Determination du coefficient d'extinction molaire de OH− dans les verres fluores a base de metaux lourds

The extinction coefficient ? at 2.9 μm for OH in fluoride glasses is measured by determining the amount of HF evolved during heating of the glass under steam and the corresponding intensity of the OH absorption band. This coefficient is respectively equal to 31 litre mole^?1 cm^?1 for BTYbZ glass (15 BaF₂ - 29 ThF₄ - 28 YbF₃ - 28 ZnF₂) and 19.5 litre mole^?1 cm^?1 for BALLA glass (34 BaF₂ - 57 ZrF₄ - 4 AlF₃ - 5 LaF₃).     

Structure of metal site in Cd-substituted His117Gly mutant of azurin with and without addition of imidazole derivatives

The present work uses 111mCd-perturbed angular correlations of gamma-rays (PAC) to investigate the structure of the metal site of the His117Gly mutant of Pseudomonas aeruginosa azurin in aqueous solution and the effect on the structure upon addition of the following exogenous ligands: imidazole, 4-methyl imidazole, 1-methyl imidazole, 2-methyl imidazole and histidine. The nuclear quadrupole interaction of cadmium bound to the mutant without addition of exogenous ligands shows a strong pH dependence with three different nuclear quadrupole interactions consistent with two pKa values at about 7.2 and 8.6 at 2 degrees C. Addition of the imidazole derivatives resulted in a significant change in the PAC spectrum showing that they coordinate. This is in accordance with observations by EPR for the same mutant with copper at the metal site [den Blaauwen, T. & Canters, G. W. (1993) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 115, 1121-1129]. However, whereas EPR and ultraviolet/visual absorption show that the characteristics of the wild-type copper protein are regained by addition of the imidazole derivatives with the exception of the possible bidentates (histidine and histamine), the comparison of the PAC results to model calculations shows that the cadmium ion must be fourfold coordinated in most cases, probably binding an additional water or hydroxide ligand. A fourfold coordination is in contrast to cadmium-substituted wild-type azurin where PAC data inferred a threefold coordination by a Cys and two His residues [Danielsen, E. Bauer, R., Hemmingsen, L., Andersen. M., Bjerrum, M. J., Butz, T., Tr?ger, W., Canters, G. W., Hoitink, C. W. G., Karlsson, G., Hansson, O. & Messerschmidt, A. (1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270, 573-580]     

The cytomegalovirus-encoded chemokine receptor US28 can enhance cell-cell fusion mediated by different viral proteins

The human cytomegalovirus (CMV) US28 gene encodes a functional CC chemokine receptor. However, this activity was observed in cells transfected to express US28 and might not correspond to the actual role of the protein in the CMV life cycle. Expression of US28 allows human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) entry into certain CD4(+) cells and their fusion with cells expressing HIV-1 envelope (Env) proteins. Such properties were initially reported for the cellular chemokine receptors CCR5 and CXCR4, which behave as CD4-associated HIV-1 coreceptors. We found that coexpression of US28 and either CXCR4 or CCR5 in CD4(+) cells resulted in enhanced synctium formation with HIV-1 Env+ cells. This positive effect of US28 on cell fusion seems to be distinct from its HIV-1 coreceptor activity. Indeed, enhancement of cell fusion was also observed when US28 was expressed on the HIV-1 Env+ cells instead of an CD4(+) target cells. Furthermore, US28 could enhance cell fusion mediated by other viral proteins, in particular, the G protein of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV-G). The HIV-1 coreceptor and fusion-enhancing activities could be affected by mutations in different domains of US28. The fusion-enhancing activity of US28 seems to be cell type dependent. Indeed, cells coexpressing VSV-G and US28 fused more efficiently with human, simian, or feline target cells, while US28 had no apparent effect on fusion with the three mouse or rat cell lines tested. The positive effect of US28 on cell fusion might therefore require its interaction with a cell-specific factor. We discuss a possible role for US28 in the fusion of the CMV envelope with target cells and CMV entry.     

