Search results for "matrix"

New amphiphilic conjugates of mono- and bis(carboxy)-PEG(2,000) polymers with lipoamino acids as surface modifiers of colloidal drug carriers

2010

Amino Acid derivatives as new zinc binding groups for the design of selective matrix metalloproteinase inhibitors.

2012

A number of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are important medicinal targets for conditions ranging from rheumatoid arthritis to cardiomyopathy, periodontal disease, liver cirrhosis, multiple sclerosis, and cancer invasion and metastasis, where they showed to have a dual role, inhibiting or promoting important processes involved in the pathology. MMPs contain a zinc (II) ion in the protein active site. Small-molecule inhibitors of these metalloproteins are designed to bind directly to the active site metal ions. In an effort to devise new approaches to selective inhibitors, in this paper, we describe the synthesis and preliminary biological evaluation of amino acid derivatives as new zinc b…

072 Collagen gene expression and tenascin pattern in normal, osteoarthritic, and rheumatoid connective tissues

1992

The extracellular matrix consists of four major components, namely collagens, elastin, proteoglyeans and glycoproteins. Collagens are important members of the ECM, forming a family of at least t 3 different structurally related proteins. Tenascin, synonymous with cytoactin, hexabrachion and J1, is a new member of matrix glycoproteins with a molecular mass of 1200 kD. It exhibits a "hexabrachion" structure with an ellipsoid central globule from which six arms of 75 nm in length diverge in a T-junction arrangement [1]. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) belongs to the group of connective tissue diseases. In contrast to abundant data about ECM-changes in systemic sclerodermia [2] the matrix alterations…

Chitin: A Structural Biopolysaccharide with Multiple Applications

2014

Chitin is a naturally occurring fibre-forming polymer that plays a protective role in many lower eukaryotes similar to that of cellulose in plants. Chemically it is a long-chain unbranched polysaccharide made of N-acetylglucosamine residues linked through β-1,4 covalent bonds; it is the second most abundant organic compound in nature, after cellulose. Taking into account the role played by chitin in different biological structures (i.e. fungal cell walls, insect peritrophic matrix, insect and crustacean cuticles, eggshells from nematodes, cyst wall of protozoa), its metabolism (biosynthesis and degradation) is essential for different morphogenetic events. Absent in vertebrates and plants, c…

The Formation of The Plant Vacuolar System

1999

The plant vacuole is a multifunctional subcellular compartment. In general, the vacuolar system is constituted of a single or few vacuoles. About 80% of the volume of mature plant cells is occupied by vacuoles. These organelles are limited by a single membrane, the tonoplast. According to the cell type and to particular functions, the vacuolar content can vary from a homogeneous consistency to a heterogeneous matrix containing crystalloid structures (Boiler, Wiemken, 1986; Marty et al., 1980). From the biotechnological point of view, the endomembrane system of plants, particularly the ER and vacuoles, can be envisioned as the ultimate environment for stable protein accumulation. Several rep…

MbCO embedded in trehalosyldextrin matrices: thermal effects and protein-matrix coupling

2010

Saccharide-based biopreservation is widely studied because of its scientific importance and possible technological outcomes for food and pharmaceutical industries. Ternary protein/saccharide/water systems have been extensively exploited to model the characteristics of the in vivo biopreservation process. A tight, water dependent, protein–matrix coupling has been shown to occur in various simple saccharide amorphous matrices, which is stronger in trehalose. The efficiency as bioprotectant of trehalose has been ascribed to this tight coupling, since the appearance of damages on biological structures will more involve structural variations of the surrounding matrix. Here we present, as an appl…

Nanocomposite, an innovative route to large structure and infrastructure protection. A case of study: CNT-doped polyurea

2010

<p>In this work we focus on experimental studies of polymer-nanocomposites intended for passive protection of civil structures. The material consists of a polyurea-matrix enhanced by different quantities of multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Several tensile and cyclic tests are performed to evaluate and characterize the mechanical behaviour of this new material. Furthermore, we subject the material to accelerated thermal aging and study its performance deterioration which is fairly unknown. The results on the unaged specimens are intuitive and indicate that an arbitrary amount of CNTs may result in suboptimal performance. More specifically, 1% in weight of CNTs yields the best mechanical p…

1987

Diffusion coefficients D of singly and doubly end-labeled polystyrenes (PS) with molecular weights in the range 6500 ≤ M ≤ 75400 were measured in a PS matrix of molecular weight M′ = 111000, and in matrices with M′ = M. At 212°C, we find no influence of the label. In a power-law description D = D0 · M−α · M′−β we find α = 2,0 for M′ = 111000 and α + β = 2,4 for M = M′. The crossover to Rouse-like behavior for short-M chains is at Me ≈ 18000 for the former (high M′), and at Mc ≈ 33000 in the latter (M′ = M) case. At 185°C, we find a more complex scaling behavior and different D values for singly and doubly labeled PS.

An Accurate Quartic Force Field and Fundamental Frequencies for the Ozonide Anion: A Rare Positive Anharmonicity for the Antisymmetric Stretch

2003

The CCSD(T) method has been used to compute a highly accurate quartic force field and fundamental frequencies for all 16O and 18O isotopomers of the ozonide anion. The CCSD and CASPT2 methods have also been used to verify the reliability of the CCSD(T) fundamental frequencies. The computed fundamental frequencies are in agreement with gas-phase experiments, but disagree with matrix isolation experiments for the antisymmetric stretch, ν3. CASPT2 calculations show that the antisymmetric part of the O3- potential surface is sensitive to the external environment. It is concluded that the antisymmetric stretch exhibits a significant matrix shift in the matrix isolation experiments and that the m…

Tricks and Tracks in the Identification and Quantification of Endocannabinoids

2013

Abstract The endocannabinoid system serves pivotal roles in a diverse range of physiological and pathophysiological states, including behavior, pain, schizophrenia, obesity, Alzheimer disease, multiple sclerosis and cardiovascular disease. A number of endocannabinoids (eCBs) and their receptors have been characterised and identified in a plethora of biological matrices. The eCBs include N-arachidonoyl ethanolamine (anandamide), 2-arachidonoyl glycerol, 2-arachidonoyl glyceryl ether (noladin ether), O-arachidonoyl ethanolamine (virodhamine) and N-arachidonoyl dopamine. Advanced targeted mass spectrometry methods, particularly the selected reaction monitoring, has facilitated sensitive quanti…