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Sample records for monomeric constituent occurs

  1. A monomeric variant of insulin degrading enzyme (IDE loses its regulatory properties.

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    Eun Suk Song

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Insulin degrading enzyme (IDE is a key enzyme in the metabolism of both insulin and amyloid beta peptides. IDE is unique in that it is subject to allosteric activation which is hypothesized to occur through an oligomeric structure.IDE is known to exist as an equilibrium mixture of monomers, dimers, and higher oligomers, with the dimer being the predominant form. Based on the crystal structure of IDE we deleted the putative dimer interface in the C-terminal region, which resulted in a monomeric variant. Monomeric IDE retained enzymatic activity, however instead of the allosteric behavior seen with wild type enzyme it displayed Michaelis-Menten kinetic behavior. With the substrate Abz-GGFLRKHGQ-EDDnp, monomeric IDE retained approximately 25% of the wild type activity. In contrast with the larger peptide substrates beta-endorphin and amyloid beta peptide 1-40, monomeric IDE retained only 1 to 0.25% of wild type activity. Unlike wild type IDE neither bradykinin nor dynorphin B-9 activated the monomeric variant of the enzyme. Similarly, monomeric IDE was not activated by polyphosphates under conditions in which the activity of wild type enzyme was increased more than 50 fold.These findings serve to establish the dimer interface in IDE and demonstrate the requirement for an oligomeric form of the enzyme for its regulatory properties. The data support a mechanism where the binding of activators to oligomeric IDE induces a conformational change that cannot occur in the monomeric variant. Since a conformational change from a closed to a more open structure is likely the rate-determining step in the IDE reaction, the subunit induced conformational change likely shifts the structure of the oligomeric enzyme to a more open conformation.

  2. Controlled catalytic and thermal sequential pyrolysis and hydrolysis of phenolic resin containing waste streams to sequentially recover monomers and chemicals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chum, H.L.; Evans, R.J.

    1992-08-04

    A process is described for using fast pyrolysis in a carrier gas to convert a waste phenolic resin containing feedstreams in a manner such that pyrolysis of said resins and a given high value monomeric constituent occurs prior to pyrolyses of the resins in other monomeric components therein comprising: selecting a first temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of said resin and a given high value monomeric constituent prior to a temperature range that causes pyrolysis of other monomeric components; selecting, if desired, a catalyst and a support and treating said feedstreams with said catalyst to effect acid or basic catalyzed reaction pathways to maximize yield or enhance separation of said high value monomeric constituent in said first temperature program range to utilize reactive gases such as oxygen and steam in the pyrolysis process to drive the production of specific products; differentially heating said feedstreams at a heat rate within the first temperature program range to provide differential pyrolysis for selective recovery of optimum quantity of said high value monomeric constituent prior to pyrolysis of other monomeric components therein; separating said high value monomeric constituent; selecting a second higher temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of a different high value monomeric constituent of said phenolic resins waste and differentially heating said feedstreams at said higher temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of said different high value monomeric constituent; and separating said different high value monomeric constituent. 11 figs.

  3. Controlled catalytic and thermal sequential pyrolysis and hydrolysis of polymer waste comprising nylon 6 and a polyolefin or mixtures of polyolefins to sequentially recover monomers or other high value products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, R.J.; Chum, H.L.

    1994-10-25

    A process of using fast pyrolysis in a carrier gas to convert a plastic waste feedstream having a mixed polymeric composition in a manner such that pyrolysis of a given polymer to its high value monomeric constituent occurs prior to pyrolysis of other plastic components therein comprising: selecting a first temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of said given polymer to its high value monomeric constituent prior to a temperature range that causes pyrolysis of other plastic components; selecting a catalyst and support for treating said feed streams with said catalyst to effect acid or base catalyzed reaction pathways to maximize yield or enhance separation of said high value monomeric constituent in said temperature program range; differentially heating said feed stream at a heat rate within the first temperature program range to provide differential pyrolysis for selective recovery of optimum quantities of the high value monomeric constituent prior to pyrolysis of other plastic components; separating the high value monomeric constituents; selecting a second higher temperature range to cause pyrolysis of a different high value monomeric constituent of said plastic waste and differentially heating the feedstream at the higher temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of the different high value monomeric constituent; and separating the different high value monomeric constituent. 83 figs.

  4. The flavonoid herbacetin diglucoside as a constituent of the lignan macromolecule from flaxseed hulls

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Struijs, K.; Vincken, J.P.; Verhoef, R.P.; Oostveen, van W.H.M.; Voragen, A.G.J.; Gruppen, H.

    2007-01-01

    Lignans in flaxseed are known to be part of a macromolecule in which they are connected through the linker-molecule hydroxy-methyl-glutaric acid (HMGA). In this study, the lignan macromolecule was extracted from flaxseed hulls and degraded to its monomeric constituents by complete saponification.

  5. Monomeric tartrate resistant acid phosphatase induces insulin sensitive obesity.

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    Pernilla Lång

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available Obesity is associated with macrophage infiltration of adipose tissue, which may link adipose inflammation to insulin resistance. However, the impact of inflammatory cells in the pathophysiology of obesity remains unclear. Tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP is an enzyme expressed by subsets of macrophages and osteoclasts that exists either as an enzymatically inactive monomer or as an active, proteolytically processed dimer.Using mice over expressing TRAP, we show that over-expression of monomeric, but not the dimeric form in adipose tissue leads to early onset spontaneous hyperplastic obesity i.e. many small fat cells. In vitro, recombinant monomeric, but not proteolytically processed TRAP induced proliferation and differentiation of mouse and human adipocyte precursor cells. In humans, monomeric TRAP was highly expressed in the adipose tissue of obese individuals. In both the mouse model and in the obese humans the source of TRAP in adipose tissue was macrophages. In addition, the obese TRAP over expressing mice exhibited signs of a low-grade inflammatory reaction in adipose tissue without evidence of abnormal adipocyte lipolysis, lipogenesis or insulin sensitivity.Monomeric TRAP, most likely secreted from adipose tissue macrophages, induces hyperplastic obesity with normal adipocyte lipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity.

  6. Substrate-Induced Dimerization of Engineered Monomeric Variants of Triosephosphate Isomerase from Trichomonas vaginalis.

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    Samuel Lara-Gonzalez

    Full Text Available The dimeric nature of triosephosphate isomerases (TIMs is maintained by an extensive surface area interface of more than 1600 Å2. TIMs from Trichomonas vaginalis (TvTIM are held in their dimeric state by two mechanisms: a ball and socket interaction of residue 45 of one subunit that fits into the hydrophobic pocket of the complementary subunit and by swapping of loop 3 between subunits. TvTIMs differ from other TIMs in their unfolding energetics. In TvTIMs the energy necessary to unfold a monomer is greater than the energy necessary to dissociate the dimer. Herein we found that the character of residue I45 controls the dimer-monomer equilibrium in TvTIMs. Unfolding experiments employing monomeric and dimeric mutants led us to conclude that dimeric TvTIMs unfold following a four state model denaturation process whereas monomeric TvTIMs follow a three state model. In contrast to other monomeric TIMs, monomeric variants of TvTIM1 are stable and unexpectedly one of them (I45A is only 29-fold less active than wild-type TvTIM1. The high enzymatic activity of monomeric TvTIMs contrast with the marginal catalytic activity of diverse monomeric TIMs variants. The stability of the monomeric variants of TvTIM1 and the use of cross-linking and analytical ultracentrifugation experiments permit us to understand the differences between the catalytic activities of TvTIMs and other marginally active monomeric TIMs. As TvTIMs do not unfold upon dimer dissociation, herein we found that the high enzymatic activity of monomeric TvTIM variants is explained by the formation of catalytic dimeric competent species assisted by substrate binding.

  7. SYNTHESIS AND STRUCTURE OF BIS(PHENYLTETRAMETHYLCYCLOPENTADIENYL)TITANIUM(III) HYDRIDE - THE FIRST MONOMERIC BIS(CYCLOPENTADIENYL)TITANIUM(III) HYDRIDE : The First Monomeric Bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(III) Hydride

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Wolf, J.M.; Meetsma, A.; Teuben, J.H

    1995-01-01

    The first structurally characterized monomeric bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(III) hydride, (C(5)PhMe(4))(2)TiH (4), was synthesized by hydrogenolysis of (C(5)PhMe(4))(2)TiMe (5). Hydride 4 was found to be a monomeric bent sandwich by X-ray diffraction methods, and the pentamethylcyclopentadienyl

  8. Controlled catalytic and thermal sequential pyrolysis and hydrolysis of polycarbonate and plastic waste to recover monomers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, R.J.; Chum, H.L.

    1994-06-14

    A process is described using fast pyrolysis to convert a plastic waste feed stream containing polycarbonate and ABS to high value monomeric constituents prior to pyrolysis of other plastic components therein comprising: selecting a first temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of a given polymer to its high value monomeric constituents prior to a temperature range that causes pyrolysis of other plastic components; selecting an acid or base catalysts and an oxide or carbonate support for treating the feed stream to affect acid or base catalyzed reaction pathways to maximize yield or enhance separation of the high value monomeric constituents of polycarbonate and ABS in the first temperature program range; differentially heating the feed stream at a heat rate within the first temperature program range to provide differential pyrolysis for selective recovery of optimum quantities of the high value monomeric constituents prior to pyrolysis or other plastic components; separating the high value monomeric constituents from the polycarbonate to cause pyrolysis to a different high value monomeric constituent of the plastic waste and differentially heating the feed stream at the second higher temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of different high value monomeric constituents; and separating the different high value monomeric constituents. 68 figs.

  9. Controlled catalystic and thermal sequential pyrolysis and hydrolysis of polycarbonate and plastic waste to recover monomers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, Robert J.; Chum, Helena L.

    1994-01-01

    A process of using fast pyrolysis to convert a plastic waste feed stream containing polycarbonate and ABS to high value monomeric constituents prior to pyrolysis of other plastic components therein comprising: selecting a first temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of a given polymer to its high value monomeric constituents prior to a temperature range that causes pyrolysis of other plastic components; selecting an acid or base catalysts and an oxide or carbonate support for treating the feed stream to affect acid or base catalyzed reaction pathways to maximize yield or enhance separation of the high value monomeric constituents of polycarbonate and ABS in the first temperature program range; differentially heating the feed stream at a heat rate within the first temperature program range to provide differential pyrolysis for selective recovery of optimum quantities of the high value monomeric constituents prior to pyrolysis or other plastic components; separating the high value monomeric constituents from the polycarbonate to cause pyrolysis to a different high value monomeric constituent of the plastic waste and differentially heating the feed stream at the second higher temperature program range to cause pyrolysis of different high value monomeric constituents; and separating the different high value monomeric constituents.

  10. Tumour localization and pharmacokinetics of iodine-125 human monoclonal IgM antibody (COU-1) and its monomeric and half-monomeric fragments analysed in nude mice grafted with human tumour

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ditzel, H.; Erb, K.; Rasmussen, J.W.; Jensenius, J.C.

    1992-01-01

    Human monoclonal IgM antibodies reactive with cancer-associated antigens may not have the optimal imaging capability due to their large size. Fragmentation of human IgM is less than straight-forward due to the loss of immunoreactivity. From the human monoclonal IgM antibody COU-1 we have prepared monomeric and half-monomeric fragments, which retain the ability to bind to colon cancer cells in vitro. The pharmacokinetics and tumour localization were evaluated in nude mice bearing human colon adenocarcinoma and human melanoma grafts. Faster clearance from the circulation was seen for the smaller half-monomeric fragment with a half-life (rapid phase/slow phase) of 2 h/16 h compared with the intact antibody, 4 h/25 h, and the monomeric fragment, 3 h/27 h. Intact COU-1 as well as the fragments accumulated in the colon tumour graft. Higher amounts of radioactivity were found in the colon tumour as compared to normal organs for intact COU-1 at days 4 and 6, for the monomeric fragment at day 4, and for the half-monomeric fragment at day 2 after injection. This investigation demonstrates the favourable biodistribution of the half monomeric COU-1 fragment. The fast clearance of this fragment resulted in a tumour-to-muscle ratio as high as 22 on day 2 after injection. Also, only this fragment gave a positive tumour-to-blood ratio. Normal IgM and its fragments were used as controls. Radioimmunoscintigraphy demonstrated the colon tumour discriminatory properties of each of the three iodine-labelled antibody preparations. The results compare favourably with previously reported investigations of the localization of human monoclonal antibodies and suggest that fragments of human monoclonal IgM antibodies may be useful tools for the immunodetection of cancer in patients. (orig.)

  11. Monomeric Yeast Frataxin is an Iron-Binding Protein

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cook, J.; Bencze, K.; Jankovic, A.; Crater, A.; Busch, C.; Bradley, P.; Stemmler, A.; Spaller, M.; Stemmler, T.

    2006-01-01

    Friedreich's ataxia, an autosomal cardio- and neurodegenerative disorder that affects 1 in 50 000 humans, is caused by decreased levels of the protein frataxin. Although frataxin is nuclear-encoded, it is targeted to the mitochondrial matrix and necessary for proper regulation of cellular iron homeostasis. Frataxin is required for the cellular production of both heme and iron-sulfur (Fe-S) clusters. Monomeric frataxin binds with high affinity to ferrochelatase, the enzyme involved in iron insertion into porphyrin during heme production. Monomeric frataxin also binds to Isu, the scaffold protein required for assembly of Fe-S cluster intermediates. These processes (heme and Fe-S cluster assembly) share requirements for iron, suggesting that monomeric frataxin might function as the common iron donor. To provide a molecular basis to better understand frataxin's function, we have characterized the binding properties and metal-site structure of ferrous iron bound to monomeric yeast frataxin. Yeast frataxin is stable as an iron-loaded monomer, and the protein can bind two ferrous iron atoms with micromolar binding affinity. Frataxin amino acids affected by the presence of iron are localized within conserved acidic patches located on the surfaces of both helix-1 and strand-1. Under anaerobic conditions, bound metal is stable in the high-spin ferrous state. The metal-ligand coordination geometry of both metal-binding sites is consistent with a six-coordinate iron-(oxygen/nitrogen) based ligand geometry, surely constructed in part from carboxylate and possibly imidazole side chains coming from residues within these conserved acidic patches on the protein. On the basis of our results, we have developed a model for how we believe yeast frataxin interacts with iron

  12. Hazardous constituent source term. Revision 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1994-01-01

    The Department of Energy (DOE) has several facilities that either generate and/or store transuranic (TRU)-waste from weapons program research and production. Much of this waste also contains hazardous waste constituents as regulated under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Toxicity characteristic metals in the waste principally include lead, occurring in leaded rubber gloves and shielding. Other RCRA metals may occur as contaminants in pyrochemical salt, soil, debris, and sludge and solidified liquids, as well as in equipment resulting from decontamination and decommissioning activities. Volatile organic compounds (VOCS) contaminate many waste forms as a residue adsorbed on surfaces or occur in sludge and solidified liquids. Due to the presence of these hazardous constituents, applicable disposal regulations include land disposal restrictions established by Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA). The DOE plans to dispose of TRU-mixed waste from the weapons program in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) by demonstrating no-migration of hazardous constituents. This paper documents the current technical basis for methodologies proposed to develop a post-closure RCRA hazardous constituent source term. For the purposes of demonstrating no-migration, the hazardous constituent source term is defined as the quantities of hazardous constituents that are available for transport after repository closure. Development of the source term is only one of several activities that will be involved in the no-migration demonstration. The demonstration will also include uncertainty and sensitivity analyses of contaminant transport

  13. Generation and Characterization of an IgG4 Monomeric Fc Platform.

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    Lu Shan

    Full Text Available The immunoglobulin Fc region is a homodimer consisted of two sets of CH2 and CH3 domains and has been exploited to generate two-arm protein fusions with high expression yields, simplified purification processes and extended serum half-life. However, attempts to generate one-arm fusion proteins with monomeric Fc, with one set of CH2 and CH3 domains, are often plagued with challenges such as weakened binding to FcRn or partial monomer formation. Here, we demonstrate the generation of a stable IgG4 Fc monomer with a unique combination of mutations at the CH3-CH3 interface using rational design combined with in vitro evolution methodologies. In addition to size-exclusion chromatography and analytical ultracentrifugation, we used multi-angle light scattering (MALS to show that the engineered Fc monomer exhibits excellent monodispersity. Furthermore, crystal structure analysis (PDB ID: 5HVW reveals monomeric properties supported by disrupted interactions at the CH3-CH3 interface. Monomeric Fc fusions with Fab or scFv achieved FcRn binding and serum half-life comparable to wildtype IgG. These results demonstrate that this monomeric IgG4 Fc is a promising therapeutic platform to extend the serum half-life of proteins in a monovalent format.

  14. Direct labelling of monomeric antibody fragments Fab' with 99mTc

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Jun; Wang Shizhen; Yang Ziyi

    1994-01-01

    Direct labelling method and conditions of monomeric antibody Fab' with 99m Tc were investigated. Polyclonal antibody IgG was digested with ficin to produce dimeric fragments F(ab') 2 , which was subsequently reduced to monomeric fragments Fab' with 2-mercaptoethylamine. Finally, Fab' was incubated with sodium gluconate (Sn(II)) kit solution and 99m TcO 4 - eluted at room temperature to form 99m Tc-Fab'. The labelling efficiency was 85%-95%. The stability of labelled products was satisfactory and the elimination rate was faster than 99m Tc-IgG

  15. Monomeric insulins and their experimental and clinical implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brange, J; Owens, D R; Kang, S; Vølund, A

    1990-09-01

    Due to the inherent pharmacokinetic properties of available insulins, normoglycemia is rarely, if ever, achieved in insulin-dependent diabetic patients without compromising their quality of life. Subcutaneous insulin absorption is influenced by many factors, among which the associated state of insulin (hexameric) in pharmaceutical formulation may be of importance. This review describes the development of a series of human insulin analogues with reduced tendency to self-association that, because of more rapid absorption, are better suited to meal-related therapy. DNA technology has made it possible to prepare insulins that remain dimeric or even monomeric at high concentration by introducing one or a few amino acid substitutions into human insulin. These analogues were characterized and used for elucidating the mechanisms involved in subcutaneous absorption and were investigated in preliminary clinical studies. Their relative receptor binding and in vitro potency (free-fat cell assay), ranging from 0.05 to 600% relative to human insulin, were strongly correlated (r = 0.97). In vivo, most of the analogues exhibited approximately 100% activity, explainable by a dominating receptor-mediated clearance. This was confirmed by clamp studies in which correlation between receptor binding and clearance was observed. Thus, an analogue with reduced binding and clearance gives higher circulating concentrations, counterbalancing the reduced potency at the cellular level. Absorption studies in pigs revealed a strong inverse correlation (r = 0.96) between the rate of subcutaneous absorption and the mean association state of the insulin analogues. These studies also demonstrated that monomeric insulins were absorbed three times faster than human insulin. In healthy subjects, rates of disappearance from subcutis were two to three times faster for dimeric and monomeric analogues than for human insulin. Concomitantly, a more rapid rise in plasma insulin concentration and an earlier

  16. Anthocyanins and Their Variation in Red Wines I. Monomeric Anthocyanins and Their Color Expression

    OpenAIRE

    Chang-Qing Duan; Malcolm J. Reeves; Qiu-Hong Pan; Lin Mu; Na-Na Liang; Fei He; Jun Wang

    2012-01-01

    Originating in the grapes, monomeric anthocyanins in young red wines contribute the majority of color and the supposed beneficial health effects related to their consumption, and as such they are recognized as one of the most important groups of phenolic metabolites in red wines. In recent years, our increasing knowledge of the chemical complexity of the monomeric anthocyanins, their stability, together with the phenomena such as self-association and copigmentation that can stabilize and enha...

  17. Anthocyanins and Their Variation in Red Wines I. Monomeric Anthocyanins and Their Color Expression

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    Chang-Qing Duan

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Originating in the grapes, monomeric anthocyanins in young red wines contribute the majority of color and the supposed beneficial health effects related to their consumption, and as such they are recognized as one of the most important groups of phenolic metabolites in red wines. In recent years, our increasing knowledge of the chemical complexity of the monomeric anthocyanins, their stability, together with the phenomena such as self-association and copigmentation that can stabilize and enhance their color has helped to explain their color representation in red wine making and aging. A series of new enological practices were developed to improve the anthocyanin extraction, as well as their color expression and maintenance. This paper summarizes the most recent advances in the studies of the monomeric anthocyanins in red wines, emphasizing their origin, occurrence, color enhancing effects, their degradation and the effect of various enological practices on them.

  18. Multistage modeling of protein dynamics with monomeric Myc oncoprotein as an example.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jiaojiao; Dai, Jin; He, Jianfeng; Niemi, Antti J; Ilieva, Nevena

    2017-03-01

    We propose to combine a mean-field approach with all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) into a multistage algorithm that can model protein folding and dynamics over very long time periods yet with atomic-level precision. As an example, we investigate an isolated monomeric Myc oncoprotein that has been implicated in carcinomas including those in colon, breast, and lungs. Under physiological conditions a monomeric Myc is presumed to be an example of intrinsically disordered proteins that pose a serious challenge to existing modeling techniques. We argue that a room-temperature monomeric Myc is in a dynamical state, it oscillates between different conformations that we identify. For this we adopt the Cα backbone of Myc in a crystallographic heteromer as an initial ansatz for the monomeric structure. We construct a multisoliton of the pertinent Landau free energy to describe the Cα profile with ultrahigh precision. We use Glauber dynamics to resolve how the multisoliton responds to repeated increases and decreases in ambient temperature. We confirm that the initial structure is unstable in isolation. We reveal a highly degenerate ground-state landscape, an attractive set towards which Glauber dynamics converges in the limit of vanishing ambient temperature. We analyze the thermal stability of this Glauber attractor using room-temperature molecular dynamics. We identify and scrutinize a particularly stable subset in which the two helical segments of the original multisoliton align in parallel next to each other. During the MD time evolution of a representative structure from this subset, we observe intermittent quasiparticle oscillations along the C-terminal α helix, some of which resemble a translating Davydov's Amide-I soliton. We propose that the presence of oscillatory motion is in line with the expected intrinsically disordered character of Myc.

  19. Iontophoresis of monomeric insulin analogues in vitro: effects of insulin charge and skin pretreatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langkjaer, L; Brange, J; Grodsky, G M; Guy, R H

    1998-01-23

    The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of association state and net charge of human insulin analogues on the rate of iontophoretic transport across hairless mouse skin, and the effect of different skin pretreatments on said transport. No insulin flux was observed with anodal delivery probably because of degradation at the Ag/AgCl anode. The flux during cathodal iontophoresis through intact skin was insignificant for human hexameric insulin, and only low and variable fluxes were observed for monomeric insulins. Using stripped skin on the other hand, the fluxes of monomeric insulins with two extra negative charges were 50-100 times higher than that of hexameric human insulin. Introducing three additional charges led to a further 2-3-fold increase in flux. Wiping the skin gently with absolute alcohol prior to iontophoresis resulted in a 1000-fold increase in transdermal transport of insulin relative to that across untreated skin, i.e. to almost the same level as stripping the skin. The alcohol pretreatment reduced the electrical resistance of the skin, presumably by lipid extraction. In conclusion, monomeric insulin analogues with at least two extra negative charges can be iontophoretically delivered across hairless mouse skin, whereas insignificant flux is observed with human, hexameric insulin. Wiping the skin with absolute alcohol prior to iontophoresis gave substantially improved transdermal transport of monomeric insulins resulting in clinically relevant delivery rates for basal treatment.

  20. Peracetic Acid Depolymerization of Biorefinery Lignin for Production of Selective Monomeric Phenolic Compounds

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ma, Ruoshui [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Guo, Mond [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Lin, Kuan-ting [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Hebert, Vincent R. [Food and Environmental Laboratory, Washington State, University-TriCities, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Zhang, Jinwen [Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164 USA; Wolcott, Michael P. [Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164 USA; Quintero, Melissa [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan K. [Chemical and Biological Process Development Group, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland WA 99354 USA; Chen, Xiaowen [National Bioenergy Center, National Renewable Energy Lab, 1617 Cole Blvd Golden CO 80127 USA; Zhang, Xiao [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA

    2016-07-04

    Lignin is the largest source of renewable material with an aromatic skeleton. However, due to the recalcitrant and heterogeneous nature of the lignin polymer, it has been a challenge to effectively depolymerize lignin and produce high-value chemicals with high selectivity. In this study, a highly efficient lignin-to-monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC) conversion method based on peracetic acid (PAA) treatment was reported. PAA treatment of two biorefinery lignin samples, diluted acid pretreated corn stover lignin (DACSL) and steam exploded spruce lignin (SESPL), led to complete solubilization and production of selective hydroxylated monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC-H) and monomeric phenolic acid compounds (MPC-A) including 4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenol, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, syringic acid, and 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid. The maximized MPC yields obtained were 18 and 22 % based on the initial weight of the lignin in SESPL and DACSL, respectively. However, we found that the addition of niobium pentoxide catalyst to PAA treatment of lignin can significantly improve the MPC yields up to 47 %. The key reaction steps and main mechanisms involved in this new lignin-to-MPC valorization pathway were investigated and elucidated.

  1. Peracetic Acid Depolymerization of Biorefinery Lignin for Production of Selective Monomeric Phenolic Compounds

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ma, Ruoshui [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Guo, Mond [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Lin, Kuan-ting [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Hebert, Vincent R. [Food and Environmental Laboratory, Washington State, University-TriCities, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Zhang, Jinwen [Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164 USA; Wolcott, Michael P. [Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164 USA; Quintero, Melissa [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan K. [Chemical and Biological Process Development Group, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland WA 99354 USA; Chen, Xiaowen [National Bioenergy Center, National Renewable Energy Lab, 1617 Cole Blvd Golden CO 80127 USA; Zhang, Xiao [Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Bioproducts, Science & Engineering Laboratory, Washington State University, 2710 Crimson Way Richland WA 99354 USA

    2016-07-04

    Lignin is the largest source of renewable material with an aromatic skeleton. However, due to the recalcitrant and heterogeneous nature of the lignin polymer as well as its complex side chain structures, it has been a challenge to effectively depolymerize lignin and produce high value chemicals with high selectivity. In this study, a highly efficient lignin-to-monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC) conversion method based on peracetic acid (PAA) treatment was reported. PAA treatment of two biorefinery lignin samples, diluted acid pretreated corn stover lignin (DACSL) and steam exploded spruce lignin (SESPL), led to complete solubilization and production of selective hydroxylated monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC-H) and monomeric phenolic acid compounds (MPC-A) inclduing 4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenol, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, syringic acid, and 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid. The maximized MPCs yields obtained were 18% and 22% based on the initial weight of the lignin in SESPL and DACSL respectively. However, we found that the addition of niobium pentoxide catalyst to PAA treatment of lignin can significantly improve the MPC yields up to 47%. The key reaction steps and main mechanisms involved in this new lignin-to-MPC valorization pathway were investigated and elucidated.

  2. Monomeric adiponectin modulates nitric oxide release and calcium movements in porcine aortic endothelial cells in normal/high glucose conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grossini, Elena; Farruggio, Serena; Qoqaiche, Fatima; Raina, Giulia; Camillo, Lara; Sigaudo, Lorenzo; Mary, David; Surico, Nicola; Surico, Daniela

    2016-09-15

    Perivascular adipose tissue can be involved in the process of cardiovascular pathology through the release of adipokines, namely adiponectins. Monomeric adiponectin has been shown to increase coronary blood flow in anesthetized pigs through increased nitric oxide (NO) release and the involvement of adiponectin receptor 1 (AdipoR1). The present study was therefore planned to examine the effects of monomeric adiponectin on NO release and Ca(2+) transients in porcine aortic endothelial cells (PAEs) in normal/high glucose conditions and the related mechanisms. PAEs were treated with monomeric adiponectin alone or in the presence of intracellular kinases blocker, AdipoR1 and Ca(2+)-ATPase pump inhibitors. The role of Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger was examined in experiments performed in zero Na(+) medium. NO release and intracellular Ca(2+) were measured through specific probes. In PAE cultured in normal glucose conditions, monomeric adiponectin elevated NO production and [Ca(2+)]c. Similar effects were observed in high glucose conditions, although the response was lower and not transient. The Ca(2+) mobilized by monomeric adiponectin originated from an intracellular pool thapsigargin- and ATP-sensitive and from the extracellular space. Moreover, the effects of monomeric adiponectin were prevented by kinase blockers and AdipoR1 inhibitor. Finally, in normal glucose condition, a role for Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger and Ca(2+)-ATPase pump in restoring Ca(2+) was found. Our results add new information about the control of endothelial function elicited by monomeric adiponectin, which would be achieved by modulation of NO release and Ca(2+) transients. A signalling related to Akt, ERK1/2 and p38MAPK downstream AdipoR1 would be involved. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Monomeric adiponectin increases cell viability in porcine aortic endothelial cells cultured in normal and high glucose conditions: Data on kinases activation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena Grossini

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available We found that monomeric adiponectin was able to increase cell viability in porcine aortic endothelial cells (PAE cultured both in normal and high glucose condition. Moreover, in normal glucose condition monomeric adiponectin increased p38MAPK, Akt, ERK1/2 and eNOS phosphorylation in a dose- and time-dependent way. Also in high glucose condition monomeric adiponectin increased eNOS and above kinases phosphorylation with similar patterns but at lower extent. For interpretation of the data presented in this article, please see the research article “Monomeric adiponectin modulates nitric oxide release and calcium movements in porcine aortic endothelial cells in normal/high glucose conditions” (Grossini et al., in press [1].

  4. Distinct subcellular trafficking resulting from monomeric vs multimeric targeting to endothelial ICAM-1: implications for drug delivery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghaffarian, Rasa; Muro, Silvia

    2014-12-01

    Ligand-targeted, receptor-mediated endocytosis is commonly exploited for intracellular drug delivery. However, cells-surface receptors may follow distinct endocytic fates when bound by monomeric vs multimeric ligands. Our purpose was to study this paradigm using ICAM-1, an endothelial receptor involved in inflammation, to better understand its regulation and potential for drug delivery. Our procedure involved fluorescence microscopy of human endothelial cells to determine the endocytic behavior of unbound ICAM-1 vs ICAM-1 bound by model ligands: monomeric (anti-ICAM) vs multimeric (anti-ICAM biotin-streptavidin conjugates or anti-ICAM coated onto 100 nm nanocarriers). Our findings suggest that both monomeric and multimeric ligands undergo a similar endocytic pathway sensitive to amiloride (∼50% inhibition), but not inhibitors of clathrin-pits or caveoli. After 30 min, ∼60-70% of both ligands colocalized with Rab11a-compartments. By 3-5 h, ∼65-80% of multimeric anti-ICAM colocalized with perinuclear lysosomes with ∼60-80% degradation, while 70% of monomeric anti-ICAM remained associated with Rab11a at the cell periphery and recycled to and from the cell-surface with minimal (drug delivery.

  5. Peracetic Acid Depolymerization of Biorefinery Lignin for Production of Selective Monomeric Phenolic Compounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Ruoshui; Guo, Mond; Lin, Kuan-Ting; Hebert, Vincent R; Zhang, Jinwen; Wolcott, Michael P; Quintero, Melissa; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan K; Chen, Xiaowen; Zhang, Xiao

    2016-07-25

    Lignin is the largest source of renewable material with an aromatic skeleton. However, due to the recalcitrant and heterogeneous nature of the lignin polymer, it has been a challenge to effectively depolymerize lignin and produce high-value chemicals with high selectivity. In this study, a highly efficient lignin-to-monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC) conversion method based on peracetic acid (PAA) treatment was reported. PAA treatment of two biorefinery lignin samples, diluted acid pretreated corn stover lignin (DACSL) and steam exploded spruce lignin (SESPL), led to complete solubilization and production of selective hydroxylated monomeric phenolic compounds (MPC-H) and monomeric phenolic acid compounds (MPC-A) including 4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenol, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, syringic acid, and 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid. The maximized MPC yields obtained were 18 and 22 % based on the initial weight of the lignin in SESPL and DACSL, respectively. However, we found that the addition of niobium pentoxide catalyst to PAA treatment of lignin can significantly improve the MPC yields up to 47 %. The key reaction steps and main mechanisms involved in this new lignin-to-MPC valorization pathway were investigated and elucidated. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  6. Quantification of the predominant monomeric catechins in baking chocolate standard reference material by LC/APCI-MS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nelson, Bryant C; Sharpless, Katherine E

    2003-01-29

    Catechins are polyphenolic plant compounds (flavonoids) that may offer significant health benefits to humans. These benefits stem largely from their anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and antimutagenic properties. Recent epidemiological studies suggest that the consumption of flavonoid-containing foods is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. Chocolate is a natural cocoa bean-based product that reportedly contains high levels of monomeric, oligomeric, and polymeric catechins. We have applied solid-liquid extraction and liquid chromatography coupled with atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry to the identification and determination of the predominant monomeric catechins, (+)-catechin and (-)-epicatechin, in a baking chocolate Standard Reference Material (NIST Standard Reference Material 2384). (+)-Catechin and (-)-epicatechin are detected and quantified in chocolate extracts on the basis of selected-ion monitoring of their protonated [M + H](+) molecular ions. Tryptophan methyl ester is used as an internal standard. The developed method has the capacity to accurately quantify as little as 0.1 microg/mL (0.01 mg of catechin/g of chocolate) of either catechin in chocolate extracts, and the method has additionally been used to certify (+)-catechin and (-)-epicatechin levels in the baking chocolate Standard Reference Material. This is the first reported use of liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry for the quantitative determination of monomeric catechins in chocolate and the only report certifying monomeric catechin levels in a food-based Standard Reference Material.

  7. Dose-finding study of carbamylated monomeric allergoid tablets in grass-allergic rhinoconjunctivitis patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mösges, Ralph; Rohdenburg, Christina; Eichel, Andrea; Zadoyan, Gregor; Kasche, Elena-Manja; Shah-Hosseini, Kija; Lehmacher, Walter; Schmalz, Petra; Compalati, Enrico

    2017-11-01

    To determine the optimal effective and safe dose of sublingual immunotherapy tablets containing carbamylated monomeric allergoids in patients with grass pollen-induced allergic rhinoconjunctivitis. In this prospective, randomized, double-blind, active-controlled, multicenter, Phase II study, four different daily doses were applied preseasonally for 12 weeks. Of 158 randomized adults, 155 subjects (safety population) received 300 units of allergy (UA)/day (n = 36), 600 UA/day (n = 43), 1000 UA/day (n = 39), or 2000 UA/day (n = 37). After treatment, 54.3, 47.6, 59.0 and 51.4% of patients, respectively, ceased to react to the highest allergen concentration in a conjunctival provocation test. Furthermore, the response threshold improved in 70.4, 62.9, 76.7 and 66.7% of patients, respectively. No serious adverse events occurred. This study found 1000 UA/day to be the optimal effective and safe dose.

  8. Stability of human interferon-beta 1: oligomeric human interferon-beta 1 is inactive but is reactivated by monomerization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utsumi, J; Yamazaki, S; Kawaguchi, K; Kimura, S; Shimizu, H

    1989-10-05

    Human interferon-beta 1 is extremely stable is a low ionic strength solution of pH 2 such as 10 mM HCl at 37 degrees C. However, the presence of 0.15 M NaCl led to a remarkable loss of antiviral activity. The molecular-sieve high-performance liquid chromatography revealed that, whereas completely active human interferon-beta 1 eluted as a 25 kDa species (monomeric form), the inactivated preparation eluted primarily as a 90 kDa species (oligomeric form). The specific activity (units per mg protein) of the oligomeric form was approx. 10% of that of the monomeric form. This observation shows that oligomeric human interferon-beta 1 is apparently in an inactive form. When the oligomeric eluate was resolved by polyacrylamide gel containing sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), it appeared to be monomeric under non-reducing conditions. Monomerization of the oligomeric human interferon-beta 1 by treatment with 1% SDS, fully regenerated its antiviral activity. These results suggest that the inactivation of the human interferon-beta 1 preparation was caused by its oligomerization via hydrophobic interactions without the formation of intermolecular disulphide bonds. These oligomers can be dissociated by SDS to restore biological activity.

  9. Principal Component Regression Analysis of the Relation Between CIELAB Color and Monomeric Anthocyanins in Young Cabernet Sauvignon Wines

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chang-Qing Duan

    2008-11-01

    Full Text Available Color is one of the key characteristics used to evaluate the sensory quality of red wine, and anthocyanins are the main contributors to color. Monomeric anthocyanins and CIELAB color values were investigated by HPLC-MS and spectrophotometry during fermentation of Cabernet Sauvignon red wine, and principal component regression (PCR, a statistical tool, was used to establish a linkage between the detected anthocyanins and wine coloring. The results showed that 14 monomeric anthocyanins could be identified in wine samples, and all of these anthocyanins were negatively correlated with the L*, b* and H*ab values, but positively correlated with a* and C*ab values. On an equal concentration basis for each detected anthocyanin, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (Cy3-glu had the most influence on CIELAB color value, while malvidin 3-O-glucoside (Mv3-glu had the least. The color values of various monomeric anthocyanins were influenced by their structures, substituents on the B-ring, acyl groups on the glucoside and the molecular steric structure. This work develops a statistical method for evaluating correlation between wine color and monomeric anthocyanins, and also provides a basis for elucidating the effect of intramolecular copigmentation on wine coloring.

  10. Monomeric insulins obtained by protein engineering and their medical implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brange, J; Ribel, U; Hansen, J F; Dodson, G; Hansen, M T; Havelund, S; Melberg, S G; Norris, F; Norris, K; Snel, L

    1988-06-16

    The use of insulin as an injected therapeutic agent for the treatment of diabetes has been one of the outstanding successes of modern medicine. The therapy has, however, had its associated problems, not least because injection of insulin does not lead to normal diurnal concentrations of insulin in the blood. This is especially true at meal times when absorption from subcutaneous tissue is too slow to mimic the normal rapid increments of insulin in the blood. In the neutral solutions used for therapy, insulin is mostly assembled as zinc-containing hexamers and this self-association, which under normal physiological circumstances functions to facilitate proinsulin transport, conversion and intracellular storage, may limit the rate of absorption. We now report that it is possible, by single amino-acid substitutions, to make insulins which are essentially monomeric at pharmaceutical concentrations (0.6 mM) and which have largely preserved their biological activity. These monomeric insulins are absorbed two to three times faster after subcutaneous injection than the present rapid-acting insulins. They are therefore capable of giving diabetic patients a more physiological plasma insulin profile at the time of meal consumption.

  11. Improved detection of a staphylococcal infection by monomeric and protein A-purified polyclonal human immunoglobulin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Calame, W.

    1993-01-01

    The present study was undertaken to compare the technetium-99m labelled non-specific polyclonal human immunoglobulin (Ig) with 99m Tc-labelled monomeric human immunoglobulin (m-Ig), 99m Tc-labelled, protein A-purified, human immunoglobulin (A-IG) and 99m Tc-labelled monomeric, protein A-purified, human immunoglobulin (mA-Ig) as tracer agents for the detection of a thigh infection with Staphylococcus aureus. In vitro the binding of the various tracer agents to bacteria at various intervals was determined. For the in vivo evaluation, mice were infected and received one of the various labelled proteins. Scintigrams were made 0.25, 1, 4 and 24 h later. All 99m Tc-labelled Igs bound to bacteria in vitro: The percentages of binding for the m-Ig (from 1 h onwards) and A-Ig and mA-Ig (from 3 h onwards) were significantly higher than that for Ig. The in vivo target-to-non-target (T/NT) ratios were significantly higher from 4 h onwards for all purified Igs than for Ig. Protein A-purified Ig yielded higher T/NT ratios than m-Ig. Furthermore, the amount of activity in the liver was significantly lower 24 h after administration of m-Ig, A-Ig and mA-Ig than after administration of Ig. It is concluded that in this experimental infection 99m Tc-labelled monomeric Ig localizes a staphylococcal thigh infection better and faster than 99m Tc-labelled unpurified Ig. However, the accumulation obtained with protein A-purified Ig or protein A-purified monomeric Ig was the highest of all tracer agents tested. (orig.)

  12. Characterization of monomeric intermediates during VSV glycoprotein structural transition.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aurélie A Albertini

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Entry of enveloped viruses requires fusion of viral and cellular membranes, driven by conformational changes of viral glycoproteins. Crystal structures provide static pictures of pre- and post-fusion conformations of these proteins but the transition pathway remains elusive. Here, using several biophysical techniques, including analytical ultracentrifugation, circular dichroïsm, electron microscopy and small angle X-ray scattering, we have characterized the low-pH-induced fusogenic structural transition of a soluble form of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV glycoprotein G ectodomain (G(th, aa residues 1-422, the fragment that was previously crystallized. While the post-fusion trimer is the major species detected at low pH, the pre-fusion trimer is not detected in solution. Rather, at high pH, G(th is a flexible monomer that explores a large conformational space. The monomeric population exhibits a marked pH-dependence and adopts more elongated conformations when pH decreases. Furthermore, large relative movements of domains are detected in absence of significant secondary structure modification. Solution studies are complemented by electron micrographs of negatively stained viral particles in which monomeric ectodomains of G are observed at the viral surface at both pH 7.5 and pH 6.7. We propose that the monomers are intermediates during the conformational change and thus that VSV G trimers dissociate at the viral surface during the structural transition.

  13. Preparation of a highly concentrated, completely monomeric, active sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lüdi, H; Hasselbach, W

    1985-11-21

    Sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles from fast skeletal muscle were partially delipidated with sodium cholate at high ionic strength and sedimented in a discontinuous sucrose gradient. Phospholipid content was reduced from 0.777 mumol/mg protein to 0.242 mumol/mg protein. As judged from gel electrophoresis and high pressure liquid gel chromatography, accessory proteins were removed during centrifugation and the Ca2+-ATPase was obtained in an almost pure form. Addition of myristoylglycerophosphocholine (1 mg/mg protein) reactivates ATPase and dinitrophenylphosphatase activity to the same degree obtained with native vesicles. Using the analytical ultracentrifuge it could be demonstrated that the reactivated Ca2+-ATPase was present exclusively in a monomeric state. These results were obtained at high and low ionic strength and up to a protein concentration of 10 mg/ml. Therefore this preparation should be very useful to investigate differences between oligomeric and monomeric Ca2+-ATPase.

  14. Metal-free ALS variants of dimeric human Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase have enhanced populations of monomeric species.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna-Karin E Svensson

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Amino acid replacements at dozens of positions in the dimeric protein human, Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1 can cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS. Although it has long been hypothesized that these mutations might enhance the populations of marginally-stable aggregation-prone species responsible for cellular toxicity, there has been little quantitative evidence to support this notion. Perturbations of the folding free energy landscapes of metal-free versions of five ALS-inducing variants, A4V, L38V, G93A, L106V and S134N SOD1, were determined with a global analysis of kinetic and thermodynamic folding data for dimeric and stable monomeric versions of these variants. Utilizing this global analysis approach, the perturbations on the global stability in response to mutation can be partitioned between the monomer folding and association steps, and the effects of mutation on the populations of the folded and unfolded monomeric states can be determined. The 2- to 10-fold increase in the population of the folded monomeric state for A4V, L38V and L106V and the 80- to 480-fold increase in the population of the unfolded monomeric states for all but S134N would dramatically increase their propensity for aggregation through high-order nucleation reactions. The wild-type-like populations of these states for the metal-binding region S134N variant suggest that even wild-type SOD1 may also be prone to aggregation in the absence of metals.

  15. Two mechanisms for dissipation of excess light in monomeric and trimeric light-harvesting complexes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dall' Osto, Luca [Univ. di Verona, Verona (Italy). Dipartimento di Biotecnologie; Cazzaniga, Stefano [Univ. di Verona, Verona (Italy). Dipartimento di Biotecnologie; Bressan, Mauro [Univ. di Verona, Verona (Italy). Dipartimento di Biotecnologie; Paleček, David [Lund Univ. (Sweden). Dept. of Chemical Physics; Židek, Karel [Lund Univ. (Sweden). Dept. of Chemical Physics; Niyogi, Krishna K. [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Howard Hughes Medical Inst., Dept. of Plant and Microbial Biology; Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division; Fleming, Graham R. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division; Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Chemistry, Graduate Group in Applied Science and Technology; Zigmantas, Donatas [Lund Univ. (Sweden). Dept. of Chemical Physics; Bassi, Roberto [Univ. di Verona, Verona (Italy). Dipartimento di Biotecnologie; Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Firenze (Italy). Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante (IPP)

    2017-04-10

    Oxygenic photoautotrophs require mechanisms for rapidly matching the level of chlorophyll excited states from light harvesting with the rate of electron transport from water to carbon dioxide. These photoprotective reactions prevent formation of reactive excited states and photoinhibition. The fastest response to excess illumination is the so-called non-photochemical quenching which, in higher plants, requires the luminal pH sensor PsbS and other yet unidentified components of the photosystem II antenna. Both trimeric light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) and monomeric LHC proteins have been indicated as site(s) of the heat-dissipative reactions. Different mechanisms have been proposed: Energy transfer to a lutein quencher in trimers, formation of a zeaxanthin radical cation in monomers. Here, we report on the construction of a mutant lacking all monomeric LHC proteins but retaining LHCII trimers. Its non-photochemical quenching induction rate was substantially slower with respect to the wild type. A carotenoid radical cation signal was detected in the wild type, although it was lost in the mutant. Here, we conclude that non-photochemical quenching is catalysed by two independent mechanisms, with the fastest activated response catalysed within monomeric LHC proteins depending on both zeaxanthin and lutein and on the formation of a radical cation. Trimeric LHCII was responsible for the slowly activated quenching component whereas inclusion in supercomplexes was not required. Finally, this latter activity does not depend on lutein nor on charge transfer events, whereas zeaxanthin was essential.

  16. Crystallization and preliminary crystallographic analysis of decameric and monomeric forms of C49S mutant thioredoxin-dependent AhpC from Helicobacter pylori

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Supangat; Seo, Kyung Hye; Furqoni, Ahmad; Kwon, Young-Chul; Cho, Myung-Je; Rhee, Kwang-Ho; Lee, Sang Yeol; Lee, Kon Ho

    2008-01-01

    Decameric and monomeric forms of recombinant C49S mutant AhpC from H. pylori have been crystallized. Diffraction data were collected to 2.8 and 2.25 Å, respectively. Cys49Ser mutant Helicobacter pylori alkyl hydroperoxide reductase (C49S HpAhpC) was purified under reducing conditions in monomeric and decameric forms. The monomeric form was crystallized by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. The crystals diffracted to 2.25 Å resolution and belonged to space group C2, with unit-cell parameters a = 245.8, b = 140.7, c = 189.5 Å, β = 127°, and contained 20 molecules in the asymmetric unit. A crystal of the decameric form was obtained by the microbatch crystallization method and diffracted to 2.8 Å resolution. It belonged to space group C222, with unit-cell parameters a = 257.5, b = 417.5, c = 95.6 Å. The structure of the monomeric form of C49S HpAhpC has been solved by the molecular-replacement method

  17. Chemical investigation of the volatile constituents of Cleome viscosa from Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriel Olatunji

    2005-06-01

    Full Text Available The major volatile constituents of the oils from the integral parts of Cleome viscosa L. from Nigeria have been identified by GC, GC/MS and 1H NMR. The main constituents of the non-polar fraction of the oils were monoterpene hydrocarbons (21% in stem/leaves, 15% in seed/fruits, 12% in roots and some oxygenated derivatives (3% in leaves/stem; 1% in seeds/fruits and 1.5% in roots. The monoterpenes occurred frequently in the oils. Fatty acid esters especially ethyl palmitate which constituted a major constituent in the oil from the seeds/fruits was not detected in the oils from the roots.

  18. Development of bisphenol A-removing recombinant Escherichia coli by monomeric and dimeric surface display of bisphenol A-binding peptide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maruthamuthu, Murali Kannan; Hong, Jiyeon; Arulsamy, Kulandaisamy; Somasundaram, Sivachandiran; Hong, SoonHo; Choe, Woo-Seok; Yoo, Ik-Keun

    2018-04-01

    Peptide-displaying Escherichia coli cells were investigated for use in adsorptive removal of bisphenol A (BPA) both in Luria-Bertani medium including BPA or ATM thermal paper eluted wastewater. Two recombinant strains were constructed with monomeric and dimeric repeats of the 7-mer BPA-binding peptide (KSLENSY), respectively. Greater than threefold increased adsorption of BPA [230.4 µmol BPA per g dry cell weight (DCW)] was found in dimeric peptide-displaying cells compared to monomeric strains (63.4 µmol per g DCW) in 15 ppm BPA solution. The selective removal of BPA from a mixture of BPA analogs (bisphenol F and bisphenol S) was verified in both monomeric and dimeric peptide-displaying cells. The binding chemistry of BPA with the peptide was assumed, based on molecular docking analysis, to be the interaction of BPA with serine and asparagine residues within the 7-mer peptide sequence. The peptide-displaying cells also functioned efficiently in thermal paper eluted wastewater containing 14.5 ppm BPA.

  19. Neurodevelopmental Expression Profile of Dimeric and Monomeric Group 1 mGluRs: Relevance to Schizophrenia Pathogenesis and Treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lum, Jeremy S; Fernandez, Francesca; Matosin, Natalie; Andrews, Jessica L; Huang, Xu-Feng; Ooi, Lezanne; Newell, Kelly A

    2016-10-10

    Group 1 metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR1/mGluR5) play an integral role in neurodevelopment and are implicated in psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia. mGluR1 and mGluR5 are expressed as homodimers, which is important for their functionality and pharmacology. We examined the protein expression of dimeric and monomeric mGluR1α and mGluR5 in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus throughout development (juvenile/adolescence/adulthood) and in the perinatal phencyclidine (PCP) model of schizophrenia. Under control conditions, mGluR1α dimer expression increased between juvenile and adolescence (209-328%), while monomeric levels remained consistent. Dimeric mGluR5 was steadily expressed across all time points; monomeric mGluR5 was present in juveniles, dramatically declining at adolescence and adulthood (-97-99%). The mGluR regulators, Homer 1b/c and Norbin, significantly increased with age in the PFC and hippocampus. Perinatal PCP treatment significantly increased juvenile dimeric mGluR5 levels in the PFC and hippocampus (37-50%) but decreased hippocampal mGluR1α (-50-56%). Perinatal PCP treatment also reduced mGluR1α dimer levels in the PFC at adulthood (-31%). These results suggest that Group 1 mGluRs have distinct dimeric and monomeric neurodevelopmental patterns, which may impact their pharmacological profiles at specific ages. Perinatal PCP treatment disrupted the early expression of Group 1 mGluRs which may underlie neurodevelopmental alterations observed in this model.

  20. Structure/function analysis of PARP-1 in oxidative and nitrosative stress-induced monomeric ADPR formation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ben Buelow

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available Poly adenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase-1 (PARP-1 is a multifunctional enzyme that is involved in two major cellular responses to oxidative and nitrosative (O/N stress: detection and response to DNA damage via formation of protein-bound poly adenosine diphosphate-ribose (PAR, and formation of the soluble 2(nd messenger monomeric adenosine diphosphate-ribose (mADPR. Previous studies have delineated specific roles for several of PARP-1's structural domains in the context of its involvement in a DNA damage response. However, little is known about the relationship between the mechanisms through which PARP-1 participates in DNA damage detection/response and those involved in the generation of monomeric ADPR. To better understand the relationship between these events, we undertook a structure/function analysis of PARP-1 via reconstitution of PARP-1 deficient DT40 cells with PARP-1 variants deficient in catalysis, DNA binding, auto-PARylation, and PARP-1's BRCT protein interaction domain. Analysis of responses of the respective reconstituted cells to a model O/N stressor indicated that PARP-1 catalytic activity, DNA binding, and auto-PARylation are required for PARP-dependent mADPR formation, but that BRCT-mediated interactions are dispensable. As the BRCT domain is required for PARP-dependent recruitment of XRCC1 to sites of DNA damage, these results suggest that DNA repair and monomeric ADPR 2(nd messenger generation are parallel mechanisms through which PARP-1 modulates cellular responses to O/N stress.

  1. Alpha B- and βA3-crystallins containing d-aspartic acids exist in a monomeric state.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sakaue, Hiroaki; Takata, Takumi; Fujii, Norihiko; Sasaki, Hiroshi; Fujii, Noriko

    2015-01-01

    Crystallin stability and subunit-subunit interaction are essential for eye lens transparency. There are three types of crystallins in lens, designated as α-, β-, and γ-crystallins. Alpha-crystallin is a hetero-polymer of about 800kDa, consisting of 35-40 subunits of two different αA- and αB-subunits, each of 20kDa. The β/γ-crystallin superfamily comprises oligomeric β-crystallin (2-6 subunits) and monomeric γ-crystallin. Since lens proteins have very long half-lives, they undergo numerous post-translational modifications including racemization, isomerization, deamidation, oxidation, glycation, and truncation, which may decrease crystallin solubility and ultimately cause cataract formation. Racemization and isomerization of aspartyl (Asp) residues have been detected only in polymeric α- and oligomeric β-crystallin, while the situation in monomeric γ-crystallin has not been studied. Here, we investigated the racemization and isomerization of Asp in the γ-crystallin fraction of elderly donors. The results show that Asp residues of γS-, γD- and γC-crystallins were not racemized and isomerized. However, strikingly, we found that a portion of αB-crystallin and βA3-crystallin moved to the lower molecular weight fraction which is the same size of γ-crystallin. In those fractions, Asp-96 of αB-crystallin and Asp-37 of βA3-crystallin were highly inverted, which do not occur in the native lens higher molecular weight fraction. Our results indicate the possibility that the inversion of Asp residues may induce dissociation of αB- and βA3-crystallins from the polymeric and oligomeric states. This is the first report that stereoinversion of amino acids disturbs lens protein assembly in aged human lens. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. MONOMERIC ß-AMYLOID INTERACTS WITH TYPE-1 INSULIN-LIKE GROWTH FACTOR RECEPTORS TO PROVIDE ENERGY SUPPLY TO NEURONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Laura eGiuffrida

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available ß-amyloid (Aß1-42 is produced by proteolytic cleavage of the transmembrane type-1 protein, amyloid precursor protein. Under pathological conditions, Aß1-42 self-aggregates into oligomers, which cause synaptic dysfunction and neuronal loss, and are considered the culprit of Alzheimer’s disease (AD. However, Aß1-42 is mainly monomeric at physiological concentrations, and the precise role of monomeric Aß1-42 in neuronal function is largely unknown. We report that the monomer of Aß1-42 activates type-1 insulin-like growth factor receptors and enhances glucose uptake in neurons and peripheral cells by promoting the translocation of the Glut3 glucose transporter from the cytosol to the plasma membrane. In neurons, activity-dependent glucose uptake was blunted after blocking endogenous Aß production, and re-established in the presence of cerebrospinal fluid Aß. APP-null neurons failed to enhance depolarization-stimulated glucose uptake unless exogenous monomeric Aß1-42 was added. These data suggest that Aß1-42 monomers were critical for maintaining neuronal glucose homeostasis. Accordingly, exogenous Aß1-42 monomers were able to rescue the low levels of glucose consumption observed in brain slices from AD mutant mice.

  3. Induction of antibodies against epitopes inaccessible on the HIV type 1 envelope oligomer by immunization with recombinant monomeric glycoprotein 120

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schønning, Kristian; Bolmstedt, A; Novotny, J

    1998-01-01

    An N-glycan (N306) at the base of the V3 loop of HIV-BRU gp120 is shielding a linear neutralization epitope at the tip of the V3 loop on oligomeric Env. In contrast, this epitope is readily antigenic on monomeric gp120. Immunization with recombinant monomeric HIV-BRU gp120 may thus be expected...... immunogenic structures inaccessible on the envelope oligomer. The limited ability of recombinant gp120 vaccines to induce neutralizing antibodies against primary isolates may thus not exclusively reflect genetic variation....

  4. Natural monomeric form of fetal bovine serum acetylcholinesterase lacks the C-terminal tetramerization domain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saxena, Ashima; Hur, Regina S; Luo, Chunyuan; Doctor, Bhupendra P

    2003-12-30

    Acetylcholinesterase isolated from fetal bovine serum (FBS AChE) was previously characterized as a globular tetrameric form. Analysis of purified preparations of FBS AChE by gel permeation chromatography revealed the presence of a stable, catalytically active, monomeric form of this enzyme. The two forms could be distinguished from each other based on their molecular weight, hydrodynamic properties, kinetic properties, thermal stability, and the type of glycans they carry. No differences between the two forms were observed for the binding of classical inhibitors such as edrophonium and propidium or inhibitors that are current or potential drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease such as (-) huperzine A and E2020; tacrine inhibited the monomeric form 2-3-fold more potently than the tetrameric form. Sequencing of peptides obtained from an in-gel tryptic digest of the monomer and tetramer by tandem mass spectrometry indicated that the tetramer consists of 583 amino acid residues corresponding to the mature form of the enzyme, whereas the monomer consists of 543-547 amino acid residues. The subunit molecular weight of the protein component of the monomer (major species) was determined to be 59 414 Da and that of the tetramer as 64 239 Da. The N-terminal of the monomer and the tetramer was Glu, suggesting that the monomer is not a result of truncation at the N-terminal. The only differences detected were at the C-terminus. The tetramer yielded the expected C-terminus, CSDL, whereas the C-terminus of the monomer yielded a mixture of peptides, of which LLSATDTLD was the most abundant. These results suggest that monomeric FBS AChE is trimmed at the C-terminus, and the results are consistent with the involvement of C-terminal amino acids in the assembly of monomers into tetramers.

  5. Monomeric, Oligomeric and Polymeric Proteins in Huntington Disease and Other Diseases of Polyglutamine Expansion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guylaine Hoffner

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Huntington disease and other diseases of polyglutamine expansion are each caused by a different protein bearing an excessively long polyglutamine sequence and are associated with neuronal death. Although these diseases affect largely different brain regions, they all share a number of characteristics, and, therefore, are likely to possess a common mechanism. In all of the diseases, the causative protein is proteolyzed, becomes abnormally folded and accumulates in oligomers and larger aggregates. The aggregated and possibly the monomeric expanded polyglutamine are likely to play a critical role in the pathogenesis and there is increasing evidence that the secondary structure of the protein influences its toxicity. We describe here, with special attention to huntingtin, the mechanisms of polyglutamine aggregation and the modulation of aggregation by the sequences flanking the polyglutamine. We give a comprehensive picture of the characteristics of monomeric and aggregated polyglutamine, including morphology, composition, seeding ability, secondary structure, and toxicity. The structural heterogeneity of aggregated polyglutamine may explain why polyglutamine-containing aggregates could paradoxically be either toxic or neuroprotective.

  6. Monomeric banana lectin at acidic pH overrules conformational stability of its native dimeric form.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javed M Khan

    Full Text Available Banana lectin (BL is a homodimeric protein categorized among jacalin-related family of lectins. The effect of acidic pH was examined on conformational stability of BL by using circular dichroism, intrinsic fluorescence, 1-anilino-8-napthalene sulfonate (ANS binding, size exclusion chromatography (SEC and dynamic light scattering (DLS. During acid denaturation of BL, the monomerization of native dimeric protein was found at pH 2.0. The elution profile from SEC showed two different peaks (59.65 ml & 87.98 ml at pH 2.0 while single peak (61.45 ml at pH 7.4. The hydrodynamic radii (R h of native BL was 2.9 nm while at pH 2.0 two species were found with R h of 1.7 and 3.7 nm. Furthermore at, pH 2.0 the secondary structures of BL remained unaltered while tertiary structure was significantly disrupted with the exposure of hydrophobic clusters confirming the existence of molten globule like state. The unfolding of BL with different subunit status was further evaluated by urea and temperature mediated denaturation to check their stability. As inferred from high Cm and ΔG values, the monomeric form of BL offers more resistance towards chemical denaturation than the native dimeric form. Besides, dimeric BL exhibited a Tm of 77°C while no loss in secondary structures was observed in monomers even up to 95°C. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on monomeric subunit of lectins showing more stability against denaturants than its native dimeric state.

  7. mKikGR, a monomeric photoswitchable fluorescent protein.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Satoshi Habuchi

    Full Text Available The recent demonstration and utilization of fluorescent proteins whose fluorescence can be switched on and off has greatly expanded the toolkit of molecular and cell biology. These photoswitchable proteins have facilitated the characterization of specifically tagged molecular species in the cell and have enabled fluorescence imaging of intracellular structures with a resolution far below the classical diffraction limit of light. Applications are limited, however, by the fast photobleaching, slow photoswitching, and oligomerization typical for photoswitchable proteins currently available. Here, we report the molecular cloning and spectroscopic characterization of mKikGR, a monomeric version of the previously reported KikGR that displays high photostability and switching rates. Furthermore, we present single-molecule imaging experiments that demonstrate that individual mKikGR proteins can be localized with a precision of better than 10 nanometers, suggesting their suitability for super-resolution imaging.

  8. Constituent concentrations, loads, and yields to Beaver Lake, Arkansas, water years 1999-2008

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bolyard, Susan E.; De Lanois, Jeanne L.; Green, W. Reed

    2010-01-01

    Beaver Lake is a large, deep-storage reservoir used as a drinking-water supply and considered a primary watershed of concern in the State of Arkansas. As such, information is needed to assess water quality, especially nutrient enrichment, nutrient-algal relations, turbidity, and sediment issues within the reservoir system. Water-quality samples were collected at three main inflows to Beaver Lake: the White River near Fayetteville, Richland Creek at Goshen, and War Eagle Creek near Hindsville. Water-quality samples collected over the period represented different flow conditions (from low to high). Constituent concentrations, flow-weighted concentrations, loads, and yields from White River, Richland Creek, and War Eagle Creek to Beaver Lake for water years 1999-2008 were documented for this report. Constituents include total ammonia plus organic nitrogen, dissolved nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, dissolved orthophosphorus (soluble reactive phosphorus), total phosphorus, total nitrogen, dissolved organic carbon, total organic carbon, and suspended sediment. Linear regression models developed by computer program S-LOADEST were used to estimate loads for each constituent for the 10-year period at each station. Constituent yields and flow-weighted concentrations for each of the three stations were calculated for the study. Constituent concentrations and loads and yields varied with time and varied among the three tributaries contributing to Beaver Lake. These differences can result from differences in precipitation, land use, contributions of nutrients from point sources, and variations in basin size. Load and yield estimates varied yearly during the study period, water years 1999-2008, with the least nutrient and sediment load and yields generally occurring in water year 2006, and the greatest occurring in water year 2008, during a year with record amounts of precipitation. Flow-weighted concentrations of most constituents were greatest at War Eagle Creek near Hindsville

  9. Hydrodynamical model with massless constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiu, C.B.; Wang, K.H.

    1974-01-01

    Within the constituent hydrodynamical model, it is shown that the total number of constituents is conserved, if these constituents are massless and satisfy the Fermi-Dirac distribution. A simple scheme for the transition from the constituent-phase to the hadron-phase is suggested, and the hadron inclusive momentum spectra are presented for this case. This phase transition scheme predicts the average transverse momentum of meson resonances which is compatible with the data. (U.S.)

  10. Selective defunctionalization by TiO2 of monomeric phenolics from lignin pyrolysis into simple phenols.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mante, Ofei D; Rodriguez, Jose A; Babu, Suresh P

    2013-11-01

    This study is focused on defunctionalizing monomeric phenolics from lignin into simple phenols for applications such as phenol/formaldehyde resins, epoxidized novolacs, adhesives and binders. Towards this goal, Titanium dioxide (TiO2) was used to selectively remove hydroxyl, methoxy, carbonyl and carboxyl functionalities from the monomeric phenolic compounds from lignin to produce mainly phenol, cresols and xylenols. The results showed that anatase TiO2 was more selective and active compared to rutile TiO2. Catechols were found to be the most reactive phenolics and 4-ethylguaiacol the least reactive with anatase TiO2. An overall conversion of about 87% of the phenolics was achieved at 550°C with a catalyst-to-feed ratio of 5 w/w. Over 97% conversion of phenolics is achievable at moderate temperatures (550°C or ≤ 600°C) and a moderate catalyst-to-feed ratio of 6.5:1. The reactivity of catechols on TiO2 suggests that titania is a promising catalyst in the removal of hydroxyl moiety. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  11. Preparation and properties of a monomeric Mn(IV)-oxo complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parsell, Trenton H; Behan, Rachel K; Green, Michael T; Hendrich, Michael P; Borovik, A S

    2006-07-12

    Manganese-oxo complexes have long been investigated because of their proposed roles in biological and chemical catalysis. However, there are few examples of monomeric complexes with terminal oxo ligands, especially those with oxomanganese(IV) units. A oxomanganese(IV) complex has been prepared from [MnIIIH3buea(O)]2- ([H3buea]3-, tris[(N'-tert-butylureaylato)-N-ethylene]aminato), a monomeric MnIII-O complex in which the oxo ligand arises from cleavage of dioxygen. Treating [MnIIIH3buea(O)]2- with [Cp2Fe]BF4 in either DMF at -45 degrees C or DMSO at room temperature produces [MnIVH3buea(O)]-: lambdamax = 635 nm; nu(Mn-16O) = 737 cm-1; nu(Mn-18O) = 709 cm-1; g = 5.15, 2.44, 1.63, D = 3.0 cm-1, E/D = 0.26, aMn = 66 G (A = 190 MHz). These spectroscopic properties support the assignment of a mononuclear MnIV-oxo complex with an S = 3/2 ground state. Density functional theory supports this assignment and the Jahn-Teller distortion around the high-spin MnIV center that would alter the molecular structure of [MnIVH3buea(O)]- from trigonal symmetry (as indicated by the highly rhombic EPR signal). [MnIVH3buea(O)]- is relatively unstable in DMSO, converting to [MnIIIH3buea(OH)]- via a proposed X-H bond cleavage. [MnIVH3buea(O)]- reacts with 1,2-diphenylhydrazine to from azobenzene (95% yield) and [MnIIIH3buea(OH)]-. The MnIV-oxo does not react with triphenyl- or tricyclohexylphosphine. However, O-atom transfer is observed with methyldiphenylphosphine and dimethylphenylphosphine, producing the corresponding phosphine oxides. These results illustrate the diverse reactivity of the MnIV-oxo unit.

  12. Polyimide resin composites via in situ polymerization of monomeric reactants

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cavano, P. J.

