Effect of Different Purification Techniques on the Characteristics of Heteropolysaccharide-Protein Biopolymer from Durian (<em>Durio zibethinus</em>) Seed

Natural biopolymers from plant sources contain many impurities (e.g., fat, protein, fiber, natural pigment and endogenous enzymes), therefore, an efficient purification process is recommended to minimize these impurities and consequently improve the functional properties of the biopolymer. The main objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of different purification techniques on the yield, protein content, solubility, water- and oil-holding capacity of a heteropolysaccharide-protein biopolymer obtained from durian seed. Four different purification methods using different chemicals and solvents (i.e., A (isopropanol and ethanol), B (isopropanol and acetone), C (saturated barium hydroxide), and D (Fehling solution)] to liberate the purified biopolymer from its crude form were compared. In most cases, the purification process significantly (p < 0.05) improved the physicochemical properties of heteropolysaccharide-protein biopolymer from durian fruit seed. The present work showed that the precipitation using isopropanol and acetone (Method B) resulted in the highest purification yield among all the tested purification techniques. The precipitation using saturated barium hydroxide (Method C) led to induce the highest solubility and relatively high capacity of water absorption. The current study reveals that the precipitation using Fehling solution (Method D) most efficiently eliminates the protein fraction, thus providing more pure biopolymer suitable for biological applications.     

Synthesis of D-mannitol substituted ether-linked bis-1,2,3-triazoles as models of gemini surfactants

Readily available and low cost D-mannitol was converted into 1,2,5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-D-mannitol (1) in the presence of acetone and zinc chloride. Williamson etherfication of 1 with propargyl bromide afforded the bisalkyne 2 in a very good yield. 1,3-Dipolar cycloaddition of 2 with four different alkyl azides using click conditions gave four novel bistriazoles 3a-d. Removal of the acetal groups of 3a-d afforded the deprotected bistriazoles 4a-d in excellent yields. Products 3 and 4 represent models of gemini surfactants.     

Indirubin Derivatives Modulate TGFβ/BMP Signaling at Different Levels and Trigger Ubiquitin-Mediated Depletion of Nonactivated R-Smads

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Highlights? Inhibition of TGFβ/BMP signaling by degradation of nonactivated R-Smads ? Total R-Smad pools are regulated through the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway ? Ubiquitin proteases USP9x and USP34 interact directly with R-Smads ? Indirubin derivative E738 controls BMP/TGFβ signaling though R-Smad depletion     

Plasticity-triggered architectural effects in periodic multilayers with wavy microstructures

Despite considerable presence of periodic multilayers with wavy architectures in nature and technology, little simulation data is available on their response. A recent investigation of wavy multilayers comprised of alternating elastic and elastic-perfectly plastic plies has revealed the important role that plasticity plays on their post-yield response relative to the corresponding flat configurations [Khatam, H., Pindera, M.-J., 2009b. Parametric finite-volume micromechanics of periodic materials with elastoplastic phases. Int. J. Plasticity 25 (7), 1386–1411]. Herein, we extend this investigation by considering the effect of elastic layer thickness on the post-yield response at several fixed elastic phase volume fractions using the parametric finite-volume direct averaging micromechanics (FVDAM) theory. The layer thickness is shown to have a substantial impact on the post-yield response whose extent depends on the loading mode and waviness amplitude, in contrast with the minimal impact on the homogenized elastic moduli. Decreasing the layer thickness at sufficiently high fixed volume fractions decreases the extent of strain hardening under transverse normal loading, as well as the maximum normal and shear stresses in the stiff layers, reducing the possibility of failure and thus potentially enhancing durability. The opposite holds under transverse shear loading for low waviness amplitudes. The presented results provide a framework for tailoring the elastoplastic response of multilayers with sinusoidally varying plies under different loading modes.     

Pesticide Residues in Vegetables and Fruits from Farmer Markets and Associated Dietary Risks

The use of pesticides leads to an increase in agricultural production but also causes harmful effects on human health when excessively used. For safe consumption, pesticide residues should be below the maximum residual limits (MRLs). In this study, the residual levels of pesticides in vegetables and fruits collected from farmers’ markets in Sharkia Governorate, Egypt were investigated using LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS. A total number of 40 pesticides were detected in the tested vegetable and fruit samples. Insecticides were the highest group in detection frequency with 85% and 69% appearance in vegetables and fruits, respectively. Cucumber and apple samples were found to have the highest number of pesticide residues. The mean residue levels ranged from 7 to 951 µg kg⁻¹ (in vegetable samples) and from 8 to 775 µg kg⁻¹ (in fruit samples). It was found that 35 (40.7%) out of 86 pesticide residues detected in vegetables and 35 (38.9%) out of 90 pesticide residues detected in fruits exceeded MRLs. Results for lambda-cyhalothrin, fipronil, dimothoate, and omethoate in spinach, zucchini, kaki, and strawberry, respectively, can cause acute or chronic risks when consumed at 0.1 and 0.2 kg day⁻¹. Therefore, it is necessary for food safety and security to continuously monitor pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables in markets.     

