an exciting opportunity to investigate bioactivity and mechanism of action. Herein, we report the stereoselective synthesis of acortatarins A and B, furanose members of the pyrrolomorpholine spiroketal family. Our synthetic route was expanded to synthesize the pyranose congeners, thus completing entire D-enantiomeric family of natural products. Efficient access towards these scaffolds enabled systematic analogue synthesis, investigation of mechanism-of-action, and the discovery of novel antioxidants.

  16. Directed natural product biosynthesis gene cluster capture and expression in the model bacterium Bacillus subtilis

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Yongxin

    2015-03-24

    Bacilli are ubiquitous low G+C environmental Gram-positive bacteria that produce a wide assortment of specialized small molecules. Although their natural product biosynthetic potential is high, robust molecular tools to support the heterologous expression of large biosynthetic gene clusters in Bacillus hosts are rare. Herein we adapt transformation-associated recombination (TAR) in yeast to design a single genomic capture and expression vector for antibiotic production in Bacillus subtilis. After validating this direct cloning plug-and-playa approach with surfactin, we genetically interrogated amicoumacin biosynthetic gene cluster from the marine isolate Bacillus subtilis 1779. Its heterologous expression allowed us to explore an unusual maturation process involving the N-acyl-asparagine pro-drug intermediates preamicoumacins, which are hydrolyzed by the asparagine-specific peptidase into the active component amicoumacin A. This work represents the first direct cloning based heterologous expression of natural products in the model organism B. subtilis and paves the way to the development of future genome mining efforts in this genus.

  17. Directed natural product biosynthesis gene cluster capture and expression in the model bacterium Bacillus subtilis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yongxin; Li, Zhongrui; Yamanaka, Kazuya; Xu, Ying; Zhang, Weipeng; Vlamakis, Hera; Kolter, Roberto; Moore, Bradley S.; Qian, Pei-Yuan

    2015-03-01

    Bacilli are ubiquitous low G+C environmental Gram-positive bacteria that produce a wide assortment of specialized small molecules. Although their natural product biosynthetic potential is high, robust molecular tools to support the heterologous expression of large biosynthetic gene clusters in Bacillus hosts are rare. Herein we adapt transformation-associated recombination (TAR) in yeast to design a single genomic capture and expression vector for antibiotic production in Bacillus subtilis. After validating this direct cloning ``plug-and-play'' approach with surfactin, we genetically interrogated amicoumacin biosynthetic gene cluster from the marine isolate Bacillus subtilis 1779. Its heterologous expression allowed us to explore an unusual maturation process involving the N-acyl-asparagine pro-drug intermediates preamicoumacins, which are hydrolyzed by the asparagine-specific peptidase into the active component amicoumacin A. This work represents the first direct cloning based heterologous expression of natural products in the model organism B. subtilis and paves the way to the development of future genome mining efforts in this genus.

  18. LHCb: Managing Large Data Productions in LHCb

    CERN Multimedia

    Tsaregorodtsev, A

    2009-01-01

    LHC experiments are producing very large volumes of data either accumulated from the detectors or generated via the Monte-Carlo modeling. The data should be processed as quickly as possible to provide users with the input for their analysis. Processing of multiple hundreds of terabytes of data necessitates generation, submission and following a huge number of grid jobs running all over the Computing Grid. Manipulation of these large and complex workloads is impossible without powerful production management tools. In LHCb, the DIRAC Production Management System (PMS) is used to accomplish this task. It enables production managers and end-users to deal with all kinds of data generation, processing and storage. Application workflow tools allow to define jobs as complex sequences of elementary application steps expressed as Directed Acyclic Graphs. Specialized databases and a number of dedicated software agents ensure automated data driven job creation and submission. The productions are accomplished by thorough ...

  19. Flow chemistry syntheses of natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pastre, Julio C; Browne, Duncan L; Ley, Steven V

    2013-12-07

    The development and application of continuous flow chemistry methods for synthesis is a rapidly growing area of research. In particular, natural products provide demanding challenges to this developing technology. This review highlights successes in the area with an emphasis on new opportunities and technological advances.

  20. Transporter-mediated natural product-drug interactions for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zha, Weibin

    2018-04-01

    The growing use of natural products in cardiovascular (CV) patients has been greatly raising the concerns about potential natural product-CV drug interactions. Some of these may lead to unexpected cardiovascular adverse effects and it is, therefore, essential to identify or predict potential natural product-CV drug interactions, and to understand the underlying mechanisms. Drug transporters are important determinants for the pharmacokinetics of drugs and alterations of drug transport has been recognized as one of the major causes of natural product-drug interactions. In last two decades, many CV drugs (e.g., angiotensin II receptor blockers, beta-blockers and statins) have been identified to be substrates and inhibitors of the solute carrier (SLC) transporters and the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, which are two major transporter superfamilies. Meanwhile, in vitro and in vivo studies indicate that a growing number of natural products showed cardioprotective effects (e.g., gingko biloba, danshen and their active ingredients) are also substrates and inhibitors of drug transporters. Thus, to understand transporter-mediated natural product-CV drug interactions is important and some transporter-mediated interactions have already shown to have clinical relevance. In this review, we review the current knowledge on the role of ABC and SLC transporters in CV therapy, as well as transporter modulation by natural products used in CV diseases and their induced natural product-CV drug interactions through alterations of drug transport. We hope our review will aid in a comprehensive summary of transporter-mediated natural product-CV drug interactions and help public and physicians understand these type of interactions. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  1. Experience curve for natural gas production by hydraulic fracturing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fukui, Rokuhei; Greenfield, Carl; Pogue, Katie; Zwaan, Bob van der

    2017-01-01

    From 2007 to 2012 shale gas production in the US expanded at an astounding average growth rate of over 50%/yr, and thereby increased nearly tenfold over this short time period alone. Hydraulic fracturing technology, or “fracking”, as well as new directional drilling techniques, played key roles in this shale gas revolution, by allowing for extraction of natural gas from previously unviable shale resources. Although hydraulic fracturing technology had been around for decades, it only recently became commercially attractive for large-scale implementation. As the production of shale gas rapidly increased in the US over the past decade, the wellhead price of natural gas dropped substantially. In this paper we express the relationship between wellhead price and cumulative natural gas output in terms of an experience curve, and obtain a learning rate of 13% for the industry using hydraulic fracturing technology. This learning rate represents a measure for the know-how and skills accumulated thus far by the US shale gas industry. The use of experience curves for renewable energy options such as solar and wind power has allowed analysts, practitioners, and policy makers to assess potential price reductions, and underlying cost decreases, for these technologies in the future. The reasons for price reductions of hydraulic fracturing are fundamentally different from those behind renewable energy technologies – hence they cannot be directly compared – and hydraulic fracturing may soon reach, or maybe has already attained, a lower bound for further price reductions, for instance as a result of its water requirements or environmental footprint. Yet, understanding learning-by-doing phenomena as expressed by an industry-wide experience curve for shale gas production can be useful for strategic planning in the gas sector, as well as assist environmental policy design, and serve more broadly as input for projections of energy system developments. - Highlights: • Hydraulic

  2. Anti-cancer natural products isolated from chinese medicinal herbs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wu Guosheng

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract In recent years, a number of natural products isolated from Chinese herbs have been found to inhibit proliferation, induce apoptosis, suppress angiogenesis, retard metastasis and enhance chemotherapy, exhibiting anti-cancer potential both in vitro and in vivo. This article summarizes recent advances in in vitro and in vivo research on the anti-cancer effects and related mechanisms of some promising natural products. These natural products are also reviewed for their therapeutic potentials, including flavonoids (gambogic acid, curcumin, wogonin and silibinin, alkaloids (berberine, terpenes (artemisinin, β-elemene, oridonin, triptolide, and ursolic acid, quinones (shikonin and emodin and saponins (ginsenoside Rg3, which are isolated from Chinese medicinal herbs. In particular, the discovery of the new use of artemisinin derivatives as excellent anti-cancer drugs is also reviewed.

  3. Nature-Inspired Design : Strategies for Sustainable Product Development

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    De Pauw, I.C.

    2015-01-01

    Product designers can apply different strategies, methods, and tools for sustainable product development. Nature-Inspired Design Strategies (NIDS) offer designers a distinct class of strategies that use ‘nature’ as a guiding source of knowledge and inspiration for addressing sustainability.

  4. T R Seshadri's Contributions to the Chemistry of Natural Products

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Sri Sathya Sai Institute of. Higher Learning. Generations of students would vouch for the fact that he has the uncanny ability to present the chemistry of natural products logically and with feeling. Keywords. Flavonoids, lichen metabolite, methylation, Elbs-Seshadri oxi- dation, structure elucidation, natural products synthesis.

  5. A comparative economic assessment of hydrogen production from large central versus smaller distributed plant in a carbon constrained world

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nguyen, Y.V.; Ngo, Y.A.; Tinkler, M.J.; Cowan, N.

    2003-01-01

    This paper compares the economics of producing hydrogen at large central plants versus smaller distributed plants at user sites. The economics of two types of central plant, each at 100 million standard cubic feet per day of hydrogen, based on electrolysis and natural gas steam reforming technologies, will be discussed. The additional cost of controlling CO 2 emissions from the natural gas steam reforming plant will be included in the analysis in order to satisfy the need to live in a future carbon constrained world. The cost of delivery of hydrogen from the large central plant to the user sites in a large metropolitan area will be highlighted, and the delivered cost will be compared to the cost from on-site distributed generation plants. Five types of distributed generation plants, based on proton exchange membrane, alkaline electrolysis and advanced steam reforming, will be analysed and discussed. Two criteria were used to rank various hydrogen production options, the cost of production and the price of hydrogen to achieve an acceptable return of investment. (author)

  6. Fishing for Nature's Hits: Establishment of the Zebrafish as a Model for Screening Antidiabetic Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tabassum, Nadia; Tai, Hongmei; Jung, Da-Woon; Williams, Darren R

    2015-01-01

    Diabetes mellitus affects millions of people worldwide and significantly impacts their quality of life. Moreover, life threatening diseases, such as myocardial infarction, blindness, and renal disorders, increase the morbidity rate associated with diabetes. Various natural products from medicinal plants have shown potential as antidiabetes agents in cell-based screening systems. However, many of these potential "hits" fail in mammalian tests, due to issues such as poor pharmacokinetics and/or toxic side effects. To address this problem, the zebrafish (Danio rerio) model has been developed as a "bridge" to provide an experimentally convenient animal-based screening system to identify drug candidates that are active in vivo. In this review, we discuss the application of zebrafish to drug screening technologies for diabetes research. Specifically, the discovery of natural product-based antidiabetes compounds using zebrafish will be described. For example, it has recently been demonstrated that antidiabetic natural compounds can be identified in zebrafish using activity guided fractionation of crude plant extracts. Moreover, the development of fluorescent-tagged glucose bioprobes has allowed the screening of natural product-based modulators of glucose homeostasis in zebrafish. We hope that the discussion of these advances will illustrate the value and simplicity of establishing zebrafish-based assays for antidiabetic compounds in natural products-based laboratories.

  7. Natural Selection in Large Populations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Desai, Michael

    2011-03-01

    I will discuss theoretical and experimental approaches to the evolutionary dynamics and population genetics of natural selection in large populations. In these populations, many mutations are often present simultaneously, and because recombination is limited, selection cannot act on them all independently. Rather, it can only affect whole combinations of mutations linked together on the same chromosome. Methods common in theoretical population genetics have been of limited utility in analyzing this coupling between the fates of different mutations. In the past few years it has become increasingly clear that this is a crucial gap in our understanding, as sequence data has begun to show that selection appears to act pervasively on many linked sites in a wide range of populations, including viruses, microbes, Drosophila, and humans. I will describe approaches that combine analytical tools drawn from statistical physics and dynamical systems with traditional methods in theoretical population genetics to address this problem, and describe how experiments in budding yeast can help us directly observe these evolutionary dynamics.

  8. Development and planning of plant for the high-pressure extraction of natural products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eggers, R; Tschiersch, R [Thyssen Industrie A.G., Witten (Germany, F.R.)

    1978-11-01

    Important criteria in the designing of plant for the recovery of carrier or extract are reviewed, especially for the extraction of natural products with supercritical CO/sub 2/. The quantities to be determined in the planning of a large-scale plant are outlined and a typical process, the extraction of spices, is discussed in detail. The plant components and assemblies are presented together with their particular process engineering and construction characteristics. Finally, the thermodynamic aspects are dealt with in more detail and ways of optimizing a large-scale plant and reducing the power consumption are outlined. Particular attention is paid to the question of optimization regarding the most economic method of operation of such a plant in the future.

  9. Naturally Efficient Emitters: Luminescent Organometallic Complexes Derived from Natural Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Wen-Hua; Young, David J.

    2013-08-01

    Naturally occurring molecules offer intricate structures and functionality that are the basis of modern medicinal chemistry, but are under-represented in materials science. Herein, we review recent literature describing the use of abundant and relatively inexpensive, natural products for the synthesis of ligands for luminescent organometallic complexes used for organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) and related technologies. These ligands are prepared from the renewable starting materials caffeine, camphor, pinene and cinchonine and, with the exception of caffeine, impart performance improvements to the emissive metal complexes and resulting OLED devices, with emission wavelengths that span the visible spectrum from blue to red. The advantages of these biologically-derived molecules include improved solution processibility and phase homogeneity, brighter luminescence, higher quantum efficiencies and lower turn-on voltages. While nature has evolved these carbon-skeletons for specific purposes, they also offer some intriguing benefits in materials science and technology.

  10. Emerging trends in the discovery of natural product antibacterials

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bologa, Cristian G; Ursu, Oleg; Oprea, Tudor

    2013-01-01

    This article highlights current trends and advances in exploiting natural sources for the deployment of novel and potent anti-infective countermeasures. The key challenge is to therapeutically target bacterial pathogens that exhibit a variety of puzzling and evolutionarily complex resistance...... mechanisms. Special emphasis is given to the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities in the natural product antibacterial drug discovery arena, and to emerging applications driven by advances in bioinformatics, chemical biology, and synthetic biology in concert with exploiting bacterial phenotypes....... These efforts have identified a critical mass of natural product antibacterial lead compounds and discovery technologies with high probability of successful implementation against emerging bacterial pathogens....

  11. Exploring the production of natural gas through the lenses of the ACEGES model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Voudouris, Vlasios; Matsumoto, Ken'ichi; Sedgwick, John; Rigby, Robert; Stasinopoulos, Dimitrios; Jefferson, Michael

    2014-01-01

    Due to the increasing importance of natural gas for modern economic activity, and gas's non-renewable nature, it is extremely important to try to estimate possible trajectories of future natural gas production while considering uncertainties in resource estimates, demand growth, production growth and other factors that might limit production. In this study, we develop future scenarios for natural gas supply using the ACEGES computational laboratory. Conditionally on the currently estimated ultimate recoverable resources, the ‘Collective View’ and ‘Golden Age’ Scenarios suggest that the supply of natural gas is likely to meet the increasing demand for natural gas until at least 2035. The ‘Golden Age’ Scenario suggests significant ‘jumps’ of natural gas production – important for testing the resilience of long-term strategies. - Highlights: • We present the ‘Collective View’ and ‘Golden Age’ Scenarios for natural gas production. • We do not observe any significant supply demand pressure of natural gas until 2035. • We do observe ‘jumps’ in natural gas supply until 2035. • The ACEGES-based scenarios can assess the resilience of longterm strategies

  12. Quantifying methane emissions from natural gas production in north-eastern Pennsylvania

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Z. R. Barkley

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Natural gas infrastructure releases methane (CH4, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. The estimated emission rate associated with the production and transportation of natural gas is uncertain, hindering our understanding of its greenhouse footprint. This study presents a new application of inverse methodology for estimating regional emission rates from natural gas production and gathering facilities in north-eastern Pennsylvania. An inventory of CH4 emissions was compiled for major sources in Pennsylvania. This inventory served as input emission data for the Weather Research and Forecasting model with chemistry enabled (WRF-Chem, and atmospheric CH4 mole fraction fields were generated at 3 km resolution. Simulated atmospheric CH4 enhancements from WRF-Chem were compared to observations obtained from a 3-week flight campaign in May 2015. Modelled enhancements from sources not associated with upstream natural gas processes were assumed constant and known and therefore removed from the optimization procedure, creating a set of observed enhancements from natural gas only. Simulated emission rates from unconventional production were then adjusted to minimize the mismatch between aircraft observations and model-simulated mole fractions for 10 flights. To evaluate the method, an aircraft mass balance calculation was performed for four flights where conditions permitted its use. Using the model optimization approach, the weighted mean emission rate from unconventional natural gas production and gathering facilities in north-eastern Pennsylvania approach is found to be 0.36 % of total gas production, with a 2σ confidence interval between 0.27 and 0.45 % of production. Similarly, the mean emission estimates using the aircraft mass balance approach are calculated to be 0.40 % of regional natural gas production, with a 2σ confidence interval between 0.08 and 0.72 % of production. These emission rates as a percent of production are

  13. Quantifying methane emissions from natural gas production in north-eastern Pennsylvania

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barkley, Zachary R.; Lauvaux, Thomas; Davis, Kenneth J.; Deng, Aijun; Miles, Natasha L.; Richardson, Scott J.; Cao, Yanni; Sweeney, Colm; Karion, Anna; Smith, MacKenzie; Kort, Eric A.; Schwietzke, Stefan; Murphy, Thomas; Cervone, Guido; Martins, Douglas; Maasakkers, Joannes D.

    2017-11-01

    Natural gas infrastructure releases methane (CH4), a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. The estimated emission rate associated with the production and transportation of natural gas is uncertain, hindering our understanding of its greenhouse footprint. This study presents a new application of inverse methodology for estimating regional emission rates from natural gas production and gathering facilities in north-eastern Pennsylvania. An inventory of CH4 emissions was compiled for major sources in Pennsylvania. This inventory served as input emission data for the Weather Research and Forecasting model with chemistry enabled (WRF-Chem), and atmospheric CH4 mole fraction fields were generated at 3 km resolution. Simulated atmospheric CH4 enhancements from WRF-Chem were compared to observations obtained from a 3-week flight campaign in May 2015. Modelled enhancements from sources not associated with upstream natural gas processes were assumed constant and known and therefore removed from the optimization procedure, creating a set of observed enhancements from natural gas only. Simulated emission rates from unconventional production were then adjusted to minimize the mismatch between aircraft observations and model-simulated mole fractions for 10 flights. To evaluate the method, an aircraft mass balance calculation was performed for four flights where conditions permitted its use. Using the model optimization approach, the weighted mean emission rate from unconventional natural gas production and gathering facilities in north-eastern Pennsylvania approach is found to be 0.36 % of total gas production, with a 2σ confidence interval between 0.27 and 0.45 % of production. Similarly, the mean emission estimates using the aircraft mass balance approach are calculated to be 0.40 % of regional natural gas production, with a 2σ confidence interval between 0.08 and 0.72 % of production. These emission rates as a percent of production are lower than rates found in any

  14. Concepts for Large Scale Hydrogen Production

    OpenAIRE

    Jakobsen, Daniel; Åtland, Vegar

    2016-01-01

    The objective of this thesis is to perform a techno-economic analysis of large-scale, carbon-lean hydrogen production in Norway, in order to evaluate various production methods and estimate a breakeven price level. Norway possesses vast energy resources and the export of oil and gas is vital to the country s economy. The results of this thesis indicate that hydrogen represents a viable, carbon-lean opportunity to utilize these resources, which can prove key in the future of Norwegian energy e...

  15. Importance of microbial natural products and the need to revitalize their discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demain, Arnold L

    2014-02-01

    Microbes are the leading producers of useful natural products. Natural products from microbes and plants make excellent drugs. Significant portions of the microbial genomes are devoted to production of these useful secondary metabolites. A single microbe can make a number of secondary metabolites, as high as 50 compounds. The most useful products include antibiotics, anticancer agents, immunosuppressants, but products for many other applications, e.g., antivirals, anthelmintics, enzyme inhibitors, nutraceuticals, polymers, surfactants, bioherbicides, and vaccines have been commercialized. Unfortunately, due to the decrease in natural product discovery efforts, drug discovery has decreased in the past 20 years. The reasons include excessive costs for clinical trials, too short a window before the products become generics, difficulty in discovery of antibiotics against resistant organisms, and short treatment times by patients for products such as antibiotics. Despite these difficulties, technology to discover new drugs has advanced, e.g., combinatorial chemistry of natural product scaffolds, discoveries in biodiversity, genome mining, and systems biology. Of great help would be government extension of the time before products become generic.

  16. Future hydrogen markets for large-scale hydrogen production systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Forsberg, Charles W.

    2007-01-01

    The cost of delivered hydrogen includes production, storage, and distribution. For equal production costs, large users (>10 6 m 3 /day) will favor high-volume centralized hydrogen production technologies to avoid collection costs for hydrogen from widely distributed sources. Potential hydrogen markets were examined to identify and characterize those markets that will favor large-scale hydrogen production technologies. The two high-volume centralized hydrogen production technologies are nuclear energy and fossil energy with carbon dioxide sequestration. The potential markets for these technologies are: (1) production of liquid fuels (gasoline, diesel and jet) including liquid fuels with no net greenhouse gas emissions and (2) peak electricity production. The development of high-volume centralized hydrogen production technologies requires an understanding of the markets to (1) define hydrogen production requirements (purity, pressure, volumes, need for co-product oxygen, etc.); (2) define and develop technologies to use the hydrogen, and (3) create the industrial partnerships to commercialize such technologies. (author)

  17. Natural radionuclide distribution in phosphate fertilizer and superphosphate production technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lisachenko, Eh P; Ponikarova, T M; Lisitsyna, Yu Z

    1987-01-01

    The obtained data on the natural radionuclide distribution by phosphate fertilizer and superphosphate production process stages testify to phosphate fertilizer enrichment 2-4 times in relation to initial ore, depending in the raw material used. In this case uranium and thorium series element concentration value (in equilibrium with their decomposition products), proposed as a regulating one in phosphorus-containing fertilizers, is not achieved. However, the fact of lurichment as it is and the enrichment factor, stated in the course of the work, should be taken into account for evaluation of phosphorite new deposit raw material with higher concentrations of natural radionuclides. Natural radionuclide separation in the enrichment process and superphosphate production is not revealed.

  18. A plug-and-play pathway refactoring workflow for natural product research in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Hengqian; Hu, Pingfan; Zhao, Huimin

    2017-08-01

    Pathway refactoring serves as an invaluable synthetic biology tool for natural product discovery, characterization, and engineering. However, the complicated and laborious molecular biology techniques largely hinder its application in natural product research, especially in a high-throughput manner. Here we report a plug-and-play pathway refactoring workflow for high-throughput, flexible pathway construction, and expression in both Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Biosynthetic genes were firstly cloned into pre-assembled helper plasmids with promoters and terminators, resulting in a series of expression cassettes. These expression cassettes were further assembled using Golden Gate reaction to generate fully refactored pathways. The inclusion of spacer plasmids in this system would not only increase the flexibility for refactoring pathways with different number of genes, but also facilitate gene deletion and replacement. As proof of concept, a total of 96 pathways for combinatorial carotenoid biosynthesis were built successfully. This workflow should be generally applicable to different classes of natural products produced by various organisms. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 1847-1854. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Dereplication of Microbial Natural Products by LC-DAD-TOFMS

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Kristian Fog; Månsson, Maria; Rank, Christian

    2011-01-01

    Dereplication, the rapid identification of known compounds present in a mixture, is crucial to the fast discovery of novel natural products. Determining the elemental composition of compounds in mixtures and tentatively identifying natural products using MS/MS and UV/vis spectra is becoming easier...... with advances in analytical equipment and better compound databases. Here we demonstrate the use of LC-UV/vis-MS-based dereplication using data from UV/vis diode array detection and ESI+/ESI– time-of-flight MS for assignment of 719 microbial natural product and mycotoxin reference standards. ESI+ was the most...... unambiguously using multiple adduct ions, while a further 41% of the compounds were detected only as [M – H]−. The most reliable interpretations of conflicting ESI+ and ESI– data on a chromatographic peak were from the ionization polarity with the most intense ionization. Poor ionization was most common...

  20. Indexing Natural Products for Their Potential Anti-Diabetic Activity: Filtering and Mapping Discriminative Physicochemical Properties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zeidan, Mouhammad; Rayan, Mahmoud; Zeidan, Nuha; Falah, Mizied; Rayan, Anwar

    2017-09-17

    Diabetes mellitus (DM) poses a major health problem, for which there is an unmet need to develop novel drugs. The application of in silico techniques and optimization algorithms is instrumental to achieving this goal. A set of 97 approved anti-diabetic drugs, representing the active domain, and a set of 2892 natural products, representing the inactive domain, were used to construct predictive models and to index anti-diabetic bioactivity. Our recently-developed approach of 'iterative stochastic elimination' was utilized. This article describes a highly discriminative and robust model, with an area under the curve above 0.96. Using the indexing model and a mix ratio of 1:1000 (active/inactive), 65% of the anti-diabetic drugs in the sample were captured in the top 1% of the screened compounds, compared to 1% in the random model. Some of the natural products that scored highly as potential anti-diabetic drug candidates are disclosed. One of those natural products is caffeine, which is noted in the scientific literature as having the capability to decrease blood glucose levels. The other nine phytochemicals await evaluation in a wet lab for their anti-diabetic activity. The indexing model proposed herein is useful for the virtual screening of large chemical databases and for the construction of anti-diabetes focused libraries.

  1. Relationship between Platelet PPARs, cAMP Levels, and P-Selectin Expression: Antiplatelet Activity of Natural Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo Fuentes

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Platelets are no longer considered simply as cells participating in thrombosis. In atherosclerosis, platelets are regulators of multiple processes, with the recruitment of inflammatory cells towards the lesion sites, inflammatory mediators release, and regulation of endothelial function. The antiplatelet therapy has been used for a long time in an effort to prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases. However, limited efficacy in some patients, drug resistance, and side effects are limitations of current antiplatelet therapy. In this context, a large number of natural products (polyphenols, terpenoids, alkaloids, and fatty acids have been reported with antiplatelet activity. In this sense, the present paper describes mechanisms of antiplatelet action of natural products on platelet P-selectin expression through cAMP levels and its role as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors agonists.

  2. Informatic search strategies to discover analogues and variants of natural product archetypes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnston, Chad W; Connaty, Alex D; Skinnider, Michael A; Li, Yong; Grunwald, Alyssa; Wyatt, Morgan A; Kerr, Russell G; Magarvey, Nathan A

    2016-03-01

    Natural products are a crucial source of antimicrobial agents, but reliance on low-resolution bioactivity-guided approaches has led to diminishing interest in discovery programmes. Here, we demonstrate that two in-house automated informatic platforms can be used to target classes of biologically active natural products, specifically, peptaibols. We demonstrate that mass spectrometry-based informatic approaches can be used to detect natural products with high sensitivity, identifying desired agents present in complex microbial extracts. Using our specialised software packages, we could elaborate specific branches of chemical space, uncovering new variants of trichopolyn and demonstrating a way forward in mining natural products as a valuable source of potential pharmaceutical agents.

  3. Mimicking a natural pathway for de novo biosynthesis: natural vanillin production from accessible carbon sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ni, Jun; Tao, Fei; Du, Huaiqing; Xu, Ping

    2015-09-02

    Plant secondary metabolites have been attracting people's attention for centuries, due to their potentials; however, their production is still difficult and costly. The rich diversity of microbes and microbial genome sequence data provide unprecedented gene resources that enable to develop efficient artificial pathways in microorganisms. Here, by mimicking a natural pathway of plants using microbial genes, a new metabolic route was developed in E. coli for the synthesis of vanillin, the most widely used flavoring agent. A series of factors were systematically investigated for raising production, including efficiency and suitability of genes, gene dosage, and culture media. The metabolically engineered strain produced 97.2 mg/L vanillin from l-tyrosine, 19.3 mg/L from glucose, 13.3 mg/L from xylose and 24.7 mg/L from glycerol. These results show that the metabolic route enables production of natural vanillin from low-cost substrates, suggesting that it is a good strategy to mimick natural pathways for artificial pathway design.

  4. Mimicking a natural pathway for de novo biosynthesis: natural vanillin production from accessible carbon sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ni, Jun; Tao, Fei; Du, Huaiqing; Xu, Ping

    2015-01-01

    Plant secondary metabolites have been attracting people’s attention for centuries, due to their potentials; however, their production is still difficult and costly. The rich diversity of microbes and microbial genome sequence data provide unprecedented gene resources that enable to develop efficient artificial pathways in microorganisms. Here, by mimicking a natural pathway of plants using microbial genes, a new metabolic route was developed in E. coli for the synthesis of vanillin, the most widely used flavoring agent. A series of factors were systematically investigated for raising production, including efficiency and suitability of genes, gene dosage, and culture media. The metabolically engineered strain produced 97.2 mg/L vanillin from l-tyrosine, 19.3 mg/L from glucose, 13.3 mg/L from xylose and 24.7 mg/L from glycerol. These results show that the metabolic route enables production of natural vanillin from low-cost substrates, suggesting that it is a good strategy to mimick natural pathways for artificial pathway design. PMID:26329726

  5. Radon gas in oil and natural gas production facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chandler, W.P.

    1994-01-01

    Radon gas is a naturally occurring radionuclide that can be found in some oil and natural gas production facilities, either as a contaminant in a natural gas stream or derived from Radium dissolved in formation waters. The gas itself is not normally a health hazard, but it's decay products, which can be concentrated by plate-out or deposition as a scale in process equipment, can be a health hazard for maintenance personnel. To evaluate possible health hazards, it is necessary to monitor for naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) in the gas stream and in the formation water. If Radon and/or Radium is found, a monitoring programme should be initiated to comply with National or State requirements. In some instances, it has been found necessary to dispose of silt and scale materials as low level radioactive waste. 8 refs

  6. Higher-Twist Dynamics in Large Transverse Momentum Hadron Production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Francois, Alero

    2009-01-01

    A scaling law analysis of the world data on inclusive large-p # perpendicular# hadron production in hadronic collisions is carried out. A significant deviation from leading-twist perturbative QCD predictions at next-to-leading order is reported. The observed discrepancy is largest at high values of x # perpendicular# = 2p # perpendicular#/√s. In contrast, the production of prompt photons and jets exhibits the scaling behavior which is close to the conformal limit, in agreement with the leading-twist expectation. These results bring evidence for a non-negligible contribution of higher-twist processes in large-p # perpendicular# hadron production in hadronic collisions, where the hadron is produced directly in the hard subprocess rather than by gluon or quark jet fragmentation. Predictions for scaling exponents at RHIC and LHC are given, and it is suggested to trigger the isolated large-p # perpendicular# hadron production to enhance higher-twist processes.

  7. Natural products - plenty more where that came from

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Arnold, M.

    1980-12-22

    In this article, natural products and their possible use as renewable resources are reviewed. The fermentation of corn for the production of alcohol for motor fuel is discussed and other crops for this purpose include sugar cane, cassava, sweet potato and Jerusalem artichoke. The hydrolysis of cellulose to sugars based on enzyme hydrolysis is currently being researched in the USA. Also in the USA, Melvin Calvin hopes to breed a rubber-bearing plant whose latex can be easily cracked to motor fuel. Guayule and jojoba rubber-bearing plants are also the focus of research at present. The importance of natural vegetation in the manufacturing of medicines and in the chemical and food industries is stressed. Finally products of the sea, particularly alginates and carragheenins are mentioned, but as yet, the full potential of the sea to yield renewable resources is unknown.

  8. Synthesis of natural products of therapeutic significance

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    system

    2015-11-07

    Nov 7, 2015 ... potential activity, while more natural products await the ... Treaty that prohibits commercial exploitation of Antarctic resources, the development of a synthetic strategy that allows the synthesis of palmerolide A and an array of its.

  9. Soil Properties and Plant Biomass Production in Natural Rangeland Management Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romeu de Souza Werner

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Improper management of rangelands can cause land degradation and reduce the economic efficiency of livestock activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate soil properties and quantify plant biomass production in four natural rangeland management systems in the Santa Catarina Plateau (Planalto Catarinense of Brazil. The treatments, which included mowed natural rangeland (NR, burned natural rangeland (BR, natural rangeland improved through the introduction of plant species after harrowing (IH, and natural rangeland improved through the introduction of plant species after chisel plowing (IC, were evaluated in a Nitossolo Bruno (Nitisol. In the improved treatments, soil acidity was corrected, phosphate fertilizer was applied, and intercropped annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum, velvet grass (Holcus lanatus, and white clover (Trifolium repens were sown. Management systems with harrowed or chisel plowed soil showed improved soil physical properties; however, the effect decreased over time and values approached those of burned and mowed natural rangelands. Natural rangeland systems in the establishment phase had little influence on soil organic C. The mowed natural rangeland and improved natural rangeland exhibited greater production of grazing material, while burning the field decreased production and increased the proportion of weeds. Improvement of the natural rangelands increased leguminous biomass for pasture.

  10. Natural products as potential anticonvulsants: caffeoylquinic acids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyo Geun; Oh, Myung Sook

    2012-03-01

    Current anticonvulsant therapies are generally directed at symptomatic treatment by suppressing excitability within the brain. Consequently, they have adverse effects such as cognitive impairment, dependence, and abuse. The need for more effective and less toxic anticonvulsants has generated renewed interest in natural products for the treatment of convulsions. Caffeoylquinic acids (CQs) are naturally occurring phenolic acids that are distributed widely in plants. There has been increasing interest in the biological activities of CQs in diseases of the central nervous system. In this issue, Nugroho et al. give evidence for the anticonvulsive effect of a CQ-rich extract from Aster glehni Franchet et Sckmidt. They optimized the extract solvent conditions, resulting in high levels of CQs and peroxynitrite-scavenging activity. Then, they investigated the sedative and anticonvulsive effects in pentobarbital- and pentylenetetrazole-induced models in mice. The CQ-rich extract significantly inhibited tonic convulsions as assessed by onset time, tonic extent, and mortality. They suggested that the CQ-rich extract from A. glehni has potential for treating convulsions. This report provides preclinical data which may be used for the development of anticonvulsants from natural products.

  11. The European Union Solidarity Fund: An Important Tool in the Recovery After Large-Scale Natural Disasters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria IONCICĂ

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper analyses the situation of the European Union Solidarity Fund, as an important tool in the recovery after large-scale natural disasters. In the last millennium, the European Union countries have faced climate change, which lead to events with disastrous consequences. There are several ex-post financial ways to respond to the challenges posed by large-scale natural disasters, among which EU Solidarity Fund, government funds, budget reallocation, donor assistance, domestic and/or external credit. The EU Solidarity Fund was created in 2002 after the massive floods from the Central Europe as the expression of the solidarity of EU countries. Romania has received financial assistance from the EU Solidarity Fund after the occurrence of major natural disasters, regional and neighbouring country disasters. The assessment of large-scale natural disasters in EU is very important and in order to analyse if there is a concentration of large-scale natural disasters in EU we used the Gini coefficient. In the paper, the method of the statistical analysis and the correlation between several indicators were used to study the financial impacts of large-scale natural disasters in Europe, and especially in Romania.

  12. Synthetic Strategies toward Natural Products Containing Contiguous Stereogenic Quaternary Carbon Atoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Büschleb, Martin; Dorich, Stéphane; Hanessian, Stephen; Tao, Daniel; Schenthal, Kyle B; Overman, Larry E

    2016-03-18

    Strategies for the total synthesis of complex natural products that contain two or more contiguous stereogenic quaternary carbon atoms in their intricate structures are reviewed with 12 representative examples. Emphasis has been put on methods to create quaternary carbon stereocenters, including syntheses of the same natural product by different groups, thereby showcasing the diversity of thought and individual creativity. A compendium of selected natural products containing two or more contiguous stereogenic quaternary carbon atoms and key reactions in their total or partial syntheses is provided in the Supporting Information. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  13. The Rakicidin Family of Anticancer Natural Products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tsakos, Michail; Jacobsen, Kristian Mark; Yu, Wanwan

    2016-01-01

    Rakicidin A is a prominent member of a small class of macrocyclic lipodepsipeptide natural products that contain an electrophilic 4- amido-2,4-pentadienoate (APD) functionality. Rakicidin A displays selective growth inhibitory activity against hypoxic cancer cells as well as imatinib...

  14. Enantiomeric Mixtures in Natural Product Chemistry: Separation and Absolute Configuration Assignment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    N L Batista, Andrea; M Dos Santos, Fernando; Batista, João M; Cass, Quezia B

    2018-02-23

    Chiral natural product molecules are generally assumed to be biosynthesized in an enantiomerically pure or enriched fashion. Nevertheless, a significant amount of racemates or enantiomerically enriched mixtures has been reported from natural sources. This number is estimated to be even larger since the enantiomeric purity of secondary metabolites is rarely checked in the natural product isolation pipeline. This latter fact may have drastic effects on the evaluation of the biological activity of chiral natural products. A second bottleneck is the determination of their absolute configurations. Despite the widespread use of optical rotation and electronic circular dichroism, most of the stereochemical assignments are based on empirical correlations with similar compounds reported in the literature. As an alternative, the combination of vibrational circular dichroism and quantum chemical calculations has emerged as a powerful and reliable tool for both conformational and configurational analysis of natural products, even for those lacking UV-Vis chromophores. In this review, we aim to provide the reader with a critical overview of the occurrence of enantiomeric mixtures of secondary metabolites in nature as well the best practices for their detection, enantioselective separation using liquid chromatography, and determination of absolute configuration by means of vibrational circular dichroism and density functional theory calculations.

  15. Chemical Biology of Microbial Anticancer Natural Products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bladt, Tanja Thorskov; Gotfredsen, Charlotte Held

    than 100 years. New natural products (NPs) are continually discovered and with the increase in selective biological assays, previously described compounds often also display novel bioactivities, justifying their presence in novel screening efforts. Screening and discovery of compounds with activity...... towards chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells is crucial since CLL is considered as an incurable disease. To discover novel agents that targets CLL cells is complicated. CLL cells rapidly undergo apoptosis in vitro when they are removed from their natural microenvironment, even though they are long...

  16. Long-term organic-inorganic fertilization ensures great soil productivity and bacterial diversity after natural-to-agricultural ecosystem conversion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xun, Weibing; Xu, Zhihui; Li, Wei; Ren, Yi; Huang, Ting; Ran, Wei; Wang, Boren; Shen, Qirong; Zhang, Ruifu

    2016-09-01

    Natural ecosystems comprise the planet's wild plant and animal resources, but large tracts of land have been converted to agroecosystems to support the demand for agricultural products. This conversion limits the number of plant species and decreases the soil biological diversity. Here we used high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing to evaluate the responses of soil bacterial communities in long-term converted and fertilized red soils (a type of Ferralic Cambisol). We observed that soil bacterial diversity was strongly affected by different types of fertilization management. Oligotrophic bacterial taxa demonstrated large relative abundances in chemically fertilized soil, whereas copiotrophic bacterial taxa were found in large relative abundances in organically fertilized and fallow management soils. Only organic-inorganic fertilization exhibited the same local taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity as that of a natural ecosystem. However, the independent use of organic or inorganic fertilizer reduced local taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity and caused biotic homogenization. This study demonstrated that the homogenization of bacterial communities caused by natural-to-agricultural ecosystem conversion can be mitigated by employing rational organic-inorganic fertilization management.

  17. Natural product terpenoids in Eocene and Miocene conifer fossils.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otto, Angelika; White, James D; Simoneit, Bernd R T

    2002-08-30

    Numerous saturated and aromatic hydrocarbons, but not polar compounds, originating from plants and microorganisms (biomarkers) have been reported in sediments, coals, and petroleum. Here we describe natural product terpenoids found in two fossil conifers, Taxodium balticum (Eocene) and Glyptostrobus oregonensis (Miocene). A similar terpenoid pattern is also observed in extant Taxodium distichum. The preservation of characteristic terpenoids (unaltered natural products) in the fossil conifers supports their systematic assignment to the Cypress family (Cupressaceae sensu lato). The results also show that fossil conifers can contain polar terpenoids, which are valuable markers for (paleo)chemosystematics and phylogeny.

  18. Natural products from microbes associated with insects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Beemelmanns, Christine; Guo, Huijuan; Rischer, Maja

    2016-01-01

    Here we review discoveries of secondary metabolites from microbes associated with insects. We mainly focus on natural products, where the ecological role has been at least partially elucidated, and/or the pharmaceutical properties evaluated, and on compounds with unique structural features. We...

  19. Natural products – learning chemistry from plants

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Staniek, A.; Bouwmeester, H.J.; Fraser, P.D.; Kayser, O.; Martens, S.; Tissier, A.; Krol, van der A.R.; Wessjohann, L.; Warzecha, H.

    2014-01-01

    Plant natural products (PNPs) are unique in that they represent a vast array of different structural features, ranging from relatively simple molecules to very complex ones. Given the fact that many plant secondary metabolites exhibit profound biological activity, they are frequently used as

  20. Nature is the best source of anticancer drugs: Indexing natural products for their anticancer bioactivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rayan, Anwar; Raiyn, Jamal; Falah, Mizied

    2017-01-01

    Cancer is considered one of the primary diseases that cause morbidity and mortality in millions of people worldwide and due to its prevalence, there is undoubtedly an unmet need to discover novel anticancer drugs. However, the traditional process of drug discovery and development is lengthy and expensive, so the application of in silico techniques and optimization algorithms in drug discovery projects can provide a solution, saving time and costs. A set of 617 approved anticancer drugs, constituting the active domain, and a set of 2,892 natural products, constituting the inactive domain, were employed to build predictive models and to index natural products for their anticancer bioactivity. Using the iterative stochastic elimination optimization technique, we obtained a highly discriminative and robust model, with an area under the curve of 0.95. Twelve natural products that scored highly as potential anticancer drug candidates are disclosed. Searching the scientific literature revealed that few of those molecules (Neoechinulin, Colchicine, and Piperolactam) have already been experimentally screened for their anticancer activity and found active. The other phytochemicals await evaluation for their anticancerous activity in wet lab.

  1. Caspase-1 Specific Light-Up Probe with Aggregation-Induced Emission Characteristics for Inhibitor Screening of Coumarin-Originated Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Hao; Yang, Haitao; Huang, Shuai; Wang, Fujia; Wang, Dong-Mei; Liu, Bin; Tang, Yi-Da; Zhang, Chong-Jing

    2018-04-18

    Caspase-1 is a key player in pyroptosis and inflammation. Caspase-1 inhibition is found to be beneficial to various diseases. Coumarin-originated natural products have an anti-inflammation function, but their direct inhibition effect to caspase-1 remains unexplored. To evaluate their interactions, the widely used commercial coumarin-based probe (Ac-YVAD-AMC) is not suitable, as the background signal from coumarin-originated natural products could interfere with the screening results. Therefore, fluorescent probes using a large Stokes shift could help solve this problem. In this work, we chose the fluorophore of tetraphenylethylene-thiophene (TPETH) with aggregation-induced emission characteristics and a large Stokes shift of about 200 nm to develop a molecular probe. Bioconjugation between TPETH and hydrophilic peptides (DDYVADC) through a thiol-ene reaction generated a light-up probe, C1-P3. The probe has little background signal in aqueous media and exerts a fluorescent turn-on effect in the presence of caspase-1. Moreover, when evaluating the inhibition potency of coumarin-originated natural products, the new probe could generate a true and objective result but not for the commercial probe (Ac-YVAD-AMC), which is evidenced by HPLC analysis. The quick light-up response and accurate screening results make C1-P3 very useful in fundamental study and inhibitior screening toward caspase-1.

  2. Natural cold pressed oils as cosmetic products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Małgorzata Ligęza

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Background. It seems that patients may ask general practitioners about natural cosmetics applied on the skin regarding their safety and suitability. Objectives. The aim of the study was to analyze natural cold pressed oils as potential cosmetic products. Material and methods. Cold pressed oils obtained from selected seeds and fruit stones were analyzed, including: chokeberry seed oil, blackcurrant seed oil, elderberry seed oil, raspberry seed oil, apricot seed oil, tomato seed oil, strawberry seed oil, broccoli seed oil, Nigella sativa seed oil, hemp oil, safflower seed oil, Silybum marianum seed oil and coconut oil. 80 adult volunteers assessed the cosmetic properties of the analyzed oils. Each of the volunteers tested 2 to 4 different oils, by applying them on the skin. In addition, patch tests with all analyzed oils were performed on 23 individuals. Results. The majority of tested oils were positively evaluated by the participants: in the opinion of the participants, oil extracted from safflower had the best appearance (100% positive opinions, coconut oil had the best smell (70% positive opinions, while black currant seed oil showed the best absorbency (85% positive opinions. No irritation was observed within the analyzed product group, albeit one allergic reaction to apricot seed oil was observed with patch testing. Conclusions . Based on the achieved results, it could be suggested that natural cold pressed oils can be applied to the skin as cosmetics. Our observations may be helpful for general practitioners when choosing natural cosmetics.

