The NADH-dependent flavin reductase ThdF follows an ordered sequential mechanism though crystal structures reveal two FAD molecules in the active site.

Two-component flavin-dependent monooxygenases are of great interest as biocatalysts for the production of pharmaceuticals and other relevant molecules, as they catalyze chemically important reactions such as hydroxylation, epoxidation and halogenation. The monooxygenase components require a separate flavin reductase, which provides the necessary reduced flavin cofactor. The tryptophan halogenase Thal from Streptomyces albogriseolus is a well-characterized two-component flavin-dependent halogenase.

Derivation of toxicity parameters from field data: Analysis of lake zooplankton species responses to metals and acidity.

The WHAM-Fβ model describes the toxic effects of mixtures of protons and metal cations towards biological species, using a set of intrinsic parameters for the cations (α, α*) and a sensitivity parameter (β) for each species. We applied the model to extensive water chemistry and zooplankton species occurrence data for four lakes contaminated with acidity and metals (Al, Ni, Cu, Zn) at Sudbury, Ontario, over the period 1973-2018, during which cation contamination declined, and zooplankton species numbers increased. Assuming that the appearance of a species resulted solely from decreases in water toxicity, and that α and α* values previously derived from laboratory toxicity test data could be applied in the field, we used the field data to estimate values of β for individual lake zooplankton species.

Method for Quantitative Analysis of Vitreoretinal Adhesion in Ex Vivo Model.

Purpose: Posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) is implicated in numerous retinal pathologies. A necessary step in developing new therapies, an area of significant interest, is a quantifiable assessment of posterior vitreous adhesion (PVA) that is also clinically relevant.

Methods: A 23-gauge vitrector was used at varying levels of vacuum to attempt PVD induction in a porcine eye model injected with either balanced salt solution (BSS) (control) or plasmin (2, 3, or 5 U), which can pharmacologically induce PVD.

The cytoskeletal protein profilin is an important allergen in saltwort ().

Pollen from , i.e., saltwort, Russian thistle, is a major allergen source in the coastal regions of southern Europe, in Turkey, Central Asia, and Iran.

A Direct Route to closo-SBCl Thiaboranes from Simple Electron-Precise Synthons: The Different Role of Chalcogen Bonding in SBCl and SBCl Crystals.

Six-vertex closo-SBCl (1) and ten-vertex closo-1-SBCl (2) thiaboranes have been prepared, besides the already known 12-vertex closo-SBCl (3), from the co-pyrolysis reaction of BCl with SCl at 280 °C in vacuo. The compounds are sublimable, off-white solids. Their elemental composition has been determined by high-resolution mass spectrometry.

The molecular architecture of S-layer: Assembly and attachment to teichoic acids.

S-layers are crystalline arrays found on bacterial and archaeal cells. is a diverse family of bacteria known especially for potential gut health benefits. This study focuses on the S-layer proteins from and common in the mammalian gut.

Vaccine Based on Recombinant Fusion Protein Combining Hepatitis B Virus PreS with SARS-CoV-2 Wild-Type- and Omicron-Derived Receptor Binding Domain Strongly Induces Omicron-Neutralizing Antibodies in a Murine Model.

Background: COVID-19, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has become a recurrent endemic disease affecting the whole world. Since November 2021, Omicron and its subvariants have dominated in the spread of the disease. In order to prevent severe courses of disease, vaccines are needed to boost and maintain antibody levels capable of neutralizing Omicron.

Using double pulse laser ablation in air to enhance the strength of laser-driven shocks.

In the process of multi-pulse laser ablation, inter-pulse delay time, Δt, is known to be an important parameter for maximizing ablation efficiency as well as impulse imparted to the target. In this work, using photon Doppler velocimetry, we show that for single pairs of colinear pulses (1064 nm, 8 ns, ∼ 60 J cm per pulse) in air, the peak free surface velocity of the back surface of an aluminum target (125 µm thick) is increased, by a factor of nearly 3, when Δt = 10 microseconds, compared with both pulses arriving simultaneously (Δt = 0). Fast imaging of the ablation process suggests this enhancement is due to rarefaction of the contiguous air in the passage of the leading shock produced by ablation, which then in turn allows a larger fraction of the energy of the second pulse to reach the target surface.