Separation of strontium and yttrium in nitric acid solutions using zirconium titanium phosphate and Dowex exchangers

Sulfonated ion irradiated (H⁺ and He²⁺) PEEK films were synthesized with a range of cross-linking density and a variety of sulfonation degrees. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out at an initial pH of 6.0 ± 0.2, initial concentrations of Pb²⁺ and ¹³⁷Cs ions of 10.0 mg L⁻¹ and 5500 Bq L⁻¹, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacity was 60 mg g⁻¹ for Pb²⁺, and the distribution coefficient reached 6200 cm³ g⁻¹ for ¹³⁷Cs. The results indicated that sulfonation could be used to recycle low cross-linked PEEK and prepare efficient adsorbents to remove toxic Pb²⁺ and ¹³⁷Cs from polluted aqueous solutions.

     

Experiments on the sputtering of neutral Cu2 dimers from Cu by Ar+ ions (60–300 eV)

A planar polycrystalline copper target was bombarded normally by Ar⁺ ions with energies ranging from 60 to 300 eV. in the source of a mass spectrometer. The neutral particles sputtered normally from the target were post-ionized and analyzed in the mass spectrometer. A thermionically sustained, magnetically confined low pressure arc plasma was used to supply the bombarding ions, and for post-ionization of the neutral sputtered species. It was found that the relative yields of the sputtered neutral post-ionized Cu₂ dimers are linearly proportional to S², where S is the total sputtering yield for Ar⁺ -Cu. The results support the recombination model for the formation of neutral dimers in sputtering.     

Organocopper-based magnetically recoverable and reusable nanocatalyst for efficient synthesis of novel 1,2,3-triazole-based sulfonamides in green medium

Research on Chemical Intermediates - We report robust green synthesis of novel 1,2,3-triazole-based sulfonamides bearing different motifs such as fluorine under click conditions in presence of a...     

Role of protein structure and the role of individual fingers in zinc finger protein–DNA recognition: a molecular dynamics simulation study and free energy calculations

Molecular dynamics and MM_GBSA energy calculations on various zinc finger proteins containing three and four fingers bound to their target DNA gave insights into the role of each finger in the DNA binding process as part of the protein structure. The wild type Zif 268 (PDB code: 1AAY) gave a ΔG value of ??76.1 (14) kcal/mol. Zinc fingers ZF1, ZF2 and ZF3 were mutated in one experiment and in another experiment one finger was cut and the rest of the protein was studied for binding. The ΔΔG values for the Zinc Finger protein with both ZF1 and ZF2 mutated was +?80 kcal/mol, while mutating only ZF1 the ΔΔG value was +?52 kcal/mol (relative to the wild type). Cutting ZF3 and studying the protein consisting only of ZF1 linked to ZF2 gave a ΔΔG value of +?68 kcal/mol. Upon cutting ZF1, the resulting ZF2 linked to ZF3 protein gave a ΔΔG value of +?41 kcal/mol. The above results shed light on the importance of each finger in the binding process, especially the role of ZF1 as the anchoring finger followed in importance by ZF2 and ZF3. The energy difference between the binding of the wild type protein Zif268 (1AAY) and that for individual finger binding to DNA according to the formula: ΔΔG_{linkers, otherstructuralfactors}?=?ΔG_zif268???(ΔG_F1+F2+F3) gave a value?=???44.5 kcal/mol. This stabilization can be attributed to the contribution of linkers and other structural factors in the intact protein in the DNA binding process. DNA binding energies of variant proteins of the wild type Zif268 which differ in their ZF1 amino acid sequence gave evidence of a good relationship between binding energy and recognition and specificity, this finding confirms the reported vital role of ZF1 in the ZF protein scanning and anchoring to the target DNA sequence. The role of hydrogen bonds in both specific and nonspecific amino acid-DNA contacts is discussed in relation to mutations. The binding energies of variant Zinc Finger proteins confirmed the role of ZF1 in the recognition, specificity and anchoring of the zinc finger protein to DNA.     

Prediction of rheological behavior of MWCNTs–SiO2/EG–water non-Newtonian hybrid nanofluid by designing new correlations and optimal artificial neural networks

In this paper, at the first, new correlations were proposed to predict the rheological behavior of MWCNTs–SiO₂/EG–water non-Newtonian hybrid nanofluid using different sets of experimental data for the viscosity, consistency and power law indices. Then, based on minimum prediction errors, two optimal artificial neural network models (ANNs) were considered to forecast the rheological behavior of the non-Newtonian hybrid nanofluid. One hundred and ninety-eight experimental data were employed for predicting viscosity (Model I). Two sets of forty-two experimental data also were considered to predict the consistency and power law indices (Model II). The data sets were divided to training and test sets which contained respectively 80 and 20% of data points. Comparisons between the correlations and ANN models showed that ANN models were much more accurate than proposed correlations. Moreover, it was found that the neural network is a powerful instrument in establishing the relationship between a large numbers of experimental data. Thus, this paper confirmed that the neural network is a reliable method for predicting the rheological behavior of non-Newtonian nanofluids in different models.