  3. Large-scale bioenergy production: how to resolve sustainability trade-offs?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Humpenöder, Florian; Popp, Alexander; Bodirsky, Benjamin Leon; Weindl, Isabelle; Biewald, Anne; Lotze-Campen, Hermann; Dietrich, Jan Philipp; Klein, David; Kreidenweis, Ulrich; Müller, Christoph; Rolinski, Susanne; Stevanovic, Miodrag

    2018-02-01

    Large-scale 2nd generation bioenergy deployment is a key element of 1.5 °C and 2 °C transformation pathways. However, large-scale bioenergy production might have negative sustainability implications and thus may conflict with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) agenda. Here, we carry out a multi-criteria sustainability assessment of large-scale bioenergy crop production throughout the 21st century (300 EJ in 2100) using a global land-use model. Our analysis indicates that large-scale bioenergy production without complementary measures results in negative effects on the following sustainability indicators: deforestation, CO2 emissions from land-use change, nitrogen losses, unsustainable water withdrawals and food prices. One of our main findings is that single-sector environmental protection measures next to large-scale bioenergy production are prone to involve trade-offs among these sustainability indicators—at least in the absence of more efficient land or water resource use. For instance, if bioenergy production is accompanied by forest protection, deforestation and associated emissions (SDGs 13 and 15) decline substantially whereas food prices (SDG 2) increase. However, our study also shows that this trade-off strongly depends on the development of future food demand. In contrast to environmental protection measures, we find that agricultural intensification lowers some side-effects of bioenergy production substantially (SDGs 13 and 15) without generating new trade-offs—at least among the sustainability indicators considered here. Moreover, our results indicate that a combination of forest and water protection schemes, improved fertilization efficiency, and agricultural intensification would reduce the side-effects of bioenergy production most comprehensively. However, although our study includes more sustainability indicators than previous studies on bioenergy side-effects, our study represents only a small subset of all indicators relevant for the

  4. Natural products as radiation response modifiers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Colin Seymour; Carmel Mothersill

    2007-01-01

    Complete text of publication follows. Protection of cells and organisms against low doses of radiation is a complex issue which must be considered at the level of cells, tissues and organisms. 'Protection' at one level, for example, prevention of cell death, may be adverse at another level, if it allows a damaged cell to survive and form a malignant tumour. Conversely, death of a cell carrying damage can be protective for the organism if it eliminates a damaged cell. Thus, it is important to understand the mechanisms involved in protection against radiation damage at several hierarchical levels. The use of natural products as radiation response modifiers is very attractive. Many of these compounds are readily available and their function and pharmacology is well understood. Some derive from venoms or natural defenses and are currently used in medicine, others include vitamins, antioxidants or cofactors, which are tried and tested nutritional supplements. Radiation effects may be targeted or untargeted. Radiation may interact directly within a cell causing a direct DNA lesion or it may elicit a bystander response from the irradiated cell. A bystander effect is produced when the irradiated cell apparently exhibits no damage from the radiation, but passes on a biochemical signal which induces neighbouring cells to apoptose or undergo a number of other responses usually associated with irradiation such as mutation induction, transformation, induction of ROS responses etc.. Effects induced in progeny of non-targeted cells in receipt of bystander signals include genetic instability, mini and microsatellite mutations and carcinogenesis. A key characteristic of these non targeted effects is that they occur at very low acute doses (of the order of 5mGy) and saturate so that effective prevention requires an agent which can effectively shut off the mechanism. While the mechanism is not fully known, it is thought to involve signals from irradiated cells communicating via

  5. Indexing Natural Products for Their Potential Anti-Diabetic Activity: Filtering and Mapping Discriminative Physicochemical Properties

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mouhammad Zeidan

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Diabetes mellitus (DM poses a major health problem, for which there is an unmet need to develop novel drugs. The application of in silico techniques and optimization algorithms is instrumental to achieving this goal. A set of 97 approved anti-diabetic drugs, representing the active domain, and a set of 2892 natural products, representing the inactive domain, were used to construct predictive models and to index anti-diabetic bioactivity. Our recently-developed approach of ‘iterative stochastic elimination’ was utilized. This article describes a highly discriminative and robust model, with an area under the curve above 0.96. Using the indexing model and a mix ratio of 1:1000 (active/inactive, 65% of the anti-diabetic drugs in the sample were captured in the top 1% of the screened compounds, compared to 1% in the random model. Some of the natural products that scored highly as potential anti-diabetic drug candidates are disclosed. One of those natural products is caffeine, which is noted in the scientific literature as having the capability to decrease blood glucose levels. The other nine phytochemicals await evaluation in a wet lab for their anti-diabetic activity. The indexing model proposed herein is useful for the virtual screening of large chemical databases and for the construction of anti-diabetes focused libraries.

  6. Colour dynamics in large psub(T) hadron production on nuclei

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kopeliovich, B.Z.; Niedermayer, F.

    1984-01-01

    The color dynamics of hadron production with large transverse momentum (psub(T)) on nuclei is investigated. Retardation by colour forces of colour objects propagating through nuclear matter leads to considerable shadowing of hard processes inside the nucleus. This explains the weak A dependence of the production cross section for large psub(T) meson pairs. The small absorption of compressed hadronic configurations inside the nucleus explains the linear A dependence of pp-pair production

  7. Biotransformation and Production from Hansenula Anomala to Natural Ethyl Phenylacetate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tian Xun

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Ethyl phenylacetate can be widely applied in many industries, such as food, medicines, cosmetics and medicinal herbs. At the moment, the production of natural ethyl phenylacetate is very limited. However, the biotransformation production of natural ethyl phenylacetate has an very extensive application prospect. This paper is written by taking the phenylacetic acid tolerance and the esterifying enzyme activity as the two indexes for screening the HA14 strain of hansenula anomala mutagenic which is regarded as the microorganism of ethyl phenylacetate production through biotransformation. By optimizing the production condition of phenylacetic acid and the esterification condition of ethyl phenylacetate, the production of ethyl phenylacetate accomplished through biotransformation within 72 hours can reach 864mg/L which is 171% of that of the initial bacterial strain.

  8. The chemistry of isoindole natural products

    OpenAIRE

    Speck, Klaus; Magauer, Thomas

    2013-01-01

    Summary This review highlights the chemical and biological aspects of natural products containing an oxidized or reduced isoindole skeleton. This motif is found in its intact or modified form in indolocarbazoles, macrocyclic polyketides (cytochalasan alkaloids), the aporhoeadane alkaloids, meroterpenoids from Stachybotrys species and anthraquinone-type alkaloids. Concerning their biological activity, molecular structure and synthesis, we have limited this review to the most inspiring examples...

  9. Targeting arachidonic acid pathway by natural products for cancer prevention and therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yarla, Nagendra Sastry; Bishayee, Anupam; Sethi, Gautam; Reddanna, Pallu; Kalle, Arunasree M; Dhananjaya, Bhadrapura Lakkappa; Dowluru, Kaladhar S V G K; Chintala, Ramakrishna; Duddukuri, Govinda Rao

    2016-10-01

    Arachidonic acid (AA) pathway, a metabolic process, plays a key role in carcinogenesis. Hence, AA pathway metabolic enzymes phospholipase A 2 s (PLA 2 s), cyclooxygenases (COXs) and lipoxygenases (LOXs) and their metabolic products, such as prostaglandins and leukotrienes, have been considered novel preventive and therapeutic targets in cancer. Bioactive natural products are a good source for development of novel cancer preventive and therapeutic drugs, which have been widely used in clinical practice due to their safety profiles. AA pathway inhibitory natural products have been developed as chemopreventive and therapeutic agents against several cancers. Curcumin, resveratrol, apigenin, anthocyans, berberine, ellagic acid, eugenol, fisetin, ursolic acid, [6]-gingerol, guggulsteone, lycopene and genistein are well known cancer chemopreventive agents which act by targeting multiple pathways, including COX-2. Nordihydroguaiaretic acid and baicalein can be chemopreventive molecules against various cancers by inhibiting LOXs. Several PLA 2 s inhibitory natural products have been identified with chemopreventive and therapeutic potentials against various cancers. In this review, we critically discuss the possible utility of natural products as preventive and therapeutic agents against various oncologic diseases, including prostate, pancreatic, lung, skin, gastric, oral, blood, head and neck, colorectal, liver, cervical and breast cancers, by targeting AA pathway. Further, the current status of clinical studies evaluating AA pathway inhibitory natural products in cancer is reviewed. In addition, various emerging issues, including bioavailability, toxicity and explorability of combination therapy, for the development of AA pathway inhibitory natural products as chemopreventive and therapeutic agents against human malignancy are also discussed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Chocolate: A Marvelous Natural Product of Chemistry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tannenbaum, Ginger

    2004-01-01

    The study of chocolate, a natural product, can be beneficial for the chemistry students as they ask frequently about the relevancy of their chemistry classes. The history of chocolate, its chemical and physical changes during processing, its composition, different crystalline forms, tempering and its viscosity are discussed.

  11. Inhibition of aflatoxin B production of Aspergillus flavus, isolated from soybean seeds by certain natural plant products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krishnamurthy, Y L; Shashikala, J

    2006-11-01

    The inhibitory effect of cowdung fumes, Captan, leaf powder of Withania somnifera, Hyptis suaveolens, Eucalyptus citriodora, peel powder of Citrus sinensis, Citrus medica and Punica granatum, neem cake and pongamia cake and spore suspension of Trichoderma harzianum and Aspergillus niger on aflatoxin B(1) production by toxigenic strain of Aspergillus flavus isolated from soybean seeds was investigated. Soybean seed was treated with different natural products and fungicide captan and was inoculated with toxigenic strain of A. flavus and incubated for different periods. The results showed that all the treatments were effective in controlling aflatoxin B(1) production. Captan, neem cake, spore suspension of T. harzianum, A. niger and combination of both reduced the level of aflatoxin B(1) to a great extent. Leaf powder of W. somnifera, H. suaveolens, peel powder of C. sinensis, C. medica and pongamia cake also controlled the aflatoxin B(1) production. All the natural product treatments applied were significantly effective in inhibiting aflatoxin B(1) production on soybean seeds by A. flavus. These natural plant products may successfully replace chemical fungicides and provide an alternative method to protect soybean and other agricultural commodities from aflatoxin B(1) production by A. flavus.

  12. Application of natural and synthetic polymers in a production of paper

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jovanović Slobodan

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available This work gives the review of most frequently used natural and synthetic polymers in production of paper, board and cardboard. Physical and chemical interaction of natural and synthetic polymers with cellulose fibers, and thus the way these polymers influence the improvement of both production process and the paper characteristics, have been presented.

  13. Insects: an underrepresented resource for the discovery of biologically active natural products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lauren Seabrooks

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Nature has been the source of life-changing and -saving medications for centuries. Aspirin, penicillin and morphine are prime examples of Nature׳s gifts to medicine. These discoveries catalyzed the field of natural product drug discovery which has mostly focused on plants. However, insects have more than twice the number of species and entomotherapy has been in practice for as long as and often in conjunction with medicinal plants and is an important alternative to modern medicine in many parts of the world. Herein, an overview of current traditional medicinal applications of insects and characterization of isolated biologically active molecules starting from approximately 2010 is presented. Insect natural products reviewed were isolated from ants, bees, wasps, beetles, cockroaches, termites, flies, true bugs, moths and more. Biological activities of these natural products from insects include antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects.

  14. Discovery of the leinamycin family of natural products by mining actinobacterial genomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pan, Guohui; Xu, Zhengren; Guo, Zhikai; Hindra; Ma, Ming; Yang, Dong; Zhou, Hao; Gansemans, Yannick; Zhu, Xiangcheng; Huang, Yong; Zhao, Li-Xing; Jiang, Yi; Cheng, Jinhua; Van Nieuwerburgh, Filip; Suh, Joo-Won; Duan, Yanwen; Shen, Ben

    2017-12-26

    Nature's ability to generate diverse natural products from simple building blocks has inspired combinatorial biosynthesis. The knowledge-based approach to combinatorial biosynthesis has allowed the production of designer analogs by rational metabolic pathway engineering. While successful, structural alterations are limited, with designer analogs often produced in compromised titers. The discovery-based approach to combinatorial biosynthesis complements the knowledge-based approach by exploring the vast combinatorial biosynthesis repertoire found in Nature. Here we showcase the discovery-based approach to combinatorial biosynthesis by targeting the domain of unknown function and cysteine lyase domain (DUF-SH) didomain, specific for sulfur incorporation from the leinamycin (LNM) biosynthetic machinery, to discover the LNM family of natural products. By mining bacterial genomes from public databases and the actinomycetes strain collection at The Scripps Research Institute, we discovered 49 potential producers that could be grouped into 18 distinct clades based on phylogenetic analysis of the DUF-SH didomains. Further analysis of the representative genomes from each of the clades identified 28 lnm -type gene clusters. Structural diversities encoded by the LNM-type biosynthetic machineries were predicted based on bioinformatics and confirmed by in vitro characterization of selected adenylation proteins and isolation and structural elucidation of the guangnanmycins and weishanmycins. These findings demonstrate the power of the discovery-based approach to combinatorial biosynthesis for natural product discovery and structural diversity and highlight Nature's rich biosynthetic repertoire. Comparative analysis of the LNM-type biosynthetic machineries provides outstanding opportunities to dissect Nature's biosynthetic strategies and apply these findings to combinatorial biosynthesis for natural product discovery and structural diversity.

  15. Interdisciplinary researches for potential developments of drugs and natural products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arunrat Chaveerach

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Developments of drugs or natural products from plants are possibly made, simple to use and lower cost than modern drugs. The development processes can be started with studying local wisdom and literature reviews to choose the plants which have long been used in diverse areas, such as foods, traditional medicine, fragrances and seasonings. Then those data will be associated with scientific researches, namely plant collection and identification, phytochemical screening by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, pharmacological study/review for their functions, and finally safety and efficiency tests in human. For safety testing, in vitro cell toxicity by cell viability assessment and in vitro testing of DNA breaks by the comet assay in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells can be performed. When active chemicals and functions containing plants were chosen with safety and efficacy for human uses, then, the potential medicinal natural products will be produced. Based on these procedures, the producing cost will be cheaper and the products can be evaluated for their clinical properties. Thus, the best and lowest-priced medicines and natural products can be distributed worldwide.

  16. Interdisciplinary researches for potential developments of drugs and natural products

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Arunrat Chaveerach; Runglawan Sudmoon; Tawatchai Tanee

    2017-01-01

    Developments of drugs or natural products from plants are possibly made,simple to use and lower cost than modern drugs.The development processes can be started with studying local wisdom and literature reviews to choose the plants which have long been used in diverse areas,such as foods,traditional medicine,fragrances and seasonings.Then those data will be associated with scientific researches,namely plant collection and identification,phytochemical screening by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry,pharmacological study/review for their functions,and finally safety and efficiency tests in human.For safety testing,in vitro cell toxicity by cell viability assessment and in vitro testing of DNA breaks by the comet assay in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells can be performed.When active chemicals and functions containing plants were chosen with safety and efficacy for human uses,then,the potential medicinal natural products will be produced.Based on these procedures,the producing cost will be cheaper and the products can be evaluated for their clinical properties.Thus,the best and lowest-priced medicines and natural products can be distributed worldwide.

  17. Biocombinatorial Engineering of Fungal PKS-NRPS Hybrids for Production of Novel Synthetic Natural Products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Maria Lund

    encoding a PKS-NRPS hybrid responsible for the production of a medically relevant compound in Talaromyces atroroseus. To the best of my knowledge, this study represents the first example of reverse engineering of a Talaromyces species. In the fourth study (chapter 5), I used the CRISPR-Cas9 system...... structure optimization. Within the last decade, an alternative approach for expanding natural product chemodiversity has been applied. This strategy, known as combinatorial biosynthesis, involves the re-engineering of biosynthetic pathways and ultimately the rational engineering of new natural product...... analogs. This field, however, has proved very challenging and many engineering efforts have resulted in enzymatic loss-of-function or reduced yields. Thus, the future success in combinatorial biosynthetic studies requires a thorough understanding of the structure and function of biosynthetic enzymes...

  18. The use of natural products for consumption in Denmark

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Strandberg, M.

    1996-05-01

    Through a questionnaire it was indicated that Danes use products from 'natural' ecosystems in an amount of approximately 2 kg per year. The most used products are berries and meat from game animals, whereas freshwater fish and wild mushrooms are less common in Danish kitchens. (au)

  19. Core@shell Nanoparticles: Greener Synthesis Using Natural Plant Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehrdad Khatami

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Among an array of hybrid nanoparticles, core-shell nanoparticles comprise of two or more materials, such as metals and biomolecules, wherein one of them forms the core at the center, while the other material/materials that were located around the central core develops a shell. Core-shell nanostructures are useful entities with high thermal and chemical stability, lower toxicity, greater solubility, and higher permeability to specific target cells. Plant or natural products-mediated synthesis of nanostructures refers to the use of plants or its extracts for the synthesis of nanostructures, an emerging field of sustainable nanotechnology. Various physiochemical and greener methods have been advanced for the synthesis of nanostructures, in contrast to conventional approaches that require the use of synthetic compounds for the assembly of nanostructures. Although several biological resources have been exploited for the synthesis of core-shell nanoparticles, but plant-based materials appear to be the ideal candidates for large-scale green synthesis of core-shell nanoparticles. This review summarizes the known strategies for the greener production of core-shell nanoparticles using plants extract or their derivatives and highlights their salient attributes, such as low costs, the lack of dependence on the use of any toxic materials, and the environmental friendliness for the sustainable assembly of stabile nanostructures.

  20. Forecasting natural gas supply in China: Production peak and import trends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Boqiang; Wang Ting

    2012-01-01

    China's natural gas consumption has increased rapidly in recent years making China a net gas importer. As a nonrenewable energy, the gas resource is exhaustible. Based on the forecast of this article, China's gas production peak is likely to approach in 2022. However, China is currently in the industrialization and urbanization stage, and its natural gas consumption will persistently increase. With China's gas production peak, China will have to face a massive expansion in gas imports. As the largest developing country, China's massive imports of gas will have an effect on the international gas market. In addition, as China's natural gas price is still controlled by the government and has remained at a low level, the massive imports of higher priced gas will exert great pressure on China's gas price reform. - Highlights: ► We figured out the natural gas production peak of China. ► We predict the import trends of natural gas of China. ► We study the international and national impacts of China's increasing import of gas. ► It is important for China to accelerate price reformation of natural gas.

  1. Large-Scale Selection and Breeding To Generate Industrial Yeasts with Superior Aroma Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steensels, Jan; Meersman, Esther; Snoek, Tim; Saels, Veerle

    2014-01-01

    The concentrations and relative ratios of various aroma compounds produced by fermenting yeast cells are essential for the sensory quality of many fermented foods, including beer, bread, wine, and sake. Since the production of these aroma-active compounds varies highly among different yeast strains, careful selection of variants with optimal aromatic profiles is of crucial importance for a high-quality end product. This study evaluates the production of different aroma-active compounds in 301 different Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Saccharomyces paradoxus, and Saccharomyces pastorianus yeast strains. Our results show that the production of key aroma compounds like isoamyl acetate and ethyl acetate varies by an order of magnitude between natural yeasts, with the concentrations of some compounds showing significant positive correlation, whereas others vary independently. Targeted hybridization of some of the best aroma-producing strains yielded 46 intraspecific hybrids, of which some show a distinct heterosis (hybrid vigor) effect and produce up to 45% more isoamyl acetate than the best parental strains while retaining their overall fermentation performance. Together, our results demonstrate the potential of large-scale outbreeding to obtain superior industrial yeasts that are directly applicable for commercial use. PMID:25192996

  2. Nature is the best source of anticancer drugs: Indexing natural products for their anticancer bioactivity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anwar Rayan

    Full Text Available Cancer is considered one of the primary diseases that cause morbidity and mortality in millions of people worldwide and due to its prevalence, there is undoubtedly an unmet need to discover novel anticancer drugs. However, the traditional process of drug discovery and development is lengthy and expensive, so the application of in silico techniques and optimization algorithms in drug discovery projects can provide a solution, saving time and costs. A set of 617 approved anticancer drugs, constituting the active domain, and a set of 2,892 natural products, constituting the inactive domain, were employed to build predictive models and to index natural products for their anticancer bioactivity. Using the iterative stochastic elimination optimization technique, we obtained a highly discriminative and robust model, with an area under the curve of 0.95. Twelve natural products that scored highly as potential anticancer drug candidates are disclosed. Searching the scientific literature revealed that few of those molecules (Neoechinulin, Colchicine, and Piperolactam have already been experimentally screened for their anticancer activity and found active. The other phytochemicals await evaluation for their anticancerous activity in wet lab.

  3. Genome engineering for microbial natural product discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choi, Si-Sun; Katsuyama, Yohei; Bai, Linquan; Deng, Zixin; Ohnishi, Yasuo; Kim, Eung-Soo

    2018-03-03

    The discovery and development of microbial natural products (MNPs) have played pivotal roles in the fields of human medicine and its related biotechnology sectors over the past several decades. The post-genomic era has witnessed the development of microbial genome mining approaches to isolate previously unsuspected MNP biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) hidden in the genome, followed by various BGC awakening techniques to visualize compound production. Additional microbial genome engineering techniques have allowed higher MNP production titers, which could complement a traditional culture-based MNP chasing approach. Here, we describe recent developments in the MNP research paradigm, including microbial genome mining, NP BGC activation, and NP overproducing cell factory design. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Deposition of naturally occurring radioactivity in oil and gas production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lysebo, I.; Strand, T.

    1997-01-01

    This booklet contains general information about naturally occurring radioactive materials, NORM, in production of oil and natural gas, occupational doses, radiation protection procedures and measures, and classification methods of contaminated equipment. 6 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab

  5. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products -12 ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Higher Learning. Generations of students would vouch for the fact that he has the uncanny ability to present the chemistry of natural products logically and with feeling. The most interesting chemical aspect of a molecule is its. reactivHy pattern. NR Krishnaswamy. In this part of the series, dynamic organic chemistry and.

  6. Natural sweetening of food products by engineering Lactococcus lactis for glucose production

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pool, Wietske A.; Neves, Ana Rute; Kok, Jan; Santos, Helena; Kuipers, Oscar P.

    We show that sweetening of food products by natural fermentation can be achieved by a combined metabolic engineering and transcriptome analysis approach. A Lactococcus lactis ssp. cremoris strain was constructed in which glucose metabolism was completely disrupted by deletion of the genes coding for

  7. Amorfrutins are potent antidiabetic dietary natural products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weidner, Christopher; de Groot, Jens C.; Prasad, Aman; Freiwald, Anja; Quedenau, Claudia; Kliem, Magdalena; Witzke, Annabell; Kodelja, Vitam; Han, Chung-Ting; Giegold, Sascha; Baumann, Matthias; Klebl, Bert; Siems, Karsten; Müller-Kuhrt, Lutz; Schürmann, Annette; Schüler, Rita; Pfeiffer, Andreas F. H.; Schroeder, Frank C.; Büssow, Konrad; Sauer, Sascha

    2012-01-01

    Given worldwide increases in the incidence of obesity and type 2 diabetes, new strategies for preventing and treating metabolic diseases are needed. The nuclear receptor PPARγ (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma) plays a central role in lipid and glucose metabolism; however, current PPARγ-targeting drugs are characterized by undesirable side effects. Natural products from edible biomaterial provide a structurally diverse resource to alleviate complex disorders via tailored nutritional intervention. We identified a family of natural products, the amorfrutins, from edible parts of two legumes, Glycyrrhiza foetida and Amorpha fruticosa, as structurally new and powerful antidiabetics with unprecedented effects for a dietary molecule. Amorfrutins bind to and activate PPARγ, which results in selective gene expression and physiological profiles markedly different from activation by current synthetic PPARγ drugs. In diet-induced obese and db/db mice, amorfrutin treatment strongly improves insulin resistance and other metabolic and inflammatory parameters without concomitant increase of fat storage or other unwanted side effects such as hepatoxicity. These results show that selective PPARγ-activation by diet-derived ligands may constitute a promising approach to combat metabolic disease. PMID:22509006

  8. Natural language acquisition in large scale neural semantic networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ealey, Douglas

    This thesis puts forward the view that a purely signal- based approach to natural language processing is both plausible and desirable. By questioning the veracity of symbolic representations of meaning, it argues for a unified, non-symbolic model of knowledge representation that is both biologically plausible and, potentially, highly efficient. Processes to generate a grounded, neural form of this model-dubbed the semantic filter-are discussed. The combined effects of local neural organisation, coincident with perceptual maturation, are used to hypothesise its nature. This theoretical model is then validated in light of a number of fundamental neurological constraints and milestones. The mechanisms of semantic and episodic development that the model predicts are then used to explain linguistic properties, such as propositions and verbs, syntax and scripting. To mimic the growth of locally densely connected structures upon an unbounded neural substrate, a system is developed that can grow arbitrarily large, data- dependant structures composed of individual self- organising neural networks. The maturational nature of the data used results in a structure in which the perception of concepts is refined by the networks, but demarcated by subsequent structure. As a consequence, the overall structure shows significant memory and computational benefits, as predicted by the cognitive and neural models. Furthermore, the localised nature of the neural architecture also avoids the increasing error sensitivity and redundancy of traditional systems as the training domain grows. The semantic and episodic filters have been demonstrated to perform as well, or better, than more specialist networks, whilst using significantly larger vocabularies, more complex sentence forms and more natural corpora.

  9. Discovery and characterization of natural products that act as pheromones in fish.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ke; Buchinger, Tyler J; Li, Weiming

    2018-06-20

    Covering: up to 2018 Fish use a diverse collection of molecules to communicate with conspecifics. Since Karlson and Lüscher termed these molecules 'pheromones', chemists and biologists have joined efforts to characterize their structures and functions. In particular, the understanding of insect pheromones developed at a rapid pace, set, in part, by the use of bioassay-guided fractionation and natural product chemistry. Research on vertebrate pheromones, however, has progressed more slowly. Initially, biologists characterized fish pheromones by screening commercially available compounds suspected to act as pheromones based upon their physiological function. Such biology-driven screening has proven a productive approach to studying pheromones in fish. However, the many functions of fish pheromones and diverse metabolites that fish release make predicting pheromone identity difficult and necessitate approaches led by chemistry. Indeed, the few cases in which pheromone identification was led by natural product chemistry indicated novel or otherwise unpredicted compounds act as pheromones. Here, we provide a brief review of the approaches to identifying pheromones, placing particular emphasis on the promise of using natural product chemistry together with assays of biological activity. Several case studies illustrate bioassay-guided fractionation as an approach to pheromone identification in fish and the unexpected diversity of pheromone structures discovered by natural product chemistry. With recent advances in natural product chemistry, bioassay-guided fractionation is likely to unveil an even broader collection of pheromone structures and enable research that spans across disciplines.

  10. Natural products for chronic cough: Text mining the East Asian historical literature for future therapeutics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shergis, Johannah Linda; Wu, Lei; May, Brian H; Zhang, Anthony Lin; Guo, Xinfeng; Lu, Chuanjian; Xue, Charlie Changli

    2015-08-01

    Chronic cough is a significant health burden. Patients experience variable benefits from over the counter and prescribed products, but there is an unmet need to provide more effective treatments. Natural products have been used to treat cough and some plant compounds such as pseudoephedrine from ephedra and codeine from opium poppy have been developed into drugs. Text mining historical literature may offer new insight for future therapeutic development. We identified natural products used in the East Asian historical literature to treat chronic cough. Evaluation of the historical literature revealed 331 natural products used to treat chronic cough. Products included plants, minerals and animal substances. These natural products were found in 75 different books published between AD 363 and 1911. Of the 331 products, the 10 most frequently and continually used products were examined, taking into consideration findings from contemporary experimental studies. The natural products identified are promising and offer new directions in therapeutic development for treating chronic cough. © The Author(s) 2015.

  11. A comprehensive evaluation of the toxicology of cigarette ingredients: carbohydrates and natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coggins, Christopher R E; Wagner, Karl A; Werley, Michael S; Oldham, Michael J

    2011-06-01

    Eleven carbohydrates and natural product ingredients were added individually to experimental cigarettes. A battery of tests was used to compare toxicity of mainstream smoke from these experimental cigarettes to matched control cigarettes without test ingredients. Smoke fractions from each cigarette type were evaluated using analytical chemistry; in vitro cytotoxicity (neutral red uptake) and in vitro bacterial (Salmonella) mutagenicity (five strains) testing. For 10 ingredients (β-cyclodextrin, cleargum, D-sorbitol, high fructose corn syrup, honey, invert sugar, maltodextrin, molasses, raisin juice concentrate, and sucrose), 90-day nose-only smoke inhalation studies using rats were also performed. In general, addition of each ingredient in experimental cigarettes resulted in minimal changes in smoke chemistry; the exceptions were D-sorbitol and sucrose, where reductions in amount of 60% to 80% of control values for some smoke constituents were noted. Additionally, each ingredient resulted in small increases in smoke formaldehyde concentrations. Except for a reduction in cytotoxicity by inclusion of maltodextrin and an increase by inclusion of plum juice concentrate, the cytotoxicity and mutagenicity results were unaffected by addition of the other ingredients in experimental cigarettes. There were also very few statistically significant differences within any of the 10 inhalation studies, and when present, the differences were largely sporadic and inconsistent between sexes. The carbohydrates and natural products tested here as ingredients in experimental cigarettes as a class increased formaldehyde, but resulted in minimal toxicological responses, even at high inclusion levels compared with the levels used in commercial cigarette products.

  12. Natural Fostering in Fritillaria cirrhosa: Integrating herbal medicine production with biodiversity conservation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiwen Li

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Protected areas are generally regarded as a power tool to conserve biodiversity. Nonetheless, few protected areas could address three crucial problems simultaneously, namely funding, public participation and rural living. Here, we introduced a new protective approach, Natural Fostering, which integrated herbal medicine production with community conservation. The principles of Natural Fostering adopted species–species interaction at community level. Most effective chemical components of herbal medicine are derived from such interaction. Fritillaria cirrhosa was selected as an economic botany, one of herbal medicines, to carry out Natural Fostering. Community habitats, herbal medicine production, funding and income of local family were investigated to verify the feasibility of Natural Fostering for biodiversity. We found the density of plant populations and the annual average personal income of rural people increased. F. cirrhosa production could provide sufficient funds for sustainable conservation. Local people gradually changed their life style of wild collection and overgrazing, instead of herbal medicine production. The fostering area set up a good sustainable economic cycle. Natural Fostering can be presented as an effective and pragmatic way to conserve biological diversity and sustainable utilization of traditional medicinal resources.

  13. Large-scale hydrogen production using nuclear reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ryland, D.; Stolberg, L.; Kettner, A.; Gnanapragasam, N.; Suppiah, S. [Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Chalk River, ON (Canada)

    2014-07-01

    For many years, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) has been studying the feasibility of using nuclear reactors, such as the Supercritical Water-cooled Reactor, as an energy source for large scale hydrogen production processes such as High Temperature Steam Electrolysis and the Copper-Chlorine thermochemical cycle. Recent progress includes the augmentation of AECL's experimental capabilities by the construction of experimental systems to test high temperature steam electrolysis button cells at ambient pressure and temperatures up to 850{sup o}C and CuCl/HCl electrolysis cells at pressures up to 7 bar and temperatures up to 100{sup o}C. In parallel, detailed models of solid oxide electrolysis cells and the CuCl/HCl electrolysis cell are being refined and validated using experimental data. Process models are also under development to assess options for economic integration of these hydrogen production processes with nuclear reactors. Options for large-scale energy storage, including hydrogen storage, are also under study. (author)

  14. The Asia Pacific natural gas market: Large enough for all?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aguilera, Roberto F.; Inchauspe, Julian; Ripple, Ronald D.

    2014-01-01

    Among natural gas producing nations, there has been some concern about how the Asia Pacific will meet future demand for energy. We argue that natural gas, both regional and global, will play a vital role. Estimates of potential gas consumption in the region are analyzed and used to develop consensus projections to 2030. These consumption profiles are compared with gas supply estimates including indigenous, pipeline and LNG for the Asia Pacific market. From this analytical framework, we find that demand will be sufficiently large to accommodate supplies from diverse sources including North America, the Middle East, Central Asia, Russia, and the Asia Pacific itself. An important policy implication is that gas producing and consuming nations should benefit from promoting gas trade and not be concerned about a situation of potential lack of demand coupled with oversupply. - Highlights: • Estimates of gas consumption in the Asia Pacific (AP) in 2030 are presented. • Compared with supply estimates for AP including indigenous, pipeline, and LNG. • Find that demand in AP large enough to accommodate supply from all regions. • Nations should promote gas trade policy and not be overly concerned about oversupply

  15. Sustainability, natural and organic cosmetics: consumer, products, efficacy, toxicological and regulatory considerations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruno Fonseca-Santos

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The interest in sustainable products has increased along the years, since the choice of products, packaging and production processes have a great impact on the environment. These products are classified by regulatory agencies in different categories, aggregating advantages to the product and increasing the demand by consumers. However, there is no harmonization in guidelines of these certifying agencies and each cosmetic industry formulates their product and packaging in a more rational way, which causes less damage to the environment. Many cosmetic products have in their formulation natural products that perform a specific biological function, but these products should be evaluated on efficacy and toxicological aspects. The aim of this article is to approach sustainability, natural and organic cosmetics, considering the consumer and the efficacy, toxicological and regulatory aspects.

  16. In-use product stocks link manufactured capital to natural capital.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Wei-Qiang; Graedel, T E

    2015-05-19

    In-use stock of a product is the amount of the product in active use. In-use product stocks provide various functions or services on which we rely in our daily work and lives, and the concept of in-use product stock for industrial ecologists is similar to the concept of net manufactured capital stock for economists. This study estimates historical physical in-use stocks of 91 products and 9 product groups and uses monetary data on net capital stocks of 56 products to either approximate or compare with in-use stocks of the corresponding products in the United States. Findings include the following: (i) The development of new products and the buildup of their in-use stocks result in the increase in variety of in-use product stocks and of manufactured capital; (ii) substitution among products providing similar or identical functions reflects the improvement in quality of in-use product stocks and of manufactured capital; and (iii) the historical evolution of stocks of the 156 products or product groups in absolute, per capita, or per-household terms shows that stocks of most products have reached or are approaching an upper limit. Because the buildup, renewal, renovation, maintenance, and operation of in-use product stocks drive the anthropogenic cycles of materials that are used to produce products and that originate from natural capital, the determination of in-use product stocks together with modeling of anthropogenic material cycles provides an analytic perspective on the material linkage between manufactured capital and natural capital.

  17. World natural gas supply and demand: Brief pause in production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coccia, G.

    1993-01-01

    With reference to the 1992 CEDIGAZ (Centre International sur le Gas Naturel et tous Hydrocarbures Gazeux) report on world natural gas supply and demand, this paper assesses current market and production trends in this industry. The slight drop in production in 1992, the first which has which has occurred after many consecutive years of steady increases, is ascribed to ownership disputes among the former-USSR republics and major changes in the organizational structure of the former-USSR's natural gas industry. Strong increases in demand are forecasted due to expected strong population growth and increased industrialization to take place in China and India. Price trends in natural gas should remain steady as a result of plentiful supplies of this fuel and coal, a major competitor. The use of relatively clean natural gas is suggested as a practical alternative to energy taxes now being proposed as a means for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions

  18. Analysis of Specific Features of the Ukrainian Market of Natural Gas Production and Consumption

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lelyuk Oleksiy V.

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available The article provides results of the study of specific features of the Ukrainian market of natural gas production and consumption. It analyses dynamics of the specific weight of Ukraine in general volumes of natural gas consumption in the world, dynamics of natural gas consumption in Ukraine during 1990 – 2012 and dependence of natural gas consumption on GDP volumes by the purchasing power parity. It studies the structure of natural gas consumption by regions in 2012 and sectors of economy, resource base of natural gas in Ukraine and also dynamics of established resources of natural gas in Ukraine and dynamics of natural gas production. It analyses base rates of growth of natural gas resources and production in Ukraine. It considers dynamics of import of natural gas into Ukraine and its import prices and also the structure of natural gas import. It identifies the balance of the natural gas market in Ukraine. On the basis of the conducted analysis the article proves that Ukraine is a gas-deficit country of the world, which depends on natural gas import supplies.

  19. Principal component analysis as a tool for library design: a case study investigating natural products, brand-name drugs, natural product-like libraries, and drug-like libraries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wenderski, Todd A; Stratton, Christopher F; Bauer, Renato A; Kopp, Felix; Tan, Derek S

    2015-01-01

    Principal component analysis (PCA) is a useful tool in the design and planning of chemical libraries. PCA can be used to reveal differences in structural and physicochemical parameters between various classes of compounds by displaying them in a convenient graphical format. Herein, we demonstrate the use of PCA to gain insight into structural features that differentiate natural products, synthetic drugs, natural product-like libraries, and drug-like libraries, and show how the results can be used to guide library design.

  20. Marine Natural Products as Prototype Agrochemical Agents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Jiangnan; Shen, Xiaoyu; El Sayed, Khalid A.; Dunbar, D. C Harles; Perry, Tony L.; Wilkins, Scott P.; Hamann, Mark T.; Bobzin, Steve; Huesing, Joseph; Camp, Robin; Prinsen, Mike; Krupa, Dan; Wideman, Margaret A.

    2016-01-01

    In the interest of identifying new leads that could serve as prototype agrochemical agents, 18 structurally diverse marine-derived compounds were examined for insecticidal, herbicidal, and fungicidal activities. Several new classes of compounds have been shown to be insecticidal, herbicidal, and fungicidal, which suggests that marine natural products represent an intriguing source for the discovery of new agrochemical agents. PMID:12670165

  1. Natural Products for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ríos, José Luis; Francini, Flavio; Schinella, Guillermo R

    2015-08-01

    Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease characterized by persistent hyperglycemia. High blood sugar can produce long-term complications such as cardiovascular and renal disorders, retinopathy, and poor blood flow. Its development can be prevented or delayed in people with impaired glucose tolerance by implementing lifestyle changes or the use of therapeutic agents. Some of these drugs have been obtained from plants or have a microbial origin, such as galegine isolated from Galega officinalis, which has a great similarity to the antidiabetic drug metformin. Picnogenol, acarbose, miglitol, and voglibose are other antidiabetic products of natural origin. This review compiles the principal articles on medicinal plants used for treating diabetes and its comorbidities, as well as mechanisms of natural products as antidiabetic agents. Inhibition of α-glucosidase and α-amylase, effects on glucose uptake and glucose transporters, modification of mechanisms mediated by the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor, inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B activity, modification of gene expression, and activities of hormones involved in glucose homeostasis such as adiponectin, resistin, and incretin, and reduction of oxidative stress are some of the mechanisms in which natural products are involved. We also review the most relevant clinical trials performed with medicinal plants and natural products such as aloe, banaba, bitter melon, caper, cinnamon, cocoa, coffee, fenugreek, garlic, guava, gymnema, nettle, sage, soybean, green and black tea, turmeric, walnut, and yerba mate. Compounds of high interest as potential antidiabetics are: fukugetin, palmatine, berberine, honokiol, amorfrutins, trigonelline, gymnemic acids, gurmarin, and phlorizin. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  2. Cytochromes P450 for natural product biosynthesis in Streptomyces: sequence, structure, and function.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudolf, Jeffrey D; Chang, Chin-Yuan; Ma, Ming; Shen, Ben

    2017-08-30

    Covering: up to January 2017Cytochrome P450 enzymes (P450s) are some of the most exquisite and versatile biocatalysts found in nature. In addition to their well-known roles in steroid biosynthesis and drug metabolism in humans, P450s are key players in natural product biosynthetic pathways. Natural products, the most chemically and structurally diverse small molecules known, require an extensive collection of P450s to accept and functionalize their unique scaffolds. In this review, we survey the current catalytic landscape of P450s within the Streptomyces genus, one of the most prolific producers of natural products, and comprehensively summarize the functionally characterized P450s from Streptomyces. A sequence similarity network of >8500 P450s revealed insights into the sequence-function relationships of these oxygen-dependent metalloenzymes. Although only ∼2.4% and structurally characterized, respectively, the study of streptomycete P450s involved in the biosynthesis of natural products has revealed their diverse roles in nature, expanded their catalytic repertoire, created structural and mechanistic paradigms, and exposed their potential for biomedical and biotechnological applications. Continued study of these remarkable enzymes will undoubtedly expose their true complement of chemical and biological capabilities.

  3. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products A Practical ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 9. Learning Organic Chemistry Through Natural Products A Practical Approach. N R Krishnaswamy. Series Article Volume 1 Issue 9 September 1996 pp 25-33. Fulltext. Click here to view fulltext PDF. Permanent link:

  4. Utilization of Natural Products as Functional Feed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stella Magdalena

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The use of antibiotics as feed additive improves performance in livestock. However, scientific data related to the use of antibiotics in feed merge spreading of bacterial resistance in animal and human bodies, therefore the usage of antibiotics in animal production is restricted. This condition raise the utilization of natural antibiotic as functional feed such as phytogenics (essential oil, flavonoid, saponin, and tannin, enzyme, probiotic, and prebiotic to improve the livestock’s performance, quality, and health. Functional feeds increase profitability in animal husbandry production and its use is feeds are expected to be functional foods that may have positive effects in human nutrition.

  5. A simple biosynthetic pathway for large product generation from small substrate amounts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Djordjevic, Marko; Djordjevic, Magdalena

    2012-10-01

    A recently emerging discipline of synthetic biology has the aim of constructing new biosynthetic pathways with useful biological functions. A major application of these pathways is generating a large amount of the desired product. However, toxicity due to the possible presence of toxic precursors is one of the main problems for such production. We consider here the problem of generating a large amount of product from a potentially toxic substrate. To address this, we propose a simple biosynthetic pathway, which can be induced in order to produce a large number of the product molecules, by keeping the substrate amount at low levels. Surprisingly, we show that the large product generation crucially depends on fast non-specific degradation of the substrate molecules. We derive an optimal induction strategy, which allows as much as three orders of magnitude increase in the product amount through biologically realistic parameter values. We point to a recently discovered bacterial immune system (CRISPR/Cas in E. coli) as a putative example of the pathway analysed here. We also argue that the scheme proposed here can be used not only as a stand-alone pathway, but also as a strategy to produce a large amount of the desired molecules with small perturbations of endogenous biosynthetic pathways.

  6. A simple biosynthetic pathway for large product generation from small substrate amounts

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Djordjevic, Marko [Institute of Physiology and Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade (Serbia); Djordjevic, Magdalena [Institute of Physics Belgrade, University of Belgrade (Serbia)

    2012-10-01

    A recently emerging discipline of synthetic biology has the aim of constructing new biosynthetic pathways with useful biological functions. A major application of these pathways is generating a large amount of the desired product. However, toxicity due to the possible presence of toxic precursors is one of the main problems for such production. We consider here the problem of generating a large amount of product from a potentially toxic substrate. To address this, we propose a simple biosynthetic pathway, which can be induced in order to produce a large number of the product molecules, by keeping the substrate amount at low levels. Surprisingly, we show that the large product generation crucially depends on fast non-specific degradation of the substrate molecules. We derive an optimal induction strategy, which allows as much as three orders of magnitude increase in the product amount through biologically realistic parameter values. We point to a recently discovered bacterial immune system (CRISPR/Cas in E. coli) as a putative example of the pathway analysed here. We also argue that the scheme proposed here can be used not only as a stand-alone pathway, but also as a strategy to produce a large amount of the desired molecules with small perturbations of endogenous biosynthetic pathways. (paper)

  7. A simple biosynthetic pathway for large product generation from small substrate amounts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Djordjevic, Marko; Djordjevic, Magdalena

    2012-01-01

    A recently emerging discipline of synthetic biology has the aim of constructing new biosynthetic pathways with useful biological functions. A major application of these pathways is generating a large amount of the desired product. However, toxicity due to the possible presence of toxic precursors is one of the main problems for such production. We consider here the problem of generating a large amount of product from a potentially toxic substrate. To address this, we propose a simple biosynthetic pathway, which can be induced in order to produce a large number of the product molecules, by keeping the substrate amount at low levels. Surprisingly, we show that the large product generation crucially depends on fast non-specific degradation of the substrate molecules. We derive an optimal induction strategy, which allows as much as three orders of magnitude increase in the product amount through biologically realistic parameter values. We point to a recently discovered bacterial immune system (CRISPR/Cas in E. coli) as a putative example of the pathway analysed here. We also argue that the scheme proposed here can be used not only as a stand-alone pathway, but also as a strategy to produce a large amount of the desired molecules with small perturbations of endogenous biosynthetic pathways. (paper)

  8. Natural radiation - a perspective to radiological risk factors of nuclear energy production

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mustonen, R.; Christensen, T.; Stranden, E.

    1992-01-01

    Radiation doses from natural radiation and from man-made modifications on natural radiation, and different natural radiological environments in the Nordic countries are summarized and used as a perspective for the radiological consequences of nuclear energy production. The significance of different...... radiation sources can be judged against the total collective effective dose equivalent from natural radiation in the Nordic countries, 92 000 manSv per year. The collective dose from nuclear energy production during normal operation is estimated to 20 manSv per year and from non-nuclear energy production...... to 80 manSv per year. The increase in collective dose due to the conservation of heating energy in Nordic dwellings is estimated to 23 000 manSv per year, from 1973 to 1984. An indirect radiological danger index is defined in order to be able to compare the significance of estimated future releases...

