DNA-induced inter-particle cross-linking during expanded bed adsorption chromatography. Impact on future support design

We have investigated the effects of adsorbent size, ionic capacity and surface immobilised polymers on dynamic capacity and changes occurring to beds of anion-exchangers during the binding of DNA. During application of low concentrations of "3-20 kilobase" calf thymus DNA feeds to expanded beds of anion-exchangers, the bed heights dropped progressively as DNA molecules physically cross-linked neighbouring adsorbent particles together, to form severely aggregated fluidised beds. In plots of dynamic binding capacities and absolute changes in bed porosity at maximum contraction, against the inverse of the mean hydrated particle radii, the anion-exchangers were observed to split into three distinct, but different clusters in each case. The highest index of surface packing of DNA was observed for two prototype pellicular supports, one derivatised with highly charged high molecular mass polyethyleneimine (Mr approximately 50,000) and the other with long dextran (Mr approximately 500,000) chains weakly derivatised with DEAE. However, the ability of the surfaces of these two matrices to bring about bed contraction, was strikingly different. The highly charged surface afforded by coupling of polyethyleneimine exhibited a three-fold higher tendency to interact with neighbouring particles in the presence of DNA than that of the dextran DEAE support. The implications of these findings on the design of future expanded bed materials for separation of both proteins and nucleic acids are discussed.     

CoMFA-based comparison of two models of binding site on adenosine A1 receptor

A set of 32 N6-substituted adenosines and 22 8-substituted xanthines with affinity for adenosine A1 receptors was subjected to three-dimensional quantitative structure-affinity relationship analysis using comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA). The aim was to compare two modes of binding to the receptor – `N6-C8' and `N6-N7'. Good models with high predictive power and stability were obtained. A comparison of these models gives the following results: (a) Inclusion of both steric and electrostatic fields in CoMFA generates better predictive models compared to models based on steric or electrostatic fields alone. (b) The `N6-N7' CoMFA models are slightly better than the `N6-C8' ones. (c) Steric restriction exists around the N6-H in the `N6-N7' steric field map, which is absent in the `N6-C8' steric field map. This report demonstrates that the `N6-N7' mode of binding is a further development of the `N6-C8' model with a slightly better predictive ability and more accurate steric and electrostatic overlaps between agonists and antagonists.     

Fluidisation and dispersion behaviour of small high density pellicular expanded bed adsorbents

The fluidisation and dispersion properties of various agarose-based expanded bed matrices--small high density stainless steel cored prototypes and standard commercial types--were studied in 1-cm diameter expanded bed contactors in which fluid entering the column base is locally stirred. In all cases, fluidisation behaviour was poorly predicted from the Richardson-Zaki correlation, with experimentally determined values of the expansion index being considerably higher than the theoretical values. The resons for these discrepancies are discussed in detail and the validity of applying this widely used correlation for characterisation of expanded bed systems is questioned. Residence time distribution studies using acetone tracers, demonstrated that in comparison to existing commercial supports, the small pellicular prototype materials generally possessed far superior hydrodynamic properties, which augurs well for their future employment in expanded bed chromatographic separations.     

The subindependence of coordinate slabs inl p n balls

It is proved that if the probabilityP is normalised Lebesgue measure on one of thel _p ⁿ balls in R ⁿ , then for any sequencet ₁ , t ₂ , …, t _n of positive numbers, the coordinate slabs {|x _i |≤t _i } are subindependent, namely, . A consequence of this result is that the proportion of the volume of thel ₁ ⁿ ball which is inside the cube[−1, t] ⁿ is less than or equal tof _n (t)=(1−(1−t) ⁿ ) ⁿ . It turns out that this estimate is remarkably accurate over most of the range of values oft. A reverse inequality, demonstrating this, is the second major result of the article. Supported in part by NSF DMS-9257020. Supported by a grant from Public Benefit Foundation Alexander S. Onassis. This work will form part of a Ph.D. thesis written by the second-named author.     

Effects of Curcumin and Ferulic Acid on the Folding of Amyloid-β Peptide

The polyphenols curcumin (CU) and ferulic acid (FA) are able to inhibit the aggregation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide with different strengths. CU is a strong inhibitor while FA is a weaker one. In the present study, we examine the effects of CU and FA on the folding process of an Aβ monomer by 1 µs molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We found that both inhibitors increase the helical propensity and decrease the non-helical propensity of Aβ peptide. They prevent the formation of a dense bulk core and shorten the average lifetime of intramolecular hydrogen bonds in Aβ. CU makes more and longer-lived hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic, π–π, and cation–π interactions with Aβ peptide than FA does, which is in a good agreement with the observed stronger inhibitory activity of CU on Aβ aggregation.     

Discovery of a Novel Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitor by Fragment-Based Design and Virtual Screening

Despite extensive and intensive research efforts in recent decades, there is still no effective treatment for neurodegenerative diseases. On this background, the use of drugs inhibiting the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) remains an eternal evergreen in the symptomatic treatment of mild to moderate cognitive impairments. Even more, the cholinergic hypothesis, somewhat forgotten in recent years due to the shift in focus on amyloid cascade, is back to life, and the search for new, more effective AChE inhibitors continues. We generated a fragment-based library containing aromatic moieties and linkers originating from a set of novel AChE inhibitors. We used this library to design 1220 galantamine (GAL) derivatives following the model GAL (binding core) - linker (L) - aromatic fragment (Ar). The newly designed compounds were screened virtually for blood–brain barrier (BBB) permeability and binding to AChE. Among the top 10 best-scored compounds, a representative lead molecule was selected and tested for anti-AChE activity and neurotoxicity. It was found that the selected compound was a powerful non-toxic AChE inhibitor, 68 times more active than GAL, and could serve as a lead molecule for further optimization and development.     

Thermodynamics modelling of plasticity and damage of argilliteModélisation thermodynamique de la plasticité et de l'endommagement d'une argilite.

The study of the physical and mechanical characteristics of argillites allows us to retain the state variables useful for the thermodynamic modelling of their behaviour. We built a thermodynamic potential which reproduces the nonlinear behaviour. Plasticity-damage coupling is taken into account by using an effective stress coming from strain equivalence principle. To cite this article: N. Conil et al., C. R. Mecanique 332 (2004).     

Synthesis and Properties of Pyrrones Containing p-Benzoquinone Units

Novel pyrrones were synthesized by one-stage polycondensation in polyphosphoric acid of 2,3,5,6-tetraamino-l,4-benzoquinone with pyromellitic anhydride, 3,3′,4,4′-benzophenonetetracarboxylic dianhydride, 1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, or 3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride. The prepared polymers showed a considerable percentage of imide linkages, so they were heated at 350°C under high vacuum to increase the ring closure to the pyrrone structure. The polymers were insoluble in all common polar aprotic solvents, even in dimethylacetamide-water mixture, after reduction with sodium dithionite, but were slightly soluble in concentrated sulfuric and methanesulfonic acid. The thermal decomposition of the polymers (weight loss 5%) started above 400°C both under nitrogen and in air.     

A versatile synthesis of fused triazolo derivatives by sequential Ugi/alkyne-azide cycloaddition reactions

We report a facile synthesis of fused dihydrotriazolo[1,5-a]pyrazinones and triazolobenzodiazepines by an Ugi/alkyne-azide cycloaddition synthetic sequence. The coupling of the Ugi multi-component reaction with the intramolecular alkyne-azide cycloaddition provides access to highly functionalized heterocyclic ring systems in two steps from easily available starting materials in excellent overall yields.