Search results for "Function"

Brownian dynamics of grafted polymer chains: time dependent properties

1995

Results of computer simulations of polymer layers consisting of chains grafted by one end on an unpenetrable plane are presented. Characteristics of translational and rotational motion of different chain segments and correlation functions of chain radii were calculated both for single layers at different grafting densities s and for two interacting layers at different distances D between parallel grafting planes. Two values of grafting density were used in the latter case. The behavior of different correlation times as function of s and D and the interplay between the interpenetration of the brushes and rotational and translational motion are discussed. Both relaxation functions and mean sq…

Adsorption and structure formation of semiflexible polymers on spherical surfaces

2018

Abstract Rigid spheres with a short-range attractive potential are taken as a coarse-grained model of vesicles, which contain a solution of semiflexible polymers in their interior. Assuming good solvent conditions with an implicit description of the solvent, effective monomers experience bond-length and bond-angle potentials as well as excluded-volume interaction. Due to the attractive vesicle surface, phase separation occurs between a thin shell of adsorbed monomers at the surface and a rather dilute, and therefore, disordered polymer solution in the sphere interior. While at a planar attractive surface the wormlike chains would exhibit liquid crystalline (nematic and smectic) order, the c…

Radiolabeling of DOTATOC with the long-lived positron emitter 44Sc.

2010

Abstract The positron-emitting radionuclide 44 Sc with a half-life of 3.97 h and a β + branching of 94.3% is of potential interest for clinical PET. As so far it is available from a 44 Ti/ 44 Sc generator in Mainz, where long-lived 44 Ti decays to no-carrier-added (nca) 44 Sc. The 44 Sc is a trivalent metal cation and should be suitable for complexation with many well established bifunctional chelators conjugated to peptides or other molecular targeting vectors. Thus, the aim of this work was to investigate the potential of 44 Sc for labeling of DOTA-conjugated peptides. DOTA-D-Phe 1 -Tyr 3 -octreotide (DOTATOC) was used as a model molecule to study and optimize labeling procedure. Reaction…

The Role of Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species Formation for Age-Induced Vascular Dysfunction

2010

Aging is an important risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases, which can be accelerated by atherosclerosis, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, or obesity. Vascular aging is mainly characterized by endothelial dysfunction, an alteration of endothelium-dependent signaling processes, and vascular remodeling. The underlying mechanisms include increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), inactivation of nitric oxide (•NO), and subsequent formation of reactive nitrogen and oxygen species (RNOS). Elevated RNOS may exhibit new messenger functions by posttranslational oxidative modification of intracellular regulatory proteins or lead to irreversible alterations of biologic…

In vivo analysis of noise dependent activation of white blood cells and microvascular dysfunction in mice

2021

This article contains supporting information on data collection for the research article entitled “Aircraft noise exposure drives the activation of white blood cells and induces microvascular dysfunction in mice” by Eckrich et al. We found that noise-induced stress triggered microvascular dysfunction via involvement of innate immune-derived reactive oxygen species. In this article, we present the instrumentation of mice with dorsal skinfold chambers for in vivo microscopic imaging of blood flow, interaction of leukocytes with the vascular wall (also by fluorescent labelling of blood cells) and vessel diameter. In addition, we explain the preparation of cerebral arterioles for measurement of…

2021

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) rank the leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Obesity and its related metabolic syndrome are well-established risk factors for CVDs. Therefore, understanding the pathophysiological role of adipose tissues is of great importance in maintaining cardiovascular health. Oxidative stress, characterized by excessive formation of reactive oxygen species, is a common cellular stress shared by obesity and CVDs. While plenty of literatures have illustrated the vascular oxidative stress, very few have discussed the impact of oxidative stress in adipose tissues. Adipose tissues can communicate with vascular systems, in an endocrine and paracrine manner, throu…

High-throughput Functional Genomics Identifies Genes That Ameliorate Toxicity Due to Oxidative Stress in Neuronal HT-22 Cells

2004

We describe a novel genetic screen that is performed by transfecting every individual clone of an expression clone collection into a separate population of cells in a highthroughput mode. We combined high-throughput functional genomics with experimental validation to discover human genes that ameliorate cytotoxic responses of neuronal HT-22 cells upon exposure to oxidative stress. A collection of 5,000 human cDNAs in mammalian expression vectors were individually transfected into HT-22 cells, which were then exposed to H2O2. Five genes were found that are known to be involved in pathways of detoxification of peroxide (catalase, glutathione peroxidase-1, peroxiredoxin-1, peroxiredoxin-5, and…

Uncoupling of Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase in Cardiovascular Disease and its Pharmacological Reversal

2010

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the role of oxidative stress in vascular dysfunction and atherogenesis, and strategies for its prevention. Endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress have been identified as a common denominator of many cardiovascular risk factors. They support pro-inflammatory, prothrombotic, proliferative, and vasoconstrictor mechanisms that are involved in the initiation, progression, and complications of atherosclerosis. The pathophysiologic causes of oxidative stress involve changes in a number of different enzyme systems. Increased production of ROS by uncoupled eNOS is likely to contribute significantly to vascular oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunctio…

A Comparison of Shuttling Mechanisms in Two Constitutionally Isomeric Bistable Rotaxane-Based Sunlight-Powered Nanomotors

2006

To find out how best to optimize shuttling of the macrocycle in a particular class of photochemically driven molecular abacus, which has the molecular structure of BR-I6+ in its Mark I prototype (Ashton et al., Chem. Eur. J. 2000, 6, 3558), we have synthesized and characterized a Mark II version of this kind of two-station rotaxane comprised of six molecular modules, namely (a) a bisparaphenylene[34]crown-10 electron donor macrocycle M and its dumbbell-shaped component which contains (b) a Ru(ii)-polypyridine photoactive unit P2+ as one of its stoppers, (c) a p-terphenyl-type ring system as a rigid spacer S, (d) 4,4′-bipyridinium (A12+) and (e) 3,3′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium (A22+) electr…

Scattering function and the dynamics of phase separation in polymer mixtures under shear flow

1988

The phenomenological mean-field theory describing concentration fluctuations and spinodal decomposition of binary mixtures of long flexible macromolecules is generalized to mixtures under steady shear flow. This shear flow leads to a partial orientation and stretching of the coils, as well as to an anisotropic deformation of concentration fluctuations. Generalizing the approach of Onuki and Kawasaki, we obtain the collective scattering function describing these concentration fluctuations in the mixture under shear flow. Both the steady-state situation in the one-phase region and the initial stages of spinodal decomposition for concentrations inside of the spinodal curve are considered.