Environmental effects on a prion's helix II domain: copper(II) and membrane interactions with PrP180-193 and its analogues

An abnormal interaction between copper and the prion protein is believed to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of prion diseases. Copper binding has been mainly attributed to the N-terminal domain of the prion protein, but this hypothesis has recently been challenged in some papers which suggest that the C-terminal domain might also compete for metal anchoring. In particular, the segment corresponding to the helix II region of the prion protein, namely PrP180-193, has been shown both to bind copper and to exhibit a copper-enhanced cytotoxicity, as well as to interact with artificial membranes. The present work is aimed at extending these results by choosing the most representative model of this domain and by determining its copper affinity. With this aim, the different role played by the electrostatic properties of the C- and N-termini of PrP180-193 (VNITIKQHTVTTTT) in determining its conformational behaviour, copper coordination and ability to perturb model membranes was investigated. Owing to the low solubility of PrP180-193, its copper affinity was evaluated by using the shorter PrPAc184-188NH2 (IKQHT) analogue as a model. ESI-MS, ESR, UV/Vis, and CD measurements were carried out on the copper(II)/PrPAc184-188NH2 and copper(II)/PrP180-193NH2 systems, and showed that PrPAc184-188NH2 is a reliable model for the metal interaction with the helix II domain. The affinity of copper(II) for the helix II fragment is higher than that for the octarepeat and PrP106-126 peptides. Finally, the different ability of PrP180-193 analogues to perturb the DPPC model membrane was assessed by DSC measurements. The possible biological consequences of these findings are also discussed briefly.     

Application of nanosized zeolites in methanol conversion processes: A short review

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Stereoselective Double Functionalization of Iron-Carbonyl Complexes of 5,6,7,8-Tetramethylidenebicyclo[2.2.2]oct-2-ene. Crystal Structure and Absolute Configuration of (–)-trans-μ-[(2S,5R,7S)-C,5,6,C-η:C,7,8,C-η-(6,7,8-trimethylidene-5-((Z)-2-oxopropylidene)-2-bicyclo[2.2.2]octyl acetate)]-bis(tricarbonyliron)

The Friedel-Crafts monoacylation of trans-η-[(1RS,2RS,4SR,5SR,6RS,7SR,8SR)-C,5,6,C-η:C,7,8,C-η-(5,6,7,8-tetramethylidene-2-bicyclo[2.2.2]octyl acetate)]-bis(tricarbonyliron) ((±)- 5 ) is highly stereoselective and yields trans-η-[(1RS,2RS,4RS,5SR,6RS,7RS,8SR)-C,6-η,oxo-σ:C,7,8,C-η-(6,7,8-trimethylidene-5-((Z)-2-oxopropylidene)-2-bicyclo[2.2.2]octyl acetate)]-bis(tricarbonyliron) ((±)- 8 ) which equilibrates with the trans-η-[(1RS,2RS,4RS,5SR,6RS,7RS,8SR)-C,5,6,C-η:C,7,8,C-η-(6,7,8-trimethylidene-5-((Z)-2-oxopropylidene)-2-bicyclo[2.2.2]octyl acetate)]-bis(tricarbonyliron) ((±)- 9 ) on heating. Optically pure (–)- 9 has been prepared from the corresponding optically pure alcohol (+)- 4 . The structure and absolute configuration of (–)- 9 was established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction.     

Extension of the Coulomb–Hole–Hartree–Fock theory to molecules

The Coulomb–Hole–Hartree–Fock method introduced by E. Clementi in the early 1960s and reparametrized more recently by S. Chakraworty and E. Clementi to compute the correlated electronic energy in atomic systems, is here extended to compute molecules. The new parametrization is obtained empirically by fitting first and second atomic ionization potentials from He to Ca and a few diatomic molecules. The present formulation makes use of either one or more determinants in order to ensure proper dissociation products, following the early proposal of G.C. Lie and E. Clementi in the context of density functional computations for molecular systems. The new formulation is tested against the dissociation energies of a large number of molecules and it is found satisfactory. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Lignin peroxidase-catalyzed oxidation of nonphenolic trimeric lignin model compounds: fragmentation reactions in the intermediate radical cations

The H(2)O(2)-promoted oxidations of the two nonphenolic beta-O-aryl lignin model trimers 1 and 2, catalyzed by lignin peroxidase (LiP) at pH = 3.5, have been studied. The results have been compared with those obtained in the oxidation of 1 and 2 with the genuine one-electron oxidant potassium 12-tungstocobalt(III)ate. These models present a different substitution pattern of the three aromatic rings, and by one-electron oxidation, they form radical cations with the positive charge, which is localized in the dialkoxylated ring as also evidenced by a pulse radiolysis study. Both the oxidations with the enzymatic and with the chemical systems lead to the formation of products deriving from the cleavage of C-C and C-H bonds in a beta position with respect to the radical cation with the charge residing in the dialkoxylated ring (3,4-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (5) and a trimeric ketone 6 in the oxidation of 1 and a dimeric aldehyde 8 and a trimeric ketone 9 in the oxidation of 2). These products are accompanied by a dimeric aldehyde 7 in the oxidation of 1 and 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (10) in the oxidation of 2. The unexpected formation of these two products has been explained by suggesting that 1.+ and 2.+ can also undergo an intramolecular electron transfer leading to the radical cations 1a.+ and 2a.+ with the charge residing in a monoalkoxylated ring. The fast cleavage of a C-C bond beta to this ring, leading to 7 from 1.+ and to 10 from 2.+, is the driving force of the endoergonic electron transfer. A kinetic steady-state investigation of the LiP-catalyzed oxidation of the trimer 2, the dimeric model 1-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-phenoxy-1-ethanol (4), and 3,4-dimethoxybenzyl alcohol (3) has indicated that the turnover number (k(cat)) and the affinity for the enzyme decrease significantly by increasing the size of the model compound. In contrast, the three substrates exhibited a very similar reactivity toward a chemical oxidant [Co(III)W]. This suggests a size-dependent interaction of the enzyme with the substrate which may influence the efficiency of the electron transfer.     