Comment on Balwierz et al. Potential Carcinogens in Makeup Cosmetics. 2023, , 4780.

The article by Balwierz et al [...

Effect of TraN key residues involved in DNA binding on pIP501 transfer rates in .

Conjugation is a major mechanism that facilitates the exchange of antibiotic resistance genes among bacteria. The broad-host-range Inc18 plasmid pIP501 harbors 15 genes that encode for a type IV secretion system (T4SS). It is a membrane-spanning multiprotein complex formed between conjugating donor and recipient cells.

Rational downstream development for adeno-associated virus full/empty capsid separation - A streamlined methodology based on high-throughput screening and mechanistic modeling.

Recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) has emerged as one of the most promising systems for therapeutic gene delivery and has demonstrated clinical success in a wide range of genetic disorders. However, manufacturing of high-quality AAV in large amounts still remains a challenge. A significant difficulty for downstream processing is the need to remove empty capsids that are generated in all currently utilized expression systems and that represent product-related impurities that adversely affect safety and efficacy of AAV vectors.

Allergenic Activity of Individual Cat Allergen Molecules.

More than 10% of the world's population suffers from an immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergy to cats which is accompanied mainly by respiratory symptoms such as rhinitis and asthma. Several cat allergen molecules have been identified, but their allergenic activity has not been investigated in depth. Purified cat allergen molecules (Fel d 1, Fel d 2, Fel d 3, Fel d 4, Fel d 6, Fel d 7 and Fel d 8) were characterized via mass spectrometry and circular dichroism spectroscopy regarding their molecular mass and fold, respectively.

Chlorinated polyhedral selenaboranes revisited by joint experimental/computational efforts: the formation of -1-SeBCl and the crystal structure of -SeBCl.

The recent success in the formation of chlorinated telluraboranes and the reactivities of pnictogenaboranes prompted us to re-examine the vacuum co-pyrolysis of BCl with SeCl at various molar ratios and temperatures in order to search for the generation of other polyhedral selenaboranes than -SeBCl (1a) and -SeBCl (1b), the latter being observed earlier. Interestingly, a new compound with the elemental composition SeBCl (2) was detected, this time by high- and low-resolution mass spectrometry. Further characterization by 1- and 2-D B-NMR spectroscopy suggests that 2 should adopt a closed bicapped square-antiprismatic geometry with selenium at the apical position.

Recombinant PreS-fusion protein vaccine for birch pollen and apple allergy.

Background: IgE cross-sensitization to major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1 and pathogenesis-related (PR10) plant food allergens is responsible for the pollen-food allergy syndrome.

Methods: We designed a recombinant protein, AB-PreS, consisting of non-allergenic peptides derived from the IgE-binding sites of Bet v 1 and the cross-reactive apple allergen, Mal d 1, fused to the PreS domain of HBV surface protein as immunological carrier. AB-PreS was expressed in E.

Outcomes of subsequent abdominal operations after an initial ventral hernia repair.

Introduction: Nearly 20% of ventral hernia repair (VHR) patients require a subsequent abdominal operation (SAO), and mesh position may impact the complexity and outcome of the SAO.

Methods: Retrospective review of VHR with mesh from 2006 to 2020 from an internal database and the ACHQC. Primary outcomes measured incidence, complexity, and complications of SAO relative to mesh position.

Tamper performance for confined laser drive applications.

The shock imparted by a laser beam striking a metal surface can be increased by the presence of an optically transparent tamper plate bonded to the surface. We explore the shock produced in an aluminum slab, for a selection of tamper materials and drive conditions. The experiments are conducted with a single-pulse laser of maximum fluence up to 100 J/cm.

Boron-based octahedral dication experimentally detected: DFT surface confirms its availability.

Borane and heteroborane clusters have been known as neutral or anionic species. In contrast to them, several ten-vertex monocationic and dicarbaborane-based systems have recently emerged from the reaction of the parent bicapped-square antiprismatic dicarbaboranes with N-heterocyclic carbenes followed by the protonization of the corresponding intermediates. The expansion of these efforts has afforded the very first -dicationic octahedral phosphahexaborane along with new monocationic pnictogenahexaboranes of the same shapes.

A multi-step machine learning approach for accelerating QbD-based process development of protein spray drying.

