Age-dependent plasticity in the superior temporal sulcus in deaf humans: a functional MRI study

Background  

Sign-language comprehension activates the auditory cortex in deaf subjects. It is not known whether this functional plasticity in the temporal cortex is age dependent. We conducted functional magnetic-resonance imaging in six deaf signers who lost their hearing before the age of 2 years, five deaf signers who were >5 years of age at the time of hearing loss and six signers with normal hearing. The task was sentence comprehension in Japanese sign language.     

PHYTOCHROME SYNTHESIS DURING IMBIBITION IN EMBRYONIC AXES OF Pisum sativum L.*

Abstract— The exact quantity of phytochrome in crude homogenates (2kS) prepared from embryonic axes of Pisum sativum during imbibition at 25°C on 0,2% agar was estimated optically. The problem of the scattering factor was solved by using highly purified phytochrome as an internal standard. The content of phytochrome protein moiety in diluted samples of the crude homogenates of the axes was also determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Phytochrome was not detectable either spectropho-tometrically or immunochemically in 2kS of dormant dry axes. Embryonic axes quickly absorbed water during the first1–2 h after the start of imbibition, after which the fresh weight stayed at a constant level for a further 10 h. The content of spectrophotometrically detectable phytochrome increased during imbibition in the dark, reaching about 0.2 μ.g/axis after 12 h. The amount of phytochrome in 2kS of axes in the light was so small that only about 0.05 μg/axis was detected after 12 h. The content of immunochemically detectable phytochrome greatly increased up to ca. 0.5 μg/axis after 12 h of dark incubation. In 2kS of the light-grown axes the content of the phytochrome protein was ca. one fourth lower than in dark-grown axes. We conclude that the appearance and increase of phytochrome in fragments of imbibed embryonic axes were caused by de novo synthesis and that the contents of both photometrically detectable phytochrome and its protein moiety in the light-grown samples were lower than those in the dark throughout the early germination process.     

Retention Behavior of Nucleic Acid Bases and Purine Derivatives on Titania

The retention of nucleic acid bases and purine derivatives on titania was studied using a 0.4 mM acetic acid–sodium acetate buffer (pH 6.0) and 70% aqueous methanol as mobile phases. We observed that the retention strength of tested analytes on titania was dependent on the structural differences between pyrimidine and purine skeletons and the variety and number of substituents. The retention order was purine derivatives with methyl groups, pyrimidine bases and purine derivatives with hydrophilic functional groups, which were retained most strongly on titania. We concluded that the retention of each analyte was caused by the analyte’s hydrophobicity in the case of purine derivatives with methyl groups and pyrimidine bases. In the case of purine and its derivatives with hydrophilic functional groups, it was considered that the retention was dependent on the analyte’s ability to form chelates, and the variety and number of functional groups on C6 and C2.     

Determination of chemical form of antimony in contaminated soil around a smelter using X-ray absorption fine structure.

Only limited information is available about the behavior of antimony (Sb) in contaminated soils. However, understanding the behavior of Sb in contaminated soils is important, because the toxicity or solubility of this element depends on its chemical state. In this study, we investigated the levels of Sb and the chemical forms of Sb in the soil around a smelter using X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectra. The highest Sb concentration in the contaminated soil was 2900 mg/kg dry soil. According to Sb-K edge X-ray absorption near edge (XANE) spectra, the Sb in the soil was in the form of Sb(V) compounds. The similarity of extended XAFS (EXAFS) spectra suggests that Sb speciation was independent of the sampling site, which indicates that Sb or Sb2O3 emitted from the smelter was converted into Sb(V) compounds in the soil.     

Photoreactive polyamides having m- or 1-type dimer moiety derived from 4-(3-oxo-3-phenyl-1-propenyl)benzoic acid derivatives

Photoreactive polyamides having m- or 1 -type cyclobutane moiety were prepared via a topochemical photodimerization of 4-(3-oxo-3-phenyl-1-propenyl)benzoic derivatives,⁴ followed by polycondensation of cyclobutane dicarboxylate derivatives with diamines. From the spectral studies of resulted polyamides compared with the corresponding reference diamides, it was concluded that both types of polyamides were depolymerized photochemically to give the same type of amide derivative having chalcone moiety with a small amount of undefined side reaction. The cyclobutane ring of the m-dimer from 4-(3-oxo-3-phenyl-1-propenyl)benzoic acid in crystal is severely twisted presumably because of the enhanced steric repulsions between two pairs of adjacent substituents. The higher quantum yield of the m-dimer for the photocleavege, compared with that of the 1 -dimer, has been interpreted in terms of such steric repulsions by the strained structure of the m-dimer.     

Structural interconversion and regulation of optical properties of stable hypercoordinate dipyrrin-silicon complexes

Novel pentacoordinate dipyrrin-silicon complexes showed efficient red or near-IR fluorescence, and the structural interconversion between silanol and siloxane derivatives resulted in significant changes in the optical properties.     

Peptide bond formation by aminolysin-A catalysis: a simple approach to enzymatic synthesis of diverse short oligopeptides and biologically active puromycins

A new S9 family aminopeptidase derived from the actinobacterial thermophile Acidothermus cellulolyticus was cloned and engineered into a transaminopeptidase by site-directed mutagenesis of catalytic Ser(491) into Cys. The engineered biocatalyst, designated aminolysin-A, can catalyze the formation of peptide bonds to give linear homo-oligopeptides, hetero-dipeptides, and cyclic dipeptides using cost-effective substrates in a one-pot reaction. Aminolysin-A can recognize several C-terminal-modified amino acids, including the l- and d-forms, as acyl donors as well as free amines, including amino acids and puromycin aminonucleoside, as acyl acceptors. The absence of amino acid esters prevents the formation of peptides; therefore, the reaction mechanism involves aminolysis and not a reverse reaction of hydrolysis. The aminolysin system will be a beneficial tool for the preparation of structurally diverse peptide mimetics by a simple approach.