Electrostatic surface properties of plasmalemma vesicles from oat and wheat roots. Ion binding and screening investigated by 9-aminoacridine fluorescence

Right-side-out and sealed plasmalemma vesicles were isolated from roots of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Drabant) and oat (Avena sativa L. cv. Brighton) by two-phase partition in a medium containing sucrose (0.25 mol l^-1). Oat root plasmalemma vesicles were discovered to contain a strongly fluorescent compound with an emission maximum at 418 nm. The surface potential of the membranes was monitored by 9-aminoacridine fluorescence and the effect of protein concentration, mannitol versus sucrose, absence of osmoticum, concentrations of salt, and titrations with chelators investigated. It is concluded that i) protein concentrations of less than 50 g ml^-1 for oat and 100 g ml^-1 for wheat plasmalemma vesicles should be used to avoid serious problems with non-linearity of response of 9-aminoacridine fluorescence, ii) mannitol can be used instead of sucrose as the osmoticum, iii) the vesicles were ruptured in the absence of osmoticum allowing us to monitor both sides of the membranes, iv) plasmalemma vesicles from oat roots are more negative than vesicles from wheat roots, and v) oat and wheat root plasmalemma vesicles are isolated with about the same amounts of bound Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺. These bound divalent cations may not, however, reflect the in-vivo conditions since the tissues were homogenised in the presence of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid.Abbreviations EDTA ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid - EGTA ethylene glycol-bis(-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N,N-tetraacetic acid - c1/2 value concentration at which half of the maximum effect is observed - Mops 3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid     

Biogeographical patterns of soil molecular microbial biomass as influenced by soil characteristics and management

Aim The spatial organization of soil microbial communities on large scales and the identification of environmental factors structuring their distribution have been little investigated. The overall objective of this study was to determine the spatial patterning of microbial biomass in soils over a wide extent and to rank the environmental filters most influencing this distribution. Location French territory using the French Soil Quality Monitoring Network. This network covers the entire French territory and soils were sampled at 2150 sites along a systematic grid. Methods The soil DNA extracted from all these soils was expressed in terms of soil molecular microbial biomass and related to other soil and land‐use data over French territory. Results This study provides the first extensive map of microbial biomass and reveals the heterogeneous and spatially structured distribution of this biomass on the scale of France. The main factors driving biomass distribution are the physico‐chemical properties of the soil (texture, pH and total organic carbon) as well as land use. Soils from land used for intensive agriculture, especially monoculture and vineyards, exhibited the smallest biomass pools. Interestingly, factors known to influence the large‐scale distribution of macroorganisms, such as climatic factors, were not identified as important drivers for microbial communities. Main conclusions Microbial abundance is spatially structured and dependent on local filters such as soil characteristics and land use but is relatively independent of global filters such as climatic factors or the presence of natural barriers. Our study confirms that the biogeography of microorganisms differs fundamentally from the biogeography of ‘macroorganisms’ and that soil management can have significant large‐scale effects.     

Ab initio and DFT study of the aromaticity of some Fulvalenes derived from Methylidenecyclopropabenzene

Methylidencyclopropabenzene (MCPB) 1 and Fulvalenes 2–4 are molecules of special interest due to the relation between structure and aromaticity. The aim of this work was to analyze this relation and to quantify the aromaticity in 1–4 using different methods. Magnetic properties are directly related with aromaticity; here we studied the magnetic susceptibility and the anisotropy of the magnetic susceptibility. Nucleus indepedent chemical shift (NICS) and the anisotropy of the induced current density (ACID) were also employed. Tools of very different nature, geometric indexes HOMA and Bird, were determinated too for 1–4. All of these measures were found to be in agreement. Figure Both spatial NICS and ACID plot allow to show the aromaticity/antiaromaticity of a ring     

