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Feature Scale Simulations of Deposition Processes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Moroz, Paul; Moroz, Daniel J.
Deposition processes, together with etching, planarization, and implantation, represent the basis of materials processing. Requirements for the accuracy of processing are becoming ever more stringent and thus the role of numerical simulations grows. The feature scale simulator FPS3D allows detailed simulation of simultaneous deposition, etching, and implantation processes. In this report, we emphasize FPD3D's capability to simulate deposition. We simulate and analyze the deposition of copper seed layer films into high-aspect-ratio features, examining the profile conformity and feature-filling quality of the deposited copper layers and their dependence on the energy and angular distributions of incoming fluxes of species. A number of cases were analyzed, including the following: isotropic flow of Cu, directional flow of Cu, isotropic flow of Cu together with ions, and directional flow of Cu together with ions. It was found that directional flow of Cu together with ions has significant advantages over other options, allowing efficient Cu seed layer deposition even for small high-aspect-ratio features. We also discuss detailed structure of deposited layers such as agglomeration into islands with specific orientation and film roughness.
Microfluidic Mobility Shift Profiling of Lysine Acetyltransferases Enables Screening and Mechanistic Analysis of Cellular Acetylation Inhibitors.
Sorum, Alexander W; Shrimp, Jonathan H; Roberts, Allison M; Montgomery, David C; Tiwari, Neil K; Lal-Nag, Madhu; Simeonov, Anton; Jadhav, Ajit; Meier, Jordan L
Lysine acetyltransferases (KATs) are critical regulators of signaling in many diseases, including cancer. A major challenge in establishing the targetable functions of KATs in disease is a lack of well-characterized, cell-active KAT inhibitors. To confront this challenge, here we report a microfluidic mobility shift platform for the discovery and characterization of small molecule KAT inhibitors. Novel fluorescent peptide substrates were developed for four well-known KAT enzymes (p300, Crebbp, Morf, and Gcn5). Enzyme-catalyzed acetylation alters the electrophoretic mobility of these peptides in a microfluidic chip, allowing facile and direct monitoring of KAT activity. A pilot screen was used to demonstrate the utility of microfluidic mobility shift profiling to identify known and novel modulators of KAT activity. Real-time kinetic monitoring of KAT activity revealed that garcinol, a natural product KAT inhibitor used in cellular studies, exhibits time-dependent and detergent-sensitive inhibition, consistent with an aggregation-based mechanism. In contrast, the cell-permeable bisubstrate inhibitor Tat-CoA exhibited potent and time-independent KAT inhibition, highlighting its potential utility as a cellular inhibitor of KAT activity. These studies define microfluidic mobility shift profiling as a powerful platform for the discovery and characterization of small molecule inhibitors of KAT activity, and provide mechanistic insights potentially important for the application of KAT inhibitors in cellular contexts. PMID:26428393
Dicycloplatin, a novel platinum analog in chemotherapy: synthesis of chinese pre-clinical and clinical profile and emerging mechanistic studies.
Yu, Jing Jie; Yang, Xuqing; Song, Qinhua; Mueller, Michael D; Remick, Scot C
Dicycloplatin (DCP) has better solubility and stability than both cisplatin and carboplatin. Pre-clinical and phase I studies demonstrated significant antitumor activity and fewer adverse events than carboplatin. Phase II clinical trials in advanced non-small cell lung cancer found efficacy and safety of DCP-plus-paclitaxel comparable to carboplatin-plus-paclitaxel but better tolerability. This article summarizes and reviews pre-clinical and clinical data for dicycloplatin from the Chinese medical literature. We also report on new mechanistic findings in our laboratory in West Virginia, USA. Patient blood samples were collected for DCP-prototype determination by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Molecular studies of ovarian cancer cells treated with DCP or cisplatin were carried out for gene-signature profiling using immunoblotting. Pharmacokinetic mass-spectrometry showed different spectrum profiles of DCP and carboplatin in plasma. Plasma concentration of DCP prototype was 17.1 μg/ml 2h after administration, with a peak concentration of 26.9 μg/ml at 0.5 h. Immunoblotting showed DCP-induced activation of DNA damage pathways, including double-phosphorylated checkpoint kinase 2 (CHK2) and breast cancer 1 (BRCA1) and triple-phosphorylated p53, compared to controls. Cisplatin produced a similar profile, with increased p53 protein. DCP and cisplatin activate DNA-damage response through similar pathways. DCP may be more soluble and stable, and better-tolerated. PMID:24403501
Bioinforrnatics of Gene Expression Profiling Data Provide Mechanistic Understanding of Acute Ozone-Induced Lung injury
Acute ozone-induced pulmonary injury and inflammation are well characterized. A few studies have used gene expression profiling to determine the types of changes induced by ozone; however the mechanisms or the pathways involved are less well understood. We presumed that robust bi...
Mechanistic modeling of the vertical soil organic matter profile in terrestrial ecosystems
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Braakhekke, Maarten; Beer, Christian; Hoosbeek, Marcel; Reichstein, Markus; Kruijt, Bart; Wutzler, Thomas; Kattge, Jens; Schrumpf, Marion; Kabat, Pavel
Modelling and measuring studies of soil organic carbon have traditionally focused on the 30 cm of the soil. In the recent past however, interest in the vertical distribution of soil carbon has increased due to 1) estimates suggesting that the deep soil globally stores a large amount of carbon, and 2) increasing evidence that soil carbon stabilization is be controlled by different processes at different depths that are likely to respond varyingly to future global changes, possibly leading to release of previously stabilized carbon. Therefore the 'bucket' approach employed in traditional soil carbon models is not sufficient to adequately predict future soil carbon dynamics on long time scales. Furthermore, aggregation of soil temperature and moisture response of the whole profile may lead to biased results on short time scales as well. Hence, a more vertically explicit representation is needed, but development and parameterization of such models is hindered by lack of understanding of the processes involved in SOM profile development. Our study aims to answer the following questions: 1) what are the key driving processes that determine the vertical profile of soil organic matter and their comparative strength? and 2) can we improve soil carbon cycle models by accounting for the vertical SOM profile? In this scope we have developed SOMPROF, a new soil carbon model that dynamically simulates the vertical profile of the SOM fraction in the mineral soil, as well as the storage of organic matter in organic surface horizons L, F and H. The model includes two mechanisms of vertical organic matter transport: 1) diffusion, representing bioturbation (mixing of the soil matrix by soil biota), and 2) advection, representing downward movement with infiltrating water. Furthermore organic matter may be input directly at depth by root turnover. The model includes 5 organic carbon pools that differ with respect to their transport behavior and decomposability. The model has been
Metabolic Model-Based Integration of Microbiome Taxonomic and Metabolomic Profiles Elucidates Mechanistic Links between Ecological and Metabolic Variation
Noecker, Cecilia; Eng, Alexander; Srinivasan, Sujatha; Theriot, Casey M.; Young, Vincent B.; Jansson, Janet K.; Fredricks, David N.; Borenstein, Elhanan
Multiple molecular assays now enable high-throughput profiling of the ecology, metabolic capacity, and activity of the human microbiome. However, to date, analyses of such multi-omic data typically focus on statistical associations, often ignoring extensive prior knowledge of the mechanisms linking these various facets of the microbiome. Here, we introduce a comprehensive framework to systematically link variation in metabolomic data with community composition by utilizing taxonomic, genomic, and metabolic information. Specifically, we integrate available and inferred genomic data, metabolic network modeling, and a method for predicting community-wide metabolite turnover to estimate the biosynthetic and degradation potential of a given community. Our framework then compares variation in predicted metabolic potential with variation in measured metabolites' abundances to evaluate whether community composition can explain observed shifts in the community metabolome, and to identify key taxa and genes contributing to the shifts. Focusing on two independent vaginal microbiome data sets, each pairing 16S community profiling with large-scale metabolomics, we demonstrate that our framework successfully recapitulates observed variation in 37% of metabolites. Well-predicted metabolite variation tends to result from disease-associated metabolism. We further identify several disease-enriched species that contribute significantly to these predictions. Interestingly, our analysis also detects metabolites for which the predicted variation negatively correlates with the measured variation, suggesting environmental control points of community metabolism. Applying this framework to gut microbiome data sets reveals similar trends, including prediction of bile acid metabolite shifts. This framework is an important first step toward a system-level multi-omic integration and an improved mechanistic understanding of the microbiome activity and dynamics in health and disease. IMPORTANCE
Hartung, Thomas; Hoffmann, Sebastian; Stephens, Martin
Validation of new approaches in regulatory toxicology is commonly defined as the independent assessment of the reproducibility and relevance (the scientific basis and predictive capacity) of a test for a particular purpose. In large ring trials, the emphasis to date has been mainly on reproducibility and predictive capacity (comparison to the traditional test) with less attention given to the scientific or mechanistic basis. Assessing predictive capacity is difficult for novel approaches (which are based on mechanism), such as pathways of toxicity or the complex networks within the organism (systems toxicology). This is highly relevant for implementing Toxicology for the 21st Century, either by high-throughput testing in the ToxCast/Tox21 project or omics-based testing in the Human Toxome Project. This article explores the mostly neglected assessment of a test's scientific basis, which moves mechanism and causality to the foreground when validating/qualifying tests. Such mechanistic validation faces the problem of establishing causality in complex systems. However, pragmatic adaptations of the Bradford Hill criteria, as well as bioinformatic tools, are emerging. As critical infrastructures of the organism are perturbed by a toxic mechanism we argue that by focusing on the target of toxicity and its vulnerability, in addition to the way it is perturbed, we can anchor the identification of the mechanism and its verification. PMID:23665802
Transcriptional Profiling of Dibenzo[def,p]chrysene-induced Spleen Atrophy Provides Mechanistic Insights into its Immunotoxicity in MutaMouse.
Chepelev, Nikolai L; Long, Alexandra S; Williams, Andrew; Kuo, Byron; Gagné, Rémi; Kennedy, Dean A; Phillips, David H; Arlt, Volker M; White, Paul A; Yauk, Carole L
Dibenzo[def,p]chrysene (DBC) is the most carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) examined to date. We investigated the immunotoxicity of DBC, manifested as spleen atrophy, following acute exposure of adult MutaMouse males by oral gavage. Mice were exposed to 0, 2.0, 6.2, or 20.0 mg DBC /kg-bw per day, for 3 days. Genotoxic endpoints (DBC-DNA adducts and lacZ mutant frequency in spleen and bone marrow, and red blood cell micronucleus frequency) and global gene expression changes were measured. All of the genotoxicity measures increased in a dose-dependent manner in spleen and bone marrow. Gene expression analysis showed that DBC activates p53 signaling pathways related to cellular growth and proliferation, which was evident even at the low dose. Strikingly, the expression profiles of DBC exposed mouse spleens were highly inversely correlated with the expression profiles of the only published toxicogenomics dataset of enlarged mouse spleen. This analysis suggested a central role for Bnip3l, a pro-apoptotic protein involved in negative regulation of erythroid maturation. RT-PCR confirmed expression changes in several genes related to apoptosis, iron metabolism, and aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling that are regulated in the opposite direction during spleen atrophy versus benzo[a]pyrene-mediated splenomegaly. In addition, benchmark dose modeling of toxicogenomics data yielded toxicity estimates that are very close to traditional toxicity endpoints. This work illustrates the power of toxicogenomics to reveal rich mechanistic information for immunotoxic compounds and its ability to provide information that is quantitatively similar to that derived from standard toxicity methods in health risk assessment. PMID:26496743
Feature Scale Simulation of PECVD of SiO2 in SiH4/N2O Mixture
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Liu, Xuan; Ge, Jie; Yang, Yi; Song, Yixu; Ren, Tianling
In this paper, to simulate the process of PECVD (plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition) of SiO2, the plasma chemistry and plasma density of SiH4/N2O mixture have been studied with an inductive coupled plasma model, and the level set methodology has been used to obtain the feature scale variation during the process. In this simulation, the goal is to fill a trench. We studied how ion sputtering and chamber pressure affect the feature scale model. After the simulation, we found that the trench will close up at the top after a few steps, and if we add the ion sputtering into the surface reactions, the trench top will close up a little later. When the chamber pressure is improved, the plasma density will increase, so the trench top will close up earlier. In semiconductor device manufacture, people can control the trench's feature scale through adjusting these two parameters.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
School Arts, 1979
Profiles seven Black, Native American, and Chicano artists and art teachers: Hale A. Woodruff, Allan Houser, Luis Jimenez, Betrand D. Phillips, James E. Pate, I, and Fernando Navarro. This article is part of a theme issue on multicultural art. (SJL)
Mechanistic investigations of shuttle glow
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Caledonia, G. E.; Holtzclaw, K. W.; Krech, R. H.; Sonnenfroh, D. M.; Leone, A.; Blumberg, W. A. M.
A series of laboratory measurements have been performed in order to provide a mechanistic interpretation for the visible shuttle glow. These studies involved interactions of an 8 km/s oxygen atom beam with both contaminant dosed surfaces and gaseous targets. We conclude that visible shuttle glow arises from surface mediated O + NO recombination via a Langmuir-Hinshelwood mechanism and that the gas-phase exchange reaction O + N2 - NO + N provides a viable source of precursor NO above surfaces oriented in the ram direction.
Mechanistic investigations of shuttle glow
Caledonia, G.E.; Holtzclaw, K.W.; Krech, R.H.; Sonnenfroh, D.M. ); Leone, A. ); Blumber, W.A.M. )
A series of laboratory measurements have been performed in order to provide a mechanistic interpretation for the visible shuttle glow. These studies involved interactions in an 8 km/s oxygen atom beam with both contaminant dosed surfaces and gaseous targets. The authors conclude that visible shuttle glow arises from surface mediated O + NO recombination via a Langmuir-Hinshelwood mechanism and that the gas-phase exchange reaction O + N[sub 2] [r arrow] NO + N provides a viable source of precursor NO above surfaces oriented in the ram direction. 35 refs., 4 figs.
Assessment of Borderline Personality Features in Population Samples: Is the Personality Assessment Inventory-Borderline Features Scale Measurement Invariant across Sex and Age?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
De Moor, Marleen H. M.; Distel, Marijn A.; Trull, Timothy J.; Boomsma, Dorret I.
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is more often diagnosed in women than in men, and symptoms tend to decline with age. Using a large community sample, the authors investigated whether sex and age differences in four main features of BPD, measured with the "Personality Assessment Inventory-Borderline Features" scale (PAI-BOR; Morey, 1991), are…
Food for Thought ... Mechanistic Validation
Hartung, Thomas; Hoffmann, Sebastian; Stephens, Martin
Summary Validation of new approaches in regulatory toxicology is commonly defined as the independent assessment of the reproducibility and relevance (the scientific basis and predictive capacity) of a test for a particular purpose. In large ring trials, the emphasis to date has been mainly on reproducibility and predictive capacity (comparison to the traditional test) with less attention given to the scientific or mechanistic basis. Assessing predictive capacity is difficult for novel approaches (which are based on mechanism), such as pathways of toxicity or the complex networks within the organism (systems toxicology). This is highly relevant for implementing Toxicology for the 21st Century, either by high-throughput testing in the ToxCast/ Tox21 project or omics-based testing in the Human Toxome Project. This article explores the mostly neglected assessment of a test's scientific basis, which moves mechanism and causality to the foreground when validating/qualifying tests. Such mechanistic validation faces the problem of establishing causality in complex systems. However, pragmatic adaptations of the Bradford Hill criteria, as well as bioinformatic tools, are emerging. As critical infrastructures of the organism are perturbed by a toxic mechanism we argue that by focusing on the target of toxicity and its vulnerability, in addition to the way it is perturbed, we can anchor the identification of the mechanism and its verification. PMID:23665802
HTGR Mechanistic Source Terms White Paper
Wayne Moe
The primary purposes of this white paper are: (1) to describe the proposed approach for developing event specific mechanistic source terms for HTGR design and licensing, (2) to describe the technology development programs required to validate the design methods used to predict these mechanistic source terms and (3) to obtain agreement from the NRC that, subject to appropriate validation through the technology development program, the approach for developing event specific mechanistic source terms is acceptable
Natural selection and mechanistic regularity.
DesAutels, Lane
In this article, I address the question of whether natural selection operates regularly enough to qualify as a mechanism of the sort characterized by Machamer, Darden, and Craver (2000). Contrary to an influential critique by Skipper and Millstein (2005), I argue that natural selection can be seen to be regular enough to qualify as an MDC mechanism just fine-as long as we pay careful attention to some important distinctions regarding mechanistic regularity and abstraction. Specifically, I suggest that when we distinguish between process vs. product regularity, mechanism-internal vs. mechanism-external sources of irregularity, and abstract vs. concrete regularity, we can see that natural selection is only irregular in senses that are unthreatening to its status as an MDC mechanism. PMID:26921876
Rational and Mechanistic Perspectives on Reinforcement Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chater, Nick
This special issue describes important recent developments in applying reinforcement learning models to capture neural and cognitive function. But reinforcement learning, as a theoretical framework, can apply at two very different levels of description: "mechanistic" and "rational." Reinforcement learning is often viewed in mechanistic terms--as…
Data graphs and mechanistic explanation.
Burnston, Daniel C
It is a widespread assumption in philosophy of science that representations of data are not explanatory-that they are mere stepping stones towards an explanation, such as a representation of a mechanism. I draw on instances of representational and explanatory practice from mammalian chronobiology to suggest that this assumption is unsustainable. In many instances, biologists employ representations of data in explanatory ways that are not reducible to constraints on or evidence for representations of mechanisms. Data graphs are used to represent relationships between quantities across conditions, and often these representations are necessary for explaining particular aspects of the phenomena under study. The benefit of the analysis is two-fold. First, it provides a more accurate account of explanatory practice in broadly mechanistic investigation in biology. Second, it suggests that there is not an explanatorily "fundamental" type of representation in biology. Rather, the practice of explanation consists in the construction of different types of representations and their employment for distinct explanatory purposes. PMID:26871740
Negative mechanistic reasoning in medical intervention assessment.
Jerkert, Jesper
Traditionally, mechanistic reasoning has been assigned a negligible role in standard EBM (evidence-based medicine) literature, although some recent authors have argued for an upgrade. Even so, the mechanistic reasoning that has received attention has almost exclusively been positive--both in an epistemic sense of claiming that there is a mechanistic chain and in a health-related sense of there being claimed benefits for the patient. Negative mechanistic reasoning has been neglected, both in the epistemic and in the health-related sense. I distinguish three main types of negative mechanistic reasoning and subsume them under a new definition of mechanistic reasoning in the context of assessing medical interventions. This definition is wider than a previous suggestion in the literature. Each negative type corresponds to a range of evidential strengths, and it is argued that there are differences with respect to typical evidential strengths. The variety of negative mechanistic reasoning should be acknowledged in EBM, and it presents a serious challenge to proponents of so-called medical hierarchies of evidence. PMID:26597869
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is interested in the interplay of environmental and genetic factors on the development and exacerbation of asthma. The Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood Asthma (MICA) study will use exposure measurements and markers of environmental ...
Submarine Glacial Geomorphology of the Continental Shelf East of the Antarctic Peninsula: Variable Feature-Scales and Overprinting Patterns
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Campo, Jennifer; Wellner, Julia; Lavoie, Caroline; Domack, Eugene; Yoo, Kyu-Cheul
profiles across each of these sets of features, we highlight that only two sets are actually mega-scale glacial lineations. The other two are actually sets of sub parallel iceberg furrows that are interpreted to have come from calving at a nearby grounding line. Additional crosscutting flow patterns are observed in the area of the Seal Nunataks, between the Larsen A and B embayments. Flow indicators are oriented directly offshore (~E-W), parallel to the Nunataks; this flow pattern is interpreted to be from LGM time. Additional flow indicators go from the Nunataks to the northeast, into the Larsen A embayment; however, a similar flow pattern is not observed on the south side of the Seal Nunataks. This pattern is interpreted as more recent flow and thus reorganization of the flow pattern as the grounding line retreated.
Mechanistic models in computational social science
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Holme, Petter; Liljeros, Fredrik
Quantitative social science is not only about regression analysis or, in general, data inference. Computer simulations of social mechanisms have an over 60 years long history. They have been used for many different purposes—to test scenarios, to test the consistency of descriptive theories (proof-of-concept models), to explore emergent phenomena, for forecasting, etc. In this essay, we sketch these historical developments, the role of mechanistic models in the social sciences and the influences from the natural and formal sciences. We argue that mechanistic computational models form a natural common ground for social and natural sciences, and look forward to possible future information flow across the social-natural divide.
Testing mechanistic models of growth in insects.
Maino, James L; Kearney, Michael R
Insects are typified by their small size, large numbers, impressive reproductive output and rapid growth. However, insect growth is not simply rapid; rather, insects follow a qualitatively distinct trajectory to many other animals. Here we present a mechanistic growth model for insects and show that increasing specific assimilation during the growth phase can explain the near-exponential growth trajectory of insects. The presented model is tested against growth data on 50 insects, and compared against other mechanistic growth models. Unlike the other mechanistic models, our growth model predicts energy reserves per biomass to increase with age, which implies a higher production efficiency and energy density of biomass in later instars. These predictions are tested against data compiled from the literature whereby it is confirmed that insects increase their production efficiency (by 24 percentage points) and energy density (by 4 J mg(-1)) between hatching and the attainment of full size. The model suggests that insects achieve greater production efficiencies and enhanced growth rates by increasing specific assimilation and increasing energy reserves per biomass, which are less costly to maintain than structural biomass. Our findings illustrate how the explanatory and predictive power of mechanistic growth models comes from their grounding in underlying biological processes. PMID:26609084
Exploring Organic Mechanistic Puzzles with Molecular Modeling
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Horowitz, Gail; Schwartz, Gary
The molecular modeling was used to reinforce more general skills such as deducing and drawing reaction mechanisms, analyzing reaction kinetics and thermodynamics and drawing reaction coordinate energy diagrams. This modeling was done through the design of mechanistic puzzles, involving reactions not familiar to the students.
Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood Asthma (MICA) Study
The Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood Asthma (MICA) Study has been designed to incorporate state-of-the-art technologies to examine the physiological and environmental factors that interact to increase the risk of asthmatic responses. MICA is primarily a clinically-bases obser...
Mechanistic fracture criteria for the failure of human cortical bone
Nalla, Ravi K.; Kinney, John H.; Ritchie, Robert O.
A mechanistic understanding of fracture in human bone is critical to predicting fracture risk associated with age and disease. Despite extensive work, a mechanistic framework for describing how the underlying microstructure affects the failure mode in bone is lacking.
Mechanistic analysis of challenge-response experiments.
Shotwell, M S; Drake, K J; Sidorov, V Y; Wikswo, J P
We present an application of mechanistic modeling and nonlinear longitudinal regression in the context of biomedical response-to-challenge experiments, a field where these methods are underutilized. In this type of experiment, a system is studied by imposing an experimental challenge, and then observing its response. The combination of mechanistic modeling and nonlinear longitudinal regression has brought new insight, and revealed an unexpected opportunity for optimal design. Specifically, the mechanistic aspect of our approach enables the optimal design of experimental challenge characteristics (e.g., intensity, duration). This article lays some groundwork for this approach. We consider a series of experiments wherein an isolated rabbit heart is challenged with intermittent anoxia. The heart responds to the challenge onset, and recovers when the challenge ends. The mean response is modeled by a system of differential equations that describe a candidate mechanism for cardiac response to anoxia challenge. The cardiac system behaves more variably when challenged than when at rest. Hence, observations arising from this experiment exhibit complex heteroscedasticity and sharp changes in central tendency. We present evidence that an asymptotic statistical inference strategy may fail to adequately account for statistical uncertainty. Two alternative methods are critiqued qualitatively (i.e., for utility in the current context), and quantitatively using an innovative Monte-Carlo method. We conclude with a discussion of the exciting opportunities in optimal design of response-to-challenge experiments. PMID:23859366
Mechanistic facility safety and source term analysis
A PC-based computer program was created for facility safety and source term analysis at Hanford The program has been successfully applied to mechanistic prediction of source terms from chemical reactions in underground storage tanks, hydrogen combustion in double contained receiver tanks, and proccss evaluation including the potential for runaway reactions in spent nuclear fuel processing. Model features include user-defined facility room, flow path geometry, and heat conductors, user-defined non-ideal vapor and aerosol species, pressure- and density-driven gas flows, aerosol transport and deposition, and structure to accommodate facility-specific source terms. Example applications are presented here.
Mechanistic studies of carbon monoxide reduction
Geoffroy, G.L.
The progress made during the current grant period (1 January 1988--1 April 1990) in three different areas of research is summarized. The research areas are: (1) oxidatively-induced double carbonylation reactions to form {alpha}-ketoacyl complexes and studies of the reactivity of the resulting compounds, (2) mechanistic studies of the carbonylation of nitroaromatics to form isocyanates, carbamates, and ureas, and (3) studies of the formation and reactivity of unusual metallacycles and alkylidene ligands supported on binuclear iron carbonyl fragments. 18 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.
Composite Nanomechanics: A Mechanistic Properties Prediction
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chamis, Christos C.; Handler, Louis M.; Manderscheid, Jane M.
A unique mechanistic theory is described to predict the properties of nanocomposites. The theory is based on composite micromechanics with progressive substructuring down to a nanoscale slice of a nanofiber where all the governing equations are formulated. These equations hav e been programmed in a computer code. That computer code is used to predict 25 properties of a mononanofiber laminate. The results are pr esented graphically and discussed with respect to their practical sig nificance. Most of the results show smooth distributions. Results for matrix-dependent properties show bimodal through-the-thickness distr ibution with discontinuous changes from mode to mode.
Composite Nanomechanics: A Mechanistic Properties Prediction
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chamis, Christos C.; Handler, Louis M.; Manderscheid, Jane M.
A unique mechanistic theory is described to predict the properties of nanocomposites. The theory is based on composite micromechanics with progressive substructuring down to a nanoscale slice of a nanofiber where all the governing equations are formulated. These equations have been programmed in a computer code. That computer code is used to predict 25 properties of a mononanofiber laminate. The results are presented graphically and discussed with respect to their practical significance. Most of the results show smooth distributions. Results for matrix-dependent properties show bimodal through-the-thickness distribution with discontinuous changes from mode to mode.
LDRD final report : on the development of hybrid level-set/particle methods for modeling surface evolution during feature-scale etching and deposition processes.
McBride, Cory L.; Schmidt, Rodney Cannon; Musson, Lawrence Cale
Two methods for creating a hybrid level-set (LS)/particle method for modeling surface evolution during feature-scale etching and deposition processes are developed and tested. The first method supplements the LS method by introducing Lagrangian marker points in regions of high curvature. Once both the particle set and the LS function are advanced in time, minimization of certain objective functions adjusts the LS function so that its zero contour is in closer alignment with the particle locations. It was found that the objective-minimization problem was unexpectedly difficult to solve, and even when a solution could be found, the acquisition of it proved more costly than simply expanding the basis set of the LS function. The second method explored is a novel explicit marker-particle method that we have named the grid point particle (GPP) approach. Although not a LS method, the GPP approach has strong procedural similarities to certain aspects of the LS approach. A key aspect of the method is a surface rediscretization procedure--applied at each time step and based on a global background mesh--that maintains a representation of the surface while naturally adding and subtracting surface discretization points as the surface evolves in time. This method was coded in 2-D, and tested on a variety of surface evolution problems by using it in the ChISELS computer code. Results shown for 2-D problems illustrate the effectiveness of the method and highlight some notable advantages in accuracy over the LS method. Generalizing the method to 3D is discussed but not implemented.
Appropriateness of mechanistic and non-mechanistic models for the application of ultrafiltration to mixed waste
Foust, Henry; Ghosehajra, Malay
This study asks two questions: (1) How appropriate is the use of a basic filtration equation to the application of ultrafiltration of mixed waste, and (2) How appropriate are non-parametric models for permeate rates (volumes)? To answer these questions, mechanistic and non-mechanistic approaches are developed for permeate rates and volumes associated with an ultrafiltration/mixed waste system in dia-filtration mode. The mechanistic approach is based on a filtration equation which states that t/V vs. V is a linear relationship. The coefficients associated with this linear regression are composed of physical/chemical parameters of the system and based the mass balance equation associated with the membrane and associated developing cake layer. For several sets of data, a high correlation is shown that supports the assertion that t/V vs. V is a linear relationship. It is also shown that non-mechanistic approaches, i.e., the use of regression models to are not appropriate. One models considered is Q(p) = a*ln(Cb)+b. Regression models are inappropriate because the scale-up from a bench scale (pilot scale) study to full-scale for permeate rates (volumes) is not simply the ratio of the two membrane surface areas. (authors)
Reaction Coordinates and Mechanistic Hypothesis Tests.
Peters, Baron
Reaction coordinates are integral to several classic rate theories that can (a) predict kinetic trends across conditions and homologous reactions, (b) extract activation parameters with a clear physical interpretation from experimental rates, and (c) enable efficient calculations of free energy barriers and rates. New trajectory-based rare events methods can provide rates directly from dynamical trajectories without a reaction coordinate. Trajectory-based frameworks can also generate ideal (but abstract) reaction coordinates such as committors and eigenfunctions of the master equation. However, rates and mechanistic insights obtained from trajectory-based methods and abstract coordinates are not readily generalized across simulation conditions or reaction families. We discuss methods for identifying physically meaningful reaction coordinates, including committor analysis, variational transition state theory, Kramers-Langer-Berezhkovskii-Szabo theory, and statistical inference methods that can use path sampling data to screen, mix, and optimize thousands of trial coordinates. Special focus is given to likelihood maximization and inertial likelihood maximization approaches. PMID:27090846
Reaction Coordinates and Mechanistic Hypothesis Tests
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Peters, Baron
Reaction coordinates are integral to several classic rate theories that can (a) predict kinetic trends across conditions and homologous reactions, (b) extract activation parameters with a clear physical interpretation from experimental rates, and (c) enable efficient calculations of free energy barriers and rates. New trajectory-based rare events methods can provide rates directly from dynamical trajectories without a reaction coordinate. Trajectory-based frameworks can also generate ideal (but abstract) reaction coordinates such as committors and eigenfunctions of the master equation. However, rates and mechanistic insights obtained from trajectory-based methods and abstract coordinates are not readily generalized across simulation conditions or reaction families. We discuss methods for identifying physically meaningful reaction coordinates, including committor analysis, variational transition state theory, Kramers-Langer-Berezhkovskii-Szabo theory, and statistical inference methods that can use path sampling data to screen, mix, and optimize thousands of trial coordinates. Special focus is given to likelihood maximization and inertial likelihood maximization approaches.
Development of a mechanistic model for forced convection subcooled boiling
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shaver, Dillon R.
The focus of this work is on the formulation, implementation, and testing of a mechanistic model of subcooled boiling. Subcooled boiling is the process of vapor generation on a heated wall when the bulk liquid temperature is still below saturation. This is part of a larger effort by the US DoE's CASL project to apply advanced computational tools to the simulation of light water reactors. To support this effort, the formulation of the dispersed field model is described and a complete model of interfacial forces is formulated. The model has been implemented in the NPHASE-CMFD computer code with a K-epsilon model of turbulence. The interfacial force models are built on extensive work by other authors, and include novel formulations of the turbulent dispersion and lift forces. The complete model of interfacial forces is compared to experiments for adiabatic bubbly flows, including both steady-state and unsteady conditions. The same model is then applied to a transient gas/liquid flow in a complex geometry of fuel channels in a sodium fast reactor. Building on the foundation of the interfacial force model, a mechanistic model of forced-convection subcooled boiling is proposed. This model uses the heat flux partitioning concept and accounts for condensation of bubbles attached to the wall. This allows the model to capture the enhanced heat transfer associated with boiling before the point of net generation of vapor, a phenomenon consistent with existing experimental observations. The model is compared to four different experiments encompassing flows of light water, heavy water, and R12 at different pressures, in cylindrical channels, an internally heated annulus, and a rectangular channel. The experimental data includes axial and radial profiles of both liquid temperature and vapor volume fraction, and the agreement can be considered quite good. The complete model is then applied to simulations of subcooled boiling in nuclear reactor subchannels consistent with the
Mechanistically based mapping of human cardiac fibrillation
Zaman, Junaid A. B.
Abstract The mechanisms underpinning human cardiac fibrillation remain elusive. In his 1913 paper 'On dynamic equilibrium in the heart', Mines proposed that an activation wave front could propagate repeatedly in a circle, initiated by a stimulus in the vulnerable period. While the dynamics of activation and recovery are central to cardiac fibrillation, these physiological data are rarely used in clinical mapping. Fibrillation is a rapid irregular rhythm with spatiotemporal disorder resulting from two fundamental mechanisms – sources in preferred cardiac regions or spatially diffuse self‐sustaining activity, i.e. with no preferred source. On close inspection, however, this debate may also reflect mapping technique. Fibrillation is initiated from triggers by regional dispersion in repolarization, slow conduction and wavebreak, then sustained by non‐uniform interactions of these mechanisms. Notably, optical mapping of action potentials in atrial fibrillation (AF) show spiral wave sources (rotors) in nearly all studies including humans, while most traditional electrogram analyses of AF do not. Techniques may diverge in fibrillation because electrograms summate non‐coherent waves within an undefined field whereas optical maps define waves with a visually defined field. Also fibrillation operates at the limits of activation and recovery, which are well represented by action potentials while fibrillatory electrograms poorly represent repolarization. We conclude by suggesting areas for study that may be used, until such time as optical mapping is clinically feasible, to improve mechanistic understanding and therapy of human cardiac fibrillation. PMID:26607671
Mechanistic chemical perspective of hydrogen sulfide signaling.
Nagy, Péter
Hydrogen sulfide is now a well-appreciated master regulator in a diverse array of physiological processes. However, as a consequence of the rapid growth of the area, sulfide biology suffers from an increasing number of controversial observations and interpretations. A better understanding of the underlying molecular pathways of sulfide's actions is key to reconcile controversial issues, which calls for rigorous chemical/biochemical investigations. Protein sulfhydration and coordination/redox chemical interactions of sulfide with heme proteins are the two most extensively studied pathways in sulfide biochemistry. These pathways are important mediators of protein functions, generate bioactive sulfide metabolites, contribute to sulfide storage/trafficking and carry antioxidant functions. In addition, inorganic polysulfides, which are oxidative sulfide metabolites, are increasingly recognized as important players in sulfide biology. This chapter provides an overview of our mechanistic perspective on the reactions that govern (i) sulfide's bioavailability (including the delicate enzyme machineries that orchestrate sulfide production and consumption and the roles of the large sulfide-storing pools as biological buffers), (ii) biological significance and mechanisms of persulfide formation (including the reduction of disulfides, condensation with sulfenic acids, oxidation of thiols with polysulfides and radical-mediated pathways), (iii) coordination and redox chemical interactions of sulfide with heme proteins (including cytochrome c oxidase, hemoglobins, myoglobins and peroxidases), and (iv) the chemistry of polysulfides. PMID:25725513
Structural and mechanistic insights on nitrate reductases.
Coelho, Catarina; Romão, Maria João
Nitrate reductases (NR) belong to the DMSO reductase family of Mo-containing enzymes and perform key roles in the metabolism of the nitrogen cycle, reducing nitrate to nitrite. Due to variable cell location, structure and function, they have been divided into periplasmic (Nap), cytoplasmic, and membrane-bound (Nar) nitrate reductases. The first crystal structure obtained for a NR was that of the monomeric NapA from Desulfovibrio desulfuricans in 1999. Since then several new crystal structures were solved providing novel insights that led to the revision of the commonly accepted reaction mechanism for periplasmic nitrate reductases. The two crystal structures available for the NarGHI protein are from the same organism (Escherichia coli) and the combination with electrochemical and spectroscopic studies also lead to the proposal of a reaction mechanism for this group of enzymes. Here we present an overview on the current advances in structural and functional aspects of bacterial nitrate reductases, focusing on the mechanistic implications drawn from the crystallographic data. PMID:26362109
Somatodendritic dopamine release: recent mechanistic insights.
Rice, Margaret E; Patel, Jyoti C
Dopamine (DA) is a key transmitter in motor, reward and cogitative pathways, with DA dysfunction implicated in disorders including Parkinson's disease and addiction. Located in midbrain, DA neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta project via the medial forebrain bundle to the dorsal striatum (caudate putamen), and DA neurons in the adjacent ventral tegmental area project to the ventral striatum (nucleus accumbens) and prefrontal cortex. In addition to classical vesicular release from axons, midbrain DA neurons exhibit DA release from their cell bodies and dendrites. Somatodendritic DA release leads to activation of D2 DA autoreceptors on DA neurons that inhibit their firing via G-protein-coupled inwardly rectifying K(+) channels. This helps determine patterns of DA signalling at distant axonal release sites. Somatodendritically released DA also acts via volume transmission to extrasynaptic receptors that modulate local transmitter release and neuronal activity in the midbrain. Thus, somatodendritic release is a pivotal intrinsic feature of DA neurons that must be well defined in order to fully understand the physiology and pathophysiology of DA pathways. Here, we review recent mechanistic aspects of somatodendritic DA release, with particular emphasis on the Ca(2+) dependence of release and the potential role of exocytotic proteins. PMID:26009764
Mechanistically based mapping of human cardiac fibrillation.
Narayan, Sanjiv M; Zaman, Junaid A B
The mechanisms underpinning human cardiac fibrillation remain elusive. In his 1913 paper 'On dynamic equilibrium in the heart', Mines proposed that an activation wave front could propagate repeatedly in a circle, initiated by a stimulus in the vulnerable period. While the dynamics of activation and recovery are central to cardiac fibrillation, these physiological data are rarely used in clinical mapping. Fibrillation is a rapid irregular rhythm with spatiotemporal disorder resulting from two fundamental mechanisms - sources in preferred cardiac regions or spatially diffuse self-sustaining activity, i.e. with no preferred source. On close inspection, however, this debate may also reflect mapping technique. Fibrillation is initiated from triggers by regional dispersion in repolarization, slow conduction and wavebreak, then sustained by non-uniform interactions of these mechanisms. Notably, optical mapping of action potentials in atrial fibrillation (AF) show spiral wave sources (rotors) in nearly all studies including humans, while most traditional electrogram analyses of AF do not. Techniques may diverge in fibrillation because electrograms summate non-coherent waves within an undefined field whereas optical maps define waves with a visually defined field. Also fibrillation operates at the limits of activation and recovery, which are well represented by action potentials while fibrillatory electrograms poorly represent repolarization. We conclude by suggesting areas for study that may be used, until such time as optical mapping is clinically feasible, to improve mechanistic understanding and therapy of human cardiac fibrillation. PMID:26607671
Black tea polyphenols: a mechanistic treatise.
Butt, M S; Imran, A; Sharif, M K; Ahmad, Rabia Shabir; Xiao, Hang; Imran, M; Rsool, H A
Dietary interventions are among the emerging trends to curtail physiological malfunctioning like cancer, diabetes, cardiac complications, etc. The essence of phytonutrients has developed the concept of nutraceuticals at the junction of diet health linkages. In this context, theaflavin & thearubigins are the oxidized derivatives of black tea catechins during fermentation having nutraceutical potential owing to esterification of hydroxyl ring with digallate esters. Theaflavin may influence activation of transcription factors such as NFnB or AP-1 that ultimately hinder the formation of nitric oxide expression gene. Likewise, black tea contains a unique amino acid theanine acts as neurotransmitter owing to its ability to cross the blood-brain barrier. Moreover, it boasts immunity by enhancing the disease-fighting ability of gamma delta T cells. Theaflavin & thearubigins act as safeguard against oxidative stress thereby effective in the cardiac functioning. The mechanistic approach of these antioxidants is likely to be associated with inhibition of redox sensitive transcription factors & pro-oxidant enzymes such as xanthine oxidase or nitric oxide synthase. However, their involvement in antioxidative enzyme induction as in glutathione-S-transferases is also well documented. They act as curative agent against numerous pathological disorders by disrupting the electron chain thus inhibiting the progression of certain ailments. Black tea polyphenols established themselves as strong antioxidants due to their standard one-electron potential, and their vitality is dependent on the concentration of polyphenols and pH for their inclusive execution. Present review is an attempt to enrich the readers regarding the health promoting aspects of black tea polyphenols. Concomitantly, it needs core attention of researchers for the exploitations of black tea flavanols as an important dietary constituent for the vulnerable segment. PMID:24499118
Predictive toxicodynamics: Empirical/mechanistic approaches.
Frazier, J M
A major objective of the toxicological sciences is to predict the in vivo toxicological consequences of human exposure to pure chemicals, complex mixtures and commercial formulations. Historically, the experimental approach to this goal has been to investigate toxicological processes in whole animal models and extrapolate the results obtained to predict human risk using various extrapolation procedures (high-dose/low-dose extrapolation, interspecies extrapolation and route-to-route extrapolation). Can in vitro methods be more widely employed in quantitative risk assessment? One major limitation to the broader application of in vitro toxicity testing methods is the lack of validated techniques for the extrapolation of in vitro-derived toxicodynamic data to the in vivo situation. The objective of this paper is to describe some approaches to the development of techniques to extrapolate in vitro toxicity testing data to predict in vivo toxicological responses. An empirical approach within the context of a mechanistic framework is explored. The basic hypothesis is that the in vivo response can be constructed from a cellular toxicity factor that accounts for the cellular response and a toxicodynamic factor that relates toxicological events at the cellular level to the observable in vivo responses. A predictive paradigm to describe the in vivo acute target organ toxicity (hepatotoxicity) of a model chemical (cadmium) is discussed. The cellular toxicity factor is derived from in vitro toxicity testing studies using isolated rat hepatocytes. The toxicodynamic factor is derived through Biologically-Based Response (BBR) modelling techniques to predict target organ toxicity markers (i.e. plasma hepatic enzyme levels as markers for acute hepatotoxicity). The ultimate goal is to develop validated extrapolation procedures that can be applied to predicting target organ toxicity quantitatively in human populations based on in vitro toxicity studies using human cellular models. PMID
Mechanistic Insights into Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Asymmetric Iron Catalysis
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sonnenberg, Jessica
Our group has been focused on replacing toxic and expensive precious metal catalysts with iron for the synthesis of enantiopure compounds for industrial applications. During an investigation into the mechanism of asymmetric transfer hydrogenation with our first generation iron-(P-N-N-P) catalysts we found substantial evidence for zero-valent iron nanoparticles coated in chiral ligand acting as the active site. Extensive experimental and computational experiments were undertaken which included NMR, DFT, reaction profile analysis, substoichiometric poisoning, electron microscope imaging, XPS and multiphasic analysis, all of which supported the fact that NPs were the active species in catalysis. Reversibility of this asymmetric reaction on the nanoparticle surface was then probed using oxidative kinetic resolution of racemic alcohols, yielding modest enantiopurity and high turnover frequencies (TOF) for a range of aromatic alcohols. Efficient dehydrogenation of ammonia-borane for hydrogen evolution and the formation of B-N oligomers was also shown using the NP system, yielding highly active systems, with a maximum TOF of 3.66 H2/s-1 . We have also begun to focus on the development of iron catalysts for asymmetric direct hydrogenation of ketones using hydrogen gas. New chiral iron-(P-N-P) catalysts were developed and shown to be quite active and selective for a wide range of substrates. Mechanistic investigations primarily using NMR and DFT indicated that a highly active trans-dihydride species was being formed during catalyst activation. Lastly, a new library of chiral P-N-P and P-NH-P ligands were developed, as well as their corresponding iron complexes, some of which show promise for the development of future generations of active asymmetric direct hydrogenation catalysts.
Application of Mechanistic Toxicology Data to Ecological Risk Assessments
The ongoing evolution of knowledge and tools in the areas of molecular biology, bioinformatics, and systems biology holds significant promise for reducing uncertainties associated with ecological risk assessment. As our understanding of the mechanistic basis of responses of organ...
Accurate health risk assessments of inhalation exposure to nanomaterials will require dosimetry models that account for interspecies differences in dose delivered to the respiratory tract. Mechanistic models offer the advantage to interspecies extrapolation that physicochemica...
Bridging paradigms: hybrid mechanistic-discriminative predictive models.
Doyle, Orla M; Tsaneva-Atansaova, Krasimira; Harte, James; Tiffin, Paul A; Tino, Peter; Díaz-Zuccarini, Vanessa
Many disease processes are extremely complex and characterized by multiple stochastic processes interacting simultaneously. Current analytical approaches have included mechanistic models and machine learning (ML), which are often treated as orthogonal viewpoints. However, to facilitate truly personalized medicine, new perspectives may be required. This paper reviews the use of both mechanistic models and ML in healthcare as well as emerging hybrid methods, which are an exciting and promising approach for biologically based, yet data-driven advanced intelligent systems. PMID:23392334
William R. Rossen
. We find that such behavior is consistent with earlier models of foam viscosity in tubes, and a modified model for the low-quality regime can account for this behavior. It is not yet clear why this new regime appears in some cases and not in others. Simple modeling suggests that the answer may have to do with the sensitivity of gas trapping to pressure gradient. Research on Task 3 continued to focus on foam generation at limited pressure gradient in sandpacks. We investigated the effects of permeability, surfactant concentration and liquid injection rates on foam generation. In addition, a careful review of published studies showed that repeated snap-off is not a plausible mechanism of foam generation in homogeneous porous media beyond the stage of initial drainage from a fully liquid-saturated state. Snap-off has been the focus of much research on foam generation and is incorporated into most mechanistic foam simulators. This finding should force a reconsideration of its role in foam generation and properties in porous media.
From formamide to purine: an energetically viable mechanistic reaction pathway.
Wang, Jing; Gu, Jiande; Nguyen, Minh Tho; Springsteen, Greg; Leszczynski, Jerzy
A step-by-step mechanistic pathway following the transformation of formamide to purine through a five-membered ring intermediate has been explored by density functional theory computations. The highlight of the mechanistic route detailed here is that the proposed pathway represents the simplest reaction pathway. All necessary reactants are generated from a single starting compound, formamide, through energetically viable reactions. Several important reaction steps are involved in this mechanistic route: formylation-dehydration, Leuckart reduction, five- and six-membered ring-closure, and deamination. On the basis of the study of noncatalytic pathways, catalytic water has been found to provide energetically viable step-by-step mechanistic pathways. Among these reaction steps, five-member ring-closure is the rate-determining step. The energy barrier (ca. 42 kcal/mol) of this rate-control step is somewhat lower than the rate-determining step (ca. 44 kcal/mol) for a pyrimidine-based pathway reported previously. The mechanistic pathway reported herein is less energetically demanding than for previously proposed routes to adenine. PMID:23347082
Explanation and inference: mechanistic and functional explanations guide property generalization
Lombrozo, Tania; Gwynne, Nicholas Z.
The ability to generalize from the known to the unknown is central to learning and inference. Two experiments explore the relationship between how a property is explained and how that property is generalized to novel species and artifacts. The experiments contrast the consequences of explaining a property mechanistically, by appeal to parts and processes, with the consequences of explaining the property functionally, by appeal to functions and goals. The findings suggest that properties that are explained functionally are more likely to be generalized on the basis of shared functions, with a weaker relationship between mechanistic explanations and generalization on the basis of shared parts and processes. The influence of explanation type on generalization holds even though all participants are provided with the same mechanistic and functional information, and whether an explanation type is freely generated (Experiment 1), experimentally provided (Experiment 2), or experimentally induced (Experiment 2). The experiments also demonstrate that explanations and generalizations of a particular type (mechanistic or functional) can be experimentally induced by providing sample explanations of that type, with a comparable effect when the sample explanations come from the same domain or from a different domains. These results suggest that explanations serve as a guide to generalization, and contribute to a growing body of work supporting the value of distinguishing mechanistic and functional explanations. PMID:25309384
Mechanistic Study of Manganese-Substituted Glycerol Dehydrogenase Using a Kinetic and Thermodynamic Analysis
Fang, Baishan; Niu, Jin; Ren, Hong; Guo, Yingxia; Wang, Shizhen
Mechanistic insights regarding the activity enhancement of dehydrogenase by metal ion substitution were investigated by a simple method using a kinetic and thermodynamic analysis. By profiling the binding energy of both the substrate and product, the metal ion's role in catalysis enhancement was revealed. Glycerol dehydrogenase (GDH) from Klebsiella pneumoniae sp., which demonstrated an improvement in activity by the substitution of a zinc ion with a manganese ion, was used as a model for the mechanistic study of metal ion substitution. A kinetic model based on an ordered Bi-Bi mechanism was proposed considering the noncompetitive product inhibition of dihydroxyacetone (DHA) and the competitive product inhibition of NADH. By obtaining preliminary kinetic parameters of substrate and product inhibition, the number of estimated parameters was reduced from 10 to 4 for a nonlinear regression-based kinetic parameter estimation. The simulated values of time-concentration curves fit the experimental values well, with an average relative error of 11.5% and 12.7% for Mn-GDH and GDH, respectively. A comparison of the binding energy of enzyme ternary complex for Mn-GDH and GDH derived from kinetic parameters indicated that metal ion substitution accelerated the release of dioxyacetone. The metal ion's role in catalysis enhancement was explicated. PMID:24896258
Mechanistic Models of Friction Stir Welding
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Stewart, Michael B.
showed that the balance of moments through the weld plug was not possible under steady state conditions and realistic temperature profiles. This led to some consideration of a quasi-steady oscillating process. Later when force measurements became available some models were modified and new ones were proposed.
In the last ten years the Spray Drift Task Force (SDTF), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), USDA Agricultural Research Service, and USDA Forest Service cooperated in the refinement and evaluation of a mechanistically-based aerial spray model (contained within AGDISP and ...
The paper discusses mechanistic and source understanding of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran (PCDD/F) formation. (NOTE: Considerable research effort has been expended over the last 15-plus years to understand how combustion sources result in formation of PCDDs/F...
We propose developing a mechanistic-based numerical model for chlorine decay and regulated DBP (THM and HAA) formation derived from (free) chlorination; the model framework will allow future modifications for other DBPs and chloramination. Predicted chlorine residual and DBP r...
Does Mechanistic Thinking Improve Student Success in Organic Chemistry?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Grove, Nathaniel P.; Cooper, Melanie M.; Cox, Elizabeth L.
The use of the curved-arrow notation to depict electron flow during mechanistic processes is one of the most important representational conventions in the organic chemistry curriculum. Our previous research documented a disturbing trend: when asked to predict the products of a series of reactions, many students do not spontaneously engage in…
Mechanistically Consistent Reduced Models of Synthetic Gene Networks
Mier-y-Terán-Romero, Luis; Silber, Mary; Hatzimanikatis, Vassily
Designing genetic networks with desired functionalities requires an accurate mathematical framework that accounts for the essential mechanistic details of the system. Here, we formulate a time-delay model of protein translation and mRNA degradation by systematically reducing a detailed mechanistic model that explicitly accounts for the ribosomal dynamics and the cleaving of mRNA by endonucleases. We exploit various technical and conceptual advantages that our time-delay model offers over the mechanistic model to probe the behavior of a self-repressing gene over wide regions of parameter space. We show that a heuristic time-delay model of protein synthesis of a commonly used form yields a notably different prediction for the parameter region where sustained oscillations occur. This suggests that such heuristics can lead to erroneous results. The functional forms that arise from our systematic reduction can be used for every system that involves transcription and translation and they could replace the commonly used heuristic time-delay models for these processes. The results from our analysis have important implications for the design of synthetic gene networks and stress that such design must be guided by a combination of heuristic models and mechanistic models that include all relevant details of the process. PMID:23663853
Bridging Mechanistic and Phenomenological Models of Complex Biological Systems
Transtrum, Mark K.; Qiu, Peng
The inherent complexity of biological systems gives rise to complicated mechanistic models with a large number of parameters. On the other hand, the collective behavior of these systems can often be characterized by a relatively small number of phenomenological parameters. We use the Manifold Boundary Approximation Method (MBAM) as a tool for deriving simple phenomenological models from complicated mechanistic models. The resulting models are not black boxes, but remain expressed in terms of the microscopic parameters. In this way, we explicitly connect the macroscopic and microscopic descriptions, characterize the equivalence class of distinct systems exhibiting the same range of collective behavior, and identify the combinations of components that function as tunable control knobs for the behavior. We demonstrate the procedure for adaptation behavior exhibited by the EGFR pathway. From a 48 parameter mechanistic model, the system can be effectively described by a single adaptation parameter τ characterizing the ratio of time scales for the initial response and recovery time of the system which can in turn be expressed as a combination of microscopic reaction rates, Michaelis-Menten constants, and biochemical concentrations. The situation is not unlike modeling in physics in which microscopically complex processes can often be renormalized into simple phenomenological models with only a few effective parameters. The proposed method additionally provides a mechanistic explanation for non-universal features of the behavior. PMID:27187545
EPA's Guidelines for Carcinogen Risk Assessment call for use of mechanistic and other relevant information in making choices about the models to be used in extrapolating hazard estimates from high to low exposures. The Forum report on thyroid neoplasia proposes that, under clearl...
Rearrangements of Allylic Sulfinates to Sulfones: A Mechanistic Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ball, David B.; Mollard, Paul; Voigtritter, Karl R.; Ball, Jenelle L.
Most current organic chemistry textbooks are organized by functional groups and those of us who teach organic chemistry use functional-group organization in our courses but ask students to learn organic chemistry from a mechanistic approach. To enrich and extend the chemical understanding and knowledge of pericyclic-type reactions for chemistry…
Bridging Mechanistic and Phenomenological Models of Complex Biological Systems.
Transtrum, Mark K; Qiu, Peng
The inherent complexity of biological systems gives rise to complicated mechanistic models with a large number of parameters. On the other hand, the collective behavior of these systems can often be characterized by a relatively small number of phenomenological parameters. We use the Manifold Boundary Approximation Method (MBAM) as a tool for deriving simple phenomenological models from complicated mechanistic models. The resulting models are not black boxes, but remain expressed in terms of the microscopic parameters. In this way, we explicitly connect the macroscopic and microscopic descriptions, characterize the equivalence class of distinct systems exhibiting the same range of collective behavior, and identify the combinations of components that function as tunable control knobs for the behavior. We demonstrate the procedure for adaptation behavior exhibited by the EGFR pathway. From a 48 parameter mechanistic model, the system can be effectively described by a single adaptation parameter τ characterizing the ratio of time scales for the initial response and recovery time of the system which can in turn be expressed as a combination of microscopic reaction rates, Michaelis-Menten constants, and biochemical concentrations. The situation is not unlike modeling in physics in which microscopically complex processes can often be renormalized into simple phenomenological models with only a few effective parameters. The proposed method additionally provides a mechanistic explanation for non-universal features of the behavior. PMID:27187545
Mechanistic investigation of a hemostatic keratin biomaterial
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rahmany, Maria Bahawdory
biomaterial surfaces. While other groups have discussed keratin's capacity to specifically adhere cells, this work was the first to utilize function blocking antibodies to deduce the specific receptors involved in mediating the cell-keratin interaction. To explore keratin's role in the second arm of coagulation, the clotting cascade, we followed the kinetic behavior of fibrin generation in the presence and absence of keratin. Confirmed with samples of plasma and a purified system of fibrinogen and thrombin, we observed an increased rate of fibrin polymerization in the presence of keratin proteins. The final goal of this project was to utilize a Chinese hamster ovary cell line to more specifically explore integrin-mediated cell interactions with keratin biomaterials in a controlled, biologically relevant system. Together, this work provides key details regarding keratin's hemostatic characteristics, providing the foundations for further development and optimizing of the material's unique characteristics for use as a hemostatic agent. More broadly, application of the CHO cell model could provide a useful tool for developing a receptor-ligand profile for keratin biomaterials.
Antimalarial benzoheterocyclic 4-aminoquinolines: Structure-activity relationship, in vivo evaluation, mechanistic and bioactivation studies.
Ongarora, Dennis S B; Strydom, Natasha; Wicht, Kathryn; Njoroge, Mathew; Wiesner, Lubbe; Egan, Timothy J; Wittlin, Sergio; Jurva, Ulrik; Masimirembwa, Collen M; Chibale, Kelly
A novel class of benzoheterocyclic analogues of amodiaquine designed to avoid toxic reactive metabolite formation was synthesized and evaluated for antiplasmodial activity against K1 (multidrug resistant) and NF54 (sensitive) strains of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Structure-activity relationship studies led to the identification of highly promising analogues, the most potent of which had IC50s in the nanomolar range against both strains. The compounds further demonstrated good in vitro microsomal metabolic stability while those subjected to in vivo pharmacokinetic studies had desirable pharmacokinetic profiles. In vivo antimalarial efficacy in Plasmodium berghei infected mice was evaluated for four compounds, all of which showed good activity following oral administration. In particular, compound 19 completely cured treated mice at a low multiple dose of 4×10mg/kg. Mechanistic and bioactivation studies suggest hemozoin formation inhibition and a low likelihood of forming quinone-imine reactive metabolites, respectively. PMID:26264839
A framework for recognizing mechanistic reasoning in student scientific inquiry
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Russ, Rosemary S.
A central ambition of science education reform is to help students develop abilities for scientific inquiry. Education research is thus rightly focused on defining what constitutes "inquiry" and developing tools for assessing it. There has been progress with respect to particular aspects of inquiry, namely student abilities for controlled experimentation and scientific argumentation. However, we suggest that in addition to these frameworks for assessing the structure of inquiry we need frameworks for analyzing the substance of that inquiry. In this work we draw attention to and evaluate the substance of student mechanistic reasoning. Both within the history and philosophy of science and within science education research, scientific inquiry is characterized in part as understanding the causal mechanisms that underlie natural phenomena. The challenge for science education, however, is that there has not been the same progress with respect to making explicit what constitutes mechanistic reasoning as there has been in making explicit other aspects of inquiry. This dissertation attempts to address this challenge. We adapt an account of mechanism in professional research science to develop a framework for reliably recognizing mechanistic reasoning in student discourse. The coding scheme articulates seven specific aspects of mechanistic reasoning and can be used to systematically analyze narrative data for patterns in student thinking. It provides a tool for detecting quality reasoning that may be overlooked by more traditional assessments. We apply the mechanism coding scheme to video and written data from a range of student inquiries, from large group discussions among first grade students to the individual problem solving of graduate students. While the primary result of this work is the coding scheme itself and the finding that it provides a reliable means of analyzing transcript data for evidence of mechanistic thinking, the rich descriptions we develop in each case
Mechanistic model for catalytic recombination during aerobraking maneuvers
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Willey, Ronald J.
Several mechanistic models are developed to predict recombination coefficients for use in heat shield design for reusable surface insulation (RSI) on aerobraking vehicles such as space shuttles. The models are applied over a temperature range of 300 to 1800 K and a stagnation pressure range of 0 to 3,000 Pa. A four parameter model in temperature was found to work best; however, several models (including those with atom concentrations at the surface) were also investigated. Mechanistic models developed with atom concentration terms may be applicable when sufficient data becomes available. The requirement is shown for recombination experiments in the 300 to 1000 K and 1500 to 1850 K temperature range, with deliberate concentration variations.
Answering evolutionary questions: A guide for mechanistic biologists.
Masel, Joanna; Promislow, Daniel E L
The questions and methods of molecular biology and evolutionary biology are clearly distinct, yet a unified approach can lead to deep insights. Unfortunately, attempts to unify these approaches are fraught with pitfalls. In this informal series of questions and answers, we offer the mechanistically oriented biologist a set of steps to come up with evolutionarily reasonable and meaningful hypotheses. We emphasize the critical power and importance of carefully constructed null hypotheses, and we illustrate our ideas with examples representing a range of topics, from the biology of aging, to protein structure, to speciation, and more. We also stress the importance of mathematics as the lingua franca for biologists of all stripes, and encourage mechanistic biologists to seek out quantitative collaborators to build explicit mathematical models, making their assumptions explicit, and their logic clear and testable. Biologists in all realms of inquiry stand to gain from strong bridges between our disciplines. PMID:27151396
Millifluidics for Chemical Synthesis and Time-resolved Mechanistic Studies
Krishna, Katla Sai; Biswas, Sanchita; Navin, Chelliah V.; Yamane, Dawit G.; Miller, Jeffrey T.; Kumar, Challa S.S.R.
Procedures utilizing millifluidic devices for chemical synthesis and time-resolved mechanistic studies are described by taking three examples. In the first, synthesis of ultra-small copper nanoclusters is described. The second example provides their utility for investigating time resolved kinetics of chemical reactions by analyzing gold nanoparticle formation using in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The final example demonstrates continuous flow catalysis of reactions inside millifluidic channel coated with nanostructured catalyst. PMID:24327099
Millifluidics for chemical synthesis and time-resolved mechanistic studies.
Krishna, Katla Sai; Biswas, Sanchita; Navin, Chelliah V; Yamane, Dawit G; Miller, Jeffrey T; Kumar, Challa S S R
Procedures utilizing millifluidic devices for chemical synthesis and time-resolved mechanistic studies are described by taking three examples. In the first, synthesis of ultra-small copper nanoclusters is described. The second example provides their utility for investigating time resolved kinetics of chemical reactions by analyzing gold nanoparticle formation using in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The final example demonstrates continuous flow catalysis of reactions inside millifluidic channel coated with nanostructured catalyst. PMID:24327099
Underreliance on mechanistic models: Comment on Ferguson (2015).
Tryon, Warren W
Ferguson (see record ) proposed that our overreliance on mechanistic models is responsible for the public's negative view of psychology. On the contrary, I claim that our explanations do not actually explain because they lack mechanism information and that is why the public has a negative view of psychology. Some of the mechanism information required to move from interpretations to explanations can be found in parallel distributed processing connectionist neural network models of psychology and behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record PMID:27571530
Mechanistic model and analysis of doxorubicin release from liposomal formulations.
Fugit, Kyle D; Xiang, Tian-Xiang; Choi, Du H; Kangarlou, Sogol; Csuhai, Eva; Bummer, Paul M; Anderson, Bradley D
Reliable and predictive models of drug release kinetics in vitro and in vivo are still lacking for liposomal formulations. Developing robust, predictive release models requires systematic, quantitative characterization of these complex drug delivery systems with respect to the physicochemical properties governing the driving force for release. These models must also incorporate changes in release due to the dissolution media and methods employed to monitor release. This paper demonstrates the successful development and application of a mathematical mechanistic model capable of predicting doxorubicin (DXR) release kinetics from liposomal formulations resembling the FDA-approved nanoformulation DOXIL® using dynamic dialysis. The model accounts for DXR equilibria (e.g. self-association, precipitation, ionization), the change in intravesicular pH due to ammonia release, and dialysis membrane transport of DXR. The model was tested using a Box-Behnken experimental design in which release conditions including extravesicular pH, ammonia concentration in the release medium, and the dilution of the formulation (i.e. suspension concentration) were varied. Mechanistic model predictions agreed with observed DXR release up to 19h. The predictions were similar to a computer fit of the release data using an empirical model often employed for analyzing data generated from this type of experimental design. Unlike the empirical model, the mechanistic model was also able to provide reasonable predictions of release outside the tested design space. These results illustrate the usefulness of mechanistic modeling to predict drug release from liposomal formulations in vitro and its potential for future development of in vitro - in vivo correlations for complex nanoformulations. PMID:26310713
Mechanistic profiling of the siRNA delivery dynamics of lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles.
Colombo, Stefano; Cun, Dongmei; Remaut, Katrien; Bunker, Matt; Zhang, Jianxin; Martin-Bertelsen, Birte; Yaghmur, Anan; Braeckmans, Kevin; Nielsen, Hanne M; Foged, Camilla
Understanding the delivery dynamics of nucleic acid nanocarriers is fundamental to improve their design for therapeutic applications. We investigated the carrier structure-function relationship of lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPNs) consisting of poly(DL-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanocarriers modified with the cationic lipid dioleoyltrimethyl-ammoniumpropane (DOTAP). A library of siRNA-loaded LPNs was prepared by systematically varying the nitrogen-to-phosphate (N/P) ratio. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and cryo-transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) combined with small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) studies suggested that the siRNA-loaded LPNs are characterized by a core-shell structure consisting of a PLGA matrix core coated with lamellar DOTAP structures with siRNA localized both in the core and in the shell. Release studies in buffer and serum-containing medium combined with in vitro gene silencing and quantification of intracellular siRNA suggested that this self-assembling core-shell structure influences the siRNA release kinetics and the delivery dynamics. A main delivery mechanism appears to be mediated via the release of transfection-competent siRNA-DOTAP lipoplexes from the LPNs. Based on these results, we suggest a model for the nanostructural characteristics of the LPNs, in which the siRNA is organized in lamellar superficial assemblies and/or as complexes entrapped in the polymeric matrix. PMID:25540904
Explaining the atypical reaction profiles of heme enzymes with a novel mechanistic hypothesis and kinetic treatment.
