Chemical fractionation of caseins by differential precipitation: influence of pH,calcium addition,protein concentration and temperature on the depletion in α- and β-caseins

The impact of pH, calcium and casein concentrations, and temperature on the efficiency of the differential precipitation of caseins by calcium affinity was investigated, using native phosphocaseinate as starting material. We adapted one of the most recent methods for the separation of caseins that is based on the addition of calcium at alkaline pH. Increasing the pH to 11 disturbed the micellar structure by enhancing electrostatic repulsion of caseins, leading to a marked viscosity increase and a significant particle size decrease, indicating casein micelle disruption. This pH-driven increase in negative charges enhanced the affinity of individual caseins for calcium, proportionally to the number of phosphate groups carried by each casein. The addition of calcium first led to a progressive increase in the proportion of precipitated caseins, before reaching a plateau. Hence, an optimal calcium/casein molar ratio of about 40 was evidenced to optimise casein precipitation (and fractionation), leading to significant depletion of α-casein (around 80%) and, in a lesser extent, β-casein (around 65%) and κ-casein (around 55%). This method led to relative proportions of caseins significantly differing from the starting material: 31% α-casein, 45% β-casein and 24% κ-casein.     

PR10/Bet v1-like Proteins as Novel Contributors to Plant Biochemical Diversity

Pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins constitute a broad class of plant proteins with analogues found throughout nature from bacteria to higher eukaryotes. PR proteins were first noted in plants as part of the hypersensitive response, but have since been assigned an array of biological roles. The PR10/Bet v1-like proteins are a subset of PR proteins characterized by an ability to bind a wide range of lipophilic ligands, uniquely positioning them as contributors to specialized biosynthetic pathways. PR10/Bet v1-like proteins participate in the production of plant alkaloids and phenolics including flavonoids, both as general binding proteins and in special cases as catalysts. Owing initially to the perceived allergenic properties of PR10/Bet v1-like proteins, many were studied at the structural level to elucidate the basis for ligand binding. These studies provided a foundation for more recent efforts to understand higher-level structural order and how PR10/Bet v1-like proteins catalyse key reactions in plant pathways. Synthetic biology aimed at reconstituting plant-specialized metabolism in microorganisms uses knowledge of these proteins to fine-tune performance in new systems.     

Characterization of fusion welded ceramics in the SiC-ZrB2-ZrC system

Various SiC-ZrB₂-ZrC ceramics were joined by fusion welding to determine the maximum silicon carbide content that could be joined. Commercial powders were hot pressed, machined, and preheated to 1450 °C before joining with a tungsten inert gas welding torch at 160–200 A. Resulting welds were cross-sectioned and analyzed to determine which compositions were weldable and to characterize microstructural evolution in welded samples. As compositions approached the ternary eutectic, the welds had smaller SiC grains and exhibited better weldability. Penetration depth of welds was controlled by a combination of current input and welding speed. The ternary eutectic in the system was found at 36.9 ± 1.3 vol% SiC, 42.7 ± 1.5 vol% ZrB₂, and 20.4 ± 1.9 vol% ZrC and its melting temperature was 2330 ± 23 °C. A ternary phase diagram for the SiC-ZrB₂-ZrC was constructed and proposed via microstructural analysis of arc melted pellets on binary joins between each binary eutectic and the ternary eutectic in the system.     

Maternal Heat Stress Alters Expression of Genes Associated with Nutrient Transport Activity and Metabolism in Female Placentae from Mid-Gestating Pigs

Placental insufficiency is a known consequence of maternal heat stress during gestation in farm animals. The molecular regulation of placentae during the stress response is little known in pigs. This study aims to identify differential gene expression in pig placentae caused by maternal heat exposure during early to mid-gestation. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was performed on female placental samples from pregnant pigs exposed to thermoneutral control (CON; constant 20 °C; n = 5) or cyclic heat stress (HS; cyclic 28 to 33 °C; n = 5) conditions between d40 and d60 of gestation. On d60 of gestation, placental efficiency (fetal/placental weight) was decreased (p = 0.023) by maternal HS. A total of 169 genes were differentially expressed (FDR ≤ 0.1) between CON and HS placentae of female fetuses, of which 35 genes were upregulated and 134 genes were downregulated by maternal HS. The current data revealed transport activity (FDR = 0.027), glycoprotein biosynthetic process (FDR = 0.044), and carbohydrate metabolic process (FDR = 0.049) among the terms enriched by the downregulated genes (HS vs. CON). In addition, solute carrier (SLC)-mediated transmembrane transport (FDR = 0.008) and glycosaminoglycan biosynthesis (FDR = 0.027), which modulates placental stroma synthesis, were identified among the pathways enriched by the downregulated genes. These findings provide evidence that heat-stress induced placental inefficiency may be underpinned by altered expression of genes associated with placental nutrient transport capacity and metabolism. A further understanding of the molecular mechanism contributes to the identification of placental gene signatures of summer infertility in pigs.     

