Biocatalytic Alkylation Cascades: Recent Advances and Future Opportunities for Late-Stage Functionalization

This Concept article describes the latest developments in the emerging area of late-stage biocatalytic alkylation. Central to these developments is the ability to efficiently prepare S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) cofactor analogues and couple this with enzymatic alkyl transfer. Recent developments in the enzymatic synthesis of SAM cofactor analogues are summarized first, followed by their application as alkyl transfer agents catalyzed by methyltransferases (MTases). Second, innovative methods to regenerate SAM cofactors by enzymatic cascades is reported. Finally, future opportunities towards establishing a generalized platform for late-stage alkylation are described.     

The day of the week when you were born in 700 ms: Calendar computation in an autistic savant.

Some individuals are able to determine the weekday of a given date in a few seconds (finding for instance that June 12, 1900, was a Tuesday). This ability has fascinated scientists for many years because it is predominantly observed in people with limited intelligence and may appear very early in life. Exceptional visual memory, exceptional concentration abilities, or privileged access to lower levels of information not normally available through introspection have been advanced to explain such phenomena. In the present article, the authors show that a simple cognitive model can explain all aspects of the performance of Donny, a young autistic savant who is possibly the fastest and most accurate calendar prodigy ever described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using bald eagles to indicate the health of the Great Lakes' environment

The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is one of the most studied birds of North America, and a great amount of natural life‐history information, including the response of various stressors on the eagles' ability to reproduce, are well known. In Michigan, the eagle has been chosen to track the trends of bioaccumulative compounds of concern across watersheds in the state. The state has been divided into major watersheds, and 20% of these are surveyed each year. A control area in northern Minnesota, Voyageurs National Park, is also sampled annually. We report here on the methods used, the preliminary results of the 1999 field season, and how differences in mercury concentrations varied over a 10‐year period. Mercury in feathers of nestling eagles declined over time only in Lakes Michigan and Huron, but have not decreased among other subpopulations in Michigan. Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 4,4′‐DDE in blood plasma from nestling eagles have declined over time for most subpopulations; however, they remain greater for breeding areas associated with the Great Lakes' food web. Sea eagles of the genus Haliaeetus are a good sentinel species to track trends in bioaccumulative compounds in aquatic systems.     

Comment on Greenwood (2007): Solving the puzzle of structure/function relations in the aging brain?

Neuroimaging experiments have shown that prefrontal regions of the brain, which have the most age-related volume loss, are also the regions most likely to be more active in older adults than in younger adults. In an attempt to solve this puzzle, P. M. Greenwood (see record 2007-15625-001) has proposed a cascade that flows from age-related atrophy in the brain to changed processing strategies that result in plastic changes in regions adjacent and contralateral to the atrophic areas, culminating in greater functional activity. This hypothesis should stimulate research into these mechanisms and hopefully will ultimately inform researchers' ability to rehabilitate cognitive disorders in the elderly. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gheo-shih: an ancient pre-Columbian plaza

This paper describes the configuration and cultural context of the oldest known designed space in central America, Gheo-Shih, dating from 5,000 - 4,000 BC. This site may have been a ceremonial space, being employed in a similar fashion to ceremonial spaces of Native American cultures from the North American Great Basin. It contains physical features that set precedents and are similar to the geomantic features of later nearby Mesoamerican cultures.     

Psychosocial characteristics of adolescents who refuse cancer treatment.

Examined psychosocial variables by comparing 10 13–17 yr old adolescents (and their mothers) who had refused cancer treatment with a group of 10 consenting adolescents who were matched on age and demographic and illness variables. Adolescents completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children and measures of family characteristics, locus of control, religion, hopelessness, impact of event, and satisfaction with physician. Mothers completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and measures of coping and religion. Adolescent refusers scored lower on state anxiety and subjective distress but scored higher on trait anxiety, religiosity, and external locus of control. Their mothers also scored higher than did the consenting-group mothers on religiosity and trait anxiety. It is suggested that refusers are prone to anxiety and cope with their present distress by maintaining the belief that their lives are determined by fate or religious convictions. An intervention approach that fosters mastery over the cancer experience is advocated. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Liquefaction evaluation at a California substation site

A probabilistic seismic hazard analysis, in conjunction with subsurface geologic investigations, was used to evaluate the liquefaction potential of sand layers at Western Area Power Adminstration's Tracy, California, substation site. The seismic hazard analysis evaluates the peak ground acceleration corresponding to a lower level earthquake with a 50-percent probability of occurrence in 150 years, and two upper level earthquakes with a 10-percent probability of occurrence in 50 and 100 years. Based on the results of the geologic investigations and seismologic studies, it was concluded that the potential of liquefaction at the site for the design earthquakes was low