Influence of ethanol on the rennet-induced coagulation of milk

The influence of ethanol on the rennet-induced coagulation of milk was studied to investigate potential synergistic effects of these two mechanisms of destabilisation on the casein micelles. Addition of 5% (v/v) ethanol reduced the rennet coagulation time (RCT) of milk, whereas higher levels of ethanol (10-20%, v/v) progressively increased RCT. The temperature at which milk was coagulable by rennet decreased with increasing ethanol content of the milk. The primary stage of rennet coagulation, i.e., the enzymatic hydrolysis of kappa-casein, was progressively slowed with increasing ethanol content (5-20%, v/v), possibly due to ethanol-induced conformational changes in the enzyme molecule. The secondary stage of rennet coagulation, i.e., the aggregation of kappa-casein-depleted micelles, was enhanced in the presence of 5-15% ethanol, the effect being largest at 5% ethanol. Enhanced aggregation of micelles is probably due to an ethanol-induced decrease in inter-micellar steric repulsion. These results indicate an interrelationship between the effects of ethanol and chymosin on the casein micelles in milk, which may have interesting implications for properties of dairy products.     

Radiation doses to Norwegian heart-transplanted patients undergoing annual coronary angiography

Heart-transplanted patients in Norway undergo annual coronary angiography (CA). The aims of this study were to establish a conversion factor between dose-area product and effective dose for these examinations and to use this to evaluate the accumulated radiation dose and risks associated with annual CA. An experienced cardiac interventionist performed a simulated examination on an Alderson phantom loaded with thermoluminescence dosemeters. The simulated CA examination yielded a dose-area product of 17 Gy cm(2) and an effective dose of 3.4 mSv: the conversion factor between dose-area product and effective dose was 0.20 mSv Gy cm(-2). Dose-area product values from 200 heart-transplanted patients that had undergone 906 CA examinations between 2001 and 2008 were retrieved from the institutional database. Mean dose-area product from annual CA was 25 Gy cm(2), ranging from 2 to 140 Gy cm(2). Mean number of CA procedure was 8 (range, 1-23). Mean accumulated effective dose for Norwegian heart-transplanted patients between 2001 and 2008 was 34 mSv (range, 5-113 mSv). Doses and radiation risks for heart-transplanted patients are generally low, because most heart transplantations are performed on middle-aged patients with limited life expectancy. Special concern should however be taken to reduce doses for young heart-transplanted patients who are committed to lifelong follow-up of their transplanted heart.     

Micro structuration of gaas surface by wet etching: towards a specific surface behavior

Resonant microelectromechanical systems are promising devices for real time and highly sensitive measurements. The sensitivity of such sensors to additional mass loadings which can be increased thanks to the miniaturisation of devices is of prime importance for biological applications. The miniaturisation of structures passes through a photolithographic process and wet chemical etching. So, this paper presents new results on the anisotropic chemical etching of the gallium arsenide (GaAs) crystal used for this application, in several solutions. This paper focuses on the micro/nanostructuration of the sensing surface to increase the sensor sensitivity. Indeed, this active surface will be biofunctionalized to operate in biological liquid media in view of biomolecules detection. Several experimental conditions of etching bath composition, concentration and temperature were examined to obtain a large variety of geometrical surfaces topographies and roughness. According to the orientation dependence of the chemical etching process, the experiments were also performed on various GaAs crystal plates. The bath 1 H3PO4:9 H2O2:1 H2O appeared to be particularly adapted to the fabrication of the GaAs microstructured membrane: indeed, the bath is highly stable, anisotropic, and, as a function of temperature, it allows the production of a large variety of GaAs surface topographies.     

