紫外分光光度法测定控释尿素的透膜扩散速率

使用控释氮肥能提高其利用率,减轻环境污染。(包膜型)控释尿素是近几年发展较快的控释氮肥之一。控释尿素透膜扩散速率是其控释性能的一个重要指标。研究表明, 使用对二甲氨基苯甲醛为显色剂,在酸性水溶液介质中显色络合物的最大紫外吸收峰在λ=426 nm处,尿素浓度在7.5～210 μg·mL-1范围内,其浓度与吸光度呈线性关系。据此, 建立了在此紫外波段测定水溶液中尿素的含量来实现控释尿素透膜扩散速率的测定方法, 其回收率为96.1％～103.9％。     

The alternating access mechanism of transport as observed in the sodium-hydantoin transporter Mhp1

Secondary active transporters move molecules across cell membranes by coupling this process to the energetically favourable downhill movement of ions or protons along an electrochemical gradient. They function by the alternating access model of transport in which, through conformational changes, the substrate binding site alternately faces either side of the membrane. Owing to the difficulties in obtaining the crystal structure of a single transporter in different conformational states, relatively little structural information is known to explain how this process occurs. Here, the structure of the sodium-benzylhydantoin transporter, Mhp1, from Microbacterium liquefaciens, has been determined in three conformational states; from this a mechanism is proposed for switching from the outward-facing open conformation through an occluded structure to the inward-facing open state.     

壳聚糖固定化脲酶活性的X射线微区分析

利用X射线微区分析方法,对壳聚糖固定化脲酶活性进行了定位分析。筛选出了能捕捉固定化脲酶活性部位的捕捉剂BaCl₂,以尿素作为底物,在Tris-HCl缓冲溶液中,底物经固定化脲酶催化产生NH₃和CO₂,后者和捕捉剂反应生成BaCO₃沉淀, 沉积在固定化脲酶的催化活性部位,借此确定其催化活性部位。结果表明BaCl₂可用做固定化脲酶活性定位的捕捉剂。同时得到了壳聚糖固定化脲酶活性定位的最佳实验条件。     

The effect of acoustically-induced cavitation on the permeance of a bullfrog urinary bladder

It is well known that ultrasound enhances drug delivery to tissues, although there is not a general consensus about the responsible mechanisms. However, it is known that the most important factor associated with ultrasonically-enhanced drug permeance through tissues is cavitation. Here we report results from research conducted using a experimental approach adapted from single bubble sonoluminescence experiments which generates very well defined acoustic fields and allows controlled activation and location of cavitation. The experimental design requires that a biological tissue be immersed inside a highly degassed liquid media to avoid random bubble nucleation. Therefore, live frog bladders were used as the living tissue due to their high resistance to hypoxia. Tissue membrane permeance was measured using radiolabeled urea. The results show that an increase in tissue permeance only occurs when cavitation is present near the tissue membrane. Moreover, confocal microscopy shows a direct correlation between permeance increases and physical damage to the tissue.     

(Chicken feathers keratin)/polyurethane membranes

Actually, chicken feathers are considered as waste from the poultry industry; however, 90% of feather structure is constituted by a protein called keratin. In this research, the properties of feather keratin and polyurethane are combined in order to synthesize hybrid synthetic–natural membranes. Both polymers are linked by urethane bonds which are similar to peptide bonds found in proteins. Keratin is incorporated onto the polyurethane matrix by dissolving protein in a salt solution (urea and 2-mercaptoethanol) at different concentrations: 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, and 21% (w/w). In order to know the effect of urea on membranes, keratin is incorporated to polyurethane in two ways; as keratin salt solution and after dialyzing. Both membrane types were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to observe their morphologic changes. Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Termogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) were used to study membrane structures. Results show that keratin is grafted in polyurethane and, therefore, there is an influence of amino acids through the amino and carboxylic groups (NH and COOH) into the synthetic polymer structure. According with characterization results, the obtained membranes are functional materials that can be useful in diverse applications, among them the separation process can be emphasized.     