  9. Life Cycle Assessment Of Hydrogen Production From Natural Gas Reforming Process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ozturk, M.

    2010-01-01

    Society has become concerned about the issues of natural resource depletion and environmental degradation. The environmental performance of products or processes has become a key issue, which is why ways to minimize the effects on the environment are investigated. The most effective tool for this purpose is called life cycle assessment (LCA). This concept considers the entire life cycle of product or process. The life cycle of a product begins with the extraction of raw materials from the earth to create the product and ends at the point when all materials are returned to the earth. LCA makes it possible to estimate the cumulative environmental impacts resulting from all stages in the product life cycle, often including impacts not considered in more traditional analyses. Therefore, LCA provides a comprehensive view of the environmental aspects of the product or process and a more accurate picture of the true environmental trade-offs in product selection. In the case of this study, life cycle assessments of hydrogen production via natural gas reforming process are investigated for environmental affect.

  10. Impacts of Marcellus Shale Natural Gas Production on Regional Air Quality

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swarthout, R.; Russo, R. S.; Zhou, Y.; Mitchell, B.; Miller, B.; Lipsky, E. M.; Sive, B. C.

    2012-12-01

    Natural gas is a clean burning alternative to other fossil fuels, producing lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions during combustion. Gas deposits located within shale rock or tight sand formations are difficult to access using conventional drilling techniques. However, horizontal drilling coupled with hydraulic fracturing is now widely used to enhance natural gas extraction. Potential environmental impacts of these practices are currently being assessed because of the rapid expansion of natural gas production in the U.S. Natural gas production has contributed to the deterioration of air quality in several regions, such as in Wyoming and Utah, that were near or downwind of natural gas basins. We conducted a field campaign in southwestern Pennsylvania on 16-18 June 2012 to investigate the impact of gas production operations in the Marcellus Shale on regional air quality. A total of 235 whole air samples were collected in 2-liter electropolished stainless- steel canisters throughout southwestern Pennsylvania in a regular grid pattern that covered an area of approximately 8500 square km. Day and night samples were collected at each grid point and additional samples were collected near active wells, flaring wells, fluid retention reservoirs, transmission pipelines, and a processing plant to assess the influence of different stages of the gas production operation on emissions. The samples were analyzed at Appalachian State University for methane (CH4), CO2, C2-C10 nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHCs), C1-C2 halocarbons, C1-C5 alkyl nitrates and selected reduced sulfur compounds. In-situ measurements of ozone (O3), CH4, CO2, nitric oxide (NO), total reactive nitrogen (NOy), formaldehyde (HCHO), and a range of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were carried out at an upwind site and a site near active gas wells using a mobile lab. Emissions associated with gas production were observed throughout the study region. Elevated mixing ratios of CH4 and CO2 were observed in the

  11. The sustainable management of a productive natural capital

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Daubanes, Julien Xavier

    is relevant, among other examples, to the case of naturebased tourism. I study the sustainable management of a productive natural capital: the conditions under which its exploitation generates maximum long-run social benefits; the various ways in which a regulator can implement such an exploitation; the rent...

  12. SAM-dependent enzyme-catalysed pericyclic reactions in natural product biosynthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ohashi, Masao; Liu, Fang; Hai, Yang; Chen, Mengbin; Tang, Man-Cheng; Yang, Zhongyue; Sato, Michio; Watanabe, Kenji; Houk, K. N.; Tang, Yi

    2017-09-01

    Pericyclic reactions—which proceed in a concerted fashion through a cyclic transition state—are among the most powerful synthetic transformations used to make multiple regioselective and stereoselective carbon-carbon bonds. They have been widely applied to the synthesis of biologically active complex natural products containing contiguous stereogenic carbon centres. Despite the prominence of pericyclic reactions in total synthesis, only three naturally existing enzymatic examples (the intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction, and the Cope and the Claisen rearrangements) have been characterized. Here we report a versatile S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM)-dependent enzyme, LepI, that can catalyse stereoselective dehydration followed by three pericyclic transformations: intramolecular Diels-Alder and hetero-Diels-Alder reactions via a single ambimodal transition state, and a retro-Claisen rearrangement. Together, these transformations lead to the formation of the dihydropyran core of the fungal natural product, leporin. Combined in vitro enzymatic characterization and computational studies provide insight into how LepI regulates these bifurcating biosynthetic reaction pathways by using SAM as the cofactor. These pathways converge to the desired biosynthetic end product via the (SAM-dependent) retro-Claisen rearrangement catalysed by LepI. We expect that more pericyclic biosynthetic enzymatic transformations remain to be discovered in naturally occurring enzyme ‘toolboxes’. The new role of the versatile cofactor SAM is likely to be found in other examples of enzyme catalysis.

  13. Structure elucidation of secondary natural products

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Seger, C.

    2001-06-01

    The presented thesis deals with the structure elucidation of secondary natural products. Most of the compounds under investigation were terpenes, especially triterpenes, alkaloids and stilbenoids. Besides characterizing a multitude of already known and also new compounds, it was possible to detect and correct wrongly assigned literature data. The methodological aspect of this thesis lies - beside in the utilization of modern 2D NMR spectroscopy - in the evaluation of computer assisted structure elucidation (CASE) techniques in the course of spectroscopy supported structure elucidation processes. (author)

  14. The potential of natural products for targeting PPARα

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniela Rigano

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Peroxisome proliferator activated receptors (PPARs α, -γ and -β/δ are ligand-activated transcription factors and members of the superfamily of nuclear hormone receptor. These receptors play key roles in maintaining glucose and lipid homeostasis by modulating gene expression. PPARs constitute a recognized druggable target and indeed several classes of drugs used in the treatment of metabolic disease symptoms, such as dyslipidemia (fibrates, e.g. fenofibrate and gemfibrozil and diabetes (thiazolidinediones, e.g. rosiglitazone and pioglitazone are ligands for the various PPAR isoforms. More precisely, antidiabetic thiazolidinediones act on PPARγ, while PPARα is the main molecular target of antidyslipidemic fibrates. Over the past few years, our understanding of the mechanism underlying the PPAR modulation of gene expression has greatly increased. This review presents a survey on terrestrial and marine natural products modulating the PPARα system with the objective of highlighting how the incredible chemodiversity of natural products can provide innovative leads for this “hot” target.

  15. Production and Evaluation of 236gNp and Reference Materials for Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larijani, Cyrus Kouroush

    This thesis is based on the development of a radiochemical separation scheme capable of separating both 236gNp and 236Pu from a uranium target of natural isotopic composition ( 1 g uranium) and 200 MBq of fission decay products. The isobaric distribution of fission residues produced following the bombardment of a natural uranium target with a beam of 25 MeV protons has been evaluated. Decay analysis of thirteen isobarically distinct fission residues were carried out using high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry at the UK National Physical Laboratory. Stoichiometric abundances were calculated via the determination of absolute activity concentrations associated with the longest-lived members of each isobaric chain. This technique was validated by computational modelling of likely sequential decay processes through an isobaric decay chain. The results were largely in agreement with previously published values for neutron bombardments on natural uranium at energies of 14 MeV. Higher relative yields of products with mass numbers A 110-130 were found, consistent with the increasing yield of these radionuclides as the bombarding energy is increased. Using literature values for the production cross-section for fusion of protons with uranium targets, it is estimated that an upper limit of approximately 250 Bq of activity from the 236Np ground state was produced in this experiment. Using a radiochemical separation scheme, Np and Pu fractions were separated from the produced fission decay products, with analyses of the target-based final reaction products made using Inductively Couple Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and high-resolution alpha and gamma-ray spectrometry. In a separate research theme, reliable measurement of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials is of significance in order to comply with environmental regulations and for radiological protection purposes. The thesis describes the standardisation of three reference materials, namely Sand, Tuff and TiO2 which

  16. More natural gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leprince, P.; Valais, M.

    1993-01-01

    This paper reports that large resources and growing markets are the salient prospects of natural gas for the coming decades. The greater impact of natural gas on the worldwide energy market can become a reality if several scientific disciplines can be mobilized in order to succeed in cutting production costs. Modeling, mechanics of complex fluids, and physical chemistry of interfaces are basic disciplines for understanding and mastering the gas processing technologies

  17. Ultra-High-Throughput Screening of Natural Product Extracts to Identify Proapoptotic Inhibitors of Bcl-2 Family Proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassig, Christian A; Zeng, Fu-Yue; Kung, Paul; Kiankarimi, Mehrak; Kim, Sylvia; Diaz, Paul W; Zhai, Dayong; Welsh, Kate; Morshedian, Shana; Su, Ying; O'Keefe, Barry; Newman, David J; Rusman, Yudi; Kaur, Harneet; Salomon, Christine E; Brown, Susan G; Baire, Beeraiah; Michel, Andrew R; Hoye, Thomas R; Francis, Subhashree; Georg, Gunda I; Walters, Michael A; Divlianska, Daniela B; Roth, Gregory P; Wright, Amy E; Reed, John C

    2014-09-01

    Antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins are validated cancer targets composed of six related proteins. From a drug discovery perspective, these are challenging targets that exert their cellular functions through protein-protein interactions (PPIs). Although several isoform-selective inhibitors have been developed using structure-based design or high-throughput screening (HTS) of synthetic chemical libraries, no large-scale screen of natural product collections has been reported. A competitive displacement fluorescence polarization (FP) screen of nearly 150,000 natural product extracts was conducted against all six antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins using fluorochrome-conjugated peptide ligands that mimic functionally relevant PPIs. The screens were conducted in 1536-well format and displayed satisfactory overall HTS statistics, with Z'-factor values ranging from 0.72 to 0.83 and a hit confirmation rate between 16% and 64%. Confirmed active extracts were orthogonally tested in a luminescent assay for caspase-3/7 activation in tumor cells. Active extracts were resupplied, and effort toward the isolation of pure active components was initiated through iterative bioassay-guided fractionation. Several previously described altertoxins were isolated from a microbial source, and the pure compounds demonstrate activity in both Bcl-2 FP and caspase cellular assays. The studies demonstrate the feasibility of ultra-high-throughput screening using natural product sources and highlight some of the challenges associated with this approach. © 2014 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening.

  18. Cordyceps fungi: natural products, pharmacological functions and developmental products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Xuanwei; Gong, Zhenghua; Su, Ying; Lin, Juan; Tang, Kexuan

    2009-03-01

    Parasitic Cordyceps fungi, such as Cordyceps sinensis, is a parasitic complex of fungus and caterpillar, which has been used for medicinal purposes for centuries particularly in China, Japan and other Asian countries. This article gives a general idea of the latest developments in C. sinensis research, with regard to the active chemical components, the pharmacological effects and the research and development of products in recent years. The common names for preparations include DongChongXiaCao in Chinese, winter worm summer grass in English. It has many bioactive components, such as 3'-deoxyadenosine, cordycepic acid and Cordyceps polysaccharides. It is commonly used to replenish the kidney and soothe the lung, and for the treatment of fatigue. It also can be used to treat conditions such as night sweating, hyposexuality, hyperglycaemia, hyperlipidaemia, asthenia after severe illness, respiratory disease, renal dysfunction, renal failure, arrhythmias and other heart disease and liver disease. Because of its rarity and outstanding curative effects, several mycelia strains have been isolated from natural Cordyceps and manufactured by fermentation technology, and are commonly sold as health food products. In addition, some substitutes such as C. militaris and adulterants also have been used; therefore, quality control of C. sinensis and its products is very important to ensure their safety and efficacy. Recent research advances in the study of Cordyceps, including Cordyceps mushrooms, chemical components, pharmacological functions and developmental products, has been reviewed and discussed. Developing trends in the field have also been appraised.

  19. A Review on the Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Pharmacokinetics and Toxicology of Geniposide, a Natural Product

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mingqiu Shan

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Iridoid glycosides are natural products occurring widely in many herbal plants. Geniposide (C17H24O10 is a well-known one, present in nearly 40 species belonging to various families, especially the Rubiaceae. Along with this herbal component, dozens of its natural derivatives have also been isolated and characterized by researchers. Furthermore, a large body of pharmacological evidence has proved the various biological activities of geniposide, such as anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, anti-diabetic, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective, cholagogic effects and so on. However, there have been some research articles on its toxicity in recent years. Therefore, this review paper aims to provide the researchers with a comprehensive profile of geniposide on its phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and toxicology in order to highlight some present issues and future perspectives as well as to help us develop and utilize this iridoid glycoside more efficiently and safely.

  20. Plant natural products research in tuberculosis drug discovery and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Plant natural products research in tuberculosis drug discovery and development: A situation report ... African Journal of Biotechnology ... tuberculosis (XDR-TB), call for the development of new anti-tuberculosis drugs to combat this disease.

  1. Uncertainty of measurement for large product verification: evaluation of large aero gas turbine engine datums

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Muelaner, J E; Wang, Z; Keogh, P S; Brownell, J; Fisher, D

    2016-01-01

    Understanding the uncertainty of dimensional measurements for large products such as aircraft, spacecraft and wind turbines is fundamental to improving efficiency in these products. Much work has been done to ascertain the uncertainty associated with the main types of instruments used, based on laser tracking and photogrammetry, and the propagation of this uncertainty through networked measurements. Unfortunately this is not sufficient to understand the combined uncertainty of industrial measurements, which include secondary tooling and datum structures used to locate the coordinate frame. This paper presents for the first time a complete evaluation of the uncertainty of large scale industrial measurement processes. Generic analysis and design rules are proven through uncertainty evaluation and optimization for the measurement of a large aero gas turbine engine. This shows how the instrument uncertainty can be considered to be negligible. Before optimization the dominant source of uncertainty was the tooling design, after optimization the dominant source was thermal expansion of the engine; meaning that no further improvement can be made without measurement in a temperature controlled environment. These results will have a significant impact on the ability of aircraft and wind turbines to improve efficiency and therefore reduce carbon emissions, as well as the improved reliability of these products. (paper)

  2. Nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chang, Ho-Myung; Park, Jae Hoon; Gwak, Kyung Hyun [Hong Ik University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Seoul, 121-791 (Korea, Republic of); Choe, Kun Hyung [Korea Gas Corporation, Incheon, 406-130 (Korea, Republic of)

    2014-01-29

    Thermodynamic study is performed on nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas. In order to substantially increase the capacity, a Brayton refrigeration cycle with nitrogen expander was recently added to the cold end of the reputable propane pre-cooled mixed-refrigerant (C3-MR) process. Similar modifications with a nitrogen expander cycle are extensively investigated on a variety of cycle configurations. The existing and modified cycles are simulated with commercial process software (Aspen HYSYS) based on selected specifications. The results are compared in terms of thermodynamic efficiency, liquefaction capacity, and estimated size of heat exchangers. The combination of C3-MR with partial regeneration and pre-cooling of nitrogen expander cycle is recommended to have a great potential for high efficiency and large capacity.

  3. Nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Ho-Myung; Park, Jae Hoon; Gwak, Kyung Hyun; Choe, Kun Hyung

    2014-01-01

    Thermodynamic study is performed on nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas. In order to substantially increase the capacity, a Brayton refrigeration cycle with nitrogen expander was recently added to the cold end of the reputable propane pre-cooled mixed-refrigerant (C3-MR) process. Similar modifications with a nitrogen expander cycle are extensively investigated on a variety of cycle configurations. The existing and modified cycles are simulated with commercial process software (Aspen HYSYS) based on selected specifications. The results are compared in terms of thermodynamic efficiency, liquefaction capacity, and estimated size of heat exchangers. The combination of C3-MR with partial regeneration and pre-cooling of nitrogen expander cycle is recommended to have a great potential for high efficiency and large capacity.

  4. Nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang, Ho-Myung; Park, Jae Hoon; Gwak, Kyung Hyun; Choe, Kun Hyung

    2014-01-01

    Thermodynamic study is performed on nitrogen expander cycles for large capacity liquefaction of natural gas. In order to substantially increase the capacity, a Brayton refrigeration cycle with nitrogen expander was recently added to the cold end of the reputable propane pre-cooled mixed-refrigerant (C3-MR) process. Similar modifications with a nitrogen expander cycle are extensively investigated on a variety of cycle configurations. The existing and modified cycles are simulated with commercial process software (Aspen HYSYS) based on selected specifications. The results are compared in terms of thermodynamic efficiency, liquefaction capacity, and estimated size of heat exchangers. The combination of C3-MR with partial regeneration and pre-cooling of nitrogen expander cycle is recommended to have a great potential for high efficiency and large capacity

  5. Natural Products Research in South Africa: End of an Era on Land or ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    NICO

    single era of natural product chemistry research in South Africa but rather three ... The Specialization Era (ca. 1960–1990) ... South African Natural Products in the International Drug. Discovery .... subsequently proposed that 24 was formed through an initial ... complete elimination of M. grisea infestation by the commercial.

  6. Constant rate natural gas production from a well in a hydrate reservoir

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ji Chuang; Ahmadi, Goodarz; Smith, Duane H.

    2003-01-01

    Using a computational model, production of natural gas at a constant rate from a well that is drilled into a confined methane hydrate reservoir is studied. It is assumed that the pores in the reservoir are partially saturated with hydrate. A linearized model for an axisymmetric condition with a fixed well output is used in the analysis. For different reservoir temperatures and various well outputs, time evolutions of temperature and pressure profiles, as well as the gas flow rate in the hydrate zone and the gas region, are evaluated. The distance of the decomposition front from the well as a function of time is also computed. It is shown that to maintain a constant natural gas production rate, the well pressure must be decreased with time. A constant low production rate can be sustained for a long duration of time, but a high production rate demands unrealistically low pressure at the well after a relatively short production time. The simulation results show that the process of natural gas production in a hydrate reservoir is a sensitive function of reservoir temperature and hydrate zone permeability

  7. Transition to a new generation of large natural-draught cooling towers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Biller, H.; Boslau, C.; Heyde, K.; Kockelke, W.

    1985-01-01

    A concept of a new generation of natural-draught cooling towers for large nuclear power plant units is presented considering optimization and calculation methods, safety philosophy, dimension criteria, constructional measures, building materials, construction surveying, climbing formwork, and climbing cranes. The first installation will be available by 1990, with a unit 250 m in diameter by 150 m high

  8. Inclusive production of large-p/sub T/ protons and quark-quark elastic scattering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, C.K.

    1978-01-01

    A proton-formation process in combination with hard quark-quark scattering is capable of explaining the observed large-p/sub T/ single-proton inclusive production data. This model implies that the inclusive production of two large-p/sub T/ protons at opposite directions is dominated by large-angle elastic scattering of two up quarks, and becomes an ideal place to study elastic quark-quark scattering. This two-proton inclusive production process is also ideal for the study of the spin structure of quark-quark elastic scattering, so the assumptions of pure vector-type quark-quark interaction and of colored quarks can be checked empirically. The consistency of applying the quark-elastic-scattering idea to large-angle elastic proton-proton scattering and to the inclusive production of large-p/sub T/ protons is also demonstrated

  9. Evidence for a Large Natural Nuclear Reactor in Mars Past

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brandenburg, J. E.

    2006-05-01

    It has long been known that The isotopic ratios 129 Xe/132Xe and 40Ar/36Ar are very high in Mars atmosphere relative to Earth or meteoritic backgrounds. This fact has allowed the SNC meteorites to be identified as Martian based on their trapped gases (1). However, while the isotopic anomalies explained one mystery, the origin of the SNC meteorites, they created a new mystery: the rock samples from Mars show no evidence of the large amounts of Iodine or Potassium that would give naturally give rise to the Xenon and Argon isotopic anomalies (2). In fact, the Martian meteorites are depleted in Potassium relative to earth rocks. This is added to the fact that for other isotopic systems such as 80Kr, Mars rock samples must be irradiated by neutrons at fluences of 1015 /cm2 to explain observed abundances (1) . Compounding the mystery is the fact that Mars surface layer has elevated levels of Uranium and Thorium relative to Earth and even its own rocks, as determined from SNCs (3). These anomalies can be explained if some large nuclear energy release, such as by natural nuclear reactors known to have operated on Earth (4) in in some concentrated ore body, occurred with perhaps a large volcano like explosion that spread residues over the planets surface. Based on gamma ray observations from orbit (3), and the correlations of normally uncorrelated Th and K deposits , the approximate location of this event would appear to have been in the north of Mars in a region in Acidalia Planitia centered at 45N Latitude and 15W Longitude (5). The possibility of such a large radiological event in Mars past adds impetus to Mars exploration efforts and particularly to a human mission to Mars to learn more about this possible occurrence. (1) Swindle, T. D. , Caffee, M. W., and Hohenberg, C. M., (1986) "Xenon and other Noble Gases in Shergottites" Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 50, pp 1001-1015. (2) Banin, A., Clark, B.C., and Wanke, H. "Surface Chemistry and Mineralogy" (1992) in "Mars

  10. Natural product derived insecticides: discovery and development of spinetoram.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galm, Ute; Sparks, Thomas C

    2016-03-01

    This review highlights the importance of natural product research and industrial microbiology for product development in the agricultural industry, based on examples from Dow AgroSciences. It provides an overview of the discovery and development of spinetoram, a semisynthetic insecticide derived by a combination of a genetic block in a specific O-methylation of the rhamnose moiety of spinosad coupled with neural network-based QSAR and synthetic chemistry. It also emphasizes the key role that new technologies and multidisciplinary approaches play in the development of current spinetoram production strains.

  11. Natural Gas and Cellulosic Biomass: A Clean Fuel Combination? Determining the Natural Gas Blending Wall in Biofuel Production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    M Wright, Mark; Seifkar, Navid; Green, William H; Román-Leshkov, Yuriy

    2015-07-07

    Natural gas has the potential to increase the biofuel production output by combining gas- and biomass-to-liquids (GBTL) processes followed by naphtha and diesel fuel synthesis via Fischer-Tropsch (FT). This study reflects on the use of commercial-ready configurations of GBTL technologies and the environmental impact of enhancing biofuels with natural gas. The autothermal and steam-methane reforming processes for natural gas conversion and the gasification of biomass for FT fuel synthesis are modeled to estimate system well-to-wheel emissions and compare them to limits established by U.S. renewable fuel mandates. We show that natural gas can enhance FT biofuel production by reducing the need for water-gas shift (WGS) of biomass-derived syngas to achieve appropriate H2/CO ratios. Specifically, fuel yields are increased from less than 60 gallons per ton to over 100 gallons per ton with increasing natural gas input. However, GBTL facilities would need to limit natural gas use to less than 19.1% on a LHV energy basis (7.83 wt %) to avoid exceeding the emissions limits established by the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) for clean, advanced biofuels. This effectively constitutes a blending limit that constrains the use of natural gas for enhancing the biomass-to-liquids (BTL) process.

  12. Performance of mushroom fruiting for large scale commercial production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mat Rosol Awang; Rosnani Abdul Rashid; Hassan Hamdani Mutaat; Mohd Meswan Maskom

    2012-01-01

    The paper described the determination of mushroom fruiting yield, which is vital to economics of mushroom production. Consistency in mushroom yields enabling an estimation to be made for revenues and hence profitability could be predicted. It has been reported by many growers, there are a large variation in mushroom yields over different times of production. To assess such claims we have run four batches of mushroom fruiting and the performance fruiting body productions are presented. (author)

  13. What Is the Structure of the Antitubercular Natural Product Eucapsitrione?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pullella, Glenn A; Wild, Duncan A; Nealon, Gareth L; Elyashberg, Mikhail; Piggott, Matthew J

    2017-07-21

    1,5,7-Trihydroxy-6H-indeno[1,2-b]anthracene-6,11,13-trione (1), proposed to be the antitubercular natural product eucapsitrione, has been synthesized in 43% overall yield and six steps, including a key Suzuki-Miyaura biaryl coupling and a directed remote metalation (DReM)-initiated cyclization. The physical and spectroscopic properties of 1 do not match the data reported for the natural product. At this time there is insufficient information available to enable a structure reassignment. During the optimization of the Suzuki-Miyaura coupling, an unprecedented biaryl coupling ortho to the borono group was observed. The scope of this unusual reaction has been investigated.

  14. Natural products as starting points for future anti-malarial therapies: going back to our roots?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wells Timothy NC

    2011-03-01

    medicinal products already used by the community. This first step forms a solid basis of observations, before moving to in vivo pharmacological characterization and ultimately identifying the active ingredient. A large part of the population uses herbal medicinal products despite limited numbers of well-controlled clinical studies. Increased awareness by the regulators and public health bodies of the need for safety information on herbal medicinal products also lends support to obtaining more clinical data on such products. Conclusions The relative paucity of new herbal medicinal product scaffolds active against malaria results discovered in recent years suggest it is time to re-evaluate the ‘smash and grab’ approach of randomly testing purified natural products and replace it with a patient-data led approach. This will require a change of perspective form many in the field. It will require an investment in standardisation in several areas, including: the ethnopharmacology and design and reporting of clinical observation studies, systems for characterizing anti-malarial activity of patient plasma samples ex vivo followed by chemical and pharmacological characterisation of extracts from promising sources. Such work falls outside of the core mandate of the product development partnerships, such as MMV, and so will require additional support. This call is timely, given the strong interest from researchers in disease endemic countries to support the research arm of a malaria eradication agenda. Para-national institutions such as the African Network for Drugs and Diagnostics Innovation (ANDi will play a major role in facilitating the development of their natural products patrimony and possibly clinical best practice to bring forward new therapeutics. As in the past, with quinine, lapinone and artemisinin, once the activity of herbal medicinal products in humans is characterised, it can be used to identify new molecular scaffolds which will form the basis of the next

  15. Does species diversity limit productivity in natural grassland communities?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Grace, James B.; Anderson, T. Michael; Smith, Melinda D.; Seabloom, Eric; Andelman, Sandy J.; Meche, Gayna; Weiher, Evan; Allain, Larry K.; Jutila, Heli; Sankaran, Mahesh; Knops, Johannes; Ritchie, Mark; Willig, Michael R.

    Theoretical analyses and experimental studies of synthesized assemblages indicate that under particular circumstances species diversity can enhance community productivity through niche complementarity. It remains unclear whether this process has important effects in mature natural ecosystems where

  16. Marine natural products in prevention and treatment of osteoporosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zahra Ghanbari

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Undoubtedly, pharmaceutical and nutritional factors play an important role in the prevention of age-related bone loss. According to the several studies so far, the effects of nutrients and bioactive components which are extracted from marine resources are very promising in osteoporosis. Most of these investigations have been done on various marine algae extracts. Since, algae are rich source of essential minerals, primary and secondary unique natural products, several amino acids and growth factors their extracts show favorable effects on bone metabolism. Moreover, it has been shown that marine nutrients such as marine fishes, shrimp and crabs increase the absorption of calcium and bone collagen synthesis or reduce the production of prostaglandins and decrease the deoxypyridinoline disposal. On the other hand, secondary products which are extracted and characterized from marine organisms such as mollusks, fungi, bacteria, sponges and coral reefs show anti-osteoporosis activities via the inhibition of osteoclast differentiation and the induction of apoptosis in osteoclasts like cells or stimulation of osteoblast differentiation. Although, several investigations have been done in this area, many of studies have been carried out on animal models, like ovariectomy-induced bone loss in mice. Hence, clinical investigations are warranted to develop marine natural products against bone loss and to prevent osteoporosis.

  17. Naturally light hidden photons in LARGE volume string compactifications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goodsell, M.; Jaeckel, J.; Redondo, J.; Ringwald, A.

    2009-09-01

    Extra ''hidden'' U(1) gauge factors are a generic feature of string theory that is of particular phenomenological interest. They can kinetically mix with the Standard Model photon and are thereby accessible to a wide variety of astrophysical and cosmological observations and laboratory experiments. In this paper we investigate the masses and the kinetic mixing of hidden U(1)s in LARGE volume compactifications of string theory. We find that in these scenarios the hidden photons can be naturally light and that their kinetic mixing with the ordinary electromagnetic photon can be of a size interesting for near future experiments and observations. (orig.)

  18. Recent advances in the elucidation of enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis [version 2; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gao-Yi Tan

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available With the successful production of artemisinic acid in yeast, the promising potential of synthetic biology for natural product biosynthesis is now being realized. The recent total biosynthesis of opioids in microbes is considered to be another landmark in this field. The importance and significance of enzymes in natural product biosynthetic pathways have been re-emphasized by these advancements. Therefore, the characterization and elucidation of enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis are undoubtedly fundamental for the development of new drugs and the heterologous biosynthesis of active natural products. Here, discoveries regarding enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis over the past year are briefly reviewed.

  19. Recent advances in the elucidation of enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tan Gao-Yi

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available With the successful production of artemisinic acid in yeast, the promising potential of synthetic biology for natural product biosynthesis is now being realized. The recent total biosynthesis of opioids in microbes is considered to be another landmark in this field. The importance and significance of enzymes in natural product biosynthetic pathways have been re-emphasized by these advancements. Therefore, the characterization and elucidation of enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis are undoubtedly fundamental for the development of new drugs and the heterologous biosynthesis of active natural products. Here, discoveries regarding enzymatic function in natural product biosynthesis over the past year are briefly reviewed.

  20. Investigating the Structure-Activity Relationship of the Insecticidal Natural Product Rocaglamide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Roger G; Bruce, Ian; Cooke, Nigel G; Diorazio, Louis J; Cederbaum, Fredrik; Dobler, Markus R; Irving, Ed

    2017-12-01

    The natural product Rocaglamide (1), isolated from the tree Aglaia elliptifolia, is a compelling but also challenging lead structure for crop protection. In laboratory assays, the natural product shows highly interesting insecticidal activity against chewing pests and beetles, but also phytotoxicity on some crop plants. Multi-step syntheses with control of stereochemistry were required to probe the structure-activity relationship (SAR), and seek simplified analogues. After a significant research effort, just two areas of the molecule were identified which allow modification whilst maintaining activity, as will be highlighted in this paper.

  1. Utilization of Natural Products as Functional Feed

    OpenAIRE

    Stella Magdalena; Natadiputri G H; Nailufar; Purwadaria T

    2013-01-01

    The use of antibiotics as feed additive improves performance in livestock. However, scientific data related to the use of antibiotics in feed merge spreading of bacterial resistance in animal and human bodies, therefore the usage of antibiotics in animal production is restricted. This condition raise the utilization of natural antibiotic as functional feed such as phytogenics (essential oil, flavonoid, saponin, and tannin), enzyme, probiotic, and prebiotic to improve the livestock’s performan...

  2. Current Status and Future Prospects of Marine Natural Products (MNPs) as Antimicrobials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choudhary, Alka; Naughton, Lynn M; Montánchez, Itxaso; Dobson, Alan D W; Rai, Dilip K

    2017-08-28

    The marine environment is a rich source of chemically diverse, biologically active natural products, and serves as an invaluable resource in the ongoing search for novel antimicrobial compounds. Recent advances in extraction and isolation techniques, and in state-of-the-art technologies involved in organic synthesis and chemical structure elucidation, have accelerated the numbers of antimicrobial molecules originating from the ocean moving into clinical trials. The chemical diversity associated with these marine-derived molecules is immense, varying from simple linear peptides and fatty acids to complex alkaloids, terpenes and polyketides, etc. Such an array of structurally distinct molecules performs functionally diverse biological activities against many pathogenic bacteria and fungi, making marine-derived natural products valuable commodities, particularly in the current age of antimicrobial resistance. In this review, we have highlighted several marine-derived natural products (and their synthetic derivatives), which have gained recognition as effective antimicrobial agents over the past five years (2012-2017). These natural products have been categorized based on their chemical structures and the structure-activity mediated relationships of some of these bioactive molecules have been discussed. Finally, we have provided an insight into how genome mining efforts are likely to expedite the discovery of novel antimicrobial compounds.

  3. Natural products from Cuscuta reflexa Roxb. with antiproliferation activities in HCT116 colorectal cell lines.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riaz, Muhammad; Bilal, Aishah; Ali, Muhammad Shaiq; Fatima, Itrat; Faisal, Amir; Sherkheli, Muhammad Azhar; Asghar, Adnan

    2017-03-01

    Parasitic Cuscuta reflexa Roxb. possesses many medicinal properties and is a rich source of a variety of biologically relevant natural products. Natural products are the prime source of leads, drugs, and drug templates, and many of the anticancer and antiviral drugs are either based on natural product or derived from them. Cancer is a devastating disease and one of the leading causes of death worldwide despite improvements in patient survival during the past 50 years; new and improved treatments for cancer are therefore actively sought. Colorectal cancer is the fourth most prevalent cancer worldwide and is responsible for nearly 9% of all cancer deaths. Our search for anticancer natural products from C. reflexa has yielded four natural products: Scoparone (1), p-coumaric acid (2), stigmasta-3,5-diene (3) and 1-O-p-hydroxycinnamoylglucose (4) and among them 1-O-p-hydroxycinnamoyldlucose (4) showed promising antiproliferative activities in HCT116 colorectal cell lines, whereas compounds 1-3 showed moderate activities.

  4. Optimization of large scale food production using Lean Manufacturing principles

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Engelund, Eva Høy; Friis, Alan; Breum, Gitte

    2009-01-01

    This paper discusses how the production principles of Lean Manufacturing (Lean) can be applied in a large-scale meal production. Lean principles are briefly presented, followed by a field study of how a kitchen at a Danish hospital has implemented Lean in the daily production. In the kitchen...... not be negatively affected by the rationalisation of production procedures. The field study shows that Lean principles can be applied in meal production and can result in increased production efficiency and systematic improvement of product quality without negative effects on the working environment. The results...... show that Lean can be applied and used to manage the production of meals in the kitchen....

  5. An introduction to planar chromatography and its application to natural products isolation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gibbons, Simon

    2012-01-01

    Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) is an easy, inexpensive, rapid, and the most widely used method for the analysis and isolation of small organic natural and synthetic products. It also has use in the biological evaluation of organic compounds, particularly in the areas of antimicrobial and antioxidant metabolites and for the evaluation of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors which have utility in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The ease and inexpensiveness of use of this technique, coupled with the ability to rapidly develop separation and bioassay protocols will ensure that TLC will be used for some considerable time alongside conventional instrumental methods. This chapter deals with the basic principles of TLC and describes methods for the analysis and isolation of natural products. Examples of methods for isolation of several classes of natural product are detailed and protocols for TLC bioassays are given.

  6. Natural product biosyntheses in cyanobacteria: A treasure trove of unique enzymes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kehr, Jan-Christoph; Gatte Picchi, Douglas; Dittmann, Elke

    2011-01-01

    Cyanobacteria are prolific producers of natural products. Investigations into the biochemistry responsible for the formation of these compounds have revealed fascinating mechanisms that are not, or only rarely, found in other microorganisms. In this article, we survey the biosynthetic pathways of cyanobacteria isolated from freshwater, marine and terrestrial habitats. We especially emphasize modular nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) and polyketide synthase (PKS) pathways and highlight the unique enzyme mechanisms that were elucidated or can be anticipated for the individual products. We further include ribosomal natural products and UV-absorbing pigments from cyanobacteria. Mechanistic insights obtained from the biochemical studies of cyanobacterial pathways can inspire the development of concepts for the design of bioactive compounds by synthetic-biology approaches in the future.

  7. Natural product biosyntheses in cyanobacteria: A treasure trove of unique enzymes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jan-Christoph Kehr

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Cyanobacteria are prolific producers of natural products. Investigations into the biochemistry responsible for the formation of these compounds have revealed fascinating mechanisms that are not, or only rarely, found in other microorganisms. In this article, we survey the biosynthetic pathways of cyanobacteria isolated from freshwater, marine and terrestrial habitats. We especially emphasize modular nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS and polyketide synthase (PKS pathways and highlight the unique enzyme mechanisms that were elucidated or can be anticipated for the individual products. We further include ribosomal natural products and UV-absorbing pigments from cyanobacteria. Mechanistic insights obtained from the biochemical studies of cyanobacterial pathways can inspire the development of concepts for the design of bioactive compounds by synthetic-biology approaches in the future.

  8. Long-term dust aerosol production from natural sources in Iceland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dagsson-Waldhauserova, Pavla; Arnalds, Olafur; Olafsson, Haraldur

    2017-02-01

    Iceland is a volcanic island in the North Atlantic Ocean with maritime climate. In spite of moist climate, large areas are with limited vegetation cover where >40% of Iceland is classified with considerable to very severe erosion and 21% of Iceland is volcanic sandy deserts. Not only do natural emissions from these sources influenced by strong winds affect regional air quality in Iceland ("Reykjavik haze"), but dust particles are transported over the Atlantic ocean and Arctic Ocean >1000 km at times. The aim of this paper is to place Icelandic dust production area into international perspective, present long-term frequency of dust storm events in northeast Iceland, and estimate dust aerosol concentrations during reported dust events. Meteorological observations with dust presence codes and related visibility were used to identify the frequency and the long-term changes in dust production in northeast Iceland. There were annually 16.4 days on average with reported dust observations on weather stations within the northeastern erosion area, indicating extreme dust plume activity and erosion within the northeastern deserts, even though the area is covered with snow during the major part of winter. During the 2000s the highest occurrence of dust events in six decades was reported. We have measured saltation and Aeolian transport during dust/volcanic ash storms in Iceland, which give some of the most intense wind erosion events ever measured. Icelandic dust affects the ecosystems over much of Iceland and causes regional haze. It is likely to affect the ecosystems of the oceans around Iceland, and it brings dust that lowers the albedo of the Icelandic glaciers, increasing melt-off due to global warming. The study indicates that Icelandic dust may contribute to the Arctic air pollution. Long-term records of meteorological dust observations from Northeast Iceland indicate the frequency of dust events from Icelandic deserts. The research involves a 60-year period and

  9. Potential for large-scale uses for fission-product Xenon

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rohrmann, C.A.

    1983-03-01

    Of all fission products in spent, low-enrichment-uranium power-reactor fuels, xenon is produced in the highest yield - nearly one cubic meter, STP, per metric ton. In aged fuels which may be considered for processing in the US, radioactive xenon isotopes approach the lowest limits of detection. The separation from accompanying radioactive 85 Kr is the essential problem; however, this is state-of-the-art technology which has been demonstrated on the pilot scale to yield xenon with pico-curie levels of 85 Kr contamination. If needed for special applications, such levels could be further reduced. Environmental considerations require the isolation of essentially all fission-product krypton during fuel processing. Economic restraints assure that the bulk of this krypton will need to be separated from the much-more-voluminous xenon fraction of the total amount of fission gas. Xenon may thus be discarded or made available for uses at probably very low cost. In contrast with many other fission products which have unique radioactive characteristics which make them useful as sources of heat, gamma and x-rays, and luminescence - as well as for medicinal diagnostics and therapeutics - fission-product xenon differs from naturally occurring xenon only in its isotopic composition which gives it a slightly hgiher atomic weight, because of the much higher concentrations of the 134 Xe and 136 Xe isotopes. Therefore, fission-product xenon can most likely find uses in applications which already exist but which can not be exploited most beneficially because of the high cost and scarcity of natural xenon. Unique uses would probably include applications in improved incandescent light illumination in place of krypton and in human anesthesia

  10. The influence of wind direction on natural ventilation: application to a large semi-enclosed stadium

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hooff, van T.A.J.; Blocken, B.J.E.

    2009-01-01

    Natural ventilation is still a commonly applied way in building engineering to ensure a healthy and comfortable indoor climate. In this paper CFD simulations of the natural ventilation of a large semi-enclosed stadium in the Netherlands during the summer are described. Simulations are performed to

  11. Evaluation of antioxidant activity of natural products; Kosanka seibun no kino hyokaho

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miyazawa, T.; Nakagawa, K. [Tohoku Univ., Sendai (Japan)

    1998-10-20

    The methods for evaluating antioxidant property of natural products in in vitro and in vivo lipid peroxidation systems are reviewed. Antioxidant activity of tocopherols, carotenoids, flavonoids and curcuminoids have been demonstrated against lipid peroxidation induced in microsomes, erythrocytes, plasma lipoproteins and in animal trials. Recently, in vivo antioxidant function of natural products was extensively investigated in humans together with explanation of their absorbability and metabolic fate. 35 refs., 8 figs., 4 tabs.

  12. Natural or Plant Products for the Treatment of Neurological Disorders: Current Knowledge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parvez, Mohammad Khalid

    2018-01-01

    In recent decades, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has become very popular in the treatment of several chronic diseases. Natural products as one of the CAM modalities offer potential opportunities to discover lead compounds for novel drug development. The use of CAM or natural products in the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases is comparatively a newer area. A structured online literature search for peer-reviewed research articles was conducted on the PubMed, Europe PMC, Medline and Google Scholar portals, using phrases: natural products for neurologic disorders, phytomedicine for neurodegenerative diseases, natural therapeutics for neurological symptopms etc. Results: The retrieved data showed the natural therapeutics with anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory salutations evidently plays a crucial role in protecting neurons. Of these, the most promising are caffeine, trigonelline, shogaol, curcumin, resveratrol, baicalein, wogonin, ginsenosides, tanshinones, withanolides, picrosides, parthenolide, cannabinoids, Devil's claw and white willow bark, including Chinese formulations Renshen Shouwu and Shengmai San. Though several herbs and their active ingredients have been studied in laboratory and clinical settings, only a few have been investigated for their molecular mechanisms of action. Notably, despite the promising and safe therapeutic benefits of CAM/herbal medicines, there exists a possible risk when combining them with prescription drugs. As a result, many drugs have shown changes in blood pressure, hepatotoxicity, seizures etc. when combined with certain herbs. Certainly, extensive work is needed to make sure that patients should take a regimen of protective and restorative therapy under an experienced healthcare professional. This article updates on the current knowledge of promising natural products used in neurological disorders. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  13. Review of Natural Product-Derived Compounds as Potent Antiglioblastoma Drugs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moon Nyeo Park

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Common care for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM is a surgical resection followed by radiotherapy and temozolomide- (TMZ- based chemotherapy. Unfortunately, these therapies remain inadequate involving severe mortality and recurrence. Recently, new approaches discovering combinations of multiple inhibitors have been proposed along with the identification of key driver mutations that are specific to each patient. To date, this approach is still limited by the lack of effective therapy. Hopefully, novel compounds derived from natural products are suggested as potential solutions. Inhibitory effects of natural products on angiogenesis and metastasis and cancer suppressive effect of altering miRNA expression are provident discoveries. Angelica sinensis accelerates apoptosis by their key substances influencing factors of apoptosis pathways. Brazilin displays antitumor features by making influence on reactive oxygen species (ROS intensity. Sargassum serratifolium, flavonoids, and so on have antimetastasis effect. Ficus carica controls miRNA that inhibits translation of certain secretory pathway proteins during the UPR. Serratia marcescens and patupilone (EPO 906 are physically assessed materials through clinical trials related to GBM progression. Consequently, our review puts emphasis on the potential of natural products in GBM treatment by regulating multiple malignant cancer-related pathway solving pending problem such as reducing toxicity and side effect.

  14. EFFECTS OF OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRICES ON INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION IN THE EUROZONE MEMBER COUNTRIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yılmaz BAYAR

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Industrial production is one of the leading indicators of gross domestic product which reflects the overall economic performance of a country. In other words decreases or increases in industrial production point out a contracting or expanding economy. Therefore, changes in prices of oil and natural gas which are the crucial inputs to the industrial production are also important for the overall economy. This study examines the effects of changes in oil and natural gas prices on the industrial production in the 18 Eurozone member countries during the period January 2001-September 2013 by using panel regression. We found that oil prices and natural gas prices had negative effect on industrial production in the Eurozone member countries.

  15. 40 CFR 1048.620 - What are the provisions for exempting large engines fueled by natural gas or liquefied petroleum...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... large engines fueled by natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas? 1048.620 Section 1048.620 Protection of... exempting large engines fueled by natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas? (a) If an engine meets all the... natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas. (2) The engine must have maximum engine power at or above 250 kW...

  16. Economic growth to raise U.S. oil products, natural gas demand

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beck, R.J.

    1994-01-01

    An accelerating economy will raise consumption of oil products and natural gas in the US this year. Contributing to demand growth will be the slump that began late last year in prices for crude oil and petroleum products. Some price recovery is likely in 1994, but there's little reason to expect a major increase. With oil production falling and demand rising, imports will have to climb again this year. OGJ projects a 2.6% increase this year following a 6.6% increase last year. Imports are expected to fill a record high 49.3% of US oil demand this year. The paper discusses energy and the economy, overall energy use, energy by source, the electrification trend, energy supplies, imports, refining operations, the growth of margins, and the energy demand of motor gasoline, jet fuel, distillate fuels, residual fuel oils, other petroleum products, and natural gas

  17. Production of High Quality Die Steels from Large ESR Slab Ingots

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geng, Xin; Jiang, Zhou-hua; Li, Hua-bing; Liu, Fu-bin; Li, Xing

    With the rapid development of manufacture industry in China, die steels are in great need of large slab ingot of high quality and large tonnage, such as P20, WSM718R and so on. Solidification structure and size of large slab ingots produced with conventional methods are not satisfied. However, large slab ingots manufactured by ESR process have a good solidification structure and enough section size. In the present research, the new slab ESR process was used to produce the die steels large slab ingots with the maximum size of 980×2000×3200mm. The compact and sound ingot can be manufactured by the slab ESR process. The ultra-heavy plates with the maximum thickness of 410 mm can be obtained after rolling the 49 tons ingots. Due to reducing the cogging and forging process, the ESR for large slab ingots process can increase greatly the yield and production efficiency, and evidently cut off product costs.

