Search results for " secondary"

Improving protein secondary structure predictions by prediction fusion

2009

Protein secondary structure prediction is still a challenging problem at today. Even if a number of prediction methods have been presented in the literature, the various prediction tools that are available on-line produce results whose quality is not always fully satisfactory. Therefore, a user has to know which predictor to use for a given protein to be analyzed. In this paper, we propose a server implementing a method to improve the accuracy in protein secondary structure prediction. The method is based on integrating the prediction results computed by some available on-line prediction tools to obtain a combined prediction of higher quality. Given an input protein p whose secondary struct…

The execution of the Grooved Pegboard test in a Dual-Task situation: A pilot study

2020

Background Manual dexterity is an important aspect in everyday life, which is widely studied through the Grooved Pegboard Test (GPT). Since Dual-Tasks (DT) activities are widely investigated and important to simulate everyday life situations, the objectives of the present pilot study were the evaluation of the effect of a cognitive task and a motor task during the performance of the GPT and the feasibility of the GPT in a DT contest. A secondary objective was to evaluate the training effect of the GPT. Methods A total of 31 young adults (20 man and 11 woman, age (SD): 27.7 (2.5)) performed the GPT eight times to understand the presence of a training effect before performing the GPT in DT. T…

Mens sana in corpore exhausto. Emociones y gestión de sí en escuelas secundarias del sur global

2020

In recent years, emotional education has become a central element in a series of guidelines on a global scale that have been translated into various state initiatives aimed at education. Thus, Mens sana in corpore exhausto proposes to demonstrate the tension that is expressed between the growing series of discourses on emotional education and the school climate and the exhaustive bodies of teachers and directors of public secondary schools in the Metropolitan Region of Buenos Aires (RMBA). By way of hypothesis, these policies are considered to work on the bodies of teachers and directors, encouraging them to continue and not stop under the logic of management and self-management that throw …

Comparison of some dispersion-corrected and traditional functionals as applied to peptides and conformations of cyclohexane derivatives.

2012

We compare the energetic and structural properties of fully optimized α-helical and antiparallel β-sheet polyalanines and the energetic differences between axial and equatorial conformations of three cyclohexane derivatives (methyl, fluoro, and chloro) as calculated using several functionals designed to treat dispersion (B97-D, ωB97x-D, M06, M06L, and M06-2X) with other traditional functionals not specifically parametrized to treat dispersion (B3LYP, X3LYP, and PBE1PBE) and with experimental results. Those functionals developed to treat dispersion significantly overestimate interaction enthalpies of folding for the α-helix and predict unreasonable structures that contain Ramachandran φ and …

(DIS)Assembly and Structural Stability of mtHsp60 and its Precursor NaÏve Form

2015

Heat shock protein 60kDa is a molecular chaperone (GroEL human homolog) that assists protein folding in mitochondria (mtHsp60). It is synthesized in the cell cytoplasm as a higher molecular weight precursor form (p-mtHsp60) containing a N-terminal targeting sequence, that is cleaved after import into the mitochondrial matrix [1, 2].It has been established, and demonstrated by various techniques, Hsp60 can accumulate in the cytosol, in various pathological conditions (i.e., cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases). The cytosolical Hsp60 accumulation mechanism may occur with or without mitochondrial release concomitantly, so that in the cytosol the two types of 60 kDa chaperonin proteins, (m…

'Naughty cylinder' mechanical paradox

2013

The double cone: a mechanical paradox or a geometrical constraint?

2011

In the framework of the Italian National Plan ‘Lauree Scientifiche’ (PLS) in collaboration with secondary schools, we have investigated the mechanical paradox of the double cone. We have calculated the geometric condition for obtaining an upward movement. Based on this result, we have built a mechanical model with a double cone made of aluminum and a couple of wooden rails.

A didactic experiment and model of a flat-plate solar collector

2011

We report on an experiment performed with a home-made flat-plate solar collector, carried out together with high-school students. To explain the experimental results, we propose a model that describes the heating process of the solar collector. The model accounts quantitatively for the experimental data. We suggest that solar-energy topics should be included in school programmes to give students the opportunity to gain experience with solar energy and increase their awareness of the benefits that can be obtained from this remarkable and renewable energy source.

Measurement of nanoparticle mass distributions by laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

2011

In this paper, access to the mass distribution analysis of nanoparticles is described based on laser desorption/ionization and time of flight mass spectrometry. Two examples are given, demonstrating the accurate mass distribution analysis of nanoparticles fabricated both ex situ and in situ during the laser-assisted desorption process. The potentials and the limitations of the method are discussed, with special emphasis on carbonaceous clusters and molecules.

Detergent Properties Influence the Stability of the Glycophorin A Transmembrane Helix Dimer in Lysophosphatidylcholine Micelles

2012

AbstractDetergents might affect membrane protein structures by promoting intramolecular interactions that are different from those found in native membrane bilayers, and fine-tuning detergent properties can be crucial for obtaining structural information of intact and functional transmembrane proteins. To systematically investigate the influence of the detergent concentration and acyl-chain length on the stability of a transmembrane protein structure, the stability of the human glycophorin A transmembrane helix dimer has been analyzed in lyso-phosphatidylcholine micelles of different acyl-chain length. While our results indicate that the transmembrane protein is destabilized in detergents w…