Effects of inhibitors on anaerobic microbial consortium with enhanced dechlorination activity in polychlorinated biphenyl mixture

Characterization was carried out on the anaerobic microbial consortium with enhanced degradation activity toward polychlorinated biphenyls in Kanechlor-300 and Kanechlor-400 mixtures in a burnt soil (BS) culture. The addition of molybdate to the BS culture resulted in the accumulation of less-chlorinated biphenyls such as 4,4'-dichlorinated biphenyl and 2,3',4-trichlorinated biphenyl; however, no such accumulation occurred without molybdate supplementation. No significant effect was observed in individual congeners in the BS culture supplemented with 2-bromoethane sulfonic acid. Analyses involving both the polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of partial 16S rRNA genes and respiratory quinones showed that the predominant microorganisms in the BS culture were anaerobic Firmicutes, while sulfate reducers of the phyla Deltaproteobacteria, Firmicutes and Chloroflexi were absent in the culture amended with the inhibitors. No positive correlation was observed between the dechlorination activity and a PCR-based detection of gene fragments of known dechlorinating bacteria. These results suggest that sulfate reducers played an important role in the enhanced anaerobic dechlorination of PCBs in the BS culture.     

Filtration coefficients and physical properties of fluids for osmotic action

In the present study, the filtration coefficient of an acetyl cellulose tubular‐type osmotic membrane is measured with two methods using reverse osmosis and osmosis processes. In addition, the effects of temperature and concentration on the physical properties of fluids needed for studies on osmosis are examined using sodium chloride, potassium chloride, sucrose, and polyethylene glycol 600 aqueous solutions as test fluids. As a result, a new method for measuring the filtration coefficient for osmosis is proposed. Moreover, the present study reveals that little difference exists between the filtration coefficients for these processes. In addition, relations for estimating mass diffusivities, osmotic coefficients, viscosities, and densities of fluids are presented. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Heat Trans Asian Res, 29(1): 72–90, 2000     

Grafting of poly(ethylene glycol) onto poly(acrylic acid)-coated glass for a protein-resistant surface

The surface of solid glass supports for samples in optical microscopy and for biosensors needs to be protein-resistant. A coating of a poly(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether (mPEG) on the surface of the glass is one promising method for preventing the nonspecific adsorption of proteins. In this study, we have developed a novel technique for achieving an optimal coverage of a glass surface with mPEG to prevent protein adhesion. A clean glass substrate previously treated with (3-aminopropyl)dimethylethoxysilane (APDMES) was treated sequentially with poly(acrylic acid) and subsequently a primary amine derivative of mPEG in the presence of 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide. The resultant glass surface was demonstrated to be highly protein-resistant, and the adsorption of bovine serum albumin decreased to only a few percentage points of that on a glass surface treated with APDMES alone. Furthermore, to extend the present method, we also prepared a glass substrate on which biotinylated poly(ethylene glycol) was cografted with mPEG, and biotinylated myosin subfragment-1 (biotin-S1) was subsequently immobilized on this substrate by biotin/avidin chemistry. Actin filaments were observed to glide on the biotin-S1-coated glass surface in the presence of ATP, and thus, the method is capable of immobilizing the protein specifically without any loss in its biological function.     

Structural characterization of glycopeptides by N-terminal protein ladder sequencing

High-sensitivity and high-throughput mass spectrometry (MS) has become an important tool for characterizing glycopeptides. Here, we analyzed synthetic O-linked glycopeptides using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) MS. First, we applied MALDI-quadrupole ion trap (QIT)-TOF MS, which enables collision-induced dissociation-MSn analysis for fine structural characterization. Subsequent MS/MS of sodium adduct ions selected as precursor ions yielded detailed information about the site of oligosaccharide attachment as well as the carbohydrate and amino acid sequences; however, these MS/MS spectra were very complex. To obtain easily interpretable and simple spectra, we used N-terminal protein ladder sequencing coupled with MALDI-TOF MS. From the extremely simple resulting spectra, we were able to determine the glycosylation sites, amino acid sequences, and oligosaccharide molecular weights of the glycopeptides.     