    1974-01-01

    Thermo-oxidatively stable polyimide/graphite-fiber composites were prepared using a unique in situ polymerization of monomeric reactants directly on reinforcing fibers. This was accomplished by using an aromatic diamine and two ester-acids in a methyl alcohol solvent, rather than a previously synthesized prepolymer varnish, as with other A-type polyimides. A die molding procedure was developed and a composite property characterization conducted with high modulus graphite fiber tow. Flexure, tensile, compressive, and shear tests were conducted at temperatures from 72 to 650 F on laminates before and after exposures at the given temperatures in an air environment for times up to 1000 hours. The composite material was determined to be oxidatively, thermally, and hydrolytically stable.

  13. Natural occurring radioactive substances. Vol. 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Emara, A E [National Center for radiation Research and Technology Atomic Energy Authority, Cairo (Egypt)

    1996-03-01

    Naturally occurring radioactive substances produced by cosmic rays of those of terrestrial origin are surveyed. The different radioactive decay series are discussed. Special emphasis is given to the element radium as regards its properties and distribution in different environmental samples. The properties of naturally occurring k-40 and its distribution in different natural media are also outlined. Induced radionuclides which are formed as a result of the interaction of cosmic rays with the constituents of the atmosphere are mentioned. In this respect the intensity of natural background radiation and the dose at different locations and levels is surveyed. Some regions of exceptionally high radioactivity which result in high exposure rates are mentioned. Monazite deposits and water springs are mentioned in some detail. The Oklo phenomenon as a natural reactor is also discussed. 8 tabs.

  14. Natural occurring radioactive substances. Vol. 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Emara, A.E.

    1996-01-01

    Naturally occurring radioactive substances produced by cosmic rays of those of terrestrial origin are surveyed. The different radioactive decay series are discussed. Special emphasis is given to the element radium as regards its properties and distribution in different environmental samples. The properties of naturally occurring k-40 and its distribution in different natural media are also outlined. Induced radionuclides which are formed as a result of the interaction of cosmic rays with the constituents of the atmosphere are mentioned. In this respect the intensity of natural background radiation and the dose at different locations and levels is surveyed. Some regions of exceptionally high radioactivity which result in high exposure rates are mentioned. Monazite deposits and water springs are mentioned in some detail. The Oklo phenomenon as a natural reactor is also discussed. 8 tabs

  15. Discovery of Radioiodinated Monomeric Anthraquinones as a Novel Class of Necrosis Avid Agents for Early Imaging of Necrotic Myocardium.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Qin; Yang, Shengwei; Jiang, Cuihua; Li, Jindian; Wang, Cong; Chen, Linwei; Jin, Qiaomei; Song, Shaoli; Feng, Yuanbo; Ni, Yicheng; Zhang, Jian; Yin, Zhiqi

    2016-02-16

    Assessment of myocardial viability is deemed necessary to aid in clinical decision making whether to recommend revascularization therapy for patients with myocardial infarction (MI). Dianthraquinones such as hypericin (Hyp) selectively accumulate in necrotic myocardium, but were unsuitable for early imaging after administration to assess myocardial viability. Since dianthraquinones can be composed by coupling two molecules of monomeric anthraquinone and the active center can be found by splitting chemical structure, we propose that monomeric anthraquinones may be effective functional groups for necrosis targetability. In this study, eight radioiodinated monomeric anthraquinones were evaluated as novel necrosis avid agents (NAAs) for imaging of necrotic myocardium. All (131)I-anthraquinones showed high affinity to necrotic tissues and (131)I-rhein emerged as the most promising compound. Infarcts were visualized on SPECT/CT images at 6 h after injection of (131)I-rhein, which was earlier than that with (131)I-Hyp. Moreover, (131)I-rhein showed satisfactory heart-to-blood, heart-to-liver and heart-to-lung ratios for obtaining images of good diagnostic quality. (131)I-rhein was a more promising "hot spot imaging" tracer for earlier visualization of necrotic myocardium than (131)I-Hyp, which supported further development of radiopharmaceuticals based on rhein for SPECT/CT ((123)I and (99m)Tc) or PET/CT imaging ((18)F and (124)I) of myocardial necrosis.

  16. Structural Characterization of Monomeric/Dimeric State of p59fyn SH2 Domain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huculeci, Radu; Kieken, Fabien; Garcia-Pino, Abel; Buts, Lieven; van Nuland, Nico; Lenaerts, Tom

    2017-01-01

    Src homology 2 (SH2) domains are key modulators in various signaling pathways allowing the recognition of phosphotyrosine sites of different proteins. Despite the fact that SH2 domains acquire their biological functions in a monomeric state, a multitude of reports have shown their tendency to dimerize. Here, we provide a technical description on how to isolate and characterize by gel filtration, circular dichroism (CD), and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) each conformational state of p59 fyn SH2 domain.

  17. Comparison of excretory urographic contrast effects of dimeric and monomeric non-ionic iodinated contrast media in dogs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kishimoto, M.; Yamada, K.; Watanabe, A.; Miyamoto, K.; Iwasaki, T.; Miyake, Y.

    2007-01-01

    In excretory urography, the osmolarity of contrast media has rarely been treated as important in veterinary medicine. In this study, the contrast effect of two contrast media (monomeric iohexol and dimeric iodixanol) in the renal cortex and aorta were compared using computed tomography (CT). Five beagle dogs were used and the study employed a cross-over method for each contrast media. The results showed that there was no difference between the media in the aorta, but iodixanol showed higher CT value and a longer contrast effect than iohexol in the renal cortex, in spite of having the same iodine dosage. It is believed that iodixanol, with its low osmolarity, is diluted less by osmotic diuresis than monomeric iohexol. It is important to consider the osmolarity of the contrast media when evaluating the contrast effect, and it is essential to use the same contrast media for each examination, or the renal excretory speed will be under/overestimated

  18. α-SNAP prevents docking of the acrosome during sperm exocytosis because it sequesters monomeric syntaxin.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Facundo Rodríguez

    Full Text Available α-SNAP has an essential role in membrane fusion that consists of bridging cis SNARE complexes to NSF. α-SNAP stimulates NSF, which releases itself, α-SNAP, and individual SNAREs that subsequently re-engage in the trans arrays indispensable for fusion. α-SNAP also binds monomeric syntaxin and NSF disengages the α-SNAP/syntaxin dimer. Here, we examine why recombinant α-SNAP blocks secretion in permeabilized human sperm despite the fact that the endogenous protein is essential for membrane fusion. The only mammalian organism with a genetically modified α-SNAP is the hyh mouse strain, which bears a M105I point mutation; males are subfertile due to defective sperm exocytosis. We report here that recombinant α-SNAP-M105I has greater affinity for the cytosolic portion of immunoprecipitated syntaxin than the wild type protein and in consequence NSF is less efficient in releasing the mutant. α-SNAP-M105I is a more potent sperm exocytosis blocker than the wild type and requires higher concentrations of NSF to rescue its effect. Unlike other fusion scenarios where SNAREs are subjected to an assembly/disassembly cycle, the fusion machinery in sperm is tuned so that SNAREs progress uni-directionally from a cis configuration in resting cells to monomeric and subsequently trans arrays in cells challenged with exocytosis inducers. By means of functional and indirect immunofluorescense assays, we show that recombinant α-SNAPs--wild type and M105I--inhibit exocytosis because they bind monomeric syntaxin and prevent this SNARE from assembling with its cognates in trans. Sequestration of free syntaxin impedes docking of the acrosome to the plasma membrane assessed by transmission electron microscopy. The N-terminal deletion mutant α-SNAP-(160-295, unable to bind syntaxin, affects neither docking nor secretion. The implications of this study are twofold: our findings explain the fertility defect of hyh mice and indicate that assembly of SNAREs in trans

  19. Constituency Orientation in Irish Politics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kusche, Isabel

    2017-01-01

    The constituency orientation of Irish politicians is a recurring topic in Irish political science. Its analysis has predominantly focused on TDs. This article uses a content analysis of candidate video statements in the general election 2016 in order to assess the strength of constituency...... this pattern, indicated by the weak constituency orientation in Dublin and Cork constituencies. Results also indicate differences between parties and some political statuses, while the gender of the candidates is of no relevance. Although the material does not permit a clear distinction between effects...... of political culture and short-term considerations, taken together the results indicate that localism in Irish politics matters, but in more complicated ways than usually depicted....

  20. Sequence-specific 1H-NMR assignments for the aromatic region of several biologically active, monomeric insulins including native human insulin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roy, M; Lee, R W; Kaarsholm, N C; Thøgersen, H; Brange, J; Dunn, M F

    1990-06-12

    The aromatic region of the 1H-FT-NMR spectrum of the biologically fully-potent, monomeric human insulin mutant, B9 Ser----Asp, B27 Thr----Glu has been investigated in D2O. At 1 to 5 mM concentrations, this mutant insulin is monomeric above pH 7.5. Coupling and amino acid classification of all aromatic signals is established via a combination of homonuclear one- and two-dimensional methods, including COSY, multiple quantum filters, selective spin decoupling and pH titrations. By comparisons with other insulin mutants and with chemically modified native insulins, all resonances in the aromatic region are given sequence-specific assignments without any reliance on the various crystal structures reported for insulin. These comparisons also give the sequence-specific assignments of most of the aromatic resonances of the mutant insulins B16 Tyr----Glu, B27 Thr----Glu and B25 Phe----Asp and the chemically modified species des-(B23-B30) insulin and monoiodo-Tyr A14 insulin. Chemical dispersion of the assigned resonances, ring current perturbations and comparisons at high pH have made possible the assignment of the aromatic resonances of human insulin, and these studies indicate that the major structural features of the human insulin monomer (including those critical to biological function) are also present in the monomeric mutant.

  1. Formation of amyloid fibers by monomeric light chain variable domains.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brumshtein, Boris; Esswein, Shannon R; Landau, Meytal; Ryan, Christopher M; Whitelegge, Julian P; Phillips, Martin L; Cascio, Duilio; Sawaya, Michael R; Eisenberg, David S

    2014-10-03

    Systemic light chain amyloidosis is a lethal disease characterized by excess immunoglobulin light chains and light chain fragments composed of variable domains, which aggregate into amyloid fibers. These fibers accumulate and damage organs. Some light chains induce formation of amyloid fibers, whereas others do not, making it unclear what distinguishes amyloid formers from non-formers. One mechanism by which sequence variation may reduce propensity to form amyloid fibers is by shifting the equilibrium toward an amyloid-resistant quaternary structure. Here we identify the monomeric form of the Mcg immunoglobulin light chain variable domain as the quaternary unit required for amyloid fiber assembly. Dimers of Mcg variable domains remain stable and soluble, yet become prone to assemble into amyloid fibers upon disassociation into monomers. © 2014 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

  2. The Beckman DxI 800 prolactin assay demonstrates superior specificity for monomeric prolactin.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    Byrne, Brendan

    2010-02-01

    Commercially available prolactin immunoassays detect macroprolactin to variable degrees. Best practice requires laboratories to assess the cross-reactivity of their prolactin assay with macroprolactin, and where appropriate, introduce a screen for the presence of macroprolactin. Our policy has been to reanalyse hyperprolactinaemic samples following polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation and to report the resultant value as the monomeric prolactin content of the sample. The goal of this study was to determine the need to continue PEG precipitation when prolactin measurements with the Wallac AutoDELFIA were replaced by the Beckman DxI 800.

  3. 7 CFR 930.16 - Sales constituency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... Definitions § 930.16 Sales constituency. Sales constituency means a common marketing organization or brokerage... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sales constituency. 930.16 Section 930.16 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Marketing Agreements...

  4. Pleiotropic benefit of monomeric and oligomeric flavanols on vascular health--a randomized controlled clinical pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weseler, Antje R; Ruijters, Erik J B; Drittij-Reijnders, Marie-José; Reesink, Koen D; Haenen, Guido R M M; Bast, Aalt

    2011-01-01

    Cardiovascular diseases are expanding to a major social-economic burden in the Western World and undermine man's deep desire for healthy ageing. Epidemiological studies suggest that flavanol-rich foods (e.g. grapes, wine, chocolate) sustain cardiovascular health. For an evidenced-based application, however, sound clinical data on their efficacy are strongly demanded. In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled intervention study we supplemented 28 male smokers with 200 mg per day of monomeric and oligomeric flavanols (MOF) from grape seeds. At baseline, after 4 and 8 weeks we measured macro- and microvascular function and a cluster of systemic biomarkers for major pathological processes occurring in the vasculature: disturbances in lipid metabolism and cellular redox balance, and activation of inflammatory cells and platelets. In the MOF group serum total cholesterol and LDL decreased significantly (P ≤ 0.05) by 5% (n = 11) and 7% (n = 9), respectively in volunteers with elevated baseline levels. Additionally, after 8 weeks the ratio of glutathione to glutathione disulphide in erythrocytes rose from baseline by 22% (n = 15, Pbenefit of an 8 weeks supplementation with 200 mg/d MOF in humans. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00742287.

  5. Extracellular Monomeric and Aggregated Tau Efficiently Enter Human Neurons through Overlapping but Distinct Pathways

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lewis D. Evans

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Summary: In Alzheimer’s disease, neurofibrillary tangle pathology appears to spread along neuronal connections, proposed to be mediated by the release and uptake of abnormal, disease-specific forms of microtubule-binding protein tau MAPT. It is currently unclear whether transfer of tau between neurons is a toxic gain-of-function process in dementia or reflects a constitutive biological process. We report two entry mechanisms for monomeric tau to human neurons: a rapid dynamin-dependent phase typical of endocytosis and a second, slower actin-dependent phase of macropinocytosis. Aggregated tau entry is independent of actin polymerization and largely dynamin dependent, consistent with endocytosis and distinct from macropinocytosis, the major route for aggregated tau entry reported for non-neuronal cells. Anti-tau antibodies abrogate monomeric tau entry into neurons, but less efficiently in the case of aggregated tau, where internalized tau carries antibody with it into neurons. These data suggest that tau entry to human neurons is a physiological process and not a disease-specific phenomenon. : In contrast with predictions that transfer of the microtubule-associated protein tau between neurons is a toxic gain-of-function process in dementia, Evans et al. show that healthy human neurons efficiently take up both normal and aggregated tau, by distinct but overlapping uptake mechanisms. Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, Tau, MAPT, iPSC, endocytosis, human neurons, intracellular transport

  6. 11 Efficacy and Tolerability of HDM Injective Immunotherapy With Monomeric Allergoid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Compalati, Enrico; Atzeni, Isabella; Cabras, Sergio; Fancello, Paolo; Gaspardini, Giulio; Longo, Rocco; Patella, Vincenzo; Tore, Giorgio

    2012-01-01

    Background Subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) is an effective treatment of respiratory allergy and carbamylated monomeric allergoids (monoids), by virtue of their reduced IgE-binding activity, resulted clinically safe by sublingual administration. Purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of immunotherapy with house dust mites (HDM) monoid administered by injective route in patients with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (AR). Methods A preparation of 0.70 mL of 10 BU/mL containing modified extract with 50% Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and 50% Dermatophagoides farinae (amount of major allergen: 4 μg of group 1 per milliliter) was delivered monthly for 12 months, following a 5-week build-up induction phase (0.10–0.20–0.30–0.50–0.70 mL), to 58 patients (60% males, mean age 25.1 ± 12.7) suffering from AR due to mites for at least 2 years, whereas 60 patients with similar baseline characteristics were observed as controls. All patients were allowed to assume traditional drug therapy for their condition. At the end of the study changes from baseline in symptoms scores, in number of days with drug assumption, in severity of AR (according to ARIA classification) were compared between the 2 groups; moreover an overall assessment of clinical efficacy and tolerability was based on patients' and physicians' judgements (unsatisfactory, mild, good, optimal). Results In respect to baseline both groups showed, after 1 year, an improvement in symptoms score (P allergoid was associated with a significant clinical benefit observed through objective and subjective outcomes; the traditional safety of monomeric allergoids was confirmed by the subjective judgements of tolerability.

  7. The structure of mAG, a monomeric mutant of the green fluorescent protein Azami-Green, reveals the structural basis of its stable green emission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ebisawa, Tatsuki; Yamamura, Akihiro; Kameda, Yasuhiro; Hayakawa, Kou; Nagata, Koji; Tanokura, Masaru

    2010-01-01

    The crystal structure of a monomeric mutant of Azami-Green (mAG) from G. fascicularis was determined at 2.2 Å resolution. Monomeric Azami-Green (mAG) from the stony coral Galaxea fascicularis is the first known monomeric green-emitting fluorescent protein that is not a variant of Aequorea victoria green fluorescent protein (avGFP). These two green fluorescent proteins are only 27% identical in their amino-acid sequences. mAG is more similar in its amino-acid sequence to four fluorescent proteins: Dendra2 (a green-to-red irreversibly photoconverting fluorescent protein), Dronpa (a bright-and-dark reversibly photoswitchable fluorescent protein), KikG (a tetrameric green-emitting fluorescent protein) and Kaede (another green-to-red irreversibly photoconverting fluorescent protein). To reveal the structural basis of stable green emission by mAG, the 2.2 Å crystal structure of mAG has been determined and compared with the crystal structures of avGFP, Dronpa, Dendra2, Kaede and KikG. The structural comparison revealed that the chromophore formed by Gln62-Tyr63-Gly64 (QYG) and the fixing of the conformation of the imidazole ring of His193 by hydrogen bonds and van der Waals contacts involving His193, Arg66 and Thr69 are likely to be required for the stable green emission of mAG. The crystal structure of mAG will contribute to the design and development of new monomeric fluorescent proteins with faster maturation, brighter fluorescence, improved photostability, new colours and other preferable properties as alternatives to avGFP and its variants

  8. MxiN Differentially Regulates Monomeric and Oligomeric Species of the Shigella Type Three Secretion System ATPase Spa47.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Case, Heather B; Dickenson, Nicholas E

    2018-04-17

    Shigella rely entirely on the action of a single type three secretion system (T3SS) to support cellular invasion of colonic epithelial cells and to circumvent host immune responses. The ATPase Spa47 resides at the base of the Shigella needle-like type three secretion apparatus (T3SA), supporting protein secretion through the apparatus and providing a likely means for native virulence regulation by Shigella and a much needed target for non-antibiotic therapeutics to treat Shigella infections. Here, we show that MxiN is a differential regulator of Spa47 and that its regulatory impact is determined by the oligomeric state of the Spa47 ATPase, with which it interacts. In vitro and in vivo characterization shows that interaction of MxiN with Spa47 requires the six N-terminal residues of Spa47 that are also necessary for stable Spa47 oligomer formation and activation. This interaction with MxiN negatively influences the activity of Spa47 oligomers while upregulating the ATPase activity of monomeric Spa47. Detailed kinetic analyses of monomeric and oligomeric Spa47 in the presence and absence of MxiN uncover additional mechanistic insights into the regulation of Spa47 by MxiN, suggesting that the MxiN/Spa47 species resulting from interaction with monomeric and oligomeric Spa47 are functionally distinct and that both could be involved in Shigella T3SS regulation. Uncovering regulation of Spa47 by MxiN addresses an important gap in the current understanding of how Shigella controls T3SA activity and provides the first description of differential T3SS ATPase regulation by a native T3SS protein.

  9. Constituency Input into Budget Management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Norman E.

    1995-01-01

    Presents techniques for ensuring constituency involvement in district- and site-level budget management. Outlines four models for securing constituent input and focuses on strategies to orchestrate the more complex model for staff and community participation. Two figures are included. (LMI)

  10. Successes and failures of the constituent quark model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lipkin, H.J.

    1982-01-01

    Our approach considers the model as a possible bridge between QCD and the experimental data and examines its predictions to see where these succeed and where they fail. We also attempt to improve the model by looking for additional simple assumptions which give better fits to the experimental data. But we avoid complicated models with too many ad hoc assumptions and too many free parameters; these can fit everything but teach us nothing. We define our constituent quark model by analogy with the constituent electron model of the atom and the constituent nucleon model of the nucleus. In the same way that an atom is assumed to consist only of constituent electrons and a central Coulomb field and a nucleus is assumed to consist only of constituent nucleons hadrons are assumed to consist only of their constituent valence quarks with no bag, no glue, no ocean, nor other constituents. Although these constituent models are oversimplified and neglect other constituents we push them as far as we can. Atomic physics has photons and vacuum polarization as well as constituent electrons, but the constituent model is adequate for calculating most features of the spectrum when finer details like the Lamb shift are neglected. 54 references

  11. Antioxidant effects of phenolic rye (Secale cereale L.) extracts, monomeric hydroxycinnamates, and ferulic acid dehydrodimers on human low-density lipoproteins

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andreasen, M.F.; Landbo, Anne-Katrine Regel; Christensen, L.P.

    2001-01-01

    Dietary antioxidants that protect low-density lipoprotein (LDL) from oxidation may help to prevent atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. The antioxidant activities of purified monomeric and dimeric hydroxycinnamates and of phenolic extracts from rye (whole grain, bran, and flour) were...

  12. The effect of repeated melting of zircaloy-4 to the distribution of volatile constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johneri, E.; Wijaksana; Badruzzaman, M.

    1996-01-01

    The effect of repeated fusion on the composition and distribution of zircaloy volatile elemental constituents (especially Sn) has been investigated. The results showed that the higher the number of repeated fusion is, the more evenly distributed the constituents are, but the composition decreased until reached constant values. This phenomenon occurred due to the relatively faster diffusion movement of one element compared to the others. Further investigation needs to be done to find other proofs of the phenomenon. Moreover, continued research is in demand in order to answer technological problems regarding the zircaloy production and metal alloy production in general. (author)

  13. A de novo designed monomeric, compact three helix bundle protein on a carbohydrate template

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Malik, Leila; Nygård, Jesper; Christensen, Niels Johan

    2015-01-01

    De novo design and chemical synthesis of proteins and of other artificial structures, which mimic them, is a central strategy for understanding protein folding and for accessing proteins with novel functions. We have previously described carbohydrates as templates for the assembly of artificial...... the template could facilitate protein folding. Here we report the design and synthesis of 3-helix bundle carboproteins on deoxy-hexopyranosides. The carboproteins were analyzed by CD, AUC, SAXS, and NMR, which revealed the formation of the first compact, and folded monomeric carboprotein distinctly different...

  14. Antioxidant effects of phenolic rye (Secale cereale L.) extracts, monomeric hydroxycinnamates, and ferulic acid dehydrodimers on human low-density lipoproteins

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andreasen, Mette Findal; Landbo, A K; Christensen, L P

    2001-01-01

    Dietary antioxidants that protect low-density lipoprotein (LDL) from oxidation may help to prevent atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. The antioxidant activities of purified monomeric and dimeric hydroxycinnamates and of phenolic extracts from rye (whole grain, bran, and flour) were...... investigated using an in vitro copper-catalyzed human LDL oxidation assay. The most abundant ferulic acid dehydrodimer (diFA) found in rye, 8-O-4-diFA, was a slightly better antioxidant than ferulic acid and p-coumaric acid. The antioxidant activity of the 8-5-diFA was comparable to that of ferulic acid......, but neither 5-5-diFA nor 8-5-benzofuran-diFA inhibited LDL oxidation when added at 10-40 microM. The antioxidant activity of the monomeric hydroxycinnamates decreased in the following order: caffeic acid > sinapic acid > ferulic acid > p-coumaric acid. The antioxidant activity of rye extracts...

  15. Hda monomerization by ADP binding promotes replicase clamp-mediated DnaA-ATP hydrolysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su'etsugu, Masayuki; Nakamura, Kenta; Keyamura, Kenji; Kudo, Yuka; Katayama, Tsutomu

    2008-12-26

    ATP-DnaA is the initiator of chromosomal replication in Escherichia coli, and the activity of DnaA is regulated by the regulatory inactivation of the DnaA (RIDA) system. In this system, the Hda protein promotes DnaA-ATP hydrolysis to produce inactive ADP-DnaA in a mechanism that is mediated by the DNA-loaded form of the replicase sliding clamp. In this study, we first revealed that hda translation uses an unusual initiation codon, CUG, located downstream of the annotated initiation codon. The CUG initiation codon could be used for restricting the Hda level, as this initiation codon has a low translation efficiency, and the cellular Hda level is only approximately 100 molecules per cell. Hda translated using the correct reading frame was purified and found to have a high RIDA activity in vitro. Moreover, we found that Hda has a high affinity for ADP but not for other nucleotides, including ATP. ADP-Hda was active in the RIDA system in vitro and stable in a monomeric state, whereas apo-Hda formed inactive homomultimers. Both ADP-Hda and apo-Hda could form complexes with the DNA-loaded clamp; however, only ADP-Hda-DNA-clamp complexes were highly functional in the following interaction with DnaA. Formation of ADP-Hda was also observed in vivo, and mutant analysis suggested that ADP binding is crucial for cellular Hda activity. Thus, we propose that ADP is a crucial Hda ligand that promotes the activated conformation of the protein. ADP-dependent monomerization might enable the arginine finger of the Hda AAA+ domain to be accessible to ATP bound to the DnaA AAA+ domain.

  16. Comparison of the release of constituents from granular materials under batch and column testing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lopez Meza, Sarynna; Garrabrants, Andrew C; van der Sloot, Hans; Kosson, David S

    2008-01-01

    Column leaching testing can be considered a better basis for assessing field impact data than any other available batch test method and thus provides a fundamental basis from which to estimate constituent release under a variety of field conditions. However, column testing is time-intensive compared to the more simplified batch testing, and may not always be a viable option when making decisions for material reuse. Batch tests are used most frequently as a simple tool for compliance or quality control reasons. Therefore, it is important to compare the release that occurs under batch and column testing, and establish conservative interpretation protocols for extrapolation from batch data when column data are not available. Five different materials (concrete, construction debris, aluminum recycling residue, coal fly ash and bottom ash) were evaluated via batch and column testing, including different column flow regimes (continuously saturated and intermittent unsaturated flow). Constituent release data from batch and column tests were compared. Results showed no significant difference between the column flow regimes when constituent release data from batch and column tests were compared. In most cases batch and column testing agreed when presented in the form of cumulative release. For arsenic in carbonated materials, however, batch testing underestimates the column constituent release for most LS ratios and also on a cumulative basis. For cases when As is a constituent of concern, column testing may be required.

  17. Naturally occurring crystalline phases: analogues for radioactive waste forms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haaker, R.F.; Ewing, R.C.

    1981-01-01

    Naturally occurring mineral analogues to crystalline phases that are constituents of crystalline radioactive waste forms provide a basis for comparison by which the long-term stability of these phases may be estimated. The crystal structures and the crystal chemistry of the following natural analogues are presented: baddeleyite, hematite, nepheline; pollucite, scheelite;sodalite, spinel, apatite, monazite, uraninite, hollandite-priderite, perovskite, and zirconolite. For each phase in geochemistry, occurrence, alteration and radiation effects are described. A selected bibliography for each phase is included

  18. Naturally occurring crystalline phases: analogues for radioactive waste forms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Haaker, R.F.; Ewing, R.C.

    1981-01-01

    Naturally occurring mineral analogues to crystalline phases that are constituents of crystalline radioactive waste forms provide a basis for comparison by which the long-term stability of these phases may be estimated. The crystal structures and the crystal chemistry of the following natural analogues are presented: baddeleyite, hematite, nepheline; pollucite, scheelite;sodalite, spinel, apatite, monazite, uraninite, hollandite-priderite, perovskite, and zirconolite. For each phase in geochemistry, occurrence, alteration and radiation effects are described. A selected bibliography for each phase is included.

  19. Mapping monomeric threading to protein-protein structure prediction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guerler, Aysam; Govindarajoo, Brandon; Zhang, Yang

    2013-03-25

    The key step of template-based protein-protein structure prediction is the recognition of complexes from experimental structure libraries that have similar quaternary fold. Maintaining two monomer and dimer structure libraries is however laborious, and inappropriate library construction can degrade template recognition coverage. We propose a novel strategy SPRING to identify complexes by mapping monomeric threading alignments to protein-protein interactions based on the original oligomer entries in the PDB, which does not rely on library construction and increases the efficiency and quality of complex template recognitions. SPRING is tested on 1838 nonhomologous protein complexes which can recognize correct quaternary template structures with a TM score >0.5 in 1115 cases after excluding homologous proteins. The average TM score of the first model is 60% and 17% higher than that by HHsearch and COTH, respectively, while the number of targets with an interface RMSD benchmark proteins. Although the relative performance of SPRING and ZDOCK depends on the level of homology filters, a combination of the two methods can result in a significantly higher model quality than ZDOCK at all homology thresholds. These data demonstrate a new efficient approach to quaternary structure recognition that is ready to use for genome-scale modeling of protein-protein interactions due to the high speed and accuracy.

  20. Resolved single-molecule detection of individual species within a mixture of anti-biotin antibodies using an engineered monomeric nanopore.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fahie, Monifa; Chisholm, Christina; Chen, Min

    2015-02-24

    Oligomeric protein nanopores with rigid structures have been engineered for the purpose of sensing a wide range of analytes including small molecules and biological species such as proteins and DNA. We chose a monomeric β-barrel porin, OmpG, as the platform from which to derive the nanopore sensor. OmpG is decorated with seven flexible loops that move dynamically to create a distinct gating pattern when ionic current passes through the pore. Biotin was chemically tethered to the most flexible one of these loops. The gating characteristic of the loop's movement in and out of the porin was substantially altered by analyte protein binding. The gating characteristics of the pore with bound targets were remarkably sensitive to molecular identity, even providing the ability to distinguish between homologues within an antibody mixture. A total of five gating parameters were analyzed for each analyte to create a unique fingerprint for each biotin-binding protein. Our exploitation of gating noise as a molecular identifier may allow more sophisticated sensor design, while OmpG's monomeric structure greatly simplifies nanopore production.

  1. Resinous constituent extracting process

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sayer, W F

    1947-10-07

    The method of recovering oily constituents from coal or oil shale comprising the saturation of coal or oil shale in a sealed vessel with an organic solution having a boiling point at atmospheric pressure of not exceeding 220/sup 0/C, elevating the temperature within the vessel to a temperature below the cracking temperature of the constituents and maintaining the pressure within the vessel below 51 pounds, to extract the oily material from the coal or oil shale and subsequently separating the solvent from the oily material.

  2. Resolution of two native monomeric 90 kDa nitrate reductase active proteins from Shewanella gelidimarina and the sequence of two napA genes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Simpson, Philippa J.L.; McKinzie, Audra A.; Codd, Rachel

    2010-01-01

    Research highlights: → Two monomeric 90 kDa nitrate reductase active proteins from Shewanella gelidimarina. → Sequence of napA from napEDABC-type operon and napA from NapDAGHB-type operon. → Isolation of NAP as NapA or NapAB correlated with NapA P47E amino acid substitution. -- Abstract: The reduction of nitrate to nitrite in the bacterial periplasm occurs in the 90 kDa NapA subunit of the periplasmic nitrate reductase (NAP) system. Most Shewanella genomes contain two nap operons: napEDABC and napDAGHB, which is an unusual feature of this genus. Two native, monomeric, 90 kDa nitrate reductase active proteins were resolved by hydrophobic interaction chromatography from aerobic cultures of Shewanella gelidimarina replete with reduced nitrogen compounds. The 90 kDa protein obtained in higher yield was characterized as NapA by electronic absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopies and was identified by LC/MS/MS and MALDI-TOF/TOF MS as NapA from the napEDABC-type operon. The other 90 kDa protein, which was unstable and produced in low yields, was posited as NapA from the napDAGHB-type operon. Two napA genes have been sequenced from the napEDABC-type and napDAGHB-type operons of S. gelidimarina. Native NAP from S. putrefaciens was resolved as one NapA monomer and one NapAB heterodimer. Two amino acid substitutions in NapA correlated with the isolation of NAP as a NapA monomer or a NapAB heterodimer. The resolution of native, redox-active NapA isoforms in Shewanella provides new insight into the respiratory versatility of this genus, which has implications in bioremediation and the assembly of microbial fuel cells.

  3. Paranormal belief and errors of probabilistic reasoning: The role of constituent conditional relatedness in believers' susceptibility to the conjunction fallacy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rogers, Paul; Fisk, John E; Lowrie, Emma

    2017-11-01

    The present study examines the extent to which stronger belief in either extrasensory perception, psychokinesis or life-after-death is associated with a proneness to making conjunction errors (CEs). One hundred and sixty members of the UK public read eight hypothetical scenarios and for each estimated the likelihood that two constituent events alone plus their conjunction would occur. The impact of paranormal belief plus constituents' conditional relatedness type, estimates of the subjectively less likely and more likely constituents plus relevant interaction terms tested via three Generalized Linear Mixed Models. General qualification levels were controlled for. As expected, stronger PK beliefs and depiction of a positively conditionally related (verses conditionally unrelated) constituent pairs predicted higher CE generation. ESP and LAD beliefs had no impact with, surprisingly, higher estimates of the less likely constituent predicting fewer - not more - CEs. Theoretical implications, methodological issues and ideas for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Hda Monomerization by ADP Binding Promotes Replicase Clamp-mediated DnaA-ATP Hydrolysis*S⃞

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su'etsugu, Masayuki; Nakamura, Kenta; Keyamura, Kenji; Kudo, Yuka; Katayama, Tsutomu

    2008-01-01

    ATP-DnaA is the initiator of chromosomal replication in Escherichia coli, and the activity of DnaA is regulated by the regulatory inactivation of the DnaA (RIDA) system. In this system, the Hda protein promotes DnaA-ATP hydrolysis to produce inactive ADP-DnaA in a mechanism that is mediated by the DNA-loaded form of the replicase sliding clamp. In this study, we first revealed that hda translation uses an unusual initiation codon, CUG, located downstream of the annotated initiation codon. The CUG initiation codon could be used for restricting the Hda level, as this initiation codon has a low translation efficiency, and the cellular Hda level is only ∼100 molecules per cell. Hda translated using the correct reading frame was purified and found to have a high RIDA activity in vitro. Moreover, we found that Hda has a high affinity for ADP but not for other nucleotides, including ATP. ADP-Hda was active in the RIDA system in vitro and stable in a monomeric state, whereas apo-Hda formed inactive homomultimers. Both ADP-Hda and apo-Hda could form complexes with the DNA-loaded clamp; however, only ADP-Hda-DNA-clamp complexes were highly functional in the following interaction with DnaA. Formation of ADP-Hda was also observed in vivo, and mutant analysis suggested that ADP binding is crucial for cellular Hda activity. Thus, we propose that ADP is a crucial Hda ligand that promotes the activated conformation of the protein. ADP-dependent monomerization might enable the arginine finger of the Hda AAA+ domain to be accessible to ATP bound to the DnaA AAA+ domain. PMID:18977760

  5. Analysis of gamma irradiated pepper constituents, 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takagi, Kazuko; Okuyama, Tsuneo

    1988-01-01

    A reversed phase high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed for the analysis of many constituents of pepper at the same time. And a extraction method of ultraviolet absorbing constituents from pepper was developed for the HPLC analysis. The Ultraviolet absorbing constituents were extracted by precooled Automatic Air-Hammer from frozen pepper with 20% acetonitrile in water. The process of extraction was achieved under cooling by liquid nitrogen from start to end. The extracted constituents were separated on a reversed phase C 8 (LiChrospher 300 RP - 8 10 μm 0.4 I.D. x 0.4 cm and LiChrosorb RP - 8 SelectB 0.4 I. D. x 25 cm) column with a concave gradient from 0.1% trifluoro acetic acid (TFA) in water to 75% acetonitrile and 0.1% TFA in water for 60 minutes. The eluted constituents were detected 210 nm and 280 nm. The present method permits the detection of about 50 peaks by 280 nm. (author)

  6. Comparative analysis of the heme iron electronic structure and stereochemistry in tetrameric rabbit hemoglobin and monomeric soybean leghemoglobin a using Mössbauer spectroscopy with a high velocity resolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alenkina, I. V.; Kumar, A.; Berkovsky, A. L.; Oshtrakh, M. I.

    2018-02-01

    A comparative study of tetrameric rabbit hemoglobin and monomeric soybean leghemoglobin a in the oxy- and deoxy-forms was carried out using 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy with a high velocity resolution in order to analyze the heme iron electronic structure and stereochemistry in relation to the Mössbauer hyperfine parameters. The Mössbauer spectra of tetrameric rabbit hemoglobin in both forms were fitted using two quadrupole doublets related to the 57Fe in ɑ- and β-subunits. In contrast, the Mössbauer spectra of monomeric soybean leghemoglobin a were fitted using: (i) two quadrupole doublets for the oxy-form related to two conformational states of the distal His E7 imidazole ring and different hydrogen bonding of oxygen molecule in the oxy-form and (ii) using three quadrupole doublets for deoxy-form related to three conformational states of the proximal His F8 imidazole ring. Small variations of Mössbauer hyperfine parameters related to small differences in the heme iron electronic structure and stereochemistry in tetrameric rabbit hemoglobin and monomeric soybean leghemoglobin a are discussed.

  7. CHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE VOLATILE CONSTITUENTS ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    CHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE VOLATILE CONSTITUENTS OF CLEOME VISCOSA FROM NIGERIA. Gabriel Olatunji, Peter Weyerstahl, Stephen Oguntoye. Abstract. The major volatile constituents of the oils from the integral parts of Cleome viscosa L. from Nigeria have been identified by GC, GC/MS and 1H NMR.

  8. Fermentation of Arabinoxylan-Oligosaccharides, Oligofructose and their Monomeric Sugars by Hindgut Bacteria from Siberian Sturgeon and African Catfish in Batch Culture in vitro

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Geraylou, Z.; Rurangwa, E.; Wiele, van der T.; Courtin, C.M.; Delcour, J.A.; Buyse, J.; Ollevier, F.

    2014-01-01

    The in vitro fermentation of two Non-Digestible Oligosaccharide (NDO) preparations, Arabinoxylan- Oligosaccharides (AXOS) and Oligofructose (OF), and their respective monomeric sugars, xylose and fructose, were investigated by hindgut microbiota of two major aquaculture fish species, Siberian

  9. Inorganic Constituents in Coal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rađenović A.

    2006-02-01

    Full Text Available Coal contains not only organic matter but also small amounts of inorganic constituents. More thanone hundred different minerals and virtually every element in the periodic table have been foundin coal. Commonly found group minerals in coal are: major (quartz, pyrite, clays and carbonates,minor, and trace minerals. Coal includes a lot of elements of low mass fraction of the orderof w=0.01 or 0.001 %. They are trace elements connected with organic matter or minerals comprisedin coal. The fractions of trace elements usually decrease when the rank of coal increases.Fractions of the inorganic elements are different, depending on the coal bed and basin. A varietyof analytical methods and techniques can be used to determine the mass fractions, mode ofoccurrence, and distribution of organic constituents in coal. There are many different instrumentalmethods for analysis of coal and coal products but atomic absorption spectroscopy – AAS is theone most commonly used. Fraction and mode of occurrence are one of the main factors that haveinfluence on transformation and separation of inorganic constituents during coal conversion.Coal, as an important world energy source and component for non-fuels usage, will be continuouslyand widely used in the future due to its relatively abundant reserves. However, there is aconflict between the requirements for increased use of coal on the one hand and less pollution onthe other. It’s known that the environmental impacts, due to either coal mining or coal usage, canbe: air, water and land pollution. Although, minor components, inorganic constituents can exert asignificant influence on the economic value, utilization, and environmental impact of the coal.

  10. A Domain of Herpes Simplex Virus pUL33 Required To Release Monomeric Viral Genomes from Cleaved Concatemeric DNA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Kui; Dang, Xiaoqun; Baines, Joel D

    2017-10-15

    Monomeric herpesvirus DNA is cleaved from concatemers and inserted into preformed capsids through the actions of the viral terminase. The terminase of herpes simplex virus (HSV) is composed of three subunits encoded by U L 15, U L 28, and U L 33. The U L 33-encoded protein (pU L 33) interacts with pU L 28, but its precise role in the DNA cleavage and packaging reaction is unclear. To investigate the function of pU L 33, we generated a panel of recombinant viruses with either deletions or substitutions in the most conserved regions of U L 33 using a bacterial artificial chromosome system. Deletion of 11 amino acids (residues 50 to 60 or residues 110 to 120) precluded viral replication, whereas the truncation of the last 10 amino acids from the pU L 33 C terminus did not affect viral replication or the interaction of pU L 33 with pU L 28. Mutations that replaced the lysine at codon 110 and the arginine at codon 111 with alanine codons failed to replicate, and the pU L 33 mutant interacted with pU L 28 less efficiently. Interestingly, genomic termini of the large (L) and small (S) components were detected readily in cells infected with these mutants, indicating that concatemeric DNA was cleaved efficiently. However, the release of monomeric genomes as assessed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was greatly diminished, and DNA-containing capsids were not observed. These results suggest that pU L 33 is necessary for one of the two viral DNA cleavage events required to release individual genomes from concatemeric viral DNA. IMPORTANCE This paper shows a role for pU L 33 in one of the two DNA cleavage events required to release monomeric genomes from concatemeric viral DNA. This is the first time that such a phenotype has been observed and is the first identification of a function of this protein relevant to DNA packaging other than its interaction with other terminase components. Copyright © 2017 Yang et al.

  11. LRP1 Modulates APP Intraneuronal Transport and Processing in Its Monomeric and Dimeric State

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claus U. Pietrzik

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1, LRP1, interacts with APP and affects its processing. This is assumed to be mostly caused by the impact of LRP1 on APP endocytosis. More recently, also an interaction of APP and LRP1 early in the secretory pathway was reported whereat retention of LRP1 in the ER leads to decreased APP cell surface levels and in turn, to reduced Aβ secretion. Here, we extended the biochemical and immunocytochemical analyses by showing via live cell imaging analyses in primary neurons that LRP1 and APP are transported only partly in common (one third but to a higher degree in distinct fast axonal transport vesicles. Interestingly, co-expression of LRP1 and APP caused a change of APP transport velocities, indicating that LRP1 recruits APP to a specific type of fast axonal transport vesicles. In contrast lowered levels of LRP1 facilitated APP transport. We further show that monomeric and dimeric APP exhibit similar transport characteristics and that both are affected by LRP1 in a similar way, by slowing down APP anterograde transport and increasing its endocytosis rate. In line with this, a knockout of LRP1 in CHO cells and in primary neurons caused an increase of monomeric and dimeric APP surface localization and in turn accelerated shedding by meprin β and ADAM10. Notably, a choroid plexus specific LRP1 knockout caused a much higher secretion of sAPP dimers into the cerebrospinal fluid compared to sAPP monomers. Together, our data show that LRP1 functions as a sorting receptor for APP, regulating its cell surface localization and thereby its processing by ADAM10 and meprin β, with the latter exhibiting a preference for APP in its dimeric state.

  12. Goldstone-Boson Dynamics for Constituent Quarks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plessas, W.

    2003-07-01

    We address some essential features of the Goldstone-boson-exchange constituent quark model. Starting from its background we discuss the motivation for its construction and show its performance in light and strange baryon spectroscopy. Then we quote results from first applications of this type of constituent quark model in covariant calculations of electroweak nucleon form factors.

  13. Method for the isolation of biologically active monomeric immunoglobulin A from a plasma fraction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leibl, H; Tomasits, R; Wolf, H M; Eibl, M M; Mannhalter, J W

    1996-04-12

    A purification method for immunoglobulin A (IgA) yielding monomeric IgA with a purity of over 97% has been developed. This procedure uses ethanol-precipitated plasma (Cohn fraction III precipitate) as the starting material and includes heparin-Sepharose adsorption, dextran sulfate and ammonium sulfate precipitation, hydroxyapatite chromatography, batch adsorption by an anion-exchange matrix and gel permeation. Additional protein G Sepharose treatment leads to an IgA preparation of greater than 99% purity. The isolated IgA presented with an IgA subclass distribution, equivalent to IgA in unfractionated plasma, and was biologically active, as was shown by its ability to down-modulate Haemophilus influenzae-b-induced IL-6 secretion of human monocytes.

  14. Holistic versus monomeric strategies for hydrological modelling of human-modified hydrosystems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. Nalbantis

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available The modelling of human-modified basins that are inadequately measured constitutes a challenge for hydrological science. Often, models for such systems are detailed and hydraulics-based for only one part of the system while for other parts oversimplified models or rough assumptions are used. This is typically a bottom-up approach, which seeks to exploit knowledge of hydrological processes at the micro-scale at some components of the system. Also, it is a monomeric approach in two ways: first, essential interactions among system components may be poorly represented or even omitted; second, differences in the level of detail of process representation can lead to uncontrolled errors. Additionally, the calibration procedure merely accounts for the reproduction of the observed responses using typical fitting criteria. The paper aims to raise some critical issues, regarding the entire modelling approach for such hydrosystems. For this, two alternative modelling strategies are examined that reflect two modelling approaches or philosophies: a dominant bottom-up approach, which is also monomeric and, very often, based on output information, and a top-down and holistic approach based on generalized information. Critical options are examined, which codify the differences between the two strategies: the representation of surface, groundwater and water management processes, the schematization and parameterization concepts and the parameter estimation methodology. The first strategy is based on stand-alone models for surface and groundwater processes and for water management, which are employed sequentially. For each model, a different (detailed or coarse parameterization is used, which is dictated by the hydrosystem schematization. The second strategy involves model integration for all processes, parsimonious parameterization and hybrid manual-automatic parameter optimization based on multiple objectives. A test case is examined in a hydrosystem in Greece

  15. Leachability of radioactive constituents from uranium mine tailings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bryant, D.N.; Cohen, D.B.; Durham, R.W.

    1979-04-01

    A project was carried out using lysimeters to determine the leaching of radioactive constituents and BaRaSO 4 from abandoned uranium mine tailings. Lime addition to the surface of acidic abandoned tailings did not reduce the level of radioactive constituents in the leachate. Considerable increases in levels of the radionuclides 230 Th, 232 Th and 22 /8Th, as well as gross alpha and beta activity in the leachate, occurred five months after recycling of BaRaSO 4 sediments to the surface layers of abandoned tailings. After nine months of leaching, the levels of 226 Ra in the leachate were 30% greater than the tailings plus sediment treatment than from tailings only (control). Another experiment compared the quality of effluent flowing over chemically-fixed (solidified) BaRaSO 4 sediments with that of non-fixed (control) in simulated sedimentation ponds. During seven months the release of 226 Ra to water from chemically-fixed BaRaSO 4 sediments remained 3 for phosphorus removal) was applied to supply 3 percent organic matter in the top 15 cm of the revegetated lysimeters. Undiluted effluent and leachate from chemically-fixed BaRaSO 4 sediments and fresh tailings were 100 percent lethal to Daphnia pulex and rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) in static 96-hour bioassay tests. Diluted (50 percent) effluent samples were non-toxic. (auth)

  16. Creating a monomeric endonuclease TALE-I-SceI with high specificity and low genotoxicity in human cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Jianfei; Chen, He; Luo, Ling; Lai, Yongrong; Xie, Wei; Kee, Kehkooi

    2015-01-01

    To correct a DNA mutation in the human genome for gene therapy, homology-directed repair (HDR) needs to be specific and have the lowest off-target effects to protect the human genome from deleterious mutations. Zinc finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN) and CRISPR-CAS9 systems have been engineered and used extensively to recognize and modify specific DNA sequences. Although TALEN and CRISPR/CAS9 could induce high levels of HDR in human cells, their genotoxicity was significantly higher. Here, we report the creation of a monomeric endonuclease that can recognize at least 33 bp by fusing the DNA-recognizing domain of TALEN (TALE) to a re-engineered homing endonuclease I-SceI. After sequentially re-engineering I-SceI to recognize 18 bp of the human β-globin sequence, the re-engineered I-SceI induced HDR in human cells. When the re-engineered I-SceI was fused to TALE (TALE-ISVB2), the chimeric endonuclease induced the same HDR rate at the human β-globin gene locus as that induced by TALEN, but significantly reduced genotoxicity. We further demonstrated that TALE-ISVB2 specifically targeted at the β-globin sequence in human hematopoietic stem cells. Therefore, this monomeric endonuclease has the potential to be used in therapeutic gene targeting in human cells. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  17. Temporal trends in water-quality constituent concentrations and annual loads of chemical constituents in Michigan watersheds, 1998–2013

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoard, Christopher J.; Fogarty, Lisa R.; Duris, Joseph W.

    2018-02-21

    In 1998, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Geological Survey began the Water Chemistry Monitoring Program for select streams in the State of Michigan. Objectives of this program were to provide assistance with (1) statewide water-quality assessments, (2) the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permitting process, and (3) water-resource management decisions. As part of this program, water-quality data collected from 1998 to 2013 were analyzed to identify potential trends for select constituents that were sampled. Sixteen water-quality constituents were analyzed at 32 stations throughout Michigan. Trend analysis on the various water-quality data was done using either the uncensored Seasonal Kendall test or through Tobit regression. In total, 79 trends were detected in the constituents analyzed for 32 river stations sampled for the study period—53 downward trends and 26 upward trends were detected. The most prevalent trend detected throughout the State was for ammonia, with 11 downward trends and 1 upward trend estimated.In addition to trends, constituent loads were estimated for 31 stations from 2002 to 2013 for stations that were sampled 12 times per year. Loads were computed using the Autobeale load computation program, which used the Beale ratio estimator approach to estimate an annual load. Constituent loads were the largest in large watershed streams with the highest annual flows such as the Saginaw and Grand Rivers. Likewise, constituent loads were the smallest in smaller tributaries that were sampled as part of this program such as the Boardman and Thunder Bay Rivers.

  18. Preliminary Investigation on the Phytochemical Constituents of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Demand for honey consumption nowadays is continuously increasing worldwide due to its multiple importance from food to medicine. The medicinal value of honey lies in the bioactive phytochemical constituents that produce health benefits to man. Investigation of the phytochemical constituents of the two honey samples ...

  19. Combinatorial synthesis by nature: volatile organic sulfur-containing constituents of Ruta chalepensis L.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Escher, Sina; Niclass, Yvan; van de Waal, Matthijs; Starkenmann, Christian

    2006-09-01

    Ongoing interest in discovering new natural fragrance and flavor ingredients prompted us to examine a solvent extract of sulfurous-sweaty smelling Ruta chalepensis L. (Rutaceae) plant material more closely. Twenty-one sulfur-containing constituents of similar structures were identified by GC/MS techniques. Amongst them, 14 have never been described to occur in nature. The compounds 1-18 belong to a family of natural flavor and fragrance molecules having a 1,3-positioned O,S moiety in common. The identities of the natural constituents were confirmed by comparison with synthetic reference samples, and the organoleptic properties of the latter were studied. The relative and absolute configurations of the four stereoisomers of 4-methyl-3-sulfanylhexan-1-ol (5) were established by stereoselective synthesis. The natural isomers consisted of a 65 : 35 mixture of (3R,4S)-5 and (3S,4S)-5.

  20. Monomeric Aβ(1-40) and Aβ(1-42) Peptides in Solution Adopt Very Similar Ramachandran Map Distributions That Closely Resemble Random Coil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roche, Julien; Shen, Yang; Lee, Jung Ho; Ying, Jinfa; Bax, Ad

    2016-02-09

    The pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease is characterized by the aggregation and fibrillation of amyloid peptides Aβ(1-40) and Aβ(1-42) into amyloid plaques. Despite strong potential therapeutic interest, the structural pathways associated with the conversion of monomeric Aβ peptides into oligomeric species remain largely unknown. In particular, the higher aggregation propensity and associated toxicity of Aβ(1-42) compared to that of Aβ(1-40) are poorly understood. To explore in detail the structural propensity of the monomeric Aβ(1-40) and Aβ(1-42) peptides in solution, we recorded a large set of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) parameters, including chemical shifts, nuclear Overhauser effects (NOEs), and J couplings. Systematic comparisons show that at neutral pH the Aβ(1-40) and Aβ(1-42) peptides populate almost indistinguishable coil-like conformations. Nuclear Overhauser effect spectra collected at very high resolution remove assignment ambiguities and show no long-range NOE contacts. Six sets of backbone J couplings ((3)JHNHα, (3)JC'C', (3)JC'Hα, (1)JHαCα, (2)JNCα, and (1)JNCα) recorded for Aβ(1-40) were used as input for the recently developed MERA Ramachandran map analysis, yielding residue-specific backbone ϕ/ψ torsion angle distributions that closely resemble random coil distributions, the absence of a significantly elevated propensity for β-conformations in the C-terminal region of the peptide, and a small but distinct propensity for αL at K28. Our results suggest that the self-association of Aβ peptides into toxic oligomers is not driven by elevated propensities of the monomeric species to adopt β-strand-like conformations. Instead, the accelerated disappearance of Aβ NMR signals in D2O over H2O, particularly pronounced for Aβ(1-42), suggests that intermolecular interactions between the hydrophobic regions of the peptide dominate the aggregation process.

  1. Effects of time pressure and accountability to constituents on negotiation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mosterd, I.; Rutte, C.G.

    2000-01-01

    A laboratory experiment examined the effects of time pressure (high versus low) and accountability to constituents (not-accountable-to-constituents versus accountable-to-constituents) on the competitiveness of negotiators' interaction and on the outcome (i.e., agreement or impasse) of the

  2. [Chemical constituents in Buddleja albiflora].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tao, Liang; Huang, Jincheng; Zhao, Yanping; Li, Chong

    2009-12-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja albiflora. The constituents were isolated by column chromatography and their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods. Eleven compounds were isolated and identified as luteolin (1), quercetin (2), quercetin-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (3), apigenin (4), apigenin-7-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (5), apigenin-7-O-neohesperidoside (6), acacetin-7-O-beta-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (7), cranioside A (8), acetylmartynoside B (9), 4"-O-acetylmartynoside (10), isomartynoside (11). All these compounds were obtained from B. albiflora for the first time and compound 8 was obtained from the genus Buddleja for the first time.

  3. Interaction of Classical Platinum Agents with the Monomeric and Dimeric Atox1 Proteins: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaolei Wang

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available We carried out molecular dynamics simulations and free energy calculations for a series of binary and ternary models of the cisplatin, transplatin and oxaliplatin agents binding to a monomeric Atox1 protein and a dimeric Atox1 protein to investigate their interaction mechanisms. All three platinum agents could respectively combine with the monomeric Atox1 protein and the dimeric Atox1 protein to form a stable binary and ternary complex due to the covalent interaction of the platinum center with the Atox1 protein. The results suggested that the extra interaction from the oxaliplatin ligand–Atox1 protein interface increases its affinity only for the OxaliPt + Atox1 model. The binding of the oxaliplatin agent to the Atox1 protein might cause larger deformation of the protein than those of the cisplatin and transplatin agents due to the larger size of the oxaliplatin ligand. However, the extra interactions to facilitate the stabilities of the ternary CisPt + 2Atox1 and OxaliPt + 2Atox1 models come from the α1 helices and α2-β4 loops of the Atox1 protein–Atox1 protein interface due to the cis conformation of the platinum agents. The combinations of two Atox1 proteins in an asymmetric way in the three ternary models were analyzed. These investigations might provide detailed information for understanding the interaction mechanism of the platinum agents binding to the Atox1 protein in the cytoplasm.

  4. Analysis of constituents of earth formations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hertzog, R.C.; Grau, J.A.

    1981-01-01

    The composition of an earth formation is investigated by repetitively irradiating the formation with bursts of neutrons from a source and measuring an energy spectrum of the scattering gamma rays resulting from such irradiation e.g. by photomultiplier or solid state detector. The measured spectrum is thereafter analyzed by comparing it with a composite spectrum, made up of standard spectra, measured in a controlled environment, of constituents postulated to comprise the formation. As a result of such analysis, the proportions of the postulated constituents in the formation are determined. Since the measured spectrum is subject to degradation due to changes in the resolution of the detector, a filtering arrangement effects modification of the standard spectra in a manner which compensates for the changes in the detector and thereby provides for a more accurate determination of the constituents of the formation. Temperature is measured by sensor to compensate for temperature dependence of detector resolution. (author)

  5. Constituents of Chondria armata

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Govenkar, M.B.; Wahidullah, S.

    A novel long chain fatty ester, pentyl hentriacontanoate 1 and an orange red pigment, caulerpin 2 have been isolated and characterised from a red alga Chondria armata. The pigment caulerpin hitherto known to be a constituent of green algae of genus...

  6. Distribution of biologic, anthropogenic, and volcanic constituents as a proxy for sediment transport in the San Francisco Bay Coastal System

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGann, Mary; Erikson, Li H.; Wan, Elmira; Powell, Charles; Maddocks, Rosalie F.; Barnard, P.L.; Jaffee, B.E.; Schoellhamer, D.H.

    2013-01-01

    Although conventional sediment parameters (mean grain size, sorting, and skewness) and provenance have typically been used to infer sediment transport pathways, most freshwater, brackish, and marine environments are also characterized by abundant sediment constituents of biological, and possibly anthropogenic and volcanic, origin that can provide additional insight into local sedimentary processes. The biota will be spatially distributed according to its response to environmental parameters such as water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, organic carbon content, grain size, and intensity of currents and tidal flow, whereas the presence of anthropogenic and volcanic constituents will reflect proximity to source areas and whether they are fluvially- or aerially-transported. Because each of these constituents have a unique environmental signature, they are a more precise proxy for that source area than the conventional sedimentary process indicators. This San Francisco Bay Coastal System study demonstrates that by applying a multi-proxy approach, the primary sites of sediment transport can be identified. Many of these sites are far from where the constituents originated, showing that sediment transport is widespread in the region. Although not often used, identifying and interpreting the distribution of naturally-occurring and allochthonous biologic, anthropogenic, and volcanic sediment constituents is a powerful tool to aid in the investigation of sediment transport pathways in other coastal systems.

  7. Constituent-level pile-up mitigation techniques in ATLAS

    CERN Document Server

    The ATLAS collaboration

    2017-01-01

    Pile-up of simultaneous proton-proton collisions at the LHC has a significant impact on jet reconstruction. In this note the performance of several pile-up mitigation techniques is evaluated in detailed simulations of the ATLAS experiment. Four algorithms that act on the jet-constituent level are evaluated: SoftKiller, the cluster vertex fraction algorithm and Voronoi and constituent subtraction. We find that application of these constituent-level algorithms improves the resolution of low-transverse-momentum jets. The improvement is significant for collisions with 80-200 simultaneous proton-proton collisions envisaged in future runs of the LHC.

  8. SHORT COMMUNICATION CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS AND ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITIES OF THE FRUITS ... alkaloids, phenols, steroids, flavonoids, saponins and terpenoids while tannin ..... Harveer, K.; Jasmeen, S. Synthesis, characterization and radical scavenging ...

  9. Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of a monomeric mutant of Azami-Green (mAG), an Aequorea victoria green fluorescent protein-like green-emitting fluorescent protein from the stony coral Galaxea fascicularis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ebisawa, Tatsuki; Yamamura, Akihiro; Kameda, Yasuhiro; Hayakawa, Kou; Nagata, Koji; Tanokura, Masaru

    2009-01-01

    A monomeric mutant of Azami-Green from G. fascicularis was expressed, purified and crystallized using the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion method. The crystal belonged to space group P1 and diffracted X-rays to 2.20 Å resolution. Monomeric Azami-Green (mAG) from the stony coral Galaxea fascicularis is the first monomeric green-emitting fluorescent protein that is not a derivative of Aequorea victoria green fluorescent protein (avGFP). mAG and avGFP are 27% identical in amino-acid sequence. Diffraction-quality crystals of recombinant mAG were obtained by the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion method using PEG 3350 as the precipitant. The mAG crystal diffracted X-rays to 2.20 Å resolution on beamline AR-NW12A at the Photon Factory (Tsukuba, Japan). The crystal belonged to space group P1, with unit-cell parameters a = 41.78, b = 51.72, c = 52.89 Å, α = 90.96, β = 103.41, γ = 101.79°. The Matthews coefficient (V M = 2.10 Å 3 Da −1 ) indicated that the crystal contained two mAG molecules per asymmetric unit

  10. A rationally designed monomeric peptide triagonist corrects obesity and diabetes in rodents

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Finan, Brian; Yang, Bin; Ottaway, Nickki

    2015-01-01

    -in-class monoagonists to reduce body weight, enhance glycemic control and reverse hepatic steatosis in relevant rodent models. Various loss-of-function models, including genetic knockout, pharmacological blockade and selective chemical knockout, confirmed contributions of each constituent activity in vivo. We...

  11. [Study on the chemical constituents of Buddleja purdomii].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yinghua; Li, Chong; Zhang, Chengzhong; Tao, Baoquan

    2005-11-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja purdomii W. W Smith. The constituents were isolated and purified by various chromatographic methods and structurally identified by spectral analysis. 4 compounds were obtained as cryptomeridiol (I), aucubin (II), galactilol (III), daucosterol (IV). All these compounds are obtained from this plant for the first time.

  12. [Study on the chemical constituent from Buddleja purdomii].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Yan; Li, Chong; Zhang, Chengzhong; Xu, Yourui; Tao, Baoquan

    2004-05-01

    To study the chemical constituents from Buddleja purdomii W. W. Smith. The constituents were isolated and purified by various chromatographic methods and structurally identified by spectral analysis. 4 compounds were identified as vanillin (I), vanillic acid (II), acteoside (III), acteoside isomer (IV). All these compounds were obtained from this plant for the first time.

  13. Nuclei with exotic constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamazaki, Toshimitsu.

    1990-08-01

    We discuss various interesting features in the behavior of exotic constituents of nuclei such as hyperons and mesons, in particular, with emphases on the aspect of exotic halos which are formed in general by short-range repulsion and long-range attraction. Specifically, Λ and Σ hypernuclei and pionic nuclei are discussed. (author)

  14. Towards Verification of Constituent Systems through Automated Proof

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Couto, Luis Diogo Monteiro Duarte; Foster, Simon; Payne, R

    2014-01-01

    This paper explores verification of constituent systems within the context of the Symphony tool platform for Systems of Systems (SoS). Our SoS modelling language, CML, supports various contractual specification elements, such as state invariants and operation preconditions, which can be used...... to specify contractual obligations on the constituent systems of a SoS. To support verification of these obligations we have developed a proof obligation generator and theorem prover plugin for Symphony. The latter uses the Isabelle/HOL theorem prover to automatically discharge the proof obligations arising...... from a CML model. Our hope is that the resulting proofs can then be used to formally verify the conformance of each constituent system, which is turn would result in a dependable SoS....

  15. Effectiveness of a stormwater collection and detention system for reducing constituent loads from bridge runoff in Pinellas County, Florida

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoker, Y.E.

    1996-01-01

    , orthophosphorus, phosphorus, total organic carbon, aluminum, arsenic, copper, and zinc in stormwater runoff generally were inversely related to runoff volume. The quality of outflow from the detention pond also varied during a storm event and with season. Maximum concentrations generally occurred near the beginning of a storm, and decreased as the storm continued. Maximum concentrations of many constituents occurred in June and July 1995. During the summer months, pH exceeded 9.0 while inorganic nitrogen concentrations were very low. These high pH values and low inorganic nitrogen concentrations are most likely associated with photosynthesis by algae or aquatic plants in the pond. Concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, and nickel in stormwater runoff were correlated with total organic carbon concentrations. Concentrations of chromium, copper, iron, nickel, lead, and zinc in stormwater runoff were correlated with aluminum concentrations. The source of these metals is probably the bridge materials and metallic debris from vehicles. The northern detention pond system of the Bayside Bridge effectively reduced concentrations of suspended solids, ammonia nitrogen, nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, phosphorus, aluminum, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, nickel, and zinc in stormwater runoff before water discharged from the pond. However, concentrations of ammonia plus organic nitrogen, organic carbon, arsenic, and values for alkalinity, pH, and specific conductance generally were greater in outflow from the pond than in stormwater runoff from the bridge. Stormwater runoff and pond outflow for three storm events were evaluated to determine the effectiveness of the detention pond system in removing selected constituents from the stormwater runoff. Most constituents and constituent loads were reduced in the outflow from the pond. Suspended solids loads were reduced about 30 to 45 percent, inorganic nitrogen loads were reduced by about 60 to 90 percent, and loads of most trace elements

  16. Screening and identification of potential bioactive constituents in a ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... of lung cancer, liver cancer and digestive cancer. Materials and Methods: In this study, the potential bioactive constituents of SCP were isolated and identified by chromatographic and spectroscopic methods. The immunomodulatory and DPPH radical scavenging activities of the constituents were also evaluated in vitro.

  17. Cigarette constituent health communications for smokers: impact of chemical, imagery, and source.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kowitt, Sarah; Sheeran, Paschal; Jarman, Kristen L; Ranney, Leah M; Schmidt, Allison M; Noar, Seth M; Huang, Li-Ling; Goldstein, Adam O

    2017-10-03

    Communication campaigns are incorporating tobacco constituent messaging to reach smokers, yet there is a dearth of research on how such messages should be constructed or will be received by smokers. In a 2x2x2 experiment, we manipulated three cigarette constituent message components: (1) the toxic constituent of tobacco (arsenic vs. lead) with a corresponding health effect, (2) the presence or absence of an evocative image, and (3) the source of the message (FDA vs. no source). We recruited smokers (N = 1,669, 55.4% women) via an online platform and randomized them to 1 of the 8 message conditions. Participants viewed the message and rated its believability and perceived effectiveness, the credibility of the message source, and action expectancies (i.e., likelihood of seeking additional information and help with quitting as a result of seeing the message). We found significant main effects of image, constituent, and source on outcomes. The use of arsenic as the constituent, the presence of an evocative image, and the FDA as the source increased the believability, source credibility, and perceived effectiveness of the tobacco constituent health message. Multiple elements of a constituent message, including type of constituent, imagery, and message source, impact their reception among smokers. Specifically, communication campaigns targeting smokers that utilize arsenic as the tobacco constituent, visual imagery, and the FDA logo may be particularly effective in changing key outcomes that are associated with subsequent attitude and behavioral changes. This paper describes how components of communication campaigns about cigarette constituents are perceived. Multiple elements of a tobacco constituent message, including type of constituent, image, and message source may influence the reception of messages among current smokers. Communication campaigns targeting smokers that utilize arsenic as the tobacco constituent, visual imagery, and the FDA logo may be particularly

  18. Antifungal constituents of Melicope borbonica

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Simonsen, Henrik Toft; Adsersen, Anne; Bremner, Paul

    2004-01-01

    -methoxycoumarin, cedrelopsin and psoralen], two sesquiterpenes (alpha-curcumene and 3,6-epidioxy-1,10-bisaboladiene), eugenol, methyleugenol and a lignan (sesamin) were isolated. None of the isolated constituents exhibited antiin fl ammatory activity in vitro. No alkaloids were detected....