Manoj, Kelath Murali; Baburaj, Arun; Ephraim, Binoy; Pappachan, Febin; Maviliparambathu, Pravitha Parapurathu; Vijayan, Umesh K; Narayanan, Sivaprasad Valiyaveettil; Periasamy, Kalaiselvi; George, Ebi Ashley; Mathew, Lazar T
Many heme enzymes show remarkable versatility and atypical kinetics. The fungal extracellular enzyme chloroperoxidase (CPO) characterizes a variety of one and two electron redox reactions in the presence of hydroperoxides. A structural counterpart, found in mammalian microsomal cytochrome P450 (CYP), uses molecular oxygen plus NADPH for the oxidative metabolism (predominantly hydroxylation) of substrate in conjunction with a redox partner enzyme, cytochrome P450 reductase. In this study, we employ the two above-mentioned heme-thiolate proteins to probe the reaction kinetics and mechanism of heme enzymes. Hitherto, a substrate inhibition model based upon non-productive binding of substrate (two-site model) was used to account for the inhibition of reaction at higher substrate concentrations for the CYP reaction systems. Herein, the observation of substrate inhibition is shown for both peroxide and final substrate in CPO catalyzed peroxidations. Further, analogy is drawn in the "steady state kinetics" of CPO and CYP reaction systems. New experimental observations and analyses indicate that a scheme of competing reactions (involving primary product with enzyme or other reaction components/intermediates) is relevant in such complex reaction mixtures. The presence of non-selective reactive intermediate(s) affords alternate reaction routes at various substrate/product concentrations, thereby leading to a lowered detectable concentration of "the product of interest" in the reaction milieu. Occam's razor favors the new hypothesis. With the new hypothesis as foundation, a new biphasic treatment to analyze the kinetics is put forth. We also introduce a key concept of "substrate concentration at maximum observed rate". The new treatment affords a more acceptable fit for observable experimental kinetic data of heme redox enzymes. PMID:20498847
Explaining the Atypical Reaction Profiles of Heme Enzymes with a Novel Mechanistic Hypothesis and Kinetic Treatment
Manoj, Kelath Murali; Baburaj, Arun; Ephraim, Binoy; Pappachan, Febin; Maviliparambathu, Pravitha Parapurathu; Vijayan, Umesh K.; Narayanan, Sivaprasad Valiyaveettil; Periasamy, Kalaiselvi; George, Ebi Ashley; Mathew, Lazar T.
Many heme enzymes show remarkable versatility and atypical kinetics. The fungal extracellular enzyme chloroperoxidase (CPO) characterizes a variety of one and two electron redox reactions in the presence of hydroperoxides. A structural counterpart, found in mammalian microsomal cytochrome P450 (CYP), uses molecular oxygen plus NADPH for the oxidative metabolism (predominantly hydroxylation) of substrate in conjunction with a redox partner enzyme, cytochrome P450 reductase. In this study, we employ the two above-mentioned heme-thiolate proteins to probe the reaction kinetics and mechanism of heme enzymes. Hitherto, a substrate inhibition model based upon non-productive binding of substrate (two-site model) was used to account for the inhibition of reaction at higher substrate concentrations for the CYP reaction systems. Herein, the observation of substrate inhibition is shown for both peroxide and final substrate in CPO catalyzed peroxidations. Further, analogy is drawn in the "steady state kinetics" of CPO and CYP reaction systems. New experimental observations and analyses indicate that a scheme of competing reactions (involving primary product with enzyme or other reaction components/intermediates) is relevant in such complex reaction mixtures. The presence of non-selective reactive intermediate(s) affords alternate reaction routes at various substrate/product concentrations, thereby leading to a lowered detectable concentration of "the product of interest" in the reaction milieu. Occam's razor favors the new hypothesis. With the new hypothesis as foundation, a new biphasic treatment to analyze the kinetics is put forth. We also introduce a key concept of "substrate concentration at maximum observed rate". The new treatment affords a more acceptable fit for observable experimental kinetic data of heme redox enzymes. PMID:20498847
Home range analysis using a mechanistic home range model
Moorcroft, P.R. . Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology); Lewis, M.A. . Dept. of Mathematics) Crabtree, R.L. . Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Resources)
The traditional models used to characterize animal home ranges have no mechanistic basis underlying their descriptions of space use, and as a result, the analysis of animal home ranges has primarily been a descriptive endeavor. In this paper, the authors characterize coyote (Canis latrans) home range patterns using partial differential equations for expected space use that are formally derived from underlying descriptions of individual movement behavior. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that mechanistic models have been used to characterize animal home ranges. The results provide empirical support for a model formulation of movement response to scent marks, and suggest that having relocation data for individuals in adjacent groups is necessary to capture the spatial arrangement of home range boundaries. The authors then show how the model fits can be used to obtain predictions for individual movement and scent marking behavior and to predict changes in home range patterns. More generally, the findings illustrate how mechanistic models permit the development of a predictive theory for the relationship between movement behavior and animal spatial distribution.
Mechanistic modeling of ion-exchange process chromatography of charge variants of monoclonal antibody products.
Kumar, Vijesh; Leweke, Samuel; von Lieres, Eric; Rathore, Anurag S
Ion-exchange chromatography (IEX) is universally accepted as the optimal method for achieving process scale separation of charge variants of a monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapeutic. These variants are closely related to the product and a baseline separation is rarely achieved. The general practice is to fractionate the eluate from the IEX column, analyze the fractions and then pool the desired fractions to obtain the targeted composition of variants. This is, however, a very cumbersome and time consuming exercise. A mechanistic model that is capable of simulating the peak profile will be a much more elegant and effective way to make a decision on the pooling strategy. This paper proposes a mechanistic model, based on the general rate model, to predict elution peak profile for separation of the main product from its variants. The proposed approach uses inverse fit of process scale chromatogram for estimation of model parameters using the initial values that are obtained from theoretical correlations. The packed bed column has been modeled along with the chromatographic system consisting of the mixer, tubing and detectors as a series of dispersed plug flow and continuous stirred tank reactors. The model uses loading ranges starting at 25% to a maximum of 70% of the loading capacity and hence is applicable to process scale separations. Langmuir model has been extended to include the effects of salt concentration and temperature on the model parameters. The extended Langmuir model that has been proposed uses one less parameter than the SMA model and this results in a significant ease of estimating the model parameters from inverse fitting. The proposed model has been validated with experimental data and has been shown to successfully predict peak profile for a range of load capacities (15-28mg/mL), gradient lengths (10-30CV), bed heights (6-20cm), and for three different resins with good accuracy (as measured by estimation of residuals). The model has been also
Recurrent Glioblastomas Reveal Molecular Subtypes Associated with Mechanistic Implications of Drug-Resistance
Park, Chul-Kee; Jung, Shin; Park, Eun Sung; Lee, Ju-Seog; Kim, Se-Hyuk; Woo, Hyun Goo
Previously, transcriptomic profiling studies have shown distinct molecular subtypes of glioblastomas. It has also been suggested that the recurrence of glioblastomas could be achieved by transcriptomic reprograming of tumors, however, their characteristics are not yet fully understood. Here, to gain the mechanistic insights on the molecular phenotypes of recurrent glioblastomas, gene expression profiling was performed on the 43 cases of glioblastomas including 15 paired primary and recurrent cases. Unsupervised clustering analyses revealed two subtypes of G1 and G2, which were characterized by proliferation and neuron-like gene expression traits, respectively. While the primary tumors were classified as G1 subtype, the recurrent glioblastomas showed two distinct expression types. Compared to paired primary tumors, the recurrent tumors in G1 subtype did not show expression alteration. By contrast, the recurrent tumors in G2 subtype showed expression changes from proliferation type to neuron-like one. We also observed the expression of stemness-related genes in G1 recurrent tumors and the altered expression of DNA-repair genes (i.e., AURK, HOX, MGMT, and MSH6) in the G2 recurrent tumors, which might be responsible for the acquisition of drug resistance mechanism during tumor recurrence in a subtype-specific manner. We suggest that recurrent glioblastomas may choose two different strategies for transcriptomic reprograming to escape the chemotherapeutic treatment during tumor recurrence. Our results might be helpful to determine personalized therapeutic strategy against heterogeneous glioma recurrence. PMID:26466313
Systematic interpolation method predicts protein chromatographic elution from batch isotherm data without a detailed mechanistic isotherm model.
Creasy, Arch; Barker, Gregory; Yao, Yan; Carta, Giorgio
Predicting protein elution for overloaded ion exchange columns requires models capable of describing protein binding over broad ranges of protein and salt concentrations. Although approximate mechanistic models are available, they do not always have the accuracy needed for precise predictions. The aim of this work is to develop a method to predict protein chromatographic behavior from batch isotherm data without relying on a mechanistic model. The method uses a systematic empirical interpolation (EI) scheme coupled with a lumped kinetic model with rate parameters determined from HETP measurements for non-binding conditions, to numerically predict the column behavior. For two experimental systems considered in this work, predictions based on the EI scheme are in excellent agreement with experimental elution profiles under highly overloaded conditions without using any adjustable parameters. A qualitative study of the sensitivity of predicting protein elution profiles to the precision, granularity, and extent of the batch adsorption data shows that the EI scheme is relatively insensitive to the properties of the dataset used, requiring only that the experimental ranges of protein and salt concentrations overlap those under which the protein actually elutes from the column and possess a ± 10% measurement precision. PMID:26015091
In Silico, Experimental, Mechanistic Model for Extended-Release Felodipine Disposition Exhibiting Complex Absorption and a Highly Variable Food Interaction
Kim, Sean H. J.; Jackson, Andre J.; Hunt, C. Anthony
The objective of this study was to develop and explore new, in silico experimental methods for deciphering complex, highly variable absorption and food interaction pharmacokinetics observed for a modified-release drug product. Toward that aim, we constructed an executable software analog of study participants to whom product was administered orally. The analog is an object- and agent-oriented, discrete event system, which consists of grid spaces and event mechanisms that map abstractly to different physiological features and processes. Analog mechanisms were made sufficiently complicated to achieve prespecified similarity criteria. An equation-based gastrointestinal transit model with nonlinear mixed effects analysis provided a standard for comparison. Subject-specific parameterizations enabled each executed analog's plasma profile to mimic features of the corresponding six individual pairs of subject plasma profiles. All achieved prespecified, quantitative similarity criteria, and outperformed the gastrointestinal transit model estimations. We observed important subject-specific interactions within the simulation and mechanistic differences between the two models. We hypothesize that mechanisms, events, and their causes occurring during simulations had counterparts within the food interaction study: they are working, evolvable, concrete theories of dynamic interactions occurring within individual subjects. The approach presented provides new, experimental strategies for unraveling the mechanistic basis of complex pharmacological interactions and observed variability. PMID:25268237
(Mechanistic examination of organometallic electron transfer reactions: Annual report, 1989)
Not Available
Our mechanistic examination of electron transfer reactions between organometallic complexes has required data from our stopped-flow infrared spectrophotometer that was constructed in the first year. Our research on organometallic electron transfer reaction mechanisms was recognized by an invitation to the Symposium on Organometallic Reaction Mechanisms at the National ACS meeting in Miami. We have obtained a reasonable understanding of the electron transfer reactions between metal cations and anions and between metal carbonyl anions and metal carbonyl dimers. In addition we have begun to obtain data on the outer sphere electron transfer between metal carbonyl anions and coordination complexes and on reactions involving cluster anions.
Mechanistic systems modeling to guide drug discovery and development
Schmidt, Brian J.; Papin, Jason A.; Musante, Cynthia J.
A crucial question that must be addressed in the drug development process is whether the proposed therapeutic target will yield the desired effect in the clinical population. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies place a large investment on research and development, long before confirmatory data are available from human trials. Basic science has greatly expanded the computable knowledge of disease processes, both through the generation of large omics data sets and a compendium of studies assessing cellular and systemic responses to physiologic and pathophysiologic stimuli. Given inherent uncertainties in drug development, mechanistic systems models can better inform target selection and the decision process for advancing compounds through preclinical and clinical research. PMID:22999913
[Mechanistic examination of organometallic electron transfer reactions: Annual report, 1989
Not Available
Our mechanistic examination of electron transfer reactions between organometallic complexes has required data from our stopped-flow infrared spectrophotometer that was constructed in the first year. Our research on organometallic electron transfer reaction mechanisms was recognized by an invitation to the Symposium on Organometallic Reaction Mechanisms at the National ACS meeting in Miami. We have obtained a reasonable understanding of the electron transfer reactions between metal cations and anions and between metal carbonyl anions and metal carbonyl dimers. In addition we have begun to obtain data on the outer sphere electron transfer between metal carbonyl anions and coordination complexes and on reactions involving cluster anions.
Mechanistic study of a diazo dye degradation by Soybean Peroxidase
Background Enzyme based remediation of wastewater is emerging as a novel, efficient and environmentally-friendlier approach. However, studies showing detailed mechanisms of enzyme mediated degradation of organic pollutants are not widely published. Results The present report describes a detailed study on the use of Soybean Peroxidase to efficiently degrade Trypan Blue, a diazo dye. In addition to examining various parameters that can affect the dye degradation ability of the enzyme, such as enzyme and H2O2 concentration, reaction pH and temperature, we carried out a detailed mechanistic study of Trypan Blue degradation. HPLC-DAD and LC-MS/MS studies were carried out to confirm dye degradation and analyze the intermediate metabolites and develop a detailed mechanistic dye degradation pathway. Conclusion We report that Soybean peroxidase causes Trypan Blue degradation via symmetrical azo bond cleavage and subsequent radical-initiated ring opening of the metabolites. Interestingly, our results also show that no high molecular weight polymers were produced during the peroxidase-H2O2 mediated degradation of the phenolic Trypan Blue. PMID:23711110
Surgery for malignant gliomas: mechanistic reasoning and slippery statistics.
Mitchell, Patrick; Ellison, David W; Mendelow, A David
Current surgical treatment of malignant gliomas largely depends on mechanistic reasoning and data collected in non-randomised studies. Technological advance has enabled more accurate resection of tumours and preservation of eloquent brain areas but ethical considerations have restricted randomised trials on the efficacy of surgery to one small trial that found a 3 month survival advantage for patients over age 65 years who received surgery and interim analysis of a larger trial. There is an argument for surgery as a palliative measure in patients with symptoms caused by mechanisms that are surgically remediable. Whether there is any survival advantage from surgery in patients other than those with immediately life-threatening, surgically remediable complications, such as raised intracranial pressure, is unclear. The available data show that if such an advantage does exist, it is modest at best. Adjuvant treatments given surgically are being studied. Chemotherapy wafers are the most prominent of the adjuvant treatments but the evidence available is insufficient to recommend their use in routine practice. In this review we examine the prevailing mechanistic model and observational data; we assess how these are applied and the priorities they indicate for future research. PMID:15963444
From data patterns to mechanistic models in acute critical illness.
Aerts, Jean-Marie; Haddad, Wassim M; An, Gary; Vodovotz, Yoram
The complexity of the physiologic and inflammatory response in acute critical illness has stymied the accurate diagnosis and development of therapies. The Society for Complex Acute Illness was formed a decade ago with the goal of leveraging multiple complex systems approaches to address this unmet need. Two main paths of development have characterized the society's approach: (i) data pattern analysis, either defining the diagnostic/prognostic utility of complexity metrics of physiologic signals or multivariate analyses of molecular and genetic data and (ii) mechanistic mathematical and computational modeling, all being performed with an explicit translational goal. Here, we summarize the progress to date on each of these approaches, along with pitfalls inherent in the use of each approach alone. We suggest that the next decade holds the potential to merge these approaches, connecting patient diagnosis to treatment via mechanism-based dynamical system modeling and feedback control and allowing extrapolation from physiologic signals to biomarkers to novel drug candidates. As a predicate example, we focus on the role of data-driven and mechanistic models in neuroscience and the impact that merging these modeling approaches can have on general anesthesia. PMID:24768566
Discerning mechanistically rewired biological pathways by cumulative interaction heterogeneity statistics
Cotton, Travis B.; Nguyen, Hien H.; Said, Joseph I.; Ouyang, Zhengyu; Zhang, Jinfa; Song, Mingzhou
Changes in response of a biological pathway could be a consequence of either pathway rewiring, changed input, or a combination of both. Most pathway analysis methods are not designed for mechanistic rewiring such as regulatory element variations. This limits our understanding of biological pathway evolution. Here we present a Q-method to discern whether changed pathway response is caused by mechanistic rewiring of pathways due to evolution. The main innovation is a cumulative pathway interaction heterogeneity statistic accounting for rewiring-specific effects on the rate of change of each molecular variable across conditions. The Q-method remarkably outperformed differential-correlation based approaches on data from diverse biological processes. Strikingly, it also worked well in differentiating rewired chaotic systems, whose dynamics are notoriously difficult to predict. Applying the Q-method on transcriptome data of four yeasts, we show that pathway interaction heterogeneity for known metabolic and signaling pathways is indeed a predictor of interspecies genetic rewiring due to unbalanced TATA box-containing genes among the yeasts. The demonstrated effectiveness of the Q-method paves the way to understanding network evolution at the resolution of functional biological pathways. PMID:25921728
Trichloroethylene: Mechanistic, Epidemiologic and Other Supporting Evidence of Carcinogenic Hazard
Rusyn, Ivan; Chiu, Weihsueh A.; Lash, Lawrence H.; Kromhout, Hans; Hansen, Johnni; Guyton, Kathryn Z.
The chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene (TCE) is a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. The carcinogenic hazard of TCE was the subject of a 2012 evaluation by a Working Group of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Information on exposures, relevant data from epidemiologic studies, bioassays in experimental animals, and toxicity and mechanism of action studies was used to conclude that TCE is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). This article summarizes the key evidence forming the scientific bases for the IARC classification. Exposure to TCE from environmental sources (including from hazardous waste sites and contaminated water) is common throughout the world. While workplace use of TCE has been declining, occupational exposures remain of concern, especially in developing countries. Strongest human evidence is from studies of occupational TCE exposure and kidney cancer. Positive, although less consistent, associations were reported for liver cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. TCE is carcinogenic at multiple sites in multiple species and strains of experimental animals. The mechanistic evidence includes extensive data on the toxicokinetics and genotoxicity of TCE and its metabolites. Together, available evidence provided a cohesive database supporting the human cancer hazard of TCE, particularly in the kidney. For other target sites of carcinogenicity, mechanistic and other data were found to be more limited. Important sources of susceptibility to TCE toxicity and carcinogenicity were also reviewed by the Working Group. In all, consideration of the multiple evidence streams presented herein informed the IARC conclusions regarding the carcinogenicity of TCE. PMID:23973663
Discerning mechanistically rewired biological pathways by cumulative interaction heterogeneity statistics.
Cotton, Travis B; Nguyen, Hien H; Said, Joseph I; Ouyang, Zhengyu; Zhang, Jinfa; Song, Mingzhou
Changes in response of a biological pathway could be a consequence of either pathway rewiring, changed input, or a combination of both. Most pathway analysis methods are not designed for mechanistic rewiring such as regulatory element variations. This limits our understanding of biological pathway evolution. Here we present a Q-method to discern whether changed pathway response is caused by mechanistic rewiring of pathways due to evolution. The main innovation is a cumulative pathway interaction heterogeneity statistic accounting for rewiring-specific effects on the rate of change of each molecular variable across conditions. The Q-method remarkably outperformed differential-correlation based approaches on data from diverse biological processes. Strikingly, it also worked well in differentiating rewired chaotic systems, whose dynamics are notoriously difficult to predict. Applying the Q-method on transcriptome data of four yeasts, we show that pathway interaction heterogeneity for known metabolic and signaling pathways is indeed a predictor of interspecies genetic rewiring due to unbalanced TATA box-containing genes among the yeasts. The demonstrated effectiveness of the Q-method paves the way to understanding network evolution at the resolution of functional biological pathways. PMID:25921728
A mechanistic PK/PD model for two anti-IL13 antibodies explains the difference in total IL-13 accumulation observed in clinical studies.
Tiwari, Abhinav; Kasaian, Marion; Heatherington, Anne C; Jones, Hannah M; Hua, Fei
IMA-638 and IMA-026 are humanized IgG1 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that target non-overlapping epitopes of IL-13. Separate first-in-human single ascending dose studies were conducted for each mAb. These studies had similar study designs, but mild to moderate asthmatics were recruited for the IMA-638 study and healthy subjects were recruited for the IMA-026 study. IMA-638 and IMA-026 showed similar pharmacokinetic (PK) profiles, but very different total IL-13 (free and drug bound IL-13) profiles; free IL13 was not measured. IMA-026 treatment induced a dose-dependent accumulation of total IL-13, while IMA-638 treatment led to a much smaller accumulation without any clear dose-response. To understand the differences between the two total IL-13 profiles and to predict the free IL-13 profiles for each mAb treatment, a mechanistic PK/pharmacodynamic model was developed. PK-related parameters were first fit to the mean PK profiles of each mAb separately; thereafter, the target-related parameters were fit to both total IL-13 profiles simultaneously. The IL-13 degradation rate was assumed to be the same for asthma patients and healthy subjects. The model suggests that an approximately 100× faster elimination of IL-13-IMA-638 complex than IL-13-IMA-026 complex could be responsible for the differences observed in total IL-13 profiles for the two mAbs. Furthermore, the model predicts that IMA-638 administration results in greater and more prolonged free IL-13 inhibition than equivalent dosing of IMA-026 despite similar binding KD and PK profile. In conclusion, joint modeling of two similar molecules provided mechanistic insight that the elimination rate of mAb-target complex can regulate the degree of free target inhibition. PMID:27049478
Development of an in Silico Profiler for Mitochondrial Toxicity.
Nelms, Mark D; Mellor, Claire L; Cronin, Mark T D; Madden, Judith C; Enoch, Steven J
This study outlines the analysis of mitochondrial toxicity for a variety of pharmaceutical drugs extracted from Zhang et al. ((2009) Toxicol. In Vitro, 23, 134-140). These chemicals were grouped into categories based upon structural similarity. Subsequently, mechanistic analysis was undertaken for each category to identify the molecular initiating event driving mitochondrial toxicity. The mechanistic information elucidated during the analysis enabled mechanism-based structural alerts to be developed and combined together to form an in silico profiler. This profiler is envisaged to be used to develop chemical categories based upon similar mechanisms as part of the adverse outcome pathway paradigm. Additionally, the profiler could be utilized in screening large data sets in order to identify chemicals with the potential to induce mitochondrial toxicity. PMID:26375963
Sadler, William A
* Imprecision profiles express precision characteristics of an assay over a range of concentration values. They can convert large quantities of potentially complex data into an easily interpreted graphical summary. * Imprecision profile estimation does not require precisely structured data. This implies that structured method evaluation data can be easily compared with, or merged with, less structured internal quality control (QC) data (or with data from any other source). * Although originally conceived for immunoassays, imprecision profiles could, in principle, be used as a summary method with any measurement system where precision varies with level of measurand. PMID:18852854
Perspectives on the Application of Mechanistic Information in Chemical Hazard and Dose-Response Assessments
This overview summarizes several EPA Assessment publications reviewing approaches for applying mechanistic information in human health risk assessment and exploring opportunities for progress in this area.
A new mechanistic framework to predict OCS fluxes in soils
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sauze, Joana; Ogee, Jérôme; Launois, Thomas; Kesselmeier, Jürgen; Van Diest, Heidi; Wingate, Lisa
A better description of the amplitude of photosynthetic and respiratory gross CO2 fluxes at large scales is needed to improve our predictions of the current and future global CO2 cycle. Carbonyl sulfide (COS) is the most abundant sulphur gas in the atmosphere and has been proposed as a new tracer of gross photosynthesis, as the uptake of COS from the atmosphere is dominated by the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA), an enzyme abundant in leaves that also catalyses CO2 hydration during photosynthesis. However, soils also exchange COS with the atmosphere and there is growing evidence that this flux must also be accounted for in atmospheric budgets. In this context a new mechanistic description of soil-atmosphere COS exchange is clearly needed. Soils can take up COS from the atmosphere as the soil biota also contain CA, and COS emissions from soils have also been reported in agricultural fields or anoxic soils. Previous studies have also shown that soil COS fluxes present an optimum soil water content and soil temperature. Here we propose a new mechanistic framework to predict the fluxes of COS between the soils and the atmosphere. We describe the COS soil budget by a first-order reaction-diffusion-production equation, assuming that the hydrolysis of COS by CA is total and irreversible. To describe COS diffusion through the soil matrix, we use different formulations of soil air-filled pore space and temperature, depending on the turbulence level above the soil surface. Using this model we are able to explain the observed presence of an optimum temperature for soil COS uptake and show how this optimum can shift to cooler temperatures in the presence of soil COS emissions. Our model can also explain the observed optimum with soil moisture content previously described in the literature (e.g. Van Diest & Kesselmeier, 2008) as a result of diffusional constraints on COS hydrolysis. These diffusional constraints are also responsible for the response of COS uptake to soil
Conservative or reactive? Mechanistic chemical perspectives on organic matter stability
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Koch, Boris
Carbon fixation by terrestrial and marine primary production has a fundamental seasonal effect on the atmospheric carbon content and it profoundly contributes to long-term carbon storage in form of organic matter (OM) in soils, water, and sediments. The efficacy of this sequestration process strongly depends on the degree of OM persistence. Therefore, one of the key issues in dissolved and particulate OM research is to assess the stability of reservoirs and to quantify their contribution to global carbon fluxes. Incubation experiments are helpful to assess OM stability during the first, early diagenetic turnover induced by sunlight or microbes. However, net carbon fluxes within the global carbon cycle also act on much longer time scales, which are not amenable in experiments. It is therefore critical to improve our mechanistic understanding to be able to assess potential future changes in the organic matter cycle. This session contribution highlights some achievements and open questions in the field. An improved mechanistic understanding of OM turnover particularly depends on the molecular characterization of biogeochemical processes and their kinetics: (i) in soils and sediments, aggregation/disaggregation of OM is primarily controlled by its molecular composition. Hence, the chemical composition determines the transfer of organic carbon from the large particulate to the small dissolved organic matter reservoir - an important substrate for microbial metabolism. (ii) In estuaries, dissolved organic carbon gradients usually suggest conservative behavior, whereas molecular-level studies reveal a substantial chemical modification of terrestrial DOM along the land-ocean interface. (iii) In the ocean, previous studies have shown that the recalcitrance of OM depends on bulk concentration and energy yield. However, ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry in combination with radiocarbon analyses also emphasized that stability is tightly connected to molecular composition
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Teach, Beverly; And Others
Presents profiles of two leaders in the field of educational media and technology: Carolyn Guss and Mendel Sherman, both retired professors from Indiana University's program in Information Systems Technology. (KRN)
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Butcher, Channa Beth
Profiles Herbert A. Sweet, founder and director of Acorn Farms Day Camp (Indiana) for 44 years. Includes reminiscences about the camp's program, staffing, food, World War II, affiliation with the American Camping Association, and camps/directors of today. (NEC)
Atrial Fibrillation and Hypertension: Mechanistic, Epidemiologic, and Treatment Parallels
Ogunsua, Adedotun A.; Shaikh, Amir Y.; Ahmed, Mohamed; McManus, David D.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an increasingly prevalent condition and the most common sustained arrhythmia encountered in ambulatory and hospital practice. Several clinical risk factors for AF include age, sex, valvular heart disease, obesity, sleep apnea, heart failure, and hypertension (HTN). Of all the risk factors, HTN is the most commonly encountered condition in patients with incident AF. Hypertension is associated with a 1.8-fold increase in the risk of developing new-onset AF and a 1.5-fold increase in the risk of progression to permanent AF. Hypertension predisposes to cardiac structural changes that influence the development of AF such as atrial remodeling. The renin angiotensin aldosterone system has been demonstrated to be a common mechanistic link in the pathogenesis of HTN and AF. Importantly, HTN is one of the few modifiable AF risk factors, and guideline-directed management of HTN may reduce the incidence of AF. PMID:27057292
Atrial Fibrillation and Hypertension: Mechanistic, Epidemiologic, and Treatment Parallels.
Ogunsua, Adedotun A; Shaikh, Amir Y; Ahmed, Mohamed; McManus, David D
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an increasingly prevalent condition and the most common sustained arrhythmia encountered in ambulatory and hospital practice. Several clinical risk factors for AF include age, sex, valvular heart disease, obesity, sleep apnea, heart failure, and hypertension (HTN). Of all the risk factors, HTN is the most commonly encountered condition in patients with incident AF. Hypertension is associated with a 1.8-fold increase in the risk of developing new-onset AF and a 1.5-fold increase in the risk of progression to permanent AF. Hypertension predisposes to cardiac structural changes that influence the development of AF such as atrial remodeling. The renin angiotensin aldosterone system has been demonstrated to be a common mechanistic link in the pathogenesis of HTN and AF. Importantly, HTN is one of the few modifiable AF risk factors, and guideline-directed management of HTN may reduce the incidence of AF. PMID:27057292
Mechanistic views on aromatic substitution reactions by gaseous cations.
Fornarini, S
Recent advances in the understanding of the gas-phase reaction of aromatics with cationic electrophiles in a thermally equilibrated domain are described. The overall substitution reaction is analyzed in terms of its elementary steps. Their contribution to the overall reactivity pattern is dissected by the use of selected systems, which allowed one to highlight the kinetic role of single elementary events. Mechanistic studies have focused on the structure and reactivity of covalent and non-covalent ionic intermediates, which display a rich chemistry and provide benchmark reactivity models. Particular interest has been devoted to proton transfer reactions, which may occur in either an intra- or intermolecular fashion in arenium intermediates. A quantitative study of their rates and associated kinetic isotope effects is reported. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Mass Spectrom Rev 15(6), 365-389, 1997. PMID:27082944
Mechanistic failure mode investigation and resolution of parvovirus retentive filters.
LaCasse, Daniel; Lute, Scott; Fiadeiro, Marcus; Basha, Jonida; Stork, Matthew; Brorson, Kurt; Godavarti, Ranga; Gallo, Chris
Virus retentive filters are a key product safety measure for biopharmaceuticals. A simplistic perception is that they function solely based on a size-based particle removal mechanism of mechanical sieving and retention of particles based on their hydrodynamic size. Recent observations have revealed a more nuanced picture, indicating that changes in viral particle retention can result from process pressure and/or flow interruptions. In this study, a mechanistic investigation was performed to help identify a potential mechanism leading to the reported reduced particle retention in small virus filters. Permeate flow rate or permeate driving force were varied and analyzed for their impact on particle retention in three commercially available small virus retentive filters. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 32:959-970, 2016. PMID:27160325
Mechanistic insights into selective autophagy pathways: lessons from yeast.
Farré, Jean-Claude; Subramani, Suresh
Autophagy has burgeoned rapidly as a field of study because of its evolutionary conservation, the diversity of intracellular cargoes degraded and recycled by this machinery, the mechanisms involved, as well as its physiological relevance to human health and disease. This self-eating process was initially viewed as a non-selective mechanism used by eukaryotic cells to degrade and recycle macromolecules in response to stress; we now know that various cellular constituents, as well as pathogens, can also undergo selective autophagy. In contrast to non-selective autophagy, selective autophagy pathways rely on a plethora of selective autophagy receptors (SARs) that recognize and direct intracellular protein aggregates, organelles and pathogens for specific degradation. Although SARs themselves are not highly conserved, their modes of action and the signalling cascades that activate and regulate them are. Recent yeast studies have provided novel mechanistic insights into selective autophagy pathways, revealing principles of how various cargoes can be marked and targeted for selective degradation. PMID:27381245
Mechanistic Investigations into the Application of Sulfoxides in Carbohydrate Synthesis
Brabham, Robin
Abstract The utility of sulfoxides in a diverse range of transformations in the field of carbohydrate chemistry has seen rapid growth since the first introduction of a sulfoxide as a glycosyl donor in 1989. Sulfoxides have since developed into more than just anomeric leaving groups, and today have multiple roles in glycosylation reactions. These include as activators for thioglycosides, hemiacetals, and glycals, and as precursors to glycosyl triflates, which are essential for stereoselective β‐mannoside synthesis, and bicyclic sulfonium ions that facilitate the stereoselective synthesis of α‐glycosides. In this review we highlight the mechanistic investigations undertaken in this area, often outlining strategies employed to differentiate between multiple proposed reaction pathways, and how the conclusions of these investigations have and continue to inform upon the development of more efficient transformations in sulfoxide‐based carbohydrate synthesis. PMID:26744250
The unique enzymatic and mechanistic properties of plant myosins.
Henn, Arnon; Sadot, Einat
Myosins are molecular motors that move along actin-filament tracks. Plants express two main classes of myosins, myosin VIII and myosin XI. Along with their relatively conserved sequence and functions, plant myosins have acquired some unique features. Myosin VIII has the enzymatic characteristics of a tension sensor and/or a tension generator, similar to functions found in other eukaryotes. Interestingly, class XI plant myosins have gained a novel function that consists of propelling the exceptionally rapid cytoplasmic streaming. This specific class includes the fastest known translocating molecular motors, which can reach an extremely high velocity of about 60μms(-1). However, the enzymatic properties and mechanistic basis for these remarkable manifestations are not yet fully understood. Here we review recent progress in understanding the uniqueness of plant myosins, while emphasizing the unanswered questions. PMID:25435181
Mechanistic modeling confronts the complexity of molecular cell biology.
Phair, Robert D
Mechanistic modeling has the potential to transform how cell biologists contend with the inescapable complexity of modern biology. I am a physiologist-electrical engineer-systems biologist who has been working at the level of cell biology for the past 24 years. This perspective aims 1) to convey why we build models, 2) to enumerate the major approaches to modeling and their philosophical differences, 3) to address some recurrent concerns raised by experimentalists, and then 4) to imagine a future in which teams of experimentalists and modelers build-and subject to exhaustive experimental tests-models covering the entire spectrum from molecular cell biology to human pathophysiology. There is, in my view, no technical obstacle to this future, but it will require some plasticity in the biological research mind-set. PMID:25368428
A mechanistic interpretation of the resonant wave-particle interaction
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chim, Chi Yung; O'Neil, Thomas M.
This paper provides a simple mechanistic interpretation of the resonant wave-particle interaction of Landau. For the simple case of a Langmuir wave in a Vlasov plasma, the non-resonant electrons satisfy an oscillator equation that is driven resonantly by the bare electric field from the resonant electrons, and in the case of wave damping, this complex driver field is of a phase to reduce the oscillation amplitude. The wave-particle resonant interaction also occurs in waves governed by 2D E × B drift dynamics, such as a diocotron wave. In this case, the bare electric field from the resonant electrons causes E × B drift motion back in the core plasma, reducing the amplitude of the wave.
Mechanistic model for void distribution in flashing flow
Riznic, J.; Ishii, M.; Afgan, N.
A problem of discharging of an initially subcooled liquid from a high pressure condition into a low pressure environment is quite important in several industrial systems such as nuclear reactors and chemical reactors. A new model for the flashing process is proposed here based on the wall nucleation theory, bubble growth model and drift-flux bubble transport model. In order to calculate the bubble number density, the bubble number transport equation with a distributed source from the wall nucleation sites is used. The model predictions in terms of the void fraction are compared to Moby Dick and BNL experimental data. It shows that satisfactory agreements could be obtained from the present model without any floating parameter to be adjusted with data. This result indicates that, at least for the experimental conditions considered here, the mechanistic prediction of the flashing phenomenon is possible based on the present wall nucleation based model. 43 refs., 4 figs.
Mechanistic model for void distribution in flashing flow
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Riznic, J.; Ishii, M.; Afgan, N.
A problem of discharging of an initially subcooled liquid from a high pressure condition into a low pressure environment is quite important in several industrial systems such as nuclear reactors and chemical reactors. A new model for the flashing process is proposed here based on the wall nucleation theory, bubble growth model and drift-flux bubble transport model. In order to calculate the bubble number density, the bubble number transport equation with a distributed source from the wall nucleation sites is used. The model predictions in terms of the void fraction are compared to Moby Dick and BNL experimental data. It shows that satisfactory agreements could be obtained from the present model without any floating parameter to be adjusted with data. This result indicates that, at least for the experimental conditions considered here, the mechanistic prediction of the flashing phenomenon is possible based on the present wall nucleation based model.
Parameter and uncertainty estimation for mechanistic, spatially explicit epidemiological models
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Finger, Flavio; Schaefli, Bettina; Bertuzzo, Enrico; Mari, Lorenzo; Rinaldo, Andrea
Epidemiological models can be a crucially important tool for decision-making during disease outbreaks. The range of possible applications spans from real-time forecasting and allocation of health-care resources to testing alternative intervention mechanisms such as vaccines, antibiotics or the improvement of sanitary conditions. Our spatially explicit, mechanistic models for cholera epidemics have been successfully applied to several epidemics including, the one that struck Haiti in late 2010 and is still ongoing. Calibration and parameter estimation of such models represents a major challenge because of properties unusual in traditional geoscientific domains such as hydrology. Firstly, the epidemiological data available might be subject to high uncertainties due to error-prone diagnosis as well as manual (and possibly incomplete) data collection. Secondly, long-term time-series of epidemiological data are often unavailable. Finally, the spatially explicit character of the models requires the comparison of several time-series of model outputs with their real-world counterparts, which calls for an appropriate weighting scheme. It follows that the usual assumption of a homoscedastic Gaussian error distribution, used in combination with classical calibration techniques based on Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithms, is likely to be violated, whereas the construction of an appropriate formal likelihood function seems close to impossible. Alternative calibration methods, which allow for accurate estimation of total model uncertainty, particularly regarding the envisaged use of the models for decision-making, are thus needed. Here we present the most recent developments regarding methods for parameter and uncertainty estimation to be used with our mechanistic, spatially explicit models for cholera epidemics, based on informal measures of goodness of fit.
Mechanistic information from analysis of molecular weight distributions of starch.
Castro, Jeffrey V; Dumas, Céline; Chiou, Herbert; Fitzgerald, Melissa A; Gilbert, Robert G
A methodology is developed for interpreting the molecular weight distributions of debranched amylopectin, based on techniques developed for quantitatively and qualitatively finding mechanistic information from the molecular weight distributions of synthetic polymers. If the only events occurring are random chain growth and stoppage (i.e., the rates are independent of degree of polymerization over the range in question), then the number of chains of degree of polymerization N, P(N), is linear in ln P(N) with a negative slope, where the slope gives the ratio of the stoppage and growth rates. This starting point suggests that mechanistic inferences can be made from a plot of lnP against N. Application to capillary electrophoresis data for the P(N) of debranched starch from across the major taxa, from bacteria (Escherichia coli), green algae (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii), mammals (Bos), and flowering plants (Oryza sativa, rice; Zea mays, maize; Triticum aestivum, wheat; Hordeum vulgare, barley; and Solanum tuberosum, potato), gives insights into the biosynthetic pathways, showing the differences and similarities of the alpha-1,4-glucans produced by the various species. Four characteristic regions for storage starch from the higher plants are revealed: (1) an initial increasing region corresponding to the formation of new branches, (2) a linear ln P region with negative slope, indicating random growth and stoppage, (3) a region corresponding to the formation of the crystalline lamellae and subsequent elongation of chains, and (4) a second linear ln P with negative slope region. Each region can be assigned to specific enzymatic processes in starch synthesis, including determining the ranges of degrees of polymerization which are subject to random and nonrandom processes. PMID:16004469
Mechanistic models of biofilm growth in porous media
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jaiswal, Priyank; Al-Hadrami, Fathiya; Atekwana, Estella A.; Atekwana, Eliot A.
Nondestructive acoustics methods can be used to monitor in situ biofilm growth in porous media. In practice, however, acoustic methods remain underutilized due to the lack of models that can translate acoustic data into rock properties in the context of biofilm. In this paper we present mechanistic models of biofilm growth in porous media. The models are used to quantitatively interpret arrival times and amplitudes recorded in the 29 day long Davis et al. (2010) physical scale biostimulation experiment in terms of biofilm morphologies and saturation. The model pivots on addressing the sediment elastic behavior using the lower Hashin-Shtrikman bounds for grain mixing and Gassmann substitution for fluid saturation. The time-lapse P wave velocity (VP; a function of arrival times) is explained by a combination of two rock models (morphologies); "load bearing" which assumes the biofilm as an additional mineral in the rock matrix and "pore filling" which assumes the biofilm as an additional fluid phase in the pores. The time-lapse attenuation (QP-1; a function of amplitudes), on the other hand, can be explained adequately in two ways; first, through squirt flow where energy is lost from relative motion between rock matrix and pore fluid, and second, through an empirical function of porosity (φ), permeability (κ), and grain size. The squirt flow model-fitting results in higher internal φ (7% versus 5%) and more oblate pores (0.33 versus 0.67 aspect ratio) for the load-bearing morphology versus the pore-filling morphology. The empirical model-fitting results in up to 10% increase in κ at the initial stages of the load-bearing morphology. The two morphologies which exhibit distinct mechanical and hydraulic behavior could be a function of pore throat size. The biofilm mechanistic models developed in this study can be used for the interpretation of seismic data critical for the evaluation of biobarriers in bioremediation, microbial enhanced oil recovery, and CO2
Assembly Line Polyketide Synthases: Mechanistic Insights and Unsolved Problems
Two hallmarks of assembly line polyketide synthases have motivated an interest in these unusual multienzyme systems, their stereospecificity and their capacity for directional biosynthesis. In this review, we summarize the state of knowledge regarding the mechanistic origins of these two remarkable features, using the 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase as a prototype. Of the 10 stereocenters in 6-deoxyerythronolide B, the stereochemistry of nine carbon atoms is directly set by ketoreductase domains, which catalyze epimerization and/or diastereospecific reduction reactions. The 10th stereocenter is established by the sequential action of three enzymatic domains. Thus, the problem has been reduced to a challenge in mainstream enzymology, where fundamental gaps remain in our understanding of the structural basis for this exquisite stereochemical control by relatively well-defined active sites. In contrast, testable mechanistic hypotheses for the phenomenon of vectorial biosynthesis are only just beginning to emerge. Starting from an elegant theoretical framework for understanding coupled vectorial processes in biology [Jencks, W. P. (1980) Adv. Enzymol. Relat. Areas Mol. Biol. 51, 75–106], we present a simple model that can explain assembly line polyketide biosynthesis as a coupled vectorial process. Our model, which highlights the important role of domain–domain interactions, not only is consistent with recent observations but also is amenable to further experimental verification and refinement. Ultimately, a definitive view of the coordinated motions within and between polyketide synthase modules will require a combination of structural, kinetic, spectroscopic, and computational tools and could be one of the most exciting frontiers in 21st Century enzymology. PMID:24779441
Angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibition in heart failure: mechanistic action and clinical impact.
Buggey, Jonathan; Mentz, Robert J; DeVore, Adam D; Velazquez, Eric J
Heart failure (HF) is an increasingly common syndrome associated with high mortality and economic burden, and there has been a paucity over the past decade of new pharmacotherapies that improve outcomes. However, recent data from a large randomized controlled trial compared the novel agent LCZ696, a dual-acting angiotensin receptor blocker and neprilysin inhibitor (ARNi), with the well established angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor enalapril and found significant reduction in mortality among the chronic reduced ejection fraction HF population. Preclinical and clinical data suggest that neprilysin inhibition provides beneficial outcomes in HF patients by preventing the degradation of natriuretic peptides and thereby promoting natriuresis and vasodilatation and counteracting the negative cardiorenal effects of the up-regulated renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. Agents such as omapatrilat combined neprilysin and ACE inhibition but had increased rates of angioedema. Goals of an improved safety profile provided the rationale for the development of the ARNi LCZ696. Along with significant reductions in mortality and hospitalizations, clinical trials suggest that LCZ696 may improve surrogate markers of HF severity. In this paper, we review the preclinical and clinical data that led to the development of LCZ696, the understanding of the underlying mechanistic action, and the robust clinical impact that LCZ696 may have in the near future. PMID:26209000
Unified superresolution experiments and stochastic theory provide mechanistic insight into protein ion-exchange adsorptive separations
Kisley, Lydia; Chen, Jixin; Mansur, Andrea P.; Shuang, Bo; Kourentzi, Katerina; Poongavanam, Mohan-Vivekanandan; Chen, Wen-Hsiang; Dhamane, Sagar; Willson, Richard C.; Landes, Christy F.
Chromatographic protein separations, immunoassays, and biosensing all typically involve the adsorption of proteins to surfaces decorated with charged, hydrophobic, or affinity ligands. Despite increasingly widespread use throughout the pharmaceutical industry, mechanistic detail about the interactions of proteins with individual chromatographic adsorbent sites is available only via inference from ensemble measurements such as binding isotherms, calorimetry, and chromatography. In this work, we present the direct superresolution mapping and kinetic characterization of functional sites on ion-exchange ligands based on agarose, a support matrix routinely used in protein chromatography. By quantifying the interactions of single proteins with individual charged ligands, we demonstrate that clusters of charges are necessary to create detectable adsorption sites and that even chemically identical ligands create adsorption sites of varying kinetic properties that depend on steric availability at the interface. Additionally, we relate experimental results to the stochastic theory of chromatography. Simulated elution profiles calculated from the molecular-scale data suggest that, if it were possible to engineer uniform optimal interactions into ion-exchange systems, separation efficiencies could be improved by as much as a factor of five by deliberately exploiting clustered interactions that currently dominate the ion-exchange process only accidentally. PMID:24459184
Mechanistically linked serum miRNAs distinguish between drug induced and fatty liver disease of different grades
Liu, Zhichao; Wang, Yuping; Borlak, Jürgen; Tong, Weida
Hepatic steatosis is characterised by excessive triglyceride accumulation in the form of lipid droplets (LD); however, mechanisms differ in drug induced (DIS) and/or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Here we hypothesized distinct molecular circuits of microRNA/LD-associated target genes and searched for mechanistically linked serum and tissue biomarkers that would distinguish between DIS and human NAFLD of different grades. We analysed >800 rat hepatic whole genome data for 17 steatotic drugs and identified 157 distinct miRNAs targeting 77 DIS regulated genes. Subsequently, genomic data of N = 105 cases of human NAFLD and N = 32 healthy controls were compared to serum miRNA profiles of N = 167 NAFLD patients. This revealed N = 195 tissue-specific miRNAs being mechanistically linked to LD-coding genes and 24 and 9 miRNAs were commonly regulated in serum and tissue of advanced and mild NAFLD, respectively. The NASH serum regulated miRNAs informed on hepatic inflammation, adipocytokine and insulin signalling, ER-and caveolae associated activities and altered glycerolipid metabolism. Conversely, serum miRNAs associated with blunt steatosis specifically highlighted activity of FOXO1&HNF4α on CPT2, the lipid droplet and ER-lipid-raft associated PLIN3 and Erlin1. Altogether, serum miRNAs informed on the molecular pathophysiology of NAFLD and permitted differentiation between DIS and NAFLD of different grades. PMID:27045805
A Mechanistic Approach for the Prediction of Critical Power in BWR Fuel Bundles
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chandraker, Dinesh Kumar; Vijayan, Pallipattu Krishnan; Sinha, Ratan Kumar; Aritomi, Masanori
The critical power corresponding to the Critical Heat Flux (CHF) or dryout condition is an important design parameter for the evaluation of safety margins in a nuclear fuel bundle. The empirical approaches for the prediction of CHF in a rod bundle are highly geometric specific and proprietary in nature. The critical power experiments are very expensive and technically challenging owing to the stringent simulation requirements for the rod bundle tests involving radial and axial power profiles. In view of this, the mechanistic approach has gained momentum in the thermal hydraulic community. The Liquid Film Dryout (LFD) in an annular flow is the mechanism of CHF under BWR conditions and the dryout modeling has been found to predict the CHF quite accurately for a tubular geometry. The successful extension of the mechanistic model of dryout to the rod bundle application is vital for the evaluation of critical power in the rod bundle. The present work proposes the uniform film flow approach around the rod by analyzing individual film of the subchannel bounded by rods with different heat fluxes resulting in different film flow rates around a rod and subsequently distributing the varying film flow rates of a rod to arrive at the uniform film flow rate as it has been found that the liquid film has a strong tendency to be uniform around the rod. The FIDOM-Rod code developed for the dryout prediction in BWR assemblies provides detailed solution of the multiple liquid films in a subchannel. The approach of uniform film flow rate around the rod simplifies the liquid film cross flow modeling and was found to provide dryout prediction with a good accuracy when compared with the experimental data of 16, 19 and 37 rod bundles under BWR conditions. The critical power has been predicted for a newly designed 54 rod bundle of the Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR). The selected constitutive models for the droplet entrainment and deposition rates validated for the dryout in tube were
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Voglewede, Paul E.; Zampieron, Jeffrey
For unattended persistent surveillance there is a need for a system which provides the following information: target classification, target quantity estimate, cargo presence and characterization, direction of travel, and action. Over highly bandwidth restricted links, such as Iridium, SATCOM or HF, the data rates of common techniques are too high, even after aggressive compression, to deliver the required intelligence in a timely, low power manner. We propose the following solution to this data rate problem: Profile Video. Profile video is a new technique which provides all of the required information in a very low data-rate package.
Application of spectral deconvolution and inverse mechanistic modelling as a tool for root cause investigation in protein chromatography.
Brestrich, Nina; Hahn, Tobias; Hubbuch, Jürgen
In chromatographic protein purification, process variations, aging of columns, or processing errors can lead to deviations of the expected elution behavior of product and contaminants and can result in a decreased pool purity or yield. A different elution behavior of all or several involved species leads to a deviating chromatogram. The causes for deviations are however hard to identify by visual inspection and complicate the correction of a problem in the next cycle or batch. To overcome this issue, a tool for root cause investigation in protein chromatography was developed. The tool combines a spectral deconvolution with inverse mechanistic modelling. Mid-UV spectral data and Partial Least Squares Regression were first applied to deconvolute peaks to obtain the individual elution profiles of co-eluting proteins. The individual elution profiles were subsequently used to identify errors in process parameters by curve fitting to a mechanistic chromatography model. The functionality of the tool for root cause investigation was successfully demonstrated in a model protein study with lysozyme, cytochrome c, and ribonuclease A. Deviating chromatograms were generated by deliberately caused errors in the process parameters flow rate and sodium-ion concentration in loading and elution buffer according to a design of experiments. The actual values of the three process parameters and, thus, the causes of the deviations were estimated with errors of less than 4.4%. Consequently, the established tool for root cause investigation is a valuable approach to rapidly identify process variations, aging of columns, or processing errors. This might help to minimize batch rejections or contribute to an increased productivity. PMID:26879457
Modeling Bird Migration under Climate Change: A Mechanistic Approach
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Smith, James A.
How will migrating birds respond to changes in the environment under climate change? What are the implications for migratory success under the various accelerated climate change scenarios as forecast by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change? How will reductions or increased variability in the number or quality of wetland stop-over sites affect migratory bird species? The answers to these questions have important ramifications for conservation biology and wildlife management. Here, we describe the use of continental scale simulation modeling to explore how spatio-temporal changes along migratory flyways affect en-route migration success. We use an individually based, biophysical, mechanistic, bird migration model to simulate the movement of shorebirds in North America as a tool to study how such factors as drought and wetland loss may impact migratory success and modify migration patterns. Our model is driven by remote sensing and climate data and incorporates important landscape variables. The energy budget components of the model include resting, foraging, and flight, but presently predation is ignored. Results/Conclusions We illustrate our model by studying the spring migration of sandpipers through the Great Plains to their Arctic breeding grounds. Why many species of shorebirds have shown significant declines remains a puzzle. Shorebirds are sensitive to stop-over quality and spacing because of their need for frequent refueling stops and their opportunistic feeding patterns. We predict bird "hydrographs that is, stop-over frequency with latitude, that are in agreement with the literature. Mean stop-over durations predicted from our model for nominal cases also are consistent with the limited, but available data. For the shorebird species simulated, our model predicts that shorebirds exhibit significant plasticity and are able to shift their migration patterns in response to changing drought conditions. However, the question remains as to whether this
A new mechanistic framework to predict OCS fluxes from soils
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ogée, Jérôme; Sauze, Joana; Kesselmeier, Jürgen; Genty, Bernard; Van Diest, Heidi; Launois, Thomas; Wingate, Lisa
Estimates of photosynthetic and respiratory fluxes at large scales are needed to improve our predictions of the current and future global CO2 cycle. Carbonyl sulfide (OCS) is the most abundant sulfur gas in the atmosphere and has been proposed as a new tracer of photosynthetic gross primary productivity (GPP), as the uptake of OCS from the atmosphere is dominated by the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA), an enzyme abundant in leaves that also catalyses CO2 hydration during photosynthesis. However soils also exchange OCS with the atmosphere, which complicates the retrieval of GPP from atmospheric budgets. Indeed soils can take up large amounts of OCS from the atmosphere as soil microorganisms also contain CA, and OCS emissions from soils have been reported in agricultural fields or anoxic soils. To date no mechanistic framework exists to describe this exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere, but empirical results, once upscaled to the global scale, indicate that OCS consumption by soils dominates OCS emission and its contribution to the atmospheric budget is large, at about one third of the OCS uptake by vegetation, also with a large uncertainty. Here, we propose a new mechanistic model of the exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere that builds on our knowledge of soil CA activity from CO2 oxygen isotopes. In this model the OCS soil budget is described by a first-order reaction-diffusion-production equation, assuming that the hydrolysis of OCS by CA is total and irreversible. Using this model we are able to explain the observed presence of an optimum temperature for soil OCS uptake and show how this optimum can shift to cooler temperatures in the presence of soil OCS emission. Our model can also explain the observed optimum with soil moisture content previously described in the literature as a result of diffusional constraints on OCS hydrolysis. These diffusional constraints are also responsible for the response of OCS uptake to soil weight and
A new mechanistic framework to predict OCS fluxes from soils
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ogée, J.; Sauze, J.; Kesselmeier, J.; Genty, B.; Van Diest, H.; Launois, T.; Wingate, L.
Estimates of photosynthetic and respiratory fluxes at large scales is needed to improve our predictions of the current and future global CO2 cycle. Carbonyl sulphide (OCS) is the most abundant sulphur gas in the atmosphere and has been proposed as a new tracer of photosynthesis (GPP), as the uptake of OCS from the atmosphere is dominated by the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA), an enzyme abundant in leaves that also catalyses CO2 hydration during photosynthesis. But soils also exchange OCS with the atmosphere which complicates the retrieval of GPP from atmospheric budgets. Indeed soils can take up large amounts of OCS from the atmosphere as soil microorganisms also contain CA, and OCS emissions from soils have been reported in agricultural fields or anoxic soils. To date no mechanistic framework exists to describe this exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere but empirical results, once upscaled to the global scale, indicate that OCS consumption by soils dominates over production and its contribution to the atmospheric budget is large, at about one third of the OCS uptake by vegetation, with also a large uncertainty. Here, we propose a new mechanistic model of the exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere that builds on our knowledge of soil CA activity from CO2 oxygen isotopes. In this model the OCS soil budget is described by a first-order reaction-diffusion-production equation, assuming that the hydrolysis of OCS by CA is total and irreversible. Using this model we are able to explain the observed presence of an optimum temperature for soil OCS uptake and show how this optimum can shift to cooler temperatures in the presence of soil OCS emissions. Our model can also explain the observed optimum with soil moisture content previously described in the literature as a result of diffusional constraints on OCS hydrolysis. These diffusional constraints are also responsible for the response of OCS uptake to soil weight and depth observed previously. In
A new mechanistic framework to predict OCS fluxes from soils
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ogee, J.; Sauze, J.; Kesselmeier, J.; Genty, B.; Whelan, M.; Launois, T.; Wingate, L.
A better description of the amplitude of photosynthetic and respiratory gross CO2 fluxes at large scales is needed to improve our predictions of the current and future global CO2 cycle. Carbonyl sulphide (OCS) has been proposed as a new tracer of gross photosynthesis (GPP), as the uptake of OCS from the atmosphere is dominated by the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA), an enzyme abundant in leaves that also catalyses CO2 hydration during photosynthesis. But soils also exchange OCS with the atmosphere which complicates the retrieval of GPP from atmospheric budgets. Indeed soils can take up large amounts of OCS from the atmosphere as soil microorganisms also contain CA, and OCS emissions from soils have been reported in agricultural or anoxic soils. To date no mechanistic framework exists to describe this exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere but empirical results, once up-scaled to the global scale, indicate that OCS consumption by soils dominates over production and its contribution to the atmospheric budget is large, at about one third of the OCS uptake by vegetation, with also a large uncertainty. Here, we propose a new mechanistic model of the exchange of OCS between soils and the atmosphere that builds on our knowledge of soil CA activity from CO2 oxygen isotopes. In this model the OCS soil budget is described by a first-order reaction-diffusion-production equation, assuming that the hydrolysis of OCS by CA is total and irreversible. Using this model we are able to explain the observed presence of an optimum temperature for soil OCS uptake and show how this optimum can shift to cooler temperatures in the presence of soil OCS emissions. Our model can also explain the observed optimum with soil moisture content previously described in the literature as a result of diffusional constraints on OCS hydrolysis. In order to simulate the exact OCS uptake rates and patterns observed on several soils collected from a range of biomes, different CA activities
Circadian rhythms and addiction: Mechanistic insights and future directions
Logan, Ryan W.; Williams, Wilbur P.; McClung, Colleen A.
Circadian rhythms are prominent in many physiological and behavioral functions. Circadian disruptions either by environmental or molecular perturbation can have profound health consequences, including the development and progression of addiction. Both animal and humans studies indicate extensive bidirectional relationships between the circadian system and drugs of abuse. Addicted individuals display disrupted rhythms, and chronic disruption or particular chronotypes, may increase the risk for substance abuse and relapse. Moreover, polymorphisms in circadian genes and an evening chronotype have been linked to mood and addiction disorders, and recent efforts suggest an association with the function of reward neurocircuitry. Animal studies are beginning to determine how altered circadian gene function results in drug induced neuroplasticity and behaviors. Many studies suggest a critical role for circadian rhythms in reward-related pathways in the brain and indicate that drugs of abuse directly affect the central circadian pacemaker. In this review, we highlight key findings demonstrating the importance of circadian rhythms in addiction, and how future studies will reveal important mechanistic insights into the involvement of circadian rhythms in drug addiction. PMID:24731209
Spectroscopic and Mechanistic Investigations of Dehaloperoxidase B from Amphitrite ornata†
D'Antonio, Jennifer; D'Antonio, Edward L.; Thompson, Matthew K.; Bowden, Edmond F.; Franzen, Stefan; Smirnova, Tatyana; Ghiladi, Reza A.
Dehaloperoxidase (DHP) from the terebellid polychaete Amphitrite ornata is a bifunctional enzyme that possesses both hemoglobin and peroxidase activities. Of the two DHP isoenzymes identified to date, much of the recent focus has been on DHP A, whereas very little is known pertaining to the activity, substrate specificity, mechanism of function, or spectroscopic properties of DHP B. Herein, we report the recombinant expression and purification of DHP B, as well as the details of our investigations into its catalytic cycle using biochemical assays, stopped-flow UV-visible, resonance Raman and rapid-freeze-quench electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopies, and spectroelectrochemistry. Our experimental design reveals mechanistic insights and kinetic descriptions of the dehaloperoxidase mechanism which have not been previously reported for isoenzyme A. Namely, we demonstrate a novel reaction pathway in which the products of the oxidative dehalogenation of trihalophenols (dihaloquinones) are themselves capable of inducing formation of oxyferrous DHP B, and an updated catalytic cycle for DHP is proposed. We further demonstrate that unlike the traditional monofunctional peroxidases, the oxyferrous state in DHP is a peroxidase competent starting species, which suggests that the ferric oxidation state may not be an obligatory starting point for the enzyme. The data presented herein provide a link between the peroxidase and oxygen transport activities which furthers our understanding of how this bifunctional enzyme is able to unite its two inherent functions in one system. PMID:20545299
Warming will affect phytoplankton differently: evidence through a mechanistic approach
Huertas, I. Emma; Rouco, Mónica; López-Rodas, Victoria; Costas, Eduardo
Although the consequences of global warming in aquatic ecosystems are only beginning to be revealed, a key to forecasting the impact on aquatic communities is an understanding of individual species' vulnerability to increased temperature. Despite their microscopic size, phytoplankton support about half of the global primary production, drive essential biogeochemical cycles and represent the basis of the aquatic food web. At present, it is known that phytoplankton are important targets and, consequently, harbingers of climate change in aquatic systems. Therefore, investigating the capacity of phytoplankton to adapt to the predicted warming has become a relevant issue. However, considering the polyphyletic complexity of the phytoplankton community, different responses to increased temperature are expected. We experimentally tested the effects of warming on 12 species of phytoplankton isolated from a variety of environments by using a mechanistic approach able to assess evolutionary adaptation (the so-called ratchet technique). We found different degrees of tolerance to temperature rises and an interspecific capacity for genetic adaptation. The thermal resistance level reached by each species is discussed in relation to their respective original habitats. Our study additionally provides evidence on the most resistant phytoplankton groups in a future warming scenario. PMID:21508031
A brief review of exercise, bipolar disorder, and mechanistic pathways
Thomson, Daniel; Turner, Alyna; Lauder, Sue; Gigler, Margaret E.; Berk, Lesley; Singh, Ajeet B.; Pasco, Julie A.; Berk, Michael; Sylvia, Louisa
Despite evidence that exercise has been found to be effective in the treatment of depression, it is unclear whether these data can be extrapolated to bipolar disorder. Available evidence for bipolar disorder is scant, with no existing randomized controlled trials having tested the impact of exercise on depressive, manic or hypomanic symptomatology. Although exercise is often recommended in bipolar disorder, this is based on extrapolation from the unipolar literature, theory and clinical expertise and not empirical evidence. In addition, there are currently no available empirical data on program variables, with practical implications on frequency, intensity and type of exercise derived from unipolar depression studies. The aim of the current paper is to explore the relationship between exercise and bipolar disorder and potential mechanistic pathways. Given the high rate of medical co-morbidities experienced by people with bipolar disorder, it is possible that exercise is a potentially useful and important intervention with regard to general health benefits; however, further research is required to elucidate the impact of exercise on mood symptomology. PMID:25788889
Rapid Discrimination Among Putative Mechanistic Models of Biochemical Systems
Lomnitz, Jason G.; Savageau, Michael A.
An overarching goal in molecular biology is to gain an understanding of the mechanistic basis underlying biochemical systems. Success is critical if we are to predict effectively the outcome of drug treatments and the development of abnormal phenotypes. However, data from most experimental studies is typically noisy and sparse. This allows multiple potential mechanisms to account for experimental observations, and often devising experiments to test each is not feasible. Here, we introduce a novel strategy that discriminates among putative models based on their repertoire of qualitatively distinct phenotypes, without relying on knowledge of specific values for rate constants and binding constants. As an illustration, we apply this strategy to two synthetic gene circuits exhibiting anomalous behaviors. Our results show that the conventional models, based on their well-characterized components, cannot account for the experimental observations. We examine a total of 40 alternative hypotheses and show that only 5 have the potential to reproduce the experimental data, and one can do so with biologically relevant parameter values. PMID:27578053
Ultrasound enhanced ethanol production from Parthenium hysterophorus: A mechanistic investigation.
Singh, Shuchi; Sarma, Shyamali; Agarwal, Mayank; Goyal, Arun; Moholkar, Vijayanand S
This study presents mechanistic investigations in ultrasound-assisted bioethanol fermentation using Parthenium hysterophorus biomass. Ultrasound (35 kHz, 10% duty cycle) has been used for sonication. Experimental results were fitted to mathematical model; the kinetic and physiological parameters in the model were obtained using Genetic Algorithm (GA) based optimization. In control experiments (mechanical shaking), maximum ethanol titer of 10.93 g/L and cell mass concentration of 5.26 g/L was obtained after 18 h. In test experiments (mechanical shaking and intermittent sonication), ethanol titer of 12.14 g/L and cell mass concentration of 5.7 g/L was obtained in 10h. This indicated ∼ 2 × enhanced productivity of ethanol and cell mass with sonication. Trends in model parameters obtained after fitting of model to experimental data essentially revealed that beneficial influence of ultrasound on fermentation is a manifestation of enhanced trans-membrane transportation and dilution of toxic substances due to strong micro-convection induced by ultrasound. PMID:25555927
Mechanistic modeling of destratification in cryogenic storage tanks using ultrasonics.
Jagannathan, T K; Mohanan, Srijith; Nagarajan, R
Stratification is one of the main causes for vaporization of cryogens and increase of tank pressure during cryogenic storage. This leads subsequent problems such as cavitation in cryo-pumps, reduced length of storage time. Hence, it is vital to prevent stratification to improve the cost efficiency of storage systems. If stratified layers exist inside the tank, they have to be removed by suitable methods without venting the vapor. Sonication is one such method capable of keeping fluid layers mixed. In the present work, a mechanistic model for ultrasonic destratification is proposed and validated with destratification experiments done in water. Then, the same model is used to predict the destratification characteristics of cryogenic liquids such as liquid nitrogen (LN₂), liquid hydrogen (LH₂) and liquid ammonia (LNH₃). The destratification parameters are analysed for different frequencies of ultrasound and storage pressures by considering continuous and pulsed modes of ultrasonic operation. From the results, it is determined that use of high frequency ultrasound (low-power/continuous; high-power/pulsing) or low frequency ultrasound (continuous operation with moderate power) can both be effective in removing stratification. PMID:23810463
Mechanistic studies of malonic acid-mediated in situ acylation.