Synthesis of novel amperometric urea-sensor using hybrid synthesized NiO-NPs/GO modified GCE in aqueous solution of cetrimonium bromide

In this study NiO nanostructures were synthesized via combinational synthetic method (ultrasound-assisted biosynthesis) and immobilized on the glassy carbon electrode (GCE) as a highly sensitive and selective enzyme-less sensor for urea detection. NiO-NPs were fully characterized using SEM, EDX, XRD, BET, TGA, FT-IR, UV–vis and Raman methods which revealed the formation of NiO nanostructures in the form of cotton like porous material and crystalline in nature with the average size of 3.8 nm. GCE was modified with NiO-NPs in aqueous solution of cetrimonium bromide(CTAB). Highly adhesive NiO/CTAB/GO nanocomposite membrane has been formed on GCE by immersing NiO/CTAB modified GCE in GO suspension. CTAB has a major role in the production and immobilization of the nanocomposites on the GCE surface and the binding NiO nanoparticles on GO plates. In addition, CTAB/GO composition made a highly adhesive surface on the GCE. The resulting NiO/CTAB/GO/GCE contains potently sensitive to urea in aqueous environments. The response of as developed amperometric sensor was linear in the range of 100–1200 µM urea with R² value of 0.991 and limit of detection (LOD), 8 µM. The sensor responded negligibly to various interfering species like glucose, uric acid and ascorbic acid. This sensor was applied successfully for determining urea in real water samples such as mineral water, tap water and river water with acceptable recovery.     

红外光谱分析醋酸酯淀粉包膜尿素膜降解特征

采用傅里叶变换红外吸收光谱(FTIR)方法分析醋酸酯淀粉包膜尿素及与生化抑制剂结合的四种肥料在棕壤中膜降解特征,为包膜尿素肥料的应用提供科学依据。分析表明,膜化学成分,分子结构和膜组成没有因加入不同的抑制剂而改变。膜特征峰主要是H-O,—OH,CO2,C=O,—CH2,—CH3,C—O,C—O—H,C—O—C的不对称、对称伸缩振动吸收。在棕壤中,最高峰吸收强度总趋势0>15>30>60>90>120>150>310d,前15d降解相对缓慢。150d大部分膜物质已降解。经过310d,膜主要官能团或分子结构发生了实质性改变,不同抑制剂对膜降解速度没有显著影响。红外吸收光谱完全可以测定与描述醋酸酯淀粉膜降解特征,并可揭示膜降解速度差异。     

Influence of membrane lipid composition on the activity of functionally reconstituted LmrA under high hydrostatic pressure

In cellular membranes, proteins and lipids are in sensitive macromolecular interaction influencing each other. To evaluate this interaction, the multi-drug transporter LmrA from Lactococcus lactis was functionally reconstituted in vesicles consisting of 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC), 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC), DMPC+10 mol% cholesterol and the model raft mixture DOPC/1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine/cholesterol (1:2:1) and in natural membrane lipids at 30 °C. The lateral structure and organization of these proteoliposomes were modulated using high hydrostatic pressure. A sharp pressure-induced fluid-to-gel phase transition is observed without an extended two-phase region. The possibility for lipid sorting, such as for DMPC/cholesterol bilayers, has an inhibitory effect on the LmrA activity. A fluid-like membrane phase over the whole pressure range with suitable hydrophobic matching, such as for DOPC, prevents the membrane protein from high-pressure inactivation up to 200 MPa. Under high-pressure conditions, highest LmrA activities, exceeding those at ambient pressure, are achieved for heterogeneous lipid matrices with a small hydrophobic mismatch and the ability of lipid sorting.     

Identification of functionally key residues in maltose transporter with an elastic network model-based thermodynamic method

Periplasmic binding protein-dependent maltose transport system (MBP-MalFGK₂) of Escherichia coli, an important member of the Adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette transporter superfamily, is in charge of the transportation of maltoses across cellular membrane. Studies have shown that this transport processes are activated by the binding of maltose and are accompanied by large-scale cooperative movements between different domains which are mediated by a network of important residues related to signal transduction and allosteric regulation. In this paper, the functionally crucial residues and long-range allosteric pathway of the regulation of the system by substrate were identified by utilising a coarse-grained thermodynamic method proposed by our group. The residues whose perturbations markedly change the binding free energy between maltoses and MBP-MalFGK₂ were considered to be key residues. In result, the key residues in 62 clusters distributed in different subdomains were identified successfully, and the results from our calculation are highly consistent with experimental and theoretical observations. Furthermore, we explored the long-range cooperation within the transporter. These studies will help us better understand the physical mechanism of the effects of the maltose on MBP-MalFGK₂ by long-range allosteric modulation.     