Synthesis and immunological properties of a tetrasaccharide portion of the B side chain of rhamnogalacturonan II (RG-II)

A highly convergent strategy was used for the synthesis of a tetrasaccharide [3-aminopropyl beta-L-arabinofuranosyl-(1-->3)-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->2)-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->3)]-alpha-L-arabinopyranoside] portion of the B side chain of the plant cell-wall pectic polysaccharide rhamnogalacturonan II (RG-II). The terminal nonreducing beta-L-arabinofuranosyl residue of the target compound was installed by using an arabinofuranosyl donor that was protected with a 3,5-O-(di-tert-butylsilane) group to facilitate nucleophilic attack from the beta-face. The synthetic strategy also employed a chemoselective glycosylation of a trichloroacetimidate donor with a thioglycosyl acceptor; this gave a product that could be used immediately in a subsequent glycosylation. The reducing end of the tetrasaccharide contained an aminopropyl group to facilitate conjugation to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) and bovine serum albumin (BSA). Mice that were immunized with a KLH-tetrasaccharide conjugate produced antibodies that recognized RG-II isolated from Arabidopsis thaliana cell walls, but did not recognize RG-II obtained from red wine. Our data suggest that the arabinopyranosyl residue exists in the (4)C(1) conformation in the tetrasaccharide and in A. thaliana RG-II, whereas it has the (1)C(4) conformation in wine RG-II. It is proposed that differences in the conformation of side chain B might account for the ability of antibodies to discriminate between RG-II that was isolated from Arabidopsis and wine.     

UV radiation induces genome-mediated, site-specific cleavage in viral proteins

Much research has been dedicated to understanding the molecular basis of UV damage to biomolecules, yet many questions remain regarding the specific pathways involved. Here we describe a genome-mediated mechanism that causes site-specific virus protein cleavage upon UV irradiation. Bacteriophage MS2 was disinfected with 254 nm UV, and protein damage was characterized with ESI- and MALDI-based FT-ICR, Orbitrap, and TOF mass spectroscopy. Top-down mass spectrometry of the products identified the backbone cleavage site as Cys46-Ser47 in the virus capsid protein, a location of viral genome-protein interaction. The presence of viral RNA was essential to inducing backbone cleavage. The similar bacteriophage GA did not exhibit site-specific protein cleavage. Based on the major protein fragments identified by accurate mass analysis, a cleavage mechanism is proposed by radical formation. The mechanism involves initial oxidation of the Cys46 side chain followed by hydrogen atom abstraction from Ser47 C(α). Computational protein QM/MM studies confirmed the initial steps of the radical mechanism. Collectively, this study describes a rare incidence of genome-induced protein cleavage without the addition of sensitizers.     

Fungal pretreatment of wheat straw: Effects on the biodegradability of cell walls,structural polysaccharides,lignin and phenolic acids by rumen microorganisms

Disappearance of cell wall components of untreated straw and straw treated with the ligninolytic white-rot fungi Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Dichomitus squalens and Cyathus stercoreus were determined during the course of rumen digestion of samples in nylon bags. The first fungus degraded hemicelluloses and cellulose non-selectively, adversely affecting the digestion rate of crude cell walls. Dichomitus squalens and C. stercoreus preferentially degraded hemicelluloses and lignin, affording cell wall degradation rates 1.5 times higher than in native straw. Furthermore, the extent of cell wall digestion was also significantly enhanced. Both strains improved the extent of cellulose digestion, whereas the potentially degradable xylan fraction remained unchanged. Polysaccharide digestion rates were influenced in different ways depending on the strain tested: straw degraded by C. stercoreus showed an increase in cellulose digestion rate by 50%, whereas residual arabinose units were slowly degraded. Xylan was degraded 1.8 times faster in straw decayed' by D. squalens, while cellulose digestion remained unchanged. Phanerochaete chrysosporium depressed both xylan and cellulose digestion rates. Fungal-treated lignins were solubilised in the rumen faster than in untreated straw, whereas only treatment by C. stercoreus resulted in higher lignin losses. Esterified phenolic acids were extensively degraded by all three fungi. Residual ferulic and p-coumaric acids accumulated during rumen digestion, although only the former decreased in the original straw.     