Chandra, Koushik; Naoum, Johnny N; Roy, Tapta Kanchan; Gilon, Chaim; Gerber, R Benny; Friedler, Assaf
We have previously introduced an easy to perform, cost-effective and highly efficient acetylation technique for solid phase synthesis (SPPS). Malonic acid is used as a precursor and the reaction proceeds via a reactive ketene that acetylates the target amine. Here we present a detailed mechanistic study of the malonic acid-mediated acylation. The influence of reaction conditions, peptide sequence and reagents was systematically studied. Our results show that the methodology can be successfully applied to different types of peptides and nonpeptidic molecules irrespective of their structure, sequence, or conformation. Using alkyl, phenyl, and benzyl malonic acid, we synthesized various acyl peptides with almost quantitative yields. The ketenes obtained from the different malonic acid derived precursors were characterized by in situ (1) H-NMR. The reaction proceeded in short reaction times and resulted in excellent yields when using uronium-based coupling agents, DIPEA as a base, DMF/DMSO/NMP as solvents, Rink amide/Wang/Merrifield resins, temperature of 20°C, pH 8-12 and 5 min preactivation at inert atmosphere. The reaction was unaffected by Lewis acids, transition metal ions, surfactants, or salt. DFT studies support the kinetically favorable concerted mechanism for CO2 and ketene formation that leads to the thermodynamically stable acylated products. We conclude that the malonic acid-mediated acylation is a general method applicable to various target molecules. PMID:25846609
A mechanistic stochastic framework for regulating bacterial cell division
Ghusinga, Khem Raj; Vargas-Garcia, Cesar A.; Singh, Abhyudai
How exponentially growing cells maintain size homeostasis is an important fundamental problem. Recent single-cell studies in prokaryotes have uncovered the adder principle, where cells add a fixed size (volume) from birth to division, irrespective of their size at birth. To mechanistically explain the adder principle, we consider a timekeeper protein that begins to get stochastically expressed after cell birth at a rate proportional to the volume. Cell-division time is formulated as the first-passage time for protein copy numbers to hit a fixed threshold. Consistent with data, the model predicts that the noise in division timing increases with size at birth. Intriguingly, our results show that the distribution of the volume added between successive cell-division events is independent of the newborn cell size. This was dramatically seen in experimental studies, where histograms of the added volume corresponding to different newborn sizes collapsed on top of each other. The model provides further insights consistent with experimental observations: the distribution of the added volume when scaled by its mean becomes invariant of the growth rate. In summary, our simple yet elegant model explains key experimental findings and suggests a mechanism for regulating both the mean and fluctuations in cell-division timing for controlling size. PMID:27456660
Mechanistic insight into mycobacterial MmpL protein function.
Székely, R; Cole, S T
Mycobacterial cell walls are complex structures containing a broad range of unusual lipids, glycolipids and other polymers, some of which act as immunomodulators or virulence determinants. Better understanding of the enzymes involved in export processes would enlighten cell wall biogenesis. Bernut et al. () present the findings of a structural and functional investigation of one of the most important transporter families, the MmpL proteins, members of the resistance-nodulation-cell division (RND) superfamily. A Tyr842His missense mutation in the mmpL4a gene was shown to be responsible for the smooth-to-rough morphotype change of the near untreatable opportunistic pathogen Mycobacterium bolletii due to its failure to export a glycopeptidolipid (GPL). This mutation was pleiotropic and markedly increased virulence in infection models. Tyr842 is well conserved in all actinobacterial MmpL proteins suggesting that it is functionally important and this was confirmed by several approaches including replacing the corresponding residue in MmpL3 of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Structural modelling combined with experimental results showed Tyr842 to be a critical residue for mediating the proton motive force required for GPL export. This mechanistic insight applies to all MmpL proteins and probably to all RND transporters. PMID:26710752
Water in Photosystem II: structural, functional and mechanistic considerations.
Linke, Katrin; Ho, Felix M
Water is clearly important for the functioning of Photosystem II (PSII). Apart from being the very substrate that needs to be transported in this water oxidation enzyme, water is also vital for the transport of protons to and from the catalytic center as well as other important co-factors and key residues in the enzyme. The latest crystal structural data of PSII have enabled detailed analyses of the location and possible function of water molecules in the enzyme. Significant progress has also been made recently in the investigation of channels and pathways through the protein complex. Through these studies, the mechanistic significance of water for PSII is becoming increasingly clear. An overview and discussion of key aspects of the current research on water in PSII is presented here. The role of water in three other systems (aquaporin, bacteriorhodopsin and cytochrome P450) is also outlined to illustrate further points concerning the central significance that water can have, and potential applications of these ideas for continued research on PSII. It is advocated that water be seen as an integral part of the protein and far from a mere solvent. PMID:23978393
Mechanistic Studies in Friction and Wear of Bulk Materials
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sawyer, W. Gregory; Argibay, Nicolas; Burris, David L.; Krick, Brandon A.
From the context of a contemporary understanding of the phenomenological origins of friction and wear of materials, we review insightful contributions from recent experimental investigations of three classes of materials that exhibit uniquely contrasting tribological behaviors: metals, polymers, and ionic solids. We focus on the past decade of research by the community to better understand the correlations between environment parameters, materials properties, and tribological behavior in systems of increasingly greater complexity utilizing novel synthesis and in situ experimental techniques. In addition to such review, and a half-century after seminal publications on the subject, we present recently acquired evidence linking anisotropy in friction response with anisotropy in wear behavior of crystalline ionic solids as a function of crystallographic orientation. Although the tribological behaviors of metals, polymers, and ionic solids differ widely, it is increasingly more evident that the mechanistic origins (such as fatigue, corrosion, abrasion, and adhesion) are essentially the same. However, we hope to present a clear and compelling argument favoring the prominent and irreplaceable role of in situ experimental techniques as a bridge between fundamental atomistic and molecular processes and emergent behaviors governing tribological contacts.
A global scale mechanistic model of the photosynthetic capacity
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Xu, C.; Ali, A. A.; Fisher, R.; Wullschleger, S. D.; Rogers, A.; McDowell, N. G.; Wilson, C. J.
Although plant photosynthetic capacity as determined by the maximum carboxylation rate (i.e., Vc,max25) and the maximum electron transport rate (i.e., Jmax25) at a reference temperature (generally 25oC) is known to vary substantially in space and time in response to environmental conditions, it is typically parameterized in Earth system models (ESMs) with tabulated values associated to plant functional types. In this study, we developed a mechanistic model of leaf utilization of nitrogen for assimilation (LUNA V1.0) to predict the photosynthetic capacity at the global scale under different environmental conditions, based on the optimization of nitrogen allocated among light capture, electron transport, carboxylation, and respiration. The LUNA model was able to reasonably well capture the observed patterns of photosynthetic capacity in view that it explained approximately 55% of the variation in observed Vc,max25 and 65% of the variation in observed Jmax25 across the globe. Our model simulations under current and future climate conditions indicated that Vc,max25 could be most affected in high-latitude regions under a warming climate and that ESMs using a fixed Vc,max25 or Jmax25 by plant functional types were likely to substantially overestimate future global photosynthesis.
Mechanistic evaluation of virus clearance by depth filtration.
Venkiteshwaran, Adith; Fogle, Jace; Patnaik, Purbasa; Kowle, Ron; Chen, Dayue
Virus clearance by depth filtration has not been well-understood mechanistically due to lack of quantitative data on filter charge characteristics and absence of systematic studies. It is generally believed that both electrostatic interactions and sized based mechanical entrapment contribute to virus clearance by depth filtration. In order to establish whether the effectiveness of virus clearance correlates with the charge characteristics of a given depth filter, a counter-ion displacement technique was employed to determine the ionic capacity for several depth filters. Two depth filters (Millipore B1HC and X0HC) with significant differences in ionic capacities were selected and evaluated for their ability to eliminate viruses. The high ionic capacity X0HC filter showed complete porcine parvovirus (PPV) clearance (eliminating the spiked viruses to below the limit of detection) under low conductivity conditions (≤2.5 mS/cm), achieving a log10 reduction factor (LRF) of > 4.8. On the other hand, the low ionic capacity B1HC filter achieved only ∼2.1-3.0 LRF of PPV clearance under the same conditions. These results indicate that parvovirus clearance by these two depth filters are mainly achieved via electrostatic interactions between the filters and PPV. When much larger xenotropic murine leukemia virus (XMuLV) was used as the model virus, complete retrovirus clearance was obtained under all conditions evaluated for both depth filters, suggesting the involvement of mechanisms other than just electrostatic interactions in XMuLV clearance. PMID:25683459
Mechanistic Enzymology of the Radical SAM Enzyme DesII
DesII is a member of the radical SAM family of enzymes that catalyzes radical-mediated transformations of TDP-4-amino-4,6-didexoy-D-glucose as well as other sugar nucleotide diphosphates. Like nearly all radical SAM enzymes, the reactions begin with the reductive homolysis of SAM to produce a 5′-deoxyadenosyl radical which is followed by regiospecific hydrogen atom abstraction from the substrate. What happens next, however, depends on the nature of the substrate radical so produced. In the case of the biosynthetically relevant substrate, a radical-mediated deamination ensues; however, when this amino group is replaced with a hydroxyl, one instead observes dehydrogenation. The factors that govern the fate of the initially generated substrate radical as well as the mechanistic details underlying these transformations have been a key focus of research into the chemistry of DesII. This review will discuss recent discoveries pertaining to the enzymology of DesII, how it may relate to understanding other radical-mediated lyases and dehydrogenases and the working hypotheses currently being investigated regarding the mechanism of DesII catalysis.
Anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic Chinese herbal medicines: A mechanistic overview.
Boye, Alex; Yang, Yan; Asenso, James; Wei, Wei
Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) is an integral component of complementary/alternative medicine and it is increasingly becoming the preferred therapeutic modality for the treatment of liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) worldwide. Accordingly, the World Health Organization (WHO) has attested to the popularity and efficacy of indigenous herbal therapies including CHM as a first line of treatment for some diseases including liver disorders. However, the WHO and drug discovery experts have always recommended that use of indigenous herbal remedies must go hand-in-hand with the requisite mechanistic elucidation so as to constitute a system of verification of efficacy within the ethnobotanical context of use. Although many CHM experts have advanced knowledge on CHM, nonetheless, more enlightenment is needed, particularly mechanisms of action of CHMs on fibro-hepato-carcinogenesis. We, herein, provide in-depth mechanisms of the action of CHMs which have demonstrated anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic effects, in pre-clinical and clinical studies as published in PubMed and other major scientific databases. Specifically, the review brings out the important signaling pathways, and their downstream targets which are modulated at multi-level by various anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic CHMs. PMID:27366355
Equation-free mechanistic ecosystem forecasting using empirical dynamic modeling
Ye, Hao; Beamish, Richard J.; Glaser, Sarah M.; Grant, Sue C. H.; Hsieh, Chih-hao; Richards, Laura J.; Schnute, Jon T.; Sugihara, George
It is well known that current equilibrium-based models fall short as predictive descriptions of natural ecosystems, and particularly of fisheries systems that exhibit nonlinear dynamics. For example, model parameters assumed to be fixed constants may actually vary in time, models may fit well to existing data but lack out-of-sample predictive skill, and key driving variables may be misidentified due to transient (mirage) correlations that are common in nonlinear systems. With these frailties, it is somewhat surprising that static equilibrium models continue to be widely used. Here, we examine empirical dynamic modeling (EDM) as an alternative to imposed model equations and that accommodates both nonequilibrium dynamics and nonlinearity. Using time series from nine stocks of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) from the Fraser River system in British Columbia, Canada, we perform, for the the first time to our knowledge, real-data comparison of contemporary fisheries models with equivalent EDM formulations that explicitly use spawning stock and environmental variables to forecast recruitment. We find that EDM models produce more accurate and precise forecasts, and unlike extensions of the classic Ricker spawner–recruit equation, they show significant improvements when environmental factors are included. Our analysis demonstrates the strategic utility of EDM for incorporating environmental influences into fisheries forecasts and, more generally, for providing insight into how environmental factors can operate in forecast models, thus paving the way for equation-free mechanistic forecasting to be applied in management contexts. PMID:25733874
Mechanistic modeling and correlations for pool-entrainment phenomenon
Kataoka, I.; Ishii, M.
Entrainment from a liquid pool with boiling or bubbling is of considerable practical importance in safety evaluation of nuclear reactor under off-normal transients or accidents such as loss-of-coolant and loss-of-flow accidents. Droplets which are suspended from a free surface are partly carried away by streaming gas and partly returned back to free surface by the gravity. A correlation is developed for the pool entrainment amount based on simple mechanistic modeling and a number of data. This analysis reveals that there exist three regions of entrainment in the axial direction from a pool surface. In the first region (near surface region), entrainment is independent of height and gas velocity. In the second region (momentum controlled region), the amount of entrainment decreases with increasing height from the free surface and increases with increasing gas velocity. In the third region (deposition controlled region), the entrainment increases with increasing height due to deposition of droplets. The present correlation agrees well with a large number of experimental data over a wide range of pressure for air-water and steam-water systems.
Bioavailability and Pharmacokinetics of Genistein: Mechanistic Studies on its ADME
Yang, Zhen; Kulkarni, Kaustubh; Zhu, Wei; Hu, Ming
Genistein, one of the most active natural flavonoids, exerts various biological effects including chemoprevention, antioxidation, antiproliferation and anticancer. More than 30 clinical trials of genistein with various disease indications have been conducted to evaluate its clinical efficacy. Based on many animals and human pharmacokinetic studies, it is well known that the most challenge issue for developing genistein as a chemoprevention agent is the low oral bioavailability, which may be the major reason relating to its ambiguous therapeutic effects and large interindividual variations in clinical trials. In order to better correlate pharmacokinetic to pharmacodynamics results in animals and clinical studies, an in-depth understanding of pharmacokinetic behavior of genistein and its ADME properties are needed. Numerous in vitro/in vivo ADME studies had been conducted to reveal the main factors contributing to the low oral bioavailability of genistein. Therefore, this review focuses on summarizing the most recent progress on mechanistic studies of genistein ADME and provides a systemic view of these processes to explain genistein pharmacokinetic behaviors in vivo. The better understanding of genistein ADME property may lead to development of proper strategy to improve genistein oral bioavailability via mechanism-based approaches. PMID:22583407
Mechanistic insight into sonochemical biodiesel synthesis using heterogeneous base catalyst.
Choudhury, Hanif A; Chakma, Sankar; Moholkar, Vijayanand S
The beneficial effect of ultrasound on transesterification reaction is well known. Heterogeneous (or solid) catalysts for biodiesel synthesis have merit that they do not contaminate the byproduct of glycerol. In this paper, we have attempted to identify the mechanistic features of ultrasound-enhanced biodiesel synthesis with the base-catalyst of CaO. A statistical design of experiments (Box-Behnken) was used to identify the influence of temperature, alcohol to oil molar ratio and catalyst loading on transesterification yield. The optimum values of these parameters for the highest yield were identified through Response Surface Method (with a quadratic model) and ANOVA. These values are: temperature=62 °C, molar ratio=10:1 and catalyst loading=6 wt.%. The activation energy was determined as 82.3 kJ/mol, which is higher than that for homogeneous catalyzed system (for both acidic and basic catalyst). The experimental results have been analyzed vis-à-vis simulations of cavitation bubble dynamics. Due to 3-phase heterogeneity of the system, the yield was dominated by intrinsic kinetics, and the optimum temperature for the highest yield was close to boiling point of methanol. At this temperature, the influence of cavitation bubbles (in terms of both sonochemical and sonophysical effect) is negligible, and ultrasonic micro-streaming provided necessary convection in the system. The influence of all parameters on the reaction system was found to be strongly inter-dependent. PMID:23742888
Environmental perception and epigenetic memory: mechanistic insight through FLC
Berry, Scott; Dean, Caroline
Chromatin plays a central role in orchestrating gene regulation at the transcriptional level. However, our understanding of how chromatin states are altered in response to environmental and developmental cues, and then maintained epigenetically over many cell divisions, remains poor. The floral repressor gene FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) in Arabidopsis thaliana is a useful system to address these questions. FLC is transcriptionally repressed during exposure to cold temperatures, allowing studies of how environmental conditions alter expression states at the chromatin level. FLC repression is also epigenetically maintained during subsequent development in warm conditions, so that exposure to cold may be remembered. This memory depends on molecular complexes that are highly conserved among eukaryotes, making FLC not only interesting as a paradigm for understanding biological decision-making in plants, but also an important system for elucidating chromatin-based gene regulation more generally. In this review, we summarize our understanding of how cold temperature induces a switch in the FLC chromatin state, and how this state is epigenetically remembered. We also discuss how the epigenetic state of FLC is reprogrammed in the seed to ensure a requirement for cold exposure in the next generation. Significance Statement FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) regulation provides a paradigm for understanding how chromatin can be modulated to determine gene expression in a developmental context. This review describes our current mechanistic understanding of how FLC expression is genetically specified and epigenetically regulated throughout the plant life cycle, and how this determines plant life-history strategy. PMID:25929799
A global scale mechanistic model of the photosynthetic capacity
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ali, A. A.; Xu, C.; Rogers, A.; Fisher, R. A.; Wullschleger, S. D.; McDowell, N. G.; Massoud, E. C.; Vrugt, J. A.; Muss, J. D.; Fisher, J. B.; Reich, P. B.; Wilson, C. J.
Although plant photosynthetic capacity as determined by the maximum carboxylation rate (i.e., Vc, max25) and the maximum electron transport rate (i.e., Jmax25) at a reference temperature (generally 25 °C) is known to vary substantially in space and time in response to environmental conditions, it is typically parameterized in Earth system models (ESMs) with tabulated values associated to plant functional types. In this study, we developed a mechanistic model of leaf utilization of nitrogen for assimilation (LUNA V1.0) to predict the photosynthetic capacity at the global scale under different environmental conditions, based on the optimization of nitrogen allocated among light capture, electron transport, carboxylation, and respiration. The LUNA model was able to reasonably well capture the observed patterns of photosynthetic capacity in view that it explained approximately 55 % of the variation in observed Vc, max25 and 65 % of the variation in observed Jmax25 across the globe. Our model simulations under current and future climate conditions indicated that Vc, max25 could be most affected in high-latitude regions under a warming climate and that ESMs using a fixed Vc, max25 or Jmax25 by plant functional types were likely to substantially overestimate future global photosynthesis.
Neutron structure and mechanistic studies of diisopropyl fluorophosphatase (DFPase)
Chen, Julian C.-H.; Mustyakimov, Marat; Schoenborn, Benno P.; Langan, Paul; Blum, Marc-Michael
The structure and mechanism of diisopropyl fluorophosphatase (DFPase) have been studied using a variety of methods, including isotopic labelling, X-ray crystallography and neutron crystallography. The neutron structure of DFPase, mechanistic studies and subsequent rational design efforts are described. Diisopropyl fluorophosphatase (DFPase) is a calcium-dependent phosphotriesterase that acts on a variety of highly toxic organophosphorus compounds that act as inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase. The mechanism of DFPase has been probed using a variety of methods, including isotopic labelling, which demonstrated the presence of a phosphoenzyme intermediate in the reaction mechanism. In order to further elucidate the mechanism of DFPase and to ascertain the protonation states of the residues and solvent molecules in the active site, the neutron structure of DFPase was solved at 2.2 Å resolution. The proposed nucleophile Asp229 is deprotonated, while the active-site solvent molecule W33 was identified as water and not hydroxide. These data support a mechanism involving direct nucleophilic attack by Asp229 on the substrate and rule out a mechanism involving metal-assisted water activation. These data also allowed for the re-engineering of DFPase through rational design to bind and productively orient the more toxic S{sub P} stereoisomers of the nerve agents sarin and cyclosarin, creating a modified enzyme with enhanced overall activity and significantly increased detoxification properties.
Mechanistic modeling of aberrant energy metabolism in human disease
Sangar, Vineet; Eddy, James A.; Simeonidis, Evangelos; Price, Nathan D.
Dysfunction in energy metabolism—including in pathways localized to the mitochondria—has been implicated in the pathogenesis of a wide array of disorders, ranging from cancer to neurodegenerative diseases to type II diabetes. The inherent complexities of energy and mitochondrial metabolism present a significant obstacle in the effort to understand the role that these molecular processes play in the development of disease. To help unravel these complexities, systems biology methods have been applied to develop an array of computational metabolic models, ranging from mitochondria-specific processes to genome-scale cellular networks. These constraint-based (CB) models can efficiently simulate aspects of normal and aberrant metabolism in various genetic and environmental conditions. Development of these models leverages—and also provides a powerful means to integrate and interpret—information from a wide range of sources including genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and enzyme kinetics. Here, we review a variety of mechanistic modeling studies that explore metabolic functions, deficiency disorders, and aberrant biochemical pathways in mitochondria and related regions in the cell. PMID:23112774
Vadillo-Ortega, Felipe; Osornio-Vargas, Alvaro; Buxton, Miatta A.; Sánchez, Brisa N.; Rojas-Bracho, Leonora; Viveros-Alcaráz, Martin; Castillo-Castrejón, Marisol; Beltrán-Montoya, Jorge; Brown, Daniel G.; O´Neill, Marie S.
Preterm birth is a public health issue of global significance, which may result in mortality during the perinatal period or may lead to major health and financial consequences due to lifelong impacts. Even though several risk factors for preterm birth have been identified, prevention efforts have failed to halt the increasing rates of preterm birth. Epidemiological studies have identified air pollution as an emerging potential risk factor for preterm birth. However, many studies were limited by study design and inadequate exposure assessment. Due to the ubiquitous nature of ambient air pollution and the potential public health significance of any role in causing preterm birth, a novel focus investigating possible causal mechanisms influenced by air pollution is therefore a global health priority. We hypothesize that air pollution may act together with other biological factors to induce systemic inflammation and influence the duration of pregnancy. Evaluation and testing of this hypothesis is currently being conducted in a prospective cohort study in Mexico City and will provide an understanding of the pathways that mediate the effects of air pollution on preterm birth. The important public health implication is that crucial steps in this mechanistic pathway can potentially be acted on early in pregnancy to reduce the risk of preterm birth. PMID:24382337
Physical activity and its mechanistic effects on prostate cancer.
Wekesa, A; Harrison, M; Watson, R W
Beneficial effects of physical activity have been illustrated in numerous aspects of health. With the increasing incidence of prostate cancer and changes in physical activity of men, understanding the link between the two has important implications for changing this cancer burden. Both positive and negative associations between physical activity and prostate cancer have been previously demonstrated in observational epidemiological studies. Elucidating the biological mechanisms would lead to a better understanding of how physical activity influences the progression of prostate cancer. This review was undertaken to: (1) identify evidence in literature that demonstrates the effects of physical activity on skeletal muscle secretomes, (2) indicate the plausible signaling pathways these proteins might activate, and (3) identify evidence in literature that demonstrates the roles of the signaling pathways in prostate cancer progression and regression. We also discuss proposed biological mechanisms and signaling pathways by which physical activity may prevent the development and progression of prostate cancer. We discuss proteins involved in the normal and aberrant growth and development of the prostate gland that may be affected by physical activity. We further identify future directions for research, including a better understanding of the biological mechanisms, the need to standardize physical activity and identify mechanistic end points of physical activity that can then be correlated with outcomes. PMID:25800589
Thermal hydrogen-atom transfer from methane: A mechanistic exercise
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Schwarz, Helmut
Hydrogen-atom transfer (HAT) constitutes a key process in a broad range of chemical transformations as it covers heterogeneous, homogeneous, and enzymatic reactions. While open-shell metal oxo species [MO]rad are no longer regarded as being involved in the heterogeneously catalyzed oxidative coupling of methane (2CH4 +
A mechanistic model for permeability evolution in fractured sorbing media
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wang, Shugang; Elsworth, Derek; Liu, Jishan
A mechanistic model is presented to represent the evolution of permeability in fractured sorbing media such as coal beds and organic-rich shales. This model accommodates key competing processes of poromechanical dilation and sorption-induced swelling. We show that the significant difference in stiffness between fracture and matrix transforms the composite system from globally unconstrained to locally constrained by the development of a virtual "stiff shell" that envelops the perimeter of a representative elementary volume containing a fracture. It is this transformation that results in swelling-induced permeability reduction at low (sorbing) gas pressures and self consistently allows competitive dilation of the fracture as gas pressures are increased. Importantly, net dilation is shown to require a mismatch in the Biot coefficients of fracture and matrix with the coefficient for the fracture exceeding that for the matrix—a condition that is logically met. Permeability evolution is cast in terms of series and parallel models with the series model better replicating observational data. The model may be cast in terms of nondimensional parameters representing sorptive and poromechanical effects and modulated by the sensitivity of the fracture network to dilation or compaction of the individual fractures. This latter parameter encapsulates the effects of fracture spacing and initial permeability and scale changes in permeability driven by either sorption or poromechanical effects. This model is applied to well-controlled observational data for different ranks of coals and different gases (He, CO2) and satisfactory agreement is obtained.
The road to advanced glycation end products: a mechanistic perspective.
Cho, S-J; Roman, G; Yeboah, F; Konishi, Y
Protein glycation is a slow natural process involving the chemical modification of the reactive amino and guanidine functions in amino acids by sugars and carbohydrates-derived reactive carbonyls. Its deleterious consequences are obvious in the case of long-lived proteins in aged people and are exacerbated by the high blood concentration of sugars in diabetic patients. The non-enzymatic glycation of proteins occurs through a wide range of concurrent processes comprising condensation, rearrangement, fragmentation, and oxidation reactions. Using a few well established intermediates such as Schiff base, Amadori product and reactive a-dicarbonyls as milestones and the results of in vitro glycation investigations, an overall detailed mechanistic analysis of protein glycation is presented for the first time. The pathways leading to several advanced glycation end products (AGEs) such as (carboxymethyl)lysine, pentosidine, and glucosepane are outlined, whereas other AGEs useful as potential biomarkers of glycation are only briefly mentioned. The current stage of the development of glycation inhibitors has been reviewed with an emphasis on their mechanism of action. PMID:17584071
Equation-free mechanistic ecosystem forecasting using empirical dynamic modeling.
Ye, Hao; Beamish, Richard J; Glaser, Sarah M; Grant, Sue C H; Hsieh, Chih-Hao; Richards, Laura J; Schnute, Jon T; Sugihara, George
It is well known that current equilibrium-based models fall short as predictive descriptions of natural ecosystems, and particularly of fisheries systems that exhibit nonlinear dynamics. For example, model parameters assumed to be fixed constants may actually vary in time, models may fit well to existing data but lack out-of-sample predictive skill, and key driving variables may be misidentified due to transient (mirage) correlations that are common in nonlinear systems. With these frailties, it is somewhat surprising that static equilibrium models continue to be widely used. Here, we examine empirical dynamic modeling (EDM) as an alternative to imposed model equations and that accommodates both nonequilibrium dynamics and nonlinearity. Using time series from nine stocks of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) from the Fraser River system in British Columbia, Canada, we perform, for the the first time to our knowledge, real-data comparison of contemporary fisheries models with equivalent EDM formulations that explicitly use spawning stock and environmental variables to forecast recruitment. We find that EDM models produce more accurate and precise forecasts, and unlike extensions of the classic Ricker spawner-recruit equation, they show significant improvements when environmental factors are included. Our analysis demonstrates the strategic utility of EDM for incorporating environmental influences into fisheries forecasts and, more generally, for providing insight into how environmental factors can operate in forecast models, thus paving the way for equation-free mechanistic forecasting to be applied in management contexts. PMID:25733874
Anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic Chinese herbal medicines: A mechanistic overview
Boye, Alex; Yang, Yan; Asenso, James; Wei, Wei
Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) is an integral component of complementary/alternative medicine and it is increasingly becoming the preferred therapeutic modality for the treatment of liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) worldwide. Accordingly, the World Health Organization (WHO) has attested to the popularity and efficacy of indigenous herbal therapies including CHM as a first line of treatment for some diseases including liver disorders. However, the WHO and drug discovery experts have always recommended that use of indigenous herbal remedies must go hand-in-hand with the requisite mechanistic elucidation so as to constitute a system of verification of efficacy within the ethnobotanical context of use. Although many CHM experts have advanced knowledge on CHM, nonetheless, more enlightenment is needed, particularly mechanisms of action of CHMs on fibro-hepato-carcinogenesis. We, herein, provide in-depth mechanisms of the action of CHMs which have demonstrated anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic effects, in pre-clinical and clinical studies as published in PubMed and other major scientific databases. Specifically, the review brings out the important signaling pathways, and their downstream targets which are modulated at multi-level by various anti-fibro-hepatocarcinogenic CHMs. PMID:27366355
Multiscale mechanistic modeling in pharmaceutical research and development.
Kuepfer, Lars; Lippert, Jörg; Eissing, Thomas
Discontinuation of drug development projects due to lack of efficacy or adverse events is one of the main cost drivers in pharmaceutical research and development (R&D). Investments have to be written-off and contribute to the total costs of a successful drug candidate receiving marketing authorization and allowing return on invest. A vital risk for pharmaceutical innovator companies is late stage clinical failure since costs for individual clinical trials may exceed the one billion Euro threshold. To guide investment decisions and to safeguard maximum medical benefit and safety for patients recruited in clinical trials, it is therefore essential to understand the clinical consequences of all information and data generated. The complexity of the physiological and pathophysiological processes and the sheer amount of information available overcharge the mental capacity of any human being and prevent a prediction of the success in clinical development. A rigorous integration of knowledge, assumption, and experimental data into computational models promises a significant improvement of the rationalization of decision making in pharmaceutical industry. We here give an overview of the current status of modeling and simulation in pharmaceutical R&D and outline the perspectives of more recent developments in mechanistic modeling. Specific modeling approaches for different biological scales ranging from intracellular processes to whole organism physiology are introduced and an example for integrative multiscale modeling of therapeutic efficiency in clinical oncology trials is showcased. PMID:22161351
Stem cell guidance through the mechanistic target of rapamycin
Maiese, Kenneth
Stem cells offer great promise for the treatment of multiple disorders throughout the body. Critical to this premise is the ability to govern stem cell pluripotency, proliferation, and differentiation. The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), 289-kDa serine/threonine protein kinase, that is a vital component of mTOR Complex 1 and mTOR Complex 2 represents a critical pathway for the oversight of stem cell maintenance. mTOR can control the programmed cell death pathways of autophagy and apoptosis that can yield variable outcomes in stem cell survival and be reliant upon proliferative pathways that include Wnt signaling, Wnt1 inducible signaling pathway protein 1 (WISP1), silent mating type information regulation 2 homolog 1 (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) (SIRT1), and trophic factors. mTOR also is a necessary component for the early development and establishment of stem cells as well as having a significant impact in the regulation of the maturation of specific cell phenotypes. Yet, as a proliferative agent, mTOR can not only foster cancer stem cell development and tumorigenesis, but also mediate cell senescence under certain conditions to limit invasive cancer growth. mTOR offers an exciting target for the oversight of stem cell therapies but requires careful consideration of the diverse clinical outcomes that can be fueled by mTOR signaling pathways. PMID:26328016
A mechanistic compartmental model for total antibody uptake in tumors
Thurber, Greg M.; Dane Wittrup, K.
Antibodies are under development to treat a variety of cancers, such as lymphomas, colon, and breast cancer. A major limitation to greater efficacy for this class of drugs is poor distribution in vivo. Localization of antibodies occurs slowly, often in insufficient therapeutic amounts, and distributes heterogeneously throughout the tumor. While the microdistribution around individual vessels is important for many therapies, the total amount of antibody localized in the tumor is paramount for many applications such as imaging, determining the therapeutic index with antibody drug conjugates, and dosing in radioimmunotherapy. With imaging and pretargeted therapeutic strategies, the time course of uptake is critical in determining when to take an image or deliver a secondary reagent. We present here a simple mechanistic model of antibody uptake and retention that captures the major rates that determine the time course of antibody concentration within a tumor including dose, affinity, plasma clearance, target expression, internalization, permeability, and vascularization. Since many of the parameters are known or can be estimated in vitro, this model can approximate the time course of antibody concentration in tumors to aid in experimental design, data interpretation, and strategies to improve localization. PMID:22974563
Mechanistic Perspectives of Maslinic Acid in Targeting Inflammation
Yap, Wei Hsum; Lim, Yang Mooi
Chronic inflammation drives the development of various pathological diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and cancer. The arachidonic acid pathway represents one of the major mechanisms for inflammation. Prostaglandins (PGs) are lipid products generated from arachidonic acid by the action of cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes and their activity is blocked by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). The use of natural compounds in regulation of COX activity/prostaglandins production is receiving increasing attention. In Mediterranean diet, olive oil and table olives contain significant dietary sources of maslinic acid. Maslinic acid is arising as a safe and novel natural pentacyclic triterpene which has protective effects against chronic inflammatory diseases in various in vivo and in vitro experimental models. Understanding the anti-inflammatory mechanism of maslinic acid is crucial for its development as a potential dietary nutraceutical. This review focuses on the mechanistic action of maslinic acid in regulating the inflammation pathways through modulation of the arachidonic acid metabolism including the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB)/COX-2 expression, upstream protein kinase signaling, and phospholipase A2 enzyme activity. Further investigations may provide insight into the mechanism of maslinic acid in regulating the molecular targets and their associated pathways in response to specific inflammatory stimuli. PMID:26491566
A mechanistic stochastic framework for regulating bacterial cell division.
Ghusinga, Khem Raj; Vargas-Garcia, Cesar A; Singh, Abhyudai
How exponentially growing cells maintain size homeostasis is an important fundamental problem. Recent single-cell studies in prokaryotes have uncovered the adder principle, where cells add a fixed size (volume) from birth to division, irrespective of their size at birth. To mechanistically explain the adder principle, we consider a timekeeper protein that begins to get stochastically expressed after cell birth at a rate proportional to the volume. Cell-division time is formulated as the first-passage time for protein copy numbers to hit a fixed threshold. Consistent with data, the model predicts that the noise in division timing increases with size at birth. Intriguingly, our results show that the distribution of the volume added between successive cell-division events is independent of the newborn cell size. This was dramatically seen in experimental studies, where histograms of the added volume corresponding to different newborn sizes collapsed on top of each other. The model provides further insights consistent with experimental observations: the distribution of the added volume when scaled by its mean becomes invariant of the growth rate. In summary, our simple yet elegant model explains key experimental findings and suggests a mechanism for regulating both the mean and fluctuations in cell-division timing for controlling size. PMID:27456660
Mechanistic biomarkers for clinical decision making in rheumatic diseases
Robinson, William H.; Lindstrom, Tamsin M.; Cheung, Regina K.; Sokolove, Jeremy
The use of biomarkers is becoming increasingly intrinsic to the practice of medicine and holds great promise for transforming the practice of rheumatology. Biomarkers have the potential to aid clinical diagnosis when symptoms are present or to provide a means of detecting early signs of disease when they are not. Some biomarkers can serve as early surrogates of eventual clinical outcomes or guide therapeutic decision making by enabling identification of individuals likely to respond to a specific therapy. Using biomarkers might reduce the costs of drug development by enabling individuals most likely to respond to be enrolled in clinical trials, thereby minimizing the number of participants required. In this Review, we discuss the current use and the potential of biomarkers in rheumatology and in select fields at the forefront of biomarker research. We emphasize the value of different types of biomarkers, addressing the concept of 'actionable' biomarkers, which can be used to guide clinical decision making, and 'mechanistic' biomarkers, a subtype of actionable biomarker that is embedded in disease pathogenesis and, therefore, represents a superior biomarker. We provide examples of actionable and mechanistic biomarkers currently available, and discuss how development of such biomarkers could revolutionize clinical practice and drug development. PMID:23419428
Mechanistic Differences Leading to Infectious and Sterile Inflammation.
Behnia, Faranak; Sheller, Samantha; Menon, Ramkumar
Inflammation is a physiologic component of pregnancy and parturition. Overwhelming intrauterine inflammatory load promotes quiescent feto-maternal tissues into a contractile phenotype. Like inflammation, oxidative stress is an inevitable component of both pregnancy and parturition. Pathologic activation of host innate immune response to adverse pregnancy conditions can lead to premature activation of inflammatory and oxidative stress. Inflammation and oxidative stress markers seen with both sterile and infectious inflammation are often similar; therefore, it is difficult to understand causality of conditions like spontaneous preterm birth. This review demonstrates potential mechanistic pathways of activation of sterile and infectious inflammation. We demonstrate the activation of two unique pathways of inflammation by factors that are well-documented proxies for oxidative stress (cigarette smoke extract) and infection (lipopolysaccharide). Sterile inflammation seen after exposure to an oxidative stress inducer is due to cellular elemental damage resulting in p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) induced cellular senescence. Infectious inflammation is through activation of transcription factor NF-κB and independent of oxidative stress-associated damages and p38 MAPK-induced senescence. Understanding the differences in the inflammatory pathway activation by various risk factors is important to design better screening, diagnostic and intervention strategies to reduce the risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes. PMID:26840942
Mechanistic aspects of photooxidation of polyhydroxylated molecules on metal oxides.
Shkrob, I. A.; Marin, T. M.; Sevilla, M. D.; Chemerisov, S.
Polyhydroxylated molecules, including natural carbohydrates, are known to undergo photooxidation on wide-gap transition-metal oxides irradiated by ultraviolet light. In this study, we examine mechanistic aspects of this photoreaction on aqueous TiO{sub 2}, {alpha}-FeOOH, and {alpha}-Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} particles using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and site-selective deuteration. We demonstrate that the carbohydrates are oxidized at sites involved in the formation of oxo bridges between the chemisorbed carbohydrate molecule and metal ions at the oxide surface. This bridging inhibits the loss of water (which is the typical reaction of the analogous free radicals in bulk solvent) promoting instead a rearrangement that leads to elimination of the formyl radical. For natural carbohydrates, the latter reaction mainly involves carbon-1, whereas the main radical products of the oxidation are radical arising from H atom loss centered on carbon-1, -2, and -3 sites. Photoexcited TiO{sub 2} oxidizes all of the carbohydrates and polyols, whereas {alpha}-FeOOH oxidizes some of the carbohydrates, and {alpha}-Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} is unreactive. These results serve as a stepping stone for understanding the photochemistry on mineral surfaces of more complex biomolecules such as nucleic acids.
Microneedle/nanoencapsulation-mediated transdermal delivery: Mechanistic insights
Gomaa, Yasmine A.; Garland, Martin J.; McInnes, Fiona J.; Donnelly, Ryan F.; El-Khordagui, Labiba K.; Wilson, Clive G.
A systematic study was undertaken to gain more insight into the mechanism of transdermal delivery of nanoencapsulated model dyes across microneedle (MN)-treated skin, a complex process not yet explored. Rhodamine B (Rh B) and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) as model hydrophilic and hydrophobic small/medium-size molecules, respectively, were encapsulated in poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) and delivered through full thickness porcine skin pretreated with MN array. Permeation through MN-treated skin was affected by physicochemical characteristics of NPs and the encapsulated dyes. Dye flux was enhanced by smaller particle size, hydrophilicity, and negative zeta potential of NPs. Regarding encapsulated dyes, solubility at physiological pH and potential interaction with skin proteins proved to outweigh molecular weight as determinants of skin permeation. Data were verified using confocal laser scanning microscopy imaging. Findings coupled with the literature data are supportive of a mechanism involving influx of NPs, particularly of smaller size, deep into MN-created channels, generating depot dye-rich reservoirs. Molecular diffusion of the released dye across viable skin layers proceeds at a rate determined by its molecular characteristics. Data obtained provide mechanistic information of importance to the development of formulation strategies for more effective intradermal and transdermal MN-mediated delivery of nanoencapsulated therapeutic agents. PMID:23461860
A Mechanistic Stochastic Ricker Model: Analytical and Numerical Investigations
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gadrich, Tamar; Katriel, Guy
The Ricker model is one of the simplest and most widely-used ecological models displaying complex nonlinear dynamics. We study a discrete-time population model, which is derived from simple assumptions concerning individual organisms' behavior, using the "site-based" approach, developed by Brännström, Broomhead, Johansson and Sumpter. In the large-population limit the model converges to the Ricker model, and can thus be considered a mechanistic version of the Ricker model, derived from basic ecological principles, and taking into account the demographic stochasticity inherent to finite populations. We employ several analytical and precise numerical methods to study the model, showing how each approach contributes to understanding the model's dynamics. Expressing the model as a Markov chain, we employ the concept of quasi-stationary distributions, which are computed numerically, and used to examine the interaction between complex deterministic dynamics and demographic stochasticity, as well as to calculate mean times to extinction. A Gaussian Markov chain approximation is used to obtain quantitative asymptotic approximations for the size of fluctuations of the stochastic model's time series around the deterministic trajectory, and for the correlations between successive fluctuations. Results of these approximations are compared to results obtained from quasi-stationary distributions and from direct simulations, and are shown to be in good agreement.
Not Available
This report presents profiles of US patents in the area of solar energy technology, and in the related areas of wind, geothermal and tide and wave energy. Each profile is divided into three parts. The first part identifies the area which is examined, lists the pertinent US Patent Classification(s), and graphically illustrates patent activity across a designated 10-year span. The second part tabulates the data upon which the graphs of the first part were based, provides a list of assignees for the period 1969 to 1978 both by the number of patents and alphabetically, and presents on alphabetical listing of inventors of unassigned patents. The third part updates the preceding material for the period January-October 1979. (SPH)
The ecological impacts of nighttime light pollution: a mechanistic appraisal.
Gaston, Kevin J; Bennie, Jonathan; Davies, Thomas W; Hopkins, John
The ecological impacts of nighttime light pollution have been a longstanding source of concern, accentuated by realized and projected growth in electrical lighting. As human communities and lighting technologies develop, artificial light increasingly modifies natural light regimes by encroaching on dark refuges in space, in time, and across wavelengths. A wide variety of ecological implications of artificial light have been identified. However, the primary research to date is largely focused on the disruptive influence of nighttime light on higher vertebrates, and while comprehensive reviews have been compiled along taxonomic lines and within specific research domains, the subject is in need of synthesis within a common mechanistic framework. Here we propose such a framework that focuses on the cross-factoring of the ways in which artificial lighting alters natural light regimes (spatially, temporally, and spectrally), and the ways in which light influences biological systems, particularly the distinction between light as a resource and light as an information source. We review the evidence for each of the combinations of this cross-factoring. As artificial lighting alters natural patterns of light in space, time and across wavelengths, natural patterns of resource use and information flows may be disrupted, with downstream effects to the structure and function of ecosystems. This review highlights: (i) the potential influence of nighttime lighting at all levels of biological organisation (from cell to ecosystem); (ii) the significant impact that even low levels of nighttime light pollution can have; and (iii) the existence of major research gaps, particularly in terms of the impacts of light at population and ecosystem levels, identification of intensity thresholds, and the spatial extent of impacts in the vicinity of artificial lights. PMID:23565807
Mechanistic Study of Plasma Damage of Low k Dielectric Surfaces
Bao Junjing; Shi Hualiang; Huang Huai; Ho, P. S.; Liu Junjun; Goodner, M. D.; Moinpour, M.; Kloster, G. M.
Plasma damage to low k dielectric materials was investigated from a mechanistic point of view. Low k dielectric films were treated by plasma Ar, O{sub 2}, N{sub 2}/H{sub 2}, N{sub 2} and H{sub 2} in a standard RIE chamber and the damage was characterized by Angle Resolved X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (ARXPS), X-Ray Reflectivity (XRR), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Contact Angle measurements. Both carbon depletion and surface densification were observed on the top surface of damaged low k materials while the bulk remained largely unaffected. Plasma damage was found to be a complicated phenomenon involving both chemical and physical effects, depending on chemical reactivity and the energy and mass of the plasma species. A downstream hybrid plasma source with separate ions and atomic radicals was employed to study their respective roles in the plasma damage process. Ions were found to play a more important role in the plasma damage process. The dielectric constant of low k materials can increase up to 20% due to plasma damage and we attributed this to the removal of the methyl group making the low k surface hydrophilic. Annealing was generally effective in mitigating moisture uptake to restore the k value but the recovery was less complete for higher energy plasmas. Quantum chemistry calculation confirmed that physisorbed water in low k materials induces the largest increase of dipole moments in comparison with changes of surface bonding configurations, and is primarily responsible for the dielectric constant increase.
A Mechanistic Link between Olfaction and Autism Spectrum Disorder
Rozenkrantz, Liron; Zachor, Ditza; Heller, Iris; Plotkin, Anton; Weissbrod, Aharon; Snitz, Kobi; Secundo, Lavi; Sobel, Noam
Summary Internal action models (IAMs) are brain templates for sensory-motor coordination underlying diverse behaviors [1]. An emerging theory suggests that impaired IAMs are a common theme in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) [2–4]. However, whether impaired IAMs occur across sensory systems and how they relate to the major phenotype of ASD, namely impaired social communication [5], remains unclear. Olfaction relies on an IAM known as the sniff response, where sniff magnitude is automatically modulated to account for odor valence [6–12]. To test the failed IAM theory in olfaction, we precisely measured the non-verbal non-task-dependent sniff response concurrent with pleasant and unpleasant odors in 36 children—18 with ASD and 18 matched typically developing (TD) controls. We found that whereas TD children generated a typical adult-like sniff response within 305 ms of odor onset, ASD children had a profoundly altered sniff response, sniffing equally regardless of odor valance. This difference persisted despite equal reported odor perception and allowed for 81% correct ASD classification based on the sniff response alone (binomial, p < 0.001). Moreover, increasingly aberrant sniffing was associated with increasingly severe ASD (r = −0.75, p < 0.001), specifically with social (r = −0.72, p < 0.001), but not motor (r < −0.38, p > 0.18), impairment. These results uncover a novel ASD marker implying a mechanistic link between the underpinnings of olfaction and ASD and directly linking an impaired IAM with impaired social abilities. PMID:26144969
Radiation induced base excision repair (BER): a mechanistic mathematical approach.
Rahmanian, Shirin; Taleei, Reza; Nikjoo, Hooshang
This paper presents a mechanistic model of base excision repair (BER) pathway for the repair of single-stand breaks (SSBs) and oxidized base lesions produced by ionizing radiation (IR). The model is based on law of mass action kinetics to translate the biochemical processes involved, step-by-step, in the BER pathway to translate into mathematical equations. The BER is divided into two subpathways, short-patch repair (SPR) and long-patch repair (LPR). SPR involves in replacement of single nucleotide via Pol β and ligation of the ends via XRCC1 and Ligase III, while LPR involves in replacement of multiple nucleotides via PCNA, Pol δ/ɛ and FEN 1, and ligation via Ligase I. A hallmark of IR is the production of closely spaced lesions within a turn of DNA helix (named complex lesions), which have been attributed to a slower repair process. The model presented considers fast and slow component of BER kinetics by assigning SPR for simple lesions and LPR for complex lesions. In the absence of in vivo reaction rate constants for the BER proteins, we have deduced a set of rate constants based on different published experimental measurements including accumulation kinetics obtained from UVA irradiation, overall SSB repair kinetic experiments, and overall BER kinetics from live-cell imaging experiments. The model was further used to calculate the repair kinetics of complex base lesions via the LPR subpathway and compared to foci kinetic experiments for cells irradiated with γ rays, Si, and Fe ions. The model calculation show good agreement with experimental measurements for both overall repair and repair of complex lesions. Furthermore, using the model we explored different mechanisms responsible for inhibition of repair when higher LET and HZE particles are used and concluded that increasing the damage complexity can inhibit initiation of LPR after the AP site removal step in BER. PMID:25117268
Conceptualising population health: from mechanistic thinking to complexity science
The mechanistic interpretation of reality can be traced to the influential work by René Descartes and Sir Isaac Newton. Their theories were able to accurately predict most physical phenomena relating to motion, optics and gravity. This paradigm had at least three principles and approaches: reductionism, linearity and hierarchy. These ideas appear to have influenced social scientists and the discourse on population health. In contrast, Complexity Science takes a more holistic view of systems. It views natural systems as being 'open', with fuzzy borders, constantly adapting to cope with pressures from the environment. These are called Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). The sub-systems within it lack stable hierarchies, and the roles of agency keep changing. The interactions with the environment and among sub-systems are non-linear interactions and lead to self-organisation and emergent properties. Theoretical frameworks such as epi+demos+cracy and the ecosocial approach to health have implicitly used some of these concepts of interacting dynamic sub-systems. Using Complexity Science we can view population health outcomes as an emergent property of CAS, which has numerous dynamic non-linear interactions among its interconnected sub-systems or agents. In order to appreciate these sub-systems and determinants, one should acquire a basic knowledge of diverse disciplines and interact with experts from different disciplines. Strategies to improve health should be multi-pronged, and take into account the diversity of actors, determinants and contexts. The dynamic nature of the system requires that the interventions are constantly monitored to provide early feedback to a flexible system that takes quick corrections. PMID:21247500
Toward a mechanistic understanding and prediction of biotic homogenization.
Olden, Julian D; Poff, N LeRoy
The widespread replacement of native species with cosmopolitan, nonnative species is homogenizing the global fauna and flora. While the empirical study of biotic homogenization is substantial and growing, theoretical aspects have yet to be explored. Consequently, the breadth of possible ecological mechanisms that can shape current and future patterns and rates of homogenization remain largely unknown. Here, we develop a conceptual model that describes 14 potential scenarios by which species invasions and/or extinctions can lead to various trajectories of biotic homogenization (increased community similarity) or differentiation (decreased community similarity); we then use a simulation approach to explore the model's predictions. We found changes in community similarity to vary with the type and number of nonnative and native species, the historical degree of similarity among the communities, and, to a lesser degree, the richness of the recipient communities. Homogenization is greatest when similar species invade communities, causing either no extinction or differential extinction of native species. The model predictions are consistent with current empirical data for fish, bird, and plant communities and therefore may represent the dominant mechanisms of contemporary homogenization. We present a unifying model illustrating how the balance between invading and extinct species dictates the outcome of biotic homogenization. We conclude by discussing a number of critical but largely unrecognized issues that bear on the empirical study of biotic homogenization, including the importance of spatial scale, temporal scale, and data resolution. We argue that the study of biotic homogenization needs to be placed in a more mechanistic and predictive framework in order for studies to provide adequate guidance in conservation efforts to maintain regional distinctness of the global biota. PMID:14582007
Toward a mechanistic modeling of nitrogen limitation on vegetation dynamics
Xu, Chonggang; Fisher, Rosie; Wullschleger, Stan D; Wilson, Cathy; Cai, Michael; McDowell, Nathan
Nitrogen is a dominant regulator of vegetation dynamics, net primary production, and terrestrial carbon cycles; however, most ecosystem models use a rather simplistic relationship between leaf nitrogen content and photosynthetic capacity. Such an approach does not consider how patterns of nitrogen allocation may change with differences in light intensity, growing-season temperature and CO{sub 2} concentration. To account for this known variability in nitrogen-photosynthesis relationships, we develop a mechanistic nitrogen allocation model based on a trade-off of nitrogen allocated between growth and storage, and an optimization of nitrogen allocated among light capture, electron transport, carboxylation, and respiration. The developed model is able to predict the acclimation of photosynthetic capacity to changes in CO{sub 2} concentration, temperature, and radiation when evaluated against published data of V{sub c,max} (maximum carboxylation rate) and J{sub max} (maximum electron transport rate). A sensitivity analysis of the model for herbaceous plants, deciduous and evergreen trees implies that elevated CO{sub 2} concentrations lead to lower allocation of nitrogen to carboxylation but higher allocation to storage. Higher growing-season temperatures cause lower allocation of nitrogen to carboxylation, due to higher nitrogen requirements for light capture pigments and for storage. Lower levels of radiation have a much stronger effect on allocation of nitrogen to carboxylation for herbaceous plants than for trees, resulting from higher nitrogen requirements for light capture for herbaceous plants. As far as we know, this is the first model of complete nitrogen allocation that simultaneously considers nitrogen allocation to light capture, electron transport, carboxylation, respiration and storage, and the responses of each to altered environmental conditions. We expect this model could potentially improve our confidence in simulations of carbon-nitrogen interactions
Mechanistic analysis of cavitation assisted transesterification on biodiesel characteristics.
Sajjadi, Baharak; Abdul Aziz, A R; Ibrahim, Shaliza
The influence of sonoluminescence transesterification on biodiesel physicochemical properties was investigated and the results were compared to those of traditional mechanical stirring. This study was conducted to identify the mechanistic features of ultrasonication by coupling statistical analysis of the experiments into the simulation of cavitation bubble. Different combinations of operational variables were employed for alkali-catalysis transesterification of palm oil. The experimental results showed that transesterification with ultrasound irradiation could change the biodiesel density by about 0.3kg/m(3); the viscosity by 0.12mm(2)/s; the pour point by about 1-2°C and the flash point by 5°C compared to the traditional method. Furthermore, 93.84% of yield with alcohol to oil molar ratio of 6:1 could be achieved through ultrasound assisted transesterification within only 20min. However, only 89.09% of reaction yield was obtained by traditional macro mixing/heating under the same condition. Based on the simulated oscillation velocity value, the cavitation phenomenon significantly contributed to generation of fine micro emulsion and was able to overcome mass transfer restriction. It was found that the sonoluminescence bubbles reached the temperature of 758-713K, pressure of 235.5-159.55bar, oscillation velocity of 3.5-6.5cm/s, and equilibrium radius of 17.9-13.7 times greater than its initial size under the ambient temperature of 50-64°C at the moment of collapse. This showed that the sonoluminescence bubbles were in the condition in which the decomposition phenomena were activated and the reaction rate was accelerated together with a change in the biodiesel properties. PMID:24981808
Two Mechanistic Pathways for Thienopyridine-Associated Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura
Bennett, Charles L.; Kim, Benjamin; Zakarija, Anaadriana; Bandarenko, Nicholas; Pandey, Dilip K.; Buffie, Charlie G.; McKoy, June M.; Tevar, Amul D.; Cursio, John F.; Yarnold, Paul R.; Kwaan, Hau C.; De Masi, Davide; Sarode, Ravindra; Raife, Thomas J.; Kiss, Joseph E.; Raisch, Dennis W.; Davidson, Charles; Sadler, J. Evan; Ortel, Thomas L.; Zheng, X. Long; Kato, Seiji; Matsumoto, Masanori; Uemura, Masahito; Fujimura, Yoshihiro
Objectives We sought to describe clinical and laboratory findings for a large cohort of patients with thienopyridine-associated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Background The thienopyridine derivatives, ticlopidine and clopidogrel, are the 2 most common drugs associated with TTP in databases maintained by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Methods Clinical reports of TTP associated with clopidogrel and ticlopidine were identified from medical records, published case reports, and FDA case reports (n = 128). Duration of thienopyridine exposure, clinical and laboratory findings, and survival were recorded. ADAMTS13 activity (n = 39) and inhibitor (n = 30) were measured for a subset of individuals. Results Compared with clopidogrel-associated TTP cases (n = 35), ticlopidine-associated TTP cases (n = 93) were more likely to have received more than 2 weeks of drug (90% vs. 26%), to be severely thrombocytopenic (84% vs. 60%), and to have normal renal function (72% vs. 45%) (p < 0.01 for each). Compared with TTP patients with ADAMTS13 activity >15% (n = 13), TTP patients with severely deficient ADAMTS13 activity (n = 26) were more likely to have received ticlopidine (92.3% vs. 46.2%, p < 0.003). Among patients who developed TTP >2 weeks after thienopyridine, therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) increased likelihood of survival (84% vs. 38%, p < 0.05). Among patients who developed TTP within 2 weeks of starting thienopyridines, survival was 77% with TPE and 78% without. Conclusions Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura is a rare complication of thienopyridine treatment. This drug toxicity appears to occur by 2 different mechanistic pathways, characterized primarily by time of onset before versus after 2 weeks of thienopyridine administration. If TTP occurs after 2 weeks of ticlopidine or clopidogrel therapy, therapeutic plasma exchange must be promptly instituted to enhance likelihood of survival. PMID:17868804
A partial mechanistic understanding of the North American monsoon
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Erfani, Ehsan; Mitchell, David
An understanding of the major governing processes of North American monsoon (NAM) is necessary to guide improvement in global and regional climate modeling of the NAM, as well as NAM's impacts on the summer circulation, precipitation, and drought over North America. A mechanistic understanding of the NAM is suggested by incorporating local- and synoptic-scale processes. The local-scale mechanism describes the effect of the temperature inversion over the Gulf of California (GC) on controlling low-level moisture during the 2004 NAM. The strong low-level inversion inhibits the exchange between the moist air in the marine boundary layer (MBL) and the overlying dry air. This inversion weakens with increasing sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in GC and generally disappears once SSTs exceed 29.5°C, allowing the moist air, trapped in the MBL, to mix with free tropospheric air. This leads to a deep, moist layer that can be transported by across-gulf (along-gulf) flow toward the NAM core region (southwestern U.S.) to form thunderstorms. On the synoptic scale, climatologies from 1983 to 2010 exhibit a temporal correspondence between coastal warm tropical surface water, NAM deep convection, NAM anticyclone center, and NAM-induced strong descent. A hypothesis is proposed to explain this correspondence, based on limited soundings at the GC entrance (suggesting this local mechanism may also be active in that region), the climatologies, and the relevant literature. The warmest SSTs moving up the coast may initiate NAM convection and atmospheric heating, advancing the position of the anticyclone and the region of descent northward.
A mechanistic nitrogen limitation model for CLM(ED)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ali, A. A.; Xu, C.; McDowell, N. G.; Rogers, A.; Wullschleger, S. D.; Fisher, R.; Vrugt, J. A.
Photosynthetic capacity is a key plant trait that determines the rate of photosynthesis; however, in Earth System Models it is either a fixed value or derived from a linear function of leaf nitrogen content. A mechanistic leaf nitrogen allocation model have been developed for a DOE-sponsored Community Land Model coupled to the Ecosystem Demography model (CLM-ED) to predict the photosynthetic capacity [Vc,max25 (μmol CO2 m-2 s-1)] under different environmental conditions at the global scale. We collected more than 800 data points of photosynthetic capacity (Vc,max25) for 124 species from 57 studies with the corresponding leaf nitrogen content and environmental conditions (temperature, radiation, humidity and day length) from literature and the NGEE arctic site (Barrow). Based on the data, we found that environmental control of Vc,max25 is about 4 times stronger than the leaf nitrogen content. Using the Markov-Chain Monte Carlo simulation approach, we fitted the collected data to our newly developed nitrogen allocation model, which predict the leaf nitrogen investment in different components including structure, storage, respiration, light capture, carboxylation and electron transport at different environmental conditions. Our results showed that our nitrogen allocation model explained 52% of variance in observed Vc,max25 and 65% variance in observed Jmax25 using a single set of fitted model parameters for all species. Across the growing season, we found that the modeled Vc,max25 explained 49% of the variability in measured Vc,max25. In the context of future global warming, our model predicts that a temperature increase by 5oC and the doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide reduced the Vc,max25 by 5%, 11%, respectively.
A mechanistic accounting of SOM speciation and kinetics in soils
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Maggi, F.; Riley, W. J.; Guerry, N.; Torn, M. S.; Kleber, M.
The nature and dynamics of soil organic matter (SOM) are arguably far from being understood and accurately represented in current site, regional, and global land use and climate models. Whereas consolidated models make use of aggregated pools describing SOM with characteristic turnover times such as inert, passive, slow cycling, and fast cycling, or linking the turnover time to the molecular weight of the compound, recent analyses of SOM below the top soil suggest that those approaches only partially capture SOM dynamics, and that SOM stability may largely be determined by biological and chemical protection as well as other environmental factors rather than the molecular structure of the compound and its molecular weight. We introduce here a new paradigm of SOM speciation and kinetics that explicitly decouples the assumed recalcitrance and turnover time from the SOM molecular density and structure in favour of a mechanistic accounting of microbially mediated processes and chemo-physical interactions among the various SOM species and soil environment. These processes include microbial assimilation, respiration and C recycling; depolymerization of solid litter, root exudates, and dead cells into various decomposed SOM groups; and incorporation of soluble SOM species into a protected phase not available to chemical and biological agents. SOM was described by means of functional compounds including mono- and polysaccharides, lignin, amino compounds, organic acids, nucleic acids, lipids, and phenols, each being accounted for by one or more representative species in the model. Fungal and bacterial microbial functional groups were used to characterize depolymerization and respiration rates. The SOM reaction network and characteristics, its mathematical inclusion within the TOUGHREACT framework, and some preliminary results of modeling grasslands and forested ecosystems are presented here. Biogeochemical reaction network of SOC pathways. Steady state vertical contentration
The attention schema theory: a mechanistic account of subjective awareness
Graziano, Michael S. A.; Webb, Taylor W.
We recently proposed the attention schema theory, a novel way to explain the brain basis of subjective awareness in a mechanistic and scientifically testable manner. The theory begins with attention, the process by which signals compete for the brain's limited computing resources. This internal signal competition is partly under a bottom–up influence and partly under top–down control. We propose that the top–down control of attention is improved when the brain has access to a simplified model of attention itself. The brain therefore constructs a schematic model of the process of attention, the 'attention schema,' in much the same way that it constructs a schematic model of the body, the 'body schema.' The content of this internal model leads a brain to conclude that it has a subjective experience. One advantage of this theory is that it explains how awareness and attention can sometimes become dissociated; the brain's internal models are never perfect, and sometimes a model becomes dissociated from the object being modeled. A second advantage of this theory is that it explains how we can be aware of both internal and external events. The brain can apply attention to many types of information including external sensory information and internal information about emotions and cognitive states. If awareness is a model of attention, then this model should pertain to the same domains of information to which attention pertains. A third advantage of this theory is that it provides testable predictions. If awareness is the internal model of attention, used to help control attention, then without awareness, attention should still be possible but should suffer deficits in control. In this article, we review the existing literature on the relationship between attention and awareness, and suggest that at least some of the predictions of the theory are borne out by the evidence. PMID:25954242
Mechanistic Understanding of Microbial Plugging for Improved Sweep Efficiency
Steven Bryant; Larry Britton
Microbial plugging has been proposed as an effective low cost method of permeability reduction. Yet there is a dearth of information on the fundamental processes of microbial growth in porous media, and there are no suitable data to model the process of microbial plugging as it relates to sweep efficiency. To optimize the field implementation, better mechanistic and volumetric understanding of biofilm growth within a porous medium is needed. In particular, the engineering design hinges upon a quantitative relationship between amount of nutrient consumption, amount of growth, and degree of permeability reduction. In this project experiments were conducted to obtain new data to elucidate this relationship. Experiments in heterogeneous (layered) beadpacks showed that microbes could grow preferentially in the high permeability layer. Ultimately this caused flow to be equally divided between high and low permeability layers, precisely the behavior needed for MEOR. Remarkably, classical models of microbial nutrient uptake in batch experiments do not explain the nutrient consumption by the same microbes in flow experiments. We propose a simple extension of classical kinetics to account for the self-limiting consumption of nutrient observed in our experiments, and we outline a modeling approach based on architecture and behavior of biofilms. Such a model would account for the changing trend of nutrient consumption by bacteria with the increasing biomass and the onset of biofilm formation. However no existing model can explain the microbial preference for growth in high permeability regions, nor is there any obvious extension of the model for this observation. An attractive conjecture is that quorum sensing is involved in the heterogeneous bead packs.
Vitamins C and E: Beneficial effects from a mechanistic perspective
Traber, Maret G.; Stevens, Jan F.
The mechanistic properties of two dietary antioxidants that are required by humans, vitamins C and E, are discussed relative to their biological effects. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an essential cofactor for α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases. Examples are prolyl hydroxylases, which play a role in the biosynthesis of collagen and in down-regulation of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1, a transcription factor that regulates many genes responsible for tumor growth, energy metabolism, and neutrophil function and apoptosis. Vitamin C-dependent inhibition of the HIF pathway may provide alternative or additional approaches for controlling tumor progression, infections and inflammation. Vitamin E (α-tocopherol) functions as an essential lipid soluble antioxidant, scavenging hydroperoxyl radicals in lipid milieu. Human symptoms of vitamin E deficiency suggest that its antioxidant properties play a major role in protecting erythrocyte membranes and nervous tissues. As an antioxidant, vitamin C provides protection against oxidative stress-induced cellular damage by scavenging of reactive oxygen species, vitamin E-dependent neutralization of lipid hydroperoxyl radicals, and by protecting proteins from alkylation by electrophilic lipid peroxidation products. These bioactivities bear relevance to inflammatory disorders. Vitamin C plays also a role in the function of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) by recycling the eNOS cofactor, tetrahydrobiopterin, which is relevant to arterial elasticity and blood pressure regulation. Evidence from plants supports a role for vitamin C in the formation of covalent adducts with electrophilic secondary metabolites. Mechanism-based effects of vitamin C and E supplementation on biomarkers and on clinical outcomes from randomized, placebo-controlled trials are emphasized in this review. PMID:21664268
Mechanistic evaluation of alginate-HEC gelisphere compacts for controlled intrastriatal nicotine release in Parkinson's disease.
