Search results for "DISCOVERY"
showing 10 items of 4119 documents
Mixotrophy in a Local Strain of Nannochloropsis granulata for Renewable High-Value Biomass Production on the West Coast of Sweden
2022
A local strain of Nannochloropsis granulata (Ng) has been reported as the most productive microalgal strain in terms of both biomass yield and lipid content when cultivated in photobioreactors that simulate the light and temperature conditions during the summer on the west coast of Sweden. To further increase the biomass and the biotechnological potential of this strain in these conditions, mixotrophic growth (i.e., the simultaneous use of photosynthesis and respiration) with glycerol as an external carbon source was investigated in this study and compared with phototrophic growth that made use of air enriched with 1–2% CO2. The addition of either glycerol or CO2-enriched air stimulated the…
Application of a Knowledge Discovery Process to Study Instances of Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problems
2020
Vehicle Routing Problems (VRP) are computationally challenging, constrained optimization problems, which have central role in logistics management. Usually different solvers are being developed and applied for different kind of problems. However, if descriptive and general features could be extracted to describe such problems and their solution attempts, then one could apply data mining and machine learning methods in order to discover general knowledge on such problems. The aim then would be to improve understanding of the most important characteristics of VRPs from both efficient solution and utilization points of view. The purpose of this article is to address these challenges by proposi…
Musashi-2 contributes to myotonic dystrophy muscle dysfunction by promoting excessive autophagy through miR-7 biogenesis repression
2021
Skeletal muscle symptoms strongly contribute to mortality of myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) patients. DM1 is a neuromuscular genetic disease caused by CTG repeat expansions that, upon transcription, sequester the Muscleblind-like family of proteins and dysregulate alternative splicing of hundreds of genes. However, mis-splicing does not satisfactorily explain muscle atrophy and wasting, and several other contributing factors have been suggested, including hyperactivated autophagy leading to excessive catabolism. MicroRNA ( miR ) -7 has been demonstrated to be necessary and sufficient to repress the autophagy pathway in cell models of the disease, but the origin of its low levels in DM1 was…
Thermodynamics of binding between α- and β-cyclodextrins and some p-nitro-aniline derivatives: reconsidering the enthalpy–entropy compensation effect
2004
Abstract The thermodynamics of binding between native α- and β-cyclodextrin towards several p -nitro-aniline derivatives was examined, in order to gain further insights about the occurrence of different interaction modes for the two hosts. Valuable information was achieved regarding the ‘expanded hydrophobic sphere’ of α-cyclodextrin. Furthermore, very interesting and unexpected aspects of the behavior of β-cyclodextrin were enlightened, such as the crucial role played by hydrogen bond interactions. Experimental data were examined under the perspective of the ‘enthalpy–entropy compensation effect’, and some ideas about this topic are discussed.
Chemical Proteomics-Guided Identification of a Novel Biological Target of the Bioactive Neolignan Magnolol
2019
Understanding the recognition process between bioactive natural products and their specific cellular receptors is of key importance in the drug discovery process. In this outline, some potential targets of Magnolol, a natural bioactive compound, have been identified by proteomic approaches. Among them, Importin-β1 has been considered as the most relevant one. A direct binding between Magnolol and this nuclear chaperone has been confirmed by DARTS and molecular docking, while its influence on Importin-β1 translocation has been evaluated by in vitro assays.
Porifera Lectins: diversity, physiological roles and biotechnological potential
2015
An overview on the diversity of 39 lectins from the phylum Porifera is presented, including 38 lectins, which were identified from the class of demosponges, and one lectin from the class of hexactinellida. Their purification from crude extracts was mainly performed by using affinity chromatography and gel filtration techniques. Other protocols were also developed in order to collect and study sponge lectins, including screening of sponge genomes and expression in heterologous bacterial systems. The characterization of the lectins was performed by Edman degradation or mass spectrometry. Regarding their physiological roles, sponge lectins showed to be involved in morphogenesis and cell intera…
Influence of bacterial physiology on processing of selenite, biogenesis of nanomaterials and their thermodynamic stability
2019
We explored how Ochrobactrum sp. MPV1 can convert up to 2.5 mM selenite within 120 h, surviving the challenge posed by high oxyanion concentrations. The data show that thiol-based biotic chemical reaction(s) occur upon bacterial exposure to low selenite concentrations, whereas enzymatic systems account for oxyanion removal when 2 mM oxyanion is exceeded. The selenite bioprocessing produces selenium nanomaterials, whose size and morphology depend on the bacterial physiology. Selenium nanoparticles were always produced by MPV1 cells, featuring an average diameter ranging between 90 and 140 nm, which we conclude constitutes the thermodynamic stability range for these nanostructures. Alternativ…
Xanthones and sesquiterpene derivatives from a marine-derived fungus Scopulariopsis sp.
2016
Abstract Two new xanthone derivatives, 12-dimethoxypinselin ( 1 ) and 12- O -acetyl-AGI-B4 ( 2 ), as well as two new phenolic bisabolane-type sesquiterpenes, 11,12-dihydroxysydonic acid ( 15 ) and 1-hydroxyboivinianic acid ( 16 ), together with one new alkaloid, scopulamide ( 21 ) and one new α-pyrone derivative, scopupyrone ( 26 ), in addition to twenty-three known compounds ( 3 – 14 , 17 – 20 , 22 – 25 , 27 – 29 ) were isolated from solid rice cultures of the marine-derived fungus Scopulariopsis sp. obtained from the Red Sea hard coral Stylophora sp. All compounds were unambiguously identified through extensive NMR spectroscopic analyses, and by comparison with the literature. Marfey's re…
Drug Synergism: Studies of Combination of RK-52 and Curcumin against Rhodesain of Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense
2020
Rhodesain is an enzyme essential for the life of Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense, a parasite causing a rapid-onset form of Human African Trypanosomiasis. RK-52 is a synthetic inhibitor of rhodesain,...
Secondary metabolites of the lichen-associated fungus Apiospora montagnei
2017
Abstract The endolichenic fungus Apiospora montagnei isolated from the lichen Cladonia sp. was cultured on solid rice medium, yielding the new diterpenoid libertellenone L (1), the new pyridine alkaloid, 23-O-acetyl-N-hydroxyapiosporamide (2) and the new xanthone derivative 8-hydroxy-3-hydroxymethyl-9-oxo-9H-xanthene-1-carboxylic acid methyl ether (3) together with 19 known compounds (4–22). The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by 1D and 2D NMR spectra as well as by HRESIMS data. The absolute configuration of the new 6,7-seco-libertellenone derivative 1 was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Four additional known compounds 23–26 were isolated when NaCl or NH4Cl w…