Radiochemical synthesis of silver nanoparticles onto textile fabrics and their antibacterial activity

This paper presents a new technique for synthesizing silver nanoparticles immobilized on textile fabrics using a radiochemical process. In this process, the irradiation of a high-energy electron beam on an aqueous solution containing silver ions induces a reducing reaction that forms metallic silver nanoparticles. Small Ag particles of about 2–4 nm were observed together with relatively large particles of more than 10 nm. These nanoparticles are firmly immobilized on the surface of a support textile fabric without the need for any binder or surfactant. The amount of silver nanoparticles immobilized was found to depend on the water content of the support textile fabric, suggesting that the silver ions are reduced not only by radiochemical species generated by the radiolysis of water, but also by radiochemical species generated in the irradiated support fabric itself. The silver nanoparticles that were immobilized on the support textile fabric exhibited an excellent antibacterial activity across a wide antibacterial spectrum, even after a durability test involving washing the fabric 100 times.     

Analysis of Selenoprotein F Binding to UDP-Glucose:Glycoprotein Glucosyltransferase (UGGT) by a Photoreactive Crosslinker

In the endoplasmic reticulum glycoprotein quality control system, UDP-glucose : glycoprotein glucosyltransferase (UGGT) functions as a folding sensor. Although it is known to form a heterodimer with selenoprotein F (SelenoF), the details of the complex formation remain obscure. A pulldown assay using co-transfected SelenoF and truncated mutants of human UGGT1 (HUGT1) revealed that SelenoF binds to the TRXL2 domain of HUGT1. Additionally, a newly developed photoaffinity crosslinker was selectively introduced into cysteine residues of recombinant SelenoF to determine the spatial orientation of SelenoF to HUGT1. The crosslinking experiments showed that SelenoF formed a covalent bond with amino acids in the TRXL3 region and the interdomain between βS2 and GT24 of HUGT1 via the synthetic crosslinker. SelenoF might play a role in assessing and refining the disulfide bonds of misfolded glycoproteins in the hydrophobic cavity of HUGT1 as it binds to the highly flexible region of HUGT1 to reach its long hydrophobic cavity. Clarification of the SelenoF-binding domain of UGGT and its relative position will help predict and reveal the function of SelenoF from a structural perspective.     

S-Denitrosylase-Like Activity of Cyclic Diselenides Conjugated with Xaa-His Dipeptide: Role of Proline Spacer as a Key Activity Booster

This study developed dipeptide-conjugated 1,2-diselenan-4-amine ( 1 ), i. e., 1 -Xaa-His, as a new class of S-denitrosylase mimic. The synthesized compounds, especially 1 -Pro-His, remarkably promoted S-denitrosylation of nitrosothiols (RSNO) via a catalytic cycle involving the reversible redox reaction between the diselenide and its corresponding diselenol ([SeH,SeH]) form with coexisting reductant thiols (R′SH), during which the [SeH,SeH] form as a key reactive species reduces RSNO to the corresponding thiol (RSH). Structural analyses of 1 -Pro-His suggested that the peptide backbone of [SeH,SeH] is rigidly bent to form a γ-turn, possibly including an NH⋅⋅⋅Se hydrogen bond between the imidazole ring of His and selenol group, thus stabilizing the [SeH,SeH] form thermodynamically, and dramatically enhancing the catalytic activity. Furthermore, the synthetic compounds were found to prohibit S-nitrosylation-induced protein misfolding in the presence of RSNO, eventually implying their potential as a drug seed for misfolding diseases caused by the dysregulation of the S-denitrosylation system.