The Quasi-static Deformation, Failure, and Fracture Behavior of Titanium Alloy Gusset Plates Containing Bolt Holes

In this article, the influence of bolt holes, specifically their number and layout on strength, deformation, and final fracture behavior of titanium alloy gusset plates under the influence of an external load is presented and discussed. Several plates having differences in both the number and layout of the bolt holes were precision machined and then deformed under quasi-static loading. The specific influence of number of bolt holes and their layout on maximum load-carrying capability and even fracture load was determined. The conjoint influence of bolt number, bolt layout pattern, nature of loading, contribution from local stress concentration, and intrinsic microstructural effects in governing the macroscopic fracture mode and intrinsic microscopic mechanisms is presented and discussed.     

A life cycle approach to modeling sea lamprey population dynamics in the Lake Champlain basin to evaluate alternative control strategies

Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) is a nuisance species in the Laurentian Great Lakes and Lake Champlain that has devastated native fish populations and hampered sport fisheries development. We developed a modified stage-based life history matrix for sea lamprey to analyze the effects of various management efforts to suppress sea lamprey population growth in Lake Champlain. These efforts targeted different life stages of the sea lamprey life cycle. A beta distribution was used to distribute stochastic larval populations among twenty sea lamprey-bearing tributaries and five deltas to Lake Champlain, from which sea lamprey that survive through larval metamorphosis were then pooled into a lake-wide parasitic-phase population. Parasitic-phase survival to the spawning stage was evaluated based on proximity to the natal tributary and on the size of the resident larval population in each tributary. Potential control strategies were modeled at egg to emergence, larval, and spawning stages to reduce vital rates at each stage, with the goal of suppressing parasitic-phase production. Simulations indicate that control of the larval stage was essential to achieving this goal, and with supplemental effort to reduce the vital rates at early life stages and at the spawning stage, the parasitic-phase population can be further suppressed. Sensitivity simulations indicate that the life history model was sensitive to egg deposition rate, abundance of parasitic-phase sea lamprey from unknown, uncontrolled sources, and the method in which parasitic-phase sea lamprey select tributaries for spawning. Results from this model can guide management agencies to optimize future management programs.     

Justice as a principle for the distribution of open space maintenance: the conceptions of housing staff and tenants

This paper is about what people conceive as just principles for the distribution of open space maintenance. Housing staff and residents’ conceptions of just distribution of open space maintenance were studied in rental housing areas with large green open spaces in Sweden. Qualitative interviews with nine housing staff members and 27 tenants in three multi-family housing areas owned and managed by different municipal housing companies revealed widely varying conceptions. These could be partly classified into three basic principles: equal outcome, same inputs and less inputs (when decline is high). The conceptions varied among interviewees with different roles in providing upkeep, suggesting that they partly depended on the individual’s insight into the services. These personal conceptions of justice influence how people experience service distribution in a neighbourhood and pose a challenge for actors dealing with strategic decisions on open space maintenance.     

The effect of cooling rate on the impact performance and dynamic mechanical properties of rotationally molded metallocene catalyzed linear low density polyethylene

This article examines changes to the morphology of rotationally molded metallocene catalyzed linear low density polyethylene brought about by varying the cooling rate during processing. These changes in morphology lead to variations in the impact performance, which is reflected in the dynamic mechanical characteristics of the materials. Various analytical techniques are used in an attempt to explain the differences in impact behavior. Slow cooling is shown to result in high crystallinity, and in the formation of large spherulites, which in turn is detrimental to the impact performance of the material, particularly at low temperatures. The high crystallinity corresponds with a shift in the β transition of the material to a higher temperature, and is shown to result in a higher brittle–ductile transition. A case study was also carried out on samples from a finished part provided by an industrial molder, one section of which failed in a brittle manner when impact tested while the other failed in a ductile manner. Microscopy results showed that the brittle material had large spherulites at the inside surface, while the ductile material showed incipient degradation at this surface, which has previously been shown to be of benefit to impact strength in rotationally molded parts. Dynamic mechanical studies again showed a β transition at a higher temperature in the brittle samples. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 1963–1971, 2006