Jahn-Teller distortion and dissociation of CCl4+ by transient X-ray spectroscopy simultaneously at the carbon K- and chlorine L-edge

X-ray Transient Absorption Spectroscopy (XTAS) and theoretical calculations are used to study CCl₄⁺ prepared by 800 nm strong-field ionization. XTAS simultaneously probes atoms at the carbon K-edge (280–300 eV) and chlorine L-edge (195–220 eV). Comparison of experiment to X-ray spectra computed by orbital-optimized density functional theory (OO-DFT) indicates that after ionization, CCl₄⁺ undergoes symmetry breaking driven by Jahn–Teller distortion away from the initial tetrahedral structure (T_d) in 6 ± 2 fs. The resultant symmetry-broken covalently bonded form subsequently separates to a noncovalently bound complex between CCl₃⁺ and Cl over 90 ± 10 fs, which is again predicted by theory. Finally, after more than 800 fs, L-edge signals for atomic Cl are observed, indicating dissociation to free CCl₃⁺ and Cl. The results for Jahn–Teller distortion to the symmetry-broken form of CCl₄⁺ and formation of the Cl–CCl⁺₃ complex characterize previously unobserved new species along the route to dissociation.

Dynamics of CCl₄⁺ prepared by 800 nm strong-field ionization, as studied with X-ray transient absorption spectroscopy (XTAS) and quantum chemical calculations.     

On the Spatial Distribution of Temporal Complexity in Resting State and Task Functional MRI

Measuring the temporal complexity of functional MRI (fMRI) time series is one approach to assess how brain activity changes over time. In fact, hemodynamic response of the brain is known to exhibit critical behaviour at the edge between order and disorder. In this study, we aimed to revisit the spatial distribution of temporal complexity in resting state and task fMRI of 100 unrelated subjects from the Human Connectome Project (HCP). First, we compared two common choices of complexity measures, i.e., Hurst exponent and multiscale entropy, and observed a high spatial similarity between them. Second, we considered four tasks in the HCP dataset (Language, Motor, Social, and Working Memory) and found high task-specific complexity, even when the task design was regressed out. For the significance thresholding of brain complexity maps, we used a statistical framework based on graph signal processing that incorporates the structural connectome to develop the null distributions of fMRI complexity. The results suggest that the frontoparietal, dorsal attention, visual, and default mode networks represent stronger complex behaviour than the rest of the brain, irrespective of the task engagement. In sum, the findings support the hypothesis of fMRI temporal complexity as a marker of cognition.     

催化膜和催化膜反应器:整合的高效和环保催化过程

 The design of new heterogeneous photooxygenation systems able to employ visible light, oxygen, mild temperatures, and solvent with a low environmental impact has been investigated. In particular, the heterogenization of decatungstate (W10O4-32), a polyoxometalate with photocatalytic activity in oxidation reactions, has been carried out in polymeric membranes of polyvinylidenefluoride. The polymeric catalytic membranes prepared by phase inversion technique have been successfully applied in the aerobic mineralization of phenol in water, which was used as an example of organic pollutant. In order to evaluate the effect of the polymeric environment on the overall catalyst behavior, we have also heterogenized the decatungstate (opportunely functionalized) in perfluorinated membrane made of Hyflon. The photocatalytic composite membranes are characterized by different and tuneable properties depending on the nature of the polymeric micro-environment, in which the catalyst is confined. Moreover, the selective separation function of the membrane results in enhanced performance in comparison with homogeneous reactions.     

Photoluminescence-Based Techniques for the Detection of Micro- and Nanoplastics

The growing numbers related to plastic pollution are impressive, with ca. 70 % of produced plastic (>350 tonnes/year) being indiscriminately wasted in the environment. The most dangerous forms of plastic pollution for biota and human health are micro- and nano-plastics (MNPs), which are ubiquitous and more bioavailable. Their elimination is extremely difficult, but the first challenge is their detection since existing protocols are unsatisfactory for microplastics and mostly absent for nanoplastics. After a discussion of the state of the art for MNPs detection, we specifically revise the techniques based on photoluminescence that represent very promising solutions for this problem. In this context, Nile Red staining is the most used strategy and we show here its pros and limitations, but we also discuss other more recent approaches, such as the use of fluorogenic probes based on perylene-bisimide and on fluorogenic hyaluronan nanogels, with the added values of biocompatibility and water solubility.     

Electroactive Polymers: Developments of and Perspectives for Dielectric Elastomers

We present the development and applications of dielectric elastomers. For the last 10 years the significance of this class of polymers has risen as more applications seem possible and first products have been commercialized.