Thermally labile domains in the collagen molecule

We have proposed that the denaturation kinetics of the characteristic sharp melting point of the collagen molecules is an irreversible rate rather than an equilibrium process as previously believed. This leads to the concept of domains of variable thermal stability along the length of the molecule. We have identified the major thermally labile domains from which the denaturation process is initiated as hydroxyproline deficient sequences of 65, 65 and 59 residues near the carboxy terminus in fibrillar collagen types I, II and III, respectively. These domains differ in that there is a single hydroxyproline in the type II domain and two hydroxyprolines in the type III domain. Similar sized domains are conserved in these collagen types across species including amphibians and invertebrates. The effective size of the domain is reduced in the fibrillar aggregates to 26 residues due to the interaction with adjacent molecules and because of the precise quarter-staggered alignment of the molecules the domains are located in the gap region. This spatial confinement within the lattice of the fibre leads to the significant increase in denaturation temperature of the fibre compared to the molecule. These labile domains have also been located in molecules that form the non-fibrillar type IV basement membrane collagens and the fibril-associated aggregates such as type IX. Based on the location of the different domains in type IX we have proposed a different arrangement of the type IX on the type II fibril.The model stresses the importance of hydroxyproline in stabilising the triple helix and supports the concept of hydrogen-bonded water-bridges originally proposed from X-ray diffraction studies in contrast to other studies indicating water-bridges do not play a role in stabilising the collagen molecule.     

Heuristic Interpretation of Infeasible Solutions to a Production Scheduling Problem in Cigarette Manufacture

In this paper an end-user Infeasibility Resolution Heuristic (IRH) is developed to assist managers and production schedulers in the evaluation and interpretation of infeasible solutions arising from the use of a production scheduling model of a tobacco processing plant. The primary aim of the model is initially to determine whether the forecast annual demand for tobacco products can be met by the plant, and if not what must be done. Having determined that the demanded quantities are feasible, the model is then used to arrive at a production schedule such that the minimum number of machines are used in the entire process for the planning period (the model is a monthly one linked together by the closing stock equations for up to 12 months ahead). The operations of the plant modelled include the selection of the appropriate blend of leaf, assignment of the forecast product demand to suitable making machines, production of the required quantity of filters, assignment of the cigarettes produced to specific packers and then the determination as to whether the final product produced in the current period will be used to satisfy the current month's demand or demand in the future. The problem of sequencing the monthly production once the production schedule is determined has not been dealt with in this paper.     

Double asymmetric induction as a mechanistic probe: conjugate addition for the asymmetric synthesis of a pseudotripeptide

Double asymmetric induction as a mechanistic probe indicates that, for the conjugate addition of (R)- and (S)-lithium N-benzyl-N--alpha-methylbenzylamide to (S)-3'-phenylprop-2'-enoyl-4-benzyloxazolidinone, the reactive conformation of the N-acyl oxazolidinone is the anti-s-cis form, facilitating the asymmetric synthesis of a pseudotripeptide.     

Directional frequency and recording (DIFAR) sensors in seafloor recorders to locate calling bowhead whales during their fall migration

Bowhead whales, Balaena mysticetus, migrate west during fall approximately 10-75 km off the north coast of Alaska, passing the petroleum developments around Prudhoe Bay. Oil production operations on an artificial island 5 km offshore create sounds heard by some whales. As part of an effort to assess whether migrating whales deflect farther offshore at times with high industrial noise, an acoustical approach was selected for localizing calling whales. The technique incorporated DIFAR (directional frequency and recording) sonobuoy techniques. An array of 11 DASARs (directional autonomous seafloor acoustic recorders) was built and installed with unit-to-unit separation of 5 km. When two or more DASARs detected the same call, the whale location was determined from the bearing intersections. This article describes the acoustic methods used to determine the locations of the calling bowhead whales and shows the types and precision of the data acquired. Calibration transmissions at GPS-measured times and locations provided measures of the individual DASAR clock drift and directional orientation. The standard error of the bearing measurements at distances of 3-4 km was approximately 1.35 degrees after corrections for gain imbalance in the two directional sensors. During 23 days in 2002, 10,587 bowhead calls were detected and 8383 were localized.