Effect of membrane additives on vesicle fusion

A large variety of alkyl derivatives were found to either slow or block the low-temperature induced fusion of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine small unilamellar vesicles (DPPC SUV) when incorporated into the SUV bilayer at five mol%. Only corn oil was fusogenic.     

Effects of bilayer thickness on the activity of diacylglycerol kinase of Escherichia coli.

We have developed a procedure for the reconstitution of Escherichia coli diacylglycerol kinase (DGK) into phospholipid bilayers containing diacylglycerol substrate. When DGK is reconstituted into a series of phosphatidylcholines containing monounsaturated fatty acyl chains, activity against dihexanoylglycerol (DHG) as a substrate was found to be markedly dependent on the fatty acyl chain length with the highest activity in dioleoylphosphatidylcholine [di(C18:1)PC] and a lower activity in bilayers with shorter or longer fatty acyl chains. Low activities in the short chain phospholipid dimyristoleoylphosphatidylcholine [di(C14:1)PC] followed from an increase in the K(m) value for DHG and ATP, with no effect on v(max). In contrast, in the long chain lipid dierucoylphosphatidylcholine [di(C24:1)PC], the low activity followed from a decrease in v(max) with no effect on K(m). In mixtures of two phosphatidylcholines with different chain lengths, the activity corresponded to that expected for the average chain length of the mixture. Cholesterol increased the activity in di(C14:1)PC but slightly decreased it in di(C18:1)PC or di(C24:1)PC, effects that could follow from changes in bilayer thickness caused by cholesterol.     

Chemiluminescence associated with phagocytosis of foreign particles in rabbit alveolar macrophages

Rabbit alveolar macrophages exhibit a chemiluminescent response which is associated with phagocytosis of zymosan and polystyrene-butadiene particles. The chemiluminescence reaches a peak in 15 to 25 minutes and then gradually diminishes over the next 1 to 3 hours. During the time of maximal light emission there appears to be no actual uptake of particles, but the response is dependent upon the particle concentration. The metabolic inhibitor, DNP (2,4-dinitrophenol), causes a rapid inhibition of the chemiluminescent response. The addition of ATP to the medium prior to exposure of the cells to particles causes the chemiluminescent response to be greatly diminished, i.e., 0.3mM ATP virtually abolishes the response. These experiments suggest that some metabolic response of the cell to phagocytosis is responsible for the chemiluminescence.     

How Can the Eco‐efficiency of a Region be Measured and Monitored?

The concept of eco-efficiency is commonly referred to as a business link to sustainable development. In this article, ecoefficiency is examined at a regional level as an approach to promoting the competitiveness of economic activities in the Finnish Kymenlaakso region and mitigating their harmful impacts on the environment. The aim is to develop appropriate indicators for monitoring changes in the eco-efficiency of the region. A starting point is to produce indicators for the environmental and economic dimensions of regional development and use them for measuring regional eco-efficiency. The environmental impact indicators are based on a life-cycle assessment method, producing different types of environmental impact indicators: pressure indicators (e.g., emissions of CO₂), impact category indicators (e.g., CO₂ equivalents in the case of climate change), and a total impact indicator (aggregating different impact category indicator results into a single value). Environmental impact indicators based on direct material input, total material input, and total material requirement of the Kymenlaakso region are also assessed. The economic indicators used are the gross domestic product, the value added, and the output of the main economic sectors of Kymenlaakso. In the eco-efficiency assessment, the economic and environmental impact indicators are monitored in the same graph. In a few cases eco-efficiency ratios can also be calculated (the economic indicators are divided by the environmental indicators). Output (= value added + intermediate consumption) is used as an economic indicator related to the environmental impact indicators, which also cover the upstream processes of the region's activities. In the article, we also discuss the strengths and weaknesses of using the different environmental impact indicators.     

Purification, characterization and immunolocalization of fimbrial protein from Porphyromonas (bacteroides) gingivalis.

Rapid and reproducible method is described here for the purification of the 43 kDa fimbrial protein from P. gingivalis by preferential fractionation in the presence of 1% SDS and 0.2M of a bivalent cation at pH 6.5. Homogeneity of the purified 43 kDa was confirmed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis using monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies raised against this protein. Amino acid composition and the amino acid sequence of the first 30 amino acid residues of the purified fimbriae are consistent with the composition and sequence predicted from the cloned gene of the fimbrial subunit. Circular dichroism spectra shows high levels of beta-sheet structure. The purified 43 kDa polymer shows fimbriae-like morphology under the electron microscope. Ultrastructural localization of the 43 kDa protein by the immunogold technique revealed specific labeling of the fimbriae with a diameter of approximately 3.5 to 5.0 nm. Localization of this protein suggest that the 43 kDa component is a fimbrial subunit.     

Phosphorylating-dephosphorylating enzymes of avian oviductal secretions

Avian oviductal fluids contain phosphorylating-dephosphorylating enzymes that might function in sperm-oocyte interactions. Phosphorprotein phosphatase and protein kinase have been purified 20-fold and 40-fold, respectively. The latter easily aggregates and is highly labile. Other properties are comparable to those of holoenzymes.