Choonara, Yahya E; Pillay, Viness; Khan, Riaz A; Singh, Neha; du Toit, Lisa C
This study focused on elucidating a mechanistic understanding in support of the multiple mechanisms which govern the formation of crosslinked alginate-hydroxyethylcellulose (Alg-HEC) gelispheres intended for the controlled intrastriatal release of nicotine as a neuroprotectant in Parkinson's Disease. HEC was incorporated as a reinforcing "protective" colloidal polymer to induce interactions between the free carboxyl groups of alginate with hydroxylated HEC monomers. Gelispheres were compressed within an external poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) matrix to further prolong the release of nicotine. Sol-gel interconversion mechanisms, matrix deformability moduli, matrix fracture energies and chemometric models of the associated energy paradigms were analyzed for their influence on the mechanism and extent of nicotine release. Textural profiling demonstrated higher fracture energies (7.94-26.69 x 10(-4) J) and lower deformability moduli (12.24-58.36 N/mm) when gelispheres were cured in 2 M HCl as a postcuring step. Ba(2+) crosslinked gelispheres resulted in superiorly compact matrices with an increase in volume of 201-329% as compared to the Ca(2+) and Zn(2+) crosslinked matrices. The order of matrix compactness was as follows: Zn(2+) < Ca(2+) < Ba(2+). Molecular mechanisms of formation, interaction, conversion, and stability of sol-gel transitions depended on the type of crosslinker, crosslinking time, energy transactions, and interactions with molecules of the hydration medium. Ba(2+) crosslinked gelispheres released nicotine slower than Ca(2+) and Zn(2+) crosslinked gelispheres due to the higher energy requirement for interconversion to sol while the energy requirements for Ca(2+) and Zn(2+) was at a lower demand. Ba(2+) crosslinked gelispheres within PLGA matrices therefore retarded nicotine release in a pseudo-zero-order manner over 21 days. PMID:18823012
Han, D K; Jones, T R
The Message Passing Interface (MPI) is the de facto message-passing standard for massively parallel programs. It is often the case that application performance is a crucial factor, especially for solving grand challenge problems. While there have been many studies on the scalability of applications, there have not been many focusing on the specific types of MPI calls being made and their impact on application performance. Using a profiling tool called mpiP, a large spectrum of parallel scientific applications were surveyed and their performance results analyzed.
UTILITY OF MECHANISTIC MODELS FOR DIRECTING ADVANCED SEPARATIONS RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES: Electrochemically Modulated Separation Example
Schwantes, Jon M.
The objective for this work was to demonstrate the utility of mechanistic computer models designed to simulate actinide behavior for use in efficiently and effectively directing advanced laboratory R&D activities associated with developing advanced separations methods.
The Modeling Environment for Total Risks studies (MENTOR) system, combined with an extension of the SHEDS (Stochastic Human Exposure and Dose Simulation) methodology, provide a mechanistically consistent framework for conducting source-to-dose exposure assessments of multiple pol...
Dose-response relationships and extrapolation in toxicology - Mechanistic and statistical considerations
Controversy on toxicological dose-response relationships and low-dose extrapolation of respective risks is often the consequence of misleading data presentation, lack of differentiation between types of response variables, and diverging mechanistic interpretation. In this chapter...
Use of Gene Expression Changes in Blood to Elucidate Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood Asthma (MICA)
Risk assessment increasingly relies more heavily on mode of action, thus the identification of human bioindicators of disease becomes all the more important. Genomic methods represent a tool for both mode of action determination and bioindicator identification. The Mechanistic In...
Daphnia magna ecotoxicogenomics provides mechanistic insights into metal toxicity.
Poynton, Helen C; Varshavsky, Julia R; Chang, Bonnie; Cavigiolio, Giorgio; Chan, Sarah; Holman, Patricia S; Loguinov, Alexandre V; Bauer, Darren J; Komachi, Kelly; Theil, Elizabeth C; Perkins, Edward J; Hughes, Owen; Vulpe, Chris D
Toxicogenomics has provided innovative approaches to chemical screening, risk assessment, and predictive toxicology. If applied to ecotoxicology, genomics tools could greatly enhance the ability to understand the modes of toxicity in environmentally relevant organisms. Daphnia magna, a small aquatic crustacean, is considered a "keystone" species in ecological food webs and is an indicator species for toxicant exposure. Our objective was to demonstrate the potential utility of gene expression profiling in ecotoxicology by identifying novel biomarkers and uncovering potential modes of action in D. magna. Using a custom D. magna cDNA microarray, we identified distinct expression profiles in response to sublethal copper, cadmium, and zinc exposures and discovered specific biomarkers of exposure including two probable metallothioneins, and a ferritin mRNA with a functional IRE. The gene expression patterns support known mechanisms of metal toxicity and reveal novel modes of action including zinc inhibition of chitinase activity. By integrating gene expression profiling into an environmentally important organism, this study provides experimental support for the utility of ecotoxicogenomics. PMID:17328222
Mechanistic species distribution modelling as a link between physiology and conservation
Evans, Tyler G.; Diamond, Sarah E.; Kelly, Morgan W.
Climate change conservation planning relies heavily on correlative species distribution models that estimate future areas of occupancy based on environmental conditions encountered in present-day ranges. The approach benefits from rapid assessment of vulnerability over a large number of organisms, but can have poor predictive power when transposed to novel environments and reveals little in the way of causal mechanisms that define changes in species distribution or abundance. Having conservation planning rely largely on this single approach also increases the risk of policy failure. Mechanistic models that are parameterized with physiological information are expected to be more robust when extrapolating distributions to future environmental conditions and can identify physiological processes that set range boundaries. Implementation of mechanistic species distribution models requires knowledge of how environmental change influences physiological performance, and because this information is currently restricted to a comparatively small number of well-studied organisms, use of mechanistic modelling in the context of climate change conservation is limited. In this review, we propose that the need to develop mechanistic models that incorporate physiological data presents an opportunity for physiologists to contribute more directly to climate change conservation and advance the field of conservation physiology. We begin by describing the prevalence of species distribution modelling in climate change conservation, highlighting the benefits and drawbacks of both mechanistic and correlative approaches. Next, we emphasize the need to expand mechanistic models and discuss potential metrics of physiological performance suitable for integration into mechanistic models. We conclude by summarizing other factors, such as the need to consider demography, limiting broader application of mechanistic models in climate change conservation. Ideally, modellers, physiologists and
Mechanistic species distribution modelling as a link between physiology and conservation.
Evans, Tyler G; Diamond, Sarah E; Kelly, Morgan W
Climate change conservation planning relies heavily on correlative species distribution models that estimate future areas of occupancy based on environmental conditions encountered in present-day ranges. The approach benefits from rapid assessment of vulnerability over a large number of organisms, but can have poor predictive power when transposed to novel environments and reveals little in the way of causal mechanisms that define changes in species distribution or abundance. Having conservation planning rely largely on this single approach also increases the risk of policy failure. Mechanistic models that are parameterized with physiological information are expected to be more robust when extrapolating distributions to future environmental conditions and can identify physiological processes that set range boundaries. Implementation of mechanistic species distribution models requires knowledge of how environmental change influences physiological performance, and because this information is currently restricted to a comparatively small number of well-studied organisms, use of mechanistic modelling in the context of climate change conservation is limited. In this review, we propose that the need to develop mechanistic models that incorporate physiological data presents an opportunity for physiologists to contribute more directly to climate change conservation and advance the field of conservation physiology. We begin by describing the prevalence of species distribution modelling in climate change conservation, highlighting the benefits and drawbacks of both mechanistic and correlative approaches. Next, we emphasize the need to expand mechanistic models and discuss potential metrics of physiological performance suitable for integration into mechanistic models. We conclude by summarizing other factors, such as the need to consider demography, limiting broader application of mechanistic models in climate change conservation. Ideally, modellers, physiologists and
Adsorption kinetic and mechanistic studies for pharmaceutical spherical carbon adsorbents: comparison of a brand product and two generics.
Abe, Hiroyuki; Morikawa, Risa; Otsuka, Makoto
The kinetic and mechanistic profiles of three pharmaceutical spherical carbon adsorbents, Kremezin as the brand product and two generics (Merckmezin and spherical carbon adsorbent "Mylan"), were compared. Five non-ionic active pharmaceutical ingredients with molecular weights of 136.1-424.1 Da were used as adsorbates. The results of Boehm titration, the standard method to qualify acidic or basic functional groups on a carbon surface, suggested distinctly different quantitative characteristics of each functional group among the three adsorbents. But those differences do not affect the adsorption to non-ionic adsorbates. The amount of theophylline adsorbed at equilibrium and surface area well correlated, suggesting that adsorptive ability was defined by surface area. In the tested molecular weight range, the order in terms of adsorption kinetics was spherical carbon adsorbent "Mylan">Kremezin>Merkmezin. The adsorption profile in the equilibrium and kinetic experiments, and the lack of an effect of pH on adsorption quantity suggested that the mechanism of adsorption for non-ionic substances to be Langmuir type monolayer adsorption. Kremezin and spherical carbon adsorbent "Mylan" are more likely to adsorb co-administered drugs than Merckmezin. PMID:23261577
A mechanistic model of the cysteine synthase complex.
Feldman-Salit, Anna; Wirtz, Markus; Hell, Ruediger; Wade, Rebecca C
OAS-TL with E. coli SAT. The proposed models of the enzymes and their complexes provide mechanistic insights into CS complexation. PMID:18801369
Mechanistic, Mutational, and Structural Evaluation of a Taxus Phenylalanine Aminomutase
Feng, Lei; Wanninayake, Udayanga; Strom, Susan; Geiger, James; Walker, Kevin D.
The structure of a phenylalanine aminomutase (TcPAM) from Taxus canadensis has been determined at 2.4 {angstrom} resolution. The active site of the TcPAM contains the signature 4-methylidene-1H-imidazol-5(4H)-one prosthesis, observed in all catalysts of the class I lyase-like family. This catalyst isomerizes (S)-{alpha}-phenylalanine to the (R)-{beta}-isomer by exchange of the NH{sub 2}/H pair. The stereochemistry of the TcPAM reaction product is opposite of the (S)-{beta}-tyrosine made by the mechanistically related tyrosine aminomutase (SgTAM) from Streptomyces globisporus. Since TcPAM and SgTAM share similar tertiary- and quaternary-structures and have several highly conserved aliphatic residues positioned analogously in their active sites for substrate recognition, the divergent product stereochemistries of these catalysts likely cannot be explained by differences in active site architecture. The active site of the TcPAM structure also is in complex with (E)-cinnamate; the latter functions as both a substrate and an intermediate. To account for the distinct (3R)-{beta}-amino acid stereochemistry catalyzed by TcPAM, the cinnamate skeleton must rotate the C{sub 1}-C{sub {alpha}} and C{sub ipso}-C{sub {beta}} bonds 180{sup o} in the active site prior to exchange and rebinding of the NH{sub 2}/H pair to the cinnamate, an event that is not required for the corresponding acrylate intermediate in the SgTAM reaction. Moreover, the aromatic ring of the intermediate makes only one direct hydrophobic interaction with Leu-104. A L104A mutant of TcPAM demonstrated an 1.5-fold increase in k{sub cat} and a decrease in K{sub M} values for sterically demanding 3'-methyl-{alpha}-phenylalanine and styryl-{alpha}-alanine substrates, compared to the kinetic parameters for TcPAM. These parameters did not change significantly for the mutant with 4'-methyl-{alpha}-phenylalanine compared to those for TcPAM.
Toward a mechanistic modeling of nitrogen limitation for photosynthesis
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Xu, C.; Fisher, R. A.; Travis, B. J.; Wilson, C. J.; McDowell, N. G.
The nitrogen limitation is an important regulator for vegetation growth and global carbon cycle. Most current ecosystem process models simulate nitrogen effects on photosynthesis based on a prescribed relationship between leaf nitrogen and photosynthesis; however, there is a large amount of variability in this relationship with different light, temperature, nitrogen availability and CO2 conditions, which can affect the reliability of photosynthesis prediction under future climate conditions. To account for the variability in nitrogen-photosynthesis relationship under different environmental conditions, in this study, we developed a mechanistic model of nitrogen limitation for photosynthesis based on nitrogen trade-offs among light absorption, electron transport, carboxylization and carbon sink. Our model shows that strategies of nitrogen storage allocation as determined by tradeoff among growth and persistence is a key factor contributing to the variability in relationship between leaf nitrogen and photosynthesis. Nitrogen fertilization substantially increases the proportion of nitrogen in storage for coniferous trees but much less for deciduous trees, suggesting that coniferous trees allocate more nitrogen toward persistence compared to deciduous trees. The CO2 fertilization will cause lower nitrogen allocation for carboxylization but higher nitrogen allocation for storage, which leads to a weaker relationship between leaf nitrogen and maximum photosynthesis rate. Lower radiation will cause higher nitrogen allocation for light absorption and electron transport but less nitrogen allocation for carboxylyzation and storage, which also leads to weaker relationship between leaf nitrogen and maximum photosynthesis rate. At the same time, lower growing temperature will cause higher nitrogen allocation for carboxylyzation but lower allocation for light absorption, electron transport and storage, which leads to a stronger relationship between leaf nitrogen and maximum
Mechanistic, kinetic, and processing aspects of tungsten chemical mechanical polishing
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Stein, David
This dissertation presents an investigation into tungsten chemical mechanical polishing (CMP). CMP is the industrially predominant unit operation that removes excess tungsten after non-selective chemical vapor deposition (CVD) during sub-micron integrated circuit (IC) manufacture. This work explores the CMP process from process engineering and fundamental mechanistic perspectives. The process engineering study optimized an existing CMP process to address issues of polish pad and wafer carrier life. Polish rates, post-CMP metrology of patterned wafers, electrical test data, and synergy with a thermal endpoint technique were used to determine the optimal process. The oxidation rate of tungsten during CMP is significantly lower than the removal rate under identical conditions. Tungsten polished without inhibition during cathodic potentiostatic control. Hertzian indenter model calculations preclude colloids of the size used in tungsten CMP slurries from indenting the tungsten surface. AFM surface topography maps and TEM images of post-CMP tungsten do not show evidence of plow marks or intergranular fracture. Polish rate is dependent on potassium iodate concentration; process temperature is not. The colloid species significantly affects the polish rate and process temperature. Process temperature is not a predictor of polish rate. A process energy balance indicates that the process temperature is predominantly due to shaft work, and that any heat of reaction evolved during the CMP process is negligible. Friction and adhesion between alumina and tungsten were studied using modified AFM techniques. Friction was constant with potassium iodate concentration, but varied with applied pressure. This corroborates the results from the energy balance. Adhesion between the alumina and the tungsten was proportional to the potassium iodate concentration. A heuristic mechanism, which captures the relationship between polish rate, pressure, velocity, and slurry chemistry, is presented
Mechanistically Driven Development of Iridium Catalysts for Asymmetric Allylic Substitution
Hartwig, John F.; Stanley, Levi M.
, with high branched-to-linear ratios and high enantioselectivities. Parallel mechanistic studies had revealed the metallacyclic structure of the active catalyst, and subsequent experiments with the purposefully formed metallacycle increased the reaction scope dramatically. Aromatic amines, azoles, ammonia, and amides and carbamates as ammonia equivalents all reacted with high selectivities and yields. Moreover, weakly basic enolates (such as silyl enol ethers) and enolate equivalents (such as enamines) also reacted, and other research groups have used this catalyst to conduct reactions of stabilized carbon nucleophiles in the absence of additional base. One hallmark of the reactions catalyzed by this iridium system is the invariably high enantioselectivity, which reflects a high stereoselectivity for formation of the allyl intermediate. Enantioselectivity typically exceeds 95%, regioselectivity for formation of branched over linear products is usually near 20:1, and yields generally exceed 75% and are often greater than 90%. Thus, the development of iridium catalysts for enantioselective allylic substitution shows how studies of reaction mechanism can lead to a particularly active and a remarkably general system for an enantioselective process. In this case, a readily accessible catalyst effects allylic substitution, with high enantioselectivity and regioselectivity complementary to that of the venerable palladium systems. PMID:20873839
Ferritin Diversity: Mechanistic Studies, Disease Implications, and Materials Chemistry
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hilton, Robert J.
The study of ferritin includes a rich history of discoveries and scientific progress. Initially, the composition of ferritin was determined. Soon, it was shown that ferritin is a spherical, hollow protein. Eventually, over several decades of research, the structure and some function of this interesting protein was elucidated. However, the ferritin field was not completely satisfied. Today, for example, researchers are interested in refining the details of ferritin function, in discovering the role of ferritin in a variety of diseases, and in using ferritin for materials chemistry applications. The work presented in this dissertation highlights the progress that we have made in each of these three areas: (1) Mechanistic studies: The buffer used during horse spleen ferritin iron loading significantly influences the mineralization process and the quantity of iron deposited in ferritin. The ferrihydrite core of ferritin is crystalline and ordered when iron is loaded into ferritin in the presence of imidazole buffer. On the other hand, when iron is loaded into ferritin in the presence of MOPS buffer, the ferrihydrite core is less crystalline and less ordered, and a smaller amount of total iron is loaded in ferritin. We also show that iron can be released from the ferritin core in a non-reductive manner. The rate of Fe3+ release from horse spleen ferritin was measured using the Fe3+-specific chelator desferoxamine. We show that iron release occurs by three kinetic events. (2) Disease studies: In order to better understand iron disruption during disease states, we performed in vitro assays that mimicked chronic kidney disease. We tested the hypothesis that elevated levels of serum phosphate interrupted normal iron binding by transferrin and ferritin. Results show that phosphate competes for iron, forming an iron(III)-phosphate complex that is inaccessible to either transferrin or ferritin. Ferritin samples separated from the iron(III)-phosphate complex shows that as the
Mechanistic pharmacokinetic modeling for the prediction of transporter-mediated disposition in humans from sandwich culture human hepatocyte data.
Jones, Hannah M; Barton, Hugh A; Lai, Yurong; Bi, Yi-An; Kimoto, Emi; Kempshall, Sarah; Tate, Sonya C; El-Kattan, Ayman; Houston, J Brian; Galetin, Aleksandra; Fenner, Katherine S
With efforts to reduce cytochrome P450-mediated clearance (CL) during the early stages of drug discovery, transporter-mediated CL mechanisms are becoming more prevalent. However, the prediction of plasma concentration-time profiles for such compounds using physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling is far less established in comparison with that for compounds with passively mediated pharmacokinetics (PK). In this study, we have assessed the predictability of human PK for seven organic anion-transporting polypeptide (OATP) substrates (pravastatin, cerivastatin, bosentan, fluvastatin, rosuvastatin, valsartan, and repaglinide) for which clinical intravenous data were available. In vitro data generated from the sandwich culture human hepatocyte system were simultaneously fit to estimate parameters describing both uptake and biliary efflux. Use of scaled active uptake, passive distribution, and biliary efflux parameters as inputs into a PBPK model resulted in the overprediction of exposure for all seven drugs investigated, with the exception of pravastatin. Therefore, fitting of in vivo data for each individual drug in the dataset was performed to establish empirical scaling factors to accurately capture their plasma concentration-time profiles. Overall, active uptake and biliary efflux were under- and overpredicted, leading to average empirical scaling factors of 58 and 0.061, respectively; passive diffusion required no scaling factor. This study illustrates the mechanistic and model-driven application of in vitro uptake and efflux data for human PK prediction for OATP substrates. A particular advantage is the ability to capture the multiphasic plasma concentration-time profiles for such compounds using only preclinical data. A prediction strategy for novel OATP substrates is discussed. PMID:22344703
Enhanced Identification of Transcriptional Enhancers Provides Mechanistic Insights into Diseases.
Murakawa, Yasuhiro; Yoshihara, Masahito; Kawaji, Hideya; Nishikawa, Miki; Zayed, Hatem; Suzuki, Harukazu; Fantom Consortium; Hayashizaki, Yoshihide
Enhancers are distal cis-regulatory DNA elements that increase the expression of target genes. Various experimental and computational approaches including chromatin signature profiling have been developed to predict enhancers on a genome-wide scale, although each method has its advantages and disadvantages. Here we overview an emerging method to identify transcribed enhancers at exceedingly high nucleotide resolution based on enhancer RNA transcripts captured by Cap Analysis of Gene Expression (CAGE) technology. We further argue that disease-causative regulatory mutations at enhancers are increasingly recognized, emphasizing the importance of enhancer identification in functional and clinical genomics including, but not limited to, genome-wide association studies (GWASs) and cancer genomics studies. PMID:26780995
Mechanistic study of the rubber-brass adhesion interphase
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ashirgade, Akshay
Brass-plated steel tire cords form an essential strengthening component of a radial automobile tire. Adhesion between rubber compound and brass-plated steel tire cord is crucial in governing the overall performance of tires. The rubber-brass interfacial adhesion is influenced by the chemical composition and thickness of the interfacial layer. It has been shown that the interfacial layer consists mainly of sulfides and oxides of copper and zinc. This thesis discusses the effect of changes in the chemical composition and the structure of the interfacial layers due to addition of adhesion promoter resins. Grazing incidence X-Ray Diffraction (GIXRD) experiments were run on sulfidized polished brass coupons previously bonded to six experimental rubber compounds. It was confirmed that heat and humidity conditions lead to physical and chemical changes of the rubber-steel tire cord interfacial layer, closely related to the degree of rubber-brass adhesion. Morphological transformation of the interfacial layer led to loss of adhesion after aging. The adhesion promoter resins inhibit unfavorable morphological changes in the interfacial layer thus stabilizing it during aging and prolonging failure. Tire cord adhesion tests illustrated that the one-component resins improved adhesion after aging using a rubber compound with lower cobalt loading. Based on the acquired diffraction profiles, these resins were also found to impede crystallization of the sulfide layer after aging leading to improved adhesion. Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) depth profiles, SEM micrographs and AFM images strongly corroborated the findings from GIXRD. FTIR was utilized in a novel way to understand the degradation mechanism due to aging. A model for rubber and interfacial layer degradation is proposed to illustrate the effect of aging and the one-component resins. This interfacial analysis adds valuable new information to our understanding of the complex nature of the rubber-brass bonding
Performance modeling of the Ballard Mark IV solid polymer electrolyte fuel cell. 1: Mechanistic model development
Amphlett, J.C.; Baumert, R.M.; Mann, R.F.; Peppley, B.A.; Roberge, P.R. ); Harris, T.J. )
A parametric model predicting the performance of a solid polymer electrolyte, proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell has been developed using a combination of mechanistic and empirical modeling techniques. This paper details the mechanistic model development. Mass transport properties are considered in the mechanistic development via Stefan-Maxwell equations. Thermodynamic equilibrium potentials are defined using the Nernst equation. Activation overvoltages are defined via a Tafel equation, and internal resistance are defined via the Nernst-Planck equation, leading to a definition of ohmic overvoltage via an Ohm's law equation. The mechanistic model cannot adequately model fuel cell performance, since several simplifying approximations have been used in order to facilitate model development. Additionally, certain properties likely to be observed in operational fuel cells, such as thermal gradients, have not been considered. Nonetheless, the insights gained from the mechanistic assessment of fuel cell processes were found to give the resulting empirical model a firmer theoretical basis than many of the models presently available in the literature. Correlation of the empirical model to actual experimental data was very good.
Using a Mechanistic Reactive Transport Model to Represent Soil Organic Matter Dynamics and Climate Sensitivity
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Guerry, N.; Riley, W. J.; Maggi, F.; Torn, M. S.; Kleber, M.
The nature of long term Soil Organic Matter (SOM) dynamics is uncertain and the mechanisms involved are crudely represented in site, regional, and global models. Recent work challenging the paradigm that SOM is stabilized because of its sequential transformations to more intrinsically recalcitrant compounds motivated us to develop a mechanistic modeling framework that can be used to test hypotheses of SOM dynamics. We developed our C cycling model in TOUGHREACT, an established 3-dimensional reactive transport solver that accounts for multiple phases (aqueous, gaseous, sorbed), multiple species, advection and diffusion, and multiple microbial populations. Energy and mass exchange through the soil boundaries are accounted for via ground heat flux, rainfall, C sources (e.g., exudation, woody, leaf, root litter) and C losses (e.g., CO2 emissions and DOC deep percolation). SOM is categorized according to the various types of compounds commonly found in the above mentioned C sources and microbial byproducts, including poly- and monosaccharides, lignin, amino compounds, organic acids, nucleic acids, lipids, and phenols. Each of these compounds is accounted for by one or more representative species in the model. A reaction network was developed to describe the microbially-mediated processes and chemical interactions of these species, including depolymerization, microbial assimilation, respiration and deposition of byproducts, and incorporation of dead biomass into SOM stocks. Enzymatic reactions are characterized by Michaelis-Menten kinetics, with maximum reaction rates determined by the species' O/C ratio. Microbial activity is further regulated by soil moisture content, O2 availability, pH, and temperature. For the initial set of simulations, literature values were used to constrain microbial Monod parameters, Michaelis-Menten parameters, sorption parameters, physical protection, partitioning of microbial byproducts, and partitioning of litter inputs, although there is
Mechanistic modeling of vacuum UV advanced oxidation process in an annular photoreactor.
Crapulli, F; Santoro, D; Sasges, M R; Ray, A K
A novel mechanistic model that describes the vacuum UV advanced oxidation process in an annular photoreactor initiated by 172 nm and 185 nm (in combination with 253.7 nm, with and without exogenous H2O2) is presented in this paper. The model was developed from first principles by incorporating the vacuum UV-AOP kinetics into the theoretical framework of in-series continuous flow stirred tank reactors. After conducting a sensitivity analysis, model predictions were compared against experiments conducted under a variety of conditions: (a) photo-induced formation of hydrogen peroxide by water photolysis at 172 nm (for both air- and oxygen-saturated conditions); (b) photo-induced formation of hydrogen peroxide by water photolysis at 185 + 253.7 nm (in the presence of formic acid, with and without the initial addition of hydrogen peroxide); (c) direct photolysis of hydrogen peroxide by 253.7 nm; (d) degradation of formic acid by 185 + 253.7 nm (with and without initial addition of hydrogen peroxide); and (e) degradation of formic acid by 253.7 nm (with the addition of exogenous hydrogen peroxide). In all cases, the model was able to accurately predict the time-dependent profiles of hydrogen peroxide and formic acid concentrations. Two newly recognized aspects associated with water photolysis were identified through the use of the validated model. Firstly, unlike the 185 nm and 253.7 nm cases, water photolysis by the 172 nm wavelength revealed a depth of photoactive water layer an order of magnitude greater (∼230-390 μm, depending on the specific operating conditions) than the 1-log photon penetration layer (∼18 μm). To further investigate this potentially very important finding, a computational fluid dynamics model was set up to assess the role of transport mechanisms and species distributions within the photoreactor annulus. The model confirmed that short-lived hydroxyl radicals were present at a radial distance far beyond the ∼18 μm photon
Mechanistic similarity and diversity among the guanidine-modifying members of the pentein superfamily
Linsky, Thomas; Fast, Walter
The pentein superfamily is a mechanistically diverse superfamily encompassing both noncatalytic proteins and enzymes that catalyze hydrolase, dihydrolase and amidinotransfer reactions on guanidine substrates. Despite generally low sequence identity, they possess a conserved structural fold and display common mechanistic themes in catalysis. The structurally characterized catalytic penteins possess a conserved core of residues that include a Cys, His and two polar, guanidine-binding residues. All known catalytic penteins use the core Cys to attack the substrate's guanidine moiety to form a covalent thiouronium adduct and all cleave one or more of the guanidine C–N bonds. The mechanistic information compiled to date supports the hypothesis that this superfamily may have evolved divergently from a catalytically promiscuous ancestor. PMID:20654741
Chemoselective Transformation of Diarylethanones to Arylmethanoic Acids and Diarylmethanones and Mechanistic Insights.
Wang, Xing; Chen, Rui-Xi; Wei, Zeng-Feng; Zhang, Chen-Yang; Tu, Hai-Yang; Zhang, Ai-Dong
The chemoselective transformation of diarylethanones via either aerobic oxidative cleavage to give arylmethanoic acids or tandem aerobic oxidation/benzilic acid rearrangement/decarboxylation to give diarylmethanones has been developed. The transformation is controllable and applicable to a broad spectrum of substrates and affords the desired products in good to excellent yields. Mechanistic insights with control reactions, (1)H NMR tracking, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction reveal a complex mechanistic network in which two common intermediates, α-ketohydroperoxide and diarylethanedione, and three plausible pathways are proposed and verified. These pathways are interlinked and can be switched reasonably by changing the reaction conditions. This method enables scalable synthesis and access to a number of valuable compounds, including vitamin B3, diphenic acid, and the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug ketoprofen. The present protocol represents a step forward in exploiting complex mechanistic networks to control reaction pathways, achieving divergent syntheses from the same class of starting materials. PMID:26618373
Mechanistic bases for modelling space radiation risk and planning radiation protection of astronauts.
Ottolenghi, A; Ballarini, F; Biaggi, M
The approaches generally adopted for planning radiation protection in ground-based facilities cannot be applied straightforward for astronaut protection in space. Indeed in such extreme conditions, modelling methods and shielding design must be based on a detailed mechanistic knowledge of the peculiar astronauts irradiation conditions. Great help can derive from mechanistic modelling, generally aimed to better understand the intermediate steps leading from the initial energy depositions to different biological endpoints, up to organ and organism level. In the present work, criteria will be illustrated for using mechanistic approaches in developing practical tools for astronauts radioprotection, once the external field and the interaction cross sections with the spacecraft walls are known; particular attention will be given to the treatment of mixed fields. Techniques for integrating into condensed-history codes stochastic information provided by event-by-event simulations will be presented. PMID:11780618
Periodic table-based descriptors to encode cytotoxicity profile of metal oxide nanoparticles: a mechanistic QSTR approach.
Kar, Supratik; Gajewicz, Agnieszka; Puzyn, Tomasz; Roy, Kunal; Leszczynski, Jerzy
Nanotechnology has evolved as a frontrunner in the development of modern science. Current studies have established toxicity of some nanoparticles to human and environment. Lack of sufficient data and low adequacy of experimental protocols hinder comprehensive risk assessment of nanoparticles (NPs). In the present work, metal electronegativity (χ), the charge of the metal cation corresponding to a given oxide (χox), atomic number and valence electron number of the metal have been used as simple molecular descriptors to build up quantitative structure-toxicity relationship (QSTR) models for prediction of cytotoxicity of metal oxide NPs to bacteria Escherichia coli. These descriptors can be easily obtained from molecular formula and information acquired from periodic table in no time. It has been shown that a simple molecular descriptor χox can efficiently encode cytotoxicity of metal oxides leading to models with high statistical quality as well as interpretability. Based on this model and previously published experimental results, we have hypothesized the most probable mechanism of the cytotoxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles to E. coli. Moreover, the required information for descriptor calculation is independent of size range of NPs, nullifying a significant problem that various physical properties of NPs change for different size ranges. PMID:24949897
Synthesis, biological profiling and mechanistic studies of 4-aminoquinoline-based heterodimeric compounds with dual trypanocidal-antiplasmodial activity.
Sola, Irene; Castellà, Sílvia; Viayna, Elisabet; Galdeano, Carles; Taylor, Martin C; Gbedema, Stephen Y; Pérez, Belén; Clos, M Victòria; Jones, Deuan C; Fairlamb, Alan H; Wright, Colin W; Kelly, John M; Muñoz-Torrero, Diego
Dual submicromolar trypanocidal-antiplasmodial compounds have been identified by screening and chemical synthesis of 4-aminoquinoline-based heterodimeric compounds of three different structural classes. In Trypanosoma brucei, inhibition of the enzyme trypanothione reductase seems to be involved in the potent trypanocidal activity of these heterodimers, although it is probably not the main biological target. Regarding antiplasmodial activity, the heterodimers seem to share the mode of action of the antimalarial drug chloroquine, which involves inhibition of the haem detoxification process. Interestingly, all of these heterodimers display good brain permeabilities, thereby being potentially useful for late stage human African trypanosomiasis. Future optimization of these compounds should focus mainly on decreasing cytotoxicity and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity. PMID:25678015
Serum Metabolomic Profiling and Liver Transcriptomic Analysis Provide Mechanistic Evidence of Ozone (O3)- Induced Systemic Metabolic Impairment
Recently, air pollution has been linked to insulin resistance and obesity but the mechanisms remain to be elucidated. We have recently shown that acute O3 exposure induces glucose intolerance, hyperglycemia and increases in leptin and epinephrine in rats. Here, we hypothesized th...
Metabolomic profiling in Selaginella lepidophylla at various hydration states provides new insights into the mechanistic basis of desiccation tolerance
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
Selaginella lepidophylla is one of only a few species of spike mosses (Selaginellaceae) that have evolved desiccation tolerance (DT) or the ability to 'resurrect' from an air-dried state. In order to understand the metabolic basis of DT, S. lepidophylla was subjected to a five-stage, rehydration/de...
Mechanistic investigation on pressure dependency of Heckel parameter.
Patel, Sarsvatkumar; Kaushal, Aditya Mohan; Bansal, Arvind Kumar
This work proposed to study the influence of varying compaction pressure on the plastic energy, elasticity (Young's modulus), particle yield strength, strain hardening, and applied pressures on derived Heckel parameter using material with different densification and deformation mechanisms: ibuprofen (IBN), paracetamol (PCM) (elastic behavior), methyl cellulose (Me-Cel), microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), sodium chloride (NaCl) (plastic behavior), and dicalcium phosphate (DCP) (brittle fracture). Force-displacement data were captured during in-die compaction for all materials having different deformation behavior. The apparent mean yield pressure (Py), plastic energy, Young's moduli, strain hardening parameter and rate of increase in Py were calculated from force-displacement compaction profiles obtained across a pressure range of 65-260 MPa. Materials under confined compression loading showed pressure dependent biphasic behavior in Py upon increasing pressure from 65 MPa to 260 MPa. IBN and PCM showed pressure dependency due to simultaneous elasticity and strain hardening upon increasing applied pressure. Me-Cel, MCC, and NaCl showed lower pressure dependency while DCP showed higher change in Py upon increasing pressure as a result of higher yield strength of DCP particles. Apparent mean yield pressure from Heckel analysis was significantly affected by the applied pressure, viscoelastic behavior, particle yield strength, and strain hardening. The simultaneously occurring events of elastic deformation and strain hardening give a false increase in Py at higher applied pressures. PMID:20083173
Mechanistic insights into the mode of action of anticandidal sesamol.
Ansari, Moiz A; Fatima, Zeeshan; Hameed, Saif
Previously we have deciphered the antifungal effect of sesamol (Ses), a phenolic compound obtained from sesame oil, against human fungal pathogen Candida albicans. To gain deeper insights into the possible mechanisms involved, transcription profiling was done in presence of Ses which revealed various targets through which Ses was barricading the growth of C. albicans. We observed that Ses perturbs membrane integrity confirming our previous observations and displayed disrupted plasma membrane ATPase activity. We further investigated that Ses leads to inhibited morphological transition, biofilm formation and epithelial cell adhesion which are significant virulence attributes required for pathogenesis. Interestingly, Ses also causes amendment in iron homeostasis as revealed by hypersensitivity under iron deprivation, ferroxidase assay to estimate iron levels and concomitant upregulation of FTR2, a high affinity iron transporter. Finally we assessed that Ses causes defect in mitochondrial functioning and DNA repair mechanism. Together, being source of consumable natural product, further studies on Ses are warranted so that it can be exploited as effective antifungal agent. PMID:27392701
Integrating mechanistic organism--environment interactions into the basic theory of community and evolutionary ecology.
Baskett, Marissa L
This paper presents an overview of how mechanistic knowledge of organism-environment interactions, including biomechanical interactions of heat, mass and momentum transfer, can be integrated into basic theoretical population biology through mechanistic functional responses that quantitatively describe how organisms respond to their physical environment. Integrating such functional responses into simple community and microevolutionary models allows scaling up of the organism-level understanding from biomechanics both ecologically and temporally. For community models, Holling-type functional responses for predator-prey interactions provide a classic example of the functional response affecting qualitative model dynamics, and recent efforts are expanding analogous models to incorporate environmental influences such as temperature. For evolutionary models, mechanistic functional responses dependent on the environment can serve as fitness functions in both quantitative genetic and game theoretic frameworks, especially those concerning function-valued traits. I present a novel comparison of a mechanistic fitness function based on thermal performance curves to a commonly used generic fitness function, which quantitatively differ in their predictions for response to environmental change. A variety of examples illustrate how mechanistic functional responses enhance model connections to biologically relevant traits and processes as well as environmental conditions and therefore have the potential to link theoretical and empirical studies. Sensitivity analysis of such models can provide biologically relevant insight into which parameters and processes are important to community and evolutionary responses to environmental change such as climate change, which can inform conservation management aimed at protecting response capacity. Overall, the distillation of detailed knowledge or organism-environment interactions into mechanistic functional responses in simple population
Enantioselective and Regiodivergent Functionalization of N-Allylcarbamates by Mechanistically Divergent Multicatalysis.
Richmond, Edward; Khan, Ismat Ullah; Moran, Joseph
A pair of mechanistically divergent multicatalytic reaction sequences has been developed consisting of nickel-catalyzed isomerization of N-allylcarbamates and subsequent phosphoric-acid-catalyzed enantioselective functionalization of the resulting intermediates. By appropriate selection of reaction partners, in situ generated imines and ene-carbamates are mechanistically partitioned to yield opposing functionalized products. Formal α-functionalization to give protected α-arylamines is achieved upon enantioselective Friedel-Crafts reaction with arene nucleophiles, whereas formal β-functionalization is achieved upon reaction with diarylimine electrophiles in an enantioselective Povarov-[4+2] cycloaddition. PMID:27461524
Mechanistic Considerations in the Synthesis of 2-Aryl-Indole Analogues under Bischler-Mohlau Conditions
MacDonough, Matthew T.; Shi, Zhe; Pinney, Kevin G.
Mechanistic insight into the pathway of the Bischler-Mohlau indole formation reaction is provided by isotopic labeling utilizing judicious incorporation of a 13C atom within the α-bromoacetophenone analogue reactant. The resulting rearranged 2-aryl indole, isolated as the major product, located the 13C isotope label at the methine carbon of the fused five-membered heterocyclic ring, which suggested that the mechanistic pathway of cyclization, in this specific example, required two equivalents of the aniline analogue reactant partner and proceeded through an imine intermediate rather than by direct formation of the corresponding 3-aryl indole accompanied by a concomitant 1,2-aryl shift rearrangement. PMID:26973358
Profiling and Racial Profiling: An Interactive Exercise
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Semple, Philip
Racial Profiling has been recognized as a serious problem that affects many segments of our society and is especially notable in law enforcement. Governments and police services have pronounced that racial profiling is not acceptable and will not be tolerated. They have gone to great lengths in trying to eradicate racial profiling through…
... STD on Facebook Data & Statistics Sexually Transmitted Diseases Syphilis Profiles, 2012 Recommend on Facebook Tweet Share Compartir ... Profiles The following profiles provide an overview of syphilis morbidity in each of the 50 states, the ...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Standera, Oldrich
This manual provides instructions for completing the COMPENDEX (Computerized Engineering Index) Profile Submission Form used to prepare Current Information Selection (CIS) profiles. An annotated bibliography lists nine items useful in searching for proper profile words. (AB)
PTN signaling: Components and mechanistic insights in human ovarian cancer.
Sethi, Geetika; Kwon, Youngjoo; Burkhalter, Rebecca J; Pathak, Harsh B; Madan, Rashna; McHugh, Sarah; Atay, Safinur; Murthy, Smruthi; Tawfik, Ossama W; Godwin, Andrew K
Molecular vulnerabilities represent promising candidates for the development of targeted therapies that hold the promise to overcome the challenges encountered with non-targeted chemotherapy for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Through a synthetic lethality screen, we previously identified pleiotrophin (PTN) as a molecular vulnerability in ovarian cancer and showed that siRNA-mediated PTN knockdown induced apoptotic cell death in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) cells. Although, it is well known that PTN elicits its pro-tumorigenic effects through its receptor, protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor Z1 (PTPRZ1), little is known about the potential importance of this pathway in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. In this study, we show that PTN is expressed, produced, and secreted in a panel of EOC cell lines. PTN levels in serous ovarian tumor tissues are on average 3.5-fold higher relative to normal tissue and PTN is detectable in serum samples of patients with EOC. PTPRZ1 is also expressed and produced by EOC cells and is found to be up-regulated in serous ovarian tumor tissue relative to normal ovarian surface epithelial tissue (P < 0.05). Gene silencing of PTPRZ1 in EOC cell lines using siRNA-mediated knockdown shows that PTPRZ1 is essential for viability and results in significant apoptosis with no effect on the cell cycle phase distribution. In order to determine how PTN mediates survival, we silenced the gene using siRNA mediated knockdown and performed expression profiling of 36 survival-related genes. Through computational mapping of the differentially expressed genes, members of the MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) family were found to be likely effectors of PTN signaling in EOC cells. Our results provide the first experimental evidence that PTN and its signaling components may be of significance in the pathogenesis of epithelial ovarian cancer and provide a rationale for clinical evaluation of MAPK inhibitors in PTN and/or PTPRZ1 expressing ovarian
Mechanistic studies of the agmatine deiminase from Listeria monocytogenes.
Soares, Charles A; Knuckley, Bryan
Listeria monocytogenes is a Gram-positive food-borne pathogen that is capable of living within extreme environments (i.e. low temperatures and pH). This ability to survive in such conditions may arise, at least in part, from agmatine catabolism via the agmatine deiminase system (AgDS). This catabolic pathway utilizes an agmatine deiminase (AgD) to hydrolyse agmatine into N-carbamoylputrescine (NCP), with concomitant release of ammonia, which increases the pH, thus mitigating the ill effects of the acidic environment. Given the potential significance of this pathway for cell survival, we set out to study the catalytic mechanism of the AgD encoded by L. monocytogenes In the present paper, we describe the catalytic mechanism employed by this enzyme based on pH profiles, pKa measurements of the active site cysteine and solvent isotope effects (SIE). In addition, we report inhibition of this enzyme by two novel AgD inhibitors, i.e. N-(4-aminobutyl)-2-fluoro-ethanimidamide (ABFA) and N-(4-aminobutyl)-2-chloro-ethanimidamide (ABCA). In contrast with other orthologues, L. monocytogenes AgD does not use the reverse protonation or substrate-assisted mechanism, which requires an active site cysteine with a high pKa and has been commonly seen in other members of the guanidinium-modifying enzyme (GME) superfamily. Instead, the L. monocytogenes AgD has a low pKa cysteine in the active site leading to an alternative mechanism of catalysis. This is the first time that this mechanism has been observed in the GME superfamily and is significant because it explains why previously developed mechanism-based inactivators of AgDs are ineffective against this orthologue. PMID:27034081
Mechanistic studies of the agmatine deiminase from Listeria monocytogenes
Soares, Charles A.; Knuckley, Bryan
Listeria monocytogenes is a Gram-positive food-borne pathogen that is capable of living within extreme environments (i.e. low temperatures and pH). This ability to survive in such conditions may arise, at least in part, from agmatine catabolism via the agmatine deiminase system (AgDS). This catabolic pathway utilizes an agmatine deiminase (AgD) to hydrolyse agmatine into N-carbamoylputrescine (NCP), with concomitant release of ammonia, which increases the pH, thus mitigating the ill effects of the acidic environment. Given the potential significance of this pathway for cell survival, we set out to study the catalytic mechanism of the AgD encoded by L. monocytogenes. In the present paper, we describe the catalytic mechanism employed by this enzyme based on pH profiles, pKa measurements of the active site cysteine and solvent isotope effects (SIE). In addition, we report inhibition of this enzyme by two novel AgD inhibitors, i.e. N-(4-aminobutyl)-2-fluoro-ethanimidamide (ABFA) and N-(4-aminobutyl)-2-chloro-ethanimidamide (ABCA). In contrast with other orthologues, L. monocytogenes AgD does not use the reverse protonation or substrate-assisted mechanism, which requires an active site cysteine with a high pKa and has been commonly seen in other members of the guanidinium-modifying enzyme (GME) superfamily. Instead, the L. monocytogenes AgD has a low pKa cysteine in the active site leading to an alternative mechanism of catalysis. This is the first time that this mechanism has been observed in the GME superfamily and is significant because it explains why previously developed mechanism-based inactivators of AgDs are ineffective against this orthologue. PMID:27034081
Mechanistic Modeling of Pitavastatin Disposition in Sandwich-Cultured Human Hepatocytes: A Proteomics-Informed Bottom-Up Approach.
Vildhede, Anna; Mateus, André; Khan, Elin K; Lai, Yurong; Karlgren, Maria; Artursson, Per; Kjellsson, Maria C
Isolated human hepatocytes are commonly used to predict transporter-mediated clearance in vivo. Such predictions, however, do not provide estimations of transporter contributions and consequently do not allow predictions of the outcome resulting from a change in the activity of a certain transporter, for example, by inhibition or a genetic variant with reduced function. Pitavastatin is a drug that is heavily dependent on hepatic transporters for its elimination, and it is excreted mainly as unchanged drug in the bile. For this reason, pitavastatin was used as a model drug to demonstrate the applicability of a bottom-up approach to predict transporter-mediated disposition in sandwich-cultured human hepatocytes (SCHHs), allowing for the estimation of transporter contributions. Transport experiments in transfected human embryonic kidney cells (HEK293 cell lines) and inverted membrane vesicles overexpressing each of the relevant transport proteins were used to generate parameter estimates for the mechanistic model. By adjusting for differences in transporter abundance between the in vitro systems and individual SCHH batches, the model successfully predicted time profiles of medium and intracellular accumulation. Our predictions of pitavastatin bile accumulation could not be confirmed, however, because of a very low biliary excretion of pitavastatin in relation to the hepatic uptake in our SCHHs. This study is, to our knowledge, the first to successfully simulate transporter-mediated processes in a complex system such as SCHHs at the level of individual transport proteins using a bottom-up approach. PMID:26842596
A Quantitative Toxicogenomics Assay for High-throughput and Mechanistic Genotoxicity Assessment and Screening of Environmental Pollutants.
Lan, Jiaqi; Gou, Na; Rahman, Sheikh Mokhles; Gao, Ce; He, Miao; Gu, April Z
The ecological and health concern of mutagenicity and carcinogenicity potentially associated with an overwhelmingly large and ever-increasing number of chemicals demands for cost-effective and feasible method for genotoxicity screening and risk assessment. This study proposed a genotoxicity assay using GFP-tagged yeast reporter strains, covering 38 selected protein biomarkers indicative of all the seven known DNA damage repair pathways. The assay was applied to assess four model genotoxic chemicals, eight environmental pollutants and four negative controls across six concentrations. Quantitative molecular genotoxicity end points were derived based on dose response modeling of a newly developed integrated molecular effect quantifier, Protein Effect Level Index (PELI). The molecular genotoxicity end points were consistent with multiple conventional in vitro genotoxicity assays, as well as with in vivo carcinogenicity assay results. Further more, the proposed genotoxicity end point PELI values quantitatively correlated with both comet assay in human cell and carcinogenicity potency assay in mice, providing promising evidence for linking the molecular disturbance measurements to adverse outcomes at a biological relevant level. In addition, the high-resolution DNA damaging repair pathway alternated protein expression profiles allowed for chemical clustering and classification. This toxicogenomics-based assay presents a promising alternative for fast, efficient and mechanistic genotoxicity screening and assessment of drugs, foods, and environmental contaminants. PMID:26855253
Functional and mechanistic studies of XPC DNA-repair complex as transcriptional coactivator in embryonic stem cells
Cattoglio, Claudia; Zhang, Elisa T.; Grubisic, Ivan; Chiba, Kunitoshi; Fong, Yick W.; Tjian, Robert
The embryonic stem cell (ESC) state is transcriptionally controlled by OCT4, SOX2, and NANOG with cofactors, chromatin regulators, noncoding RNAs, and other effectors of signaling pathways. Uncovering components of these regulatory circuits and their interplay provides the knowledge base to deploy ESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells. We recently identified the DNA-repair complex xeroderma pigmentosum C (XPC)-RAD23B-CETN2 as a stem cell coactivator (SCC) required for OCT4/SOX2 transcriptional activation. Here we investigate the role of SCC genome-wide in murine ESCs by mapping regions bound by RAD23B and analyzing transcriptional profiles of SCC-depleted ESCs. We establish OCT4 and SOX2 as the primary transcription factors recruiting SCC to regulatory regions of pluripotency genes and identify the XPC subunit as essential for interaction with the two proteins. The present study reveals new mechanistic and functional aspects of SCC transcriptional activity, and thus underscores the diversified functions of this regulatory complex. PMID:25901318
Target biomarker profile for the clinical management of paracetamol overdose.
Vliegenthart, A D Bastiaan; Antoine, Daniel J; Dear, James W
Paracetamol (acetaminophen) overdose is one of the most common causes of acute liver injury in the Western world. To improve patient care and reduce pressure on already stretched health care providers new biomarkers are needed that identify or exclude liver injury soon after an overdose of paracetamol is ingested. This review highlights the current state of paracetamol poisoning management and how novel biomarkers could improve patient care and save healthcare providers money. Based on the widely used concept of defining a target product profile, a target biomarker profile is proposed that identifies desirable and acceptable key properties for a biomarker in development to enable the improved treatment of this patient population. The current biomarker candidates, with improved hepatic specificity and based on the fundamental mechanistic basis of paracetamol-induced liver injury, are reviewed and their performance compared with our target profile. PMID:26076366
Legitimising data-driven models: exemplification of a new data-driven mechanistic modelling framework
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mount, N. J.; Dawson, C. W.; Abrahart, R. J.
In this paper the difficult problem of how to legitimise data-driven hydrological models is addressed using an example of a simple artificial neural network modelling problem. Many data-driven models in hydrology have been criticised for their black-box characteristics, which prohibit adequate understanding of their mechanistic behaviour and restrict their wider heuristic value. In response, presented here is a new generic data-driven mechanistic modelling framework. The framework is significant because it incorporates an evaluation of the legitimacy of a data-driven model's internal modelling mechanism as a core element in the modelling process. The framework's value is demonstrated by two simple artificial neural network river forecasting scenarios. We develop a novel adaptation of first-order partial derivative, relative sensitivity analysis to enable each model's mechanistic legitimacy to be evaluated within the framework. The results demonstrate the limitations of standard, goodness-of-fit validation procedures by highlighting how the internal mechanisms of complex models that produce the best fit scores can have lower mechanistic legitimacy than simpler counterparts whose scores are only slightly inferior. Thus, our study directly tackles one of the key debates in data-driven, hydrological modelling: is it acceptable for our ends (i.e. model fit) to justify our means (i.e. the numerical basis by which that fit is achieved)?
Legitimising neural network river forecasting models: a new data-driven mechanistic modelling framework
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mount, N. J.; Dawson, C. W.; Abrahart, R. J.
In this paper we address the difficult problem of gaining an internal, mechanistic understanding of a neural network river forecasting (NNRF) model. Neural network models in hydrology have long been criticised for their black-box character, which prohibits adequate understanding of their modelling mechanisms and has limited their broad acceptance by hydrologists. In response, we here present a new, data-driven mechanistic modelling (DDMM) framework that incorporates an evaluation of the legitimacy of a neural network's internal modelling mechanism as a core element in the model development process. The framework is exemplified for two NNRF modelling scenarios, and uses a novel adaptation of first order, partial derivate, relative sensitivity analysis methods as the means by which each model's mechanistic legitimacy is explored. The results demonstrate the limitations of standard, goodness-of-fit validation procedures applied by NNRF modellers, by highlighting how the internal mechanisms of complex models that produce the best fit scores can have much lower legitimacy than simpler counterparts whose scores are only slightly inferior. The study emphasises the urgent need for better mechanistic understanding of neural network-based hydrological models and the further development of methods for elucidating their mechanisms.
A Mechanistic Study of Arsenic (III) Rejection by Reverse Osmosis and Nanofiltration Membranes
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Suzuki, Tasuma
Reverse osmosis/nanofiltration (RO/NF) membranes are capable to provide an effective barrier for a wide range of contaminants (including disinfection by-products precursors) in a single treatment step. However, solute rejection mechanisms by RO/NF membranes are not well understood. The lack of mechanistic information arises from experimental…
A mechanistic detachment rate model to predict soil erodibility due to fluvial and seepage forces
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
The erosion rate of cohesive soils is typically computed using an excess shear stress model based on the applied fluvial shear stress. However, no mechanistic approaches are available for incorporating additional forces such as localized groundwater seepage forces into the excess shear stress model...
Predictive mechanistic bioenergetics to model habitat suitability of shellfish culture in coastal lakes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rinaldi, A.; Montalto, V.; Manganaro, A.; Mazzola, A.; Mirto, S.; Sanfilippo, M.; Sarà, G.
Quantitative tools based on mechanistic modelling of functional traits able to enhance the sustainability of aquaculture and most other human activities (i.e. reducing the likelihood of detrimental impacts optimising productions), are especially important factors in the decision to site aquaculture facilities in coastal lakes, ponds and lagoons and, in the case of detrimental impact, to adopt mitigation measures. We tested the ability of mechanistic functional trait based models to predict life history traits of cultivable shellfish in shallow coastal lakes. Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) models were run to generate spatially explicit predictions of Mytilus galloprovincialis life history (LH) traits (e.g. body size and fecundity). Using fortnightly data of food supply and hourly data of body temperatures, and exploiting the power of mechanistic rules, we estimated the amount of faeces ejected by a fixed quantity of organisms cultivated in two shallow Southern Mediterranean (Sicily) lakes. These differed in terms of temperature and food density, implying large differences in life history traits of mussels in the two study areas. This information could help facilitate the selection of sites where environmental conditions are more suitable for aquaculture and contextually compatible with sustainability. The validation exercise obtained by comparing the predicted and observed data was nearly consistent. Therefore, a mechanistic functional traits-based model seems able to capture the link between habitat characteristics and functional traits of organisms, delineating the fundamental portion of an ecological niche, the possibility of predicting LH traits and potential ecological applications in the management of natural coastal resources.
A mechanistic treatment of the dominant soil nitrogen cycling processes: Model development, testing, and application
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
The development and initial application of a mechanistic model (TOUGHREACT-N) designed to characterize soil nitrogen (N) cycling and losses are described. The model couples advective and diffusive nutrient transport, multiple microbial biomass dynamics, and equilibrium and kinetic chemical reactions...
The current understanding of cancer as a genetic disease, requiring a specific set of genomic alterations for a normal cell to form a metastatic tumor, has provided the oppor...
Assessing Metal Levels in Children from the Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood Asthma(MICA) study
Toxic and essential metals levels can be used as health indicators. Here, we quantitatively compare and contrast toxic and essential metals levels in vacuum dust, urine, and fingernail samples of 109 children in Detroit, Michigan as part of The Mechanistic Indicators of Childhood...
26th Lauriston S. Taylor Lecture
R. Julian Preston, Environmental Carcinogenesis Division, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, NHEERL, Research Tr...
New Simulation Methods to Facilitate Achieving a Mechanistic Understanding of Basic Pharmacology Principles in the Classroom
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Grover, Anita; Lam, Tai Ning; Hunt, C. Anthony
We present a simulation tool to aid the study of basic pharmacology principles. By taking advantage of the properties of agent-based modeling, the tool facilitates taking a mechanistic approach to learning basic concepts, in contrast to the traditional empirical methods. Pharmacodynamics is a particular aspect of pharmacology that can benefit from…
Territoriality and home-range dynamics in meerkats, Suricata suricatta: a mechanistic modelling approach.
Bateman, Andrew W; Lewis, Mark A; Gall, Gabriella; Manser, Marta B; Clutton-Brock, Tim H
Multiple approaches exist to model patterns of space use across species, among them resource selection analysis, statistical home-range modelling and mechanistic movement modelling. Mechanistic home-range models combine the benefits of these approaches, describing emergent territorial patterns based on fine-scale individual- or group-movement rules and incorporating interactions with neighbours and the environment. These models have not, to date, been extended to dynamic contexts. Using mechanistic home-range models, we explore meerkat (Suricata suricatta) territorial patterns, considering scent marking, direct group interactions and habitat selection. We also extend the models to accommodate dynamic aspects of meerkat territoriality (territory development and territory shift). We fit models, representing multiple working hypotheses, to data from a long-term meerkat study in South Africa, and we compare models using Akaike's and Bayesian Information Criteria. Our results identify important features of meerkat territorial patterns. Notably, larger groups do not seem to control larger territories, and groups apparently prefer dune edges along a dry river bed. Our model extensions capture instances in which 1) a newly formed group interacts more strongly with its parent groups over time and 2) a group moves its territory core out of aversive habitat. This extends our mechanistic modelling framework in previously unexplored directions. PMID:24995457
From Source to Sink: Mechanistic Reasoning Using the Electron-Pushing Formalism
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bhattacharyya, Gautam
Since the introduction of Morrison and Boyd's textbook in organic chemistry over 50 years ago, reaction mechanisms and mechanistic reasoning using the electron-pushing formalism (EPF) have become a mainstay of organic chemistry courses. In recent years there have even been several papers in this Journal and others detailing research on how…
Productivity of "Collisions Generate Heat" for Reconciling an Energy Model with Mechanistic Reasoning: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Scherr, Rachel E.; Robertson, Amy D.
We observe teachers in professional development courses about energy constructing mechanistic accounts of energy transformations. We analyze a case in which teachers investigating adiabatic compression develop a model of the transformation of kinetic energy to thermal energy. Among their ideas is the idea that thermal energy is generated as a…
SUMMARY: Mechanistic data should provide the Agency with a more accurate basis to estimate risk than do the Agency's default assumptions (10x uncertainty factors, etc.), thereby improving risk assessment decisions. NTD is providing mechanistic data for toxicant effects on two maj...
Main individual and product characteristics influencing in-mouth flavour release during eating masticated food products with different textures: mechanistic modelling and experimental validation.
Doyennette, M; Déléris, I; Féron, G; Guichard, E; Souchon, I; Trelea, I C
A mechanistic model predicting flavour release during oral processing of masticated foods was developed. The description of main physiological steps (product mastication and swallowing) and physical mechanisms (mass transfer, product breakdown and dissolution) occurring while eating allowed satisfactory simulation of in vivo release profiles of ethyl propanoate and 2-nonanone, measured by Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry on ten representative subjects during the consumption of four cheeses with different textures. Model sensitivity analysis showed that the main parameters affecting release intensity were the product dissolution rate in the mouth, the mass transfer coefficient in the bolus, the air-bolus contact area in the mouth and the respiratory frequency. Parameters furthermore affecting release dynamics were the mastication phase duration, the velopharynx opening and the rate of saliva incorporation into the bolus. Specific retention of 2-nonanone on mucosa was assumed to explain aroma release kinetics and confirmed when gaseous samples were consumed. PMID:24045155
The Combined Use of Correlative and Mechanistic Species Distribution Models Benefits Low Conservation Status Species.
Rougier, Thibaud; Lassalle, Géraldine; Drouineau, Hilaire; Dumoulin, Nicolas; Faure, Thierry; Deffuant, Guillaume; Rochard, Eric; Lambert, Patrick
Species can respond to climate change by tracking appropriate environmental conditions in space, resulting in a range shift. Species Distribution Models (SDMs) can help forecast such range shift responses. For few species, both correlative and mechanistic SDMs were built, but allis shad (Alosa alosa), an endangered anadromous fish species, is one of them. The main purpose of this study was to provide a framework for joint analyses of correlative and mechanistic SDMs projections in order to strengthen conservation measures for species of conservation concern. Guidelines for joint representation and subsequent interpretation of models outputs were defined and applied. The present joint analysis was based on the novel mechanistic model GR3D (Global Repositioning Dynamics of Diadromous fish Distribution) which was parameterized on allis shad and then used to predict its future distribution along the European Atlantic coast under different climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5). We then used a correlative SDM for this species to forecast its distribution across the same geographic area and under the same climate change scenarios. First, projections from correlative and mechanistic models provided congruent trends in probability of habitat suitability and population dynamics. This agreement was preferentially interpreted as referring to the species vulnerability to climate change. Climate change could not be accordingly listed as a major threat for allis shad. The congruence in predicted range limits between SDMs projections was the next point of interest. The difference, when noticed, required to deepen our understanding of the niche modelled by each approach. In this respect, the relative position of the northern range limit between the two methods strongly suggested here that a key biological process related to intraspecific variability was potentially lacking in the mechanistic SDM. Based on our knowledge, we hypothesized that local adaptations to cold
The Combined Use of Correlative and Mechanistic Species Distribution Models Benefits Low Conservation Status Species
Rougier, Thibaud; Lassalle, Géraldine; Drouineau, Hilaire; Dumoulin, Nicolas; Faure, Thierry; Deffuant, Guillaume; Rochard, Eric; Lambert, Patrick
Species can respond to climate change by tracking appropriate environmental conditions in space, resulting in a range shift. Species Distribution Models (SDMs) can help forecast such range shift responses. For few species, both correlative and mechanistic SDMs were built, but allis shad (Alosa alosa), an endangered anadromous fish species, is one of them. The main purpose of this study was to provide a framework for joint analyses of correlative and mechanistic SDMs projections in order to strengthen conservation measures for species of conservation concern. Guidelines for joint representation and subsequent interpretation of models outputs were defined and applied. The present joint analysis was based on the novel mechanistic model GR3D (Global Repositioning Dynamics of Diadromous fish Distribution) which was parameterized on allis shad and then used to predict its future distribution along the European Atlantic coast under different climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5). We then used a correlative SDM for this species to forecast its distribution across the same geographic area and under the same climate change scenarios. First, projections from correlative and mechanistic models provided congruent trends in probability of habitat suitability and population dynamics. This agreement was preferentially interpreted as referring to the species vulnerability to climate change. Climate change could not be accordingly listed as a major threat for allis shad. The congruence in predicted range limits between SDMs projections was the next point of interest. The difference, when noticed, required to deepen our understanding of the niche modelled by each approach. In this respect, the relative position of the northern range limit between the two methods strongly suggested here that a key biological process related to intraspecific variability was potentially lacking in the mechanistic SDM. Based on our knowledge, we hypothesized that local adaptations to cold
Proposal of an in silico profiler for categorisation of repeat dose toxicity data of hair dyes.
Nelms, M D; Ates, G; Madden, J C; Vinken, M; Cronin, M T D; Rogiers, V; Enoch, S J
This study outlines the analysis of 94 chemicals with repeat dose toxicity data taken from Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety opinions for commonly used hair dyes in the European Union. Structural similarity was applied to group these chemicals into categories. Subsequent mechanistic analysis suggested that toxicity to mitochondria is potentially a key driver of repeat dose toxicity for chemicals within each of the categories. The mechanistic hypothesis allowed for an in silico profiler consisting of four mechanism-based structural alerts to be proposed. These structural alerts related to a number of important chemical classes such as quinones, anthraquinones, substituted nitrobenzenes and aromatic azos. This in silico profiler is intended for grouping chemicals into mechanism-based categories within the adverse outcome pathway paradigm. PMID:24888375
Mechanistic exploration of a bi-directional PDT-based combination in pancreatic cancer (Conference Presentation)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Huang, Huang-Chiao; Mallidi, Srivalleesha; Liu, Joyce; Chiang, Chun-Te; Mai, Zhiming; Goldschmidt, Ruth; Rizvi, Imran; Ebrahim-Zadeh, Neema; Hasan, Tayyaba
It is increasingly evident that the most effective cancer treatments will involve interactive regimens that target multiple non-overlapping pathways, preferably such that each component enhances the others to improve outcomes while minimizing systemic toxicities. Toward this goal, we developed a combination of photodynamic therapy and irinotecan, which mechanistically cooperate with each other, beyond their individual tumor destruction pathways, to cause synergistic reduction in orthotopic pancreatic tumor burden. A three-way mechanistic basis of the observed the synergism will be discussed: (i) PDT downregulates drug efflux transporters to increase intracellular irinotecan levels. (ii) Irinotecan reduces the expression of hypoxia-induced marker, which is upregulated by PDT. (iii) PDT downregulates irinotecan-induced survivin expression to amplify the apoptotic and anti-proliferative effects. The clinical translation potential of the combination will also be highlighted.
Mechanistic determinants of the directionality and energetics of active export by a heterodimeric ABC transporter
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Grossmann, Nina; Vakkasoglu, Ahmet S.; Hulpke, Sabine; Abele, Rupert; Gaudet, Rachelle; Tampé, Robert
The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) participates in immune surveillance by moving proteasomal products into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen for major histocompatibility complex class I loading and cell surface presentation to cytotoxic T cells. Here we delineate the mechanistic basis for antigen translocation. Notably, TAP works as a molecular diode, translocating peptide substrates against the gradient in a strict unidirectional way. We reveal the importance of the D-loop at the dimer interface of the two nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs) in coupling substrate translocation with ATP hydrolysis and defining transport vectoriality. Substitution of the conserved aspartate, which coordinates the ATP-binding site, decreases NBD dimerization affinity and turns the unidirectional primary active pump into a passive bidirectional nucleotide-gated facilitator. Thus, ATP hydrolysis is not required for translocation per se, but is essential for both active and unidirectional transport. Our data provide detailed mechanistic insight into how heterodimeric ABC exporters operate.
A data-intensive approach to mechanistic elucidation applied to chiral anion catalysis
Milo, Anat; Neel, Andrew J.; Toste, F. Dean; Sigman, Matthew S.
Knowledge of chemical reaction mechanisms can facilitate catalyst optimization, but extracting that knowledge from a complex system is often challenging. Here we present a data-intensive method for deriving and then predictively applying a mechanistic model of an enantioselective organic reaction. As a validating case study, we selected an intramolecular dehydrogenative C-N coupling reaction, catalyzed by chiral phosphoric acid derivatives, in which catalyst-substrate association involves weak, non-covalent interactions. Little was previously understood regarding the structural origin of enantioselectivity in this system. Catalyst and substrate substituent effects were probed by systematic physical organic trend analysis. Plausible interactions between the substrate and catalyst that govern enantioselectivity were identified and supported experimentally, indicating that such an approach can afford an efficient means of leveraging mechanistic insight to optimize catalyst design. PMID:25678656
Mechanistic modelling of cancer: some reflections from software engineering and philosophy of science.
