Nano-gold supported on Fe2O3: A highly active catalyst for low temperature oxidative destruction of methane green house gas from exhaust/waste gases

A number of nano-gold catalysts were prepared by depositing gold on different metal oxides (viz. Fe₂O₃, Al₂O₃, Co₃O₄, MnO₂, CeO₂, MgO, Ga₂O₃ and TiO₂), using the homogeneous deposition precipitation (HDP) technique. The catalysts were evaluated for their performance in the combustion of methane (1 mol% in air) at different temperatures (300–600 °C) for a GHSV of 51,000 h⁻¹. The supported nano-gold catalysts have been characterized for their gold loading (by ICP) and gold particle size (by TEM/HRTEM or XRD peak broadening). Among these nano-gold catalysts, the Au/Fe₂O₃ (Au loading = 6.1% and Au particle size = 8.5 nm) showed excellent performance. For this catalyst, temperature required for half the methane combustion was 387 °C, which is lower than that required for Pd(1%)/Al₂O₃ (400 °C) and Pt(1%)/Al₂O₃ (500 °C) under identical conditions. A detailed investigation on the influence of space velocity (GHSV = 10,000–100,000 cm³ g⁻¹ h⁻¹) at different temperatures (200–600 °C) on the oxidative destruction of methane over the Au/Fe₂O₃ catalyst has also been carried out. The Au/Fe₂O₃ catalyst prepared by the HDP method showed much higher methane combustion activity than that prepared by the conventional deposition precipitation (DP) method. The XPS analysis showed the presence of Au in the different oxidation states (Au⁰, Au¹⁺ and Au³⁺) in the catalyst.     

Synthesis, characterization and radionuclide (Cs) trapping properties of a carbon foam

Low-density carbon foam was synthesized from an aqueous acidic sucrose solution. The resin formed by heating this solution underwent foaming and set into a solid green foam which was sintered in the temperature range 573-1223 K. The green and the sintered foams were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. A thermogravimetric analyzer coupled with a mass spectrometer was used to study the thermal stability of green foam under an argon atmosphere in the temperature range 303-1273 K. The suitability of this carbon foam and a commercially available reticulated vitreous carbon for trapping radioactive ¹³⁷Cs was studied by a tracer technique in static sodium at 473 K. A NaI(Tl) detector was used to measure ¹³⁷Cs activity trapped by these materials. Trapping efficiency for ¹³⁷Cs and distribution coefficient of ¹³⁷Cs between sodium and the carbon foam were found to be in the range 73-77% and 4.9-6.0 × 10², respectively.     

The Role of Synovial Membrane in the Development of a Potential In Vitro Model of Osteoarthritis

There is a lack of in vitro models able to plausibly represent the inflammation microenvironment of knee osteoarthritis (OA). We analyzed the molecules released from OA tissues (synovial membrane, cartilage, infrapatellar fat pad) and investigated whether the stimulation of human synovial fibroblasts (SFs), with synthetic cytokines (IL-1β and TNF-α or IFN-γ) or conditioned media (CM) from OA tissues, influence the SFs’ response, in the sense of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, growth factors, and degradative enzymes modulation. Human SFs were obtained from OA synovial membranes. SFs and their CM were analyzed for biomarkers, proliferation rate, protein profile and gene expression, before and after stimulation. Real-time PCR and multiplex assays quantified OA-related gene expression and biomolecule production. Unlike other activators, CM from OA synovial membrane (CM-SM), significantly up-regulated all genes of interest (IL-6, IL-8, MMP-1, MMP-3, RANTES, MCP-1, TSG-6, YKL-40) in SFs. Multiplex immunoassay analysis showed that levels of OA-related cytokines (IL-6, IL-8, MCP 1, IL-1Ra), chemokine (RANTES) and growth factor (VEGF), produced by CM-SM stimulated SFs, increased significantly compared to non-stimulated SFs. Molecules released from the SM from OA patients induces OA-like changes in vitro, in specific OA synovial populations (SFs). These findings promote the use and establish a compelling in vitro model that simulates the versatility and complexity of the OA disease. This model, in the future, will allow us to study new cell therapies or test drugs by reducing or avoiding animal models.     

Structural and Functional Characterization of Four Novel Fibrinogen Mutations in FGB Causing Congenital Fibrinogen Disorder

Congenital fibrinogen disorders are caused by mutations in genes coding for fibrinogen and may lead to various clinical phenotypes. Here, we present a functional and structural analysis of 4 novel variants located in the FGB gene coding for fibrinogen Bβ chain-heterozygous missense BβY416C and BβA68S, homozygous nonsense BβY345*, and heterozygous nonsense BβW403* mutations. The cases were identified by coagulation screening tests and further investigated by various methods. Fibrin polymerization had abnormal development with decreased maximal absorbance in all patients. Plasmin-induced fibrin degradation revealed different lytic phases of BβY416C and BβW403* than those of the control. Fibrinopeptide cleavage measured by reverse phase high pressure liquid chromatography of BβA68S showed impaired release of fibrinopeptide B. Morphological properties, studied through scanning electron microscopy, differed significantly in the fiber thickness of BβY416C, BβA68S, and BβW403*, and in the fiber density of BβY416C and BβW403*. Finally, homology modeling of BβA68S showed that mutation caused negligible alternations in the protein structure. In conclusion, all mutations altered the correct fibrinogen function or structure that led to congenital fibrinogen disorders.     

