Search results for "Biomolecule"

Impact of t-PA administration on brain BDNF levels in physiological conditions and in circulating BDNF levels in ischemic conditions : Human and anim…

2014

Our objective was to test the hypothesis that the beneficial effect of the administration of the recombinant form of tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) in ischemic stroke patient not only results from its fibrinolytic activity but also from its ability to increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the brain. To this end, we conducted an initial study to evaluate the effect of rt-PA on brain BDNF levels in healthy animals. In a second study, we investigated the effect of rt-PA on serum BDNF levels in ischemic stroke patients and in animals subjected to permanent focal cerebral ischemia. Blood samples were obtained from patient on admission (D0), D1, D7 and D90 after stroke and in…

Thermodynamic properties and conductivities of some dodecylsurfactants in water

1988

Densities, heat capacities, enthalpies of dilution, osmotic coefficients and conductivities are reported for dodecylamine hydrochloride, dodecyldimethylammonium and dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride in water over a wide range of concentration. The last two properties were also measured for dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide. From the thermodynamic data partial molar volumes, heat capacities and relative enthalpies and nonideal free energies and entropies were derived as a function of the surfactant concentration. The cmc's and degree of counterion dissociation were also calculated from the transport properties. It is shown that the trends of volumes, enthalpies, free energies and entropies ar…

The 18S ribosomal RNA m 6 A methyltransferase Mettl5 is required for normal walking behavior in Drosophila

2020

RNA modifications have recently emerged as an important layer of gene regulation. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prominent modification on eukaryotic messenger RNA and has also been found on noncoding RNA, including ribosomal and small nuclear RNA. Recently, several m6A methyltransferases were identified, uncovering the specificity of m6A deposition by structurally distinct enzymes. In order to discover additional m6A enzymes, we performed an RNAi screen to deplete annotated orthologs of human methyltransferase-like proteins (METTLs) in Drosophila cells and identified CG9666, the ortholog of human METTL5. We show that CG9666 is required for specific deposition of m6A on 18S ribosomal …

Anomalous temperature dependence of the IR spectrum of polyalanine

1997

Abstract We have studied the temperature dependence of the infrared spectra of acetanilide (ACN), tryptophan–(alanine) 15 , and tyrosine–(alanine) 15 . No sidebands of the amide-I vibration were observed in the polypeptides, but two anomalous sidebands of the NH stretch with a similar temperature dependence as that of the anomalous amide-I vibrational mode at 1650 cm −1 of crystalline ACN were detected. Fermi resonance combined with the appearance of a red-shifted sideband of NH stretch through coupling to lattice modes seems to explain this band structure. Observations are indicative of excitons that may occur in polypeptides as well as in single crystals of ACN.

Linear chain surfactants at a planar interface: a comparative Monte Carlo study of several lattice models

1993

Linear chain surfactants in a densely packed arrangement (such as alkane chains in lipid monolayers in the “uniform tilt” structures) are described by a crude coarse-grained model where the endgroups grafted on the interface form a regular lattice and the chains are described by the bond fluctuation model with chains containing N = 4 effective monomers only. Square-well interactions between the monomers are studied for both the attractive and repulsive case for three choices of the interaction range. None of these models exhibits a structure with uniform tilt. For attractive interactions the last bond has a strong tendency to fold back thus leading to a very high density close to the interf…

1988

Deviations in the determination of the unperturbed dimensions of polymers arising in ternary polymer systems (solvent (1)/solvent (2)/polymer) can be explained by the inaccurate use of an interaction parameter independent of polymer molecular weight. On this basis, a new formalism for the calculation of the second virial coefficient from intrinsic viscosity is proposed. This formalism was tested (and compared with well established formalisms) for all ternary polymer systems with simultaneous intrinsic viscosity and second virial coefficient data in the literature.

The Boson Peak of Amyloid Fibrils: Probing the Softness of Protein Aggregates by Inelastic Neutron Scattering

2014

Proteins and polypeptides are characterized by low-frequency vibrations in the terahertz regime responsible for the so-called "boson peak". The shape and position of this peak are related to the mechanical properties of peptide chains. Amyloid fibrils are ordered macromolecular assemblies, spontaneously formed in nature, characterized by unique biological and nanomechanical properties. In this work, we investigate the effects of the amyloid state and its polymorphism on the boson peak. We used inelastic neutron scattering to probe low-frequency vibrations of the glucagon polypeptide in the native state and in two different amyloid morphologies in both dry and hydrated sample states. The dat…

Affinity Sensors for the Diagnosis of COVID-19

2021

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was proclaimed a global pandemic in March 2020. Reducing the dissemination rate, in particular by tracking the infected people and their contacts, is the main instrument against infection spreading. Therefore, the creation and implementation of fast, reliable and responsive methods suitable for the diagnosis of COVID-19 are required. These needs can be fulfilled using affinity sensors, which differ in applied detection methods and markers that are generating analytical signals. Recently, nucleic acid hybridization, antigen-antibody interaction, and change of reactive oxyge…

Mechanisms of nanotoxicity – biomolecule coronas protect pathological fungi against nanoparticle-based eradication

2020

Whereas nanotoxicity is intensely studied in mammalian systems, our knowledge of desired or unwanted nano-based effects for microbes is still limited. Fungal infections are global socio-economic health and agricultural problems, and current chemical antifungals may induce adverse side-effects in humans and ecosystems. Thus, nanoparticles are discussed as potential novel and sustainable antifungals via the desired nanotoxicity but often fail in practical applications. In our study, we found that nanoparticles' toxicity strongly depends on their binding to fungal spores, including the clinically relevant pathogen

Medicinal Mushrooms: Bioactive Compounds, Use, and Clinical Trials

2021

Medicinal mushrooms have important health benefits and exhibit a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities, including antiallergic, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, antiviral, cytotoxic, immunomodulating, antidepressive, antihyperlipidemic, antidiabetic, digestive, hepatoprotective, neuroprotective, nephroprotective, osteoprotective, and hypotensive activities. The growing interest in mycotherapy requires a strong commitment from the scientific community to expand clinical trials and to propose supplements of safe origin and genetic purity. Bioactive compounds of selected medicinal mushrooms and their effects and mechanisms in in vitro and in vivo clinical stu…