Cañete-Valdeón, José M; Wieringa, Roel; Smallbone, Kieran
There is a growing interest in mathematical mechanistic modelling as a promising strategy for understanding tumour progression. This approach is accompanied by a methodological change of making research, in which models help to actively generate hypotheses instead of waiting for general principles to become apparent once sufficient data are accumulated. This paper applies recent research from philosophy of science to uncover three important problems of mechanistic modelling which may compromise its mainstream application, namely: the dilemma of formal and informal descriptions, the need to express degrees of confidence and the need of an argumentation framework. We report experience and research on similar problems from software engineering and provide evidence that the solutions adopted there can be transferred to the biological domain. We hope this paper can provoke new opportunities for further and profitable interdisciplinary research in the field. PMID:23149931
Mechanistic modelling of cancer: some reflections from software engineering and philosophy of science
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cañete-Valdeón, José M.; Wieringa, Roel; Smallbone, Kieran
There is a growing interest in mathematical mechanistic modelling as a promising strategy for understanding tumour progression. This approach is accompanied by a methodological change of making research, in which models help to actively generate hypotheses instead of waiting for general principles to become apparent once sufficient data are accumulated. This paper applies recent research from philosophy of science to uncover three important problems of mechanistic modelling which may compromise its mainstream application, namely: the dilemma of formal and informal descriptions, the need to express degrees of confidence and the need of an argumentation framework. We report experience and research on similar problems from software engineering and provide evidence that the solutions adopted there can be transferred to the biological domain. We hope this paper can provoke new opportunities for further and profitable interdisciplinary research in the field.
Aortic Binding of AZD5248: Mechanistic Insight and Reactivity Assays To Support Lead Optimzation.
Bragg, Ryan A; Brocklehurst, Simon; Gustafsson, Frida; Goodman, James; Hickling, Kevin; MacFaul, Philip A; Swallow, Steve; Tugwood, Jonathan
The oral dipeptidyl peptidase 1 (DPP1) inhibitor AZD5248 showed aortic binding in a rat quantitative whole-body autoradiography (QWBA) study, and its development was terminated prior to human dosing. A mechanistic hypothesis for this finding was established invoking reactivity with aldehydes involved in the cross-linking of elastin, a major component of aortic tissue. This was tested by developing a simple aldehyde chemical reactivity assay and a novel in vitro competitive covalent binding assay. Results obtained with AZD5248, literature compounds, and close analogues of AZD5248 support the mechanistic hypothesis and provide validation for the use of these assays in a two tier screening approach to support lead optimization. The strengths and limitations of these assays are discussed. PMID:26351880
Synthesis, cytotoxicity and mechanistic evaluation of 4-oxoquinoline-3-carboxamide derivatives: finding new potential anticancer drugs.
Forezi, Luana da S M; Tolentino, Nathalia M C; de Souza, Alessandra M T; Castro, Helena C; Montenegro, Raquel C; Dantas, Rafael F; Oliveira, Maria E I M; Silva, Floriano P; Barreto, Leilane H; Burbano, Rommel M R; Abrahim-Vieira, Bárbara; de Oliveira, Riethe; Ferreira, Vitor F; Cunha, Anna C; Boechat, Fernanda da C S; de Souza, Maria Cecília B V
As part of a continuing search for new potential anticancer candidates, we describe the synthesis, cytotoxicity and mechanistic evaluation of a series of 4-oxoquinoline-3-carboxamide derivatives as novel anticancer agents. The inhibitory activity of compounds 10-18 was determined against three cancer cell lines using the MTT colorimetric assay. The screening revealed that derivatives 16b and 17b exhibited significant cytotoxic activity against the gastric cancer cell line but was not active against a normal cell line, in contrast to doxorubicin, a standard chemotherapeutic drug in clinical use. Interestingly, no hemolytical activity was observed when the toxicity of 16b and 17b was tested against blood cells. The in silico and in vitro mechanistic evaluation indicated the potential of 16b as a lead for the development of novel anticancer agents against gastric cancer cells. PMID:24858098
Mechanistic basis of resistance to PCBs in Atlantic tomcod from the Hudson River.
Wirgin, Isaac; Roy, Nirmal K; Loftus, Matthew; Chambers, R Christopher; Franks, Diana G; Hahn, Mark E
The mechanistic basis of resistance of vertebrate populations to contaminants, including Atlantic tomcod from the Hudson River (HR) to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), is unknown. HR tomcod exhibited variants in the aryl hydrocarbon receptor 2 (AHR2) that were nearly absent elsewhere. In ligand-binding assays, AHR2-1 protein (common in the HR) was impaired as compared to widespread AHR2-2 in binding TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin) and in driving expression in reporter gene assays in AHR-deficient cells treated with TCDD or PCB126. We identified a six-base deletion in AHR2 as the basis of resistance and suggest that the HR population has undergone rapid evolution, probably due to contaminant exposure. This mechanistic basis of resistance in a vertebrate population provides evidence of evolutionary change due to selective pressure at a single locus. PMID:21330491
Formalising a mechanistic linkage between heterotrophic feeding and thermal bleaching resistance
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wooldridge, Scott A.
In this paper, I utilise the CO2 (sink) limitation model of coral bleaching to propose a new biochemical framework that explains how certain (well-adapted) coral species can utilise heterotrophic carbon acquisition to combat the damaging algal photoinhibition response sequence that underpins thermal bleaching, thereby increasing thermal bleaching resistance. This mechanistic linkage helps to clarify a number of previously challenging experimental responses arising from feeding (versus starved) temperature stress experiments, and isotope labelling (tracer) experiments with heterotrophic carbon sources (e.g., zooplankton). In an era of rapidly warming surface ocean temperatures, the conferred fitness benefits arising from such a mechanistic linkage are considerable. Yet, various ecological constraints are outlined which caution against the ultimate benefit of the mechanism for raising bleaching thresholds at the coral community (reef) scale. Future experiments are suggested that can strengthen these proposed arguments.
Substrate inhibition in the heterogeneous catalyzed aldol condensation: A mechanistic study of supported organocatalysts
Kandel, Kapil; Althaus, Stacey M.; Peeraphatdit, Chorthip; Kobayashi, Takeshi; Trewyn, Brian G.; Pruski, Marek; Slowing, Igor I.
In this study, we demonstrate how materials science can be combined with the established methods of organic chemistry to find mechanistic bottlenecks and redesign heterogeneous catalysts for improved performance. By using solid-state NMR, infrared spectroscopy, surface and kinetic analysis, we prove the existence of a substrate inhibition in the aldol condensation catalyzed by heterogeneous amines. We show that modifying the structure of the supported amines according to the proposed mechanism dramatically enhances the activity of the heterogeneous catalyst. We also provide evidence that the reaction benefits significantly from the surface chemistry of the silica support, which plays the role of a co-catalyst, giving activities up to two orders of magnitude larger than those of homogeneous amines. This study confirms that the optimization of a heterogeneous catalyst depends as much on obtaining organic mechanistic information as it does on controlling the structure of the support.
Conceptual models for waste tank mechanistic analysis. Status report, January 1991
Allemann, R. T.; Antoniak, Z. I.; Eyler, L. L.; Liljegren, L. M.; Roberts, J. S.
Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) is conducting a study for Westinghouse Hanford Company (Westinghouse Hanford), a contractor for the US Department of Energy (DOE). The purpose of the work is to study possible mechanisms and fluid dynamics contributing to the periodic release of gases from double-shell waste storage tanks at the Hanford Site in Richland, Washington. This interim report emphasizing the modeling work follows two other interim reports, Mechanistic Analysis of Double-Shell Tank Gas Release Progress Report -- November 1990 and Collection and Analysis of Existing Data for Waste Tank Mechanistic Analysis Progress Report -- December 1990, that emphasized data correlation and mechanisms. The approach in this study has been to assemble and compile data that are pertinent to the mechanisms, analyze the data, evaluate physical properties and parameters, evaluate hypothetical mechanisms, and develop mathematical models of mechanisms.
Microbial community dynamics in soil aggregates shape biogeochemical gas fluxes from soil profiles
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ebrahimi, Ali; Or, Dani
Microbial communities inhabiting soil aggregates dynamically adjust their activity and composition in response to variations in hydration and other external conditions. These rapid dynamics shape signatures of biogeochemical activity and gas fluxes emitted from soil profiles. Mechanistic models of microbial processes in unsaturated aggregate pore networks revealed dynamic interplay between oxic and anoxic microsites that are jointly shaped by hydration and by aerobic and anaerobic microbial communities. The spatial extent of anoxic niches (hotspots) flicker in time (hot moments) and support significant anaerobic microbial activity even in aerated soil profiles. We employed an individual-based model for microbial community life in soil aggregate assemblies represented by 3-D angular pore networks with profiles of water, carbon, and oxygen that vary with soil depth as boundary conditions. The study integrates microbial activity within aggregates of different sizes and soil depth to obtain biogeochemical fluxes over the soil profile. The results quantify impacts of dynamic shifts in microbial community composition on CO2 and N2O production rates in soil profiles in good agreement with experimental data. Aggregate size distribution and the shape of resource profiles in a soil determine how hydration dynamics shape denitrification and carbon utilization rates. Results from the mechanistic model for microbial activity in aggregates of different sizes were used to derive parameters for analytical representation of soil biogeochemical processes across large scales of interest for hydrological and climate models.
Data-driven mechanistic analysis method to reveal dynamically evolving regulatory networks
Intosalmi, Jukka; Nousiainen, Kari; Ahlfors, Helena; Lähdesmäki, Harri
Motivation: Mechanistic models based on ordinary differential equations provide powerful and accurate means to describe the dynamics of molecular machinery which orchestrates gene regulation. When combined with appropriate statistical techniques, mechanistic models can be calibrated using experimental data and, in many cases, also the model structure can be inferred from time–course measurements. However, existing mechanistic models are limited in the sense that they rely on the assumption of static network structure and cannot be applied when transient phenomena affect, or rewire, the network structure. In the context of gene regulatory network inference, network rewiring results from the net impact of possible unobserved transient phenomena such as changes in signaling pathway activities or epigenome, which are generally difficult, but important, to account for. Results: We introduce a novel method that can be used to infer dynamically evolving regulatory networks from time–course data. Our method is based on the notion that all mechanistic ordinary differential equation models can be coupled with a latent process that approximates the network structure rewiring process. We illustrate the performance of the method using simulated data and, further, we apply the method to study the regulatory interactions during T helper 17 (Th17) cell differentiation using time–course RNA sequencing data. The computational experiments with the real data show that our method is capable of capturing the experimentally verified rewiring effects of the core Th17 regulatory network. We predict Th17 lineage specific subnetworks that are activated sequentially and control the differentiation process in an overlapping manner. Availability and Implementation: An implementation of the method is available at http://research.ics.aalto.fi/csb/software/lem/. Contacts: email@example.com or email@example.com PMID:27307629
Studies on the interaction of isocyanides with imines: reaction scope and mechanistic variations.
Ghashghaei, Ouldouz; Manna, Consiglia Annamaria; Vicente-García, Esther; Revés, Marc; Lavilla, Rodolfo
The interaction of imines with isocyanides has been studied. The main product results from a sequential process involving the attack of two units of isocyanide, under Lewis acid catalysis, upon the carbon-nitrogen double bond of the imine to form the 4-membered ring system. The scope of the reaction regarding the imine and isocyanide ranges has been determined, and also some mechanistic variations and structural features have been described. PMID:24454559
Mechanistic interrogation of the asymmetric lithiation-trapping of N-thiopivaloyl azetidine and pyrrolidine.
Rayner, Peter J; Smith, Joshua C; Denneval, Charline; O'Brien, Peter; Clarke, Paul A; Horan, Richard A J
A fundamental mechanistic study of the s-BuLi/chiral diamine-mediated lithiation-trapping of N-thiopivaloyl azetidine and pyrrolidine is reported. We show that lithiated thiopivalamides are configurationally unstable at -78 °C. Reaction then proceeds via a dynamic resolution of diastereomeric lithiated intermediates and this accounts for the variable sense and degree of asymmetric induction observed compared to N-Boc heterocycles. PMID:26620913
Structural and Mechanistic Aspects of Copper Catalyzed Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pintauer, Tomislav; Matyjaszewski, Krzysztof
During the past decade, atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) has had a tremendous impact on the synthesis of macromolecules with well-defined compositions, architectures, and functionalities. Structural features of copper(I) and copper(II) complexes with bidentate, tridentate, tetradentate, and multidentate nitrogen-based ligands commonly utilized in ATRP are reviewed and discussed. Additionally, recent advances in mechanistic understanding of copper-mediated ATRP are outlined.
Quantitative assessment of biological impact using transcriptomic data and mechanistic network models
Thomson, Ty M.; Sewer, Alain; Martin, Florian; Belcastro, Vincenzo; Frushour, Brian P.; Gebel, Stephan; Park, Jennifer; Schlage, Walter K.; Talikka, Marja; Vasilyev, Dmitry M.; Westra, Jurjen W.; Hoeng, Julia; Peitsch, Manuel C.
Exposure to biologically active substances such as therapeutic drugs or environmental toxicants can impact biological systems at various levels, affecting individual molecules, signaling pathways, and overall cellular processes. The ability to derive mechanistic insights from the resulting system responses requires the integration of experimental measures with a priori knowledge about the system and the interacting molecules therein. We developed a novel systems biology-based methodology that leverages mechanistic network models and transcriptomic data to quantitatively assess the biological impact of exposures to active substances. Hierarchically organized network models were first constructed to provide a coherent framework for investigating the impact of exposures at the molecular, pathway and process levels. We then validated our methodology using novel and previously published experiments. For both in vitro systems with simple exposure and in vivo systems with complex exposures, our methodology was able to recapitulate known biological responses matching expected or measured phenotypes. In addition, the quantitative results were in agreement with experimental endpoint data for many of the mechanistic effects that were assessed, providing further objective confirmation of the approach. We conclude that our methodology evaluates the biological impact of exposures in an objective, systematic, and quantifiable manner, enabling the computation of a systems-wide and pan-mechanistic biological impact measure for a given active substance or mixture. Our results suggest that various fields of human disease research, from drug development to consumer product testing and environmental impact analysis, could benefit from using this methodology. - Highlights: • The impact of biologically active substances is quantified at multiple levels. • The systems-level impact integrates the perturbations of individual networks. • The networks capture the relationships between
Studies on the interaction of isocyanides with imines: reaction scope and mechanistic variations
Ghashghaei, Ouldouz; Manna, Consiglia Annamaria; Vicente-García, Esther; Revés, Marc
Summary The interaction of imines with isocyanides has been studied. The main product results from a sequential process involving the attack of two units of isocyanide, under Lewis acid catalysis, upon the carbon–nitrogen double bond of the imine to form the 4-membered ring system. The scope of the reaction regarding the imine and isocyanide ranges has been determined, and also some mechanistic variations and structural features have been described. PMID:24454559
Mechanistic Studies on Au(I)-Catalyzed [3,3]-Sigmatropic Rearrangements using Cyclopropane Probes
Mauleón, Pablo; Krinsky, Jamin L.
A comparative study of the Au(I)-catalyzed [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement of propargylic esters and propargyl vinyl ethers is described. Stereochemically defined cyclopropanes are employed as mechanistic probes to provide new synthetic and theoretical data concerning the reversibility of this type of rearrangement. Factors controlling the structure-reactivity relationship of Au(I)-coordinated allenes have been examined, thereby allowing for controlled access to orthogonal reactivity. PMID:19275228
Mechanistic insights into the potassium tert-butoxide-mediated synthesis of N-heterobiaryls.
Stephens, David E; Lakey-Beitia, Johant; Burch, Jessica E; Arman, Hadi D; Larionov, Oleg V
We report herein that symmetrical and non-symmetrical N-heterobiaryls are produced by a potassium tert-butoxide-mediated dimerization of heterocyclic N-oxides. The reaction is scalable and transition metal-free, and can be carried out under thermal and microwave conditions. Preliminary mechanistic studies point to the involvement of radical anionic intermediates arising from the N-oxide substrates and potassium tert-butoxide. PMID:27440397
Mechanistic insight into gramicidin-based detection of protein-ligand interactions via sensitized photoinactivation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rokitskaya, Tatyana I.; Macrae, Michael X.; Blake, Steven; Egorova, Natalya S.; Kotova, Elena A.; Yang, Jerry; Antonenko, Yuri N.
Among the many challenges for the development of ion channel-based sensors is the poor understanding of how to engineer modified transmembrane pores with tailored functionality that can respond to external stimuli. Here, we use the method of sensitized photoinactivation of gramicidin A (gA) channels in planar bilayer lipid membranes to help elucidate the underlying mechanistic details for changes in macroscopic transmembrane ionic current observed upon interaction of C-terminally attached gA ligands with specific proteins in solution. Three different systems were studied: (i) carbonic anhydrase (CA) and gA-sulfonamide, (ii) PSD-95 protein (belonging to the 'PDZ domain-containing protein') and a gA analog carrying the KGGHRRSARYLESSV peptide sequence at the C-terminus, and (iii) an anti-biotin antibody and gA-biotin. The results challenge a previously proposed mechanistic hypothesis suggesting that protein-induced current suppression is due to steric blockage of the ion passage through gA channels, while they reveal new insight for consideration in alternative mechanistic models. Additionally, we demonstrate that the length of a linker between the ligand and the gA channel may be less important for gramicidin-based detection of monovalent compared to multivalent protein-ligand interactions. These studies collectively shed new light on the mechanism of protein-induced current alterations in bilayer recordings of gA derivatives, which may be important in the design of new gramicidin-based sensors.
Emergent Global Patterns of Ecosystem Structure and Function from a Mechanistic General Ecosystem Model
Emmott, Stephen; Hutton, Jon; Lyutsarev, Vassily; Smith, Matthew J.; Scharlemann, Jörn P. W.; Purves, Drew W.
Anthropogenic activities are causing widespread degradation of ecosystems worldwide, threatening the ecosystem services upon which all human life depends. Improved understanding of this degradation is urgently needed to improve avoidance and mitigation measures. One tool to assist these efforts is predictive models of ecosystem structure and function that are mechanistic: based on fundamental ecological principles. Here we present the first mechanistic General Ecosystem Model (GEM) of ecosystem structure and function that is both global and applies in all terrestrial and marine environments. Functional forms and parameter values were derived from the theoretical and empirical literature where possible. Simulations of the fate of all organisms with body masses between 10 µg and 150,000 kg (a range of 14 orders of magnitude) across the globe led to emergent properties at individual (e.g., growth rate), community (e.g., biomass turnover rates), ecosystem (e.g., trophic pyramids), and macroecological scales (e.g., global patterns of trophic structure) that are in general agreement with current data and theory. These properties emerged from our encoding of the biology of, and interactions among, individual organisms without any direct constraints on the properties themselves. Our results indicate that ecologists have gathered sufficient information to begin to build realistic, global, and mechanistic models of ecosystems, capable of predicting a diverse range of ecosystem properties and their response to human pressures. PMID:24756001
Life in the balance - a mechanistic view of the crosstalk between autophagy and apoptosis.
Rubinstein, Assaf D; Kimchi, Adi
Cellular stress triggers a fascinating decision-making process in cells; they can either attempt to survive until the stress is resolved through the activation of cytoprotective pathways, such as autophagy, or can commit suicide by apoptosis in order to prevent further damage to surrounding healthy cells. Although autophagy and apoptosis constitute distinct cellular processes with often opposing outcomes, their signalling pathways are extensively interconnected through various mechanisms of crosstalk. The physiological relevance of the autophagy-apoptosis crosstalk is not well understood, but it is presumed to facilitate a controlled and well-balanced cellular response to a given stress signal. In this Commentary, we explore the various mechanisms by which autophagy and apoptosis regulate each other, and define general paradigms of crosstalk on the basis of mechanistic features. One paradigm relates to physical and functional interactions between pairs of specific apoptotic and autophagic proteins. In a second mechanistic paradigm, the apoptosis or autophagy processes (as opposed to individual proteins) regulate each other through induced caspase and autolysosomal activity, respectively. In a third paradigm unique to autophagy, caspases are recruited and activated on autophagosomal membranes. These mechanistic paradigms are discernible experimentally, and can therefore be used as a practical guide for the interpretation of experimental data. PMID:23377657
Comparative evaluation of statistical and mechanistic models of Escherichia coli at beaches in southern Lake Michigan
Safaie, Ammar; Wendzel, Aaron; Ge, Zhongfu; Nevers, Meredith; Whitman, Richard L.; Corsi, Steven R.; Phanikumar, Mantha S.
Statistical and mechanistic models are popular tools for predicting the levels of indicator bacteria at recreational beaches. Researchers tend to use one class of model or the other, and it is difficult to generalize statements about their relative performance due to differences in how the models are developed, tested, and used. We describe a cooperative modeling approach for freshwater beaches impacted by point sources in which insights derived from mechanistic modeling were used to further improve the statistical models and vice versa. The statistical models provided a basis for assessing the mechanistic models which were further improved using probability distributions to generate high-resolution time series data at the source, long-term "tracer" transport modeling based on observed electrical conductivity, better assimilation of meteorological data, and the use of unstructured-grids to better resolve nearshore features. This approach resulted in improved models of comparable performance for both classes including a parsimonious statistical model suitable for real-time predictions based on an easily measurable environmental variable (turbidity). The modeling approach outlined here can be used at other sites impacted by point sources and has the potential to improve water quality predictions resulting in more accurate estimates of beach closures.
Mechanistic models of animal migration behaviour – their diversity, structure and use
Bauer, Silke; Klaassen, Marcel
Migration is a wide-spread phenomenon in the animal kingdom, including many taxonomic groups and modes of locomotion. Developing an understanding of the proximate and ultimate causes for this behaviour not only addresses fundamental ecological questions but has relevance to many other fields, e.g. in relation to the spread of emerging zoonotic diseases, the proliferation of invasive species, aeronautical safety as well as the conservation of migrants.Theoretical methods can make important contributions to our understanding of migration, by allowing us to integrate findings on this complex behaviour, identify caveats in our understanding and guide future empirical research efforts. Various mechanistic models exist to date but their applications seem to be scattered and far from evenly distributed across taxonomic units.Therefore, we provide an overview of the major mechanistic modelling approaches used in the study of migration behaviour and characterise their fundamental features, assumptions and limitations, and discuss their typical data requirements both for model parameterisation and for scrutinizing model predictions.Furthermore, we review 155 studies that have used mechanistic models to study animal migration and analyse them with regard to the approaches used, focal species and also explore their contribution of advancing current knowledge within six broad migration ecology research themes.This identifies important gaps in our present knowledge, which should be tackled in future research using existing and to-be developed theoretical approaches. PMID:23373515
Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind.
Katul, G G; Porporato, A; Nathan, R; Siqueira, M; Soons, M B; Poggi, D; Horn, H S; Levin, S A
We introduce an analytical model, the Wald analytical long-distance dispersal (WALD) model, for estimating dispersal kernels of wind-dispersed seeds and their escape probability from the canopy. The model is based on simplifications to well-established three-dimensional Lagrangian stochastic approaches for turbulent scalar transport resulting in a two-parameter Wald (or inverse Gaussian) distribution. Unlike commonly used phenomenological models, WALD's parameters can be estimated from the key factors affecting wind dispersal--wind statistics, seed release height, and seed terminal velocity--determined independently of dispersal data. WALD's asymptotic power-law tail has an exponent of -3/2, a limiting value verified by a meta-analysis for a wide variety of measured dispersal kernels and larger than the exponent of the bivariate Student t-test (2Dt). We tested WALD using three dispersal data sets on forest trees, heathland shrubs, and grassland forbs and compared WALD's performance with that of other analytical mechanistic models (revised versions of the tilted Gaussian Plume model and the advection-diffusion equation), revealing fairest agreement between WALD predictions and measurements. Analytical mechanistic models, such as WALD, combine the advantages of simplicity and mechanistic understanding and are valuable tools for modeling large-scale, long-term plant population dynamics. PMID:16224691
Modeling systems-level dynamics: Understanding without mechanistic explanation in integrative systems biology.
MacLeod, Miles; Nersessian, Nancy J
In this paper we draw upon rich ethnographic data of two systems biology labs to explore the roles of explanation and understanding in large-scale systems modeling. We illustrate practices that depart from the goal of dynamic mechanistic explanation for the sake of more limited modeling goals. These processes use abstract mathematical formulations of bio-molecular interactions and data fitting techniques which we call top-down abstraction to trade away accurate mechanistic accounts of large-scale systems for specific information about aspects of those systems. We characterize these practices as pragmatic responses to the constraints many modelers of large-scale systems face, which in turn generate more limited pragmatic non-mechanistic forms of understanding of systems. These forms aim at knowledge of how to predict system responses in order to manipulate and control some aspects of them. We propose that this analysis of understanding provides a way to interpret what many systems biologists are aiming for in practice when they talk about the objective of a "systems-level understanding." PMID:25462871
Comparative Evaluation of Statistical and Mechanistic Models of Escherichia coli at Beaches in Southern Lake Michigan.
Safaie, Ammar; Wendzel, Aaron; Ge, Zhongfu; Nevers, Meredith B; Whitman, Richard L; Corsi, Steven R; Phanikumar, Mantha S
Statistical and mechanistic models are popular tools for predicting the levels of indicator bacteria at recreational beaches. Researchers tend to use one class of model or the other, and it is difficult to generalize statements about their relative performance due to differences in how the models are developed, tested, and used. We describe a cooperative modeling approach for freshwater beaches impacted by point sources in which insights derived from mechanistic modeling were used to further improve the statistical models and vice versa. The statistical models provided a basis for assessing the mechanistic models which were further improved using probability distributions to generate high-resolution time series data at the source, long-term "tracer" transport modeling based on observed electrical conductivity, better assimilation of meteorological data, and the use of unstructured-grids to better resolve nearshore features. This approach resulted in improved models of comparable performance for both classes including a parsimonious statistical model suitable for real-time predictions based on an easily measurable environmental variable (turbidity). The modeling approach outlined here can be used at other sites impacted by point sources and has the potential to improve water quality predictions resulting in more accurate estimates of beach closures. PMID:26825142
Mechanistic insight into gramicidin-based detection of protein-ligand interactions via sensitized photoinactivation.
Rokitskaya, Tatyana I; Macrae, Michael X; Blake, Steven; Egorova, Natalya S; Kotova, Elena A; Yang, Jerry; Antonenko, Yuri N
Among the many challenges for the development of ion channel-based sensors is the poor understanding of how to engineer modified transmembrane pores with tailored functionality that can respond to external stimuli. Here, we use the method of sensitized photoinactivation of gramicidin A (gA) channels in planar bilayer lipid membranes to help elucidate the underlying mechanistic details for changes in macroscopic transmembrane ionic current observed upon interaction of C-terminally attached gA ligands with specific proteins in solution. Three different systems were studied: (i) carbonic anhydrase (CA) and gA-sulfonamide, (ii) PSD-95 protein (belonging to the 'PDZ domain-containing protein') and a gA analog carrying the KGGHRRSARYLESSV peptide sequence at the C-terminus, and (iii) an anti-biotin antibody and gA-biotin. The results challenge a previously proposed mechanistic hypothesis suggesting that protein-induced current suppression is due to steric blockage of the ion passage through gA channels, while they reveal new insight for consideration in alternative mechanistic models. Additionally, we demonstrate that the length of a linker between the ligand and the gA channel may be less important for gramicidin-based detection of monovalent compared to multivalent protein-ligand interactions. These studies collectively shed new light on the mechanism of protein-induced current alterations in bilayer recordings of gA derivatives, which may be important in the design of new gramicidin-based sensors. PMID:21339605
A reconciliation of empirical and mechanistic models of the air-sea gas transfer velocity
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Goddijn-Murphy, Lonneke; Woolf, David K.; Callaghan, Adrian H.; Nightingale, Philip D.; Shutler, Jamie D.
Models of the air-sea transfer velocity of gases may be either empirical or mechanistic. Extrapolations of empirical models to an unmeasured gas or to another water temperature can be erroneous if the basis of that extrapolation is flawed. This issue is readily demonstrated for the most well-known empirical gas transfer velocity models where the influence of bubble-mediated transfer, which can vary between gases, is not explicitly accounted for. Mechanistic models are hindered by an incomplete knowledge of the mechanisms of air-sea gas transfer. We describe a hybrid model that incorporates a simple mechanistic view—strictly enforcing a distinction between direct and bubble-mediated transfer—but also uses parameterizations based on data from eddy flux measurements of dimethyl sulphide (DMS) to calibrate the model together with dual tracer results to evaluate the model. This model underpins simple algorithms that can be easily applied within schemes to calculate local, regional, or global air-sea fluxes of gases.
Mechanistic Modelling of DNA Repair and Cellular Survival Following Radiation-Induced DNA Damage.
McMahon, Stephen J; Schuemann, Jan; Paganetti, Harald; Prise, Kevin M
Characterising and predicting the effects of ionising radiation on cells remains challenging, with the lack of robust models of the underlying mechanism of radiation responses providing a significant limitation to the development of personalised radiotherapy. In this paper we present a mechanistic model of cellular response to radiation that incorporates the kinetics of different DNA repair processes, the spatial distribution of double strand breaks and the resulting probability and severity of misrepair. This model enables predictions to be made of a range of key biological endpoints (DNA repair kinetics, chromosome aberration and mutation formation, survival) across a range of cell types based on a set of 11 mechanistic fitting parameters that are common across all cells. Applying this model to cellular survival showed its capacity to stratify the radiosensitivity of cells based on aspects of their phenotype and experimental conditions such as cell cycle phase and plating delay (correlation between modelled and observed Mean Inactivation Doses R(2) > 0.9). By explicitly incorporating underlying mechanistic factors, this model can integrate knowledge from a wide range of biological studies to provide robust predictions and may act as a foundation for future calculations of individualised radiosensitivity. PMID:27624453
Left ventricular partitioning in systolic heart failure subjects: addressing a mechanistic void with current therapies.
Schäfer, Ulrich
ICD patients with narrow QRS, CRT non-responders, and functional MR patients all have one mechanistic failure mode that is left untreated - the scar left behind following an MI. ICDs, CRTs, and MitraClip implantation are all well-proven therapies, but the Parachute device may address the mechanistic void that remains after each of these therapies has been used and may further improve patients' outcomes. A pooled analysis of 134 subjects was conducted using the first three clinical trials which included subjects with symptomatic ischaemic HF with LV wall motion abnormalities secondary to MI, and an LV ejection fraction less than 40%. The two-year cumulative mortality rate was 12.9%, with 8.7% in the first year and an increment of 4.2% in the second, which is a 53% reduction as compared to the first year. There is a significant proportion of patients with ischaemic heart failure being excluded from cardiac rhythm management (CRT, etc.), leaving a large treatment gap until mechanical support devices (LVAD) or heart transplantation in progressive heart failure are indicated. Along with other heart failure devices, Parachute may be a useful treatment modality, addressing a mechanistic void in the treatment of this disease. Current data support improvements in haemodynamics, functional capacity, six-minute walk distance, quality of life and a promising decline in mortality two years after Parachute implantation. PMID:27174122
Integration of QSAR and SAR methods for the mechanistic interpretation of predictive models for carcinogenicity
Fjodorova, Natalja; Novič, Marjana
The knowledge-based Toxtree expert system (SAR approach) was integrated with the statistically based counter propagation artificial neural network (CP ANN) model (QSAR approach) to contribute to a better mechanistic understanding of a carcinogenicity model for non-congeneric chemicals using Dragon descriptors and carcinogenic potency for rats as a response. The transparency of the CP ANN algorithm was demonstrated using intrinsic mapping technique specifically Kohonen maps. Chemical structures were represented by Dragon descriptors that express the structural and electronic features of molecules such as their shape and electronic surrounding related to reactivity of molecules. It was illustrated how the descriptors are correlated with particular structural alerts (SAs) for carcinogenicity with recognized mechanistic link to carcinogenic activity. Moreover, the Kohonen mapping technique enables one to examine the separation of carcinogens and non-carcinogens (for rats) within a family of chemicals with a particular SA for carcinogenicity. The mechanistic interpretation of models is important for the evaluation of safety of chemicals. PMID:24688639
DNA profiles from fingermarks.
Templeton, Jennifer E L; Linacre, Adrian
Criminal investigations would be considerably improved if DNA profiles could be routinely generated from single fingermarks. Here we report a direct DNA profiling method that was able to generate interpretable profiles from 71% of 170 fingermarks. The data are based on fingermarks from all 5 digits of 34 individuals. DNA was obtained from the fingermarks using a swab moistened with Triton-X, and the fibers were added directly to one of two commercial DNA profiling kits. All profiles were obtained without increasing the number of amplification cycles; therefore, our method is ideally suited for adoption by the forensic science community. We indicate the use of the technique in a criminal case in which a DNA profile was generated from a fingermark on tape that was wrapped around a drug seizure. Our direct DNA profiling approach is rapid and able to generate profiles from touched items when current forensic practices have little chance of success. PMID:25391915
The mechanistic study of Leishmania major dihydro-orotate dehydrogenase based on steady- and pre-steady-state kinetic analysis.
Reis, Renata A G; Ferreira, Patricia; Medina, Milagros; Nonato, M Cristina
Leishmania major dihydro-orotate dehydrogenase (DHODHLm) has been considered as a potential therapeutic target against leishmaniasis. DHODHLm, a member of class 1A DHODH, oxidizes dihydro-orotate (DHO) to orotate (ORO) during pyrimidine biosynthesis using fumarate (FUM) as the oxidizing substrate. In the present study, the chemistry of reduction and reoxidation of the flavin mononucleotide (FMN) cofactor in DHODHLm was examined by steady- and pre-steady state kinetics under both aerobic and anaerobic environments. Our results provide for the first time the experimental evidence of co-operative behaviour in class 1A DHODH regulated by DHO binding and reveal that the initial reductive flavin half-reaction follows a mechanism with two steps. The first step is consistent with FMN reduction and shows a hyperbolic dependence on the DHO concentration with a limiting rate (kred) of 110±6 s(-1) and a K(DHO) d of 180±27 μM. Dissociation of the reduced flavin-ORO complex corresponds to the second step, with a limiting rate of 6 s(-1). In the oxidative half-reaction, the oxygen-sensitive reoxidation of the reduced FMN cofactor of DHODHLm by FUM exhibited a hyperbolic saturation profile dependent on FUM concentration allowing estimation of K(FUM) d and the limiting rate (kreox) of 258±53 μM and 35±2 s(-1), respectively. Comparison between steady- and pre-steady-state parameters together with studies of interaction for DHODHLm with both ORO and succinate (SUC), suggests that ORO release is the rate-limiting step in overall catalysis. Our results provide evidence of mechanistic differences between class 1A and class 2 individual half-reactions to be exploited for the development of selective inhibitors. PMID:26656485
Mechanistic studies on the flavin-dependent N⁶-lysine monooxygenase MbsG reveal an unusual control for catalysis.
Robinson, Reeder M; Rodriguez, Pedro J; Sobrado, Pablo
The mechanism of Mycobacterium smegmatis G (MbsG), a flavin-dependent l-lysine monooxygenase, was investigated under steady-state and rapid reaction conditions using primary and solvent kinetic isotope effects, substrate analogs, pH and solvent viscosity effects as mechanistic probes. The results suggest that l-lysine binds before NAD(P)H, which leads to a decrease in the rate constant for flavin reduction. l-lysine binding has no effect on the rate of flavin oxidation, which occurs in a one-step process without the observation of a C4a-hydroperoxyflavin intermediate. Similar effects were determined with several substrate analogs. Flavin oxidation is pH independent while the kcat/Km and kred/KD pH profiles for NAD(P)H exhibit single pKa values of ∼6.0, with increasing activity as the pH decreases. At lower pH, the enzyme becomes more uncoupled, producing more hydrogen peroxide and superoxide. Hydride transfer is partially rate-limiting at neutral pH and becomes more rate-limiting at low pH. An inverse solvent viscosity effect on kcat/Km for NAD(P)H was observed at neutral pH whereas a normal solvent viscosity effect was observed at lower pH. Together, the results indicate a unique mechanism where a rate-limiting and pH-sensitive conformational change occurs in the reductive half-reaction, which affects the efficiency of lysine hydroxylation. PMID:24769337
Mechanistic Evaluation of LixOy Formation on δ-MnO2 in Nonaqueous Li-Air Batteries.
Liu, Zhixiao; De Jesus, Luis R; Banerjee, Sarbajit; Mukherjee, Partha P
Transition metal oxides are usually used as catalysts in the air cathode of lithium-air (Li-air) batteries. This study elucidates the mechanistic origin of the oxygen reduction reaction catalyzed by δ-MnO2 monolayers and maps the conditions for Li2O2 growth using a combination of first-principles calculations and mesoscale modeling. The MnO2 monolayer, in the absence of an applied potential, preferentially reacts with a Li atom instead of an O2 molecule to initiate the formation of LiO2. The oxygen reduction products (LiO2, Li2O2, and Li2O molecules) strongly interact with the MnO2 monolayer via the stabilization of Li-O chemical bonds with lattice oxygen atoms. As compared to the disproportionation reaction, direct lithiation reactions are the primary contributors to the stabilization of Li2O2 on the MnO2 monolayer. The energy profiles of (Li2O2)2 and (Li2O)2 nucleation on δ-MnO2 monolayer during the discharge process demonstrate that Li2O2 is the predominant discharge product and that further reduction to Li2O is inhibited by the high overpotential of 1.21 V. Interface structures have been examined to study the interaction between the Li2O2 and MnO2 layers. This study demonstrates that a Li2O2 film can be homogeneously deposited onto δ-MnO2 and that the Li2O2/MnO2 interface acts as an electrical conductor. A mesoscale model, developed based on findings from the first-principles calculations, further shows that Li2O2 is the primary product of electrochemical reactions when the applied potential is smaller than 2.4 V. PMID:27532334
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mortimore, Jo, Ed.
This publication traces developments in the use of profiles produced over the last two years and attempts to face some difficult and controversial issues raised repeatedly in any consideration of profiling. The introduction addresses assessment issues. Section 2 discusses the technical issues surrounding profiles, or records of achievement, and…
Assessment of hepatotoxic liabilities by transcript profiling
Ruepp, Stefan . E-mail: email@example.com; Boess, Franziska; Suter, Laura; Vera, Maria Cristina de; Steiner, Guido; Steele, Thomas; Weiser, Thomas; Albertini, Silvio
Male Wistar rats were treated with various model compounds or the appropriate vehicle controls in order to create a reference database for toxicogenomics assessment of novel compounds. Hepatotoxic compounds in the database were either known hepatotoxicants or showed hepatotoxicity during preclinical testing. Histopathology and clinical chemistry data were used to anchor the transcript profiles to an established endpoint (steatosis, cholestasis, direct acting, peroxisomal proliferation or nontoxic/control). These reference data were analyzed using a supervised learning method (support vector machines, SVM) to generate classification rules. This predictive model was subsequently used to assess compounds with regard to a potential hepatotoxic liability. A steatotic and a non-hepatotoxic 5HT{sub 6} receptor antagonist compound from the same series were successfully discriminated by this toxicogenomics model. Additionally, an example is shown where a hepatotoxic liability was correctly recognized in the absence of pathological findings. In vitro experiments and a dog study confirmed the correctness of the toxicogenomics alert. Another interesting observation was that transcript profiles indicate toxicologically relevant changes at an earlier timepoint than routinely used methods. Together, these results support the useful application of toxicogenomics in raising alerts for adverse effects and generating mechanistic hypotheses that can be followed up by confirmatory experiments.
Curtis, S.B.
Several models and theories are reviewed that incorporate the idea of radiation-induced lesions (repairable and/or irreparable) that can be related to molecular lesions in the DNA molecule. Usually the DNA double-strand or chromatin break is suggested as the critical lesion. In the models, the shoulder on the low-LET survival curve is hypothesized as being due to one (or more) of the following three mechanisms: (1) ``interaction`` of lesions produced by statistically independent particle tracks; (2) nonlinear (i.e., linear-quadratic) increase in the yield of initial lesions, and (3) saturation of repair processes at high dose. Comparisons are made between the various approaches. Several significant advances in model development are discussed; in particular, a description of the matrix formulation of the Markov versions of the RMR and LPL models is given. The more advanced theories have incorporated statistical fluctuations in various aspects of the energy-loss and lesion-formation process. An important direction is the inclusion of physical and chemical processes into the formulations by incorporating relevant track structure theory (Monte Carlo track simulations) and chemical reactions of radiation-induced radicals. At the biological end, identification of repair genes and how they operate as well as a better understanding of how DNA misjoinings lead to lethal chromosome aberrations are needed for appropriate inclusion into the theories. More effort is necessary to model the complex end point of radiation-induced carcinogenesis.
Curtis, S.B.
Several models and theories are reviewed that incorporate the idea of radiation-induced lesions (repairable and/or irreparable) that can be related to molecular lesions in the DNA molecule. Usually the DNA double-strand or chromatin break is suggested as the critical lesion. In the models, the shoulder on the low-LET survival curve is hypothesized as being due to one (or more) of the following three mechanisms: (1) interaction'' of lesions produced by statistically independent particle tracks; (2) nonlinear (i.e., linear-quadratic) increase in the yield of initial lesions, and (3) saturation of repair processes at high dose. Comparisons are made between the various approaches. Several significant advances in model development are discussed; in particular, a description of the matrix formulation of the Markov versions of the RMR and LPL models is given. The more advanced theories have incorporated statistical fluctuations in various aspects of the energy-loss and lesion-formation process. An important direction is the inclusion of physical and chemical processes into the formulations by incorporating relevant track structure theory (Monte Carlo track simulations) and chemical reactions of radiation-induced radicals. At the biological end, identification of repair genes and how they operate as well as a better understanding of how DNA misjoinings lead to lethal chromosome aberrations are needed for appropriate inclusion into the theories. More effort is necessary to model the complex end point of radiation-induced carcinogenesis.
In vitro--in silico--in vivo drug absorption model development based on mechanistic gastrointestinal simulation and artificial neural networks: nifedipine osmotic release tablets case study.
Ilić, Marija; Ðuriš, Jelena; Kovačević, Ivan; Ibrić, Svetlana; Parojčić, Jelena
In vitro--in vivo correlations (IVIVC) are generally accepted as a valuable tool in modified release formulation development aimed at (i) quantifying the in vivo drug delivery profile and formulation related effects on absorption; (ii) establishing clinically relevant dissolution specifications and (iii) supporting the biowaiver claims. The aim of the present study was to develop relevant IVIVC models based on mechanistic gastrointestinal simulation (GIS) and artificial neural network (ANN) analysis and to evaluate their applicability and usefulness in biopharmaceutical drug characterisation. Nifedipine osmotic release tablets were selected as model drug product on the basis of their robustness, dissolution limited drug absorption and the availability of relevant literature data. Although the osmotic release tablets have been designed to be robust against the influence of physiological conditions in the gastrointestinal tract, notable differences in nifedipine dissolution kinetics were observed depending on the in vitro experimental conditions employed. The results obtained indicate that both GIS and ANN model developed were sensitive to input kinetics represented by the in vitro profiles obtained under various experimental conditions. Different in silico approaches may be successfully employed in the in vitro--in silico--in vivo model development. However, the results obtained may differ and relevant outcomes are sensitive to the methodology employed. PMID:24911992
Examining the Use of a Mechanistic Model to Generate an In Vivo/In Vitro Correlation: Journey Through a Thought Process.
Mistry, Bipin; Patel, Nikunjkumar; Jamei, Masoud; Rostami-Hodjegan, Amin; Martinez, Marilyn N
The attention and interest in establishing in vivo/in vitro correlations (IVIVCs) is grounded in its tremendous utility as a prognostic tool. It can be used to support formulation optimization, predict in vivo drug exposure across a potential patient population, select a biologically relevant in vitro dissolution test condition, and support the use of in vitro dissolution data as a surrogate for in vivo bioequivalence trials. The pharmacological and statistical implications of this correlation are linked to the method by which the IVIVC was determined and to the assumptions and optimization approaches integrated into the estimation procedure. Using previously published data generated in normal healthy volunteers, an IVIVC for metoprolol was established using a mechanistic modeling approach. Within that framework, we explored the consequences of (1) our method of fitting a single Weibull function to the in vivo dissolution, (2) our selection of weighting scheme and optimization approaches, (3) the impact of applying a fixed versus fitted gastric emptying time, and 4) the importance of factoring population variability into our IVIVC estimation and profile reconvolution. We identified those factors found to be critical in terms of their influence on the accuracy of our predicted systemic metoprolol concentration-time profiles. We considered the strengths and weaknesses of our approach and discussed how the results of this study may impact efforts to generate IVIVCs with compounds presenting physicochemical characteristics different from that of metoprolol. PMID:27312260
Global MS-Based Proteomics Drug Profiling.
Carvalho, Ana Sofia; Matthiesen, Rune
DNA-based technologies such as RNAi, chemical-genetic profiling, or gene expression profiling by DNA microarrays combined with other biochemical methods are established strategies for surveying drug mechanisms. Such approaches can provide mechanistic information on how drugs act and affect cellular pathways. By studying how cancer cells compensate for the drug treatment, novel targets used in a combined treatment can be designed. Furthermore, toxicity effects on cells not targeted can be obtained on a molecular level. For example, drug companies are particularly interested in studying the molecular side effects of drugs in the liver. In addition, experiments with the purpose of elucidating liver toxicity can be studied using samples obtained from animal models exposed to different concentrations of a drug over time. More recently considerable advances in mass spectrometry (MS) technologies and bioinformatics tools allows informative global drug profiling experiments to be performed at a cost comparable to other large-scale technologies such as DNA-based technologies. Moreover, MS-based proteomics provides an additional layer of information on the dynamic regulation of proteins translation and particularly protein degradation. MS-based proteomics approaches combined with other biochemical methods delivers information on regulatory networks, signaling cascades, and metabolic pathways upon drug treatment. Furthermore, MS-based proteomics can provide additional information on single amino acid polymorphisms, protein isoform distribution, posttranslational modifications, and subcellular localization. In this chapter, we will share our experience using MS based proteomics as a pharmacoproteomics strategy to characterize drug mechanisms of action in single drug therapy or in multidrug combination. Finally, the emergence of integrated proteogenomics analysis, such as "The Cancer Genome Atlas" program, opened interesting perspectives to extend this approach to drug target
A dynamic and mechanistic model of PCB bioaccumulation in the European hake ( Merluccius merluccius)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bodiguel, Xavier; Maury, Olivier; Mellon-Duval, Capucine; Roupsard, François; Le Guellec, Anne-Marie; Loizeau, Véronique
Bioaccumulation is difficult to document because responses differ among chemical compounds, with environmental conditions, and physiological processes characteristic of each species. We use a mechanistic model, based on the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) theory, to take into account this complexity and study factors impacting accumulation of organic pollutants in fish through ontogeny. The bioaccumulation model proposed is a comprehensive approach that relates evolution of hake PCB contamination to physiological information about the fish, such as diet, metabolism, reserve and reproduction status. The species studied is the European hake ( Merluccius merluccius, L. 1758). The model is applied to study the total concentration and the lipid normalised concentration of 4 PCB congeners in male and female hakes from the Gulf of Lions (NW Mediterranean sea) and the Bay of Biscay (NE Atlantic ocean). Outputs of the model compare consistently to measurements over the life span of fish. Simulation results clearly demonstrate the relative effects of food contamination, growth and reproduction on the PCB bioaccumulation in hake. The same species living in different habitats and exposed to different PCB prey concentrations exhibit marked difference in the body accumulation of PCBs. At the adult stage, female hakes have a lower PCB concentration compared to males for a given length. We successfully simulated these sex-specific PCB concentrations by considering two mechanisms: a higher energy allocation to growth for females and a transfer of PCBs from the female to its eggs when allocating lipids from reserve to eggs. Finally, by its mechanistic description of physiological processes, the model is relevant for other species and sets the stage for a mechanistic understanding of toxicity and ecological effects of organic contaminants in marine organisms.
Mechanistic investigation of the endo-alpha-N-acetylgalactosaminidase from Streptococcus pneumoniae R6.
Willis, Lisa M; Zhang, Ran; Reid, Anne; Withers, Stephen G; Wakarchuk, Warren W
The large (1767-amino acid) endo-alpha-N-acetylgalactosaminidase from Streptococcus pneumoniae (SpGH101) specifically removes an O-linked disaccharide Gal-beta-1,3-GalNAc-alpha from glycoproteins. While the enzyme from natural sources has been used as a reagent for many years, very few mechanistic studies have been performed. Using the recently determined three-dimensional structure of the recombinant protein as a background, we report here a mechanistic investigation of the SpGH101 retaining alpha-glycoside hydrolase using a combination of synthetic and natural substrates. On the basis of a model of the substrate complex of SpGH101, we propose D764 and E796 as the nucleophile and general acid-base residues, respectively. These roles were confirmed by kinetic and mechanistic analysis of mutants at those positions using synthetic substrates and anion rescue experiments. pK(a) values of 5.3 and 7.2 were assigned to D764 and E796 on the basis of the pK(a) values derived from the bell-shaped dependence of k(cat)/K(m) upon pH. The enzyme contains several putative carbohydrate binding modules whose glycan binding specificities were probed using the printed glycan array of the Consortium for Functional Glycomics using the inactive D764A and D764F mutants that had been labeled with Alexafluor 488. These studies revealed binding to galacto-N-biose, consistent with a role for these domains in localizing the enzyme near its substrates. PMID:19788271
A Parsimonious Modular Approach to Building a Mechanistic Belowground C and N Model
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Abramoff, R. Z.; Davidson, E. A.; Finzi, A.
Ecosystem models simulate belowground processes of element cycling, such as soil carbon dynamics, through numerical representations of our mechanistic understanding of these processes. This poses a great challenge, because many mechanistic models are so highly parameterized and complex that the reasons for their behavior are often difficult to understand, while others are so simplistic that they are unlikely to capture potentially important complexities, such as C-N interactions. Here we propose a mechanistic, but parsimonious modular approach to building a belowground C and N model, with a core processes-level representation of microbial and exoenzymatic activity. We have merged the Dual-Arrhenius Michaelis Menten (DAMM) model of Davidson et al. (2012) with the Microbial Carbon and Nitrogen Physiology (MCNiP) model of Drake et al. (2013). DAMM explicitly simulates the effects of temperature, soil moisture and substrate supply on the kinetics of soil organic matter (SOM) depolymerization. MCNiP is a stoichiometrically constrained model of microbial maintenance and growth respiration, exoenzyme production, and C and N uptake and mineralization. Here we present the results of this model merger, focusing on how temperature, soil moisture, substrate limitation, and the stoichiometry of microbial processes individually and interactively regulate gains or losses of C and N from SOM at the Harvard Forest. We compare model performance running DAMM-MCNiP with and without C-N linkages. We find that substrate limitation is a major constraint over SOM decomposition and that N availability can be a strong regulator of decomposition. The C-only formulation of DAMM-MCNiP generally results in greater losses of SOC than the coupled C-N formulation. Future data-model assimilation and parameter estimation will help determine which aspects of the merged model can be well constrained and which aspects will need further refinement through new data collection or meta-analysis.
Validating Mechanistic Sorption Model Parameters and Processes for Reactive Transport in Alluvium
Zavarin, M; Roberts, S K; Rose, T P; Phinney, D L
The laboratory batch and flow-through experiments presented in this report provide a basis for validating the mechanistic surface complexation and ion exchange model we use in our hydrologic source term (HST) simulations. Batch sorption experiments were used to examine the effect of solution composition on sorption. Flow-through experiments provided for an analysis of the transport behavior of sorbing elements and tracers which includes dispersion and fluid accessibility effects. Analysis of downstream flow-through column fluids allowed for evaluation of weakly-sorbing element transport. Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) analysis of the core after completion of the flow-through experiments permitted the evaluation of transport of strongly sorbing elements. A comparison between these data and model predictions provides additional constraints to our model and improves our confidence in near-field HST model parameters. In general, cesium, strontium, samarium, europium, neptunium, and uranium behavior could be accurately predicted using our mechanistic approach but only after some adjustment was made to the model parameters. The required adjustments included a reduction in strontium affinity for smectite, an increase in cesium affinity for smectite and illite, a reduction in iron oxide and calcite reactive surface area, and a change in clinoptilolite reaction constants to reflect a more recently published set of data. In general, these adjustments are justifiable because they fall within a range consistent with our understanding of the parameter uncertainties. These modeling results suggest that the uncertainty in the sorption model parameters must be accounted for to validate the mechanistic approach. The uncertainties in predicting the sorptive behavior of U-1a and UE-5n alluvium also suggest that these uncertainties must be propagated to nearfield HST and large-scale corrective action unit (CAU) models.
A translational preclinical model of interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and pulmonary hypertension: mechanistic pathways driving disease pathophysiology
Jarman, Elizabeth R.; Khambata, Valerie S.; Yun Ye, Li; Cheung, Kenneth; Thomas, Matthew; Duggan, Nicholas; Jarai, Gabor
Abstract Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic progressive interstitial lung disease, in which a decline in patient prognosis is frequently associated with the onset of pulmonary hypertension (PH). Animal models exhibiting principle pathophysiological features of IPF and PH could provide greater insight into mechanistic pathways underlying disease progression and a means for evaluating novel therapeutic approaches for intervention. Here, we describe an in vivo disease model, in which animals develop progressive interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and associated PH, as defined by the presence of fibrotic foci adjacent to areas of alveolar injury and remodeling of the pulmonary vasculature. Associated changes in physiological parameters included a decline in lung function and increase in mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) >25 mmHg. The early fibrotic pathology is associated with a profibrogenic microenvironment, elevated levels of the matrix metalloproteases, MMP‐2, MMP‐7, and MMP‐12, TIMP‐1, the chemoattractant and mitogen, PDGF‐β, and the chemokines CCL2 and CXCL12, that are associated with the recruitment of macrophages, mast cells, and fibrocytes. Principle mechanistic pathways associated with disease pathogenesis are upregulated in the lungs and pulmonary arteries, with sustained increases in gene transcripts for the profibrotic mediator TGF‐β1 and components of the TGF‐β signaling pathway; PAI‐1, Nox‐4, and HIF‐1α. Therapeutic treatment with the ALK‐5/TGF‐β RI inhibitor SB‐525334 reversed established pulmonary fibrosis and associated vascular remodeling, leading to normalization in clinically translatable physiological parameters including lung function and hemodynamic measurements of mPAP. These studies highlight the application of this model in validating potential approaches for targeting common mechanistic pathways driving disease pathogenesis. PMID:25214520
Divergence of mechanistic pathways mediating cardiovascular aging and developmental programming of cardiovascular disease.
Allison, Beth J; Kaandorp, Joepe J; Kane, Andrew D; Camm, Emily J; Lusby, Ciara; Cross, Christine M; Nevin-Dolan, Rhianon; Thakor, Avnesh S; Derks, Jan B; Tarry-Adkins, Jane L; Ozanne, Susan E; Giussani, Dino A
Aging and developmental programming are both associated with oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction, suggesting common mechanistic origins. However, their interrelationship has been little explored. In a rodent model of programmed cardiovascular dysfunction we determined endothelial function and vascular telomere length in young (4 mo) and aged (15 mo) adult offspring of normoxic or hypoxic pregnancy with or without maternal antioxidant treatment. We show loss of endothelial function [maximal arterial relaxation to acetylcholine (71 ± 3 vs. 55 ± 3%) and increased vascular short telomere abundance (4.2-1.3 kb) 43.0 ± 1.5 vs. 55.1 ± 3.8%) in aged vs. young offspring of normoxic pregnancy (P < 0.05). Hypoxic pregnancy in young offspring accelerated endothelial dysfunction (maximal arterial relaxation to acetylcholine: 42 ± 1%, P < 0.05) but this was dissociated from increased vascular short telomere length abundance. Maternal allopurinol rescued maximal arterial relaxation to acetylcholine in aged offspring of normoxic or hypoxic pregnancy but not in young offspring of hypoxic pregnancy. Aged offspring of hypoxic allopurinol pregnancy compared with aged offspring of untreated hypoxic pregnancy had lower levels of short telomeres (vascular short telomere length abundance 35.1 ± 2.5 vs. 48.2 ± 2.6%) and of plasma proinflammatory chemokine (24.6 ± 2.8 vs. 36.8 ± 5.5 pg/ml, P < 0.05). These data provide evidence for divergence of mechanistic pathways mediating cardiovascular aging and developmental programming of cardiovascular disease, and aging being decelerated by antioxidants even prior to birth.-Allison, B. J., Kaandorp, J. J., Kane, A. D., Camm, E. J., Lusby, C., Cross, C. M., Nevin-Dolan, R., Thakor, A. S., Derks, J. B., Tarry-Adkins, J. L., Ozanne, S. E., Giussani, D. A. Divergence of mechanistic pathways mediating cardiovascular aging and developmental programming of cardiovascular disease. PMID:26932929
Prediction of Damage in Randomly Oriented Short-Fibre Composites by means of A Mechanistic Approach
Nguyen, Ba Nghiep; Khaleel, Mohammad A.
A micro-macro mechanistic approach to damage in short-fiber composites is developed in this paper. At the micro-scale, the damage mechanisms such as matrix cracking, fiber/matrix debonding are analyzed to define the associated damage variables. The stiffness reduction law dependent on these variables is then established using micromechanical models and average orientation distributions of fibers and microcracks. The macroscopic response is obtained by means of thermodynamics of continuous media, continuum damage mechanics and a finite element formulation.
Advances in mechanistic understanding of release rate control mechanisms of extended-release hydrophilic matrix tablets.
Timmins, Peter; Desai, Divyakant; Chen, Wei; Wray, Patrick; Brown, Jonathan; Hanley, Sarah
Approaches to characterizing and developing understanding around the mechanisms that control the release of drugs from hydrophilic matrix tablets are reviewed. While historical context is provided and direct physical characterization methods are described, recent advances including the role of percolation thresholds, the application on magnetic resonance and other spectroscopic imaging techniques are considered. The influence of polymer and dosage form characteristics are reviewed. The utility of mathematical modeling is described. Finally, how all the information derived from applying the developed mechanistic understanding from all of these tools can be brought together to develop a robust and reliable hydrophilic matrix extended-release tablet formulation is proposed. PMID:27444495
A mechanistic model of hydrogen-methanogen dynamics in the rumen.
Wang, Yuancheng; Janssen, Peter H; Lynch, Tammy A; Brunt, Bruce van; Pacheco, David
Existing mathematical models to estimate methane production in the rumen are based on calculation of hydrogen balances without considering the presence of methanogens. In this study, a mechanistic model of methane production is proposed that depicts the interaction between hydrogen concentration and methanogens in the rumen. Analytical results show that it meets biological expectations, namely increased fractional passage rate leads to a greater growth rate of methanogens, and a greater steady state hydrogen concentration. This model provides a basis on which to develop a more comprehensive model of methane production in the rumen that includes thermodynamics and feed fermentation pathways. PMID:26780651
Mechanistic Studies on Garratt-Braverman Cyclization: The Diradical-Cycloaddition Puzzle.
Das, Joyee; Bag, Subhendu Sekhar; Basak, Amit
In this work, we present the results of extensive multiprong studies involving the fate of deuterium-labeled substrates, EPR, trapping experiments, and LA-LDI mass spectrometry to sort out the controversies relating to the mechanism of Garratt-Braverman cyclization in two systems, namely bis-propargyl sulfones and ethers. The results are in conformity with a diradical mechamism for the sulfone, while for the ether, the anionic [4 + 2] appears to be the preferred pathway. This shows that the mechanistic pathway toward GB cyclization is dependent upon the nature of heteroatom (O or S in sulfone) bridging the propargyl arms. PMID:27116541
Prediction of Damage in Randomly Oriented Short-Fibre Composites by means of A Mechanistic Approach
Nguyen, Ba NGHIEP; Khaleel, Mohammad A.
A micro-macro mechanistic approach to damage in short-fiber composites is developed in this paper. At the micro-scale, the damage mechanisms such as matrix cracking, fiber/matrix debonding are analyzed to define the associated damage variables. The stiffness reduction law dependent on these variables is then established using micromechanical models and average orientation distributions of fibers and microcracks. The macroscopic response is obtained by means of thermodynamics of continuous media, continuum damage mechanics and a finite element formulation.
A mechanistic study of the effects of nitrogen on the corrosion properties of stainless steels
Levey, P.R.; Bennekom, A. van
The effects of nitrogen alloying on the corrosion properties of stainless steels (SS) is a matter of debate. A number of apparently contradictory results have been presented by various researchers. The actual mechanism by which nitrogen alloying influences the corrosion properties of SS has been the topic of even more controversy. The effects of nitrogen on the corrosion and mechanical properties of SS were reviewed. Various proposals relating to the mechanistic effect of nitrogen alloying on the corrosion properties of SS were evaluated critically by comparing the various theories.
GLUT, SGLT, and SWEET: Structural and mechanistic investigations of the glucose transporters.
Deng, Dong; Yan, Nieng
Glucose is the primary fuel to life on earth. Cellular uptake of glucose is a fundamental process for metabolism, growth, and homeostasis. Three families of secondary glucose transporters have been identified in human, including the major facilitator superfamily glucose facilitators GLUTs, the sodium-driven glucose symporters SGLTs, and the recently identified SWEETs. Structures of representative members or their prokaryotic homologs of all three families were obtained. This review focuses on the recent advances in the structural elucidation of the glucose transporters and the mechanistic insights derived from these structures, including the molecular basis for substrate recognition, alternating access, and stoichiometric coupling of co-transport. PMID:26650681
The Cycloaddition of the Benzimidazolium Ylides with Alkynes: New Mechanistic Insights
Moldoveanu, Costel; Zbancioc, Gheorghita; Mantu, Dorina; Maftei, Dan; Mangalagiu, Ionel
New insights concerning the reaction mechanism in the cycloaddition reaction of benzimidazolium ylides to activated alkynes are presented. The proposed pathway leading both to 2-(1H-pyrrol-1-yl)anilines and to pyrrolo[1,2-a]quinoxalin-4(5H)-ones involves an opening of the imidazole ring from the cycloaddition product, followed by a nucleophilic attack of the aminic nitrogen to a proximal carbonyl group and the elimination of a leaving group. The mechanistic considerations are fully supported by experimental data, including the XRD resolved structure of the key reaction intermediate. PMID:27224656
Copper/TEMPO-Catalyzed Aerobic Alcohol Oxidation: Mechanistic Assessment of Different Catalyst Systems.
Hoover, Jessica M; Ryland, Bradford L; Stahl, Shannon S
Combinations of homogeneous Cu salts and TEMPO have emerged as practical and efficient catalysts for the aerobic oxidation of alcohols. Several closely related catalyst systems have been reported, which differ in the identity of the solvent, the presence of 2,2'-bipyridine as a ligand, the identity of basic additives, and the oxidation state of the Cu source. These changes have a significant influence on the reaction rates, yields, and substrate scope. In this report, we probe the mechanistic basis for differences among four different Cu/TEMPO catalyst systems and elucidate the features that contribute to efficient oxidation of aliphatic alcohols. PMID:24558634
Parameterization of phosphine ligands reveals mechanistic pathways and predicts reaction outcomes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Niemeyer, Zachary L.; Milo, Anat; Hickey, David P.; Sigman, Matthew S.
The mechanistic foundation behind the identity of a phosphine ligand that best promotes a desired reaction outcome is often non-intuitive, and thus has been addressed in numerous experimental and theoretical studies. In this work, multivariate correlations of reaction outcomes using 38 different phosphine ligands were combined with classic potentiometric analyses to study a Suzuki reaction, for which the site selectivity of oxidative addition is highly dependent on the nature of the phosphine. These studies shed light on the generality of hypotheses regarding the structural influence of different classes of phosphine ligands on the reaction mechanism(s), and deliver a methodology that should prove useful in future studies of phosphine ligands.
New mechanistic insights in the NH3-SCR reactions at low temperature
Ruggeri, Maria Pia; Selleri, Tomasso; Nova, Isabella; Tronconi, Enrico; Pihl, Josh A.; Toops, Todd J.; Partridge, Jr., William P.
The present study is focused on the investigation of the low temperature Standard SCR reaction mechanism over Fe- and Cu-promoted zeolites. Different techniques are employed, including in situ DRIFTS, transient reaction analysis and chemical trapping techniques. The results present strong evidence of nitrite formation in the oxidative activation of NO and of their role in SCR reactions. These elements lead to a deeper understanding of the standard SCR chemistry at low temperature and can potentially improve the consistency of mechanistic mathematical models. Furthermore, comprehension of the mechanism on a fundamental level can contribute to the development of improved SCR catalysts.
Copper/TEMPO-Catalyzed Aerobic Alcohol Oxidation: Mechanistic Assessment of Different Catalyst Systems
Hoover, Jessica M.; Ryland, Bradford L.; Stahl, Shannon S.
