Demystification of luminescence properties and the near imperceptible thermal quenching of Sm3+-doped tungstate phosphors

Ultra-high thermally stable Ca₂MgWO₆:xSm³⁺ (x = 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, and 1.5 mol%) double perovskite phosphors were synthesized through solid-state reaction method. Product formation was confirmed by comparing the X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the phosphors with the standard reference file. The structural, morphological, thermal, and optical properties of the prepared phosphor were examined in detail using XRD, Fourier transform infrared spectra, scanning electron microscopy, diffused reflectance spectra, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), photoluminescence emission, and temperature-dependent PLE (TDPL). It was seen that the phosphor exhibited emission in the reddish region for the near-ultraviolet excitation with moderate Colour Rendering Index values and high colour purity. The optimized phosphor (x = 1.25 mol%) was found to possess a direct optical band gap of 3.31 eV. TGA studies showed the astonishing thermal stability of the optimized phosphor. Additionally, near-zero thermal quenching was seen in TDPL due to elevated phonon-assisted radiative transition. Furthermore, the anti-Stokes and Stokes emission peaks were found to be sensitive toward the temperature change and followed a Boltzmann-type distribution. All these marked properties will make the prepared phosphors a suitable candidate for multifield applications and a fascinating material for further development.     

Bioremoval of Cyanide and Phenol from Industrial Wastewater: An Update

In nature, phenols and cyanides are produced by certain microbes and plants. Phenols are antioxidants found in almost all plants, and cyanides are important components of lima beans, almonds, and cassava. Their presence in small amounts may not upset the environment, but their large-scale production, wide applicability, and unrestricted release by the industries makes them widespread and important pollutants. Phenols and cyanides can be recovered/removed from wastewater streams using various physicochemical techniques practiced commercially. Lack of complete mineralization, cost-effectiveness, and release of secondary by-products are amongst a few of the major considerations that limit the installation of such processes. Biological removal of such pollutants from industrial waste has gained momentum in recent years, as they promise to surpass the major drawbacks laid by the physicochemical methods and can be practically carried out in all conditions. Presence of either cyanide or phenol is highly dangerous, and in the presence of both, the effect is compounded. The present review illustrates the various industries involved in the release of phenols, cyanides, or both; it summarizes the available technologies for their treatment and emphasizes recent advances and advantages of biological abatement of these pollutants.     

Proteogenomic analysis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by high resolution mass spectrometry

The genome sequencing of H37Rv strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis was completed in 1998 followed by the whole genome sequencing of a clinical isolate, CDC1551 in 2002. Since then, the genomic sequences of a number of other strains have become available making it one of the better studied pathogenic bacterial species at the genomic level. However, annotation of its genome remains challenging because of high GC content and dissimilarity to other model prokaryotes. To this end, we carried out an in-depth proteogenomic analysis of the M. tuberculosis H37Rv strain using Fourier transform mass spectrometry with high resolution at both MS and tandem MS levels. In all, we identified 3176 proteins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis representing ~80% of its total predicted gene count. In addition to protein database search, we carried out a genome database search, which led to identification of ~250 novel peptides. Based on these novel genome search-specific peptides, we discovered 41 novel protein coding genes in the H37Rv genome. Using peptide evidence and alternative gene prediction tools, we also corrected 79 gene models. Finally, mass spectrometric data from N terminus-derived peptides confirmed 727 existing annotations for translational start sites while correcting those for 33 proteins. We report creation of a high confidence set of protein coding regions in Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome obtained by high resolution tandem mass-spectrometry at both precursor and fragment detection steps for the first time. This proteogenomic approach should be generally applicable to other organisms whose genomes have already been sequenced for obtaining a more accurate catalogue of protein-coding genes.     

