Characterization of sulfate-reducing bacteria in yeast industry waste by microcalorimetry and PCR amplification

Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) were isolated from anaerobic sludge of yeast factory wastewater treatment plant by cultivation on Postgate C medium. Microcalorimetry was used to monitor the anaerobic digestion processes and to measure the growth rates of sulfate-reducing bacteria. The maximum growth rates determined by microcalorimetry and ATP analysis were different—μ_max(dQ/dt) = 0.165 ± 0.008 h⁻¹ and μ_max(N_ATP) = 0.207 ± 0.013 h⁻¹. Experiments on the cultivation of SRB from yeast industry wastewater treatment plant in batch culture showed that during the first 20 h the concentration of sulfate decreased from 78.3 mM down to 62.2 mM while the increase of sulfide production was negligible. Perceptible amount of sulfide (7.82 mM) appeared on the 33.5 h of fermentation together with a peak on the power–time curve and considerable increase in the cell count (1.26 × 10⁹). First steps of sulfate metabolism (activation of sulfate by ATP sulfurylase, production of H₂) are accompanied by endothermic heat effects, therefore the values of thermal power remain moderate until the evolution of sulfide starts. The influence of green microalgae Chlorococcum sp. (preparation Biotreat 100) on the growth characteristics of microorganisms was also studied. Identification of one SRB strain was started by sequencing of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene. Two sets of primers were used for PCR amplification, both specific for domain Bacteria but giving different gene fragments. PCR-products were purified with JETQUICK kit according to the manufacturer instructions.     

Early reactions of light-induced protochlorophyllide and chlorophyllide transformations analyzed in vivo at room temperature with a diode array spectrofluorometer

The steps of protochlorophyllide (Pchlide) photoreduction and subsequent chlorophyllide (Chlide) transformations which occur in the seconds to minutes time-scale were studied using a diode array spectrofluorometer in dark-grown barley leaves. The intensity of the excitation light was varied between 3 and 2,500 micromol m(-2) s(-1) and a series of fluorescence spectra were recorded at room temperature in the seconds and minutes time scales. In certain experiments, 77-K emission spectra were measured with the same equipment. The high quality of the spectra allowed us to run spectral resolution studies which proved the occurrence, at room temperature, of multiple Pchlide and Chlide forms found previously in 77-K spectra. The comparison of the 77-K and room-temperature spectra showed that the fluorescence yields of the nonphotoactive 633-nm Pchlide form and of the Chlide product emitting at 678 nm were temperature independent. The fluorescence intensity of aggregated NADPH-pigment-POR complexes (photoactive 656-nm Pchlide and 693-nm Chlide forms) were strongly increased at 77 K, while that of the NADP(+)-Chlide-POR (684-686-nm Chlide form) was much less affected by temperature. Information was obtained also about the dynamics of the transformation of pigment forms in the light at different photon densities. At low light intensities, the phototransformation of the 642-644-nm Pchlide form was faster than that of the 654-656-nm form. The relative amplitudes of Gaussian components related to different Chlide forms found after exposure to a constant amount of photons strongly depended on the light intensity used. Strong quenching of all Chlide components occurred upon prolonged exposure to high intensity light. These effects are discussed by considering the interconversion processes between different forms of the pigment-protein complexes, their relative fluorescence yields and energy migration processes.     

Composition of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Carlina acanthifolia</Emphasis> Root Essential Oil

The root of Carlina acanthifolia All. (Asteraceae) contained 1.0% of essential oil (expressed in g per 100 g of dried plant material). Using GC and GC/MS, nine components were identified (100% of total oil). The structure of benzyl 2-furylacetylene (carlina oxide), which is the principal component of the oil (91.5%), was spectrometrically identified. __________ Published in Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 4, pp. 331–332, July–August, 2005.     