  18. Marketing and Socioeconomics Aspects of Large Cardamom Production in Tehrathum, Nepal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nirajan Bhandari

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available A survey was conducted in November 2015 in one of the pocket area of large cardamom production in Teharthum District, eastern Nepal with aim to investigate the status of cardamom enterprises. The parameters used were cardamom production area, type of manure used, drying facilities, technical skills of farmers, market channels and variable cost etc. We purposively selected 30 cardamom producers and stakeholders for interview pre-designed questionnaires. The result showed that average area, production and productivity of large cardamom per household were 0.86 ha, 200 kg and 232 kg.ha-1, respectively, with the average farming experience of 22 years. It was revealed that 13% farmers used farmyard organic manure, the use of 1.5 kg/plant farmyard manure might produce 28.5% higher yield cardamom compared to without using any manure or fertilizers. It was also revealed among the responded only 7% had received improved drying machine from District Agriculture Development Office (DADO at 50% subsidy, while only 23% of farmers received training and technical services from DADO. The study showed that per hectare average total cost of large cardamom production, selling price and gross revenue were NRs. 2,36,705 ($2255, NRs. 5,50,305 ($5240 and NRs. 3,13,600 ($2985, respectively, with benefit/cost (B/C ratio of 2 after the completion of gestation period of 4 years. Our survey showed that predominant marketing approach was by direct sell to the traders located at district headquarter. The productivity of large cardamom was influenced by various factors, such as nearly 75.2% of the variation in productivity was explained by the number of active family members, farming period, area, intercultural operations, variable cost and depreciated fixed cost.

  19. Drugs from the Oceans: Marine Natural Products as Leads for Drug Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Altmann, Karl-Heinz

    2017-10-25

    The marine environment harbors a vast number of species that are the source of a wide array of structurally diverse bioactive secondary metabolites. At this point in time, roughly 27'000 marine natural products are known, of which eight are (were) at the origin of seven marketed drugs, mostly for the treatment of cancer. The majority of these drugs and also of drug candidates currently undergoing clinical evaluation (excluding antibody-drug conjugates) are unmodified natural products, but synthetic chemistry has played a central role in the discovery and/or development of all but one of the approved marine-derived drugs. More than 1000 new marine natural products have been isolated per year over the last decade, but the pool of new and unique structures is far from exhausted. To fully leverage the potential offered by the structural diversity of marine-produced secondary metabolites for drug discovery will require their broad assessment for different bioactivities and the productive interplay between new fermentation technologies, synthetic organic chemistry, and medicinal chemistry, in order to secure compound supply and enable lead optimization.

  20. Environmental review of natural gas production in Lake Erie

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Shea, K.

    2002-01-01

    The water of Lake Erie is used as a source of drinking water for Ontario, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan. An environmental review has been conducted to determine the impact of drilling operations on the overall ecology of the lake. Since 1913, 2000 natural gas wells have been drilled in Lake Erie, of which 550 currently produce gas and account for 75 per cent of Ontario's total gas production. 180 wells are shut-in or suspended and the remaining wells have been abandoned. The gas wells are connected to onshore production facilities by approximately 1,600 km of small diameter pipelines that lie buried near shore or on top of the lake bed. Nearly 90 per cent of the in-lake infrastructure is in water depths of more than 20 metres. Talisman Energy is actively involved with the Canadian Coast Guard, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Ministry of Natural Resources to ensure cooperation between regulators and off-shore personnel. The environmental assessment of natural gas production in Lake Erie included a review of regulatory and best management practices, a biophysical overview of the lake, and a review of drilling practices, well completions, handling of waste streams, materials management, operations inspections, wastewater discharge, air emissions, and oil spills. It was revealed that for most drilling programs, cuttings are washed and discharged to the Lake. Ongoing testing will determine the impact that this practice has on benthic populations. The drill muds used for drilling operations are water based, environmentally friendly, and re-used between well locations. For completion programs, all well activities are closed circuit operations. Wells are abandoned through plugging with cement, removing wellheads and casing below the lake bottom. There has been a reported volume of about 23,000 litres of spilled product from 1990 to 2001, of which 68 per cent has come from 3 industrial companies that operate near Lake Erie. The offshore gas

  1. Marine actinobacteria associated with marine organisms and their potentials in producing pharmaceutical natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valliappan, Karuppiah; Sun, Wei; Li, Zhiyong

    2014-09-01

    Actinobacteria are ubiquitous in the marine environment, playing an important ecological role in the recycling of refractory biomaterials and producing novel natural products with pharmic applications. Actinobacteria have been detected or isolated from the marine creatures such as sponges, corals, mollusks, ascidians, seaweeds, and seagrass. Marine organism-associated actinobacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences, i.e., 3,003 sequences, deposited in the NCBI database clearly revealed enormous numbers of actinobacteria associated with marine organisms. For example, RDP classification of these sequences showed that 112 and 62 actinobacterial genera were associated with the sponges and corals, respectively. In most cases, it is expected that these actinobacteria protect the host against pathogens by producing bioactive compounds. Natural products investigation and functional gene screening of the actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms revealed that they can synthesize numerous natural products including polyketides, isoprenoids, phenazines, peptides, indolocarbazoles, sterols, and others. These compounds showed anticancer, antimicrobial, antiparasitic, neurological, antioxidant, and anti-HIV activities. Therefore, marine organism-associated actinobacteria represent an important resource for marine drugs. It is an upcoming field of research to search for novel actinobacteria and pharmaceutical natural products from actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms. In this review, we attempt to summarize the present knowledge on the diversity and natural products production of actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms, based on the publications from 1991 to 2013.

  2. Exploitation of Aspergillus terreus for the Production of Natural Statins

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mishal Subhan

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The fungus Aspergillus (A. terreus has dominated the biological production of the “blockbuster” drugs known as statins. The statins are a class of drugs that inhibit HMG-CoA reductase and lead to lower cholesterol production. The statins were initially discovered in fungi and for many years fungi were the sole source for the statins. At present, novel chemically synthesised statins are produced as inspired by the naturally occurring statin molecules. The isolation of the natural statins, compactin, mevastatin and lovastatin from A. terreus represents one of the great achievements of industrial microbiology. Here we review the discovery of statins, along with strategies that have been applied to scale up their production by A. terreus strains. The strategies encompass many of the techniques available in industrial microbiology and include the optimization of media and fermentation conditions, the improvement of strains through classical mutagenesis, induced genetic manipulation and the use of statistical design.

  3. Some effects of integrated production planning in large-scale kitchens

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Engelund, Eva Høy; Friis, Alan; Jacobsen, Peter

    2005-01-01

    Integrated production planning in large-scale kitchens proves advantageous for increasing the overall quality of the food produced and the flexibility in terms of a diverse food supply. The aim is to increase the flexibility and the variability in the production as well as the focus on freshness ...

  4. Epoxide-Opening Cascades in the Synthesis of Polycyclic Polyether Natural Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-01-01

    The group of polycyclic polyether natural products is of special interest due to the fascinating structure and biological effects displayed by its members. The latter includes potentially therapeutic antibiotic, antifungal, and anticancer properties, as well as extreme lethality. The polycyclic structural features of this family can, in some cases, be traced to their biosynthetic origin, but in others that are less well understood, only to proposed biosynthetic pathways that feature dramatic, yet speculative, epoxide–opening cascades. In this review we summarize how such epoxide–opening cascade reactions have been used in the synthesis of polycyclic polyethers and related natural products. PMID:19572302

  5. Rationale for a natural products approach to herbicide discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dayan, Franck E; Owens, Daniel K; Duke, Stephen O

    2012-04-01

    Weeds continue to evolve resistance to all the known modes of herbicidal action, but no herbicide with a new target site has been commercialized in nearly 20 years. The so-called 'new chemistries' are simply molecules belonging to new chemical classes that have the same mechanisms of action as older herbicides (e.g. the protoporphyrinogen-oxidase-inhibiting pyrimidinedione saflufenacil or the very-long-chain fatty acid elongase targeting sulfonylisoxazoline herbicide pyroxasulfone). Therefore, the number of tools to manage weeds, and in particular those that can control herbicide-resistant weeds, is diminishing rapidly. There is an imminent need for truly innovative classes of herbicides that explore chemical spaces and interact with target sites not previously exploited by older active ingredients. This review proposes a rationale for a natural-products-centered approach to herbicide discovery that capitalizes on the structural diversity and ingenuity afforded by these biologically active compounds. The natural process of extended-throughput screening (high number of compounds tested on many potential target sites over long periods of times) that has shaped the evolution of natural products tends to generate molecules tailored to interact with specific target sites. As this review shows, there is generally little overlap between the mode of action of natural and synthetic phytotoxins, and more emphasis should be placed on applying methods that have proved beneficial to the pharmaceutical industry to solve problems in the agrochemical industry. Published 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  6. Search for bioactive natural products from medicinal plants of Bangladesh.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmed, Firoj; Sadhu, Samir Kumar; Ishibashi, Masami

    2010-10-01

    In our continuous search for bioactive natural products from natural resources, we explored medicinal plants of Bangladesh, targeting cancer-related tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand-signaling pathway, along with some other biological activities such as prostaglandin inhibitory activity, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl free-radical-scavenging activity, and cell growth inhibitory activity. Along with this, we describe a short field study on Sundarbans mangrove forests, Bangladesh, in the review.

  7. Personal-Care Products Formulated with Natural Antioxidant Extracts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Luisa Soto

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential use of some vegetal raw materials in personal-care products. Four ethanolic extracts (grape pomace, Pinus pinaster wood chips, Acacia dealbata flowers, and Lentinus edodes were prepared and total phenolics, monomeric sugars, and antioxidant capacity were determined on alcoholic extracts. Six of the most important groups of cosmetics products (hand cream, body oil, shampoo, clay mask, body exfoliating cream, and skin cleanser were formulated. Participants evaluated some sensory attributes and overall acceptance by a 10-point scale; the results showed differences among age-intervals, but not between males and females. The results confirmed that all extracts presented characteristics appropriate for their use in cosmetic formulations and their good acceptability by consumers into all cosmetic products. Texture/appearance, spreadability, and skin feeling are important attributes among consumer expectations, but odor and color were the primary drivers and helped differentiate the natural extracts added into all personal-care products.

  8. Technical review of coal gasifiers for production of synthetic natural gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Geun Woo; Shin, Yong Seung

    2012-01-01

    Because of the increasing cost of oil and natural gas, energy production technologies using coal, including synthetic natural gas (SNG) and integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC), have attracted attention because of the relatively low cost of coal. During the early stage of a project, the developer or project owner has many options with regard to the selection of a gasifier. In particular, from the viewpoint of feasibility, the gasifier is a key factor in the economic evaluation. This study compares the technical aspects of gasifiers for a real SNG production project in an early stage. A fixed bed slagging gasifier, wet type entrained gasifier, and dry type entrained gasifier, all of which have specific advantages, can be used for the SNG production project. Base on a comparison of the process descriptions and performances of each gasifier, this study presents a selection guideline for a gasifier for an SNG production project that will be beneficial to project developers and EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) contractors

  9. Marine organisms: an alternative source of potentially valuable natural products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alphonse Kelecom

    1991-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper recalls the outcoming of marine natural products research and reviews a selection of marirne bioactive metabolites in current use together with promising trends in marine pharmacology.

  10. Natural gas for power production in Western Europe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    The third and last part of the Sub-Committee's study on natural gas for power generation is reprinted in this issue. This part addresses gas consumption in electricity production until the year 2010. The first part of the study dealing with combined cycle power plants was published in September and the 2nd part on regulatory and environmental issues in October 1992

  11. SULTAN test facility for large-scale vessel coolability in natural convection at low pressure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rouge, S.

    1997-01-01

    The SULTAN facility (France/CEA/CENG) was designed to study large-scale structure coolability by water in boiling natural convection. The objectives are to measure the main characteristics of two-dimensional, two-phase flow, in order to evaluate the recirculation mass flow in large systems, and the limits of the critical heat flux (CHF) for a wide range of thermo-hydraulic (pressure, 0.1-0.5 MPa; inlet temperature, 50-150 C; mass flow velocity, 5-4400 kg s -1 m -2 ; flux, 100-1000 kW m -2 ) and geometric (gap, 3-15 cm; inclination, 0-90 ) parameters. This paper makes available the experimental data obtained during the first two campaigns (90 , 3 cm; 10 , 15 cm): pressure drop differential pressure (DP) = f(G), CHF limits, local profiles of temperature and void fraction in the gap, visualizations. Other campaigns should confirm these first results, indicating a favourable possibility of the coolability of large surfaces under natural convection. (orig.)

  12. The rare fluorinated natural products and biotechnological prospects for fluorine enzymology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, K K Jason; O'Hagan, David

    2012-01-01

    Nature has hardly evolved a biochemistry of fluorine although there is a low-level occurrence of fluoroacetate found in selected tropical and subtropical plants. This compound, which is generally produced in low concentrations, has been identified in the plants due to its high toxicity, although to date the biosynthesis of fluoroacetate in plants remains unknown. After that, fluorinated entities in nature are extremely rare, and despite increasingly sophisticated screening and analytical methods applied to natural product extraction, it has been 25 years since the last bona fide fluorinated natural product was identified from an organism. This was the reported isolation of the antibiotic 4-fluorothreonine and the toxin fluoroacetate in 1986 from Streptomyces cattleya. This bacterium has proven amenable to biochemical investigation, the fluorination enzyme (fluorinase) has been isolated and characterized, and the biosynthetic pathway to these bacterial metabolites has been elucidated. Also the fluorinase gene has been cloned into a host bacterium (Salinispora tropica), and this has enabled the de novo production of a bioactive fluorinated metabolite from fluoride ion, by genetic engineering. Biotechnological manipulation of the fluorinase offers the prospects for the assembly of novel fluorinated metabolites by fermentation technology. This is particularly attractive, given the backdrop that about 15-20% of pharmaceuticals licensed each year (new chemical entities) contain a fluorine atom. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Inhibition of eukaryotic translation elongation by the antitumor natural product Mycalamide B.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dang, Yongjun; Schneider-Poetsch, Tilman; Eyler, Daniel E; Jewett, John C; Bhat, Shridhar; Rawal, Viresh H; Green, Rachel; Liu, Jun O

    2011-08-01

    Mycalamide B (MycB) is a marine sponge-derived natural product with potent antitumor activity. Although it has been shown to inhibit protein synthesis, the molecular mechanism of action by MycB remains incompletely understood. We verified the inhibition of translation elongation by in vitro HCV IRES dual luciferase assays, ribosome assembly, and in vivo [(35)S]methinione labeling experiments. Similar to cycloheximide (CHX), MycB inhibits translation elongation through blockade of eEF2-mediated translocation without affecting the eEF1A-mediated loading of tRNA onto the ribosome, AUG recognition, or dipeptide synthesis. Using chemical footprinting, we identified the MycB binding site proximal to the C3993 28S rRNA residue on the large ribosomal subunit. However, there are also subtle, but significant differences in the detailed mechanisms of action of MycB and CHX. First, MycB arrests the ribosome on the mRNA one codon ahead of CHX. Second, MycB specifically blocked tRNA binding to the E-site of the large ribosomal subunit. Moreover, they display different polysome profiles in vivo. Together, these observations shed new light on the mechanism of inhibition of translation elongation by MycB.

  14. Natural Time and Nowcasting Earthquakes: Are Large Global Earthquakes Temporally Clustered?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luginbuhl, Molly; Rundle, John B.; Turcotte, Donald L.

    2018-02-01

    The objective of this paper is to analyze the temporal clustering of large global earthquakes with respect to natural time, or interevent count, as opposed to regular clock time. To do this, we use two techniques: (1) nowcasting, a new method of statistically classifying seismicity and seismic risk, and (2) time series analysis of interevent counts. We chose the sequences of M_{λ } ≥ 7.0 and M_{λ } ≥ 8.0 earthquakes from the global centroid moment tensor (CMT) catalog from 2004 to 2016 for analysis. A significant number of these earthquakes will be aftershocks of the largest events, but no satisfactory method of declustering the aftershocks in clock time is available. A major advantage of using natural time is that it eliminates the need for declustering aftershocks. The event count we utilize is the number of small earthquakes that occur between large earthquakes. The small earthquake magnitude is chosen to be as small as possible, such that the catalog is still complete based on the Gutenberg-Richter statistics. For the CMT catalog, starting in 2004, we found the completeness magnitude to be M_{σ } ≥ 5.1. For the nowcasting method, the cumulative probability distribution of these interevent counts is obtained. We quantify the distribution using the exponent, β, of the best fitting Weibull distribution; β = 1 for a random (exponential) distribution. We considered 197 earthquakes with M_{λ } ≥ 7.0 and found β = 0.83 ± 0.08. We considered 15 earthquakes with M_{λ } ≥ 8.0, but this number was considered too small to generate a meaningful distribution. For comparison, we generated synthetic catalogs of earthquakes that occur randomly with the Gutenberg-Richter frequency-magnitude statistics. We considered a synthetic catalog of 1.97 × 10^5 M_{λ } ≥ 7.0 earthquakes and found β = 0.99 ± 0.01. The random catalog converted to natural time was also random. We then generated 1.5 × 10^4 synthetic catalogs with 197 M_{λ } ≥ 7.0 in each catalog and

  15. Spontaneously Reported Adverse Reactions for Herbal Medicinal Products and Natural Remedies in Sweden 2007-15: Report from the Medical Products Agency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Svedlund, Erika; Larsson, Maria; Hägerkvist, Robert

    2017-06-01

    In relation to the extensive use of herbal medicinal products in self-care, the safety information is limited and there is a need for improvement. This study describes spontaneously reported adverse reactions related to herbal medicinal products and natural remedies in Sweden. To evaluate the characteristics and frequency of adverse events recorded by the Swedish Medical Products Agency, where herbal medicinal products and natural remedies were suspected as causative agents. Adverse drug reactions reported to the Swedish Medical Product Agency during 2007-15 related to approved herbal medicinal products or natural remedies were included and analysed in the retrospective study. Reports had been assessed for causality when they were lodged and only reports that had been assessed as at least possible were included in the study. In total, 116 reports (concerning 259 adverse reactions) related to herbal medicinal products or natural remedies were found in the Swedish national pharmacovigilance database. The active ingredients most frequently suspected during the study period were black cohosh rhizome (15 reports), purple coneflower herb (14 reports) and a combination of extracts of pollen (13 reports). Adverse reactions related to skin and subcutaneous tissue were the most commonly reported reactions. No previously unknown safety problems have been discovered in the present study. This finding could be explained by a thorough pre-approval assessment of medicinal products and the fact that most herbal preparations in medicinal products have been in clinical use for many years (for traditional herbal medicinal products, the requirements are ≥30 years), i.e. adverse reactions are acknowledged and assessed before approval.

  16. Organisms for biofuel production: natural bioresources and methodologies for improving their biosynthetic potentials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Guangrong; Ji, Shiqi; Yu, Yanchong; Wang, Shi'an; Zhou, Gongke; Li, Fuli

    2015-01-01

    In order to relieve the pressure of energy supply and environment contamination that humans are facing, there are now intensive worldwide efforts to explore natural bioresources for production of energy storage compounds, such as lipids, alcohols, hydrocarbons, and polysaccharides. Around the world, many plants have been evaluated and developed as feedstock for bioenergy production, among which several crops have successfully achieved industrialization. Microalgae are another group of photosynthetic autotroph of interest due to their superior growth rates, relatively high photosynthetic conversion efficiencies, and vast metabolic capabilities. Heterotrophic microorganisms, such as yeast and bacteria, can utilize carbohydrates from lignocellulosic biomass directly or after pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis to produce liquid biofuels such as ethanol and butanol. Although finding a suitable organism for biofuel production is not easy, many naturally occurring organisms with good traits have recently been obtained. This review mainly focuses on the new organism resources discovered in the last 5 years for production of transport fuels (biodiesel, gasoline, jet fuel, and alkanes) and hydrogen, and available methods to improve natural organisms as platforms for the production of biofuels.

  17. Regional air quality impacts of increased natural gas production and use in Texas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pacsi, Adam P; Alhajeri, Nawaf S; Zavala-Araiza, Daniel; Webster, Mort D; Allen, David T

    2013-04-02

    Natural gas use in electricity generation in Texas was estimated, for gas prices ranging from $1.89 to $7.74 per MMBTU, using an optimal power flow model. Hourly estimates of electricity generation, for individual electricity generation units, from the model were used to estimate spatially resolved hourly emissions from electricity generation. Emissions from natural gas production activities in the Barnett Shale region were also estimated, with emissions scaled up or down to match demand in electricity generation as natural gas prices changed. As natural gas use increased, emissions decreased from electricity generation and increased from natural gas production. Overall, NOx and SO2 emissions decreased, while VOC emissions increased as natural gas use increased. To assess the effects of these changes in emissions on ozone and particulate matter concentrations, spatially and temporally resolved emissions were used in a month-long photochemical modeling episode. Over the month-long photochemical modeling episode, decreases in natural gas prices typical of those experienced from 2006 to 2012 led to net regional decreases in ozone (0.2-0.7 ppb) and fine particulate matter (PM) (0.1-0.7 μg/m(3)). Changes in PM were predominantly due to changes in regional PM sulfate formation. Changes in regional PM and ozone formation are primarily due to decreases in emissions from electricity generation. Increases in emissions from increased natural gas production were offset by decreasing emissions from electricity generation for all the scenarios considered.

  18. Gamma radiodecontamination of natural products uses in Cuban pharmaceutical industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rodriguez, M.; Lopez, M.; Guerra, M.; Lastra, H.; Prieto, E.; Padron, E.

    1997-01-01

    The aim of the present paper was to carry out the gamma radiodecontamination of industrial productions from there medicinal plant species (C. officinalis, P. incarta and M. recuttia) and two pharmaceuticals forms (S. platensis and bee pollen tabs) which presented high levels of microbiological count. Adequate irradiation doses calculated for each product were used in decontamination. The results obtained showed the effectiveness of the process in the elimination of microbial contamination from theses natural products. No changes in nutritional constituents or physico-chemical properties were observed

  19. Natural Radiation in byproducts of the production of phosphoric acid

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silveira, Marcilei A. Guazzelli da; Cardoso, L.L.; Medina, N.H.

    2014-01-01

    Natural radiation is the largest source of radiation exposure to which man is subject. It is formed basically by cosmic radiation and the radionuclides present in the Earth crust, as 40 K and the elements of the decay series of 232 Th and 238 U. Phosphate ores, which constitutes the raw material for the production of phosphoric acid, have a high rate of natural radiation from the decay series of 232 Th and 238 U. Phosphogypsum, which is naturally radioactivity, is a by-product of the production of phosphoric acid by the wet method. For each ton of phosphoric acid it is produced about 4.5 tons of phosphogypsum. This work presents the analysis of samples collected in all stages of the manufacturing process of phosphoric acid, which generates the phosphogypsum. Gamma-ray spectrometry was used to measure the concentration of the elements of the decay series of 232 Th and 238 U. All analyzed samples showed a high concentration of radionuclides, promoting the need for further steps in the process in order to reduce the presence of such radionuclides in the phosphogypsum. The results indicate the radionuclide 238 U has higher contribution in some samples of the intermediate stages of the process. All samples exceeded the international average range of human exposure to terrestrial gamma radiation, which is 0.3 to 1.0 mSv/year. (author)

  20. Short history of natural product research in the CSIR

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Walwyn, D

    2006-02-01

    Full Text Available Natural product research has been a major component of the CSIR's bioscience activities for its entire history, and particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. This type of work is also strongly aligned with one of the objectives of the CSIR, namely...

  1. Telomerase Inhibitors from Natural Products and Their Anticancer Potential

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kumar Ganesan

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Telomeres and telomerase are nowadays exploring traits on targets for anticancer therapy. Telomerase is a unique reverse transcriptase enzyme, considered as a primary factor in almost all cancer cells, which is mainly responsible to regulate the telomere length. Hence, telomerase ensures the indefinite cell proliferation during malignancy—a hallmark of cancer—and this distinctive feature has provided telomerase as the preferred target for drug development in cancer therapy. Deactivation of telomerase and telomere destabilization by natural products provides an opening to succeed new targets for cancer therapy. This review aims to provide a fundamental knowledge for research on telomere, working regulation of telomerase and its various binding proteins to inhibit the telomere/telomerase complex. In addition, the review summarizes the inhibitors of the enzyme catalytic subunit and RNA component, natural products that target telomeres, and suppression of transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. This extensive understanding of telomerase biology will provide indispensable information for enhancing the efficiency of rational anti-cancer drug design.

  2. Microbial production of natural gas from coal and organic-rich shale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orem, William

    2013-01-01

    Natural gas is an important component of the energy mix in the United States, producing greater energy yield per unit weight and less pollution compared to coal and oil. Most of the world’s natural gas resource is thermogenic, produced in the geologic environment over time by high temperature and pressure within deposits of oil, coal, and shale. About 20 percent of the natural gas resource, however, is produced by microorganisms (microbes). Microbes potentially could be used to generate economic quantities of natural gas from otherwise unexploitable coal and shale deposits, from coal and shale from which natural gas has already been recovered, and from waste material such as coal slurry. Little is known, however, about the microbial production of natural gas from coal and shale.

  3. SUSY Higgs at the LHC large stop mixing effects and associated production

    CERN Document Server

    Bélanger, G; Sridhar, K

    2000-01-01

    We revisit the effect of the large stop mixing on the decay and production of the lightest SUSY Higgs at the LHC. We stress that whenever the inclusive 2-photon signature is substantially reduced, associated production, $Wh$ and $t\\bar t h$, with the subsequent decay of the Higgs into photons is enhanced and becomes an even more important discovery channel. We also point out that these reductions in the inclusive channel do not occur for the smallest Higgs mass where the significance is known to be lowest. We show that in such scenarios the Higgs can be produced in the decay of the heaviest stop. For not too heavy masses of the pseudo-scalar Higgs where the inclusive channel is even further reduced, we show that large stop mixing also allows the production of the pseudo-scalar Higgs through stop decays. These large mixing scenarios therefore offer much better prospects than previously thought. As a by-product we have recalculated stop1-stop1-h production at the LHC and give a first evaluation of stop1-stop1-Z...

  4. EnviroAtlas - Percent Large, Medium, and Small Natural Areas for the Conterminous United States

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — This EnviroAtlas dataset contains the percentage of small, medium, and large natural areas for each Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) 12-Digit Hydrologic Unit Code...

  5. A Growing Disconnection From Nature Is Evident in Cultural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kesebir, Selin; Kesebir, Pelin

    2017-03-01

    Human connection with nature is widely believed to be in decline even though empirical evidence is scarce on the magnitude and historical pattern of the change. Studying works of popular culture in English throughout the 20th century and later, we have documented a cultural shift away from nature that begins in the 1950s. Since then, references to nature have been decreasing steadily in fiction books, song lyrics, and film storylines, whereas references to the human-made environment have not. The observed temporal pattern is consistent with the explanatory role of increased virtual and indoors recreation options (e.g., television, video games) in the disconnect from nature, and it is inconsistent with a pure urbanization account. These findings are cause for concern, not only because they imply foregone physical and psychological benefits from engagement with nature, but also because cultural products are agents of socialization that can evoke curiosity, respect, and concern for the natural world.

  6. Medicinal plants and natural products in amelioration of arsenic toxicity: a short review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhattacharya, Sanjib

    2017-12-01

    Chronic arsenic toxicity (arsenicosis) is considered a serious public health menace worldwide, as there is no specific, safe, and efficacious therapeutic management of arsenicosis. To collate the studies on medicinal plants and natural products with arsenic toxicity ameliorative effect, active pre-clinically and/or clinically. Literature survey was carried out by using Google, Scholar Google and Pub-Med. Only the scientific journal articles found on the internet for last two decades were considered. Minerals and semi-synthetic or synthetic analogs of natural products were excluded. Literature study revealed that 34 medicinal plants and 14 natural products exhibited significant protection from arsenic toxicity, mostly in preclinical trials and a few in clinical studies. This research could lead to development of a potentially useful agent in clinical management of arsenicosis in humans.

  7. Distribution forms for biogas and natural gas in Sweden

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benjaminsson, Johan; Nilsson, Ronny

    2009-11-01

    Since biogas and natural gas basically have the same characteristics, they can be distributed in the same system. In the parts of the country where there is an extensive natural gas distribution network, the infrastructure for natural gas can be used for distribution of biogas. In order to increase the use of renewable energy, it is a political ambition to increase the share of biogas in the natural gas network, and, in the long run, entirely replace natural gas with biogas. Much of biogas production in the country is, however, not reached by the existing natural gas network, and this is also the case for a large part of the potential for future biogas production. In these areas the gas is transported in more or less extensive local gas distribution networks and by truck in compressed or liquid form. Transport of compressed and liquefied gas is efficient in some cases and development of these systems is an ongoing process. A number of facilities are planned for production of large quantities of biogas, several hundred GWh/year, through digestion and gasification processes. These plants will be located either in conjunction with major gas consumers or in the vicinity of the existing natural gas grid. The potential for biogas production is, however, present throughout the country and in order to meet market demand biogas requires efficient distribution systems

  8. The importance of asking "how and why?" in natural product structure elucidation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Patrick D; Lawrence, Andrew L

    2017-10-18

    Covering: up to 2017This review highlights why careful consideration of the biosynthetic origin (the how) and the biological function (the why) of a natural product can be so useful during the determination of its structure. Recent examples of structural reassignments inspired by biosynthetic and functional insights will be presented. This review will demonstrate the importance of viewing the origin, structure and function of a natural product as intertwined threads of a single story, best viewed as a whole rather than as discrete topics.

  9. Chiral thiazoline and thiazole building blocks for the synthesis of peptide-derived natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Just-Baringo, Xavier; Albericio, Fernando; Alvarez, Mercedes

    2014-01-01

    Thiazoline and thiazole heterocycles are privileged motifs found in numerous peptide-derived natural products of biological interest. During the last decades, the synthesis of optically pure building blocks has been addressed by numerous groups, which have developed a plethora of strategies to that end. Efficient and reliable methodologies that are compatible with the intricate and capricious architectures of natural products are a must to further develop their science. Structure confirmation, structure-activity relationship studies and industrial production are fields of paramount importance that require these robust methodologies in order to successfully bring natural products into the clinic. Today's chemist toolbox is assorted with many powerful methods for chiral thiazoline and thiazole synthesis. Ranging from biomimetic approaches to stereoselective alkylations, one is likely to find a suitable method for their needs.

  10. Chemistry of natural products: A veritable approach to the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Even with the advent of newer technologies such as combinatorial chemistry, robotics, high throughput screening (HTS), bioinformatics, and in silico molecular modelling, natural products still play a crucial role in drug discovery. This is because they provide an unparalleled range of chemical diversity on which the newer ...

  11. Cell immobilization for production of lactic acid biofilms do it naturally.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dagher, Suzanne F; Ragout, Alicia L; Siñeriz, Faustino; Bruno-Bárcena, José M

    2010-01-01

    Interest in natural cell immobilization or biofilms for lactic acid fermentation has developed considerably over the last few decades. Many studies report the benefits associated with biofilms as industrial methods for food production and for wastewater treatment, since the formation represents a protective means of microbial growth offering survival advantages to cells in toxic environments. The formation of biofilms is a natural process in which microbial cells adsorb to a support without chemicals or polymers that entrap the cells and is dependent on the reactor environment, microorganism, and characteristics of the support. These unique characteristics enable biofilms to cause chronic infections, disease, food spoilage, and devastating effects as in microbial corrosion. Their distinct resistance to toxicity, high biomass potential, and improved stability over cells in suspension make biofilms a good tool for improving the industrial economics of biological lactic acid production. Lactic acid bacteria and specific filamentous fungi are the main sources of biological lactic acid. Over the past two decades, studies have focused on improving the lactic acid volumetric productivity through reactor design development, new support materials, and improvements in microbial production strains. To illustrate the operational designs applied to the natural immobilization of lactic acid producing microorganisms, this chapter presents the results of a search for optimum parameters and how they are affected by the physical, chemical, and biological variables of the process. We will place particular emphasis upon the relationship between lactic acid productivity attained by various types of reactors, supports, media formulations, and lactic acid producing microorganisms. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Developing A Large-Scale, Collaborative, Productive Geoscience Education Network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manduca, C. A.; Bralower, T. J.; Egger, A. E.; Fox, S.; Ledley, T. S.; Macdonald, H.; Mcconnell, D. A.; Mogk, D. W.; Tewksbury, B. J.

    2012-12-01

    Over the past 15 years, the geoscience education community has grown substantially and developed broad and deep capacity for collaboration and dissemination of ideas. While this community is best viewed as emergent from complex interactions among changing educational needs and opportunities, we highlight the role of several large projects in the development of a network within this community. In the 1990s, three NSF projects came together to build a robust web infrastructure to support the production and dissemination of on-line resources: On The Cutting Edge (OTCE), Earth Exploration Toolbook, and Starting Point: Teaching Introductory Geoscience. Along with the contemporaneous Digital Library for Earth System Education, these projects engaged geoscience educators nationwide in exploring professional development experiences that produced lasting on-line resources, collaborative authoring of resources, and models for web-based support for geoscience teaching. As a result, a culture developed in the 2000s in which geoscience educators anticipated that resources for geoscience teaching would be shared broadly and that collaborative authoring would be productive and engaging. By this time, a diverse set of examples demonstrated the power of the web infrastructure in supporting collaboration, dissemination and professional development . Building on this foundation, more recent work has expanded both the size of the network and the scope of its work. Many large research projects initiated collaborations to disseminate resources supporting educational use of their data. Research results from the rapidly expanding geoscience education research community were integrated into the Pedagogies in Action website and OTCE. Projects engaged faculty across the nation in large-scale data collection and educational research. The Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network and OTCE engaged community members in reviewing the expanding body of on-line resources. Building Strong

  13. Rational screening of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ agonists from natural products: potential therapeutics for heart failure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Rui; Wan, Jing; Song, Jing; Qian, Yan; Liu, Yong; Gu, Shuiming

    2017-12-01

    Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) is a member of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily of ligand-activated transcription factors. Activation of PPARγ pathway has been shown to enhance fatty acid oxidation, improve endothelial cell function, and decrease myocardial fibrosis in heart failure. Thus, the protein has been raised as an attractive target for heart failure therapy. This work attempted to discover new and potent PPARγ agonists from natural products using a synthetic strategy of computer virtual screening and transactivation reporter assay. A large library of structurally diverse, drug-like natural products was compiled, from which those with unsatisfactory pharmacokinetic profile and/or structurally redundant compounds were excluded. The binding mode of remaining candidates to PPARγ ligand-binding domain (LBD) was computationally modelled using molecular docking and their relative binding potency was ranked by an empirical scoring scheme. Consequently, eight commercially available hits with top scores were selected and their biological activity was determined using a cell-based reporter-gene assay. Four natural product compounds, namely ZINC13408172, ZINC4292805, ZINC44179 and ZINC901461, were identified to have high or moderate agonistic potency against human PPARγ with EC 50 values of 0.084, 2.1, 0.35 and 5.6 μM, respectively, which are comparable to or even better than that of the approved PPARγ full agonists pioglitazone (EC 50  =   0.16 μM) and rosiglitazone (EC 50  =   0.034 μM). Hydrophobic interactions and van der Waals contacts are the primary chemical forces to stabilize the complex architecture of PPARγ LBD domain with these agonist ligands, while few hydrogen bonds, salt bridges and/or π-π stacking at the complex interfaces confer selectivity and specificity for the domain-agonist recognition. The integrated in vitro-in silico screening strategy can be successfully applied to rational discovery of

  14. Appreciation of symmetry in natural product synthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bai, Wen-Ju; Wang, Xiqing

    2017-12-13

    Covering: 2012 to June 2017This review aims to show that complex natural product synthesis can be streamlined by taking advantage of molecular symmetry. Various strategies to construct molecules with either evident or hidden symmetry are illustrated. Insights regarding the origins and adjustments of these strategies as well as inspiring new methodological developments are deliberated. When a symmetric strategy fails, the corresponding reason is analysed and an alternative approach is briefly provided. Finally, the importance of exploiting molecular symmetry and future research directions are discussed.

  15. Natural Gas Reserves, Development and Production in Qatar

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Naji, Abi-Aad.

    1998-01-01

    Qatar entered the club of natural gas exporters in early 1997 when the first shipment of liquefied natural gas left the state for Japan. Qatar was helped by the discovery in 1971 of supergiant North Field gas field, the country's suitable location between the established gas consuming markets in Europe and Southeast Asia, and its proximity to developing markets in the Indian subcontinent and in neighbouring countries. All that have combined to make gas export projects from Qatar economically viable and commercially attractive. In addition to export-oriented development, increased gas production from the North Field is planned for meeting a growing domestic demand for gas as fuel and feedstock for power generation and desalination plants, as well as value-added petrochemical and fertilizer industries

  16. Natural gas productive capacity for the lower 48 states 1984 through 1996, February 1996

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-01-01

    This is the fourth wellhead productive capacity report. The three previous ones were published in 1991, 1993, and 1994. This report should be of particular interest to those in Congress, Federal and State agencies, industry, and the academic community, who are concerned with the future availability of natural gas. The EIA Dallas Field Office has prepared five earlier reports regarding natural gas productive capacity. These reports, Gas Deliverability and Flow Capacity of Surveillance Fields, reported deliverability and capacity data for selected gas fields in major gas producing areas. The data in the reports were based on gas-well back-pressure tests and estimates of gas-in-place for each field or reservoir. These reports use proven well testing theory, most of which has been employed by industry since 1936 when the Bureau of Mines first published Monograph 7. Demand for natural gas in the United States is met by a combination of natural gas production, underground gas storage, imported gas, and supplemental gaseous fuels. Natural gas production requirements in the lower 48 States have been increasing during the last few years while drilling has remained at low levels. This has raised some concern about the adequacy of future gas supplies, especially in periods of peak heating or cooling demand. The purpose of this report is to address these concerns by presenting a 3-year projection of the total productive capacity of natural gas at the wellhead for the lower 48 States. Alaska is excluded because Alaskan gas does not enter the lower-48 States pipeline system. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) generates this 3-year projection based on historical gas-well drilling and production data from State, Federal, and private sources. In addition to conventional gas-well gas, coalbed gas and oil-well gas are also included

  17. Guide to Large Scale Production of Moringa oleifera (Lam.) for ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Thus, the use of environmentally safe natural pesticides as an alternative is being embraced in aquaculture because they have a short time of toxicity disappearance and biodegradable. This will enhance the principles of sustainable aquaculture production and its management in Nigeria. In Southwestern Nigeria, there is ...

  18. Natural Products as Adjunctive Treatment for Pancreatic Cancer: Recent Trends and Advancements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qingxi Yue

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Pancreatic cancer is a type of common malignant tumors with high occurrence in the world. Most patients presented in clinic had pancreatic cancer at advanced stages. Furthermore, chemotherapy or radiotherapy had very limited success in treating pancreatic cancer. Complementary and alternative medicines, such as natural products/herbal medicines, represent exciting adjunctive therapies. In this review, we summarize the recent advances of using natural products/herbal medicines, such as Chinese herbal medicine, in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic agents to treat pancreatic cancer in preclinical and clinical trials.

  19. Deposits of naturally occurring radioactivity in production of oil and natural gas; Radioaktive avleiringer i olje- og gassproduksjon

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Strand, T; Lysebo, I; Kristensen, D; Birovljev, A

    1997-01-01

    Deposits of naturally occurring radioactive materials is an increasing problem in Norwegian oil and gas production. Activity concentration in solid-state samples and production water, and doses to workers involved in different operations off-shore, have been measured. The report also includes a discussion of different methods of monitoring and alternatives for final disposal of wastes. 154 refs.

  20. J/ψ -pair production at large momenta: Indications for double parton scatterings and large α$_s^5$ contributions

    CERN Document Server

    Lansberg, Jean-Philippe

    2015-01-01

    The recent observations of prompt J/psi-pair production by CMS at the LHC and by D0 at the Tevatron reveal the presence of different production mechanisms in different kinematical regions. We find out that next-to-leading-order single-parton-scattering contributions at alpha_s^5 dominate the yield at large transverse momenta of the pair. Our analysis further emphasises the importance of double-parton-scatterings --which are expected to dominate the yield at large rapidity differences-- at large invariant masses of the pair in the CMS acceptance. In addition, we provide the first exact --gauge-invariant and infrared-safe-- evaluation of a class of leading-P_T next-to-next-to-leading-order contributions, which are dominant in the region of large sub-leading transverse momenta, precisely where the colour-octet contributions can be non-negligible. Finally, we discuss the contribution from decays of excited charmonium states within both single- and double-parton scatterings and suggest measurements to distinguish ...

  1. Distribution and sediment production of large benthic foraminifers on reef flats of the Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujita, K.; Osawa, Y.; Kayanne, H.; Ide, Y.; Yamano, H.

    2009-03-01

    The distributions and population densities of large benthic foraminifers (LBFs) were investigated on reef flats of the Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. Annual sediment production by foraminifers was estimated based on population density data. Predominant LBFs were Calcarina and Amphistegina, and the population densities of these foraminifers varied with location and substratum type on reef flats. Both foraminifers primarily attached to macrophytes, particularly turf-forming algae, and were most abundant on an ocean reef flat (ORF) and in an inter-island channel near windward, sparsely populated islands. Calcarina density was higher on windward compared to leeward sides of ORFs, whereas Amphistegina density was similar on both sides of ORFs. These foraminifers were more common on the ocean side relative to the lagoon side of reef flats around a windward reef island, and both were rare or absent in nearshore zones around reef islands and on an ORF near windward, densely populated islands. Foraminiferal production rates varied with the degree to which habitats were subject to water motion and human influences. Highly productive sites (>103 g CaCO3 m-2 year-1) included an ORF and an inter-island channel near windward, sparsely populated islands, and a seaward area of a reef flat with no reef islands. Low-productivity sites (<10 g CaCO3 m-2 year-1) included generally nearshore zones of lagoonal reef flats, leeward ORFs, and a windward ORF near densely populated islands. These results suggest that the distribution and production of LBFs were largely influenced by a combination of natural environmental factors, including water motion, water depth, elevation relative to the lowest tidal level at spring tide, and the distribution of suitable substratum. The presence of reef islands may limit the distribution and production of foraminifers by altering water circulation in nearshore environments. Furthermore, increased anthropogenic factors (population and activities) may

  2. The Role of Natural Products in Drug Discovery and Development against Neglected Tropical Diseases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Mubanga Cheuka

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Endemic in 149 tropical and subtropical countries, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs affect more than 1 billion people annually, including 875 million children in developing economies. These diseases are also responsible for over 500,000 deaths per year and are characterized by long-term disability and severe pain. The impact of the combined NTDs closely rivals that of malaria and tuberculosis. Current treatment options are associated with various limitations including widespread drug resistance, severe adverse effects, lengthy treatment duration, unfavorable toxicity profiles, and complicated drug administration procedures. Natural products have been a valuable source of drug regimens that form the cornerstone of modern pharmaceutical care. In this review, we highlight the potential that remains untapped in natural products as drug leads for NTDs. We cover natural products from plant, marine, and microbial sources including natural-product-inspired semi-synthetic derivatives which have been evaluated against the various causative agents of NTDs. Our coverage is limited to four major NTDs which include human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis and lymphatic filariasis.

  3. Functional Reconstitution of a Fungal Natural Product Gene Cluster by Advanced Genome Editing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weber, Jakob; Valiante, Vito; Nødvig, Christina S; Mattern, Derek J; Slotkowski, Rebecca A; Mortensen, Uffe H; Brakhage, Axel A

    2017-01-20

    Filamentous fungi produce varieties of natural products even in a strain dependent manner. However, the genetic basis of chemical speciation between strains is still widely unknown. One example is trypacidin, a natural product of the opportunistic human pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus, which is not produced among different isolates. Combining computational analysis with targeted gene editing, we could link a single nucleotide insertion in the polyketide synthase of the trypacidin biosynthetic pathway and reconstitute its production in a nonproducing strain. Thus, we present a CRISPR/Cas9-based tool for advanced molecular genetic studies in filamentous fungi, exploiting selectable markers separated from the edited locus.

  4. Cytotoxic Natural Products from Marine Sponge-Derived Microorganisms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huawei Zhang

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available A growing body of evidence indicates that marine sponge-derived microbes possess the potential ability to make prolific natural products with therapeutic effects. This review for the first time provides a comprehensive overview of new cytotoxic agents from these marine microbes over the last 62 years from 1955 to 2016, which are assorted into seven types: terpenes, alkaloids, peptides, aromatics, lactones, steroids, and miscellaneous compounds.

