Calculating order parameter profiles utilizing magnetically aligned phospholipid bilayers for 2H solid-state NMR studies

Solid-state deuterium NMR spectroscopy was used to study the structural and dynamic properties of stearic acid-d(35) in magnetically aligned phospholipid bilayers as a function of temperature. Magnetically aligned phospholipid bilayers or bicelles are model systems, which mimic biological membranes for magnetic resonance studies. Paramagnetic lanthanide ions (Yb(3+)) were added to align the bicelles such that the bilayer normal is colinear with the direction of the static magnetic field. The corresponding order parameters of the stearic acid-d(35) probe were calculated and compared with values obtained from unoriented samples in the literature. The addition of cholesterol to the bicelle system decreases the fluidity of the phospholipid bilayers and increases the ordering of the acyl chains of stearic acid-d(35). This study demonstrates the feasibility of utilizing magnetically aligned bicelles for calculating 2H order parameter profiles for non-biological systems such as polymer-grafted membranes and Schiff's base complexes.     

Magnetically aligned phospholipid bilayers in weak magnetic fields: optimization,mechanism, and advantages for X-band EPR studies

Our lab is developing a spin-labeled EPR spectroscopic technique complementary to solid-state NMR studies to study the structure, orientation, and dynamics of uniaxially aligned integral membrane proteins inserted into magnetically aligned discotic phospholipid bilayers, or bicelles. The focus of this study is to optimize and understand the mechanisms involved in the magnetic alignment process of bicelle disks in weak magnetic fields. Developing experimental conditions for optimized magnetic alignment of bicelles in low magnetic fields may prove useful to study the dynamics of membrane proteins and its interactions with lipids, drugs, steroids, signaling events, other proteins, etc. In weak magnetic fields, the magnetic alignment of Tm(3+)-doped bicelle disks was thermodynamically and kinetically very sensitive to experimental conditions. Tm(3+)-doped bicelles were magnetically aligned using the following optimized procedure: the temperature was slowly raised at a rate of 1.9K/min from an initial temperature being between 298 and 307K to a final temperature of 318K in the presence of a static magnetic field of 6300G. The spin probe 3beta-doxyl-5alpha-cholestane (cholestane) was inserted into the bicelle disks and utilized to monitor bicelle alignment by analyzing the anisotropic hyperfine splitting for the corresponding EPR spectra. The phases of the bicelles were determined using solid-state 2H NMR spectroscopy and compared with the corresponding EPR spectra. Macroscopic alignment commenced in the liquid crystalline nematic phase (307K), continued to increase upon slowly raising the temperature, and was well-aligned in the liquid crystalline lamellar smectic phase (318K).     

Systems of oblate molecules. Monte Carlo study

Monte Carlo (MC) simulations were performed for systems of hard oblate spherocylinders with breadth-to-height ratios φ = 0.5–3.5 and packing fractions y = 0.25–0.45 and for Kihara oblate molecule systems of φ = 1 at reduced temperatures T* = 0.75 and 1.0 and y = 0.05–0.45. The compression factors and the dependence of the average correlation functions on the shortest surface-to-surface distance were determined for the case of hard oblate spherocylinders and the compression factors, residual internal energies and average correlation functions for the case of the generalized Kihara molecule systems. In addition, values of the third virial coefficient of the hard oblate spherocylinders were evaluated in the range of φ = 1–3. Results of the MC simulations for the hard oblate spherocylinders compare well with the available data in the literature and theoretical values; thermodynamic functions of the Kihara molecule systems were determined from the second-order perturbation theory. They agree well with our MC values at lower densities and higher reduced temperatures.     

Surface States in a Simple Crystal Model

A very simple crystal model of a semi-infinite heteroatomic planar lattice like boronitride is investigated for the energy, wave functions and existence conditions of surface states, using the one-electron Green function method. σ and π electrons are treated separately. For π electrons, we find two surface state bands, both for the electropositive and the electronegative surface. The consequence is the existence of Shockley “subsurface” states. For σ electrons, similar results were found as for the sphalerite-type lattice. The investigated model can also be used to draw qualitative conclusions about the effect of electronic correlation on surface states of planar graphite. The possibility of finding a certain type of “antiferromagnetism” with π electrons localized on the planar graphite boundary is suggested. On étudie un modèle très simple d'un cristal avec un réseau sémi-infini, héteroatomique, comme le boronitride. L'énergie, les fonctions d'onde et des conditions d'existence d'états de surface ont été obtenus par la méthode de la fonction de Green à un électron. Les électrons σ et π ont été traités séparément. Pour les électrons π on trouve deux bandes d'états de surface pour la surface électropositive ainsi que pour la surface électronégative, ce qui implique l'existence d'états de “sous-surface” de Shockley. Pour les électrons σ on trouve des résultats semblables aux ceux qu'on a obtenu pour le réseau de type sphalérite. Le modèle étudié ici peut aussi être employé pour tirer des conclusions qualitatives sur l'effet de la corrélation électronique sur les états de surface du graphite plan. On propose qu'il serait possible de trouver un certain type de “antiferromagnétisme” avec les électrons π localisés sur le bord du graphite plan. Es wurde ein einfaches Modell für ein halb-unendliches, heteroatomares Kristallgitter, wie Boronitrid untersucht. Die Energie, die Wellenfunktionen und Existenzbedingungen für Oberflächenzustände wurden mit der Einelektron-Green-Funktionsmethode erhalten. Die σ- und π-Electronen wurden getrennt behandelt. Für die π-Elektronen finden wir zwei Bände für Oberflächenzustände, sowohl für die elektropositive als für die elektronegative Oberfläche. Als Folgerung erhalten wir die Shockleysche unteroberflächenzustände. Für die σ-Elektronen wurden ähnliche Resultate als für das Sphaleritgitter gefunden. Das untersuchte Modell kann auch dafür angewendet werden, urn den Effekt der elektronischen Korrelation auf die Oberflächenzustände planares Graphits in qualitativer Weise zu diskutieren. Es wurde vorgeschlagen, dass es möglich wäre, eine gewisse Art von “Antiferromagnetismus” der π-Elektronen die auf der Grenze planares Graphits lokalisiert sind, zu finden.     

