Respiratory Chains from Aerobic Thermophilic Prokaryotes

Thermophiles are organisms that grow optimally above 50 degrees C and up to approximately 120 degrees C. These extreme conditions must have led to specific characteristics of the cellular components. In this paper we extensively analyze the types of respiratory complexes from thermophilic aerobic prokaryotes. The different membrane-bound complexes so far characterized are described, and the genomic data available for thermophilic archaea and bacteria are analyzed. It is observed that no specific characteristics can be associated to thermophilicity as the different types of complexes I-IV are present randomly in thermophilic aerobic organisms, as well as in mesophiles. Rather, the extensive genomic analyses indicate that the differences concerning the several complexes are related to the organism phylogeny, i.e., to evolution and lateral gene transfer events.     

NMR-based metabonomics of bovine blood: an investigation into the effects of long term storage on plasma samples

Freezers in research institutions often contain a plethora of samples left over from studies performed years or even decades ago. Along with samples stored in biobanks, these could prove to be treasure troves for metabonomic research. Although the influence of sample handling and short to medium term storage on conventionally determined blood parameters has been reported, little is known about the effects of long term storage (years to decades) on plasma samples. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of long term storage on the metabolite profile and to assess the value of archived samples for metabonomic studies. Heparinised plasma of 22 heifers that had been stored at ?20 °C for between 2 and 15 years was analysed using NMR spectroscopy and statistical analysis techniques. Lactate (principal component 1) explained 79.6 % of variance between all spectra, but was not correlated with storage time. The highest correlation with storage time (R ² = 0.474) was found for betaine, with other metabolites (acetoacetate, histidines, glycerol, lipids and glucose) also showing moderate correlation (R ² values between 0.217 and 0.437). Our results indicate that samples stored for extended periods of time can potentially be used in metabonomics studies, if precautions are taken during data analysis.     

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Quantification and Reduction Efforts in a Rural Municipality

The present article aims to determine the current carbon footprint (CF) of Zernez, a Swiss mountain village, and to identify reduction potentials of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. For this purpose, material and energy flows were assessed mainly based on detailed household surveys, interviews, and energy bills, but also by means of other information sources, for example, national statistics, traffic censuses, and literature values. To set up the GHG balance, special attention was paid to the consistent definition of system boundaries by adopting two fundamentally different perspectives: purely geographical accounting (PGA) and the consumption‐based footprint (CBF) method. Each of these two perspectives total approximately 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents per capita per year. The PGA revealed that 70% of the direct emissions in Zernez are caused by agricultural activities, whereas no consumption area dominated the consumption‐induced CF. For the identification of targeted measures, both perspectives were considered in a complementary manner. The building stock and its underlying energy supply system showed a GHG reduction potential of 80%. The building sector was thus detected as a reasonable first step for the municipality to adopt GHG mitigation strategies. In the case of Zernez, building‐stock‐related measures are predicted to decrease the current CF by 13% (CBF) and 17% (PGA), respectively.     

A structure filter for the Eukaryotic Linear Motif Resource

Background  

Many proteins are highly modular, being assembled from globular domains and segments of natively disordered polypeptides. Linear motifs, short sequence modules functioning independently of protein tertiary structure, are most abundant in natively disordered polypeptides but are also found in accessible parts of globular domains, such as exposed loops. The prediction of novel occurrences of known linear motifs attempts the difficult task of distinguishing functional matches from stochastically occurring non-functional matches. Although functionality can only be confirmed experimentally, confidence in a putative motif is increased if a motif exhibits attributes associated with functional instances such as occurrence in the correct taxonomic range, cellular compartment, conservation in homologues and accessibility to interacting partners. Several tools now use these attributes to classify putative motifs based on confidence of functionality.     

Development of a new class of potential antiatherosclerosis agents: NO-donor antioxidants

A new class of NO-donor phenol derivatives is described. The products were obtained by joining appropriate phenols with either nitrooxy or 3-phenylsulfonylfuroxan-4-yloxy moieties. All the compounds proved to inhibit the ferrous salt/ascorbate induced lipidic peroxidation of membrane lipids of rat hepatocytes. They were also capable of dilating rat aorta strips precontracted with phenylephrine.     

Percutaneous closure of a coronary fistula between the right coronary artery to the left atrium

We describe a case of a congenital coronary artery fistula of the right coronary artery draining into the left atrium in an eight-year-old boy. The initial diagnosis was made after the detection of a continuous cardiac murmur at the age of six years. Transthoracic echocardiography showed the right coronaric ostium dilatation, the site of drainage in the left atrium and left ventricle volume overload. Catheterization confirmed the diagnosis. The patient underwent percutaneous closure by PDA occluder device. Immediate post-closure angiograms showed complete occlusion of the fistula. The patient showed transient ischemic changes on ECG associated to an increase of plasmatic levels of the cardiac enzyme. ECG and cardiac enzyme were normal one week after the procedure.