  5. Collision-Induced Dissociation Mass Spectrometry: A Powerful Tool for Natural Product Structure Elucidation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Andrew R; Carlson, Erin E

    2015-11-03

    Mass spectrometry is a powerful tool in natural product structure elucidation, but our ability to directly correlate fragmentation spectra to these structures lags far behind similar efforts in peptide sequencing and proteomics. Often, manual data interpretation is required and our knowledge of the expected fragmentation patterns for many scaffolds is limited, further complicating analysis. Here, we summarize advances in natural product structure elucidation based upon the application of collision induced dissociation fragmentation mechanisms.

  6. Plant volatile aldehydes as natural insecticides against stored-product beetles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hubert, Jan; Münzbergová, Zuzana; Santino, Angelo

    2008-01-01

    Infestation by stored-product pests causes serious losses in food and feed commodities. Among possible strategies against these pests, which aim to reduce the use of synthetic insecticides, including fumigants, natural insecticides produced by plants represent one of the most promising approaches for their ecochemical control. Three six-carbon and nine-carbon aldehydes, natural plant volatiles produced by the plant lipoxygenase pathway, were tested for their insecticidal activity against five species of stored-product beetles in feeding, fumigation and combined bioassays. The compounds (2E,6Z)-nonadienal, (2E)-nonenal and (2E)-hexenal were incorporated into feeding discs in feeding bioassays or evaporated from filter paper in closed glass chambers in fumigation tests. Beetle sensitivity to aldehydes differed according to the different treatments. The highest activity was obtained by (2E)-hexenal in fumigation tests, with the LC(50) ranging from 4 to 26 mg L(-1), while (2E, 6Z)-nonadienal was the most effective in feeding tests, giving LD(50)s ranging from 0.44 to 2.76 mg g(-1) when applied to feeding discs. Fumigation tests in the presence of wheat grains confirmed that (2E)-hexenal was the most effective compound, with a calculated LC(99) ranging from 33 to 166 mg L(-1). The results of both feeding and fumigation tests indicated that natural plant aldehydes are potential candidates to control stored-product beetles.

  7. Natural gas: reserves keep ahead of production

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hough, G V

    1983-08-01

    World production of natural gas in 1982 fell only 1.6% below 1981 levels, while proven recoverable reserves were up by 3.6% for a total of 3.279 quadrillion CF, which is 32.4% higher than had been estimated in 1978. Gas consumption, however, has experienced greater changes, with most of the industrialized countries (except for Japan) reporting declines in gas demand resulting from falling oil prices, reduced energy demand, and a slack world economy. Although gas seems to be holding its own in energy markets, further progress will not be easy to achieve.

  8. Large psub(T) pion production and clustered parton model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kanki, T [Osaka Univ., Toyonaka (Japan). Coll. of General Education

    1977-05-01

    Recent experimental results on the large p sub(T) inclusive ..pi../sup 0/ productions by pp and ..pi..p collisions are interpreted by the parton model in which the constituent quarks are defined to be the clusters of the quark-partons and gluons.

  9. Pilot Scale Production of Irradiated Natural Rubber Latex and its Dipping Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Utama

    2005-07-01

    Full Text Available One hundred and fifty kg natural rubber latex (NRL before and after concentration were added with 3 phr (part hundred ratio of rubber normal butyl acrylate, then the mixture were irradiated at 25 kGy by gamma rays of 60Co in pilot scale. The irradiated natural rubber latex (INRL were then being to use for producing rubber products such as condom, surgical gloves, and spygmomanometer in factory scale. The quality of INRL and rubber products such as : total solid content (TSC, dry rubber content (DRC, KOH, VFA and MST number, tensile strength, modulus, elongation at break, extractable protein content, and response against Type I allergy etc. were evaluated. The economic aspect for producing INRL by means of Gamma Irradiator (GI and Electron Beam Machine (EBM such as payback period (PP, net present value (NPV and internal rate return (IRR were calculated. The results showed that the latex properties of INRL such as DRC, TSC, KOH, VFA, and MST number are not only found to the requirement of the ISO 2004 standard but also the latex has low protein, lipid, and carbohydrate content. The physical and mechanical properties (tensile strength, modulus, and elongation at break of rubber dipping products such as condom, gloves, and sphygmomanometer are not only found to the requirement of ISO 4074, ISO 10282, and ANSI/AAMI SP-1994 standards, but also the allergic response tested clinical latex-sensitive protein allergen by ELISA test on gloves, and by SPT test on condom are found to be negative. It indicates that production of INRL or PVNRL or RVNRL by EBM 250 keV/10 mA, was more cheap than by using gamma γ irradiator 200 kCi, or sulfur vulcanization. The value of PBP (payback period was 2,1 years, NPV (net present value was 4,250 US $, PI (profitability index 1,06 and IRR (internal rate of returns was 25,0%.

  10. Upper-bound fission product release assessment for large break LOCA in CANFLEX bundle reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oh, Duk Ju; Lee, Kang Moon

    1996-07-01

    Quarter-core gap inventory assessment for CANDU-6 reactor core loaded with CANFLEX fuel bundles has been performed as one of the licensing safety analyses required for 24 natural uranium CANFLEX bundle irradiation in CANDU-6 reactor. The quarter-core gap inventory for the CANFLEX bundle core is 5 - 10 times lower than that for the standard bundle core, depending on the half-life of the isotope. The lower gap inventory of the CANFLEX bundle core is attributed to the lower linear power of the CANFLEX bundle compared with the standard bundle. However, the whole core total inventories for both the CANFLEX and standard bundle cores are nearly the same. The 6 - 8 times lower upper-bound fission product releases of the CANFLEX bundle core for large break LOCA than those of the standard bundle core imply that the loading of 24 natural uranium CANFLEX bundles would improve the predicted consequences of the postulated accident described in the Wolsung 2 safety report. 2 tabs., 6 figs., 3 refs. (Author)

  11. Tolerance of natural baby skin-care products on healthy, full-term infants and toddlers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Coret CD

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Catherine D Coret, Michael B Suero, Neena K Tierney Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Inc, Skillman, NJ, USA Purpose: To evaluate the tolerance of baby skin-care products with at least 95% naturally derived ingredients on infants and toddlers. Materials and methods: Healthy, full-term infants and toddlers aged 1–36 months were enrolled. In study 1, a lightly fragranced natural baby hair and body wash (n=30, a lightly fragranced natural baby shampoo (n=30, or a lightly fragranced natural baby lotion (n=32 were assessed over 2 weeks. In study 2, a lightly fragranced natural baby hair and body wash and a lightly fragranced natural baby lotion (n=33 were assessed as a regimen over 4 weeks. The wash and shampoo were used three or more times per week, but not more than once daily. Lotions were applied in the morning or after a bath. Clinicians assessed the arms, legs, torso, or scalp for erythema, dryness, peeling/flakiness (study 1 only, tactile roughness, edema (study 1 only, rash/irritation (study 2 only, and overall skin condition (study 2 only at baseline, week 1, and weeks 2 or 4. Parents completed skin assessment questionnaires. In study 2, stratum corneum hydration was measured. Subjects were monitored for adverse events. Results: No significant changes in clinical grading scores were observed, indicating that all products were well tolerated. By the end of each study, >90% of parents/caregivers believed each product was mild and gentle. In study 2, improvement in stratum corneum hydration was observed (+37% at week 1 and +48% at week 4, P<0.05 for both. In study 1, one baby experienced mild erythema on the neck and scalp after using the shampoo (possibly related to treatment. In study 2, there were no product-related adverse events. Conclusion: The natural baby skin-care products were well tolerated by infants and toddlers when used alone or as part of a skin-care regimen. Keywords: bath, cleanser, natural, infant, lotion, shampoo

  12. Evidences of Herbal Medicine-Derived Natural Products Effects in Inflammatory Lung Diseases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fernanda Paula R. Santana

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Pulmonary inflammation is a hallmark of many respiratory diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD, and acute respiratory syndrome distress (ARDS. Most of these diseases are treated with anti-inflammatory therapy in order to prevent or to reduce the pulmonary inflammation. Herbal medicine-derived natural products have been used in folk medicine and scientific studies to evaluate the value of these compounds have grown in recent years. Many substances derived from plants have the biological effects in vitro and in vivo, such as flavonoids, alkaloids, and terpenoids. Among the biological activities of natural products derived from plants can be pointed out the anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antiplatelet, antitumor anti-allergic activities, and antioxidant. Although many reports have evaluated the effects of these compounds in experimental models, studies evaluating clinical trials are scarce in the literature. This review aims to emphasize the effects of these different natural products in pulmonary diseases in experimental models and in humans and pointing out some possible mechanisms of action.

  13. Natural products as potential cancer therapy enhancers: A preclinical update

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abed Agbarya

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Cancer is a multifactorial disease that arises as a consequence of alterations in many physiological processes. Recently, hallmarks of cancer were suggested that include sustaining proliferative signaling, evading growth suppressors, resisting cell death, enabling replicative immortality, inducing angiogenesis, and activating invasion and metastasis, along with two emerging hallmarks including reprogramming energy metabolism and escaping immune destruction. Treating multifactorial diseases, such as cancer with agents targeting a single target, might provide partial treatment and, in many cases, disappointing cure rates. Epidemiological studies have consistently shown that the regular consumption of fruits and vegetables is strongly associated with a reduced risk of developing chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Since ancient times, plants, herbs, and other natural products have been used as healing agents. Moreover, the majority of the medicinal substances available today have their origin in natural compounds. Traditionally, pharmaceuticals are used to cure diseases, and nutrition and herbs are used to prevent disease and to provide an optimal balance of macro- and micro-nutrients needed for good health. We explored the combination of natural products, dietary nutrition, and cancer chemotherapeutics for improving the efficacy of cancer chemotherapeutics and negating side effects.

  14. Recent Advances in Developing Insect Natural Products as Potential Modern Day Medicines

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Norman Ratcliffe

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Except for honey as food, and silk for clothing and pollination of plants, people give little thought to the benefits of insects in their lives. This overview briefly describes significant recent advances in developing insect natural products as potential new medicinal drugs. This is an exciting and rapidly expanding new field since insects are hugely variable and have utilised an enormous range of natural products to survive environmental perturbations for 100s of millions of years. There is thus a treasure chest of untapped resources waiting to be discovered. Insects products, such as silk and honey, have already been utilised for thousands of years, and extracts of insects have been produced for use in Folk Medicine around the world, but only with the development of modern molecular and biochemical techniques has it become feasible to manipulate and bioengineer insect natural products into modern medicines. Utilising knowledge gleaned from Insect Folk Medicines, this review describes modern research into bioengineering honey and venom from bees, silk, cantharidin, antimicrobial peptides, and maggot secretions and anticoagulants from blood-sucking insects into medicines. Problems and solutions encountered in these endeavours are described and indicate that the future is bright for new insect derived pharmaceuticals treatments and medicines.

  15. Lightweight Approaches to Natural Gas Hydrate Exploration & Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Max, M. D.; Johnson, A. H.

    2017-12-01

    Lower-cost approaches to drilling and reservoir utilization are made possible by adapting both emerging and new technology to the unique, low risk NGH natural gas resource. We have focused on drilling, wellbore lining technology, and reservoir management with an emphasis on long-term sand control and adaptive mechanical stability during NGH conversion to its constituent gas and water. In addition, we suggest that there are opportunities for management of both the gas and water with respect to maintaining desired thermal conditions. Some of the unique aspects of NGH deposits allow for new, more efficient technology to be applied to development, particularly in drilling. While NGH-bearing sands are in deepwater, they are confined to depths beneath the seafloor of 1.2 kilometers or less. As a result, they will not be significantly above hydrostatic pressure, and temperatures will be less than 30 oC. Drilling will be through semi-consolidated sediment without liquid hydrocarbons. These characteristics mean that high capability drillships are not needed. What is needed is a new perspective about drilling and producing NGH. Drilling from the seafloor will resolve the high-pressure differential between a wellhead on the sea surface in a vessel and reservoir to about the hydrostatic pressure difference between the seafloor and, at most, the base of the GHSZ. Although NGH production will begin using "off-the-shelf" technology, innovation will lead to new technology that will bring down costs and increase efficiency in the same way that led to the shale breakthrough. Commercial success is possible if consideration is given to what is actually needed to produce NGH in a safe and environmentally manner. Max, M.D. 2017. Wellbore Lining for Natural Gas Hydrate. U.S. Patent Application US15644947 Max, M.D. & Johnson, A.H. 2017. E&P Cost Reduction Opportunities for Natural Gas Hydrate. OilPro. . Max, M.D. & Johnson, A.H. 2016. Exploration and Production of Oceanic Natural Gas

  16. Chapter 7. Cloning and analysis of natural product pathways.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gust, Bertolt

    2009-01-01

    The identification of gene clusters of natural products has lead to an enormous wealth of information about their biosynthesis and its regulation, and about self-resistance mechanisms. Well-established routine techniques are now available for the cloning and sequencing of gene clusters. The subsequent functional analysis of the complex biosynthetic machinery requires efficient genetic tools for manipulation. Until recently, techniques for the introduction of defined changes into Streptomyces chromosomes were very time-consuming. In particular, manipulation of large DNA fragments has been challenging due to the absence of suitable restriction sites for restriction- and ligation-based techniques. The homologous recombination approach called recombineering (referred to as Red/ET-mediated recombination in this chapter) has greatly facilitated targeted genetic modifications of complex biosynthetic pathways from actinomycetes by eliminating many of the time-consuming and labor-intensive steps. This chapter describes techniques for the cloning and identification of biosynthetic gene clusters, for the generation of gene replacements within such clusters, for the construction of integrative library clones and their expression in heterologous hosts, and for the assembly of entire biosynthetic gene clusters from the inserts of individual library clones. A systematic approach toward insertional mutation of a complete Streptomyces genome is shown by the use of an in vitro transposon mutagenesis procedure.

  17. Direct capture and heterologous expression of Salinispora natural product genes for the biosynthesis of enterocin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonet, Bailey; Teufel, Robin; Crüsemann, Max; Ziemert, Nadine; Moore, Bradley S

    2015-03-27

    Heterologous expression of secondary metabolic pathways is a promising approach for the discovery and characterization of bioactive natural products. Herein we report the first heterologous expression of a natural product from the model marine actinomycete genus Salinispora. Using the recently developed method of yeast-mediated transformation-associated recombination for natural product gene clusters, we captured a type II polyketide synthase pathway from Salinispora pacifica with high homology to the enterocin pathway from Streptomyces maritimus and successfully produced enterocin in two different Streptomyces host strains. This result paves the way for the systematic interrogation of Salinispora's promising secondary metabolome.

  18. Building blocks for automated elucidation of metabolites: natural product-likeness for candidate ranking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jayaseelan, Kalai Vanii; Steinbeck, Christoph

    2014-07-05

    In metabolomics experiments, spectral fingerprints of metabolites with no known structural identity are detected routinely. Computer-assisted structure elucidation (CASE) has been used to determine the structural identities of unknown compounds. It is generally accepted that a single 1D NMR spectrum or mass spectrum is usually not sufficient to establish the identity of a hitherto unknown compound. When a suite of spectra from 1D and 2D NMR experiments supplemented with a molecular formula are available, the successful elucidation of the chemical structure for candidates with up to 30 heavy atoms has been reported previously by one of the authors. In high-throughput metabolomics, usually 1D NMR or mass spectrometry experiments alone are conducted for rapid analysis of samples. This method subsequently requires that the spectral patterns are analyzed automatically to quickly identify known and unknown structures. In this study, we investigated whether additional existing knowledge, such as the fact that the unknown compound is a natural product, can be used to improve the ranking of the correct structure in the result list after the structure elucidation process. To identify unknowns using as little spectroscopic information as possible, we implemented an evolutionary algorithm-based CASE mechanism to elucidate candidates in a fully automated fashion, with input of the molecular formula and 13C NMR spectrum of the isolated compound. We also tested how filters like natural product-likeness, a measure that calculates the similarity of the compounds to known natural product space, might enhance the performance and quality of the structure elucidation. The evolutionary algorithm is implemented within the SENECA package for CASE reported previously, and is available for free download under artistic license at http://sourceforge.net/projects/seneca/. The natural product-likeness calculator is incorporated as a plugin within SENECA and is available as a GUI client and

  19. Preliminary definition of the design of a nuclear reactor for research and radioisotope production using natural uranium and heavy water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Llagostera Beltran, J.I.

    1982-01-01

    A study was conducted about the evolution of the Brazilian importations of radioisotopes, from the beginning of the 70's since they have been increasingly used in the Country. In view of the limited production capacity of radioactive isotopes now existing in Brazil, a nuclear reactor type (natural uranium and heavy water) was defined, for research and production of radioisotopes, wich, besides providing, at least partially, the Brazilian needs of said isotopes, permits a large national participation in its project, construction and operating maintenance. The processes for heavy water production have been analyzed and it could be detected what is the best alternative for the production thereof, in low scale, in Brazil. The options concerning the definition of the main components of the reactor were justified and its most important features were determined, in relation to the neutronic and thermal aspects, being so defined its most significant parameters. The annual quantities were estimated, in terms of total and specific activity, for the radioisotopes that could be obtained by means of the proposed reactor, which, by now, are participating, to a large extent, in the total of Brazilian importation of radioactive isotopes. (Author) [pt

  20. Environmentalism and natural aggregate mining

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drew, L.J.; Langer, W.H.; Sachs, J.S.

    2002-01-01

    living space has encroached on the sites of production; in other words, the act of production has engendered condemnation. Many other environmental problems that are associated with dust and noise and blasting from quarry and pit operations have been reduced through the efficient use of technology. Recycling concrete in buildings, bridges, and roads and asphaltic pavements will ultimately reduce the demand for virgin natural aggregate. The impact created by the large holes in the ground required for the mining of natural aggregate can be greatly reduced by planning their reclamation before mining begins. ?? 2002 International Association for Mathematical Geology.

  1. Total Synthesis of Natural Products Using Hypervalent Iodine Reagents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gaetan eMaertens

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available We present a review of natural product syntheses accomplished in our laboratory during the last five years. Each synthetic route features a phenol dearomatization promoted by an environmentally benign hypervalent iodine reagent. The dearomatizations demonstrate the aromatic ring umpolung concept, and involve stereoselective remodeling of the inert unsaturations of a phenol into a highly functionalized key intermediate that may contain a quaternary carbon center and a prochiral dienone system. Several new oxidative strategies were employed, including transpositions (1,3-alkyl shift and Prins-pinacol, a polycyclization, an ipso rearrangement, and direct nucleophilic additions at the phenol para position. Several alkaloids, heterocyclic compounds, and a polycyclic core have been achieved, including sceletenone (a serotonin reuptake inhibitor, acetylaspidoalbidine (an antitumor agent, fortucine (antiviral and antitumor, erysotramidine (curare-like effect, platensimycin (an antibiotic, and the main core of a kaurane diterpene (immunosuppressive agent and stimulator of apoptosis. These concise and in some cases enantioselective syntheses effectively demonstrate the importance of hypervalent iodine reagents in the total synthesis of bioactive natural products.

  2. Applications of natural zeolites on agriculture and food production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eroglu, Nazife; Emekci, Mevlut; Athanassiou, Christos G

    2017-08-01

    Zeolites are crystalline hydrated aluminosilicates with remarkable physical and chemical properties, which include losing and receiving water in a reverse way, adsorbing molecules that act as molecular sieves, and replacing their constituent cations without structural change. The commercial production of natural zeolites has accelerated during the last 50 years. The Structure Commission of the International Zeolite Association recorded more than 200 zeolites, which currently include more than 40 naturally occurring zeolites. Recent findings have supported their role in stored-pest management as inert dust applications, pesticide and fertilizer carriers, soil amendments, animal feed additives, mycotoxin binders and food packaging materials. There are many advantages of inert dust application, including low cost, non-neurotoxic action, low mammalian toxicity and safety for human consumption. The latest consumer trends and government protocols have shifted toward organic origin materials to replace synthetic chemical products. In the present review, we summarize most of the main uses of zeolites in food and agruculture, along with the with specific paradigms that illustrate their important role. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

  3. The potential for large scale uses for fission product xenon

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rohrmann, C.A.

    1983-01-01

    Of all fission products in spent, low enrichment, uranium, power reactor fuels xenon is produced in the highest yield - nearly one cubic meter, STP, per metric ton. In aged fuels which may be considered for processing in the U.S. radioactive xenon isotopes approach the lowest limits of detection. The separation from accompanying radioactive 85 Kr is the essential problem; however, this is state of the art technology which has been demonstrated on the pilot scale to yield xenon with pico-curie levels of 85 Kr contamination. If needed for special applications, such levels could be further reduced. Environmental considerations require the isolation of essentially all fission product krypton during fuel processing. Economic restraints assure that the bulk of this krypton will need to be separated from the much more voluminous xenon fraction of the total amount of fission gas. Xenon may thus be discarded or made available for uses at probably very low cost. In contrast with many other fission products which have unique radioactive characteristics which make them useful as sources of heat, gamma and x-rays and luminescence as well as for medicinal diagnostics and therapeutics fission product xenon differs from naturally occurring xenon only in its isotopic composition which gives it a slightly higher atomic weight, because of the much higher concentrations of the 134 X and 136 Xe isotopes. Therefore, fission product xenon can most likely find uses in applications which already exist but which can not be exploited most beneficially because of the high cost and scarcity of natural xenon. Unique uses would probably include applications in improved incandescent light illumination in place of krypton and in human anesthesia

  4. Natural antifouling compound production by microbes associated with marine macroorganisms — A review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sathianeson Satheesh

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available In the marine environment, all hard surfaces including marine macroorganims are colonized by microorganisms mainly from the surrounding environment. The microorganisms associated with marine macroorganisms offer tremendous potential for exploitation of bioactive metabolites. Biofouling is a continuous problem in marine sectors which needs huge economy for control and cleaning processes. Biotechnological way for searching natural product antifouling compounds gained momentum in recent years because of the environmental pollution associated with the use of toxic chemicals to control biofouling. While, natural product based antifoulants from marine organisms particularly sponges and corals attained significance due to their activities in field assays, collection of larger amount of organisms from the sea is not a viable one. The microorganisms associated with sponges, corals, ascidians, seaweeds and seagrasses showed strong antimicrobial and also antifouling activities. This review highlights the advances in natural product antifoulants research from microbes associated with marine organisms.

  5. Operator-Oriented Product and Production Process Design for Manufacturing, Maintenance and Upgrading

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rhijn, G. van; Bosch, T.

    2017-01-01

    The nature of production in the manufacturing industry is changing, and companies face large challenges. Customers expect fast delivery times, proven sustainability, flexibility, and frequent product upgrades. To stay competitive and manage rapid technological demands, a parallel, iterative and

  6. Green Extraction of Natural Products: Concept and Principles

    OpenAIRE

    Giancarlo Cravotto; Maryline Abert Vian; Farid Chemat

    2012-01-01

    The design of green and sustainable extraction methods of natural products is currently a hot research topic in the multidisciplinary area of applied chemistry, biology and technology. Herein we aimed to introduce the six principles of green-extraction, describing a multifaceted strategy to apply this concept at research and industrial level. The mainstay of this working protocol are new and innovative technologies, process intensification, agro-solvents and energy saving. The concept, princi...

  7. Interlayer catalytic exfoliation realizing scalable production of large-size pristine few-layer graphene

    OpenAIRE

    Geng, Xiumei; Guo, Yufen; Li, Dongfang; Li, Weiwei; Zhu, Chao; Wei, Xiangfei; Chen, Mingliang; Gao, Song; Qiu, Shengqiang; Gong, Youpin; Wu, Liqiong; Long, Mingsheng; Sun, Mengtao; Pan, Gebo; Liu, Liwei

    2013-01-01

    Mass production of reduced graphene oxide and graphene nanoplatelets has recently been achieved. However, a great challenge still remains in realizing large-quantity and high-quality production of large-size thin few-layer graphene (FLG). Here, we create a novel route to solve the issue by employing one-time-only interlayer catalytic exfoliation (ICE) of salt-intercalated graphite. The typical FLG with a large lateral size of tens of microns and a thickness less than 2?nm have been obtained b...

  8. The potential contribution of the natural products from Brazilian biodiversity to bioeconomy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valli, Marilia; Russo, Helena M; Bolzani, Vanderlan S

    2018-01-01

    The development of our society has been based on the use of biodiversity, especially for medicines and nutrition. Brazil is the nation with the largest biodiversity in the world accounting for more than 15% of all living species. The devastation of biodiversity in Brazil is critical and may not only cause the loss of species and genes that encode enzymes involved in the complex metabolism of organisms, but also the loss of a rich chemical diversity, which is a potential source for bioeconomy based on natural products and new synthetic derivatives. Bioeconomy focus on the use of bio-based products, instead of fossil-based ones and could address some of the important challenges faced by society. Considering the chemical and biological diversity of Brazil, this review highlights the Brazilian natural products that were successfully used to develop new products and the value of secondary metabolites from Brazilian biodiversity with potential application for new products and technologies. Additionally, we would like to address the importance of new technologies and scientific programs to support preservation policies, bioeconomy and strategies for the sustainable use of biodiversity.

  9. Exploring natural variation of photosynthetic, primary metabolism and growth parameters in a large panel of Capsicum chinense accessions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosado-Souza, Laise; Scossa, Federico; Chaves, Izabel S; Kleessen, Sabrina; Salvador, Luiz F D; Milagre, Jocimar C; Finger, Fernando; Bhering, Leonardo L; Sulpice, Ronan; Araújo, Wagner L; Nikoloski, Zoran; Fernie, Alisdair R; Nunes-Nesi, Adriano

    2015-09-01

    Collectively, the results presented improve upon the utility of an important genetic resource and attest to a complex genetic basis for differences in both leaf metabolism and fruit morphology between natural populations. Diversity of accessions within the same species provides an alternative method to identify physiological and metabolic traits that have large effects on growth regulation, biomass and fruit production. Here, we investigated physiological and metabolic traits as well as parameters related to plant growth and fruit production of 49 phenotypically diverse pepper accessions of Capsicum chinense grown ex situ under controlled conditions. Although single-trait analysis identified up to seven distinct groups of accessions, working with the whole data set by multivariate analyses allowed the separation of the 49 accessions in three clusters. Using all 23 measured parameters and data from the geographic origin for these accessions, positive correlations between the combined phenotypes and geographic origin were observed, supporting a robust pattern of isolation-by-distance. In addition, we found that fruit set was positively correlated with photosynthesis-related parameters, which, however, do not explain alone the differences in accession susceptibility to fruit abortion. Our results demonstrated that, although the accessions belong to the same species, they exhibit considerable natural intraspecific variation with respect to physiological and metabolic parameters, presenting diverse adaptation mechanisms and being a highly interesting source of information for plant breeders. This study also represents the first study combining photosynthetic, primary metabolism and growth parameters for Capsicum to date.

  10. Low Carbon Technology Options for the Natural Gas Electricity Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    The ultimate goal of this task is to perform environmental and economic analysis of natural gas based power production technologies (different routes) to investigate and evaluate strategies for reducing emissions from the power sector. It is a broad research area. Initially, the...

  11. International comparisons of productivity and its determinants in the natural gas industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Tai-Yoo; Lee, Jeong-Dong; Park, Yearn H.; Kim, Boyoung

    1999-01-01

    The objective of this paper was to evaluate the performance of the natural gas industry using an inter-country comparison of productivity level and its determinants. Three methodologies: multilateral Toernqvist productivity analysis; managerial index system analysis; and non-parametric efficiency analysis, are employed to make a methodological cross-checking and to perform diversified analysis. From the empirical results, we identified the level and growth rate of productivity of individual firms. The results also indicated that the Korean gas industry has shown a relatively low level of productivity. From the results of managerial performance index analysis, we found that during the recent years of regulatory changes, the final price of gas has decreased dramatically while the productivity growth has not been enough to offset the effect of decreased output price, which has resulted in decreased profit. We also examine the extent of the allocative, scale, and managerial efficiency as source components of the overall efficiency based on the performance of best-practiced. With the results of this study, an effective policy measure could be established to improve the productivity and the overall managerial performance in the natural gas industry

  12. Umatilla Basin Natural Production Monitoring and Evaluation; 2003-2004 Annual Report.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schwartz, Jesse D.M.; Contor, Craig C.; Hoverson, Eric (Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Department of Natural Resources, Pendleton, OR)

    2005-10-01

    The Umatilla Basin Natural Production Monitoring and Evaluation Project (UBNPMEP) is funded by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) as directed by section 4(h) of the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation Act of 1980 (P. L. 96-501). This project is in accordance with and pursuant to measures 4.2A, 4.3C.1, 7.1A.2, 7.1C.3, 7.1C.4 and 7.1D.2 of the Northwest Power Planning Council's (NPPC) Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program (NPPC 1994). Work was conducted by the Fisheries Program of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). UBNPMEP is coordinated with two ODFW research projects that also monitor and evaluate the success of the Umatilla Fisheries Restoration Plan. Our project deals with the natural production component of the plan, and the ODFW projects evaluate hatchery operations (project No. 19000500, Umatilla Hatchery M & E) and smolt outmigration (project No. 198902401, Evaluation of Juvenile Salmonid Outmigration and Survival in the Lower Umatilla River). Collectively these three projects comprehensively monitor and evaluate natural and hatchery salmonid production in the Umatilla River Basin. Table 1 outlines relationships with other BPA supported projects. The need for natural production monitoring has been identified in multiple planning documents including Wy-Kan-Ush-Mi Wa-Kish-Wit Volume I, 5b-13 (CRITFC 1996), the Umatilla Hatchery Master Plan (CTUIR & ODFW 1990), the Umatilla Basin Annual Operation Plan (ODFW and CTUIR 2004), the Umatilla Subbasin Summary (CTUIR & ODFW 2001), the Subbasin Plan (CTUIR & ODFW 2004), and the Comprehensive Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation Plan (Schwartz & Cameron Under Revision). Natural production monitoring and evaluation is also consistent with Section III, Basinwide Provisions, Strategy 9 of the 2000 Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program (NPPC 1994, NPPC 2004). The need for monitoring the natural production of salmonids in the Umatilla River

  13. The encounter and analysis of naturally occurring radionuclides in gas and oil production and processing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hartog, F.A.; Jonkers, G.; Knaepen, W.A.I.

    1996-01-01

    As a result of oil and gas production, radioactive daughter elements from the uranium and thorium decay series can be mobilized and transported away from the reservoir. Due to changes in flow regime, temperature, pressure or chemical environment NORs (Naturally Occurring Radionuclides) may build up in products, by-products or waste streams from gas and oil production and processing facilities. Products containing NORs are commonly denoted by the acronym NORM (Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials). Main topics of this paper are: E and P (Exploration and Production) NORM characteristics; incentives for NORM analysis; NORM analysis; interlaboratory test programme; analysis techniques; results and conclusions of the test programme. 4 figs., 2 tabs

  14. Tolerance of natural baby skin-care products on healthy, full-term infants and toddlers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coret, Catherine D; Suero, Michael B; Tierney, Neena K

    2014-01-01

    To evaluate the tolerance of baby skin-care products with at least 95% naturally derived ingredients on infants and toddlers. Healthy, full-term infants and toddlers aged 1-36 months were enrolled. In study 1, a lightly fragranced natural baby hair and body wash (n=30), a lightly fragranced natural baby shampoo (n=30), or a lightly fragranced natural baby lotion (n=32) were assessed over 2 weeks. In study 2, a lightly fragranced natural baby hair and body wash and a lightly fragranced natural baby lotion (n=33) were assessed as a regimen over 4 weeks. The wash and shampoo were used three or more times per week, but not more than once daily. Lotions were applied in the morning or after a bath. Clinicians assessed the arms, legs, torso, or scalp for erythema, dryness, peeling/flakiness (study 1 only), tactile roughness, edema (study 1 only), rash/irritation (study 2 only), and overall skin condition (study 2 only) at baseline, week 1, and weeks 2 or 4. Parents completed skin assessment questionnaires. In study 2, stratum corneum hydration was measured. Subjects were monitored for adverse events. No significant changes in clinical grading scores were observed, indicating that all products were well tolerated. By the end of each study, >90% of parents/caregivers believed each product was mild and gentle. In study 2, improvement in stratum corneum hydration was observed (+37% at week 1 and +48% at week 4, Pproduct-related adverse events. The natural baby skin-care products were well tolerated by infants and toddlers when used alone or as part of a skin-care regimen.

  15. Dietary Natural Products for Prevention and Treatment of Breast Cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ya; Li, Sha; Meng, Xiao; Gan, Ren-You; Zhang, Jiao-Jiao; Li, Hua-Bin

    2017-07-08

    Breast cancer is the most common cancer among females worldwide. Several epidemiological studies suggested the inverse correlation between the intake of vegetables and fruits and the incidence of breast cancer. Substantial experimental studies indicated that many dietary natural products could affect the development and progression of breast cancer, such as soy, pomegranate, mangosteen, citrus fruits, apple, grape, mango, cruciferous vegetables, ginger, garlic, black cumin, edible macro-fungi, and cereals. Their anti-breast cancer effects involve various mechanisms of action, such as downregulating ER-α expression and activity, inhibiting proliferation, migration, metastasis and angiogenesis of breast tumor cells, inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, and sensitizing breast tumor cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This review summarizes the potential role of dietary natural products and their major bioactive components in prevention and treatment of breast cancer, and special attention was paid to the mechanisms of action.

  16. Yoghurt enrichment with natural bee farming products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Lomova

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Bee pollen is a unique and unparalleled natural bioactive substances source. Using it in conjunction with the popular functional fermented milk product -yogurt will expand its product range and increase the biological value. Materials and Methods. Dried bee pollen’s moisture determination was made by gravimetry methods, based on the sample weight loss due to desiccation, until constant weight was reached.Test and control yogurt samples were studied by applying standard techniques for milk and milk products set forth in the regulations of Ukraine. Results and discussion. It is found that bee pollen pellet drying to a moisture content of 2 -4%, increases the flow rate of powder almost by 90%. The sample having moisture content of 2% will have a bulk density exceeding 12.5% compared to the sample having moisture content of 10%. Raw output will also increase by 3.7%. By contrast, apparent density and weight fraction of losses decreases, which has a positive impact on pollen efficiency of use and distribution in bulk yogurt. Moreover, the weight fraction of losses decreases by fourfold (4.6% vs. 1%. It was experimentally determined that pollen can deteriorate microbiological characteristics of yogurt. It was proved that treatment of crushed bee pollen pellet sample with ultraviolet allows improving yogurt microbiological safety indicators. Namely, to reduce the presence of coli-forms to 0, mould –to 10 CFU/cm³. Conclusions. The proposed bee pollen pellet treatment method will improve the technological and microbiological characteristics of pollen powder. This provides for yoghurt production biotechnology using bee farming products.

  17. Recent trends in rapid dereplication of natural product extracts:an update

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Fikre Mammo; Milkyas Endale

    2015-01-01

    Natural products are the prominent sources of drugs to combat various infectious diseases. The rapid progress of multi-resistance and pan-resistant pathogens to various medicines represents today a major challenge. The search for novel natural products requires a quick and efficient approach to distinguish novel compounds from the known ones, a process called dereplication. Dereplication strategy is generic and time-saving, avoids isolation/purification of known compounds, enables an efficient liquid chromatography peak annotation of most of the studied compounds and can be well adapted for plant chemotaxonomy, phytochemical screening and metabolite profiling. In this review, recent developments of hyphenated techniques towards dereplication of active compounds, chemotaxonomy, metabolite profiling and rapid detection of novel compounds in medicinal plant extracts are presented.

  18. Exploring fungal biodiversity for the production of water-soluble pigments as potential natural food colorants

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mapari, Sameer Shamsuddin; Nielsen, Kristian Fog; Larsen, Thomas Ostenfeld

    2005-01-01

    The production of many currently authorized natural food colorants has a number of disadvantages, including a dependence on the supply of raw materials and variations in pigment extraction. Fungi provide a readily available alternative source of naturally derived food colorants that could easily...... be produced in high yields. The recent authorization of a fungal food colorant has fuelled research to explore the extraordinary chemical diversity and biodiversity of fungi for the biotechnological production of pigments as natural food colorants. These studies require an appropriate use of chernotaxonomic...... technology, in the future it should be possible to employ metabolic engineering to create microbial cell factories for the production of food colorants....

  19. Application of the aza-Diels-Alder reaction in the synthesis of natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Min-Hui; Green, Nicholas J; Xu, Sheng-Zhen

    2017-04-11

    The Diels-Alder reaction that involves a nitrogen atom in the diene or dienophile is termed the aza-Diels-Alder reaction. As well as the powerful all-carbon Diels-Alder reaction, the aza-Diels-Alder reaction has also played an important role in the total synthesis of natural products. Herein, we review various natural products using an aza-Diels-Alder reaction as a key step to their total synthesis, and divide the syntheses into inter- and intra-molecular aza-Diels-Alder reactions and a retro-aza-Diels-Alder reaction. Inter- and intra-molecular aza-Diels-Alder reactions involve an imine as an electron deficient dienophile and an imine as an electron deficient azadiene. The significance of the aza-Diels-Alder reaction for the construction of a six-membered ring containing nitrogen is tremendous, but the development of asymmetric, in particular catalytic enantioselective intramolecular aza-Diels-Alder reaction in the total synthesis of natural products remains highly challenging, and will no doubt see enormous advances in the future.

  20. Liquefied natural gas production at Hammerfest: A transforming marine community

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bets, van L.K.J.; Tatenhove, van J.P.M.; Mol, A.P.J.

    2016-01-01

    Global energy demand and scarce petroleum resources require communities to adapt to a rapidly changing Arctic environment, but as well to a transforming socio-economic environment instigated by oil and gas development. This is illustrated by liquefied natural gas production by Statoil at Hammerfest,

  1. From Discovery to Production: Biotechnology of Marine Fungi for the Production of New Antibiotics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silber, Johanna; Kramer, Annemarie; Labes, Antje; Tasdemir, Deniz

    2016-01-01

    Filamentous fungi are well known for their capability of producing antibiotic natural products. Recent studies have demonstrated the potential of antimicrobials with vast chemodiversity from marine fungi. Development of such natural products into lead compounds requires sustainable supply. Marine biotechnology can significantly contribute to the production of new antibiotics at various levels of the process chain including discovery, production, downstream processing, and lead development. However, the number of biotechnological processes described for large-scale production from marine fungi is far from the sum of the newly-discovered natural antibiotics. Methods and technologies applied in marine fungal biotechnology largely derive from analogous terrestrial processes and rarely reflect the specific demands of the marine fungi. The current developments in metabolic engineering and marine microbiology are not yet transferred into processes, but offer numerous options for improvement of production processes and establishment of new process chains. This review summarises the current state in biotechnological production of marine fungal antibiotics and points out the enormous potential of biotechnology in all stages of the discovery-to-development pipeline. At the same time, the literature survey reveals that more biotechnology transfer and method developments are needed for a sustainable and innovative production of marine fungal antibiotics. PMID:27455283

  2. Natural Products Research in China from 2015 to 2016

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Haishan; Zhu, Guoliang; Fan, Yaqin; Du, Yuqi; Lan, Mengmeng; Xu, Yibo; Zhu, Weiming

    2018-03-01

    This review covers the literature published by Chinese chemists from 2015 to 2016 on natural products (NPs), with 1,985 citations referring to 6,944 new compounds isolated from marine or terrestrial microorganisms, plants, and animals. The emphasis is on 730 new compounds with a novel skeleton or/and significant bioactivity, together with their source organism and country of origin.

  3. Natural Products Research in China From 2015 to 2016

    OpenAIRE

    Haishan Liu; Haishan Liu; Guoliang Zhu; Guoliang Zhu; Yaqin Fan; Yaqin Fan; Yuqi Du; Yuqi Du; Mengmeng Lan; Mengmeng Lan; Yibo Xu; Yibo Xu; Weiming Zhu; Weiming Zhu

    2018-01-01

    This review covers the literature published by chemists from China during the 2015–2016 on natural products (NPs), with 1,985 citations referring to 6,944 new compounds isolated from marine or terrestrial microorganisms, plants, and animals. The emphasis is on 730 new compounds with a novel skeleton or/and significant bioactivity, together with their source organism and country of origin.

  4. Natural fibre selection for composite eco-design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Corona, Andrea; Madsen, Bo; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky

    2016-01-01

    Natural fibre composites (NFC) are gaining interest in manufacturing because they address some of the environmental problems of traditional composites: use of non-renewable resources, and large impacts related to their production and disposal. Since natural fibres are not yet optimized...... for composite production, it is crucial to identify the most appropriate applications, and determine the optimal fibre/matrix ratio. A methodology is proposed for early-stage decisions support on selection of bio-composite materials. Results help identify the application with the largest reduction...

  5. Hard pair production in large-angle Bhabha scattering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arbuzov, A.B.; Trentadue, L.

    1996-01-01

    The cross section of hard pair production in large-angle Bhabha scattering calculated in the leading and next-to-leading logarithmic approximations. Eight regions of the collinear kinematics, when the final particles imitate a process of the 2 →2 type, and three semicollinear regions, when the final particles imitate a process of the 2→3 type, are considered. Analytical formulae for differential cross sections are presented. (orig.)

  6. Expansion of ribosomally produced natural products: a nitrile hydratase- and Nif11-related precursor family

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mitchell Douglas A

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A new family of natural products has been described in which cysteine, serine and threonine from ribosomally-produced peptides are converted to thiazoles, oxazoles and methyloxazoles, respectively. These metabolites and their biosynthetic gene clusters are now referred to as thiazole/oxazole-modified microcins (TOMM. As exemplified by microcin B17 and streptolysin S, TOMM precursors contain an N-terminal leader sequence and C-terminal core peptide. The leader sequence contains binding sites for the posttranslational modifying enzymes which subsequently act upon the core peptide. TOMM peptides are small and highly variable, frequently missed by gene-finders and occasionally situated far from the thiazole/oxazole forming genes. Thus, locating a substrate for a particular TOMM pathway can be a challenging endeavor. Results Examination of candidate TOMM precursors has revealed a subclass with an uncharacteristically long leader sequence closely related to the enzyme nitrile hydratase. Members of this nitrile hydratase leader peptide (NHLP family lack the metal-binding residues required for catalysis. Instead, NHLP sequences display the classic Gly-Gly cleavage motif and have C-terminal regions rich in heterocyclizable residues. The NHLP family exhibits a correlated species distribution and local clustering with an ABC transport system. This study also provides evidence that a separate family, annotated as Nif11 nitrogen-fixing proteins, can serve as natural product precursors (N11P, but not always of the TOMM variety. Indeed, a number of cyanobacterial genomes show extensive N11P paralogous expansion, such as Nostoc, Prochlorococcus and Cyanothece, which replace the TOMM cluster with lanthionine biosynthetic machinery. Conclusions This study has united numerous TOMM gene clusters with their cognate substrates. These results suggest that two large protein families, the nitrile hydratases and Nif11, have been retailored for

  7. Structure of a putative fluorinated natural product from Streptomyces sp. TC1.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aldemir, Hülya; Kohlhepp, Stefanie V; Gulder, Tanja; Gulder, Tobias A M

    2014-11-26

    Fluorine-containing natural products are extremely rare. The recent report on the isolation and biological activity of the bacterial secondary metabolite 3-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-fluorophenyl)propionic acid was thus highly remarkable. The compound contained the first aromatic fluorine substituent known to date in any natural product. The promise to discover an enzyme capable of aromatic fluorination in the producing strain Streptomyces sp. TC1 prompted our immediate interest. A close inspection of the originally reported analytical data of the fluoro metabolite revealed inconsistencies that triggered us to validate the reported structure. The results of these efforts are presented in this communication.

  8. Natural products induce a G protein-mediated calcium pathway activating p53 in cancer cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ginkel, Paul R. van; Yan, Michael B. [UW Carbone Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Bhattacharya, Saswati [UW Carbone Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Polans, Arthur S., E-mail: aspolans@wisc.edu [UW Carbone Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Kenealey, Jason D. [UW Carbone Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792 (United States); Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 (United States)

    2015-11-01

    Paclitaxel, etoposide, vincristine and doxorubicin are examples of natural products being used as chemotherapeutics but with adverse side effects that limit their therapeutic window. Natural products derived from plants and having low toxicity, such as quercetin, resveratrol, epigallocatechin gallate and piceatannol, have been shown to inhibit tumor cell growth both in vitro and in pre-clinical models of cancer, but their mechanisms of action have not been fully elucidated, thus restricting their use as prototypes for developing synthetic analogs with improved anti-cancer properties. We and others have demonstrated that one of the earliest and consistent events upon exposure of tumor cells to these less toxic natural products is a rise in cytoplasmic calcium, activating several pro-apoptotic pathways. We describe here a G protein/inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate pathway (InsP3) in MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells that mediates between these less toxic natural products and the release of calcium from the endoplasmic reticulum. Further, we demonstrate that this elevation of intracellular calcium modulates p53 activity and the subsequent transcription of several pro-apoptotic genes encoding PIG8, CD95, PIDD, TP53INP, RRM2B, Noxa, p21 and PUMA. We conclude from our findings that less toxic natural products likely bind to a G protein coupled receptor that activates a G protein-mediated and calcium-dependent pathway resulting selectively in tumor cell death. - Highlights: • Natural products having low toxicity increase cytoplasmic calcium in cancer cells. • A G-protein/IP{sub 3} pathway mediates the release of calcium from the ER. • The elevation of intracellular calcium modulates p53 activity. • p53 and other Ca{sup 2+}-dependent pro-apoptotic pathways inhibit cancer cell growth.