Validation of the three-dimensional acquisition mode in positron emission tomography for the quantitation of [18F]fluoro-DOPA uptake in the human striata

Three-dimensional (3D) positron emission tomography (PET) is attractive for [18F]fluoro-DOPA studies, since the sensitivity improvement is maximal for radioactive sources located in central planes, which is usually the case for the human striata. However, the image quantitation in that mode must be assessed because of the nearly threefold increase in scattered coincidences. We report the results of [18F]fluoro-DOPA studies performed on six normal volunteers. Each one was scanned in the 3D and two-dimensional (2D) modes on the same tomograph. The quantitation in the 3D and 2D modes was compared for a Patlak graphical analysis with the occipital counts as the input function (Ki) and a striatooccipital ratio analysis. We find that, in 3D PET, a scatter correction is required to preserve the same quantitation as in 2D PET. When the 3D data sets are corrected for scatter, the quantitation of the [18F]fluoro-DOPA uptake, using the Patlak analysis, is similar in the 2D and 3D acquisition modes. Conversely, analysis of the striatooccipital ratio leads to higher values in 3D PET because of a better in-plane resolution. Finally, using the 3D mode, the dose injected to the subjects can be reduced by a factor greater than 1.5 without any loss in accuracy compared to the 2D mode.     

Morphologic image processing operators: reduction of partial volume effects for improved 3D visualization of CT data

AIM: The quality of segmentation and three-dimensional reconstruction of anatomical structures in tomographic slices is often impaired by disturbances due to partial volume effects (PVE). The potential for artefact reduction by use of the morphological image processing operators (MO) erosion and dilation is investigated. DESIGN: The CT examinations of 31 patients with pathological alterations in lung or brain were segmented using automatic region growing and the MO were applied in a different number of iterations. The processed regions were 3D-reconstructed (shaded surface display, MIP, volume rendering) and the occurrence of PVE-related artefacts using the signal-to-background ratio (SBR) prior to and after MO application was compared. RESULTS: For all patients under review, the artefacts caused by PVE were significantly reduced by erosion (lung: mean SBRpre = 1.67, SBRpost = 4.83; brain: SBRpre = 1.06, SBRpost = 1.29) even with only a small number of iterations. Region dilation was applied to integrate further structures (e.g. at tumor borders) into a configurable neighbourhood for segmentation and quantitative analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The MO represent an efficient approach for the reduction of PVE artefacts in 3D-CT reconstructions and allow optimized visualization of individual objects.     

Evaluation of UF and RO in a cellulose saccharification process

The applications of membrane separation within the bioconversion of lignocellulosic materials to ethanol are studied, and this paper reports on cellulolytic enzyme recovery, and reduction of the product inhibition. The conversion of cellulose and hemicellulose to hexoses and pentoses is carried out in a laboratory scale UF-membrane reactor, and the sugars, which have an inhibiting effect on the enzymes, are continuously removed with the permeate. By optimizing the space velocity, the enzyme inhibition is minimized and the rate of hydrolysis is significantly increased.The recovery of the enzymes has also been investigated with regard to their mechanical stability and adsorption on the substrate. Prior to enzymatic hydrolysis, the raw material is subjected to a pretreatment to make the cellulose more accessible to the enzymes, and the effect of the pretreatment can easily be evaluated in the UF-membrane reactor.As a result of the continuous removal of products formed in the hydrolysis, the permeate has a low content of fermentable sugars, and to give the optimal conditions for the fermentation a concentration step is needed. Different RO-membranes are tested in a laboratory scale batch cell to be able to choose a membrane material, fit for filtration in larger modules.     

Tetranorsesquiterpenoids as Attractants of Yucca Moths to Yucca Flowers

Journal of Chemical Ecology - The obligate pollination mutualism between Yucca and yucca moths is a classical example of coevolution. Oviposition and active pollination by female yucca moths occur...     

3D ActionSLAM: wearable person tracking in multi-floor environments

We present 3D ActionSLAM, a stand-alone wearable system that can track people in previously unknown multi-floor environments with sub-room accuracy. ActionSLAM stands for action-based simultaneous localization and mapping: It fuses dead reckoning data from a foot-mounted inertial measurement unit with the recognition of location-related actions to build and update a local landmark map. Simultaneously, this map compensates for position drift errors that accumulate in open-loop tracking by means of a particle filter. To evaluate the system performance, we analyzed 23 tracks with a total walked distance of 6,489 m in buildings with up to three floors. The algorithm robustly (93 % of runs converged) mapped the areas with a mean landmark positioning error of 0.59 m. As ActionSLAM is fully stand-alone and not dependent on external infrastructure, it is well suited for patient tracking in remote health care applications. The algorithm is computationally light-weight and runs in real-time on a Samsung Galaxy S4, enabling immediate location-aware feedback. Finally, we propose visualization techniques to facilitate the interpretation of tracking data acquired with 3D ActionSLAM.