The Veterinary Anti-Parasitic Selamectin Is a Novel Inhibitor of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis DprE1 Enzyme

Avermectins are macrocyclic lactones with anthelmintic activity. Recently, they were found to be effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which accounts for one third of the worldwide deaths from antimicrobial resistance. However, their anti-mycobacterial mode of action remains to be elucidated. The activity of selamectin was determined against a panel of M. tuberculosis mutants. Two strains carrying mutations in DprE1, the decaprenylphosphoryl-β-D-ribose oxidase involved in the synthesis of mycobacterial arabinogalactan, were more susceptible to selamectin. Biochemical assays against the Mycobacterium smegmatis DprE1 protein confirmed this finding, and docking studies predicted a binding site in a loop that included Leu275. Sequence alignment revealed variants in this position among mycobacterial species, with the size and hydrophobicity of the residue correlating with their MIC values; M. smegmatis DprE1 variants carrying these point mutations validated the docking predictions. However, the correlation was not confirmed when M. smegmatis mutant strains were constructed and MIC phenotypic assays performed. Likewise, metabolic labeling of selamectin-treated M. smegmatis and M. tuberculosis cells with ¹⁴C-labeled acetate did not reveal the expected lipid profile associated with DprE1 inhibition. Together, our results confirm the in vitro interactions of selamectin and DprE1 but suggest that selamectin could be a multi-target anti-mycobacterial compound.     

Evaluating environmental impact of STPs situated on streams in the Czech Republic: an integrated approach to biomonitoring the aquatic environment

Sewage water treatment plants (STPs) are frequently associated with the release of xenobiotics and, consequently, with biological responses of fish to these substances. The impact of three STPs situated on small streams was assessed in 2009. Brown trout (Salmo trutta fario L.), captured upstream and downstream of these STPs, were used as biomonitors. The concentrations of 39 organic pollutants (PCBs, OCPs, PBDEs, HBCDs, and MCs), and the biological responses related to oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation and carbonyl protein), and antioxidant responses (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase) were measured. Through chemometrics of these parameters, three groups with 97.62% of the total accumulated variance were distinguished. Integration of the assessed biomarkers using the IBR index, ranked environment impact on sites as: DS Pacov > DS Prachatice > DS Brloh > US Pacov > US Prachatice > US Brloh (most to least affected). STPs are a major source of xenobiotic pollution in streams of the Czech Republic. The combined use of chemical analysis and biological responses is necessary to validate the efficacy of a battery of biomarkers chosen to detect environmental stress due to pollution.     

An Immune-Evolutionary Algorithm for Multiple Rearrangements of Gene Expression Data

Microarray technologies are employed to simultaneously measure expression levels of thousands of genes. Data obtained from such experiments allow inference of individual gene functions, help to identify genes from specific tissues, to analyze the behavior of gene expression levels under various environmental conditions and under different cell cycle stages, and to identify inappropriately transcribed genes and several genetic diseases, among many other applications. As thousands of genes may be involved in a microarray experiment, computational tools for organizing and providing possible visualizations of the genes and their relationships are crucial to the understanding and analysis of the data. This work proposes an algorithm based on artificial immune systems for organizing gene expression data in order to simultaneously reveal multiple features in large amounts of data. A distinctive property of the proposed algorithm is the ability to provide a diversified set of high-quality rearrangements of the genes, opening up the possibility of identifying various co-regulated genes from representative graphical configurations of the expression levels. This is a very useful approach for biologists, because several co-regulated genes may exist under different conditions.     

Age and motivation predict gaze behavior for facial expressions.

This study investigated age-related differences between younger (M = 25.52 years) and older (M = 70.51 years) adults in avoidance motivation and the influence of avoidance motivation on gaze preferences for happy, neutral, and angry faces. In line with the hypothesis of reduced negativity effect later in life, older adults avoided angry faces and (to a lesser degree) preferred happy faces more than younger adults did. This effect cannot be explained by age-related changes in dispositional motivation. Irrespective of age, avoidance motivation predicted gaze behavior towards emotional faces. The study demonstrates the importance of interindividual differences beyond young adulthood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Scan time minimization in hepatic diffusion-weighted imaging: evaluation of the simultaneous multislice acceleration technique with different acceleration factors and gradient preparation schemes

Objective

To evaluate simultaneous multislice (sms) accelerated diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) of the liver in comparison to conventional sequences.

Materials and methods

Ten volunteers underwent DWI of the liver at 1.5 T. Four different sms-accelerated sequences with monopolar and bipolar gradient preparation (MP, BP) and acceleration factors 2 and 3 (sms2-DWI, sms3-DWI) were compared to conventional DWI (c-DWI). Image quality criteria rated on a 5-point Likert scale (5 = excellent), image quality sum scores (maximum 120), and ADC were compared using Friedman test and Dunn-Bonferroni post hoc test. Bland–Altman plots were calculated for ADC comparison. p values <0.05 were considered significant.

Results

Sms2-DWI offered scan time minimization of 67 % without significant difference in image quality (sum score: sms2-DWI MP/BP: 97 ± 8/92 ± 9; c-DWI MP/BP: 99 ± 8/97 ± 8). Sms3-DWI offered slight additional scan time minimization with significantly inferior image quality (sum score: sms3-DWI MP/BP: 75 ± 14/69 ± 14; p < 0.001). MP preparation provided slightly higher image quality in sms-DWI without statistical significance. ADC in sms-DWI were significantly lower (sms2-DWI MP 1.01 × 10^?3 mm²/s; c-DWI MP 1.20 × 10^?3 mm²/s; p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Sms2-DWI provides considerable scan time minimization without significant shortcomings in image quality. Sms3-DWI provides significantly inferior image quality without further scan time minimization. Potentially lower ADC in sms-DWI should be considered in clinical routine.