Combinations of homogeneous Cu salts and TEMPO have emerged as practical and efficient catalysts for the aerobic oxidation of alcohols. Several closely related catalyst systems have been reported, which differ in the identity of the solvent, the presence of 2,2′-bipyridine as a ligand, the identity of basic additives, and the oxidation state of the Cu source. These changes have a significant influence on the reaction rates, yields, and substrate scope. In this report, we probe the mechanistic basis for differences among four different Cu/TEMPO catalyst systems and elucidate the features that contribute to efficient oxidation of aliphatic alcohols. PMID:24558634
Problems in mechanistic theoretical models for cell transformation by ionizing radiation
Chatterjee, A.; Holley, W.R.
A mechanistic model based on yields of double strand breaks has been developed to determine the dose response curves for cell transformation frequencies. At its present stage the model is applicable to immortal cell lines and to various qualities (X-rays, Neon and Iron) of ionizing radiation. Presently, we have considered four types of processes which can lead to activation phenomena: (1) point mutation events on a regulatory segment of selected oncogenes, (2) inactivation of suppressor genes, through point mutation, (3) deletion of a suppressor gene by a single track, and (4) deletion of a suppressor gene by two tracks.
Bird Migration Under Climate Change - A Mechanistic Approach Using Remote Sensing
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Smith, James A.; Blattner, Tim; Messmer, Peter
The broad-scale reductions and shifts that may be expected under climate change in the availability and quality of stopover habitat for long-distance migrants is an area of increasing concern for conservation biologists. Researchers generally have taken two broad approaches to the modeling of migration behaviour to understand the impact of these changes on migratory bird populations. These include models based on causal processes and their response to environmental stimulation, "mechanistic models", or models that primarily are based on observed animal distribution patterns and the correlation of these patterns with environmental variables, i.e. "data driven" models. Investigators have applied the latter technique to forecast changes in migration patterns with changes in the environment, for example, as might be expected under climate change, by forecasting how the underlying environmental data layers upon which the relationships are built will change over time. The learned geostatstical correlations are then applied to the modified data layers.. However, this is problematic. Even if the projections of how the underlying data layers will change are correct, it is not evident that the statistical relationships will remain the same, i.e. that the animal organism may not adapt its' behaviour to the changing conditions. Mechanistic models that explicitly take into account the physical, biological, and behaviour responses of an organism as well as the underlying changes in the landscape offer an alternative to address these shortcomings. The availability of satellite remote sensing observations at multiple spatial and temporal scales, coupled with advances in climate modeling and information technologies enable the application of the mechanistic models to predict how continental bird migration patterns may change in response to environmental change. In earlier work, we simulated the impact of effects of wetland loss and inter-annual variability on the fitness of
Induced polarization dependence on pore space geometry: Empirical observations and mechanistic predictions
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Weller, A.; Slater, L. D.
We use an extensive database to compare empirical observations and previously proposed empirical models against recently developed mechanistic formulations for the induced polarization (IP) response in porous media as a function of pore space geometry and interfacial chemistry. These comparisons support the argument that the pore-volume normalized internal surface (Spor) is the most important geometric parameter influencing the polarization. The specific polarizability derived from the empirical relationship between imaginary conductivity σ″ and Spor is independent of the porosity. By contrast, equivalent specific polarizability terms in recently proposed mechanistic models are found to be significantly correlated with porosity, and thus do not appear to represent an interfacial chemistry factor independent of the pore space geometry. Furthermore, the database shows no evidence for a significant decrease in the counterion mobility of clayey materials relative to clay-free materials, as postulated in recent studies. On the contrary, a single value of cp is consistent with no significant differences in ionic mobility given that all samples were saturated with a NaCl solution close to a common salinity of about 100 mS/m.
Comparison of Two-Phase Pipe Flow in OpenFOAM with a Mechanistic Model
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shuard, Adrian M.; Mahmud, Hisham B.; King, Andrew J.
Two-phase pipe flow is a common occurrence in many industrial applications such as power generation and oil and gas transportation. Accurate prediction of liquid holdup and pressure drop is of vast importance to ensure effective design and operation of fluid transport systems. In this paper, a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) study of a two-phase flow of air and water is performed using OpenFOAM. The two-phase solver, interFoam is used to identify flow patterns and generate values of liquid holdup and pressure drop, which are compared to results obtained from a two-phase mechanistic model developed by Petalas and Aziz (2002). A total of 60 simulations have been performed at three separate pipe inclinations of 0°, +10° and -10° respectively. A three dimensional, 0.052m diameter pipe of 4m length is used with the Shear Stress Transport (SST) k - ɷ turbulence model to solve the turbulent mixtures of air and water. Results show that the flow pattern behaviour and numerical values of liquid holdup and pressure drop compare reasonably well to the mechanistic model.
Non-destructive estimation of root pressure using sap flow, stem diameter measurements and mechanistic modelling
De Swaef, Tom; Hanssens, Jochen; Cornelis, Annelies; Steppe, Kathy
Background Upward water movement in plants via the xylem is generally attributed to the cohesion–tension theory, as a response to transpiration. Under certain environmental conditions, root pressure can also contribute to upward xylem water flow. Although the occurrence of root pressure is widely recognized, ambiguity exists about the exact mechanism behind root pressure, the main influencing factors and the consequences of root pressure. In horticultural crops, such as tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), root pressure is thought to cause cells to burst, and to have an important impact on the marketable yield. Despite the challenges of root pressure research, progress in this area is limited, probably because of difficulties with direct measurement of root pressure, prompting the need for indirect and non-destructive measurement techniques. Methods A new approach to allow non-destructive and non-invasive estimation of root pressure is presented, using continuous measurements of sap flow and stem diameter variation in tomato combined with a mechanistic flow and storage model, based on cohesion–tension principles. Key Results Transpiration-driven sap flow rates are typically inversely related to stem diameter changes; however, this inverse relationship was no longer valid under conditions of low transpiration. This decoupling between sap flow rates and stem diameter variations was mathematically related to root pressure. Conclusions Root pressure can be estimated in a non-destructive, repeatable manner, using only external plant sensors and a mechanistic model. PMID:23211757
Using mechanistic Bayesian networks to identify downstream targets of the Sonic Hedgehog pathway
Background The topology of a biological pathway provides clues as to how a pathway operates, but rationally using this topology information with observed gene expression data remains a challenge. Results We introduce a new general-purpose analytic method called Mechanistic Bayesian Networks (MBNs) that allows for the integration of gene expression data and known constraints within a signal or regulatory pathway to predict new downstream pathway targets. The MBN framework is implemented in an open-source Bayesian network learning package, the Python Environment for Bayesian Learning (PEBL). We demonstrate how MBNs can be used by modeling the early steps of the sonic hedgehog pathway using gene expression data from different developmental stages and genetic backgrounds in mouse. Using the MBN approach we are able to automatically identify many of the known downstream targets of the hedgehog pathway such as Gas1 and Gli1, along with a short list of likely targets such as Mig12. Conclusions The MBN approach shown here can easily be extended to other pathways and data types to yield a more mechanistic framework for learning genetic regulatory models. PMID:20021670
Life at the Common Denominator: Mechanistic and Quantitative Biology for the Earth and Space Sciences
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hoehler, Tori M.
The remarkable challenges and possibilities of the coming few decades will compel the biogeochemical and astrobiological sciences to characterize the interactions between biology and its environment in a fundamental, mechanistic, and quantitative fashion. The clear need for integrative and scalable biology-environment models is exemplified in the Earth sciences by the challenge of effectively addressing anthropogenic global change, and in the space sciences by the challenge of mounting a well-constrained yet sufficiently adaptive and inclusive search for life beyond Earth. Our understanding of the life-planet interaction is still, however, largely empirical. A variety of approaches seek to move from empirical to mechanistic descriptions. One approach focuses on the relationship between biology and energy, which is at once universal (all life requires energy), unique (life manages energy flow in a fashion not seen in abiotic systems), and amenable to characterization and quantification in thermodynamic terms. Simultaneously, a focus on energy flow addresses a critical point of interface between life and its geological, chemical, and physical environment. Characterizing and quantifying this relationship for life on Earth will support the development of integrative and predictive models for biology-environment dynamics. Understanding this relationship at its most fundamental level holds potential for developing concepts of habitability and biosignatures that can optimize astrobiological exploration strategies and are extensible to all life.
Productivity of "collisions generate heat" for reconciling an energy model with mechanistic reasoning: A case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Scherr, Rachel E.; Robertson, Amy D.
We observe teachers in professional development courses about energy constructing mechanistic accounts of energy transformations. We analyze a case in which teachers investigating adiabatic compression develop a model of the transformation of kinetic energy to thermal energy. Among their ideas is the idea that thermal energy is generated as a byproduct of individual particle collisions, which is represented in science education research literature as an obstacle to learning. We demonstrate that in this instructional context, the idea that individual particle collisions generate thermal energy is not an obstacle to learning, but instead is productive: it initiates intellectual progress. Specifically, this idea initiates the reconciliation of the teachers' energy model with mechanistic reasoning about adiabatic compression, and leads to a canonically correct model of the transformation of kinetic energy into thermal energy. We claim that the idea's productivity is influenced by features of our particular instructional context, including the instructional goals of the course, the culture of collaborative sense making, and the use of certain representations of energy.
Ultrasound and Microbubble Guided Drug Delivery: Mechanistic Understanding and Clinical Implications
Wang, Tzu-Yin; Wilson, Katheryne E.; Machtaler, Steven; Willmann, Jürgen K.
Ultrasound mediated drug delivery using microbubbles is a safe and noninvasive approach for spatially localized drug administration. This approach can create temporary and reversible openings on cellular membranes and vessel walls (a process called "sonoporation"), allowing for enhanced transport of therapeutic agents across these natural barriers. It is generally believed that the sonoporation process is highly associated with the energetic cavitation activities (volumetric expansion, contraction, fragmentation, and collapse) of the microbubble. However, a thorough understanding of the process was unavailable until recently. Important progress on the mechanistic understanding of sonoporation and the corresponding physiological responses in vitro and in vivo has been made. Specifically, recent research shed light on the cavitation process of microbubbles and fluid motion during insonation of ultrasound, on the spatio-temporal interactions between microbubbles and cells or vessel walls, as well as on the temporal course of the subsequent biological effects. These findings have significant clinical implications on the development of optimal treatment strategies for effective drug delivery. In this article, current progress in the mechanistic understanding of ultrasound and microbubble mediated drug delivery and its implications for clinical translation is discussed. PMID:24372231
Assessment of mechanistic multiphase methods against independent experiments at large pipe diameter
Crowley, C.J. )
Previously, the mechanistic multiphase methods for pipelines which have been documented in state of the art reports have been compared extensively with laboratory data from Creare/PRC experiments in pipes at 3.5 and 7 inches diameter. The multiphase methods have also been assessed against field data from 17 pipelines. In order to provide the broadest possible assessment of the methods, this report compares the multiphase methods against independent laboratory data at large pipe diameter from the IFP (Boussens), SINTEF (Trondheim), and Harwell facilities at 6, 8, and 12 inch diameters, respectively. The SINTEF and IFP facilities operate at elevated pressure (high gas density) while the Harwell facility operates at low pressures, near one atmosphere. Selected data from each facility have been published in the open literature. These data are primarily for horizontal pipes, although the IFP data include upward and downward inclinations. The mechanistic multiphase methods are in substantial agreement with most of the data from these facilities (especially at high gas density), including the flow regime maps from each facility, pressure drop and holdup data for the stratified flow regime in the SINTEF facility, and flow characteristics in the slug flow regime for the IFP facility. The agreement with the pressure drop in the Harwell facility is not as good as expected, being a factor of two low. 15 figs.
Toward a Mechanistic Understanding of Environmentally Forced Zoonotic Disease Emergence: Sin Nombre Hantavirus
Carver, Scott; Mills, James N.; Parmenter, Cheryl A.; Parmenter, Robert R.; Richardson, Kyle S.; Harris, Rachel L.; Douglass, Richard J.; Kuenzi, Amy J.; Luis, Angela D.
Understanding the environmental drivers of zoonotic reservoir and human interactions is crucial to understanding disease risk, but these drivers are poorly predicted. We propose a mechanistic understanding of human–reservoir interactions, using hantavirus pulmonary syndrome as a case study. Crucial processes underpinning the disease's incidence remain poorly studied, including the connectivity among natural and peridomestic deer mouse host activity, virus transmission, and human exposure. We found that disease cases were greatest in arid states and declined exponentially with increasing precipitation. Within arid environments, relatively rare climatic conditions (e.g., El Niño) are associated with increased rainfall and reservoir abundance, producing more frequent virus transmission and host dispersal. We suggest that deer mice increase their occupancy of peridomestic structures during spring–summer, amplifying intraspecific transmission and human infection risk. Disease incidence in arid states may increase with predicted climatic changes. Mechanistic approaches incorporating reservoir behavior, reservoir–human interactions, and pathogen spillover could enhance our understanding of global hantavirus ecology, with applications to other directly transmitted zoonoses. PMID:26955081
Stoichiometry of proton translocation by respiratory complex I and its mechanistic implications
Wikström, Mårten; Hummer, Gerhard
Complex I (NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase) in the respiratory chain of mitochondria and several bacteria functions as a redox-driven proton pump that contributes to the generation of the protonmotive force across the inner mitochondrial or bacterial membrane and thus to the aerobic synthesis of ATP. The stoichiometry of proton translocation is thought to be 4 H+ per NADH oxidized (2 e-). Here we show that a H+/2 e- ratio of 3 appears more likely on the basis of the recently determined H+/ATP ratio of the mitochondrial F1Fo-ATP synthase of animal mitochondria and of a set of carefully determined ATP/2 e- ratios for different segments of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. This lower H+/2 e- ratio of 3 is independently supported by thermodynamic analyses of experiments with both mitochondria and submitochondrial particles. A reduced H+/2 e- stoichiometry of 3 has important mechanistic implications for this proton pump. In a rough mechanistic model, we suggest a concerted proton translocation mechanism in the three homologous and tightly packed antiporter-like subunits L, M, and N of the proton-translocating membrane domain of complex I. PMID:22392981
Simulating the Risk of Liver Fluke Infection using a Mechanistic Hydro-epidemiological Model
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Beltrame, Ludovica; Dunne, Toby; Rose, Hannah; Walker, Josephine; Morgan, Eric; Vickerman, Peter; Wagener, Thorsten
Liver Fluke (Fasciola hepatica) is a common parasite found in livestock and responsible for considerable economic losses throughout the world. Risk of infection is strongly influenced by climatic and hydrological conditions, which characterise the host environment for parasite development and transmission. Despite on-going control efforts, increases in fluke outbreaks have been reported in recent years in the UK, and have been often attributed to climate change. Currently used fluke risk models are based on empirical relationships derived between historical climate and incidence data. However, hydro-climate conditions are becoming increasingly non-stationary due to climate change and direct anthropogenic impacts such as land use change, making empirical models unsuitable for simulating future risk. In this study we introduce a mechanistic hydro-epidemiological model for Liver Fluke, which explicitly simulates habitat suitability for disease development in space and time, representing the parasite life cycle in connection with key environmental conditions. The model is used to assess patterns of Liver Fluke risk for two catchments in the UK under current and potential future climate conditions. Comparisons are made with a widely used empirical model employing different datasets, including data from regional veterinary laboratories. Results suggest that mechanistic models can achieve adequate predictive ability and support adaptive fluke control strategies under climate change scenarios.
Ecological Forecasting in Chesapeake Bay: Using a Mechanistic-Empirical Modelling Approach
Brown, C. W.; Hood, Raleigh R.; Long, Wen; Jacobs, John M.; Ramers, D. L.; Wazniak, C.; Wiggert, J. D.; Wood, R.; Xu, J.
The Chesapeake Bay Ecological Prediction System (CBEPS) automatically generates daily nowcasts and three-day forecasts of several environmental variables, such as sea-surface temperature and salinity, the concentrations of chlorophyll, nitrate, and dissolved oxygen, and the likelihood of encountering several noxious species, including harmful algal blooms and water-borne pathogens, for the purpose of monitoring the Bay's ecosystem. While the physical and biogeochemical variables are forecast mechanistically using the Regional Ocean Modeling System configured for the Chesapeake Bay, the species predictions are generated using a novel mechanistic empirical approach, whereby real-time output from the coupled physical biogeochemical model drives multivariate empirical habitat models of the target species. The predictions, in the form of digital images, are available via the World Wide Web to interested groups to guide recreational, management, and research activities. Though full validation of the integrated forecasts for all species is still a work in progress, we argue that the mechanistic–empirical approach can be used to generate a wide variety of short-term ecological forecasts, and that it can be applied in any marine system where sufficient data exist to develop empirical habitat models. This paper provides an overview of this system, its predictions, and the approach taken.
A tissue-engineered gastric cancer model for mechanistic study of anti-tumor drugs.
Gao, Ming; Cai, Yiting; Wu, Wei; Shi, Yazhou; Fei, Zhewei
The use of the traditional xenograft subcutaneous tumor model has been contested because of its limitations, such as a slow tumorigenesis, inconsistent chemotherapeutic results, etc. In light of these challenges, we aim to revamp the traditional model by employing an electrospun scaffold composed of polydioxanone, gelatin and elastin to boost the tumorigenesis. The scaffold featured a highly porous microstructure and successfully supported the growth of tumor cells in vitro without provoking apoptosis. In vivo studies showed that in the scaffold model the tumor volume increased by 43.27% and the weight by 75.58%, respectively, within a 12-week period. In addition, the scaffold model saw an increase of CD24(+) and CD44(+) cells in the tumor mass by 42% and 313%, respectively. The scaffolding materials did not lead to phenotypic changes during the tumorigenesis. Thereafter, in the scaffold model, we found that the chemotherapeutic regimen of docetaxel, cisplatin and fluorouracil unleashed a stronger capability than the regimen comprising cisplatin and fluorouracil to deplete the CD44(+) subpopulation. This discovery sheds mechanistic lights on the role of docetaxel for its future chemotherapeutic applications. This revamped model affords cancer scientists a convenient and reliable platform to mechanistically investigate the chemotherapeutic drugs on gastric cancer stem cells. PMID:23715169
Biomimetic and Live Medusae Reveal the Mechanistic Advantages of a Flexible Bell Margin
Colin, Sean P.; Costello, John H.; Dabiri, John O.; Villanueva, Alex; Blottman, John B.; Gemmell, Brad J.; Priya, Shashank
Flexible bell margins are characteristic components of rowing medusan morphologies and are expected to contribute towards their high propulsive efficiency. However, the mechanistic basis of thrust augmentation by flexible propulsors remained unresolved, so the impact of bell margin flexibility on medusan swimming has also remained unresolved. We used biomimetic robotic jellyfish vehicles to elucidate that propulsive thrust enhancement by flexible medusan bell margins relies upon fluid dynamic interactions between entrained flows at the inflexion point of the exumbrella and flows expelled from under the bell. Coalescence of flows from these two regions resulted in enhanced fluid circulation and, therefore, thrust augmentation for flexible margins of both medusan vehicles and living medusae. Using particle image velocimetry (PIV) data we estimated pressure fields to demonstrate a mechanistic basis of enhanced flows associated with the flexible bell margin. Performance of vehicles with flexible margins was further enhanced by vortex interactions that occur during bell expansion. Hydrodynamic and performance similarities between robotic vehicles and live animals demonstrated that the propulsive advantages of flexible margins found in nature can be emulated by human-engineered propulsors. Although medusae are simple animal models for description of this process, these results may contribute towards understanding the performance of flexible margins among other animal lineages. PMID:23145016
The autism puzzle: challenging a mechanistic model on conceptual and historical grounds
Although clinicians and researchers working in the field of autism are generally not concerned with philosophical categories of kinds, a model for understanding the nature of autism is important for guiding research and clinical practice. Contemporary research in the field of autism is guided by the depiction of autism as a scientific object that can be identified with systematic neuroscientific investigation. This image of autism is compatible with a permissive account of natural kinds: the mechanistic property cluster (MPC) account of natural kinds, recently proposed as the model for understanding psychiatric disorders. Despite the heterogeneity, multicausality and fuzzy boundaries that complicate autism research, a permissive account of natural kinds (MPC kinds) provides prescriptive guidance for the investigation of objective causal mechanisms that should inform nosologists in their attempt to carve autism's boundaries at its natural joints. However, this essay will argue that a mechanistic model of autism is limited since it disregards the way in which autism relates to ideas about what kind of behavior is abnormal. As historical studies and definitions of autism show, normative issues concerning disability, impairment and societal needs have been and still are inextricably linked to how we recognize and understand autism. The current search for autism's unity in neurobiological mechanisms ignores the values, social norms and various perspectives on mental pathology that play a significant role in 'the thing called autism'. Autism research needs to engage with these issues in order to achieve more success in the effort to become clinically valuable. PMID:24207065
Mechismo: predicting the mechanistic impact of mutations and modifications on molecular interactions
Betts, Matthew J.; Lu, Qianhao; Jiang, YingYing; Drusko, Armin; Wichmann, Oliver; Utz, Mathias; Valtierra-Gutiérrez, Ilse A.; Schlesner, Matthias; Jaeger, Natalie; Jones, David T.; Pfister, Stefan; Lichter, Peter; Eils, Roland; Siebert, Reiner; Bork, Peer; Apic, Gordana; Gavin, Anne-Claude; Russell, Robert B.
Systematic interrogation of mutation or protein modification data is important to identify sites with functional consequences and to deduce global consequences from large data sets. Mechismo (mechismo.russellab.org) enables simultaneous consideration of thousands of 3D structures and biomolecular interactions to predict rapidly mechanistic consequences for mutations and modifications. As useful functional information often only comes from homologous proteins, we benchmarked the accuracy of predictions as a function of protein/structure sequence similarity, which permits the use of relatively weak sequence similarities with an appropriate confidence measure. For protein–protein, protein–nucleic acid and a subset of protein–chemical interactions, we also developed and benchmarked a measure of whether modifications are likely to enhance or diminish the interactions, which can assist the detection of modifications with specific effects. Analysis of high-throughput sequencing data shows that the approach can identify interesting differences between cancers, and application to proteomics data finds potential mechanistic insights for how post-translational modifications can alter biomolecular interactions. PMID:25392414
Mechanistic determinants of the directionality and energetics of active export by a heterodimeric ABC transporter
Grossmann, Nina; Vakkasoglu, Ahmet S.; Hulpke, Sabine; Abele, Rupert; Gaudet, Rachelle; Tampé, Robert
The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) participates in immune surveillance by moving proteasomal products into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen for major histocompatibility complex class I loading and cell surface presentation to cytotoxic T cells. Here we delineate the mechanistic basis for antigen translocation. Notably, TAP works as a molecular diode, translocating peptide substrates against the gradient in a strict unidirectional way. We reveal the importance of the D-loop at the dimer interface of the two nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs) in coupling substrate translocation with ATP hydrolysis and defining transport vectoriality. Substitution of the converved aspartate, whichmore » coordinates the ATP-binding site, decreases NBD dimerization affinity and turns the unidirectional primary active pump into a passive bidirectional nucleotide-gated facilitator. Thus, ATP hydrolysis is not required for translocation per se, but is essential for both active and unidirectional transport. As a result, our data provide detailed mechanistic insight into how heterodimeric ABC exporters operate.« less
Mechanistic determinants of the directionality and energetics of active export by a heterodimeric ABC transporter
Grossmann, Nina; Vakkasoglu, Ahmet S.; Hulpke, Sabine; Abele, Rupert; Gaudet, Rachelle; Tampé, Robert
The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) participates in immune surveillance by moving proteasomal products into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen for major histocompatibility complex class I loading and cell surface presentation to cytotoxic T cells. Here we delineate the mechanistic basis for antigen translocation. Notably, TAP works as a molecular diode, translocating peptide substrates against the gradient in a strict unidirectional way. We reveal the importance of the D-loop at the dimer interface of the two nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs) in coupling substrate translocation with ATP hydrolysis and defining transport vectoriality. Substitution of the converved aspartate, which coordinates the ATP-binding site, decreases NBD dimerization affinity and turns the unidirectional primary active pump into a passive bidirectional nucleotide-gated facilitator. Thus, ATP hydrolysis is not required for translocation per se, but is essential for both active and unidirectional transport. As a result, our data provide detailed mechanistic insight into how heterodimeric ABC exporters operate.
Radical Cyclisation of α-Halo Aluminium Acetals: A Mechanistic Study.
Bénéteau, Romain; Boussonnière, Anne; Rouaud, Jean-Christophe; Lebreton, Jacques; Graton, Jérôme; Jacquemin, Denis; Sebban, Muriel; Oulyadi, Hassan; Hamdoun, Ghanem; Hancock, Amber N; Schiesser, Carl H; Dénès, Fabrice
α-Bromo aluminium acetals are suitable substrates for Ueno-Stork-like radical cyclisations affording γ-lactols and acid-sensitive methylene-γ-lactols in high yields. The mechanistic study herein sets the scope and limitation of this reaction. The influence of the halide (or chalcogenide) atom X (X=Cl, Br, I, SPh, SePh) in the precursors α-haloesters, as well as influence of the solvent and temperature was studied. The structure of the aluminium acetal intermediates resulting from the reduction of the corresponding α-haloesters has been investigated by low-temperature (13) C-INEPT diffusion-ordered NMR spectroscopy (DOSY) experiments and quantum calculations, providing new insights into the structures of these thermally labile intermediates. Oxygen-bridged dimeric structures with a planar Al2 O2 ring are proposed for the least hindered aluminium acetals, while monomeric structures seem to prevail for the most hindered species. A comparison against the radical cyclisation of aluminium acetals derived from allyl and propargyl alcohols with the parent Ueno-Stork has been made at the BHandHLYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory, highlighting mechanistic similarities and differences. PMID:26890896
A Mechanistic Model for CO2 Sequestration in Tiffany Coal Bed Methane Field
Liang, J.; Raterman, K.T.; Robertson, E.P.
The objective of this project is to develop mechanistic models specific to CO2 sequestration in BP's Tiffany coal bed methane (CBM) field. In this study, the original field model was modified to match the field performance of a 5-spot pattern in the northern part of the Tiffany Field where BP plans to perform a micro-pilot test. The modified model consists of one high-permeability fast layer sandwiched between two low-permeability slow layers. In this mechanistic model, the fast layer represents well-cleated and fractured coal from all geological layers while the slow layers represent coal with little or no fracture development from the same geological layers. The model successfully matched the performance of the 5-spot pattern during the enhanced recovery period. However, in order to match nitrogen breakthrough times and nitrogen cut the vertical transmissibility between layers had to be set to zero. During gas injection, nitrogen was allowed to enter all three layers, not just the high-permeability fast layer. However, because the permeabilities of the slow layers were low and there is no communication between the fast and the slow layers, most of the injected nitrogen entered the high-permeability fast layer. This suggests that the future gas injection and CO2 sequestration may be restricted to only one third of the total available pay.
A Mechanistic Proof-of-concept Clinical Trial With JX-594, a Targeted Multi-mechanistic Oncolytic Poxvirus, in Patients With Metastatic Melanoma
Hwang, Tae-Ho; Moon, Anne; Burke, James; Ribas, Antoni; Stephenson, Joe; Breitbach, Caroline J; Daneshmand, Manijeh; De Silva, Naomi; Parato, Kelley; Diallo, Jean-Simon; Lee, Yeon-Sook; Liu, Ta-Chiang; Bell, John C; Kirn, David H
JX-594 is a targeted and granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF)-expressing oncolytic poxvirus designed to selectively replicate in and destroy cancer cells through viral oncolysis and tumor-specific immunity. In order to study the mechanisms-of-action (MOA) of JX-594 in humans, a mechanistic proof-of-concept clinical trial was performed at a low dose equivalent to ≤10% of the maximum-tolerated dose (MTD) in other clinical trials. Ten patients with previously treated stage IV melanoma were enrolled. Tumors were injected weekly for up to nine total treatments. Blood samples and tumor biopsies were analyzed for evidence of transgene activity, virus replication, and immune stimulation. The β-galactosidase (β-gal) transgene was expressed in all patients as evidenced by antibody induction. Six patients had significant induction of GM-CSF-responsive white blood cell (WBC) subsets such as neutrophils (25–300% increase). JX-594 replication and subsequent shedding into blood was detectable in five patients after cycles 1–9. Tumor biopsies demonstrated JX-594 replication, perivascular lymphocytic infiltration, and diffuse tumor necrosis. Mild flu-like symptoms were the most common adverse events. In sum, JX-594 replication, oncolysis, and expression of both transgenes were demonstrated; replication was still evident after multiple cycles. These findings have implications for further clinical development of JX-594 and other transgene-armed oncolytic viruses. PMID:21772252
Florida Language Profile Manual.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wolking, William D.; And Others
Described in the manual is the Florida Language Profile (funded through Title VI), a flexible set of performance sampling procedures for measuring language cognitive skills of children in kindergarten and grade 1 and remediating diagnosed disabilities. It is said that the Profile may be administered by the trained examiner or classroom teacher on…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Glendale Community Coll., CA. Planning and Research Office.
Glendale Community College's Campus Profile is designed to assist faculty, staff, and students in understanding the college's diverse operations. Organized around an outline from the state accountability model, this statistical report focuses on the academic years 1995-1997. "Campus Profile '98" includes more accountability performance measures…
Mechanistic Studies at the Interface Between Organometallic Chemistry and Homogeneous Catalysis
Casey, Charles P
Mechanistic Studies at the Interface Between Organometallic Chemistry and Homogeneous Catalysis Charles P. Casey, Principal Investigator Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 Phone 608-262-0584 FAX: 608-262-7144 Email: email@example.com http://www.chem.wisc.edu/main/people/faculty/casey.html Executive Summary. Our goal was to learn the intimate mechanistic details of reactions involved in homogeneous catalysis and to use the insight we gain to develop new and improved catalysts. Our work centered on the hydrogenation of polar functional groups such as aldehydes and ketones and on hydroformylation. Specifically, we concentrated on catalysts capable of simultaneously transferring hydride from a metal center and a proton from an acidic oxygen or nitrogen center to an aldehyde or ketone. An economical iron based catalyst was developed and patented. Better understanding of fundamental organometallic reactions and catalytic processes enabled design of energy and material efficient chemical processes. Our work contributed to the development of catalysts for the selective and mild hydrogenation of ketones and aldehydes; this will provide a modern green alternative to reductions by LiAlH4 and NaBH4, which require extensive work-up procedures and produce waste streams. (C5R4OH)Ru(CO)2H Hydrogenation Catalysts. Youval Shvo described a remarkable catalytic system in which the key intermediate (C5R4OH)Ru(CO)2H (1) has an electronically coupled acidic OH unit and a hydridic RuH unit. Our efforts centered on understanding and improving upon this important catalyst for reduction of aldehydes and ketones. Our mechanistic studies established that the reduction of aldehydes by 1 to produce alcohols and a diruthenium bridging hydride species occurs much more rapidly than regeneration of the ruthenium hydride from the diruthenium bridging hydride species. Our mechanistic studies require simultaneous transfer of hydride from ruthenium to
Estimating Cognitive Profiles Using Profile Analysis via Multidimensional Scaling (PAMS)
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kim, Se-Kang; Frisby, Craig L.; Davison, Mark L.
Two of the most popular methods of profile analysis, cluster analysis and modal profile analysis, have limitations. First, neither technique is adequate when the sample size is large. Second, neither method will necessarily provide profile information in terms of both level and pattern. A new method of profile analysis, called Profile Analysis via…
Preconditioning is hormesis part II: How the conditioning dose mediates protection: Dose optimization within temporal and mechanistic frameworks.
Calabrese, Edward J
In Part I, hormetic doses of a variety of agents stimulated adaptive responses that conditioned and protected cells against the subsequent toxicity resulting from a second, higher dose (called a challenging dose) of the same or different agents. Herein (Part II), the optimal conditioning (hormetic) doses of many agents are documented, cellular mechanisms and temporal profiles are examined from which the conditioning (hormetic) responses are elicited, and the optimal conditioning doses are compared to the levels at which optimal protection occurs in response to the toxic challenge dose. Entry criteria for study evaluation required a conditioning mechanism-induced endpoint response, an hormetic/biphasic dose response for the protective response following the challenging dose, and a mechanistic assessment of how the conditioning dose afforded protection against a toxic challenging dose. The conditioning dose that demonstrated the largest increase in a mechanism-related conditioning (hormetic) response (i.e., prior to administration of the challenging dose) was the same dose that was optimally protective following the challenging dose. Specific receptor antagonists and/or inhibitors of cell signaling pathways which blocked the induction of conditioning (hormetic) effects during the conditioning period abolished the protective effects following the application of a challenge dose, thus identifying a specific and essential component of the hormetic mechanism. Conditioning responses often had sufficient doses to assess the nature of the dose response. In each of the cases these mechanism-based endpoints displayed an hormetic dose response. The present analysis reveals that hormetic biphasic dose responses were associated with both the conditioning process and the protective effects elicited following the challenging dose. Furthermore, based on optimal dosage, temporal relationships and the known mediating actions of receptor-based and/or cell signaling-based mechanisms
A mechanistic modeling system for estimating large-scale emissions and transport of pollen and co-allergens
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Efstathiou, Christos; Isukapalli, Sastry; Georgopoulos, Panos
Allergic airway diseases represent a complex health problem which can be exacerbated by the synergistic action of pollen particles and air pollutants such as ozone. Understanding human exposures to aeroallergens requires accurate estimates of the spatial distribution of airborne pollen levels as well as of various air pollutants at different times. However, currently there are no established methods for estimating allergenic pollen emissions and concentrations over large geographic areas such as the United States. A mechanistic modeling system for describing pollen emissions and transport over extensive domains has been developed by adapting components of existing regional scale air quality models and vegetation databases. First, components of the Biogenic Emissions Inventory System (BEIS) were adapted to predict pollen emission patterns. Subsequently, the transport module of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system was modified to incorporate description of pollen transport. The combined model, CMAQ-pollen, allows for simultaneous prediction of multiple air pollutants and pollen levels in a single model simulation, and uses consistent assumptions related to the transport of multiple chemicals and pollen species. Application case studies for evaluating the combined modeling system included the simulation of birch and ragweed pollen levels for the year 2002, during their corresponding peak pollination periods (April for birch and September for ragweed). The model simulations were driven by previously evaluated meteorological model outputs and emissions inventories for the eastern United States for the simulation period. A semi-quantitative evaluation of CMAQ-pollen was performed using tree and ragweed pollen counts in Newark, NJ for the same time periods. The peak birch pollen concentrations were predicted to occur within two days of the peak measurements, while the temporal patterns closely followed the measured profiles of overall tree pollen
In silico predictions of gastrointestinal drug absorption in pharmaceutical product development: application of the mechanistic absorption model GI-Sim.
Sjögren, Erik; Westergren, Jan; Grant, Iain; Hanisch, Gunilla; Lindfors, Lennart; Lennernäs, Hans; Abrahamsson, Bertil; Tannergren, Christer
Oral drug delivery is the predominant administration route for a major part of the pharmaceutical products used worldwide. Further understanding and improvement of gastrointestinal drug absorption predictions is currently a highly prioritized area of research within the pharmaceutical industry. The fraction absorbed (fabs) of an oral dose after administration of a solid dosage form is a key parameter in the estimation of the in vivo performance of an orally administrated drug formulation. This study discloses an evaluation of the predictive performance of the mechanistic physiologically based absorption model GI-Sim. GI-Sim deploys a compartmental gastrointestinal absorption and transit model as well as algorithms describing permeability, dissolution rate, salt effects, partitioning into micelles, particle and micelle drifting in the aqueous boundary layer, particle growth and amorphous or crystalline precipitation. Twelve APIs with reported or expected absorption limitations in humans, due to permeability, dissolution and/or solubility, were investigated. Predictions of the intestinal absorption for different doses and formulations were performed based on physicochemical and biopharmaceutical properties, such as solubility in buffer and simulated intestinal fluid, molecular weight, pK(a), diffusivity and molecule density, measured or estimated human effective permeability and particle size distribution. The performance of GI-Sim was evaluated by comparing predicted plasma concentration-time profiles along with oral pharmacokinetic parameters originating from clinical studies in healthy individuals. The capability of GI-Sim to correctly predict impact of dose and particle size as well as the in vivo performance of nanoformulations was also investigated. The overall predictive performance of GI-Sim was good as >95% of the predicted pharmacokinetic parameters (C(max) and AUC) were within a 2-fold deviation from the clinical observations and the predicted plasma AUC
Pharmacokinetic Modeling to Simulate the Concentration-Time Profiles After Dermal Application of Rivastigmine Patch.
Nozaki, Sachiko; Yamaguchi, Masayuki; Lefèvre, Gilbert
Rivastigmine is an inhibitor of acetylcholinesterases and butyrylcholinesterases for symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer disease and is available as oral and transdermal patch formulations. A dermal absorption pharmacokinetic (PK) model was developed to simulate the plasma concentration-time profile of rivastigmine to answer questions relative to the efficacy and safety risks after misuse of the patch (e.g., longer application than 24 h, multiple patches applied at the same time, and so forth). The model comprised 2 compartments which was a combination of mechanistic dermal absorption model and a basic 1-compartment model. The initial values for the model were determined based on the physicochemical characteristics of rivastigmine and PK parameters after intravenous administration. The model was fitted to the clinical PK profiles after single application of rivastigmine patch to obtain model parameters. The final model was validated by confirming that the simulated concentration-time curves and PK parameters (Cmax and area under the drug plasma concentration-time curve) conformed to the observed values and then was used to simulate the PK profiles of rivastigmine. This work demonstrated that the mechanistic dermal PK model fitted the clinical data well and was able to simulate the PK profile after patch misuse. PMID:27212635
Iron Trichloride and Air Mediated Guanylation of Acylthioureas. An Ecological Route to Acylguanidines: Scope and Mechanistic Insights.
Pape, Simon; Wessig, Pablo; Brunner, Heiko
Recently we introduced iron trichloride as an environmentally benign and cost-efficient reagent for the synthesis of N-benzoylguanidines. This highly attractive synthetic approach grants access to a broad spectrum of N-benzoylguanidines under mild conditions in short reaction times. In this work we present an extended scope of our methodology along with the results obtained from mechanistic studies via in situ IR spectroscopy in combination with LC (liquid chromatography)-MS analyses. On the basis of these new mechanistic insights we were able to optimize the synthetic protocol and to develop an alternative mechanistic proposal. In this context the symbiotic roles of iron trichloride and oxygen in the guanylation process are highlighted. PMID:27181741
Determination of the upper and lower limits of the mechanistic stoichiometry of incompletely coupled fluxes. Stoichiometry of incompletely coupled reactions.
Beavis, A D; Lehninger, A L
A rationale is formulated for the design of experiments to determine the upper and lower limits of the mechanistic stoichiometry of any two incompletely coupled fluxes J1 and J2. Incomplete coupling results when there is a branch at some point in the sequence of reactions or processes coupling the two fluxes. The upper limit of the mechanistic stoichiometry is given by the minimum value of dJ2/dJ1 obtained when the fluxes are systematically varied by changes in steps after the branch point. The lower limit is given by the maximum value of dJ2/dJ1 obtained when the fluxes are varied by changes in steps prior to the branch point. The rationale for determining these limits is developed from both a simple kinetic model and from a linear nonequilibrium thermodynamic treatment of coupled fluxes, using the mechanistic approach [Westerhoff, H. V. & van Dam, K. (1979) Curr. Top. Bioenerg. 9, 1-62]. The phenomenological stoichiometry, the flux ratio at level flow and the affinity ratio at static head of incompletely coupled fluxes are defined in terms of mechanistic conductances and their relationship to the mechanistic stoichiometry is discussed. From the rationale developed, experimental approaches to determine the mechanistic stoichiometry of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation are outlined. The principles employed do not require knowledge of the pathway or the rate of transmembrane leaks or slippage and may also be applied to analysis of the stoichiometry of other incompletely coupled systems, including vectorial H+/O and K+/O translocation coupled to mitochondrial electron transport. PMID:3015612
A mechanistic code for intact and defective nuclear fuel element performance
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shaheen, Khaled
During reactor operation, nuclear fuel elements experience an environment featuring high radiation, temperature, and pressure. Predicting in-reactor performance of nuclear fuel elements constitutes a complex multi-physics problem, one that requires numerical codes to be solved. Fuel element performance codes have been developed for different reactor and fuel designs. Most of these codes simulate fuel elements using one-or quasi-two-dimensional geometries, and some codes are only applicable to steady state but not transient behaviour and vice versa. Moreover, while many conceptual and empirical separate-effects models exist for defective fuel behaviour, wherein the sheath is breached allowing coolant ingress and fission gas escape, there have been few attempts to predict defective fuel behaviour in the context of a mechanistic fuel performance code. Therefore, a mechanistic fuel performance code, called FORCE (Fuel Operational peRformance Computations in an Element) is proposed for the time-dependent behaviour of intact and defective CANDU nuclear fuel elements. The code, which is implemented in the COMSOL Multiphysics commercial software package, simulates the fuel, sheath, and fuel-to-sheath gap in a radial-axial geometry. For intact fuel performance, the code couples models for heat transport, fission gas production and diffusion, and structural deformation of the fuel and sheath. The code is extended to defective fuel performance by integrating an adapted version of a previously developed fuel oxidation model, and a model for the release of radioactive fission product gases from the fuel to the coolant. The FORCE code has been verified against the ELESTRES-IST and ELESIM industrial code for its predictions of intact fuel performance. For defective fuel behaviour, the code has been validated against coulometric titration data for oxygen-to-metal ratio in defective fuel elements from commercial reactors, while also being compared to a conceptual oxidation model
A reductionist mechanistic model for bioconcentration of neutral and weakly polar organic compounds in fish.
Kuo, Dave T F; Di Toro, Dominic M
The bioconcentration factor (BCF) of neutral and weakly polar organic chemicals in fish is modeled using independently calibrated models of chemical partitioning (freely dissolved fraction of chemical in the aqueous phase [φsys ] and wet-weight fish-water partition coefficient [KFW ]), respiratory exchange (respiratory update rate constant [k1 ], and respiratory elimination rate constant [k2 = k1 /KFW ]), and biotransformation (whole-body biotransformation rate constant [kM ]) as BCF = φsys KFW /(1 + kM /k2 ). Existing k1 models tend to overestimate for chemicals with log KOW < 3.5, which constituted 30% to 50% of the examined chemicals. A revised k1 model covering a wider log KOW range (0-8.5) is presented k1 = (5.46 × 10(-6) MW + 0.261/KOW )(-1) , where MW is the molecular weight. The biotransformation rate constant kM is modeled using biota internal partitioning and Abraham parameters as reactivity descriptors. The reductionist model was tested using 3 different BCF data sets (US Environmental Protection Agency's Estimation Programs Interface [EPI], n = 548; Hertfordshire, n = 210; Arnot-Gobas, n = 1855) and compared with the following 3 state-of-the-art models: 1) the EPI Suite BCFBAF module, 2) the European Commision's Computer Assisted Evaluation of industrial chemical Substances According to Regulations (CAESAR), and 3) the EPI/Arnot mechanistic kinetic model. The reductionist model performed comparably with the alternative models (root mean square errors [RMSEs] = 0.72-0.77), with only 5 fitting parameters and no training against experimental BCFs. Respiratory elimination and biotransformation dominate the total depuration (i.e., [k2 + kM ]/kT ≥ 0.8) for approximately 98% of the data entries, thus validating the reductionist approximation. Mechanistic models provide greater insights into bioaccumulation and are more sensitive to biological variation. All three BCF data sets and relevant
Bridging the gap between empirical and mechanistic models for nitrate in groundwater
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nolan, B. T.; Malone, R. W.; Gronberg, J.; Thorp, K.; Ma, L.
Water-quality models are useful tools for predicting the vulnerability of groundwater to nitrate contamination, and include both empirical and mechanistic approaches. Empirical models commonly are used at regional and national scales. Such models are data-driven and have comparatively few parameters, but their capability to simulate processes is limited. In contrast, mechanistic models are physically based, simulate controlling processes, and can have many parameters. The GroundWAter Vulnerability Assessment model (GWAVA), an example of the first approach, is a national-scale nonlinear regression model (R2=0.80) that predicts areally averaged nitrate concentration in groundwater based on mid-1990s land use. The Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM2) is an example of the second approach and simulates N cycling processes, crop growth, and the fate and transport of agricultural chemicals at the field-scale for daily time steps. Thorough accounting by RZWQM2 of key processes can yield more accurate predictions, but application at large spatial scales is difficult because of the numerous parameters. To bridge the gap between these contrasting scales and approaches, we developed metamodels (MMs) to predict nitrate concentrations and N fluxes in the Corn Belt. Metamodels are simplified representations of mechanistic models which map outputs from the latter onto the inputs. Our MMs consisted of artificial neural networks (ANNs), which are inherently flexible and do not require linearity or normally distributed data. The MMs were based on RZWQM2 models previously calibrated to data from field sites in Nebraska, Iowa, and Maryland. The three sites are in corn-soybean rotation and reflect diverse soil types and climatic conditions as well as different management practices. We calibrated the MMs to RZWQM2 predictions of N in tile drainage and leachate below the root zone of crops. Therefore the MMs represent an integrated approach to vulnerability assessment-nitrate leaching
Intermolecular hydroamination of vinylarenes by iminoanilide alkaline-earth catalysts: a computational scrutiny of mechanistic pathways.
Tobisch, Sven
A thorough computational exploration of the mechanistic intricacies of the intermolecular hydroamination (HA) of vinylarenes by a recently reported class of kinetically stabilised iminoanilide [{N^N}Ae{N(SiMe3)2}⋅(THF)n] alkaline-earth amido compounds (Ae = Ca, Sr, Ba) is presented. Two distinct mechanistic pathways for catalytic HA mediated by alkaline-earth and rare-earth compounds have emerged over the years that account equally well for the specific features of the process. On one hand, a concerted proton-assisted pathway to deliver the amine product in a single step can be invoked and, on the other, a stepwise σ-insertive pathway that comprises a rapid, reversible migratory olefin insertion step linked to a less facile, irreversible Ae-C alkyl bond aminolysis. The results of the study presented herein, which employed a heavily benchmarked and reliable DFT methodology, supports a stepwise σ-insertive pathway that involves fast and reversible migratory C=C bond insertion into the polar Ae-N pyrrolido σ bond. This proceeds with strict 2,1 regioselectivity via a highly polarised four-centre transition state (TS) structure, linked to irreversible intramolecular Ae-C bond aminolysis of the alkaline-earth alkyl intermediate as the energetically favourable mechanism. Turnover-limiting aminolysis is consistent with the significant KIE measured; the DFT-derived effective barrier matches the Eyring parameter empirically determined for the best-performing {N^N}Ba(NR2) catalyst gratifyingly well. It also predicts the observed trend in reactivity (Ca
Mechanistic models of plant seed dispersal by wind in heterogeneous landscapes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Trakhtenbrot, A.; Katul, G. G.; Nathan, R.
Seed dispersal, and especially long-distance dispersal (LDD), is a key process in plant population survival, colonization, and gene flow. Its importance is amplified by the man-induced habitat fragmentation, climate change and invasions of exotic species. Mechanistic seed dispersal models are central to quantitative prediction of dispersal patterns and understanding their underlying mechanisms. For wind dispersal, most current mechanistic models assume homogenous environment. Although both topography and sharp transitions in vegetation stature profoundly affect wind flow, accounting for these effects via simplified models remains a vexing research problem. Such simplified models are needed to inform ecosystem managers about consequences of landscape fragmentation. We modified the Coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian closure (CELC) mechanistic dispersal model to represent scenarios of wind flow over a sharp transition from short to tall vegetation or over forested hilly terrain, and predicted the resulting dispersal distances and direction. We parameterized the wind and vegetation factors using measurements taken on a hill with short height Mediterranean shrubland and pine forest vegetation at Mt. Pithulim, Israel. For the short-to-tall vegetation transition scenario, the main feature of the modeled wind field is an exponential decay of the mean horizontal wind velocity, assuming that the mean momentum equation simplifies to a balance between the advective acceleration and the drag force terms. As a consequence of the incompressibility condition, this exponential decay leads to strong upward mean vertical velocity component. We found that for seed release downwind of the edge, the simulated median (short) and 99-th percentile (long) distances were longer than those for the homogeneous tall vegetation scenario. For seed release upwind of the edge the effect on dispersal distance was more complex and depended on the release height and he seed terminal velocity of the seeds
Mechanistic study of copper-catalyzed aerobic oxidative coupling of arylboronic esters and methanol: insights into an organometallic oxidase reaction.
King, Amanda E; Brunold, Thomas C; Stahl, Shannon S
Copper-catalyzed aerobic oxidative coupling of arylboronic acid derivatives and heteroatom nucleophiles is a highly useful method for the formation of aryl-heteroatom bonds. Mechanistic studies reveal that this reaction proceeds via an "oxidase"-style mechanism. Kinetic and spectroscopic studies establish that transmetalation of the aryl group from boron to Cu(II) is the turnover-limiting step and reoxidation of the reduced catalyst by O(2) is rapid. Further mechanistic analysis implicates the involvement of an aryl-copper(III) intermediate that undergoes facile C-O bond formation. PMID:19309072
The six members of Expedition 29 are profiled and interviewed. NASA astronauts Mike Fossum and Dan Burbank; JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa; and cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin di...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fusselman, Kay
Consists of the results of a profile survey completed by more than 12,000 members of Professional Secretaries International. Information is included on secretarial titles, salaries, employer types, and secretaries' personal characteristics. (CH)
Contaminated Sediment Core Profiling
Evaluating the environmental risk of sites containing contaminated sediments often poses major challenges due in part to the absence of detailed information available for a given location. Sediment core profiling is often utilized during preliminary environmental investigations ...
These articles put a face to some of the thousands of individuals who contribute to NCI's cancer research efforts. The profiles highlight the work of scientists and clinicians and describe the circumstances and motivation behind their work.
Attitude profile design program
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
The Attitude Profile Design (APD) Program was designed to be used as a stand-alone addition to the Simplex Computation of Optimum Orbital Trajectories (SCOOT). The program uses information from a SCOOT output file and the user defined attitude profile to produce time histories of attitude, angular body rates, and accelerations. The APD program is written in standard FORTRAN77 and should be portable to any machine that has an appropriate compiler. The input and output are through formatted files. The program reads the basic flight data, such as the states of the vehicles, acceleration profiles, and burn information, from the SCOOT output file. The user inputs information about the desired attitude profile during coasts in a high level manner. The program then takes these high level commands and executes the maneuvers, outputting the desired information.
Recent developments in using mechanistic cardiac modelling for drug safety evaluation.
Davies, Mark R; Wang, Ken; Mirams, Gary R; Caruso, Antonello; Noble, Denis; Walz, Antje; Lavé, Thierry; Schuler, Franz; Singer, Thomas; Polonchuk, Liudmila
On the tenth anniversary of two key International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines relating to cardiac proarrhythmic safety, an initiative aims to consider the implementation of a new paradigm that combines in vitro and in silico technologies to improve risk assessment. The Comprehensive In Vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) initiative (co-sponsored by the Cardiac Safety Research Consortium, Health and Environmental Sciences Institute, Safety Pharmacology Society and FDA) is a bold and welcome step in using computational tools for regulatory decision making. This review compares and contrasts the state-of-the-art tools from empirical to mechanistic models of cardiac electrophysiology, and how they can and should be used in combination with experimental tests for compound decision making. PMID:26891981
Mechanistic differences between methanol and dimethyl ether carbonylation in side pockets and large channels of mordenite.
Boronat, Mercedes; Martínez, Cristina; Corma, Avelino
The activity and selectivity towards carbonylation presented by Brønsted acid sites located inside the 8MR pockets or in the main 12MR channels of mordenite is studied by means of quantum-chemical calculations, and the mechanistic differences between methanol and DME carbonylation are investigated. The selectivity towards carbonylation is higher inside the 8MR pockets, where the competitive formation of DME and hydrocarbons that finally leads to catalyst deactivation is sterically impeded. Moreover, inclusion of dispersion interactions in the calculations leads to agreement between the calculated activation barriers for the rate determining step and the experimentally observed higher reactivity of methoxy groups located inside the 8MR channels. PMID:21249237
Dual effect of red wine on liver redox status: a concise and mechanistic review.
Silva, Paula; Fernandes, Eduarda; Carvalho, Félix
Chronic ethanol consumption is a strong risk factor for the development of liver disease. Multiple mechanisms are involved in ethanol-mediated liver injury; oxidative stress being pointed has an important factor. However, it should be noted that moderate consumption of red wine has been associated with hepatoprotective effects, mainly due to the antioxidant effect of resveratrol, one of its polyphenolic compounds. In this paper, the potential molecular mechanisms through which the protective effects of resveratrol counteract the oxidative effect of ethanol and the way as this dual effect impacts liver oxidative stress are reviewed. Mechanistic evaluation of modulation of oxidative signaling pathways by ethanol and resveratrol may explain the pathogenesis of various liver diseases and ultimately to disclose possible pharmacological therapies. PMID:26026610
Phase Stability of t;#8242;-Zirconia-Based Thermal Barrier Coatings: Mechanistic Insights
Krogstad, Jessica A.; Krämer, Stephan; Lipkin, Don M.; Johnson, Curtis A.; Mitchell, David R.G.; Cairney, Julie M.; Levi, Carlos G.
The temperature capability of yttria-stabilized zirconia thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) is ultimately tied to the rate of evolution of the 'nontransformable' t' phase into a depleted tetragonal form predisposed to the monoclinic transformation on cooling. The t' phase, however, has been shown to decompose in a small fraction of the time necessary to form the monoclinic phase. Instead, a modulated microstructure consisting of a coherent array of Y-rich and Y-lean lamellar phases develops early in the process, with mechanistic features suggestive of spinodal decomposition. Coarsening of this microstructure leads to loss of coherency and ultimately transformation into the monoclinic form, making the kinetics of this process, and not the initial decomposition, the critical factor in determining the phase stability of TBCs. Transmission electron microscopy is shown to be essential not only for characterizing the microstructure but also for proper interpretation of X-ray diffraction analysis.
Helical-Peptide-Catalyzed Enantioselective Michael Addition Reactions and Their Mechanistic Insights.
Ueda, Atsushi; Umeno, Tomohiro; Doi, Mitsunobu; Akagawa, Kengo; Kudo, Kazuaki; Tanaka, Masakazu
Helical peptide foldamer catalyzed Michael addition reactions of nitroalkane or dialkyl malonate to α,β-unsaturated ketones are reported along with the mechanistic considerations of the enantio-induction. A wide variety of α,β-unsaturated ketones, including β-aryl, β-alkyl enones, and cyclic enones, were found to be catalyzed by the helical peptide to give Michael adducts with high enantioselectivities (up to 99%). On the basis of X-ray crystallographic analysis and depsipeptide study, the amide protons, N(2)-H and N(3)-H, at the N terminus in the α-helical peptide catalyst were crucial for activating Michael donors, while the N-terminal primary amine activated Michael acceptors through the formation of iminium ion intermediates. PMID:27384597
Combating Pathogenic Microorganisms Using Plant-Derived Antimicrobials: A Minireview of the Mechanistic Basis
Upadhyaya, Indu; Kollanoor-Johny, Anup
The emergence of antibiotic resistance in pathogenic bacteria has led to renewed interest in exploring the potential of plant-derived antimicrobials (PDAs) as an alternative therapeutic strategy to combat microbial infections. Historically, plant extracts have been used as a safe, effective, and natural remedy for ailments and diseases in traditional medicine. Extensive research in the last two decades has identified a plethora of PDAs with a wide spectrum of activity against a variety of fungal and bacterial pathogens causing infections in humans and animals. Active components of many plant extracts have been characterized and are commercially available; however, research delineating the mechanistic basis of their antimicrobial action is scanty. This review highlights the potential of various plant-derived compounds to control pathogenic bacteria, especially the diverse effects exerted by plant compounds on various virulence factors that are critical for pathogenicity inside the host. In addition, the potential effect of PDAs on gut microbiota is discussed. PMID:25298964
Pathophysiology of white-nose syndrome in bats: a mechanistic model linking wing damage to mortality.
Warnecke, Lisa; Turner, James M; Bollinger, Trent K; Misra, Vikram; Cryan, Paul M; Blehert, David S; Wibbelt, Gudrun; Willis, Craig K R
White-nose syndrome is devastating North American bat populations but we lack basic information on disease mechanisms. Altered blood physiology owing to epidermal invasion by the fungal pathogen Geomyces destructans (Gd) has been hypothesized as a cause of disrupted torpor patterns of affected hibernating bats, leading to mortality. Here, we present data on blood electrolyte concentration, haematology and acid-base balance of hibernating little brown bats, Myotis lucifugus, following experimental inoculation with Gd. Compared with controls, infected bats showed electrolyte depletion (i.e. lower plasma sodium), changes in haematology (i.e. increased haematocrit and decreased glucose) and disrupted acid-base balance (i.e. lower CO2 partial pressure and bicarbonate). These findings indicate hypotonic dehydration, hypovolaemia and metabolic acidosis. We propose a mechanistic model linking tissue damage to altered homeostasis and morbidity/mortality. PMID:23720520
Pathophysiology of white-nose syndrome in bats: a mechanistic model linking wing damage to mortality
Warnecke, Lisa; Turner, James M.; Bollinger, Trent K.; Misra, Vikram; Cryan, Paul M.; Blehert, David S.; Wibbelt, Gudrun; Willis, Craig K.R.
White-nose syndrome is devastating North American bat populations but we lack basic information on disease mechanisms. Altered blood physiology owing to epidermal invasion by the fungal pathogen Geomyces destructans (Gd) has been hypothesized as a cause of disrupted torpor patterns of affected hibernating bats, leading to mortality. Here, we present data on blood electrolyte concentration, haematology and acid–base balance of hibernating little brown bats, Myotis lucifugus, following experimental inoculation with Gd. Compared with controls, infected bats showed electrolyte depletion (i.e. lower plasma sodium), changes in haematology (i.e. increased haematocrit and decreased glucose) and disrupted acid–base balance (i.e. lower CO2 partial pressure and bicarbonate). These findings indicate hypotonic dehydration, hypovolaemia and metabolic acidosis. We propose a mechanistic model linking tissue damage to altered homeostasis and morbidity/mortality.
Assessing first-order emulator inference for physical parameters in nonlinear mechanistic models
Hooten, Mevin B.; Leeds, William B.; Fiechter, Jerome; Wikle, Christopher K.
We present an approach for estimating physical parameters in nonlinear models that relies on an approximation to the mechanistic model itself for computational efficiency. The proposed methodology is validated and applied in two different modeling scenarios: (a) Simulation and (b) lower trophic level ocean ecosystem model. The approach we develop relies on the ability to predict right singular vectors (resulting from a decomposition of computer model experimental output) based on the computer model input and an experimental set of parameters. Critically, we model the right singular vectors in terms of the model parameters via a nonlinear statistical model. Specifically, we focus our attention on first-order models of these right singular vectors rather than the second-order (covariance) structure.
Mechanistic Modeling Reveals the Critical Knowledge Gaps in Bile Acid-Mediated DILI.
Woodhead, J L; Yang, K; Brouwer, K L R; Siler, S Q; Stahl, S H; Ambroso, J L; Baker, D; Watkins, P B; Howell, B A
Bile salt export pump (BSEP) inhibition has been proposed to be an important mechanism for drug-induced liver injury (DILI). Modeling can prioritize knowledge gaps concerning bile acid (BA) homeostasis and thus help guide experimentation. A submodel of BA homeostasis in rats and humans was constructed within DILIsym, a mechanistic model of DILI. In vivo experiments in rats with glibenclamide were conducted, and data from these experiments were used to validate the model. The behavior of DILIsym was analyzed in the presence of a simulated theoretical BSEP inhibitor. BSEP inhibition in humans is predicted to increase liver concentrations of conjugated chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) and sulfate-conjugated lithocholic acid (LCA) while the concentration of other liver BAs remains constant or decreases. On the basis of a sensitivity analysis, the most important unknowns are the level of BSEP expression, the amount of intestinal synthesis of LCA, and the magnitude of farnesoid-X nuclear receptor (FXR)-mediated regulation. PMID:25006780
Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin (Mtor) Is Essential for Murine Embryonic Heart Development and Growth
Zhu, Yi; Pires, Karla M. P.; Whitehead, Kevin J.; Olsen, Curtis D.; Wayment, Benjamin; Zhang, Yi Cheng; Bugger, Heiko; Ilkun, Olesya; Litwin, Sheldon E.; Thomas, George; Kozma, Sara C.; Abel, E. Dale
Mechanistic target of rapamycin (Mtor) is required for embryonic inner cell mass proliferation during early development. However, Mtor expression levels are very low in the mouse heart during embryogenesis. To determine if Mtor plays a role during mouse cardiac development, cardiomyocyte specific Mtor deletion was achieved using α myosin heavy chain (α-MHC) driven Cre recombinase. Initial mosaic expression of Cre between embryonic day (E) 10.5 and E11.5 eliminated a subset of cardiomyocytes with high Cre activity by apoptosis and reduced overall cardiac proliferative capacity. The remaining cardiomyocytes proliferated and expanded normally. However loss of 50% of cardiomyocytes defined a threshold that impairs the ability of the embryonic heart to sustain the embryo's circulatory requirements. As a result 92% of embryos with cardiomyocyte Mtor deficiency died by the end of gestation. Thus Mtor is required for survival and proliferation of cardiomyocytes in the developing heart. PMID:23342106
Water-soluble NHC-Cu catalysts: applications in click chemistry, bioconjugation and mechanistic analysis.
Díaz Velázquez, Heriberto; Ruiz García, Yara; Vandichel, Matthias; Madder, Annemieke; Verpoort, Francis
Copper(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azides and terminal alkynes (CuAAC), better known as "click" reaction, has triggered the use of 1,2,3-triazoles in bioconjugation, drug discovery, materials science and combinatorial chemistry. Here we report a new series of water-soluble catalysts based on N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-Cu complexes which are additionally functionalized with a sulfonate group. The complexes show superior activity towards CuAAC reactions and display a high versatility, enabling the production of triazoles with different substitution patterns. Additionally, successful application of these complexes in bioconjugation using unprotected peptides acting as DNA binding domains was achieved for the first time. Mechanistic insight into the reaction mechanism is obtained by means of state-of-the-art first principles calculations. PMID:25251642
Inhibition of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) - Rapamycin and beyond
Lamming, Dudley W.
Rapamycin is an FDA-approved immunosuppressant and anti-cancer agent discovered in the soil of Easter Island in the early 1970s. Rapamycin is a potent and selective inhibitor of the mTOR (mechanistic Target Of Rapamycin) protein kinase, which acts as a central integrator of nutrient signaling pathways. During the last decade, genetic and pharmaceutical inhibition of mTOR pathway signaling has been found to promote longevity in yeast, worms, flies and mice. In this chapter, we will discuss the molecular biology underlying the effects of rapamycin and its physiological effects; evidence for rapamycin as an anti-aging compound; mechanisms by which rapamycin may extend lifespan; and the potential limitations of rapamycin as an anti-aging molecule. Finally, we will discuss possible strategies that may allow us to inhibit mTOR signaling safely while minimizing side effects, and reap the health, social and economic benefits from slowing the aging process. PMID:27048303
Lipids, adiposity and tendinopathy: is there a mechanistic link? Critical review.
Scott, Alex; Zwerver, Johannes; Grewal, Navi; de Sa, Agnetha; Alktebi, Thuraya; Granville, David J; Hart, David A
Being overweight or obese is associated with an elevated risk of tendon pathology. However, for sportspeople the epidemiological data linking weight or adiposity on one hand, and risk of tendon pathology on the other, are less consistent. Indeed, the mechanistic links between diet, adiposity and tendon pathology remain largely unexamined. Recent studies have begun to examine the effects of dietary interventions on outcomes such as tendon biomechanics or pain. Oxidised low-density lipoprotein has been shown to (A) accumulate in the tendon tissues of mice that eat a fatty diet and (B) induce a pathological phenotype in human tendon cells. This paper addresses the current debate: is excessive body mass index (causing increased load and strain on tendon tissue) per se the underlying mechanism? Or do local or systemic influences of fat on tendons predispose to tendon pathology? This narrative review argues that excessive blood lipids may be an important avenue for clinical investigations. PMID:25488953
Improving Predictive Modeling in Pediatric Drug Development: Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Mechanistic Modeling
Slikker, William; Young, John F.; Corley, Rick A.; Dorman, David C.; Conolly, Rory B.; Knudsen, Thomas; Erstad, Brian L.; Luecke, Richard H.; Faustman, Elaine M.; Timchalk, Chuck; Mattison, Donald R.
A workshop was conducted on November 18?19, 2004, to address the issue of improving predictive models for drug delivery to developing humans. Although considerable progress has been made for adult humans, large gaps remain for predicting pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) outcome in children because most adult models have not been tested during development. The goals of the meeting included a description of when, during development, infants/children become adultlike in handling drugs. The issue of incorporating the most recent advances into the predictive models was also addressed: both the use of imaging approaches and genomic information were considered. Disease state, as exemplified by obesity, was addressed as a modifier of drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics during development. Issues addressed in this workshop should be considered in the development of new predictive and mechanistic models of drug kinetics and dynamics in the developing human.
Activity restriction and the mechanistic basis for extinctions under climate warming.
