Modeling the saturation of detergent association in mixed liposome systems.

Cells tune the lipid types present in their membranes to adjust for thermal and chemical stability, as well as to promote association and dissociation of small molecules and bound proteins. Understanding the influence of lipid type on molecule association would open doors for targeted cell therapies, in particular when molecular association is observed in the presence of competing membranes. For this reason, we modeled and experimentally observed the association of a small molecule with two membrane types present by measuring the association of the detergent Triton X-100 with two types of liposomes, egg phosphatidylcholine (ePC) liposomes and egg phosphatidic acid (ePA) liposomes, at varying ratios.

Lipid shape determination of detergent solubilization in mixed-lipid liposomes.

The effects of lipid charge and head group size on liposome partitioning by detergents is an important consideration for applications such as liposomal drug delivery or proteoliposome formation. Yet, the solubilization of mixed-lipid liposomes, those containing multiple types of lipids, by detergents has received insufficient attention. This study examines the incorporation into and subsequent dissolution of mixed-lipid liposomes comprised of both egg phosphatidylcholine (ePC) and egg phosphatidic acid (ePA) by the detergent Triton-X100 (TX).

A Review of Hydrogen Production by Photosynthetic Organisms Using Whole-Cell and Cell-Free Systems.

Molecular hydrogen is a promising currency in the future energy economy due to the uncertain availability of finite fossil fuel resources and environmental effects from their combustion. It also has important uses in the production of fertilizers and platform chemicals as well as in upgrading conventional fuels. Conventional methods for producing molecular hydrogen from natural gas produce carbon dioxide and use a finite resource as feedstock.

Sortase-mediated ligation of PsaE-modified photosystem I from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 to a conductive surface for enhanced photocurrent production on a gold electrode.

Sortase-mediated ligation was used to attach the photosystem I (PSI) complex from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 in a preferential orientation to enhance photoinduced electron flow to a conductive gold surface. Ideally, this method can result in a uniform monolayer of protein, covalently bound unidirectionally to the electrode surface.

Analysis of the solution structure of Thermosynechococcus elongatus photosystem I in n-dodecyl-β-D-maltoside using small-angle neutron scattering and molecular dynamics simulation.

Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation were used to investigate the structure of trimeric photosystem I (PSI) from Thermosynechococcus elongatus (T. elongatus) stabilized in n-dodecyl-β-d-maltoside (DDM) detergent solution. Scattering curves of detergent and protein-detergent complexes were measured at 18% D2O, the contrast match point for the detergent, and 100% D2O, allowing observation of the structures of protein/detergent complexes.

Development of a three-stage system for wastewater toxicity monitoring: a design and feasibility study.

A three-stage system was developed to automate a batchwise toxicity testing protocol designed for assessing wastewater toxicity to activated sludge. The three-stage system used the luminescent bacterium Shkl. The three stages were cell storage, cell activation, and continuous toxicity testing.

Toxicity of metals and organic chemicals evaluated with bioluminescence assays.

The development of a bioluminescent sensor organism (Shk1) that was created for assessing wastewater toxicity was reported several years ago. In order to establish a test battery to better characterize wastewater toxicity, additional luminescent sensor organisms were later created. The present study focused on one promising candidate (PM6), a Pseudomonas spp.

Reducing bioassay variability by identifying sources of variation and controlling key parameters in assay protocol.

Reducing bioassay variability by identifying sources of variation and controlling important parameters in assay protocol was demonstrated in this study. The variability of a bioassay based on a luminescent bacterium was examined as an example. This assay involved the growth of cells, storage at a low temperature, activation, and exposure to a test sample, and the assay response was bioluminescence inhibition.

Using factorial experiments to study the toxicity of metal mixtures.

Two-level factorial experiments were employed in this study for understanding and predicting the toxicity of binary and ternary metal mixtures. Toxicity of metal mixtures with concentrations between the respective EC10 and EC80 values was experimentally measured. Models were fit to the experimental data and the resultant models were of high quality as reflected by R2 (coefficient of determination).

An exploratory study of the use of multivariate techniques to determine mechanisms of toxic action.

The most successful quantitative structure-activity relationships have been developed by separating compounds by their mechanisms of toxic action (MOAs). However, to correctly determine the MOA of a compound is often not easy. We investigated the usefulness of discriminant analysis and logistic regression in determining MOAs.

The use of a genetically engineered Pseudomonas species (Shk1) as a bioluminescent reporter for heavy metal toxicity screening in wastewater treatment plant influent.

Heavy metals are known to be inhibitory and toxic to the activated-sludge microbial community in biological wastewater treatment plants. Toxicity screening of aqueous mixtures of these heavy metal ions in plant influent could use both chemical and biological methods. As a biological method, luminescent bacterial bioreporters offer the advantages of a simple test procedure and rapid response.

Use of multidimensional scaling in the selection of wastewater toxicity test battery components.

In aquatic toxicity testing, no single test species is sensitive to all toxicants. Therefore, test batteries consisting of several individual assays are becoming more common. The organisms in a test battery should be representative of the entire system of interest.

Modeling the toxicity of polar and nonpolar narcotic compounds to luminescent bacterium Shk1.

Luminescent bacterium Shk1 was created for the purpose of testing and screening the toxicity of activated sludge wastewater treatment plant influent to avoid toxic shock to the wastewater treatment plant microorganisms. The toxicity of a number of organic compounds was tested using an assay employing Shk1. Because these compounds exhibit toxicity by mechanisms of both polar and nonpolar narcosis, their toxicity cannot be properly modeled together using a quantitative structure-activity relationship model based on the logarithm of the octanol-water partition coefficient (log K(ow)).

Estimating the toxicities of organic chemicals to bioluminescent bacteria and activated sludge.

Toxicity assays based on bioluminescent bacteria have several advantages including a quick response and an easily measured signal. The Shk1 assay is a procedure for wastewater toxicity testing based on the bioluminescent bacterium Shk1. Using the Shk1 assay, the toxicity of 98 organic chemicals were measured and EC50 values were obtained.

Direct transesterification of gases by "dry" immobilized lipase.

Several different reactor configurations, including single pass, continuous recycle, and batch reactor modes, were used to investigate the effects of temperature and water activity, or relative humidity, on lipase-catalyzed, gas-phase transesterifications. Temperature and relative humidity were controlled both inside reactors and throughout the course of the reaction to account for and optimize their effects. Results indicated that, at low relative humidity, reaction rates increased with temperature up to 60 degrees C.