A new strategy for improved glutathione production from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: use of cysteine‐ and glycine‐rich chicken feather protein hydrolysate as a new cheap substrate

BACKGROUND: Glutathione (GSH) is composed of the amino acids glutamic acid, cysteine and glycine. This study investigated the usability of chicken feather protein hydrolysate (chicken feather peptone, CFP) as a substrate for GSH production from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. RESULTS: CFP was found to be rich in ash (36.7 g per 100 g), protein (61.1 g per 100 g) and minerals (S, P, K, Ca, Fe, Na and Mg). It also had high contents of cysteine and glycine. CFP augmented biomass and GSH production by 53 and 115% respectively compared with the control medium. The highest biomass (17.4 g l^?1) and GSH (271 mg L^?1) concentrations were attained in CFP medium. The second highest biomass (16.8 g l^?1) and GSH (255 mg L^?1) concentrations were obtained in fish peptone medium. It was assumed that the high mineral, cysteine and glycine contents of CFP were related to cell growth and GSH synthesis in S. cerevisiae. CONCLUSION: This is the first report on the effect of cysteine‐ and glycine‐rich protein hydrolysates on GSH production from S. cerevisiae. In this regard, CFP was tested for the first time as a GSH production substrate. As an additional contribution, a new hydrolysis process was developed for the preparation of protein hydrolysates. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Genetic algorithm approach on pyramidal dielectric absorbers

Array of absorbing pyramid cones are widely used in anechoic chambers. When the period of the array is small compared with wavelength, which is in the low‐frequency limit; the plane wave reflection problem is simplified and can be studied in one‐dimensionally inhomogeneous media. This article deals with the optimal design parameters of pyramid cone absorbers via genetic algorithm for the normal and oblique incidence of plane wave. The optimization parameters are the dielectric permittivity and the length of the absorber over a wide frequency band and incidence angle range. The cost function of the optimization algorithm is the reflection coefficient of the absorber which is to be minimized. The algorithm is applied to different frequency bands and incidence angles. The results show that the minimized reflection coefficients and corresponding relative permittivities and absorber lengths are acceptable for each application. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2008.     

Precipitation forecasting by using wavelet-support vector machine conjunction model

A new wavelet-support vector machine conjunction model for daily precipitation forecast is proposed in this study. The conjunction method combining two methods, discrete wavelet transform and support vector machine, is compared with the single support vector machine for one-day-ahead precipitation forecasting. Daily precipitation data from Izmir and Afyon stations in Turkey are used in the study. The root mean square errors (RMSE), mean absolute errors (MAE), and correlation coefficient (R) statistics are used for the comparing criteria. The comparison results indicate that the conjunction method could increase the forecast accuracy and perform better than the single support vector machine. For the Izmir and Afyon stations, it is found that the conjunction models with RMSE=46.5 mm, MAE=13.6 mm, R=0.782 and RMSE=21.4 mm, MAE=9.0 mm, R=0.815 in test period is superior in forecasting daily precipitations than the best accurate support vector regression models with RMSE=71.6 mm, MAE=19.6 mm, R=0.276 and RMSE=38.7 mm, MAE=14.2 mm, R=0.103, respectively. The ANN method was also employed for the same data set and found that there is a slight difference between ANN and SVR methods.     

Vinylferrocene copolymers based biosensors for phenol derivatives

BACKGROUND: Newly synthesized composite films of P(glycidyl methacrylate₈₅‐co‐vinylferrocene₁₅)/Poly(glutaraldehyde)/ Polypyrrole [P(GMA₈₅‐co‐VFc₁₅)/PGA/PPy] and Poly(3‐methylthienyl methacrylate₈₅‐co‐vinylferrocene₁₅)/Polypyrrole [P (MTM₈₅‐co‐VFc₁₅)/PPy] were used as matrices for tyrosinase based working electrodes. Direct covalent attachment of enzyme was carried out via the pendant epoxy groups of P(GMA₈₅‐co‐VFc₁₅) film, and the entrapment of enzyme was achieved for electrode containing P(MTM₈₅‐co‐VFc₁₅) film via electropolymerization of pyrrole in the presence of enzyme. The aim of the study is amperometric determination of various phenolics and investigation of the effect of interfacial interactions between enzyme and matrices on biosensor response. RESULTS: The lowest detection limit and the highest sensitivity for a P(GMA₈₅‐co‐VFc₁₅) based working electrode was found to be 0.113 µmol L^?1 for 4‐methoxyphenol, 40 nA (µmol L^?1)^?1 for pyrocatechol, respectively. Results showed that sensitivities were at least 8500–55000 times higher than the results in previous P(GMA‐co‐VFc) related studies. CONCLUSION: Facilitated electron transfer was achieved by means of mediator incorporated in conductive composites of VFc based redox copolymers. The effect was greater when enzyme was covalently bonded via epoxy groups due to the proximity of enzyme, mediator and electrode surface. Results showed that a multifunctional surface was provided on electrodes since the suggested copolymers could mediate an electrochemical reaction, and the multifunctional surface was capable of coating with conductive PPy. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Synthesis of polydimethylsiloxane‐block‐polystyrene‐block‐polydimethylsiloxane via polysiloxane‐based macroinitiator in supercritical CO2