R Kearney, Michael
Correlative analyses predict that anthropogenic climate warming will cause widespread extinction but the nature and generality of the underlying mechanisms is unclear. Warming-induced activity restriction has been proposed as a general explanatory mechanism for recent population extinctions in lizards, and has been used to forecast future extinction. Here, I test this hypothesis using globally applied biophysical calculations of the effects of warming and shade reduction on potential activity time and whole-life-cycle energy budgets. These 'thermodynamic niche' analyses show that activity restriction from climate warming is unlikely to provide a general explanation of recent extinctions, and that loss of shade is viable alternative explanation. Climate warming could cause population declines, even under increased activity potential, through joint impacts on fecundity and mortality rates. However, such responses depend strongly on behaviour, habitat (shade, food) and life history, all of which should be explicitly incorporated in mechanistic forecasts of extinction risk under climate change. PMID:24118740
Can mechanistic explanation be reconciled with scale-free constitution and dynamics?
Bechtel, William
This paper considers two objections to explanations that appeal to mechanisms to explain biological phenomena. Marom argues that the time-scale on which many phenomena occur is scale-free. There is also reason to suspect that the network of interacting entities is scale-free. The result is that mechanisms do not have well-delineated boundaries in nature. I argue that bounded mechanisms should be viewed as entities scientists posit in advancing scientific hypotheses. In positing such entities, scientists idealize. Such idealizations can be highly productive in developing and improving scientific explanations even if the hypothesized mechanisms never precisely correspond to bounded entities in nature. Mechanistic explanations can be reconciled with scale-free constitution and dynamics even if mechanisms as bounded entities don't exist. PMID:25977254
Glucosamine condensation catalyzed by 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate: mechanistic insight from NMR spectroscopy.
Jia, Lingyu; Pedersen, Christian Marcus; Qiao, Yan; Deng, Tiansheng; Zuo, Pingping; Ge, Wenzhi; Qin, Zhangfeng; Hou, Xianglin; Wang, Yingxiong
The basic ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([C2C1Im][OAc]) could efficiently catalyze the conversion of 2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose (GlcNH2) into deoxyfructosazine (DOF) and fructosazine (FZ). Mechanistic investigation by NMR studies disclosed that [C2C1Im][OAc], exhibiting strong hydrogen bonding basicity, could coordinate with the hydroxyl and amino groups of GlcNH2via the promotion of hydrogen bonding in bifunctional activation of substrates and further catalyzing product formation, based on which a plausible reaction pathway involved in this homogeneous base-catalyzed reaction was proposed. Hydrogen bonding as an activation force, therefore, is responsible for the remarkable selectivity and rate enhancement observed. PMID:26278065
Structural and mechanistic aspects of 3C proteases from the Picornavirus family.
Arad, D; Kreisberg, R; Shokhen, M
Picornavirus 3C proteases are prime targets for rational drug design. This viral protease appears in a large number of viruses from the Picornavirus family that cause serious disease syndromes, and it has an important role in the life cycle of the virus, processing the translation product of the Picornavirus genome by progressive co- and posttranslational cleavages. It is, therefore, important to gain structural and mechanistic information about this family of enzymes. We concentrate in this paper on the specific features of the 3C; particularly, we are trying to show that the 3C constitute a new family to enzymes which is neither a serine- nor a cysteine-type protease. General basic theory on the behavior of sulfur nucleophile vs the behavior of oxygen nucleophile regarding the nucleophilic attack on carbonyl compounds and the possible determinants in the structure of 3C viral proteases of rhinovirus 1A are being discussed. PMID:8320292
Mechanistic Investigation of a Non-Heme Iron Enzyme Catalyzed Epoxidation in (-)-4'-Methoxycyclopenin Biosynthesis.
Chang, Wei-Chen; Li, Jikun; Lee, Justin L; Cronican, Andrea A; Guo, Yisong
Mechanisms have been proposed for α-KG-dependent non-heme iron enzyme catalyzed oxygen atom insertion into an olefinic moiety in various natural products, but they have not been examined in detail. Using a combination of methods including transient kinetics, Mössbauer spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry, we demonstrate that AsqJ-catalyzed (-)-4'-methoxycyclopenin formation uses a high-spin Fe(IV)-oxo intermediate to carry out epoxidation. Furthermore, product analysis on (16)O/(18)O isotope incorporation from the reactions using the native substrate, 4'-methoxydehydrocyclopeptin, and a mechanistic probe, dehydrocyclopeptin, reveals evidence supporting oxo↔hydroxo tautomerism of the Fe(IV)-oxo species in the non-heme iron enzyme catalysis. PMID:27442345
Synthetic and Mechanistic Studies of Strained Heterocycle Opening Reactions Mediated by Zirconium(IV) Imido Complexes
Blum, Suzanne A.; Rivera, Vicki A.; Ruck, Rebecca T.; Michael, Forrest E.; Bergman, Robert G.
The reactions of the bis(cyclopentadienyl)(tert-butylimido)zirconium complex (Cp2Zr=N-t-Bu)(THF) (1) with epoxides, aziridines, and episulfides were investigated. Heterocycles without accessible β-hydrogens undergo insertion/protonation of the C–X bond to produce 1,2-amino alcohols (X = O) and 1,2-diamines (X = NR), whereas heterocycles with accessible β-hydrogens undergo elimination/protonation to produce allylic alcohols (X = O) and allylic sulfides (X = S). Mechanistic investigations support a stepwise pathway with zwitterionic intermediates for the first reaction class and a concerted pathway for the second reaction class. Additionally, the feasibility of chirality transfer from the planar-chiral ebthi (ebthi = ethylenebis(tetrahydroindenyl)) ligand was demonstrated with a chiral analogue, (ebthi)-Zr=NAr(THF) (Ar = 2,6-dimethylphenyl), 2, through the diastereoselective ring opening of meso epoxides. PMID:16508693
Parameterization of phosphine ligands reveals mechanistic pathways and predicts reaction outcomes.
Niemeyer, Zachary L; Milo, Anat; Hickey, David P; Sigman, Matthew S
The mechanistic foundation behind the identity of a phosphine ligand that best promotes a desired reaction outcome is often non-intuitive, and thus has been addressed in numerous experimental and theoretical studies. In this work, multivariate correlations of reaction outcomes using 38 different phosphine ligands were combined with classic potentiometric analyses to study a Suzuki reaction, for which the site selectivity of oxidative addition is highly dependent on the nature of the phosphine. These studies shed light on the generality of hypotheses regarding the structural influence of different classes of phosphine ligands on the reaction mechanism(s), and deliver a methodology that should prove useful in future studies of phosphine ligands. PMID:27219707
Mechanistic study of synthesis of gold nanoparticles using multi-functional polymer
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yu, Taekyung; Kim, Rayoung; Park, Hoseok; Yi, Jonghyup; Kim, Woo-Sik
This Letter presents a mechanistic study of the large-scale synthesis of Au nanoparticles when using branched polyethyleneimine (BPEI) as a multi-functional reducing agent, capping agent, and stabilizer. During the synthesis, the molar ratio of BPEI/HAuCl4, reaction temperature, and pH of the reacting solution were all found to be important factors in the formation, size control, and stabilization of the Au nanoparticles. The proposed synthetic route provided a highly concentrated product of Au nanoparticles (above 40 g/L), at least 10- to 200-fold more than previous methods, and can be readily applied to a large-scale process due to its simple and mild reaction conditions.
Development of a mechanistic model for predicting corrosion rate in multiphase oil/water/gas flows
Zhang, R.; Gopal, M.; Jepson, W.P.
A mechanistic model has been developed to predict corrosion rates in multiphase (water/oil/CO{sub 2}) flow conditions. The model takes into account electrochemistry, reaction kinetics, and, mass transport effects. This paper describes the equations used to determine pH and bulk concentrations of various ions, which are then used to calculate the mass transfer rates to the corrosion surface. The result includes the determination of the mass transfer coefficients of various ionic species and corrosion rates. Details of relations used for determination of mass transfer coefficients for multiphase flows, and rates of electrochemical reaction kinetics are discussed and predicted results are compared with experimental observations. Agreement between model results and experimental data is good.
Direct-acting antiviral agents for hepatitis C: structural and mechanistic insights.
Götte, Matthias; Feld, Jordan J
The treatment of HCV infection has evolved at an extremely rapid pace over the past few years. The development of direct-acting antiviral agents, which potently inhibit different stages in the viral life cycle, has led to the replacement of interferon with well-tolerated oral therapies with cure rates of >90% in most patient populations. Understanding the mechanisms of action of the various agents as well as related issues, including the molecular basis for resistance, helps to guide drug development and clinical use. In this Review, we provide a mechanistic description of NS3/4A protease inhibitors, nucleotide and non-nucleotide inhibitors of the NS5B viral polymerase and inhibitors of the NS5A protein, followed by a summary of clinical data from studies of each drug class alone and in combination. Remaining challenges in drug development efforts are also discussed. PMID:27147491
A Three-Stage Mechanistic Model for Ammonia Borane Dehydrogenation by Shvo's Catalyst.
Lu, Zhiyao; Conley, Brian L; Williams, Travis J
We propose a mechanistic model for three-stage dehydrogenation of ammonia borane (AB) catalyzed by Shvo's cyclopentadienone-ligated ruthenium complex. We provide evidence for a plausible mechanism for catalyst deactivation, the transition from fast catalysis to slow catalysis, and relate those findings to the invention of a second-generation catalyst that does not suffer from the same deactivation chemistry.The primary mechanism of catalyst deactivation is borazine-mediated hydroboration of the ruthenium species that is the active oxidant in the fast catalysis case. This transition is characterized by a change in the rate law for the reaction and changes in the apparent resting state of the catalyst. Also, in this slow catalysis situation, we see an additional intermediate in the sequence of boron, nitrogen species, aminodiborane. This occurs with concurrent generation of NH(3), which itself does not strongly affect the rate of AB dehydrogenation. PMID:23335832
A Three-Stage Mechanistic Model for Ammonia Borane Dehydrogenation by Shvo's Catalyst
Lu, Zhiyao; Conley, Brian L.; Williams, Travis J.
We propose a mechanistic model for three-stage dehydrogenation of ammonia borane (AB) catalyzed by Shvo's cyclopentadienone-ligated ruthenium complex. We provide evidence for a plausible mechanism for catalyst deactivation, the transition from fast catalysis to slow catalysis, and relate those findings to the invention of a second-generation catalyst that does not suffer from the same deactivation chemistry. The primary mechanism of catalyst deactivation is borazine-mediated hydroboration of the ruthenium species that is the active oxidant in the fast catalysis case. This transition is characterized by a change in the rate law for the reaction and changes in the apparent resting state of the catalyst. Also, in this slow catalysis situation, we see an additional intermediate in the sequence of boron, nitrogen species, aminodiborane. This occurs with concurrent generation of NH3, which itself does not strongly affect the rate of AB dehydrogenation. PMID:23335832
Inhibition of the Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin (mTOR)-Rapamycin and Beyond.
Lamming, Dudley W
Rapamycin is a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved immunosuppressant and anticancer agent discovered in the soil of Easter Island in the early 1970s. Rapamycin is a potent and selective inhibitor of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) protein kinase, which acts as a central integrator of nutrient signaling pathways. During the last decade, genetic and pharmaceutical inhibition of mTOR pathway signaling has been found to promote longevity in yeast, worms, flies, and mice. In this article, we will discuss the molecular biology underlying the effects of rapamycin and its physiological effects, evidence for rapamycin as an antiaging compound, mechanisms by which rapamycin may extend life span, and the potential limitations of rapamycin as an antiaging molecule. Finally, we will discuss possible strategies that may allow us to inhibit mTOR signaling safely while minimizing side effects, and reap the health, social, and economic benefits from slowing the aging process. PMID:27048303
Reactions of Co(III)-nitrosyl complexes with superoxide and their mechanistic insights.
Kumar, Pankaj; Lee, Yong-Min; Park, Young Jun; Siegler, Maxime A; Karlin, Kenneth D; Nam, Wonwoo
New Co(III)-nitrosyl complexes bearing N-tetramethylated cyclam (TMC) ligands, [(12-TMC)Co(III)(NO)](2+) (1) and [(13-TMC)Co(III)(NO)](2+) (2), were synthesized via [(TMC)Co(II)(CH3CN)](2+) + NO(g) reactions. Spectroscopic and structural characterization showed that these compounds bind the nitrosyl moiety in a bent end-on fashion. Complexes 1 and 2 reacted with KO2/2.2.2-cryptand to produce [(12-TMC)Co(II)(NO2)](+) (3) and [(13-TMC)Co(II)(NO2)](+) (4), respectively; these possess O,O'-chelated nitrito ligands. Mechanistic studies using (18)O-labeled superoxide ((18)O2(•-)) showed that one O atom in the nitrito ligand is derived from superoxide and the O2 produced comes from the other superoxide O atom. Evidence supporting the formation of a Co-peroxynitrite intermediate is also presented. PMID:25793706
Mechanistic insights on immunosenescence and chronic immune activation in HIV-tuberculosis co-infection.
Shankar, Esaki M; Velu, Vijayakumar; Kamarulzaman, Adeeba; Larsson, Marie
Immunosenescence is marked by accelerated degradation of host immune responses leading to the onset of opportunistic infections, where senescent T cells show remarkably higher ontogenic defects as compared to healthy T cells. The mechanistic association between T-cell immunosenescence and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease progression, and functional T-cell responses in HIV-tuberculosis (HIV-TB) co-infection remains to be elaborately discussed. Here, we discussed the association of immunosenescence and chronic immune activation in HIV-TB co-infection and reviewed the role played by mediators of immune deterioration in HIV-TB co-infection necessitating the importance of designing therapeutic strategies against HIV disease progression and pathogenesis. PMID:25674514
Lipids, adiposity and tendinopathy: is there a mechanistic link? Critical review
Scott, Alex; Zwerver, Johannes; Grewal, Navi; de Sa, Agnetha; Alktebi, Thuraya; Granville, David J; Hart, David A
Being overweight or obese is associated with an elevated risk of tendon pathology. However, for sportspeople the epidemiological data linking weight or adiposity on one hand, and risk of tendon pathology on the other, are less consistent. Indeed, the mechanistic links between diet, adiposity and tendon pathology remain largely unexamined. Recent studies have begun to examine the effects of dietary interventions on outcomes such as tendon biomechanics or pain. Oxidised low-density lipoprotein has been shown to (A) accumulate in the tendon tissues of mice that eat a fatty diet and (B) induce a pathological phenotype in human tendon cells. This paper addresses the current debate: is excessive body mass index (causing increased load and strain on tendon tissue) per se the underlying mechanism? Or do local or systemic influences of fat on tendons predispose to tendon pathology? This narrative review argues that excessive blood lipids may be an important avenue for clinical investigations. PMID:25488953
How do animal territories form and change? Lessons from 20 years of mechanistic modelling
Potts, Jonathan R.; Lewis, Mark A.
Territory formation is ubiquitous throughout the animal kingdom. At the individual level, various behaviours attempt to exclude conspecifics from regions of space. At the population level, animals often segregate into distinct territorial areas. Consequently, it should be possible to derive territorial patterns from the underlying behavioural processes of animal movements and interactions. Such derivations are an important element in the development of an ecological theory that can predict the effects of changing conditions on territorial populations. Here, we review the approaches developed over the past 20 years or so, which go under the umbrella of 'mechanistic territorial models'. We detail the two main strands to this research: partial differential equations and individual-based approaches, showing what each has offered to our understanding of territoriality and how they can be unified. We explain how they are related to other approaches to studying territories and home ranges, and point towards possible future directions. PMID:24741017
Joint modeling of the clinical progression and of the biomarkers' dynamics using a mechanistic model.
Guedj, Jeremie; Thiébaut, Rodolphe; Commenges, Daniel
Joint models are used to rigorously explore the relationship between the dynamics of biomarkers and clinical events. In the context of HIV infection, where the multivariate dynamics of HIV-RNA and CD4 are complex, a mechanistic approach based on a system of nonlinear differential equations naturally takes into account the correlation between the biomarkers. Using data from a randomized clinical trial comparing dual antiretroviral therapy to a single drug regimen, a full maximum likelihood approach is proposed to explore the relationship between the evolution of the biomarkers and the time to a clinical event. The role of each marker as an independent predictor of disease progression is assessed. We show that the joint dynamics of HIV-RNA and CD4 captures the effect of antiretroviral treatment; the CD4 dynamics alone is found to capture most but not all of the treatment effect. PMID:20377577
Mechanistic Studies on the Copper-Catalyzed N-Arylation of Amides
Strieter, Eric R.; Bhayana, Brijesh; Buchwald, Stephen L.
The copper-catalyzed N-arylation of amides, i.e., the Goldberg reaction, is an efficient method for the construction of products relevant to both industry and academic settings. Herein, we present mechanistic details concerning the catalytic and stoichiometric N-arylation of amides. In the context of the catalytic reaction, our findings reveal the importance of chelating diamine ligands in controlling the concentration of the active catalytic species. The consistency between the catalytic and stoichiometric results suggest that the activation of aryl halides occurs through a 1,2-diamine-ligated copper(I) amidate complex. Kinetic studies on the stoichiometric N-arylation of aryl iodides using 1,2-diamine ligated Cu(I) amidates also provide insights into the mechanism of aryl halide activation. PMID:19072233
Pollution and skin: from epidemiological and mechanistic studies to clinical implications.
Krutmann, Jean; Liu, Wei; Li, Li; Pan, Xiaochuan; Crawford, Martha; Sore, Gabrielle; Seite, Sophie
In recent years, the health effects associated with air pollution have been intensively studied. Most studies focus on air pollution effects on the lung and the cardiovascular system. More recently, however, epidemiological and mechanistic studies suggest that air pollution is also affecting skin integrity. This state-of-the-art review focuses on this latter aspect; it was developed with the collaboration of European and Chinese board of experts with specific interests in environmental health, clinical and basic research in dermatology and cosmetic dermatology. A literature review limited to pollution and health effects and (sensitive) skin was performed using PubMed. Review and original articles were chosen. We summarize the existing scientific evidence that air pollution exerts detrimental effects on human skin, discuss potential clinical implications and suggest specific and unspecific cosmetic protective measures. PMID:25278222
Mechanistic studies related to the safety of Li/SOCl2 cells
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Carter, B. J.; Williams, R. M.; Tsay, F. D.; Rodriguez, A.; Kim, S.; Evans, M. M.; Frank, H.
Mechanistic studies of the reactions in Li-SOCl2 cells have been undertaken to improve understanding of the safety problems of these cells. The electrochemical reduction of 1.5M LiAlCl4/SOCl2 has been investigated using gas chromatography, electron spin resonance spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. Cl2 and S2Cl2 have been identified as intermediates in the reduction of SOCl2, along with a radical species (g/xx/ = 2.004, g/yy/ = 2.016, g/zz/ = 2.008) and the proposed triplet ground-state dimer of this radical. SO2 and sulfur have been identified as products. Based upon these findings, a mechanism for the electrochemical reduction of 1.5M LiAlCl4/SOCl2 has been proposed, and its implications for safety of Li-SOCl2 cells during discharge to +0.5V at 25-30 C are discussed.
A dynamic, mechanistic model of metabolism in adipose tissue of lactating dairy cattle.
McNamara, J P; Huber, K; Kenéz, A
Research in dairy cattle biology has resulted in a large body of knowledge on nutrition and metabolism in support of milk production and efficiency. This quantitative knowledge has been compiled in several model systems to balance and evaluate rations and predict requirements. There are also systems models for metabolism and reproduction in the cow that can be used to support research programs. Adipose tissue plays a significant role in the success and efficiency of lactation, and recent research has resulted in several data sets on genomic differences and changes in gene transcription of adipose tissue in dairy cattle. To fully use this knowledge, we need to build and expand mechanistic, dynamic models that integrate control of metabolism and production. Therefore, we constructed a second-generation dynamic, mechanistic model of adipose tissue metabolism of dairy cattle. The model describes the biochemical interconversions of glucose, acetate, β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), glycerol, C16 fatty acids, and triacylglycerols. Data gathered from our own research and published references were used to set equation forms and parameter values. Acetate, glucose, BHB, and fatty acids are taken up from blood. The fatty acids are activated to the acyl coenzyme A moieties. Enzymatically catalyzed reactions are explicitly described with parameters including maximal velocity and substrate sensitivity. The control of enzyme activity is partially carried out by insulin and norepinephrine, portraying control in the cow. Model behavior was adequate, with sensitive responses to changing substrates and hormones. Increased nutrient uptake and increased insulin stimulate triacylglycerol synthesis, whereas a reduction in nutrient availability or increase in norepinephrine increases triacylglycerol hydrolysis and free fatty acid release to blood. This model can form a basis for more sophisticated integration of existing knowledge and future studies on metabolic efficiency of dairy cattle. PMID
Fetal programming of CVD and renal disease: animal models and mechanistic considerations.
Langley-Evans, Simon C
The developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis postulates that exposure to a less than optimal maternal environment during fetal development programmes physiological function, and determines risk of disease in adult life. Much evidence of such programming comes from retrospective epidemiological cohorts, which demonstrate associations between birth anthropometry and non-communicable diseases of adulthood. The assertion that variation in maternal nutrition drives these associations is supported by studies using animal models, which demonstrate that maternal under- or over-nutrition during pregnancy can programme offspring development. Typically, the offspring of animals that are undernourished in pregnancy exhibit a relatively narrow range of physiological phenotypes that includes higher blood pressure, glucose intolerance, renal insufficiency and increased adiposity. The observation that common phenotypes arise from very diverse maternal nutritional insults has led to the proposal that programming is driven by a small number of mechanistic processes. The remodelling of tissues during development as a consequence of maternal nutritional status being signalled by endocrine imbalance or key nutrients limiting processes in the fetus may lead to organs having irreversibly altered structures that may limit their function with ageing. It has been proposed that the maternal diet may impact upon epigenetic marks that determine gene expression in fetal tissues, and this may be an important mechanism connecting maternal nutrient intakes to long-term programming of offspring phenotype. The objective for this review is to provide an overview of the mechanistic basis of fetal programming, demonstrating the critical role of animal models as tools for the investigation of programming phenomena. PMID:23312451
Reduction of Carbon Dioxide by a Molybdenum-Containing Formate Dehydrogenase: A Kinetic and Mechanistic Study.
Maia, Luisa B; Fonseca, Luis; Moura, Isabel; Moura, José J G
Carbon dioxide accumulation is a major concern for the ecosystems, but its abundance and low cost make it an interesting source for the production of chemical feedstocks and fuels. However, the thermodynamic and kinetic stability of the carbon dioxide molecule makes its activation a challenging task. Studying the chemistry used by nature to functionalize carbon dioxide should be helpful for the development of new efficient (bio)catalysts for atmospheric carbon dioxide utilization. In this work, the ability of Desulfovibrio desulfuricans formate dehydrogenase (Dd FDH) to reduce carbon dioxide was kinetically and mechanistically characterized. The Dd FDH is suggested to be purified in an inactive form that has to be activated through a reduction-dependent mechanism. A kinetic model of a hysteretic enzyme is proposed to interpret and predict the progress curves of the Dd FDH-catalyzed reactions (initial lag phase and subsequent faster phase). Once activated, Dd FDH is able to efficiently catalyze, not only the formate oxidation (kcat of 543 s(-1), Km of 57.1 μM), but also the carbon dioxide reduction (kcat of 46.6 s(-1), Km of 15.7 μM), in an overall reaction that is thermodynamically and kinetically reversible. Noteworthy, both Dd FDH-catalyzed formate oxidation and carbon dioxide reduction are completely inactivated by cyanide. Current FDH reaction mechanistic proposals are discussed and a different mechanism is here suggested: formate oxidation and carbon dioxide reduction are proposed to proceed through hydride transfer and the sulfo group of the oxidized and reduced molybdenum center, Mo(6+)═S and Mo(4+)-SH, are suggested to be the direct hydride acceptor and donor, respectively. PMID:27348246
Mechanistic Variants in Gas-Phase Metal-Oxide Mediated Activation of Methane at Ambient Conditions.
Li, Jilai; Zhou, Shaodong; Zhang, Jun; Schlangen, Maria; Usharani, Dandamudi; Shaik, Sason; Schwarz, Helmut
The C-H bond activation of methane mediated by a prototypical heteronuclear metal-oxide cluster, [Al2Mg2O5](•+), was investigated by using Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS) in conjunction with high-level quantum mechanical calculations. Experimentally, hydrogen-atom abstraction from methane by the cluster ion [Al2Mg2O5](•+) takes place at ambient conditions. As to the mechanism, according to our computational findings, both the proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) and the conventional hydrogen-atom transfer (HAT) are feasible and compete with each other. This is in distinct contrast to the [XYO2](+) (X, Y = Mg, Al, Si) cluster oxide ions which activate methane exclusively via the PCET route (Li, J.; Zhou, S.; Zhang, J.; Schlangen, M.; Weiske, T.; Usharani, D.; Shaik, S.; Schwarz, H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2016, 138, 7973-7981). The electronic origins of the mechanistically rather complex reactivity scenarios of the [Al2Mg2O5](•+)/CH4 couple were elucidated. For the PCET mechanism, in which the Lewis acid-base pair [Al(+)-O(-)] of the cluster acts as the active site, a clear correlation has been established between the nature of the transition state, the corresponding barrier height, the Lewis acidity-basicity of the [M(+)-O(-)] unit, as well as the bond order of the M(+)-O(-) bond. Also addressed is the role of the spin and charge distributions of a terminal oxygen radical site in the direct HAT route. The knowledge of the factors that control the reactivity of PCET and HAT pathways not only deepens our mechanistic understanding of metal-oxide mediated C-H bond activation but may also provide guidance for the rational design of catalysts. PMID:27518766
A mechanistic model for electricity consumption on dairy farms: definition, validation, and demonstration.
Upton, J; Murphy, M; Shalloo, L; Groot Koerkamp, P W G; De Boer, I J M
Our objective was to define and demonstrate a mechanistic model that enables dairy farmers to explore the impact of a technical or managerial innovation on electricity consumption, associated CO2 emissions, and electricity costs. We, therefore, (1) defined a model for electricity consumption on dairy farms (MECD) capable of simulating total electricity consumption along with related CO2 emissions and electricity costs on dairy farms on a monthly basis; (2) validated the MECD using empirical data of 1yr on commercial spring calving, grass-based dairy farms with 45, 88, and 195 milking cows; and (3) demonstrated the functionality of the model by applying 2 electricity tariffs to the electricity consumption data and examining the effect on total dairy farm electricity costs. The MECD was developed using a mechanistic modeling approach and required the key inputs of milk production, cow number, and details relating to the milk-cooling system, milking machine system, water-heating system, lighting systems, water pump systems, and the winter housing facilities as well as details relating to the management of the farm (e.g., season of calving). Model validation showed an overall relative prediction error (RPE) of less than 10% for total electricity consumption. More than 87% of the mean square prediction error of total electricity consumption was accounted for by random variation. The RPE values of the milk-cooling systems, water-heating systems, and milking machine systems were less than 20%. The RPE values for automatic scraper systems, lighting systems, and water pump systems varied from 18 to 113%, indicating a poor prediction for these metrics. However, automatic scrapers, lighting, and water pumps made up only 14% of total electricity consumption across all farms, reducing the overall impact of these poor predictions. Demonstration of the model showed that total farm electricity costs increased by between 29 and 38% by moving from a day and night tariff to a flat
Exploring BSEP inhibition-mediated toxicity with a mechanistic model of drug-induced liver injury
Woodhead, Jeffrey L.; Yang, Kyunghee; Siler, Scott Q.; Watkins, Paul B.; Brouwer, Kim L. R.; Barton, Hugh A.; Howell, Brett A.
Inhibition of the bile salt export pump (BSEP) has been linked to incidence of drug-induced liver injury (DILI), presumably by the accumulation of toxic bile acids in the liver. We have previously constructed and validated a model of bile acid disposition within DILIsym®, a mechanistic model of DILI. In this paper, we use DILIsym® to simulate the DILI response of the hepatotoxic BSEP inhibitors bosentan and CP-724,714 and the non-hepatotoxic BSEP inhibitor telmisartan in humans in order to explore whether we can predict that hepatotoxic BSEP inhibitors can cause bile acid accumulation to reach toxic levels. We also simulate bosentan in rats in order to illuminate potential reasons behind the lack of toxicity in rats compared to the toxicity observed in humans. DILIsym® predicts that bosentan, but not telmisartan, will cause mild hepatocellular ATP decline and serum ALT elevation in a simulated population of humans. The difference in hepatotoxic potential between bosentan and telmisartan is consistent with clinical observations. However, DILIsym® underpredicts the incidence of bosentan toxicity. DILIsym® also predicts that bosentan will not cause toxicity in a simulated population of rats, and that the difference between the response to bosentan in rats and in humans is primarily due to the less toxic bile acid pool in rats. Our simulations also suggest a potential synergistic role for bile acid accumulation and mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) inhibition in producing the observed toxicity in CP-724,714, and suggest that CP-724,714 metabolites may also play a role in the observed toxicity. Our work also compares the impact of competitive and noncompetitive BSEP inhibition for CP-724,714 and demonstrates that noncompetitive inhibition leads to much greater bile acid accumulation and potential toxicity. Our research demonstrates the potential for mechanistic modeling to contribute to the understanding of how bile acid transport inhibitors cause DILI
A Mechanistic Beta-Binomial Probability Model for mRNA Sequencing Data
Smith, Gregory R.; Birtwistle, Marc R.
A main application for mRNA sequencing (mRNAseq) is determining lists of differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) between two or more conditions. Several software packages exist to produce DEGs from mRNAseq data, but they typically yield different DEGs, sometimes markedly so. The underlying probability model used to describe mRNAseq data is central to deriving DEGs, and not surprisingly most softwares use different models and assumptions to analyze mRNAseq data. Here, we propose a mechanistic justification to model mRNAseq as a binomial process, with data from technical replicates given by a binomial distribution, and data from biological replicates well-described by a beta-binomial distribution. We demonstrate good agreement of this model with two large datasets. We show that an emergent feature of the beta-binomial distribution, given parameter regimes typical for mRNAseq experiments, is the well-known quadratic polynomial scaling of variance with the mean. The so-called dispersion parameter controls this scaling, and our analysis suggests that the dispersion parameter is a continually decreasing function of the mean, as opposed to current approaches that impose an asymptotic value to the dispersion parameter at moderate mean read counts. We show how this leads to current approaches overestimating variance for moderately to highly expressed genes, which inflates false negative rates. Describing mRNAseq data with a beta-binomial distribution thus may be preferred since its parameters are relatable to the mechanistic underpinnings of the technique and may improve the consistency of DEG analysis across softwares, particularly for moderately to highly expressed genes. PMID:27326762
Advancements in the mechanistic understanding of the copper-catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition
Summary The copper-catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) is one of the most broadly applicable and easy-to-handle reactions in the arsenal of organic chemistry. However, the mechanistic understanding of this reaction has lagged behind the plethora of its applications for a long time. As reagent mixtures of copper salts and additives are commonly used in CuAAC reactions, the structure of the catalytically active species itself has remained subject to speculation, which can be attributed to the multifaceted aggregation chemistry of copper(I) alkyne and acetylide complexes. Following an introductory section on common catalyst systems in CuAAC reactions, this review will highlight experimental and computational studies from early proposals to very recent and more sophisticated investigations, which deliver more detailed insights into the CuAAC's catalytic cycle and the species involved. As diverging mechanistic views are presented in articles, books and online resources, we intend to present the research efforts in this field during the past decade and finally give an up-to-date picture of the currently accepted dinuclear mechanism of CuAAC. Additionally, we hope to inspire research efforts on the development of molecularly defined copper(I) catalysts with defined structural characteristics, whose main advantage in contrast to the regularly used precatalyst reagent mixtures is twofold: on the one hand, the characteristics of molecularly defined, well soluble catalysts can be tuned according to the particular requirements of the experiment; on the other hand, the understanding of the CuAAC reaction mechanism can be further advanced by kinetic studies and the isolation and characterization of key intermediates. PMID:24367437
Advancements in the mechanistic understanding of the copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition.
Berg, Regina; Straub, Bernd F
The copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) is one of the most broadly applicable and easy-to-handle reactions in the arsenal of organic chemistry. However, the mechanistic understanding of this reaction has lagged behind the plethora of its applications for a long time. As reagent mixtures of copper salts and additives are commonly used in CuAAC reactions, the structure of the catalytically active species itself has remained subject to speculation, which can be attributed to the multifaceted aggregation chemistry of copper(I) alkyne and acetylide complexes. Following an introductory section on common catalyst systems in CuAAC reactions, this review will highlight experimental and computational studies from early proposals to very recent and more sophisticated investigations, which deliver more detailed insights into the CuAAC's catalytic cycle and the species involved. As diverging mechanistic views are presented in articles, books and online resources, we intend to present the research efforts in this field during the past decade and finally give an up-to-date picture of the currently accepted dinuclear mechanism of CuAAC. Additionally, we hope to inspire research efforts on the development of molecularly defined copper(I) catalysts with defined structural characteristics, whose main advantage in contrast to the regularly used precatalyst reagent mixtures is twofold: on the one hand, the characteristics of molecularly defined, well soluble catalysts can be tuned according to the particular requirements of the experiment; on the other hand, the understanding of the CuAAC reaction mechanism can be further advanced by kinetic studies and the isolation and characterization of key intermediates. PMID:24367437
Mechanistic models for the spatial spread of species under climate change.
Leroux, Shawn J; Larrivée, Maxim; Boucher-Lalonde, Véronique; Hurford, Amy; Zuloaga, Juan; Kerr, Jeremy T; Lutscher, Frithjof
Global climate change is a major threat to biodiversity. The most common methods for predicting the response of biodiversity to changing climate do not explicitly incorporate fundamental evolutionary and ecological processes that determine species responses to changing climate, such as reproduction, dispersal, and adaptation. We provide an overview of an emerging mechanistic spatial theory of species range shifts under climate change. This theoretical framework explicitly defines the ecological processes that contribute to species range shifts via biologically meaningful dispersal, reproductive, and climate envelope parameters. We present methods for estimating the parameters of the model with widely available species occurrence and abundance data and then apply these methods to empirical data for 12 North American butterfly species to illustrate the potential use of the theory for global change biology. The model predicts species persistence in light of current climate change and habitat loss. On average, we estimate that the climate envelopes of our study species are shifting north at a rate of 3.25 +/- 1.36 km/yr (mean +/- SD) and that our study species produce 3.46 +/- 1.39 (mean +/- SD) viable offspring per individual per year. Based on our parameter estimates, we are able to predict the relative risk of our 12 study species for lagging behind changing climate. This theoretical framework improves predictions of global change outcomes by facilitating the development and testing of hypotheses, providing mechanistic predictions of current and future range dynamics, and encouraging the adaptive integration of theory and data. The theory is ripe for future developments such as the incorporation of biotic interactions and evolution of adaptations to novel climatic conditions, and it has the potential to be a catalyst for the development of more effective conservation strategies to mitigate losses of biodiversity from global climate change. PMID:23865232
A minimal mechanistic model for temporal signal processing in the lateral geniculate nucleus.
Norheim, Eivind S; Wyller, John; Nordlie, Eilen; Einevoll, Gaute T
The receptive fields of cells in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) are shaped by their diverse set of impinging inputs: feedforward synaptic inputs stemming from retina, and feedback inputs stemming from the visual cortex and the thalamic reticular nucleus. To probe the possible roles of these feedforward and feedback inputs in shaping the temporal receptive-field structure of LGN relay cells, we here present and investigate a minimal mechanistic firing-rate model tailored to elucidate their disparate features. The model for LGN relay ON cells includes feedforward excitation and inhibition (via interneurons) from retinal ON cells and excitatory and inhibitory (via thalamic reticular nucleus cells and interneurons) feedback from cortical ON and OFF cells. From a general firing-rate model formulated in terms of Volterra integral equations, we derive a single delay differential equation with absolute delay governing the dynamics of the system. A freely available and easy-to-use GUI-based MATLAB version of this minimal mechanistic LGN circuit model is provided. We particularly investigate the LGN relay-cell impulse response and find through thorough explorations of the model's parameter space that both purely feedforward models and feedback models with feedforward excitation only, can account quantitatively for previously reported experimental results. We find, however, that the purely feedforward model predicts two impulse response measures, the time to first peak and the biphasic index (measuring the relative weight of the rebound phase) to be anticorrelated. In contrast, the models with feedback predict different correlations between these two measures. This suggests an experimental test assessing the relative importance of feedforward and feedback connections in shaping the impulse response of LGN relay cells. PMID:23730357
Explicit kinetic heterogeneity: mechanistic models for interpretation of labeling data in heterogeneous populations
Ganusov, Vitaly V
Estimation of division and death rates of lymphocytes in different conditions is vital for quantitative understanding of the immune system. Deuterium, in the form of deuterated glucose or heavy water, can be used to measure rates of proliferation and death of lymphocytes in vivo. Inferring these rates from labeling and delabeling curves has been subject to considerable debate with different groups suggesting different mathematical models for that purpose. We show that the three models that are most commonly used are in fact mathematically identical and differ only in their interpretation of the estimated parameters. By extending these previous models, we here propose a more mechanistic approach for the analysis of data from deuterium labeling experiments. We construct a model of 'kinetic heterogeneity' in which the total cell population consists of many sub-populations with different rates of cell turnover. In this model, for a given distribution of the rates of turnover, the predicted fraction of labeled DNA accumulated and lost can be calculated. Our model reproduces several previously made experimental observations, such as a negative correlation between the length of the labeling period and the rate at which labeled DNA is lost after label cessation. We demonstrate the reliability of the new explicit kinetic heterogeneity model by applying it to artificially generated datasets, and illustrate its usefulness by fitting experimental data. In contrast to previous models, the explicit kinetic heterogeneity model (1) provides a mechanistic way of interpreting labeling data; (2) allows for a non-exponential loss of labeled cells during delabeling, and (3) can be used to describe data with variable labeling length.
Mechanistic insights on the Dicer-independent AGO2-mediated processing of AgoshRNAs.
Liu, Ying Poi; Karg, Margarete; Harwig, Alex; Herrera-Carrillo, Elena; Jongejan, Aldo; van Kampen, Antoine; Berkhout, Ben
Short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) are widely used for gene knockdown by inducing the RNA interference (RNAi) mechanism, both for research and therapeutic purposes. The shRNA precursor is processed by the RNase III-like enzyme Dicer into biologically active small interfering RNA (siRNA). This effector molecule subsequently targets a complementary mRNA for destruction via the Argonaute 2 (AGO2) complex. The cellular role of Dicer concerns the processing of pre-miRNAs into mature microRNA (miRNA). Recently, a non-canonical pathway was reported for the biogenesis of miR-451, which bypasses Dicer and is processed instead by the slicer activity of AGO2, followed by the regular AGO2-mediated mRNA targeting step. Interestingly, shRNA designs that are characterized by a relatively short basepaired stem also bypass Dicer to be processed by AGO2. We named this design AgoshRNA as these molecules depend on AGO2 both for processing and silencing activity. In this study, we investigated diverse mechanistic aspects of this new class of AgoshRNA molecules. We probed the requirements for AGO2-mediated processing of AgoshRNAs by modification of the proposed cleavage site in the hairpin. We demonstrate by deep sequencing that AGO2-processed AgoshRNAs produce RNA effector molecules with more discrete ends than the products of the regular shRNA design. Furthermore, we tested whether trimming and tailing occurs upon AGO2-mediated processing of AgoshRNAs, similar to what has been described for miR-451. Finally, we tested the prediction that AgoshRNA activity, unlike that of regular shRNAs, is maintained in Dicer-deficient cell types. These mechanistic insights could aid in the design of optimised AgoshRNA tools and therapeutics. PMID:25826416
Descriptive vs. mechanistic network models in plant development in the post-genomic era.
Davila-Velderrain, J; Martinez-Garcia, J C; Alvarez-Buylla, E R
Network modeling is now a widespread practice in systems biology, as well as in integrative genomics, and it constitutes a rich and diverse scientific research field. A conceptually clear understanding of the reasoning behind the main existing modeling approaches, and their associated technical terminologies, is required to avoid confusions and accelerate the transition towards an undeniable necessary more quantitative, multidisciplinary approach to biology. Herein, we focus on two main network-based modeling approaches that are commonly used depending on the information available and the intended goals: inference-based methods and system dynamics approaches. As far as data-based network inference methods are concerned, they enable the discovery of potential functional influences among molecular components. On the other hand, experimentally grounded network dynamical models have been shown to be perfectly suited for the mechanistic study of developmental processes. How do these two perspectives relate to each other? In this chapter, we describe and compare both approaches and then apply them to a given specific developmental module. Along with the step-by-step practical implementation of each approach, we also focus on discussing their respective goals, utility, assumptions, and associated limitations. We use the gene regulatory network (GRN) involved in Arabidopsis thaliana Root Stem Cell Niche patterning as our illustrative example. We show that descriptive models based on functional genomics data can provide important background information consistent with experimentally supported functional relationships integrated in mechanistic GRN models. The rationale of analysis and modeling can be applied to any other well-characterized functional developmental module in multicellular organisms, like plants and animals. PMID:25757787
Mechanistic modelling of fluidized bed drying processes of wet porous granules: a review.
Mortier, Séverine Thérèse F C; De Beer, Thomas; Gernaey, Krist V; Remon, Jean Paul; Vervaet, Chris; Nopens, Ingmar
Fluidized bed dryers are frequently used in industrial applications and also in the pharmaceutical industry. The general incentives to develop mechanistic models for pharmaceutical processes are listed, and our vision on how this can particularly be done for fluidized bed drying processes of wet granules is given. This review provides a basis for future mechanistic model development for the drying process of wet granules in pharmaceutical processes. It is intended for a broad audience with a varying level of knowledge on pharmaceutical processes and mathematical modelling. Mathematical models are powerful tools to gain process insight and eventually develop well-controlled processes. The level of detail embedded in such a model depends on the goal of the model. Several models have therefore been proposed in the literature and are reviewed here. The drying behaviour of one single granule, a porous particle, can be described using the continuum approach, the pore network modelling method and the shrinkage of the diameter of the wet core approach. As several granules dry at a drying rate dependent on the gas temperature, gas velocity, porosity, etc., the moisture content of a batch of granules will reside in a certain interval. Population Balance Model (ling) (PBM) offers a tool to describe the distribution of particle properties which can be of interest for the application. PBM formulation and solution methods are therefore reviewed. In a fluidized bed, the granules show a fluidization pattern depending on the geometry of the gas inlet, the gas velocity, characteristics of the particles, the dryer design, etc. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) allows to model this behaviour. Moreover, turbulence can be modelled using several approaches: Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes Equations (RANS) or Large Eddy Simulation (LES). Another important aspect of CFD is the choice between the Eulerian-Lagrangian and the Eulerian-Eulerian approach. Finally, the PBM and CFD frameworks
A Mechanistic Beta-Binomial Probability Model for mRNA Sequencing Data.
Smith, Gregory R; Birtwistle, Marc R
A main application for mRNA sequencing (mRNAseq) is determining lists of differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) between two or more conditions. Several software packages exist to produce DEGs from mRNAseq data, but they typically yield different DEGs, sometimes markedly so. The underlying probability model used to describe mRNAseq data is central to deriving DEGs, and not surprisingly most softwares use different models and assumptions to analyze mRNAseq data. Here, we propose a mechanistic justification to model mRNAseq as a binomial process, with data from technical replicates given by a binomial distribution, and data from biological replicates well-described by a beta-binomial distribution. We demonstrate good agreement of this model with two large datasets. We show that an emergent feature of the beta-binomial distribution, given parameter regimes typical for mRNAseq experiments, is the well-known quadratic polynomial scaling of variance with the mean. The so-called dispersion parameter controls this scaling, and our analysis suggests that the dispersion parameter is a continually decreasing function of the mean, as opposed to current approaches that impose an asymptotic value to the dispersion parameter at moderate mean read counts. We show how this leads to current approaches overestimating variance for moderately to highly expressed genes, which inflates false negative rates. Describing mRNAseq data with a beta-binomial distribution thus may be preferred since its parameters are relatable to the mechanistic underpinnings of the technique and may improve the consistency of DEG analysis across softwares, particularly for moderately to highly expressed genes. PMID:27326762
Mechanistic Investigation of the Biological Effects of SiO₂, TiO₂, and ZnO Nanoparticles on Intestinal Cells.
Setyawati, Magdiel I; Tay, Chor Yong; Leong, David T
Silicon dioxide (SiO2), titanium dioxide (TiO2), and zinc oxide (ZnO) are currently among the most widely used nanoparticles (NPs) in the food industry. This could potentially lead to unintended exposure of the gastrointestinal tract to these NPs. This study aims to investigate the potential side-effects of these food-borne NPs on intestinal cells and to mechanistically understand the observed biological responses. Among the panel of tested NPs, ZnO NPs are the most toxic. Consistently in all three tested intestinal cell models, ZnO NPs invoke the most inflammatory responses from the cells and induce the highest intracellular production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The elevated ROS levels induce significant damage to the DNA of the cells, resulting in cell-cycle arrest and subsequently cell death. In contrast, both SiO2 and TiO2 NPs elicit minimum biological responses from the intestinal cells. Overall, the study showcases the varying capability of the food-borne NPs to induce a cellular response in the intestinal cells. In addition to physicochemical differences in the NPs, the genetic landscape of the intestinal cell models governs the toxicology profile of these food-borne NPs. PMID:25902938
Accelerated Profile HMM Searches
Eddy, Sean R.
Profile hidden Markov models (profile HMMs) and probabilistic inference methods have made important contributions to the theory of sequence database homology search. However, practical use of profile HMM methods has been hindered by the computational expense of existing software implementations. Here I describe an acceleration heuristic for profile HMMs, the "multiple segment Viterbi" (MSV) algorithm. The MSV algorithm computes an optimal sum of multiple ungapped local alignment segments using a striped vector-parallel approach previously described for fast Smith/Waterman alignment. MSV scores follow the same statistical distribution as gapped optimal local alignment scores, allowing rapid evaluation of significance of an MSV score and thus facilitating its use as a heuristic filter. I also describe a 20-fold acceleration of the standard profile HMM Forward/Backward algorithms using a method I call "sparse rescaling". These methods are assembled in a pipeline in which high-scoring MSV hits are passed on for reanalysis with the full HMM Forward/Backward algorithm. This accelerated pipeline is implemented in the freely available HMMER3 software package. Performance benchmarks show that the use of the heuristic MSV filter sacrifices negligible sensitivity compared to unaccelerated profile HMM searches. HMMER3 is substantially more sensitive and 100- to 1000-fold faster than HMMER2. HMMER3 is now about as fast as BLAST for protein searches. PMID:22039361
J. Huffer
The purpose of this calculation is to develop axial profiles for estimating the axial variation in burnup of a boiling water reactor (BWR) assembly spent nuclear fuel (SNF) given the average burnup of an assembly. A discharged fuel assembly typically exhibits higher burnup in the center and lower burnup at the ends of the assembly. Criticality safety analyses taking credit for SNF burnup must account for axially varying burnup relative to calculations based on uniformly distributed assembly average burnup due to the under-burned tips. Thus, accounting for axially varying burnup in criticality analyses is also referred to as accounting for the ''end effect'' reactivity. The magnitude of the reactivity change due to ''end effect'' is dependent on the initial assembly enrichment, the assembly average burnup, and the particular axial profile characterizing the burnup distribution. The set of bounding axial profiles should incorporate multiple BWR core designs and provide statistical confidence (95 percent confidence that 95 percent of the population is bound by the profile) that end nodes are conservatively represented. The profiles should also conserve the overall burnup of the fuel assembly. More background on BWR axial profiles is provided in Attachment I.
Feature Profile Evolution of SiO2 Trenches In Fluorocarbon Plasmas
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hwang, Helen; Govindan, T. R.; Meyyappan, M.; Arunachalam, Valli; Rauf, Shahid; Coronell, Dan; Carroll, Carol W. (Technical Monitor)
Etching of silicon microstructures for semiconductor manufacturing in chlorine plasmas has been well characterized. The etching proceeds in a two-part process, where the chlorine neutrals passivate the Si surface and then the ions etch away SiClx. However, etching in more complicated gas mixtures and materials, such as etching of SiO2 in Ar/C4F8, requires knowledge of the ion and neutral distribution functions as a function of angle and velocity, in addition to modeling the gas surface reactions. In order to address these needs, we have developed and integrated a suite of models to simulate the etching process from the plasma reactor level to the feature profile evolution level. This arrangement allows for a better understanding, control, and prediction of the influence of equipment level process parameters on feature profile evolution. We are currently using the HPEM (Hybrid Plasma Equipment Model) and PCMCM (Plasma Chemistry Monte Carlo Model) to generate plasma properties and ion and neutral distribution functions for argon/fluorocarbon discharges in a GEC Reference Cell. These quantities are then input to the feature scale model, Simulation of Profile Evolution by Level Sets (SPELS). A surface chemistry model is used to determine the interaction of the incoming species with the substrate material and simulate the evolution of the trench profile. The impact of change of gas pressure and inductive power on the relative flux of CFx and F to the wafer, the etch and polymerization rates, and feature profiles will be examined. Comparisons to experimental profiles will also be presented.
At the Intersection of Attention and Memory: The Mechanistic Role of the Posterior Parietal Lobe in Working Memory
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Berryhill, Marian E.; Chein, Jason; Olson, Ingrid R.
Portions of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) play a role in working memory (WM) yet the precise mechanistic function of this region remains poorly understood. The "pure storage" hypothesis proposes that this region functions as a short-lived modality-specific memory store. Alternatively, the "internal attention" hypothesis proposes that the PPC…
Mechanistic aspects of the gas-phase coupling of thioanisole and chlorobenzene to dibenzothiophene catalyzed by atomic Ho(+).
Zhou, Shaodong; Schlangen, Maria; Schwarz, Helmut
Mechanistic aspects of the novel gas-phase generation of dibenzothiophene via coupling of thioanisole and chlorobenzene, employing atomic Ho(+) as a catalyst, have been investigated using Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry in conjunction with density functional theory (DFT) calculations. PMID:25765339
Mechanistic Aspects of the Palladium-Catalyzed Isomerization of Allenic Sulfones to 1-Arylsulfonyl 1,3-Dienes.
Hampton, Carissa S; Harmata, Michael
When an allenic sulfone is treated under palladium catalysis in the presence of a weak acid, isomerization to a 1-arylsulfonyl 1,3-diene occurs. Investigations of the mechanistic aspects of this isomerization were performed, leading to the mechanism proposed herein. Some further studies of reaction parameters are reported. PMID:27127922
A mechanistic model to predict the capture of gas phase mercury species using in-situ generated titania nanosize particles activated by UV irradiation is developed. The model is an extension of a recently reported model1 for photochemical reactions that accounts for the rates of...
Mechanistic models as a transferable framework for projecting effects of habitat change on production and delivery of ecosystem services
Drawing a link between habitat change and the production and delivery of ecosystem services is a priority in coastal estuarine ecosystems. Mechanistic modeling tools are highly functional for exploring this link because they allow for the synthesis of multiple ecological and beh...
Gene arrays for elucidating mechanistic data from models of male infertility and chemical exposure in mice, rats and humans
John C. Rockett and David J. Dix
Gamete and Early Embryo Biology Branch, Reproductive Toxicology Division, National Health and Environmental Effects ...
By necessity, most molecular and biochemical toxicology research is conducted using in vitro models which vary in their ability to approximate toxic responses at the organismal level. Validating the relevance of in vitro mechanistic findings in vivo would lead to increased confid...
Microbial community dynamics in soil aggregates shape biogeochemical gas fluxes from soil profiles - upscaling an aggregate biophysical model.
Ebrahimi, Ali; Or, Dani
Microbial communities inhabiting soil aggregates dynamically adjust their activity and composition in response to variations in hydration and other external conditions. These rapid dynamics shape signatures of biogeochemical activity and gas fluxes emitted from soil profiles. Recent mechanistic models of microbial processes in unsaturated aggregate-like pore networks revealed a highly dynamic interplay between oxic and anoxic microsites jointly shaped by hydration conditions and by aerobic and anaerobic microbial community abundance and self-organization. The spatial extent of anoxic niches (hotspots) flicker in time (hot moments) and support substantial anaerobic microbial activity even in aerated soil profiles. We employed an individual-based model for microbial community life in soil aggregate assemblies represented by 3D angular pore networks. Model aggregates of different sizes were subjected to variable water, carbon and oxygen contents that varied with soil depth as boundary conditions. The study integrates microbial activity within aggregates of different sizes and soil depth to obtain estimates of biogeochemical fluxes from the soil profile. The results quantify impacts of dynamic shifts in microbial community composition on CO2 and N2 O production rates in soil profiles in good agreement with experimental data. Aggregate size distribution and the shape of resource profiles in a soil determine how hydration dynamics shape denitrification and carbon utilization rates. Results from the mechanistic model for microbial activity in aggregates of different sizes were used to derive parameters for analytical representation of soil biogeochemical processes across large scales of practical interest for hydrological and climate models. PMID:27152862
The upper and lower limits of the mechanistic stoichiometry of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Stoichiometry of oxidative phosphorylation.
Beavis, A D; Lehninger, A L
Determination of the intrinsic or mechanistic P/O ratio of oxidative phosphorylation is difficult because of the unknown magnitude of leak fluxes. Applying a new approach developed to overcome this problem (see our preceding paper in this journal), the relationships between the rate of O2 uptake [( Jo)3], the net rate of phosphorylation (Jp), the P/O ratio, and the respiratory control ratio (RCR) have been determined in rat liver mitochondria when the rate of phosphorylation was systematically varied by three specific means. (a) When phosphorylation is titrated with carboxyatractyloside, linear relationships are observed between Jp and (Jo)3. These data indicate that the upper limit of the mechanistic P/O ratio is 1.80 for succinate and 2.90 for 3-hydroxybutyrate oxidation. (b) Titration with malonate or antimycin yields linear relationships between Jp and (Jo)3. These data give the lower limit of the mechanistic P/O ratio of 1.63 for succinate and 2.66 for 3-hydroxybutyrate oxidation. (c) Titration with a protonophore yields linear relationships between Jp, (Jo)3, and (Jo)4 and between P/O and 1/RCR. Extrapolation of the P/O ratio to 1/RCR = 0 yields P/O ratios of 1.75 for succinate and 2.73 for 3-hydroxybutyrate oxidation which must be equal to or greater than the mechanistic stoichiometry. When published values for the H+/O and H+/ATP ejection ratios are taken into consideration, these measurements suggest that the mechanistic P/O ratio is 1.75 for succinate oxidation and 2.75 for NADH oxidation. PMID:3015613
Practical Differential Profiling
Schulz, M; De Supinski, B R
Comparing performance profiles from two runs is an essential performance analysis step that users routinely perform. In this work we present eGprof, a tool that facilitates these comparisons through differential profiling inside gprof. We chose this approach, rather than designing a new tool, since gprof is one of the few performance analysis tools accepted and used by a large community of users. eGprof allows users to 'subtract' two performance profiles directly. It also includes callgraph visualization to highlight the differences in graphical form. Along with the design of this tool, we present several case studies that show how eGprof can be used to find and to study the differences of two application executions quickly and hence can aid the user in this most common step in performance analysis. We do this without requiring major changes on the side of the user, the most important factor in guaranteeing the adoption of our tool by code teams.
Provider 1997 corporate profiles.
As the long term care industry seeks out new products, new solutions, and new ways of providing quality care, it is important for long term care providers to know more about the companies they do business with. The following corporate profiles showcase information about leading companies in the long term health care industry. Some of the areas highlighted include: mission of company, history, product lines, support services. We hope you will find this information useful when making purchasing decisions, and we're confident you'll keep this issue of Provider as a handy reference guide. The information in the following corporate profiles was supplied by the companies. Neither Provider magazine nor the American Health Care Association endorses the products and services listed in this section. Provider magazine and the American Health Care Association disclaim any and all liability related to or arising from the information contained in the profiles. PMID:10166888
Not Available
Country Profile: Hungary has been prepared as a background document for use by US Government agencies and US businesses interested in becoming involved with the new democracies of Eastern Europe as they pursue sustainable economic development. The focus of the Profile is on energy and highlights information on Hungary's energy supply, demand, and utilization. It identifies patterns of energy usage in the important economic sectors, especially industry, and provides a preliminary assessment for opportunities to improve efficiencies in energy production, distribution and use by introducing more efficient technologies. The use of more efficient technologies would have the added benefit of reducing the environmental impact which, although is not the focus of the report, is an issue that effects energy choices. The Profile also presents considerable economic information, primarily in the context of how economic restructuring may affect energy supply, demand, and the introduction of more efficient technologies.
Not Available
Country Profile: Hungary has been prepared as a background document for use by US Government agencies and US businesses interested in becoming involved with the new democracies of Eastern Europe as they pursue sustainable economic development. The focus of the Profile is on energy and highlights information on Hungary`s energy supply, demand, and utilization. It identifies patterns of energy usage in the important economic sectors, especially industry, and provides a preliminary assessment for opportunities to improve efficiencies in energy production, distribution and use by introducing more efficient technologies. The use of more efficient technologies would have the added benefit of reducing the environmental impact which, although is not the focus of the report, is an issue that effects energy choices. The Profile also presents considerable economic information, primarily in the context of how economic restructuring may affect energy supply, demand, and the introduction of more efficient technologies.
Menikoff, Ralph
The Zel'dovich-von Neumann-Doering (ZND) profile of a detonation wave is derived. Two basic assumptions are required: i. An equation of state (EOS) for a partly burned explosive; P(V, e, λ). ii. A burn rate for the reaction progress variable; d/dt λ = R(V, e, λ). For a steady planar detonation wave the reactive flow PDEs can be reduced to ODEs. The detonation wave profile can be determined from an ODE plus algebraic equations for points on the partly burned detonation loci with a specified wave speed. Furthermore, for the CJ detonation speed the end of the reaction zone is sonic. A solution to the reactive flow equations can be constructed with a rarefaction wave following the detonation wave profile. This corresponds to an underdriven detonation wave, and the rarefaction is know as a Taylor wave.
Temperamental Profiles of Dysregulated Children
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Althoff, Robert R.; Ayer, Lynsay A.; Crehan, Eileen T.; Rettew, David C.; Baer, Julie R.; Hudziak, James J.
It is crucial to characterize self-regulation in children. We compared the temperamental profiles of children with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) Dysregulation Profile (CBCL-DP) to profiles associated with other CBCL-derived syndromes. 382 children (204 boys; aged 5-18) from a large family study were examined. Temperamental profiles were…
Impacts of mechanistic changes on HOx formation and recycling in the oxidation of isoprene
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Archibald, A. T.; Cooke, M. C.; Utembe, S. R.; Shallcross, D. E.; Derwent, R. G.; Jenkin, M. E.
Recently reported model-measurement discrepancies for the concentrations of the HOx radical species (OH and HO2) in locations characterized by high emission rates of isoprene have indicated possible deficiencies in the representation of OH recycling and formation in isoprene mechanisms currently employed in numerical models; particularly at low levels of NOx. Using version 3.1 of the Master Chemical Mechanism (MCM v3.1) as a base mechanism, the sensitivity of the system to a number of detailed mechanistic changes is examined for a wide range of NOx levels, using a simple box model. The studies consider sensitivity tests in relation to three general areas for which experimental and/or theoretical evidence has been reported in the peer-reviewed literature, as follows: (1) implementation of propagating channels for the reactions of HO2 with acyl and β-oxo peroxy radicals with HO2, with support from a number of studies; (2) implementation of the OH-catalysed conversion of isoprene-derived hydroperoxides to isomeric epoxydiols, as characterised by Paulot et al.~(2009a); and (3) implementation of a mechanism involving respective 1,5 and 1,6 H atom shift isomerisation reactions of the β-hydroxyalkenyl and cis-δ-hydroxyalkenyl peroxy radical isomers, formed from the sequential addition of OH and O2 to isoprene, based on the theoretical study of Peeters et al. (2009). All the considered mechanistic changes lead to simulated increases in the concentrations of OH, with (1) and (2) resulting in respective increases of up to about 7% and 16%, depending on the level of NOx. (3) is found to have potentially much greater impacts, with enhancements in OH concentrations of up to a factor of about 3.3, depending on the level of NOx, provided the (crucial) rapid photolysis of the hydroperoxy-methyl-butenal products of the cis-δ-hydroxyalkenyl peroxy radical isomerisation reactions is represented, as also postulated by Peeters et al.~(2009). Additional tests suggest that the
Generation of geographical profile
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shen, Zhi-Bin; Zhang, Yuan-Biao; Liang, Kai-Fa; Lu, Zhen-Xing
To provide help for the police's investigation on serial criminals, we develop a mathematical model in the paper. First, we use Inherently Continuous Model and Improved Kinetic Model to generate the offender's geographical profile. However, there is a difference in two models' results. For better synthesizing the difference, we develop a Combination Model and generate a new geographical profile. As a result, we estimate the offender's location and carry on a series of analysis. What's more, the models created can be applied in other fields, such as market's investigation, military operations and so on.
Murphy, R F
Imposed restrictions on inpatient revenue have encouraged hospitals to seek alternative sources of revenue through diversification. The venture profile analysis is a low-cost, orderly process to help hospitals plan for service diversification. Potential business ventures are assigned a weighted score based on nine evaluation criteria. Potential business ventures with high relative scores should be those opportunities with the greater prospects of success and those deserving of serious consideration by the hospital. The format of the profile facilitates active involvement of board members in the decision making process and prudent management of risk in market-based strategic planning. PMID:10300483
Higher plant modelling for life support applications: first results of a simple mechanistic model
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hezard, Pauline; Dussap, Claude-Gilles; Sasidharan L, Swathy
In the case of closed ecological life support systems, the air and water regeneration and food production are performed using microorganisms and higher plants. Wheat, rice, soybean, lettuce, tomato or other types of eatable annual plants produce fresh food while recycling CO2 into breathable oxygen. Additionally, they evaporate a large quantity of water, which can be condensed and used as potable water. This shows that recycling functions of air revitalization and food production are completely linked. Consequently, the control of a growth chamber for higher plant production has to be performed with efficient mechanistic models, in order to ensure a realistic prediction of plant behaviour, water and gas recycling whatever the environmental conditions. Purely mechanistic models of plant production in controlled environments are not available yet. This is the reason why new models must be developed and validated. This work concerns the design and test of a simplified version of a mathematical model coupling plant architecture and mass balance purposes in order to compare its results with available data of lettuce grown in closed and controlled chambers. The carbon exchange rate, water absorption and evaporation rate, biomass fresh weight as well as leaf surface are modelled and compared with available data. The model consists of four modules. The first one evaluates plant architecture, like total leaf surface, leaf area index and stem length data. The second one calculates the rate of matter and energy exchange depending on architectural and environmental data: light absorption in the canopy, CO2 uptake or release, water uptake and evapotranspiration. The third module evaluates which of the previous rates is limiting overall biomass growth; and the last one calculates biomass growth rate depending on matter exchange rates, using a global stoichiometric equation. All these rates are a set of differential equations, which are integrated with time in order to provide
Mechanistic studies of the radical SAM enzyme spore photoproduct lyase (SPL).
Li, Lei
Spore photoproduct lyase (SPL) repairs a special thymine dimer 5-thyminyl-5,6-dihydrothymine, which is commonly called spore photoproduct or SP at the bacterial early germination phase. SP is the exclusive DNA photo-damage product in bacterial endospores; its generation and swift repair by SPL are responsible for the spores' extremely high UV resistance. The early in vivo studies suggested that SPL utilizes a direct reversal strategy to repair the SP in the absence of light. The research in the past decade further established SPL as a radical SAM enzyme, which utilizes a tri-cysteine CXXXCXXC motif to harbor a [4Fe-4S] cluster. At the 1+ oxidation state, the cluster provides an electron to the S-adenosylmethionine (SAM), which binds to the cluster in a bidentate manner as the fourth and fifth ligands, to reductively cleave the CS bond associated with the sulfonium ion in SAM, generating a reactive 5'-deoxyadenosyl (5'-dA) radical. This 5'-dA radical abstracts the proR hydrogen atom from the C6 carbon of SP to initiate the repair process; the resulting SP radical subsequently fragments to generate a putative thymine methyl radical, which accepts a back-donated H atom to yield the repaired TpT. SAM is suggested to be regenerated at the end of each catalytic cycle; and only a catalytic amount of SAM is needed in the SPL reaction. The H atom source for the back donation step is suggested to be a cysteine residue (C141 in Bacillus subtilis SPL), and the H-atom transfer reaction leaves a thiyl radical behind on the protein. This thiyl radical thus must participate in the SAM regeneration process; however how the thiyl radical abstracts an H atom from the 5'-dA to regenerate SAM is unknown. This paper reviews and discusses the history and the latest progress in the mechanistic elucidation of SPL. Despite some recent breakthroughs, more questions are raised in the mechanistic understanding of this intriguing DNA repair enzyme. This article is part of a Special Issue
Prediction of episodic acidification in North-eastern USA: An empirical/mechanistic approach
Davies, T.D.; Tranter, M.; Wigington, P.J., Jr.; Eshleman, K.N.; Peters, N.E.; Van Sickle, J.; DeWalle, David R.; Murdoch, Peter S.
