Design of Oligourea-Based Foldamers with Antibacterial and Antifungal Activities

There is an urgent need to develop new therapeutic strategies to fight the emergence of multidrug resistant bacteria. Many antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been identified and characterized, but clinical translation has been limited partly due to their structural instability and degradability in physiological environments. The use of unnatural backbones leading to foldamers can generate peptidomimetics with improved properties and conformational stability. We recently reported the successful design of urea-based eukaryotic cell-penetrating foldamers (CPFs). Since cell-penetrating peptides and AMPs generally share many common features, we prepared new sequences derived from CPFs by varying the distribution of histidine- and arginine-type residues at the surface of the oligourea helix, and evaluated their activity on both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria as well as on fungi. In addition, we prepared and tested new amphiphilic block cofoldamers consisting of an oligourea and a peptide segment whereby polar and charged residues are located in the peptide segment and more hydrophobic residues in the oligourea segment. Several foldamer sequences were found to display potent antibacterial activities even in the presence of 50% serum. Importantly, we show that these urea-based foldamers also possess promising antifungal properties.     

Variable range hopping conduction in semiconductor nanocrystal solids

The temperature and electrical field dependent conductivity of n-type CdSe nanocrystal thin films is investigated. In the low electrical field regime, the conductivity follows sigma approximately exp([-(T(*)/T)(1/2)] in the temperature range 10相似文献   

Metabolic compartmentalization in the human cortex and hippocampus: evidence for a cell- and region-specific localization of lactate dehydrogenase 5 and pyruvate dehydrogenase

Background  

For a long time now, glucose has been thought to be the main, if not the sole substrate for brain energy metabolism. Recent data nevertheless suggest that other molecules, such as monocarboxylates (lactate and pyruvate mainly) could be suitable substrates. Although monocarboxylates poorly cross the blood brain barrier (BBB), such substrates could replace glucose if produced locally.     

MULTIQ: A Queueing Model for FMSs with Several Pallet Types

Analytical modelling of the work flow through flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs), based on closed queueing network models, has been successfully applied to the early stages of design and analysis of FMSs. This paper describes the advantages of using multiple job-class closed queueing networks for modelling realistic situations occurring in FMSs. The general modelling of FMSs by closed queueing networks is first reviewed. The way Solberg's CAN-Q—a single job-class queueing-based package—deals with several part types is clarified. A new model called MULTIQ, allowing multiple pallet types, each of which is used by several part types, is proposed. Results are derived using the data from an existing FMS. The use of the MULTIQ model for optimization purposes is suggested by some examples.     

Absorption spectrum of CO2 in the 4.82-μm region

The absorption spectrum of CO₂ in the 4.82-μm region has been observed with a high-resolution spectrometer. The (11¹0, 03¹0)_I-00⁰0 transition and the “hot” transitions (12²0, 04²0)_I-01¹0 and (20⁰0, 04⁰0)_I-01¹0 have been calibrated. The effective rotational constants of the upper levels have been deduced with good accuracy.     

The structure of alternative tableaux

In this paper we study alternative tableaux introduced by Viennot [X. Viennot, Alternative tableaux, permutations and partially asymmetric exclusion process, talk in Cambridge, 2008]. These tableaux are in simple bijection with permutation tableaux, defined previously by Postnikov [A. Postnikov, Total positivity, Grassmannians, and networks, arXiv:math/0609764v1 [math.CO], 2006].We exhibit a simple recursive structure for alternative tableaux, from which we can easily deduce a number of enumerative results. We also give bijections between these tableaux and certain classes of labeled trees. Finally, we exhibit a bijection with permutations, and relate it to some other bijections that already appeared in the literature.     

