Search results for "Mechanism"
showing 10 items of 1835 documents
The histone deacetylase Rpd3 regulates the heterochromatin structure of Drosophila telomeres
2011
Telomeres are specialized structures at the end of eukaryotic chromosomes that are required to preserve genome integrity, chromosome stability and nuclear architecture. Telomere maintenance and function are established epigenetically in several eukaryotes. However, the exact chromatin enzymatic modifications regulating telomere homeostasis are poorly understood. In Drosophila melanogaster, telomere length and stability are maintained through the retrotransposition of specialized telomeric sequences and by the specific loading of protecting capping proteins, respectively. Here, we show that the loss of the essential and evolutionarily conserved histone deacetylase Rpd3, the homolog of mammal…
Multidrug resistance reverting activity and antitumor profile of new phenothiazine derivatives
2008
Abstract A series of easily affordable phenothiazine derivatives bearing a rigid but-2-ynyl amino side chain were synthesized and tested to evaluate the MDR reverting activity and full antitumor profile. Some compounds endowed with remarkable MDR reverting effect were identified, and the most active one ( 6c ) was shown to increase doxorubicin retention in multidrug resistant cells, suggesting a direct interaction with P-glycoprotein. Furthermore, a broad range of cellular activities were observed for different compounds. In particular, the ability of some derivatives to induce antiproliferative effects on resistant cell lines and to interfere with the G 1 phase of the cell cycle, a phase u…
New propylamine oligopyrrole carboxamides linked to a heterocyclic or anthraquinone system: synthesis, DNA binding, topoisomerase I inhibition and cy…
2003
Continuing our studies on combilexines, compounds consisting of a DNA intercalator linked to a minor groove ligand, new results are presented. The synthesis of a series of new propylamine oligopyrrole carboxamides closely related to netropsin and distamycin A, linked to a heterocyclic or anthraquinone system is reported. The cytotoxic activity in vitro, the DNA binding characteristics and the inhibition of the topoisomerase I of the compounds were studied in order to explain the biological mechanism of action of these new potential combilexines. Some of the synthesised compounds showed cytotoxic activity against human tumour cell lines, as well as DNA binding and topoisomerase I inhibiting …
On the use of ionic liquids as mobile phase additives in high-performance liquid chromatography. A review.
2015
The popularity of ionic liquids (ILs) has grown during the last decades in several analytical separation techniques. Consequently, the number of reports devoted to the applications of ILs is still increasing. This review is focused on the use of ILs (mainly imidazolium-based associated to chloride and tetrafluoroborate) as mobile phase additives in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). In this approach, ILs just function as salts, but keep several kinds of intermolecular interactions, which are useful for chromatographic separations. Both cation and anion can be adsorbed on the stationary phase, creating a bilayer. This gives rise to hydrophobic, electrostatic and other specific in…
Modulation of intracellular calcium concentrations and T cell activation by prickly pear polyphenols.
2004
Opuntia ficus indica (prickly pear) polyphenolic compounds (OFPC) triggered an increase in [Ca2+]i in human Jurkat T-cell lines. Furthermore, OFPC-induced rise in [Ca2+]i was significantly curtailed in calcium-free buffer (0% Ca2+) as compared to that in 100% Ca2+ medium. Preincubation of cells with tyrphostin A9, an inhibitor of Ca2+ release-activated Ca2+ (CRAC) channels, significantly diminished the OFPC-induced sustained response on the increases in [Ca2+]i. Lanthanum and nifedipine, the respective inhibitors of voltage-dependent and L-type calcium channels, failed to curtail significantly the OFPC-induced calcium response. As OFPC still stimulated increases in [Ca2+]i in 0% Ca2+ medium…
A Mechanistic Reading of Quantum Laser Theory
2015
Quantum laser theory proceeds in a way that seems at variance with the mechanistic model of explanation. First, as is typical for a complex systems theory, the detailed behavior of the component parts plays a surprisingly subordinate role. In particular, the so-called “enslaving principle” seems to defy a mechanistic reading. Moreover, being quantum objects, the “parts” of a laser are neither located in space nor describable as separate entities. I want to show that, despite these apparent obstacles, quantum laser theory constitutes a good example of a mechanistic explanation in a quantum physical setting, provided that one broadens the notion of mechanism. One may feel that such adjustment…
A salt-induced mechanism for the swelling of black liquor droplet during devolatilization
2017
Abstract Black liquor (BL) from the pulp and paper industry is a significant bioenergy source. Swelling of BL droplet during the pyrolysis stage of combustion and gasification is a profound phenomenon affecting various boiler processes. However, the mechanism for droplet swelling has remains a puzzle due to an insufficient understanding of the formation of the plastic droplet at the pyrolysis stage of the thermal conversion. Thermogravimetric studies with model aliphatic carboxylates unraveled the melting and decomposition behavior of the complex mixture of BL salts during pyrolysis, indicating that the melting of salts forming a liquid state may be the primary cause for the development of …
Thermal Stability and Flame Retardancy of Polypropylene Composites Containing Siloxane-Silsesquioxane Resins
2018
A novel group of silsesquioxane derivatives, which are siloxane-silsesquioxane resins (S4SQ), was for the first time examined as possible flame retardants in polypropylene (PP) materials. Thermal stability of the PP/S4SQ composites compared to the S4SQ resins and neat PP was estimated using thermogravimetric (TG) analysis under nitrogen and in air atmosphere. The effects of the non-functionalized and n-alkyl-functionalized siloxane-silsesquioxane resins on thermostability and flame retardancy of PP materials were also evaluated by thermogravimetry-Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (TG-FTIR) and by cone calorimeter tests. The results revealed that the functionalized S4SQ resins may for…
Analysis of the oxidation process and mechanical evolution in nanosized copper spinel ferrites. Role of stresses on the coercivity
1997
Isothermal oxidations of the iron(II) and copper(I) cations in nanosized copper spinel ferrites which were oxidized in cation-deficient spinels have been studied by thermogravimetric analysis. The low temperature kinetics of oxidation of each oxidizable cation has been explained on the basis of a diffusion-induced stress effect, these stresses being generated in the ferrite particles by the chemical gradient induced during the oxidation process where the cations at the surface are more oxidized than those in the bulk. A reaction mechanism coupling the chemical and the mechanical effects has been proposed. When the Cu-ferrites contain some Co-cations, it has also been revealed that the stres…
Characterization of Hydrophilic Gold(I) N-Heterocyclic Carbene (NHC) Complexes as Potent TrxR Inhibitors Using Biochemical and Mass Spectrometric App…
2017
We report here on the synthesis of a series of mono-and dinuclear gold(I) complexes exhibiting sulfonated bis(NHC) ligands and novel hydroxylated mono(NHC) Au(I) compounds, which were also examined for their 'biological activities. Initial cell viability assays show strong antiproliferative activities of the hydroxylated mono(NHC) gold compounds (8 > 9 > 10) against 2008 human ovarian cancer cells even after 1 h incubation. In order to gain insight into the mechanism of biological action of the gold compounds, their effect on the pivotal cellular target seleno-enzyme thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), involved in the maintenance of intracellular redox balance, was investigated in depth. Th…