  19. Characterization of monomeric DNA-binding protein Histone H1 in Leishmania braziliensis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carmelo, Emma; González, Gloria; Cruz, Teresa; Osuna, Antonio; Hernández, Mariano; Valladares, Basilio

    2011-08-01

    Histone H1 in Leishmania presents relevant differences compared to higher eukaryote counterparts, such as the lack of a DNA-binding central globular domain. Despite that, it is apparently fully functional since its differential expression levels have been related to changes in chromatin condensation and infectivity, among other features. The localization and the aggregation state of L. braziliensis H1 has been determined by immunolocalization, mass spectrometry, cross-linking and electrophoretic mobility shift assays. Analysis of H1 sequences from the Leishmania Genome Database revealed that our protein is included in a very divergent group of histones H1 that is present only in L. braziliensis. An antibody raised against recombinant L. braziliensis H1 recognized specifically that protein by immunoblot in L. braziliensis extracts, but not in other Leishmania species, a consequence of the sequence divergences observed among Leishmania species. Mass spectrometry analysis and in vitro DNA-binding experiments have also proven that L. braziliensis H1 is monomeric in solution, but oligomerizes upon binding to DNA. Finally, despite the lack of a globular domain, L. braziliensis H1 is able to form complexes with DNA in vitro, with higher affinity for supercoiled compared to linear DNA.

  20. A model of insulin fibrils derived from the x-ray crystal structure of a monomeric insulin (despentapeptide insulin).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brange, J; Dodson, G G; Edwards, D J; Holden, P H; Whittingham, J L

    1997-04-01

    The crystal structure of despentapeptide insulin, a monomeric insulin, has been refined at 1.3 A spacing and subsequently used to predict and model the organization in the insulin fibril. The model makes use of the contacts in the densely packed despentapeptide insulin crystal, and takes into account other experimental evidence, including binding studies with Congo red. The dimensions of this model fibril correspond well with those measured experimentally, and the monomer-monomer contacts within the fibril are in accordance with the known physical chemistry of insulin fibrils. Using this model, it may be possible to predict mutations in insulin that might alleviate problems associated with fibril formation during insulin therapy.

  1. 40 CFR 264.342 - Principal organic hazardous constituents (POHCs).

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ...) Principal Organic Hazardous Constituents (POHCs) in the waste feed must be treated to the extent required by... organic constituents in the waste and on their concentration or mass in the waste feed, considering the... (CONTINUED) SOLID WASTES (CONTINUED) STANDARDS FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE...

  2. [Studies on the chemical constituents of Portulaca oleracea].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Ce-jia; Liu, Dian-yu; Xiang, Lan; Zhou, Wen; Shao, Ning-ning

    2009-11-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Portulaca oleracea. The constituents were isolated by column chromatography and identified on the basis of physicochemical and spectral data. Five compounds were isolated from 70% ethanol extract of this plant and their structures were elucidated as cyclo (Phe-Ile) (1), cycle (Tyr-Ala) (2), adenine (3), friedelin (4) and isoselachoceric acid (5). Compounds 1-5 are isolated from Portulaca oleracea for the first time.

  3. Products of Irreducible Characters Having Complex-Valued Constituents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa R. Hendrixson

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available First, we prove that when a finite solvable group $G$ has a faithful irreducible character $\\chi$ such that $\\chi\\overline{\\chi}$ has two irreducible constituents, both must be real-valued. Then, we study the situation where $\\chi\\overline{\\chi}$ has exactly three distinct nonprincipal irreducible constituents, two of which are complex conjugates. In this case, we prove that $G$ has derived length bounded above by $6$.

  4. Modeling of heat transfer within porous multi-constituent materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Niezgoda, M.

    2012-01-01

    The CEA works a great deal with porous materials - carbon composites, ceramics - and aims to optimize their properties for specific uses. These materials can be composed of several constituents and generally has a complex structure with pore size of several tens of micrometers. It is used in large-scale systems that are bigger than its own characteristic scale in which they are considered as equivalent to a homogeneous medium for the simulation of its behavior in its using environment without taking into account its local morphology. We are especially interested in the effective thermal diffusivity of heterogeneous materials that we estimate as a function of temperature with the help of an inverse method by considering they are homogeneous. The identification of the diffusivity of porous and/or semi-transparent materials is made difficult because of the strong conducto-radiative coupling can quickly occur when the temperature increases. We have thus modeled the coupled conductive and radiative heat transfer as a function of the temperature within porous multi-constituent materials from their morphology discretized into a set of homogeneous voxels. We have developed a methodology that consists in starting from a 3D-microstructure of the studied materials obtained by tomography. The microstructures constitute the numerical support to this modeling that renders it possible, on the one hand, to simulate any kind of numerical thermal experiments, especially the flash method whose the results render it possible to estimate the thermal diffusivity, and on the other hand, to reproduce the thermal behavior of our materials in their using conditions. (author) [fr

  5. Monomeric Aβ1–40 and Aβ1–42 Peptides in Solution Adopt Very Similar Ramachandran Map Distributions That Closely Resemble Random Coil

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-01-01

    The pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by the aggregation and fibrillation of amyloid peptides Aβ1–40 and Aβ1–42 into amyloid plaques. Despite strong potential therapeutic interest, the structural pathways associated with the conversion of monomeric Aβ peptides into oligomeric species remain largely unknown. In particular, the higher aggregation propensity and associated toxicity of Aβ1–42 compared to that of Aβ1–40 are poorly understood. To explore in detail the structural propensity of the monomeric Aβ1–40 and Aβ1–42 peptides in solution, we recorded a large set of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) parameters, including chemical shifts, nuclear Overhauser effects (NOEs), and J couplings. Systematic comparisons show that at neutral pH the Aβ1–40 and Aβ1–42 peptides populate almost indistinguishable coil-like conformations. Nuclear Overhauser effect spectra collected at very high resolution remove assignment ambiguities and show no long-range NOE contacts. Six sets of backbone J couplings (3JHNHα, 3JC′C′, 3JC′Hα, 1JHαCα, 2JNCα, and 1JNCα) recorded for Aβ1–40 were used as input for the recently developed MERA Ramachandran map analysis, yielding residue-specific backbone ϕ/ψ torsion angle distributions that closely resemble random coil distributions, the absence of a significantly elevated propensity for β-conformations in the C-terminal region of the peptide, and a small but distinct propensity for αL at K28. Our results suggest that the self-association of Aβ peptides into toxic oligomers is not driven by elevated propensities of the monomeric species to adopt β-strand-like conformations. Instead, the accelerated disappearance of Aβ NMR signals in D2O over H2O, particularly pronounced for Aβ1–42, suggests that intermolecular interactions between the hydrophobic regions of the peptide dominate the aggregation process. PMID:26780756

  6. Method for verification of constituents of a process stream

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Baylor, L.C.; Buchanan, B.R.; O`Rourke, P.E.

    1993-01-01

    This invention is comprised of a method for validating a process stream for the presence or absence of a substance of interest such as a chemical warfare agent; that is, for verifying that a chemical warfare agent is present in an input line for feeding the agent into a reaction vessel for destruction, or, in a facility for producing commercial chemical products, that a constituent of the chemical warfare agent has not been substituted for the proper chemical compound. The method includes the steps of transmitting light through a sensor positioned in the feed line just before the chemical constituent in the input line enters the reaction vessel, measuring an optical spectrum of the chemical constituent from the light beam transmitted through it, and comparing the measured spectrum to a reference spectrum of the chemical agent and preferable also reference spectra of surrogates. A signal is given if the chemical agent is not entering a reaction vessel for destruction, or if a constituent of a chemical agent is added to a feed line in substitution of the proper chemical compound.

  7. Chemical constituents of Asparagus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negi, J. S.; Singh, P.; Joshi, G. P.; Rawat, M. S.; Bisht, V. K.

    2010-01-01

    Asparagus species (family Liliaceae) are medicinal plants of temperate Himalayas. They possess a variety of biological properties, such as being antioxidants, immunostimulants, anti-inflammatory, antihepatotoxic, antibacterial, antioxytocic, and reproductive agents. The article briefly reviews the isolated chemical constituents and the biological activities of the plant species. The structural formula of isolated compounds and their distribution in the species studied are also given. PMID:22228964

  8. Constituent gluon interpretation of glueballs and gluelumps

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boulanger, N.; Buisseret, F.; Mathieu, V.; Semay, C.

    2008-01-01

    Arguments are given that support the interpretation of the lattice QCD glueball and gluelump spectra in terms of bound states of massless constituent gluons with helicity 1. In this scheme, we show that the mass hierarchy of the currently known gluelumps and glueballs is mainly due to the number of constituent gluons and can be understood within a simple flux tube model. It is also argued that the lattice QCD 0 +- glueball should be seen as a four-gluon bound state. We finally predict the mass of the 0 - state, not yet computed in lattice QCD. (orig.)

  9. Recombinant DNA derived monomeric insulin analogue: comparison with soluble human insulin in normal subjects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vora, J P; Owens, D R; Dolben, J; Atiea, J A; Dean, J D; Kang, S; Burch, A; Brange, J

    1988-11-12

    To compare the rate of absorption from subcutaneous tissue and the resulting hypoglycaemic effect of iodine-125 labelled soluble human insulin and a monomeric insulin analogue derived by recombinant DNA technology. Single blind randomised comparison of equimolar doses of 125I labelled soluble human insulin and insulin analogue. Study in normal people at a diabetes research unit and a university department of medical physics. Seven healthy male volunteers aged 20-39 not receiving any other drugs. After an overnight fast and a basal period of one hour two doses (0.05 and 0.1 U/kg) of 125I labelled soluble human insulin and insulin analogue were injected subcutaneously into the anterior abdominal wall on four separate days. To find a fast acting insulin for meal related requirements in insulin dependent diabetics. MEASUREMENTS and main results--Residual radioactivity at the injection site was measured continuously for the first two hours after injection of the 125I labelled preparations and thereafter for five minutes simultaneously with blood sampling. Frequent venous blood samples were obtained over six hours for determination of plasma immunoreactive insulin, insulin analogue, glucose, and glucagon values. Time to 50% of initial radioactivity at the injection site for the insulin analogue compared with soluble insulin was 61 v 135 minutes (p less than 0.05) with 0.05 U/kg and 67 v 145 minutes (p less than 0.001) with 0.1 U/kg. Concentrations in plasma increased faster after the insulin analogue compared with soluble insulin, resulting in higher plasma concentrations between 10 and 150 minutes (0.001 less than p less than 0.05) after 0.05 U/kg and between 40 and 360 minutes (0.001 less than p less than 0.05) after 0.1 U/kg. The hypoglycaemic response to insulin analogue was a plasma glucose nadir at 60 minutes with both doses compared with 90 and 120 minutes with soluble insulin at 0.5 and 0.1 U/kg respectively. The response of glucagon substantiated the earlier and

  10. Volatile constituents of Glechoma hirsute Waldst. & Kit. and G ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The essential oils of two Glechoma species from Serbia have been analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Eighty eight and two hundred thirty eight constituents identified accounted for 90.6 and 86.6% of the total oils of G. hirsuta Waldst. & Kit. and G. hederacea L., respectively. In both oils the dominant constituent class was the ...

  11. [Chemical constituents of Aconitum tanguticum].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Ming; Lin, Limei; Li, Chun; Wang, Zhimin; Guo, Wubao

    2012-05-01

    To study the chemical constituents isolated from the whole plant of Aconitum tanguticum. Chemical constituents were isolated and purified from the title plant by using a combination of various chromatographic techniques including column chromatography over silica gel, Sephadex LH-20, ODS and preparative HPLC. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic techniques including 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, 2D-NMR, and ESI-MS. Seven compounds were isolated from this plant and their structures were identified as kaempferol-3-O-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->6)-beta-D-galactopyranoside]-7-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyrano-side (1), kaempferol-3-O-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside]-7-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside (2), kaempferol 7-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside (3), gentiopieroside (4), vomifoliol-9-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (5), dihydrovomifoliol-9-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (6) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl alcohol-beta-D-glucopyranoside (7). All the compounds were isolated from this plant for the first time.

  12. Studies on sphagnum peat. III. A quantitative study on the carbohydrate constituents of sphagnum mosses and sphagnum peat

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Theander, O

    1954-01-01

    A qualitative and a quantitative investigation of the carbohydrates in two sphagnum mosses and five samples of sphagnum peat of different age and degree of huminosity has been performed. The two mosses investigated showed no significant differences. Samples of very different age but with the same degree of physical huminosity were very similar, indicating that the chief changes occur at the top of the bog and/or are determined by the conditions at the start of the humification. The total amount of carbohydrates was about 90% of the organic material in the mosses and about 65% and 35% in peats with a degree of huminosity of 3-4 and 6-7 respectively. Of the constituent sugars, fructose which occurred in the mosses, was completely absent in the peat. Another sugar, which occurs in nature as a furanoside, arabinose, disappeared almost completely during the humification. The uronic acids and galactose decreased faster, while ylose and glucose decreased at about the same rate as the total carbohydrates. Mannose and probably also rhamnose are the most stable components and accumulate during the humification. The polysaccharides in mosses and peat seem to constitute a very complex mixture. The presence of a fructan in the living moss, of a polyuronide (pectin) and a large amount of more complex polysaccharides built up of galactose, xylose, rhamnose and uronic acids is indicated. The glucose, the most important constituent, probably occurs chiefly as cellulose, the presence of which has been demonstrated by other workers. Finally the behaviour of mannose during the humification indicates the presence of a stable mannan. There is no evidence of polysaccharides formed by microorganisms in the peat.

  13. The transfer of the native constituent power to an international authority

    OpenAIRE

    Konan , Line

    2007-01-01

    The transfer of the original constituent power comes when the adoption of a constitution falls under a procedure which moves the constitutional decision-making centre towards an external authority in the State. However in constitutional law, the constituent procedure concerns by nature the expression of the State?s sovereignty. In the same way, in international law, the right of peoples to self determination implies for the constituent people, the freedom in the determination of its political...

  14. Brain correlates of constituent structure in sign language comprehension.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreno, Antonio; Limousin, Fanny; Dehaene, Stanislas; Pallier, Christophe

    2018-02-15

    During sentence processing, areas of the left superior temporal sulcus, inferior frontal gyrus and left basal ganglia exhibit a systematic increase in brain activity as a function of constituent size, suggesting their involvement in the computation of syntactic and semantic structures. Here, we asked whether these areas play a universal role in language and therefore contribute to the processing of non-spoken sign language. Congenitally deaf adults who acquired French sign language as a first language and written French as a second language were scanned while watching sequences of signs in which the size of syntactic constituents was manipulated. An effect of constituent size was found in the basal ganglia, including the head of the caudate and the putamen. A smaller effect was also detected in temporal and frontal regions previously shown to be sensitive to constituent size in written language in hearing French subjects (Pallier et al., 2011). When the deaf participants read sentences versus word lists, the same network of language areas was observed. While reading and sign language processing yielded identical effects of linguistic structure in the basal ganglia, the effect of structure was stronger in all cortical language areas for written language relative to sign language. Furthermore, cortical activity was partially modulated by age of acquisition and reading proficiency. Our results stress the important role of the basal ganglia, within the language network, in the representation of the constituent structure of language, regardless of the input modality. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. [Studies on the chemical constituents of Buddleja albiflora (II)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Hai-Ping; Tao, Liang

    2010-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja albiflora. The constituents were isolated by column chromatography and their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses. seven compounds were isolated and identified as aucubin (1), catalpol (2), acteoside (3), martynoside (4), ursolicacid (5), daucosterol (6), beta-sitosterol-3-0-beta-D-(6'-0-palmitate) glucopyranosisde (7). All these compounds are obtained from Buddleja albiflora for the first time.

  16. Functional alteration of a dimeric insecticidal lectin to a monomeric antifungal protein correlated to its oligomeric status.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nilanjana Banerjee

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Allium sativum leaf agglutinin (ASAL is a 25-kDa homodimeric, insecticidal, mannose binding lectin whose subunits are assembled by the C-terminal exchange process. An attempt was made to convert dimeric ASAL into a monomeric form to correlate the relevance of quaternary association of subunits and their functional specificity. Using SWISS-MODEL program a stable monomer was designed by altering five amino acid residues near the C-terminus of ASAL. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: By introduction of 5 site-specific mutations (-DNSNN-, a β turn was incorporated between the 11(th and 12(th β strands of subunits of ASAL, resulting in a stable monomeric mutant ASAL (mASAL. mASAL was cloned and subsequently purified from a pMAL-c2X system. CD spectroscopic analysis confirmed the conservation of secondary structure in mASAL. Mannose binding assay confirmed that molecular mannose binds efficiently to both mASAL and ASAL. In contrast to ASAL, the hemagglutination activity of purified mASAL against rabbit erythrocytes was lost. An artificial diet bioassay of Lipaphis erysimi with mASAL displayed an insignificant level of insecticidal activity compared to ASAL. Fascinatingly, mASAL exhibited strong antifungal activity against the pathogenic fungi Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani and Alternaria brassicicola in a disc diffusion assay. A propidium iodide uptake assay suggested that the inhibitory activity of mASAL might be associated with the alteration of the membrane permeability of the fungus. Furthermore, a ligand blot assay of the membrane subproteome of R. solani with mASAL detected a glycoprotein receptor having interaction with mASAL. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Conversion of ASAL into a stable monomer resulted in antifungal activity. From an evolutionary aspect, these data implied that variable quaternary organization of lectins might be the outcome of defense-related adaptations to diverse situations in plants. Incorporation of m

  17. [Study on the chemical constituents of Buddleja davidii].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Xue-Jing; Zeng, Yong; Luo, Jian-Jun; Chang, Xiao-Li; Xie, Qin-Jian; Wang, Ting; Li, Chong; Zhao, Lei

    2012-12-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja davidii. The constituents were isolated and purified by silica gel column chromatography, polyamide column chromatography and macroporous adsorption resin and their structures were identified by spectroscopic analysis. Eight compounds were elucidated as : Cranioside A (1), Eutigoside A (2), 1-O-4-Dimethoxyphenylethyl-4-O-3,4-dimethoxyphenylethy-beta-D-glucopyranoside (3), Isomartynoside (4'), 4"-O-Acetylmartynoside (5), Stigmasterol glueoside (6), beta-Sitosterol (7), Daucosterol (8). All these compounds are obtained from this plant for the first time.

  18. Short Period Storage Impact on Bioactive Constituents from Bilberries and Blueberries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ştefănescu Ruxandra Emilia

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess storage effects on anthocyanin and total polyphenol content in different bilberry and blueberry extracts and to evaluate the antioxidant and antibacterial activity of these extracts. Materials and methods: Total phenolic content, total monomeric anthocyanin content and antioxidant activity were determined in the first month and after three months storage of berries at either -20 °C or -50 °C. Two different solvents were used (methanol and 50% ethanol. Antibacterial activity was determined for the 3 months stored fruits using a microdilution method and was expressed as the minimum inhibitory concentration. Results: There were significant differences between the concentration in the first month and after three months storage in both types of fruit extracts. Regarding the extracting solvent, we noticed that total phenols were better extracted with 50% ethanol, while the total monomeric anthocyanin content was higher in the methanolic extracts. No significant or slightly significant differences were observed between the fruits stored at -20 °C or -50 °C. Ethanolic extracts showed the highest scavenging activity. Good antibacterial activity was observed on gram-positive bacteria. Conclusions: Storage conditions are an important factor that can influence chemical composition of fruits. Although freezing is a good option for preservation, our study showed a high decrease in the concentration of total phenols and anthocyanins after only three months. The fruits have shown a high antioxidant activity and a good antibacterial effect. Further studies are needed for better understanding the changes that can appear during the storage.

  19. Allergen-Specific Immunotherapy with Monomeric Allergoid in a Mouse Model of Atopic Dermatitis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babakhin, Alexander; Andreev, Sergey; Nikonova, Alexandra; Shilovsky, Igor; Buzuk, Andrey; Elisyutina, Olga; Fedenko, Elena; Khaitov, Musa

    2015-01-01

    Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a widespread and difficult to treat allergic skin disease and is a tough challenge for healthcare. In this study, we investigated whether allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT) with a monomeric allergoid obtained by succinylation of ovalbumin (sOVA) is effective in a mouse model of atopic dermatitis. An experimental model of AD was reproduced by epicutaneous sensitization with ovalbumin (OVA). ASIT was performed with subcutaneous (SC) administration of increasing doses of OVA or sOVA. The levels of anti-OVA antibodies, as well as cytokines, were detected by ELISA. Skin samples from patch areas were taken for histologic examination. ASIT with either OVA or sOVA resulted in a reduction of both the anti-OVA IgE level and the IgG1/IgG2a ratio. Moreover, ASIT with sOVA increased the IFN-γ level in supernatants after splenocyte stimulation with OVA. Histologic analysis of skin samples from the sites of allergen application showed that ASIT improved the histologic picture by decreasing allergic inflammation in comparison with untreated mice. These data suggest that ASIT with a succinylated allergen represents promising approach for the treatment of AD. PMID:26275152

  20. Sulfatide promotes the folding of proinsulin, preserves insulin crystals, and mediates its monomerization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Osterbye, T; Jørgensen, K H; Fredman, P; Tranum-Jensen, J; Kaas, A; Brange, J; Whittingham, J L; Buschard, K

    2001-06-01

    Sulfatide is a glycolipid that has been associated with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. It is present in the islets of Langerhans and follows the same intracellular route as insulin. However, the role of sulfatide in the beta cell has been unclear. Here we present evidence suggesting that sulfatide promotes the folding of reduced proinsulin, indicating that sulfatide possesses molecular chaperone activity. Sulfatide associates with insulin by binding to the insulin domain A8--A10 and most likely by interacting with the hydrophobic side chains of the dimer-forming part of the insulin B-chain. Sulfatide has a dual effect on insulin. It substantially reduces deterioration of insulin hexamer crystals at pH 5.5, conferring stability comparable to those in beta cell granules. Sulfatide also mediates the conversion of insulin hexamers to the biological active monomers at neutral pH, the pH at the beta-cell surface. Finally, we report that inhibition of sulfatide synthesis with chloroquine and fumonisine B1 leads to inhibition of insulin granule formation in vivo. Our observations suggest that sulfatide plays a key role in the folding of proinsulin, in the maintenance of insulin structure, and in the monomerization process.

  1. The analysis of fuel constituent redistribution for ternary metallic fuel slug

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Byoung Oon; Lee, Dong Uk; Kim, Young Kyun; Chang, Jin Wook; Lee, Ki Bok; Kim, Young Il

    2004-02-01

    U-TRU-Zr metallic alloy is being considered as the fuel slug for the proliferation resistance core of KALIMER. The radial fuel constituent migration is a general phenomenon in the metallic alloys. This phenomenon may affect the in-reactor performance of metallic fuel rods, influencing such factors as melting temperature, thermal conductivity, power generation rate, phase boundaries and eutectic melting of the fuel slug. Thus, constituent redistribution modeling is essential when developing a metallic fuel performance code. The constituent migration model adopted in this report was based on the Ishida's model and Hofman's theory. A subroutine program has been made and installed into the MACSIS code to simulate constituent redistribution. The radial profile of Zr redistribution was calculated for the ternary metallic fuel, and compared with the measured data.

  2. Constituent models and large transverse momentum reactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brodsky, S.J.

    1975-01-01

    The discussion of constituent models and large transverse momentum reactions includes the structure of hard scattering models, dimensional counting rules for large transverse momentum reactions, dimensional counting and exclusive processes, the deuteron form factor, applications to inclusive reactions, predictions for meson and photon beams, the charge-cubed test for the e/sup +-/p → e/sup +-/γX asymmetry, the quasi-elastic peak in inclusive hadronic reactions, correlations, and the multiplicity bump at large transverse momentum. Also covered are the partition method for bound state calculations, proofs of dimensional counting, minimal neutralization and quark--quark scattering, the development of the constituent interchange model, and the A dependence of high transverse momentum reactions

  3. [Chemical constituents from stems of Ilex pubescens].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xing, Xian-dong; Zhang, Qian; Feng, Feng; Liu, Wen-yuan

    2012-09-01

    To study the chemical constituents from the stems of Ilex pubescens Hook. et Am. The chemical constituents were isolated and purified by various column chromatographic methods with diatomite, silica gel, ODS and Sephadex LH-20. Their structures were identified on physical properties and spectroscopic methods. Nine compounds were isolated and determined as luteolin(1), quercetin(2), hyperoside(3), rutin(4), 1, 5-dihydroxy-3-methyl-anthraquinone(5),3,5-dimethoxy-4-hydroxy-benzoic acid-1-O-beta-D-glucoside(6), hexadecanoic acid(7), stearic acid(8), n-tetratriacontanol(9), respectively. All the compounds are isolated from this plant for the first time, and compounds 5 and 6 are isolated from this genus for the first time.

  4. Development, validation and evaluation of an analytical method for the determination of monomeric and oligomeric procyanidins in apple extracts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hollands, Wendy J; Voorspoels, Stefan; Jacobs, Griet; Aaby, Kjersti; Meisland, Ane; Garcia-Villalba, Rocio; Tomas-Barberan, Francisco; Piskula, Mariusz K; Mawson, Deborah; Vovk, Irena; Needs, Paul W; Kroon, Paul A

    2017-04-28

    There is a lack of data for individual oligomeric procyanidins in apples and apple extracts. Our aim was to develop, validate and evaluate an analytical method for the separation, identification and quantification of monomeric and oligomeric flavanols in apple extracts. To achieve this, we prepared two types of flavanol extracts from freeze-dried apples; one was an epicatechin-rich extract containing ∼30% (w/w) monomeric (-)-epicatechin which also contained oligomeric procyanidins (Extract A), the second was an oligomeric procyanidin-rich extract depleted of epicatechin (Extract B). The parameters considered for method optimisation were HPLC columns and conditions, sample heating, mass of extract and dilution volumes. The performance characteristics considered for method validation included standard linearity, method sensitivity, precision and trueness. Eight laboratories participated in the method evaluation. Chromatographic separation of the analytes was best achieved utilizing a Hilic column with a binary mobile phase consisting of acidic acetonitrile and acidic aqueous methanol. The final method showed linearity for epicatechin in the range 5-100μg/mL with a correlation co-efficient >0.999. Intra-day and inter-day precision of the analytes ranged from 2 to 6% and 2 to 13% respectively. Up to dp3, trueness of the method was >95% but decreased with increasing dp. Within laboratory precision showed RSD values <5 and 10% for monomers and oligomers, respectively. Between laboratory precision was 4 and 15% (Extract A) and 7 and 30% (Extract B) for monomers and oligomers, respectively. An analytical method for the separation, identification and quantification of procyanidins in an apple extract was developed, validated and assessed. The results of the inter-laboratory evaluation indicate that the method is reliable and reproducible. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  5. Estimating instream constituent loads using replicate synoptic sampling, Peru Creek, Colorado

    Science.gov (United States)

    Runkel, Robert L.; Walton-Day, Katherine; Kimball, Briant A.; Verplanck, Philip L.; Nimick, David A.

    2013-01-01

    The synoptic mass balance approach is often used to evaluate constituent mass loading in streams affected by mine drainage. Spatial profiles of constituent mass load are used to identify sources of contamination and prioritize sites for remedial action. This paper presents a field scale study in which replicate synoptic sampling campaigns are used to quantify the aggregate uncertainty in constituent load that arises from (1) laboratory analyses of constituent and tracer concentrations, (2) field sampling error, and (3) temporal variation in concentration from diel constituent cycles and/or source variation. Consideration of these factors represents an advance in the application of the synoptic mass balance approach by placing error bars on estimates of constituent load and by allowing all sources of uncertainty to be quantified in aggregate; previous applications of the approach have provided only point estimates of constituent load and considered only a subset of the possible errors. Given estimates of aggregate uncertainty, site specific data and expert judgement may be used to qualitatively assess the contributions of individual factors to uncertainty. This assessment can be used to guide the collection of additional data to reduce uncertainty. Further, error bars provided by the replicate approach can aid the investigator in the interpretation of spatial loading profiles and the subsequent identification of constituent source areas within the watershed.The replicate sampling approach is applied to Peru Creek, a stream receiving acidic, metal-rich effluent from the Pennsylvania Mine. Other sources of acidity and metals within the study reach include a wetland area adjacent to the mine and tributary inflow from Cinnamon Gulch. Analysis of data collected under low-flow conditions indicates that concentrations of Al, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn in Peru Creek exceed aquatic life standards. Constituent loading within the study reach is dominated by effluent from the

  6. Estimating instream constituent loads using replicate synoptic sampling, Peru Creek, Colorado

    Science.gov (United States)

    Runkel, Robert L.; Walton-Day, Katherine; Kimball, Briant A.; Verplanck, Philip L.; Nimick, David A.

    2013-05-01

    SummaryThe synoptic mass balance approach is often used to evaluate constituent mass loading in streams affected by mine drainage. Spatial profiles of constituent mass load are used to identify sources of contamination and prioritize sites for remedial action. This paper presents a field scale study in which replicate synoptic sampling campaigns are used to quantify the aggregate uncertainty in constituent load that arises from (1) laboratory analyses of constituent and tracer concentrations, (2) field sampling error, and (3) temporal variation in concentration from diel constituent cycles and/or source variation. Consideration of these factors represents an advance in the application of the synoptic mass balance approach by placing error bars on estimates of constituent load and by allowing all sources of uncertainty to be quantified in aggregate; previous applications of the approach have provided only point estimates of constituent load and considered only a subset of the possible errors. Given estimates of aggregate uncertainty, site specific data and expert judgement may be used to qualitatively assess the contributions of individual factors to uncertainty. This assessment can be used to guide the collection of additional data to reduce uncertainty. Further, error bars provided by the replicate approach can aid the investigator in the interpretation of spatial loading profiles and the subsequent identification of constituent source areas within the watershed. The replicate sampling approach is applied to Peru Creek, a stream receiving acidic, metal-rich effluent from the Pennsylvania Mine. Other sources of acidity and metals within the study reach include a wetland area adjacent to the mine and tributary inflow from Cinnamon Gulch. Analysis of data collected under low-flow conditions indicates that concentrations of Al, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn in Peru Creek exceed aquatic life standards. Constituent loading within the study reach is dominated by effluent

  7. Analysis of gamma irradiated pepper constituents, 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takagi, Kazuko; Ochiai, Junko; Okuyama, Tsuneo

    1988-01-01

    Black pepper, white pepper, frozen green pepper and real pink pepper (kept in vinegar) were analyzed by reversed phase IIPLC. The extraction method and HPLC conditions were same as the first report, that is, the extraction from pepper was performed by Automatic Air Hammer and the extracted samples were separated on a reversed phase C 8 column with a concave gradient from 0.1% trifluoro aceticacid (TFA) in water to 75% acetonitrile - 0.1% TFA in water for 60 minutes and detected at 210 nm, 280 nm. The different constituents were observed clearly on chromatogram between black pepper and white pepper. The different constituents were observed between different producing white peppers, and as the result that the analyzed pepper was distinguished its producing district by HPLC chromatogram. In order to investigate of effect of lyophilization on white pepper extracts, lyophilized extraction was analyzed by this HPLC method. Some peaks were decreased by lyophilization. The effect of heat on white pepper constituents was examined. White pepper was heated by electronic oven and thermostat. When the former method was used, decreased peak number (peak height was lower than without heat treatment) was more than latter method. These subtle change was able to be recognized by these HPLC chromatograms. (author)

  8. [Advance in chemical constituents of genus Clematis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Feng; Yang, Depo

    2009-10-01

    Progresses in the studies on chemical constituents of Clematis L. (belonging to the family Ranunculaceae) were systematiically reviewed in this article. The plants in this genus have a wide spectrum of constituents as follows: triterpenes, flavonoids, lignans, coumarins, alkaloids, volatile oils, steroids, organic acids, macrocyclic compounds and phenols, etc., among which triterpenoid saponins, flavonoids and lignans are the main components. The triterpenoid saponins are mainly oleanolic type and hederagenin type, most of which are bidesmosidic saponins, substituted with oligosaccharide chains at both C-3 and C-28, and some are substituted with acetyl, caffeoyl, isoferuloyl, p-methoxy cinnamyl and 3,4-dimethoxy cinnamyl groups in the oligosaccharide chains. The flavonoids from Clematis species are mainly flavones, flavonols, flavanones, isoflavones, xanthones and their glucosides (sugar moieties are connected to the aglycone through either the oxygen or the carbon atoms), the aglycones of which are mainly apigenin, kaempferol, luteolin and quercetin. The lignans from Clematis are mainly eupomatene lignans, cyclolignans, monoepoxylignans, bisepoxylignans and lignanolides. Clematis spp. are rich in resources, however, studies on their chemical constituents have only been carried out on twenty or so spp. As a result, it is necessary to expand our study on other spp. from this genus for better utilization of medicinal resources.

  9. [Chemical Constituents in hypoglycemic active fraction of Celastrus orbiculatus leaf].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Xiao-xia; Zhang, Ting-ting; Wang, Ding-yong

    2014-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents in the hypoglycemic active fraction of Celastrus orbiculatus leaf. The constituents were separated and purified by column chromatography and thin layer chromatography, and their structures were elucidated by IR, MS and NMR. Seven compounds were isolated from the active fraction of Celastnrus orbiculatus, which identified as kaempferol( 1) ,quercetin(2), kaempferol-7-0-α-L-rhamnoside (3), kaempferol-3,7-di-O-α-L-rhamnoside (4) , quercetin-3-0-β-D-glucoside(5), myricetrin(6) and kaempferol-3-0-rutinoside(7). Chemical constituents in the hypoglycemic active fraction of Celastrus orbiculatus leaf are reported for the first time,and compounds 5,6 and 7 are firstly obtained from this plant.

  10. Volatile Constituents of Three Piper Species from Vietnam.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hieua, Le D; Hoic, Tran M; Thangda, Tran D; Ogunwande, Isiaka A

    2015-11-01

    The chemical compositions of the essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation of three Piper plants grown in Vietnam are reported. The analysis was achieved by means of gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The main constituents of the leaf oil of Piper majusculum Blume were β-caryophyllene (20.7%), germacrene D (18.6%) and β-elemene (11.3%). The quantitatively significant compounds of the volatile oils of P. harmandii C. DC were sabinene (leaves, 14.5%; stems, 16.2%), benzyl benzoate (leaves, 20.0%; stems, 29.40%) and benzyl salicylate (leaves, 14.1%; stems, 24.3%). Also, α-cadinol (17.0%) was identified in large proportion in the leaf oil. However, sabinene (leaves, 17.9%; stems, 13.5%), benzyl benzoate (leaves, 20.5%; stems, 32.5%) and β-eudesmol (leaves, 13.8%; stems, 8.4%) were the main constituents of P. brevicaule C. DC. This is the first report on the volatile constituents of both P. harmandii and P. brevicaule.

  11. Antioxidant and antibacterial constituents of Steganotaenia ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    GC-MS analysis of the hexane and dichloromethane was carried out to determine their chemical constituents. Results revealed that both extracts contained similar compounds (including cumene, xylene, citronellol and long chain hydrocarbons). In addition the dichloromethane extract contains cadinanol, ar-curcumene and ...

  12. 40 CFR 227.6 - Constituents prohibited as other than trace contaminants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... trace contaminants. 227.6 Section 227.6 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY... Environmental Impact § 227.6 Constituents prohibited as other than trace contaminants. (a) Subject to the..., of materials containing the following constituents as other than trace contaminants will not be...

  13. Identifying constituents in commercial gasoline using Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy and independent component analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pasadakis, Nikos; Kardamakis, Andreas A

    2006-09-25

    A new method is proposed that enables the identification of five refinery fractions present in commercial gasoline mixtures using infrared spectroscopic analysis. The data analysis and interpretation was carried out based on independent component analysis (ICA) and spectral similarity techniques. The FT-IR spectra of the gasoline constituents were determined using the ICA method, exclusively based on the spectra of their mixtures as a blind separation procedure, i.e. assuming unknown the spectra of the constituents. The identity of the constituents was subsequently determined using similarity measures commonly employed in spectra library searches against the spectra of the constituent components. The high correlation scores that were obtained in the identification of the constituents indicates that the developed method can be employed as a rapid and effective tool in quality control, fingerprinting or forensic applications, where gasoline constituents are suspected.

  14. 40 CFR 227.7 - Limits established for specific wastes or waste constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ..., shellfish and wildlife by: (1) Extending the range of biological pests, viruses, pathogenic microorganisms... containing biodegradable constituents, or constituents which consume oxygen in any fashion, may be dumped in...

  15. [Chemical constituents of the roots of Vaccinium bracteatum].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lv, Xiao-Lan; Mai, Xi; Guo, Hui; Lai, Xiao-Ping

    2012-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents of the roots of Vaccinium bracteatum. The constituents were separated and purified with chromatographic methods (including silica gel, Sephadex LH-20 and RP-18 column chromatography), and their structures were determined by spectroscopic methods (including MS, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR). 10 compounds were isolated from the roots of Vaccinium bracteatu and were elucidated as chlorogenic acid (1), pinoresinol (2), ferulic acid (3), kaempferol (4), trans-caffeic acid (5), beta-sitosterol (6), quercetin (7), oleanolic acid (8), apigenin (9) and luteolin (10). Compounds 1 -3 are obtained from this plant for the first time.

  16. CYTOTOXIC ACTIVITY OF THE CONSTITUENTS OF ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Crude methanol extracts obtained from the stem, roots and leaves of Anthocleista djalonensis and three natural plant constituents (djalonenol 1, sweroside 3 and djalonensone 9 respectively) isolated from these extracts were evaluated invitro against ST-57 brain tumor transformed fibroblasts. In addition, six semisynthetic ...

  17. Hydrogen production from the monomeric sugars hydrolyzed from hemicellulose by Enterobacter aerogenes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ren, Yunli; Wang, Jianji; Liu, Zhen; Ren, Yunlai; Li, Guozhi [School of Chemical Engineering and Pharmaceutics, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471039, Henan (China)

    2009-12-15

    Relatively large percentages of xylose with glucose, arabinose, mannose, galactose and rhamnose constitute the hydrolysis products of hemicellulose. In this paper, hydrogen production performance of facultative anaerobe (Enterobacter aerogenes) has been investigated from these different monomeric sugars except glucose. It was shown that the stereoisomers of mannose and galactose were more effective for hydrogen production than those of xylose and arabinose. The substrate of 5 g/l xylose resulted in a relative high level of hydrogen yield (73.8 mmol/l), hydrogen production efficiency (2.2 mol/mol) and a maximum hydrogen production rate (249 ml/l/h). The hydrogen yield, hydrogen production efficiency and the maximum hydrogen production rate reached 104 mmol/l, 2.35 mol/mol and 290 ml/l/h, respectively, on a substrate of 10 g/l galactose. The hydrogen yields and the maximum hydrogen production rates increased with an increase of mannose concentrations and reached 119 mmol/l and 518 ml/l/h on the culture of 25 g/l mannose. However, rhamnose was a relative poor carbon resource for E. aerogenes to produce hydrogen, from which the hydrogen yield and hydrogen production efficiency were about one half of that from the mannose substrate. E. aerogenes was found to be a promising strain for hydrogen production from hydrolysis products of hemicellulose. (author)

  18. Lipoamino acid-based micelles as promising delivery vehicles for monomeric amphotericin B.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Serafim, Cláudia; Ferreira, Inês; Rijo, Patrícia; Pinheiro, Lídia; Faustino, Célia; Calado, António; Garcia-Rio, Luis

    2016-01-30

    Lipoamino acid-based micelles have been developed as delivery vehicles for the hydrophobic drug amphotericin B (AmB). The micellar solubilisation of AmB by a gemini lipoamino acid (LAA) derived from cysteine and its equimolar mixtures with the bile salts sodium cholate (NaC) and sodium deoxycholate (NaDC), as well as the aggregation sate of the drug in the micellar systems, was studied under biomimetic conditions (phosphate buffered-saline, pH 7.4) using UV-vis spectroscopy. Pure surfactant systems and equimolar mixtures were characterized by tensiometry and important parameters were determined, such as critical micelle concentration (CMC), surface tension at the CMC (γCMC), maximum surface excess concentration (Γmax), and minimum area occupied per molecule at the water/air interface (Amin). Rheological behaviour from viscosity measurements at different shear rates was also addressed. Solubilisation capacity was quantified in terms of molar solubilisation ratio (χ), micelle-water partition coefficient (KM) and Gibbs energy of solubilisation (ΔGs°). Formulations of AmB in micellar media were compared in terms of drug loading, encapsulation efficiency, aggregation state of AmB and in vitro antifungal activity against Candida albicans. The LAA-containing micellar systems solubilise AmB in its monomeric and less toxic form and exhibit in vitro antifungal activity comparable to that of the commercial formulation Fungizone. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Inactivation of lipoprotein lipase occurs on the surface of THP-1 macrophages where oligomers of angiopoietin-like protein 4 are formed

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Makoveichuk, Elena; Sukonina, Valentina; Kroupa, Olessia; Thulin, Petra; Ehrenborg, Ewa; Olivecrona, Thomas; Olivecrona, Gunilla

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity is controlled by ANGPTL4 in THP-1 macrophages. ► Both LPL and ANGPTL4 bind to THP-1 macrophages in a heparin-releasable fashion. ► Only monomers of ANGPTL4 are present within THP-1 macrophages. ► Covalent oligomers of ANGPTL4 appear on cell surface and in medium. ► Inactivation of LPL coincide with ANGPTL4 oligomer formation on cell surfaces. -- Abstract: Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) hydrolyzes triglycerides in plasma lipoproteins causing release of fatty acids for metabolic purposes in muscles and adipose tissue. LPL in macrophages in the artery wall may, however, promote foam cell formation and atherosclerosis. Angiopoietin-like protein (ANGPTL) 4 inactivates LPL and ANGPTL4 expression is controlled by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR). The mechanisms for inactivation of LPL by ANGPTL4 was studied in THP-1 macrophages where active LPL is associated with cell surfaces in a heparin-releasable form, while LPL in the culture medium is mostly inactive. The PPARδ agonist GW501516 had no effect on LPL mRNA, but increased ANGPTL4 mRNA and caused a marked reduction of the heparin-releasable LPL activity concomitantly with accumulation of inactive, monomeric LPL in the medium. Intracellular ANGPTL4 was monomeric, while dimers and tetramers of ANGPTL4 were present in the heparin-releasable fraction and medium. GW501516 caused an increase in the amount of ANGPTL4 oligomers on the cell surface that paralleled the decrease in LPL activity. Actinomycin D blocked the effects of GW501516 on ANGPTL4 oligomer formation and prevented the inactivation of LPL. Antibodies against ANGPTL4 interfered with the inactivation of LPL. We conclude that inactivation of LPL in THP-1 macrophages primarily occurs on the cell surface where oligomers of ANGPTL4 are formed.

  20. Methods of using adsorption media for separating or removing constituents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tranter, Troy J [Idaho Falls, ID; Herbst, R Scott [Idaho Falls, ID; Mann, Nicholas R [Blackfoot, ID; Todd, Terry A [Aberdeen, ID

    2011-10-25

    Methods of using an adsorption medium to remove at least one constituent from a feed stream. The method comprises contacting an adsorption medium with a feed stream comprising at least one constituent and removing the at least one constituent from the feed stream. The adsorption medium comprises a polyacrylonitrile (PAN) matrix and at least one metal hydroxide homogenously dispersed therein. The adsorption medium may comprise from approximately 15 wt % to approximately 90 wt % of the PAN and from approximately 10 wt % to approximately 85 wt % of the at least one metal hydroxide. The at least one metal hydroxide may be selected from the group consisting of ferric hydroxide, zirconium hydroxide, lanthanum hydroxide, cerium hydroxide, titanium hydroxide, copper hydroxide, antimony hydroxide, and molybdenum hydroxide.

  1. Analytical Techniques and Pharmacokinetics of Gastrodia elata Blume and Its Constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Jinyi; Wu, Bingchu; Tang, Chunlan; Zhao, Jinshun

    2017-07-08

    Gastrodia elata Blume ( G. elata ), commonly called Tianma in Chinese, is an important and notable traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which has been used in China as an anticonvulsant, analgesic, sedative, anti-asthma, anti-immune drug since ancient times. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the abundant efforts of scientists in developing analytical techniques and performing pharmacokinetic studies of G. elata and its constituents, including sample pretreatment methods, analytical techniques, absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion (ADME) and influence factors to its pharmacokinetics. Based on the reported pharmacokinetic property data of G. elata and its constituents, it is hoped that more studies will focus on the development of rapid and sensitive analytical techniques, discovering new therapeutic uses and understanding the specific in vivo mechanisms of action of G. elata and its constituents from the pharmacokinetic viewpoint in the near future. The present review discusses analytical techniques and pharmacokinetics of G. elata and its constituents reported from 1985 onwards.

  2. [Analysis of the chemical constituents of volatile oils of Metasequoia glyptostroboides leave].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shong, E; Lui, R

    1997-10-01

    The chemical constituents of volatile oils of Metasequoia glyptostroboides leave were analyzed by GC-MS-DS. 27 constituents were identified, alpha-pinene (70.65%) and caryophyllene (10.38%) of them are main components.

  3. Absorption mechanism of three curcumin constituents through in situ intestinal perfusion method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y.-H. Wang

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to investigate the absorption mechanism of three curcumin constituents in rat small intestines. Self-emulsification was used to solubilize the three curcumin constituents, and the rat in situ intestinal perfusion method was used to study factors on drug absorption, including drug mass concentration, absorption site, and the different types and concentrations of absorption inhibitors. Within the scope of experimental concentrations, three curcumin constituents were absorbed in rat small intestines through the active transport mechanism.

  4. Multi-satellite ocean tide modelling - the K-1 constituent

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Ole Baltazar; Knudsen, Per

    1997-01-01

    All major ocean tide constituents are aliased into signals with periods less than 90 days from TOPEX/POSEIDON altimetry, except the K-1 constituent. The aliased K-1 has a period of 173 days. Consequently, it might be confounded with height variations caused by the semiannual cycle having a period......, where the presence of crossing tracks cannot separate K-1 from the semiannual signal from TOPEX/POSEIDON, the importance of including ERS-1 and GEOSAT observations was demonstrated. A comparison with 29 pelagic and coastal tide gauges in the Southern Ocean south of 50 degrees S gave 5.59 (M-2), 2.27 (S......-2) and 5.04 (K-1) cm RMS agreement for FES95.1 ocean tide model. The same comparison for the best empirical estimated constituents based on TOPEX/POSEIDON + ERS-1 + GEOSAT gave 4.32, 2.21, and 4.29 cm for M-2, S-2 and K-1, respectively....

  5. Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) and its bioactive constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laribi, Bochra; Kouki, Karima; M'Hamdi, Mahmoud; Bettaieb, Taoufik

    2015-06-01

    Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), a member of the Apiaceae family, is among most widely used medicinal plant, possessing nutritional as well as medicinal properties. Thus, the aim of this updated review is to highlight the importance of coriander as a potential source of bioactive constituents and to summarize their biological activities as well as their different applications from data obtained in recent literature, with critical analysis on the gaps and potential for future investigations. A literature review was carried out by searching on the electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar for studies focusing on the biological and pharmacological activities of coriander seed and herb bioactive constituents. All recent English-language articles published between 2000 and 2014 were searched using the terms 'C. sativum', 'medicinal plant', 'bioactive constituents', and 'biological activities'. Subsequently, coriander seed and herb essential oils have been actively investigated for their chemical composition and biological activities including antimicrobial, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, anxiolytic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-convulsant and anti-cancer activities, among others. Although coriander has been reported to possess a wide range of traditional medicinal uses, no report is available in its effectiveness use in reactive airway diseases such as asthma and bronchiolitis. In brief, the information presented herein will be helpful to create more interest towards this medicinal species by defining novel pharmacological and clinical applications and hence, may be useful in developing new drug formulations in the future or by employing coriander bioactive constituents in combination with conventional drugs to enhance the treatment of diseases such as Alzheimer and cancer. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Design Function and Structure of a Monomeric CLC Transporter

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    L Robertson; L Kolmakova-Partensky; C Miller

    2011-12-31

    Channels and transporters of the ClC family cause the transmembrane movement of inorganic anions in service of a variety of biological tasks, from the unusual - the generation of the kilowatt pulses with which electric fish stun their prey - to the quotidian - the acidification of endosomes, vacuoles and lysosomes. The homodimeric architecture of ClC proteins, initially inferred from single-molecule studies of an elasmobranch Cl{sup -} channel and later confirmed by crystal structures of bacterial Cl{sup -}/H{sup +} antiporters, is apparently universal. Moreover, the basic machinery that enables ion movement through these proteins - the aqueous pores for anion diffusion in the channels and the ion-coupling chambers that coordinate Cl{sup -} and H{sup +} antiport in the transporters - are contained wholly within each subunit of the homodimer. The near-normal function of a bacterial ClC transporter straitjacketed by covalent crosslinks across the dimer interface and the behaviour of a concatemeric human homologue argue that the transport cycle resides within each subunit and does not require rigid-body rearrangements between subunits. However, this evidence is only inferential, and because examples are known in which quaternary rearrangements of extramembrane ClC domains that contribute to dimerization modulate transport activity, we cannot declare as definitive a 'parallel-pathways picture in which the homodimer consists of two single-subunit transporters operating independently. A strong prediction of such a view is that it should in principle be possible to obtain a monomeric ClC. Here we exploit the known structure of a ClC Cl{sup -}/H{sup +} exchanger, ClC-ec1 from Escherichia coli, to design mutants that destabilize the dimer interface while preserving both the structure and the transport function of individual subunits. The results demonstrate that the ClC subunit alone is the basic functional unit for transport and that cross-subunit interaction is not

  7. Pleiotropic benefit of monomeric and oligomeric flavanols on vascular health--a randomized controlled clinical pilot study.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antje R Weseler

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular diseases are expanding to a major social-economic burden in the Western World and undermine man's deep desire for healthy ageing. Epidemiological studies suggest that flavanol-rich foods (e.g. grapes, wine, chocolate sustain cardiovascular health. For an evidenced-based application, however, sound clinical data on their efficacy are strongly demanded. METHODS: In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled intervention study we supplemented 28 male smokers with 200 mg per day of monomeric and oligomeric flavanols (MOF from grape seeds. At baseline, after 4 and 8 weeks we measured macro- and microvascular function and a cluster of systemic biomarkers for major pathological processes occurring in the vasculature: disturbances in lipid metabolism and cellular redox balance, and activation of inflammatory cells and platelets. RESULTS: In the MOF group serum total cholesterol and LDL decreased significantly (P ≤ 0.05 by 5% (n = 11 and 7% (n = 9, respectively in volunteers with elevated baseline levels. Additionally, after 8 weeks the ratio of glutathione to glutathione disulphide in erythrocytes rose from baseline by 22% (n = 15, P<0.05 in MOF supplemented subjects. We also observed that MOF supplementation exerts anti-inflammatory effects in blood towards ex vivo added bacterial endotoxin and significantly reduces expression of inflammatory genes in leukocytes. Conversely, alterations in macro- and microvascular function, platelet aggregation, plasma levels of nitric oxide surrogates, endothelin-1, C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, prostaglandin F2alpha, plasma antioxidant capacity and gene expression levels of antioxidant defense enzymes did not reach statistical significance after 8 weeks MOF supplementation. However, integrating all measured effects into a global, so-called vascular health index revealed a significant improvement of overall vascular health by MOF compared to placebo (P ≤ 0.05. CONCLUSION: Our

  8. Classical relativistic constituent particles and composite-particle scattering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    King, M.J.

    1984-01-01

    A nonlocal Lagrangian formalism is developed to describe a classical many-particle system. The nonstandard Lagrangian is a function of a single parameter s which is not, in general, associated with the physical clock. The particles are constrained to be constituents of composite systems, which in turn can decompose into asymptotic composite states representing free observable particles. To demonstrate this, explicit models of composite-composite particle scattering are constructed. Space-time conservation laws are not imposed separately on the system, but follow upon requiring the constituents to ''pair up'' into free composites at s = +infinity,-infinity. One model is characterized by the appearance of an ''external'' zero-mass composite particle which participates in the scattering process without affecting the space-time conservation laws of the two-composite system. Initial conditions on the two incoming composite particles and the zero-mass participant determine the scattering angle and the final states of the two outgoing composite particles. Although the formalism is classical, the model displays some features usually associated with quantum field theory, such as particle scattering by means of constituent exchange, creation and annihilation of particles, and restriction of values of angular momentum

  9. User's manual for the Graphical Constituent Loading Analysis System (GCLAS)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koltun, G.F.; Eberle, Michael; Gray, J.R.; Glysson, G.D.

    2006-01-01

    This manual describes the Graphical Constituent Loading Analysis System (GCLAS), an interactive cross-platform program for computing the mass (load) and average concentration of a constituent that is transported in stream water over a period of time. GCLAS computes loads as a function of an equal-interval streamflow time series and an equal- or unequal-interval time series of constituent concentrations. The constituent-concentration time series may be composed of measured concentrations or a combination of measured and estimated concentrations. GCLAS is not intended for use in situations where concentration data (or an appropriate surrogate) are collected infrequently or where an appreciable amount of the concentration values are censored. It is assumed that the constituent-concentration time series used by GCLAS adequately represents the true time-varying concentration. Commonly, measured constituent concentrations are collected at a frequency that is less than ideal (from a load-computation standpoint), so estimated concentrations must be inserted in the time series to better approximate the expected chemograph. GCLAS provides tools to facilitate estimation and entry of instantaneous concentrations for that purpose. Water-quality samples collected for load computation frequently are collected in a single vertical or at single point in a stream cross section. Several factors, some of which may vary as a function of time and (or) streamflow, can affect whether the sample concentrations are representative of the mean concentration in the cross section. GCLAS provides tools to aid the analyst in assessing whether concentrations in samples collected in a single vertical or at single point in a stream cross section exhibit systematic bias with respect to the mean concentrations. In cases where bias is evident, the analyst can construct coefficient relations in GCLAS to reduce or eliminate the observed bias. GCLAS can export load and concentration data in formats

  10. [Chemical constituents from rhizomes of Illicium henryi].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jifeng; Zhang, Xuemei; Shi, Yao; Jiang, Zhiyong; Ma, Yunbao; Chen, Jijun

    2010-09-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Illicium henryi. Column chromatographic techniques using silica gel, Sephadex LH-20, Rp-8 and Rp-18 as packing materials were applied to isolate constituents. The structures of isolates were determined on the basis of spectroscopic data analyses. Twelve compounds were isolated from the rhizomes of I. henryi, which were characterized as balanophonin (1), aviculin (2), rubriflosides A (3), 1,2-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1,3-propanediol (4), jasopyran (5), kaempferol (6), quercetin (7), (2R, 3R)-3, 5, 7, 3', 5'- pentahydroxyflavan (8), 3, 4, 5-trimethoxyphenyl-1-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (9), 3, 4-dimethoxyphenyl-1-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (10), coniferyl aldehyde (11), sinapaldehyde (12), respectively. All the isolates were obtained for the first time from this plant.

  11. The integration of the Constituent Congress in 1917

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan Bernardino Sánchez Aguilar

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper offers a new perspective around the perception of political legitimacy held by the representatives to one of the most emblematic assemblies in Mexico. Reviewing the credentials of the Querétaro Constituent Congress allows us to observe the first internal disputes within constitutionalism, since plenty has been said about the enactment of the Political Constitution of the Mexican United States, whereas the legislative sessions that gave rise to it are not studied enough.  By presenting the chiaroscuros of the constituent parliamentary work, particularly during the first days of the electoral college, this article aims to complement the existing enormous historiographic production on this Congress.

  12. "My First Thought was Croutons": Perceptions of Cigarettes and Cigarette Smoke Constituents Among Adult Smokers and Nonsmokers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moracco, Kathryn E; Morgan, Jennifer C; Mendel, Jennifer; Teal, Randall; Noar, Seth M; Ribisl, Kurt M; Hall, Marissa G; Brewer, Noel T

    2016-07-01

    Understanding what people think about harmful and potentially harmful constituents in cigarettes and cigarette smoke has new urgency given legislation requiring US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to disclose constituent information. Our study sought to obtain qualitative information on what people think about these constituents and the language they use to talk about them. We conducted six focus groups in 2014 with 40 adults in North Carolina. Open-ended questions focused on cigarette and cigarette smoke constituents in general and on the 18 constituents on the FDA's abbreviated list. We coded the transcripts for emergent themes, and all four coders discussed themes until we reached consensus. Participants knew that cigarette smoke contains chemicals but did not know how many chemicals nor what those chemicals are, beyond tar and nicotine. Dangers of constituents mentioned included "chemicals," physical disease, and addiction. Participants incorrectly believed harmful constituents came primarily from tobacco companies' additives. For unfamiliar constituents, people tried to make associations based on similar-sounding words. Recognizable constituents that participants associated with health harms most discouraged them from wanting to smoke. Most participants wanted to know health harms associated with constituents and what else the chemicals were in. Participants showed enthusiasm for learning more information about constituents, and also showed substantial misunderstandings about the source of harmful constituents. Our findings contribute to the limited body of research on adults' knowledge and perceptions of cigarette smoke constituents and can aid the FDA as it plans to disclose constituent information to the public. Our study provides information about adults' understanding of cigarette smoke constituents and what adults would like to know about these constituents. This information can help communication campaigns describe cigarette smoke constituents in a

  13. The fragrance mix and its constituents

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johansen, J D; Menné, T

    1995-01-01

    Results from 14 years of patch testing with the fragrance mix and its constituents are reviewed. From 1979-1992, 8215 consecutive patients were patch tested with the fragrance mix and 449 (5.5%) had a positive reaction. An increase in the frequency of reactions to fragrance mix was seen from the ...

  14. FOCUS AND CONSTITUENT QUESTION FORMATION IN DAGBANI

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Issah

    Key words: SpecFoc, focus marker, clause initial, constituent interrogatives, information ... 1Throughout this work, I use the phrase interrogative words in a general way to refer to the ...... Wh-Questions and extraction asymmetries in Malagasy.

  15. [Effects of Lime on Seedling Growth,Yield and Volatile Constituents of Atractylodes lancea].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yan; Miki, Sakurai; Chen, Mei-lan; Takeda, Xiuji; Zhao, Dong-yue; Kang, Li-ping; Guo, Lan-ping

    2015-03-01

    To investigate the effects of different amounts of lime on yield and quality of Atractylodes lancea, and to provide reference for the herb growing site soil improvement and self-poisoning ease. Add different gradients of lime, and then measure their growth targets, yield and four kinds of volatile constituents content(hinesol, atractylone, β-eudesmol and atractylodin). Volatile constituents yield per plant was calculated. Adding 160 g/m2 lime had a significant role in promoting the growth and yield of herb; Adding 80 g/m2 lime was conducive to the volatile constituents production, and adding lime decreased the atractylone and atractylodin content, while increased the hinesol and β-eudesmol content; Adding 160 g/m2 lime promoted the volatile constituents yield per plant. Adding lime plays a role of neutralize soil pH, antibacteria and prevention incognita, and has a certain degree of ease autotoxicity and obstacle,and then promotes the yield and volatile constituents production of Atractylodes lancea.

  16. Updates to Constituent Subtraction in Heavy Ions at CMS

    CERN Document Server

    CMS Collaboration

    2018-01-01

    The latest upgrades and performance of constituent subtraction in 5.02 TeV PbPb collisions is presented. The constituent subtraction is extended through the full tracker acceptance, increasing the rapidity reach of correctly subtracted jets. A modulation in azimuthal angle is added to the subtraction, accounting for flow on an event-by-event basis and improving jet energy resolution. Closure of jet energy scale after corrections and jet energy resolution is shown for R=0.4 and R=0.8 jets, the latter for the first time in CMS Heavy-Ions.

  17. Surface modification influencing adsorption of red wine constituents: The role of functional groups

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mierczynska-Vasilev, Agnieszka; Smith, Paul A.

    2016-11-01

    The adsorption of wine constituents at solid surfaces is important in applications such as filtration and membrane fouling, binding to tanks and fittings and interactions with processing aids such as bentonite. The interaction of wine constituents with surfaces is mediated through adsorbed wine components, where the type of constituents, amount, orientation, and conformation are of consequence for the surface response. This study examines the effect of surface chemical functionalities on the adsorption of red wine constituents. Plasma-polymerized films rich in amine, carboxyl, hydroxyl, formyl and methyl functional groups were generated on solid substrates whereas, glycidyltrimethylammonium chloride was covalently attached to allylamine plasma-polymer modified surface and poly(sodium styrenesulfonate) was electrostatically adsorbed to an amine plasma-polymerized surface. The surface chemical functionalities were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The ability of different substrates to adsorb red wine constituents was evaluated by quartz crystal microbalance and atomic force microscopy. The results showed that substrates modified with -SO3H and -COOH groups can adsorb more of the wine nitrogen-containing compounds whereas -NH2 and -NR3 groups encourage carbon-containing compounds adsorption. Red wine constituents after filtration were adsorbed in higher extend on -NR3 and -CHO surfaces. The -OH modified surfaces had the lowest ability to absorb wine components.

  18. Distribution of radioactive constituents in river waters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Herranz, M.; Elejalde, C.; Legarda, F.; Romero, F.

    1994-01-01

    For a research project on the distribution and evaluation of natural and artificial radioactive constituents in ecological segments of Biscay (northeast spain), the amounts of nuclides present in the main river waters were measured. Radioactive procedures include i) total alpha and beta indexes with a gas flow detector, dry residues near to 2 and 10 mg/ cm sup 2, respectively and counting periods of 1000 mn, ii) gamma emitters with a low level gamma spectrometer (Ge-HP detector + 8000 channels analyser) using the dry residue from 8 litres and a counting period of 4 days and iii) statistical treatment of data at 95% confidence.In this paper, ten water samples from the nervion river basin are included. Physical and chemical parameters of samples were also determined by standard procedures, because there is a sharp change in the composition of this river in the first part of the course. Radioactive constituents were identified as follows: a sample has a detectable alpha index, all samples contains beta emitters with a high variability, natural nuclides from uranium and thorium families were detected in some cases. A parallel behaviour is found between samples where K-40 and Cs-137 were found. The paper tries at last to find relations among chemical and radioactive constituents by the application of multivariate statistical methods, specially for the case of Cs-137, the only artificial nuclide identified in this work. 1 tab., 2 figs., 5 refs. (author)

  19. Constituent quarks in nuclear matter and the Nolen-Schiffer anomaly

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lutz, M.; Lee, H.K.; Weise, W.

    1991-01-01

    We investigate the density dependence of the neutron-proton mass difference using the Nambu and Jona-Lasinio model in combination with the Isgur-Karl constituent quark model. The decrease of the constituent quark masses with increasing density reduces the n-p mass difference in the proper way to help resolving the Nolen-Schiffer anomaly. We point out however, that in the presence of vector interactions, this effect is less pronounced than previously suggested. (orig.)

  20. Quark solitons as constituents of hadrons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ellis, J.; Frishman, Y.; Hanany, A.; Karlinev, M.

    1992-01-01

    We exhibit static solutions of multi-flavour QCD in two dimensions that have the quantum numbers of baryons and mesons, constructed out of quark and anti-quark solitons. In isolation the latter solitons have infinite energy, corresponding to the presence of a string carrying the non-singlet colour flux off to spatial infinity. When N c solitons of this type are combined, a static, finite-energy, colour singlet solution is formed, corresponding to a baryon. Similarly, static meson solutions are formed out of a soliton and an anti-soliton of different flavours. The stability of the mesons against annihilation is ensured by flavour conservation. The static solutions exist only when the fundamental fields of the bosonized lagrangian belong to U(N c xN f ) rather than to SU(N c )xU(N f ). Discussion of flavour-symmetry breaking requires a careful treatment of the normal-ordering ambiguity. Our results can be viewed as a derivation of the constituent quark model in QCD 2 , allowing a detailed study of constituent mass generation and of the heavy-quark symmetry. (orig.)

  1. A monomeric G protein-coupled receptor isolated in a high-density lipoprotein particle efficiently activates its G protein

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Whorton, Matthew R; Bokoch, Michael P; Rasmussen, Søren Gøgsig Faarup

    2007-01-01

    G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) respond to a diverse array of ligands, mediating cellular responses to hormones and neurotransmitters, as well as the senses of smell and taste. The structures of the GPCR rhodopsin and several G proteins have been determined by x-ray crystallography, yet...... the organization of the signaling complex between GPCRs and G proteins is poorly understood. The observations that some GPCRs are obligate heterodimers, and that many GPCRs form both homo- and heterodimers, has led to speculation that GPCR dimers may be required for efficient activation of G proteins. However......, technical limitations have precluded a definitive analysis of G protein coupling to monomeric GPCRs in a biochemically defined and membrane-bound system. Here we demonstrate that a prototypical GPCR, the beta2-adrenergic receptor (beta2AR), can be incorporated into a reconstituted high-density lipoprotein...

  2. Microstructures and constituents of super-high strength aluminum alloy ingots made through LFEC process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WANG Shuang

    2007-11-01

    Full Text Available Ingots of a new super-high strength Al-Zn-Mg-Cu-Zr alloy were produced respectively by low frequency electromagnetic casting (LFEC and by conventional direct chill (DC casting process. Microstructure and constituents of the ingots were studied. The results indicated that the LFEC process significantly refines microstructure and constituents of the alloy, and to some extent, decreases the area (or volume fraction of constituents and eutectic structure precipitated at grain boundaries. But, no difference in the type of constituents was observed between LFEC and DC ingots. The results also showed LFEC process can improve the as-cast mechanical properties.

  3. Crystal Structure of a Monomeric Form of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Endonuclease Nsp15 Suggests a Role for Hexamerization As An Allosteric Switch

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Joseph, J.S.; Saikatendu, K.S.; Subramanian, V.; Neuman, B.W.; Buchmeier, M.J.; Stevens, R.C.; Kuhn, P.; /Scripps Res. Inst.

    2007-07-09

    Mature nonstructural protein-15 (nsp15) from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) contains a novel uridylate-specific Mn{sup 2+}-dependent endoribonuclease (NendoU). Structure studies of the full-length form of the obligate hexameric enzyme from two CoVs, SARS-CoV and murine hepatitis virus, and its monomeric homologue, XendoU from Xenopus laevis, combined with mutagenesis studies have implicated several residues in enzymatic activity and the N-terminal domain as the major determinant of hexamerization. However, the tight link between hexamerization and enzyme activity in NendoUs has remained an enigma. Here, we report the structure of a trimmed, monomeric form of SARS-CoV nsp15 (residues 28 to 335) determined to a resolution of 2.9 Angstroms. The catalytic loop (residues 234 to 249) with its two reactive histidines (His 234 and His 249) is dramatically flipped by {approx}120 degrees into the active site cleft. Furthermore, the catalytic nucleophile Lys 289 points in a diametrically opposite direction, a consequence of an outward displacement of the supporting loop (residues 276 to 295). In the full-length hexameric forms, these two loops are packed against each other and are stabilized by intimate intersubunit interactions. Our results support the hypothesis that absence of an adjacent monomer due to deletion of the hexamerization domain is the most likely cause for disruption of the active site, offering a structural basis for why only the hexameric form of this enzyme is active.

