Kemp elimination catalysts by computational enzyme design

The design of new enzymes for reactions not catalysed by naturally occurring biocatalysts is a challenge for protein engineering and is a critical test of our understanding of enzyme catalysis. Here we describe the computational design of eight enzymes that use two different catalytic motifs to catalyse the Kemp elimination-a model reaction for proton transfer from carbon-with measured rate enhancements of up to 10(5) and multiple turnovers. Mutational analysis confirms that catalysis depends on the computationally designed active sites, and a high-resolution crystal structure suggests that the designs have close to atomic accuracy. Application of in vitro evolution to enhance the computational designs produced a >200-fold increase in k(cat)/K(m) (k(cat)/K(m) of 2,600 M(-1)s(-1) and k(cat)/k(uncat) of >10(6)). These results demonstrate the power of combining computational protein design with directed evolution for creating new enzymes, and we anticipate the creation of a wide range of useful new catalysts in the future.     

New Design of Textile Vascular Prostheses for the Reconstruction of Small Diameter Vascular Blood Vessels

The general object of research is to design new idea of the semi-biodegradable,multilayered vascular prosthesis used for the reconstruction of significantly small diameter vascular vessels( microreconstruction). The paper studies the selection of appropriate sterilization technique for resorbable tubular structures made of poly( L-lactide-co-glicolide)( PLAGA) and nonbiodegradable tubular structures made of polypropylene( PP). The designed grafts are characterized by the physical properties as well as mechanical properties according to ISO 7198 ∶ 1998 Standard.Moreover,the process of the grafts fabrication will be explained considering the stages affected the critical properties of the elaborated textile implants. The increase of PLAGA melt-electrospun tubular structures mechanical properties was observed due to the thermal stabilization use. The ethylene oxide( EO) and steam sterilization had a destructive effect on the designed PLAGA meltelectrospun tubular, fibrous structures, whereas the irradiation yielded in the changes in mechanical and physical properties on the acceptable level,taking into account the future clinical applications.     

New data on isotopic composition of Jurassic-Early Cretaceous cephalopods

The aim of this paper is to reconstruct the Jurassic-Early Cretaceous climatic conditions using new isotopic data. Paleobotanical data indicate that a cooling occurred gradually just after Late Triassic, and a temperature minimum was reached in the Pliensbachian. This was followed by a climatic optimum in the early Toarcian, cooling in the late Toarcian and a second climatic optimum in the Oxfordian. Published isotopic thermometry data and our new results on isotopic composition of some Jurassic invertebrate shells from the Russian Platform, Poland, Germany and England generally confirm this pattern, and also indicate a third climatic optimum in the Middle Callovian. Middle-Late Mesozoic adult belemnites apparently lived during their spawning phase, in shallow waters similar to extant Nautilus. However, at least juvenile belemnoids, unlike ammonoids, engaged in significant short-term vertical migrations in the water column, reaching colder waters of the upper bathyal zone.     

Quantum tunnelling of the magnetization in a monolayer of oriented single-molecule magnets

A fundamental step towards atomic- or molecular-scale spintronic devices has recently been made by demonstrating that the spin of an individual atom deposited on a surface, or of a small paramagnetic molecule embedded in a nanojunction, can be externally controlled. An appealing next step is the extension of such a capability to the field of information storage, by taking advantage of the magnetic bistability and rich quantum behaviour of single-molecule magnets (SMMs). Recently, a proof of concept that the magnetic memory effect is retained when SMMs are chemically anchored to a metallic surface was provided. However, control of the nanoscale organization of these complex systems is required for SMMs to be integrated into molecular spintronic devices. Here we show that a preferential orientation of Fe(4) complexes on a gold surface can be achieved by chemical tailoring. As a result, the most striking quantum feature of SMMs-their stepped hysteresis loop, which results from resonant quantum tunnelling of the magnetization-can be clearly detected using synchrotron-based spectroscopic techniques. With the aid of multiple theoretical approaches, we relate the angular dependence of the quantum tunnelling resonances to the adsorption geometry, and demonstrate that molecules predominantly lie with their easy axes close to the surface normal. Our findings prove that the quantum spin dynamics can be observed in SMMs chemically grafted to surfaces, and offer a tool to reveal the organization of matter at the nanoscale.     

