Ethanol Production from Residual Wood Chips of Cellulose Industry: Acid Pretreatment Investigation,Hemicellulosic Hydrolysate Fermentation,and Remaining Solid Fraction Fermentation by SSF Process

Current research indicates the ethanol fuel production from lignocellulosic materials, such as residual wood chips from the cellulose industry, as new emerging technology. This work aimed at evaluating the ethanol production from hemicellulose of eucalyptus chips by diluted acid pretreatment and the subsequent fermentation of the generated hydrolysate by a flocculating strain of Pichia stipitis. The remaining solid fraction generated after pretreatment was subjected to enzymatic hydrolysis, which was carried out simultaneously with glucose fermentation [saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process] using a strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The acid pretreatment was evaluated using a central composite design for sulfuric acid concentration (1.0–4.0 v/v) and solid to liquid ratio (1:2–1:4, grams to milliliter) as independent variables. A maximum xylose concentration of 50 g/L was obtained in the hemicellulosic hydrolysate. The fermentation of hemicellulosic hydrolysate and the SSF process were performed in bioreactors and the final ethanol concentrations of 15.3 g/L and 28.7 g/L were obtained, respectively.     

Searching for gallium bioactive compounds: Gallium(III) complexes of tridentate salicylaldehyde semicarbazone derivatives

In the search for gallium bioactive compounds five Ga(III) complexes, [Ga^III(L-H)₂](NO₃), with tridentate salicylaldehyde semicarbazone derivatives as ligands (L) have been synthesized and characterized in the solid state and in solution by different techniques. The crystal structure of [Ga^III(L4-H)₂](NO₃)·2H₂O, where L4 is 3-ethoxysalicylaldehyde semicarbazone, was solved by X-ray diffraction methods. The gallium(III) ion is in a distorted octahedral environment, coordinated to two nearly planar and mutually perpendicular 3-ethoxysalicylaldehyde semicarbazonato anions acting as tridentate ligands through their phenol and carbonyl oxygen atoms and their azomethine nitrogen atom. Their biological potential has been explored by evaluating their activity on Mycobacterium tuberculosis, causative agent of tuberculosis, and their cytotoxicity on tumor cell lines. Three different human tumor cell lines were selected that show different degrees of resistance to metallodrugs: ovarian A2780 (low resistance), breast MCF7 (medium resistance) and prostate PC3 (high resistance) cells. Although the complexes have not shown activity on M. tuberculosis, complexation with gallium has led to the enhancement of the cytotoxic potencies of the organic compounds. Those complexes that contain a bromide substituent at the phenolate ring have shown the highest cytotoxicities. In particular, [Ga^III(L2-H)₂](NO₃), where L2 is 5-bromosalicylaldehyde semicarbazone,·has shown a remarkable cytotoxicity on A2780 tumor cell line with an IC₅₀ value of the same order than cisplatin (IC_{50 Ga-L2} = 2.4 ± 0.3 μM; IC_{50 cisplatin} = 2.0 ± 0.1 μM, 72 h incubation at 37 °C). Interestingly, this complex has also shown moderate cytotoxicity against MCF7 and PC3 cells (IC_{50 MCF7} = 30 ± 6; IC_{50 PC3} = 18 ± 3 μM). Therefore, this gallium compound could be considered a promising wide spectrum potential anti-tumor agent.     

Heparin Binding by Murine Recombinant Prion Protein Leads to Transient Aggregation and Formation of RNA-Resistant Species

The conversion of cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) into the pathological conformer PrP(Sc) requires contact between both isoforms and probably also requires a cellular factor, such as a nucleic acid or a glycosaminoglycan (GAG). Little is known about the structural features implicit in the GAG-PrP interaction. In the present work, light scattering, fluorescence, circular dichroism, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy were used to describe the chemical and physical properties of the murine recombinant PrP 23-231 interaction with low molecular weight heparin (LMWHep) at pH 7.4 and 5.5. LMWHep interacts with rPrP 23-231, thereby inducing transient aggregation. The interaction between murine rPrP and heparin at pH 5.5 had a stoichiometry of 2:1 (LMWHep:rPrP 23-231), in contrast to a 1:1 binding ratio at pH 7.4. At binding equilibrium, NMR spectra showed that rPrP complexed with LMWHep had the same general fold as that of the free protein, even though the binding can be indicated by significant changes in few residues of the C-terminal domain, especially at pH 5.5. Notably, the soluble LMWHep:rPrP complex prevented RNA-induced aggregation. We also investigated the interaction between LMWHep and the deletion mutants rPrP Δ51-90 and Δ32-121. Heparin did not bind these constructs at pH 7.4 but was able to interact at pH 5.5, indicating that this glycosaminoglycan binds the octapeptide repeat region at pH 7.4 but can also bind other regions of the protein at pH 5.5. The interaction at pH 5.5 was dependent on histidine residues of the murine rPrP 23-231. Depending on the cellular milieu, the PrP may expose different regions that can bind GAG. These results shed light on the role of GAGs in PrP conversion. The transient aggregation of PrP may explain why some GAGs have been reported to induce the conversion into the misfolded, scrapie conformation, whereas others are thought to protect against conversion. The acquired resistance of the complex against RNA-induced aggregation explains some of the unique properties of the PrP interaction with GAGs.     