Morganella morganii J-8羰基不对称还原酶的分离纯化及性质研究

由本实验室筛选得到的摩尔摩根氏菌J-8菌株可将底物1-苯基-2-甲氨基丙酮专一性地转化为d-伪麻黄碱。以M. morganii J-8为出发菌株,菌体超声破碎后,经硫酸铵沉淀、Phenyl Superose疏水柱层析、DEAD阴离子柱层析和非变性凝胶电泳四步纯化获得电泳纯羰基不对称还原酶。亚基分子质量为42.5 kD,高效液相色谱分析酶的分子质量约为84.1 kD,初步认为该酶为二聚体蛋白。对所得到的部分纯化酶的酶学性质做了初步研究,纯酶进行基质辅助激光解析电离-飞行质谱分析,比对结果显示为与亮氨酸脱氢酶蛋白有很高相似性。     

Purification and characterization of a lectin from endophytic fungus Fusarium solani having complex sugar specificity

A lectin from the mycelial extract of an endophytic strain of Fusarium solani was purified. Its hemagglutinating activity was inhibited by glycoproteins possessing N-linked as well as O-linked glycans. The thermodynamics and kinetics of binding of glycans and glycoproteins to F. solani lectin was studied using surface plasmon resonance. The lectin showed high affinity for asialofetuin, asialomucin, asialofibrinogen, and thyroglobulin; and comparatively low affinity for mucin, fetuin, fibrinogen, and holotransferrin. Glycoproteins showed several fold higher affinity than their corresponding glycans with significant contribution from enthalpy and positive entropy, suggesting the involvement of non-polar protein-protein interaction. Moreover, the higher affinity of the glycoproteins was due to their faster association rates and low activation energy.     

Mono, di and polynuclear Cu(II)-azido complexes incorporating N,N,N reduced schiff base: syntheses, structure and magnetic behavior

Three kinds of copper(II) azide complexes have been synthesised in excellent yields by reacting Cu(ClO₄)₂ · 6H₂O with N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (L¹); N-(2-pyridylmethyl)-N′,N′-dimethylethylenediamine (L²); and N-(2-pyridylmethyl)-N′,N′-diethylethylenediamine (L³), respectively, in the presence of slight excess of sodium azide. They are the monomeric Cu(L¹)(N₃)(ClO₄) (1), the end-to-end diazido-bridged Cu₂(L²)₂(μ-1,3-N₃)₂(ClO₄)₂ (2) and the single azido-bridged (μ-1,3-) 1D chain [Cu(L³)(μ-1,3-N₃)]_n(ClO₄)_n (3). The crystal and molecular structures of these complexes have been solved. The variable temperature magnetic moments of type 2 and type 3 complexes were studied. Temperature dependent susceptibility for 2 was fitted using the Bleaney-Bowers expression which led to the parameters J = −3.43 cm⁻¹ and R = 1 × 10⁻⁵. The magnetic data for 3 were fitted to Baker’s expression for S = 1/2 and the parameters obtained were J = 1.6 cm⁻¹ and R = 3.2 × 10⁻⁴. Crystal data are as follows. Cu(L¹)(N₃)(ClO₄): Chemical formula, C₁₂H₁₃ClN₆O₄Cu; crystal system, monoclinic; space group, P2₁/c; a = 8.788(12), b = 13.045(15), c = 14.213(15) Å; β = 102.960(10)°; Z = 4. Cu(L²)(μ-N₃)(ClO₄): Chemical formula, C₁₀H₁₇ClN₆O₄Cu: crystal system, monoclinic; space group, P2₁/c; a = 10.790(12), b = 8.568(9), c = 16.651(17) Å; β = 102.360(10)°; Z = 4. [Cu(L³)(μ-N₃)](ClO₄): Chemical formula, C₁₂H₂₁ClN₆O₄Cu; crystal system, monoclinic; space group, P2₁/c; a = 12.331(14), b = 7.804(9), c = 18.64(2) Å; β = 103.405(10)°; Z = 4.     

Study of the coordination behaviour of (3,5-diphenyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)ethanol against Pd(II), Zn(II) and Cu(II)

A new easily synthetic route with a 96% yield of ligand 2-(3,5-diphenyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)ethanol (L) is obtained. The reactivity of L against Pd(II), Zn(II) and Cu(II) leads to [PdCl₂(L)₂] (1), [ZnCl₂(L)] (2) and [CuCl(L′)]₂ (3) (L′ is the ligand L without alcoholic proton), respectively. According to the different geometries imposed by the metallic centre and the capability of L to present various coordination links, it has been obtained complexes with square planar (1 and 3) or tetrahedral (2) geometry and different nuclearity: monomeric (1 and 2) or dimeric (3). Complete characterisation by analytical and spectroscopic methods, resolution of L and 1-3 by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and magnetic studies for complex 3 are presented.     