Nanoscale Structure of Urethane/Urea Elastomeric Films

The nanostructure of urethane/urea elastomeric membranes was investigated by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) in order to establish relationships between their structure and mechanical properties. The networks were made up of polypropylene oxide (PPO) and polybutadiene (PB) segments. The structural differences were investigated in two types of membranes with the same composition but with different thermal treatment after casting. Type I was cured at 70–80 °C and type II at 20 °C. Both membranes showed similar phase separation by TEM, with nanodomains rich in PB or PPO and 25 nm dimensions. The main difference between type I and type II membranes was found by SAXS. The type I membrane spectra showed, besides a broad band at a 27-nm q value (modulus of the scattering vector), an extra band at 6 nm, which was not observed in the type II membrane. The SAXS spectra were interpreted in terms of PPO, PB soft segments, and urethane/urea links, as well as hard moiety segregation in the reaction medium. This additional segregation (q = 7 nm), although subtle, results in diverse mechanical behavior of in both membranes.     

Conformational Study of Spectrin in Presence of Submolar Concentrations of Denaturants

The presence of very low concentrations of the commonly used chemical denaturants, guanidinium chloride (GdmCl) and urea brought about conformational changes in the erythrocyte membrane skeletal protein, spectrin. Evidences in support of changes in the quaternary structure of spectrin have been put forward from quenching study of tryptophan fluorescence, by both steady state and time-resolved measurements, using acrylamide as the quencher. It revealed significant differences between the Stern–Volmer quenching constants (K_SV) and the fraction of accessible tryptophans (f_e) observed in absence and presence of GdmCl and urea concentrations below 1 M at which the association of the two subunits remains intact. The steady state anisotropy of both the spectrin tryptophans and the spectrin-bound fluorescence probe, Prodan also indicate changes in the overall flexibility of the spectrin dimer, originating from changes in the quaternary structure of spectrin. Studies on the binding of Prodan, further indicate that conformational changes also occur in spectrin near the Prodan-binding site at the terminal domain of the protein which is reflected in 3–4 fold decrease in the affinity of binding of Prodan to spectrin in the presence of GdmCl and urea compared to that observed in the absence of the denaturants. The dissociation constant (K_d) of Prodan to spectrin is 0.43 M at 25°C.     

Denaturation Mechanism of BSA by Urea Derivatives: Evidence for Hydrogen-Bonding Mode from Fluorescence Tools

Urea and alkyl urea derivatives, which posses a free N-H moiety in the urea molecular framework is responsible for the fluorescence quenching of BSA. Fluorescence quenching accompanied with a blue initially and subsequently a red shift in the emission maximum of BSA is observed on the addition of urea derivatives containing N-H moieties. On the contrary, a fluorescence enhancement accompanied with a shift in the emission maximum towards the blue region is observed on the addition of tetramethylurea (TMU). Urea derivatives, which posses a free N-H moiety acts as a perfect denaturant by direct hydrogen-bonding interaction with BSA resulting in the unfolding process. The unfolding of the buried tryptophan moieties to the aqueous phase does not occur, when all the N-H moieties in the urea are methyl substituted (TMU). Fluorescence spectral techniques reveal that the direct hydrogen-bonding interaction of the N-H moiety of urea molecular framework with the carbonyl oxygen moieties of BSA results in the unfolding of the tryptophan moieties to the aqueous phase, while that of the carbonyl oxygen of urea with the N-H moieties of BSA is definitely not involved in the denaturation process. Steady state and time-resolved fluorescence studies illustrate that the extent of protein folding occurs at a relatively lower concentration of unsymmetrical alkyl urea derivatives (butyl urea (BU) and ethyl urea (EU)), compared to that of urea.     