The non-oxidative thermal degradation of poly (Di-2-chloroethyl itaconate)

The non-oxidative thermal degradation of poly (di-2-chloroethyl itaconate) (PD2CEI) was studied by TG and by analysing the thermal products. The major processes occurring during thermal analysis are crosslinking, depolymerisation and carbonisation. The thermal degradation activation energy increased with increasing sample mass loss. The thermal degradation of PD2CEI was compared to that of the structurally similar poly(2-chloroethyl methacrylate) (P2CMA).     

Metal-catalyzed di-tert-butylsilylene transfer: synthesis and reactivity of silacyclopropanes

Metal-catalyzed di-tert-butylsilylene transfer was developed as a mild, operationally simple, functional-group-tolerant method for silacyclopropane formation. Di-tert-butylsilylene was transferred from cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 to an alkene through the use of a metal salt. Silacyclopropanation occurred at temperatures as low as -27 degrees C when AgOTf or AgOC(O)CF(3) were used as catalysts. Complex silacyclopropanes were formed stereospecifically and diastereoselectively from functionalized alkenes. Silacyclopropanes reacted with various carbonyl compounds, including aldehydes, ketones, formate esters, and formamides, in an overall process that efficiently converts alkenes into oxasilacyclopentanes with defined stereochemistry.     

Cobalt(II) Chloride Complex Formation in Acetamide–Calcium Nitrate Tetrahydrate Melts

The absorption spectra of Co(II) chloride complexes, containing variable concentrations of chloride ligand, in a molten mixture of 80 mol% acetamide–20 mol% calcium nitrate tetrahydrate, were studied at 313, 333, 353, and 363 K, in the wavelength range 400-800 nm. The melt contains three possible ligands (CH₃CONH₂, H₂O, and NO₃ ^-) for competition with added chloride ligand. Addition of chloride caused a shift of the absorption maximum of octahedral cobalt(II) nitrate towards lower energies and pronounced changes in the shape of the initial spectrum of cobalt(II) nitrate. The effect of temperature changes on the molar absorption coefficient of the Co(II) species was dependent on the chloride concentration and was attributed to the structural changes occurring in the cobalt(II) species. The STAR and STAR FA programs were applied to identify the complex ionic species and to calculate the stability constants of Co(II) complexes formed in this solvent. The results indicate the highest probability of formation of the following complex species: Co(NO₃)₄ ^2-, Co(NO₃)₂Cl₂ ^2-, and CoCl₄ ^2-. Stability constants of each complex were presented for the equilibria occurring at 313, 333, 353, and 363 K. Distribution of the Co(II) species was also calculated over the ranges of chloride concentration and temperature investigated.     

Selective pervaporation of water through a nonselective microporous titania membrane by a dynamically induced molecular sieving mechanism

Pervaporation experiments were performed on microporous titania membranes using several binary liquids containing 2-20 wt % water. The membrane was nonselective in the separation of water from alcohols and p-dioxane but showed a remarkably high selectivity in the separation of water from ethylene glycol/water mixtures with < or =15 mol % water. The absence of selectivity under most conditions is explained by the large pore size (0.9 nm) of microporous titania. The high selectivity for water in the separation from ethylene glycol can be explained by the formation of a hydrogen-bonded network of ethylene glycol in the micropores, which blocks transport of ethylene glycol, while water can still permeate through. These networks are disrupted by water at higher concentrations, leading to full loss of membrane selectivity.     

OXYGEN QUENCHING OF CHLOROPHYLL FLUORESCENCE IN CHLOROPLASTS

Abstract— Three phases of chlorophyll a fluorescence quenching by O₂ are observed in green plants. The effects of various inhibitors on photosynthetic partial processes in chloroplasts were investigated in attempts to (1) localize the O₂-quenching sites and (2) assess possible physiological significance of O₂-quenching. Our results localize the most sensitive (and presumably functionally important) phase to a site between plastoquinone and the photosystem I acceptor, chlorophyll (P₇₀₀), possibly plastocyanin. It is suggested that PC may transfer electrons to oxygen in addition to P₇₀₀.