  4. Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids: Testing for Toxic Constituents of Comfrey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vollmer, John J.; And Others

    1987-01-01

    Discusses the possibilities of toxins present in medicinal herbs. Describes an experiment in which toxic constituents can be selectively detected by thin-layer chromatography and NMR spectroscopy. (TW)

  5. Constituent order and semantic parallelism in online comprehension: eye-tracking evidence from German.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knoeferle, Pia; Crocker, Matthew W

    2009-12-01

    Reading times for the second conjunct of and-coordinated clauses are faster when the second conjunct parallels the first conjunct in its syntactic or semantic (animacy) structure than when its structure differs (Frazier, Munn, & Clifton, 2000; Frazier, Taft, Roeper, & Clifton, 1984). What remains unclear, however, is the time course of parallelism effects, their scope, and the kinds of linguistic information to which they are sensitive. Findings from the first two eye-tracking experiments revealed incremental constituent order parallelism across the board-both during structural disambiguation (Experiment 1) and in sentences with unambiguously case-marked constituent order (Experiment 2), as well as for both marked and unmarked constituent orders (Experiments 1 and 2). Findings from Experiment 3 revealed effects of both constituent order and subtle semantic (noun phrase similarity) parallelism. Together our findings provide evidence for an across-the-board account of parallelism for processing and-coordinated clauses, in which both constituent order and semantic aspects of representations contribute towards incremental parallelism effects. We discuss our findings in the context of existing findings on parallelism and priming, as well as mechanisms of sentence processing.

  6. Changes in digestibility and cell - wall constituents of some agricultural by-products due to gamma irradiation and urea treatments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Al-Masri, M.R.; Guenther, K.D.

    2000-01-01

    The effects of different doses of gamma irradiation (0. 100, 150, 200 KGy) or different concentrations of urea (0, 2, 3, and 5 g urea/100 g DM) on in-vitro organic matter digestibility (JVOMD), digestible energy (IVDE), gross energy (GE) nd cell-wall constituents: neutral-detergent fibre, acid-detergent fibre and acid=detergent lignin, have been evaluated in wheat straw, cotton seed shell, peanut shell, soybean shell, extracted olive cake and extracted unpeeled sunflower seeds. The results indicated that gamma irradiation or urea treatments increased the digestible energy values significantly. (p<0.05) and these were attributed to the increases IVOMD and decreases cell-wall constituents of treated samples. The experimental agricultural by-products do not respond to the treatments in the same amount in increasing the IVOMD. There was no significant effect of irradiation and urea treatments on GE. Combined treatments had slightly less effect in increasing IVDE as the addition of both effects. The treatment of 200 KGy and 5% urea resulted in a larger increase in the digestible energy and a better effect by reducing the concentration of the cell-wall constituents even more than what occurred using a single treatment. However, the combination of irradiation with urea treatments could reduce the applied irradiation doses for increasing the IVDE in some studied agricultural by-products. (author)

  7. SU/sub 3/ and color properties of the psi constituents

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wolfenstein, L [Carnegie-Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, Pa. (USA)

    1976-06-19

    It is suggested that the psi constituents form a (3,1) representation of SU/sub 3/xSU/sub 3/c rather than (1,3) as in the charm scheme. Within the framework of confined color this allows the psi constituents to be produced above some threshold and decay weakly, as suggested in recent models. Some general consequences of this classification are discussed and a specific scheme which may help to resolve some problems in psi spectroscopy is presented.

  8. Light-Absorbing Brown Carbon Aerosol Constituents from Combustion of Indonesian Peat and Biomass.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Budisulistiorini, Sri Hapsari; Riva, Matthieu; Williams, Michael; Chen, Jing; Itoh, Masayuki; Surratt, Jason D; Kuwata, Mikinori

    2017-04-18

    Light-absorbing brown carbon (BrC) constituents of organic aerosol (OA) have been shown to significantly absorb ultraviolet (UV) and visible light and thus impact radiative forcing. However, molecular identification of the BrC constituents is still limited. In this study, we characterize BrC constituents at the molecular level in (i) aerosols emitted by combustion of peat, fern/leaf, and charcoal from Indonesia and (ii) ambient aerosols collected in Singapore during the 2015 haze episode. Aerosols were analyzed using ultra performance liquid chromatography instrument interfaced to a diode array detector and electrospray ionization high-resolution quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer operated in the negative ion mode. In the laboratory-generated aerosols, we identified 41 compounds that can potentially absorb near-UV and visible wavelengths, such as oxygenated-conjugated compounds, nitroaromatics, and S-containing compounds. The sum of BrC constituents in peat, fern/leaf, and charcoal burning aerosols are 16%, 35%, and 28% of the OA mass, respectively, giving an average contribution of 24%. On average, the BrC constituents account for 0.4% of the ambient OA mass; however, large uncertainties in mass closure remain because of the lack of authentic standards. This study highlights the potential of light-absorbing BrC OA constituents from peat, fern/leaf, and charcoal burning and their importance in the atmosphere.

  9. Monomeric RC-LH1 core complexes retard LH2 assembly and intracytoplasmic membrane formation in PufX-minus mutants of Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, Peter G; Mothersole, David J; Ng, Irene W; Olsen, John D; Hunter, C Neil

    2011-09-01

    In the model photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides domains of light-harvesting 2 (LH2) complexes surround and interconnect dimeric reaction centre-light-harvesting 1-PufX (RC-LH1-PufX) 'core' complexes, forming extensive networks for energy transfer and trapping. These complexes are housed in spherical intracytoplasmic membranes (ICMs), which are assembled in a stepwise process where biosynthesis of core complexes tends to dominate the early stages of membrane invagination. The kinetics of LH2 assembly were measured in PufX mutants that assemble monomeric core complexes, as a consequence of either a twelve-residue N-terminal truncation of PufX (PufXΔ12) or the complete removal of PufX (PufX(-)). Lower rates of LH2 assembly and retarded maturation of membrane invagination were observed for the larger and less curved ICM from the PufX(-) mutant, consistent with the proposition that local membrane curvature, initiated by arrays of bent RC-LH1-PufX dimers, creates a favourable environment for stable assembly of LH2 complexes. Transmission electron microscopy and high-resolution atomic force microscopy were used to examine ICM morphology and membrane protein organisation in these mutants. Some partitioning of core and LH2 complexes was observed in PufX(-) membranes, resulting in locally ordered clusters of monomeric RC-LH1 complexes. The distribution of core and LH2 complexes in the three types of membrane examined is consistent with previous models of membrane curvature and domain formation (Frese et al., 2008), which demonstrated that a combination of crowding and asymmetries in sizes and shapes of membrane protein complexes drives membrane organisation. 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Surface modification influencing adsorption of red wine constituents: The role of functional groups

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mierczynska-Vasilev, Agnieszka, E-mail: agnieszka.mierczynska-vasilev@awri.com.au; Smith, Paul A., E-mail: paul.smith@awri.com.au

    2016-11-15

    Highlights: • Chemical surface composition affects behaviour of wine adsorption. • SO{sub 3}H and COOH groups adsorb more of the wine nitrogen-containing compounds. • NH{sub 2} and NR{sub 3} groups encourage carbon-containing compounds adsorption. • Red wine constituents after filtration adsorbed more on NR{sub 3} and CHO surfaces. - Abstract: The adsorption of wine constituents at solid surfaces is important in applications such as filtration and membrane fouling, binding to tanks and fittings and interactions with processing aids such as bentonite. The interaction of wine constituents with surfaces is mediated through adsorbed wine components, where the type of constituents, amount, orientation, and conformation are of consequence for the surface response. This study examines the effect of surface chemical functionalities on the adsorption of red wine constituents. Plasma-polymerized films rich in amine, carboxyl, hydroxyl, formyl and methyl functional groups were generated on solid substrates whereas, glycidyltrimethylammonium chloride was covalently attached to allylamine plasma-polymer modified surface and poly(sodium styrenesulfonate) was electrostatically adsorbed to an amine plasma-polymerized surface. The surface chemical functionalities were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The ability of different substrates to adsorb red wine constituents was evaluated by quartz crystal microbalance and atomic force microscopy. The results showed that substrates modified with −SO{sub 3}H and –COOH groups can adsorb more of the wine nitrogen-containing compounds whereas −NH{sub 2} and −NR{sub 3} groups encourage carbon-containing compounds adsorption. Red wine constituents after filtration were adsorbed in higher extend on −NR{sub 3} and –CHO surfaces. The –OH modified surfaces had the lowest ability to absorb wine components.

  11. Surface modification influencing adsorption of red wine constituents: The role of functional groups

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mierczynska-Vasilev, Agnieszka; Smith, Paul A.

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Chemical surface composition affects behaviour of wine adsorption. • SO_3H and COOH groups adsorb more of the wine nitrogen-containing compounds. • NH_2 and NR_3 groups encourage carbon-containing compounds adsorption. • Red wine constituents after filtration adsorbed more on NR_3 and CHO surfaces. - Abstract: The adsorption of wine constituents at solid surfaces is important in applications such as filtration and membrane fouling, binding to tanks and fittings and interactions with processing aids such as bentonite. The interaction of wine constituents with surfaces is mediated through adsorbed wine components, where the type of constituents, amount, orientation, and conformation are of consequence for the surface response. This study examines the effect of surface chemical functionalities on the adsorption of red wine constituents. Plasma-polymerized films rich in amine, carboxyl, hydroxyl, formyl and methyl functional groups were generated on solid substrates whereas, glycidyltrimethylammonium chloride was covalently attached to allylamine plasma-polymer modified surface and poly(sodium styrenesulfonate) was electrostatically adsorbed to an amine plasma-polymerized surface. The surface chemical functionalities were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The ability of different substrates to adsorb red wine constituents was evaluated by quartz crystal microbalance and atomic force microscopy. The results showed that substrates modified with −SO_3H and –COOH groups can adsorb more of the wine nitrogen-containing compounds whereas −NH_2 and −NR_3 groups encourage carbon-containing compounds adsorption. Red wine constituents after filtration were adsorbed in higher extend on −NR_3 and –CHO surfaces. The –OH modified surfaces had the lowest ability to absorb wine components.

  12. Effect of coffee reduction on constituent concentration in an energy-efficient process of ultrasonic extraction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang Cheng-Chi

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Coffee is one of the popular beverage; its constituents include caffeine, oxidation resistant aromatic constituents, protein, tannin, and fat. It is indicated in literatures that a proper amount of coffee stimulates the brain and enhances memory, but excessive coffee causes negative results, such as coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, heart disease and kidney disease. This study used high-performance ultrasonic process to discuss the effect of pulverized coffee reduction on the constituent concentration. It further compared the constituent concentrations obtained in different extraction periods. The experimental results show that the coffee aroma constituents can be extracted effectively by ultrasonic process without any organic solvent, and the constituent concentration does not decrease with the addition of pulverized coffee. Therefore, the consumption of pulverized coffee can be reduced greatly by using the proposed. The time of extraction process can be shortened, so as to save energy. The most important point is to reduce the enterprises manufacturing cost and to increase the profit.

  13. Action of Monomeric/Gemini Surfactants on Free Cells and Biofilm of Asaia lannensis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna Koziróg

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available We investigated the biological activity of surfactants based on quaternary ammonium compounds: gemini surfactant hexamethylene-1,6-bis-(N,N-dimethyl-N-dodecylammonium bromide (C6, synthesized by the reaction of N,N-dimethyl-N-dodecylamine with 1,6-dibromohexane, and its monomeric analogue dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB. The experiments were performed with bacteria Asaia lannensis, a common spoilage in the beverage industry. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC values were determined using the tube standard two-fold dilution method. The growth and adhesive properties of bacterial cells were studied in different culture media, and the cell viability was evaluated using plate count method. Both of the surfactants were effective against the bacterial strain, but the MIC of gemini compound was significantly lower. Both C6 and DTAB exhibited anti-adhesive abilities. Treatment with surfactants at or below MIC value decreased the number of bacterial cells that were able to form biofilm, however, the gemini surfactant was more effective. The used surfactants were also found to be able to eradicate mature biofilms. After 4 h of treatment with C6 surfactant at concentration 10 MIC, the number of bacterial cells was reduced by 91.8%. The results of this study suggest that the antibacterial activity of the gemini compound could make it an effective microbiocide against the spoilage bacteria Asaia sp. in both planktonic and biofilm stages.

  14. Action of Monomeric/Gemini Surfactants on Free Cells and Biofilm of Asaia lannensis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koziróg, Anna; Kręgiel, Dorota; Brycki, Bogumił

    2017-11-22

    We investigated the biological activity of surfactants based on quaternary ammonium compounds: gemini surfactant hexamethylene-1,6-bis-( N,N -dimethyl- N -dodecylammonium bromide) (C6), synthesized by the reaction of N,N -dimethyl- N- dodecylamine with 1,6-dibromohexane, and its monomeric analogue dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB). The experiments were performed with bacteria Asaia lannensis , a common spoilage in the beverage industry. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values were determined using the tube standard two-fold dilution method. The growth and adhesive properties of bacterial cells were studied in different culture media, and the cell viability was evaluated using plate count method. Both of the surfactants were effective against the bacterial strain, but the MIC of gemini compound was significantly lower. Both C6 and DTAB exhibited anti-adhesive abilities. Treatment with surfactants at or below MIC value decreased the number of bacterial cells that were able to form biofilm, however, the gemini surfactant was more effective. The used surfactants were also found to be able to eradicate mature biofilms. After 4 h of treatment with C6 surfactant at concentration 10 MIC, the number of bacterial cells was reduced by 91.8%. The results of this study suggest that the antibacterial activity of the gemini compound could make it an effective microbiocide against the spoilage bacteria Asaia sp. in both planktonic and biofilm stages.

  15. [Studies on flavone constituents of Erigeron breviscapus (Vant.) Hand.-Mazz].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, W D; Chen, W S; Wang, Y H; Liu, W Y; Kong, D Y; Li, H T

    2000-09-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Erigeron breviscapus. The constituents were separated and purified by column chromatography with silica gel, and identified by IR, MS, NMR and physical data. Five compounds were isolated and identified as 3, 5, 6, 4'-tetrahydroxy-7-methoxy flavonoid(I); 5, 7, 4'-trihydroxy flavonoid(II); 3, 5, 6, 7, 4'-pentahydroxy flavonoid(III); scutellarein (IV) and 5, 7, 4'-trihydroxy flavanone(V). Compounds I, III and V were isolated from this plant for the first time.

  16. Simultaneous Determination of Seven Constituents in Herbal ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Simultaneous Determination of Seven Constituents in Herbal Prescription Jaeumganghwa-Tang Using HPLC-PDA. CS Seo, JH Kim, HK Shin. Abstract. A simple and accurate high-performance liquid chromatographic method was applied to the quantitative analysis of seven components of the traditional herbal prescription ...

  17. Patch testing with constituents of Compositae mixes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Paulsen, Evy; Andersen, Klaus Ejner

    2012-01-01

    Background. The development of mixes containing Compositae plant extracts has improved the diagnosis of Compositae contact allergy, but none of them has fulfilled the criteria for an ideal European plant mix. Objective. To evaluate which constituents of two commercial Compositae mixes were most u...

  18. Pushing the size limit of de novo structure ensemble prediction guided by sparse SDSL-EPR restraints to 200 residues: The monomeric and homodimeric forms of BAX

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fischer, Axel W.; Bordignon, Enrica; Bleicken, Stephanie; García-Sáez, Ana J.; Jeschke, Gunnar; Meiler, Jens

    2016-01-01

    Structure determination remains a challenge for many biologically important proteins. In particular, proteins that adopt multiple conformations often evade crystallization in all biologically relevant states. Although computational de novo protein folding approaches often sample biologically relevant conformations, the selection of the most accurate model for different functional states remains a formidable challenge, in particular, for proteins with more than about 150 residues. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy can obtain limited structural information for proteins in well-defined biological states and thereby assist in selecting biologically relevant conformations. The present study demonstrates that de novo folding methods are able to accurately sample the folds of 192-residue long soluble monomeric Bcl-2-associated X protein (BAX). The tertiary structures of the monomeric and homodimeric forms of BAX were predicted using the primary structure as well as 25 and 11 EPR distance restraints, respectively. The predicted models were subsequently compared to respective NMR/X-ray structures of BAX. EPR restraints improve the protein-size normalized root-mean-square-deviation (RMSD100) of the most accurate models with respect to the NMR/crystal structure from 5.9 Å to 3.9 Å and from 5.7 Å to 3.3 Å, respectively. Additionally, the model discrimination is improved, which is demonstrated by an improvement of the enrichment from 5% to 15% and from 13% to 21%, respectively. PMID:27129417

  19. The Effects of Filter Ventilation on Flavor Constituents in Cigarette Smoke

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jing Y

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The deliveries of 20 added flavor constituents, total particulate matter (TPM, nicotine, ‘tar’ carbon monoxide and water in cigarette mainstream smoke were studied when filter ventilation was 0, 10%, 30%, 50% and 70%, respectively. The flavor substance test was done by addition of standard samples. The flavor constituents in cigarette smoke condensate were separated by simultaneous distillation-extraction (SDE and capillary gas chromatography (GC. The flavor constituents were identified and determined quantitatively by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS and GC. The flavors studied were methylpyrazine, furaldehyde, 5-methylfuraldehyde, benzaldehyde, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one, trimethylpyrazine, 2-acetylpyridine, phenylacetaldehyde, acetophenone, linalool, b-phenylethyl alcohol, isophorone, oxoisophorone, benzyl acetate, menthol, ethyl octanoate, b-damascenone, b-damascone, geranylacetone and b-ionone. The deliveries of TPM, nicotine, ‘tar’ carbon monoxide and water in mainstream smoke were determined according to International Standard methods. It was found that the flavor constituents and routine components in mainstream smoke decreased in different proportions as the filter ventilation increased. Carbon monoxide and ‘tar’ decreased more than nicotine. The flavor constituents with lower boiling points and lower molecular weights decreased more than those with higher boiling points and higher molecular weights. With the increase of filter ventilation, not only is the amount of smoke components reduced and the smoke taste weakened, but also the composition of smoke is modified and the quality of aroma changed slightly. These findings should be considered when developing low-‘tar’ cigarettes through the use of filter ventilation technology.

  20. anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities: chemical constituents of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    a

    *Corresponding author. E-mail: bedisag@yahoo.fr. ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANALGESIC ACTIVITIES: CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS OF ESSENTIAL OILS OF OCIMUM GRATISSIMUM,. EUCALYPTUS CITRIODORA AND CYMBOPOGON GIGANTEUS INHIBITED. LIPOXYGENASE L-1 AND CYCLOOXYGENASE OF ...

  1. Early cytokine modulation after the rapid induction phase of sublingual immunotherapy with mite monomeric allergoids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Di Gioacchino, M; Perrone, A; Petrarca, C; Di Claudio, F; Mistrello, G; Falagiani, P; Dadorante, V; Verna, N; Braga, M; Ballone, E; Cavallucci, E

    2008-01-01

    The influence of different treatment schedules of sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) in activating IL-10-producing T-cells, crucial in inducing allergen-specific tolerance, is not completely understood. The present work was designed to evaluate allergen driven interleukin release by mononuclear cells in the early phase of SLIT, after application of different induction schemes. Twenty mite-allergic patients were enrolled, 10 (group A) treated with a traditional 98 day induction scheme and 10 (group B) with a 16 day scheme with monomeric allergoid vaccine. At the end of the induction phase, the cumulative doses taken by group A and group B patients were equivalent to 50.5 and 50.3 microg of mite group 1 allergens, respectively. The release of Th1-, Th2- and Treg-related interleukins was assessed in culture supernatants of 5 microg/ml Der-p1-stimulated mononuclear cells, isolated before and after the induction phases. No relevant treatment-related side effects were observed. Interleukin release was similar in the two groups at the enrolment. Non-stimulated and Der p 1 stimulated release of studied cytokines was similar in the two groups at enrolment. Der p 1 stimulation significantly increased IL-10 release (pallergoids are utilized.

  2. Refinement of the list of constituents for groundwater monitoring at M-area

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wells, D.G.

    1997-11-01

    For several years Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) has been examining ways of reducing monitoring costs. Most of these efforts have been aimed at reducing the number of wells sampled or reducing sample frequency. With regards to monitoring around the M-Area Settling Basin, we are now examining a possible reduction in the number of constituents analyzed. It is our opinion that many constituents can be dropped entirely. Several others should be dropped from analyses in the plume definition wells, while retained for analyses at the point of compliance (POC) wells. Constituents that can be dropped entirely are nonhazardous inorganics generally referred to as water quality indicators. Monitoring for these parameters is sensible when a facility is in detection monitoring, but it is much less useful at a facility like the M-Area Basin. The water quality indicators are helpful in detecting whether or not a facility has impacted the environment. But their concentrations are not important in themselves. At M-Area, it is well documented that the facility has impacted groundwater quite seriously with a known group of hazardous constituents. So the concentrations of the nonhazardous constituents are of little interest. Obviously, monitoring for the hazardous constituents should continue, but it should only continue at wells that are likely to yield useful data. At M-Area there are 41 Point of Compliance (POC) wells monitoring an area of about .25 square miles and about 236 plume definition wells monitoring the surround 4 square miles. The locations of well clusters and the point of compliance are shown in figure 1. The POC wells and plume definition wells are intended to serve entirely different purposes and should not, necessarily, be monitored for the same things. The POC wells form a picket line around the facility and are intended to detect any constituents leaching from it. They are also intended to determine whether such constituents exceed action levels. Plume

  3. Modeling of constituent redistribution in U-Pu-Zr metallic fuel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Yeon Soo [Argonne National Laboratory, Nuclear Engineering, RERTR, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)]. E-mail: yskim@anl.gov; Hayes, S.L. [Idaho National Laboratory, P.O. Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID 83415-6188 (United States); Hofman, G.L. [Argonne National Laboratory, Nuclear Engineering, RERTR, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Yacout, A.M. [Argonne National Laboratory, Nuclear Engineering, RERTR, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)

    2006-12-01

    A computer model was developed to analyze constituent redistribution in U-Pu-Zr metallic nuclear fuels. Diffusion and thermochemical properties were parametrically determined to fit the postirradiation data from a fuel test performed in the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II). The computer model was used to estimate redistribution profiles of fuels proposed for the conceptual designs of small modular fast reactors. The model results showed that the level of redistribution of the fuel constituents of the designs was similar to the measured data from EBR-II.

  4. Analysis of chemical constituents in Cistanche species.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Yong; Tu, Peng-Fei

    2009-03-13

    Species of the genus of Cistanche (Rou Cong Rong in Chinese) are perennial parasite herbs, and are mainly distributed in arid lands and warm deserts. As a superior tonic for the treatment of kidney deficiency, impotence, female infertility, morbid leucorrhea, profuse metrorrhagia and senile constipation, Cistanche herbs earned the honor of "Ginseng of the desert". Recently, there has been increasing scientific attention on Herba Cistanche for its remarkable bioactivities including antioxidation, neuroprotection, and anti-aging. The chemical constituents of Cistanche plants mainly include volatile oils and non-volatile phenylethanoid glycosides (PhGs), iridoids, lignans, alditols, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides. Pharmacological studies show that PhGs are the main active components for curing kidney deficiency, antioxidation and neuroprotection; galactitol and oligosaccharides are the representatives for the treatment of senile constipation, while polysaccharides are responsible for improving body immunity. In this paper, the advances on the chemical constituents of Cistanche plants and their corresponding analyses are reviewed.

  5. The Chemical Constituents and Pharmacological Actions of Cordyceps sinensis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yi; Wang, Jihui; Wang, Wei; Zhang, Hanyue; Zhang, Xuelan; Han, Chunchao

    2015-01-01

    Cordyceps sinensis, also called DongChongXiaCao (winter worm, summer grass) in Chinese, is becoming increasingly popular and important in the public and scientific communities. This study summarizes the chemical constituents and their corresponding pharmacological actions of Cordyceps sinensis. Many bioactive components of Cordyceps sinensis have been extracted including nucleoside, polysaccharide, sterol, protein, amino acid, and polypeptide. In addition, these constituents' corresponding pharmacological actions were also shown in the study such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumour, antiapoptosis, and immunomodulatory actions. Therefore can use different effects of C. sinensis against different diseases and provide reference for the study of Cordyceps sinensis in the future. PMID:25960753

  6. [Study on the terpenoids of chemical constituents of Buddleja purdomii (II)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Yan; Cai, Li; Li, Hai-Yan; Li, Chong

    2007-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja purdomii W. W. Smith. The constituents were isolated and purified by various chromatographic methods and structurally identified by spectral analysis. 7 compounds were obtained as luteolin (I), luteolin-7-O-beta-D-glucoside (II), trans-caffeic acid (III), cis-caffeic acid (IV), beta-stiosterol (V), stigmasterol (VI), nonacosane (VII). All these compounds are obtained from this plant for the first time.

  7. Testing with fragrance mix. Is the addition of sorbitan sesquioleate to the constituents useful?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frosch, P J; Pilz, B; Burrows, D; Camarasa, J G; Lachapelle, J M; Lahti, A; Menné, T; Wilkinson, J D

    1995-05-01

    In a multicentre study, the value of adding sorbitan sesquioleate (SSO) to the constituents of the 8% fragrance mix (FM) was investigated. In 7 centres, 709 consecutive patients were tested with 2 types of FM from different sources, its 8 constituents with 1% SSO, its 8 constituents without SSO, and 20% SSO. 5 patients (0.71%) reacted to the emulsifier SSO itself, read as definitely allergic on day 3/4. 53 patients reacted to either one of the mixes with an allergic type of reaction. When tested with the constituents without SSO, 41.5% showed an allergic reaction versus 54.7% with SSO. If both types of reactions were considered (allergic and irritant) 38.3% of 73 patients showed a positive "breakdown" result without SSO, versus 54.8% with SSO. The differences were statistically significant. Reactivity to FM constituents was changed in a specific pattern by addition of SSO--irritant reactions increased, particularly for cinnamic alcohol, eugenol, geraniol, oak moss and hydroxycitronellal, whereas others showed only a slight change. Allergic reactions were also increased by SSO, but the rank order of the top 3 sensitizers (isoeugenol, oak moss and eugenol) did not change. Cinnamic alcohol was the only constituent with decreased reactivity after addition of SSO. A positive history of fragrance sensitivity (HFS) was clearly associated with a positive allergic reaction to either the mix or 1 of its constituents (51% versus 28.6% with a negative HFS). Irritant reactions were linked to a negative HFS in a high proportion (64.3%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  8. Mutations of Electrons as Constituents of Hadrons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Driscoll, R. B.

    1997-04-01

    Conjecture (C) 1: Coulomb-charged constituents of electron (e) are attracted to its barycentre by lepto-strong force F=K/r^2+f; f is stably perturbative for r Non-fiction Library, Urbana, 1986); R.M. Santilli, Hadronic Mechanics (Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Kiev, 1995 and 1996), 3 volumes.)

  9. Volatile constituents from Samanae saman (Jacq.) Merr. Fabaceae

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    AJB SERVER

    2006-10-16

    Oct 16, 2006 ... Key words: Samanae saman, Fabaceae, volatile oil, fatty acids, terpenoids, palmitic acid, 1,8-cineole. .... Gas chromatography – mass spectrometry analyses (GC/MS) ... this study, is an important constituent of most vegetable.

  10. Separation of the constituents of coal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Betrand, M F

    1938-12-06

    A process is disclosed of separating, by means of dense aqueous solutions, the constituents of coal, isolated by preliminary crushing from each other and/or from barren and carbonaceous shales, comprising the addition to the washing water before treatment or during any stage of the preparation of the coal before separation, or to the dense separating solution of agents improving the wetting of the coal by water.

  11. The reversal constituent structure of photo-electrode in dye-sensitized solar cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ting, Chen-Ching; Chao, Wei-Shi

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → The new structure of photo-electrode in DSSC increases absorption of incident photons. → The substrate of copper mesh as photo-electrode reduces electric resistance. → Application of the copper mesh as substrate reduces the fabricating cost. → There are ca. 3 times increment of photoelectric conversion efficiency. → Application of the copper mesh as substrate can achieve the flexible DSSCs. - Abstract: This article presents significant experimental data about the dye-sensitized nano solar cells (DSSCs) using the new developed photo-electrode with reversal constituent structure in our CCT laboratory. The conventional constituent structure of a photo-electrode arranged in sequence from the incident light is the transparent conductive glass, the nano TiO 2 semi-conductive porous film, and the dye. In process, the photons energy of the incident light is mainly absorbed by the dye for DSSCs. This causes excited electrons in the dye to jump into conductive band of the TiO 2 and further to transfer into the outer circuit through the conductive glass. That is, a correct constituent structure of the photo-electrode arranged in sequence from the incident light in terms of the working principle should be the dye, the nano TiO 2 film, and the conductive substrate. The conventional constituent structure of the photo-electrode causes the incident light to be hindered by the TiO 2 layer. To reduce the light hindrance for the dye, this work used copper mesh as the conductive substrate and the nano TiO 2 was coated on it. In this way, the copper mesh connects the nano TiO 2 layer with the outer circuit and the holes of the copper mesh also allow the dye to contact with the electrolyte. The new developed constituent structure of the photo-electrode arranged in sequence from the incident light is the dye, the nano TiO 2 film, and the copper mesh. This new constituent structure, which increases amounts of the absorption light in the dye and further improved the

  12. Structural Analysis of Monomeric RNA-Dependent Polymerases: Evolutionary and Therapeutic Implications.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo Jácome

    Full Text Available The crystal structures of monomeric RNA-dependent RNA polymerases and reverse transcriptases of more than 20 different viruses are available in the Protein Data Bank. They all share the characteristic right-hand shape of DNA- and RNA polymerases formed by the fingers, palm and thumb subdomains, and, in many cases, "fingertips" that extend from the fingers towards the thumb subdomain, giving the viral enzyme a closed right-hand appearance. Six conserved structural motifs that contain key residues for the proper functioning of the enzyme have been identified in all these RNA-dependent polymerases. These enzymes share a two divalent metal-ion mechanism of polymerization in which two conserved aspartate residues coordinate the interactions with the metal ions to catalyze the nucleotidyl transfer reaction. The recent availability of crystal structures of polymerases of the Orthomyxoviridae and Bunyaviridae families allowed us to make pairwise comparisons of the tertiary structures of polymerases belonging to the four main RNA viral groups, which has led to a phylogenetic tree in which single-stranded negative RNA viral polymerases have been included for the first time. This has also allowed us to use a homology-based structural prediction approach to develop a general three-dimensional model of the Ebola virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. Our model includes several of the conserved structural motifs and residues described in other viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerases that define the catalytic and highly conserved palm subdomain, as well as portions of the fingers and thumb subdomains. The results presented here help to understand the current use and apparent success of antivirals, i.e. Brincidofovir, Lamivudine and Favipiravir, originally aimed at other types of polymerases, to counteract the Ebola virus infection.

  13. Phytochemical composition and radical scavenging activities of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus seed constituents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. L. Otutu

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available It is a known fact that antioxidant phytochemicals in foods have many health benefits including prevention of various diseases associated with oxidative stress such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, neuro-degeneration and diabetes. Watermelon seed constituents (whole meal, shelled and shells flours were evaluated for phytochemical components and in vitro antioxidant activity to determine the potential practical applications in food and other related areas. Antioxidant activity was investigated by measuring its DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl and ABTS (2, 2’-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiozoline- 6-sulphonic acid radical scavenging ability as well as FRAP method (ferric reducing power. Quantitative estimation of the constituents showed cardiac glycosides (9.94-14.35 mg/g and saponins (11.62-32.48 mg/g as the most concentrated phytochemicals in the constituents, while alkaloids (47.2-95.8 mg/g, total phenol (5.63-8.40 mg GAE/g, flavonoids 3.51-7.76 mg QE/g. A positive radical scavenging ability of the constituents against ABTS and DPPH free radicals ranged from 0.02 to 0.04 mg Trolox equivalent /g seed flour and 39.89 to 61.11 mg ascorbic acid equivalent /g seed flour respectively. There was a considerable ferric reducing power and higher activity was observed in whole meal than shelled seeds and shells. The significant antioxidant capacities of the seed constituents underline the potential source of natural antioxidants and bioactive compounds for therapeutic purposes.

  14. Small-angle X-ray scattering analysis reveals the ATP-bound monomeric state of the ATPase domain from the homodimeric MutL endonuclease, a GHKL phosphotransferase superfamily protein.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iino, Hitoshi; Hikima, Takaaki; Nishida, Yuya; Yamamoto, Masaki; Kuramitsu, Seiki; Fukui, Kenji

    2015-05-01

    DNA mismatch repair is an excision system that removes mismatched bases chiefly generated by replication errors. In this system, MutL endonucleases direct the excision reaction to the error-containing strand of the duplex by specifically incising the newly synthesized strand. Both bacterial homodimeric and eukaryotic heterodimeric MutL proteins belong to the GHKL ATPase/kinase superfamily that comprises the N-terminal ATPase and C-terminal dimerization regions. Generally, the GHKL proteins show large ATPase cycle-dependent conformational changes, including dimerization-coupled ATP binding of the N-terminal domain. Interestingly, the ATPase domain of human PMS2, a subunit of the MutL heterodimer, binds ATP without dimerization. The monomeric ATP-bound state of the domain has been thought to be characteristic of heterodimeric GHKL proteins. In this study, we characterized the ATP-bound state of the ATPase domain from the Aquifex aeolicus MutL endonuclease, which is a homodimeric GHKL protein unlike the eukaryotic MutL. Gel filtration, dynamic light scattering, and small-angle X-ray scattering analyses clearly showed that the domain binds ATP in a monomeric form despite its homodimeric nature. This indicates that the uncoupling of dimerization and ATP binding is a common feature among bacterial and eukaryotic MutL endonucleases, which we suggest is closely related to the molecular mechanisms underlying mismatch repair.

  15. Constituent quarks as clusters in quark-gluon-parton model. [Total cross sections, probability distributions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

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

    1976-12-01

    We present a quark-gluon-parton model in which quark-partons and gluons make clusters corresponding to two or three constituent quarks (or anti-quarks) in the meson or in the baryon, respectively. We explicitly construct the constituent quark state (cluster), by employing the Kuti-Weisskopf theory and by requiring the scaling. The quark additivity of the hadronic total cross sections and the quark counting rules on the threshold powers of various distributions are satisfied. For small x (Feynman fraction), it is shown that the constituent quarks and quark-partons have quite different probability distributions. We apply our model to hadron-hadron inclusive reactions, and clarify that the fragmentation and the diffractive processes relate to the constituent quark distributions, while the processes in or near the central region are controlled by the quark-partons. Our model gives the reasonable interpretation for the experimental data and much improves the usual ''constituent interchange model'' result near and in the central region (x asymptotically equals x sub(T) asymptotically equals 0).

  16. Inactivation of lipoprotein lipase occurs on the surface of THP-1 macrophages where oligomers of angiopoietin-like protein 4 are formed

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Makoveichuk, Elena; Sukonina, Valentina; Kroupa, Olessia [Department of Medical Biosciences, Physiological Chemistry Umea University, SE-901 87 Umea (Sweden); Thulin, Petra; Ehrenborg, Ewa [Atherosclerosis Research Unit, Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE-171 76 Stockholm (Sweden); Olivecrona, Thomas [Department of Medical Biosciences, Physiological Chemistry Umea University, SE-901 87 Umea (Sweden); Olivecrona, Gunilla, E-mail: Gunilla.Olivecrona@medbio.umu.se [Department of Medical Biosciences, Physiological Chemistry Umea University, SE-901 87 Umea (Sweden)

    2012-08-24

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity is controlled by ANGPTL4 in THP-1 macrophages. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Both LPL and ANGPTL4 bind to THP-1 macrophages in a heparin-releasable fashion. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Only monomers of ANGPTL4 are present within THP-1 macrophages. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Covalent oligomers of ANGPTL4 appear on cell surface and in medium. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Inactivation of LPL coincide with ANGPTL4 oligomer formation on cell surfaces. -- Abstract: Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) hydrolyzes triglycerides in plasma lipoproteins causing release of fatty acids for metabolic purposes in muscles and adipose tissue. LPL in macrophages in the artery wall may, however, promote foam cell formation and atherosclerosis. Angiopoietin-like protein (ANGPTL) 4 inactivates LPL and ANGPTL4 expression is controlled by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR). The mechanisms for inactivation of LPL by ANGPTL4 was studied in THP-1 macrophages where active LPL is associated with cell surfaces in a heparin-releasable form, while LPL in the culture medium is mostly inactive. The PPAR{delta} agonist GW501516 had no effect on LPL mRNA, but increased ANGPTL4 mRNA and caused a marked reduction of the heparin-releasable LPL activity concomitantly with accumulation of inactive, monomeric LPL in the medium. Intracellular ANGPTL4 was monomeric, while dimers and tetramers of ANGPTL4 were present in the heparin-releasable fraction and medium. GW501516 caused an increase in the amount of ANGPTL4 oligomers on the cell surface that paralleled the decrease in LPL activity. Actinomycin D blocked the effects of GW501516 on ANGPTL4 oligomer formation and prevented the inactivation of LPL. Antibodies against ANGPTL4 interfered with the inactivation of LPL. We conclude that inactivation of LPL in THP-1 macrophages primarily occurs on the cell surface where oligomers of ANGPTL4 are formed.

  17. Concentrations and annual fluxes of sediment-associated chemical constituents from conterminous US coastal rivers using bed sediment data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horowitz, Arthur J.; Stephens, Verlin C.; Elrick, Kent A.; Smith, James J.

    2012-01-01

    Coastal rivers represent a significant pathway for the delivery of natural and anthropogenic sediment-associated chemical constituents to the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coasts of the conterminous USA. This study entails an accounting segment using published average annual suspended sediment fluxes with published sediment-associated chemical constituent concentrations for (1) baseline, (2) land-use distributions, (3) population density, and (4) worldwide means to estimate concentrations/annual fluxes for trace/major elements and total phosphorus, total organic and inorganic carbon, total nitrogen, and sulphur, for 131 coastal river basins. In addition, it entails a sampling and subsequent chemical analysis segment that provides a level of ‘ground truth’ for the calculated values, as well as generating baselines for sediment-associated concentrations/fluxes against which future changes can be evaluated. Currently, between 260 and 270 Mt of suspended sediment are discharged annually from the conterminous USA; about 69% is discharged from Gulf rivers (n = 36), about 24% from Pacific rivers (n = 42), and about 7% from Atlantic rivers (n = 54). Elevated sediment-associated chemical concentrations relative to baseline levels occur in the reverse order of sediment discharges:Atlantic rivers (49%)>Pacific rivers (40%)>Gulf rivers (23%). Elevated trace element concentrations (e.g. Cu, Hg, Pb, Zn) frequently occur in association with present/former industrial areas and/or urban centres, particularly along the northeast Atlantic coast. Elevated carbon and nutrient concentrations occur along both the Atlantic and Gulf coasts but are dominated by rivers in the urban northeast and by southeastern and Gulf coast (Florida) ‘blackwater’ streams. Elevated Ca, Mg, K, and Na distributions tend to reflect local petrology, whereas elevated Ti, S, Fe, and Al concentrations are ubiquitous, possibly because they have substantial natural as well as anthropogenic sources

  18. Modulation of basophils' degranulation and allergy-related enzymes by monomeric and dimeric naphthoquinones.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brígida R Pinho

    Full Text Available Allergic disorders are characterized by an abnormal immune response towards non-infectious substances, being associated with life quality reduction and potential life-threatening reactions. The increasing prevalence of allergic disorders demands for new and effective anti-allergic treatments. Here we test the anti-allergic potential of monomeric (juglone, menadione, naphthazarin, plumbagin and dimeric (diospyrin and diosquinone naphthoquinones. Inhibition of RBL-2H3 rat basophils' degranulation by naphthoquinones was assessed using two complementary stimuli: IgE/antigen and calcium ionophore A23187. Additionally, we tested for the inhibition of leukotrienes production in IgE/antigen-stimulated cells, and studied hyaluronidase and lipoxidase inhibition by naphthoquinones in cell-free assays. Naphthazarin (0.1 µM decreased degranulation induced by IgE/antigen but not A23187, suggesting a mechanism upstream of the calcium increase, unlike diospyrin (10 µM that reduced degranulation in A23187-stimulated cells. Naphthoquinones were weak hyaluronidase inhibitors, but all inhibited soybean lipoxidase with the most lipophilic diospyrin, diosquinone and menadione being the most potent, thus suggesting a mechanism of competition with natural lipophilic substrates. Menadione was the only naphthoquinone reducing leukotriene C4 production, with a maximal effect at 5 µM. This work expands the current knowledge on the biological properties of naphthoquinones, highlighting naphthazarin, diospyrin and menadione as potential lead compounds for structural modification in the process of improving and developing novel anti-allergic drugs.

  19. Effect of seven Indian plant extracts on Fenton reaction-mediated damage to DNA constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kar, Indrani; Chattopadhyaya, Rajagopal

    2017-11-01

    The influences of substoichiometric amounts of seven plant extracts in the Fenton reaction-mediated damage to deoxynucleosides, deoxynucleoside monophosphates, deoxynucleoside triphosphates, and supercoiled plasmid DNA were studied to rationalize anticancer properties reported in some of these extracts. Extracts from Acacia catechu, Emblica officinalis, Spondias dulcis, Terminalia belerica, Terminalia chebula, as well as gallic acid, epicatechin, chebulagic acid and chebulinic acid enhance the extent of damage in Fenton reactions with all monomeric substrates but protect supercoiled plasmid DNA, compared to standard Fenton reactions. The damage to pyrimidine nucleosides/nucleotides is enhanced by these extracts and compounds to a greater extent than for purine ones in a concentration dependent manner. Dolichos biflorus and Hemidesmus indicus extracts generally do not show this enhancement for the monomeric substrates though they protect plasmid DNA. Compared to standard Fenton reactions for deoxynucleosides with ethanol, the presence of these five plant extracts render ethanol scavenging less effective as the radical is generated in the vicinity of the target. Since substoichiometric amounts of these extracts and the four compounds produce this effect, a catalytic mechanism involving the presence of a ternary complex of the nucleoside/nucleotide substrate, a plant compound and the hydroxyl radical is proposed. Such a mechanism cannot operate for plasmid DNA as the planar rings in the extract compounds cannot stack with the duplex DNA bases. These plant extracts, by enhancing Fenton reaction-mediated damage to deoxynucleoside triphosphates, slow down DNA replication in rapidly dividing cancer cells, thus contributing to their anticancer properties.

  20. Effects of Framing Proximal Benefits of Quitting and Motivation to Quit as a Query on Communications About Tobacco Constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kowitt, Sarah; Sheeran, Paschal; Jarman, Kristen; Ranney, Leah M; Schmidt, Allison M; Huang, Li-Ling; Goldstein, Adam O

    2017-10-01

    Little is known on how to communicate messages on tobacco constituents to tobacco users. This study manipulated three elements of a message in the context of a theory-based communication campaign about tobacco constituents: (1) latency of response efficacy (how soon expected health benefits would accrue), (2) self-efficacy (confidence about quitting), and (3) interrogative cue ("Ready to be tobacco-free?"). Smokers (N = 1669, 55.4% women) were recruited via an online platform, and were randomized to a 3 (Latency of response efficacy) × 2 (Self-efficacy) × 2 (Interrogative cue) factorial design. The dependent variables were believability, credibility, perceived effectiveness of the communication message, and action expectancies (likelihood of seeking additional information and help with quitting). Latency of response efficacy influenced believability, perceived effectiveness, credibility, and action expectancies. In each case, scores were higher when specific health benefits were said to accrue within 1 month, as compared to general health benefits occurring in a few hours. The interrogative cue had a marginal positive effect on perceived effectiveness. The self-efficacy manipulation had no reliable effects, and there were no significant interactions among conditions. Smokers appear less persuaded by a communication message on constituents where general health benefits accrue immediately (within a few hours) than specific benefits over a longer timeframe (1 month). Additionally, smokers appeared to be more persuaded by messages with an interrogative cue. Such findings may help design more effective communication campaigns on tobacco constituents to smokers. This paper describes, for the first time, how components of tobacco constituent messages are perceived. We now know that smokers appear to be less persuaded by communication messages where general health benefits accrue immediately (within a few hours) than specific benefits over a longer timeframe (1 month

  1. Volatile constituents of redblush grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) and pummelo (Citrus grandis) peel essential oils from Kenya.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Njoroge, Simon Muhoho; Koaze, Hiroshi; Karanja, Paul Nyota; Sawamura, Masayoshi

    2005-12-14

    The volatile constituents of cold-pressed peel essential oils of redblush grapefruit (Citrus paradisi Macfadyen forma Redblush) and pummelo (Citrus grandis Osbeck) from the same locality in Kenya were determined by GC and GC-MS. A total of 67 and 52 compounds, amounting to 97.9 and 98.8% of the two oils, respectively, were identified. Monoterpene hydrocarbons constituted 93.3 and 97.5% in the oils, respectively, with limonene (91.1 and 94.8%), alpha-terpinene (1.3 and 1.8%), and alpha-pinene (0.5%) as the main compounds. Sesquiterpene hydrocarbons constituted 0.4% in each oil. The notable compounds were beta-caryophyllene, alpha-cubebene, and (E,E)-alpha-farnesene. Oxygenated compounds constituted 4.2 and 2.0% of the redblush grapefruit and pummelo oils, respectively, out of which carbonyl compounds (2.0 and 1.3%), alcohols (1.4 and 0.3%), and esters (0.7 and 0.4%) were the major groups. Heptyl acetate, octanal, decanal, citronellal, and (Z)-carvone were the main constituents (0.1-0.5%). Perillene, (E)-carveol, and perillyl acetate occurred in the redblush grapefruit but were absent from the pummelo oil. Nootkatone, alpha- and beta-sinensal, methyl-N-methylanthranilate, and (Z,E)-farnesol were prominent in both oils.

  2. Combining of radionuclides with constituent materials of marine algae

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nakamura, Ryoichi; Nakahara, Motokazu; Ishii, Toshiaki; Ueda, Taishi; Shimizu, Chiaki.

    1979-01-01

    The relations between the accumulation-elimination of radionuclides and the constituent materials of marine algae were studied to determine more precisely the mechanism of the radioactive contamination of marine organisms. This will increase the information about the behavior of radionuclides in marine organisms in relation to the environmental conditions (temperature, physico-chemical state of radioisotope, and so on) and the biological conditions (feeding habits, species, and so on). Eisenia contaminated by 137 Cs and 106 Ru- 106 Rh was fractionated by solvent extraction into 6 fractions. The largest portion of 137 Cs was in the boiling water fraction; 106 Ru- 106 Rh was most extracted by 24% KOH solution. Elution patterns by Sephadex G-100 gel-filtration of samples differed largely from each other, both among the 3 kinds of radionuclides and between the 2 species of the algae. Therefore, the accumulation of the radionuclides by the marine algae was proved to be not only due to a physical absorption to the surface of the algae but also to the biological combining of the radionuclides with the constituents of the algae. Furthermore, it was found that radionuclides which combine with a few constituents of alga are not eliminated equally. This is considered to be useful for the physiological analysis of elimination curves. (author)

  3. Classification of Westminster Parliamentary constituencies using e-petition data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen Clark

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract In a representative democracy it is important that politicians have knowledge of the desires, aspirations and concerns of their constituents. Opportunities to gauge these opinions are however limited and, in the era of novel data, thoughts turn to what alternative, secondary, data sources may be available to keep politicians informed about local concerns. One such source of data are signatories to electronic petitions (e-petitions. Such e-petitions have risen greatly in popularity over the past decade and allow members of the public to initiate and sign an e-petition online, with popular e-petitions resulting in media attention, a response from the government or ultimately a debate in parliament. These data are thus novel in their availability and have not yet been widely used for research purposes. In this article we will use the e-petition data to show how semantic classes of Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, fitted as Gaussian finite mixture models via EM algorithm, can be used to typify constituencies. We identify four classes: Domestic Liberals; International Liberals; Nostalgic Brits and Rural Concerns, and illustrate how they map onto electoral results. The findings and the utility of this approach to incorporate new e-petitions and adapt to changes in electoral geography are discussed.

  4. hispidulin and other constituents of scoparia dulcis linn

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Administrator

    HIV. INTRODUCTION. Scoparia dulcis Linn. (Scrophulariaceae) has been extensively studied for its flavone and terpene constituents (Ahmed et al., 1990, Ah- san et al., 2003, Chen et al., 1976, Hayashi et al., 1987, 1987b, 1988, 1990, 1991, ...

  5. Antiparasitic, Nematicidal and Antifouling Constituents from Juniperus Berries

    Science.gov (United States)

    A bioassay-guided fractionation of Juniperus procera berries yielded antiparasitic, nematicidal and antifouling constituents, including a wide range of known abietane, pimarane and labdane diterpenes. Among these, abieta-7,13-diene (1) demonstrated in vitro antimalarial activity against Plasmodium f...

  6. Chemical Constituents and Insecticidal Activities of Ajania fruticulosa Essential Oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liang, Jun-Yu; Guo, Shan-Shan; You, Chun-Xue; Zhang, Wen-Juan; Wang, Cheng-Fang; Geng, Zhu-Feng; Deng, Zhi-Wei; Du, Shu-Shan; Zhang, Ji

    2016-08-01

    The insecticidal activity and chemical constituents of the essential oil from Ajania fruticulosa were investigated. Twelve constituents representing 91.0% of the essential oil were identified, and the main constituents were 1,8-cineole (41.40%), (+)-camphor (32.10%), and myrtenol (8.15%). The essential oil exhibited contact toxicity against Tribolium castaneum and Liposcelis bostrychophila adults with LD50 values of 105.67 μg/adult and 89.85 μg/cm(2) , respectively. The essential oil also showed fumigant toxicity against two species of insect with LC50 values of 11.52 and 0.65 mg/l, respectively. 1,8-Cineole exhibited excellent fumigant toxicity (LC50  = 5.47 mg/l) against T. castaneum. (+)-Camphor showed obvious fumigant toxicity (LC50  = 0.43 mg/l) against L. bostrychophila. Myrtenol showed contact toxicity (LD50  = 29.40 μg/cm(2) ) and fumigant toxicity (LC50  = 0.50 mg/l) against L. bostrychophila. 1,8-Cineole and (+)-camphor showed strong insecticidal activity to some important insects, and they are main constituents of A. fruticulosa essential oil. The two compounds may be related to insecticidal activity of A. fruticulosa essential oil against T. castaneum and L. bostrychophila. © 2016 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zürich.

  7. Modeling of Alkane Oxidation Using Constituents and Species

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bellan, Jasette; Harstad, Kenneth G.

    2010-01-01

    It is currently not possible to perform simulations of turbulent reactive flows due in particular to complex chemistry, which may contain thousands of reactions and hundreds of species. This complex chemistry results in additional differential equations, making the numerical solution of the equation set computationally prohibitive. Reducing the chemical kinetics mathematical description is one of several important goals in turbulent reactive flow modeling. A chemical kinetics reduction model is proposed for alkane oxidation in air that is based on a parallel methodology to that used in turbulence modeling in the context of the Large Eddy Simulation. The objective of kinetic modeling is to predict the heat release and temperature evolution. This kinetic mechanism is valid over a pressure range from atmospheric to 60 bar, temperatures from 600 K to 2,500 K, and equivalence ratios from 0.125 to 8. This range encompasses diesel, HCCI, and gas-turbine engines, including cold ignition. A computationally efficient kinetic reduction has been proposed for alkanes that has been illustrated for n-heptane using the LLNL heptane mechanism. This model is consistent with turbulence modeling in that scales were first categorized into either those modeled or those computed as progress variables. Species were identified as being either light or heavy. The heavy species were decomposed into defined 13 constituents, and their total molar density was shown to evolve in a quasi-steady manner. The light species behave either in a quasi-steady or unsteady manner. The modeled scales are the total constituent molar density, Nc, and the molar density of the quasi-steady light species. The progress variables are the total constituent molar density rate evolution and the molar densities of the unsteady light species. The unsteady equations for the light species contain contributions of the type gain/loss rates from the heavy species that are modeled consistent with the developed mathematical

  8. Radionuclides, inorganic constituents, organic compounds, and bacteria in water from selected wells and springs from the southern boundary of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory to the Hagerman Area, Idaho, 1990

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bartholomay, R.C.; Edwards, D.D.; Campbell, L.J.

    1992-03-01

    The US Geological Survey and the Idaho Department of Water Resources, in response to a request from the US Department of Energy, sampled 19 sites as part of a long-term project to monitor water quality of the Snake River Plain aquifer from the southern boundary of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory to the Hagerman area. Water samples were collected and analyzed for manmade pollutants and naturally occurring constituents. The samples were collected from seven irrigation wells, five domestic wells, two springs, one stock well, two dairy wells, one observation well, and one commercial well. Two quality assurance samples also were collected and analyzed. The water samples were analyzed for selected radionuclides, inorganic constituents, organic compounds, and bacteria. None of the radionuclides, inorganic constituents, or organic compounds exceeded the established maximum contaminant levels for drinking water. Most of the radionuclide and inorganic constituent concentrations exceeded their respective reporting levels. All samples analyzed for surfactants and dissolved organic carbon had concentrations that exceeded their reporting level. Toluene concentrations exceeded the reporting level in one water sample. Two samples contained fecal coliform bacteria counts that exceeded established maximum contaminant levels for drinking water

  9. In quest of a relativistic constituent quark model - some constructive remarks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hofsaess, T.; Schierholz, G.

    1978-01-01

    The set-up of a relativistic constituent quark model in four dimensions is one of the outstanding problems in particle physics. For the time being this involves a great deal of model building which, very probably, will not change in the near future. In this paper we shall offer some general remarks which might help putting such models into shape. Most of the earlier attempts are found controversial. In particular, a conventional quark constituent interpretation could not be recovered. (orig.) [de

  10. Refinement of the list of constituents for groundwater monitoring at M-area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wells, D.G.

    1997-11-01

    For several years Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) has been examining ways of reducing monitoring costs. Most of these efforts have been aimed at reducing the number of wells sampled or reducing sample frequency. With regards to monitoring around the M-Area Settling Basin, we are now examining a possible reduction in the number of constituents analyzed. Constituents that can be dropped entirely are nonhazardous inorganics generally referred to as water quality indicators. Monitoring for these parameters is sensible when a facility is in detection monitoring, but it is much less useful at a facility like the M-Area Basin. The water quality indicators are helpful in detecting whether or not a facility has impacted the environment. But their concentrations are not important in themselves. At M-Area, it is well documented that the facility has impacted groundwater quite seriously with a known group of hazardous constituents. So the concentrations of the nonhazardous constituents are of little interest. At M-Area there are 41 Point of Compliance (POC) wells monitoring an area of about .25 square miles and about 236 plume definition wells monitoring the surround 4 square miles. The POC wells form a picket line around the facility and are intended to detect any constituents leaching from it. They are also intended to determine whether such constituents exceed action levels. Plume definition wells are added to define the plume created a particular set or subset of contaminants. The M-Area plume definition wells were installed in several phases over a ten year time span as SRS struggled to define the extent of a large plume of TCE and PCE. These wells were not located for the purpose of monitoring the numerous inorganics and radionuclides on the unit's monitoring list. Many of the inorganics and radionuclides are relatively immobile in groundwater and cannot be expected to appear in the widely scattered TCE/PCE plume definition wells

  11. Gas-phase synthesis and structure of monomeric ZnOH: a model species for metalloenzymes and catalytic surfaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zack, Lindsay N; Sun, Ming; Bucchino, Matthew P; Clouthier, Dennis J; Ziurys, Lucy M

    2012-02-16

    Monomeric ZnOH has been studied for the first time using millimeter and microwave gas-phase spectroscopy. ZnOH is important in surface processes and at the active site of the enzyme carbonic anhydrase. In the millimeter-wave direct-absorption experiments, ZnOH was synthesized by reacting zinc vapor, produced in a Broida-type oven, with water. In the Fourier-transform microwave measurements, ZnOH was produced in a supersonic jet expansion of CH(3)OH and zinc vapor, created by laser ablation. Multiple rotational transitions of six ZnOH isotopologues in their X(2)A' ground states were measured over the frequency range of 22-482 GHz, and splittings due to fine and hyperfine structure were resolved. An asymmetric top pattern was observed in the spectra, showing that ZnOH is bent, indicative of covalent bonding. From these data, spectroscopic constants and an accurate structure were determined. The Zn-O bond length was found to be similar to that in carbonic anhydrase and other model enzyme systems.

  12. Constituent aspects of workplace guidance in secondary VET

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Swager, Robert; Klarus, Ruud; Van Merriënboer, Jeroen; Nieuwenhuis, Loek

    2018-01-01

    Purpose – This paper aims to present an integrated model of workplace guidance to enhance awareness of what constitutes good guidance, to improve workplace guidance practices in vocational education and training. Design/methodology/approach – To identify constituent aspects of workplace guidance,

  13. [Studies on chemical constituents from leaves of Vaccinium bracteatum].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Zeng-Liang; Zhang, Lin; Tian, Jing-Kui; Zhou, Wen-Ming

    2008-09-01

    To investigate the chemical constituents from the leaves of Vaccinium bracteatum. Many column chromatographic techniques were used for the isolation and separation of chemical constituents. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral analysis and chemical evidences. Twelve compounds were isolated from the plant, and they were identified as chrysoeriol (1), scopoletin (2), trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid (3), trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid ethyl ester (4), cafeic acid ethyl ester (5), beta-sitosterol (6), iuteolin (7), quercetin (8), esculetin (9), cafeic acid (10), isolariciresinol-9-O-beta-D-xyloside (11), 10-O-trans-p-coumaroylsandoside (12). Compounds 4, 5, 11, 12 were isolated from the genus Vaccinium for the first time, and compounds 1, 2, 9, 10 were isolated from this plant for the first time.

  14. Antibacterial activity of chemical constituents isolated from Asparagus racemosus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muhammad Abdullah Shah

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Asparagus racemosus is a medical extensively used in traditional medicine for various disorders including its use in infectious. So far work has been done to identify its active constituents responsible for antiseptic folk use of this plant. In the current investigation, we have made an effort to identify its chemical constituents that might be partly responsible for antimicrobial properties. Extraction and isolation of plant extract lead to isolation of two nor-lignans and two steroidal triterpenes (compound 1 to 4. All compound showed considerable antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus while no significant activity was observed against S. typhi. This study highlighted the potential of A. racemosus to be further explored as a source of bioactive natural products.

  15. Methods of removing a constituent from a feed stream using adsorption media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tranter, Troy J [Idaho Falls, ID; Mann, Nicholas R [Rigby, ID; Todd, Terry A [Aberdeen, ID; Herbst, Ronald S [Idaho Falls, ID

    2011-05-24

    A method of producing an adsorption medium to remove at least one constituent from a feed stream. The method comprises dissolving and/or suspending at least one metal compound in a solvent to form a metal solution, dissolving polyacrylonitrile into the metal solution to form a PAN-metal solution, and depositing the PAN-metal solution into a quenching bath to produce the adsorption medium. The at least one constituent, such as arsenic, selenium, or antimony, is removed from the feed stream by passing the feed stream through the adsorption medium. An adsorption medium having an increased metal loading and increased capacity for arresting the at least one constituent to be removed is also disclosed. The adsorption medium includes a polyacrylonitrile matrix and at least one metal hydroxide incorporated into the polyacrylonitrile matrix.

  16. Volatile constituents of Ocotea sinuata (Mez) Rohwer (Lauraceae) of Costa Rica

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hernandez, Lorena; Ciccio, Jose F.; Chaverri, Carlos

    2007-01-01

    The chemical composition was determined of the essential oils extracted from twigs, bark and leaves of the tree Ocotea sinuata (Mez) Rohwer (Lauraceae), which grows in wild form in Costa Rica. The analyses were effected by means of the technology of gas chromatography in capillary column, using detectors of ionization at flame (FID) and spectrometry of masses (GC/MS). Eighty eight (88) compounds were identified. The oils were found to be of nature terpenic. The major constituents of the twigs were β-caryophyllene (18,4%), viridiflorol (11,3%), caryophyllene oxide (8,7%), germacrene D (7,7%), camphene (4,5%), and α-pinene (4,4%). The main constituents from bark oil were germacrene D (14.8%), β- caryophyllene(10,5%), camphene (10,3%), α-pinene (10,1%), viridiflorol (8,7%), β-pinene (4,7%) and α-copaene (4,6%). The main constituents from leaf oil were germacrene D (30,6%), β- caryophyllene (30,1%) and viridiflorol (8,9%). (author) [es

  17. Studies on chemical constituents of Polygala japonica Houtt.

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    LI Ting-zhao; ZHANG Wei-dong; LIU Run-hui; CHEN Hai-sheng; ZHANG Chuan; SU Juan; XU Xi-ke

    2006-01-01

    Objective:To investigate the chemical constituents of Polygala japonica Houtt.. Methods:The constituents were separated and purified by column chromatographies with silical gel, RP-silical gel and Sephadex LH-20. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral data (IR, MS, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, HMQC and HMBC). Results: Totally 15 compounds were obtained from Polygala japonica Houtt. And their structures were identified as castaprenol-12 (Ⅰ), β-sitosterol (Ⅱ), stigmasterol (Ⅲ),stigmasta-7,22-di-ene-3-one (Ⅳ), n-dotriacontanol ( Ⅴ ), n-hexadecanol ( Ⅵ ), arachidic acid (Ⅶ), erogosterol (Ⅷ), kaempferol (Ⅸ), quercetin (Ⅹ), daucosterol (Ⅺ), p-hydroxybenzoic acid (Ⅻ),coumaric acid (ⅩⅢ), rhamnocitrin 3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside (ⅪⅤ), quercetin 3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (ⅩⅤ). Conclusion: Compounds Ⅰ , Ⅲ , Ⅳ, Ⅴ , Ⅵ, Ⅶ, Ⅷ, Ⅻ , ⅩⅢ and ⅩⅣ were obtained from this plant for the first time.

  18. Polar constituents isolated from Green River oil shale

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Anders, D.E.; Doolittle, F.G.; Robinson, W.E.

    1975-01-01

    The mass spectrometric, ir absorption, and NMR data were interpreted for 22 compounds obtained from a polar fraction of Green River shale. The major constituents analyzed are believed to be of the following compositional types: C/sub n/H/sub 2n/O (cyclohexanols and chain isoprenoid ketones), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-10/O (tetralones and indanones), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-7/N (tetrahydroquinolines), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-11/N(quinolines), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-1/NO (alkoxypyrrolines), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-5/NO/sub 2/ (maleimides), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-8/ (tetralins), C/sub n/H/sub 2n-12/ (naphthalenes) and C/sub n/H/sub 2n-14/ (benzylbenzenes). This work expands the present information about nitrogen, oxygen and aromatic constituents indigenous to Green River shale.

  19. Comparison of monomeric and polymeric horseradish peroxidase as labels in competitive ELISA for small molecule detection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Dongyang; Ying, Yibin; Wu, Jian; Niessner, Reinhard; Knopp, Dietmar

    2013-01-01

    We have developed a simple and sensitive competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to determine aflatoxin B1 (as a model small analyte) and using streptavidin-polymeric horseradish peroxidase complex (SApolyHRP) as a label for signal amplification. The performance of the assay was evaluated by comparing it with the classical indirect competitive ELISA using HRP labeled anti-mouse IgG as the tracer antibody. The results indicate that the SApolyHRP-based competitive ELISA exhibits a typically 2.4-fold steeper slope of the linear working range of the calibration curve compared to the monomeric HRP based classical ELISA, i.e., the sensitivity was increased. The SApolyHRP conjugate causes a typically 19-fold stronger signal generation in comparison to the traditional HRP labeled anti-mouse IgG at the same concentration (25 ng mL −1 ). Moreover, the SApolyHRP-based assay has a much wider linear range and a 3.8-fold better signal-to-noise ratio. Considering its simplicity, sensitivity and ease of operation, this competitive ELISA is considered to be a promising tool for small molecule immuno detection. (author)

  20. Tensor Susceptibilities of the Vacuum from Constituent Quarks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Broniowski, W.; Polyakov, M.; Goeke, K.; Hyun-Chul Kim

    1998-01-01

    We show that the constituent quark model leads to simple expression for the isoscalar and isovector tensor susceptibilities of the vacuum. The found values are negative and of magnitude compatible with QCD-sum-rule parametrizations of spectral densities in appropriate L=1-meson channels. (author)

  1. Tensor Susceptibilities of the Vacuum from Constituent Quarks

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Broniowski, W [The H. Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics, Cracow (Poland); Polyakov, M; Goeke, K [Institute for Theoretical Physics II, Ruhr-Universitaet-Bochum, Bochum (Germany); Kim, Hyun-Chul [Pusan National University, Department of Physics, Pusan (Korea, Republic of)

    1998-05-15

    We show that the constituent quark model leads to simple expression for the isoscalar and isovector tensor susceptibilities of the vacuum. The found values are negative and of magnitude compatible with QCD-sum-rule parametrizations of spectral densities in appropriate L=1-meson channels. (author)

  2. Ethnopharmacological Investigations of Phytochemical Constituents Isolated from the Genus Cuscuta.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ibrahim, Muhammad; Rehman, Kanwal; Hussain, Iqbal; Farooq, Tahir; Ali, Bisharat; Majeed, Irum; Akash, Muhammad Sajid Hamid

    2017-01-01

    The genus Cuscuta, of the family Cuscutaceae, is present in plants and has been traditionally used medicinally against many diseases and conditions, notably depression, mental illness, headache, spleen disease, jaundice, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. Large numbers of phytochemical constituents such as alkaloids, flavonoids, lignins, oxygen heterocyclic compounds, steroids, fatty acids, phenolic acids, resin glycosides, and polysaccharides have been isolated from different species of Cuscuta. Ethnopharmacological studies conducted on such constituents have also been shown Cuscuta to possess anticancer, antiviral, antispasmodic, antihypertensive, anticonvulsant, antibacterial, antioxidant, diuretic, and hair-growth activity. Many tribes and traditional communities have long used the different forms of Cuscuta for treatment and prevention of many diseases. In this article, we comprehensively summarize relevant data regarding the phytochemical, ethnopharmacological, and traditional therapeutic uses of Cuscuta. In addition, we review the parts of the plants that are used as traditional therapeutic agents, their regions of existence, and their possible modes of action. To conclude, we provide evidence and new insights for further discovery and development of natural drugs from Cuscuta. We show that further studies are needed to investigate the mechanism of action and safety profile of phytochemical constituents isolated from Cuscuta.