This study proposes a new material-efficient multi-step machine learning (ML) approach for the development of a design space (DS) for spray drying proteins. Typically, a DS is developed by performing a design of experiments (DoE) with the spray dryer and the protein of interest, followed by deriving the DoE models via multi-variate regression. This approach was followed as a benchmark to the ML approach.

The Telluraboranes closo-TeB Cl and closo-TeB Cl with Exceptionally Long Body Diagonals: Synthetic and Bonding Motifs for Innovative Octahedral and Icosahedral Geometries.

Six-vertex closo-TeB Cl (1) and twelve-vertex closo-TeB Cl (2) telluraboranes have been prepared via co-pyrolysis of B Cl with TeCl in vacuo at temperatures between 360 °C and 400 °C. Both compounds are sublimable, off-white solids, and they have been characterized by one- and two-dimensional B NMR and high-resolution mass spectroscopy. Both ab initio/GIAO/NMR and DFT/ZORA/NMR computations support octahedral and icosahedral geometries for 1 and 2, respectively, as expected due to their closo-electron counts.

International comparisons of intraocular pressures, as measured by Tono-Pen and Goldmann applanation tonometry, in healthy adults: A meta-analysis.

Background: Investigate intraocular pressure (IOP), as measured by Tono-Pen (TP) and Goldmann applanation tonometry (GAT), in healthy adults. Provide an updated synthesis of multinational, primary studies, reported during the 10-year period 2011 to 2021 and offer an evidence-based benchmark, against which IOP can be evaluated across subject variables and pathologies. Three primary research questions are investigated: Is there a statistically significant difference between IOP measured by TP and GAT? If yes, is the difference clinically significant? Is measurement of IOP affected by the country or setting location, in which the measurements are made?

Methods: An aggregate meta-analysis was conducted on 22 primary studies, from 15 different countries.

Demonstration of continuous gradient elution functionality with automated liquid handling systems for high-throughput purification process development.

Various high-throughput systems and strategies are employed by the biopharmaceutical industry for early to late-stage process development for biologics manufacturing. The associated increases to experiment productivity and reduction in material consumption makes high throughput tools integral for bioprocess development. While these high-throughput systems have been successfully leveraged to generate high quality data representative of manufacturing scale processes, their data interpretation often requires complex data transformation and time-intensive system characterization.

Reactivity of Perhalogenated Octahedral Phospha- and Arsaboranes toward THF: A Joint Experimental/Computational Study.

Reactions of the perhalogenated polyhedral pnictogenaboranes -1,2-PnBHal (Pn = P, As; Hal = Cl, Br) with Lewis bases are presently being studied with a focus on rationalizing the sites of nucleophilic attacks on clusters bearing σ-holes. These σ-holes are localized both on pnictogens and, for Hal = Br, on bromine atoms, as revealed by electrostatic potential (ESP) and intrinsic bond orbital (IBO) analyses. Surprisingly, the attack of the cyclic ether THF on -1,2-PnBBr does not occur on the site with the largest positive partial charge, centered in the middle of the pnictogen-pnictogen vector.

Art v 1 IgE epitopes of patients and humanized mice are conformational.

Background: Worldwide, pollen of the weed mugwort (Artemisiavulgaris) is a major cause of severe respiratory allergy, with its major allergen, Art v 1, being the key pathogenic molecule for millions of patients. Humanized mice transgenic for a human T-cell receptor specific for the major Art v 1 T-cell epitope and the corresponding HLA have been made.

Objective: We sought to characterize IgE epitopes of Art v 1-sensitized patients and humanized mice for molecular immunotherapy of mugwort allergy.

Identification of Epitopes on Rhinovirus 89 Capsid Proteins Capable of Inducing Neutralizing Antibodies.

Rhinoviruses (RVs) are major causes of the common cold, but they can also trigger exacerbations of asthma. More than 160 different RV strains exist and can be classified into three genetic species (RV-A, RV-B and RV-C) which bind to different receptors on human cells including intracellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), the low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) or the cadherin-related family member 3 (CDHR3). Epitopes located in the RV capsid have mainly been determined for RV2, a minor-group RV-A strain binding to LDLR, and for RV14, a major-group RV-B strain binding to ICAM-1.