Association of hydrophobically-modified poly(ethylene glycol) with fusogenic liposomes

We present results on using cooperative interactions to shield liposomes by incorporating multiple hydrophobic anchoring sites on polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymers. The hydrophobically-modified PEGs (HMPEGs) are comb-graft polymers with strictly alternating monodisperse PEG blocks (M_w=6, 12, or 35 kDa) bonded to C18 stearylamide hydrophobes. Cooperativity is varied by changing the degree of oligomerization at a constant ratio of PEG to stearylamide. Fusogenic liposomes prepared from N-C12-DOPE:DOPC 7:3 (mol:mol) were equilibrated with HMPEGs. Affinity for polymer association to liposomes increases with the degree of oligomerization; equilibrium constants (given as surface coverage per equilibrium concentration of free polymer) for 6 kDa PEG increased from 6.1±0.8 (mg/m²)/(mg/ml) for 2.5 loops to 78.1±12.2 (mg/m²)/(mg/ml) for 13 loops. In contrast, the equilibrium constant for distearoylphosphatidylethanolamine-poly(ethylene glycol) (DSPE-PEG5k) was 0.4±0.1 (mg/m²)/(mg/ml).The multi-loop HMPEGs demonstrate higher levels of protection from complement binding than DSPE-PEG5k. Greater protection does not correlate with binding strength alone. The best shielding was by HMPEG6k-DP3 (with three 6 kDa PEG loops), suggesting that PEG chains with adequate surface mobility provide optimal protection from complement opsonization. Complement binding at 30 min and 12 h demonstrates that protection by multi-looped PEGs is constant whereas DSPE-PEG5k initially protects but presumably partitions off of the surface at longer times.     

Effect of sorghum resistant to Stenodiplosis sorghicola (Coquillett) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) on oviposition and development of Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Abstract Helicoverpa armigera oviposition preference for, and larval development on sorghum hybrids with differing resistance to sorghum midge, Stenodiplosis sorghicola , were investigated. When H. armigera larvae were fed seed of resistant and susceptible hybrids in the laboratory there were no differences in larval and pupal sizes or the rate of development. The same result was recorded when larvae fed on panicles on plants in a glasshouse. On some sampling occasions, significantly more eggs were laid on panicles of resistant hybrids in the field. This occurred when plants were in plots and also in a mixed planting. Midge-resistance status did not affect levels of egg parasitism. In a field study using recombinant inbred lines between a midge-resistant and a midge-susceptible line, no relationship was found between level of resistance and oviposition of H. armigera . We conclude that, although midge-resistant hybrids are sometimes preferred for oviposition by H. armigera, the resistance per se does not determine this preference. Egg survival, larval survival, development and resultant damage are not significantly affected by the midge-resistance status of the host.     

Les photorécepteurs des Collemboles, étude ultrastructurale

Résumé L'étude ultrastructurale de l'appareil dioptrique des photorécepteurs des Collemboles adultes a permis de reconsidérer la structure des formations oculaires à ommatidies aggrégées. Quatre types de cornéules ont été reconnus, dont les plus remarquables sont ceux à mamelons cornéens. Les cellules cristalliniennes au nombre de quatre assurent alternativement une double fonction au cours de chaque cycle de la mue. Sur les faces distales, les cellules élaborent le matériel cuticulaire de la cornéule; vers l'intérieur elles sécrètent le cristallin. Les cellules de Semper réalisent ainsi une fonction cornéagène et une fonction cristallogène. La répartition spatiale des organites intracellulaires en couches concentriques est une caractéristique des Collemboles. Chaque cellule cristallinienne envoie vers la membrane basale un processus tubulaire contenant des granules denses de nombreux microtubules et du glycogène en faible quantité. Les cônes cristallins présentent une grande diversité de forme de structure et de composition chimique. Suivant les groupes le cristallin peut être une formation intracellulaire ou extracellulaire, simple ou quadripartite. La présence de petits cristallins satellites associés à un cristallin unique reste inexpliquée mais caractérise une espèce troglobie Tomocerus problematicus. Deux cellules dites cornéagènes à cytoplasme toujours pauvre en organites intracytoplasmiques, avec ou sans pigment, complètent l'appareil dioptrique des ommas des Collemboles.