Beneficiation of the gold bearing ore by gravity and flotation

Gold concentration usually consists of gravity separation, flotation, cyanidation, or the combination of these processes. The choice among these processes depends on the mineralogical characterization and gold content of the ore. Recently, the recovery of gold using gravity methods has gained attention because of low cost and environmentally friendly operations. In this study, gold pre-concentrates were produced by the stepwise gravity separation and flotation techniques. The Knelson concentrator and conventional flotation were employed for the recovery of gold. Gold bearing ore samples were taken from Gümüşhane Region, northern east part of Turkey. As a result of stepwise Knelson concentration experiments, a gold concentrate assaying around 620 g/t is produced with 41.4wt% recovery. On the other hand, a gold concentrate about 82 g/t is obtained with 89.9wt% recovery from a gold ore assaying 6 g/t Au by direct flotation.     

A new hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad,Central Africa

The search for the earliest fossil evidence of the human lineage has been concentrated in East Africa. Here we report the discovery of six hominid specimens from Chad, central Africa, 2,500 km from the East African Rift Valley. The fossils include a nearly complete cranium and fragmentary lower jaws. The associated fauna suggest the fossils are between 6 and 7 million years old. The fossils display a unique mosaic of primitive and derived characters, and constitute a new genus and species of hominid. The distance from the Rift Valley, and the great antiquity of the fossils, suggest that the earliest members of the hominid clade were more widely distributed than has been thought, and that the divergence between the human and chimpanzee lineages was earlier than indicated by most molecular studies.     

Moesin functions antagonistically to the Rho pathway to maintain epithelial integrity

Two prominent characteristics of epithelial cells, apical-basal polarity and a highly ordered cytoskeleton, depend on the existence of precisely localized protein complexes associated with the apical plasma membrane, and on a separate machinery that regulates the spatial order of actin assembly. ERM (ezrin, radixin, moesin) proteins have been proposed to link transmembrane proteins to the actin cytoskeleton in the apical domain, suggesting a structural role in epithelial cells, and they have been implicated in signalling pathways. Here, we show that the sole Drosophila ERM protein Moesin functions to promote cortical actin assembly and apical-basal polarity. As a result, cells lacking Moesin lose epithelial characteristics and adopt invasive migratory behaviour. Our data demonstrate that Moesin facilitates epithelial morphology not by providing an essential structural function, but rather by antagonizing activity of the small GTPase Rho. Thus, Moesin functions in maintaining epithelial integrity by regulating cell-signalling events that affect actin organization and polarity. Furthermore, our results show that there is negative feedback between ERM activation and activity of the Rho pathway.     

Pathogen-induced systemic plant signal triggers DNA rearrangements

Plant genome stability is known to be affected by various abiotic environmental conditions, but little is known about the effect of pathogens. For example, exposure of maize plants to barley stripe mosaic virus seems to activate transposable elements and to cause mutations in the non-infected progeny of infected plants. The induction by barley stripe mosaic virus of an inherited effect may mean that the virus has a non-cell-autonomous influence on genome stability. Infection with Peronospora parasitica results in an increase in the frequency of somatic recombination in Arabidopsis thaliana; however, it is unclear whether effects on recombination require the presence of the pathogen or represent a systemic plant response. It is also not clear whether the changes in the frequency of somatic recombination can be inherited. Here we report a threefold increase in homologous recombination frequency in both infected and non-infected tissue of tobacco plants infected with either tobacco mosaic virus or oilseed rape mosaic virus. These results indicate the existence of a systemic recombination signal that also results in an increased frequency of meiotic and/or inherited late somatic recombination.     

Potentiation of bradykinin action on smooth-muscle by cysteine

Zusammenfassung Die Wirkung von Bradykinin, aber nicht von Angiotensin I und II auf das isolierte Meerschweinchenileum und den Uterus der Ratte wird durch Cystein verstärkt. Die Sensibilisierung der glatten Muskulatur ist auf die Hemmung der Kininase, die sich in den Geweben jener Organe befindet, durch Cystein zurückzuführen. Fragmente von Uterus oder Heum von Tieren, deren hintere Extremitäten unter Druck mit Tyrode durchströmt und zur vollkommenen Ausblutung gebracht wurden, inaktivieren das Bradykinin, wenn sie damit inkubiert werden. Diese Inaktivierung kann durch Vorbehandlung der Organe mit Cystein verhindert werden.