  9. Natural products induce a G protein-mediated calcium pathway activating p53 in cancer cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ginkel, Paul R. van; Yan, Michael B.; Bhattacharya, Saswati; Polans, Arthur S.; Kenealey, Jason D.

    2015-01-01

    Paclitaxel, etoposide, vincristine and doxorubicin are examples of natural products being used as chemotherapeutics but with adverse side effects that limit their therapeutic window. Natural products derived from plants and having low toxicity, such as quercetin, resveratrol, epigallocatechin gallate and piceatannol, have been shown to inhibit tumor cell growth both in vitro and in pre-clinical models of cancer, but their mechanisms of action have not been fully elucidated, thus restricting their use as prototypes for developing synthetic analogs with improved anti-cancer properties. We and others have demonstrated that one of the earliest and consistent events upon exposure of tumor cells to these less toxic natural products is a rise in cytoplasmic calcium, activating several pro-apoptotic pathways. We describe here a G protein/inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate pathway (InsP3) in MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells that mediates between these less toxic natural products and the release of calcium from the endoplasmic reticulum. Further, we demonstrate that this elevation of intracellular calcium modulates p53 activity and the subsequent transcription of several pro-apoptotic genes encoding PIG8, CD95, PIDD, TP53INP, RRM2B, Noxa, p21 and PUMA. We conclude from our findings that less toxic natural products likely bind to a G protein coupled receptor that activates a G protein-mediated and calcium-dependent pathway resulting selectively in tumor cell death. - Highlights: • Natural products having low toxicity increase cytoplasmic calcium in cancer cells. • A G-protein/IP 3 pathway mediates the release of calcium from the ER. • The elevation of intracellular calcium modulates p53 activity. • p53 and other Ca 2+ -dependent pro-apoptotic pathways inhibit cancer cell growth.

  10. A diversity oriented synthesis of natural product inspired molecular libraries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chauhan, Jyoti; Luthra, Tania; Gundla, Rambabu; Ferraro, Antonio; Holzgrabe, Ulrike; Sen, Subhabrata

    2017-11-07

    Natural products are the source of innumerable pharmaceutical drug candidates and also form an important aspect of herbal remedies. They are also a source of various bioactive compounds. Herein we have leveraged the structural attributes of several natural products in building a library of architecturally diverse chiral molecules by harnessing R-tryptophan as the chiral auxiliary. It is converted to its corresponding methyl ester 1 which in turn provided a bevy of 1-aryl-tetrahydro-β-carbolines 2a-d, which were then converted to chiral compounds via a diversity oriented synthetic strategy (DOS). In general, intermolecular and intramolecular ring rearrangements facilitated the formation of the final compounds. Four different classes of molecules with distinct architectures were generated, adding up to nearly twenty-two individual molecules. Phenotypic screening of a representative section of the library revealed two molecules that selectively inhibit MCF7 breast cancer cells with IC 50 of ∼5 μg mL -1 potency.

  11. The Canadian Natural Health Products (NHP regulations: industry perceptions and compliance factors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Boon Heather

    2006-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The use of natural health products, such as vitamins, minerals, and herbs, by Canadians has been increasing with time. As a result of consumer concern about the quality of these products, the Canadian Department of Health created the Natural Health Products (NHP Regulations. The new Canadian regulations raise questions about whether and how the NHP industry will be able to comply and what impact they will have on market structure. The objectives of this study were to explore who in the interview sample is complying with Canada's new NHP Regulations (i.e., submitted product licensing applications on time; and explore the factors that affect regulatory compliance. Methods Twenty key informant interviews were conducted with employees of the NHP industry. The structured interviews focused on the level of satisfaction with the Regulations and perceptions of compliance and non-compliance. Interviews were tape recorded and then transcribed verbatim. Data were independently coded, using qualitative content analysis. Team meetings were held after every three to four interviews to discuss emerging themes. Results The major finding of this study is that most (17 out of 20 companies interviewed were beginning to comply with the new regulatory regime. The factors that contribute to likelihood of regulatory compliance were: perceptions and knowledge of the regulations and business size. Conclusion The Canadian case can be instructive for other countries seeking to implement regulatory standards for natural health products. An unintended consequence of the Canadian NHP regulations may be the exit of smaller firms, leading to industry consolidation.

  12. Preliminary report on the economics of gas production from natural gas hydrates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Walsh, M.; Wilson, S.; Patil, S.; Moridis, G.; Boswell, R.; Koh, C.; Sloan, D.

    2008-01-01

    Gas hydrates are solid crystalline compounds in which gas molecules reside inside cages that are formed by hydrogen-bonded water molecules in a crystal lattice. At particularly low temperatures and high pressures, a guest molecule will combine with water to form gas hydrates. Gas hydrates are found in two different settings in which the temperature and pressure conditions are suitable for their existence, notably in Arctic permafrost regions and below the seafloor. Because of the size of this possible future resource, if any of the gas in hydrates can be proven to be economically recoverable, then production from gas hydrates could become an important portion of the world's energy portfolio as demand for natural gas increases along with the technology to compress and distribute natural gas to distant markets. This paper presented a compilation of economic research that was conducted on the resource potential of gas hydrates. The paper reported a preliminary estimate of the price of natural gas that may lead to economically-viable production from North American Arctic region hydrates. The paper also discussed the implications of a recent study on the production of class 3 marine hydrate deposits from the Gulf of Mexico. The state of the art technologies and methods in hydrate reservoir modeling and hydrate reservoir production and petrophysical testing were also discussed. It was concluded that the somewhat optimistic results presented in this report should be interpreted with caution, however, the economically-viable gas production from hydrates was not an unreasonable scenario. 23 refs., 2 tabs., 10 figs

  13. Algorithm of formation of touristic product based on natural and artificial attractions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. E. Glagoleva

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available At present potential touristic resources are the objects of numerous investigations. For using the touristic resource in the most effective way it’s necessary to transform it into a touristic product. Various types of attraction play an important part in this process, the combination of natural and artificial attractions being the most productive. Considering touristic resources of Voronezh region we can distinguish Voronezh state biosphere reserve named after V.M. Peskov as the object possessing the combination of the two attractions. For formation of touristic product based on natural and artificial attractions the question of developing the algorithm of sequence of actions is of great importance. As an example of touristic product developed according to this algorithm there performed the creation of the tour “V gostyakh u skazki” whose central idea is the route “Zapovednaya skazka” with the demonstration of objects united by the concept of Russian fairy-tales. The territory of the reserve provides every facility for accommodation, recreation, having meals and entertaining of guests. As a target audience there were chosen parents with 3–14-year-old children and schoolchildren with their teachers. During the mentioned tour cognitive excursions are proposed. Demonstrated objects are the following: the beaver farm, Beaver museum, interactive house of Fire, Tolshevsky monastery. The algorithm used for the creation of the tour is based on the idea of developing the touristic product and presence or forming the objects of artificial attraction which in its turn combining with natural attraction becomes the effective tool for attracting tourists.

  14. Black hole production and graviton emission in models with large extra dimensions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koch, B.

    2007-11-21

    This thesis studies the possible production of microscopical black holes and the emission of graviational radiation under the assumption of large extra dimensions. We derive observables for the Large Hadron Collider and for ultra high energetic cosmic rays. (orig.)

  15. Black hole production and graviton emission in models with large extra dimensions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koch, B.

    2007-01-01

    This thesis studies the possible production of microscopical black holes and the emission of graviational radiation under the assumption of large extra dimensions. We derive observables for the Large Hadron Collider and for ultra high energetic cosmic rays. (orig.)

  16. Prospects for Strengthening the Security of Ukraine’s Energy Supply through Development of Unconventional Natural Gas Production

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyzym Mykola O.

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available The article presents an analysis of the American experience in development of natural shale gas in the US, identifies the causes that led to the shale revolution. Its current state is characterized by achieving the peak production simultaneously with shift in the emphasis from natural shale gas to shale oil. The potential technically extracted gas reserves as well as trends in terms of the growth of conventional natural gas reserves and the development of trade in liquefied natural gas are regarded as global preconditions for enlargement of the shale natural gas output. Natural shale gas can be considered as an alternative project only for liquefied natural gas while, compared to pipeline gas, its production is uncompetitive. The national preconditions for development of the industry of nonconventional natural gas production are determined on the basis of the current trends in Ukraine’s gas market. The main obstacles to the realization of this direction are reduction of the gas needs and liberalization of natural gas trade on the basis of European principles. Economic evaluation of the feasibility of natural shale gas production made it possible to forecast its production cost at the wellhead at different depths and estimate its investment attractiveness in different aggregate states. On the basis of the approbation of the presented methodological approach carried out for the Dnieper-Donets and Carpathian shale basins, it was concluded that the investment attractiveness of the first one is higher, given its reservoir properties and the presence of deposits of nonconventional hydrocarbons in different states of aggregation.

  17. Econometric analysis of fire suppression production functions for large wildland fires

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas P. Holmes; David E. Calkin

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, we use operational data collected for large wildland fires to estimate the parameters of economic production functions that relate the rate of fireline construction with the level of fire suppression inputs (handcrews, dozers, engines and helicopters). These parameter estimates are then used to evaluate whether the productivity of fire suppression inputs...

  18. Kainic Acid-Induced Excitotoxicity Experimental Model: Protective Merits of Natural Products and Plant Extracts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nur Shafika Mohd Sairazi

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Excitotoxicity is well recognized as a major pathological process of neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases involving the central nervous system (CNS. In the animal models of neurodegeneration, excitotoxicity is commonly induced experimentally by chemical convulsants, particularly kainic acid (KA. KA-induced excitotoxicity in rodent models has been shown to result in seizures, behavioral changes, oxidative stress, glial activation, inflammatory mediator production, endoplasmic reticulum stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and selective neurodegeneration in the brain upon KA administration. Recently, there is an emerging trend to search for natural sources to combat against excitotoxicity-associated neurodegenerative diseases. Natural products and plant extracts had attracted a considerable amount of attention because of their reported beneficial effects on the CNS, particularly their neuroprotective effect against excitotoxicity. They provide significant reduction and/or protection against the development and progression of acute and chronic neurodegeneration. This indicates that natural products and plants extracts may be useful in protecting against excitotoxicity-associated neurodegeneration. Thus, targeting of multiple pathways simultaneously may be the strategy to maximize the neuroprotection effect. This review summarizes the mechanisms involved in KA-induced excitotoxicity and attempts to collate the various researches related to the protective effect of natural products and plant extracts in the KA model of neurodegeneration.

  19. European energy security: The future of Norwegian natural gas production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soederbergh, Bengt; Jakobsson, Kristofer; Aleklett, Kjell

    2009-01-01

    The European Union (EU) is expected to meet its future growing demand for natural gas by increased imports. In 2006, Norway had a 21% share of EU gas imports. The Norwegian government has communicated that Norwegian gas production will increase by 25-40% from today's level of about 99 billion cubic meters (bcm)/year. This article shows that only a 20-25% growth of Norwegian gas production is possible due to production from currently existing recoverable reserves and contingent resources. A high and a low production forecast for Norwegian gas production is presented. Norwegian gas production exported by pipeline peaks between 2015 and 2016, with minimum peak production in 2015 at 118 bcm/year and maximum peak production at 127 bcm/year in 2016. By 2030 the pipeline export levels are 94-78 bcm. Total Norwegian gas production peaks between 2015 and 2020, with peak production at 124-135 bcm/year. By 2030 the production is 96-115 bcm/year. The results show that there is a limited potential for increased gas exports from Norway to the EU and that Norwegian gas production is declining by 2030 in all scenarios. Annual Norwegian pipeline gas exports to the EU, by 2030, may even be 20 bcm lower than today's level.

  20. The potential contribution of the natural products from Brazilian biodiversity to bioeconomy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MARILIA VALLI

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT The development of our society has been based on the use of biodiversity, especially for medicines and nutrition. Brazil is the nation with the largest biodiversity in the world accounting for more than 15% of all living species. The devastation of biodiversity in Brazil is critical and may not only cause the loss of species and genes that encode enzymes involved in the complex metabolism of organisms, but also the loss of a rich chemical diversity, which is a potential source for bioeconomy based on natural products and new synthetic derivatives. Bioeconomy focus on the use of bio-based products, instead of fossil-based ones and could address some of the important challenges faced by society. Considering the chemical and biological diversity of Brazil, this review highlights the Brazilian natural products that were successfully used to develop new products and the value of secondary metabolites from Brazilian biodiversity with potential application for new products and technologies. Additionally, we would like to address the importance of new technologies and scientific programs to support preservation policies, bioeconomy and strategies for the sustainable use of biodiversity.

  1. Synthesis of most polyene natural product motifs using just 12 building blocks and one coupling reaction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woerly, Eric M; Roy, Jahnabi; Burke, Martin D

    2014-06-01

    The inherent modularity of polypeptides, oligonucleotides and oligosaccharides has been harnessed to achieve generalized synthesis platforms. Importantly, like these other targets, most small-molecule natural products are biosynthesized via iterative coupling of bifunctional building blocks. This suggests that many small molecules also possess inherent modularity commensurate with systematic building block-based construction. Supporting this hypothesis, here we report that the polyene motifs found in >75% of all known polyene natural products can be synthesized using just 12 building blocks and one coupling reaction. Using the same general retrosynthetic algorithm and reaction conditions, this platform enabled both the synthesis of a wide range of polyene frameworks that covered all of this natural-product chemical space and the first total syntheses of the polyene natural products asnipyrone B, physarigin A and neurosporaxanthin b-D-glucopyranoside. Collectively, these results suggest the potential for a more generalized approach to making small molecules in the laboratory.

  2. Stereodivergent Synthesis of 1,3-Syn-Polyol Natural Product for Stereochemical-Based Structure Activity Relationship Studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Jiamin

    The 1,3-syn-diol functionality is very common in many natural products. An important class containing this moiety are the 1,3-syn-polyol/pyranone natural products, which have been isolated from a variety of plant sources, and possess biological activities like plant growth inhibition as well as antifeedant, antifungal, antibacterial, and antitumor properties. The feature of this class is a 6-membered lactone where the lactoe oxygen is part of a 1,3-syn-diol motif. To pursue the 1,3-syn-polyol/pyranone natural products, an iterative hydration of polyene strategy was utilized to provide the 1,3- syn-diol functionality, and asymmetric synthetic strategies were explored to form the requisite stereochemistry. The versatility of the asymmetric approach was demonstrated in the synthesis of eupatorium pyranone and also in an ongoing project aimed at the synthesis of SIA7248. As an outgrowth of our work on the total syntheses of 1,3-syn -polyol natural products inspired a stereo-divergent synthesis of 1,3-syn-polyol natural products and their analogs for stereochemical-based structure-activity relationship (SSAR) studies. To identify the key structural factors important for the anticancer activity of the 1,3-syn-polyol/pyranones, a stereo-divergent 16-member library of pyranone/polyol congeners was designed, synthesized and tested with variations in both stereochemistry and numbers of polyol repeat units. Having access to stereochemical isomers of the biologically active natural products allowed us to design experiments that help illustrate their mechanisms of action.

  3. Diversity of governance arrangements for indigenous natural products in communal areas of Namibia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ndeinoma, A.; Wiersum, K.F.

    2017-01-01

    In several countries, it has been observed that development of policies and regulations for non-timber forest products (NTFPs) rarely follows a systematic approach. This paper characterises the diversity of governance arrangements for accessing and marketing indigenous natural products in communal

  4. Investigation on natural radioactive nuclide contents of rock products in Xi'an construction materials market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou Chunlin; Han Feng; Shang Aiguo; Li Tiantuo; Guo Huiping; Yie Lichao; Li Guifang

    2001-01-01

    The author reports the investigation results on natural radioactive nuclide contents of rock products from Xi'an construction materials market. The products were classified according to the national standard. The results show that natural radioactive nuclide contents in sampled rock products are in normal radioactive background levels. The radio-activity ranges of 238 U, 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K are 2.7 - 181.8, 0.92 - 271.0, 0.63 - 148.0, 1.8 - 1245 Bq·kg -1 , respectively. According to the national standard (JC 518-93), the application of some rock products must be limited

  5. Natural Products for the Prevention and Treatment of Hangover and Alcohol Use Disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fang Wang

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Alcoholic beverages such as beer, wine and spirits are widely consumed around the world. However, alcohol and its metabolite acetaldehyde are toxic and harmful to human beings. Chronic alcohol use disorder or occasional binge drinking can cause a wide range of health problems, such as hangover, liver damage and cancer. Some natural products such as traditional herbs, fruits, and vegetables might be potential dietary supplements or medicinal products for the prevention and treatment of the problems caused by excessive alcohol consumption. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of effective natural products for the prevention and treatment of hangover and alcohol use disorder, and special emphasis is paid to the possible functional component(s and related mechanism(s of action.

  6. Natural Origin Lycopene and Its "Green" Downstream Processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papaioannou, Emmanouil H; Liakopoulou-Kyriakides, Maria; Karabelas, Anastasios J

    2016-01-01

    Lycopene is an abundant natural carotenoid pigment with several biological functions (well-known for its antioxidant properties) which is under intensive investigation in recent years. Lycopene chemistry, its natural distribution, bioavailability, biological significance, and toxicological effects are briefly outlined in the first part of this review. The second, major part, deals with various modern downstream processing techniques, which are assessed in order to identify promising approaches for the recovery of lycopene and of similar lipophilic compounds. Natural lycopene is synthesized in plants and by microorganisms, with main representatives of these two categories (for industrial production) tomato and its by-products and the fungus Blakeslea trispora, respectively. Currently, there is a great deal of effort to develop efficient downstream processing for large scale production of natural-origin lycopene, with trends strongly indicating the necessity for "green" and mild extraction conditions. In this review, emphasis is placed on final product safety and ecofriendly processing, which are expected to totally dominate in the field of natural-origin lycopene extraction and purification.

  7. Productive international collaboration in the large coil task

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haubenreich, P.N.; Komarek, P.; Shimamoto, S.; Vecsey, G.

    1987-01-01

    The Large Coil Task (LCT), initiated in 1977, has been very productive of useful technical information about superconducting toroidal field (TF) coil design and manufacture. Moreover, it has demonstrated close international collaboration in fusion technology development, including integration of large components built in four different countries. Each of six 40-t test coils was designed and produced by a major industrial team, with government laboratory guidance, to a common set of specifications. The six were assembled into a toroidal array for testing in the International Fusion Superconducting Magnet Test Facility (IFSMTF) at Oak Ridge. Testing was done by a team of representatives of EURATOM, Japan, Switzerland, and the United States, with each participant having full access to all data. Coils were thoroughly instrumented, enabling penetrating analysis of behavior

  8. Natural Products from the Lithistida: A Review of the Literature since 2000

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Priscilla L. Winder

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Lithistid sponges are known to produce a diverse array of compounds ranging from polyketides, cyclic and linear peptides, alkaloids, pigments, lipids, and sterols. A majority of these structurally complex compounds have very potent and interesting biological activities. It has been a decade since a thorough review has been published that summarizes the literature on the natural products reported from this amazing sponge order. This review provides an update on the current taxonomic classification of the Lithistida, describes structures and biological activities of 131 new natural products, and discusses highlights from the total syntheses of 16 compounds from marine sponges of the Order Lithistida providing a compilation of the literature since the last review published in 2002.

  9. Synthesis of most polyene natural product motifs using just twelve building blocks and one coupling reaction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woerly, Eric M.; Roy, Jahnabi; Burke, Martin D.

    2014-01-01

    The inherent modularity of polypeptides, oligonucleotides, and oligosaccharides has been harnessed to achieve generalized building block-based synthesis platforms. Importantly, like these other targets, most small molecule natural products are biosynthesized via iterative coupling of bifunctional building blocks. This suggests that many small molecules also possess inherent modularity commensurate with systematic building block-based construction. Supporting this hypothesis, here we report that the polyene motifs found in >75% of all known polyene natural products can be synthesized using just 12 building blocks and one coupling reaction. Using the same general retrosynthetic algorithm and reaction conditions, this platform enabled the synthesis of a wide range of polyene frameworks covering all of this natural product chemical space, and first total syntheses of the polyene natural products asnipyrone B, physarigin A, and neurosporaxanthin β-D-glucopyranoside. Collectively, these results suggest the potential for a more generalized approach for making small molecules in the laboratory. PMID:24848233

  10. High-resolution phenotypic profiling of natural products-induced effects on the single-cell level

    KAUST Repository

    Kremb, Stephan Georg

    2017-03-15

    Natural products (NPs) are highly evolved molecules making them a valuable resource for new therapeutics. Here we demonstrate the usefulness of broad-spectrum phenotypic profiling of NP-induced perturbations on single cells with imaging-based High-Content Screening to inform on physiology, mechanisms-of-actions, and multi-level toxicity. Our technology platform aims at broad applicability using a comprehensive marker panel with standardized settings streamlined towards an easy implementation in laboratories dedicated to natural products research.

  11. Biological and Energy Productivity of Natural Spruce Forests in the Ukrainian Carpathians

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. D. Vasilishyn

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available The modern practice of forestry production in Ukraine, which is in the process of implementing the conceptual changes in forest management and harmonization of its basic approaches to the basics of sustainable development, requires a significant expansion of the current regulatory and informational tools used to assess the ecological functions of forests. For this purpose, during the 2012–2014, as part of an international project GESAPU, models and tables of bioproductivity for forest tree species in Ukraine were completed. The article presents the results of modeling the dynamics of the conversion coefficients for the main components of phytomass of modal natural spruce forests of the Carpathian region of Ukraine based on information from 32 plots in the database of «Forest Phytomass of Ukraine». According to the state forest accounting of Ukraine as of January 1, 2011, the spruce forests in the Ukrainian Carpathians cover an area of 426.2 thousand ha, 45 % of which are spruce of natural origin. To evaluate the productivity of modal dynamics of pure and mixed spruce stands, the study developed models of the stock and overall productivity, derived by Bertalanffy growth function. On the basis of these models, normative reference tables of biological productivity of natural modal spruce forests of the Ukrainian Carpathians were developed. To successfully meet the challenges of evaluating the energy possibilities of forestry of Ukraine, the study used tables of energetic productivity of investigated stands. Built on the basis of the tables of bioproductivity, they reflect the dynamic processes of energy storage in the phytomass components and can be used in forest management to predict volumes of energetic woods.

  12. Development and implementation of an herbal and natural product elective in undergraduate medical education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karpa, Kelly

    2012-05-22

    Medical students have consistently expressed interest in learning about alternative healing modalities, especially herbal and natural products. To fill this void in medical education at our institution, a novel elective was developed and implemented for fourth year medical students. This herbal/natural product course uses guest lecturers, classroom presentations, and active learning mechanisms that include experiential rotations, case-based learning, and team-based learning to increase student knowledge of herbal/natural product safety and efficacy. Knowledge outcomes were evaluated via administration of a pre- and post-course test (paired student t-test). End-of-course evaluations (Likert-type questions and narrative responses) were used to assess student opinion of knowledge and skills imparted by the elective and overall course content (mean, standard deviation). Over three academic years, 23 students have enrolled in this elective. More than 60% of participants have been female and nearly half of the students (43%) have pursued residencies in primary care. Completion of the course significantly increased student knowledge of common herbal/natural product mechanisms, uses, adverse effects, and drug-interactions as determined by a pre- and post-course knowledge assessment (45%±10% versus 78%±6%; pvariety of activities to which they were exposed and the open classroom discussions that resulted. While students tended to view some alternative medical systems with skepticism, they still believed it was valuable to learn what these modalities encompass. Development and implementation of a herbal/natural product elective that engages undergraduate medical students through active learning mechanisms and critical analysis of the literature has proven effective in increasing knowledge outcomes and is deemed to be a valuable curricular addition by student participants. In the future, it will be of interest to explore mechanisms for expanding the course to reach a larger

  13. Next Generation Sequencing of Actinobacteria for the Discovery of Novel Natural Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomez-Escribano, Juan Pablo; Alt, Silke; Bibb, Mervyn J.

    2016-01-01

    Like many fields of the biosciences, actinomycete natural products research has been revolutionised by next-generation DNA sequencing (NGS). Hundreds of new genome sequences from actinobacteria are made public every year, many of them as a result of projects aimed at identifying new natural products and their biosynthetic pathways through genome mining. Advances in these technologies in the last five years have meant not only a reduction in the cost of whole genome sequencing, but also a substantial increase in the quality of the data, having moved from obtaining a draft genome sequence comprised of several hundred short contigs, sometimes of doubtful reliability, to the possibility of obtaining an almost complete and accurate chromosome sequence in a single contig, allowing a detailed study of gene clusters and the design of strategies for refactoring and full gene cluster synthesis. The impact that these technologies are having in the discovery and study of natural products from actinobacteria, including those from the marine environment, is only starting to be realised. In this review we provide a historical perspective of the field, analyse the strengths and limitations of the most relevant technologies, and share the insights acquired during our genome mining projects. PMID:27089350

  14. Integration in New Product Development: Case Study in a Large Brazilian

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Jugend

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Proficiency in management activities undertaken in product development processes is regarded as a key competitive advantage for companies, particularly for high-tech industrial firms, which benefit from the important competitiveness factor of launching products with a differentiated technological content. This paper’s objective was to identify, through case study, practices for integration between the roles of R & D with others involved in product development in a large Brazilian company of industrial automation. The results suggest some management practices to improve the integration in new products development, such as the use of employees from marketing with knowledge and experience previously gained from R & D activities and uses the heavyweight product manager to solve synchronization problems between product and technology development.

  15. Analysis of rationality of coal-based synthetic natural gas (SNG) production in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Hengchong; Yang, Siyu; Zhang, Jun; Kraslawski, Andrzej; Qian, Yu

    2014-01-01

    To alleviate the problem of the insufficient reserves of natural gas in China, coal-based synthetic natural gas (SNG) is considered to be a promising option as a source of clean energy, especially for urban use. However, recent study showed that SNG will not accomplish the task of simultaneous energy conservation and CO 2 reduction. In this paper, life cycle costing is made for SNG use in three main applications in residential sector: heating, household use, and public transport. Comparisons are conducted between SNG and coal, natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), diesel, and methanol. The results show that SNG is a competitive option only for household use. The use of SNG for heating boilers or city buses is not as cost-effective as expected. The biggest shortcoming of SNG is the large amount of pollutants generated in the production stage. At the moment, the use of SNG is promoted by the government. However, as shown in this paper, one can expect a transfer of pollution from the urban areas to the regions where SNG is produced. Therefore, it is suggested that well-balanced set of environmental damage-compensating policies should be introduced to compensate the environmental losses in the SNG-producing regions. - Highlights: • Life cycle costing was applied on the coal-based SNG. • The SNG was compared with conventional fuels of three residential applications. • The SNG is not so cost-effective except of household use. • Ecological compensation policy is useful to deal with the transfer of pollutions

  16. Properties of large p sub( t) jets in massive lepton-pair production at large q sub( t)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kinoshita, Kisei; Kinoshita, Yukiko.

    1979-01-01

    Production mechanism of massive lepton-pairs with large transverse momentum is discussed in connection with the properties of hadronic jets on the away side. Significant differences of CIM and QCD perturbation model will show up in the angular dependence and quantum number content of the away jets. If the QCD perturbation terms dominate, we can extract the gluon distributions inside hadrons and the gluon fragmentation function from the properties of the away jets triggering large q sub( t) lepton pairs. (author)

  17. Ray-optics cloaking devices for large objects in incoherent natural light

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Hongsheng; Zheng, Bin; Shen, Lian; Wang, Huaping; Zhang, Xianmin; Zheludev, Nikolay I.; Zhang, Baile

    2013-10-01

    A cloak that can hide living creatures from sight is a common feature of mythology but still remains unrealized as a practical device. To preserve the wave phase, the previous cloaking solution proposed by Pendry and colleagues required transformation of the electromagnetic space around the hidden object in such a way that the rays bending around the object inside the cloak region have to travel faster than those passing it by. This difficult phase preservation requirement is the main obstacle for building a broadband polarization-insensitive cloak for large objects. Here we propose a simplified version of Pendry’s cloak by abolishing the requirement for phase preservation, as it is irrelevant for observation using incoherent natural light with human eyes, which are phase and polarization insensitive. This allows for a cloak design on large scales using commonly available materials. We successfully demonstrate the cloaking of living creatures, a cat and a fish, from the eye.

  18. Mass coral spawning: A natural large-scale nutrien t addition experiment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Eyre, B.D.; Glud, Ronnie Nøhr; Patten, N.

    2008-01-01

    A mass coral spawning event on the Heron Island reef flat in 2005 provided a unique opportunity to examine the response of a coral reef ecosystem to a large episodic nutrient addition. A post-major spawning phytoplankton bloom resulted in only a small drawdown of dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP......), and dissolved organic phosphorus were used in the production of biomass, and mass balance calculations highlighted the importance of organic forms of N and P for benthic and pelagic production in tropical coral reef environments characterized by low inorganic N and P. The input of N and P via the deposition...... potential N limitation of benthic coral reef communities. For example, there was sufficient bioavailable P stored in the top 10 cm of the sediment column to sustain the prespawning rates of benthic production for over 200 d. Most of the change in benthic N cycling occurred via DON and N-2 pathways, driven...

  19. Quarkonia production in small and large systems measured by ATLAS

    CERN Document Server

    Lopez, Jorge; The ATLAS collaboration

    2018-01-01

    The experimentally observed dissociation and regeneration of bound quarkonium states in heavy-ion collisions provide a powerful tool to probe the dynamics of the hot, dense plasma. These measurements are sensitive to the effects of color screening, color recombination, or other, new suppression mechanisms. In the large-statistics Run 2 lead-lead and proton-lead collision data, these phenomena can be probed with unprecedented precision. Measurements of the ground and excited quarkonia states, as well as their separation into prompt and non-prompt components, provide further opportunities to study the dynamics of heavy parton energy loss in these large systems. In addition, quarkonium production rates, and their excited to ground states ratios, in small, asymmetric systems are an interesting probe of cold nuclear matter effects. In this talk, the latest ATLAS results on quarkonia production will be presented, including new, differential measurements of charmonium suppression and azimuthal modulation in lead-lea...

  20. Utilizing natural gas huff and puff to enhance production in heavy oil reservoir

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wenlong, G.; Shuhong, W.; Jian, Z.; Xialin, Z. [Society of Petroleum Engineers, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)]|[PetroChina Co. Ltd., Beijing (China); Jinzhong, L.; Xiao, M. [China Univ. of Petroleum, Beijing (China)

    2008-10-15

    The L Block in the north structural belt of China's Tuha Basin is a super deep heavy oil reservoir. The gas to oil ratio (GOR) is 12 m{sup 3}/m{sup 3} and the initial bubble point pressure is only 4 MPa. The low production can be attributed to high oil viscosity and low flowability. Although steam injection is the most widely method for heavy oil production in China, it is not suitable for the L Block because of its depth. This paper reviewed pilot tests in which the natural gas huff and puff process was used to enhance production in the L Block. Laboratory experiments that included both conventional and unconventional PVT were conducted to determine the physical property of heavy oil saturated by natural gas. The experiments revealed that the heavy oil can entrap the gas for more than several hours because of its high viscosity. A pseudo bubble point pressure exists much lower than the bubble point pressure in manmade foamy oils, which is relative to the depressurization rate. Elastic energy could be maintained in a wider pressure scope than natural depletion without gas injection. A special experimental apparatus that can stimulate the process of gas huff and puff in the reservoir was also introduced. The foamy oil could be seen during the huff and puff experiment. Most of the oil flowed to the producer in a pseudo single phase, which is among the most important mechanisms for enhancing production. A pilot test of a single well demonstrated that the oil production increased from 1 to 2 cubic metres per day to 5 to 6 cubic metres per day via the natural gas huff and puff process. The stable production period which was 5 to 10 days prior to huff and puff, was prolonged to 91 days in the first cycle and 245 days in the second cycle. 10 refs., 1 tab., 12 figs.

  1. UV radiation and natural fluorescence linked primary production in Antarctic waters

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    LokaBharathi, P.A.; KrishnaKumari, L.; Bhattathiri, P.M.A.; Chandramohan, D.

    Primary productivity and chlorophyll values have been measured using an underwater profiling radiometer for the first time in the waters around Indian Antarctic Station (70°46'S & 11°44'E) in the summer of 1994. The profiles include natural...

  2. Student and faculty perspective toward the role and value of integration of natural product information into the pharmacy curriculum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kostka-Rokosz, Maria D; Dvorkin-Camiel, Lana; Asabigi, Amina-Louise

    2011-03-01

    Consumer use of natural products is a mainstay in our society and continues to grow in prevalence. As pharmacists are viewed as drug experts and are easily accessible to patients, it is important for them to have basic knowledge of natural products. Students and faculty members participating in a natural product elective were surveyed upon completion of the course about their perspectives regarding incorporation of covered information into the required curriculum. The majority of students and faculty members agree with the necessity of natural product content in the pharmacy curriculum. Their ideas for ways of incorporating this information, however, differ. Healthcare students and faculty are beginning to recognize the need for incorporation of Natural Product information into the curriculum and healthcare programs in the country should begin to rise to the occasion.

  3. "TEEB begins now": a virtual moment in the production of natural capital.

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacDonald, Kenneth Iain; Corson, Catherine

    2012-01-01

    This article uses theories of virtualism to analyse the role of The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) project in the production of natural capital. Presented at the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the project seeks to redress the ‘economic invisibility of nature’ by quantifying the value of ecosystems and biodiversity. This endeavour to put an economic value on ecosystems makes nature legible by abstracting it from social and ecological contexts and making it subject to, and productive of, new market devices. In reducing the complexity of ecological dynamics to idealized categories TEEB is driven by economic ideas and idealism, and, in claiming to be a quantitative force for morality, is engaged in the production of practices designed to conform the ‘real’ to the virtual. By rendering a ‘valued’ nature legible for key audiences, TEEB has mobilized a critical mass of support including modellers, policy makers and bankers. We argue that TEEB's rhetoric of crisis and value aligns capitalism with a new kind of ecological modernization in which ‘the market’ and market devices serve as key mechanisms to conform the real and the virtual. Using the case of TEEB, and drawing on data collected at COP10, we illustrate the importance of international meetings as key points where idealized models of biodiversity protection emerge, circulate and are negotiated, and as sites where actors are aligned and articulated with these idealized models in ways that begin further processes of conforming the real with the virtual and the realization of ‘natural capital’.

  4. Leveraging ecological theory to guide natural product discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smanski, Michael J; Schlatter, Daniel C; Kinkel, Linda L

    2016-03-01

    Technological improvements have accelerated natural product (NP) discovery and engineering to the point that systematic genome mining for new molecules is on the horizon. NP biosynthetic potential is not equally distributed across organisms, environments, or microbial life histories, but instead is enriched in a number of prolific clades. Also, NPs are not equally abundant in nature; some are quite common and others markedly rare. Armed with this knowledge, random 'fishing expeditions' for new NPs are increasingly harder to justify. Understanding the ecological and evolutionary pressures that drive the non-uniform distribution of NP biosynthesis provides a rational framework for the targeted isolation of strains enriched in new NP potential. Additionally, ecological theory leads to testable hypotheses regarding the roles of NPs in shaping ecosystems. Here we review several recent strain prioritization practices and discuss the ecological and evolutionary underpinnings for each. Finally, we offer perspectives on leveraging microbial ecology and evolutionary biology for future NP discovery.

  5. Cyclic Sulfamidate Enabled Syntheses of Amino Acids, Peptides, Carbohydrates, and Natural Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    This article reviews the emergence of cyclic sulfamidates as versatile intermediatesfor the synthesis of unnatural amino acids, chalcogen peptides, modified sugars, drugs and drug candidates, and important natural products.

  6. Supercritical Fluid Chromatography--Theoretical Background and Applications on Natural Products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hartmann, Anja; Ganzera, Markus

    2015-11-01

    The use of supercritical fluid chromatography for natural product analysis as well as underlying theoretical mechanisms and instrumental requirements are summarized in this review. A short introduction focusing on the historical development of this interesting separation technique is followed by remarks on the current instrumental design, also describing possible detection modes and useable stationary phases. The overview on relevant applications is grouped based on their basic intention, may it be (semi)preparative or purely analytical. They indicate that supercritical fluid chromatography is still primarily considered for the analysis of nonpolar analytes like carotenoids, fatty acids, or terpenes. The low polarity of supercritical carbon dioxide, which is used with modifiers almost exclusively as a mobile phase today, combined with high efficiency and fast separations might explain the popularity of supercritical fluid chromatography for the analysis of these compounds. Yet, it has been shown that more polar natural products (e.g., xanthones, flavonoids, alkaloids) are separable too, with the same (if not superior) selectivity and reproducibility than established approaches like HPLC or GC. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  7. Production Of Hollow Toy Product From Radiation Pre vulcanized Natural Rubber Latex (RVNRL) By Using Casting And Moulding Technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohd Noorwadi Mat Lazim; Sofian Ibrahim; Muhammad Saiful Omar

    2013-01-01

    Hollow toy products are very synonym to the child from the age of months since it able to stimulating each of their sense such as sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell. Most of hollow toy products are made from natural rubber latex by using moulding and casting technique. The moulding and casting technique is a manufacturing process by pored liquid latex into a mould, which contain cavity of the desired shape. The mould made from plaster of Paris able to absorbs water from latex meanwhile the presence of calcium ions from plaster of Paris will tend to diffuse into latex thus promote formation of deposit on surface of cavity mould. To improve the quality and safety of hollow toy product made from latex, Radiation Pre vulcanized Natural Rubber Latex (RVNRL) has been identified to be used because it can fulfill the standard requirement for latex and also due to its special abilities such as lower modulus (soft latex products), nitrosamines free, low in nitrosatables, free from chemical accelerators induced allergies and better biodegradability. This paper identify the problem appears from the process of making hollow toy products from RVNRL by using moulding and casting technique. (author)

  8. Heronapyrrole D: A case of co-inspiration of natural product biosynthesis, total synthesis and biodiscovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jens Schmidt

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available The heronapyrroles A–C have first been isolated from a marine-derived Streptomyces sp. (CMB-0423 in 2010. Structurally, these natural products feature an unusual nitropyrrole system to which a partially oxidized farnesyl chain is attached. The varying degree of oxidation of the sesquiterpenyl subunit in heronapyrroles A–C provoked the hypothesis that there might exist other hitherto unidentified metabolites. On biosynthetic grounds a mono-tetrahydrofuran-diol named heronapyrrole D appeared a possible candidate. We here describe a short asymmetric synthesis of heronapyrrole D, its detection in cultivations of CMB-0423 and finally the evaluation of its antibacterial activity. We thus demonstrate that biosynthetic considerations and the joint effort of synthetic and natural product chemists can result in the identification of new members of a rare class of natural products.

  9. Survey and Classification of Large Woody Debris (LWD in Streams Using Generated Low-Cost Geomatic Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Damian Ortega-Terol

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Water authorities are required to have a survey of large woody debris (LWD in river channels and to manage this aspect of the stream habitat, making decisions on removing, positioning or leaving LWD in a natural state. The main objective of this study is to develop a new methodology that assists in decision making for sustainable management of river channels by using generated low-cost, geomatic products to detect LWD. The use of low-cost photogrammetry based on the use of economical, conventional, non-metric digital cameras mounted on low-cost aircrafts, together with the use of the latest computational vision techniques and open-source geomatic tools, provides useful geomatic products. The proposed methodology, compared with conventional photogrammetry or other traditional methods, led to a cost savings of up to 45%. This work presents several contributions for the area of free and open source software related to Geographic Information System (FOSSGIS applications to LWD management in streams, while developing a QGIS [1] plugin that characterizes the risk from the automatic calculation of geometrical parameters.

  10. An assessment of natural product discovery from marine (sensu strictu) and marine-derived fungi

    Science.gov (United States)

    Overy, David P.; Bayman, Paul; Kerr, Russell G.; Bills, Gerald F.

    2014-01-01

    The natural products community has been investigating secondary metabolites from marine fungi for several decades, but when one attempts to search for validated reports of new natural products from marine fungi, one encounters a literature saturated with reports from ‘marine-derived’ fungi. Of the 1000+ metabolites that have been characterized to date, only approximately 80 of these have been isolated from species from exclusively marine lineages. These metabolites are summarized here along with the lifestyle and habitats of their producing organisms. Furthermore, we address some of the reasons for the apparent disconnect between the stated objectives of discovering new chemistry from marine organisms and the apparent neglect of the truly exceptional obligate marine fungi. We also offer suggestions on how to reinvigorate enthusiasm for marine natural products discovery from fungi from exclusive marine lineages and highlight the need for critically assessing the role of apparently terrestrial fungi in the marine environment. PMID:25379338

  11. Improvement of Student Critical Thinking Skills with the Natural Product Mini Project Laboratory Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aliefman Hakim

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This research aims to investigate effect of learning using natural product mini project laboratory on students’ critical thinking skills. The research was conducted on sixth semester of 59 students of chemistry and chemistry education program from one of the state universities in West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia in 2012/2013. This research revealed class where the student learn using natural product mini project laboratory had more critical thinking skills than those using verification laboratory. The average n-gain of critical thinking skills for experiment class was 0.58 while for the control class was 0.37. The highest n-gain in the experiment class was 0.70 for “deciding on an action (selecting criteria to judge possible solutions indicators”, while the smallest n-gain was 0.47 for “the making and judging value of judgments (balancing, weighing, and deciding indicators. We concluded that the natural product mini project laboratory was better than verification laboratory in improving the students’ critical thinking skills.

  12. Recent applications of intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions to natural product synthesis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Juhl, M.; Tanner, David Ackland

    2009-01-01

    This tutorial review presents some recent examples of intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) reactions as key complexity-generating steps in the total synthesis of structurally intricate natural products. The opportunities afforded by transannular (TADA) versions of the IMDA reaction in complex molecu...... comprehensive, reviews....

  13. Evaluating natural resource amenities in a human life expectancy production function

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neelam C. Poudyal; Donald G. Hodges; J.M. Bowker; H.K. Cordell

    2009-01-01

    This study examined the effect of natural resource amenities on human life expectancy. Extending theexisting model of the life expectancy production function, and correcting for spatial dependence, weevaluated the determinants of life expectancy using county level data. Results indicate that after controlling

  14. Large urban projects and social actors : Forces supporting and opposing the production

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cuenya, B.E.

    2006-01-01

    This research studies, by means of the analysis of a paradigmatic large urban project in Buenos Aires, the production process of a large urban project furthered by the State and directed to create a new centrality. The analysis is focused on the forces supporting and opposition the project that were

  15. Screening of a virtual mirror-image library of natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noguchi, Taro; Oishi, Shinya; Honda, Kaori; Kondoh, Yasumitsu; Saito, Tamio; Ohno, Hiroaki; Osada, Hiroyuki; Fujii, Nobutaka

    2016-06-08

    We established a facile access to an unexplored mirror-image library of chiral natural product derivatives using d-protein technology. In this process, two chemical syntheses of mirror-image substances including a target protein and hit compound(s) allow the lead discovery from a virtual mirror-image library without the synthesis of numerous mirror-image compounds.

  16. Natural product antifoulants from the octocorals of Indian waters

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Raveendran, T.V.; LimnaMol, V.P.; Parameswaran, P.S.

    stream_size 22497 stream_content_type text/plain stream_name Int_Biodeterior_Biodegrad_65_265a.pdf.txt stream_source_info Int_Biodeterior_Biodegrad_65_265a.pdf.txt Content-Encoding UTF-8 Content-Type text/plain; charset=UTF-8... 1 Author version: International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation, vol.65(1); 2011; 265-268 Natural Product Antifoulants from the Octocorals of Indian waters T.V. Raveendran * , V.P. Limna Mol, P.S. Parameswaran National Institute...

  17. Potential consequences of climate change for primary production and fish production in large marine ecosystems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blanchard, Julia L; Jennings, Simon; Holmes, Robert; Harle, James; Merino, Gorka; Allen, J Icarus; Holt, Jason; Dulvy, Nicholas K; Barange, Manuel

    2012-11-05

    Existing methods to predict the effects of climate change on the biomass and production of marine communities are predicated on modelling the interactions and dynamics of individual species, a very challenging approach when interactions and distributions are changing and little is known about the ecological mechanisms driving the responses of many species. An informative parallel approach is to develop size-based methods. These capture the properties of food webs that describe energy flux and production at a particular size, independent of species' ecology. We couple a physical-biogeochemical model with a dynamic, size-based food web model to predict the future effects of climate change on fish biomass and production in 11 large regional shelf seas, with and without fishing effects. Changes in potential fish production are shown to most strongly mirror changes in phytoplankton production. We project declines of 30-60% in potential fish production across some important areas of tropical shelf and upwelling seas, most notably in the eastern Indo-Pacific, the northern Humboldt and the North Canary Current. Conversely, in some areas of the high latitude shelf seas, the production of pelagic predators was projected to increase by 28-89%.

