Introduction to the proceedings of the thirteenth symposium on biotechnology for fuels and chemicals

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology -     

Coal solubilization by enhanced enzyme activity in organic solvents

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - Both oxidative and reductive enzymes can be utilized to enhance coal solubilization in aqueous and organic media. Aerobic solubilization was carried out...     

Some spectrofluorimetric applications of the cerium(IV)-cerium(III) system

Cerium(III) ions in dilute sulphuric acid medium exhibit a characteristic fluorescence which has its excitation maximum at 260 nm and its fluorescence emission maximum at 350 nm. By utilising the osmium-catalysed redox reaction between cerium(IV) and arsenic(III), microgram amounts of arsenic (7.5–37.5 μg) may be determined by spectrofluorimetric measurement of the ceriurm(III) produced. The principle may be applied to the determination of several other ions which cannot yet be determined by direct spectrofluorimetry, e.g.. Fe(II) (5.6–28 μg), oxalate (8.8–44μg). Osmium(VIII) (0.05–0.2 μg) and iodide (0.6–2.5 μg) may be determined by their catalytic action.     

Chemical interaction of flue gas components with the growth ofcyanidium caldarium

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - Normal photosynthesis byCyanidium results in O2 evolution, suggesting that the uptake and subsequent reduction of CO2 also occur. This process, therefore,...     

Alanine racemase free energy profiles from global analyses of progress curves

Free energy profiles for alanine racemase from Bacillus stearothermophilus have been determined at pH 6.9 and 8.9 from global analysis of racemization progress curves. This required a careful statistical design due to the problems in finding the global minimum in mean square for a system with eight adjustable parameters (i.e., the eight rate constants that describe the stepwise chemical mechanism). The free energy profiles obtained through these procedures are supported by independent experimental evidence: (1). steady-state kinetic constants, (2). solvent viscosity dependence, (3). spectral analysis of reaction intermediates, (4). equilibrium overshoots for progress curves measured in D(2)O, and (5). the magnitudes of calculated intrinsic kinetic isotope effects. The free energy profiles for the enzyme are compared to those of the uncatalyzed and the PLP catalyzed reactions. At pH 6.9, PLP lowers the free energy of activation for deprotonation by 8.4 kcal/mol, while the inclusion of apoenzyme along with PLP additionally lowers it by 11 kcal/mol.