Polydimethylsiloxane‐block‐polystyrene‐block‐polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS‐b‐PS‐b‐PDMS) was synthesized by the radical polymerization of styrene using a polydimethylsiloxane‐based macroazoinitiator (PDMS MAI) in supercritical CO₂. PDMS MAI was synthesized by reacting hydroxy‐terminated PDMS and 4,4′‐azobis(4‐cyanopentanoyl chloride) (ACPC) having a thermodegradable azo‐linkage at room temperature. The polymerization of styrene initiated by PDMS MAI was investigated in a batch system using supercritical CO₂ as the reaction medium. PDMS MAI was found to behave as a polyazoinitiator for radical block copolymerization of styrene, but not as a surfactant. The response surface methodology was used to design the experiments. The parameters used were pressure, temperature, PDMS MAI concentration and reaction time. These parameters were investigated at three levels (?1, 0 and 1). The dependent variable was taken as the polymerization yield of styrene. PDMS MAI and PDMS‐b‐PS‐b‐PDMS copolymers obtained were characterized by proton nuclear magnetic resonance and infrared spectroscopy. The number‐ and weight‐average molecular weights of block copolymers were determined by gel permeation chromatography. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Performance based assessment of steel frame structures by different material models

Acceptable limit conditions for materials used in structures are one of the influential factors for design and evaluation of buildings. These limits are described using different material models. Material models can be generally defined by the stressstrain relationship. Stress-strain relationship varies based on the material. Mathematical models are used for describing the stress-strain relationship for any material. The material model takes a very important role in the seismic analysis of structures. The aim of this study is investigate of effects of steel models on structural performance of steel frame buildings. For this aim, pushover curves were obtained for three different steel models. It was determined that the pushover curves obtained according to three various steel models used in the study were consonant with each other.     

Electrical spin injection from an n-type ferromagnetic semiconductor into a III-V device heterostructure

The use of carrier spin in semiconductors is a promising route towards new device functionality and performance. Ferromagnetic semiconductors (FMSs) are promising materials in this effort. An n-type FMS that can be epitaxially grown on a common device substrate is especially attractive. Here, we report electrical injection of spin-polarized electrons from an n-type FMS, CdCr(2)Se(4), into an AlGaAs/GaAs-based light-emitting diode structure. An analysis of the electroluminescence polarization based on quantum selection rules provides a direct measure of the sign and magnitude of the injected electron spin polarization. The sign reflects minority rather than majority spin injection, consistent with our density-functional-theory calculations of the CdCr(2)Se(4) conduction-band edge. This approach confirms the exchange-split band structure and spin-polarized carrier population of an FMS, and demonstrates a litmus test for these FMS hallmarks that discriminates against spurious contributions from magnetic precipitates.     

Synthesis,characterization, and Pb2+ ion sensing application of hexa‐armed dansyl end‐capped poly(ε‐caprolactone) star polymer with phosphazene core

Novel hexa‐armed dansyl end‐capped poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) star polymer with phosphazene core ( P2 ) was prepared via ring opening polymerization (ROP) and esterification reactions. P2 showed dual fluorescence emission when excited at 328 nm in acetonitrile : water (6 : 4) due to twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) between dimethylamino and naphthalene units in the dansyl moiety. TICT emission band (A band) in the emission spectra red‐shifted with increasing solvent polarity. P2 responded to the addition of Pb²⁺, Hg²⁺, Co²⁺, Cd²⁺, Mn²⁺, and Zn²⁺ metal ions by decreasing TICT emission band with slight bathochromic shifts. The highest quenching efficiency was observed for Pb²⁺ ion with Stern–Volmer constant of 324.74M^?1. The Stern–Volmer plot for Pb²⁺ was rather linear with the increasing concentration of the quencher, indicating a dynamic (collisional) quenching mechanism. Stern–Volmer constants for Hg²⁺, Co²⁺, Cd²⁺, Mn²⁺, and Zn²⁺ ions were found to be 212.33, 189.21, 36.24, 20.84, and 20.69, respectively. Besides, the highest quenching efficiency (94.24%) was attained in the presence of Pb²⁺, suggesting that P2 could be employed as a potential Pb²⁺ chemical probe. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42380.     

A low-noise preamplifier for nerve cuff electrodes.

A single-stage, low-noise preamplifier is designed using the concept of noise matching for recordings of neural signal with cuff electrodes. The signal-to-noise ratio is approximately 1.6 times higher than that of a low-noise integrated amplifier (AMP-01) for a cuff impedance of 1.5 komega. The bandwidth is 230 Hz-8.25 kHz (Rs=2 komega), and the common-mode-rejection-ratio is 91.2 dB at 1 kHz.