  18. Development of natural gas ocean transportation chain by means of natural gas hydrate (NGH)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nogami, T.; Oya, N.; Ishida, H.; Matsumoto, H.

    2008-01-01

    Recent studies in Japan have suggested that natural gas hydrate (NGH) transportation of natural gas is more economical than liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation systems for small, medium and remote gas fields. Researchers in Japan have built a 600 kg per day NGH production and pelletizing plant and regasification facility. This paper discussed feasibility studies conducted in southeast Asia to determine the unit's commercialization potential with large natural gas-related businesses including shipping companies and electric power utilities. The total supply chain was compared with the corresponding liquefied natural gas (LNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) supply chains. The study also examined natural gas reserves, energy policies, the positioning of natural gas supplies, and future forecasts of natural gas demand. A conceptual design for an NGH supply chain in Indonesia was presented. Results of the study have demonstrated that the NGH chain is an appropriate and economically feasible transportation method for many areas in southeast Asia. 8 refs., 10 figs

  19. Productivity of Stream Definitions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Endrullis, Jörg; Grabmayer, Clemens; Hendriks, Dimitri; Isihara, Ariya; Klop, Jan

    2007-01-01

    We give an algorithm for deciding productivity of a large and natural class of recursive stream definitions. A stream definition is called ‘productive’ if it can be evaluated continuously in such a way that a uniquely determined stream is obtained as the limit. Whereas productivity is undecidable

  20. Investigation of natural gas plume dispersion using mobile observations and large eddy simulations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caulton, Dana R.; Li, Qi; Golston, Levi; Pan, Da; Bou-Zeid, Elie; Fitts, Jeff; Lane, Haley; Lu, Jessica; Zondlo, Mark A.

    2016-04-01

    Recent work suggests the distribution of methane emissions from fracking operations is skewed with a small percentage of emitters contributing a large proportion of the total emissions. These sites are known as 'super-emitters.' The Marcellus shale, the most productive natural gas shale field in the United States, has received less intense focus for well-level emissions and is here used as a test site for targeted analysis between current standard trace-gas advection practices and possible improvements via advanced modeling techniques. The Marcellus shale is topographically complex, making traditional techniques difficult to implement and evaluate. For many ground based mobile studies, the inverse Gaussian plume method (IGM) is used to produce emission rates. This method is best applied to well-mixed plumes from strong point sources and may not currently be well-suited for use with disperse weak sources, short-time frame measurements or data collected in complex terrain. To assess the quality of IGM results and to improve source-strength estimations, a robust study that combines observational data with a hierarchy of models of increasing complexity will be presented. The field test sites were sampled with multiple passes using a mobile lab as well as a stationary tower. This mobile lab includes a Garmin GPS unit, Vaisala weather station (WTX520), LICOR 7700 CH4 open path sensor and LICOR 7500 CO2/H2O open path sensor. The sampling tower was constructed consisting of a Metek uSonic-3 Class A sonic anemometer, and an additional LICOR 7700 and 7500. Data were recorded for at least one hour at these sites. The modeling will focus on large eddy simulations (LES) of the wind and CH4 concentration fields for these test sites. The LES model used 2 m horizontal and 1 m vertical resolution and was integrated in time for 45 min for various test sites under stable, neutral and unstable conditions. It is here considered as the reference to which various IGM approaches can be

  1. Enhanced production of natural yellow pigments from Monascus purpureus by liquid culture: The relationship between fermentation conditions and mycelial morphology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lv, Jun; Zhang, Bo-Bo; Liu, Xiao-Dong; Zhang, Chan; Chen, Lei; Xu, Gan-Rong; Cheung, Peter Chi Keung

    2017-10-01

    Natural yellow pigments produced by submerged fermentation of Monascus purpureus have potential economic value and application in the food industry. In the present study, the relationships among fermentation conditions (in terms of pH and shaking/agitation speed), mycelial morphology and the production of Monascus yellow pigments were investigated in both shake-flask and scale-up bioreactor experiments. In the shake-flask fermentation, the highest yield of the Monascus yellow pigments was obtained at pH 5.0 and a shaking speed of 180 rpm. Microscopic images revealed that these results were associated with the formation of freely dispersed small mycelial pellets with shorter, thicker and multi-branched hyphae. Further investigation indicated that the hyphal diameter was highly correlated with the biosynthesis of the Monascus yellow pigments. In a scaled-up fermentation experiment, the yield of yellow pigments (401 U) was obtained in a 200-L bioreactor, which is the highest yield to the best of our knowledge. The present findings can advance our knowledge on the conditions used for enhancing the production of Monascus yellow pigments in submerged fermentation and facilitate large-scale production of these natural pigments. Copyright © 2017 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Natural Modulators of Amyloid-Beta Precursor Protein Processing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Can; Tanzi, Rudolph E.

    2013-01-01

    Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease and the primary cause of dementia, with no cure currently available. The pathogenesis of AD is believed to be primarily driven by Aβ, the principal component of senile plaques. Aβ is an ~4 kDa peptide generated from the amyloid-β precursor protein (APP) through proteolytic secretases. Natural products, particularly those utilized in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), have a long history alleviating common clinical disorders, including dementia. However, the cell/molecular pathways mediated by these natural products are largely unknown until recently when the underlying molecular mechanisms of the disorders begin to be elucidated. Here, the mechanisms with which natural products modulate the pathogenesis of AD are discussed, in particular, by focusing on their roles in the processing of APP. PMID:22998566

  3. US production of natural gas from tight reservoirs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    For the purposes of this report, tight gas reservoirs are defined as those that meet the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) definition of tight. They are generally characterized by an average reservoir rock permeability to gas of 0.1 millidarcy or less and, absent artificial stimulation of production, by production rates that do not exceed 5 barrels of oil per day and certain specified daily volumes of gas which increase with the depth of the reservoir. All of the statistics presented in this report pertain to wells that have been classified, from 1978 through 1991, as tight according to the FERC; i.e., they are ''legally tight'' reservoirs. Additional production from ''geologically tight'' reservoirs that have not been classified tight according to the FERC rules has been excluded. This category includes all producing wells drilled into legally designated tight gas reservoirs prior to 1978 and all producing wells drilled into physically tight gas reservoirs that have not been designated legally tight. Therefore, all gas production referenced herein is eligible for the Section 29 tax credit. Although the qualification period for the credit expired at the end of 1992, wells that were spudded (began to be drilled) between 1978 and May 1988, and from November 5, 1990, through year end 1992, are eligible for the tax credit for a subsequent period of 10 years. This report updates the EIA's tight gas production information through 1991 and considers further the history and effect on tight gas production of the Federal Government's regulatory and tax policy actions. It also provides some high points of the geologic background needed to understand the nature and location of low-permeability reservoirs

  4. Impact of rapid condensations of large vapor spaces on natural circulation in integral systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Z.; Almenas, K.; DiMarzo, M.; Hsu, Y.Y.; Unal, C.

    1992-01-01

    In this study we demonstrated that the Interruption-Resumption flow mode (IRM) observed in the University of Maryland 2x4 loop is a unique and effective natural circulation cooling mode. The IRM flow mode consists of a series of large flow cycles which are initiated from a quiescent steady-state flow condition by periodic rapid condensation of large vapor spaces. The significance of this mass/energy transport mechanism is that it cannot be evaluated using the techniques developed for the commonly known density-driven natural circulation cooling mode. We also demonstrated that the rapid condensation mechanism essentially acts as a strong amplifier which will augment small perturbations and will activate several flow phenomena. The interplay of the phenomena involves a degree of randomness. This poses two important implications. First, the study of an isolated flow phenomenon is not sufficient for the understanding of the system-wide IRM fluid movement. Second, the duplication of reactor transients which involves randomness can be achieved only within certain bounds. The modeling of such transients by deterministic computer codes requires recognition of this physical reality. (orig.)

  5. Hydrogen Production by Steam Reforming of Natural Gas Over Vanadium-Nickel-Alumina Catalysts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoo, Jaekyeong; Park, Seungwon; Song, Ji Hwan; Song, In Kyu

    2018-09-01

    A series of vanadium-nickel-alumina (xVNA) catalysts were prepared by a single-step sol-gel method with a variation of vanadium content (x, wt%) for use in the hydrogen production by steam reforming of natural gas. The effect of vanadium content on the physicochemical properties and catalytic activities of xVNA catalysts in the steam reforming of natural gas was investigated. It was found that natural gas conversion and hydrogen yield showed volcano-shaped trends with respect to vanadium content. It was also revealed that natural gas conversion and hydrogen yield increased with decreasing nickel crystallite size.

  6. Production of candidate natural matrix reference materials for micro-analytical techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeisler, R.; Fajgelj, A.; Zeiller, E.

    2002-01-01

    Homogeneity is considered to be the most vital prerequisite for a certified reference material (CRM); more stringent requirements exist for the analysis of small subsamples. Many of the natural matrix CRMs are prepared from bulk samples by grinding and milling them to a certain particle size, which is expected to provide a more homogenous material; however recommended sample sizes for biological and environmental reference materials are found to be more than 100 mg. Since the milling of materials is costly and has some drawbacks, natural materials that already occur as small particles such as air particulate matter, certain sediments, and cellular biological materials may form the basis of the required reference materials. The nature of these materials, i.e. naturally occurring particles, may provide ideal model reference material. We describe here the production of the materials and preliminary tests, the evaluation for the micro-analytical techniques

  7. Exergy and thermoeconomic evaluation of hydrogen production from natural gas; Avaliacao exergetica e termo-economica da producao de hidrogenio a partir do gas natural

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cruz, Flavio Eduardo da [PROMON Engenharia Ltda., Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Oliveira Junior, Silvio de [Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP), SP (Brazil). Escola Politecnica

    2008-07-01

    Some specific processes are required to obtain pure hydrogen and the most usual one is the natural gas reforming, where natural gas reacts with superheated steam producing H{sub 2}, CO, CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2}O. This paper presents exergy and thermoeconomic analysis of a complete hydrogen production unit of a petroleum refinery. The hydrogen production unit analysed in this paper has to supply 550,000 Nm{sup 3} of hydrogen per day to purify diesel oil. Based on a synthesis plant of the hydrogen production unit, the exergy efficiency of each component and of the overall plant are calculated. The hydrogen production cost is determined by means of a thermoeconomic analysis in which the equality cost partition method is employed, including capital and operational costs, in order to determine the production cost of hydrogen and other products of the plant.(author)

  8. Identifying demand effects in a large network of product categories

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gelper, S.E.C.; Wilms, I.; Croux, C.

    2016-01-01

    Planning marketing mix strategies requires retailers to understand within- as well as cross-category demand effects. Most retailers carry products in a large variety of categories, leading to a high number of such demand effects to be estimated. At the same time, we do not expect cross-category

  9. Phototoxic and modulatory effects of natural products from the skin of Rhinella jimi (Stevaux, 2002

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samuel V. Brito

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available The skin of amphibians possesses a large diversity of biologically active compounds that are associated with the natural defenses of these animals against pathogens. Five different extracts and fractions were obtained from the skin of Rhinella jimi: methanol extract (ME, methanol fractions (MF, chloroform extract of methanol extract (CF, aqueous alkaloid fraction (AAF and aqueous non-alkaloid fraction (ANAF. All fractions were evaluated with respect to their antibiotic modifying activity in standard bacterial strains and multiresistant clinical isolates. Antagonism was detected with kanamycin and gentamicin when combined with substances obtained from the skin of R. jimi. Phototoxic activity was observed in the methanol and chlorophorm fractions, as well as the aqueous non-alkaloid fraction. The antagonistic action was apparently associated with the protection afforded by the bacterial populations that inhabit the skin of this amphibian, preventing colonization by pathogenic fungi. The phototoxic activity demonstrated by natural products from the skin of R. jimi showed an interruption of the bacterial growth after UV exposure. This could indicate an antibacterial effect activated by the UV light, opening a path for carrying the attack by pathogenic fungi, causing the disease related with the amphibian decline.

  10. CamMedNP: building the Cameroonian 3D structural natural products database for virtual screening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ntie-Kang, Fidele; Mbah, James A; Mbaze, Luc Meva'a; Lifongo, Lydia L; Scharfe, Michael; Hanna, Joelle Ngo; Cho-Ngwa, Fidelis; Onguéné, Pascal Amoa; Owono Owono, Luc C; Megnassan, Eugene; Sippl, Wolfgang; Efange, Simon M N

    2013-04-16

    Computer-aided drug design (CADD) often involves virtual screening (VS) of large compound datasets and the availability of such is vital for drug discovery protocols. We present CamMedNP - a new database beginning with more than 2,500 compounds of natural origin, along with some of their derivatives which were obtained through hemisynthesis. These are pure compounds which have been previously isolated and characterized using modern spectroscopic methods and published by several research teams spread across Cameroon. In the present study, 224 distinct medicinal plant species belonging to 55 plant families from the Cameroonian flora have been considered. About 80 % of these have been previously published and/or referenced in internationally recognized journals. For each compound, the optimized 3D structure, drug-like properties, plant source, collection site and currently known biological activities are given, as well as literature references. We have evaluated the "drug-likeness" of this database using Lipinski's "Rule of Five". A diversity analysis has been carried out in comparison with the ChemBridge diverse database. CamMedNP could be highly useful for database screening and natural product lead generation programs.

  11. Phototoxic and modulatory effects of natural products from the skin of Rhinella jimi (Stevaux, 2002

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samuel V. Brito

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available The skin of amphibians possesses a large diversity of biologically active compounds that are associated with the natural defenses of these animals against pathogens. Five different extracts and fractions were obtained from the skin of Rhinella jimi: methanol extract (ME, methanol fractions (MF, chloroform extract of methanol extract (CF, aqueous alkaloid fraction (AAF and aqueous non-alkaloid fraction (ANAF. All fractions were evaluated with respect to their antibiotic modifying activity in standard bacterial strains and multiresistant clinical isolates. Antagonism was detected with kanamycin and gentamicin when combined with substances obtained from the skin of R. jimi. Phototoxic activity was observed in the methanol and chlorophorm fractions, as well as the aqueous non-alkaloid fraction. The antagonistic action was apparently associated with the protection afforded by the bacterial populations that inhabit the skin of this amphibian, preventing colonization by pathogenic fungi. The phototoxic activity demonstrated by natural products from the skin of R. jimi showed an interruption of the bacterial growth after UV exposure. This could indicate an antibacterial effect activated by the UV light, opening a path for carrying the attack by pathogenic fungi, causing the disease related with the amphibian decline.

  12. LARGE-SCALE HYDROGEN PRODUCTION FROM NUCLEAR ENERGY USING HIGH TEMPERATURE ELECTROLYSIS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Brien, James E.

    2010-01-01

    Hydrogen can be produced from water splitting with relatively high efficiency using high-temperature electrolysis. This technology makes use of solid-oxide cells, running in the electrolysis mode to produce hydrogen from steam, while consuming electricity and high-temperature process heat. When coupled to an advanced high temperature nuclear reactor, the overall thermal-to-hydrogen efficiency for high-temperature electrolysis can be as high as 50%, which is about double the overall efficiency of conventional low-temperature electrolysis. Current large-scale hydrogen production is based almost exclusively on steam reforming of methane, a method that consumes a precious fossil fuel while emitting carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Demand for hydrogen is increasing rapidly for refining of increasingly low-grade petroleum resources, such as the Athabasca oil sands and for ammonia-based fertilizer production. Large quantities of hydrogen are also required for carbon-efficient conversion of biomass to liquid fuels. With supplemental nuclear hydrogen, almost all of the carbon in the biomass can be converted to liquid fuels in a nearly carbon-neutral fashion. Ultimately, hydrogen may be employed as a direct transportation fuel in a 'hydrogen economy.' The large quantity of hydrogen that would be required for this concept should be produced without consuming fossil fuels or emitting greenhouse gases. An overview of the high-temperature electrolysis technology will be presented, including basic theory, modeling, and experimental activities. Modeling activities include both computational fluid dynamics and large-scale systems analysis. We have also demonstrated high-temperature electrolysis in our laboratory at the 15 kW scale, achieving a hydrogen production rate in excess of 5500 L/hr.

  13. Wind and Photovoltaic Large-Scale Regional Models for hourly production evaluation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Marinelli, Mattia; Maule, Petr; Hahmann, Andrea N.

    2015-01-01

    This work presents two large-scale regional models used for the evaluation of normalized power output from wind turbines and photovoltaic power plants on a European regional scale. The models give an estimate of renewable production on a regional scale with 1 h resolution, starting from a mesosca...... of the transmission system, especially regarding the cross-border power flows. The tuning of these regional models is done using historical meteorological data acquired on a per-country basis and using publicly available data of installed capacity.......This work presents two large-scale regional models used for the evaluation of normalized power output from wind turbines and photovoltaic power plants on a European regional scale. The models give an estimate of renewable production on a regional scale with 1 h resolution, starting from a mesoscale...

  14. Natural Product-Derived Treatments for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Safety, Efficacy, and Therapeutic Potential of Combination Therapy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahn, James; Ahn, Hyung Seok; Cheong, Jae Hoon; dela Peña, Ike

    2016-01-01

    Typical treatment plans for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) utilize nonpharmacological (behavioral/psychosocial) and/or pharmacological interventions. Limited accessibility to behavioral therapies and concerns over adverse effects of pharmacological treatments prompted research for alternative ADHD therapies such as natural product-derived treatments and nutritional supplements. In this study, we reviewed the herbal preparations and nutritional supplements evaluated in clinical studies as potential ADHD treatments and discussed their performance with regard to safety and efficacy in clinical trials. We also discussed some evidence suggesting that adjunct treatment of these agents (with another botanical agent or pharmacological ADHD treatments) may be a promising approach to treat ADHD. The analysis indicated mixed findings with regard to efficacy of natural product-derived ADHD interventions. Nevertheless, these treatments were considered as a “safer” approach than conventional ADHD medications. More comprehensive and appropriately controlled clinical studies are required to fully ascertain efficacy and safety of natural product-derived ADHD treatments. Studies that replicate encouraging findings on the efficacy of combining botanical agents and nutritional supplements with other natural product-derived therapies and widely used ADHD medications are also warranted. In conclusion, the risk-benefit balance of natural product-derived ADHD treatments should be carefully monitored when used as standalone treatment or when combined with other conventional ADHD treatments. PMID:26966583

  15. Short-term outlook for natural gas and natural gas liquids to 2006 : an energy market assessment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2005-10-01

    In recent years, natural gas markets in North America have seen a close balance between supply and demand, resulting in high and volatile natural gas prices. The National Energy Board monitors the supply of all energy commodities in Canada along with the demand for Canadian energy commodities in domestic and export markets. This is the NEB's first energy market assessment report that presents a combined short-term analysis and outlook of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs), such as ethane, propane and butane. It provides comprehensive information on the complexity of natural gas and NGL industries and highlights recent developments and topical issues. As a major producer of natural gas, western Canada has a correspondingly large natural gas processing capability that was developed specifically to extract NGLs. A world-scale petrochemical industry was developed in Alberta to convert NGLs into even higher valued products such as ethylene. Since NGLs in Canada are sourced mostly from natural gas, changes to the supply and demand for natural gas would impact NGL supply. This report addressed the issue of commodity prices with reference to crude oil, natural gas and NGL prices. Natural gas supply in terms of North American production and natural gas from coal (NGC) was also reviewed along with natural gas demand for residential and commercial heating, industrial use, power generation, and enhanced recovery for oil sand operations. There are about 692 gas plants in Canada that process raw natural gas into marketable gas and NGLs. Most are small field plants that process raw natural gas production to remove impurities such as sulphur, water and other contaminants. This report also discussed this infrastructure, with reference to field plants, straddle plants, pipelines, distribution and storage, including underground NGL storage. 3 tabs., 27 figs., 5 appendices

  16. Expanding the range of 'druggable' targets with natural product-based libraries: an academic perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bauer, Renato A; Wurst, Jacqueline M; Tan, Derek S

    2010-06-01

    Existing drugs address a relatively narrow range of biological targets. As a result, libraries of drug-like molecules have proven ineffective against a variety of challenging targets, such as protein-protein interactions, nucleic acid complexes, and antibacterial modalities. In contrast, natural products are known to be effective at modulating such targets, and new libraries are being developed based on underrepresented scaffolds and regions of chemical space associated with natural products. This has led to several recent successes in identifying new chemical probes that address these challenging targets. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. On what is made : instruments, products and natural kinds of artefacts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Houkes, W.N.; Vermaas, P.E.; Franssen, M.; Kroes, P.; Reydon, T.A.C.; Vermaas, P.E.

    2014-01-01

    Debates in the metaphysics of artefacts typically start from the observation that technical artefacts result from intentional production and then focus immediately on the issue whether this ‘mind-dependence’ undermines claims that artefacts exist or come in natural or real kinds. We aim to add

  18. Green extraction of natural products: concept and principles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chemat, Farid; Vian, Maryline Abert; Cravotto, Giancarlo

    2012-01-01

    The design of green and sustainable extraction methods of natural products is currently a hot research topic in the multidisciplinary area of applied chemistry, biology and technology. Herein we aimed to introduce the six principles of green-extraction, describing a multifaceted strategy to apply this concept at research and industrial level. The mainstay of this working protocol are new and innovative technologies, process intensification, agro-solvents and energy saving. The concept, principles and examples of green extraction here discussed, offer an updated glimpse of the huge technological effort that is being made and the diverse applications that are being developed.

  19. Green Extraction of Natural Products: Concept and Principles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giancarlo Cravotto

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The design of green and sustainable extraction methods of natural products is currently a hot research topic in the multidisciplinary area of applied chemistry, biology and technology. Herein we aimed to introduce the six principles of green-extraction, describing a multifaceted strategy to apply this concept at research and industrial level. The mainstay of this working protocol are new and innovative technologies, process intensification, agro-solvents and energy saving. The concept, principles and examples of green extraction here discussed, offer an updated glimpse of the huge technological effort that is being made and the diverse applications that are being developed.

  20. Plants and other natural products used in the management of oral infections and improvement of oral health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chinsembu, Kazhila C

    2016-02-01

    Challenges of resistance to synthetic antimicrobials have opened new vistas in the search for natural products. This article rigorously reviews plants and other natural products used in oral health: Punica granatum L. (pomegranate), Matricaria recutita L. (chamomile), Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze (green tea), chewing sticks made from Diospyros mespiliformis Hochst. ex A.D.C., Diospyros lycioides Desf., and Salvadora persica L. (miswak), honey and propolis from the manuka tree (Leptospermum scoparium J.R. Forst. & G. Forst.), rhein from Rheum rhabarbarum L. (rhubarb), dried fruits of Vitis vinifera L. (raisins), essential oils, probiotics and mushrooms. Further, the review highlights plants from Africa, Asia, Brazil, Mexico, Europe, and the Middle East. Some of the plants' antimicrobial properties and chemical principles have been elucidated. While the use of natural products for oral health is prominent in resource-poor settings, antimicrobial testing is mainly conducted in the following countries (in decreasing order of magnitude): India, South Africa, Brazil, Japan, France, Egypt, Iran, Mexico, Kenya, Switzerland, Nigeria, Australia, Uganda, and the United Kingdom. While the review exposes a dire gap for more studies on clinical efficacy and toxicity, the following emerging trend was noted: basic research on plants for oral health is mainly done in Brazil, Europe and Australia. Brazil, China, India and New Zealand generally conduct value addition of natural products for fortification of toothpastes. African countries focus on bioprospecting and primary production of raw plants and other natural products with antimicrobial efficacies. The Middle East and Egypt predominantly research on plants used as chewing sticks. More research and funding are needed in the field of natural products for oral health, especially in Africa where oral diseases are fuelled by human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B

  1. Thermoecological cost of electricity production in the natural gas pressure reduction process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kostowski, Wojciech J.; Usón, Sergio; Stanek, Wojciech; Bargiel, Paweł

    2014-01-01

    The paper presents a novel concept for thermodynamic evaluation of a selected energy system. The presented method has been developed by integration of the Thermo-Economic Analysis with the theory of Thermo-Ecological Cost. It can be applied as a thermodynamic evaluation method of rational resources management within any production system. It takes into account both the interrelation of irreversibility within the analyzed system and its influence on the global effects related to the depletion of non-renewable natural resources. The proposed method has been applied to evaluate the production of electricity in the process of natural gas transmission at pressure reduction stations. The expansion system is based on an existing plant integrated with a CHP module, characterized by a performance ratio of 89.5% and exergy efficiency of 49.2%. Within the paper, this expansion plant is supplied with natural gas transported from a natural deposit through a case-study transmission system with 4 compressor stations. The TEC (thermoecological cost) method was applied in conjunction with thermoeconomic analysis. As a result, TEC of the electricity generated in the expanders was determined at 2.42 kJ/kJ, TEC of electricity from the CHP module is 1.77, and the TEC of medium-pressure natural gas distributed to consumers is 1.022. - Highlights: • The chain of NG transmission with an exergy recovery expansion plant was analyzed. • New methodology coupling the TEC (thermoecological cost) and thermoeconomics. • Decomposition of the TEC formation process. • Case-study transmission system yields TEC of natural gas = 1.0222. • Expansion plant yields TEC of electricity 2.42 (expanders) and 1.77 (CHP module)

  2. Influence of wind direction and urban surroundings on natural ventilation of a large football stadium

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hooff, van T.A.J.; Blocken, B.J.E.

    2011-01-01

    In this paper, CFD simulations of the natural ventilation of a large semi-enclosed stadium in the Netherlands during summer conditions are described. The simulations are performed to assess the air exchange rate for eight wind directions. The CFD model consists of both the complex stadium geometry

  3. Laser-induced production of large carbon-based toroids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lyn, M. Elizabeth; He Jibao; Koplitz, Brent

    2005-01-01

    We report on the production of large carbon-based toroids (CBTs) from fullerenes. The process involves two-step laser irradiation of a mixed fullerene target (76% C 60 , 22% C 70 ). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) clearly identifies toroidal-shaped structures as well as Q-shaped constructs. The typical diameters of the CBTs are ∼0.2-0.3 μm with tubular diameters of ∼50-100 nm, but toroids as wide as 0.5 μm are observed making them nanostructures on the verge of being microstructures

  4. The use of production management techniques in the construction of large scale physics detectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bazan, A.; Chevenier, G.; Estrella, F.

    1999-01-01

    The construction process of detectors for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) experiments is large scale, heavily constrained by resource availability and evolves with time. As a consequence, changes in detector component design need to be tracked and quickly reflected in the construction process. With similar problems in industry engineers employ so-called Product Data Management (PDM) systems to control access to documented versions of designs and managers employ so-called Product Data Management (PDM) systems to control access to documented versions of designs and managers employ so-called Workflow Management Software (WfMS) to coordinate production work processes. However, PDM and WfMS software are not generally integrated in industry. The scale of LHC experiments, like CMS, demands that industrial production techniques be applied in detector construction. This paper outlines the major functions and applications of the CRISTAL system (Cooperating Repositories and an Information System for Tracking Assembly Lifecycles) in use in CMS which successfully integrates PDM and WfMS techniques in managing large scale physics detector construction. This is the first time industrial production techniques have been deployed to this extent in detector construction

  5. The 4th Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Natural Products and Drug Discovery: Back to Mother Nature (BioNat-IV, Cairo/Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, March 3–7, 2015

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ashraf A. Khalil

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The 4th Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Natural Products and Drug Discovery: Back to Mother Nature (BioNat-IV was recently (from March 3rd through 7th, 2015 convened in Cairo and Sharm El-Sheikh along the Red Sea coast of Egypt. Overall, the meeting provided a platform for scientists from different nations to discuss emerging ideas that focused on cell signaling in cancer; the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases; the identification and use of natural products as well as novel drug delivery approaches for the treatment of cancer, arthritis, diabetes, tuberculosis, fungal infection, etc.; and untapped or unconventional sources for natural products. This fourth in a row conference tried to bridge the gap not only between basic research and clinical applications, but also between developed nations and developing countries. With the continuing success of these past meetings, the fifth Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Natural Products and Drug Discovery (BioNat-V is slated to be in February 2017.

  6. Large transverse momentum hadronic processes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Darriulat, P.

    1977-01-01

    The possible relations between deep inelastic leptoproduction and large transverse momentum (psub(t)) processes in hadronic collisions are usually considered in the framework of the quark-parton picture. Experiments observing the structure of the final state in proton-proton collisions producing at least one large transverse momentum particle have led to the following conclusions: a large fraction of produced particles are uneffected by the large psub(t) process. The other products are correlated to the large psub(t) particle. Depending upon the sign of scalar product they can be separated into two groups of ''towards-movers'' and ''away-movers''. The experimental evidence are reviewed favouring such a picture and the properties are discussed of each of three groups (underlying normal event, towards-movers and away-movers). Some phenomenological interpretations are presented. The exact nature of away- and towards-movers must be further investigated. Their apparent jet structure has to be confirmed. Angular correlations between leading away and towards movers are very informative. Quantum number flow, both within the set of away and towards-movers, and between it and the underlying normal event, are predicted to behave very differently in different models

  7. Role of Antioxidants and Natural Products in Inflammation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Palanisamy Arulselvan

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Inflammation is a comprehensive array of physiological response to a foreign organism, including human pathogens, dust particles, and viruses. Inflammations are mainly divided into acute and chronic inflammation depending on various inflammatory processes and cellular mechanisms. Recent investigations have clarified that inflammation is a major factor for the progression of various chronic diseases/disorders, including diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, eye disorders, arthritis, obesity, autoimmune diseases, and inflammatory bowel disease. Free radical productions from different biological and environmental sources are due to an imbalance of natural antioxidants which further leads to various inflammatory associated diseases. In this review article, we have outlined the inflammatory process and its cellular mechanisms involved in the progression of various chronic modern human diseases. In addition, we have discussed the role of free radicals-induced tissue damage, antioxidant defence, and molecular mechanisms in chronic inflammatory diseases/disorders. The systematic knowledge regarding the role of inflammation and its associated adverse effects can provide a clear understanding in the development of innovative therapeutic targets from natural sources that are intended for suppression of various chronic inflammations associated diseases.

  8. Production of natural gas from methane hydrate by a constant downhole pressure well

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmadi, Goodarz; Ji, Chuang; Smith, Duane H.

    2007-01-01

    Natural gas production from the dissociation of methane hydrate in a confined reservoir by a depressurizing downhole well was studied. The case that the well pressure was kept constant was treated, and two different linearization schemes in an axisymmetric configuration were used in the analysis. For different fixed well pressures and reservoir temperatures, approximate self similar solutions were obtained. Distributions of temperature, pressure and gas velocity field across the reservoir were evaluated. The distance of the decomposition front from the well and the natural gas production rate as functions of time were also computed. Time evolutions of the resulting profiles were presented in graphical forms, and their differences with the constant well output results were studied. It was shown that the gas production rate was a sensitive function of well pressure and reservoir temperature. The sensitivity of the results to the linearization scheme used was also studied

  9. Natural radioactivity product from coal burning in PLTU Pacitan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sukirno; Sri Murniasih; Rosidi; Sutanto WW

    2016-01-01

    Monitoring of radioactivity in the coal-fired power plant has been carried out in the CAST-NAA laboratory at 2015. Monitoring includes analysis of soil, water, fly ash, bottom ash and coal. The basic purpose of this work is the investigation of natural radionuclide contents in coal and the actual product samples in the Pacitan power plant as a first step to estimate the radioactive in the vicinity. This paper presents the results of the analysis of radioactivity in samples of coal, fly ash and bottom ash as well as environment samples of soil and water. Ra-226, Th-232, K-40, U-235, U-238, and Pb-210 Natural radionuclides are determined by gamma spectrometry with HPGe detector. Natural radionuclide in fine grain coal, bottom ash and fly ash have concentrations range (162.182 to 0.057) Bq/kg. Radioactivity contained in soil ranges (0.041 to 169.34) Bq/kg, whereas in water ranges (0.003 to 0.045) Bq/L. According Perka BAPETEN. No. 7 of 2013. On Boundary Value Environmental Radioactivity, the results of measurement analysis contained water around the power plant Pacitan still below the limit values allowed by BAPETEN. (author)

  10. ASM Inaugural Lecture 2010: Single crystal X-ray structural determination: A powerful technique for natural products research and drug discovery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fun Hoong Kun; Chantrapromma, S.; Boonnak, N.; Lee, V.S.

    2010-01-01

    Drug discovery from natural products resources have been extensively studied worldwide because natural products with their great structural diversity have traditionally provided most of the drugs in use. They offer major opportunities for finding novel low molecular weight leading-structures that are active against a wide range of assay targets. The most important step in the discovery process is the identification of compounds with interesting biological activity. Single crystal X-ray structure determination is a powerful technique for natural products research and drug discovery. The detailed three-dimensional structures that emerge can be co-related to the activities to these structures. In this article the following is presented: (i) co-crystal and disorder structures; (ii) determination of absolute configuration and (iii) the ability to distinguish between whether a natural product compound is a natural product or a natural product artifact. All these three properties are unique to the technique of single crystal X-ray structure determination. Case (iii) was demonstrated with a compound containing a chromene ring, namely macluraxanthone (which was isolated from Cratoxylum formosum subsp. pruniflorum, a Thai medicinal plant). (author)

  11. Synthesis, characterization and wound healing imitation of Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticle grafted by natural products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pala, Sravan Kumar

    This research focused on the study of the core-shelled magnetic nanomaterials derived from a colloidal chemistry. The goals are four-fold: (1) synthesis of Fe3O4MNMs using colloidal chemistry. The Fe 3O4 MNMs were then grafted with extracts derived from natural products, namely Olecraceavar italica (broccoli), Boletus edulis (mushroom)and Solanum lycopersicum (tomato);(2)characterization of natural products by chromatography and mass spectrometry;(3) characterization of MNMs to determine their crystallinity, morphological and elemental composition by the state-of-the-art instruments; and (4) biological evaluation using Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The approach provides advantages to precisely control the composition and homogeneity. The second advantage of the colloidal chemistry is its user friendliness and feasibility. Due to the nature of the natural products, the compatibility of MNM is anticipated to be enhanced.In this chapter, the nanomaterials will be discussed from four perspectives,§1.1 Nanotechnology (§1.1), §1.2 Synthesis of nanomaterials; §1.3 The natural product extract,; §1.4 Characterization of nanomaterials; and §1.5Biological application of nanomaterials.Fig. 1 summarized the overarching goals of this study.

  12. Studies of natural radioactivity in cement products using gamma ray spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ibrahim, N.; Periasamy, V.

    2000-01-01

    Evidence from our earlier study on several types of building materials has shown that cement contains a substantial amount of natural occurring radioactive materials. There are many brands of cement products available in Malaysia. Although the basic ingredients of cement are similar across brand, their proportion varies. In this study we have selected twelve brands of cement products which are analysed for natural radioactivity (U,Th,K) using gamma ray spectrometry. The gamma energies of interest are 583.1 keV, 609.3 keV and 1460 keV for nuclides 208 Tl, 214 Bi and 40 K respectively. Our findings show a relatively high activity of 40 K for all cement brands, ranging from 33 Bq/kg to as high as 3010 Bq/kg. Uranium activity ranges from 9Bq/kg to 672 Bq/kg while thorium activity was found range from 6Bq/kg to 94 Bq/kg. The radium equivalent activity is calculated for all brands and the values obtained range between 24 Bq/kg to 879 Bq/kg. Eight out of twelve products possess radium equivalent greater than 370 Bq/kg, a threshold limit for radiation dose equivalent to 1.5 mSv per annum. (author)

  13. Assessing the drug-likeness of lamellarins, a marine-derived natural product class with diverse oncological activities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chittchang, Montakarn; Gleeson, M Paul; Ploypradith, Poonsakdi; Ruchirawat, Somsak

    2010-06-01

    Natural products currently represent an underutilized source of leads for the pharmaceutical industry, especially when one considers that almost 50% of all drugs were either derived from such sources or are very closely related. Lamellarins are a class of natural products with diverse biological activities and have entered into preclinical development for the treatment of multidrug-resistant tumors. Although these compounds demonstrated good cell penetration, as observed by their low microM activity in whole cell models, they have not been extensively profiled from a physicochemical point of view, and this is the goal of this study. For this study, we have determined the experimental logP values of a set of 25 lamellarins, given it is the single most important parameter in determining multiple ADMET parameters. We also discuss the relationship between this natural product class, natural product derivatives in development and on the market, oral marketed drugs, as well as drug molecules in development, using a range of physicochemical parameters in conjunction with principal components analysis (PCA). The impact of this systematic analysis on our ongoing medicinal chemistry strategy is also discussed. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  14. Specificity in the interaction of natural products with their target proteins--a biochemical and structural insight.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Venkatraman, Prasanna

    2010-06-01

    Natural products are an abundant source of anti cancer agents. They act as cytotoxic drugs, and inhibitors of apoptosis, transcription, cell proliferation and angiogenesis. While pathways targeted by natural products have been well studied, there is paucity of information about the in vivo molecular target/s of these compounds. This review summarizes some of the natural compounds for which the molecular targets, mechanism of action and structural basis of specificity have been well documented. These examples illustrate that 'off target' binding can be explained on the basis of diversity inherent to biomolecular interactions. There is enough evidence to suggest that natural compounds are potent and versatile warheads that can be optimized for a multi targeted therapeutic intervention in cancer.

  15. Trade-offs for food production, nature conservation and climate limit the terrestrial carbon dioxide removal potential.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boysen, Lena R; Lucht, Wolfgang; Gerten, Dieter

    2017-10-01

    Large-scale biomass plantations (BPs) are a common factor in climate mitigation scenarios as they promise double benefits: extracting carbon from the atmosphere and providing a renewable energy source. However, their terrestrial carbon dioxide removal (tCDR) potentials depend on important factors such as land availability, efficiency of capturing biomass-derived carbon and the timing of operation. Land availability is restricted by the demands of future food production depending on yield increases and population growth, by requirements for nature conservation and, with respect to climate mitigation, avoiding unfavourable albedo changes. We integrate these factors in one spatially explicit biogeochemical simulation framework to explore the tCDR opportunity space on land available after these constraints are taken into account, starting either in 2020 or 2050, and lasting until 2100. We find that assumed future needs for nature protection and food production strongly limit tCDR potentials. BPs on abandoned crop and pasture areas (~1,300 Mha in scenarios of either 8.0 billion people and yield gap reductions of 25% until 2020 or 9.5 billion people and yield gap reductions of 50% until 2050) could, theoretically, sequester ~100 GtC in land carbon stocks and biomass harvest by 2100. However, this potential would be ~80% lower if only cropland was available or ~50% lower if albedo decreases were considered as a factor restricting land availability. Converting instead natural forest, shrubland or grassland into BPs could result in much larger tCDR potentials ̶ but at high environmental costs (e.g. biodiversity loss). The most promising avenue for effective tCDR seems to be improvement of efficient carbon utilization pathways, changes in dietary trends or the restoration of marginal lands for the implementation of tCDR. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. Natural product-derived pharmacological modulators of Nrf2/ARE pathway for chronic diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Hemant; Kim, In-Su; More, Sandeep Vasant; Kim, Byung-Wook; Choi, Dong-Kug

    2014-01-01

    Covering: 2000 to 2013. Oxidative stress is the central component of chronic diseases. The nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2/antioxidant response element (Nrf2/ARE) pathway is vital in the up-regulation of cytoprotective genes and enzymes in response to oxidative stress and treatment with certain dietary phytochemicals. Herein, we classify bioactive compounds derived from natural products that are Nrf2/ARE pathway activators and recapitulate the molecular mechanisms for inducing Nrf2 to provide favorable effects in experimental models of chronic diseases. Moreover, pharmacological inhibition of Nrf2 signalling has emerged as promising strategy against multi-drug resistance thereby improving the treatment efficacy. We have also enlisted natural product-derived inhibitors of Nrf2/ARE pathway.

  17. The human impact on natural rock reserves using basalt, anorthosite, and carbonates as raw materials in insulation products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dahl, Tais Wittchen; Clausen, Anders U.; Hansen, Peter B.

    2011-01-01

    lithosphere or subducted with oceanic crust and recycled through the mantle by plate tectonics. Insulation products have a chemical composition similar to average crustal rocks and participate in the natural rock cycle. However, these products need not accumulate in nature, inasmuch as old insulation......Typical crustal rocks such as basalt, limestone, and anorthosite are used in stone wool insulation products. The raw materials for stone wool production are not specific to any rare mineral source but depend upon the mixture of materials having the correct chemical composition, exemplified by 40 wt......% basalt, 20 wt% anorthosite, and 40 wt% cement-bonded renewable materials. This study provides an overview of the natural cycle of these resources, including their abundances in nature, and sets the consumption by the stone wool industry and other human activities in perspective. Basalt, anorthosite...

  18. Dietary Natural Products for Prevention and Treatment of Breast Cancer

    OpenAIRE

    Li, Ya; Li, Sha; Meng, Xiao; Gan, Ren-You; Zhang, Jiao-Jiao; Li, Hua-Bin

    2017-01-01

    Breast cancer is the most common cancer among females worldwide. Several epidemiological studies suggested the inverse correlation between the intake of vegetables and fruits and the incidence of breast cancer. Substantial experimental studies indicated that many dietary natural products could affect the development and progression of breast cancer, such as soy, pomegranate, mangosteen, citrus fruits, apple, grape, mango, cruciferous vegetables, ginger, garlic, black cumin, edible macro-fungi...

  19. Natural Products for Drug Discovery in the 21st Century: Innovations for Novel Drug Discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicholas Ekow Thomford

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The therapeutic properties of plants have been recognised since time immemorial. Many pathological conditions have been treated using plant-derived medicines. These medicines are used as concoctions or concentrated plant extracts without isolation of active compounds. Modern medicine however, requires the isolation and purification of one or two active compounds. There are however a lot of global health challenges with diseases such as cancer, degenerative diseases, HIV/AIDS and diabetes, of which modern medicine is struggling to provide cures. Many times the isolation of “active compound” has made the compound ineffective. Drug discovery is a multidimensional problem requiring several parameters of both natural and synthetic compounds such as safety, pharmacokinetics and efficacy to be evaluated during drug candidate selection. The advent of latest technologies that enhance drug design hypotheses such as Artificial Intelligence, the use of ‘organ-on chip’ and microfluidics technologies, means that automation has become part of drug discovery. This has resulted in increased speed in drug discovery and evaluation of the safety, pharmacokinetics and efficacy of candidate compounds whilst allowing novel ways of drug design and synthesis based on natural compounds. Recent advances in analytical and computational techniques have opened new avenues to process complex natural products and to use their structures to derive new and innovative drugs. Indeed, we are in the era of computational molecular design, as applied to natural products. Predictive computational softwares have contributed to the discovery of molecular targets of natural products and their derivatives. In future the use of quantum computing, computational softwares and databases in modelling molecular interactions and predicting features and parameters needed for drug development, such as pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics, will result in few false positive leads in drug

  20. Natural Products for Drug Discovery in the 21st Century: Innovations for Novel Drug Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomford, Nicholas Ekow; Senthebane, Dimakatso Alice; Rowe, Arielle; Munro, Daniella; Seele, Palesa; Maroyi, Alfred; Dzobo, Kevin

    2018-05-25

    The therapeutic properties of plants have been recognised since time immemorial. Many pathological conditions have been treated using plant-derived medicines. These medicines are used as concoctions or concentrated plant extracts without isolation of active compounds. Modern medicine however, requires the isolation and purification of one or two active compounds. There are however a lot of global health challenges with diseases such as cancer, degenerative diseases, HIV/AIDS and diabetes, of which modern medicine is struggling to provide cures. Many times the isolation of "active compound" has made the compound ineffective. Drug discovery is a multidimensional problem requiring several parameters of both natural and synthetic compounds such as safety, pharmacokinetics and efficacy to be evaluated during drug candidate selection. The advent of latest technologies that enhance drug design hypotheses such as Artificial Intelligence, the use of 'organ-on chip' and microfluidics technologies, means that automation has become part of drug discovery. This has resulted in increased speed in drug discovery and evaluation of the safety, pharmacokinetics and efficacy of candidate compounds whilst allowing novel ways of drug design and synthesis based on natural compounds. Recent advances in analytical and computational techniques have opened new avenues to process complex natural products and to use their structures to derive new and innovative drugs. Indeed, we are in the era of computational molecular design, as applied to natural products. Predictive computational softwares have contributed to the discovery of molecular targets of natural products and their derivatives. In future the use of quantum computing, computational softwares and databases in modelling molecular interactions and predicting features and parameters needed for drug development, such as pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics, will result in few false positive leads in drug development. This review

  1. General approach to neolignan-core of the boehmenan natural product family

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Barbuščáková, Z.; Kozubíková, H.; Zálešák, B.; Doležal, Karel; Pospíšil, Jiří

    2018-01-01

    Roč. 149, č. 4 (2018), s. 737-748 ISSN 0026-9247 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LO1204 Institutional support: RVO:61389030 Keywords : Biomimetic synthesis * Enzymes * Natural products * Oxidative coupling Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology OBOR OECD: Biochemistry and molecular biology Impact factor: 1.282, year: 2016

  2. Effects of Natural Products on Fructose-Induced Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qian Chen

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available As a sugar additive, fructose is widely used in processed foods and beverages. Excessive fructose consumption can cause hepatic steatosis and dyslipidemia, leading to the development of metabolic syndrome. Recent research revealed that fructose-induced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD is related to several pathological processes, including: (1 augmenting lipogenesis; (2 leading to mitochondrial dysfunction; (3 stimulating the activation of inflammatory pathways; and (4 causing insulin resistance. Cellular signaling research indicated that partial factors play significant roles in fructose-induced NAFLD, involving liver X receptor (LXRα, sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP-1/1c, acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC, fatty acid synthase (FAS, stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD, peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor α (PPARα, leptin nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB, tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α, c-Jun amino terminal kinase (JNK, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K and adenosine 5′-monophosphate (AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK. Until now, a series of natural products have been reported as regulators of NAFLD in vivo and in vitro. This paper reviews the natural products (e.g., curcumin, resveratrol, and (−-epicatechin and their mechanisms of ameliorating fructose-induced NAFLD over the past years. Although, as lead compounds, natural products usually have fewer activities compared with synthesized compounds, it will shed light on studies aiming to discover new drugs for NAFLD.