High-affinity L-arabinose transport operon. Nucleotide sequence and analysis of gene products

The nucleotide sequence of the "high-affinity" L-arabinose transport operon has been determined 3' from the regulatory region and found to contain three open reading frames designated araF, araG and araH. The first gene 3' to the regulatory region, araF, encodes the 23-residue signal peptide and the 306-residue mature form of the L-arabinose binding protein (33,200 Mr). The binding protein, which has been described elsewhere, is hydrophilic, soluble and found in the periplasm of Escherichia coli. This gene is followed by an intragenic space of 72 nucleotides, which contains a region of dyad symmetry 23 nucleotides long capable of forming an 11-member stem-loop. The second gene, designated araG, contains an open reading frame capable of encoding an equally hydrophilic protein containing 504 residues (55,000 Mr). Following a 14-nucleotide spacer, which does not appear to have any secondary structure, the third open reading frame, herein designated araH, is capable of encoding a hydrophobic protein containing 329 residues (34,000 Mr) that can only be envisioned as having an integral membrane location. 3' to araH there is a T-rich region containing a 24-nucleotide area of dyad symmetry centered 55 nucleotides from the termination codon. Analysis of the derived primary sequences of the araG and araH products indicates the nature and potential features of these components. The araG protein was found to possess internal homology between its amino and carboxyl-terminal halves, suggesting a common origin. The araG gene product has been shown to be homologous to the rbsA gene product, the hisP product, the ptsB product and the malK product, all of which presumably play similar roles in their respective transport systems. Putative ATP binding sites are observed within the regions of homology. The araH gene product has been shown to be homologous to the rbsC gene product, which is the first observed homology between two purported membrane proteins.     

Neuroprotectin D1 inhibits retinal ganglion cell death following axotomy

Neuroprotectin D1 (NPD1), a docosahexaenoic acid-derived autacoid, is an endogenous neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory mediator that is generated in the retina and brain. The effects of exogenous NPD1 on retinal ganglion cell (RGC) apoptosis and the role of 12/15-lipoxygenase (Alox15) in retina were evaluated after optic nerve transection (ONT). Treatment with NPD1 was associated with significant protection against RGC death. The percentage of RGC survival in NPD1-treated group was 30% at 2 weeks after ONT as compared with 12% of RGC survival in the ONT group without treatment. Endogenous NPD1 was a predominant lipid autocoid in uninjured and axotomized retinas. Alox15 mRNA expression was upregulated in retinas following ONT suggesting that amplification of 12/15-lipoxygenase (12/15-LOX) may represent a neuroprotective response in the rat retina. The density of RGCs was higher in the normal retina of 12/15-LOX-deficient mice as compared with congenic controls. Hence, the resident NPD1 has a potential role in the physiological and pathophysiological responses of the retina.     

Association of resistin (rs3745367) and urotensin II (rs228648 and rs2890565) gene polymorphisms with risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Indian population

Molecular Biology Reports - Insulin resistance may become the most powerful predictor of future development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and a therapeutic target for the treatment of the...     

Myeloid related protein induces muscle derived inflammatory mediators in juvenile dermatomyositis

Introduction

The aetiopathogenesis of juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) remains poorly understood. In particular the contribution of monocytes or macrophages, which are frequently observed to be an infiltrate within muscle tissue very early in the disease process, is unknown. We hypothesised that these cells secrete the pro-inflammatory myeloid related protein (MRP) 8/14 which may then contribute to muscle pathology in JDM.

Methods

In this study of 56 JDM patients, serum MRP8/14 levels were compared with clinical measures of disease activity. Muscle biopsies taken early in disease were assessed by immunohistochemistry to determine the frequency and identity of MRP-expressing cells. The effects of MRP stimulation and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress on muscle were tested in vitro. Serum or supernatant levels of cytokines were analyzed by multiplex immunoassay.

Results

Serum MRP8/14 correlated with physician’s global assessment of disease activity in JDM (R = 0.65, p = 0.0003) and muscle strength/endurance, childhood myositis assessment score (CMAS, R = −0.55, p = 0.004). MRP8/14 was widely expressed by CD68+ macrophages in JDM muscle tissue. When cultured with human myoblasts, MRP8 led to the secretion of MCP-1 and IL-6, which was enhanced by ER stress. Both inflammatory mediators were detected in significantly higher levels in the serum of JDM patients compared to healthy controls.