Observations from the US Environmental Protection Agency's Episodic Response Project (ERP) in the North-eastern United States are used to develop an empirical/mechanistic scheme for prediction of the minimum values of acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) during episodes. An acidification episode is defined as a hydrological event during which ANC decreases. The pre-episode ANC is used to index the antecedent condition, and the stream flow increase reflects how much the relative contributions of sources of waters change during the episode. As much as 92% of the total variation in the minimum ANC in individual catchments can be explained (with levels of explanation >70% for nine of the 13 streams) by a multiple linear regression model that includes pre-episode ANC and change in discharge as independent variable. The predictive scheme is demonstrated to be regionally robust, with the regional variance explained ranging from 77 to 83%. The scheme is not successful for each ERP stream, and reasons are suggested for the individual failures. The potential for applying the predictive scheme to other watersheds is demonstrated by testing the model with data from the Panola Mountain Research Watershed in the South-eastern United States, where the variance explained by the model was 74%. The model can also be utilized to assess 'chemically new' and 'chemically old' water sources during acidification episodes.Observations from the US Environmental Protection Agency's Episodic Response Project (ERP) in the Northeastern United States are used to develop an empirical/mechanistic scheme for prediction of the minimum values of acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) during episodes. An acidification episode is defined as a hydrological event during which ANC decreases. The pre-episode ANC is used to index the antecedent condition, and the stream flow increase reflects how much the relative contributions of sources of waters change during the episode. As much as 92% of the total variation in
Computational mechanistic elucidation of the intramolecular aminoalkene hydroamination catalysed by iminoanilide alkaline-earth compounds.
Tobisch, Sven
A comprehensive computational exploration of plausible alternative mechanistic pathways for the intramolecular hydroamination (HA) of aminoalkenes by a recently reported class of kinetically stabilised iminoanilide alkaline-earth silylamido compounds [{N^N}Ae{N(SiMe3)2}⋅(thf)n] ({N^N} = iminoanilide; Ae = Ca, Sr, Ba) is presented. On the one hand, a proton-assisted concerted N-C/C-H bond-forming pathway to afford the cycloamine in a single step can be invoked and on the other hand, a stepwise σ-insertive pathway that involves a fast, reversible migratory olefin 1,2-insertion step linked to a less rapid, irreversible metal-C azacycle tether σ-bond aminolysis. Notably, these alternative mechanistic avenues are equally consistent with reported key experimental features. The present study, which employs a thoroughly benchmarked and reliable DFT methodology, supports the prevailing mechanism to be a stepwise σ-insertive pathway that sees an initial conversion of the {N^N}Ae silylamido into the catalytically competent {N^N}Ae amidoalkene compound and involves thereafter facile and reversible insertive N-C bond-forming ring closure, linked to irreversible intramolecular Ae-C tether σ-bond aminolysis at the transient {N^N}Ae alkyl intermediate. Turnover-limiting protonolysis accounts for the substantial primary kinetic isotope effect observed; its DFT-derived barrier satisfactorily matches the empirically determined Eyring parameter and predicts the decrease in rate observed across the series Ca>Sr>Ba correctly. Non-competitive kinetic demands militate against the operation of the concerted proton-assisted pathway, which describes N-C bond-forming ring closure triggered by concomitant amino proton delivery at the C=C linkage evolving through a multi-centre TS structure. Valuable insights into the catalytic structure-activity relationships are unveiled by a detailed comparison of [{N^N}Ae(NHR)] catalysts. Moreover, the intriguingly opposite trends in reactivity
Sequencing and beyond: integrating molecular 'omics for microbial community profiling
Franzosa, Eric A.; Hsu, Tiffany; Sirota-Madi, Alexandra; Shafquat, Afrah; Abu-Ali, Galeb; Morgan, Xochitl C.
High-throughput DNA sequencing has proven invaluable for investigating diverse environmental and host-associated microbial communities. In this Review, we discuss emerging strategies for microbial community analysis that complement and expand traditional metagenomic profiling. These include novel DNA sequencing strategies for identifying strain-level microbial variation and community temporal dynamics; measuring additional multi'omic data types that better capture community functional activity, such as transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics; and combining multiple forms of multi'omic data in an integrated framework. We highlight studies in which the multi'omics approach has led to improved mechanistic models of microbial community structure and function. PMID:25915636
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Taylor, Daniel; Thapa, Rita
A profile of Nepal is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population--size, growth patterns, age/sex structure, geographical distribution, topographical obstacles, ethnic and religious…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Collins, L.; Saunders, D.
User information for program PROFILE, an aerodynamics design utility for refining, plotting, and tabulating airfoil profiles is provided. The theory and implementation details for two of the more complex options are also presented. These are the REFINE option, for smoothing curvature in selected regions while retaining or seeking some specified thickness ratio, and the OPTIMIZE option, which seeks a specified curvature distribution. REFINE uses linear techniques to manipulate ordinates via the central difference approximation to second derivatives, while OPTIMIZE works directly with curvature using nonlinear least squares techniques. Use of programs QPLOT and BPLOT is also described, since all of the plots provided by PROFILE (airfoil coordinates, curvature distributions) are achieved via the general purpose QPLOT utility. BPLOT illustrates (again, via QPLOT) the shape functions used by two of PROFILE's options. The programs were designed and implemented for the Applied Aerodynamics Branch at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, and written in FORTRAN and run on a VAX-11/780 under VMS.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Goldsmith, Alfredo; And Others
A profile of Chile is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
Country Profiles, The Philippines.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Concepcion, Mercedes B.
A profile of the Philippines is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gaisie, S. K.; And Others
A profile of Ghana is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Xenos, Christos
A profile of Mauritius is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Keeny, S. M.; And Others
A profile of Taiwan is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Perkin, Gordon W.; And Others
A profile of Thailand is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Population Council, New York, NY.
A profile of Indonesia is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population - size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Population Council, New York, NY.
A profile of Hong Kong is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
Country Profiles, Sierra Leone.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dow, Thomas E., Jr.
A profile of Sierra Leone is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Anderson, Lewis S.
A profile of Turkey is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hardee, J. Gilbert; Satterthwaite, Adaline P.
A profile of Pakistan is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Svala, Gertrud
A profile of Sweden is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population--size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gray, Charles D.
This article profiles Han Dongfang of China, winner of the 1993 George Meany Human Rights Award given by the AFL-CIO. An organizer of the first democratic labor organization in the People's Republic of China and advocate of individual freedom, Dongfang has faced persecution in China and remains a stateless person. (SLD)
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ludlow, Larry H.; Wright, Benjamin Drake; Linacre, John Michael; Webster, Linda; Andrich, David
Four of the articles in this section profile major figures in measurement: (1) Sir Francis Galton (Larry Ludlow); (2) Georg Rasch (Benjamin Wright); (3) Benjamin Wright (John Michael Linacre); and (4) David Andrich (Linda Webster). The fifth article, by David Andrich, presents insights gained into the Rasch model. (SLD)
Adult Competency Education Profile.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bureau of Occupational and Adult Education (DHEW/OE), Washington, DC. Div. of Adult Education.
A compilation of abstracts of 120 current Adult Performance Level (APL) and Adult Competency Education (ACE) federally supported projects being conducted in 34 States and the District of Columbia, this project profile was developed for adult and secondary education administrators, teachers, and program developers who are beginning or are currently…
Gelbart, W.; Johnson, R. R.; Abeysekera, B.
An inexpensive beam profile monitor is based on the well proven rotating wire method. The monitor can display beam position and shape in real time for particle beams of most energies and beam currents up to 200{mu}A. Beam shape, position cross-section and other parameters are displayed on a computer screen.
Country Education Profiles: Albania.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
International Bureau of Education, Geneva (Switzerland).
One of a series of profiles prepared by the Cooperative Educational Abstracting Service, this brief outline provides basic background information on educational principles, system of administration, structure and organization, curricula, and teacher training in Albania. Statistics provided by the Unesco Office of Statistics show enrollment at all…
Halcomb, Danny L.; Mohler, Jonathan H.
A thermite igniter/heat source comprising a housing, high-density thermite, and low-density thermite. The housing has a relatively low profile and can focus energy by means of a torch-like ejection of hot reaction products and is externally ignitable.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
LaFee, Scott
Many school administrators want to develop profiling procedures to identify violence-prone students before bullets start flying. Warning signs (chronic depression, anger, abusive home conditions, violent history) are a staring point. Two FBI agents recommend visiting classrooms, identifying troubled kids, and ensuring that they get help. (MLH)
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Missouri Univ., Columbia. Instructional Materials Lab.
This chart is intended for use in documenting the fact that a student participating in a culinary arts program has achieved the performance standards specified in the Missouri Competency Profile for culinary arts. The chart includes space for recording basic student and instructor information and the student's on-the-job training and work…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Weinberg, Mark L.
This profile summarizes the responses of 20 managers of rural business incubators, reporting on their operations, entry and exit policies, facility promotion, service arrangements and economic development outcomes. Incubators assist small businesses in the early stages of growth by providing them with rental space, shared services, management and…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Procopio, Mariellen; Perella, Frederick J., Jr.
This second edition of "Poverty Profile", published by the Missionary Society of St. Paul the Apostle as part of their Campaign for Human Development, updates the data examined in the earlier (1972) edition and examines some of the current social welfare programs designed to alleviate the affects of poverty. The extent to which poverty affects…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Illinois State Library, Springfield.
Since January 1986, when the Illinois Secretary of State Literacy Grant Program began funding a wide variety of adult literacy programs, more than 30,000 students have sought help with reading. They have been matched with 25,000 tutors who have provided more than 2 million hours of volunteer instruction. The profiles in this booklet are stories of…
English Teaching Profile: Bahrain
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
British Council, London (England). English Language and Literature Div.
A profile of the state of English and English instruction in Bahrain covers the following topics: description of the role and status of English language use in industry and commerce, government, and education; the role of English at all levels of the educational system; the availability, characteristics, and qualifications of teachers of English;…
English Teaching Profile: Colombia.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
British Council, London (England). English Language and Literature Div.
This profile of the English language teaching situation in Colombia discusses the role of English in the educational system and in Colombian society. The status of English as the country's first foreign language is examined. It is noted that because Spanish is sufficient for most needs and because there is a relatively small number of Colombians…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wilks, Duffy; Ratheal, Juli D'Ann
Effective counseling practice continues to be inevitably linked to underlying theories of behavioral causality. In this article, the authors present the Moral Capacity Profile of an individual from the perspective of the Amoral, Moral, Quasi-Moral/Quasi-Immoral, and Immoral Model of Behavior, a model that uniquely expands counseling's theoretical…
In response to Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority and Low Income Populations, and in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, this project will profile the state of Oregon to identify environmental justice communi...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Marzuki, Ariffin Bin; Peng, J. Y.
A profile of Malaysia is sketched in this paper. Emphasis is placed on the nature, scope, and accomplishments of population activities in the country. Topics and sub-topics include: location and description of the country; population (size, growth patterns, age structure, urban/rural distribution, ethnic and religious composition, migration,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bishop, Rudine Sims
Profiles Eloise Greenfield. Reveals that Greenfield's early love of music echoes in both the form and content of her poetry and prose. Notes that her poems are marked by strong rhythms, expressions of emotion, and a strong sense of children, their voices, and the waystations on their journey through life. (SR)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Martin, Francois; Laurent, John
In order to meet the needs of many diverse industrial 3D inspection tasks, INO has developed a new concept for the design of a smart and modular 3D laser profiler. This stand-alone sensor which we call Smart Laser Profiler (SLP) is composed of a laser line projector, collection optics, a high frame rate camera and a digital signal processor (DSP). The on-board DSP is the key to this technology. The SLP sensor has been designed to be both compact and rugged and it is enclosed in a water resistant NEMA 4 class housing that is easy to install on a production line. The Smart Laser Profiler has several preprogrammed functions on the DSP that implement basic shape analysis algorithms like volume measurement and shape conformance. For more complex shape analysis, the sensor can transfer the raw 3D profiles to a PC through a high-speed communication link. The present article will describe both the unique hardware, electronics and optical architecture of the sensor and the software tools that were developed.
Teaching with Stratigraphic Profiles
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Stefanich, Greg P.
Presents two exercises modeled after the ice age puzzle described in the ESCP textbook, including formation of terminal moraines and kettle lakes and intersection of normal faults with gold-quartz veins. Indicates that the stratigraphic profiles are usable in teaching earth science, geography, general science, and topographic problems. (CC)
Profiles of Algebraic Competence
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Humberstone, J.; Reeve, R.A.
The algebraic competence of 72 12-year-old female students was examined to identify profiles of understanding reflecting different algebraic knowledge states. Beginning algebraic competence (mapping abilities: word-to-symbol and vice versa, classifying, and solving equations) was assessed. One week later, the nature of assistance required to map…
Education Management Profile: Uzbekistan.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Bangkok (Thailand). Principal Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.
This education management profile of Uzbekistan contains the following: basic information about the country, key educational indicators, brief comments about the country and its history, a description of the education system, the management of education, access to education and school enrollment, problems and challenges, educational reform in…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hammontree, Tom
At Coral Gables Senior High, Dade County, Florida, a profile of the average student dropout was composed on the basis of school records to serve as a guide to identifying potential dropouts, who are given special remedial and counseling attention. Dropout rates have decreased from 10 percent to 4.4 over three years. (DTT)
[Safety profile of dolutegravir].
Rivero, Antonio; Domingo, Pere
Integrase inhibitors are the latest drug family to be added to the therapeutic arsenal against human immunodeficiency virus infection. Drugs in this family that do not require pharmacological boosting are characterized by a very good safety profile. The latest integrase inhibitor to be approved for use is dolutegravir. In clinical trials, dolutegravir has shown an excellent tolerability profile, both in antiretroviral-naïve and previously treated patients. Discontinuation rates due to adverse effects were 2% and 3%, respectively. The most frequent adverse effects were nausea, headache, diarrhea and sleep disturbance. A severe hypersensitivity reaction has been reported in only one patient. In patients coinfected with hepatropic viruses, the safety profile is similar to that in patients without coinfection. The lipid profile of dolutegravir is similar to that of raltegravir and superior to those of Atripla® and darunavir/ritonavir. Dolutegravir induces an early, predictable and non-progressive increase in serum creatinine of around 10% of baseline values in treatment-naïve patients and of 14% in treatment-experienced patients. This increase is due to inhibition of tubular creatinine secretion through the OCT2 receptor and does not lead to a real decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate with algorithms that include serum creatinine. The effect of the combination of dolutegravir plus Kivexa(®) on biomarkers of bone remodeling is lower than that of Atripla(®). Dolutegravir has an excellent tolerability profile with no current evidence of long-term adverse effects. Its use is accompanied by an early and non-progressive increase in serum creatinine due to OCT2 receptor inhibition. In combination with abacavir/lamivudine, dolutegravir has a lower impact than enofovir/emtricitabine/efavirenz on bone remodelling markers. PMID:25858606
Description and evaluation of a mechanistically based conceptual model for spall
Hansen, F.D.; Knowles, M.K.; Thompson, T.W.
A mechanistically based model for a possible spall event at the WIPP site is developed and evaluated in this report. Release of waste material to the surface during an inadvertent borehole intrusion is possible if future states of the repository include high gas pressure and waste material consisting of fine particulates having low mechanical strength. The conceptual model incorporates the physics of wellbore hydraulics coupled to transient gas flow to the intrusion borehole, and mechanical response of the waste. Degraded waste properties using of the model. The evaluations include both numerical and analytical implementations of the conceptual model. A tensile failure criterion is assumed appropriate for calculation of volumes of waste experiencing fragmentation. Calculations show that for repository gas pressures less than 12 MPa, no tensile failure occurs. Minimal volumes of material experience failure below gas pressure of 14 MPa. Repository conditions dictate that the probability of gas pressures exceeding 14 MPa is approximately 1%. For these conditions, a maximum failed volume of 0.25 m{sup 3} is calculated.
Mechanistic Insights into the Formation of Dodecanethiolate-Stabilized Magnetic Iridium Nanoparticles: Thiosulfate vs Thiol Ligands
The synthesis of stable and isolable iridium nanoparticles with an average core size of ∼1.2 ± 0.3 nm was achieved by employing sodium S-dodecylthiosulfate as a ligand precursor during the modified Brust–Schiffrin reaction. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of the isolated Ir nanoparticles revealed a high degree of monodispersity. Further characterizations with 1H NMR, FT-IR, UV–vis spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed that the synthesized Ir nanoparticles are stabilized by dodecanethiolate ligands produced upon the adsorption/cleavage of S-dodecylthiosulfate on the growing Ir nanoparticle surface. By comparison, synthetic attempts employing dodecanethiol as a stabilizing ligand led to the formation of Ir-thiolate species (Ir(SR)3) as an intermediate and Ir-hydroxide species at the completion of reaction. Mechanistic investigations of these two reactions using S-dodecylthiosulfate and dodecanethiol provided deeper understandings on the novelty of thiosulfate ligands, which allow the successful formation of stable thiolate-capped Ir nanoparticles. Moreover, these Ir nanoparticles were shown to have strong magnetic properties. PMID:25018790
Station Blackout: A case study in the interaction of mechanistic and probabilistic safety analysis
Curtis Smith; Diego Mandelli; Cristian Rabiti
The ability to better characterize and quantify safety margins is important to improved decision making about nuclear power plant design, operation, and plant life extension. As research and development (R&D) in the light-water reactor (LWR) Sustainability (LWRS) Program and other collaborative efforts yield new data, sensors, and improved scientific understanding of physical processes that govern the aging and degradation of plant SSCs needs and opportunities to better optimize plant safety and performance will become known. The purpose of the Risk Informed Safety Margin Characterization (RISMC) Pathway R&D is to support plant decisions for risk-informed margin management with the aim to improve economics, reliability, and sustain safety of current NPPs. In this paper, we describe the RISMC analysis process illustrating how mechanistic and probabilistic approaches are combined in order to estimate a safety margin. We use the scenario of a "station blackout" wherein offsite power and onsite power is lost, thereby causing a challenge to plant safety systems. We describe the RISMC approach, illustrate the station blackout modeling, and contrast this with traditional risk analysis modeling for this type of accident scenario.
Gridded meteorological data as a resource for mechanistic macroecology in coastal environments.
Mislan, K A S; Wethey, David S
Gridded weather data were evaluated as sources of forcing variables for biophysical models of intertidal animal body temperature with model results obtained using local weather station data serving as the baseline of comparison. The objective of the study was to determine which gridded data are sufficient to capture observed patterns of thermal stress. Three coastal sites in western North America were included in this analysis: Boiler Bay, Oregon; Bodega Bay, California; and Pacific Grove, California. The gridded data with the highest spatial resolution, the 32-km North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) and the 38-km Climate Forecasting System Reanalysis (CFSR), predicted daily maximum intertidal animal temperature most similarly to the local weather Station data. Time step size was important for variables that change rapidly throughout the day, such as solar radiation. There were site-based differences in the ability of the model to predict daily maximum intertidal animal temperature, with the gridded data predictions being the closest to local weather station predictions in Boiler Bay, Oregon. In a review of gridded data used as part of ecological studies, there was broad use of the data across subject areas and ecosystems so the recent improvements in the spatial (from 2 degrees to 32 km) and temporal scales (from 6 hours to 1 hour) of gridded data will further add to the applicability within the ecological community particularly for mechanistic studies. PMID:22073652
Mechanistic mathematical model for in vivo aroma release during eating of semiliquid foods.
Trelea, Ioan Cristian; Atlan, Samuel; Déléris, Isabelle; Saint-Eve, Anne; Marin, Michèle; Souchon, Isabelle
The paper describes a mechanistic mathematical model for aroma release in the oropharynx to the nasal cavity during food consumption. The model is based on the physiology of the swallowing process and is validated with atmospheric pressure chemical ionization coupled with mass spectrometry measurements of aroma concentration in the nasal cavity of subjects eating flavored yogurt. The study is conducted on 3 aroma compounds representative for strawberry flavor (ethyl acetate, ethyl butanoate, and ethyl hexanoate) and 3 panelists. The model provides reasonably accurate time predictions of the relative aroma concentration in the nasal cavity and is able to simulate successive swallowing events as well as imperfect velopharyngeal closure. The most influent parameters are found to be the amount of the residual product in the pharynx and its contact area with the air flux, the volume of the nasal cavity, the equilibrium air/product partition coefficient of the volatile compound, the breath airflow rate, as well as the mass transfer coefficient of the aroma compound in the product, and the amount of product in the mouth. This work constitutes a first step toward computer-aided product formulation by allowing calculation of retronasal aroma intensity as a function of transfer and volatility properties of aroma compounds in food matrices and anatomophysiological characteristics of consumers. PMID:18048371
Structure of the apoptosome: mechanistic insights into activation of an initiator caspase from Drosophila
Pang, Yuxuan; Bai, Xiao-chen; Yan, Chuangye; Hao, Qi; Chen, Zheqin; Wang, Jia-Wei
Apoptosis is executed by a cascade of caspase activation. The autocatalytic activation of an initiator caspase, exemplified by caspase-9 in mammals or its ortholog, Dronc, in fruit flies, is facilitated by a multimeric adaptor complex known as the apoptosome. The underlying mechanism by which caspase-9 or Dronc is activated by the apoptosome remains unknown. Here we report the electron cryomicroscopic (cryo-EM) structure of the intact apoptosome from Drosophila melanogaster at 4.0 Å resolution. Analysis of the Drosophila apoptosome, which comprises 16 molecules of the Dark protein (Apaf-1 ortholog), reveals molecular determinants that support the assembly of the 2.5-MDa complex. In the absence of dATP or ATP, Dronc zymogen potently induces formation of the Dark apoptosome, within which Dronc is efficiently activated. At 4.1 Å resolution, the cryo-EM structure of the Dark apoptosome bound to the caspase recruitment domain (CARD) of Dronc (Dronc-CARD) reveals two stacked rings of Dronc-CARD that are sandwiched between two octameric rings of the Dark protein. The specific interactions between Dronc-CARD and both the CARD and the WD40 repeats of a nearby Dark protomer are indispensable for Dronc activation. These findings reveal important mechanistic insights into the activation of initiator caspase by the apoptosome. PMID:25644603
Sonoenzymatic decolourization of an azo dye employing immobilized horse radish peroxidase (HRP): a mechanistic study.
Malani, Ritesh S; Khanna, Swati; Moholkar, Vijayanand S
For degradation of biorefractory pollutants, enzymatic treatments and sonochemical treatments have shown high potential. A combined technique of sono-enzymatic treatment is of special interest as it has shown enhancement effect than the individual techniques. This work has attempted to give a mechanistic insight into the interaction of sonochemical and enzymatic treatments using immobilized horseradish peroxidase (HRP) enzyme on the decolourization of acid red dye (an azo dye). In order to segregate the effect of ultrasound and cavitation, experiments were conducted at elevated static pressure. The kinetic parameters of HRP, viz. Vmax and Km were marginally affected by immobilization. There was a minor change in pH optima and temperature optima for immobilized HRP (6.5, 25°C) from free HRP (7.0, 20-25°C). Though the specific activity of free enzyme (0.272U/mg) was found to be higher than the immobilized enzyme (0.104U/mg), immobilized enzyme exhibited higher stability (up to 3 cycles) and degradation potential than free enzyme in all experiments. The results revealed that the coupling of sonication and enzymatic treatment at high pressure in presence of polyethylene glycol (PEG) yielded the highest decolourization of acid red (61.2%). However, the total decolourization achieved with combined technique was lesser than the sum of individual techniques, indicating negative synergy between the sonochemical and enzymatic techniques. PMID:23708258
Toward a mechanistic understanding of animal migration: incorporating physiological measurements in the study of animal movement
Jachowski, David S.; Singh, Navinder J.
Movements are a consequence of an individual's motion and navigational capacity, internal state variables and the influence of external environmental conditions. Although substantial advancements have been made in methods of measuring and quantifying variation in motion capacity, navigational capacity and external environmental parameters in recent decades, the role of internal state in animal migration (and in movement in general) is comparatively little studied. Recent studies of animal movement in the wild illustrate how direct physiological measurements can improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying movement decisions. In this review, we synthesize and provide examples of how recent technical advances in the physiology-related fields of energetics, nutrition, endocrinology, immunology and ecotoxicology provide opportunities for direct measurements of physiological state in the study of animal movement. We then propose a framework for practitioners to enable better integration of studies of physiological state into animal movement ecology by assessing the mechanistic role played by physiology as both a driver and a modulator of movement. Finally, we highlight the current limitations and research priorities for better integration of direct measurements of animal physiological state into the study of animal movement. PMID:27293720
Disruption of steroidogenesis: Cell models for mechanistic investigations and as screening tools.
Odermatt, Alex; Strajhar, Petra; Engeli, Roger T
In the modern world, humans are exposed during their whole life to a large number of synthetic chemicals. Some of these chemicals have the potential to disrupt endocrine functions and contribute to the development and/or progression of major diseases. Every year approximately 1000 novel chemicals, used in industrial production, agriculture, consumer products or as pharmaceuticals, are reaching the market, often with limited safety assessment regarding potential endocrine activities. Steroids are essential endocrine hormones, and the importance of the steroidogenesis pathway as a target for endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) has been recognized by leading scientists and authorities. Cell lines have a prominent role in the initial stages of toxicity assessment, i.e. for mechanistic investigations and for the medium to high throughput analysis of chemicals for potential steroidogenesis disrupting activities. Nevertheless, the users have to be aware of the limitations of the existing cell models in order to apply them properly, and there is a great demand for improved cell-based testing systems and protocols. This review intends to provide an overview of the available cell lines for studying effects of chemicals on gonadal and adrenal steroidogenesis, their use and limitations, as well as the need for future improvements of cell-based testing systems and protocols. PMID:26807866
Dynamic Kinetic Resolution Enabled by Intramolecular Benzoin Reaction: Synthetic Applications and Mechanistic Insights.
Zhang, Guoxiang; Yang, Shuang; Zhang, Xiaoyan; Lin, Qiqiao; Das, Deb K; Liu, Jian; Fang, Xinqiang
The highly enantio-, diastereo-, and regioselective dynamic kinetic resolution of β-ketoesters and 1,3-diketones was achieved via a chiral N-heterocyclic carbene catalyzed intramolecular cross-benzoin reaction. A variety of tetralone derivatives bearing two contiguous stereocenters and multiple functionalities were liberated in moderate to excellent yields and with high levels of stereoselectivity (>95% ee and >20:1 dr in most cases). In addition, the excellent regioselectivity control for aryl/alkyl 1,3-diketones, and the superior electronic differentiation of 1,3-diarylketones were highlighted. Moreover, a set of new mechanistic rationale that differs with the currently widely accepted understanding of intramolecular benzoin reactions was established to demonstrate the superior preference of benzoin over aldol transformation: (1) A coexistence of competitive aldol and benzoin reactions was detected, but a retro-aldol-irreversible benzoin process performs a vital role in the generation of predominant benzoin products. (2) The most essential role of an N-electron-withdrawing substituent in triazolium catalysts was revealed to be accelerating the rate of the benzoin transformation, rather than suppressing the aldol process through reducing the inherent basicity of the catalyst. PMID:27270409
Mechanistic model of radiation-induced cancer after fractionated radiotherapy using the linear-quadratic formula
Schneider, Uwe
A simple mechanistic model for predicting cancer induction after fractionated radiotherapy is developed. The model is based upon the linear-quadratic model. The inductions of carcinomas and sarcomas are modeled separately. The linear-quadratic model of cell kill is applied to normal tissues which are unintentionally irradiated during a cancer treatment with radiotherapy. Tumor induction is modeled such that each transformation process results in a tumor cell. The microscopic transformation parameter was chosen such that in the limit of low dose and acute exposure, the parameters of the linear-no-threshold model for tumor induction were approached. The differential equations describing carcinoma and sarcoma inductions can be solved analytically. Cancer induction in this model is a function of treatment dose, the cell kill parameters ({alpha},{beta}), the tumor induction variable ({mu}), and the repopulation parameter ({xi}). Carcinoma induction shows a bell shaped behavior as long as cell repopulation is small. Assuming large cell repopulation rates, a plateaulike function is approached. In contrast, sarcoma induction is negligible for low doses and increases with increasing dose up to a constant value. The proposed model describes carcinoma and sarcoma inductions after fractionated radiotherapy as an analytical function of four parameters. In the limit of low dose and for an instant irradiation it reproduces the results of the linear-no-threshold model. The obtained dose-response curves for cancer induction can be implemented with other models such as the organ-equivalent dose model to predict second cancers after radiotherapy.
Mechanistic studies of two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks rapidly polymerized from initially homogenous conditions.
Smith, Brian J; Dichtel, William R
Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are periodic two- and three-dimensional (2D and 3D) polymer networks with high surface areas, low densities, and designed structures. Despite intense interest in framework materials, the nucleation and growth processes of COFs, and even of more established metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), are poorly understood. The kinetics of COF growth under varied reaction conditions provides mechanistic insight needed to improve their crystallinity and rationally synthesize new materials. Such kinetic measurements are unprecedented and difficult to perform on typical heterogeneous COF reaction mixtures. Here we synthesize 2D boronate ester-linked COF-5 under conditions in which the monomers are fully soluble. These homogeneous growth conditions provide equal or better material quality compared to any previous report and enable the first rigorous studies of the early stages of COF growth. COF-5 forms within minutes, and the precipitation rate is readily quantified from optical turbidity measurements. COF-5 formation follows an Arrhenius temperature dependence between 60-90 °C with an activation energy of 22-27 kcal/mol. The measured rate law includes a second order in both boronic acid and catechol moieties, and inverse second order in MeOH concentration. A competitive monofunctional catechol slows COF-5 formation but does not redissolve already precipitated COF, indicating both dynamic covalent bond formation and irreversible precipitation. Finally, stoichiometric H2O provides a 4-fold increase in crystallite domain areas, representing the first rational link between reaction conditions and material quality. PMID:24892961
Oxide-ion and proton conducting electrolyte materials for clean energy applications: structural and mechanistic features.
Malavasi, Lorenzo; Fisher, Craig A J; Islam, M Saiful
This critical review presents an overview of the various classes of oxide materials exhibiting fast oxide-ion or proton conductivity for use as solid electrolytes in clean energy applications such as solid oxide fuel cells. Emphasis is placed on the relationship between structural and mechanistic features of the crystalline materials and their ion conduction properties. After describing well-established classes such as fluorite- and perovskite-based oxides, new materials and structure-types are presented. These include a variety of molybdate, gallate, apatite silicate/germanate and niobate systems, many of which contain flexible structural networks, and exhibit different defect properties and transport mechanisms to the conventional materials. It is concluded that the rich chemistry of these important systems provides diverse possibilities for developing superior ionic conductors for use as solid electrolytes in fuel cells and related applications. In most cases, a greater atomic-level understanding of the structures, defects and conduction mechanisms is achieved through a combination of experimental and computational techniques (217 references). PMID:20848015
Structure-based Mechanistic Insights into Terminal Amide Synthase in Nosiheptide-Represented Thiopeptides Biosynthesis
Liu, Shanshan; Guo, Heng; Zhang, Tianlong; Han, Li; Yao, Pengfei; Zhang, Yan; Rong, Naiyan; Yu, Yi; Lan, Wenxian; Wang, Chunxi; Ding, Jianping; Wang, Renxiao; Liu, Wen; Cao, Chunyang
Nosiheptide is a parent compound of thiopeptide family that exhibit potent activities against various bacterial pathogens. Its C-terminal amide formation is catalyzed by NosA, which is an unusual strategy for maturating certain thiopeptides by processing their precursor peptides featuring a serine extension. We here report the crystal structure of truncated NosA1-111 variant, revealing three key elements, including basic lysine 49 (K49), acidic glutamic acid 101 (E101) and flexible C-terminal loop NosA112-151, are crucial to the catalytic terminal amide formation in nosiheptide biosynthesis. The side-chain of residue K49 and the C-terminal loop fasten the substrate through hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. The side-chain of residue E101 enhances nucleophilic attack of H2O to the methyl imine intermediate, leading to Cα-N bond cleavage and nosiheptide maturation. The sequence alignment of NosA and its homologs NocA, PbtH, TpdK and BerI, and the enzymatic assay suggest that the mechanistic studies on NosA present an intriguing paradigm about how NosA family members function during thiopeptide biosynthesis. PMID:26244829
Palladium(0)/NHC-Catalyzed Reductive Heck Reaction of Enones: A Detailed Mechanistic Study.
Raoufmoghaddam, Saeed; Mannathan, Subramaniyan; Minnaard, Adriaan J; de Vries, Johannes G; Reek, Joost N H
We have studied the mechanism of the palladium-catalyzed reductive Heck reaction of para-substituted enones with 4-iodoanisole by using N,N-diisopropylethylamine (DIPEA) as the reductant. Kinetic studies and in situ spectroscopic analysis have provided a detailed insight into the reaction. Progress kinetic analysis demonstrated that neither catalyst decomposition nor product inhibition occurred during the catalysis. The reaction is first order in the palladium and aryl iodide, and zero order in the activated alkene, N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand, and DIPEA. The experiments with deuterated solvent ([D7]DMF) and deuterated base ([D15]Et3N) supported the role of the amine as a reductant in the reaction. The palladium complex [Pd(0)(NHC)(1)] has been identified as the resting state. The kinetic experiments by stopped-flow UV/Vis also revealed that the presence of the second substrate, benzylideneacetone 1, slows down the oxidative addition of 4-iodoanisole through its competing coordination to the palladium center. The kinetic and mechanistic studies indicated that the oxidative addition of the aryl iodide is the rate-determining step. Various scenarios for the oxidative addition step have been analyzed by using DFT calculations (bp86/def2-TZVP) that supported the inhibiting effect of substrate 1 by formation of resting state [Pd(0)(NHC)(1)] species at the cost of further increase in the energy barrier of the oxidative addition step. PMID:26561034
Dual Lewis Acid/Lewis Base Catalyzed Acylcyanation of Aldehydes: A Mechanistic Study.
Laurell Nash, Anna; Hertzberg, Robin; Wen, Ye-Qian; Dahlgren, Björn; Brinck, Tore; Moberg, Christina
A mechanistic investigation, which included a Hammett correlation analysis, evaluation of the effect of variation of catalyst composition, and low-temperature NMR spectroscopy studies, of the Lewis acid-Lewis base catalyzed addition of acetyl cyanide to prochiral aldehydes provides support for a reaction route that involves Lewis base activation of the acyl cyanide with formation of a potent acylating agent and cyanide ion. The cyanide ion adds to the carbonyl group of the Lewis acid activated aldehyde. O-Acylation by the acylated Lewis base to form the final cyanohydrin ester occurs prior to decomplexation from titanium. For less reactive aldehydes, the addition of cyanide is the rate-determining step, whereas, for more reactive, electron-deficient aldehydes, cyanide addition is rapid and reversible and is followed by rate-limiting acylation. The resting state of the catalyst lies outside the catalytic cycle and is believed to be a monomeric titanium complex with two alcoholate ligands, which only slowly converts into the product. PMID:26592522
Dynamic, mechanistic, molecular-level modelling of cyanobacteria: Anabaena and nitrogen interaction.
Hellweger, Ferdi L; Fredrick, Neil D; McCarthy, Mark J; Gardner, Wayne S; Wilhelm, Steven W; Paerl, Hans W
Phytoplankton (eutrophication, biogeochemical) models are important tools for ecosystem research and management, but they generally have not been updated to include modern biology. Here, we present a dynamic, mechanistic, molecular-level (i.e. gene, transcript, protein, metabolite) model of Anabaena - nitrogen interaction. The model was developed using the pattern-oriented approach to model definition and parameterization of complex agent-based models. It simulates individual filaments, each with individual cells, each with genes that are expressed to yield transcripts and proteins. Cells metabolize various forms of N, grow and divide, and differentiate heterocysts when fixed N is depleted. The model is informed by observations from 269 laboratory experiments from 55 papers published from 1942 to 2014. Within this database, we identified 331 emerging patterns, and, excluding inconsistencies in observations, the model reproduces 94% of them. To explore a practical application, we used the model to simulate nutrient reduction scenarios for a hypothetical lake. For a 50% N only loading reduction, the model predicts that N fixation increases, but this fixed N does not compensate for the loading reduction, and the chlorophyll a concentration decreases substantially (by 33%). When N is reduced along with P, the model predicts an additional 8% reduction (compared to P only). PMID:27059435
Performances and mechanistic investigations of a triphosphine trioxide/ionic liquid system for rare earth extraction.
Turgis, R; Arrachart, G; Dubois, V; Dourdain, S; Virieux, D; Michel, S; Legeai, S; Lejeune, M; Draye, M; Pellet-Rostaing, S
The extraction of rare earth elements (REEs) from nitric acid solution with a triphosphine trioxide (TPO) is presented. Performances of such a ligand in ionic liquids vs. a classical solvent (benzyl ether) are compared. TPO seems to be 10 to 100 times more efficient when it is dissolved in ionic media whatever the concentration of nitric acid involved. Mechanistic investigations reveal that cation exchange classically observed in ionic liquids is not consistent with the experimental data. Moreover, clear differences in the TPO/Ln complexes between classical and ionic media are highlighted. A stable complex of 1 lanthanide for 3 TPO is formed in an ionic liquid whereas a complex of 1 lanthanide for 6 to 9 TPO is formed in benzyl ether. Back extraction is also studied and good recovery of REEs could be obtained. The TPO/ionic liquid system shows remarkable performances i.e. efficiency and selectivity towards lanthanides in a simulated leaching solution of a Nd/Fe/B/Dy magnet. PMID:26673884
A mechanistic model for the prediction of in-use moisture uptake by packaged dosage forms.
Remmelgas, Johan; Simonutti, Anne-Laure; Ronkvist, Asa; Gradinarsky, Lubomir; Löfgren, Anders
A mechanistic model for the prediction of in-use moisture uptake of solid dosage forms in bottles is developed. The model considers moisture transport into the bottle and moisture uptake by the dosage form both when the bottle is closed and when it is open. Experiments are carried out by placing tablets and desiccant canisters in bottles and monitoring their moisture content. Each bottle is opened once a day to remove one tablet or desiccant canister. Opening the bottle to remove a tablet or canister also causes some exchange of air between the bottle headspace and the environment. In order to ascertain how this air exchange might depend on the customer, tablets and desiccant canisters are removed from the bottles by either carefully removing only one or by pouring all of the tablets or desiccant canisters out of the bottle, removing one, and pouring the remaining ones back into the bottle. The predictions of the model are found to be in good agreement with experimental data for moisture sorption by desiccant canisters. Moreover, it is found experimentally that the manner in which the tablets or desiccant canisters were removed does not appreciably affect their moisture content. PMID:23194882
Genotoxicity of combined exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and UVA--a mechanistic study.
Douki, Thierry; Ksoury, Zakaria; Marie, Caroline; Favier, Alain; Ravanat, Jean-Luc; Maitre, Anne
Solar UV radiation and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) are two carcinogenic agents. When combined, their deleterious properties are synergistic. In order to get insights into the underlying processes, we carried out a mechanistic study within isolated DNA photosensitized to UVA radiation by either BaP, its diol epoxide metabolite (BPDE) or the tetraol arising from the hydrolysis of this last molecule. Measurement of the level of the oxidized base 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine revealed that BaP is a poor sensitizer while BPDE and tetraol are more potent ones. None of these compounds was found to photosensitize formation of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers through triplet energy transfer. On the basis of the distribution of oxidized DNA bases, we could show that photosensitization of DNA by BPDE involves electron abstraction (Type I) while tetraol acts mainly through singlet oxygen production (Type II). Under our experimental conditions, Type I was the major photosensitization process, which shows the lack of involvement of tetraol in the observed photo-oxidation reaction. Finally, we could show that the adducts, resulting from the alkylation of DNA by BPDE, are very potent sensitizers. Indeed, they are located in the close vicinity of the double helix and thus perfectly placed to induce oxidation reactions. PMID:18466204
Mechanistic Insights into the Rate-Limiting Step in Purine-Specific Nucleoside Hydrolase.
Chen, Nanhao; Zhao, Yuan; Lu, Jianing; Wu, Ruibo; Cao, Zexing
A full enzymatic catalysis cycle in the inosine-adenosine-guanosine specific nucleoside hydrolase (IAG-NH) was assumed to be comprised of four steps: substrate binding, chemical reaction, base release, and ribose release. Nevertheless, the mechanistic details for the rate-limiting step of the entire enzymatic reaction are still unknown, even though the ribose release was likely to be the most difficult stage. Based on state-of-the-art quantum mechanics and molecular mechanics (QM/MM) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, the ribose release process can be divided into two steps: "ribose dissociation" and "ribose release". The "ribose dissociation" includes "cleavage" and "exchange" stages, in which a metastable 6-fold intermediate will recover to an 8-fold coordination shell of Ca(2+) as observed in apo- IAG-NH. Extensive random acceleration molecular dynamics and MD simulations have been employed to verify plausible release channels, and the estimated barrier for the rate-determining step of the entire reaction is 13.0 kcal/mol, which is comparable to the experimental value of 16.7 kcal/mol. Moreover, the gating mechanism arising from loop1 and loop2, as well as key residues around the active pocket, has been found to play an important role in manipulating the ribose release. PMID:26575755
The effect of zinc on amyloid β-protein assembly and toxicity: A mechanistic investigation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Solomonov, Inna; Sagi, Irit
Neurotoxic assemblies of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) are widely believed to be the cause for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Therefore, understanding the factors and mechanisms that control, modulate, and inhibit formation of these assemblies is crucial for the development of therapeutic intervention of AD. This information also can contribute significantly to our understanding of the mechanisms of other amyloidosis diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, type 2 diabetes, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease) and prion diseases (e.g. Mad Cow disease). We have developed a multidisciplinary experimental strategy to study structural and dynamic mechanistic aspects that underlie the Aβ assembly process. Utilizing this strategy, we explored the molecular basis leading to the perturbation of the Aβ assembly process by divalent metal ions, mainly Zn2+ ions. Using Zn2+ as reaction physiological relevant probes, it was demonstrated that Zn2+ rapidly (milliseconds) induce self-assembly of Aβ aggregates and stabilize them in a manner that prevents formation of Aβ fibrils. Importantly, the early-formed intermediates are substantially more neurotoxic than fibrils. Our results suggest that relevant Aβ modulators should be targeted against the rapidly evolved intermediate states of Aβ assembly. The design of such modulators is challenging, as they have to compete with different natural mediators (such as Zn2+) of Aβ aggregation, which diverse Aβ assemblies in both specific and nonspecific manners.
Chemopreventive and therapeutic potentials of thymoquinone in HepG2 cells: mechanistic perspectives.
ElKhoely, Abeer; Hafez, Hafez F; Ashmawy, Abeer M; Badary, Osama; Abdelaziz, Ahmed; Mostafa, Adel; Shouman, Samia A
Liver cancer is the fifth commonest malignancy worldwide and the third leading cause of death. Identifying novel curative and preventive therapy may improve its prognosis. In this study, thymoquinone (TQ), the most active biological ingredient of Nigella sativa Linn, was investigated for its antitumor activity. Mechanistic perspectives underlying this antitumor activity were explored by testing its effect on cell cycle, apoptosis, and angiogenesis. In addition, the chemopreventive effect of TQ was carried out by measuring its effect on phase I CYP1A1 and phase II glutathione S-transferase (GST) drug-metabolizing enzymes. The results of the present study revealed the effectiveness of TQ as an antitumor agent against different types of cancer including brain, colon, cervix and liver at both a time- and concentration-dependent manner. In HepG2 cells, it induced G2/M phase cell cycle arrest and a concentration-dependent increase in the percentage of apoptotic cells with an increase in the ratio of Bax/BCL-2. Moreover, the expression of mRNA and protein level of vascular endothelial growth factor decreased as the concentration of TQ increased. Our data showed a significant inhibition of induced phase I CYP1A1 enzyme, and elevation in the content of glutathione and activity of phase II enzyme GST, in HepG2 cells. Our results provide support for the beneficial use of TQ as a therapeutic and chemopreventive agent against liver cancer. PMID:25796541
Children's developing understanding of the relation between variable causal efficacy and mechanistic complexity.
Erb, Christopher D; Buchanan, David W; Sobel, David M
Two experiments investigated 3-4-year-olds' ability to infer the causal mechanisms for a pair of lights. In both experiments the exterior of the two lights appeared identical. In Experiment 1, one light displayed a stable activation pattern of a single color while the other light displayed a variable pattern of activation by cycling through a series of different colors (i.e., a more varied effect). Children were asked to judge which light had a more complex internal structure. Four-year-olds were more likely to match the light with the more variable effect with a more complex internal mechanism and the light with the more stable effect with a less complex mechanism. Three-year-olds' responses were at chance. Experiment 2 replicated this finding when the activation patterns of the two lights were described verbally but never demonstrated. Taken together, these results suggest that 4-year-olds appreciate that the variability of an object's causal efficacy is related to the complexity of its internal mechanistic structure. PMID:24041835
Structures of multidrug and toxic compound extrusion transporters and their mechanistic implications.
Lu, Min
Multidrug resistance poses grand challenges to the effective treatment of infectious diseases and cancers. Integral membrane proteins from the multidrug and toxic compound extrusion (MATE) family contribute to multidrug resistance by exporting a wide variety of therapeutic drugs across cell membranes. MATE proteins are conserved from bacteria to humans and can be categorized into the NorM, DinF and eukaryotic subfamilies. MATE transporters hold great appeal as potential therapeutic targets for curbing multidrug resistance, yet their transport mechanism remains elusive. During the past 5 years, X-ray structures of 4 NorM and DinF transporters have been reported and guided biochemical studies to reveal how MATE transporters extrude different drugs. Such advances, although substantial, have yet to be discussed collectively. Herein I review these structures and the unprecedented mechanistic insights that have been garnered from those structure-inspired studies, as well as lay out the outstanding questions that present exciting opportunities for future work. PMID:26488689
Free radical scavenging reactions of sulfasalazine, 5-aminosalicylic acid and sulfapyridine: mechanistic aspects and antioxidant activity.
Joshi, Ravi; Kumar, Sudheer; Unnikrishnan, M; Mukherjee, T
Reactions of sulfasalazine (SAZ) and its metabolites, 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) and sulfapyridine (SP), with various oxidizing and reducing free radicals (hydroxyl, haloperoxyl, one-electron oxidizing, lipid peroxyl, glutathiyl, superoxide, tryptophanyl, etc.) have been studied to understand the mechanistic aspects of its action against free radicals produced during inflammation. Nanosecond pulse radiolysis technique coupled with transient spectrophotometry has been used for in situ generation of free radicals and to follow their reaction pathways. The transients produced in these reactions have been assigned and radical scavenging rate constants have been measured. In addition to scavenging of various primary and secondary free radicals by SAZ, 5-ASA and SP, 5-ASA has also been observed to efficiently scavenge radicals of biomolecules. 5-ASA has been found to be the active moiety of SAZ involved in the scavenging of oxidizing free radicals whereas reduction of SAZ produced molecular radical anion. The study suggests that free radical scavenging activity of 5-ASA may be a major path of pharmacological action of SAZ against inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). PMID:16298742
Mechanistic insights into the first Lygus-active β-pore forming protein.
Jerga, Agoston; Chen, Danqi; Zhang, Chunfen; Fu, Jinping; Kouadio, Jean-Louis K; Wang, Yanfei; Duff, Stephen M G; Howard, Jennifer E; Rydel, Timothy J; Evdokimov, Artem G; Ramaseshadri, Parthasarathy; Evans, Adam; Bolognesi, Renata; Park, Yoonseong; Haas, Jeffrey A
The cotton pests Lygus hesperus and Lygus lineolaris can be controlled by expressing Cry51Aa2.834_16 in cotton. Insecticidal activity of pore-forming proteins is generally associated with damage to the midgut epithelium due to pores, and their biological specificity results from a set of key determinants including proteolytic activation and receptor binding. We conducted mechanistic studies to gain insight into how the first Lygus-active β-pore forming protein variant functions. Biophysical characterization revealed that the full-length Cry51Aa2.834_16 was a stable dimer in solution, and when exposed to Lygus saliva or to trypsin, the protein underwent proteolytic cleavage at the C-terminus of each of the subunits, resulting in dissociation of the dimer to two separate monomers. The monomer showed tight binding to a specific protein in Lygus brush border membranes, and also formed a membrane-associated oligomeric complex both in vitro and in vivo. Chemically cross-linking the β-hairpin to the Cry51Aa2.834_16 body rendered the protein inactive, but still competent to compete for binding sites with the native protein in vivo. Our study suggests that disassociation of the Cry51Aa2.834_16 dimer into monomeric units with unoccupied head-region and sterically unhindered β-hairpin is required for brush border membrane binding, oligomerization, and the subsequent steps leading to insect mortality. PMID:27001423
Myricetin arrests human telomeric G-quadruplex structure: a new mechanistic approach as an anticancer agent.
Mondal, Soma; Jana, Jagannath; Sengupta, Pallabi; Jana, Samarjit; Chatterjee, Subhrangsu
The use of small molecules to arrest G-quadruplex structure has become a potential strategy for the development and design of a new class of anticancer therapeutics. We have studied the interaction of myricetin, a plant flavonoid and a putative anticancer agent, with human telomeric G-quadruplex TTAGGG(TTAGGG)3 DNA. Reverse transcription PCR data revealed significant repression in hTERT expression in MCF-7 breast cancer cells upon increasing the concentration of myricetin. Further, we conducted a telomeric repeat amplification protocol assay to confirm the inhibition of telomerase by myricetin. Optical spectroscopic techniques like circular dichroism, UV spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy revealed the formation of a stable myricetin-G-quadruplex complex. The thermodynamic parameters of myricetin-G-quadruplex complex formation, presented through isothermal titration calorimetry studies, indicate the binding process to be thermodynamically favorable. In addition, high resolution NMR spectroscopy in conjunction with molecular dynamics simulation is employed to provide detailed mechanistic insights into the binding in the myricetin-G-quadruplex complex at the atomic level. Our results thus propose a new mode of action of myricetin as an anticancer agent via arresting telomeric G-quadruplex structure. PMID:27249025
A mechanistic model of runoff-associated fecal coliform fate and transport through a coastal lagoon.
Steets, B M; Holden, P A
Fecal coliform (FC) contamination in coastal waters is an ongoing public health problem worldwide. Coastal wetlands and lagoons are typically expected to protect coastal waters by attenuating watershed pollutants including FC bacteria. However, new evidence suggests that coastal lagoons or marshes can also be a source of high indicator organism concentrations in coastal waters. We asked for a Mediterranean-type climate, what is the fate of runoff-associated FC through a coastal lagoon? To address this question, we developed a mass balance-based, mechanistic model of FC concentration through a coastal lagoon and simulated, for summer and winter conditions, FC within the lagoon water column, lagoon sediments, and in the ocean water just downstream of the lagoon mouth. Our model accounts for advective flow and dispersion, decay and sedimentation and resuspension of FC-laden sediments during high flow, erosional conditions. Under low flow conditions that occur in the summer, net FC decay and FC storage in lagoon sediments are predicted. Under high flow conditions that occur in the winter, FC-laden sediments are predicted to erode, resuspend and flow out of the lagoon where they elevate FC concentrations in the coastal ocean. For both seasonal conditions, the predicted water column FC concentrations were within an order of magnitude of field measurements for a reference site in southern California. Our results suggest that there are seasonally varying roles for coastal lagoons in mediating FC contamination to coastal waters. PMID:12688694
Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin Complex 2 Protects the Heart From Ischemic Damage
Völkers, Mirko; Konstandin, Mathias H.; Doroudgar, Shirin; Toko, Haruhiro; Quijada, Pearl; Din, Shabana; Joyo, Anya; Ornelas, Luis; Samse, Kaitleen; Thuerauf, Donna J.; Gude, Natalie; Glembotski, Christopher C.; Sussman, Mark A.
Background The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) comprises 2 structurally distinct multiprotein complexes, mTOR complexes 1 and 2 (mTORC1 and mTORC2). Deregulation of mTOR signaling occurs during and contributes to the severity of myocardial damage from ischemic heart disease. However, the relative roles of mTORC1 versus mTORC2 in the pathogenesis of ischemic damage are unknown. Methods and Results Combined pharmacological and molecular approaches were used to alter the balance of mTORC1 and mTORC2 signaling in cultured cardiac myocytes and in mouse hearts subjected to conditions that mimic ischemic heart disease. The importance of mTOR signaling in cardiac protection was demonstrated by pharmacological inhibition of both mTORC1 and mTORC2 with Torin1, which led to increased cardiomyocyte apoptosis and tissue damage after myocardial infarction. Predominant mTORC1 signaling mediated by suppression of mTORC2 with Rictor similarly increased cardiomyocyte apoptosis and tissue damage after myocardial infarction. In comparison, preferentially shifting toward mTORC2 signaling by inhibition of mTORC1 with PRAS40 led to decreased cardiomyocyte apoptosis and tissue damage after myocardial infarction. Conclusions These results suggest that selectively increasing mTORC2 while concurrently inhibiting mTORC1 signaling is a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of ischemic heart disease. PMID:24008870
Modelling the mating system of polar bears: a mechanistic approach to the Allee effect
Molnár, Péter K; Derocher, Andrew E; Lewis, Mark A; Taylor, Mitchell K
Allee effects may render exploited animal populations extinction prone, but empirical data are often lacking to describe the circumstances leading to an Allee effect. Arbitrary assumptions regarding Allee effects could lead to erroneous management decisions so that predictive modelling approaches are needed that identify the circumstances leading to an Allee effect before such a scenario occurs. We present a predictive approach of Allee effects for polar bears where low population densities, an unpredictable habitat and harvest-depleted male populations result in infrequent mating encounters. We develop a mechanistic model for the polar bear mating system that predicts the proportion of fertilized females at the end of the mating season given population density and operational sex ratio. The model is parametrized using pairing data from Lancaster Sound, Canada, and describes the observed pairing dynamics well. Female mating success is shown to be a nonlinear function of the operational sex ratio, so that a sudden and rapid reproductive collapse could occur if males are severely depleted. The operational sex ratio where an Allee effect is expected is dependent on population density. We focus on the prediction of Allee effects in polar bears but our approach is also applicable to other species. PMID:18029307
Mechanistic QSAR models for interpreting degradation rates of sulfonamides in UV-photocatalysis systems.
Huang, Xiangfeng; Feng, Yi; Hu, Cui; Xiao, Xiaoyu; Yu, Daliang; Zou, Xiaoming
Photocatalysis is one of the most effective methods for treating antibiotic wastewater. Thus, it is of great significance to determine the relationship between degradation rates and structural characteristics of antibiotics in photocatalysis processes. In the present study, the photocatalytic degradation characteristics of 10 sulfonamides (SAs) were studied using two photocatalytic systems composed of nanophase titanium dioxide (nTiO2) plus ultraviolet (UV) and nTiO2/activated carbon fiber (ACF) plus UV. The results indicated that the largest apparent SA degradation rate constant (Kapp) is approximately 5 times as large as that of the smallest one. Based on the degradation mechanism and the partial least squares regression (PLS) method, optimum Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship (QSAR) models were developed for the two systems. Mechanistic models indicated that the degradation rule of SAs in the TiO2 systems strongly relates to their highest occupied molecular orbital (Ehomo), the maximum values of nucleophilic attack (f(+)x), and the minimum values of the most negative partial charge on a main-chain atom (q(C)min), whereas the maximum values of OH radical attack (f(0)x) and the apparent adsorption rate constant values (kad) are key factors affecting the degradation rule of SAs in the TiO2/ACF system. PMID:26070083
Mechanistic and quantitative insight into cell surface targeted molecular imaging agent design
Zhang, Liang; Bhatnagar, Sumit; Deschenes, Emily; Thurber, Greg M.
Molecular imaging agent design involves simultaneously optimizing multiple probe properties. While several desired characteristics are straightforward, including high affinity and low non-specific background signal, in practice there are quantitative trade-offs between these properties. These include plasma clearance, where fast clearance lowers background signal but can reduce target uptake, and binding, where high affinity compounds sometimes suffer from lower stability or increased non-specific interactions. Further complicating probe development, many of the optimal parameters vary depending on both target tissue and imaging agent properties, making empirical approaches or previous experience difficult to translate. Here, we focus on low molecular weight compounds targeting extracellular receptors, which have some of the highest contrast values for imaging agents. We use a mechanistic approach to provide a quantitative framework for weighing trade-offs between molecules. Our results show that specific target uptake is well-described by quantitative simulations for a variety of targeting agents, whereas non-specific background signal is more difficult to predict. Two in vitro experimental methods for estimating background signal in vivo are compared – non-specific cellular uptake and plasma protein binding. Together, these data provide a quantitative method to guide probe design and focus animal work for more cost-effective and time-efficient development of molecular imaging agents. PMID:27147293
Blinded prospective evaluation of computer-based mechanistic schizophrenia disease model for predicting drug response.
Geerts, Hugo; Spiros, Athan; Roberts, Patrick; Twyman, Roy; Alphs, Larry; Grace, Anthony A
The tremendous advances in understanding the neurobiological circuits involved in schizophrenia have not translated into more effective treatments. An alternative strategy is to use a recently published 'Quantitative Systems Pharmacology' computer-based mechanistic disease model of cortical/subcortical and striatal circuits based upon preclinical physiology, human pathology and pharmacology. The physiology of 27 relevant dopamine, serotonin, acetylcholine, norepinephrine, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate-mediated targets is calibrated using retrospective clinical data on 24 different antipsychotics. The model was challenged to predict quantitatively the clinical outcome in a blinded fashion of two experimental antipsychotic drugs; JNJ37822681, a highly selective low-affinity dopamine D(2) antagonist and ocaperidone, a very high affinity dopamine D(2) antagonist, using only pharmacology and human positron emission tomography (PET) imaging data. The model correctly predicted the lower performance of JNJ37822681 on the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS) total score and the higher extra-pyramidal symptom (EPS) liability compared to olanzapine and the relative performance of ocaperidone against olanzapine, but did not predict the absolute PANSS total score outcome and EPS liability for ocaperidone, possibly due to placebo responses and EPS assessment methods. Because of its virtual nature, this modeling approach can support central nervous system research and development by accounting for unique human drug properties, such as human metabolites, exposure, genotypes and off-target effects and can be a helpful tool for drug discovery and development. PMID:23251349
Multivariate Bias Correction Procedures for Improving Water Quality Predictions using Mechanistic Models
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Libera, D.; Arumugam, S.
Water quality observations are usually not available on a continuous basis because of the expensive cost and labor requirements so calibrating and validating a mechanistic model is often difficult. Further, any model predictions inherently have bias (i.e., under/over estimation) and require techniques that preserve the long-term mean monthly attributes. This study suggests and compares two multivariate bias-correction techniques to improve the performance of the SWAT model in predicting daily streamflow, TN Loads across the southeast based on split-sample validation. The first approach is a dimension reduction technique, canonical correlation analysis that regresses the observed multivariate attributes with the SWAT model simulated values. The second approach is from signal processing, importance weighting, that applies a weight based off the ratio of the observed and model densities to the model data to shift the mean, variance, and cross-correlation towards the observed values. These procedures were applied to 3 watersheds chosen from the Water Quality Network in the Southeast Region; specifically watersheds with sufficiently large drainage areas and number of observed data points. The performance of these two approaches are also compared with independent estimates from the USGS LOADEST model. Uncertainties in the bias-corrected estimates due to limited water quality observations are also discussed.
Computational Mechanistic Studies of Acid-Catalyzed Lignin Model Dimers for Lignin Depolymerization
Kim, S.; Sturgeon, M. R.; Chmely, S. C.; Paton, R. S.; Beckham, G. T.
Lignin is a heterogeneous alkyl-aromatic polymer that constitutes up to 30% of plant cell walls, and is used for water transport, structure, and defense. The highly irregular and heterogeneous structure of lignin presents a major obstacle in the development of strategies for its deconstruction and upgrading. Here we present mechanistic studies of the acid-catalyzed cleavage of lignin aryl-ether linkages, combining both experimental studies and quantum chemical calculations. Quantum mechanical calculations provide a detailed interpretation of reaction mechanisms including possible intermediates and transition states. Solvent effects on the hydrolysis reactions were incorporated through the use of a conductor-like polarizable continuum model (CPCM) and with cluster models including explicit water molecules in the first solvation shell. Reaction pathways were computed for four lignin model dimers including 2-phenoxy-phenylethanol (PPE), 1-(para-hydroxyphenyl)-2-phenoxy-ethanol (HPPE), 2-phenoxy-phenyl-1,3-propanediol (PPPD), and 1-(para-hydroxyphenyl)-2-phenoxy-1,3-propanediol (HPPPD). Lignin model dimers with a para-hydroxyphenyl ether (HPPE and HPPPD) show substantial differences in reactivity relative to the phenyl ether compound (PPE and PPPD) which have been clarified theoretically and experimentally. The significance of these results for acid deconstruction of lignin in plant cell walls will be discussed.
Mechanistic studies on direct ethylene glycol synthesis from carbon monoxide and hydrogen 1. Homogeneous rhodium catalyst
Ishino, M.; Tamura, M.; Deguchi, T.; Nakamura, S. )
Mechanistic studies on direct syngas conversion to ethylene glycol by a homogeneous Rh catalyst combined with a trialkylphosphine were performed. High-pressure IR studies showed that when a bulky trialkylphosphine, such as P{sup i}Pr{sub 3}(L), was added to the Rh catalyst, it gave HRh(CO){sub 3}L, rather than Rh carbonyl cluster anions, whereas PPh{sub 3} and P{sup n}Bu{sub 3} tended to decompose under the reaction conditions, forming an inactive Rh phosphidocarbonyl cluster anion, (Rh{sub 9}P(CO){sub 21}){sup 2{minus}}. Kinetic studies by means of complete-mixing flow-reaction experiments revealed that the formation of formaldehyde (FAL) from CO and H{sub 2} was rate-determining, and a bulky trialkylphosphine accelerated both the formation and the hydrogenation of FAL. It was suggested that these acceleration effects were connected with enrichment of the mononuclear hydride species and improvement of the CO insertion abilities to the hydride and the hydroxymethyl complexes by the phosphine ligand. The studies on the catalyst concentration dependencies by means of batchwise reaction revealed the involvement of dinuclear mechanisms in the formation of FAL and the reductive elimination of the hydroxymethyl and the hydroxyacetyl complexes.
Mechanistic studies of direct ethylene glycol synthesis from carbon monoxide and hydrogen 2. Homogeneous ruthenium catalyst
Ishino, M.; Tamura, M.; Deguchi, T.; Nakamura, S. )
Mechanistic studies on direct syngas conversion to ethylene glycol by a homogeneous Ru catalyst combined with N-methylbenzimidazole (NMBI) were performed. High-pressure IR studies showed that Ru(CO){sub 5} (A), Ru(CO){sub 4}L (B), and (LH){sup +}(Ru{sub 3}H(CO){sub 11}){sup {minus}} (C) (L = NMBI) coexist at equilibrium in the catalyst solution as major species. It was found that the activity of CO hydrogenation was proportional to the concentration of the complex (B). A neutral hydride complex, H{sub 2}Ru(CO){sub 3}L, derived from the complex (B) was considered to be the active form. Kinetic studies by means of complete-mixing flow-reaction experiments indicated that NMBI added to the Ru catalyst enhanced both the formation and the hydroformylation of formaldehyde (FAL), the key intermediate, and the subsequent reactions of FAL were rate-determining. It was suggested that NMBI enriches the Ru hydride species and accelerates the CO insertion to the hydride and the hydroxymethyl species by acting as a ligand and a base. The Ru anionic hydride species has a much lower activity for the CO hydrogenation to form FAL and a higher activity for the MeOH formation that proceeds via the methoxy species. The studies on catalyst concentration dependencies by means of batchwise reaction revealed the involvement of dinuclear mechanisms, which probably worked in the reductive elimination of the acyl complexes.
A global scale mechanistic model of photosynthetic capacity (LUNA V1.0)
Ali, Ashehad A.; Xu, Chonggang; Rogers, Alistair; Fischer, R. A.; Wullschleger, Stan D.; Massoud, E. C.; Vrugt, J. A.; McDowell, Nathan G.; Fisher, Joshua B.; Reich, Peter B.; et al
Although plant photosynthetic capacity as determined by the maximum carboxylation rate (i.e., Vc,max25) and the maximum electron transport rate (i.e., Jmax25) at a reference temperature (generally 25 °C) is known to vary considerably in space and time in response to environmental conditions, it is typically parameterized in Earth system models (ESMs) with tabulated values associated with plant functional types. In this study, we have developed a mechanistic model of leaf utilization of nitrogen for assimilation (LUNA) to predict photosynthetic capacity at the global scale under different environmental conditions. We adopt an optimality hypothesis to nitrogen allocation among light capture, electronmore » transport, carboxylation and respiration. The LUNA model is able to reasonably capture the measured spatial and temporal patterns of photosynthetic capacity as it explains ~55 % of the global variation in observed values of Vc,max25 and ~65 % of the variation in the observed values of Jmax25. Model simulations with LUNA under current and future climate conditions demonstrate that modeled values of Vc,max25 are most affected in high-latitude regions under future climates. In conclusion, ESMs that relate the values of Vc,max25 or Jmax25 to plant functional types only are likely to substantially overestimate future global photosynthesis.« less