Lethality of the covalent linkage between mislocalized major outer membrane lipoprotein and the peptidoglycan of Escherichia coli

The major outer membrane lipoprotein (Lpp) of Escherichia coli possesses serine at position 2, which is thought to function as the outer membrane sorting signal, and lysine at the C terminus, through which Lpp covalently associates with peptidoglycan. Arginine (R) is present before the C-terminal lysine in the wild-type Lpp (LppSK). By replacing serine (S) at position 2 with aspartate (D), the putative inner membrane sorting signal, and by deleting lysine (K) at the C terminus, Lpp mutants with a different residue at either position 2 (LppDK) or the C terminus (LppSR) or both (LppDR) were constructed. Expression of LppSR and LppDR little affected the growth of E. coli. In contrast, the number of viable cells immediately decreased when LppDK was expressed. Prolonged expression of LppDK inhibited separation of the inner and outer membranes by sucrose density gradient centrifugation, whereas short-term expression did not. Pulse-labeled LppDK and LppDR were localized in the inner membrane, indicating that the amino acid residue at position 2 functions as a sorting signal for the membrane localization of Lpp. LppDK accumulated in the inner membrane covalently associated with the peptidoglycan and thus prevented the separation of the two membranes. Globomycin, an inhibitor of lipoprotein-specific signal peptidase II, was lethal for E. coli only when Lpp possessed the C-terminal lysine. Taken together, these results indicate that the inner membrane accumulation of Lpp per se is not lethal for E. coli. Instead, a covalent linkage between the inner membrane Lpp having the C-terminal lysine and the peptidoglycan is lethal for E. coli, presumably due to the disruption of the cell surface integrity.     

Fuzzy inference and fuzzy inference processor

Fuzzy inference, a data processing method based on the fuzzy theory that has found wide use in the control field, is reviewed. Consumer electronics, which accounts for most current applications of this concept, does not require very high speeds. Although software running on a conventional microprocessor can perform these inferences, high-speed control applications require much greater speeds. A fuzzy inference date processor that operates at 200000 fuzzy logic inferences per second and features 12-b input and 16-b output resolution is described     

Pixel design of pulsed CMOS image sensor for retinal prosthesis with digital photosensitivity control

A newly designed pulse frequency modulation photosensor for use in retinal prosthesis is proposed and demonstrated. The pixel converts the intensity of incident light into biphasic current pulses at frequencies suitable for the electrical stimulation of retinal neurons. Experimental results showed that the device was sensitive over a dynamic range of input light of about 120 dB, and that photosensitivity could be varied from 0 dB to around -40 dB.     

Intramolecular triplet energy migration in poly(2-vinylnaphthalene) and poly(naphthylalkyl methacrylate)s in solid solution: Effects of side chain length

Summary The effect of side chain length on intramolecular triplet energy migration of naphthalene containing polymers was investigated by a delayed fluorescence (DF) spectroscopy for the solid solution of the polymers. The degree of triplet energy migration depends strongly on whether the chromophores are directly attached to the main chain or not.     

Quantitative evaluation of generator power control effect of FACTS controllers for power system stabilization

The advancement of power electronics technologies has significantly developed the power system stabilizing controllers. Quantitative as well as qualitative evaluation of their effectiveness in power systems is a matter of great importance for the feasibility investigation of these apparatus. In this paper, the possible control region of FACTS controllers with series and/or shunt configuration in a single machine to infinite bus system is formulated in the powerangle curve with a set of algebraic equations. The effectiveness of TCPST (Thyristor‐Controlled Phase Shifting Transformer), SSSC (Static Synchronous Series Compensator), and TCSC (Thyristor‐Controlled Series Compensator) for the improvement of the transient stability is evaluated quantitatively as a numerical example. The correctness of the proposed method has been confirmed by analysis based on the electromagnetic transients simulation with a detailed system model. © 2001 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 138(3): 43–51, 2002     

Photoelectrochemical properties of sol–gel-derived Ti1−xVxO2 solid solution film photoelectrodes

Ti_1−xV_xO₂ solid solution film photoelectrodes were prepared by the dip-coating sol–gel method. X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were employed to ensure the formation of the solid solution and their composition. Obvious photoresponses were observed in the visible region for the solid solution film electrodes with x0.05 and the red shift of the photoresponse was enhanced with increasing x. Moreover, the solid solution film electrodes were found to be photoelectrochemically stable. However, the onset potential of photocurrent shifted positively with increasing x. Band model of the solid solution was suggested to explain the effects of the vanadium incorporation on the photoelectrochemical properties.     

Stability analysis of regional and national voting schemes by a continuous model

The previous discrete-model-based stability analysis of regional and national voting has been extended to a continuous-model-based analysis in the simultaneous presence of white and concentrated components of noise, reconfirming the previous conclusion that regional voting with smaller sized regions always demonstrates an improved stability over those with larger sized regions, including the national voting in its limiting case in particular. The conclusion remains valid as long as the weak distribution assumption is valid.     