小分子有机酸改性尿素的多谱学分子结构表征

尿素是我国主要的氮肥品种,但其活性高,在土壤中水解后极易通过挥发和淋洗损失,利用率低,造成养分资源浪费并污染环境。使用有机酸对尿素进行改性可以延缓尿素分解,提高尿素利用率,但有机酸与尿素的结合方式及其增效机理尚不明确。研究中选取柠檬酸和水杨酸两种小分子有机酸作为添加剂,分别加入到熔融尿素中,获得柠檬酸尿素与水杨酸尿素。利用傅里叶变换红外光谱（FTIR）和X射线光电子能谱（XPS）分析材料的化学结构,利用液相色谱-质谱联用（LC-MS）研究材料的物质组成及相对分子质量,尝试通过以上多谱学的分析方法,明晰两种有机酸与尿素的结合方式。结果表明,柠檬酸和水杨酸与尿素结合后,FTIR在3 348 cm-1处产生了加强的伯胺振动峰,推测小分子有机酸与尿素在伯胺处发生了反应。XPS C(1s)和N(1s)图谱分别出现新的碳结构（-CX）和新的氮结构（-NX）,降低了柠檬酸/水杨酸中原有羧基碳结构和尿素中酰胺基氮结构的相对含量,O(1s)图谱出现C-OH化学键断裂,表明,柠檬酸/水杨酸的羧基与尿素的酰胺基相互作用生成了新的物质。LC-MS分析发现柠檬酸尿素/水杨酸尿素中的新物质可能是柠檬酸/水杨酸的羧基与尿素的酰胺基发生脱水反应,生成含有O═CNHC(O)NH₂结构的物质。因此,利用光谱分析等手段明晰了有机酸与尿素的结合方式与结合产物特征,为有机高分子与尿素反应机理的研究提供了理论依据,为后续高效肥料增效剂的筛选提供了方向。     

Intercalation of magnesium–urea complex into swelling clay

N fertilization is considered as a main source of N₂O and NO emission from agricultural soils. Especially, it is a great challenge to enhance urea efficiency without any deleterious effects on the environment because of massive application of urea. In this study, we attempted to stabilize urea in the interlayer space of montmorillonite (MMT) in order to reduce urea loss from soils. Urea was successfully intercalated in the form of urea–magnesium complexes. The stabilization of urea–magnesium complexes within the interlayer space was confirmed by a significant expansion of the interlayer space and the presence of urea–magnesium complexes. Urea degradation in soils was significantly delayed by application of the urea–magnesium complex intercalated into MMT. It is highly feasible that stabilization of urea within nanosized interlayer space would lead to considerable improvement of nitrogen efficiency in soils.     

红外光谱分析丙烯酸树脂包膜尿素膜降解特征

采用傅里叶变换红外光谱吸收(FTIR)方法分析丙烯酸树脂包膜尿素及与生化抑制剂结合的四种肥料在棕壤中膜降解特征,尝试利用红外光谱技术分析丙烯酸树脂膜降解特征,为包膜尿素肥料的应用提供科学依据。分析表明,成膜的化学成分,分子结构和膜组成没有因不同种生化抑制剂的加入而受到影响。膜特征峰出现在3 479～3 195,2 993～2 873,1 741～1 564,1 461～925和850～650cm-1之间,主要是CH3,CH2的—C—H,—OH,C—O,C—C,C—O—C,CO,CC的不对称、对称伸缩振动吸收,峰面随时间变化由平到尖,由宽到窄,吸收强度因化学键量变强弱不一。60d前四种肥料膜红外吸收光谱没有明显区别,膜降解缓慢;而60d后降解速度加快,以120d降解速度最快,310d后四种肥料膜主要分子结构没有实质性改变,膜材料主要成分在棕壤中降解十分缓慢,降解速度并没有明显受到不同生化抑制剂的影响。降解特征可以用红外吸收光谱测定与描述,红外光谱能够描绘膜降解动态,物质化学基团变化,降解速度的差别。     