Conclusions

This study is the first to identify serum MRP8/14 as a potential biomarker for disease activity in JDM. We propose that tissue infiltrating macrophages secreting MRP8/14 may contribute to myositis, by driving the local production of cytokines directly from muscle.     

Correction for Irrelevant Absorption in Multicomponent Spectrophotometric Assay of Riboflavin, Formylmethylflavin, and Degradation Products: Kinetic Applications

In the spectrophotometric assay of multicomponent systems involved in drug degradation studies, some minor or unknown degradation products may be present. These products may interfere in the assay and thus invalidate the results due to their absorption in the range of analytical wavelengths. This interference may be eliminated by the application of an appropriate correction procedure to obtain reliable data for kinetic treatment. The present study is based on the application of linear and non-linear irrelevant absorption corrections in the multicomponent spectrophotometric assay of riboflavin and formylmethylflavin during the photolysis and hydrolysis studies. The correction procedures take into account the interference caused by minor or unknown products and have shown considerable improvement in the assay data in terms of the molar balance. The treatment of the corrected data has led to more accurate kinetic results in degradation studies.     

Tracking 20 Years of Compound-to-Target Output from Literature and Patents

The statistics of drug development output and declining yield of approved medicines has been the subject of many recent reviews. However, assessing research productivity that feeds development is more difficult. Here we utilise an extensive database of structure-activity relationships extracted from papers and patents. We have used this database to analyse published compounds cumulatively linked to nearly 4000 protein target identifiers from multiple species over the last 20 years. The compound output increases up to 2005 followed by a decline that parallels a fall in pharmaceutical patenting. Counts of protein targets have plateaued but not fallen. We extended these results by exploring compounds and targets for one large pharmaceutical company. In addition, we examined collective time course data for six individual protease targets, including average molecular weight of the compounds. We also tracked the PubMed profile of these targets to detect signals related to changes in compound output. Our results show that research compound output had decreased 35% by 2012. The major causative factor is likely to be a contraction in the global research base due to mergers and acquisitions across the pharmaceutical industry. However, this does not rule out an increasing stringency of compound quality filtration and/or patenting cost control. The number of proteins mapped to compounds on a yearly basis shows less decline, indicating the cumulative published target capacity of global research is being sustained in the region of 300 proteins for large companies. The tracking of six individual targets shows uniquely detailed patterns not discernible from cumulative snapshots. These are interpretable in terms of events related to validation and de-risking of targets that produce detectable follow-on surges in patenting. Further analysis of the type we present here can provide unique insights into the process of drug discovery based on the data it actually generates.     

Evolvosides C–E,flavonol-4-O-triglycosides from Evolvulus alsinoides and their anti-stress activity

Phytochemical investigation of the n-butanol fraction of Evolvulus alsinoides (Linn.) led to the isolation of three new phenolic glycosides, evolvosides C, D and E (1–3) along with six known compounds (4–9). The structures of the compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis, viz. 1D and 2D NMR experiments, chemical study, and comparison with literature data. Evolvoside C (1) was characterized as kaempferol 4′-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-α-l-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-d-glucopyranoside, whereas evolvosides D and E (2–3) were found to be mono and di-O-methyl derivatives of 1. The new compounds (1–3) represent rare triglycoside derivatives of flavonol at C-4′. The isolated compounds (1–6) were screened for acute stress-induced biochemical changes in male Sprague–Dawley rats at a dose of 40 mg/kg body weight. Compounds 1 and 2 displayed anti-stress effects by normalizing hyperglycemia, plasma corticosterone, plasma creatine kinase, and adrenal hypertrophy. Compounds 3 and 6 were also found to be effective in normalizing most of these stress parameters, whereas compounds 4 and 5 were ineffective in normalizing most of these effects.