Involvement of specific mechanism in plasmid DNA uptake by mouse peritoneal macrophages

Lamina-associated polypeptide (LAP)2, which directly interacts with B-type lamins and chromosomes, is an integral membrane protein specifically distributed along the inner nuclear membrane of the nuclear envelope. Multiple regions of its large nucleoplasmic domain promote this localization, including the first (residues 1-296) and the second (residues 298-409) halves of the LAP2 N terminus. The second half is involved in LAP2 association with the nuclear lamina [Furukawa, K., Panté, N., Aebi, U. & Gerace, L. (1995) EMBO J. 14, 1626-1636]. In this study to further define its role, we examined which domain of B-type lamin interacts with LAP2 by means of a binding assay with bacterially expressed proteins and a yeast two-hybrid system. We found that amino acids in the region of residues 78-258 of the lamin B1 rod domain directly bound with LAP2. The data suggest that LAP2 may modulate the assembly of nuclear lamins.     

Structural Study on PbO–SiO2 Glasses by X-Ray and Neutron Diffraction and 29Si MAS NMR Measurements

Structure of x PbO–(100− x )SiO₂ ( x =25–89) glasses has been investigated by means of the X-ray and neutron diffraction and ²⁹Si MAS NMR measurements. In the radial distribution functions of all the glasses, the Pb–O correlation was observed at 0.23 nm, indicating that the PbO₃ trigonal pyramids units do exist in the whole glass forming composition range. Furthermore the existence of the first Pb–Pb correlation at ∼0.385 nm in the whole composition range suggests that the basic structural unit is considered to be a Pb₂O₄ unit, which consists of the edge-shared PbO₃ trigonal pyramids. These results strongly imply that the Pb₂O₄ units participate in the glass network constructed by SiO₄ tetrahedra even at low PbO content. Differing from other lead-containing glass systems, these structural characteristics of Pb ions in the PbO–SiO₂ glass system are responsible for the extremely wide glass-forming region.     

Current distribution in a two-dimensional narrow gap cell composed of a gas evolving electrode with an open part

On the basis of the observation of gas bubbles evolved by electrolysis, a two-dimensional vertical model cell composed of electrodes with open parts for releasing gas bubbles to the back side is proposed. The model cell consists of two layers. One layer forms a bubble curtain with a maximum volume fraction of gas bubbles in the vicinity of the working electrode with open parts. The other. being located out of the bubble layer, is a convection layer with a small volume fraction distributed in the vertical direction under forced convection conditions. The cell resistance and the current distribution were computed by the finite element method when resistivity in the back side varied in the vertical direction along the cell. The following three cases for overpotential were considered: no overpotential, overpotential of the linear type and overpotential of the Butler-Volmer type. It was found that the cell resistance was determined not only by the interelectrode gap but also by the percentage of open area and in some cases by the superficial surface area. The cell resistance varied only slightly with the distribution of the bubble layer in the back side.Nomenclature b linear overpotential coefficient given byb=/i - C proportionality constant given by Equation 15 - d ₁ distance between front side of working electrode and separator - d ₂ thickness of separator - F Faraday constant - I total current per half pitch - i current density at working electrode - i ₀ exchange current density - L length of a real electrolysis cell - n number of electrons transferred in electrode reaction - O _p percentage of open area given by Equation 1 - p pitch, i.e. twice the length of the unit cell, defined by 2(BC) in Fig. 4 - q thickness of bubble curtain, defined by (AM) in Fig. 4 - R gas constant - r _t total cell resistance - r unit-cell resistance defined by (V – V _eq)/I - r _rs residue ofr from sum ofr ₀ andr - r ₀ ohmic resistance of solution when0 _p=0 - r resistance due to overpotential when0 _p=0 - s electrode surface ratio or superficial surface area given by Equation 2 for the present model - T absolute temperature - t thickness of working electrode defined by EF in Fig. 4 - V cell voltage - V _eq open circuit potential difference between working and counter electrodes - solution velocity in cell - ₀ solution velocity at bottom of cell - w width of working electrode, defined by 2(DE) in Fig. 4 - x abscissa located on cell model - y ordinate located on cell model - anodic transfer coefficient - linear overpotential kinetic parameter defined byb/[_bc(p/2)] - d infinitesimally small length on the boundary - volume fraction of gas bubbles in cell - dimensionless cell voltage defined bynF(V – V _eq)/RT - overpotential at working electrode - Butler-Volmer overpotential kinetic parameter defined by [nFi _0bc(p/2)]/RT - coordinate perpendicular to boundary of model cell - ₁ resistivity of bubble-free solution - ₂ resistivity of separator - _bc resistivity of bubble curtain - potential in cell