光谱技术分析尿素对BSA糖基化反应的影响

以牛血清白蛋白（BSA）和葡萄糖为原料,采用光谱技术从分子水平上研究不同浓度尿素（0～7 mol·L-1）对BSA糖基化反应的影响。结果表明：BSA经过尿素处理后,其糖基化产物的自由氨基含量和内源荧光强度均显著下降;同步荧光光谱表明BSA与尿素的结合点更接近于色氨酸（Trp）残基;紫外光谱分析表明经尿素处理后BSA的糖基化产物的紫外吸收值均有不同程度的增加;三维荧光光谱表明随着尿素浓度的增加,BSA的最大发射波长产生先红移再蓝移的变化趋势,说明其结构展开,促进了BSA的糖基化反应。结果表明,尿素处理会使BSA的空间结构发生不同程度的伸展,且当尿素浓度为3 mol·L-1时BSA的糖基化反应程度最大。     

The effect of temperature on urea–urea interactions in water: a molecular dynamics simulation

We investigate the temperature effect on the structural and dynamical properties (translation, rotation) of an urea/water system at 0.20 mole fraction of urea. We report the radial distribution functions of like and unlike molecules and conclude that, even at large distances, these molecules are spatially correlated (with respect to their centers of mass). This behavior is interpreted as an indication that urea molecules are not uniformly distributed at a microscopic level. However, the orientational distribution shows that, at long distances, the urea molecules are not orientationally correlated. A strong correlation between urea molecules is observed within the first-shells of neighboring molecules. In view of these results, it is postulated that urea behaves slightly like a nonpolar molecule. The dynamical properties were analyzed using the velocity (translation) and angular velocity (rotation) time autocorrelation functions, as well as their Fourier transforms. The results indicate a significant hydrogen bonding between urea and other molecules in the solution.     

丙烯腈-尿素包合物的形成过程及特征

利用差示扫描量热法(DSC)和X射线衍射(XRD)研究了在不同丙烯腈/尿素投料比情况下的丙烯腈-尿素包合物的形成过程和组成. 实验结果表明DSC是一种研究包合物的客主比及分解热的有效方法. 测定了丙烯腈-尿素包合物的客主比和分解热分别为1.17和5361.53 J/mol. 同时发现丙烯腈-尿素包合物的形成依赖于冷冻时间,在足够长的冷冻时间之后丙烯腈-尿素包合物的组成达到稳定状态. 实验结果表明,丙烯腈分子可能是采用堆叠的方式排布在尿素晶道结构中. XRD结果表明只要丙烯腈分子进入尿素晶格中,丙烯腈-尿素包合物的结构便形成了,并且这种结构与形成过程终了时的结构是一致的. 只要丙烯腈是足量的,包合物中的丙烯腈分子排列会随冷冻时间的延长而增长,直到尿素的晶道结构被丙烯腈分子填满.     

RLIP76, a non-ABC transporter,and drug resistance in epilepsy

Background  

Permeability of the blood-brain barrier is one of the factors determining the bioavailability of therapeutic drugs and resistance to chemically different antiepileptic drugs is a consequence of decreased intracerebral accumulation. The ABC transporters, particularly P-glycoprotein, are known to play a role in antiepileptic drug extrusion, but are not by themselves sufficient to fully explain the phenomenon of drug-resistant epilepsy. Proteomic analyses of membrane protein differentially expressed in epileptic foci brain tissue revealed the frequently increased expression of RLIP76/RALBP1, a recently described non-ABC multi-specific transporter. Because of a significant overlap in substrates between P-glycoprotein and RLIP76, present studies were carried out to determine the potential role of RLIP76 in AED transport in the brain.     

Comparative genomics and functional annotation of bacterial transporters

Transport proteins are difficult to study experimentally, and because of that their functional characterization trails that of enzymes. The comparative genomic analysis is a powerful approach to functional annotation of proteins, which makes it possible to utilize the genomic sequence data from thousands of organisms. The use of computational techniques allows one to identify candidate transporters, predict their structure and localization in the membrane, and perform detailed functional annotation, which includes substrate specificity and cellular role.

We overview the main techniques of analysis of transporters' structure and function. We consider the most popular algorithms to identify transmembrane segments in protein sequences and to predict topology of multispanning proteins. We describe the main approaches of the comparative genomics, and how they may be applied to the analysis of transporters, and provide examples showing how combinations of these techniques is used for functional annotation of new transporter specificities in known families, characterization of new families, and prediction of novel transport mechanisms.