  3. The use of stable isotopes to trace oil sands constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Farwell, A.J.; Nero, V.; Dixon, D.G.

    2002-01-01

    A study was conducted to determine the biological effects of oil sands mining operations on aquatic ecosystems. The study focused on the Athabasca oil sand deposit, the largest of 4 deposits in northern Alberta. In particular, the study examined the cycling of oil sand constituents in Benthic invertebrates collected from test pits at Syncrude Canada Ltd.. The invertebrates were similar in size, but different in the quantity of process-affected water or mature fine tailings containing residual bitumen. Dragonflies and damselflies in particular, showed trends of depletion for the carbon 13 isotope and enrichment in nitrogen 15 isotope in pits where levels of process affected water was high. The depletion of carbon 13 isotope suggests that oil sand constituents assimilate into the benthic food chain. The greatest carbon 13 depletion, which was approximately 27 per cent, was found to be in test pits with high turbidity. This implies that oil sands constituents degrade microbially instead of by photosynthetic production. All benthic invertebrate group demonstrated an incremental enrichment in nitrogen 15 isotope from the control pit to the pit with greatest levels of mature fine tailings

  4. 75 FR 33814 - Tobacco Product Constituents Subcommittee of the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-06-15

    ...] Tobacco Product Constituents Subcommittee of the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee; Notice of... to the public. Name of Committee: Tobacco Product Constituents Subcommittee of the Tobacco Products...-8900. Contact Person: Karen Templeton-Somers, Office of Science, Center for Tobacco Products, Food and...

  5. Sterically crowded monomeric neutral bis(benzamidinato) compounds of aluminium, [PhC(NSiMe(3))(2)](2)AlX (X=Cl, H); X-ray crystal structure of [PhC(NSiMe(3))(2)]2AlH

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Duchateau, R; Meetsma, A; Teuben, JH

    1996-01-01

    AlCl3 reacts with [PhC(NSiMe(3))(2)]Li(OEt(2)) to afford the bis(N,N'-bis(trimethylsilyl)benzamidinato)aluminium chloro compound which, on treatment with KBEt(3)H, yields the structurally characterized monomeric hydride derivative, [PhC(NSiMe(3))(2)]2AlH, whose reactivity towards unsaturated

  6. Constituent quark mass and nucleon properties in nuclei

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beyer, M.; Singh, S.K.

    1986-01-01

    It is shown that the Nolen-Schiffer anomaly, the quenching of gsub(A) and the increase in some electromagnetic properties of nucleons in nuclei can all be explained qualitatively in a constituent quark model if the quark mass is assumed to depend on its confinement size. (author)

  7. Assembly constraints drive co-evolution among ribosomal constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mallik, Saurav; Akashi, Hiroshi; Kundu, Sudip

    2015-06-23

    Ribosome biogenesis, a central and essential cellular process, occurs through sequential association and mutual co-folding of protein-RNA constituents in a well-defined assembly pathway. Here, we construct a network of co-evolving nucleotide/amino acid residues within the ribosome and demonstrate that assembly constraints are strong predictors of co-evolutionary patterns. Predictors of co-evolution include a wide spectrum of structural reconstitution events, such as cooperativity phenomenon, protein-induced rRNA reconstitutions, molecular packing of different rRNA domains, protein-rRNA recognition, etc. A correlation between folding rate of small globular proteins and their topological features is known. We have introduced an analogous topological characteristic for co-evolutionary network of ribosome, which allows us to differentiate between rRNA regions subjected to rapid reconstitutions from those hindered by kinetic traps. Furthermore, co-evolutionary patterns provide a biological basis for deleterious mutation sites and further allow prediction of potential antibiotic targeting sites. Understanding assembly pathways of multicomponent macromolecules remains a key challenge in biophysics. Our study provides a 'proof of concept' that directly relates co-evolution to biophysical interactions during multicomponent assembly and suggests predictive power to identify candidates for critical functional interactions as well as for assembly-blocking antibiotic target sites. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  8. Not Just a Sum? Identifying Different Types of Interplay between Constituents in Combined Interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Deun, Katrijn; Thorrez, Lieven; van den Berg, Robert A; Smilde, Age K; Van Mechelen, Iven

    2015-01-01

    Experiments in which the effect of combined manipulations is compared with the effects of their pure constituents have received a great deal of attention. Examples include the study of combination therapies and the comparison of double and single knockout model organisms. Often the effect of the combined manipulation is not a mere addition of the effects of its constituents, with quite different forms of interplay between the constituents being possible. Yet, a well-formalized taxonomy of possible forms of interplay is lacking, let alone a statistical methodology to test for their presence in empirical data. Starting from a taxonomy of a broad range of forms of interplay between constituents of a combined manipulation, we propose a sound statistical hypothesis testing framework to test for the presence of each particular form of interplay. We illustrate the framework with analyses of public gene expression data on the combined treatment of dendritic cells with curdlan and GM-CSF and show that these lead to valuable insights into the mode of action of the constituent treatments and their combination. R code implementing the statistical testing procedure for microarray gene expression data is available as supplementary material. The data are available from the Gene Expression Omnibus with accession number GSE32986.

  9. The European Constitution: sovereignty, legitimacy and constituent power

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Signe Larsen

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available On the basis of Hannah Arendt’s and Carl Schmitt’s writings on the constituent power, this article sets out to develop an interpretative framework which would aid the understanding of the legitimation crisis of European integration initiated by the EU constitutional failure of 2004. The question raised in this essay is whether the successful establishment of democratic constitutional legitimacy is conditional upon the existence of a federal state. From the perspective of the constituent power, two opposing answers are given based on two rivalling notions of the ultimate meaning of constitutional politics: freedom and security. The article concludes that even though the EU as a case remains undecided, it seems likely that democracy and constitutional politics have parted ways in the EU both in the Arendtian and in the Schmittian sense. If that is the case, the constitutional crisis is a serious problem for the future of democracy in the EU.

  10. Anti-inflammatory and bronchodilatory constituents of leaf extracts of Anacardium occidentale L. in animal models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Awakan, Oluwakemi Josephine; Malomo, Sylvia Omonirume; Adejare, Abdullahi Adeyinka; Igunnu, Adedoyin; Atolani, Olubunmi; Adebayo, Abiodun Humphrey; Owoyele, Bamidele Victor

    2018-01-01

    Anacardium occidentale L. leaf is useful in the treatment of inflammation and asthma, but the bioactive constituents responsible for these activities have not been characterized. Therefore, this study was aimed at identifying the bioactive constituent(s) of A. occidentale ethanolic leaf extract (AOEL) and its solvent-soluble portions, and evaluating their effects on histamine-induced paw edema and bronchoconstriction. The bronchodilatory effect was determined by measuring the percentage protection provided by plant extracts in the histamine-induced bronchoconstriction model in guinea pigs. The anti-inflammatory effect of the extracts on histamine-induced paw edema in rats was determined by measuring the increase in paw diameter, after which the percent edema inhibition was calculated. The extracts were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to identify the bioactive constituents. Column chromatography and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were used respectively to isolate and characterize the constituents. The bronchodilatory and anti-inflammatory activities of the isolated bioactive constituent were evaluated. Histamine induced bronchoconstriction in the guinea pigs and edema in the rat paw. AOEL, hexane-soluble portion of AOEL, ethyl acetate-soluble portion of AOEL, and chloroform-soluble portion of AOEL significantly increased bronchodilatory and anti-inflammatory activities (P 9-octadecenamide) was identified as the most abundant compound in the extracts and was isolated. Oleamide significantly increased bronchodilatory and anti-inflammatory activities by 32.97% and 98.41%, respectively (P < 0.05). These results indicate that oleamide is one of the bioactive constituents responsible for the bronchodilatory and anti-inflammatory activity of A. occidentale leaf, and can therefore be employed in the management of bronchoconstriction and inflammation. Copyright © 2017 Shanghai Changhai Hospital. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights

  11. Analysis of chemical constituents in medicinal plants of selected ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Analysis of chemical constituents in medicinal plants of selected districts of Pakhtoonkhwa, Pakistan. I Hussain, R Ullah, J Khan, N Khan, M Zahoor, N Ullah, MuR Khattak, FA Khan, A Baseer, M Khurram ...

  12. Effects of fine particulate matter and its constituents on low birth weight among full-term infants in California

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Basu, Rupa; Harris, Maria; Sie, Lillian; Malig, Brian; Broadwin, Rachel; Green, Rochelle

    2014-01-01

    Relationships between prenatal exposure to fine particles (PM 2.5 ) and birth weight have been observed previously. Few studies have investigated specific constituents of PM 2.5 , which may identify sources and major contributors of risk. We examined the effects of trimester and full gestational prenatal exposures to PM 2.5 mass and 23 PM 2.5 constituents on birth weight among 646,296 term births in California between 2000 and 2006. We used linear and logistic regression models to assess associations between exposures and birth weight and risk of low birth weight (LBW; 2.5 mass and several PM 2.5 constituents were significantly associated with reductions in term birth weight. The largest reductions in birth weight were associated with exposure to vanadium, sulfur, sulfate, iron, elemental carbon, titanium, manganese, bromine, ammonium, zinc, and copper. Several of these PM 2.5 constituents were associated with increased risk of term LBW. Reductions in birth weight were generally larger among younger mothers and varied by race/ethnicity. Exposure to specific constituents of PM 2.5 , especially traffic-related particles, sulfur constituents, and metals, were associated with decreased birth weight in California. -- Highlights: • Examine full gestational and trimester fine particle and its constituents on term birth weight. • Fine particles and several of its constituents associated with birth weight reductions. • Largest reductions for traffic-related particles, sulfur constituents, and metals. • Greater birth weight reductions for younger mothers, and varied by race/ethnicity

  13. Support structure for reactor core constituent element

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aida, Yasuhiko.

    1993-01-01

    A connection pipe having an entrance nozzle inserted therein as a reactor core constituent element is protruded above the upper surface of a reactor core support plate. A through hole is disposed to the protruding portion of the connection pipe. The through hole and a through hole disposed to the reactor core support plate are connected by a communication pipe. A shear rod is disposed in a horizontal portion at the inside of the communication pipe and is supported by a spring horizontally movably. Further, a groove is disposed at a position of the entrance nozzle opposing to the shear rod. The shear rod is urged out of the communication pipe by the pressure of the high pressure plenum and the top end portion of the shear rod is inserted to the groove of the entrance nozzle during operation. Accordingly, the shear rod is positioned in a state where it is extended from the through hole of the communication pipe to the groove of the entrance nozzle. This can mechanically constrain the rising of the reactor core constituent elements by the shear rod upon occurrence of earthquakes. (I.N.)

  14. Patch testing with constituents of Compositae mixes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paulsen, Evy; Andersen, Klaus E

    2012-05-01

    The development of mixes containing Compositae plant extracts has improved the diagnosis of Compositae contact allergy, but none of them has fulfilled the criteria for an ideal European plant mix. To evaluate which constituents of two commercial Compositae mixes were most useful as screening agents. These comprised 76 patients testing positive to Compositae mix 6% in petrolatum and 29 patients testing positive to Compositae mix 5% pet., all of whom were tested with constituents of the respective mixes. The majority of patients tested positive to parthenolide or parthenolide-containing extracts, followed by German chamomile, yarrow, and arnica. As German chamomile is a weak sensitizer, the results suggest cross-reactions or reactions to unknown allergens. No one was positive to Roman chamomile. Even though parthenolide seems to be a suitable supplement to the baseline series, the results emphasize that it is important to patch test with extracts of native or locally grown plants, not only because of the geographical variation, but also because of the potential unknown allergens contained in short ether preparations and the variability in the individual patient's exposure and cross-reaction patterns. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  15. ASSESSING UNIVERSITY RESEARCH PERFORMANCE WITH MULTIPLE CONSTITUENCIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kuang-Liang Liu

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The research performance of the university is critical to the national competitiveness. Previous research has established that research performance is based on scholarly publishing. Several studies suggested that journal ranking is the important research quality indicator. However, unilateral measurement for the research performance will seriously corrode the development of university research work. Assessing university research performance with multiple constituencies is a better to enhance the university research. Although substantial studies have been performed on the critical factors that affect knowledge exploration in the university, those in knowledge exploitation are still lacking. With the multiple constituencies, a fully understanding of research performance can be gained. In the research model, knowledge exploration represents the academic research and knowledge exploitation represents the university–industry collaboration. Data collected from 124 university data in online database. The study shows that knowledge exploration and exploitation both are significant positive predictors of university competitiveness. University resources play important roles to affect both knowledge exploration and exploitation in the university. The study also shows that higher knowledge exploration will enhance knowledge exploitation. Implications for theory and practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.

  16. Anti- toxoplasma gondii activity of constituents from Balsamocitrus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Isolation, characterization and anti-Toxoplasma gondii activity of constituents from the CH2Cl2/MeOH (1/1) extract of the roots of the cameroonian plant Balsamocitrus camerunensis L. were investigated in this study. Four known coumarins derivatives were isolated, namely, marmin (1), imperatorin (2), xanthoxyletin (3), ...

  17. Cytotoxic potential of valerian constituents and valerian tinctures

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, R.; Hendriks, H; Scheffer, J.J C; Woerdenbag, H.J.

    Underground parts of three Valeriana species, namely V. officinalis L. s.l., V. wallichii DC. (V. jatamansi Jones), and V. edulis Nutt. ex Torr & Gray ssp. procera (H.B.K.) F. G. Meyer (V. mexicana DC.), are used in phytotherapy because of their mild sedative properties. Characteristic constituents

  18. Constituent rearrangement model and large transverse momentum reactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Igarashi, Yuji; Imachi, Masahiro; Matsuoka, Takeo; Otsuki, Shoichiro; Sawada, Shoji.

    1978-01-01

    In this chapter, two models based on the constituent rearrangement picture for large p sub( t) phenomena are summarized. One is the quark-junction model, and the other is the correlating quark rearrangement model. Counting rules of the models apply to both two-body reactions and hadron productions. (author)

  19. Determination of Chemical Constituents of the Marine Pulmonate ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Determination of Chemical Constituents of the Marine Pulmonate Slug, Paraoncidium reevesii. B Sun, H Shen, H Wu, L Yao, Z Cheng, Y Diao. Abstract. Purpose: To isolate and identify the chemical components of Paraoncidium reevesii. Methods: Silica gel column chromatography was used to isolate the components from ...

  20. IMMEDIATE CONSTITUENT ANALYSIS (IC analysis DİREKT BİLEŞENLER ANALİZİ

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muzaffer MALKOÇ

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available IC analysis is a method of sentence analysis first explicitly introduced by American linguist Leonard Bloomfield in his book, Language, in 1933, though the underlying principle is common both to the traditional practice of parsing and to many modern systems of grammatical analysis. In IC analysis, a sentence is divided up into major divisions or immediate constituents, and these constituents are in turn divided into further immediate constituents. This process continues until irreducible constituents are reached, i.e., until each constituent consists of only a word or meaningful part of a word. The important tests used to analyze the sentences are deletion, permutation, transformation, and substitution tests.The end result of an IC analysis is often presented in a visual diagrammatic form that reveals the hierarchical immediate constituent structure of a sentence Direkt bileşenler analiz metodu Amerikalı dil bilimci Leonard Bloomfield tarafından 1933 yılında sentaks alanında başlatılmış, daha sonraki yıllarda fonetik ve morfoloji alanlarında da uygulanmıştır. Bu analiz metodunun amacı tümce veya kelime gruplarının parçalanması ve tasnif edilmesi işleminden ibarettir. Tümcelerin parçalanması en küçük dil birimine kadar kademe kademe yapılmalı ve bileşenlerin sınıflandırılmasında ise ana öbeğe veya ana gövdeye daha yakın olan unsurlar ile ikincil öğeler analizin amacına uygun olarak belirtilmelidir. Bu işlemler yapılırken Yok Etme Testi, Yer Değiştirme Testi, Dönüştürme Testi, Yerine Koyma Testi gibi metotlardan faydalanılır. Bu prensipler çerçevesinde yapılan analizin sonuçları hiyerarşik yapıları göstermek için bir grafikle özetlenir

  1. Acetylsalicylic acid and labeling of blood constituents with technetium-99m

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fonseca, Adenilson de Souza da [Universidade do Estado, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Dept. de Farmacologia e Psicobiologia; Frydman, Jacques Natan Grinapel; Rocha, Vanessa Camara da; Bernardo-Filho, Mario [Universidade do Estado, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Inst. de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes. Dept. de Biofisica e Biometria

    2005-10-15

    Acetylsalicylic acid is the drug most used an anti-inflammatory agent and for secondary prevention of thrombotic phenomenon. Drugs can modify the labeling of blood constituents with technetium-99m (99m Tc). The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of in vitro or in vivo assays with acetylsalicylic acid on the labeling of the blood constituents with 99m Tc. In vitro assay was performed with samples of whole blood from Wistar rats incubated with acetylsalicylic acid (1.0 mg/ml) for one hour before the 99m Tc-labeling process. For in vivo assay, Wistar rats were treated with acetylsalicylic acid (1.5 mg/kg) during one hour, and the whole blood was withdrawn for the 99m Tc-labeling process. Saline was used in control groups. Data showed that the fixation of 99m Tc to the blood constituents was not significantly (p>0.05) modified in in vitro and in vivo assays with acetylsalicylic acid, at least not when the experiments were carried out with the doses normally used in human beings. (author)

  2. Inhibition of nitrobenzene-induced DNA and hemoglobin adductions by dietary constituents

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Li Hongli; Cheng Yan; Wang Haifang; Sun Hongfang; Liu Yuanfang E-mail: yliu@pku.edu.cn; Liu Kexin; Peng Shixiang

    2003-03-01

    Nitrobenzene (NB), a widely used industrial chemical, is a likely human carcinogen. Many dietary constituents can suppress the DNA-adduction, acting as the inhibitors of cancer. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of vitamin C (VC), vitamin E (VE), tea polyphenols (TP), garlic squeeze, curcumin, and grapestone extract on NB-DNA and NB-hemoglobin (Hb) adductions in mice using an ultrasensitive method of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) with {sup 14}C-labelled nitrobenzene. All of these dietary constituents showed their inhibitory effects on DNA or Hb adduction. VC, VE, TP and grapestone extract could efficaciously inhibit the adductions by 33-50%, and all of these six agents could inhibit Hb adduction by 30-64%. We also investigated resveratrol, curcumin, VC and VE as inhibitors of NB-DNA adduction in vitro using liquid scintillation counting technique. These agents in the presence of NADPH and S9 components also pronouncedly blocked DNA adduction in a dose-dependent profile. Our study suggests that these seven constituents may interrupt the process of NB-induced chemical carcinogenesis.

  3. Studies on the chemical constituents, antioxidants and membrane ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The chemical constituents, antioxidant and membrane stability activities of Hibiscus rosa sinensis Linn. (Malvaceae) flower were determined. The total anthocyanin was 165 mg / kg with about 6 % reduction due to fermentation. Tannin, ascorbic acid, and total polyphenol were 11.8 g / kg; 478 mg / kg; and 14.4 mg / g, ...

  4. Constituent Aspects of Workplace Guidance in Secondary VET

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swager, Robert; Klarus, Ruud; van Merriënboer, Jeroen J. G.; Nieuwenhuis, Loek F. M.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: This paper aims to present an integrated model of workplace guidance to enhance awareness of what constitutes good guidance, to improve workplace guidance practices in vocational education and training. Design/methodology/approach: To identify constituent aspects of workplace guidance, a systematic search of Web of Science was conducted,…

  5. Elemental constituent of food and the daily intake

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suzuki, Kazumasa

    1976-01-01

    Constituent of element in foods and it's daily intake was discussed. In tables were shown instances of analysed values of major elements in Japanese foods, daily dietary intake of 8 elements in Japan (analysed value of total diet and estimated amounts of daily dietary intake of 32 elements. (J.P.N.)

  6. Environmental constraints shaping constituent order in emerging communication systems: Structural iconicity, interactive alignment and conventionalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, Peer; Fusaroli, Riccardo; Tylén, Kristian

    2016-01-01

    Where does linguistic structure come from? Recent gesture elicitation studies have indicated that constituent order (corresponding to for instance subject-verb-object, or SVO in English) may be heavily influenced by human cognitive biases constraining gesture production and transmission. Here we explore the alternative hypothesis that syntactic patterns are motivated by multiple environmental and social-interactional constraints that are external to the cognitive domain. In three experiments, we systematically investigate different motivations for structure in the gestural communication of simple transitive events. The first experiment indicates that, if participants communicate about different types of events, manipulation events (e.g. someone throwing a cake) and construction events (e.g. someone baking a cake), they spontaneously and systematically produce different constituent orders, SOV and SVO respectively, thus following the principle of structural iconicity. The second experiment shows that participants' choice of constituent order is also reliably influenced by social-interactional forces of interactive alignment, that is, the tendency to re-use an interlocutor's previous choice of constituent order, thus potentially overriding affordances for iconicity. Lastly, the third experiment finds that the relative frequency distribution of referent event types motivates the stabilization and conventionalization of a single constituent order for the communication of different types of events. Together, our results demonstrate that constituent order in emerging gestural communication systems is shaped and stabilized in response to multiple external environmental and social factors: structural iconicity, interactive alignment and distributional frequency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Preventive and Prophylactic Mechanisms of Action of Pomegranate Bioactive Constituents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viladomiu, Monica; Hontecillas, Raquel; Lu, Pinyi; Bassaganya-Riera, Josep

    2013-01-01

    Pomegranate fruit presents strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiobesity, and antitumoral properties, thus leading to an increased popularity as a functional food and nutraceutical source since ancient times. It can be divided into three parts: seeds, peel, and juice, all of which seem to have medicinal benefits. Several studies investigate its bioactive components as a means to associate them with a specific beneficial effect and develop future products and therapeutic applications. Many beneficial effects are related to the presence of ellagic acid, ellagitannins (including punicalagins), punicic acid and other fatty acids, flavonoids, anthocyanidins, anthocyanins, estrogenic flavonols, and flavones, which seem to be its most therapeutically beneficial components. However, the synergistic action of the pomegranate constituents appears to be superior when compared to individual constituents. Promising results have been obtained for the treatment of certain diseases including obesity, insulin resistance, intestinal inflammation, and cancer. Although moderate consumption of pomegranate does not result in adverse effects, future studies are needed to assess safety and potential interactions with drugs that may alter the bioavailability of bioactive constituents of pomegranate as well as drugs. The aim of this review is to summarize the health effects and mechanisms of action of pomegranate extracts in chronic inflammatory diseases. PMID:23737845

  8. Fine structure characterization of martensite/austenite constituent in low-carbon low-alloy steel by transmission electron forward scatter diffraction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, C W; Han, L Z; Luo, X M; Liu, Q D; Gu, J F

    2016-11-01

    Transmission electron forward scatter diffraction and other characterization techniques were used to investigate the fine structure and the variant relationship of the martensite/austenite (M/A) constituent of the granular bainite in low-carbon low-alloy steel. The results demonstrated that the M/A constituents were distributed in clusters throughout the bainitic ferrite. Lath martensite was the main component of the M/A constituent, where the relationship between the martensite variants was consistent with the Nishiyama-Wassermann orientation relationship and only three variants were found in the M/A constituent, suggesting that the variants had formed in the M/A constituent according to a specific mechanism. Furthermore, the Σ3 boundaries in the M/A constituent were much longer than their counterparts in the bainitic ferrite region. The results indicate that transmission electron forward scatter diffraction is an effective method of crystallographic analysis for nanolaths in M/A constituents. © 2016 The Authors Journal of Microscopy © 2016 Royal Microscopical Society.

  9. PM2.5 constituents and hospital emergency-room visits in Shanghai, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qiao, Liping; Cai, Jing; Wang, Hongli; Wang, Weibing; Zhou, Min; Lou, Shengrong; Chen, Renjie; Dai, Haixia; Chen, Changhong; Kan, Haidong

    2014-09-02

    Although ambient PM2.5 has been linked to adverse health effects, the chemical constituents that cause harm are largely unclear. Few prior studies in a developing country have reported the health impacts of PM2.5 constituents. In this study, we examined the short-term association between PM2.5 constituents and emergency room visits in Shanghai, China. We measured daily concentrations of PM2.5, organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), and eight water-soluble ions between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2012. We analyzed the data using overdispersed generalized linear Poisson models. During our study period, the mean daily average concentration of PM2.5 in Shanghai was 55 μg/m(3). Major contributors to PM2.5 mass included OC, EC, sulfate, nitrate, and ammonium. For a 1-day lag, an interquartile range increment in PM2.5 mass (36.47 μg/m(3)) corresponded to 0.57% [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.13%, 1.01%] increase of emergency room visits. In all the three models used, we found significant positive associations of emergency room visits with OC and EC. Our findings suggest that PM2.5 constituents from the combustion of fossil fuel (e.g., OC and EC) may have an appreciable influence on the health impact attributable to PM2.5.

  10. Constituent quarks and the gluonic contribution to the spin of the nucleon

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eldahoumi, Gamal

    2009-01-01

    The internal structure of the nucleon is more complicated than expected in a simple quark model. In particular, the portion of the nucleon spin carried by the spins of the quarks is not, as expected, of the order of one, but according to the experimental data much smaller. In this thesis we study the spin structure of the proton in quantum chromodynamics. The constituent quark model, based on SU(6), predicts that the spin of the proton should be carried by the quarks, in disagreement with the experiments. It appears strange, that the theoretical model works so well for the magnetic moments of the nucleons, but not for the spin, although the spin and the magnetic moments are closely related to each other. We shall resolve this problem by assuming that the constituent quarks have an internal structure on their own. Thus a constituent quark has a dynamical structure, and we can introduce notions like the quark or gluon distributions inside a constituent quark. In the light of new experimental data from HERMES, COMPASS, JLab, and RHIC-spin, the current status of our knowledge of the spin structure is discussed in the two theoretical frameworks: the naive parton model, and the QCD evolved parton model. QCD a is successful theory, both in perturbative and non-perturbative regions, but the spin of the nucleon still needs to be explained within QCD. (orig.)

  11. Constituent quarks and the gluonic contribution to the spin of the nucleon

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eldahoumi, Gamal

    2009-01-15

    The internal structure of the nucleon is more complicated than expected in a simple quark model. In particular, the portion of the nucleon spin carried by the spins of the quarks is not, as expected, of the order of one, but according to the experimental data much smaller. In this thesis we study the spin structure of the proton in quantum chromodynamics. The constituent quark model, based on SU(6), predicts that the spin of the proton should be carried by the quarks, in disagreement with the experiments. It appears strange, that the theoretical model works so well for the magnetic moments of the nucleons, but not for the spin, although the spin and the magnetic moments are closely related to each other. We shall resolve this problem by assuming that the constituent quarks have an internal structure on their own. Thus a constituent quark has a dynamical structure, and we can introduce notions like the quark or gluon distributions inside a constituent quark. In the light of new experimental data from HERMES, COMPASS, JLab, and RHIC-spin, the current status of our knowledge of the spin structure is discussed in the two theoretical frameworks: the naive parton model, and the QCD evolved parton model. QCD a is successful theory, both in perturbative and non-perturbative regions, but the spin of the nucleon still needs to be explained within QCD. (orig.)

  12. Aquatic photochemistry of sulfamethazine: multivariate effects of main water constituents and mechanisms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yingjie; Liu, Xiangliang; Zhang, Biaojun; Zhao, Qun; Ning, Ping; Tian, Senlin

    2018-03-01

    The ubiquity of sulfonamides (SAs) in natural waters requires insight into their environmental fate for ecological risk assessment. Extensive studies focused on the effect of univariate water constituents on the photochemical fate of SAs, yet the multivariate effects of water constituents in environmentally relevant concentrations on SA photodegradation are poorly understood. Here, response surface methodology was employed to explore the integrative effects of main water constituents (dissolved organic matter (DOM), NO 3 - , HCO 3 - , Cu 2+ ) on the photodegradation of a representative SA (sulfamethazine). Results showed that besides single factors, interaction of factors also significantly impacted the photodegradation. Radical scavenging experiments indicated that triplet-excited DOM ( 3 DOM*) was responsible for the enhancing effect of DOM on the photodegradation. Additionally, DOM may also quench the 3 DOM*-mediated oxidation intermediate of sulfamethazine causing the inhibiting effect of DOM-DOM interaction. We also found that HCO 3 - was oxidized by triplet-excited sulfamethazine producing CO 3 ˙ - , and the high reactivity of CO 3 ˙ - with sulfamethazine (second-order rate constant 2.2 × 10 8 M -1 s -1 ) determined by laser flash photolysis revealed the enhancing photodegradation mechanism of HCO 3 - . This study is among the first attempts to probe the photodegradation of SAs considering the integrative effects of water constituents, which is important in accurate ecological risk assessment of organic pollutants in the aquatic environment.

  13. The UK Smoke Constituents Testing Study. Summary of Results and Comparison with Other Studies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gregg E

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available At the request of the UK Department of Health, samples of 25 commercial UK cigarette brands were provided to LGC Ltd a for smoke analysis. The brands reflected a high market share (58% in July 2001 and included a wide range of blend and product styles manufactured and imported into the UK.= 0.76, suggesting a minor role of other design features on constituents yield variability. This was confirmed by the application of multiple regression analysis to the data. A subset of five brands, retested at another laboratory, gave between-laboratory differences in mean constituent yields of as much as 2.5-fold. Consideration of these results, other likely sources of analytical variation in this study and a review of other studies, clearly indicates that any tolerance values to be associated with individual smoke constituent measurements will be greater than those for NFDPM, and in some cases, much greater. Consistent with the reported results from other large studies it is concluded that, under ISO smoking conditions, smoke constituent yields are largely predictable, if NFDPM and CO yields are known, for a standard cigarette. Given these observations and the likely limitations of analytical determination, the need for routine measurement of smoke constituent yields, other than NFDPM, nicotine or CO, on standard cigarettes, is questionable.

  14. Do quarks play an explicit role as nuclear constituents ?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamazaki, Toshimitsu.

    1986-10-01

    Experimental signatures for explicit roles of quarks as nuclear constituents are looked for. It is stressed that hyperons in nuclei may reveal unique information on nuclear interior and possible quark deconfinement. Future directions of hypernuclear spectroscopy are discussed. (author)

  15. Activity guided isolation of chemical constituents from the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In this study we investigated the chemical constituents of bioactive methanol extract of Euphorbia schimperi C. Presl. For this the methanol extract was fractionated into 20, 40, 60, 80% MeOH in CHCl3, and 100% MeOH fractions respectively by vacuum liquid chromatography. Excision wound surface of the animals were ...

  16. The chemical constituents of calabash ( Crescentia cujete ) | Ejelonu ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Virtually, all parts of the calabash (Crescentia cujete) tree have been found to be useful; the wood for tool handles, ribs in boat building, cattle yokes, and the gourd is used for cups, containers and musical instruments. The calabash (C. cujete) fruit was studied for its chemical constituents- proximate and mineral composition ...

  17. Quinoline derivative containing monomeric and polymeric metal carboxylates: Synthesis, crystal structure and gas adsorption study over a 2D layered framework

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gayen, Saikat; Saha, Debraj; Koner, Subratanath

    2018-06-01

    A new supramolecular metal-carboxylate framework [Co(mqc)2]n (1), and another monomeric compound [Zn (mqc)2(H2O)] (2) (mqcH = 4-methoxy 2-quinolinecarboxylic acid) have been synthesized solvothermally and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, IR spectra, UV-vis spectra, powdered X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and thermogravimetric analysis. Compound 1 is a 2D coordination polymer, extended to a 3D porous supramolecular network having void space in between 2D layers. Compound 1 exhibits gas uptake capacity of N2, H2, CO2 and CH4 like small gas molecules in which moderately high uptake of H2 and CO2 takes place among the 2D MOFs. While the Zn variety, compound 2 features a one-dimensional chain like structure through strong intermolecular hydrogen-bonding.

  18. Antimicrobial activity of Arctium lappa constituents against microorganisms commonly found in endodontic infections.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pereira, Juliana Vianna; Bergamo, Débora Cristina Baldoqui; Pereira, José Odair; França, Suzelei de Castro; Pietro, Rosemeire Cristina Linhares Rodrigues; Silva-Sousa, Yara T Corrêa

    2005-01-01

    This study evaluated in vitro the antimicrobial activity of rough extracts from leaves of Arctium lappa and their phases. The following microorganisms, commonly found in the oral cavity, specifically in endodontic infections, were used: Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis and Candida albicans. The agar-diffusion method allowed detection of the hexanic phase as an inhibitor of microbial growth. Bioautographic assays identified antimicrobial substances in the extract. The results showed the existence, in the rough hexanic phase and in its fractions, of constituents that have retention factors (Rf) in three distinct zones, thereby suggesting the presence of active constituents with chemical structures of different polarities that exhibited specificity against the target microorganisms. It may be concluded that the Arctium lappa constituents exhibited a great microbial inhibition potential against the tested endodontic pathogens.

  19. A modelling of the mechanisms occurring during the atmospheric corrosion of iron

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Marechal, L.; Perrin, S.; Hoerle, S.; Mazaudier, F.; Dillmann, P.

    2004-01-01

    In order to predict the long-term corrosion of metallic containers in storage conditions, a modelling of atmospheric corrosion of iron is proposed. This modelling takes into account the mechanisms which occur during the three stages of a wet-dry cycle. During the wetting stage, the reduction of lepidocrocite (g-FeOOH), a constituent of the rust layer, is considered to be the rate-limiting step of the corrosion. During the second stage of the cycle, the wet period, the reduction of dissolved oxygen on the lepidocrocite, previously reduced, is controlling the mechanism. The amount of oxidized metal depends on the quantity of reduced lepidocrocite and also on the oxygen diffusion in the electrolyte and the rust layer. At the end of the cycle, the blocking of the anodic sites is considered to describe the extinction of electrochemical corrosion during the drying. It appears that each stage of the cycle depends mainly on the chemical and morphological properties of the rust layer. (authors)

  20. Model of a DNA-protein complex of the architectural monomeric protein MC1 from Euryarchaea.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Françoise Paquet

    Full Text Available In Archaea the two major modes of DNA packaging are wrapping by histone proteins or bending by architectural non-histone proteins. To supplement our knowledge about the binding mode of the different DNA-bending proteins observed across the three domains of life, we present here the first model of a complex in which the monomeric Methanogen Chromosomal protein 1 (MC1 from Euryarchaea binds to the concave side of a strongly bent DNA. In laboratory growth conditions MC1 is the most abundant architectural protein present in Methanosarcina thermophila CHTI55. Like most proteins that strongly bend DNA, MC1 is known to bind in the minor groove. Interaction areas for MC1 and DNA were mapped by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR data. The polarity of protein binding was determined using paramagnetic probes attached to the DNA. The first structural model of the DNA-MC1 complex we propose here was obtained by two complementary docking approaches and is in good agreement with the experimental data previously provided by electron microscopy and biochemistry. Residues essential to DNA-binding and -bending were highlighted and confirmed by site-directed mutagenesis. It was found that the Arg25 side-chain was essential to neutralize the negative charge of two phosphates that come very close in response to a dramatic curvature of the DNA.

  1. Tabanone a new phytotoxic constituent of cogongrass (Imperta culindrica)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cogongrass [Imperata cylindrica (L.) Beauv.] is a troublesome invasive weedy species with reported allelopathic properties. The phytotoxicity of different constituents isolated from roots and aerial parts of this species was evaluated on Lactuca sativa and Agrostis stolonifera. No significant phytot...

  2. Effects of fine particulate matter and its constituents on low birth weight among full-term infants in California

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Basu, Rupa, E-mail: Rupa.Basu@oehha.ca.gov [California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, Air Pollution Epidemiology Section, Oakland, CA (United States); Harris, Maria [School of Public Health, Boston University, Boston, MA (United States); Sie, Lillian [School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Malig, Brian; Broadwin, Rachel; Green, Rochelle [California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, Air Pollution Epidemiology Section, Oakland, CA (United States)

    2014-01-15

    Relationships between prenatal exposure to fine particles (PM{sub 2.5}) and birth weight have been observed previously. Few studies have investigated specific constituents of PM{sub 2.5}, which may identify sources and major contributors of risk. We examined the effects of trimester and full gestational prenatal exposures to PM{sub 2.5} mass and 23 PM{sub 2.5} constituents on birth weight among 646,296 term births in California between 2000 and 2006. We used linear and logistic regression models to assess associations between exposures and birth weight and risk of low birth weight (LBW; <2500 g), respectively. Models were adjusted for individual demographic characteristics, apparent temperature, month and year of birth, region, and socioeconomic indicators. Higher full gestational exposures to PM{sub 2.5} mass and several PM{sub 2.5} constituents were significantly associated with reductions in term birth weight. The largest reductions in birth weight were associated with exposure to vanadium, sulfur, sulfate, iron, elemental carbon, titanium, manganese, bromine, ammonium, zinc, and copper. Several of these PM{sub 2.5} constituents were associated with increased risk of term LBW. Reductions in birth weight were generally larger among younger mothers and varied by race/ethnicity. Exposure to specific constituents of PM{sub 2.5}, especially traffic-related particles, sulfur constituents, and metals, were associated with decreased birth weight in California. -- Highlights: • Examine full gestational and trimester fine particle and its constituents on term birth weight. • Fine particles and several of its constituents associated with birth weight reductions. • Largest reductions for traffic-related particles, sulfur constituents, and metals. • Greater birth weight reductions for younger mothers, and varied by race/ethnicity.

  3. [n-Butyl Alcohol-soluble Chemical Constituents of Psidium guajava Leaves].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Gang; Wan, Kai-hua; Fu, Hui-zheng; Yan, Qing-wei

    2015-03-01

    To study the chemical constituents of the leaves of Psidium guajava. The chemical constituents were isolated by column chromatography on silica gel, Sephadex LH-20 and MPLC. Their chemical structures were elucidated on the basis of special analysis. Seven compounds were isolated from n-butyl alcohol fraction, whose structures were elucidated as morin-3-O-α-L-arabopyranoside (1), morin-3-O-α-L-iyxopyranoside (2), 2,6-dihydroxy-4-O-β-D-glucopyranosyl-benzophenone (3), casuarictin (4),2,6-dihydroxy-3,5-dimethyl-4-O-(6"-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranosyl)-benzophenone(5), globulusin A(6), and kaempferol-3-O-β-D-(6"-galloyl) galactopyranoside (7). Compounds 3 and 5 ~ 7 are isolated from this plant for the first time.

  4. From fundamental fields to constituent quarks and nucleon form factors?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coester, F.

    1991-01-01

    Constituent-quark models formulated in the frame work of nonrelativistic quantum mechanics have been successful in accounting for the mass spectra of mesons and baryons. Applications to elastic electron scattering require relativistic dynamics. Relativistic quantum mechanics of constituent quarks can be formulated by constructing a suitable unitary representation of the Poincare group on the three-quark Hilbert space. The mass and spin operators of this representation specify the relativistic model dynamics. The dynamics of fundamental quark fields, on the other hand, is specified by a Euclidean functional integral. In this paper, the author shows how the dynamics of the fundamental fields can be related in principle to the Hamiltonian dynamics of quark particles through the properties of the Wightman functions

  5. Salacia crassifolia (Celastraceae: CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vanessa G. Rodrigues

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The phytochemical study of hexane extract from leaves of Salacia crassifolia resulted in the isolation of 3β-palmitoxy-urs-12-ene, 3-oxofriedelane, 3β-hydroxyfriedelane, 3-oxo-28-hydroxyfriedelane, 3-oxo-29-hydroxyfriedelane, 28,29-dihydroxyfriedelan-3-one, 3,4-seco-friedelan-3-oic acid, 3β-hydroxy-olean-9(11:12-diene and the mixture of α-amirin and β-amirin. β-sitosterol, the polymer gutta-percha, squalene and eicosanoic acid were also isolated. The chemical structures of these constituents were established by IR, 1H and 13C NMR spectral data. Crude extracts and the triterpenes were tested against Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia lamblia and Trichomonas vaginalis and no activity was observed under the in vitro assay conditions. The hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and ethanol crude extracts, and the constituent 3,4-seco-friedelan-3-oic acid and 28,29-dihydroxyfriedelan-3-one showed in vitro antimicrobial activity against Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, Streptococcus sanguinis and Candida albicans.

  6. Sivers function in constituent quark models

    CERN Document Server

    Scopetta, S.; Fratini, F.; Vento, V.

    2008-01-01

    A formalism to evaluate the Sivers function, developed for calculations in constituent quark models, is applied to the Isgur-Karl model. A non-vanishing Sivers asymmetry, with opposite signs for the u and d flavor, is found; the Burkardt sum rule is fulfilled up to 2 %. Nuclear effects in the extraction of neutron single spin asymmetries in semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering off 3He are also evaluated. In the kinematics of JLab, it is found that the nuclear effects described by an Impulse Approximation approach are under control.

  7. Quantification of normal vaginal constituents using a new wet preparation technique.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fowler, R Stuart

    2012-10-01

    This study aimed to evaluate a new method for preparing vaginal wet preparations to enable quantification of cells and lactobacilli. The current nonstandardized technique allows for a variable amount of vaginal fluid collected, diluted by a variable amount of saline/KOH, and no quantification of constituents. The vaginal fluids from 100 randomly selected women without vulvovaginitis symptoms presenting to the author's practice at Mayo Clinic underwent analysis by the quantification technique. Women were excluded if they were younger than 18 years, had antibiotics within the past 2 months, currently on their period, had placed anything in the vagina for the past 24 hours, used Depo-Provera, or were lactating. All the wet preparations were made by mixing the natural vaginal fluids with 3 mL of sterile normal saline. Spinal diluting fluid was added to the saline preparation. The saline and KOH mixtures were injected into separate wells of KOVA Glasstic Grid Slide and analyzed with a phase-contrast microscope at 40× and 60×. The concentration of leukocytes, lactobacilli, and squamous cells and the degree of maturation of the majority (>50%) of squamous cells were assessed, and it was determined whether there was excessive non-lactobacilli bacteria (EB) as evident by clumps of bacteria in the background fluid and speckling on the squamous cells. The 3 most common patterns to occur were as follows: First, 51% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 41%-60%) of the total specimens had abundant lactobacilli, no leukocytes, more than 50% fully maturated squamous cells, and no EB. Second, 22% (95% CI = 14%-32%) of the total specimens had low lactobacilli counts, no leukocytes, more than 50% undermaturated squamous cells, and no EB. Third, 12% (95% CI = 6%-20%) of the total specimens had abundant lactobacilli, leukocytes, more than 50% fully maturated squamous cells, and no EB. It is imperative to be able to objectively quantify normal vaginal secretion constituents so that (1) the

  8. Single-neuron identification of chemical constituents, physiological changes, and metabolism using mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Hongying; Zou, Guichang; Wang, Ning; Zhuang, Meihui; Xiong, Wei; Huang, Guangming

    2017-03-07

    The use of single-cell assays has emerged as a cutting-edge technique during the past decade. Although single-cell mass spectrometry (MS) has recently achieved remarkable results, deep biological insights have not yet been obtained, probably because of various technical issues, including the unavoidable use of matrices, the inability to maintain cell viability, low throughput because of sample pretreatment, and the lack of recordings of cell physiological activities from the same cell. In this study, we describe a patch clamp/MS-based platform that enables the sensitive, rapid, and in situ chemical profiling of single living neurons. This approach integrates modified patch clamp technique and modified MS measurements to directly collect and detect nanoliter-scale samples from the cytoplasm of single neurons in mice brain slices. Abundant possible cytoplasmic constituents were detected in a single neuron at a relatively fast rate, and over 50 metabolites were identified in this study. The advantages of direct, rapid, and in situ sampling and analysis enabled us to measure the biological activities of the cytoplasmic constituents in a single neuron, including comparing neuron types by cytoplasmic chemical constituents; observing changes in constituent concentrations as the physiological conditions, such as age, vary; and identifying the metabolic pathways of small molecules.

  9. Change of Bioactive Constituent in Clinacanthus nutans Leaves under Sun Drying

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdullah, Sriyana; Aziz, Muhamad Faris Abdul

    2018-03-01

    Clinacanthus nutans (C. nutans) or locally known as belalai gajah is a folk medicine since ancient time. This research project was established to investigate the effects of under sun drying on the C. nutans bioactive constituent. The drying experiments were conducted using different drying surfaces i.e. perforated, black polythene and white polythene. The fresh and dried leaves were then extracted using a sonicator to evaluate its bioactive constituent. The total phenolic content (TPC) in the C. nutans extracts were determined using Follin Ciocalteu reagent method to represent the bioactive constituent. Drying over the white polythene surface showed the slowest reduction of moisture content as compared to the perforated polythene and black surfaces. Results also showed no significant effect of the drying surfaces on the TPC. However, the TPC in the dried leaves was significantly higher than in the fresh leaves. This may be due to the plant cells response to abiotic stress and the inhibition of oxidation enzymes. Therefore, drying C. nutanc leaves under sun light could be considered in order to preserve the concentration of phenolic compounds and for minimizing energy consumption.

  10. Exploring basic biochemical constituents in the body tissues of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Feeding regime did not influence susceptibility to mass loss during export. Animal age influenced the biochemical composition and export performance of abalone. Keywords: abalone; aquaculture; feeds; Haliotis midae; live export; mass loss; tissue biochemical constituents. African Journal of Marine Science 2010, 32(1): ...

  11. Isolation of nematicidal constituents from essential oil of Kaempferia ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Purpose: To explore the nematicidal activities of the essential oil of Kaempferia galanga rhizomes and its isolated constituents against Heterodera avenae. Methods: Essential oil of K. galanga rhizomes was obtained by hydrodistillation and characterized by gas chromatography/mass spectrometric (GC/MS) analysis using ...

  12. Capturing optically important constituents and properties in a marine biogeochemical and ecosystem model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dutkiewicz, S.; Hickman, A. E.; Jahn, O.; Gregg, W. W.; Mouw, C. B.; Follows, M. J.

    2015-07-01

    We present a numerical model of the ocean that couples a three-stream radiative transfer component with a marine biogeochemical-ecosystem component in a dynamic three-dimensional physical framework. The radiative transfer component resolves the penetration of spectral irradiance as it is absorbed and scattered within the water column. We explicitly include the effect of several optically important water constituents (different phytoplankton functional types; detrital particles; and coloured dissolved organic matter, CDOM). The model is evaluated against in situ-observed and satellite-derived products. In particular we compare to concurrently measured biogeochemical, ecosystem, and optical data along a meridional transect of the Atlantic Ocean. The simulation captures the patterns and magnitudes of these data, and estimates surface upwelling irradiance analogous to that observed by ocean colour satellite instruments. We find that incorporating the different optically important constituents explicitly and including spectral irradiance was crucial to capture the variability in the depth of the subsurface chlorophyll a (Chl a) maximum. We conduct a series of sensitivity experiments to demonstrate, globally, the relative importance of each of the water constituents, as well as the crucial feedbacks between the light field, the relative fitness of phytoplankton types, and the biogeochemistry of the ocean. CDOM has proportionally more importance at attenuating light at short wavelengths and in more productive waters, phytoplankton absorption is relatively more important at the subsurface Chl a maximum, and water molecules have the greatest contribution when concentrations of other constituents are low, such as in the oligotrophic gyres. Scattering had less effect on attenuation, but since it is important for the amount and type of upwelling irradiance, it is crucial for setting sea surface reflectance. Strikingly, sensitivity experiments in which absorption by any of the

  13. Influence of yeast and lactic acid bacterium on the constituent profile of soy sauce during fermentation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harada, Risa; Yuzuki, Masanobu; Ito, Kotaro; Shiga, Kazuki; Bamba, Takeshi; Fukusaki, Eiichiro

    2017-02-01

    Soy sauce is a Japanese traditional seasoning composed of various constituents that are produced by various microbes during a long-term fermentation process. Due to the complexity of the process, the investigation of the constituent profile during fermentation is difficult. Metabolomics, the comprehensive study of low molecular weight compounds in biological samples, is thought to be a promising strategy for deep understanding of the constituent contribution to food flavor characteristics. Therefore, metabolomics is suitable for the analysis of soy sauce fermentation. Unfortunately, only few and unrefined studies of soy sauce fermentation using metabolomics approach have been reported. Therefore, we investigated changes in low molecular weight hydrophilic and volatile compounds of soy sauce using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS)-based non-targeted metabolic profiling. The data were analyzed by statistical analysis to evaluate influences of yeast and lactic acid bacterium on the constituent profile. Consequently, our results suggested a novel finding that lactic acid bacterium affected the production of several constituents such as cyclotene, furfural, furfuryl alcohol and methional in the soy sauce fermentation process. Copyright © 2016 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Scattering Phase Functions of Constituents of Mineral Dust Aerosols ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... Montmorillonte, Hematite, Calcite and Quartz. The behaviour of these constituents as observed by their phase functions provide information on the optical properties and radiative effects of the mineral dust types and is therefore useful on regional and global scales in assessing radiative impacts of dust outbreak events.

  15. Standard Test Methods for Constituent Content of Composite Materials

    CERN Document Server

    American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

    2009-01-01

    1.1 These test methods determine the constituent content of composite materials by one of two approaches. Method I physically removes the matrix by digestion or ignition by one of seven procedures, leaving the reinforcement essentially unaffected and thus allowing calculation of reinforcement or matrix content (by weight or volume) as well as percent void volume. Method II, applicable only to laminate materials of known fiber areal weight, calculates reinforcement or matrix content (by weight or volume), and the cured ply thickness, based on the measured thickness of the laminate. Method II is not applicable to the measurement of void volume. 1.1.1 These test methods are primarily intended for two-part composite material systems. However, special provisions can be made to extend these test methods to filled material systems with more than two constituents, though not all test results can be determined in every case. 1.1.2 The procedures contained within have been designed to be particularly effective for ce...

  16. [GC-MS analysis of volatile constituents from five different kinds of Chinese eaglewood].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mei, Wen-Li; Zeng, Yan-Bo; Liu, Jun; Dai, Hao-Fu

    2007-05-01

    Volatile oils of five different kinds of Chinese eaglewood were extracted with aether at room temperature. The chemical constituents and relative contents of the volatile oils were analysed by GC-MS. It showed that all the five volatile oils were mainly composed of sesquiterpenes, aromatic constituents and fatty acids. Several sesquiterpenes, such as hinesol, nootkatone, valerenic acid, velleral, guaiol, gamma-gurjunene, gamma-selinene, viridiflorol, isoaromadendrene epoxide, valencene, alpha-costol et. al., together with several aromatic constituents, 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol,4-methyl-2,6-di-tert-butylphenol, phenylpropionic acid, 1-(benzyloxy)-8-naphthol, anisylacetone, et. al. were found in the volatile oils of Chinese eaglewood for the first time. The samilarities and differences of the volatile oils from the five kinds of Chinese eaglewood were compared. It suggested that the quality of Chinese eaglewood could be evaluated by GC-MS analyse of the volatile oil.

  17. [Studies on chemical constituents from Buddleja lindleyana Fert].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, J H; Zhao, Y Y; Qiao, L; Fang, Y O; Huang, Q A

    2001-01-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Buddleja lindleyana. Separation by chromatographic methods and identification by spectral analysis. Seven compounds vanillic acid, daidzein octacosanoic acid, beta-sitosterol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, stigmasterol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, alpha-spinasterol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, betulin acid were isolated. All the compounds were obtained from this plant for the first time.

  18. Erythrocyte indices and serum biochemical constituents of broiler ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    One hundred and twenty (120) four weeks old Ross breed broiler finisher birds were used to study the effect of feeding maggot meal as a replacement for fish meal on erythrocyte indices and serum biochemical constituents. The birds were divided into 5 treatment groups identified as T1, T2, T3 , T4 and T5 with 24 birds per ...

  19. [Advances in novel carrier systems of chemical constituents from spice volatile oils].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Jia-jia; Zhu, Yuan; Yu, Jiang-nan; Xu, Xi-ming

    2015-10-01

    Recent years, chemical constituents from spice volatile oils have gained worldwide concern owing to its multiple pharmacological effects and safety for using as the natural antibacterial agents. However, their poor dissolution, strong volatility, serious irritation, weak stability, easy oxidation and low bioavailability characteristics are the major obstacle in the preparation of effective oral formulation and practical application. Therefore, there is an urgent need to select a novel carrier system that can delivery the chemical constituents from spice volatile oils more efficiently with improving their stability as well as alleviating the irritation, and develop the functional food, health products and even medicine for exerting their pharmacological effects, which also is the focus and nodus of the research on their application. This review presents recent systematic studies on their novel carrier systems, including cyclodextrin inclusion complex, liposomes, nanoemulsions, nanoparticles, solid dispersion and so on, and summarizes the characteristics, application range and problems of each novel carrier systems, in order to provide some beneficial thoughts in further developing new products of chemical constituents from spice volatile oils.

  20. Corrosion inhibition of aluminum with a series of aniline monomeric surfactants and their analog polymers in 0.5 M HCl solution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M.M. El-Deeb

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The inhibition effect of 3-(12-sodiumsulfonate dodecyloxy aniline monomeric surfactant (MC12 and its analog polymer Poly 3-(dodecyloxy sulfonic acid aniline (PC12 on the corrosion of aluminum in 0.5 M HCl solution was investigated using weight loss and potentiodynamic polarization techniques. The presence of these two compounds in 0.5 M HCl inhibits the corrosion of aluminum without modifying the mechanism of corrosion process. It was found that these inhibitors act as mixed-type inhibitors with anodic predominance as well as the inhibition efficiency increases with increasing inhibitor concentration, but decreases with raising temperature. Langmuir and Frumkin adsorption isotherms fit well with the experimental data. Thermodynamic functions for both dissolution and adsorption processes were determined. The obtained results from weight loss and potentiodynamic polarization techniques are in good agreement with contact angle measurements.

  1. Two new constituents from Erigeron breviscapus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jing; Yu, De-Quan

    2013-09-01

    Two novel constituents, named erigeronones A (1) and B (2), together with apigenin-7-O-β-galacturonide (3), quercetin-7-O-β-glucuronide (4), quercetin-3-O-β-galacturonide (5), and eriodictyol-7-O-β-glucuronide (6), were isolated from the whole grass of Erigeron breviscapus (Vant) Hand.-Mazz (Compositae). Their structures were established on the basis of spectral analyses and comparison with the literature data. Both new compounds 1 and 2 possess a γ-pyrone moiety that is rare in nature. Compound 1 showed significant protective effect on H2O2-injured human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

  2. Chemical constituents of Salacia elliptica (Celastraceae)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Duarte, Lucienir Pains; Figueiredo, Rute Cunha; Sousa, Grasiely Faria de; Soares, Debora Barbosa da Silva; Rodrigues, Salomao Bento Vasconcelos; Silva, Fernando Cesar; Silva, Gracia Divina de Fatima; Vieira Filho, Sidney Augusto

    2010-01-01

    The chemical investigation of Salacia elliptica allowed to the isolation of 20 constituents: two polyols, one xanthone, a mixture of long chain hydrocarbons, one carboxylic acid, one polymer, two steroidal compounds, one aromatic ester and eleven pentacyclic triterpenes. These triterpenes include 3β-stearyloxy-oleanane, 3β-stearyloxy-ursane, one seco-friedelane, and eight compounds of the friedelane series. The chemical structure and the relative configuration of a new triterpene 1,3-dioxo-16α-hydroxyfriedelane (15) were established through 1 H and 13 C NMR including 2D experiments (HMBC, HMQC, COSY and NOESY) and herein reported for the first time (author)

  3. Characterization of Formation Water Constituents and the Effect of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Michael Horsfall

    ABSTRACT: The research work examined the constituents of formation water and fresh water dilution effects from a land location in the Niger Delta Area of Nigeria. Some selected physicochemical and microbiological analyses were determined at ambient temperature (82oF) and formation temperature (185oF). Analysis of ...

  4. Chemical Constituents and Biological Properties of the Marine Soft ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The genus Nephthea is a member of the family Acyonaceae, subfamily Nephtheidae, and is distributed throughout the world mainly in the Indo-Pacific region. The genus Nephthea has been studied for its phytochemical constituents and these studies have resulted in the discovery of over a hundred compounds comprising ...

  5. A probabilistic risk assessment approach used to prioritize chemical constituents in mainstream smoke of cigarettes sold in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Jianping; Marano, Kristin M; Wilson, Cody L; Liu, Huimin; Gan, Huamin; Xie, Fuwei; Naufal, Ziad S

    2012-03-01

    The chemical and physical complexity of cigarette mainstream smoke (MSS) presents a challenge in the understanding of risk for smoking-related diseases. Quantitative risk assessment is a useful tool for assessing the toxicological risks that may be presented by smoking currently available commercial cigarettes. In this study, yields of a selected group of chemical constituents were quantified in machine-generated MSS from 30 brands of cigarettes sold in China. Using constituent yields, exposure estimates specific to and representative of the Chinese population, and available dose-response data, a Monte Carlo method was applied to simulate probability distributions for incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR), hazard quotient (HQ), and margin of exposure (MOE) values for each constituent as appropriate. Measures of central tendency were extracted from the outcome distributions and constituents were ranked according to these three risk assessment indices. The constituents for which ILCR >10(-4), HQ >1, and MOE risk contributed by each MSS constituent, this approach provides a plausible and objective framework for the prioritization of toxicants in cigarette smoke and is valuable in guiding tobacco risk management. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Analysis of monomeric and oligomeric organophosphorus flame retardants in fish muscle tissues using liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry: Application to Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) from an e-waste processing area in northern Vietnam

    OpenAIRE

    Matsukami, Hidenori; Suzuki, Go; Tue, Nguyen Minh; Tuyen, Le Huu; Viet, Pham Hung; Takahashi, Shin; Tanabe, Shinsuke; Takigami, Hidetaka

    2016-01-01

    Using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry combined with liquid chromatography (LC), a novel analytical method was developed to quantify eight monomeric organophosphorus flame retardants (m-PFRs) and three oligomeric organophosphorus flame retardants (o-PFRs) in fish muscle samples. The optimization and validation experiments indicate that the developed method can determine accurately the concentrations of analytes in fish muscle samples. The recoveries of analytes in fish muscle ...

  7. Anti-Inflammatory and Neuroprotective Effects of Constituents Isolated from Rhodiola rosea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yeonju Lee

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available To determine the biological activity of Rhodiola rosea, the protein expression of iNOS and proinflammatory cytokines was measured after the activation of murine microglial BV2 cells by LPS under the exposure of constituents of Rhodiola rosea: crude extract, rosin, rosarin, and salidroside (each 1–50 μg/mL. The LPS-induced expression of iNOS and cytokines in BV2 cells was suppressed by the constituents of Rhodiola rosea in a concentration-dependent manner. Also the expression of the proinflammatory factors iNOS, IL-1β, and TNF-α in the kidney and prefrontal cortex of brain in mice was suppressed by the oral administration of Rhodiola rosea crude extract (500 mg/kg. To determine the neuroprotective effect of constituents of Rhodiola rosea, neuronal cells were activated by L-glutamate, and neurotoxicity was analyzed. The L-glutamate-induced neurotoxicity was suppressed by the treatment with rosin but not by rosarin. The level of phosphorylated MAPK, pJNK, and pp38 was increased by L-glutamate treatment but decreased by the treatment with rosin and salidroside. These results indicate that Rhodiola rosea may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of inflammation and neurodegenerative disease.

  8. Analysis of gamma irradiated pepper constituents, 5

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takagi, Kazuko; Okuyama, Tsuneo; Ishikawa, Toshihiro.

    1988-01-01

    Gamma irradiated peppers (10 krad, 100 krad, 1 Mrad) were analyzed by HPLC. The extraction method and HPLC conditions were same as the first report, that is, the extraction from pepper was performed by Automatic Air Hammer and the extracted samples were separated on a reversed phase C 8 column with a concave gradient from 0.1% trifluoro aceticacid (TFA) in water to 75% acetonitrile-0.1% TFA in water for 60 minutes and detected at 210 nm, 280 nm. It is difficult to compare with irradiated and unirradiated pepper constituents by their peak height or area. And the method of multi variant statistically analysis was introduced. The 'peak n area/peak n + 1 area' ratio was calculated by computer. Each peak area was accounted by integrator. The value of these ratio were called 'parameter'. Each chromatogram has 741 parameters calculated with 39 chromatographic peaks. And these parameters were abopted to the multi variant statiscally analysis. Comparison of constituents between irradiated pepper and unirradiated pepper was done by 741 parameters. The correlation of parameters between irradiated and unirradiated was investigated by use of computer. Some parameters of irradiated case were selected as which had no correlation with unirradiated case. That is to say these parameters were thought to be changed with gamma spectrum irradiation. By this method, Coumarin was identified as a changed component with gamma irradiation. (author)

  9. Effect of artificial accelerated aging on the optical properties and monomeric conversion of composites used after expiration date.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia, Lucas da Fonseca Roberti; Mundim, Fabricio Mariano; Pires-de-Souza, Fernanda de Carvalho Panzeri; Puppin Rontani, Regina Maria; Consani, Simonides

    2013-01-01

    This study sought to evaluate how artificial accelerated aging (AAA) affected color stability (ΔE), opacity (ΔOP), and degree of conversion (DOC) for 3 composite materials (Tetric Ceram, Tetric Ceram HB, and Tetric Flow) used both 180 days before and 180 days after their expiration dates. To evaluate the materials' optical properties, 10 specimens of each composite-5 prior to expiration and 5 after the materials' expiration date-were made in a teflon matrix. After polishing, the specimens were submitted to initial color and opacity readings and submitted to AAA for 384 hours; at that point, new readings were taken to determine ΔE and ΔOP. To evaluate monomeric conversion evaluation, 6 specimens from each composite and expiration date-3 prior to AAA and 3 after-were submitted to DOC analysis. Results of the 2-way ANOVA and Bonferroni's tests (P 0.05). The expired Tetric Flow had the highest DOC values (71.42% ± 4.21) before AAA, significantly different than that of the other composites (P > 0.05). It was concluded that both expiration date and AAA affected the properties of the composites tested.

  10. Optimized labeling of membrane proteins for applications to super-resolution imaging in confined cellular environments using monomeric streptavidin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chamma, Ingrid; Rossier, Olivier; Giannone, Grégory; Thoumine, Olivier; Sainlos, Matthieu

    2017-04-01

    Recent progress in super-resolution imaging (SRI) has created a strong need to improve protein labeling with probes of small size that minimize the target-to-label distance, increase labeling density, and efficiently penetrate thick biological tissues. This protocol describes a method for labeling genetically modified proteins incorporating a small biotin acceptor peptide with a 3-nm fluorescent probe, monomeric streptavidin. We show how to express, purify, and conjugate the probe to organic dyes with different fluorescent properties, and how to label selectively biotinylated membrane proteins for SRI techniques (point accumulation in nanoscale topography (PAINT), stimulated emission depletion (STED), stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM)). This method is complementary to the previously described anti-GFP-nanobody/SNAP-tag strategies, with the main advantage being that it requires only a short 15-amino-acid tag, and can thus be used with proteins resistant to fusion with large tags and for multicolor imaging. The protocol requires standard molecular biology/biochemistry equipment, making it easily accessible for laboratories with only basic skills in cell biology and biochemistry. The production/purification/conjugation steps take ∼5 d, and labeling takes a few minutes to an hour.

  11. Smooth muscle relaxant activity of Crocus sativus (saffron and its constituents: possible mechanisms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amin Mokhtari-Zaer

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Saffron, Crocus sativus L. (C. sativus is rich in carotenoids and used in traditional medicine for treatment of various conditions such as coughs, stomach disorders, amenorrhea, asthma and cardiovascular disorders. These therapeutic effects of the plant are suggested to be due to its relaxant effect on smooth muscles. The effect of C. sativus and its constituents on different smooth muscles and the underlying mechanisms have been studied. Several studies have shown the relaxant effects of C. sativus and its constituents including safranal, crocin, crocetin and kaempferol on blood vessels. In addition, it was reported that saffron stigma lowers systolic blood pressure. The present review highlights the relaxant effects of C. sativus and its constituents on various smooth muscles. The possible mechanisms of this relaxing effect including activation of ß2-adrenoceptors, inhibition of histamine H1 and muscarinic receptors and calcium channels and modulation of nitric oxide (NO are also reviewed.

  12. Tetraquarks in a chiral constituent-quark model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vijande, J.; Fernandez, F.; Valcarce, A.; Silvestre-Brac, B.

    2004-01-01

    We analyze the possibility of heavy-light tetraquark bound states by means of a chiral constituent-quark model. The study is done in a variational approach. Special attention is paid to the contribution given by the different terms of the interacting potential and also to the role played by the different color channels. We find a stable state for both qq anti c anti c and qq anti b anti b configurations. Possible decay modes of these structures are analyzed. (orig.)

  13. Tetraquarks in a chiral constituent-quark model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vijande, J.; Fernandez, F.; Valcarce, A. [Grupo de Fisica Nuclear, Universidad de Salamanca, E-37008, Salamanca (Spain); Silvestre-Brac, B. [Institut des Sciences Nucleaires, 53 Avenue des Martyrs, F-38026, Grenoble Cedex (France)

    2004-03-01

    We analyze the possibility of heavy-light tetraquark bound states by means of a chiral constituent-quark model. The study is done in a variational approach. Special attention is paid to the contribution given by the different terms of the interacting potential and also to the role played by the different color channels. We find a stable state for both qq anti c anti c and qq anti b anti b configurations. Possible decay modes of these structures are analyzed. (orig.)

  14. Scheil-Gulliver Constituent Diagrams

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelton, Arthur D.; Eriksson, Gunnar; Bale, Christopher W.

    2017-06-01

    During solidification of alloys, conditions often approach those of Scheil-Gulliver cooling in which it is assumed that solid phases, once precipitated, remain unchanged. That is, they no longer react with the liquid or with each other. In the case of equilibrium solidification, equilibrium phase diagrams provide a valuable means of visualizing the effects of composition changes upon the final microstructure. In the present study, we propose for the first time the concept of Scheil-Gulliver constituent diagrams which play the same role as that in the case of Scheil-Gulliver cooling. It is shown how these diagrams can be calculated and plotted by the currently available thermodynamic database computing systems that combine Gibbs energy minimization software with large databases of optimized thermodynamic properties of solutions and compounds. Examples calculated using the FactSage system are presented for the Al-Li and Al-Mg-Zn systems, and for the Au-Bi-Sb-Pb system and its binary and ternary subsystems.

  15. Variation in the essential oil constituents of Pteronia incana ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The essential oil of Pteronia incana was collected and was investigated on a monthly basis using GCMS. The oil volume and its constituents vary greatly with different time of sampling and distillation. The oil contains a high percentage of myrcene a-pinene, b-pinene with sabinene, a-terpinene, 1.8 cineole and limonene.

