Adipogenetic effects of retrofractamide A derivatives in 3T3-L1 cells

In a previous study, retrofractamide A from the fruit of Piper chaba was shown to promote adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells. In the present study, retrofractamide A and its derivatives were synthesized, and their adipogenetic effects in 3T3-L1 cells were examined. Among the tested compounds, an amide composed of 9-(3′,4′-methylenedioxyphenyl)-nona-2E,4E,8E-trienoic acid and an n-butyl or n-pentyl amine showed strongest activity. Moreover, the amide with the n-pentyl amine moiety significantly increased the uptake of 2-deoxyglucose into the cells, and also increased the mRNA levels of adiponectin, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ2 (PPARγ2), glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4), fatty acid-binding protein (aP2), and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP) α and β in a similar manner as the PPARγ agonist troglitazone, although it had less agonistic activity against PPARγ.     

Trisubstituted and tetrasubstituted pyrazolines as a novel class of cell-growth inhibitors in tumor cells with wild type p53

Derivatives with scaffolds of 1,3,5-tri-substituted pyrazoline and 1,3,4,5-tetra-substituted pyrazoline were synthesized and tested for their inhibitory effects versus the p53^+/+ HCT116 and p53^?/? H1299 human tumor cell lines. Several compounds were active against the two cell lines displaying IC₅₀ values in the low micromolar range with a clearly more pronounced effect on the p53^+/+ HCT116 cells. The compound class shows excellent developability due to the modular synthesis, allowing independent optimization of all three to four key substituents to improve the properties of the molecules.     

Chitosan-Nanoconjugated Hormone Nanoparticles for Sustained Surge of Gonadotropins and Enhanced Reproductive Output in Female Fish

A controlled release delivery system helps to overcome the problem of short life of the leutinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) in blood and avoids use of multiple injections to enhance reproductive efficacy. Chitosan- and chitosan-gold nanoconjugates of salmon LHRH of desired size, dispersity and zeta potential were synthesized and evaluated at half the dose rate against full dose of bare LHRH for their reproductive efficacy in the female fish, Cyprinus carpio. Whereas injections of both the nanoconjugates induced controlled and sustained surge of the hormones with peak (P<0.01) at 24 hrs, surge due to bare LHRH reached its peak at 7 hrs and either remained at plateau or sharply declined thereafter. While the percentage of relative total eggs produced by fish were 130 and 67 per cent higher, that of fertilised eggs were 171 and 88 per cent higher on chitosan- and chitosan-gold nanoconjugates than bare LHRH. Chitosan nanoconjugates had a 13 per cent higher and chitosan gold preparation had a 9 per cent higher fertilization rate than bare LHRH. Histology of the ovaries also attested the pronounced effect of nanoparticles on reproductive output. This is the first report on use of chitosan-conjugated nanodelivery of gonadotropic hormone in fish.     

FLEXc: protein flexibility prediction using context-based statistics,predicted structural features,and sequence information

Background

The fluctuation of atoms around their average positions in protein structures provides important information regarding protein dynamics. This flexibility of protein structures is associated with various biological processes. Predicting flexibility of residues from protein sequences is significant for analyzing the dynamic properties of proteins which will be helpful in predicting their functions.

Results

In this paper, an approach of improving the accuracy of protein flexibility prediction is introduced. A neural network method for predicting flexibility in 3 states is implemented. The method incorporates sequence and evolutionary information, context-based scores, predicted secondary structures and solvent accessibility, and amino acid properties. Context-based statistical scores are derived, using the mean-field potentials approach, for describing the different preferences of protein residues in flexibility states taking into consideration their amino acid context.The 7-fold cross validated accuracy reached 61 % when context-based scores and predicted structural states are incorporated in the training process of the flexibility predictor.

Conclusions

Incorporating context-based statistical scores with predicted structural states are important features to improve the performance of predicting protein flexibility, as shown by our computational results. Our prediction method is implemented as web service called “FLEXc” and available online at: http://hpcr.cs.odu.edu/flexc.