Graft copolymerization of N-vinylformamide onto sodium carboxymethylcellulose and study of its swelling, metal ion sorption and flocculation behaviour

The present paper reports the graft copolymerization of N-vinylformamide onto sodium carboxymethylcellulose by free radical polymerization using potassium peroxymonosulphate/thiourea redox system in an inert atmosphere. The reaction conditions for maximum grafting have been optimized by varying the reaction variables, including the concentration of N-vinylformamide (12.0 × 10⁻²–28.0 × 10⁻² mol dm⁻³), potassium peroxymonosulphate (4.0 × 10⁻³–12.0 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³), thiourea (1.2 × 10⁻³–4.4 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³), sulphuric acid (2.0 × 10⁻³–10.0 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³), sodium carboxymethylcellulose (0.2–1.8 g dm⁻³) along with time duration (60–180 min) and temperature (25–45° C). Water swelling capacity, metal ion sorption and flocculation studies of synthesized graft copolymer have been performed with respect to the parent polymer. The graft copolymer has been characterized by FTIR spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis.     

一株沙门氏菌裂解性噬菌体的分离鉴定及生物学特性

【目的】从贝类样品中分离到一株沙门氏菌裂解性噬菌体SLMP1,对其进行鉴定及生物学特性分析。【方法】采用双层平板法从贝类样品中分离沙门氏菌噬菌体SLMP1,观察噬菌斑特征,分析SLMP1的宿主范围;利用聚乙二醇8000沉淀浓缩SLMP1颗粒,用氯化铯等密度梯度离心纯化;采用透射电子显微镜观察纯化的SLMP1颗粒;采用酚-氯仿法提取SLMP1核酸,通过核酸酶处理分析核酸类型;分析SLMP1的热稳定性、pH稳定性、最佳感染复数、一步生长曲线及裂菌效果。【结果】SLMP1噬菌斑直径约2–3 mm,圆形透明、边缘清晰;SLMP1能裂解肠沙门氏菌肠亚种和鼠伤寒沙门氏菌;SLMP1头部呈二十面体,直径约62 nm,含非收缩性尾部,尾长约110 nm,属于长尾病毒科;SLMP1核酸为双链DNA;SLMP1在30–60 °C稳定,在pH 4.0–11.0稳定,最佳感染复数为0.001,感染宿主菌潜伏期为10 min、裂解期为120 min、裂解量为51;SLMP1在液体环境中具有良好的裂菌效果。【结论】SLMP1属dsDNA长尾科裂解性噬菌体,具有沙门氏菌生物抑菌剂的应用潜力。     

Patients’ view of the differences in topical creams for radiation dermatitis prevention. A pilot study of cosmetic properties

AimTo investigate the feasibility of including patients’ reports on the cosmetic properties of topical formulations for acute radiation dermatitis (ARD).BackgroundNo topical agent tested for acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) has proven to be better than any other, all achieving similar objective outcomes. No clear guidelines have therefore been established in clinics. Because the vehicle for such creams has shown to be an important factor in patient adherence to treatments in other dermatological diseases, patients’ opinions are evaluated.Material and methodsSeventy breast cancer patients referred for postoperative radiotherapy after conservative surgery were enrolled. Patients were assigned to use one of the 7 topical agents that are most-commonly used in the prevention of ARD. Patients’ reports were assessed using continuous visual analogue scales (VAS), objective signs and symptoms produced by ARD, and were rated using the RTOG and RISRAS scales.ResultsThe creams tested differed in their cosmetic properties significantly (p = 0.044). The performance of the agent, their absorption and any residue left over were also significantly different (p = 0.022, 0.014 and 0.02, respectively).ConclusionsTopical agents for preventive ARD are reported by patients to show different cosmetic properties. Cosmetic properties are important when choosing topical agents for ARD prevention. Recommending those with better cosmetic profiles would improve patient adherence to treatments.