  3. China's natural gas: Resources, production and its impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Jianliang; Feng, Lianyong; Zhao, Lin; Snowden, Simon

    2013-01-01

    In order to achieve energy consumption targets, and subsequently reduce carbon emissions, China is working on energy strategies and policies aimed at actively increasing the consumption of natural gas—the lowest carbon energy of the fossil fuels, and to enhance the proportion of gas in total primary energy consumption. To do this, it is a necessary prerequisite that China must have access to adequate gas resources and production to meet demand. This paper shows that the availability of domestic gas resources are overestimated by China's authorities due to differences in classification and definitions of gas resources/reserves between China and those accepted internationally. Based on official gas resource figures, China's gas production remains low with respect to the projected demand, and will only be 164.6 bcm in 2020, far lower than the 375 bcm of forecast demand. The gap between gas production and demand will reach 210.4 bcm by 2020. Existing plans for the importation of gas and the development of unconventional gas will not close this gap in the next 10 years, and this situation will therefore present a severe challenge to China's gas security, achievement of targets in improving energy consumption structure and reducing carbon emissions. - Highlights: ► We show that available gas resources are overestimated by China's authorities. ► We forecast China's future gas production under different resource scenarios. ► This paper shows that China's gas production will not meet the soaring demand. ► The gap between supply and demand will continue to increase rapidly in future. ► China's gas security will meet a severe challenge because of this increasing gap

  4. Lichen symbiosis: nature's high yielding machines for induced hydrogen production.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aikaterini Papazi

    Full Text Available Hydrogen is a promising future energy source. Although the ability of green algae to produce hydrogen has long been recognized (since 1939 and several biotechnological applications have been attempted, the greatest obstacle, being the O2-sensitivity of the hydrogenase enzyme, has not yet been overcome. In the present contribution, 75 years after the first report on algal hydrogen production, taking advantage of a natural mechanism of oxygen balance, we demonstrate high hydrogen yields by lichens. Lichens have been selected as the ideal organisms in nature for hydrogen production, since they consist of a mycobiont and a photobiont in symbiosis. It has been hypothesized that the mycobiont's and photobiont's consumption of oxygen (increase of COX and AOX proteins of mitochondrial respiratory pathways and PTOX protein of chrolorespiration establishes the required anoxic conditions for the activation of the phycobiont's hydrogenase in a closed system. Our results clearly supported the above hypothesis, showing that lichens have the ability to activate appropriate bioenergetic pathways depending on the specific incubation conditions. Under light conditions, they successfully use the PSII-dependent and the PSII-independent pathways (decrease of D1 protein and parallel increase of PSaA protein to transfer electrons to hydrogenase, while under dark conditions, lichens use the PFOR enzyme and the dark fermentative pathway to supply electrons to hydrogenase. These advantages of lichen symbiosis in combination with their ability to survive in extreme environments (while in a dry state constitute them as unique and valuable hydrogen producing natural factories and pave the way for future biotechnological applications.

  5. Lichen Symbiosis: Nature's High Yielding Machines for Induced Hydrogen Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papazi, Aikaterini; Kastanaki, Elizabeth; Pirintsos, Stergios; Kotzabasis, Kiriakos

    2015-01-01

    Hydrogen is a promising future energy source. Although the ability of green algae to produce hydrogen has long been recognized (since 1939) and several biotechnological applications have been attempted, the greatest obstacle, being the O2-sensitivity of the hydrogenase enzyme, has not yet been overcome. In the present contribution, 75 years after the first report on algal hydrogen production, taking advantage of a natural mechanism of oxygen balance, we demonstrate high hydrogen yields by lichens. Lichens have been selected as the ideal organisms in nature for hydrogen production, since they consist of a mycobiont and a photobiont in symbiosis. It has been hypothesized that the mycobiont’s and photobiont’s consumption of oxygen (increase of COX and AOX proteins of mitochondrial respiratory pathways and PTOX protein of chrolorespiration) establishes the required anoxic conditions for the activation of the phycobiont’s hydrogenase in a closed system. Our results clearly supported the above hypothesis, showing that lichens have the ability to activate appropriate bioenergetic pathways depending on the specific incubation conditions. Under light conditions, they successfully use the PSII-dependent and the PSII-independent pathways (decrease of D1 protein and parallel increase of PSaA protein) to transfer electrons to hydrogenase, while under dark conditions, lichens use the PFOR enzyme and the dark fermentative pathway to supply electrons to hydrogenase. These advantages of lichen symbiosis in combination with their ability to survive in extreme environments (while in a dry state) constitute them as unique and valuable hydrogen producing natural factories and pave the way for future biotechnological applications. PMID:25826211

  6. beta. -endorphin augments the cytolytic activity and interferon production of natural killer cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mandler, R.N.; Biddison, W.E.; Mandler, R.; Serrate, S.A.

    1986-02-01

    The in vitro effects of the neurohormone ..beta..-endorphin (b-end) on natural killer (NK) activity and interferon (IFN) production mediated by large granular lymphocytes (LGL) were investigated. LGL-enriched fractions from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from normal human volunteers were obtained by fractionation over discontinuous Percoll gradients. LGL were preincubated with or without various concentrations of b-end or the closely related peptides ..cap alpha..-endorphin (a-end), ..gamma..-endorphin (g-end), or D-ALA/sub 2/-..beta..-endorphin (D-ALA/sub 2/-b-end), a synthetic b-end analogue. NK activity was assayed on /sup 51/Cr-labeled K562 target cells. Preincubation of LGL effectors (but not K562 targets) for 2 to 18 hr with concentrations of b-end between 10/sup -7/ M and 10/sup -10/ M produced significant augmentation of NK cytolytic activity (mean percentage increase: 63%). The classic opiate antagonist naloxone blocked the enhancing effect when used at a 100-fold molar excess relative to b-end. These findings demonstrate that b-end enhances NK activity and IFN production of purified LGL, and suggests that b-end might bind to an opioid receptor on LGL that can be blocked by naloxone. These results lend support to the concepts of regulation of the immune response by neurohormones and the functional relationship between the nervous and immune systems.

  7. Idaho Habitat/Natural Production Monitoring Part I, 1995 Annual Report.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hall-Griswold, J.A.; Petrosky, C.E. (Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Boise, ID)

    1996-12-01

    The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) has been monitoring trends in juvenile spring and summer chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, and steelhead trout, O. mykiss, populations in the Salmon, Clearwater, and lower Snake River drainages for the past 12 years. This work is the result of a program to protect, mitigate, and enhance fish and wildlife affected by the development and operation of hydroelectric power plants on the Columbia River. Project 91-73, Idaho Natural Production Monitoring, consists of two subprojects: General Monitoring and Intensive Monitoring. This report updates and summarizes data through 1995 for the General Parr Monitoring (GPM) database to document status and trends of classes of wild and natural chinook salmon and steelhead trout populations. A total of 281 stream sections were sampled in 1995 to monitor trends in spring and summer chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and steelhead trout O. mykiss parr populations in Idaho. Percent carrying capacity and density estimates were summarized for 1985--1995 by different classes of fish: wild A-run steelhead trout, wild B-run steelhead trout, natural A-run steelhead trout, natural B-run steelhead trout, wild spring and summer chinook salmon, and natural spring and summer chinook salmon. The 1995 data were also summarized by subbasins as defined in Idaho Department of Fish and Game`s 1992--1996 Anadromous Fish Management Plan.

  8. Idaho habitat/natural production monitoring: Part 1. Annual report 1995

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hall-Griswold, J.A.; Petrosky, C.E.

    1996-11-01

    The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) has been monitoring trends in juvenile spring and summer chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, and steelhead trout, O. mykiss, populations in the Salmon, Clearwater, and lower Snake River drainages for the past 12 years. This work is the result of a program to protect, mitigate, and enhance fish and wildlife affected by the development and operation of hydroelectric power plants on the Columbia River. Project 91-73, Idaho Natural Production Monitoring, consists of two subprojects: General Monitoring and Intensive Monitoring. This report updates and summarizes data through 1995 for the General Parr Monitoring (GPM) database to document status and trends of classes of wild and natural chinook salmon and steelhead trout populations. A total of 281 stream sections were sampled in 1995 to monitor trends in spring and summer chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and steelhead trout O. mykiss parr populations in Idaho. Percent carrying capacity and density estimates were summarized for 1985--1995 by different classes of fish: wild A-run steelhead trout, wild B-run steelhead trout, natural A-run steelhead trout, natural B-run steelhead trout, wild spring and summer chinook salmon, and natural spring and summer chinook salmon. The 1995 data were also summarized by subbasins as defined in Idaho Department of Fish and Game's 1992--1996 Anadromous Fish Management Plan

  9. Microbial production of volatile sulphur compounds in the large intestine of pigs fed two different diets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poulsen, H V; Jensen, B B; Finster, K; Spence, C; Whitehead, T R; Cotta, M A; Canibe, N

    2012-07-01

      To investigate the production of volatile sulphur compounds (VSC) in the segments of the large intestine of pigs and to assess the impact of diet on this production.   Pigs were fed two diets based on either wheat and barley (STD) or wheat and dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS). Net production of VSC and potential sulphate reduction rate (SRR) (sulphate saturated) along the large intestine were determined by means of in vitro incubations. The net production rate of hydrogen sulphide and potential SRR increased from caecum towards distal colon and were significantly higher in the STD group. Conversely, the net methanethiol production rate was significantly higher in the DDGS group, while no difference was observed for dimethyl sulphide. The number of sulphate-reducing bacteria and total bacteria were determined by quantitative PCR and showed a significant increase along the large intestine, whereas no diet-related differences were observed.   VSC net production varies widely throughout the large intestine of pigs and the microbial processes involved in this production can be affected by diet.   This first report on intestinal production of all VSC shows both spatial and dietary effects, which are relevant to both bowel disease- and odour mitigation research. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Applied Microbiology © 2012 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

  10. Investigation of the neutron production phases of a large plasma focus device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hayd, A.; Maurer, M.; Meinke, P.; Herold, H.; Bertalot, L.; Deutsch, R.; Grauf, W.; Jaeger, U.; Kaeppeler, H.J.; Lepper, F.; Oppenlaender, T.; Schmidt, H.; Schmidt, R.; Schwarz, J.; Schwoerer, K.; Shakhatre, M.

    1982-09-01

    Plasma dynamic behavior and neutron production in large focus devices with pinch currents of approximately 1 MA have been studied with theoretical as well as experimental methods. For treating turbulent plasma motion, a hybrid code based on the analytical computer algorithm REDUCE was developed. Experimental diagnostics include schlieren photographs, reaction proton localization with pinhole cameras and neutron measurements with Ag-counters and scintillators. Calculated and measured data concern the 280 kJ, 60 kV operational mode of the POSEIDON plasma focus. It is shown that for large pinch currents ( > 500 kA), neutron emission also appears before m = 0 onset in the intermediate phase. This part of the neutron production becomes predominant for very large currents. The lifetime of this intermediate phase strongly increases with increasing current. According to theory, the late phase of the focus is governed by strong turbulence phenomena. The lifetime of the turbulence packets is approximately 150 ns and seems to explain the long lasting neutron emission in this phase. (orig.)

  11. Challenges and solutions in natural gas engine development and productions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ahmadi, Mahdi; Izanloo, Hossein [Irankhodro Powertrain Co. (IPCO) (Iran)

    2008-07-01

    As an alternative fuel, natural gas is generally accepted for internal combustion engines and some developments have been conducted in order to adopt it for the road vehicles and stationary applications. Foresights shows natural gas vehicles will be a part of the future transportation technology regarding to their mid and long-term benefits. Therefore inherent problems of natural gas engine technology should be overcome to produce a competitive engine. In this paper major problems and their possible solutions in developing and producing natural gas engine for passenger cars are detailed and discussed. Challenging materials are sorted and presented in two categorizes: technical and econo-strategical problems. In the technical section major difficulties faced in components or systems of natural gas engine are analysed in different aspects of design, validation, and production. In addition problems arisen from the fuel characteristics which influence the function and durability of engine are argued. Subjects like freezing in gas regulator, cold start fuel injection, gas leakage, impurities within compressed natural gas, variation in fuel composition, thermo-mechanics of cylinder head and block, wear of valve seat inserts, spark plug erosion, back-fire phenomenon, engine oil quality requirement, low power density and mileage are described. In the econo-strategical discussion, challenges like limited gas distribution infrastructure, lack of specific manufacturing standards and codes, and non-dedicated emission standards are explained. In both part of the paper a comprehensive view is extended to clarify the effect, risk and solutions of each problem. Due to the fact that almost all information and analysis presented in this paper are based on the experience of developing a natural gas engine family, and an extensive literature review, discussions and conclusions could be useful as a guide line for future natural gas engine projects. (orig.)

  12. Natural products to improve quality of life targeting for colon drug delivery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyunjo

    2012-03-01

    The colon is largely being investigated as a site for administration of protein and peptides, which are degraded by digestive enzymes in the upper GIT. Also for local diseases of the colon such as inflammatory bowel disease, colorectal cancer and ameobiasis, drug administration to the site of action can not only reduce the dose to be administered, but also decrease the side effects. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) such as Ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are characterized by chronic intestinal inflammation. Intestinal bacteria initiate the activation of intestinal inflammatory processes, which are mediated by pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokine. Increased chemokine expression has also been observed in epithelial cells, endothelial cells, and smooth muscle cells. Future trials of specific agents capable of inhibiting chemokine synthesis and secretion or blocking chemokine-chemokine receptor interaction will be important to study in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Many important bioactive compounds have been discovered from natural sources using bioactivity directed fractionation and isolation (BDFl) Continuing discovery has also been facilitated by the recent development of new bioassay methods. These bioactive compounds are mostly plant secondary metabolites, and many naturally occurring pure compounds have become medicines, dietary supplements, and other useful commercial products. The present review includes various approaches investigated for colon drug delivery and their site specificity. To achieve successful colonic delivery, a drug needs to be protected from absorption and the environment of the upper gastrointestinal tract and then be abruptly released into the proximal colon, which is considered the optimum site for colon targeted delivery of drugs.

  13. A simple and rapid method for calixarene-based selective extraction of bioactive molecules from natural products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Segneanu, Adina-Elena; Damian, Daniel; Hulka, Iosif; Grozescu, Ioan; Salifoglou, Athanasios

    2016-03-01

    Natural products derived from medicinal plants have gained an important role in drug discovery due to their complex and abundant composition of secondary metabolites, with their structurally unique molecular components bearing a significant number of stereo-centers exhibiting high specificity linked to biological activity. Usually, the extraction process of natural products involves various techniques targeting separation of a specific class of compounds from a highly complex matrix. Aiding the process entails the use of well-defined and selective molecular extractants with distinctly configured structural attributes. Calixarenes conceivably belong to that class of molecules. They have been studied intensely over the years in an effort to develop new and highly selective receptors for biomolecules. These macrocycles, which display remarkable structural architectures and properties, could help usher a new approach in the efficient separation of specific classes of compounds from complex matrices in natural products. A simple and rapid such extraction method is presented herein, based on host-guest interaction(s) between a calixarene synthetic receptor, 4-tert-butyl-calix[6]arene, and natural biomolecular targets (amino acids and peptides) from Helleborus purpurascens and Viscum album. Advanced physicochemical methods (including GC-MS and chip-based nanoESI-MS analysis) suggest that the molecular structure and specifically the calixarene cavity size are closely linked to the nature of compounds separated. Incorporation of biomolecules and modification of the macrocyclic architecture during separation were probed and confirmed by scanning electronic microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The collective results project calixarene as a promising molecular extractant candidate, facilitating the selective separation of amino acids and peptides from natural products.

  14. Interlayer catalytic exfoliation realizing scalable production of large-size pristine few-layer graphene

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geng, Xiumei; Guo, Yufen; Li, Dongfang; Li, Weiwei; Zhu, Chao; Wei, Xiangfei; Chen, Mingliang; Gao, Song; Qiu, Shengqiang; Gong, Youpin; Wu, Liqiong; Long, Mingsheng; Sun, Mengtao; Pan, Gebo; Liu, Liwei

    2013-01-01

    Mass production of reduced graphene oxide and graphene nanoplatelets has recently been achieved. However, a great challenge still remains in realizing large-quantity and high-quality production of large-size thin few-layer graphene (FLG). Here, we create a novel route to solve the issue by employing one-time-only interlayer catalytic exfoliation (ICE) of salt-intercalated graphite. The typical FLG with a large lateral size of tens of microns and a thickness less than 2 nm have been obtained by a mild and durative ICE. The high-quality graphene layers preserve intact basal crystal planes owing to avoidance of the degradation reaction during both intercalation and ICE. Furthermore, we reveal that the high-quality FLG ensures a remarkable lithium-storage stability (>1,000 cycles) and a large reversible specific capacity (>600 mAh g-1). This simple and scalable technique acquiring high-quality FLG offers considerable potential for future realistic applications.

  15. Investigation of Secondary Neutron Production in Large Space Vehicles for Deep Space

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rojdev, Kristina; Koontz, Steve; Reddell, Brandon; Atwell, William; Boeder, Paul

    2016-01-01

    Future NASA missions will focus on deep space and Mars surface operations with large structures necessary for transportation of crew and cargo. In addition to the challenges of manufacturing these large structures, there are added challenges from the space radiation environment and its impacts on the crew, electronics, and vehicle materials. Primary radiation from the sun (solar particle events) and from outside the solar system (galactic cosmic rays) interact with materials of the vehicle and the elements inside the vehicle. These interactions lead to the primary radiation being absorbed or producing secondary radiation (primarily neutrons). With all vehicles, the high-energy primary radiation is of most concern. However, with larger vehicles, there is more opportunity for secondary radiation production, which can be significant enough to cause concern. In a previous paper, we embarked upon our first steps toward studying neutron production from large vehicles by validating our radiation transport codes for neutron environments against flight data. The following paper will extend the previous work to focus on the deep space environment and the resulting neutron flux from large vehicles in this deep space environment.

  16. Large-Scale Production of Nanographite by Tube-Shear Exfoliation in Water.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicklas Blomquist

    Full Text Available The number of applications based on graphene, few-layer graphene, and nanographite is rapidly increasing. A large-scale process for production of these materials is critically needed to achieve cost-effective commercial products. Here, we present a novel process to mechanically exfoliate industrial quantities of nanographite from graphite in an aqueous environment with low energy consumption and at controlled shear conditions. This process, based on hydrodynamic tube shearing, produced nanometer-thick and micrometer-wide flakes of nanographite with a production rate exceeding 500 gh-1 with an energy consumption about 10 Whg-1. In addition, to facilitate large-area coating, we show that the nanographite can be mixed with nanofibrillated cellulose in the process to form highly conductive, robust and environmentally friendly composites. This composite has a sheet resistance below 1.75 Ω/sq and an electrical resistivity of 1.39×10-4 Ωm and may find use in several applications, from supercapacitors and batteries to printed electronics and solar cells. A batch of 100 liter was processed in less than 4 hours. The design of the process allow scaling to even larger volumes and the low energy consumption indicates a low-cost process.

  17. Turning Subsistence Peasants into Ecosystem Servants: Inequality and the Produc-tion of Natural Resources in Lao P.D.R.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael Kleinod

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available This paper examines the nexus of nature conservation, productivity and domination in inclusive conservation approaches. It argues that the turning of subsistence peasants into “stewards and custodians of biodiversity” (CBD represents a soft form of domination according to the false alternatives of ecological instrumentality in that local development is subordinated to supposed “natural” constraints. The argument draws from critical theories of societal nature relations (Horkheimer & Adorno, 2002; Görg. 2003; Moore, 2015 as well as from extensive research on ecotourism as an instrument to reconcile conservation and development in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. From this angle, conservation is seen as a way to produce “natural” resources building on, perpetuating and creating various social inequities, based on the fiction that “nature” is essentially non-human. This case is made with regard to National Protected Areas in Laos, which are designed explicitly to accommodate local people’s needs. Among other things, ecotourism is employed to create a source of income alternative to practices seen as “unsustainable”. Thereby, economic and also moral stakes in untouched resources are to be implanted. In such way, a compromise between (rather than a reconciliation of conservation and development is imposed which is largely alien to the lived realities of local people, and only accounting partly for their needs and aspirations – an imposition which tends to produce its own countercurrents, again tying into productivity and inequality. This paper thus analyzes the workings of the nature/society dualism underlying ecological instrumentality as experienced in ecotourism as a tool for nature conservation in Laos.

  18. Free-radical-mediated conjugate additions. Enantioselective synthesis of butyrolactone natural products: (-)-enterolactone, (-)-arctigenin, (-)-isoarctigenin, (-)-nephrosteranic acid, and (-)-roccellaric acid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sibi, Mukund P; Liu, Pingrong; Ji, Jianguo; Hajra, Saumen; Chen, Jian-xie

    2002-03-22

    Lewis acid-mediated conjugate addition of alkyl radicals to a differentially protected fumarate 10 produced the monoalkylated succinates with high chemical efficiency and excellent stereoselectivity. A subsequent alkylation or an aldol reaction furnished the disubstituted succinates with syn configuration. The chiral auxiliary, 4-diphenylmethyl-2-oxazolidinone, controlled the stereoselectivity in both steps. Manipulation of the disubstituted succinates obtained by alkylation furnished the natural products (-)-enterolactone, (-)-arctigenin, and (-)-isoarctigenin. The overall yields for the target natural products were 20-26% over six steps. Selective functionalization of the disubstituted succinates obtained by aldol condensation gave the paraconic acid natural products (-)-nephrosteranic acid (8) and (-)-roccellaric acid (9). The overall yield of the natural products 8 and 9 over four steps was 53% and 42%, respectively.

  19. Discovery of a natural product-like iNOS inhibitor by molecular docking with potential neuroprotective effects in vivo.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hai-Jing Zhong

    Full Text Available In this study, we applied structure-based virtual screening techniques to identify natural product or natural product-like inhibitors of iNOS. The iNOS inhibitory activity of the hit compounds was characterized using cellular assays and an in vivo zebrafish larvae model. The natural product-like compound 1 inhibited NO production in LPS-stimulated Raw264.7 macrophages, without exerting cytotoxic effects on the cells. Significantly, compound 1 was able to reverse MPTP-induced locomotion deficiency and neurotoxicity in an in vivo zebrafish larval model. Hence, compound 1 could be considered as a scaffold for the further development of iNOS inhibitors for potential anti-inflammatory or anti-neurodegenerative applications.

  20. Emerging role of phenolic compounds as natural food additives in fish and fish products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maqsood, Sajid; Benjakul, Soottawat; Shahidi, Fereidoon

    2013-01-01

    Chemical and microbiological deteriorations are principal causes of quality loss of fish and fish products during handling, processing, and storage. Development of rancid odor and unpleasant flavor, changes of color and texture as well as lowering nutritional value in fish can be prevented by appropriate use of additives. Due to the potential health hazards of synthetic additives, natural products, especially antioxidants and antimicrobial agents, have been intensively examined as safe alternatives to synthetic compounds. Polyphenols (PP) are the natural antioxidants prevalent in fruits, vegetables, beverages (tea, wine, juices), plants, seaweeds, and some herbs and show antioxidative and antimicrobial activities in different fish and fish products. The use of phenolic compounds also appears to be a good alternative for sulphiting agent for retarding melanosis in crustaceans. Phenolic compounds have also been successfully employed as the processing aid for texture modification of fish mince and surimi. Thus, plant polyphenolic compounds can serve as potential additives for preventing quality deterioration or to retain the quality of fish and fish products.

  1. The use of production management techniques in the construction of large scale physics detectors

    CERN Document Server

    Bazan, A; Estrella, F; Kovács, Z; Le Flour, T; Le Goff, J M; Lieunard, S; McClatchey, R; Murray, S; Varga, L Z; Vialle, J P; Zsenei, M

    1999-01-01

    The construction process of detectors for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) experiments is large scale, heavily constrained by resource availability and evolves with time. As a consequence, changes in detector component design need to be tracked and quickly reflected in the construction process. With similar problems in industry engineers employ so-called Product Data Management (PDM) systems to control access to documented versions of designs and managers employ so- called Workflow Management software (WfMS) to coordinate production work processes. However, PDM and WfMS software are not generally integrated in industry. The scale of LHC experiments, like CMS, demands that industrial production techniques be applied in detector construction. This paper outlines the major functions and applications of the CRISTAL system (Cooperating Repositories and an information System for Tracking Assembly Lifecycles) in use in CMS which successfully integrates PDM and WfMS techniques in managing large scale physics detector ...

  2. Natural gas purchasing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Freedenthal, C.

    1993-01-01

    In recent years, natural gas has gained new momentum because of changes in marketing and regulations. The gas industry has always received an inordinate amount of regulatory control starting at the well head where the gas is produced to the consuming burner tip. Regulations have drastically impacted the availability of gas. Changes in the marketing and regulations have made the natural gas market sensitive at the point of production, the well head. Now, with plentiful supply and ease of transportation to bring the gas from the producing fields to the consumer, natural gas markets are taking advantage of the changed conditions. At the same time, new markets are developing to take advantage of the changes. This section shows consumers, especially the energy planners for large buyers of fuel, the advantages, sources and new methods of securing natural gas supplies. Background on how natural gas is produced and marketed are given. This section lists marketing sources, regulatory agencies and information groups available to help buyers and consumers of this important fuel for US industries and residences. 7 figs., 8 tabs

  3. Study on preparation of new antioxidants for radiation vulcanized natural rubber latex product. Antioxidant from keratin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nguyen Quoc Hien; Nguyen Van Toan; Vo Tan Thien; Le Hai

    2000-01-01

    The thermo-oxidative aging resistance of radiation vulcanization of natural rubber latex (RVNRL) products should be adequately by using suitable antioxidants or new kind of effective antioxidant. This work presents the results of preparation of natural antioxidant from hair keratin. Characteristics and effectiveness of resultant antioxidant are also presented. The results obtained indicates that antioxidant made from hair keratin is safe and effective for rubber products from RVNRL. (author)

  4. Tolerance of natural baby skin-care products on healthy, full-term infants and toddlers

    OpenAIRE

    Coret, Catherine D; Suero, Michael B; Tierney, Neena K

    2014-01-01

    Catherine D Coret, Michael B Suero, Neena K Tierney Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Inc, Skillman, NJ, USA Purpose: To evaluate the tolerance of baby skin-care products with at least 95% naturally derived ingredients on infants and toddlers. Materials and methods: Healthy, full-term infants and toddlers aged 1–36 months were enrolled. In study 1, a lightly fragranced natural baby hair and body wash (n=30), a lightly fragranced natural baby shampoo (n=30), or a lightly...

  5. Chocolate: A Marvelous Natural Product of Chemistry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tannenbaum, Ginger

    2004-08-01

    Chocolate is a natural product as ubiquitous as television. Of course, it is eaten, but it is also found in air fresheners, marking pens, flavoring in a multitude of products including soda pop, and as an aroma in "chocolate-dyed" T-shirts. However, most of us are completely unaware of the complex chemical reactions that take place to produce chocolate and the necessary technology that has evolved to produce chocolate and all its byproducts. Processing results in a mixture of many components, an interesting contrast to most of the simple, one-step reactions introduced at the high school level. This article is a survey of chocolate from tree to table. After a brief introduction to the history of chocolate and how and where it is grown, the manufacturing process is examined, and the chemistry is explored. A bit of the jargon used in the industry is mentioned. Cocoa butter is a significant ingredient in chocolate, and an investigation of it introduces triglycerides, fatty acids, polymorphic behavior, and molecular packing of the fats in chocolate and how they affect the tempering process. There is a brief discussion of chocolate's non-Newtonian behavior and the resulting challenges presented in the manufacturing process. See Featured Molecules Featured on the Cover

  6. Hybrid combinations containing natural products and antimicrobial drugs that interfere with bacterial and fungal biofilms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zacchino, Susana A; Butassi, Estefanía; Cordisco, Estefanía; Svetaz, Laura A

    2017-12-15

    Biofilms contribute to the pathogenesis of many chronic and difficult-to eradicate infections whose treatment is complicated due to the intrinsic resistance to conventional antibiotics. As a consequence, there is an urgent need for strategies that can be used for the prevention and treatment of biofilm-associated infections. The combination therapy comprising an antimicrobial drug with a low molecular weight (MW) natural product and an antimicrobial drug (antifungal or antibacterial) appeared as a good alternative to eradicate biofilms. The aims of this review were to perform a literature search on the different natural products that have showed the ability of potentiating the antibiofilm capacity of antimicrobial drugs, to analyze which are the antimicrobial drugs most used in combination, and to have a look on the microbial species most used to prepare biofilms. Seventeen papers, nine on combinations against antifungal biofilms and eight against antibacterial biofilms were collected. Within the text, the following topics have been developed: breaf history of the discovery of biofilms; stages in the development of a biofilm; the most used methodologies to assess antibiofilm-activity; the natural products with capacity of eradicating biofilms when acting alone; the combinations of low MW natural products with antibiotics or antifungal drugs as a strategy for eradicating microbial biofilms and a list of the low MW natural products that potentiate the inhibition capacity of antifungal and antibacterial drugs against biofilms. Regarding combinations against antifungal biofilms, eight over the nine collected works were carried out with in vitro studies while only one was performed with in vivo assays by using Caenorhabditis elegans nematode. All studies use biofilms of the Candida genus. A 67% of the potentiators were monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes and six over the nine works used FCZ as the antifungal drug. The activity of AmpB and Caspo was enhanced in one and two

  7. Enhancement of natural radiation and population exposures due to the activity of large steelworks

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Niewiadomski, T; Godek, J; Jasinska, M; Wasiolek, P [Institute of Nuclear Physics, Krakow (Poland)

    1984-09-01

    Radionuclide releases and resulting population exposures from large industrial plants have recently become a subject of some public concern. Methods for assessing these effects were developed and, as an example, a complex of large steelworks located in the vicinity of the city of Krakow was investigated. The following critical pathways were considered: atmospheric release, and use of fly ash for production of building materials. For assessing annual average radionuclide concentrations in air and in soil around the works, a computer program was developed while other mathematical methods were applied to the assessment of maximum individual effective dose equivalent commitments (EDEC) due to inhalation, ingestion, and external gamma radiation. In order to acquire data for calculations many samples of raw materials, coal, ash, and dust were analysed as to their radionuclide concentration. The total individual EDEC at the place of maximum immission was estimated to be about 100 ..mu..Sv a/sup -1/ (i.e., about 6% of the natural exposure in this region), this being mainly due to ingestion (ca. 65 ..mu..Sv a/sup -1/) and to gamma radiation (ca. 30 ..mu..Sv a/sup -1/). The enhancement of dose rates over the ponds and of radioactivity concentration of liquid discharges from the ponds was found to be negligible. Dose rates in houses built entirely of fly ash were estimated to be higher than those in red-brick houses by not more than 0.2 ..mu..Sv a/sup -1/. The collective EDEC from the operational discharge of the steelworks is less than 11 man Sv a/sup -1/ and that of use of fly-ash prefabricated elements will be in the future less than 45 man Sv a/sup -1/.

  8. Production capacity of equipment for medium and large hydroelectric power plant in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Huang Shenyang [Ministry of Electric Power, Beijing (China). Bureau of Electric Power Machinery

    1995-07-01

    This document presents an overview on the production capacity of equipment for medium and large hydroelectric power plant in China. The document approaches general aspects, production capability and testing facilities related to Francis, Kaplan, tubular and impulse hydroelectric generating sets, and the introduction of main manufacturers as well.

  9. Reproducible, large-scale production of thallium-based high-temperature superconductors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gay, R.L.; Stelman, D.; Newcomb, J.C.; Grantham, L.F.; Schnittgrund, G.D.

    1990-01-01

    This paper reports on the development of a large scale spray-calcination technique generic to the preparation of ceramic high-temperature superconductor (HTSC) powders. Among the advantages of the technique is that of producing uniformly mixed metal oxides on a fine scale. Production of both yttrium and thallium-based HTSCs has been demonstrated using this technique. In the spray calciner, solutions of the desired composition are atomized as a fine mist into a hot gas. Evaporation and calcination are instantaneous, yielding an extremely fine, uniform oxide powder. The calciner is 76 cm in diameter and can produce metal oxide powder at relatively large rates (approximately 100 g/h) without contamination

  10. OPTIMIZATION OF THE ORGANIZATIONAL AND ECONOMICAL MECHANISM BETWEEN SMALL AND LARGE COMPANIES IN THE PRODUCTION AND SALE OF DAIRY PRODUCTS SPHERE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    K. B. Dobrova

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper analyzes the main directions to optimize the organizational and economical mechanism between small and large companies in the production and sale of dairy products sphere in the Russian practice.

  11. 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene mineralization and bacterial production rates of natural microbial assemblages from coastal sediments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Montgomery, Michael T.; Coffin, Richard B.; Boyd, Thomas J.; Smith, Joseph P.; Walker, Shelby E.; Osburn, Christopher L.

    2011-01-01

    The nitrogenous energetic constituent, 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT), is widely reported to be resistant to bacterial mineralization (conversion to CO 2 ); however, these studies primarily involve bacterial isolates from freshwater where bacterial production is typically limited by phosphorus. This study involved six surveys of coastal waters adjacent to three biome types: temperate broadleaf, northern coniferous, and tropical. Capacity to catabolize and mineralize TNT ring carbon to CO 2 was a common feature of natural sediment assemblages from these coastal environments (ranging to 270+/-38 μg C kg -1 d -1 ). More importantly, these mineralization rates comprised a significant proportion of total heterotrophic production. The finding that most natural assemblages surveyed from these ecosystems can mineralize TNT ring carbon to CO 2 is consistent with recent reports that assemblage components can incorporate TNT ring carbon into bacterial biomass. These data counter the widely held contention that TNT is recalcitrant to bacterial catabolism of the ring carbon in natural environments. - Highlights: → TNT mineralization is a common feature of natural bacterial assemblages in coastal sediments. → TNT mineralization rates comprised a significant proportion of total heterotrophic production. → These data counter the widely held contention that TNT is recalcitrant to bacterial catabolism of the ring carbon in natural environments. - The capacity to mineralize TNT ring carbon to CO 2 is a common feature of natural bacterial assemblages in coastal sediment.

  12. Toyota production system beyond large-scale production

    CERN Document Server

    Ohno, Taiichi

    1998-01-01

    In this classic text, Taiichi Ohno--inventor of the Toyota Production System and Lean manufacturing--shares the genius that sets him apart as one of the most disciplined and creative thinkers of our time. Combining his candid insights with a rigorous analysis of Toyota's attempts at Lean production, Ohno's book explains how Lean principles can improve any production endeavor. A historical and philosophical description of just-in-time and Lean manufacturing, this work is a must read for all students of human progress. On a more practical level, it continues to provide inspiration and instruction for those seeking to improve efficiency through the elimination of waste.

  13. An Overview of Natural Gas Conversion Technologies for Co-Production of Hydrogen and Value-Added Solid Carbon Products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dagle, Robert A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Dagle, Vanessa [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Bearden, Mark D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Holladay, Jamelyn D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Krause, Theodore R. [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Ahmed, Shabbir [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

    2017-11-16

    This report was prepared in response to the U.S. Department of Energy Fuel Cell Technologies Office Congressional Appropriation language to support research on carbon-free production of hydrogen using new chemical processes that utilize natural gas to produce solid carbon and hydrogen. The U.S. produces 9-10 million tons of hydrogen annually with more than 95% of the hydrogen produced by steam-methane reforming (SMR) of natural gas. SMR is attractive because of its high hydrogen yield; but it also converts the carbon to carbon dioxide. Non-oxidative thermal decomposition of methane to carbon and hydrogen is an alternative to SMR and produces CO2-free hydrogen. The produced carbon can be sold as a co-product, thus providing economic credit that reduces the delivered net cost of hydrogen. The combination of producing hydrogen with potentially valuable carbon byproducts has market value in that this allows greater flexibility to match the market prices of hydrogen and carbon. That is, the higher value product can subsidize the other in pricing decisions. In this report we highlight the relevant technologies reported in the literature—primarily thermochemical and plasma conversion processes—and recent research progress and commercial activities. Longstanding technical challenges include the high energetic requirements (e.g., high temperatures and/or electricity requirements) necessary for methane activation and, for some catalytic processes, the separation of solid carbon product from the spent catalyst. We assess current and new carbon product markets that could be served given technological advances, and we discuss technical barriers and potential areas of research to address these needs. We provide preliminary economic analysis for these processes and compare to other emerging (e.g., electrolysis) and conventional (e.g., SMR) processes for hydrogen production. The overarching conclusion of this study is that the cost of hydrogen can be potentially

  14. Measurement of atmospheric pollutants associated with oil and natural gas exploration and production activity in Pennsylvania's Allegheny National Forest.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pekney, Natalie J; Veloski, Garret; Reeder, Matthew; Tamilia, Joseph; Rupp, Erik; Wetzel, Alan

    2014-09-01

    Oil and natural gas exploration and production (E&P) activities generate emissions from diesel engines, compressor stations, condensate tanks, leaks and venting of natural gas, construction of well pads, and well access roads that can negatively impact air quality on both local and regional scales. A mobile, autonomous air quality monitoring laboratory was constructed to collect measurements of ambient concentrations of pollutants associated with oil and natural gas E&P activities. This air-monitoring laboratory was deployed to the Allegheny National Forest (ANF) in northwestern Pennsylvania for a campaign that resulted in the collection of approximately 7 months of data split between three monitoring locations between July 2010 and June 2011. The three monitoring locations were the Kane Experimental Forest (KEF) area in Elk County, which is downwind of the Sackett oilfield; the Bradford Ranger Station (BRS) in McKean County, which is downwind of a large area of historic oil and gas productivity; and the U.S. Forest Service Hearts Content campground (HC) in Warren County, which is in an area relatively unimpacted by oil and gas development and which therefore yielded background pollutant concentrations in the ANF. Concentrations of criteria pollutants ozone and NO2 did not vary significantly from site to site; averages were below National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) associated with oil and natural gas (ethane, propane, butane, pentane) were highly correlated. Applying the conditional probability function (CPF) to the ethane data yielded most probable directions of the sources that were coincident with known location of existing wells and activity. Differences between the two impacted and one background site were difficult to discern, suggesting the that the monitoring laboratory was a great enough distance downwind of active areas to allow for sufficient dispersion with background air such that the localized

  15. Process optimization of large-scale production of recombinant adeno-associated vectors using dielectric spectroscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negrete, Alejandro; Esteban, Geoffrey; Kotin, Robert M

    2007-09-01

    A well-characterized manufacturing process for the large-scale production of recombinant adeno-associated vectors (rAAV) for gene therapy applications is required to meet current and future demands for pre-clinical and clinical studies and potential commercialization. Economic considerations argue in favor of suspension culture-based production. Currently, the only feasible method for large-scale rAAV production utilizes baculovirus expression vectors and insect cells in suspension cultures. To maximize yields and achieve reproducibility between batches, online monitoring of various metabolic and physical parameters is useful for characterizing early stages of baculovirus-infected insect cells. In this study, rAAVs were produced at 40-l scale yielding ~1 x 10(15) particles. During the process, dielectric spectroscopy was performed by real time scanning in radio frequencies between 300 kHz and 10 MHz. The corresponding permittivity values were correlated with the rAAV production. Both infected and uninfected reached a maximum value; however, only infected cell cultures permittivity profile reached a second maximum value. This effect was correlated with the optimal harvest time for rAAV production. Analysis of rAAV indicated the harvesting time around 48 h post-infection (hpi), and 72 hpi produced similar quantities of biologically active rAAV. Thus, if operated continuously, the 24-h reduction in the production process of rAAV gives sufficient time for additional 18 runs a year corresponding to an extra production of ~2 x 10(16) particles. As part of large-scale optimization studies, this new finding will facilitate the bioprocessing scale-up of rAAV and other bioproducts.

  16. Climatic potential productivity and an IRS-1CWiFS image in Natural Park Los Alcornocales. Relationship with the standing forest biomass; Productividad Potencial Climatica y una imagen IRS-1CWiFS en el Parque Natural Los Alcornocales. Relacion con la biomasa forestal real

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cuevas, J. M.; Gonzalez-Alonso, F.; Roldan, A.; Huesca, M.

    2009-07-01

    It is studied the use of the Map of Forest Potential Productivity of Spain as information in base to which classify an Indian IRS-1C WiFS satellite image in Los Alcornocales Natural Park (Andalucia, Spain), a large forest area covered by natural forests of Mediterranean broad-leaved species, mainly cork oak (Quercus suber L.). Grouping the classes of climatic potential productivity of this map were obtained three macro classes that resulted significantly different among them at the 99% confidence level for the visible and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) of the WiFS image. It was built a classifier using these macro classes of climatic potential productivity as ground truth areas. By maximum likelihood supervised classification of the NDVI were obtained classes who resulted significantly different among them at the 90% confidence level for the basal area from the Second Spanish National Forest Inventory ground plots located in the park. (Author) 60 refs.

  17. Pre-fractionated Microbial Samples – The Second Generation Natural Products Library at Wyeth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Melissa M. Wagenaar

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available From the beginning of the antibiotic era in the 1940s to the present, Wyeth has sustained an active research program in the area of natural products discovery. This program has continually evolved through the years in order to best align with the “current” drug discovery paradigm in the pharmaceutical industry. The introduction of highthroughput screening and the miniaturization of assays have created a need to optimize natural product samples to better suit these new technologies. Furthermore, natural product programs are faced with an ever shortening time period from hit detection to lead characterization. To address these issues, Wyeth has created a pre-fractionated natural products library using reversed-phase HPLC to complement their existing library of crude extracts. The details of the pre-fractionated library and a cost-benefit analysis will be presented in this review.

  18. Natural product diversity of actinobacteria in the Atacama Desert.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rateb, Mostafa E; Ebel, Rainer; Jaspars, Marcel

    2018-02-14

    The Atacama Desert of northern Chile is considered one of the most arid and extreme environment on Earth. Its core region was described as featuring "Mars-like" soils that were at one point deemed too extreme for life to exist. However, recent investigations confirmed the presence of diverse culturable actinobacteria. In the current review, we discuss a total of 46 natural products isolated to date representing diverse chemical classes characterized from different actinobacteria isolated from various locations in the Atacama Desert. Their reported biological activities are also discussed.

  19. Concepts and Plans towards fast large scale Monte Carlo production for the ATLAS Experiment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ritsch, E.; Atlas Collaboration

    2014-06-01

    The huge success of the physics program of the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) during Run 1 relies upon a great number of simulated Monte Carlo events. This Monte Carlo production takes the biggest part of the computing resources being in use by ATLAS as of now. In this document we describe the plans to overcome the computing resource limitations for large scale Monte Carlo production in the ATLAS Experiment for Run 2, and beyond. A number of fast detector simulation, digitization and reconstruction techniques are being discussed, based upon a new flexible detector simulation framework. To optimally benefit from these developments, a redesigned ATLAS MC production chain is presented at the end of this document.

  20. Conceptual process synthesis for recovery of natural products from plants

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Malwade, Chandrakant R.; Qu, Haiyan; Rong, Ben-Guang

    2013-01-01

    ) and purification of target compound(s) from the crude extract. Process analytical technology (PAT) is used in each step to understand the nature of material systems and separation characteristics of each separation method. In the present work, this methodology is applied to generate process flow sheet for recovery......A systematic method of conceptual process synthesis for recovery of natural products from their biological sources is presented. This methodology divides the task into two major subtasks namely, isolation of target compound from a chemically complex solid matrix of biological source (crude extract...... in individual unit operations of maceration, flash column chromatography, and crystallization are 90.0%, 87.1, and 47.6%, respectively. Results showed that the crystallization step is dominant to the overall yield of the process which was 37.3%....