Osmotic adjustment of Zymomonas mobilis to concentrated glucose solutions

Summary The physiological basis of the exceptionally high sugar tolerance of Zymomonas mobilis was investigated. Determinations of the internal metabolite concentrations of Z. mobilis showed that an increase in the extracellular glucose concentration was accompanied by a parallel rise in the intracellular glucose concentration, bringing about an almost complete osmotic balance between internal and external space. Studies of glucose transport confirmed that Z. mobilis has a facilitated diffusion system which enables a rapid equilibration between internal and external glucose concentrations. Studies using the non-metabolisable sugars maltose (impermeable) and xylose (permeable) revealed that these sugars were able to alter the osmotic pressure on the cytoplasmic membrane resulting in volume changes.Dedicated to Professor R. K. Finn on the occasion of his 70th birthday     

Anatomische untersuchungen über die seitenkanale der sardine (Clupea Pilchardus Walb.)

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Kinetic properties and regulation of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases in lymphoid cells

cGMP-dependent cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases have been isolated from spleen lymphocytes and the whole mice spleen and shown to possess identical properties. Two structure analogues of cAMP and cGMP, viz. N6,O2'-dibutyryl-cAMP and N2,O2'-dibutyryl-cGMP, were used to investigate the properties of the phosphodiesterase and found to inhibit hydrolysis of both cAMP and cGMP. This inhibition did not affect the cGMP activation constant. Existence of two different centres of catalytic and regulatory types in cGMP-stimulated phosphodiesterase is suggested.     

Conditions for sliding of nucleosomes along DNA: SV 40 minichromosomes

'Sliding' of nucleosomes along DNA under nearly physiological conditions was studied using treatment of SV 40 minichromosomes with the single-cut restriction endonucleases EcoRI and BamHI. Each enzyme can convert no more than 20-25% of the circular DNA molecules of minichromosomes into the linear form irrespective of the presence of histone H1. This suggests absence of the nucleosomes lateral migration (sliding) along DNa at least in the vicinity of the restriction endonucleases cleavage sites during several hours of incubation. The sites available for EcoRI and BamHI in minichromosomes seem to be located predominantly in the spacer DNA regions of nucleosomes. Introduction of only one double-strand (but not single-strand) break into the DNA of minichromosomes stripped of histone H1 is sufficient to induce redistribution of the nucleosome core particles due to their sliding along DNA. Thus, sliding of the nucleosome core particles can be induced under physiological conditions by rather low energy expenditures.     

Resolving UV Bioactinometric Results with Intensity and Time Distributions

A UV reactor with an annular design, a total liquid volume of 460[emsp4 ]ml, and outfitted with a single lamp with 1690[emsp4 ]mW of germicidal power was tested. Coliphage MS2 was used as a bioactinometer to measure the UV dose at a flow rate of 56.7[emsp4 ]ml/sec in water with a very low absorbance. The Beers Law coefficient was A₁₀0.003. The measured dose (MS2 bioactinometry) was 35.2±1.1[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm².A retention time distribution was generated with a dye tracer study. The reactor was modeled as if flow was confined to ten equal volume paths existing as concentric rings around the lamp. The UV intensity along each path (ith intensity) was calculated to generate a simulated distribution of UV intensity in the reactor. The retention time distribution was subdivided to estimate the retention time associated with each decile jth time) of the total flow.Seven methods of associating the ith intensity with the jth retention time were used to produce simulated dose distributions for the reactor. The average UV dose for each distribution was calculated as the average of the products of I and t (AP protocol) and by the apparent survival (AS protocol), in which the predicted survival along each path was averaged to back-calculate dose from the reference batch inactivation curve. The average dose predicted assuming that time and intensity were independent was 51.5[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm² based on the arithmetic average (AP protocol). Using the apparent survival method, the predicted dose for the independent distribution (I independent of t) was 36.4[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm². Three methods of developing dependent structure between time and intensity were tested. In the best possible case for stratified flow (I negatively correlated with t) the calculated (AS) intensity was 46.3[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm^2. In the worst case for stratified flow (I positively correlated with t) the AS intensity was 32.0[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm². In a rational case where flows were assumed to be distributed parabolically (low flow at the wall and at the lamp) produced an AS intensity of 37.7[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm². When either time or intensity was averaged, while the other variable was allowed to keep its distribution, the (AS) dose (time averaged 43.3[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm², intensity averaged 41.0[emsp4 ]mW-sec/cm²), yielded a poor prediction compared to the measured value.The errors associated with averaging time, intensity, or both, far outweigh the errors associated with choosing a rational distribution or an independent distribution of time and intensity in the prediction. This observation is generally true whenever an organism is exposed to UV light in a flow through reactor such that the range of doses is within the portion of the inactivation curve exhibiting strong exponential decay.     

Variabilit?tsstudien

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Silica-free silicone rubber in isolated heart perfusion with blood at 13 °C

Isolated lamb hearts were perfused at 13 °C for 24 hr with whole fresh blood using a silicone rubber circuit and a membrane lung (N = 7); there was formation of thrombi, deposition of fibrin, and an increase in resistance to blood flow in the membrane lung. The perfused hearts fibrillated at hypothermia and showed unequal recovery of function upon final rewarming.There was less rise in membrane lung resistance when the perfusion circuit was primed with blood at 38 instead of 13 °C and then cooled progressively to 13 °C. Some hearts perfused in these circuits were well preserved but others became edematous with loss of ventricular contractility (N = 6).Coating the perfusion circuit with a hypothrombogenic material, silica-free silicone rubber and priming the circuit at 38 °C prevented any rise in membrane lung resistance during blood perfusion. All the hearts perfused in these circuits (N = 6) had the same left ventricular function before and after cold perfusion.Thus isolated hearts can be perfused in vitro with whole blood at hypothermic temperature without loss in function when attention is paid to thrombogenicity of materials used to construct the perfusion circuit.