Light‐Regulated Tetracycline Binding to the Tet Repressor

Elucidation of the signal‐transmission pathways between distant sites within proteins is of great importance in medical and bioengineering sciences. The use of optical methods to redesign protein functions is emerging as a general approach for the control of biological systems with high spatiotemporal precision. Here we report the detailed thermodynamic and kinetic characterization of novel chimeric light‐regulated Tet repressor (TetR) switches in which light modulates the TetR function. Light absorbed by flavin mononucleotide (FMN) generates a signal that is transmitted to As‐LOV and YtvA‐LOV fused TetR proteins (LOV=light–oxygen–voltage), in which it alters the binding to tetracycline, the TetR ligand. The engineering of light‐sensing protein modules with TetR is a valuable tool that deepens our understanding of the mechanism of signal transmission within proteins. In addition, the light‐regulated changes of drug binding that we describe here suggest that engineered light‐sensitive proteins may be used for the development of novel therapeutic strategies.     

Water-Soluble Constituents of Phialophora lagerbergii

Chemistry of Natural Compounds -     

Optimal control of tandem reentrant queues

We consider optimal policies for reentrant queues in which customers may be served several times at the same station. We show that for tandem reentrant queues the last-buffer first-served (LBFS) policy stochastically maximizes the departure process. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Dynamic tensile strength of composite laminate joints fastened mechanically

The tensile strength of composite joints is determined under dynamic loading conditions. The composites are laminates made from hybrid fiber reinforced plastic (HFRP) and carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP). Three different mechanically fastened joint configurations are considered: they are the pin-connected, single-lap and double-lap type. The joint strength under dynamic load is found to be lower than that under quasi-static load. The pin-connected joint was the weakest. Investigated also are the influence of geometric parameters for pin-connected HFRP laminate joints. The results shed light on how to improve the bearing strength of mechanical joints when encountering dynamic loads.