Advanced Mutasynthesis Studies on the Natural α‐Pyrone Antibiotic Myxopyronin from Myxococcus fulvus

Myxopyronin is a natural α‐pyrone antibiotic from the soil bacterium Myxococcus fulvus Mx f50. Myxopyronin inhibits bacterial RNA polymerase (RNAP) by binding to a part of the enzyme not targeted by the clinically used rifamycins. This mode of action makes myxopyronins promising molecules for the development of novel broad‐spectrum antibacterials. We describe the derivatization of myxopyronins by an advanced mutasynthesis approach as a first step towards this goal. Site‐directed mutagenesis of the biosynthetic machinery was used to block myxopyronin biosynthesis at different stages. The resulting mutants were fed with diverse precursors that mimic the biosynthetic intermediates to restore production. Mutasynthon incorporation and production of novel myxopyronin derivatives were analyzed by HPLC‐MS/MS. This work sets the stage for accessing numerous myxopyronin derivatives, thus significantly expanding the chemical space of f α‐pyrone antibiotics.     

Thermodynamic analysis and optimization of RWGS processes for solar syngas production from CO2

Process systems were investigated for syngas production from CO₂ and renewable energy (solar) by the reverse water‐gas shift (RWGS) and the reverse water‐gas shift chemical looping (RWGS‐CL) process. Thermodynamic analysis and optimization was performed to maximize the solar‐to‐syngas (StS) efficiency η_StS. Special emphasis was laid on product gas separation. For RWGS‐CL, maximum StS efficiencies of 14.2 and 14.4% were achieved without and with heat integration, respectively. The StS efficiency is dictated by the low overall efficiency of H₂ production. RWGS‐CL is most beneficial for the production of pure CO, where the StS efficiency is one percent point higher compared to that of the RWGS process with heat integration. Heat integration leads to significant reductions in external heat demand since most of the gas phase process heat can be integrated. The StS efficiencies for RWGS and RWGS‐CL achieve the same level as the reported values for solar thermochemical syngas production. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 15–22, 2017     

Is Upregulation of Aquaporin 4-M1 Isoform Responsible for the Loss of Typical Orthogonal Arrays of Particles in Astrocytomas?

The astrocytic endfoot membranes of the healthy blood-brain barrier—contacting the capillary—are covered with a large number of the water channel aquaporin 4 (AQP4). They form orthogonal arrays of particles (OAPs), which consist of AQP4 isoform M1 and M23. Under pathologic conditions, AQP4 is distributed over the whole cell and no or only small OAPs are found. From cell culture experiments, it is known that cells transfected only with AQP4-M1 do not form OAPs or only small ones. We hypothesized that in astrocytomas the situation may be comparable to the in vitro experiments expecting an upregulation of AQP4-M1. Quantitative Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) of different graded astrocytomas revealed an upregulation of both isoforms AQP4 M1 and M23 in all astrocytomas investigated. In freeze fracture replicas of low-grade malignancy astrocytomas, more OAPs than in high-grade malignancy astrocytomas were found. In vitro, cultured glioma cells did not express AQP4, whereas healthy astrocytes revealed a slight upregulation of both isoforms and only a few OAPs in freeze fracture analysis. Taken together, we found a correlation between the decrease of OAPs and increasing grade of malignancy of astrocytomas but this was not consistent with an upregulation of AQP4-M1 in relation to AQP4 M23.     

Biosynthesis and identification of volatiles released by the myxobacterium Stigmatella aurantiaca

The volatiles released by agar plate cultures of two strains of the myxobacterium Stigmatella aurantiaca (strains Sg a15 and DW4/3-1) were collected in a closed-loop stripping apparatus (CLSA) and analyzed by GC-MS. Large numbers of substances from different compound classes (ketones, esters, lactones, terpenes, and sulfur and nitrogen compounds) were identified; several of them are reported from natural sources for the first time. The volatiles 2-methyltridecan-4-one (17), its isomer 3-methyltridecan-4-one (20), and the higher homologue 2-methyltetradecan-4-one (18) were identified in the extracts of both strains and were synthesized. In addition, strain Sg a15 produced 2,12-dimethyltridecan-4-one (19), 2-methyltridec-2-en-4-one (23), and a series of phenyl ketones, among them 1-phenyldecan-1-one (14) and 9-methyl-1-phenyldecan-1-one (16), whereas strain DW4/3-1 emitted traces of 10-methylundecan-2-one (21). The biosynthesis of 14 and 16 was examined in feeding experiments with deuterated precursors carried out on agar plate cultures. The leucine-derived starter unit isovalerate was shown to be incorporated into 16, as was phenylalanine-derived benzoic acid into both 14 and 16. The results point to formation both of the phenyl ketones and of the structurally related aliphatic ketones through an unusual head-to-head coupling between a starter unit such as benzoyl-CoA and a fatty acyl-CoA, followed by decarboxylation.     

Analysis of the Influence of Processing Conditions on the Supramolecular Structure and Antioxidant Distribution in PP‐Pipes Using Infrared Microscopy

The supramolecular structure in pipe walls of isotactic PP‐R is a function of compound composition and processing parameters, which both influence the mechanical properties of the pipes. µFTIR shows a gradient of the crystallinity across the pipe wall, with a lower‐crystalline outer layer, and a higher‐crystalline core layer. The rate of extrusion has an influence on the thickness of the outer layer. The nucleating effect on the morphological profile throughout the pipe wall can be visualised. µFTIR shows a homogeneous distribution of the primary antioxidant in the pipe wall. Both the spectral crystallinity and the antioxidant concentration distribution are calculated.

     

Liver Lipids of Patients with Hepatitis B and C and Associated Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) still remains a difficult to cure malignancy. In recent years, the focus has shifted to lipid metabolism for the treatment of HCC. Very little is known about hepatitis B virus (HBV) and C virus (HCV)-related hepatic lipid disturbances in non-malignant and cancer tissues. The present study showed that triacylglycerol and cholesterol concentrations were similar in tumor adjacent HBV and HCV liver, and were not induced in the HCC tissues. Higher levels of free cholesterol, polyunsaturated phospholipids and diacylglycerol species were noted in non-tumorous HBV compared to HCV liver. Moreover, polyunsaturated phospholipids and diacylglycerols, and ceramides declined in tumors of HBV infected patients. All of these lipids remained unchanged in HCV-related HCC. In HCV tumors, polyunsaturated phosphatidylinositol levels were even induced. There were no associations of these lipid classes in non-tumor tissues with hepatic inflammation and fibrosis scores. Moreover, these lipids did not correlate with tumor grade or T-stage in HCC tissues. Lipid reprogramming of the three analysed HBV/HCV related tumors mostly resembled HBV-HCC. Indeed, lipid composition of non-tumorous HCV tissue, HCV tumors, HBV tumors and HBV/HCV tumors was highly similar. The tumor suppressor protein p53 regulates lipid metabolism. The p53 and p53S392 protein levels were induced in the tumors of HBV, HCV and double infected patients, and this was significant in HBV infection. Negative correlation of tumor p53 protein with free cholesterol indicates a role of p53 in cholesterol metabolism. In summary, the current study suggests that therapeutic strategies to target lipid metabolism in chronic viral hepatitis and associated cancers have to consider disease etiology.     

Diffusive gradients in thin films predicts crop response better than calcium-acetate-lactate extraction

Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems - Soil P testing has been widely used to predict crop yields, P uptake, and fertilizer demands in agriculture. Diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) provides a...