Pd deposits on Ni(111): a theoretical study

The ASED-MO method has been used to gather electronic and energetic information on Pd deposits on Ni(111) and Pd atom inclusion in the first Ni layer since these model catalysts exhibit a striking catalytic efficiency towards butadiene hydrogenation. The electronic structure of Pd atoms is strongly altered compared with pure Pd. A Pd(4d)→Pd(5s) electronic transfer occurs in the case of the deposit when a slight similar transfer and a charge transfer from Pd to surrounding Ni takes place in the case of the inclusion. Those results are consistent with XPS experimental data. A low density of states, near the Fermi level, is also observed. The optimal geometrical situation for Pd deposits is found to be 2D-aggregates (in pseudoepitaxy or pseudomorphy with the underlying Ni surface, depending on the aggregate size). Small aggregates (part of the first Ni layer) are found to be the most stable in the case of a Pd inclusion in the Ni with a Pd---Pd distance of 2.64 Å, in agreement with available EXAFS experimental data.     

Auger electron emission in proton-induced interactions in living matter: A TILDA-V Monte Carlo tracking

The present work focuses on studying the contribution of the Auger electron emission in proton-induced interactions in biological matter. The Monte Carlo track-structure code, TILDA-V, was then used for modeling the protons beams of 10 keV to 100 MeV in biological matter, namely, water vapor and hydrated DNA. The main ionizing processes are described by means of an extensive set of ab initio differential and total cross sections computed within a quantum-mechanical CDW-EIS approximation.     

Revisiting Born’s Rule through Uhlhorn’s and Gleason’s Theorems

In a previous article we presented an argument to obtain (or rather infer) Born’s rule, based on a simple set of axioms named “Contexts, Systems and Modalities" (CSM). In this approach, there is no “emergence”, but the structure of quantum mechanics can be attributed to an interplay between the quantized number of modalities that is accessible to a quantum system and the continuum of contexts that are required to define these modalities. The strong link of this derivation with Gleason’s theorem was emphasized, with the argument that CSM provides a physical justification for Gleason’s hypotheses. Here, we extend this result by showing that an essential one among these hypotheses—the need of unitary transforms to relate different contexts—can be removed and is better seen as a necessary consequence of Uhlhorn’s theorem.     

Equations du type de Monge-Ampère sur les variétés Riemanniennes compactes,III

Let (V_n, g) be a C^∞ compact Riemannian manifold without boundary. Given the following changes of metric: $\text{g′}{}_{\mathrm{?}}{}^{\mathrm{\pm }}\text{= g +}\text{Hess}\text{? ±}\text{l}\text{α}{}^2\text{(▽ ? ? ▽?),}\text{g}\text{?}{}^{\mathrm{\pm }}\text{= ±?g + α}{}^2\text{Hess}\text{?}$, where a is a fixed constant, we study the corresponding Monge-Ampère equations (1)^±$\text{Log}\text{(¦g′}{}_{\mathrm{?}}{}^{\mathrm{\pm }}\text{¦ ¦g¦}{}^{\mathrm{?1}}\text{) = F(P,▽?;?)}$, (2)^±$\text{Log}\text{(¦}\text{g}\text{?}{}_{\mathrm{?}}{}^{\mathrm{\pm }}\text{¦ ¦g¦}{}^{\mathrm{?1}}\text{) = F(P, ▽?; ?)}$. We first solve Eq. (2)^?, under some simple assumptions on F?C^∞. Then, using an appropriate change of functions that enables us to take advantage of the estimates just carried out for Eq. (2)^?, we extend to Eq.(1)^? all the results proved in our previous articles [5, 6] for the usual Monge-Ampère equation. Although equation (2)⁺ is not locally invertible, and does not even admit a solution for all $\text{F = λ? + ?, λ > 0, f ? C}{}^{\mathrm{\infty }}\text{(V}{}_{\mathrm{n}}\text{)}$, a similar change of functions leads to partial results about Eq. (1)⁺, via C² and C³ estimates for Eq. (2)⁺. Eventually we give some comments and errata of our previous article (P. Delanoë, J. Funct. Anal.41 (1981), 341–353).