Na[Li(NH2BH3)2]--the first mixed-cation amidoborane with unusual crystal structure

We describe the successful synthesis of the first mixed-cation (pseudoternary) amidoborane, Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)], with theoretical hydrogen capacity of 11.1 wt%. Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)] crystallizes triclinic (P1) with a = 5.0197(4) ?, b = 7.1203(7) ?, c = 8.9198(9) ?, α = 103.003(6)°, β = 102.200(5)°, γ = 103.575(5)°, and V = 289.98(5) ?(3) (Z = 2), as additionally confirmed by Density Functional Theory calculations. Its crystal structure is topologically different from those of its orthorhombic LiNH(2)BH(3) and NaNH(2)BH(3) constituents, with distinctly different coordination spheres of Li (3 N atoms and 1 hydride anion) and Na (6 hydride anions). Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)], which may be viewed as a product of a Lewis acid (LiNH(2)BH(3))/Lewis base (NaNH(2)BH(3)) reaction, is an important candidate for a novel lightweight hydrogen storage material. The title material decomposes at low temperature (with onset at 75 °C, 6.0% mass loss up to 110 °C, and an additional 3.0% up to 200 °C) while evolving hydrogen contaminated with ammonia.     

Uniform approximations for the M/G/1 queue with subexponential processing times

This paper studies the asymptotic behavior of the steady-state waiting time, W _∞, of the M/G/1 queue with Subexponential processing times for different combinations of traffic intensities and overflow levels. In particular, we provide insights into the regions of large deviations where the so-called heavy-traffic approximation and heavy-tail asymptotic hold. For queues whose service time distribution decays slower than \(e^{-\sqrt{t}}\) we identify a third region of asymptotics where neither the heavy-traffic nor the heavy-tail approximations are valid. These results are obtained by deriving approximations for P(W _∞>x) that are either uniform in the traffic intensity as the tail value goes to infinity or uniform on the positive axis as the traffic intensity converges to one. Our approach makes clear the connection between the asymptotic behavior of the steady-state waiting time distribution and that of an associated random walk.     

Synthesis and application of imprinted polyvinylimidazole-silica hybrid copolymer for Pb determination by flow-injection thermospray flame furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

A novel ion imprinted polyvinylimidazole-silica hybrid copolymer (IIHC) was synthesized and used as a selective solid sorbent for Pb²⁺ ions preconcentration using an on-line solid phase extraction (SPE) system coupled to TS-FF-AAS. The ionic hybrid sorbent was prepared using 1-vinylimidazole and 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propylmethacrylate as monomers, Pb²⁺ ions as template, tetraethoxysilane as reticulating agent and 2,2′-azobis-isobutyronitrile as initiator. The best on-line SPE conditions concerning sorption behavior, including sample pH (6.46), buffer concentration (9.0 mmol L⁻¹), eluent (HNO₃) concentration (0.5 mol L⁻¹) and preconcentration flow rate (4.0 mL min⁻¹), were optimized by means of full factorial design and Doehlert matrix. The analytical curve ranged from 2.5 to 65.0 μg L⁻¹ (r = 0.999) with limit of detection of 0.75 μg L⁻¹; the precision (repeatability) calculated as relative standard deviation (n = 10) was 5.0 and 3.6% for Pb²⁺ concentration of 10.0 and 60.0 μg L⁻¹, respectively. From on-line breakthrough curve, column capacity was 3.5 mg g⁻¹. Preconcentration factor (PF), consumptive index (CI) and concentration efficiency (CE) were 128.0, 0.16 mL and 25.6 min⁻¹, respectively. The selective performance of the sorbent, based on relative selectivity coefficient, was compared to NIC (non imprinted copolymer) for the binary mixture Pb²⁺/Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺/Cu²⁺ and Pb²⁺/Zn²⁺. The results showed that ion imprinted polyvinylimidazole-silica hybrid polymer had higher selectivity for Pb²⁺ than NIC at 64.9, 16.0 and 8.8 folds. The developed method was successfully applied for highly sensitive and selective Pb²⁺ determination in different kinds of water samples, parenteral solutions and urine. Accuracy was also assessed by analyzing certified reference fish protein (DORM-3) and marine sediment (MESS-3 and PACS-2) with satisfactory results.     

Structure-guided redesign of D-fructose-6-phosphate aldolase from E. coli: remarkable activity and selectivity towards acceptor substrates by two-point mutation

Structure-guided re-design of the acceptor binding site of D-fructose-6-phosphate aldolase from E. coli leads to the construction of FSA A129S/A165G double mutant with an activity between 5- to >900-fold higher than that of wild-type towards N-Cbz-aminoaldehyde derivatives.     

Casbane diterpene as a promising natural antimicrobial agent against biofilm-associated infections

Croton nepetaefolius is a native plant from northeastern Brazil that belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family. The biological action of this plant has been extensively explored, being the secondary metabolites responsible for its properties alkaloids, diterpenes, and triterpenes. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of casbane diterpene (CD), isolated from the ethanolic extract of C. nepetaefolius, to inhibit microbial growth and biofilm formation of several clinical relevant species (bacteria and yeasts). It was found that CD possessed biocidal and biostatic activity against the majority of the species screened, with minimal active concentrations ranging between 125 and 500 μg/mL. In addition, it was observed that biofilm formation was inhibited even when the planktonic growth was not significantly affected. In conclusion, CD showed potential to be a natural tool for the treatment of diseases caused by different infectious microorganisms.     

Synthesis and photophysical properties of some 6,6″-functionalized terpyridine derivatives

The synthesis and photophysical properties of several 6,6″ symmetrically substituted 4′-aryl-2,2′:6′,2″-terpyridine derivatives are reported herein. The UV-Vis spectra in acetonitrile as well as in dichloromethane show two intense bands in the UV areas 252–262 nm and 275–290 nm while the fluorescence emission spectra are only slightly influenced by chemical derivatization.