     

Identification,cDNA Cloning,and Characterization of Luteinizing Hormone Beta Subunit (lhb) Gene in Catla catla

Reproductive hormones play a significant role in the gonadal development and gametogenesis process of animals. In the present study luteinizing hormone beta, (lhb) subunit gene was cloned and characterized from the brain of Catla catla. The lhb full-length of cDNA sequence is 629 bp which consists of 43bp 5'-UTR (untranslated region) 447bp, ORF(open reading frame) and 139 bp of 3'-UTR respectively. The coding region of lhb gene encoded a peptide of 148 amino acids. The coding sequence of lhb gene consist of a single N-linked glycosylation site (NET) and 12 cysteine knot residues. Phylogenetic analysis of C. catla Lhβ deduced amino acid sequence showed high similarity with Carassius auratus followed by Gobiocypris rarus. 3D structure Lhβ protein comprises of five β-sheets and six coils/loops. The qPCR results revealed lhb mRNA is mainly expressed in the pituitary, ovary while moderate expression was observed in brain and testis. To best our knowledge, this is the first report on the identification, molecular characterization and structural information regarding luteinizing hormone in Indian major carp.     

Diversity and Antimicrobial Activity of Actinomycetes Isolated from Lut Desert: The Extremely Arid Climatic Zones of Iran

Lut desert is situated in one of the extremely arid climatic zones of Iran and is one of the hottest deserts in our plant with the extreme fluctuation of temperature over a day. The main objective of this study is to characterize the diversity of the culturable actinomycetes and preliminary evaluation of their extracts as antimicrobial components on drug resistant pathogens. Twenty-four soil samples were collected, successively diluted and inoculated into the different culture media to support the growth of most culturable bacteria including actinomycetes. Phenotypic and molecular methods were used for accurate identification of recovered isolates particularly actinomycetes at the genus and species levels. The isolates were also evaluated for their inhibitory activities against drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, Enterococcus faecium, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus. A total of 56 isolates recovered from the samples. Based on phenotypic tests, 41 isolates were identified as actinomycetes, amongst them 8 isolates were active against drug resistant pathogens. Our study revealed Lut desert, as one of the hottest deserts in the world, is the habitat to diverse taxa of bacteria particularly actinomycetes which have potential novel antimicrobial components.

     

Correlation between Li Plating Behavior and Surface Characteristics of Carbon Matrix toward Stable Li Metal Anodes

Carbonaceous materials are widely employed to host Li for stable and safe Li metal batteries while relatively little effort is devoted to tailoring the surface properties of carbon to facilitate uniform Li plating. Herein, the correlation between Li plating behavior and the surface characteristics of electrospun porous carbon nanofibers (PCNFs) is systemically elucidated through experiments and theoretical calculations. It is revealed that the neat carbon surface suffers from severe lattice mismatch with Li metal, hindering uniform Li plating. In contrast, open pores created on the PCNF surface serve as active sites for controlled initial nucleation of Li. The introduction of oxygenated functional groups further facilitates the nucleation of Li on PCNFs through the largely reduced nucleation energy barrier. The Li film uniformly deposited on PCNFs enables efficient use of the whole carbon surface, giving rise to enhanced cyclic stability of the electrode. When used as an anode in lithium–sulfur batteries, the modified electrode delivers an excellent energy density of 385 Wh kg^?1 after 100 cycles. The fundamental correlation established in this study is universal to all types of carbonaceous materials and sheds new light on the rational design of high‐performance Li metal anodes by controlling the initial Li nucleation.     

Effects of three different cultivars of cruciferous plants on the age‐stage,two‐sex life table traits of Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae)

Plutella xylostella is an important pest of cruciferous crops worldwide. However, information regarding the age‐stage, two‐sex life parameters of P. xylostella, which is vital for designing more effective control methods, is currently lacking. The present study reports age‐stage, two‐sex life table parameters for P. xylostella on napa cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. napa), white cabbage (B. oleracea var. capitata), and cauliflower (B. oleracea var. botrytis) under laboratory conditions at 25 ± 2°C, 50–60% relative humidity, and a 16‐h light : 8‐h dark photoperiod. The time for development from an egg to a male or female adult P. xylostella on white cabbage (mean [± SE] 41.15 ± 0.54 and 39.50 ± 0.54 days, respectively) was significantly longer than that on cauliflower and napa cabbage. Furthermore, P. xylostella fecundity on cauliflower (261.90 ± 4.53 eggs female) was significantly highest than on napa cabbage and white cabbage. Intrinsic rate of increase (r) and finite rate of increase (λ) were highest on cauliflower 0.182 day^?1 and 1.199 day^?1 respectively as comparison to napa cabbage and white cabbage. The highest gross reproductive rate (GRR) and net reproductive rates (R₀) of P. xylostella 65.87 and 52.58 respectively on cauliflower then those of other hosts. The findings of the present study indicate that cauliflower is the most suitable cultivar (host) for the development of P. xylostella. Based on these findings, crops like cauliflower can be used as trap crops when napa cabbage and white cabbage are the main crops.