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Photoreceptors of Collembola, an ultrastructural studyI. The Dioptric Apparatus

Summary Ultrastructural features of the dioptric apparatus of photoreceptors of adult Collembola described by the author has enabled the author to compare the structure of ocular formations with aggregated ommatidia. Four different types of corneulae have been determined, the most remarkable of which are those showing corneal nipples. The four crystalline cells have alternately different functions during each molting cycle. On their distal surfaces, the cells elaborate cuticular material of the corneula; proximally, they secrete a crystalline cone. The Semper cells thus have both corneogenous and crystallogenous functions. The typically concentric spatial distribution of intracellular organelles in these cells is a characteristic feature for Collembola. Each crystalline cell sends towards the basal membrane a tubular process containing granules, numerous microtubules, and a small amount of glycogen. The shape, the structure, and the chemical composition of the crystalline cones are highly variable. In Collembola, the crystalline formation can either be intracellular or extracellular, and it can be simple or quadripartite. No explanation has yet been advanced for the existence of small crystalline satellites which appear to be associated with the single large crystalline cones; this association is characteristic for the troglobian species Tomocerus problematicus. The dioptric apparatus of Collembolan ommatidia is completed by the presence of two corneogenous cells, the cytoplasm of which contains few organelles and in some cases pigments.

     

Nitrile glucosides and serotobenine from Campylospermum glaucum and Ouratea turnarea

Two nitrile glucosides (1S,3S,4S,5R)-4-benzoyloxy-2-cyanomethylene-3,5-dihydroxycyclohexyl-1-O-beta-glucopyranoside (campyloside A) and (1S,3S,4S,5R)-5-benzoyloxy-2-cyanomethylene-3-hydroxy-4-(2-pyrrolcarboxyloxy)cyclohexyl-1-O-beta-glucopyranoside (campyloside B) were isolated from the stem roots of Campylospermum glaucum, whereas serotobenine was isolated from Ouratea turnarea. The structure elucidations were based on spectroscopic evidence. The biological assays of compounds and crude extract of plant species showed good antimicrobial activity of crude extracts against Gram-positive cocci.     

Dynamic Changes in Phase-Amplitude Coupling Facilitate Spatial Attention Control in Fronto-Parietal Cortex

Attention is a core cognitive mechanism that allows the brain to allocate limited resources depending on current task demands. A number of frontal and posterior parietal cortical areas, referred to collectively as the fronto-parietal attentional control network, are engaged during attentional allocation in both humans and non-human primates. Numerous studies have examined this network in the human brain using various neuroimaging and scalp electrophysiological techniques. However, little is known about how these frontal and parietal areas interact dynamically to produce behavior on a fine temporal (sub-second) and spatial (sub-centimeter) scale. We addressed how human fronto-parietal regions control visuospatial attention on a fine spatiotemporal scale by recording electrocorticography (ECoG) signals measured directly from subdural electrode arrays that were implanted in patients undergoing intracranial monitoring for localization of epileptic foci. Subjects (n = 8) performed a spatial-cuing task, in which they allocated visuospatial attention to either the right or left visual field and detected the appearance of a target. We found increases in high gamma (HG) power (70–250 Hz) time-locked to trial onset that remained elevated throughout the attentional allocation period over frontal, parietal, and visual areas. These HG power increases were modulated by the phase of the ongoing delta/theta (2–5 Hz) oscillation during attentional allocation. Critically, we found that the strength of this delta/theta phase-HG amplitude coupling predicted reaction times to detected targets on a trial-by-trial basis. These results highlight the role of delta/theta phase-HG amplitude coupling as a mechanism for sub-second facilitation and coordination within human fronto-parietal cortex that is guided by momentary attentional demands.     

Moulin Quignon : la redécouverte d’un site

The collection from Moulin Quignon is a coherent one, despite the diversity of its pieces, in the certainty of its origin, in its attachment to the researches led on the site in 1863–1864. Considered as a historic heritage, its study has nevertheless delivered significant scientific information, valid for the present, and, beyond that, to reintroduce the site of Moulin Quignon in the oldest Palaeolithic panel sites of the Somme valley.