  16. Antimicrobial monomeric and dimeric diterpenes from the leaves of Helichrysum tenax var tenax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drewes, Siegfried E; Mudau, K Esther; van Vuuren, Sandy F; Viljoen, Alvaro M

    2006-04-01

    The hexane extract of fresh air-dried leaves of Helichrysum tenax (Asteraceae) afforded ent-beyer-15-en-19-ol (1), its 4-epimer ent-beyer-15-en-18-ol (2), 15beta,16beta-epoxide-ent-beyeran-19-ol (3), as well as (4) consisting of two units of (1) linked as a diester of malonic acid, and (5), a compound. Its constituents are (1) and (3) also linked as a diester of malonic acid. The leaves of the plant are densely covered in fine glandular trichomes. These are extremely sticky and exude a mixture of the above diterpenes. Antimicrobial tests showed that (1), in particular, was highly active (3.1 and 3.6 microg/ml) against Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, respectively.

  17. The Escherichia coli P and Type 1 Pilus Assembly Chaperones PapD and FimC Are Monomeric in Solution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sarowar, Samema; Hu, Olivia J.; Werneburg, Glenn T.; Thanassi, David G.; Li, Huilin; Christie, P. J.

    2016-06-27

    ABSTRACT

    The chaperone/usher pathway is used by Gram-negative bacteria to assemble adhesive surface structures known as pili or fimbriae. Uropathogenic strains ofEscherichia coliuse this pathway to assemble P and type 1 pili, which facilitate colonization of the kidney and bladder, respectively. Pilus assembly requires a periplasmic chaperone and outer membrane protein termed the usher. The chaperone allows folding of pilus subunits and escorts the subunits to the usher for polymerization into pili and secretion to the cell surface. Based on previous structures of mutant versions of the P pilus chaperone PapD, it was suggested that the chaperone dimerizes in the periplasm as a self-capping mechanism. Such dimerization is counterintuitive because the chaperone G1 strand, important for chaperone-subunit interaction, is buried at the dimer interface. Here, we show that the wild-type PapD chaperone also forms a dimer in the crystal lattice; however, the dimer interface is different from the previously solved structures. In contrast to the crystal structures, we found that both PapD and the type 1 pilus chaperone, FimC, are monomeric in solution. Our findings indicate that pilus chaperones do not sequester their G1 β-strand by forming a dimer. Instead, the chaperones may expose their G1 strand for facile interaction with pilus subunits. We also found that the type 1 pilus adhesin, FimH, is flexible in solution while in complex with its chaperone, whereas the P pilus adhesin, PapGII, is rigid. Our study clarifies a crucial step in pilus biogenesis and reveals pilus-specific differences that may relate to biological function.

    IMPORTANCEPili are critical virulence factors for many bacterial pathogens. UropathogenicE. colirelies on P and type 1 pili assembled by the chaperone/usher pathway to

  18. [Chemical Constituents from Ethyl Acetate Extract of Psidium guajava Leaves (II)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouyang, Wen; Zhu, Xiao-ai; He, Cui-xia; Chen, Xue-xiang; Ye, Shu-min; Peng, Shan; Cao, Yong

    2015-08-01

    To study the chemical constituents from ethyl acetate extract of Psidium guajava leaves. The constituents were separated and purified by silica gel and Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography and their structures were identified on the basis of physicochemical properties and spectral data. Eleven compounds were isolated and identified as 6,10,14-trimethyl-2-pentadecanone (1), phytyl-acetate (2), cubenol (3), eucalyptin (4), n-docosanoic acid-p-hydroxy-phenethylol ester (5),8-methyl-5,7- dihydroxy-flavonone (6), 6-methyl-5,7-dihydroxy-flavonone (7), betulinic acid (8), carnosol (9), quercetin (10), and 2,4,6-tirhydroxy- 3,5-dimethyl-diphenylketone-4-O-(6'"-O-galloyl)-β-D-glucoside (11). Compounds 1-9 are isolated from this plant for the first time.

  19. Does fasting during Ramadan alter body composition, blood constituents and physical performance?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramadan, J

    2002-01-01

    To study the effect of Ramadan fast (RF) on body composition, plasma constituents, hematology, and cardiorespiratory responses to constant submaximal exercise. Sixteen sedentary healthy Kuwaiti adult males were included in the study. The subjects were tested under thermo-neutral conditions during a spring-like month of Ramadan and 2 months thereafter. They were tested during the week before RF (Pre1); the last 3 days of RF (End1); the week before a non-Ramadan month (Pre2), and the last 3 days of the non-Ramadan month (End2). The following measurements were made: body composition, cellular and biochemical constituents of blood, heart rate, ventilatory responses and blood pressure. No significant changes were observed in body composition, cellular and biochemical constituents of blood. The heart rate and ventilatory responses to the moderately intense bouts of submaximal aerobic exercise ( approximately 70% of VO(2max)) were significantly reduced (p Ramadan fasting had no adverse effect on the subjects when performing aerobic exercise at submaximal level. The mild changes in cardiorespiratory responses could be due to dehydration, abstention from consumption of substances with negative inotropy and circadian rhythms. Copyright 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel

  20. Constituent attachment and voluntary turnover in low-wage/low-skill service work.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellingson, Jill E; Tews, Michael J; Dachner, Alison M

    2016-01-01

    This paper draws on life stage theory, ethnographic research conducted in the service sector, and evidence for secondary segmentation within the low-wage/low-skill labor force to offer evidence that social bond development with coworkers can help reduce the high rate of turnover observed in low-wage/low-skill service work. Contrary to the belief that these employees will leave before social ties can develop, constituent attachment was found to be the only significant predictor of turnover in 2 samples of front-line service workers in a casual dining, national restaurant chain after controlling for other aspects of work that can create a sense of attachment to a job, and other job attitudes, such as satisfaction and commitment. However, the effect was dependent on developmental life stage. Constituent attachment reduced turnover among workers classified as emerging adults, whereas constituent attachment did little to affect turnover among nonemerging adults. Implications of the results are discussed with respect to the value of considering segmentation in future research on turnover in the service sector and the use of life stage theory for understanding the leaving behavior of workers in different stages of adulthood. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  1. Seasonality of selected surface water constituents in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qian, Y; Migliaccio, K W; Wan, Y; Li, Y C; Chin, D

    2007-01-01

    Seasonality is often the major exogenous effect that must be compensated for or removed to discern trends in water quality. Our objective was to provide a methodological example of trend analysis using water quality data with seasonality. Selected water quality constituents from 1979 to 2004 at three monitoring stations in southern Florida were evaluated for seasonality. The seasonal patterns of flow-weighted and log-transformed concentrations were identified by applying side-by-side boxplots and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test (p turbidity, color, and chloride), except for turbidity at Station C24S49, exhibited significant seasonal patterns. Almost all nutrient species (NO(2)-N, NH(4)-N, total Kjeldahl N, PO(4)-P, and total P) had an identical seasonal pattern of concentrations significantly greater in the wet than in the dry season. Some water quality constituents were observed to exhibit significant annual or seasonal trends. In some cases, the overall annual trend was insignificant while opposing trends were present in different seasons. By evaluating seasonal trends separately from all data, constituents can be assessed providing a more accurate interpretation of water quality trends.

  2. Comparative Antitussive Effects of Medicinal Plants and Their Constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saadat, Saeideh; Shakeri, Farzaneh; Boskabady, Mohammad Hossein

    2018-01-15

    Context • The cough is a protective reflex, with 2 types, one being more sensitive to mechanical stimulation and the other to chemical stimulation, such as sulfur dioxide, ammonia, citric acid, and capsaicin. Some evidence is available that suppressant therapy is most effective when used for the short-term reduction of coughing. Today, use of herbal drugs is increasing all over the world for various ailments, including to provide antitussive activity. Objective • The study intended to review the antitussive effects of various extracts, some fractions, and some constituents of the studied medicinal plants. Design • Various databases, including the Medline, Science Direct, Scopus, and Google Scholar, were searched for studies published between 1978 and 2015, using the keywords antitussive and cough and the names of various medicinal plants and their constituents. Setting • The study took place in the districts related to Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (Mashhad, Iran). Outcome Measures • The antitussive effects of medicinal plants and their constituents were normalized to 50 mg/kg and 1 mg/mL against various cough stimulants and compared. Results • The most potent antitussive effect was observed for Nigella sativa and Linum usitatissimum on coughs induced by sulfur dioxide. Artemisia absinthium showed a higher antitussive effect on cough induced by ammonia compared with the other studied medicinal plants. The antitussive effects of Cuminum cyminum and Glycyrrhiza glabra were more potent on cough induced by citric acid than other medicinal plants. Conclusions • These results suggest the therapeutic potential of the studied medicinal plants as antitussive therapies. However, only a few clinical studies have examined the antitussive effects of medicinal plants, and more clinical studies are needed. The underlying mechanisms of the antitussive effects of medicinal plants should be also examined in further studies.

  3. Chemical constituents of Salacia elliptica (Celastraceae)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Duarte, Lucienir Pains; Figueiredo, Rute Cunha; Sousa, Grasiely Faria de; Soares, Debora Barbosa da Silva; Rodrigues, Salomao Bento Vasconcelos; Silva, Fernando Cesar; Silva, Gracia Divina de Fatima, E-mail: lucienir@ufmg.b [Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil). Dept. de Quimica; Vieira Filho, Sidney Augusto [Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, MG (Brazil). Escola de Farmacia. Dept. de Farmacia

    2010-07-01

    The chemical investigation of Salacia elliptica allowed to the isolation of 20 constituents: two polyols, one xanthone, a mixture of long chain hydrocarbons, one carboxylic acid, one polymer, two steroidal compounds, one aromatic ester and eleven pentacyclic triterpenes. These triterpenes include 3{beta}-stearyloxy-oleanane, 3{beta}-stearyloxy-ursane, one seco-friedelane, and eight compounds of the friedelane series. The chemical structure and the relative configuration of a new triterpene 1,3-dioxo-16alpha-hydroxyfriedelane (15) were established through {sup 1}H and {sup 13}C NMR including 2D experiments (HMBC, HMQC, COSY and NOESY) and herein reported for the first time (author)

  4. Chemical constituents of Salacia elliptica (Celastraceae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucienir Pains Duarte

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available The chemical investigation of Salacia elliptica allowed to the isolation of 20 constituents: two polyols, one xanthone, a mixture of long chain hydrocarbons, one carboxylic acid, one polymer, two steroidal compounds, one aromatic ester and eleven pentacyclic triterpenes. These triterpenes include 3β-stearyloxy-oleanane, 3β-stearyloxy-ursane, one seco-friedelane, and eight compounds of the friedelane serie. The chemical structure and the relative configuration of a new triterpene 1,3-dioxo-16α-hydroxyfriedelane (15 were established through ¹H and 13C NMR including 2D experiments (HMBC, HMQC, COSY and NOESY and herein reported for the first time.

  5. [Chemical constituents from Vaccinium bracteatum].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qu, Jing; Chen, Xia; Niu, Chang-Shan; Yu, Shi-Shan

    2014-02-01

    The chemical constituents of Vaccinium bracteatum were studied by means of macroporous resin, ODS column chromatography and preparative HPLC. Eleven compounds were isolated from this plant. By using ESI-MS and NMR, the structures of the eleven compounds were determined as 10-O-trans-p-coumaroyl-6alpha-hydroxyl-dihydromonotropein (1), 10-O-cis-p-coumaroyl -6alpha-hydroxyl-dihydromonotropein (2), vaccinoside (3), 10-O-cis-p-coumaroyl monotropein (4), isolariciresinol-9-O-beta-D-xyloside (5), tectoridin (6), vicenin-3 (7), quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnoside (8), quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranoside (9), quercetin-3-O-beta-D-galactopyranoside (10), and quercetin-3-O-beta-D-glucuronide (11), respectively. Compounds 1 and 2 are new, and compounds 4, 6 and 7 are isolated from the genus Vaccinium for the first time.

  6. Inhibitory effects of constituents of Morinda citrifolia seeds on elastase and tyrosinase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masuda, Megumi; Murata, Kazuya; Fukuhama, Akiko; Naruto, Shunsuke; Fujita, Tadashi; Uwaya, Akemi; Isami, Fumiyuki; Matsuda, Hideaki

    2009-07-01

    A 50% ethanolic extract (MCS-ext) from seeds of Morinda citrifolia ("noni" seeds) showed more potent in vitro inhibition of elastase and tyrosinase, and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity than extracts of M. citrifolia leaves or flesh. Activity-guided fractionation of MCS-ext using in vitro assays led to the isolation of ursolic acid as an active constituent of elastase inhibitory activity. 3,3'-Bisdemethylpinoresinol, americanin A, and quercetin were isolated as active constituents having both tyrosinase inhibitory and radical scavenging activities. Americanin A and quercetin also showed superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like activity. These active compounds were isolated from noni seeds for the first time.

  7. Chemical composition of volatile constituents from the leaves of Aloe ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    AJB SERVER

    2006-09-18

    Sep 18, 2006 ... very helpful enzymes, saponins, hormones and amino acids which can be absorbed into the human skin. One of the constituents of the Aloe pith is ... higher than green tea and grape seed extracts, respectively. It is also well ...

  8. Spectrograph dedicated to measuring tropospheric trace gas constituents from space

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vries, J. de; Laan, E.C.; Deutz, A.F.; Escudero-Sanz, I.; Bokhove, H.; Hoegee, J.; Aben, I.; Jongma, R.; Landgraf, J.; Hasekamp, O.P.; Houweling, S.; Weele, M. van; Oss, R. van; Oord, G. van den; Levelt, P.

    2005-01-01

    Several organizations in the Netherlands are cooperating to develop user requirements and instrument concepts in the line of SCIAMACHY and OMI but with an increased focus on measuring tropospheric constituents from space. The concepts use passive spectroscopy in dedicated wavelength sections in the

  9. Is there need for baryons with constituent glue

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meissner, U.G.

    1983-01-01

    We investigate the breathing-mode spectrum of the Λ-particle in the framework of a general bag model including confinement via surface tension and volume energy. We show that the experimental states Λ 1/2 (1600) and Λ 1/2 (1800) can be described as radial surface excitations of the Λ. We further comment on a recent paper describing these Λ-excitations as baryons with constituent glue. (orig.)

  10. Hydrolyzable tannins of tamaricaceous plants. V. Structures of monomeric-trimeric tannins and cytotoxicity of macrocyclic-type tannins isolated from Tamarix nilotica (1).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orabi, Mohamed A A; Taniguchi, Shoko; Sakagami, Hiroshi; Yoshimura, Morio; Yoshida, Takashi; Hatano, Tsutomu

    2013-05-24

    Three new ellagitannin monomers, nilotinins M5-M7 (1-3), a dimer, nilotinin D10 (4), and a trimer, nilotinin T1 (5), together with three known dimers, hirtellin D (7) and tamarixinins B (8) and C (9), and a trimer, hirtellin T2 (6), were isolated from Tamarix nilotica dried leaves. The structures of the tannins were elucidated by intensive spectroscopic methods and chemical conversions into known tannins. The new trimer (5) is a unique macrocyclic type whose monomeric units are linked together by an isodehydrodigalloyl and two dehydrodigalloyl moieties. Additionally, dimeric and trimeric macrocyclic-type tannins isolated from T. nilotica in this study were assessed for possible cytotoxic activity against four human tumor cell lines. Tumor-selective cytotoxicities of the tested compounds were higher than those of synthetic and natural potent cytotoxic compounds, including polyphenols, and comparable with those of 5-fluorouracil and melphalan.

  11. Volatile Constituents of Three Myrsine L. Species from Brazil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arthur L. Corrêa

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The chemical compositions of the essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of Myrsine rubra, Myrsine gardneriana and Myrsine parvifolia and the fruits of Myrsine parvifolia were elucidated by a combination of GC and GC-MS analyses. The main constituents of the native M. parvifolia were caryophyllene oxide (14.4%, β-caryophyllene (12.6% and γ-Muurolene (7.9% of the leaves oil and β-caryophyllene (11.7%, δ-Cadinene (7.1% of the fruit oil. The volatile oil of the endemic M. rubra leaves was dominated by β-caryophyllene (17.2%, γ-Muurolene (11.1%, Germacrene B (10.0%. The essential oil of the native M. gardneriana leaves was characterized by β-caryophyllene (18.0%, γ-Muurolene (8.4%. These three Myrsine species are similar in the dominance of sesquiterpenes. By contrast, monoterpenes were found only in the volatile oil from the fruits of M. parvifolia. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first report on the volatile constituents of M. rubra, M. gardneriana, M. parvifolia.

  12. Effect of coal soluble constituents on caking property of coal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hengfu Shui; Mingdong Zheng; Zhicai Wang; Xunming Li [Anhui University of Technology, Maanshan (China). School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Anhui Educational Department

    2007-07-15

    Three cokemaking bituminous coals were extracted by the CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvents with different content of NMP, and the effect of the amount and the component of coal soluble constituents on the caking property of the extracted residues of coals were investigated in this study. The CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvent (1:1 by volume) was found to give the maximal extraction yields for the three coals, and the fat coal gave the highest extraction yield of 78.6% (daf) corresponding to its highest caking index of 101. It was found that for coking coal, when the extraction yield got to the maximum of 25.3% in the 1:1 by volume of CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvent, the residue extracted still had caking property with the caking index of 19. This means parts of the caking constituents of coal are un-extractible because of covalent bonding or strong associative cross-links. The soluble components extracted by the CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvent and their effects on the caking indexes of the residues at a similar extraction yield quite differed depending on the NMP content in the mixed solvent. The coal solubles extracted by the CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvent with NMP less than 50% contained less light constituents with less of oxygen groups. This may lead to the decrease in the caking indexes for the residues obtained at the similar extraction yields compared to those of the CS{sub 2}/NMP mixed solvent with NMP more than 50%. 11 refs., 5 figs., 3 tabs.

  13. Leaching of DOC, DN, and inorganic constituents from scrap tires.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Selbes, Meric; Yilmaz, Ozge; Khan, Abdul A; Karanfil, Tanju

    2015-11-01

    One concern for recycle and reuse of scrap tires is the leaching of tire constituents (organic and inorganic) with time, and their subsequent potential harmful impacts in environment. The main objective of this study was to examine the leaching of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved nitrogen (DN), and selected inorganic constituents from scrap tires. Different sizes of tire chips and crumb rubber were exposed to leaching solutions with pH's ranging from 3.0 to 10.0 for 28days. The leaching of DOC and DN were found to be higher for smaller size tire chips; however, the leaching of inorganic constituents was independent of the size. In general, basic pH conditions increased the leaching of DOC and DN, whereas acidic pH conditions led to elevated concentrations of metals. Leaching was minimal around the neutral pH values for all the monitored parameters. Analysis of the leaching rates showed that components associated with the rubbery portion of the tires (DOC, DN, zinc, calcium, magnesium, etc.) exhibited an initial rapid followed by a slow release. On the other hand, a constant rate of leaching was observed for iron and manganese, which are attributed to the metal wires present inside the tires. Although the total amounts that leached varied, the observed leaching rates were similar for all tire chip sizes and leaching solutions. Operation under neutral pH conditions, use of larger size tire chips, prewashing of tires, and removal of metal wires prior to application will reduce the impact of tire recycle and reuse. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Sucralose sweetener in vivo effects on blood constituents radiolabeling, red blood cell morphology and radiopharmaceutical biodistribution in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rocha, G.S.; Pereira, M.O.; Benarroz, M.O.; Frydman, J.N.G.; Rocha, V.C.; Pereira, M.J.; Fonseca, A.S.; Medeiros, A.C.; Bernardo-Filho, M.

    2011-01-01

    Effects of sucralose sweetener on blood constituents labelled with technetium-99m ( 99m Tc) on red blood cell (RBC) morphology, sodium pertechnetate (Na 99m TcO 4 ) and diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid labeled with 99m Tc ( 99m Tc-DTPA) biodistribution in rats were evaluated. Radiolabeling on blood constituents from Wistar rats was undertaken for determining the activity percentage (%ATI) on blood constituents. RBC morphology was also evaluated. Na 99m TcO 4 and 99m Tc-DTPA biodistribution was used to determine %ATI/g in organs. There was no alteration on RBC blood constituents and morphology %ATI. Sucralose sweetener was capable of altering %ATI/g of the radiopharmaceuticals in different organs. These findings are associated to the sucralose sweetener in specific organs.

  15. Expression of Terpenoid Biosynthetic Genes and Accumulation of Chemical Constituents in Valeriana fauriei

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yun Ji Park

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Valeriana fauriei (V. fauriei, which emits a characteristic and unpleasant odor, is important in traditional medicine. In this study, the expression of terpenoid biosynthetic genes was investigated in different organs that were also screened for volatile compounds including valerenic acid and its derivatives. Specific expression patterns from different parts of V. fauriei were observed using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR. The highest transcript levels of biosynthetic genes involved in mevalonic acid (MVA and methylerythritol phosphate (MEP production were found in the stem. Although the amounts of volatile compounds were varied by organ, most of the volatile terpenoids were accumulated in the root. Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS analysis identified 128 volatile compounds, which represented 65.33% to 95.66% of total volatiles. Certain compounds were only found in specific organs. For example, isovalerenic acid and valerenic acid and its derivatives were restricted to the root. Organs with high transcript levels did not necessarily have high levels of the corresponding chemical constituents. According to these results, we hypothesize that translocation may occur between different organs in V. fauriei.

  16. Significance of high energy spin effects in constituent pictures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, C.K.

    1977-01-01

    The spin information about high energy hadronic reactions is important for further understanding of the nature and the behavior of hadronic constituents. The usefulness of the information is discussed in the cases of dilepton production from hadronic collisions, large P/sub T/ inclusive and elastic scatterings, and small angle elastic scattering and quantum number exchanged reactions

  17. Co-Occurring Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... the mental health field. Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Addiction and Co-occurring Disorders: Co-occurring Disorders and ... 500 Montgomery Street, Suite 820 Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone (703) 684.7722 Toll Free (800) 969.6642 ...

  18. The monomeric form of Neisseria DNA mimic protein DMP19 prevents DNA from binding to the histone-like HU protein

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ko, Tzu-Ping; Liao, Yi-Ting; Hsu, Kai-Cheng

    2017-01-01

    DNA mimicry is a direct and effective strategy by which the mimic competes with DNA for the DNA binding sites on other proteins. Until now, only about a dozen proteins have been shown to function via this strategy, including the DNA mimic protein DMP19 from Neisseria meningitides. We have shown previously that DMP19 dimer prevents the operator DNA from binding to the transcription factor NHTF. Here, we provide new evidence that DMP19 monomer can also interact with the Neisseria nucleoid-associated protein HU. Using BS3 crosslinking, gel filtration and isothermal titration calorimetry assays, we found that DMP19 uses its monomeric form to interact with the Neisseria HU dimer. Crosslinking conjugated mass spectrometry was used to investigate the binding mode of DMP19 monomer and HU dimer. Finally, an electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) confirmed that the DNA binding affinity of HU is affected by DMP19. These results showed that DMP19 is bifunctional in the gene regulation of Neisseria through its variable oligomeric forms. PMID:29220372

  19. Anti-inflammatory effects of enzyme-treated asparagus extract and its constituents in hepatocytes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mikio Nishizawa

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Background:Asparagus (Asparagus officinalisL. is one of the most ancient vegetablesin the world, andis rich in asparagine. Enzyme-treated asparagus extract (ETAS™; Amino Up Chemical Co., Ltd., Sapporo, Japan is the final product of enzyme-treatment of asparagus stems and subsequent extraction. Two constituents were purified from ETAS and identified: 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (HMF, an abundant constituent, and (S-asfural, a novel constituent, which is a derivative of HMF. ETAS has been reported to increase the expression of heat shock proteins (HSPs, which are essential for the repair or removal of defective proteins. The expression of Hspfamily genes is regulated by the transcription factor heat shock factor 1 (HSF1. It is unknown whether ETAS and its constituents elicit anti-inflammatory effects, such as the suppression of nitric oxide (NO, an inflammatory mediator synthesized by inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS in interleukin (IL-1β-treated hepatocytes. Objective:To examine the anti-inflammatory effects of ETAS, we treated rat hepatocytes with ETAS, or its constituents (S-asfural or HMF, and IL-1β, beforethen analyzingthe expression of the iNOSgene and other genes involved in inflammation.Methods:Primary cultured rat hepatocytes were prepared by collagenase perfusion. ETAS, (S-asfural, or HMF was added to the medium with IL-1β and incubated at 37 °C. When necessary, an inhibitor of HSF1 was added. NO in the medium was measured by the Griess method, and the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50 values were determined. To analyze the mRNA expression, a reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction was performed. Antibody arrays were used to determine the levels of cytokines and chemokines in the medium.Results:ETAS suppressed NO production in IL-1β-treated hepatocytes without causing cytotoxicity. ETAS decreased the levels of both iNOS mRNA and the antisense transcript, whereas it increased the levels of Hsf1 m

  20. [Studies on the chemical constituents of the stems of Piper betle].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Yan; Huang, Xiang-Zhong; Wang, Jiong; Dai, Jian-Hui; Liang, Hui; Dai, Yun

    2009-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents from the stems of Piper betle. Various chromatographic techniques were used to isolate and purify the constituents. The structures of these compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectral analysis. Nine compounds were isolated from the petroleum ester and ethyl acetate soluble fractions of the 70% acetone extract and their structures were identified as 6beta-hydroxystigmast-4-en-3-one (1), beta-sitosterol (2), stigmasterol (3), oleanolic acid (4), 23-hydroxyursan-12-en-28-oic acid (5), beta-sitosterol-3-O-beta-D-glucoside-6'-O-palmitate (6), beta-daucosterol (7), (2S) -4'-hydroxy- 2,3-dihydroflavonone-7-O-beta-D-glucoside (8) and alpha-ethyl glucoside (9). Among these compounds, 1, 3 -9 are isolated from this plant for the first time.

  1. Identification of Repellent and Insecticidal Constituents from Artemisia mongolica Essential Oil against Lasioderma serricorne

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chunxue You

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The aims of this research were to determine the chemical composition and insecticidal and repellent activities of the Artemisia mongolica essential oil against Lasioderma serricorne and to isolate active constituents from the essential oil. The essential oil of A. mongolica was obtained by hydrodistillation and 36 components were identified with GC-MS. Eucalyptol (39.88%, (S-cis-verbenol (14.93%, 4-terpineol (7.20%, (−-camphor (6.02%, and α-terpineol (4.20% were found to be major components. With a further isolation process, five constituents obtained from the essential oil were identified as eucalyptol, verbenol, 4-terpineol, camphor, and α-terpineol. In the progress of assay, it showed that L. serricorne adults had different sensitivities to the crude essential oil and isolated constituents. 4-Terpineol exhibited strongest contact activity against L. serricorne, showing the LD50 value of 8.62 μg/adult. Moreover, camphor and α-terpineol showed stronger fumigant activity (LC50=2.91 and 3.27 mg/L air, resp. against L. serricorne than crude essential oil and other constituents. In addition, the essential oil, eucalyptol, verbenol, and α-terpineol showed comparable repellency against L. serricorne adults. The results indicate that the essential oil and isolated compounds have potential to provide more efficient and safer natural insecticides or repellents for control of insects in food and Chinese medicinal materials preservation.

  2. Antiviral and antituberculous activity of Helichrysum melanacme constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lall, N; Hussein, A A; Meyer, J J M

    2006-04-01

    Bioassay guided fractionation of the acetonic extract of Helichrysum melanacme using human Influenza virus type A and a drug-sensitive strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in vitro resulted in the isolation of 2 4',6'-trihydroxy-3'-prenylchalcone (1) and 4',6',5''-trihydroxy-6'',6''-dimethyldihydropyrano[2'',3''-2',3'] chalcone (2) as active constituents. 3-O-methylquercetin and quercetin were also isolated but were inactive against the microorganisms tested in this study.

  3. A constituent quark model with colour degrees of freedom confronts the data on hadron-nucleus interactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rozanska, M.; Jezabek, M.

    1991-04-01

    Three version of a model with colour excitations of constituent quarks are examined using inclusive leading proton and antiproton spectra in nuclear interactions at high energies. The comparison with experimental data excludes the models in which fragmentation into leading final hadrons depends only on the colour charge of constituents in an intermediate system. (author)

  4. A simple DOP model for constituency parsing of Italian sentences

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sangati, F.

    2009-01-01

    We present a simplified Data-Oriented Parsing (DOP) formalism for learning the constituency structure of Italian sentences. In our approach we try to simplify the original DOP methodology by constraining the number and type of fragments we extract from the training corpus. We provide some examples

  5. Identification of nevadensin as an important herb-based constituent inhibiting estragole bioactivation and physiology-based biokinetic modeling of its possible in vivo effect

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alhusainy, W.; Paini, A.; Punt, A.; Louisse, J.; Spenkelink, A.; Vervoort, J.; Delatour, T.; Scholz, G.; Schilter, B.; Adams, T.; Bladeren, P.J. van; Rietjens, I.M.C.M.

    2010-01-01

    Estragole is a natural constituent of several herbs and spices including sweet basil. In rodent bioassays, estragole induces hepatomas, an effect ascribed to estragole bioactivation to 1'-sulfooxyestragole resulting in DNA adduct formation. The present paper identifies nevadensin as a basil constituent able to inhibit DNA adduct formation in rat hepatocytes exposed to the proximate carcinogen 1'-hydroxyestragole and nevadensin. This inhibition occurs at the level of sulfotransferase (SULT)-mediated bioactivation of 1'-hydroxyestragole. The Ki for SULT inhibition by nevadensin was 4 nM in male rat and human liver fractions. Furthermore, nevadensin up to 20 μM did not inhibit 1'-hydroxyestragole detoxification by glucuronidation and oxidation. The inhibition of SULT by nevadensin was incorporated into the recently developed physiologically based biokinetic (PBBK) rat and human models for estragole bioactivation and detoxification. The results predict that co-administration of estragole at a level inducing hepatic tumors in vivo (50 mg/kg bw) with nevadensin at a molar ratio of 0.06, representing the ratio of their occurrence in basil, results in almost 100% inhibition of the ultimate carcinogen 1'-sulfooxyestragole when assuming 100% uptake of nevadensin. Assuming 1% uptake, inhibition would still amount to more than 83%. Altogether these data point at a nevadensin-mediated inhibition of the formation of the ultimate carcinogenic metabolite of estragole, without reducing the capacity to detoxify 1'-hydroxyestragole via glucuronidation or oxidation. These data also point at a potential reduction of the cancer risk when estragole exposure occurs within a food matrix containing SULT inhibitors compared to what is observed upon exposure to pure estragole.

  6. In vitro inhibition of phenolsulphotransferase by food and drink constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gibb, C; Glover, V; Sandler, M

    1987-07-15

    Several natural and synthetic food and drink constituents were tested in vitro for their inhibitory actions on phenolsulphotransferase P and M (PST P, PST M) and monoamine oxidase A and B (MAO A, MAO B). Cyanidin 3-rutinoside, a simple anthocyanin, (+)-catechin, a flavanol, and carmoisine, a synthetic food colorant, were found to be particularly potent, reversible inhibitors of PST P. All inhibited this enzyme by 100% at a concentration of 5 microM and had an IC50 in the microM range. The effects of these compounds on PST M and MAO A and B were less pronounced. There was a considerable difference in the inhibitory ability of different purified anthocyanins but all were selective for PST P. Several other phenolic food colorants were also found to be specific inhibitors of PST P, though less potent in their actions. Tartrazine, a non-phenolic food colorant, had little effect. The phenolic extracts from two red wines were also found selectively to inhibit PST P in vitro, suggesting that it is within this fraction that these inhibitors are to be found. PST is an important enzyme involved in the inactivation of a wide range of exogenous and endogenous phenols. If such a degree of inhibition were to occur in vivo, potentially toxic concentrations of some phenolic substrates might result.

  7. Sucralose sweetener in vivo effects on blood constituents radiolabeling, red blood cell morphology and radiopharmaceutical biodistribution in rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rocha, G.S.; Pereira, M.O. [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Departamento de Biofisica e Biometria, Avenida 28 de Setembro, 87, Vila Isabel, 20551030 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Ciencias da Saude, Avenida General Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, 59010180 Natal, Rio Grande do Norte (Brazil); Benarroz, M.O.; Frydman, J.N.G.; Rocha, V.C. [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Departamento de Biofisica e Biometria, Avenida 28 de Setembro, 87, Vila Isabel, 20551030 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Pereira, M.J. [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Departamento de Fisiologia, Avenida 28 de Setembro, 87, Vila Isabel, 20551030 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Fonseca, A.S., E-mail: adnfonseca@ig.com.b [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Departamento de Biofisica e Biometria, Avenida 28 de Setembro, 87, Vila Isabel, 20551030 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto Biomedico, Departamento de Ciencias Fisiologicas, Rua Frei Caneca, 94, Rio de Janeiro 20211040 (Brazil); Medeiros, A.C. [Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Ciencias da Saude, Avenida General Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, 59010180 Natal, Rio Grande do Norte (Brazil); Bernardo-Filho, M. [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Departamento de Biofisica e Biometria, Avenida 28 de Setembro, 87, Vila Isabel, 20551030 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Instituto Nacional do Cancer, Coordenadoria de Pesquisa Basica, Praca Cruz Vermelha, 23, 20230130 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

    2011-01-15

    Effects of sucralose sweetener on blood constituents labelled with technetium-99m ({sup 99m}Tc) on red blood cell (RBC) morphology, sodium pertechnetate (Na{sup 99m}TcO{sub 4}) and diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid labeled with {sup 99m}Tc ({sup 99m}Tc-DTPA) biodistribution in rats were evaluated. Radiolabeling on blood constituents from Wistar rats was undertaken for determining the activity percentage (%ATI) on blood constituents. RBC morphology was also evaluated. Na{sup 99m}TcO{sub 4} and {sup 99m}Tc-DTPA biodistribution was used to determine %ATI/g in organs. There was no alteration on RBC blood constituents and morphology %ATI. Sucralose sweetener was capable of altering %ATI/g of the radiopharmaceuticals in different organs. These findings are associated to the sucralose sweetener in specific organs.

  8. Ginkgo biloba extract alters the binding of the sodium [123I] iodide (Na123I) on blood constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aleixo, Luiz Cláudio Martins; Moreno, Silvana Ramos Farias; Freitas, Rosimeire de Souza; Thomaz, Hélio; Santos-Filho, Sebastião David

    2012-01-01

    We evaluated the in vitro effect of an aqueous extract of Ginkgo biloba (EGb) on the distribution in blood cells (BC) and plasma (P) and on the binding of Na 123 I to the blood constituents using precipitation with trichloroacetic acid. The radioactivity percentages insoluble (SF) and insoluble fraction (IF) of blood constituents were determined. The EGb interfered (p 123 I in the P (from 69.64 to 86.13) and BC (from 30.36 to 13.87) and altered the fixation of the Na 123 I in IF-P and in IF-BC. - Highlights: ► Interaction between the Ginkgo biloba and blood constituents radiolabeled. ► Modification of the binding of sodium iodide (Na 123 I) to the blood constituents. ► This alteration should have influence in a diagnosis of nuclear medicine.

  9. Chemical constituents of the genus Polygonatum and their role in medicinal treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Xueying; Li, Ji

    2015-04-01

    Polygonatum is a famous traditional Chinese medicine that is widely used in China, Korea and Japan. In the last decade, constituents of the genus have been reported including steroidal saponins, flavones, alkaloids, lignins, amino acids and carbohydrates, some of which show biological properties such as antiviral and antitumor activity, variable effects on the immune system and anticoagulant activity. In addition, some findings provide novel evidence that Polygonatum species may contain potential anti-tumor and anti-viral proteins for possible medical application and large-scale pharmaceutical production. In this review, we focus on the updated research of the chemical constituents of Polygonatum including polysaccharides, steroidal saponins, flavonoids and lectins, and their potential therapeutic roles.

  10. Chemical constituents of Capraria biflora (Scrophulariaceae) and larvicidal activity of essential oil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Souza, Luciana Gregorio da S.; Almeida, Macia Cleane S.; Monte, Francisco Jose Q.; Santiago, Gilvandete Maria P.; Braz-Filho, Raimundo; Lemos, Telma Leda G.; Gomes, Clerton L.; Nascimento, Ronaldo F. do

    2012-01-01

    . Analysis of essential oil from fresh leaves of Capraria biflora allowed identification of fourteen essential oil constituents among which thirteen are sesquiterpene compounds, and α-humulene (43.0%) the major constituent. The essential oil was tested for larvicidal activity against Aedes aegypyti showing good activity, with LC 50 73.39 μg/mL (2.27 g/mL). Chromatographic studies of extracts from roots and stems allowed the isolation of five compounds: naphthoquinone biflorin, sesquiterpene caprariolide B, the steroid β-sitosterol, the carbohydrate D-mannitol and iridoid myopochlorin first reported in the species C. biflora. The structures of compounds were characterized by spectroscopic data, IR, MS, NMR 13 C, NMR 1 H, NOE, HSQC and HMBC. (author)

  11. [Chemical constituents of Rauvolfia verticillata].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hong, Bo; Li, Wen-Jing; Zhao, Chun-Jie

    2012-06-01

    The study on the Rauvolfia verticillata (Lour.) Baill., which belongs to Apocynaceae, was carried out to look for its chemical constituents and pharmacological activity. The isolation and purification were performed by chromatography on silica gel, Sephadex LH-20 and ODS (octadecyl silane) open column. The structures of obtained compounds were elucidated on the basis of physicochemical properties and spectral analysis. Three indole alkaloids and one acridone alkaloid were isolated from chloroform layer extract and identified as ajmalicine B (1), sandwicine (2), raunescine (3) and 7-hydroxynoracronycine (4) separately. Ajmalicine B (1) is a new compound belonging to indole alkaloid. Compound 4 as an acridone alkaloid was a new type compound isolated from Rauvolfia genus for the first time. We also did some biological activity research on the new type compound (4) to explore other pharmacological activities in addition to antihypertensive activity.

  12. [Chemical constituents of Swertia macrosperma].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hongling; Geng, Changan; Zhang, Xuemei; Ma, Yunbao; Jiang, Zhiyong; Chen, Jijun

    2010-12-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Swertia macrosperma. The air-dried whole plants of Swertia macrosperma were extracted with boiling water. The extract was concentrated to a small amount of volume and extracted with petroleum ether, EtOAc and n-BuOH, successively. The compounds were isolated and purified by column chromatography from the EtOAc fraction, and identified based on spectral analyses (MS, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR). Thirteen compounds were isolated from S. macrosperma, and were characterized as norbellidifolin (1), 1-hydroxy-3,7, 8-trimethoxy-xanthone (2), norswertianolin (3), swertianolin (4), 1,3,7,8-tetrahydroxyxanthone-8-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (5), swertiamatin (6), decentapicrin (7), coniferl aldehyde (8), sinapaldehyde (9), balanophonin (10), together with beta-sitosterol, daucosterol, and oleanolic acid . Compounds 2, 4-10 were obtained from Swertia macrosperma for the first time.

  13. Identification of manganese as a toxicant in a groundwater treatment system: Addressing naturally occurring toxicants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goodfellow, W. Jr.; Sohn, V.; Richey, M.; Yost, J.

    1995-01-01

    Effluent from a groundwater remediation system at a bulk oil storage and distribution terminal has been chronically toxic to Ceriodaphnia dubia. The remediation system was designed in response to a hydrocarbon plume in the area of the terminal. The remediation system consists of a series of groundwater recovery wells and groundwater intercept trench systems with groundwater treatment and phased-separated hydrocarbon recovery systems. The groundwater treatment and petroleum recovery systems consist of oil/water separators, product recovery tanks, air strippers, filters, and carbon adsorption units. The characteristics of this effluent are low total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, and hardness concentrations as well as meeting stringent NPDES permit requirements for lead, copper, zinc, mercury, total petroleum hydrocarbons, and BTEX. Additional priority pollutant evaluations revealed no compounds of concern. Performance of a Toxicity identification Evaluation (TIE) indicated that manganese was the principle toxicant in the effluent. Manganese is a naturally occurring constituent in this groundwater source and is not added to the treatment system. This paper will present the results of the TIE with a discussion of treatability/control options for manganese control at this facility. Recommendations for addressing naturally occurring toxicants that are not a result of the facility's operations will also be presented

  14. Disclosure of incidental constituents of psychotherapy as a moral obligation for psychiatrists and psychotherapists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trachsel, Manuel; Gaab, Jens

    2016-08-01

    Informed consent to medical intervention reflects the moral principle of respect for autonomy and the patient's right to self-determination. In psychotherapy, this includes a requirement to inform the patient about those components of treatment purported to cause the therapeutic effect. This information must encompass positive expectancies of change and placebo-related or incidental constituent therapy effects, which are as important as specific intervention techniques for the efficacy of psychotherapy. There is a risk that informing the patient about possible incidental constituents of therapy may reduce or even completely impede these effects, with negative consequences for overall outcome. However, withholding information about incidental constituents of psychotherapy would effectively represent a paternalistic action at the expense of patient autonomy; whether such paternalism might in certain circumstances be justified forms part of the present discussion. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  15. The binary branching nature of syllable constituents: the English onset

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Motivating evidence is drawn from other languages, specifically Italian, Spanish and Portuguese, because it is believed that, except for the coda, the binary branching nature of syllable constituents is universally imposed in the world\\'s languages. Also, no one language or dialect can exhaustively account for all linguistic ...

  16. Statistical Analysis of CMC Constituent and Processing Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fornuff, Jonathan

    2004-01-01

    Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMCs) are the next "big thing" in high-temperature structural materials. In the case of jet engines, it is widely believed that the metallic superalloys currently being utilized for hot structures (combustors, shrouds, turbine vanes and blades) are nearing their potential limits of improvement. In order to allow for increased turbine temperatures to increase engine efficiency, material scientists have begun looking toward advanced CMCs and SiC/SiC composites in particular. Ceramic composites provide greater strength-to-weight ratios at higher temperatures than metallic alloys, but at the same time require greater challenges in micro-structural optimization that in turn increases the cost of the material as well as increases the risk of variability in the material s thermo-structural behavior. to model various potential CMC engine materials and examines the current variability in these properties due to variability in component processing conditions and constituent materials; then, to see how processing and constituent variations effect key strength, stiffness, and thermal properties of the finished components. Basically, this means trying to model variations in the component s behavior by knowing what went into creating it. inter-phase and manufactured by chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) and melt infiltration (MI) were considered. Examinations of: (1) the percent constituents by volume, (2) the inter-phase thickness, (3) variations in the total porosity, and (4) variations in the chemical composition of the Sic fiber are carried out and modeled using various codes used here at NASA-Glenn (PCGina, NASALife, CEMCAN, etc...). The effects of these variations and the ranking of their respective influences on the various thermo-mechanical material properties are studied and compared to available test data. The properties of the materials as well as minor changes to geometry are then made to the computer model and the detrimental effects

  17. A 12-week DBPC dose-finding study with sublingual monomeric allergoid tablets in house dust mite-allergic patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hüser, C; Dieterich, P; Singh, J; Shah-Hosseini, K; Allekotte, S; Lehmacher, W; Compalati, E; Mösges, R

    2017-01-01

    In sublingual immunotherapy, optimal doses are a key factor for therapeutic outcomes. The aim of this study with tablets containing carbamylated monomeric house dust mite allergoids was to determine the most effective and safe dose. In this double-blind, placebo-controlled dose-finding study, 131 patients with house dust mite-induced allergic rhinoconjunctivitis were randomized to 12-week treatments with 300 UA/day, 1000 UA/day, 2000 UA/day, 3000 UA/day or placebo. Conjunctival provocation tests (CPT) were performed before, during and after treatment. The change in mean allergic severity (primary endpoint), calculated from the severity of the CPT reaction, and the proportion of patients with an improved CPT threshold (secondary endpoint) determined the treatment effect. The mean allergic severity decreased in all groups, including the placebo group. It was lower in all active treatment groups (300 UA/day: 0.14, 1000 UA/day: 0.15, 2000 UA/day: 0.10, 3000 UA/day: 0.15) than in the placebo group (0.30). However, this difference was not statistically significant (P allergoid sublingual tablets is well tolerated and reduces the CPT reaction in house dust mite-allergic patients. © 2016 The Authors. Allergy Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  18. Monomeric, porous type II collagen scaffolds promote chondrogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in vitro

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tamaddon, M.; Burrows, M.; Ferreira, S. A.; Dazzi, F.; Apperley, J. F.; Bradshaw, A.; Brand, D. D.; Czernuszka, J.; Gentleman, E.

    2017-03-01

    Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of pain and disability and is often associated with the degeneration of articular cartilage. Lesions to the articular surface, which are thought to progress to OA, have the potential to be repaired using tissue engineering strategies; however, it remains challenging to instruct cell differentiation within a scaffold to produce tissue with appropriate structural, chemical and mechanical properties. We aimed to address this by driving progenitor cells to adopt a chondrogenic phenotype through the tailoring of scaffold composition and physical properties. Monomeric type-I and type-II collagen scaffolds, which avoid potential immunogenicity associated with fibrillar collagens, were fabricated with and without chondroitin sulfate (CS) and their ability to stimulate the chondrogenic differentiation of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells was assessed. Immunohistochemical analyses showed that cells produced abundant collagen type-II on type-II scaffolds and collagen type-I on type-I scaffolds. Gene expression analyses indicated that the addition of CS - which was released from scaffolds quickly - significantly upregulated expression of type II collagen, compared to type-I and pure type-II scaffolds. We conclude that collagen type-II and CS can be used to promote a more chondrogenic phenotype in the absence of growth factors, potentially providing an eventual therapy to prevent OA.

  19. Covalent bonding of chloroanilines to humic constituents: Pathways, kinetics, and stability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kong, Deyang; Xia, Qing; Liu, Guoqiang; Huang, Qingguo; Lu, Junhe

    2013-01-01

    Covalent coupling to natural humic constituents comprises an important transformation pathway for anilinic pollutants in the environment. We systematically investigated the reactions of chlorine substituted anilines with catechol and syringic acid in horseradish peroxidase (HRP) catalyzed systems. It was demonstrated that although nucleophilic addition was the mechanism of covalent bonding to both catechol and syringic acid, chloroanilines coupled to the 2 humic constituents via slightly different pathways. 1,4-addition and 1,2-addition are involved to catechol and syringic acid, respectively. 1,4-addition showed empirical 2nd order kinetics and this pathway seemed to be more permanent than 1,2-addition. Stability experiments demonstrated that cross-coupling products with syringic acid could be easily released in acidic conditions. However, cross-coupling with catechol was relatively stable at similar conditions. Thus, the environmental behavior and bioavailability of the coupling products should be carefully assessed. -- Highlights: •Chloroanilines covalently coupled to humic constituents in HRP catalyzed processes, which facilitated their transformation. •MS technique was employed to analyze the coupling products and therefore elucidate the reaction pathways. •Chloroanilines couple to catechol and syringic acid via 1,4- and 1,2-nucleophilic addition pathways, respectively. •Cross-coupling products formed via 1,4-nucleophilic addition pathway were more stable than those via 1,2-addition pathway. -- Bound residues of chloroanilines formed via 1,2- and 1,4-nucleophilic addition pathways showed different stability

  20. Biochar versus hydrochar as growth media constituents for ornamental plant cultivation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fernando Fornes

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Biochar and hydrochar have been proposed as novel materials for providing soilless growth media. However, much more knowledge is required before reliable advice can be given on the use of these materials for this purpose. Depending on the material and the technology applied (pyrolysis or hydrothermal carbonization, phytotoxicity and greenhouse gas emissions have been found for certain chars. In this study, our aim was to assess the feasibility of three chars as substrate constituents. We compared two biochars, one from forest waste and the other from olive mill waste, and a hydrochar from forest waste. We studied how chars affected substrate characteristics, plant performance, water economy and respiratory CO2 emission. Substrates containing biochar from forest waste showed the best characteristics, with good air/water relationships and adequate electrical conductivity. Those with biochar from olive mill waste were highly saline and, consequently, low quality. The substrates with hydrochar retained too much water and were poorly aerated, presenting high CO2 concentrations due to high respiratory activity. Plants performed well only when grown in substrates containing a maximum of 25 % biochar from forest waste or hydrochar. After analyzing the char characteristics, we concluded that biochar from forest waste could be safely used as a substrate constituent and is environmentally friendly when applied due to its low salinity and low CO2 emission. However, biochar from olive mill waste and hydrochar need to be improved before they can be used as substrate constituents.

  1. Antifungal activity and computational study of constituents from Piper divaricatum essential oil against Fusarium infection in black pepper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    da Silva, Joyce Kelly R; Silva, José Rogério A; Nascimento, Soelange B; da Luz, Shirlley F M; Meireles, Erisléia N; Alves, Cláudio N; Ramos, Alessandra R; Maia, José Guilherme S

    2014-11-04

    Fusarium disease causes considerable losses in the cultivation of Piper nigrum, the black pepper used in the culinary world. Brazil was the largest producer of black pepper, but in recent years has lost this hegemony, with a significant reduction in its production, due to the ravages produced by the Fusarium solani f. sp. piperis, the fungus which causes this disease. Scientific research seeks new alternatives for the control and the existence of other Piper species in the Brazilian Amazon, resistant to disease, are being considered in this context. The main constituents of the oil of Piper divaricatum are methyleugenol (75.0%) and eugenol (10.0%). The oil and these two main constituents were tested individually at concentrations of 0.25 to 2.5 mg/mL against F. solani f. sp. piperis, exhibiting strong antifungal index, from 18.0% to 100.0%. The 3D structure of the β-glucosidase from Fusarium solani f. sp. piperis, obtained by homology modeling, was used for molecular docking and molecular electrostatic potential calculations in order to determine the binding energy of the natural substrates glucose, methyleugenol and eugenol. The results showed that β-glucosidase (Asp45, Arg113, Lys146, Tyr193, Asp225, Trp226 and Leu99) residues play an important role in the interactions that occur between the protein-substrate and the engenol and methyleugenol inhibitors, justifying the antifungal action of these two phenylpropenes against Fusarium solani f. sp. piperis.

  2. Cardiovascular effects of saffron and its active constituents: A review article

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B. Marjan Razavi

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available (Crocus sativus L. Commonly known as saffron, is a perennial stem less herb of the iridaceae family, widely cultivated in Iran and other countries. It is used as a flavoring and coloring agent for many thousands of years. In traditional medicine, saffron has been used for various purposes including abortion, as a fever reducer, an analgesic, expectorant, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac, sedative, digestive and a carminative. Various pharmacological studies have been described that saffron and its constituents exhibit different beneficial properties, including antioxidant, anticancer, anticonvulsant, antiischemic, antigenotoxic, antidote, antiapoptotic, antitussive, antidepressive, sedative and hypnotic, hypolipidemic, antinociceptive and antiinflammatory effects. Research projects have also revealed that saffron also exhibits protective effects against cardiovascular diseases including cardiac ischemia, arrhythmia, hypertension and atherosclerosis. In this review article, the effects of saffron and its active constituents on cardiovascular system were introduced.

  3. A risk assessment approach to identifying constituents in oilfield produced water for treatment prior to beneficial use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horner, Jennifer E; Castle, James W; Rodgers, John H

    2011-05-01

    A risk assessment approach incorporating exposure pathways and calculated risk quotients was applied to identifying constituents requiring treatment prior to beneficial use of oilfield produced water (OPW). In this study, risk quotients are ratios of constituent concentrations in soil or water to guideline concentrations for no adverse effects to receptors. The risk assessment approach is illustrated by an example of an oilfield water produced from non-marine geologic strata of a rift basin in sub-Saharan Africa. The OPW studied has the following characteristics: 704-1370 mg L(-1) total dissolved solids (TDS), 45-48 mg L(-1) chloride, and 103.8 mg L(-1) oil and grease. Exposure pathways of constituents in OPW used for irrigation include: ingestion of plant tissue, ingestion and direct contact of irrigated soil by livestock, inhalation of aerosols or volatilized constituents, and ingestion of OPW directly by livestock. Applying risk quotient methods for constituents in soil and water, constituents of concern (COCs) identified for irrigation and livestock watering using the OPW studied include: iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), zinc (Zn), and oil and grease. Approximately 165,000 barrels d(-1) (26,233 m(3) d(-1)) of OPW from the study site are available for use. Identification of COCs and consideration of water quantity allows for development of reliable treatment design criteria to ensure effective and consistent treatment is achieved to meet guideline levels required for irrigation, livestock watering, or other uses. This study illustrates the utility of risk assessment for identifying the COCs in OPW for treatment, the level of treatment required, and viable options for use of the treated water. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. On Latent Growth Models for Composites and Their Constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hancock, Gregory R; Mao, Xiulin; Kher, Hemant

    2013-09-01

    Over the last decade and a half, latent growth modeling has become an extremely popular and versatile technique for evaluating longitudinal change and its determinants. Most common among the models applied are those for a single measured variable over time. This model has been extended in a variety of ways, most relevant for the current work being the multidomain and the second-order latent growth models. Whereas the former allows for growth function characteristics to be modeled for multiple outcomes simultaneously, with the degree of growth characteristics' relations assessed within the model (e.g., cross-domain slope factor correlations), the latter models growth in latent outcomes, each of which has effect indicators repeated over time. But what if one has an outcome that is believed to be formative relative to its indicator variables rather than latent? In this case, where the outcome is a composite of multiple constituents, modeling change over time is less straightforward. This article provides analytical and applied details for simultaneously modeling growth in composites and their constituent elements, including a real data example using a general computer self-efficacy questionnaire.

  5. Methods and apparatus for constituent analysis of earth formations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hertzog, R.C.; Nelligan, W.B.

    1979-01-01

    The composition of an earth formation is investigated by repetitively irradiating the formation with bursts of fast neutrons and generating an energy spectrum of the gamma rays resulting from the inelastic scattering of such neutrons by nuclei of the formation. This spectrum is analyzed by comparison with a composite spectrum, consisting of standard spectra of constituents postulated to comprise the formation. This spectrum includes one or more standard spectrum derived from a background energy spectrum generated from gamma rays detected during periods between neutron bursts. The standard background spectra are updated to reflect the current background component. More reliable information can be obtained of the presence of oil in the formation through the derivation of such indicators as the carbon/oxygen ratio, calcium/silicon ratio etc. the detected background gamma ray spectrum may also be analysed to determine the proportions of the formation constituents contributing to the spectrum; and the standards for the most significant background contributors, or the composite spectrum produced by such standard spectra, may be used among the standard spectra for the inelastic scattering spectrum analysis in lieu of the standardized detected background spectrum itself. (UK)

  6. Chemical constituents of Cordia latifolia and their nematicidal activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Begum, Sabira; Perwaiz, Sobiya; Siddiqui, Bina S; Khan, Shazia; Fayyaz, Shahina; Ramzan, Musarrat

    2011-05-01

    Following nematicidal activity-guided isolation studies on the fruits, bark, and leaves of Cordia latifolia, two new constituents, cordinoic acid (=11-oxours-12-ene-23,28-dioic acid; 1) and cordicilin (=2-{[(E)-3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)prop-2-enoyl]oxy}-3-[4-hydroxy-3-(stearoyloxy)phenyl]propanoic acid; 2) were isolated from the stem and leaves, respectively, together with nine known compounds, namely cordioic and cordifolic acid from the stem bark, latifolicin A-D and rosmarinic acid from the fruits, and cordinol and cordicinol from the leaves. Their structures were determined by means of spectroscopic analyses including 1D- and 2D-NMR techniques. The nematicidal activities of these constituents were determined against the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita. Hundred percent mortality was caused by all of these after 72 h at a 0.125% concentration. Compound 1 and cordioic acid were most active and caused 100% mortality after 24 h at a 0.50% concentration. Furthermore, compound 2, the ester of rosemarinic acid, was found to be more active than the free acid. Copyright © 2011 Verlag Helvetica Chimica Acta AG, Zürich.

  7. Estimation of inorganic constituents in the seeds of blue and white ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Jane

    2011-10-12

    Oct 12, 2011 ... The major active constituents of S. ... moistened with deionized waster to keep it over night. The ... mostly required for cell division in leaves and roots ... it matters in cancer research and pharmacokinetic studies. Integr. Cancer ...

  8. A comparative immunogenicity study in rabbits of disulfide-stabilized, proteolytically cleaved, soluble trimeric human immunodeficiency virus type 1 gp140, trimeric cleavage-defective gp140 and monomeric gp120

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beddows, Simon; Franti, Michael; Dey, Antu K.; Kirschner, Marc; Iyer, Sai Prasad N.; Fisch, Danielle C.; Ketas, Thomas; Yuste, Eloisa; Desrosiers, Ronald C.; Klasse, Per Johan; Maddon, Paul J.; Olson, William C.; Moore, John P.

    2007-01-01

    The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) surface envelope glycoprotein (Env) complex, a homotrimer containing gp120 surface glycoprotein and gp41 transmembrane glycoprotein subunits, mediates the binding and fusion of the virus with susceptible target cells. The Env complex is the target for neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) and is the basis for vaccines intended to induce NAbs. Early generation vaccines based on monomeric gp120 subunits did not confer protection from infection; one alternative approach is therefore to make and evaluate soluble forms of the trimeric Env complex. We have directly compared the immunogenicity in rabbits of two forms of soluble trimeric Env and monomeric gp120 based on the sequence of HIV-1 JR-FL . Both protein-only and DNA-prime, protein-boost immunization formats were evaluated, DNA-priming having little or no influence on the outcome. One form of trimeric Env was made by disrupting the gp120-gp41 cleavage site by mutagenesis (gp140 UNC ), the other contains an intramolecular disulfide bond to stabilize the cleaved gp120 and gp41 moieties (SOSIP.R6 gp140). Among the three immunogens, SOSIP.R6 gp140 most frequently elicited neutralizing antibodies against the homologous, neutralization-resistant strain, HIV-1 JR-FL . All three proteins induced NAbs against more sensitive strains, but the breadth of activity against heterologous primary isolates was limited. When antibodies able to neutralize HIV-1 JR-FL were detected, antigen depletion studies showed they were not directed at the V3 region but were targeted at other, undefined gp120 and also non-gp120 epitopes

  9. Cause-specific stillbirth and exposure to chemical constituents and sources of fine particulate matter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebisu, Keita; Malig, Brian; Hasheminassab, Sina; Sioutas, Constantinos; Basu, Rupa

    2018-01-01

    The stillbirth rate in the United States is relatively high, but limited evidence is available linking stillbirth with fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ), its chemical constituents and sources. In this study, we explored associations between cause-specific stillbirth and prenatal exposures to those pollutants with using live birth and stillbirth records from eight California locations during 2002-2009. ICD-10 codes were used to identify cause of stillbirth from stillbirth records. PM 2.5 total mass and chemical constituents were collected from ambient monitors and PM 2.5 sources were quantified using Positive Matrix Factorization. Conditional logistic regression was applied using a nested case-control study design (N = 32,262). We found that different causes of stillbirth were associated with different PM 2.5 sources and/or chemical constituents. For stillbirths due to fetal growth, the odds ratio (OR) per interquartile range increase in gestational age-adjusted exposure to PM 2.5 total mass was 1.23 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.06, 1.44). Similar associations were found with resuspended soil (OR=1.25, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.42), and secondary ammonium sulfate (OR=1.45, 95% CI: 1.18, 1.78). No associations were found between any pollutants and stillbirths caused by maternal complications. This study highlighted the importance of investigating cause-specific stillbirth and the differential toxicity levels of specific PM 2.5 sources and chemical constituents. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Immunomodulatory constituents from an ascomycete, Microascus tardifaciens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujimoto, H; Fujimaki, T; Okuyama, E; Yamazaki, M

    1999-10-01

    Fractionation guided by the immunosuppressive activity of the defatted AcOEt extract of an Ascomycete, Microascus tardifaciens, afforded eight constituents, questin (emodin 8-O-methylether) (1), rubrocristin (2), 5,7-dihydroxy-4-methylphthalide (3), cladosporin (asperentin) (4), cladosporin 8-O-methylether (5), tradioxopiperazine A [cyclo-L-alanyl-5-isopentenyl-2-(1',1'-dimethylallyl)-L-tryptophan] (6), tradioxopiperazine B [cyclo-L-alanyl-7-isopentenyl-2-(1',1'-dimethylallyl)-L-tryptophan] (7), and asperflavin (8), among which 6 and 7 were new compounds. Compounds 1 and 2 showed considerably high immunosuppressive activity, 6 was moderate and, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 showed low activity.

  11. Charge radii of octet and decuplet baryons in chiral constituent ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    in electron–baryon scattering experiments [4,5] giving rp = 0.877 ± 0.007 fm ... breaking of the SU(3) symmetry and a non-vanishing neutron charge mean square radius ... QCD Lagrangian is not invariant under the chiral transformation. ... of a constituent quark GBs [34–37], successfully explains the 'proton spin problem'.

  12. Use of Monte Carlo analysis in a risk-based prioritization of toxic constituents in house dust.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ginsberg, Gary L; Belleggia, Giuliana

    2017-12-01

    Many chemicals have been detected in house dust with exposures to the general public and particularly young children of potential health concern. House dust is also an indicator of chemicals present in consumer products and the built environment that may constitute a health risk. The current analysis compiles a database of recent house dust concentrations from the United States and Canada, focusing upon semi-volatile constituents. Seven constituents from the phthalate and flame retardant categories were selected for risk-based screening and prioritization: diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), butyl benzyl phthalate (BBzP), diisononyl phthalate (DINP), a pentabrominated diphenyl ether congener (BDE-99), hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP). Monte Carlo analysis was used to represent the variability in house dust concentration as well as the uncertainty in the toxicology database in the estimation of children's exposure and risk. Constituents were prioritized based upon the percentage of the distribution of risk results for cancer and non-cancer endpoints that exceeded a hazard quotient (HQ) of 1. The greatest percent HQ exceedances were for DEHP (cancer and non-cancer), BDE-99 (non-cancer) and TDCIPP (cancer). Current uses and the potential for reducing levels of these constituents in house dust are discussed. Exposure and risk for other phthalates and flame retardants in house dust may increase if they are used to substitute for these prioritized constituents. Therefore, alternative assessment and green chemistry solutions are important elements in decreasing children's exposure to chemicals of concern in the indoor environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Selected Constituent Yield Variation in the Smoke of Commercial Cigarette Brands on the Japanese Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hyodo Takatsugu

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This study focused on the variation in the yields of constituents in smoke from commercial cigarette brands available on the Japanese market. Nineteen commercial cigarette brands were sampled five times every two months from 2009 to 2010. The target constituents were benzo[a]-pyrene, 1,3-butadiene, benzene, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein, N-nitrosonornicotine (NNN, 4-(methylnitrosamino-1-(3-pyridyl-1-butanone (NNK, carbon monoxide, “tar”, and nicotine. The results of this study showed that the coefficient of variation (CV values varied greatly by brands, constituents, and smoking regimes. The yields of NNN and NNK in the smoke were strongly correlated to their yields in the tobacco filler blend for most brands. The yields of benzo[a]pyrene under the International Organization for Standardization (ISO and the Health Canada Intense (HCI smoking regimes and 1,3-butadiene under the HCI smoking regime were found to be influenced by the measurement. It was shown that factors for variation were highly varied among constituents. The grand mean of CV values for NNN and formaldehyde associated with cigarette manufacturing over ten months and measurement at the JT laboratory under the HCI smoking regimes were 17.1% and 6.6% respectively. The grand mean of CV values for NNN and formaldehyde associated with both cigarette manufacturing over ten months and measurement at different laboratories under the HCI smoking regimes were 23.7% and 22.9% respectively. This is due to the fact that formaldehyde showed the highest CV values for reproducibility among the constituents. Thus, in order to set realistic and robust confidence intervals, it is very important to take into account the variations associated with cigarette manufacturing and measurement within and between laboratories.

  14. Effect of weight fraction of different constituent elements on the total ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    The mass attenuation coefficients, µm, of biological materials have been ... increasing percentage of constituent elements in high energy region up to 10 MeV. ... Muscle. 72.89. Figure 1. Plot of µm (cm2/g) vs. hydrogen weight fraction at some ...

  15. Abolir les obstacles que constituent les frais de santé : les ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    10 juin 2016 ... Abolir les obstacles que constituent les frais de santé : les ... Le financement des services de santé repose sur un système de ... Dans les années 1980, conformément aux recommandations d'organismes internationaux, ...

  16. Predicting Raters’ Transparency Judgments of English and Chinese Morphological Constituents using Latent Semantic Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hsueh-Cheng; Hsu, Li-Chuan; Tien, Yi-Min; Pomplun, Marc

    2013-01-01

    The morphological constituents of English compounds (e.g., “butter” and “fly” for “butterfly”) and two-character Chinese compounds may differ in meaning from the whole word. Subjective differences and ambiguity of transparency make the judgments difficult, and a computational alternative based on a general model may be a way to average across subjective differences. The current study proposes two approaches based on Latent Semantic Analysis (Landauer & Dumais, 1997): Model 1 compares the semantic similarity between a compound word and each of its constituents, and Model 2 derives the dominant meaning of a constituent based on a clustering analysis of morphological family members (e.g., “butterfingers” or “buttermilk” for “butter”). The proposed models successfully predicted participants’ transparency ratings, and we recommend that experimenters use Model 1 for English compounds and Model 2 for Chinese compounds, due to raters’ morphological processing in different writing systems. The dominance of lexical meaning, semantic transparency, and the average similarity between all pairs within a morphological family are provided, and practical applications for future studies are discussed. PMID:23784009

  17. Estimating Concentrations of Road-Salt Constituents in Highway-Runoff from Measurements of Specific Conductance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granato, Gregory E.; Smith, Kirk P.

    1999-01-01

    Discrete or composite samples of highway runoff may not adequately represent in-storm water-quality fluctuations because continuous records of water stage, specific conductance, pH, and temperature of the runoff indicate that these properties fluctuate substantially during a storm. Continuous records of water-quality properties can be used to maximize the information obtained about the stormwater runoff system being studied and can provide the context needed to interpret analyses of water samples. Concentrations of the road-salt constituents calcium, sodium, and chloride in highway runoff were estimated from theoretical and empirical relations between specific conductance and the concentrations of these ions. These relations were examined using the analysis of 233 highwayrunoff samples collected from August 1988 through March 1995 at four highway-drainage monitoring stations along State Route 25 in southeastern Massachusetts. Theoretically, the specific conductance of a water sample is the sum of the individual conductances attributed to each ionic species in solution-the product of the concentrations of each ion in milliequivalents per liter (meq/L) multiplied by the equivalent ionic conductance at infinite dilution-thereby establishing the principle of superposition. Superposition provides an estimate of actual specific conductance that is within measurement error throughout the conductance range of many natural waters, with errors of less than ?5 percent below 1,000 microsiemens per centimeter (?S/cm) and ?10 percent between 1,000 and 4,000 ?S/cm if all major ionic constituents are accounted for. A semi-empirical method (adjusted superposition) was used to adjust for concentration effects-superposition-method prediction errors at high and low concentrations-and to relate measured specific conductance to that calculated using superposition. The adjusted superposition method, which was developed to interpret the State Route 25 highway-runoff records, accounts for

  18. Fluorescence of Bacteria, Pollens, and Naturally Occurring Airborne Particles: Excitation/Emission Spectra

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Hill, Steven C; Mayo, Michael W; Chang, Richard K

    2009-01-01

    The fluorescence intensity as a function of excitation and emission wavelengths (EEM spectra) was measured for different species of bacteria, biochemical constituents of cells, pollens, and vegetation...

