Search results for "techniques"

Yeast karyopherins Kap123 and Kap95 are related to the function of the cell integrity pathway

2009

The characterization of mutant strains in the gene encoding karyopherin Kap123 has revealed several morphogenetic defects. Inactivation of KAP123 caused alterations in the actin cytoskeleton, resulting in hyperpolarization and resistance to the actin polymerization inhibitor latrunculin B. In fact, the level of actin filaments is increased in kap123 mutant cells. In addition to the defect in actin cytoskeleton, the kap123 mutant cells showed a weakened cell wall, cell lysis and a growth defect in either the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate or at high temperatures, which is alleviated by osmotic stabilizers. These defects in cell integrity and the actin cytoskeleton suggested a relationshi…

Bromodomain factor 1 (Bdf1) protein interacts with histones

2001

AbstractUsing a yeast two-hybrid assay we detected an interaction between the N-terminal region of histone H4 (amino acids 1–59) and a fragment of the bromodomain factor 1 protein (Bdf1p) (amino acids 304–571) that includes one of the two bromodomains of this protein. No interaction was observed using fragments of histone H4 sequence smaller than the first 59 amino acids. Recombinant Bdf1p (rBdf1p) demonstrates binding affinity for histones H4 and H3 but not H2A and H2B in vitro. Moreover, rBdf1p is able to bind histones H3 and H4 having different degrees of acetylation. Finally, we have not detected histone acetyltransferase activity associated with Bdf1p.

A novel process-based model of microbial growth: self-inhibition in Saccharomyces cerevisiae aerobic fed-batch cultures

2015

Microbial population dynamics in bioreactors depend on both nutrients availability and changes in the growth environment. Research is still ongoing on the optimization of bioreactor yields focusing on the increase of the maximum achievable cell density. A new process-based model is proposed to describe the aerobic growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cultured on glucose as carbon and energy source. The model considers the main metabolic routes of glucose assimilation (fermentation to ethanol and respiration) and the occurrence of inhibition due to the accumulation of both ethanol and other self-produced toxic compounds in the medium. Model simulations reproduced data from classic and new expe…

Conjunctival Sac Fluid Contains Elevated Levels of Soluble TRAIL: Implications for the Anti-Tumoral Surveillance of the Anterior Surface of the Eye

2008

Little is known on the ability of different epithelia to release soluble TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) and the relevance of TRAIL secretion by epithelial cells is still incompletely understood. On these bases, we have measured the concentration of soluble TRAIL by ELISA in the conjunctival sac fluid. It was the highest ever detected in a biological fluid (mean value of 26,800 pg/ml), being approximately 20-fold greater than that found in human saliva and >200-fold greater than that detected in human serum. On the other hand, osteoprotegerin, the soluble decoy receptor of TRAIL, was almost undetectable in the conjunctival sac fluid. Of note, the levels of soluble TRAIL measur…

Analysis of metabolism and genotoxicity of 5-nitro-3-thiophenecarboxanilides in bacterial, mammalian and human cells

1995

5-nitro-3-thiophenecarboxanilide (NTCA3) was clearly mutagenic in Salmonella typhimurium strains TA98, YG1021 (the strain with elevated nitroreductase) and YG1024 (the strain with elevated O-acetyltransferase) and only slightly mutagenic at the gpt locus in AS52 cells. Clastogenic activity in human lymphocytes was dependent on the length of exposure : detectable chromosome aberrations were observed following a 24 h treatment period, but not after 3 h exposure. S9 increased genotoxicity in both mammalian cells and human lymphocytes. Metabolites formed by incubation of NTCA3 with the different cell systems were examined. A time-course study in cell whole extracts showed that bacterial and mam…

An interlaboratory study as useful tool for proficiency testing of chemical oxygen demand measurements using solid substrates and liquid samples with…

2009

In 2008, the first Proficiency Testing Scheme of Chemical Oxygen Demand (1stCOD-PTADG) was conducted to assess the results obtained for different research groups whose field work is mainly anaerobic digestion. This study was performed using four samples, two solid samples as raw materials and two solid samples to prepare high concentration suspended solid solutions. Invitations were sent to a large number of laboratories, mainly to anaerobic digestion research groups. Finally, thirty labs from sixteen countries agreed to participate, but for different reasons four participants could not send any data. In total, twenty-six results were reported to the COD-PT coordinator. This study showed th…

Sampling

2014

Silk fibroin scaffolds enhance cell commitment of adult rat cardiac progenitor cells.

2015

The use of three-dimensional (3D) cultures may induce cardiac progenitor cells to synthesize their own extracellular matrix (ECM) and sarcomeric proteins to initiate cardiac differentiation. 3D cultures grown on synthetic scaffolds may favour the implantation and survival of stem cells for cell therapy when pharmacological therapies are not efficient in curing cardiovascular diseases and when organ transplantation remains the only treatment able to rescue the patient’s life. Silk fibroin-based scaffolds may be used to increase cell affinity to biomaterials and may be chemically modified to improve cell adhesion. In the present study, porous, partially orientated and electrospun nanometric n…

Invariant Feature Matching for Image Registration Application Based on New Dissimilarity of Spatial Features

2016

An invariant feature matching method is proposed as a spatially invariant feature matching approach. Deformation effects, such as affine and homography, change the local information within the image and can result in ambiguous local information pertaining to image points. New method based on dissimilarity values, which measures the dissimilarity of the features through the path based on Eigenvector properties, is proposed. Evidence shows that existing matching techniques using similarity metrics--such as normalized cross-correlation, squared sum of intensity differences and correlation coefficient--are insufficient for achieving adequate results under different image deformations. Thus, new…

Comparing two methods of analysis of single-ring infiltrometer data for a sandy – loam soil

2009

The single-ring pressure i n filtrometer (PI) with the steady-state Two-Ponding-Depth (TPD) applic ation method were developed to simulta neously determine the saturated soil hydraulic conductivity, K , and the α ⁎ -parameter in the fi eld. Methods of analysis of transient PI data are also available but they have received little testing so far. The transient WU method and the TPD method were compared for a sandy-loam soil. A linearization technique o f the in filtration curve yielded more reliable K fs fs and α ⁎ results (i.e., falling within expected ranges) than a non-linear optimization technique. The WU method gave both positive and reasonable K and α ⁎ values for all infi ltration tests. U…