Apical membrane antigen 1 is a microneme protein which plays an indispensable role during Apicomplexa parasite invasion. The detailed mechanism of AMA-1 molecular interaction with its receptor on bovine erythrocytes has not been completely defined in Babesia bovis. This study was focused on identifying the minimum B. bovis AMA-1-derived regions governing specific and high-affinity binding to its target cells. Different approaches were used for detecting ama-1 locus genetic variability and natural selection signatures. The binding properties of twelve highly conserved 20-residue-long peptides were evaluated using a sensitive and specific binding assay based on radio-iodination. B. bovis AMA-1 ectodomain structure was modelled and refined using molecular modelling software. NetMHCIIpan software was used for calculating B- and T-cell epitopes. The B. bovis ama-1 gene had regions under functional constraint, having the highest negative selective pressure intensity in the Domain I encoding region. Interestingly, B. bovis AMA-1-DI (100YMQKFDIPRNHGSGIYVDLG119 and 120GYESVGSKSYRMPVGKCPVV139) and DII (302CPMHPVRDAIFGKWSGGSCV321)-derived peptides had high specificity interaction with erythrocytes and bound to a chymotrypsin and neuraminidase-treatment sensitive receptor. DI-derived peptides appear to be exposed on the protein’s surface and contain predicted B- and T-cell epitopes. These findings provide data (for the first-time) concerning B. bovis AMA-1 functional subunits which are important for establishing receptor-ligand interactions which could be used in synthetic vaccine development. 相似文献
This study focuses on the chemistry, thermal stability, and electrical conductivity of low/intermediate pyrolysis temperature (700?900 °C) polysiloxane derived ceramics. These ceramics were modified with additional carbon derived from divinylbenzene (DVB) added to the precursor. Their electrical properties were investigated for potential uses in micro-electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) and anodes for lithium batteries. The microstructure and chemical composition was investigated by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS); thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) provided insight into the thermal stability; and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) into the electrical properties of the material. The increase of pyrolysis temperature and carbon content lead to an enhancement of the electrical conductivity, higher than previously reported values for intermediate pyrolysis temperature SiOC polymer derived ceramics. A limit of the amount of DVB that can be added to PHMS to produce a hybrid precursor has also been obtained. 相似文献
Mobile Networks and Applications - Blockchain applications have continuously improved ever since its first debut on cryptocurrency. From then on, its uses have branched out from the financial... 相似文献
The corrosion mechanisms of T24, T92, VM12, and AISI 304 steels are studied under the influence of NaCl–KCl, NaCl–Na2SO4, and KCl–K2SO4 salt mixtures in a dry air atmosphere at 650°C for 15 days. NaCl–KCl was the most aggressive deposit and AISI 304 stainless steel exhibited the highest corrosion resistance. There was no relation between the Cr content of the ferritic steels and their corrosion resistance in NaCl–KCl. In contrast, the resistance of high-Cr steels was better when exposed to NaCl–Na2SO4 and KCl–K2SO4. The high-Cr and the low-Cr steels were more susceptible to NaCl–Na2SO4 and to KCl–K2SO4, respectively. 相似文献
With liquefied natural gas becoming increasingly prevalent as a flexible source of energy, the design and optimization of industrial refrigeration cycles becomes even more important. In this article, we propose an integrated surrogate modeling and optimization framework to model and optimize the complex CryoMan Cascade refrigeration cycle. Dimensionality reduction techniques are used to reduce the large number of process decision variables which are subsequently supplied to an array of Gaussian processes, modeling both the process objective as well as feasibility constraints. Through iterative resampling of the rigorous model, this data-driven surrogate is continually refined and subsequently optimized. This approach was not only able to improve on the results of directly optimizing the process flow sheet but also located the set of optimal operating conditions in only 2 h as opposed to the original 3 weeks, facilitating its use in the operational optimization and enhanced process design of large-scale industrial chemical systems. 相似文献
A novel series of cleavable alkyltrimethylammonium surfactants with different hydrocarbon chain lengths (C8–16) were synthesized. A carbonate break site inserted between the polar head and the hydrocarbon chain makes these compounds hydrolyzable. The reagents used are renewable, (bio)degradable, or reusable. The hydrolysis of these cleavable surfactants will lead to the generation of fatty alcohols and choline, which is an essential biological nutrient. The surface activities in aqueous solution of the synthesized carbonates fulfill the requirement of being good surfactants. In addition, the cleavable compounds containing n-decyl and n-dodecyl chains showed similar or higher antimicrobial activities when compared to a non-cleavable analog. 相似文献
In this work we analysed the stepwise charging technique to find the limits from which it is beneficial in terms of load capacitance and charge–discharge frequency. We included in the analysis practical limitations such as the consumption of auxiliary logic needed to implement the technique and the minimum size of auxiliary switches imposed by the technology. We proposed an ultra-low-power logic block to push these limits and to obtain benefits from this technique in small capacitances. Finally, we proposed to use a stepwise driver in the driving of the gate capacitance of power switches in switched-capacitor (SC) DC–DC converters. We designed and manufactured, in a 130 nm process, a SC DC–DC converter and measured a 29% energy reduction in the gate-drive losses of the converter. This accounts for an improvement of 4% (from 69 to 73%) in the overall converter efficiency.
Manganese oxides of different crystalline structures: α-MnO2, δ-MnO2, α,γ-MnO2 and Mn2O3; were treated with the organic compounds picolinic acid, ethylenediamine and pyridine; and were applied as catalysts in the chemical water oxidation reaction using Ce(IV) ammonium nitrate as sacrificial oxidant. The treatment led to modifications in the oxides properties, such as reduction of the particle size, increase of surface area and partial reduction of Mn4+ to Mn3+ for the Mn(IV) oxides, or of Mn3+ to Mn2+ for Mn2O3, because of favored interactions of the organic molecules with the lattice planes with higher d spacing. Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) tests showed the superior catalytic activity of the treated Mn(IV) oxides, for instance α,γ-MnO2-en presented TOF five times higher than pure α,γ-MnO2. The increase in surface area as well as the higher Mn3+ content caused by the treatment of the Mn(IV) oxides were correlated with the improvement in the OER catalytic activity. 相似文献
This study investigates the preparation of polyetherimide (PEI) – LaNi5 composites films for hydrogen storage. Prior to the polymer addition, LaNi5 was ball-milled at different conditions (250, 350, and 450 RPM) and annealed at 500 °C for 1 h under vacuum. The composites were produced with BM-LaNi5-350 (PEI/LaNi5-350) and annealed BM-LaNi5-350 (PEI/LaNi5-350-TT). Membranes were successfully produced through solvent casting assisted by an ultrasonic bath. The particles dispersion and the film morphology did not change after hydrogenation cycles. In the H2 sorption experiments at 43 °C and 20 bar, the films stored H2 without incubation time; both samples reached a capacity of ~0.6 wt%. The H2 sorption kinetics of PEI/LaNi5-350 was comparable to that of BM-LaNi5-350, whereas PEI/LaNi5-350-TT presented significantly slower kinetics. LaNi5 oxidation was hindered by PEI, showing that it can be explored to improve metal hydrides air resistance. The results demonstrated that PEI films filled with LaNi5 are promising materials for hydrogen storage. 相似文献