Antibacterial Activity and Synergistic Effect of Biosynthesized AgNPs with Antibiotics Against Multidrug-Resistant Biofilm-Forming Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci Isolated from Clinical Samples

Silver nanoparticles form promising template for designing antimicrobial agents against drug resistant pathogenic microorganisms. Thus, the development of a reliable green approach for the synthesis of nanoparticles is an important aspect of current nanotechnology research. In the present investigation, silver nanoparticles synthesized by a soil Bacillus sp. were characterized using UV–vis spectroscopy, FTIR, SEM, and EDS. The antibacterial potential of biosynthesized silver nanoparticles, standard antibiotics, and their conjugates were evaluated against multidrug-resistant biofilm-forming coagulase-negative S. epidermidis strains, S. aureus, Salmonella Typhi, Salmonella Paratyphi, and V. cholerae. Interestingly, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) showed remarkable antibacterial activity against all the test strains with the highest activity against S. epidermidis strains 145 and 152. In addition, the highest synergistic effect of AgNPs was observed with chloramphenicol against Salmonella typhi. The results of the study clearly indicate the promising biomedical applications of biosynthesized AgNPs.     

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SURVIVAL AND THYMINE-DIMER EXCISION IN ULTRAVIOLET-IRRADIATED ESCHERICHIA COLI

Abstract— The influence of amino acid prestarvation on both the resistance to u.v. light and excision of thymine dimers of bacterial strains E. coli B/r hcr ⁺ thy- trp ^-, E. coli B/r hcr ^-thy^- trp ^-, and E, coli 15 T^- 555–7 thy ^- meth ^- trp ^- arg ^- has been studied.
The prestarvation increased the resistance of all the strains but reasonably inhibited excision of thymine dimers. Thus the enhancement of u.v. resistance after amino acid prestarvation was not due to more complete excision of thymine dimers.     

Comparing Nonsmooth Nonconvex Bundle Methods in Solving Hemivariational Inequalities

Hemivariational inequalities can be considered as a generalization of variational inequalities. Their origin is in nonsmooth mechanics of solid, especially in nonmonotone contact problems. The solution of a hemivariational inequality proves to be a substationary point of some functional, and thus can be found by the nonsmooth and nonconvex optimization methods. We consider two type of bundle methods in order to solve hemivariational inequalities numerically: proximal bundle and bundle-Newton methods. Proximal bundle method is based on first order polyhedral approximation of the locally Lipschitz continuous objective function. To obtain better convergence rate bundle-Newton method contains also some second order information of the objective function in the form of approximate Hessian. Since the optimization problem arising in the hemivariational inequalities has a dominated quadratic part the second order method should be a good choice. The main question in the functioning of the methods is how remarkable is the advantage of the possible better convergence rate of bundle-Newton method when compared to the increased calculation demand.     

Molecular vibrations and lattice dynamics of ortho-terphenyl

Infrared and Raman spectra of crystalline, melted and solvated ortho-terphenyl and its perdeuterated isotopomer, D₁₄-ortho-tephenyl, have been recorded. Optimized geometries and vibrational frequencies were calculated by the semiempirical RHF/AM1 method and by DFT using the B3LYP functional and 6–31G(d) basis set. In both cases the lowest energy conformation is of C₂ symmetry. With the scaled AM1 and B3LYP/6-31G(d) force fields the average error in reproducing the experimental molecular vibrational frequencies is 13cm^?1 and 5cm^?1, respectively. The AM1 potential energy surface for phenyl torsions was mapped on a 15° grid. The barrier to concerted internal rotation is estimated to lie between 3 kJ mol^?1 and 6kJ mol^?1. The calculations of the lattice dynamics at k = 0 in the low temperature fully ordered crystal phase of parent and deuterated ortho-terphenyl were performed with inclusion of six low lying intramolecular vibrations. The conformational change of the ortho-terphenyl molecule induced by crystal packing forces was taken into account by re-defining the unperturbed molecular vibrational state. Although an accurate assignment of lattice vibrations was not possible, the calculated spectra give quite a reasonable picture of the low frequency dynamics in crystalline ortho-terphenyl. The relevance of the results obtained to the glass forming property of ortho-terphenyl is discussed.