The Sex Pheromone of the Pine Brown-Tail Moth,Euproctis terminalis (Lepidoptera: Erebidae)

Journal of Chemical Ecology - The pine brown tail moth, Euproctis terminalis (Walker 1855), is a periodic pest in pine plantations in South Africa. The larvae feed on pine needles and can cause...     

Robust reduction of graphene fluoride using an electrostatically biased scanning probe

We report a novel and easily accessible method to chemically reduce graphene fluoride （GF） sheets with nanoscopic precision using high electrostatic fields generated between an atomic force microscope （AFM） tip and the GF substrate. Reduction of fluorine by the electric field produces graphene nanoribbons （GNR） with a width of 105-1,800 nm with sheet resistivity drastically decreased from 〉1 TΩ.sq.^-1 （GF） down to 46 kΩ.sq.^-1 （GNR）. Fluorine reduction also changes the topography, friction, and work function of the GF. Kelvin probe force microscopy measurements indicate that the work function of GF is 180-280 meV greater than that of graphene. The reduction process was optimized by varying the AFM probe velocity between 1.2 μm.s^-1 and 12 μm.s^-1 and the bias voltage applied to the sample between -8 and -12 V. The electrostatic field required to remove fluorine from carbon is -1.6 V.nm-1. Reduction of the fluorine may be due to the softening of the C-F bond in this intense field or to the accumulation and hydrolysis of adventitious water into a meniscus.     

A new in vitro–in vivo correlation for bioabsorbable magnesium stents from mechanical behavior

Correlating the in vitro and in vivo degradation of candidate materials for bioabsorbable implants is a subject of interest in the development of next-generation metallic stents. In this study, pure magnesium wire samples were corroded both in the murine artery (in vivo) and in static cell culture media (in vitro), after which they were subjected to mechanical analysis by tensile testing. Wires corroded in vivo showed reductions in strength, elongation, and the work of fracture, with additional qualitative changes between tensile profiles. The in vivo degradation was 2.2 ± 0.5, 3.1 ± 0.8, and 2.3 ± 0.3 times slower than corrosion in vitro in terms of effective tensile strength, strain to failure, and sample lifetime, respectively. Also, a combined metric, defined as strength multiplied by elongation, was 3.1 ± 0.7 times faster in vitro than in vivo. Consideration of the utility and restrictions of each metric indicates that the lifetime-based multiplier is the best suited to general use for magnesium, though other metrics could be used to deduce the mechanical properties of degradable implants in service.     

Can a river heal itself? Natural attenuation of metal contamination in river sediment

Sediment sampling of bed sediment from a large river contaminated by mining and smelting was used to determine rates of natural attenuation of metal concentrations. A "natural decay model" was developed from high-resolution temporal data and used to predict when restoration guidelines would be met without restoration and with various degrees of restoration success. The natural decay model estimates that in the most contaminated reaches it will take about 90 years for average concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn to fall below "probable effects concentrations" (PEC), i.e. levels above which we expect to see adverse environmental effects. At sites farther downstream, all metals will fall below PEC in <35 ± 8 years. It will take longer to reach "threshold effects concentrations" (TEC), i.e. concentrations at which no effects are expected. But, even in the most contaminated reaches, Cd, Pb, and Zn will reach TEC in <80 ± 57 years, while Cu and As will take ~200 years. Model simulations with different levels of remediation success show that recovery is highly dependent on source reduction and how far the goal is from the basin background concentration. Furthermore, beneficial effects of restoration may be unexpectedly small: for example a likely decrease of ~20% in the source concentration would shorten the time to reach the Cu PEC by only 13 years. We argue that conducting analyses like these can provide insight into remediation approaches and ultimately decrease the cost of restoration by identifying the role of natural attenuation in restoration design and implementation.