A Bio-Conjugated Fullerene as a Subcellular-Targeted and Multifaceted Phototheranostic Agent

Fullerenes are candidates for theranostic applications because of their high photodynamic activity and intrinsic multimodal imaging contrast. However, fullerenes suffer from low solubility in aqueous media, poor biocompatibility, cell toxicity, and a tendency to aggregate. C₇₀@lysozyme is introduced herein as a novel bioconjugate that is harmless to a cellular environment, yet is also photoactive and has excellent optical and optoacoustic contrast for tracking cellular uptake and intracellular localization. The formation, water-solubility, photoactivity, and unperturbed structure of C₇₀@lysozyme are confirmed using UV-visible and 2D ¹H, ¹⁵N NMR spectroscopy. The excellent imaging contrast of C₇₀@lysozyme in optoacoustic and third harmonic generation microscopy is exploited to monitor its uptake in HeLa cells and lysosomal trafficking. Last, the photoactivity of C₇₀@lysozyme and its ability to initiate cell death by means of singlet oxygen (¹O₂) production upon exposure to low levels of white light irradiation is demonstrated. This study introduces C₇₀@lysozyme and other fullerene-protein conjugates as potential candidates for theranostic applications.     

Real‐time monitoring by proton relaxometry of radical polymerization reactions of acrylamide in aqueous solution

The potential of time‐domain nuclear magnetic resonance (TD‐NMR) for the real‐time monitoring of solution radical polymerizations is demonstrated. A model system composed of a redox‐pair initiator system, acrylamide as monomer and water as solvent was investigated. A second‐generation continuous wave free precession technique was employed to measure the longitudinal relaxation time constant (T₁) of the samples throughout the polymerization reactions. This parameter was shown to be sensitive to the reactant feed free‐radical enhancement of the water molecule relaxation time, making it a good probe to monitor monomer conversion in real time in an automated, non‐destructive fashion. It was found that the T₁ value was better than the transverse relaxation time constant (T₂) for describing the evolution of the polymerization reactions, due to its greater sensitivity to paramagnetic effects. The TD‐NMR signal variation observed was linked to the formation, propagation and termination steps of the radical polymerization kinetics scheme. These first results may contribute to the application of real‐time monitoring of radical polymerization reactions employing low‐cost and robust TD‐NMR spectrometers. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry     

Evolutionary algorithms and de novo peptide design

One of the goals of computational chemistry is the automated de novo design of bioactive molecules. Despite significant progress in computational approaches to ligand design and efficient evaluation of binding energy, novel procedures for ligand design are required. Evolutionary computation provides a new approach to this design issue. This paper presents an automated methodology for computer-aided peptide design based on evolutionary algorithms. It provides an automatic tool for peptide de novo design, based on protein surface patches defined by user. Regarding the restrictive constrains of this problem a special emphasis has been made on the design of the evolutionary algorithms implemented.     

An integrated system to remote monitor and control anaerobic wastewater treatment plants through the internet.

The TELEMAC project brings new methodologies from the Information and Science Technologies field to the world of water treatment. TELEMAC offers an advanced remote management system which adapts to most of the anaerobic wastewater treatment plants that do not benefit from a local expert in wastewater treatment. The TELEMAC system takes advantage of new sensors to better monitor the process dynamics and to run automatic controllers that stabilise the treatment plant, meet the depollution requirements and provide a biogas quality suitable for cogeneration. If the automatic system detects a failure which cannot be solved automatically or locally by a technician, then an expert from the TELEMAC Control Centre is contacted via the internet and manages the problem.     

Grouped Approach for the Design of H.264/AVC Motion Estimation Architectures

This letter presents a novel approach for organizing computational resources into groups within H.264/AVC motion estimation architectures, leading to reductions of up to 75% in the equivalent gate count with respect to state‐of‐the‐art designs.     

Enoxaparin in the prevention of deep venous thrombosis after major surgery: multicentric study. The Italian Study Group

Four hundred forty-six patients with Tourette Syndrome (TS) and/or their parents completed a 52-item self-report survey about vocal and motor tics, and the frequency of associated co-morbid conditions of aggression, obsessions and compulsions, attentional problems, sleep disturbance, mood disturbance, anxiety, and self-mutilative behaviours which have been frequently reported in the literature on TS. Respondents also responded to an open-ended question regarding the most disabling aspects of TS. Results were analyzed within two age groups; under 18 years of age (N = 245) and 18 years of age or older (N = 177). Tics and associated conditions were the most frequently reported disabling aspect by both age groups. Subjects under age 18, however, reported significantly more frequent problems with hyperactivity, temper control, aggressive behaviours and sleepwalking than adults with TS.     

Content of carbohydrates and trace elements in a group of non-alcoholic drinks

BACKGROUND: In order to elaborate recommendations for the dietetic care of diabetic patients and other clinical disorders we have measured the concentration of carbohydrates and trace elements in a group of non alcoholic refreshments of current use in Spain. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty refreshments were classified into 10 groups. Glucose and phosphate were measured by hexokinase and reduction of phospho-molybdate methods respectively in an autoanalyzer Dax-72. Glucose and fructose were analyzed by cellulose thin-layer chromatography; glucose, fructose and sucrose by gas chromatographys. Sodium and potassium by emission spectrophotometry and calcium, magnesium, iron, copper and zinc by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. RESULTS: Light refreshments and soft drinks have no carbohydrates. Isotonic beverages, fruit juices, cool tea and non alcoholic beers had less than 10 g/dl. Tonic waters, Fanta, different coles, non alcoholic bitter and others had more than 10 g/dl. Sodium levels between 15-20 mEq/l were found in the isotonic beverages and 7-Up and levels of 7 mEq/l in the others. Potassium values between 15-40 mEq/l were found in the fruit juices, 3-4 mEq/l in Gatorade and less than 1 mEq/l in the others. CONCLUSIONS: Light refreshments and soft drinks contain low concentrations of carbohydrates and sodium. Fruit juices have high potassium concentration. Such information can be especially useful for dietetic care of diabetic patients.     

Response coding and visuomotor transformation in the Simon task: The role of action goals.

Manual responses can be defined by differing response parameters. Any of them may generate a Simon effect. For all those response parameters, the same implementation of the Simon effect (in terms of subserving mechanism) is assumed. In 3 experiments, subjects had to respond with either fingers or sticks. Temporal properties of the Simon effect changed with response parameters relevant in a task. The Simon effect for manual responses decayed. For stick responses, in which the action goal differed from the anatomical mapping of the acting hand, a sustained Simon effect was observed. However, if the action goal for stick responses was not instrumental for selecting the correct response, the Simon effect decayed. The findings are consistent with the notion of different mechanisms involved in generating a Simon effect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)