  19. Estimation of Constituent Concentrations, Loads, and Yields in Streams of Johnson County, Northeast Kansas, Using Continuous Water-Quality Monitoring and Regression Models, October 2002 through December 2006

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rasmussen, Teresa J.; Lee, Casey J.; Ziegler, Andrew C.

    2008-01-01

    -sediment concentration was nearly always largest at the Mill Creek site. The Mill Creek watershed is undergoing rapid development that likely contributed to larger sustained sediment concentrations. During most of the time, the smallest sediment concentrations occurred at the Indian Creek site, the most urban of the monitored sites, likely because most of the streamflow originates from wastewater-treatment facilities located just upstream from the monitoring site. However, estimated annual suspended-sediment load and yield were largest annually at the Indian Creek site because of substantial contributions during storm runoff. At least 90 percent of the total annual sediment load in 2005?06 at all five monitoring sites occurred in less than 2 percent of the time, generally associated with large storm runoff. About 50 percent of the 2005 sediment load at the Blue River site occurred during a single 3-day storm, the equivalent of less than 1 percent of the time. Suspended-sediment concentration is statistically related to other water-quality constituents, and these relations have potential implications for implementation of best management practices because, if sediment concentrations are decreased, concentrations of sediment-associated constituents such as suspended solids, some nutrients, and bacteria will also likely decrease. Chloride concentrations were largest at the Indian and Mill Creek sites, the two most urban stream sites which also are most affected by road-salt runoff and wastewater-treatment-facility discharges. Two chloride runoff occurrences in January?February 2005 accounted for 19 percent of the total chloride load in Indian Creek in 2005. Escherichia coli density at the Indian Creek site was nearly always largest of the five sites with a median density more than double that of any other site and 15 times the density at the Blue River site which is primarily nonurban. More than 97 percent of the fecal coliform bacteria load at the Indian Creek site and near the B

  20. Multidimensional analysis of cannabis volatile constituents: identification of 5,5-dimethyl-1-vinylbicyclo[2.1.1]hexane as a volatile marker of hashish, the resin of Cannabis sativa L.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marchini, Marie; Charvoz, Céline; Dujourdy, Laurence; Baldovini, Nicolas; Filippi, Jean-Jacques

    2014-11-28

    The volatile constituents of drug samples derived from Cannabis sativa L. were investigated by means of headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and gas chromatography techniques (GC-MS, GC×GC-MS). Samples of cannabis herb and hashish showed clear differences in their volatile chemical profiles, mostly resulting from photo-oxidation processes occurring during the transformation of fresh cannabis herb into hashish. Most unexpectedly, we could demonstrate hashish samples as containing remarkable amounts of a rare and unusual monoterpene - 5,5-dimethyl-1-vinylbicyclo[2.1.1]hexane - among the volatile compounds detected in their headspaces. We gave evidence for the formation of this compound from the light induced rearrangement of β-myrcene during the manufacture of hashish. In view of its high abundance among volatile constituents of cannabis resin and its scarce occurrence in other natural volatile extracts, we propose to rename this specific monoterpene hashishene. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Estimation of inorganic constituents in the seeds of blue and white ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Estimation of inorganic constituents in the seeds of blue and white flowering capitulum of Silybum marianum. FA Khan, MUR Khattak, M Zahoor. Abstract. Silybum Marianum commonly known as milk thistle contains flavonolignans, collectively known as silymarin. The main components of silymarin are silybine, isosilybine, ...

  2. The categorisation of dysthymic disorder: Can its constituents be meaningfully apportioned?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rhebergen, D.; Graham, R.; Hadzi-Pavlovic, D.; Stek, M.L.; Friend, P.; Barrett, M.; Parker, G.

    2012-01-01

    Background: Since its introduction in DSM-III, the validity of dysthymia has been debated. Our objective is to further examine the concept of dysthymia in an outpatient sample, and explore whether its constituents can be meaningfully apportioned. Methods: 318 patients attending the Black Dog

  3. A study on the interaction between metformin and constituents of a ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Purpose: To investigate the interactions between metformin and Yoyo Bitters® including some of its constituents in the management of diabetes mellitus. Method: Using the generic form of metformin (Glucophage®) tablets, tests such as disintegration time, dissolution profile, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy ...

  4. 75 FR 39450 - Terpene Constituents of the Extract of Chenopodium ambrosioides

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-09

    ..., spices, and other foods and beverages. These three terpene constituents are found naturally in food... ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation through consumption of foods and beverages, as well as through... toxicity. Acute toxicity studies, submitted to support the registration of the end-use product (EP...

  5. PRIORITY SUPPORT POLICY REGARDING CONSTITUENT ENTITIES BEING THE «ENGINES» OF THE RUSSIAN ECONOMY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yumayev E. A.

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Two principal directions of state regional policy adoption have been considered: «equalization» and support of the «engine» constituent entities. Drawbacks of the priority support policy of the most developed entities have been singled out. Recommendations have been formulated; following them will make it possible to eliminate the revealed drawbacks and to use the priority support of the «engine» constituent entities in the context of the state regional policy adoption as a top-priority. Foreign experience of adopting regional policy has been employed in the course of writing the paper (European Union, China, France.

  6. Antibacterial and Anticandidal Activities of Common Essential Oil Constituents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gökalp İşcan

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Essential oils and some of their oxygenated constituents are known to possess antimicrobial activity. In the last 30 years, there is a dramatic increase in the number of resistant microorganisms against available antimicrobials and a tendency towards natural products; consequently, scientists have been forced to discover new bioactive agents preferably from nature. As a result of this, so many antimicrobial screening works have been published on plant essential oils including miscellaneous screening methods and several microorganism strains. The aim of this study was to determine the MIC values of 65 monoterpenoids and 3 phenyl propanoids commonly found in essential oils, against 24 pathogenic bacteria and Candida strains, by using standard reference broth dilution methods (CLSI M7-A7 and M27-A2. According to broth microdilution test results, when compared with standard agents, monoterpene hydrocarbons generally showed weak antibacterial effects (>16 to 4 mg/mL where the oxygenated monoterpenes inhibited the microbial growth between the concentrations of 16 to 0,03 mg/mL. Generally, tested compounds demonstrated better inhibitory effects on Candida strains then the bacteria panel. The most effective microbial growth inhibitor constituents were determined as carvacrol, thymol, cumin alcohol, terpinen-4-ol, α-terpineol, lavandulol, estragol and thymoquinone.

  7. Distribution of exposure concentrations and doses for constituents of environmental tobacco smoke

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    LaKind, J.S. [LaKind Associates (United States); Ginevan, M.E. [M.E. Ginevan and Associates (United States); Naiman, D.Q. [Johns Hopkins Univ., Baltimore, MD (United States). Dept. of Mathematical Sciences; James, A.C. [A.C. James and Associates (United States); Jenkins, R.A. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States); Dourson, M.L.; Felter, S.P. [TERA (United States); Graves, C.G.; Tardiff, R.G. [Sapphire Group, Inc., Bethesda, MD (United States)

    1999-06-01

    The ultimate goal of the research reported in this series of three articles is to derive distributions of doses of selected environmental tobacco smoke (ETS)-related chemicals for nonsmoking workers. This analysis uses data from the 16-City Study collected with personal monitors over the course of one workday in workplaces where smoking occurred. In this article, the authors describe distributions of ETS chemical concentrations and the characteristics of those distributions for the workplace exposure. Next, they present population parameters relevant for estimating dose distributions and the methods used for estimating those dose distributions. Finally, they derive distributions of doses of selected ETS-related constituents obtained in the workplace for people in smoking work environments. Estimating dose distributions provided information beyond the usual point estimate of dose and showed that the preponderance of individuals exposed to ETS in the workplace were exposed at the low end of the dose distribution curve. The results of this analysis include estimations of hourly maxima and time-weighted average (TWA) doses of nicotine from workplace exposures to ETS and doses derived from modeled lung burdens of ultraviolet-absorbing particulate matter (UVPM) and solanesol resulting from workplace exposures to ETS (extrapolated from 1 day to 1 year).

  8. The root barks of Morus alba and the flavonoid constituents inhibit airway inflammation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lim, Hun Jai; Jin, Hong-Guang; Woo, Eun-Rhan; Lee, Sang Kook; Kim, Hyun Pyo

    2013-08-26

    The root barks of Morus alba have been used in traditional medicine as an anti-inflammatory drug, especially for treating lung inflammatory disorders. To find new alternative agents against airway inflammation and to establish the scientific rationale of the herbal medicine in clinical use, the root barks of Morus alba and its flavonoid constituents were examined for the first time for their pharmacological activity against lung inflammation. For in vivo evaluation, an animal model of lipopolysaccharide-induced airway inflammation in mice was used. An inhibitory action against the production of proinflammatory molecules in lung epithelial cells and lung macrophages was examined. Against lipopolysaccharide-induced airway inflammation, the ethanol extract of the root barks of Morus alba clearly inhibited bronchitis-like symptoms, as determined by TNF-α production, inflammatory cells infiltration and histological observation at 200-400mg/kg/day by oral administration. In addition, Morus alba and their major flavonoid constituents including kuwanone E, kuwanone G and norartocarpanone significantly inhibited IL-6 production in lung epithelial cells (A549) and NO production in lung macrophages (MH-S). Taken together, it is concluded that Morus alba and the major prenylated flavonoid constituents have a potential for new agents to control lung inflammation including bronchitis. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. [Study on chemical constituents from ethyl acetate extract of Myricaria bracteata].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Ying; Yuan, Yi; Cui, Baosong; Li, Shuai

    2011-04-01

    To study the chemical constituents from the ethyl acetate extract of Myricaria bracteata. The chemical constituents were isolated and purified by chromatographic techniques, and their structures were identified by physical characters and spectroscopic analysis. Sixteen compounds were isolated from the ethyl acetate portion of the 95% ethanolic extract of Myricaria bracteata, and identified as myricarin (1), myricarin B (2), 3alpha-hydroxytaraxer-14-en-28-oic acid (3), myricadiol (4), trans-ferulic acid 22-hydroxydocosanoic acid ester (5), docosyl-3, 4-dihydroxy-trans-cinnamate (6), dillenetin (7), 3, 5, 4'-trihydroxy-7-methoxyflavone (8), 3, 5, 4'-trihydroxy-7, 3'-dimethoxyflavone (9), methyl 3, 5-dihydroxy-4-methoxybenzoate (10), 3-hydroxy-4-methoxy cinnamic acid (11), sinapaldehyde (12), vanillin (13), syringaldehyde (14), 3, 3', 4'-trimethoxyellagic acid (15), methyl p-hyroxybenzoate (16). Compounds 5, 6, 12-16 were isolated from the genus Myricaria for the fist time, all of the compounds were isolated from this plant for the fist time, except for 8 and 9.

  10. Tracking the Key Constituents of Concern of the WTP LAW Stream

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mabrouki, Ridha B. [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States); Matlack, Keith S. [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States); Abramowitz, Howard [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States); Muller, Isabelle S. [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States); Joseph, Innocent [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States); Pegg, Ian L. [The Catholic Univ. of America, Washington, DC (United States)

    2017-05-31

    The testing results presented in the present report were also obtained on a DM10 melter system operated with the primary WTP LAW offgas system components with recycle, as specified in the statement of work (SOW) [6] and detailed in the Test Plan for this work [7]. The primary offgas system components include the SBS, the WESP, and a recycle system that allows recycle of liquid effluents back to the melter, as in the present baseline for the WTP LAW vitrification. The partitioning of technetium and other key constituents between the glass waste form, the offgas system liquid effluents, the offgas stream that exits the WESP, and the liquid condensate from the vacuum evaporator were quantified in this work. The tests employed three different LAW streams spanning a range of waste compositions anticipated for WTP. Modifications to the offgas system and operational strategy were made to expedite the approach to steady state concentrations of key constituents in the glass and offgas effluent solutions during each test.

  11. Patch testing with a new fragrance mix - reactivity to the individual constituents and chemical detection in relevant cosmetic products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frosch, Peter J; Rastogi, Suresh C; Pirker, Claudia; Brinkmeier, Thomas; Andersen, Klaus E; Bruze, Magnus; Svedman, Cecilia; Goossens, An; White, Ian R; Uter, Wolfgang; Arnau, Elena Giménez; Lepoittevin, Jean-Pierre; Johansen, Jeanne Duus; Menne, Torkil

    2005-04-01

    A new fragrance mix (FM II), with 6 frequently used chemicals not present in the currently used fragrance mix (FM I), was evaluated in 6 dermatological centres in Europe, as previously reported. In this publication, test results with the individual constituents and after repeated open application test (ROAT) of FM II are described. Furthermore, cosmetic products which had caused a contact dermatitis in patients were analysed for the presence of the individual constituents. In 1701 patients, the individual constituents of the medium (14%) and the highest (28%) concentration of FM II were simultaneously applied with the new mix at 3 concentrations (break-down testing for the lowest concentration of FM II (2.8%) was performed only if the mix was positive). ROAT was performed with the concentration of the FM II which had produced a positive or doubtful (+ or ?+) patch test reaction. Patients' products were analysed for the 6 target compounds by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 50 patients (2.9%) showed a positive reaction to 14% FM II and 70 patients (4.1%) to 28% FM II. 24/50 (48%) produced a positive reaction to 1 or more of the individual constituents of 14% FM II and 38/70 (54.3%) to 28% FM II, respectively. If doubtful reactions to individual constituents are included, the break-down testing was positive in 74% and 70%, respectively. Patients with a positive reaction to 14% FM II showed a higher rate of reactions to the individual constituent of the 28% FM II: 36/50 (72%). Positive reactions to individual constituents in patients negative to FM II were exceedingly rare. If doubtful reactions are regarded as negative, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value for the medium concentration of FM II towards at least 1 individual constituent was 92.3% (exact 95% confidence interval 74.9-99.1%), 98.4% (97.7-99.0%), 48% (33.7-62.6%) and 99.9% (99.6-"100.0%), respectively. For the high concentration, the figures

  12. State of insulin self-association does not affect its absorption from the pulmonary route.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hussain, Alamdar; Ahsan, Fakhrul

    2005-06-01

    This study is designed to compare and contrast the pulmonary absorption profiles of monomeric and hexameric insulin in the presence or absence of ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) or n-tetradecyl-beta-d-maltoside (TDM). The pulmonary absorption of two forms of insulin was studied by monitoring the changes in plasma insulin and glucose levels after intratracheal administration of monomeric or hexameric insulin into anesthetized rodents. EDTA or TDM was added to the formulation in order to evaluate if either of these agents has effects on the rate and extent of pulmonary absorption of monomeric and hexameric insulin. The biochemical changes that may occur after acute administration of TDM-based formulation have also been investigated by estimating lung injury markers in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. A dose-dependent increase in the plasma insulin and decrease in plasma glucose levels was observed when increasing concentrations of hexameric or monomeric insulin were administered via the pulmonary route. Pulmonary administration of monomeric and hexameric insulin produced comparable absorption profiles in the presence or absence of EDTA or TDM. The bronchoalveolar lavage fluid analysis did not show differences in the levels of injury markers produced in TDM-treated rats and that produced in saline-treated rats, indicating no evidence for adverse effects of TDM in these short-term studies. Overall, in terms of rapidity of action and efficacy to reduce blood sugar, monomeric insulin did not provide advantages over hexameric insulin when administered via the pulmonary route.

  13. Effects of the cellulose, xylan and lignin constituents on biomass pyrolysis characteristics and bio-oil composition using the Simplex Lattice Mixture Design method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fan, Yongsheng; Cai, Yixi; Li, Xiaohua; Jiao, Lihua; Xia, Jisheng; Deng, Xiuli

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • Simplex Lattice Mixture Design was firstly applied to study biomass pyrolysis process. • Interactions between the constituents had effects on the biomass pyrolysis behavior. • Biomass pyrolysis behavior can be predicted based on the ratios of three constituents. • Bio-oil composition was affected by the constituents and their pyrolysis products. - Abstract: In order to clarify the relationships between biomass pyrolysis mechanism and its main constituents. The effects of main constituents on biomass pyrolysis characteristics were firstly determined by thermo-gravimetric analysis based on the Simplex Lattice Mixture Design to investigate that whether the prediction of the pyrolysis behavior of a certain lignocellulosic biomass is possible when its main constituent contents are known. The results showed that there are constituent interactions in the pyrolysis process, which can be intuitively reflected through the change laws of kinetics parameters. The mathematical models for calculating kinetics values were established, and the models were proved to be valid for predicting lignocellulosic biomass pyrolysis behavior. In addition, the effects of biomass constituents on bio-oil compositions were explored by subsequent vacuum pyrolysis experiments. The xylan pyrolysis had a certain inhibitory effect on the pyrolysis of cellulose, and the pyrolysis products of lignin might promote the further decomposition of sugars from cellulose pyrolysis, while the interaction between xylan and lignin had a little effect on the bio-oil composition.

  14. Constituents of Moquinia kingii Constituintes de Moquinia kingii

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elisandra Cristina Schinor

    2005-03-01

    Full Text Available Extraction of the constituents of total plant (aerial parts and roots of Moquinia kingii afforded three flavonoids described for the first time in the tribe Moquinieae. In addition sesquiterpene lactone and triterpenes were isolated. Structures were established by spectroscopic studies.A extração da planta total (partes aéreas e raiz de Moquinia kingii forneceu três flavonóides, descritos pela primeira vez na tribo Moquinieae, além de lactona sesquiterpênica e triterpenos. As estruturas foram determinadas por estudos espectroscópicos.

  15. Comparison between Serum and Saliva Biochemical Constituents in Dairy Cows during Lactation and Dry Period

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahmoud R. Abd Ellah

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The present study was undertaken to compare serum and salivary biochemical constituents during lactation and dry period in dairy cows. Also, the present study evaluated for the first time the salivary biochemical constituents in dairy cows. The study was carried out using 45 healthy multiparous Holstein cows maintained in dairy farms located in Morioka city (Iwate prefecture, Japan. Cows were classified into groups based on the month of lactation. Serum, saliva and milk samples were collected and analyzed. Data were statistically analyzed and the variation in serum and salivary biochemical constituents during lactation and dry period were discussed. From the present study, it could be concluded that the 1st month of lactation has the highest levels for serum free fatty acids (FFA, β- Hydroxy butyric acid (BHBA and aceto Acetic acid (ACAC. The dry period has the highest serum glucose level and the lowest serum FFA, BHBA and aspartate aminotransferase levels. Both serum and salivary FFA showed the highest value during the 1st month of lactation. Saliva contains a high level of gamma glutamyl transferase. The level of ammonia in saliva is higher than its serum level during all months of lactation and dry period. Most of the biochemical constituents in saliva change in different way from serum during lactation and dry period. Milk protein/fat ratio of 0.7 may be not indicative for subclinical ketosis.

  16. Contribution of different constituents to the toxicity of the essential oil ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The lethal toxicity of the major constituent of the essential oils of Vernonia amygdalina and Xylopia aetiopica, and of selected blends of these against Sitophilus zeamais (Motschulsky) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) was compared with those of the full blends of the essential oils. The compounds were assayed in amounts and ...

  17. Foraminiferal constituent in marine sediments - A parameter in some coastal engineering problems

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Setty, M.G.A.P.

    Foraminifera, among other microorganisms, form a major constituent of marine sediments and their composition is directly related to the nature of the substrate in which they are entombed. Past and the present data indicate that the size, test...

  18. Method of removing sodium deposited to constituent element of LMFBR type reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitsuta, Susumu; Nakagawa, Tamotsu.

    1989-01-01

    Spent reactor core constituent elements deposited with sodium are vertically embedded in an inactive powder contained in a container. Then, a blower for a gas circulation circuit disposed through the inactive powder from below is driven to supply inactive gases by way of a dispersion plate from blow the container. The inactive gases and/or mechanical vibrations fluidize the inactive powder and keep the inside of the container to 300 - 600degC. Then, sodium deposited to the reactor core constituent elements is deposited to the inactive powdery particles and evaporated. The inactive gases accompanying sodium vapors discharged from the container are cooled and sodium is separated by condensation and recovered. This can outstandingly reduce the amount of radioactive wastes and deposited sodium can be removed efficiently irrespective of the amount of heat generated. (T.M.)

  19. Nanoscale elasticity mappings of micro-constituents of abalone shell by band excitation-contact resonance force microscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Tao; Zeng, Kaiyang

    2014-01-01

    The macroscopic mechanical properties of the abalone shell have been studied extensively in the literature, but the in situ nanoscale elasticity of various micro-constituents in the shell have not been characterized and reported yet. In this study, the nanoscale elasticity mappings including different micro-constituents in abalone shell were observed by using the Contact Resonance Force Microscopy (CR-FM) technique. CR-FM is one of the advanced scanning probe microscopy techniques that is able to quantify the local elastic moduli of various materials in a non-destructive manner. Instead of an average value, an elasticity mapping that reveals the nanoscale variations of elastic moduli with location can be extracted and correlated with the topography of the structure. Therefore in this study, by adopting the CR-FM technique that is incorporated with the band excitation technique, the elasticity variations of the abalone shell caused by different micro-constituents and crystal orientations are reported, and the elasticity values of the aragonite and calcite nanograins are quantified.The macroscopic mechanical properties of the abalone shell have been studied extensively in the literature, but the in situ nanoscale elasticity of various micro-constituents in the shell have not been characterized and reported yet. In this study, the nanoscale elasticity mappings including different micro-constituents in abalone shell were observed by using the Contact Resonance Force Microscopy (CR-FM) technique. CR-FM is one of the advanced scanning probe microscopy techniques that is able to quantify the local elastic moduli of various materials in a non-destructive manner. Instead of an average value, an elasticity mapping that reveals the nanoscale variations of elastic moduli with location can be extracted and correlated with the topography of the structure. Therefore in this study, by adopting the CR-FM technique that is incorporated with the band excitation technique, the

  20. GC-MS Analysis of the Volatile Constituents in the Leaves of 14 Compositae Plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yiguang Wang

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The green organs, especially the leaves, of many Compositae plants possess characteristic aromas. To exploit the utility value of these germplasm resources, the constituents, mainly volatile compounds, in the leaves of 14 scented plant materials were qualitatively and quantitatively compared via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS. A total of 213 constituents were detected and tentatively identified in the leaf extracts, and terpenoids (especially monoterpene and sesquiterpene derivatives, accounting for 40.45–90.38% of the total compounds, were the main components. The quantitative results revealed diverse concentrations and compositions of the chemical constituents between species. Principal component analysis (PCA showed that different groups of these Compositae plants were characterized by main components of α-thujone, germacrene D, eucalyptol, β-caryophyllene, and camphor, for example. On the other hand, cluster memberships corresponding to the molecular phylogenetic framework, were found by hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA based on the terpenoid composition of the tested species. These results provide a phytochemical foundation for the use of these scented Compositae plants, and for the further study of the chemotaxonomy and differential metabolism of Compositae species.

  1. Semi-analytical Model for Estimating Absorption Coefficients of Optically Active Constituents in Coastal Waters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, D.; Cui, Y.

    2015-12-01

    The objectives of this paper are to validate the applicability of a multi-band quasi-analytical algorithm (QAA) in retrieval absorption coefficients of optically active constituents in turbid coastal waters, and to further improve the model using a proposed semi-analytical model (SAA). The ap(531) and ag(531) semi-analytically derived using SAA model are quite different from the retrievals procedures of QAA model that ap(531) and ag(531) are semi-analytically derived from the empirical retrievals results of a(531) and a(551). The two models are calibrated and evaluated against datasets taken from 19 independent cruises in West Florida Shelf in 1999-2003, provided by SeaBASS. The results indicate that the SAA model produces a superior performance to QAA model in absorption retrieval. Using of the SAA model in retrieving absorption coefficients of optically active constituents from West Florida Shelf decreases the random uncertainty of estimation by >23.05% from the QAA model. This study demonstrates the potential of the SAA model in absorption coefficients of optically active constituents estimating even in turbid coastal waters. Keywords: Remote sensing; Coastal Water; Absorption Coefficient; Semi-analytical Model

  2. Chemical and Radiochemical Constituents in Water from Wells in the Vicinity of the Naval Reactors Facility, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho, 1997-98

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    R. C. Bartholomay; L. L. Knobel; B. J. Tucker; B. V. Twining (USGS)

    2000-06-01

    The US Geological Survey, in response to a request from the U.S Department of Energy's Pittsburgh Naval Reactors Office, Idaho Branch Office, sampled water from 13 wells during 1997-98 as part of a long-term project to monitor water quality of the Snake River Plain aquifer in the vicinity of the Naval Reactors Facility, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho. Water samples were analyzed for naturally occurring constituents and man-made contaminants. A total of 91 samples were collected from the 13 monitoring wells. The routine samples contained detectable concentrations of total cations and dissolved anions, and nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen. Most of the samples also had detectable concentrations of gross alpha- and gross beta-particle radioactivity and tritium. Fourteen quality-assurance samples were also collected and analyzed; seven were field-blank samples, and seven were replicate samples. Most of the field blank samples contained less than detectable concentrations of target constituents; however some blank samples did contain detectable concentrations of calcium, magnesium, barium, copper, manganese, nickel, zinc, nitrite plus nitrate, total organic halogens, tritium, and selected volatile organic compounds.

  3. Stability of monomeric Cro variants: Isoenergetic transformation of a type I' to a type II' beta-hairpin by single amino acid replacements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mollah, A K M M; Stennis, Rhonda L; Mossing, Michael C

    2003-05-01

    The thermodynamic stabilities of three monomeric variants of the bacteriophage lambda Cro repressor that differ only in the sequence of two amino acids at the apex of an engineered beta-hairpin have been determined. The sequences of the turns are EVK-XX-EVK, where the two central residues are DG, GG, and GT, respectively. Standard-state unfolding free energies, determined from circular dichroism measurements as a function of urea concentration, range from 2.4 to 2.7 kcal/mole, while those determined from guanidine hydrochloride range from 2.8 to 3.3 kcal/mole for the three proteins. Thermal denaturation yields van't Hoff unfolding enthalpies of 36 to 40 kcal /mole at midpoint temperatures in the range of 53 to 58 degrees C. Extrapolation of the thermal denaturation free energies with heat capacities of 400 to 600 cal/mole deg gives good agreement with the parameters determined in denaturant titrations. As predicted from statistical surveys of amino acid replacements in beta-hairpins, energetic barriers to transformation from a type I' turn (DG) to a type II' turn (GT) can be quite small.

  4. Volatile Constituents of Valeriana hardwickii Wall. Root Oil from Arunachal Pradesh, Eastern Himalaya

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jayashankar Das

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The composition of the essential oil extracted from Valeriana hardwickii Wall. roots growing wild in Talle Valley of Arunachal Pradesh, Eastern Himalaya was analyzed by capillary GC and GC/MS. Thirty-one compounds representing 89.6% of the total oil were identified. The oil was found to be rich in sesquiterpenes from which oxygenated sesquiterpenes (25.7%. Methyl linoleate (21.1% and Valeracetate (11.6% were the major constituents present in the oil. Whereas, Bornyl acetate (11.2% and α-Terpinyl acetate (4.7% were the only oxygenated monoterpenes identified in the investigated sample. Essential oil and its constituents of V. hardwickii may be used as the substitute of highly traded Indian Valerian (V. jatamansi and European V. officinalis.

  5. Constituents of the leaf oil of Vietnamese Clausena excavata Burm.f

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leclercq, P.A.; Dung, N.X.; Thin, N.N.

    1994-01-01

    A detailed analvsis of the essential oil of Clausena excavata Burm.f. has been carried out by capillary dc and GC/MS. The oil contains more than 50 components, of which 40 have been identified. The main constituents found were beta-caryophyllene (25.3%), germacrene B (11.8%) !Uld beta-phellandrene

  6. Constituents of the essential oil from the flowers of Chromolaena odorata

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Baruah, R.N.; Leclercq, P.A.

    1993-01-01

    The essential oil obtained after hydrodistn. of the flower tops of C. odorata (yield 0.11%) afforded a-pinene (18.8%), b-cubebene (13%), and b-caryophyllene (10.2%) as the major constituents. The oil exhibited the following phys. properties: nD30: 1.503; [a]D29: -13.55 Deg

  7. Effects of Constituents and Lay-up Configuration on Drop-Weight Tests of Fiber-Metal Laminates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yanxiong; Liaw, Benjamin

    2010-02-01

    Impact responses and damage of various fiber-metal laminates were studied using a drop-weight instrument with the post-impact damage characteristics being evaluated through ultrasonic and mechanical sectioning techniques. The first severe failure induced by the low-velocity drop-weight impact occurred as delamination between the aluminum and fiber-epoxy layers at the non-impact side. It was followed by a visible shear crack in the outer aluminum layer on the non-impact face. Through-thickness shear cracks in the aluminum sheets and severe damage in the fiber laminated layers (including delamination between adjacent fiber-epoxy laminae with different fiber orientations) developed under higher energy impacts. The impact properties of fiber-metal laminates varied with different constituent materials and fiber orientations. Since it was punched through easily, the aramid-fiber reinforced fiber-metal laminates (ARALL) offered poorer impact resistance than the glass-fiber reinforced fiber-metal laminates (GLARE). Tougher and more ductile aluminum alloys improved the impact resistance. GLARE made of cross-ply prepregs provided better impact resistance than GLARE with unidirectional plies.

  8. Antischistosomal Activity of Two Active Constituents Isolated from the Leaves of Egyptian Medicinal Plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sanaa A. Ali

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Highlights D -mannitol, a naturally occurring sugar isolated from the leaves Ixora undulata Roxb., and a linear chain pectin homogalacturonan (HG polysaccharide isolated from the leaves of Linum grandiflorum Desf. (scarlet flax were evaluated for their therapeutic effect against schistosomiasis with biochemical and histochemical evaluations, and compared with the reference drug praziquantel, to assess the antioxidant and antischistosomal effects of D -mannitol and pectin. Abstract In this paper, we investigate the role of two active constituents isolated from the leaves of Egyptian medicinal plants. D -mannitol a naturally occurring sugar isolated from the leaves Ixora undulata Roxb., and the pectin a linear chain homogalacturonan (HG polysaccharide isolated from the leaves of Linum grandiflorum Desf. (scarlet flax. Both are evaluated for their therapeutic effect against schistosomiasis with biochemical and histochemical evaluations and compared with praziquantel, a reference drug. Biochemical studies of hepatic glucose, the glycogen content, and total serum protein were carried out, and histochemical evaluations through serum protein fractions separated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with different molecular weights (260–10 kDa were made in all groups, in addition to liver and body weight. D -mannitol and pectin show a remarkable effect in enhancing liver and kidney functions through enhancing most protein fractions in the serum of mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni. Also, the glucose and glycogen content in injured liver tissues improved, in addition liver and body weight in the infected groups. Thus they may be of therapeutic potential in the treatment hepatoxicity and nephrotoxicity.

  9. Geochemical and mineralogical investigation of uranium in multi-element contaminated, organic-rich subsurface sediment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qafoku, Nikolla P.; Gartman, Brandy N.; Kukkadapu, Ravi K.; Arey, Bruce W.; Williams, Kenneth H.; Mouser, Paula J.; Heald, Steve M.; Bargar, John R.; Janot, Noémie; Yabusaki, Steve; Long, Philip E.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Subsurface naturally reduced zones (NRZ) contain U and other potential co-contaminants. • The NRZ has a remarkable assortment of chemically complex, potential U hosts. • Micron-scale, multi-contaminant areas were discovered in NRZ. • U(IV) occurs as biogenic UO 2 (82%), or biomass – bound monomeric U(IV) (18%). • NRZs may exhibit contaminant sink-source complex behavior. - Abstract: Subsurface regions of alluvial sediments characterized by an abundance of refractory or lignitic organic carbon compounds and reduced Fe and S bearing minerals, which are referred to as naturally reduced zones (NRZ), are present at the Integrated Field Research Challenge site in Rifle, CO (a former U mill site), and other contaminated subsurface sites. A study was conducted to demonstrate that the NRZ contains a variety of contaminants and unique minerals and potential contaminant hosts, investigate micron-scale spatial association of U with other co-contaminants, and determine solid phase-bounded U valence state and phase identity. The NRZ sediment had significant solid phase concentrations of U and other co-contaminants suggesting competing sorption reactions and complex temporal variations in dissolved contaminant concentrations in response to transient redox conditions, compared to single contaminant systems. The NRZ sediment had a remarkable assortment of potential contaminant hosts, such as Fe oxides, siderite, Fe(II) bearing clays, rare solids such as ZnS framboids and CuSe, and, potentially, chemically complex sulfides. Micron-scale inspections of the solid phase showed that U was spatially associated with other co-contaminants. High concentration, multi-contaminant, micron size (ca. 5–30 μm) areas of mainly U(IV) (53–100%) which occurred as biogenic UO 2 (82%), or biomass – bound monomeric U(IV) (18%), were discovered within the sediment matrix confirming that biotically induced reduction and subsequent sequestration of contaminant U(VI) via

  10. Insecticidal Properties of Essential Oils and Some of Their Constituents on the Turkestan Cockroach (Blattodea: Blattidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gaire, Sudip; O'Connell, Mary; Holguin, Francisco O; Amatya, Anup; Bundy, Scott; Romero, Alvaro

    2017-04-01

    The Turkestan cockroach, Blatta lateralis (Walker), has become the most important peridomestic species in urban areas of the Southwestern United States. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of botanical compounds to control this urban pest. We tested the acute toxicity and repellency of six botanical constituents and three essential oils on Turkestan cockroach nymphs. Chemical composition of the essential oils was also determined. Topical and fumigant assays with nymphs showed that thymol was the most toxic essential oil constituent, with a LD50 of 0.34 mg/nymph and a LC50 of 27.6 mg/liter air, respectively. Contact toxicity was also observed in assays with trans-Cinnamaldehyde, eugenol, geraniol, methyl eugenol, and p-Cymene. Methyl eugenol and geraniol had limited fumigant toxicity. The essential oils from red thyme, clove bud, and Java citronella exhibited toxicity against nymphs. Cockroaches avoided fresh dry residues of thymol and essential oils. Chemical analysis of the essential oils confirmed high contents of effective essential oil constituents. Our results demonstrated that essential oils and some of their constituents have potential as eco-friendly insecticides for the management of Turkestan cockroaches. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  11. Rapid identification and simultaneous analysis of multiple constituents from Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf. by UPLC/Q-TOF-MS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Liang-Liang; Guo, Tao; Xu, Xu-Dong; Yang, Jun-Shan

    2017-07-01

    Rhubarb contains biologically active compounds such as anthraquinones, anthrones, stilbenes and tannins. A rapid and efficient UPLC/Q-TOF-MS/MS method was developed and applied towards identifying the constituents of Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf. for the first time. Chemical constituents were separated and investigated by UPLC/Q-TOF-MS/MS in the negative ion mode. The ESI-MS 2 fragmentation pathways of four types of compounds were interpreted, providing a very useful guidance for the characterisation of different types of compounds. Based on the exact mass information, fragmentation characteristic and LC retention time of 7 reference standards, 30 constituents were tentatively identified from the methanol extract of R. tanguticum. Among them, seven compounds were described for the first time from R. tanguticum and two from the genus Rheum were described for the first time. The analytical tool used here is valuable for the rapid separation and identification of multiple and minor constituents in methanol extracts of R. tanguticum.

  12. High-throughput LC-MS method for the rapid characterization of multiple chemical constituents and metabolites of Da-Bu-Yin-Wan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Xianna; Sun, Hui; Zhang, Aihua; Liu, Zhidong; Zou, Di; Song, Yanhua; Liu, Liang; Wang, Xijun

    2017-11-01

    Traditional Chinese medicine is the clinical experience accumulated by Chinese people against diseases. Da-Bu-Yin-Wan is a famous traditional Chinese medicine formula consisting of Phellodendri amurensis Rupr., Anemarrhenae asphodeloides Bge., Radix Rehmanniae Preparata and Chinemys reevesii. In this study, ultra high performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight high-definition mass spectrometry with the control software of Masslynx (V4.1) was established for comprehensive screening and identification of the chemical constituents and serum metabolites of Da-Bu-Yin-Wan in vivo and in vitro. Consequently, 70 peaks in the methanol extract from Da-Bu-Yin-Wan and 38 peaks absorbed into rat blood were characterized. The 70 constituents in vitro included alkaloids, flavonoids, polysaccharide, limonoids, flavonoid, etc. And the 38 constituents consist of 22 absorbed prototypes and 16 metabolites of Da-Bu-Yin-Wan absorbed in vivo. We fully clarified the chemical constituents of Da-Bu-Yin-Wan and provided a scientific strategy for the screening and characterization of the chemical constituents and metabolites of traditional Chinese medicine in vitro and in vivo. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  13. Phyto-Constituents And Anti-Oxidant Activity Of The Pulp Of Snake ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The phyto-constituents and antioxidant activity of the fruit pulp of Trichosanthes cucumerina L. have not been reported in literature and were therefore studied. Two identified morphotypes of this plant (Morphotype I [V1] having long fruit with deep green background and white stripes; and Morphotype II [V2] having light green ...

  14. Color exotic constituent quarks and their possible manifestations in hadron spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anisovich, V.V.

    1985-01-01

    Hypothetical colour-exotic constituent (or dressed) quarks are discussed. It is shown that the data on the excited baryons with Jsup(P)=1/2 + , 3/2 + and excited mesons with Jsup(P)=0 - , 1 - are in reasonable agreement with the hypothesis of the existence of colour-exotic quark in the colour state 6

  15. Two-dimensional numerical modelling of sediment and chemical constituent transport within the lower reaches of the Athabasca River.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kashyap, Shalini; Dibike, Yonas; Shakibaeinia, Ahmad; Prowse, Terry; Droppo, Ian

    2017-01-01

    Flows and transport of sediment and associated chemical constituents within the lower reaches of the Athabasca River between Fort McMurray and Embarrass Airport are investigated using a two-dimensional (2D) numerical model called Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC). The river reach is characterized by complex geometry, including vegetated islands, alternating sand bars and an unpredictable thalweg. The models were setup and validated using available observed data in the region before using them to estimate the levels of cohesive sediment and a select set of chemical constituents, consisting of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and metals, within the river system. Different flow scenarios were considered, and the results show that a large proportion of the cohesive sediment that gets deposited within the study domain originates from the main stem upstream inflow boundary, although Ells River may also contribute substantially during peak flow events. The floodplain, back channels and islands in the river system are found to be the major areas of concern for deposition of sediment and associated chemical constituents. Adsorbed chemical constituents also tend to be greater in the main channel water column, which has higher levels of total suspended sediments, compared to in the flood plain. Moreover, the levels of chemical constituents leaving the river system are found to depend very much on the corresponding river bed concentration levels, resulting in higher outflows with increases in their concentration in the bed sediment.

  16. Kaon-Nucleon scattering in a constituent quark model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lemaire, S.

    2002-06-01

    We have investigated Kaon-Nucleon (KN) interaction in a constituent quark model in the momentum range for the Kaon between 0 and 1 GeV/c in the laboratory frame. This study has been motivated by the fact that in an approach relying on a boson exchange mechanism the Bonn group was forced, in order to obtain good agreement with I = 0 s-wave phase shifts, to add the exchange of a short range fictitious repulsive scalar meson. This need for repulsion, whose range (∼ 0.2 fm) is smaller than the nucleon radius, clearly shows that the quark substructure of the nucleons and K + mesons cannot be neglected. The Kaon-Nucleon phase shifts are calculated in a quark potential model using the resonating group method (RGM). We have to cope with a five body problem with antisymmetrization with respect to the four ordinary quarks of the Kaon-Nucleon system. One requirement of our approach is that the quark-quark interaction must give a quite good description of the hadron spectra. One goal of the present work aims at determining the influence of a relativistic kinematics, in this constituent quark model, for the calculation of KN phase shifts. We have also investigated s, p, d, f, g waves KN elastic phase shifts and we have included a spin-orbit term in the quark-quark interaction. Then we have studied the influence of medium and long range exchange mechanism in the quark quark interaction on KN phase shifts. (author)

  17. Long-term exposure to elemental constituents of particulate matter and cardiovascular mortality in 19 European cohorts

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, Meng; Beelen, Rob; Stafoggia, Massimo

    2014-01-01

    Associations between long-term exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) and cardiovascular (CVD) mortality have been widely recognized. However, health effects of long-term exposure to constituents of PM on total CVD mortality have been explored in a single study only.......Associations between long-term exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) and cardiovascular (CVD) mortality have been widely recognized. However, health effects of long-term exposure to constituents of PM on total CVD mortality have been explored in a single study only....

  18. [Chemical constituents of Swertia angustifolia].

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Kang; Cao, Tuan-wu; Wang, Hong-ling; Geng, Chang-an; Zhang, Xue-mei; Chen, Ji-jun

    2015-09-01

    This present work is to study the chemical constituents of Swertia angustifolia. The whole plants of air-dried Swertia angustifolia was extracted with 90% EtOH. The water extract was suspended in H2O and extracted with petroleum ether, EtOAc and nBuOH, successively. The compounds were isolated and purified by column chromatography from the EtOAc fraction, and identified based on spectral analyses (MS, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR). Fourteen compounds were isolated and characterized as 1, 8-dihydroxy-3, 7-dimethoxyxanthone (1), 1, 8-dihydroxy-3, 5, 7-trimethoxyxanthone (2), 7-hydroxy-3, 8-dimethoxyxanthone-1-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (3), 8-0-[β-D-xylopyranosyl-(1-6) -β-D-glucopyranosyl] -1, 7-dihydroxy-3-methoxyxanthone (4), (+) -syringaresinol (5), ferulic acid (6), trans-coniferyl aldehyde (7), sinapaldehyde (8), trans-coniferyl alcohol (9), 3, 4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (10), 2-hydroxybenzoic acid (11), isophthalic acid (12), 2-furoic acid (13), and 2-methyl-4(3H)-quinazolinone(14). Compounds 2-14 were obtained from this plant for the first time.

  19. Chemical constituents and anticancer effects of the essential oil from leaves of Xylopia laevigata.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quintans, Jullyana de S S; Soares, Bruno M; Ferraz, Rosana P C; Oliveira, Allan C A; da Silva, Thanany B; Menezes, Leociley R A; Sampaio, Marília F C; Prata, Ana Paula do N; Moraes, Manoel O; Pessoa, Claudia; Antoniolli, Angelo R; Costa, Emmanoel V; Bezerra, Daniel P

    2013-01-01

    Xylopia laevigata, popularly known as "meiú" and "pindaíba", is a medicinal plant used in the folk medicine of the Brazilian Northeast for several purposes. The chemical constituents of the essential oil from leaves of X. laevigata, collected from wild plants growing at three different sites of the remaining Atlantic forest in Sergipe State (Brazilian Northeast), were analyzed by GC/FID and GC/MS. The effect of the essential oil samples was assessed on tumor cells in culture, as well on tumor growth in vivo. All samples of the essential oil were dominated by sesquiterpene constituents. A total of 44 compounds were identified and quantified. Although some small differences were observed in the chemical composition, the presence of γ-muurolene (0.60-17.99%), δ-cadinene (1.15-13.45%), germacrene B (3.22-7.31%), α-copaene (3.33-5.98%), germacrene D (9.09-60.44%), bicyclogermacrene (7.00-14.63%), and (E)-caryophyllene (5.43-7.98%) were verified as major constituents in all samples of the essential oil. In the in vitro cytotoxic study, the essential oil displayed cytotoxicity to all tumor cell lines tested, with the different samples displaying a similar profile; however, they were not hemolytic or genotoxic. In the in vivo antitumor study, tumor growth inhibition rates were 37.3-42.5%. The treatment with the essential oil did not significantly affect body weight, macroscopy of the organs, or blood leukocyte counts. In conclusion, the essential oil from the leaves of X. laevigata is chemically characterized by the presence of γ-muurolene, δ-cadinene, germacrene B, α-copaene, germacrene D, bicyclogermacrene, and (E)-caryophyllene as major constituents and possesses significant in vitro and in vivo anticancer potential. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  20. Identification of the Chemical Constituents in Aqueous Extract of Zhi-Qiao and Evaluation of Its Antidepressant Effect

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ming Wu

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available The immature fruit of Citrus aurantium L. (Zhi-Qiao, ZQ has been used as a traditional medicine in China. Our previous study has shown that ZQ decoction may contribute to the antidepressant-like action of Chaihu-Shu-Gan-San. However, there are no reports on the chemical constituents of ZQ aqueous extract or its anti-depression effects. Firstly, this research reported the on-line identification of the chemical constituents in the aqueous extract of ZQ by coupling ultra-performance liquid chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS. A total of 31 chemical constituents were identified in ZQ aqueous extract, including one tannic acid, five flavones, 13 flavanones, one limonoid, three coumarins, three cyclic peptides, and five polymethoxylated flavonoids. The antidepressant effect of ZQ aqueous extract was evaluated in vivo and the results indicated that the mice immobility time during the forced swimming test and the tail suspension test were significantly reduced with ZQ treatment. MTT assays showed both ZQ aqueous extract and its major constituents (naringin, hesperidin, neohesperidin, and nobiletin had neuroprotective effect on corticosterone-induced neurotoxicity in PC12 cells. The in vivo and in vitro results suggest that ZQ has an antidepressant effect.

  1. Use of time series and harmonic constituents of tidal propagation to enhance estimation of coastal aquifer heterogeneity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Joseph D.; White, Jeremy T.; Langevin, Christian D.

    2010-01-01

    A synthetic two‐dimensional model of a horizontally and vertically heterogeneous confined coastal aquifer system, based on the Upper Floridan aquifer in south Florida, USA, subjected to constant recharge and a complex tidal signal was used to generate 15‐minute water‐level data at select locations over a 7‐day simulation period.   “Observed” water‐level data were generated by adding noise, representative of typical barometric pressure variations and measurement errors, to 15‐minute data from the synthetic model. Permeability was calibrated using a non‐linear gradient‐based parameter inversion approach with preferred‐value Tikhonov regularization and 1) “observed” water‐level data, 2) harmonic constituent data, or 3) a combination of “observed” water‐level and harmonic constituent data.    In all cases, high‐frequency data used in the parameter inversion process were able to characterize broad‐scale heterogeneities; the ability to discern fine‐scale heterogeneity was greater when harmonic constituent data were used.  These results suggest that the combined use of highly parameterized‐inversion techniques and high frequency time and/or processed‐harmonic constituent water‐level data could be a useful approach to better characterize aquifer heterogeneities in coastal aquifers influenced by ocean tides.

  2. PLS-Prediction and Confirmation of Hydrojuglone Glucoside as the Antitrypanosomal Constituent of Juglans Spp.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Therese Ellendorff

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Naphthoquinones (NQs occur naturally in a large variety of plants. Several NQs are highly active against protozoans, amongst them the causative pathogens of neglected tropical diseases such as human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness, Chagas disease and leishmaniasis. Prominent NQ-producing plants can be found among Juglans spp. (Juglandaceae with juglone derivatives as known constituents. In this study, 36 highly variable extracts were prepared from different plant parts of J. regia, J. cinerea and J. nigra. For all extracts, antiprotozoal activity was determined against the protozoans Trypanosoma cruzi, T. brucei rhodesiense and Leishmania donovani. In addition, an LC-MS fingerprint was recorded for each extract. With each extract’s fingerprint and the data on in vitro growth inhibitory activity against T. brucei rhodesiense a Partial Least Squares (PLS regression model was calculated in order to obtain an indication of compounds responsible for the differences in bioactivity between the 36 extracts. By means of PLS, hydrojuglone glucoside was predicted as an active compound against T. brucei and consequently isolated and tested in vitro. In fact, the pure compound showed activity against T. brucei at a significantly lower cytotoxicity towards mammalian cells than established antiprotozoal NQs such as lapachol.

  3. I222 crystal form of despentapeptide (B26-B30) insulin provides new insights into the properties of monomeric insulin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whittingham, Jean L; Youshang, Zhang; Záková, Lenka; Dodson, Eleanor J; Turkenburg, Johan P; Brange, Jens; Dodson, G Guy

    2006-05-01

    Despentapeptide (des-B26-B30) insulin (DPI), an active modified insulin, has been crystallized in the presence of 20% acetic acid pH 2. A crystal structure analysis to 1.8 A spacing (space group I222) revealed that the DPI molecule, which is unable to make beta-strand interactions for physiological dimer formation and is apparently monomeric in solution, formed an alternative lattice-generated dimer. The formation of this dimer involved interactions between surfaces which included the B9-B19 alpha-helices (usually buried by the dimer-dimer contacts within the native hexamer). The two crystallographically independent molecules within the dimer were essentially identical and were similar in conformation to T-state insulin as seen in the T(6) insulin hexamer. An unusual feature of each molecule in the dimer was the presence of two independent conformations at the B-chain C-terminus (residues B20-B25). Both conformations were different from that of native insulin, involving a 3.5 A displacement of the B20-B23 beta-turn and a repositioning of residue PheB25 such that it made close van der Waals contact with the main body of the molecule, appearing to stabilize the B-chain C-terminus.

  4. Volatile Constituents, Inorganic Elements and Primary Screening of Bioactivity of Black Coral Cigarette Holders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ganggang Shi

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Black corals (BC have been used for a long time in Chinese medicine, and may have some pharmaceutical functions when used as material for cigarette holders in southeast China. This study is aimed to investigate the bioactivities of volatile constituents in BC and to explore the folklore behind the use of BC cigarette holders (BCCHs. We extracted the volatile constituents of BC by supercritical fluid extraction (SFE with carbon dioxide (CO2-SFE, then identified and analyzed the constituents by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS. In total, 15 components were reliably identified in BC and found to be biologically active. These included triethyl phosphate, butylated hydroxytoluene, cedrol, n-hexadecanoic acid, squalene, and cholesterol. Meanwhile 13 inorganic elements (P, Ca, Mg, S, B, Si, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ba, etc. were determined by inductively coupled plasma spectrometer (ICPS. In the bioactivity tests, the BC extract (BCE showed a scavenging activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radicals and hydroxyl radicals by phenanthroline-Fe (II oxidation and moderate inhibition of Gram-positive microorganisms. The antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of BC, which are related to the active chemical composition, may explain the perceived benefit for cigarette smokers who use BCCHs.

  5. Particle size and chemical constituents of ambient particulate pollution associated with cardiovascular mortality in Guangzhou, China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, Hualiang; Tao, Jun; Du, Yaodong; Liu, Tao; Qian, Zhengmin; Tian, Linwei; Di, Qian; Rutherford, Shannon; Guo, Lingchuan; Zeng, Weilin; Xiao, Jianpeng; Li, Xing; He, Zhihui; Xu, Yanjun; Ma, Wenjun

    2016-01-01

    Though significant associations between particulate matter (PM) air pollution and cardiovascular diseases have been widely reported, it remains unclear what characteristics, such as particle size and chemical constituents, may be responsible for the effects. A time-series model was applied to examine the cardiovascular effects of particle size (for the period of 2009–2011) and chemical constituents (2007–2010) in Guangzhou, we controlled for potential confounders in the model, such as time trends, day of the week, public holidays, meteorological factors and influenza epidemic. We found significant associations of cardiovascular mortality with PM_1_0, PM_2_._5 and PM_1; the excess risk (ER) was 6.10% (95% CI: 1.76%, 10.64%), 6.11% (95% CI: 1.76%, 10.64%) and 6.48% (95% CI: 2.10%, 11.06%) for per IQR increase in PM_1_0, PM_2_._5 and PM_1 at moving averages for the current day and the previous 3 days (lag_0_3), respectively. We did not find significant effects of PM_2_._5_-_1_0 and PM_1_-_2_._5. For PM_2_._5 constituents, we found that organic carbon, elemental carbon, sulfate, nitrate and ammonium were significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality, the corresponding ER for an IQR concentration increase at lag_0_3 was 1.13% (95% CI: 0.10%, 2.17%), 2.77% (95% CI: 0.72%, 4.86%), 2.21% (95% CI: 1.05%, 3.38%), 1.98% (95% CI: 0.54%, 3.44%), and 3.38% (95% CI: 1.56%, 5.23%), respectively. These results were robust to adjustment of other air pollutants and they remained consistent in various sensitivity analyses by changing model parameters. Our study suggests that PM_1 and constituents from combustion and secondary aerosols might be important characteristics of PM pollution associated with cardiovascular mortality in Guangzhou. - Highlights: • PM_1_0, PM_2_._5 and PM_1 were significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality. • We did not find significant cardiovascular effects of PM_2_._5_-_1_0 and PM_1_-_2_._5. • PM_1 might be most responsible for

  6. Antimelanoma and Antityrosinase from Alpinia galangal Constituents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chih-Yu Lo

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Two compounds, 1,7-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl-1,4,6-heptatrien-3-one (BHPHTO and bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDMC they have been isolated from the rhizomes of Alpinia galangal, and the structures of both pure constituents were determined using spectroscopic analyses. The study examined the bioeffectivenesses of the two compounds on the human melanoma A2058 and showed that significantly inhibited the proliferation of melanoma cells in the cell viability assay. This research was also taken on the tests to B16-F10 cell line and showed minor inhibitory consequences of cellular tyrosinase activities and melanin contents. Our results revealed the anticancer effects of A. galangal compounds, and therefore, the target compounds could be potentially applied in the therapeutic application and the food industry.

  7. The effects of flow-path modification on water-quality constituent retention in an urban stormwater detention pond and wetland system, Orlando, Florida

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gain, W.S.

    1996-01-01

    Changes in constituent retention in a wet stormwater-detention pond and wetland system in Orlando, Florida, were evaluated following the 1988 installation of a flow barrier which approximately doubled the flow path and increased detention time in the pond. The pond and wetland were arranged in series so that stormwater first enters the pond and overflows into the wetland before spilling over to the regional stream system. Several principal factors that contribute to constituent retention were examined, including changes in pond-water quality between storms, stormwater quality, and pond-water flushing during storms. A simple, analytical pond-water mixing model was used as the basis for interpreting changes in retention efficiencies caused by pond modification. Retention efficiencies were calculated by a modified event-mean concentration efficiency method using a minimum variance unbiased estimator approach. The results of this study generally support the hypothesis that changes in the geometry of stormwater treatment systems can significantly affect the constituent retention efficiency of the pond and wetland system. However, the results also indicate that these changes in efficiency are caused not only by changes in residence time, but also by changes in stormwater mixing and pond water flushing during storms. Additionally, the use of average efficiencies as indications of treatment effectiveness may fail to account for biases associated with sample distribution and independent physical properties of the system, such as the range and concentrations of constituents in stormwater inflows and stormwater volume. Changes in retention efficiencies varied among chemical constituents and were significantly different in the pond and wetland. Retention efficiency was related to inflow concentration for most constituents. Increased flushing of the pond after modification caused decreases in retention efficiencies for constituents that concentrate in the pond between storms

  8. Comparison of Chemical Constituents in Scrophulariae Radix Processed by Different Methods based on UFLC-MS Combined with Multivariate Statistical Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Shengnan; Hua, Yujiao; Zou, Lisi; Liu, Xunhong; Yan, Ying; Zhao, Hui; Luo, Yiyuan; Liu, Juanxiu

    2018-02-01

    Scrophulariae Radix is one of the most popular traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). Primary processing of Scrophulariae Radix is an important link which closely related to the quality of products in this TCM. The aim of this study is to explore the influence of different processing methods on chemical constituents in Scrophulariae Radix. The difference of chemical constituents in Scrophulariae Radix processed by different methods was analyzed by using ultra fast liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry coupled with principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis. Furthermore, the contents of 12 index differential constituents in Scrophulariae Radix processed by different methods were simultaneously determined by using ultra fast liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole-linear ion trap mass spectrometry. Gray relational analysis was performed to evaluate the different processed samples according to the contents of 12 constituents. All of the results demonstrated that the quality of Scrophulariae Radix processed by "sweating" method was better. This study will provide the basic information for revealing the change law of chemical constituents in Scrophulariae Radix processed by different methods and facilitating selection of the suitable processing method of this TCM. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  9. Statistical summary of selected physical, chemical, and microbial characteristics, and estimates of constituent loads in urban stormwater, Maricopa County, Arizona

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lopes, T.J.; Fossum, K.D.; Phillips, J.V.; Monical, J.E.

    1995-01-01

    Stormwater and streamflow in the Phoenix, Arizona, area were monitored to determine the physical, chemical, and microbial characteristics of storm- water from areas having different land uses; to describe the characteristics of streamflow in a river that receives urban stormwater; and to estimate constituent loads in stormwater from unmonitored areas in Maricopa County, Arizona. Land use affects urban stormwater chemistry mostly because the percentage of impervious area controls the suspended-solids concentrations and varies with the type of land use. Urban activities also seem to concentrate cadmium, lead, and zinc in sediments. Urban stormwater had larger concentrations of chemical oxygen demand and biological oxygen demand, oil and grease, and higher counts of fecal bacteria than streamflow and could degrade the quality of the Salt River. Most regression equations for estimating constituent loads require three explanatory variables (total rainfall, drainage area, and per- centage of impervious area) and had standard errors that were from 65 to 266 percent. Localized areas that appear to contribute a large proportion of the constituent loads typically have 40 percent or more impervious area and are associated with industrial, commercial, and high-density residential land uses. The use of the mean value of the event-mean constituent concentrations measured in stormwater may be the best way of estimating constituent concentrations.

  10. Essential oil constituents and antimicrobial activity of Pycnocycla bashagardiana Mozaff. from Iran.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alizadeh, Ardalan; Abdollahzadeh, Hamid

    2017-09-01

    Pycnocycla bashagardiana is a rare endemic and endangered species that has been used in folkloric medicine in Southern Iran. This study aimed to evaluate the essential oil constituents and antimicrobial activity of wild and cultivated p. bashagardiana. The aerial parts of wild and cultivated plants were collected from two provinces of Iran. The essential oil was isolated by hydrodistillation and analyzed by a combination of capillary GC and GC-MS. The main components in wild plants were myristicin (39.12%), (E)-β-ocimene (21.97%), sabinene (15.0%) and cis-iso-miristicin (2.67%) and in cultivated plants, (E)-β-ocimene (55.40%), myristicin (18.27%), (Z)-β-ocimene (12.47%) and cis-iso-miristicin (2.94%) were the main constituents in essential oil. The in vitro antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of P. bashagardiana were studied against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Escherichia coli and Candida albicans for the first time. The results showed that the oil exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against all the tested pathogens.

  11. Drought occurence

    Science.gov (United States)

    John W. Coulston

    2007-01-01

    Why Is Drought Important? Drought is an important forest disturbance that occurs regularly in the Western United States and irregularly in the Eastern United States (Dale and others 2001). Moderate drought stress tends to slow plant growth while severedrought stress can also reduce photosynthesis (Kareiva and others 1993). Drought can also interact with...

  12. Implications of Green Tea and Its Constituents in the Prevention of Cancer via the Modulation of Cell Signalling Pathway

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahmani, Arshad H.; Al shabrmi, Fahad M.; Allemailem, Khaled S.; Aly, Salah M.; Khan, Masood A.

    2015-01-01

    Green tea is commonly used as a beverage worldwide, especially in China, Japan, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia. Green tea and its constituents have been considered very effective in the prevention and treatment of various diseases. It contains a variety of catechins, which show a pivotal role in the modulation of biological activities and also act as chemopreventive agents. Earlier studies have confirmed that green tea and its chief constituent epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) have a potential role in the management of cancer through the modulation of cell signaling pathways. In this review, we focused on the beneficial effects of green tea and its constituents in the cancer prevention and treatment and its impact on modulation of molecular pathways. PMID:25977926

  13. Rubus fruticosus L.: constituents, biological activities and health related uses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zia-Ul-Haq, Muhammad; Riaz, Muhammad; De Feo, Vincenzo; Jaafar, Hawa Z E; Moga, Marius

    2014-07-28

    Rubus fruticosus L. is a shrub famous for its fruit called blackberry fruit or more commonly blackberry. The fruit has medicinal, cosmetic and nutritive value. It is a concentrated source of valuable nutrients, as well as bioactive constituents of therapeutic interest highlighting its importance as a functional food. Besides use as a fresh fruit, it is also used as ingredient in cooked dishes, salads and bakery products like jams, snacks, desserts, and fruit preserves. R. fruticosus contains vitamins, steroids and lipids in seed oil and minerals, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenes, acids and tannins in aerial parts that possess diverse pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, and antiviral. Various agrogeoclimatological factors like cultivar, environmental conditions of the area, agronomic practices employed, harvest time, post-harvest storage and processing techniques all influence the nutritional composition of blackberry fruit. This review focuses on the nutrients and chemical constituents as well as medicinal properties of different parts of R. fruticosus. Various cultivars and their physicochemical characteristics, polyphenolic content and ascorbic acid content are also discussed. The information in the present work will serve as baseline data and may lead to new biomedical applications of R. fruticosus as functional food.

  14. Rubus Fruticosus L.: Constituents, Biological Activities and Health Related Uses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muhammad Zia-Ul-Haq

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Rubus fruticosus L. is a shrub famous for its fruit called blackberry fruit or more commonly blackberry. The fruit has medicinal, cosmetic and nutritive value. It is a concentrated source of valuable nutrients, as well as bioactive constituents of therapeutic interest highlighting its importance as a functional food. Besides use as a fresh fruit, it is also used as ingredient in cooked dishes, salads and bakery products like jams, snacks, desserts, and fruit preserves. R. fruticosus contains vitamins, steroids and lipids in seed oil and minerals, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenes, acids and tannins in aerial parts that possess diverse pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, and antiviral. Various agrogeoclimatological factors like cultivar, environmental conditions of the area, agronomic practices employed, harvest time, post-harvest storage and processing techniques all influence the nutritional composition of blackberry fruit. This review focuses on the nutrients and chemical constituents as well as medicinal properties of different parts of R. fruticosus. Various cultivars and their physicochemical characteristics, polyphenolic content and ascorbic acid content are also discussed. The information in the present work will serve as baseline data and may lead to new biomedical applications of R. fruticosus as functional food.

  15. Hepatoprotective amide constituents from the fruit of Piper chaba: Structural requirements, mode of action, and new amides.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsuda, Hisashi; Ninomiya, Kiyofumi; Morikawa, Toshio; Yasuda, Daisuke; Yamaguchi, Itadaki; Yoshikawa, Masayuki

    2009-10-15

    The 80% aqueous acetone extract from the fruit of Piper chaba (Piperaceae) was found to have hepatoprotective effects on D-galactosamine (D-GalN)/lipopolysaccharide-induced liver injury in mice. From the ethyl acetate-soluble fraction, three new amides, piperchabamides E, G, and H, 33 amides, and four aromatic constituents were isolated. Among the isolates, several amide constituents inhibited D-GalN/tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha)-induced death of hepatocytes, and the following structural requirements were suggested: (i) the amide moiety is essential for potent activity; and (ii) the 1,9-decadiene structure between the benzene ring and the amide moiety tended to enhance the activity. Moreover, a principal constituent, piperine, exhibited strong in vivo hepatoprotective effects at doses of 5 and 10 mg/kg, po and its mode of action was suggested to depend on the reduced sensitivity of hepatocytes to TNF-alpha.

  16. Effect of potential waste constituents on the reactivity of Hanford ferrocyanide wastes: Diluent, catalyst, and initiator studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Scheele, R.D.; Johnston, J.W.; Tingey, J.M.; Burger, L.L.; Sell, R.L.

    1993-04-01

    During the 1980s, scientists at the Hanford Site began considering disposal options for wastes in underground storage tanks. As a result of safety concerns, it was determined that special consideration should be given to ferrocyanide-bearing wastes to ensure their continued safe storage. In addition, Westinghouse Hanford Company (WHC) chartered Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) to determine the conditions necessary for vigorous reactions to occur in the Hanford Site ferrocyanide wastes. As part of those studies, PNL has evaluated the effects of selected potential waste constituents to determine how they might affect the reactivity of the wastes. The authors' investigations of the diluent, catalytic, or initiating effects of potential waste constituents included studies (1) to determine the effect of the oxidant-to-ferrocyanide ratio, (2) to establish the effect of sodium aluminate concentration, (3) to identify materials that could affect the explosivity of a mixture of sodium nickel ferricyanide (a potential aging product of ferrocyanide) and sodium nitrate and nitrite, (4) and to determine the effect of nickel sulfide concentration. They also conducted a thermal sensitivity study and analyzed the results to determine the relative behaviors of sodium nickel ferrocyanide and ferricyanide. A statistical evaluation of the time-to-explosion (TTX) test results from the catalyst and initiator screening study found that the ferricyanide reacted at a faster rate than did the ferrocyanide analog. The thermal analyses indicated that the ferricyanide form is more thermally sensitive, exhibiting exothermic behavior at a lower temperature than the ferrocyanide form. The increased thermal sensitivity of the ferricyanide, which is a potential oxidation product of ferrocyanide, relative to the ferrocyanide analog, does not support the hypothesis that aging independent of the reaction pathway will necessarily reduce the reaction hazard of ferrocyanide wastes

  17. Biological degradation of partially oxidated constituents of stabilized sapropel; Biologischer Abbau teiloxidierter Inhaltsstoffe stabilisierter Faulschlaemme

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Scheminski, A.; Krull, R.; Hempel, D.C. [Technische Univ. Braunschweig (Germany). Inst. fuer Bioverfahrenstechnik

    1999-07-01

    Partial oxidation of sapropel with ozone destroys the cell walls of microorganisms in sludge and releases the cell constituents. Substances that are not biologically degraded because of the size or structure of their molecules are transformed into smaller, water-soluble and biologically degradable fractions by the reaction with ozone. The experiments aim to render the partially oxidated sewage sludge constituents highly biologically degradable using a minimum of oxidation agents. For the experiments described, stabilized sapropels with low biological activity are used. Hence the ozone is mainly used for the partial oxidation of recalcitrant constituents. (orig.) [German] Durch partielle Oxidation von Faulschlaemmen mit Ozon werden die Zellwaende der Mikroorganismen im Schlamm zerstoert und die Zellinhaltsstoffe freigesetzt. Dabei werden Substanzen, die aufgrund ihrer Molekuelgroesse oder -struktur biologisch nicht abgebaut werden, durch die Reaktion mit Ozon in kleinere, wasserloesliche und biologisch abbaubare Bruchstuecke ueberfuehrt. Ziel der Versuche ist es, durch den Einsatz moeglichst geringer Mengen an Oxidationsmitteln eine hohe biologische Abbaubarkeit der teiloxidierten Klaerschlamminhaltsstoffe zu erreichen. Fuer die hier vorgestellten Experimente wurden stabilisierte Faulschlaemme mit geringer biologischer Aktivitaet eingesetzt. Dadurch wird das Ozon vorwiegend zur Teiloxidation recalcitranter Inhaltsstoffe genutzt. (orig.)