Hybrid normal-reverse prism coupler for light-emitting diode backlight systems

For the first time to our knowledge, a hybrid normal-reverse prism coupler was formed on the bottom surface of a light guide in a LED backlight system to achieve a thin, lightweight, LED backlight system. The hybrid prism coupler (HPC) simultaneously exhibits two functions: extraction of guided light from the light guide and focusing the radiated light from the light guide, corresponding to the optical functions of the prism and diffusive sheets used in conventional LED backlight systems. Therefore, using a HPC eliminates the prism and diffusive sheets that have been indispensable optical elements in conventional LED backlight systems, which consequently reduces the thickness of the LED backlight system by 40% compared with conventional systems.     

Transport of human immunoglobulin G and Fc-fusion proteins to chicken egg yolk

We examined the transport of human immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclasses and fusion proteins with the Fc region of human IgG to the egg yolk, after the proteins were injected into a vein of hens. Human IgGs were efficiently transported and accumulated into the yolk, whereas the proteins were not detected in the egg white. Among human IgG subclasses, IgG2 was transported most efficiently. Fc-fusion proteins injected were also transported into the yolk. A fusion protein with the Fc region derived from human IgG2 was more efficiently transported into the yolk than the counterpart fusion with the Fc region from human IgG1. This study shows that the recovery of recombinant antibodies and Fc-fusion proteins from the yolk is an effective method in transgenic chicken bioreactors.     

Zeta potential of alumina powders with different crystalline phases in simulated body fluids

The zeta potential of alumina (Al₂O₃) powder with different crystalline phases, prepared by heat treatment of boehmite, was measured in simulated body fluids in order to discuss the mechanism on in vivo formation of a calcium and phosphorus (CaP)-rich layer on bone cement containing δ-Al₂O₃-based bead powder. γ, δ, and θ-Al₂O₃ powders were obtained by heat treatment of boehmite powder at 600 °C, 900 °C, and 1025 °C, respectively. It was found that δ-Al₂O₃ gave a negative zeta potential in an acidic simulated body fluid, whereas γ-Al₂O₃ and θ-Al₂O₃ gave a positive potentials. During the bone fracture healing process, acidic conditions are maintained at the site of fracture for several days. Consequently, it is speculated that the negative surface potential of δ-Al₂O₃ in an acidic body fluid, similar to the fracture site, might be responsible for the in vivo formation of the CaP-rich layer on the overlying bone cement, given that the negatively charged surface of δ-Al₂O₃ would attract calcium ions from the surrounding body fluid, thereby facilitating the formation of the CaP-rich layer.     

Analysis of the effects of thermal protein denaturation on the quality attributes of sous‐vide cooked tuna

Traditional (low temperature, long time) and novel (low temperature, short time) sous‐vide cooking of lean tuna were characterized by analyzing the effects of thermal protein denaturation (TPD) on quality attributes, such as color, appearance, shrinkage, drip loss, and texture. TPD was analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry and estimated for several thermal schedules by kinetic analysis, following the dynamic method. When heated at a rate of 10 °C/min, myosin began to denature at around 35 °C. Actin did not denature, even when the temperature rose to approximately 51 °C, until the denaturation of myosin was complete. However, actin began to denature at approximately 58 °C and was completely denatured at 76 °C. Actin denaturation had a stronger effect than myosin denaturation on texture changes, whereas myosin denaturation was responsible for changes in color and appearance. A better preservation of tuna quality was obtained by novel sous‐vide cooking over the traditional sous‐vide method.

Practical applications

The results of this study are useful to both the research community and industry because they provide quantitative characterization of the consequences of sous‐vide cooking method on food quality explained by estimating TPD. Moreover, the kinetic parameters of the denaturation rate collected for kinetic modeling of the TPD of tuna, not only have application to simulate denaturation of actin and myosin under different thermal schedules of sous‐vide cooking, but also they can be used for the analysis of additional thermal treatments.