Search results for " Small Angle"
showing 10 items of 36 documents
Nucleation and Growth of CaCO3 Mediated by the Egg-White Protein Ovalbumin: A Time-Resolved in situ Study Using Small-Angle Neutron Scattering
2008
Mineralization of calcium carbonate in aqueous solutions starting from its initiation was studied by time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). SANS revealed that homogeneous crystallization of CaCO 3 involves an initial formation of thin plate-shaped nuclei which subsequently reassemble to 3-dimensional particles, first of fractal and finally of compact structure. The presence of the egg-white protein ovalbumin leads to a different progression of mineralization through several stages; the first step represents amorphous CaCO 3, whereas the other phases are crystalline. The formation and dissolution of the amorphous phase is accompanied by Ca (2+)-mediated unfolding and cross-link…
Stability and disassembly properties of human naïve Hsp60 and bacterial GroEL chaperonins.
2015
Human Hsp60 chaperonin and its bacterial homolog GroEL, in association with the corresponding co-chaperonins Hsp10 and GroES, constitute important chaperone systems promoting the proper folding of several mitochondrial proteins. Hsp60 is also currently described as a ubiquitous molecule with multiple roles both in health conditions and in several diseases. Naïve Hsp60 bearing the mitochondrial import signal has been recently demonstrated to present different oligomeric organizations with respect to GroEL, suggesting new possible physiological functions. Here we present a combined investigation with circular dichroism and small-angle X-ray scattering of structure, self-organization, and sta…
Visualizing a protein quake with time-resolved X-ray scattering at a free-electron laser
2014
We describe a method to measure ultrafast protein structural changes using time-resolved wide-angle X-ray scattering at an X-ray free-electron laser. We demonstrated this approach using multiphoton excitation of the Blastochloris viridis photosynthetic reaction center, observing an ultrafast global conformational change that arises within picoseconds and precedes the propagation of heat through the protein. This provides direct structural evidence for a 'protein quake': the hypothesis that proteins rapidly dissipate energy through quake-like structural motions. peerReviewed
Confinement effects on the interactions of native DNA with Cu(II)-5-triethyl ammonium methyl salicylidene orto-phenylendiiminate in C12E4 liquid crys…
2008
Confinement effects of native calf thymus DNA interacting with the complex Cu(ii)-5-(triethylammoniummethyl)salicylidene ortho-phenylendiiminate (CuL(2+)) perchlorate in tetraethylene glycol monododecyl ether (C(12)E(4)) liquid crystals have been investigated by UV absorption spectrophotometry, circular dichroism (CD) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The results indicate the occurrence of dramatic structural changes of both the DNA and the CuL(2+)-DNA system, when going from aqueous solution to C(12)E(4) liquid crystals, due to confinement constrains imposed by the closed structure of C(12)E(4) reverse micelles. Further marked departures from the behaviour observed in aqueous soluti…
Nutriosomes: Prebiotic delivery systems combining phospholipids, a soluble dextrin and curcumin to counteract intestinal oxidative stress and inflamm…
2018
Nutriosomes, new phospholipid nanovesicles specifically designed for intestinal protection were developed by simultaneously loading a water-soluble dextrin (Nutriose® FM06) and a natural antioxidant (curcumin). Nutriosomes were easily fabricated in a one-step, organic solvent-free procedure. The stability and delivery performances of the vesicles were improved by adding hydroxypropyl methylcellulose. All the vesicles were small in size (mean diameter ∼168 nm), negatively charged (zeta potential ∼-38 mV, irrespective of their composition), and self-assembled predominantly in unilamellar vesicles stabilized by the presence of Nutriose®, which was located in both the inter-lamellar and inter-v…
Proteins in amorphous saccharide matrices: Structural and dynamical insights on bioprotection
2013
Bioprotection by sugars, and in particular trehalose peculiarity, is a relevant topic due to the implications in several fields. The underlying mechanisms are not yet clearly elucidated, and remain the focus of current investigations. Here we revisit data obtained at our lab on binary sugar/water and ternary protein/sugar/water systems, in wide ranges of water content and temperature, in the light of the current literature. The data here discussed come from complementary techniques (Infrared Spectroscopy, Molecular Dynamics simulations, Small Angle X-ray Scattering and Calorimetry), which provided a consistent description of the bioprotection by sugars from the atomistic to the macroscopic …
Pressure effects on α-synuclein amyloid fibrils: An experimental investigation on their dissociation and reversible nature
2017
αâsynuclein amyloid fibrils are found in surviving neurons of Parkinson's disease affected patients, but the role they play in the disease development is still under debate. A growing number of evidences points to soluble oligomers as the major cytotoxic species, while insoluble fibrillar aggregates could even play a protection role. In this work, we investigate αâsynuclein fibrils dissociation induced at high pressure by means of Small Angle X-ray Scattering and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. Fibrils were produced from wild type αâsynuclein and two familial mutants, A30P and A53T. Our results enlighten the different reversible nature of αâsynuclein fibrils fragmentati…
Ionic liquid crystals based on 1,2,4-triazolium rings
2017
Ionic liquids crystals (ILCs) are a class of organic materials of great current interest. They show unique properties that can be exploited in many different fields, for example their use as solvents for extraction processes as well as electrolytes for batteries, fuel cells, dye-sensitised solar cells etc. [1-4] Moreover, in perfluorinated ILCs, the segregation of the perfluorocarbon chains promotes further self-organisation of the LC phases, adding to the materials further properties such as affinity for gases suitable for example in gas-storage. [5-7] A series of salts based on 5-(4-alkyloxyphenyl)-1,4-dimethyl-3-(perfluoroalkyl)-1,2,4-triazol-4-ium structures, differing in the length of …
Effect of Pre-Reduction on the Properties and the Catalytic Activity of Pd/Carbon Catalysts: A Comparison with Pd/Al2O3
2013
The effect of pre-reduction in solution with chemical reagents on the catalytic performance and catalyst properties of Pd/carbon catalysts was systematically investigated with a multitechnique approach. The results are critically discussed in comparison to those recently obtained on analogous Pd/alumina catalysts. It was proved that the Pd phase on the carbon surface is characterized by a high mobility, opposite to what occurs on alumina. As a result, the Pd particles on carbon aggregate together during pre-reduction, with a consequent decrease in available metal surface. Pd particles remain aggregated also in reaction conditions; the decreased Pd dispersion negatively affects the catalyst …
Fabrication of quercetin and curcumin bionanovesicles for the prevention and rapid regeneration of full-thickness skin defects on mice
2013
In the present work biocompatible quercetin and curcumin nanovesicles were developed as a novel approach to prevent and restore skin tissue defects on chronic cutaneous pathologies. Stable and suitable quercetin- and curcumin-loaded phospholipid vesicles, namely liposomes and penetration enhancer-containing vesicles (PEVs), were prepared. Vesicles were made from a highly biocompatible mixture of phospholipids and alternatively a natural polyphenol, quercetin or curcumin. Liposomes were obtained by adding water, while PEVs by adding polyethylene glycol 400 and Oramix®CG110 to the water phase. Transmission electron microscopy, cryogenic-transmission electron microscopy and small- and wide-ang…