  18. Viscosity of Associated Mixtures Approximated by the Grunberg-Nissan Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marczak, W.; Adamczyk, N.; Łężniak, M.

    2012-04-01

    Previous experiments demonstrated that microheterogeneities occur in liquid systems (2-methylpyridine or 2,6-dimethylpyridine) + water. They are most probably due to the association of the hydrates through hydrogen bonds between water molecules. Substitution of methanol for water causes that the mixtures become homogenous. The results of viscometric studies reported in this study confirmed that the molecular clusters in aqueous solutions are much larger than the complexes occurring in the methanolic systems. Taking into consideration "kinetic entities" rather than monomeric molecules, the dependence of viscosity on concentration and temperature have been satisfactorily approximated by the Grunberg-Nissan relation with two adjustable coefficients. The kinetic entities were trimers of water, dimers of methanol, and monomeric amines. The same approach proved to be valid for the activation energy of viscous flow as well.

  19. Deformed baryons: constituent quark model vs. bag model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iwamura, Y.; Nogami, Y.

    1985-01-01

    Recently Bhaduri et al. developed a nonrelativistic constituent quark model for deformed baryons. In that model the quarks move in a deformable mean field, and the deformation parameters are determined by minimizing the quark energy subject to the constraint of volume conservation. This constraint is an ad hoc assumption. It is shown that, starting with a bag model, a model similar to that of Bhaduri et al. can be constructed. The deformation parameters are determined by the pressure balance on the bag surface. There is, however, a distinct difference between the two models with respect to the state dependence of the ''volume''. Implications of this difference are discussed

  20. The chemical constituents from leaves of Acer saccharum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yu; Zhao, Hong

    2009-03-01

    To study the chemical constituents of leaves of Acer saccharum. The leaves of Acer saccharum were extracted by ethanol. The concentrated material was partitioned by petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol. After extracted by ethyl acetate, the extract was isolated and purified by silica gel column chromatography and recrystallization. The compound structures were identified on the basis of spectral data and chemical methods. Seven compounds were isolated from the leaves of Acer saccharum. Their compound structures were identified as 3-keton-ursane,3beta-hydroxy-12-olean-12-en and 5-en-7-hydroxy-sitosterol. All the three compounds identified are isolated from this genus for the first time.

  1. Hadron form factors in the constituent quark model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cardarelli, F.; Salme', G.; Simula, S.; Pace, E.

    1998-01-01

    Hadron electromagnetic form factors are evaluated in a light-front constituent quark model based on the eigenfunctions of a mass operator, including in the q-q interaction a confining term and a one-gluon-exchange term (OGE). The spin-dependent part of the interaction plays an essential role for obtaining both a proper fit of the experimental nucleon electromagnetic form factors and the faster than dipole decrease of the magnetic N-P 33 (1232) transition form factor. The effects of the D wave, produced by the tensor part of the OGE interaction, on the quadrupole and Coulomb N-P 33 (1232) transition form factors have been found to be negligible. (author)

  2. Sphagnum moss as a growing media constituent: some effects of harvesting, processing and storage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Kumar

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The Sphagnum material used in horticulture so far has been harvested manually, and most of the available data about Sphagnum properties have been obtained from this material. A question that remains unanswered is how changes during harvesting and processing, as well as the use of mechanical methods, affect the important properties of Sphagnum moss as a growing media constituent. Some of the effects have been evaluated in Sphagnum farming projects in Germany during the past ten years, and are described in this article. Different possibilities for drying, screening and cleaning the Sphagnum material are described. The results obtained indicate that Sphagnum moss can be dried and processed using mechanical methods without negative impacts on its quality as a growing media constituent.

  3. A GC/MS Profile of the Volatile Constituents of the Aerial Parts of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    NJD

    suitable for treating allergic rhinitis and other upper airway disorders.5 It has been confirmed ... constituents.8 Although A. abrotanum is rich in essential oils, its .... diethyl ether in an ultrasonic bath (Bandelin Electronics, Berlin,. Germany) for 1 ...

  4. Photochemical reactions of nucleic acids and their constituents of photobiological relevance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Saito, I.; Sugiyama, H.; Matsuura, T.

    1983-01-01

    A review is given of the papers published from 1977 to May 1983 on the UV-induced photochemical reactions of nucleic acids and their constituents of photobiological relevance where the structures of photoproducts have been fully characterized. Among the topics discussed are photoadditions relevant to nucleic acid-protein photocrosslinking, photoreactions with psoralens and nucleic acids and photochemical reactions of polynucleotides. (U.K.)

  5. Naturally occurring antifungal aromatic esters and amides

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ali, M.S.; Shahnaz; Tabassum, S.; Ogunwande, I.A.; Pervez, M.K.

    2010-01-01

    During the search of antifungal natural products from terrestrial plants, a new long chained aromatic ester named grandiflorate along with spatazoate from Portulaca grandiflora and N-[2-methoxy-2-(4-methoxyphenyl) ethyl]-trans-cinnamide and aegeline from Solanum erianthum of Nigeria were isolated and tested against six fungal species. The known constituents have not been reported so far from mentioned investigated plants. Structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated with the aid of spectroscopic techniques including two dimensional NMR experiments. Among the compounds, the esters found more potent than amides against Candida albicans and Aspergillus flavus. The new compound grandiflorate gave response against all tested fungal species while aegeline was found to give lowest inhibition during this study. (author)

  6. Naturally occurring antifungal aromatic esters and amides

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ali, M S; Shahnaz,; Tabassum, S; Ogunwande, I A; Pervez, M K [University of Karachi (Pakistan). HEJ Research Inst. of Chemistry, International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences

    2010-08-15

    During the search of antifungal natural products from terrestrial plants, a new long chained aromatic ester named grandiflorate along with spatazoate from Portulaca grandiflora and N-[2-methoxy-2-(4-methoxyphenyl) ethyl]-trans-cinnamide and aegeline from Solanum erianthum of Nigeria were isolated and tested against six fungal species. The known constituents have not been reported so far from mentioned investigated plants. Structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated with the aid of spectroscopic techniques including two dimensional NMR experiments. Among the compounds, the esters found more potent than amides against Candida albicans and Aspergillus flavus. The new compound grandiflorate gave response against all tested fungal species while aegeline was found to give lowest inhibition during this study. (author)

  7. Cytotoxic constituents of ethyl acetate fraction from Dianthus superbus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ding, Chengli; Zhang, Wu; Li, Jie; Lei, Jiachuan; Yu, Jianqing

    2013-01-01

    The ethyl acetate fraction (EE-DS) from Dianthus superbus was found to possess the cytotoxic activity against cancer cells in previous study. To investigate cytotoxic constituents, the bioassay-guided isolation of compounds from EE-DS was performed. Two dianthramides (1 and 2), three flavonoids (3-5), two coumarins (6 and 7) and three other compounds (8-10) were obtained. Structures of isolated compounds were identified by spectroscopic analysis. Cytotoxicity of the compounds against HepG2 cells was evaluated. Compound 1 showed the strongest cytotoxicity, compounds 10, 4, 3 and 5 had moderate cytotoxicity.

  8. Volatile constituents of the essential oil of Curcuma trichosantha Gagnep. from Vietnam

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ky, P.T.; Ven, van de L.J.M.; Leclercq, P.A.; Dung, N.X.

    1994-01-01

    The volatile rhizome oil of Curcuma trichosantha Gagnep. from Vietnam was analyzed by capillary GC and GC/MS. The main constituents were found to be curdione (47.4%), curcumol (7.0%) and germacrone (6.1%). The structure elucidation of curdione was confirmed by IR, 1H- and 13C-NMR spectrometry

  9. [Chemical constituents of Halenia elliptica].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hongling; Chen, Hao; Geng, Chang'an; Zhang, Xuemei; Ma, Yunbao; Jiang, Zhiyong; Chen, Jijun

    2011-06-01

    To study the chemical constituents of Halenia elliptica. The air-dried whole plants of Halenia elliptica were extracted with 90% EtOH. The EtOH extract was condensed to a small amount of volume and extracted with petroleum ether, EtOAc and n-BuOH, successively. The compounds were isolated and purified by column chromatography from the EtOAc fraction, and identified based on spectral analyses (MS, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR). 12 compounds were isolated from H. elliptica, and characterized as 8-hydroxy-2-methylchromone (1), 5-methoxy-2-methylchromone (2), 7-epi-vogeloside (3), coniferl aldehyde (4), sinapaldehyde (5), norbellidifolin (6), 1-hydroxyl-2,3,4,6-tetramethoxyxanthone (7), 1-hydroxyl-2,3,4,7-tetramethoxyxanthone (8), 1-hydroxyl-2,3,5-trimethoxyxanthone (9), together with azelaic acid, beta-sitosterol, and oleanolic acid. Compounds 1, 2 were new natural compounds and compounds 3-6, 10 were obtained from H. elliptica for the first time and compound 6 showed inhibitory activities against HBsAg and HBeAg secretion with IC50 value of 0.77 and < 0.62 mmol x L(-1), respectively.

  10. Identification of Insecticidal Constituents of the Essential Oil of Acorus calamus Rhizomes against Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shu Shan Du

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this research was to determine the chemical composition of the essential oil of Acorus calamus rhizomes, its insecticidal activity against the booklouse, (Liposcelis bostrychophila and to isolate any insecticidal constituents from the essential oil. The essential oil of A. calamus rhizomes was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC-FID and GC-MS. A total of 32 components of the essential oil of A. calamus rhizomes was identified and the principal compounds in the essential oil were determined to be α-asarone (50.09%, (E-methylisoeugenol (14.01%, and methyleugenol (8.59%, followed by β-asarone (3.51%, α-cedrene (3.09% and camphor (2.42%. Based on bioactivity-guided fractionation, the three active constituents were isolated from the essential oil and identified as methyleugenol, (E-methylisoeugenol and α-asarone. The essential oil exhibited contact toxicity against L. bostrychophila with an LD50 value of 100.21 µg/cm2 while three constituent compounds, α-asarone, methyleugenol, and (E-methylisoeugenol had LD50 values of 125.73 µg/cm2, 103.22 µg/cm2 and 55.32 µg/cm2, respectively. Methyleugenol and (E-methylisoeugenol possessed fumigant toxicity against L. bostrychophila adults with LC50 values of 92.21 μg/L air and 143.43 μg/L air, respectively, while the crude essential oil showed an LC50 value of 392.13 μg/L air. The results indicate that the essential oil of A. calamus rhizomes and its constituent compounds have potential for development into natural fumigants/insecticides for control of the booklice.

  11. Complexation of buffer constituents with neutral complexation agents: part II. Practical impact in capillary zone electrophoresis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beneš, Martin; Riesová, Martina; Svobodová, Jana; Tesařová, Eva; Dubský, Pavel; Gaš, Bohuslav

    2013-09-17

    This article elucidates the practical impact of the complexation of buffer constituents with complexation agents on electrophoretic results, namely, complexation constant determination, system peak development, and proper separation of analytes. Several common buffers, which were selected based on the pH study in Part I of this paper series (Riesová, M.; Svobodová, J.; Tošner, Z.; Beneš, M.; Tesařová, E.; Gaš, B. Anal. Chem., 2013, DOI: 10.1021/ac4013804); e.g., CHES, MES, MOPS, Tricine were used to demonstrate behavior of such complex separation systems. We show that the value of a complexation constant determined in the interacting buffers environment depends not only on the analyte and complexation agent but it is also substantially affected by the type and concentration of buffer constituents. As a result, the complexation parameters determined in the interacting buffers cannot be regarded as thermodynamic ones and may provide misleading information about the strength of complexation of the compound of interest. We also demonstrate that the development of system peaks in interacting buffer systems significantly differs from the behavior known for noncomplexing systems, as the mobility of system peaks depends on the concentration and type of neutral complexation agent. Finally, we show that the use of interacting buffers can totally ruin the results of electrophoretic separation because the buffer properties change as the consequence of the buffer constituents' complexation. As a general conclusion, the interaction of buffer constituents with the complexation agent should always be considered in any method development procedures.

  12. Effects of interfering constituents on tritium smears

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Levi, G.D. Jr.; Cheeks, K.E.

    1993-01-01

    Tritium smears are performed by Health Protection Operations (HPO) to assess transferable contamination on work place surfaces, materials for movement outside Radiologically Controlled Areas (RCA), and product containers being shipped between facilities. Historically, gas proportional counters were used to detect transferable tritium contamination collected by smearing. Because tritium is a low-energy beta emitter, gas proportional counters do not provide the sensitivity or the counting efficiency to accurately measure the tritium activity on the smear. Liquid Scintillation Counters (LSC) provide greater counting efficiency for the low-energy beta particles along with greater reliability and reproducibility compared to gas flow proportional counters. The purpose of this technical evaluation was to determine the effects of interfering constituents such as filters, dirt and oil on the counting efficiency and tritium recoveries of tritium smears by LSC

  13. Growing media constituents determine the microbial nitrogen conversions in organic growing media for horticulture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grunert, Oliver; Reheul, Dirk; Van Labeke, Marie-Christine; Perneel, Maaike; Hernandez-Sanabria, Emma; Vlaeminck, Siegfried E; Boon, Nico

    2016-05-01

    Vegetables and fruits are an important part of a healthy food diet, however, the eco-sustainability of the production of these can still be significantly improved. European farmers and consumers spend an estimated €15.5 billion per year on inorganic fertilizers and the production of N-fertilizers results in a high carbon footprint. We investigated if fertilizer type and medium constituents determine microbial nitrogen conversions in organic growing media and can be used as a next step towards a more sustainable horticulture. We demonstrated that growing media constituents showed differences in urea hydrolysis, ammonia and nitrite oxidation and in carbon dioxide respiration rate. Interestingly, mixing of the growing media constituents resulted in a stimulation of the function of the microorganisms. The use of organic fertilizer resulted in an increase in amoA gene copy number by factor 100 compared to inorganic fertilizers. Our results support our hypothesis that the activity of the functional microbial community with respect to nitrogen turnover in an organic growing medium can be improved by selecting and mixing the appropriate growing media components with each other. These findings contribute to the understanding of the functional microbial community in growing media and its potential role towards a more responsible horticulture. © 2016 The Authors. Microbial Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Applied Microbiology.

  14. Evaluation of allergenicity of constituents of myoga using the murine local lymph node assay.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Q J; Wei, C N; Harada, K; Minamoto, K; Okamoto, Y; Otsuka, M; Ueda, A

    2010-01-01

    Myoga (Zingiber Myoga Roscoe) is a perennial plant with a pungent smell from its flower buds. It is native to East Asia and has been reported to cause allergic contact dermatitis. The purpose of this study is to assess the allergenicity of myoga related to its major chemical components, alpha-pinene, beta-pinene, limonene, limonene oxide and beta-phellandrene, which are supposed to be the causative agents of contact dermatitis among myoga cultivators. We performed a toxicity study of the volatile constituents of myoga using the local lymph node assay (LLNA), in which limonene, limonene oxide and beta-phellandrene had positive responses and the EC3 was 35.8%, 8.22%, and 0.54%, respectively. EC3 for both alpha-pinene and beta-pinene was over 100%. Both chemicals failed to induce positive responses in the LLNA. While the maximization rating of limonene, limonene oxide and phellandrene were evaluated as moderate, extreme, and extreme respectively, alpha-pinene and beta-pinene were evaluated as weak in the previously reported GPMT. The usage of LLNA was also confirmed by comparing with previously reported GPMT results to detect the allergenicity of myoga constituents. The actual risk of humans developing an allergy to myoga constituents depends on many factors. The concentration of the compounds, the frequency and duration of exposure and the condition of the skin are supposed to be important factors.

  15. Quantitative analysis of the major constituents of St John's wort with HPLC-ESI-MS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chandrasekera, Dhammitha H; Welham, Kevin J; Ashton, David; Middleton, Richard; Heinrich, Michael

    2005-12-01

    A method was developed to profile the major constituents of St John's wort extracts using high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS). The objective was to simultaneously separate, identify and quantify hyperforin, hypericin, pseudohypericin, rutin, hyperoside, isoquercetrin, quercitrin and chlorogenic acid using HPLC-MS. Quantification was performed using an external standardisation method with reference standards. The method consisted of two protocols: one for the analysis of flavonoids and glycosides and the other for the analysis of the more lipophilic hypericins and hyperforin. Both protocols used a reverse phase Luna phenyl hexyl column. The separation of the flavonoids and glycosides was achieved within 35 min and that of the hypericins and hyperforin within 9 min. The linear response range in ESI-MS was established for each compound and all had linear regression coefficient values greater than 0.97. Both protocols proved to be very specific for the constituents analysed. MS analysis showed no other signals within the analyte peaks. The method was robust and applicable to alcoholic tinctures, tablet/capsule extracts in various solvents and herb extracts. The method was applied to evaluate the phytopharmaceutical quality of St John's wort preparations available in the UK in order to test the method and investigate if they contain at least the main constituents and at what concentrations.

  16. Chemical constituents and antihistamine activity of Bixa orellana leaf extract

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yong Yoke Keong

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Bixa orellana L. has been traditionally used in Central and South America to treat a number of ailments, including internal inflammation, and in other tropical countries like Malaysia as treatment for gastric ulcers and stomach discomfort. The current study aimed to determine the major chemical constituents of the aqueous extract of B. orellana (AEBO and to evaluate the antihistamine activity of AEBO during acute inflammation induced in rats. Methods Acute inflammation was produced by subplantar injection of 0.1 mL of 0.1% histamine into the right hind paw of each rat in the control and treatment groups. The degree of edema was measured before injection and at the time points of 30, 60, 120, 180, 240 and 300 min after injection. Changes of peritoneal vascular permeability were studied using Evans blue dye as a detector. Vascular permeability was evaluated by the amount of dye leakage into the peritoneal cavity in rats. To evaluate the inhibitory effect of AEBO on biochemical mediators of vascular permeability, the levels of nitric oxide (NO and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF were determined in histamine-treated paw tissues. The major constituents of AEBO were determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS analysis. Results AEBO produced a significant inhibition of histamine-induced paw edema starting at 60 min time point, with maximal percentage of inhibition (60.25% achieved with a dose of 150 mg/kg of AEBO at 60 min time point. Up to 99% of increased peritoneal vascular permeability produced by histamine was successfully suppressed by AEBO. The expression of biochemical mediators of vascular permeability, NO and VEGF, was also found to be downregulated in the AEBO treated group. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS analysis revealed that the major constituent in AEBO was acetic acid. Conclusions The experimental findings demonstrated that the anti-inflammatory activity of AEBO was

  17. Antidiabetic Properties, Bioactive Constituents, and Other Therapeutic Effects of Scoparia dulcis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karunaratne, D. Nedra

    2016-01-01

    This review discusses the antidiabetic activities of Scoparia dulcis as well as its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in relation to the diabetes and its complications. Ethnomedical applications of the herb have been identified as treatment for jaundice, stomach problems, skin disease, fever, and kidney stones, reproductory issues, and piles. Evidence has been demonstrated through scientific studies as to the antidiabetic effects of crude extracts of S. dulcis as well as its bioactive constituents. The primary mechanisms of action of antidiabetic activity of the plant and its bioactive constituents are through α-glucosidase inhibition, curbing of PPAR-γ and increased secretion of insulin. Scoparic acid A, scoparic acid D, scutellarein, apigenin, luteolin, coixol, and glutinol are some of the compounds which have been identified as responsible for these mechanisms of action. S. dulcis has also been shown to exhibit analgesic, antimalarial, hepatoprotective, sedative, hypnotic, antiulcer, antisickling, and antimicrobial activities. Given this evidence, it may be concluded that S. dulcis could be promoted among the masses as an alternative and complementary therapy for diabetes, provided further scientific studies on the toxicological and pharmacological aspects are carried out through either in vivo or clinical means. PMID:27594892

  18. Antidiabetic Properties, Bioactive Constituents, and Other Therapeutic Effects of Scoparia dulcis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pamunuwa, Geethi; Karunaratne, D Nedra; Waisundara, Viduranga Y

    2016-01-01

    This review discusses the antidiabetic activities of Scoparia dulcis as well as its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in relation to the diabetes and its complications. Ethnomedical applications of the herb have been identified as treatment for jaundice, stomach problems, skin disease, fever, and kidney stones, reproductory issues, and piles. Evidence has been demonstrated through scientific studies as to the antidiabetic effects of crude extracts of S. dulcis as well as its bioactive constituents. The primary mechanisms of action of antidiabetic activity of the plant and its bioactive constituents are through α-glucosidase inhibition, curbing of PPAR-γ and increased secretion of insulin. Scoparic acid A, scoparic acid D, scutellarein, apigenin, luteolin, coixol, and glutinol are some of the compounds which have been identified as responsible for these mechanisms of action. S. dulcis has also been shown to exhibit analgesic, antimalarial, hepatoprotective, sedative, hypnotic, antiulcer, antisickling, and antimicrobial activities. Given this evidence, it may be concluded that S. dulcis could be promoted among the masses as an alternative and complementary therapy for diabetes, provided further scientific studies on the toxicological and pharmacological aspects are carried out through either in vivo or clinical means.

  19. Antidiabetic Properties, Bioactive Constituents, and Other Therapeutic Effects of Scoparia dulcis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geethi Pamunuwa

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available This review discusses the antidiabetic activities of Scoparia dulcis as well as its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in relation to the diabetes and its complications. Ethnomedical applications of the herb have been identified as treatment for jaundice, stomach problems, skin disease, fever, and kidney stones, reproductory issues, and piles. Evidence has been demonstrated through scientific studies as to the antidiabetic effects of crude extracts of S. dulcis as well as its bioactive constituents. The primary mechanisms of action of antidiabetic activity of the plant and its bioactive constituents are through α-glucosidase inhibition, curbing of PPAR-γ and increased secretion of insulin. Scoparic acid A, scoparic acid D, scutellarein, apigenin, luteolin, coixol, and glutinol are some of the compounds which have been identified as responsible for these mechanisms of action. S. dulcis has also been shown to exhibit analgesic, antimalarial, hepatoprotective, sedative, hypnotic, antiulcer, antisickling, and antimicrobial activities. Given this evidence, it may be concluded that S. dulcis could be promoted among the masses as an alternative and complementary therapy for diabetes, provided further scientific studies on the toxicological and pharmacological aspects are carried out through either in vivo or clinical means.

  20. Elemental constituents of particulate matter and newborn’s size in eight European cohorts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pedersen, M.; Gehring, U.; Beelen, R.; Wang, M.; Giorgis-Allemand, L.; Andersen, A.M.N.; Basagaña, X.; Bernard, C.; Cirach, M.; Forastiere, F.; Hoogh, K. de; Gražuleviĉvienė, R.; Gruzieva, O.; Hoek, G.; Jedynska, A.; Klümper, C.; Kooter, I.M.; Krämer, U.; Kukkonen, J.; Porta, D.; Postma, D.S.; Raaschou-Nielsen, O.; Rossem, L. van; Sunyer, J.; Sørensen, M.; Tsai, M.Y.; Vrijkotte, T.G.M.; Wilhelm, M.; Nieuwenhuijsen, M.J.; Pershagen, G.; Brunekreef, B.; Kogevinas, M.; Slama, R.

    2016-01-01

    Background: The health effects of suspended particulate matter (PM) may depend on its chemical composition. Associations between maternal exposure to chemical constituents of PM and newborn’s size have been little examined. Objective: We aimed to investigate the associations of exposure to elemental

  1. Influence of drying temperature on the chemical constituents of jaboticaba (Plinia Jaboticaba (Vell. Berg skin

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Paula de C. Alves

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Jaboticaba is a fruit native to Brazil. Its skin represents up to 43% of the fruit and contains high levels of fiber, minerals and phenolic compounds. The use of the skin waste adds value to the fruit. However, one of the drawbacks of skin storage is the high water content, which requires drying processes to preserve the skin without leading to the loss of nutrients and antioxidants. The influence of different drying temperatures on the levels of nutrients and antioxidants was investigated. Jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell. Berg, genotype Sabará skins were lyophilized or dried at three temperatures (30, 45, and 60ºC, using food dryers. The skins were then ground, stored (protected from light and subjected to analysis of proximate composition, vitamin C, phytate, polyphenols, anthocyanins and antioxidant activity. The drying process had little effect on the proximate composition of the flour, presenting significant difference only for crude protein, fiber and non-nitrogenous extract. The greatest preservation of chemical constituents occurs in the lyophilized jaboticaba skins. Among the drying temperatures tested, however, the skins dried at 45 and60°C had more highly preserved nutritional substances and antioxidants.

  2. Melastoma malabathricum (L. Smith Ethnomedicinal Uses, Chemical Constituents, and Pharmacological Properties: A Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Mohd. Joffry

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Melastoma malabathricum L. (Melastomataceae is one of the 22 species found in the Southeast Asian region, including Malaysia. Considered as native to tropical and temperate Asia and the Pacific Islands, this commonly found small shrub has gained herbal status in the Malay folklore belief as well as the Indian, Chinese, and Indonesian folk medicines. Ethnopharmacologically, the leaves, shoots, barks, seeds, and roots of M. malabathricum have been used to treat diarrhoea, dysentery, hemorrhoids, cuts and wounds, toothache, and stomachache. Scientific findings also revealed the wide pharmacological actions of various parts of M. malabthricum, such as antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory, wound healing, antidiarrheal, cytotoxic, and antioxidant activities. Various types of phytochemical constituents have also been isolated and identifed from different parts of M. malabathricum. Thus, the aim of the present review is to present comprehensive information on ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemical constituents, and pharmacological activities of M. malabathricum.

  3. Dependence of transmittance and group index on the coupling strength between constituents of a metamaterial

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thuy Vu, Tran Thanh; Lee, Young Pak; Nguyen, Thanh Tung; Rhee, Joo Yull; Vu, Dinh Lam

    2011-01-01

    Recent studies on the coupling effects between constituent elements of metamaterials have opened up a new gateway to many fascinating electromagnetic properties and functionalities that cannot be explained by the uncoupled point of view. In this work, we numerically investigated, in a THz regime, the coupling between a cut wire and a split-ring resonator, which gives rise to an interesting phenomenon—the so-called electromagnetically induced transparency-like effect. The trade-off between the maximum transmittance of the transmission window and the group index, which depends on the coupling strength between constituent elements, was systematically studied. Furthermore, by characterizing this trade-off by the transmittance-delay product (figure of merit), a criterion for slow-light applications was provided

  4. Coating with luminal gut-constituents alters adherence of nanoparticles to intestinal epithelial cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heike Sinnecker

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: Anthropogenic nanoparticles (NPs have found their way into many goods of everyday life. Inhalation, ingestion and skin contact are potential routes for NPs to enter the body. In particular the digestive tract with its huge absorptive surface area provides a prime gateway for NP uptake. Considering that NPs are covered by luminal gut-constituents en route through the gastrointestinal tract, we wanted to know if such modifications have an influence on the interaction between NPs and enterocytes.Results: We investigated the consequences of a treatment with various luminal gut-constituents on the adherence of nanoparticles to intestinal epithelial cells. Carboxylated polystyrene particles 20, 100 and 200 nm in size represented our anthropogenic NPs, and differentiated Caco-2 cells served as model for mature enterocytes of the small intestine. Pretreatment with the proteins BSA and casein consistently reduced the adherence of all NPs to the cultured enterocytes, while incubation of NPs with meat extract had no obvious effect on particle adherence. In contrast, contact with intestinal fluid appeared to increase the particle-cell interaction of 20 and 100 nm NPs.Conclusion: Luminal gut-constituents may both attenuate and augment the adherence of NPs to cell surfaces. These effects appear to be dependent on the particle size as well as on the type of interacting protein. While some proteins will rather passivate particles towards cell attachment, possibly by increasing colloid stability or camouflaging attachment sites, certain components of intestinal fluid are capable to modify particle surfaces in such a way that interactions with cellular surface structures result in an increased binding.

  5. Cancer Chemoprevention Effects of Ginger and its Active Constituents: Potential for New Drug Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Chong-Zhi; Qi, Lian-Wen; Yuan, Chun-Su

    2015-01-01

    Ginger is a commonly used spice and herbal medicine worldwide. Besides its extensive use as a condiment, ginger has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for the management of various medical conditions. In recent years, ginger has received wide attention due to its observed antiemetic and anticancer activities. This paper reviews the potential role of ginger and its active constituents in cancer chemoprevention. The phytochemistry, bioactivity, and molecular targets of ginger constituents, especially 6-shogaol, are discussed. The content of 6-shogaol is very low in fresh ginger, but significantly higher after steaming. With reported anti-cancer activities, 6-shogaol can be served as a lead compound for new drug discovery. The lead compound derivative synthesis, bioactivity evaluation, and computational docking provide a promising opportunity to identify novel anticancer compounds originating from ginger.

  6. Space-time patterns of trends in stratospheric constituents derived from UARS measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Randel, William J.; Wu, Fei; Russell, James M.; Waters, Joe

    1999-02-01

    The spatial and temporal behavior of low-frequency changes (trends) in stratospheric constituents measured by instruments on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) during 1991-98 is investigated. The data include CH4, H2O, HF, HCl, O3, and NO2 from the Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE), and O3, ClO, and HNO3 from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS). Time series of global anomalies are analyzed by linear regression and empirical orthogonal function analysis. Each of the constituents show significant linear trends over at least some region of the stratosphere, and the spatial patterns exhibit coupling between the different species. Several of the constituents (namely CH4, H2O, HF, HCl, O3, and NO2) exhibit a temporal change in trend rates, with strong changes prior to 1996 and weaker (or reversed) trends thereafter. Positive trends are observed in upper stratospheric ClO, with a percentage rate during 1993-97 consistent with stratospheric HCl increases and with tropospheric chlorine emission rates. Significant negative trends in ozone in the tropical middle stratosphere are found in both HALOE and MLS data during 1993-97, together with positive trends in the tropics near 25 km. These trends are very different from the decadal-scale ozone trends observed since 1979, and this demonstrates the variability of trends calculated over short time periods. Positive trends in NO2 are found in the tropical middle stratosphere, and spatial coincidence to the observed ozone decreases suggests the ozone is responding to the NO2 increase. Significant negative trends in HNO3 are found in the lower stratosphere of both hemispheres. These coupled signatures offer a fingerprint of chemical evolution in the stratosphere for the UARS time frame.

  7. Butyryl- and acetyl-cholinesterase inhibitory activities in essential oils of Salvia species and their constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savelev, Sergey U; Okello, Edward J; Perry, Elaine K

    2004-04-01

    Extracts of Salvia (sage) species have been reported to have cholinergic activities relevant to the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. A lack of information on the inhibition of the enzyme butyrylcholinesterase, also considered to be a target in the treatment of the disease, prompted this in vitro investigation of the essential oils of S. fruticosa, S. lavandulaefolia, S. of ficinalis and S. of ficinalis var. purpurea for anti-butyrylcholinesterase activity. Dose-dependent inhibition of human cholinesterases by the extracts and constituents was determined using the method of Ellman. A time dependent increase in the inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase by the oils of S. fruticosa and S. of ficinalis var. purpurea was evident. IC(50) values decreased from 0.15 +/- 0.007 and 0.14 +/- 0.007 mg/mL after 5 min to 0.035 +/- 0.016 and 0.06 +/- 0.018 mg/mL after 90 min incubation time respectively. The slow onset of inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase was also shown by individual constituents, such as 3-carene and beta-pinene. Analyses of the chemical composition of the oils and anti-butyrylcholinesterase activity of their constituents revealed that none of the compounds tested would account for the total activity of the oils and that synergy is likely. Copyright 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  8. Filter-separable constituents of groundwater from the Columbia River plateau

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Seitz, M.G.; Boggs, S. Jr.

    1984-01-01

    The purpose of this procedure is to prepare groundwaters from the Columbia River basalt, northeastern Oregon, for batch partitioning experiments by concentration dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in water samples by ultrafiltration. Water samples were double-filtered through 0.4-μm Nuclepore polycarbonate filters to remove particulates before beginning the ultrafiltration process. The results of these experiments do not indicate a consistent relation between the distribution of americium with coexisting basalt and groundwater and the DOC content of the groundwater at 25 0 C, but there is some indication of increasing sorption of americium on basalt with increasing DOC at 90 0 C. However, any simple interpretation of the effects of DOC on the sorption behavior of americium must be made with caution, as there are other variables in the chemistry of the groundwaters that may also have important controls on this process. Another important observation from this set of experiments is that ultrafiltration does not seem to be an effective means of concentrating DOC without affecting the other trace constituents of groundwaters. The observed fractionation of groundwater chemistry as a result of the ultrafiltration procedure is not yet understood. However, for further progress in experiments of this type, it may be necessary to develop an alternative means of concentrating organic compounds that would allow the maintenance of constant values of other trace constituents as an experimental control

  9. Decaying Dark Atom Constituents and Cosmic Positron Excess

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Belotsky, K.; Khlopov, M.; Kouvaris, C.

    2014-01-01

    We present a scenario where dark matter is in the form of dark atoms that can accommodate the experimentally observed excess of positrons in PAMELA and AMS-02 while being compatible with the constraints imposed on the gamma-ray ux from Fermi/LAT. This scenario assumes that the dominant component...... of dark matter is in the form of a bound state between a helium nucleus and a -2 particle and a small component is in the form of a WIMP-like dark atom compatible with direct searches in underground detectors. One of the constituents of this WIMP-like state is a +2 metastable particle with a mass of 1 Te...... baryons in the universe to be close to -3....

  10. Gastrointestinal effects of Nigella sativa and its main constituent, thymoquinone: a review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farzaneh Shakeri

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Gastrointestinal (GI diseases affect a large number of people all over the world. Uncontrolled acid secretion and occurrence of gastric ulcers are common disorders of GI tract which pose serious problems to human health. Many synthetic drugs have been used to treat GI disorders but a definite cure has not been discovered so far and the available medications cause several side effects. Nigella sativa (N. sativa (Ranunculacea has several therapeutic effects which are attributed to its constituents like nigellicine, nigellidine, thymoquinone, dithymoquinone, thymol and carvacrol. Several beneficial pharmacological properties of this plant such as anti-oxidant, anti-bacterial, anti-histaminic, anti-hypertensive, hypoglycemic, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and immunomodulatory effects were reported and different therapeutic properties such as reliving bronchial asthma, jaundice, hydrophobia, paralysis, conjunctivitis, piles, skin diseases, anorexia, headache, dysentery, infections, obesity, back pain, hypertension and gastrointestinal problems, have been described for the seeds of N. sativa and its oil. The present review provides a detailed summery of scientific researches regarding gastrointestinal effect of N. sativa and its main constituent, thymoquinone.

  11. Quantification of Phenolic Constituents and Antioxidant Activity of Pterodon emarginatus Vogel Seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nádia R. Barbosa

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available In the present study the phenolic (Folin-Dennis and flavonoid (colorimetric assay constituents and the antioxidant activity of Pterodon emarginatus seeds were investigated in several samples prepared with different extraction procedures: essential oil (EO using a Clevenger-type apparatus; hexanic (HF, ethyl acetate (EAF, buthanolic (BF and methanolic (MF fractions using Soxhlet extraction, and extracts (1 g/extract obtained from different methods: reflux 80°C/30 min, ultrasound/30 min, static maceration/48 h and heating plate 100°C/45 min. These extracts were prepared using water or ethanol/water at 30:70 v/v, 50:50 v/v or 70:30 v/v. Antioxidant activity [2,2-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH] was tested only in the fractions obtained from Soxhlet extraction. The extract obtained from reflux using ethanol/water (70:30, v/v showed the highest phenolic constituents level. The EAF, BF and MF showed DPPH scavenging activities with IC50=163.22, 18.89 and 10.15 μg/ml, respectively.

  12. Investigation of inorganic constituents of commercial tea brands and fresh tea leaves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khan, H.; Hussain, I.

    2009-01-01

    The inorganic constituents including total hardness, total alkalinity, chlorides (Cr/sup -1/), sulphates (SO/sub 4/sup -2/), nitrates (NO/sub 3/sup -1/, nitrites (NO/sub 2/sup -1/ and phosphates (PO/sub 4/sup -3/) along with pH were monitored in various tea brands and fresh tea leaves available in Pakistan. The commercial 14 tea samples were collected from the local markets in Peshawar while fresh tea leaves was obtained directly from tea plants at the National Tea Research Center, Mansehra, Pakistan and analyzed for the above parameters. The results were compared with World Health Organization (WHO) standards for drinking water quality which showed that some parameters were higher than the WHO permissible levels indicating the environmental pollution threat in areas where the tea plants were grown Efforts have been made to draw any correlations with the reported constituents of the tea samples for the beneficial health effects or otherwise and their daily intake. The adverse effects of the tested parameters on human health have also been discussed. (author)

  13. Use of the quartz crystal microbalance to determine the monomeric friction coefficient of polyimides

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bechtold, Mary M.

    1995-01-01

    When a thin film of polymer is coated on to a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), the QCM can be used to detect the rate of increase in weight of the polymer film as the volatile penetrant diffuses into the polymer. From this rate information the diffusion coefficient of the penetrant into the polymer can be computed. Calculations requiring this diffusion coefficient lead to values which approximate the monomeric friction coefficient of the polymer. This project has been concerned with the trial of crystal oscillating circuits suitable for driving polymer coated crystals in an atmosphere of penetrant. For these studies done at room temperature, natural rubber was used as an easily applied polymer that is readily penetrated by toluene vapors, qualities anticipated with polyimides when they are tested at T(g) in the presence of toluene. Three quartz crystal oscillator circuits were tested. The simplest circuit used +/- 5 volt dc and had a transistor to transistor logic (TTL) inverter chip that provides a 180 deg phase shift via a feed back loop. This oscillator circuit was stable but would not drive the crystal when the crystal was coated with polymer and subjected to toluene vapors. Removal of a variable resistor from this circuit increased stability but did not otherwise increase performance. Another driver circuit tested contained a two stage differential input, differential output, wide band video amplifier and also contain a feed back loop. The circuit voltage could not be varied and operated at +/- 5 volts dc; this circuit was also stable but failed to oscillate the polymer coated crystal in an atmosphere saturated with toluene vapors. The third oscillator circuit was of similar construction and relied on the same video amplifier but allowed operation with variable voltage. This circuit would drive the crystal when the crystal was submerged in liquid toluene and when the crystal was coated with polymer and immersed in toluene vapors. The frequency readings

  14. Volatile chemical constituents of Piper aduncum L and Piper gibbilimbum C. DC (Piperaceae) from Papua New Guinea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rali, Topul; Wossa, Stewart W; Leach, David N; Waterman, Peter G

    2007-03-09

    Exhaustive hydro-distillation of the leaves of Piper aduncum and fruits of Piper gibbilimbum (Piperaceae) afforded colorless and pale orange colored oils in 0.35 and 0.30 % yields, respectively. Detailed chemical analysis by GC/MS indicated the volatile constituents of Piper aduncum to be composed of dill apiole (43.3%), beta-caryophyllene (8.2%), piperitione (6.7%) and alpha-humulene (5.1%), whilst the oil of P. gibbilimbum is dominated by the gibbilimbols A-D (74.2%), with the remaining major constituents being the terpenes camphene (13.6%) and alpha-pinene (6.5%).

  15. Method and apparatus for maintaining condensable constituents of a gas in a vapor phase during sample transport

    Science.gov (United States)

    Felix, Larry Gordon; Farthing, William Earl; Irvin, James Hodges; Snyder, Todd Robert

    2010-05-18

    A system for fluid transport at elevated temperatures having a conduit having a fluid inlet end and a fluid outlet end and at least one heating element disposed within the conduit providing direct heating of a fluid flowing through the conduit. The system is particularly suited for preventing condensable constituents of a high temperature fluid from condensing out of the fluid prior to analysis of the fluid. In addition, operation of the system so as to prevent the condensable constituents from condensing out of the fluid surprisingly does not alter the composition of the fluid.

  16. Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and its major constituent (curcumin) as nontoxic and safe substances: Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soleimani, Vahid; Sahebkar, Amirhossein; Hosseinzadeh, Hossein

    2018-02-26

    Curcumin is the major constituent of turmeric (Curcuma longa). Turmeric has been widely used as a spice in foods and for therapeutic applications such as anti-inflammatory, antihyperlipidemic, and antimicrobial activities. Turmeric and curcumin are nonmutagenic and nongenotoxic. Oral use of turmeric and curcumin did not have reproductive toxicity in animals at certain doses. Studies on human did not show toxic effects, and curcumin was safe at the dose of 6 g/day orally for 4-7 weeks. However, some adverse effects such as gastrointestinal upsets may occur. Moreover, oral bioavailable formulations of curcumin were safe for human at the dose of 500 mg two times in a day for 30 days, but there are still few trials and more studies are needed specially on nanoformulations and it should be discussed in a separate article. In addition, curcumin is known as a generally recognized as safe substance. This review discusses the safety and toxicity of turmeric and curcumin in medicine. Turmeric and curcumin are nontoxic for human especially in oral administration. Turmeric and curcumin are also safe in animals. They are nonmutagenic and are safe in pregnancy in animals but more studies in human are needed. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  17. Resonance Raman assignment and evidence for noncoupling of individual 2- and 4-vinyl vibrational modes in a monomeric cyanomethemoglobin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gersonde, K.; Yu, N.T.; Lin, S.H.; Smith, K.M.; Parish, D.W.

    1989-01-01

    We have investigated the resonance Raman spectra of monomeric insect cyanomethemoglobins (CTT III and CTT IV) reconstituted with (1) protohemes IX selectively deuterated at the 4-vinyl as well as the 2,4-divinyls, (2) monovinyl-truncated hemes such as pemptoheme (2-hydrogen, 4-vinyl) and isopemptoheme (2-vinyl, 4-hydrogen), (3) symmetric hemes such as protoheme III (with 2- and 3-vinyls) and protoheme XIII (with 1- and 4-vinyls), and (4) hemes without 2- and 4-vinyls such as mesoheme IX, deuteroheme IX, 2,4-dimethyldeuteroheme IX, and 2,4-dibromodeuteroheme IX. Evidence is presented that the highly localized vinyl C = C stretching vibrations at the 2- and 4-positions of the heme in these cyanomet CTT hemoglobins are noncoupled and inequivalent; i.e., the 1631- and 1624-cm-1 lines have been assigned to 2-vinyl and 4-vinyl, respectively. The elimination of the 2-vinyl (in pemptoheme) or the 4-vinyl (in isopemptoheme) does not affect the C = C stretching frequency of the remaining vinyl. Furthermore, two low-frequency vinyl bending modes at 412 and 591 cm-1 exhibit greatly different resonance Raman intensities between 2-vinyl and 4-vinyl. The observed intensity at 412 cm-1 is primarily derived from 4-vinyl, whereas the 591-cm-1 line results exclusively from the 2-vinyl. Again, there is no significant coupling between 2-vinyl and 4-vinyl for these two bending modes

  18. Transverse energy distribution and hard constituent scattering in hadronic collisions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Torsten Åkesson

    1983-01-01

    Full Text Available We estimate the contributions to the total transverse energy spectrum from hard constituent scattering and the soft hadronic spectrum in hadron collisions. The transverse energy at which jet production starts to dominate is found to be essentially independent of the cms-energy (for large enough s and roughly a linear function of rapidity and azimuthal angle interval included. Calculations are presented for pp collisions at s= 25and60GeV, andp¯p interactions at s= 540GeV.

  19. Current quarks and constituent-classification quarks: some questions and ideas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Close, F.E.

    1977-01-01

    A brief introduction is given to the spin dependence of inelastic photo and electroproduction. Parton model predictions of Kuti and Weisskopf are then criticized and a paradox noted in connection with a sum rule of Bjorken. The resolution of this paradox raises several questions concerning the constituent and current quark approaches to resonance excitation. Particular attention is given to current algebra constraints, angular momentum in the nucleon, the x → 1 behavior of inelastic electroproduction, psi production and radiative decays

  20. Magnesium affects rubber biosynthesis and particle stability in Ficus elastica, Hevea brasiliensis and Parthenium argentatum

    Science.gov (United States)

    Natural rubber biosynthesis occurs in laticifers of Ficus elastica and Hevea brasiliensis, and in parenchyma cells of Parthenium argentatum. Natural rubber is synthesized by rubber transferase using allylic pyrophosphates as initiators, isopentenyl pyrophosphate as monomeric substrate and magnesium ...

  1. Chemical Constituents of Caesalpinia decapetala (Roth Alston

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Song Yang

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The current study targets the chemical constituents of Caesalpinia decapetala (Roth Alston and investigates the bioactivities of the isolated compounds. Fourteen known compounds were isolated using column chromatography, and structural identification was performed by physical and spectral analyses. The biological activities of the compounds were also evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethythiazol-2-yl-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT and 2,2-diphenlyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH assays. Emodin (6, baicalein (9, and apigenin (12 displayed antitumor activities against the MGC-803 cell line, while quercetin (2, rutin (5, baicalein (9, and epicatechin (13 showed stronger DPPH scavenging activities compared with ascorbic acid. Andrographolide (1, quercetin (2, bergenin (4, rutin (5, emodin (6, betulin (7, baicalein (9, polydatin (10, salicin (11, and apigenin (12, were obtained from C. decapetala (Roth Alston for the first time.

  2. [Advances in research of chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of common used spices].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Chao-nan; Zhu, Yuan; Xu, Xi-ming; Yu, Jiang-nan

    2014-11-01

    Spices have enjoyed a long history and a worldwide application. Of particular interest is the pharmaceutical value of spices in addition to its basic seasoning function in cooking. Concretely, equipped with complex chemical compositions, spices are of significant importance in pharmacologic actions, like antioxidant, antibacterial, antitumor, as well as therapeutical effects in gastrointestinal disorders and cardiovascular disease. Although increasing evidences in support of its distinct role in the medical field has recently reported, little information is available for substantive, thorough and sophisticated researches on its chemical constituents and pharmacological activities, especially mechanism of these actions. Therefore, in popular wave of studies directed at a single spice, this review presents systematic studies on the chemical constituents and pharmacological activities associated with common used spices, together with current typical individual studies on functional mechanism, in order to pave the way for the exploitation and development of new medicines derived from the chemical compounds of spice (such as, piperine, curcumin, geniposide, cinnamaldehyde, cinnamic acid, linalool, estragole, perillaldehyde, syringic acid, crocin).

  3. Analyses of the essential oil from Bunium persicum fruit and its antioxidant constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nickavar, Bahman; Adeli, Abrisham; Nickavar, Azar

    2014-01-01

    This study was aimed to analyze and identify the antioxidant constituents of the essential oil of Bunium persicum (Apiaceae) fruit. The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyses by GC-FID and GC-MS. The essential oil was tested for antioxidant capacity in DPPH radical scavenging and linoleic acid/β-carotene assays. The TLC-bioautography method based on DPPH radical assay and GC analyses were carried out to characterize the major antioxidant compounds in the essential oil. GC analyses showed the presence of sixteen compounds with p-cymene (31.1%), cuminaldehyde (22.2%), and γ-terpinene (11.4%) as the main components in the essential oil. The oil exhibited good radical scavenging [IC50 (DPPH·) = 4.47 (3.96 - 5.05) mg/mL] and antilipid peroxidation [IC50 (β-carotene bleaching) = 0.22 (0.16 - 0.31) mg/mL] activities. The TLC tests resulted in identification of cuminaldehyde, p-cymene-7-ol, and cuminyl acetate as the main constituents of the active oil fraction.

  4. Volatile constituents of commercial imported and domestic black-ripe table olives (Olea europaea).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sansone-Land, Angelina; Takeoka, Gary R; Shoemaker, Charles F

    2014-04-15

    Volatile constituents of commercial black-ripe table olives (Olea europaea) from the United States, Spain, Egypt and Morocco were analysed by gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Dynamic headspace sampling was used to isolate a variety of aldehydes, alcohols, esters, ketones, phenols, terpenes, norisoprenoids, and pyridines. Odour unit values, calculated from concentration and odour threshold data, indicate that the following compounds are major contributors to black-ripe table olive aroma: β-damascenone, nonanal, (E)-dec-2-enal, 3-methylbutanal, ethyl benzoate, octanal, 2-methoxyphenol, 2-methylbutanal and 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol. Imported olives contained a variety of fermentation derived volatiles that were not detected in domestic olives. Constituents such as ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl 3-methylbutanoate, 3-methylbutyl acetate, oct-1-en-3-one, ethyl hexanoate, (Z)-hex-3-enyl acetate, hexyl acetate, ethyl cyclohexanecarboxylate, benzyl acetate and 4-ethylphenol contributed to the odour of imported olives but were not detected in domestic olives. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  5. Study on the Chemical Constituents and Antibacterial Activity of Kelussia odoratissima and Teucrium polium Essential Oils against Some Food Borne Pathogens

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    mansour Mashreghi

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available In this research the essential oils (EOs of Kelussia odoratissima and Teucrium polium were extracted by hydrodistillation. Extracted essential oils constituents were analyzed by gas chromatograph (GC and GC/mass spectrometry and the essential oils constituents identified according to retention time and mass spectrum. Then minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC of the essential oils against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes، Escherichia coli O157H7, Salmonella enterica, and Pseudomonas aureogenosa were determined by microdilution technique using ELISA reader. The results showed that there are differences between the essential oils constituents as the main constituents in Kelussia odoratissima were (Z-ligustilide, (Z-3-butylidene-phthalide, limonene+-phellandren B. The main constituents of Teucrium polium essential oils were β-caryophylene, Germacrene D, γ-cadinene, (Z- nerolidol, camphor, β-pinene, α- camphene, linalool, α-humulene. The MIC of Kelussia odoratissima EO was between 0.31 mg/ml (for S. aureus to 2.5 mg/ml (for Salmonella enterica but MIC of the Teucrium polium EO was between 0.16 mg/ml (for S. aureus and 1.25 mg/ml (for Salmonella enterica. In conclusion, indigenous medicinal plants could be used for effective control of food borne pathogens as a complementary method that has less unfavorable effect on organoleptic attitudes of each products

  6. Determination of chemical constituents of leaf and stem essential oils of Artemisia monosperma from central Saudi Arabia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Merajuddin; Mousa, Ahmad A; Syamasundar, Kodakandla V; Alkhathlan, Hamad Z

    2012-08-01

    The leaf and stem essential oils of Artemisia monosperma from the desert region of central Saudi Arabia were analysed by gas chromatography-based techniques (GC-FID, GC-MS, Co-GC, LRI determination, database and literature search) using polar as well as non-polar columns, which resulted in the identification of 130 components, of which 81 were common to both oils. In the leaf oil 120 compounds were identified, while 91 were identified in the stem oil accounting for 98.4% and 99.7% of the oil composition, respectively. The major constituents of the leaf oil were beta-pinene (50.3%), a-terpinolene (10.0%), limonene (5.4%) and a-pinene (4.6%), while the major constituents of the stem oil were beta-pinene (36.7%), a-terpinolene (6.4%), limonene (4.8%), beta-maaliene (3.7%), shyobunone (3.2%) and a-pinene (3.1%). The two oils showed an important qualitative similarity. However, some specific constituents (39 in the leaf oil and 10 in the stem oil) allow differentiation of the two essential oils.

  7. Essential Oils and Their Constituents Targeting the GABAergic System and Sodium Channels as Treatment of Neurological Diseases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ze-Jun Wang

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Essential oils and the constituents in them exhibit different pharmacological activities, such as antinociceptive, anxiolytic-like, and anticonvulsant effects. They are widely applied as a complementary therapy for people with anxiety, insomnia, convulsion, pain, and cognitive deficit symptoms through inhalation, oral administration, and aromatherapy. Recent studies show that essential oils are emerging as a promising source for modulation of the GABAergic system and sodium ion channels. This review summarizes the recent findings regarding the pharmacological properties of essential oils and compounds from the oils and the mechanisms underlying their effects. Specifically, the review focuses on the essential oils and their constituents targeting the GABAergic system and sodium channels, and their antinociceptive, anxiolytic, and anticonvulsant properties. Some constituents target transient receptor potential (TRP channels to exert analgesic effects. Some components could interact with multiple therapeutic target proteins, for example, inhibit the function of sodium channels and, at the same time, activate GABAA receptors. The review concentrates on perspective compounds that could be better candidates for new drug development in the control of pain and anxiety syndromes.

  8. A recent review on phytochemical constituents and medicinal properties of kesum (Polygonum minus Huds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paritala Vikram

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Medicinal plants and herbal preparations are gaining renowned interest in scientific communities nowadays due to their reliable pharmacological actions and affordability to common people which makes them effective in control of various diseases. Polygonum minus (Polygonaceae locally known as kesum is an aromatic plant commonly used in Malay delicacies. The plant is having potential applications due to its high volatile oil constituents in perfumes and powerful antioxidant activity. It has been used traditionally to treat various ailments including dandruff. The research has been carried out by various researchers using different in vitro and in vivo models for biological evaluations to support these claims. This review paper may help upcoming research activities on Polygonum minus by giving up to date information on the phytochemical constituents and medicinal properties of kesum to a possible extent with relevant data.

  9. Recent Advances in Astragalus membranaceus Anti-Diabetic Research: Pharmacological Effects of Its Phytochemical Constituents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kojo Agyemang

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The disease burden of diabetes mellitus is increasing throughout the world. The need for more potent drugs to complement the present anti-diabetic drugs has become an imperative. Astragalus membranaceus, a key component of most Chinese herbal anti-diabetic formulas, has been an important prospect for lead anti-diabetic compounds. It has been progressively studied for its anti-diabetic properties. Ethnopharmacological studies have established its potential to alleviate diabetes mellitus. Recent studies have sought to relate its chemical constituents to types 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus. Its total polysaccharides, saponins, and flavonoids fractions and several isolated compounds have been the most studied. The total polysaccharides fraction demonstrated activity to both types 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus. This paper discusses the anti-diabetic effects and pharmacological action of the chemical constituents in relation to types 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus.

  10. Constituent Order in Minimalist Syntax, Universals and Parameters. (VP-Specifier and VP-Complement Order

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rachid Bouziane

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Natural Languages adopt a variety of structural strategies and architectures in ordering syntactic constituents. We will try in this paper to explain how these strategies and architectures are explained within the Minimalist Program framework. According to this framework, the most significant parametric differences between natural languages in constituent word order are widely and strongly limited to lexical differences. They are specifically attributed to the N-features and V-features of lexical items that occupy the functional category nodes, basically elements belonging to the functional categories Agreement and Tense: “The N-features are those that are checked off against a DP in [Spec, AGRP] (or, potentially, [Spec, TP]”, and “the V-features are those that are checked off against a V that adjoins to a functional head”.

  11. Metabolism by grasshoppers of volatile chemical constituents from Mangifera indica and Solanum paniculatum leaves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramos, Clécio S; Ramos, Natália S M; Da Silva, Rodolfo R; Da Câmara, Cláudio A G; Almeida, Argus V

    2012-12-01

    The chemical volatiles from plant leaves and their biological activities have been extensively studied. However, no studies have addressed plant-chemical volatiles after undergoing the digestive process in host insects. Here we describe for the first time chemical profiles of volatile constituents from Solanum paniculatum and Mangifera indica leaves metabolized by grasshoppers. Both profiles were qualitatively and quantitatively different from the profiles of non-metabolized leaves. The amount of nerolidol, the major constituent of S. paniculatum leaves, decreased and other sesquiterpenes, such as spathulenol, were formed during the digestive process of the grasshopper Chromacris speciosa. In M. indica, the presence of phenylpropanoids was observed (dillapiole, Z-asarone, E-asarone and γ-asarone) in the leaves metabolized by the grasshopper Tropidacris collaris, but these compounds were not found in the non-metabolized leaves. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Total allowable concentrations of monomeric inorganic aluminum and hydrated aluminum silicates in drinking water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willhite, Calvin C; Ball, Gwendolyn L; McLellan, Clifton J

    2012-05-01

    Maximum contaminant levels are used to control potential health hazards posed by chemicals in drinking water, but no primary national or international limits for aluminum (Al) have been adopted. Given the differences in toxicological profiles, the present evaluation derives total allowable concentrations for certain water-soluble inorganic Al compounds (including chloride, hydroxide, oxide, phosphate and sulfate) and for the hydrated Al silicates (including attapulgite, bentonite/montmorillonite, illite, kaolinite) in drinking water. The chemistry, toxicology and clinical experience with Al materials are extensive and depend upon the particular physical and chemical form. In general, the water solubility of the monomeric Al materials depends on pH and their water solubility and gastrointestinal bioavailability are much greater than that of the hydrated Al silicates. Other than Al-containing antacids and buffered aspirin, food is the primary source of Al exposure for most healthy people. Systemic uptake of Al after ingestion of the monomeric salts is somewhat greater from drinking water (0.28%) than from food (0.1%). Once absorbed, Al accumulates in bone, brain, liver and kidney, with bone as the major site for Al deposition in humans. Oral Al hydroxide is used routinely to bind phosphate salts in the gut to control hyperphosphatemia in people with compromised renal function. Signs of chronic Al toxicity in the musculoskeletal system include a vitamin D-resistant osteomalacia (deranged membranous bone formation characterized by accumulation of the osteoid matrix and reduced mineralization, reduced numbers of osteoblasts and osteoclasts, decreased lamellar and osteoid bands with elevated Al concentrations) presenting as bone pain and proximal myopathy. Aluminum-induced bone disease can progress to stress fractures of the ribs, femur, vertebrae, humerus and metatarsals. Serum Al ≥100 µg/L has a 75-88% positive predictive value for Al bone disease. Chronic Al

  13. Electromagnetic splitting for mesons and baryons using dressed constituent quarks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silvestre-Brac, Bernard; Brau, Fabian; Semay, Claude

    2003-01-01

    Electromagnetic splittings for mesons and baryons are calculated in a formalism where the constituent quarks are considered as dressed quasiparticles. The electromagnetic interaction, which contains coulomb, contact and hyperfine terms, is folded with the quark electrical density. Two different types of strong potentials are considered. Numerical treatment is done very carefully and several approximations are discussed in detail. Our model contains only one free parameter and the agreement with experimental data is reasonable although it seems very difficult to obtain a perfect description in any case

  14. [Studies on phenolic constituents from leaves of pineapple (Ananas comosus)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Wei; Ding, Yi; Xing, Dong-ming; Wang, Jin-ping; Du, Li-jun

    2006-08-01

    To study the phenolic constituents of the leaves of pineapple. Chromatographic methods were used to isolate compounds from the leaves of pineapple and spectroscopic methods were used to identify the structures of the isolated compounds. 7 compounds, ananasate (1), 1-O-caffeoylglycerol (2), 1-O-p-coumaroylglycerol (3), caffeic acid (4), p-coumaric acid (5), beta-sitosterol (6) and daucosterol (7), were isolated from the leaves of pineapple. 1 was a new compound, and others were obtained from this plant for the first time.

  15. Stability, Reactivity, and Constituent Interaction in TiSe2-Based Metastable Misfit Layer Compounds Synthesized from Designed Amorphous Precursors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merrill, Devin R.

    A series of intergrowth compounds with the basic formula [(MSe) 1+delta]m(TiSe2)n are reported. The compounds are prepared from modulated elemental reactants and display interesting structural and electronic behavior. Section 1 of this dissertation outlines initial attempts to characterize constituent interaction. The first member of the SnSe based subclass is reported and displays the highest Seebeck coefficient of any m = n = 1 compound reported to date, and a surprising amount of order is observed, compared to previously reported compounds. With properly established deposition parameters, the synthesis was extended to included the m = 2-4 compounds. These compounds display interesting electronic behavior that suggests the band structure shifts considerably as the SnSe block is expanded, affecting the interaction between the constituent layers. The first compound based on BiSe is then reported, suggesting that the Bi structure donates more conduction electrons to the band structure. Targeted substitution through kinetic control is the focus of Section 2, and a family of (PbxSn1-xSe)1+deltaTiSe 2 is reported over the entire range of x, even though a miscibility gap exists in the bulk PbxSn1-xSe system. The resulting alloyed intergrowth compounds also display equal or higher mobility than the end members, suggesting modulation doping could be used to affect transport properties. As a proof of principle, the analogous system based on a Bi xSn1-xSe constituent was prepared to attempt to systematically affect carrier concentration. It was found that while carrier concentration can be controlled, the evolving structure affects the doping efficiency of the Bi atoms and mobility in the structure. Section 3 outlines attempts to form higher order TiSe2-based heterostructures and the important chemical considerations observed during the preparation of these materials. The 3 component systems in the Pb-Sn-Ti-Se system can be formed at low temperature, with SnSe2 rather than

  16. System for measuring engine exhaust constituents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carduner, K.R.; Colvin, A.D.; Leong, D.Y.W.

    1992-01-01

    This patent describes a system for measuring an automotive engine exhaust constituent. It comprises: a meter for determining the mass of air flowing through the engine and for generating an engine airflow signal corresponding to the airflow; sample handling apparatus; diluent adding means; processor means. This patent also describes a method for using an analyzer to determine the amount of lubricating oil consumed by an automotive engine. It comprises: determining the amount of sulfur dioxide within the room air being drawn into the engine; maintaining a constant total flow comprised of a constant fraction of the engine's exhaust gas and a diluent gas through the analyzer, while: determining the amount of sulfur dioxide contained within the engine's exhaust, determining the amount of sulfur dioxide contained within the engine's exhaust, while operating the engine on room air; determining an efficiency factor for the analyzer; and using the efficiency factor and the concentration of sulfur in the engine oil and the amounts of sulfur dioxide determined in steps a and d to determine the amount of lubrication oil leaving the engine through its exhaust

  17. Poetry and its Essential Constituents According to Feijoo

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo OLAY VALDÉS

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Throughout his essays, Feijoo makes numerous references to his own definition of poetry. He argues that the essential constituents of poetry must be «enthusiasm» (intensity and «versification» (rhythm. Feijoo considers that non-fiction should be regarded as another relevant constitutive of poetry, because non-fiction facilitates the teaching ability and usefulness of poetry. On account of his defense of non-fiction as a way to emphasize the docere, Feijoo came to prefer Lucan’s Pharsalia above Virgil’s Aeneid. Finally, Feijoo also maintained that naturalness was the last requisite of poetry, so he criticized the excesses of Baroque and he defended the literary models and the classical composition strategies that Neoclassicism would soon recover.

  18. Volatile Chemical Constituents of Piper aduncum L and Piper gibbilimbum C. DC (Piperaceae from Papua New Guinea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter G Waterman

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available Exhaustive hydro-distillation of the leaves of Piper aduncum and fruits of Piper gibbilimbum (Piperaceae afforded colorless and pale orange colored oils in 0.35 and 0.30 % yields, respectively. Detailed chemical analysis by GC/MS indicated the volatile constituents of Piper aduncum to be composed of dill apiole (43.3 %, β-caryophyllene (8.2 %, piperitione (6.7 % and α-humulene (5.1 %, whilst the oil of P. gibbilimbum is dominated by the gibbilimbols A-D (74.2 %, with the remaining major constituents being the terpenes camphene (13.6 % and α-pinene (6.5 %.

  19. Evaluation of the effect of an extract of sabugueiro (Sambucus australis) on the labeling of blood constituents with technetium-99m

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ribeiro, Camila Godinho; Rebello, Bernardo Machado; Neves, Rosane de Figueiredo; Santos-Filho, Sebastiao David; Fonseca, Adenilson de Souza da; Medeiros, Aldo da Cunha; Bernardo-Filho, Mario; Catanho, Maria Teresa Jansem de Almeida

    2007-01-01

    Sambucus australis (sabugueiro) has been used to treat inflammatory and rheumatologic disorders. Blood constituents labeled with technetium-99m (99mTc) have been used in nuclear medicine to obtain diagnostic images. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of a sabugueiro extract on the labeling of blood cells with 99mTc. Blood samples from Wistar rats were incubated with sabugueiro extract and the radiolabeling assay of blood constituents was carried out. After centrifugation, samples of plasma and blood cells were separated. Aliquots of plasma and blood cells were precipitated with trichloroacetic acid and centrifuged to isolate soluble and insoluble fractions. The radioactivity in each fraction was counted and the percentage of activity (%ATI) was determined. Incubation with sabugueiro extract altered significantly (p<0.05) the %ATI incorporated to the blood constituents. These results could be explained due the presence of chemical substances in the sabugueiro extract that present redox and/or chelating action altering the labeling of the blood constituents with 99mTc. (author)

  20. Identification of antibacterial constituents from the indigenous Australian medicinal plant Eremophila duttonii F. Muell. (Myoporaceae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Joshua E; Tucker, David; Watson, Kenneth; Jones, Graham Lloyd

    2007-06-13

    This paper reports on the isolation and identification of antibacterial constituents from the indigenous Australian medicinal plant Eremophila duttonii F. Muell. (Myoporaceae). Preparations derived from this plant are used by indigenous populations in the topical treatment of minor wounds, otitis and ocular complaints, and as a gargle for sore throat. Several authors have reported extracts of this plant to effect rapid bacteriolysis and inhibit growth of a wide range of Gram-positive micro-organisms. In other studies involving screening of native medicinal plants for antibacterial activity, extracts of Eremophila duttonii have been reported to consistently exhibit the highest potency amongst all species included. From a hexane extract, we identified two diterpenes of the serrulatane class, the principal constituents responsible for antibacterial activity and present as major constituents of the resinous leaf cuticle: serrulat-14-en-7,8,20-triol (1) and serrulat-14-en-3,7,8,20-tetraol (2). In addition, a hydroxylated furanosesquiterpene with mild antibacterial activity which appeared to be a novel compound was isolated from the extract and tentatively identified as 4-hydroxy-4-methyl-1-(2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-5-methyl[2,3'-bifuran]-5-yl) pentan-2-one. Minimum inhibitory concentrations for each of the compounds against three Gram-positive bacteria: Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213), Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC 12228) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (ARL 10582), were determined using a micro-titre plate broth dilution assay.