Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of Arabidopsis thaliana cyclophilin 38 (AtCyp38).

AtCyp38 is one of the highly divergent multidomain cyclophilins from Arabidopsis thaliana. A recombinant form of AtCyp38 (residues 83-437) was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified to homogeneity. The protein was crystallized using the vapour-batch technique with PEG 6000 and t-butanol as precipitants.

Expression, purification and preliminary crystallographic analysis of sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) from Halothermothrix orenii.

This is the first report of the crystallization of a sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS; EC 2.4.1.

Growth and amylase production by Aspergillus oryzae during solid state fermentation using banana waste as substrate.

Aspergillus oryzae, isolated from the starch rich litter soil, produced amylase when banana fruit stalk was used as substrate in a solid state fermentation system. The effects of incubation period, pH, temperature and various carbon sources on the production of amylase were studied. A maximum yield of 380U/mg was recorded on 96th hour of incubation.

Process standardization for optimal virus recovery and removal of substrate DNA and bovine serum proteins in Vero cell-derived rabies vaccine.

Purification of a rabies vaccine by a single zonal centrifugation run was replaced by two runs with optimal standardization of the sucrose density gradient. As a result, significant reductions in the levels of substrate DNA and bovine serum protein in the Vero cell-derived human rabies vaccine were achieved. Following many trials, for the first run, loading of the 3.

Improvement of tea leaves fermentation with Aspergillus spp. pectinase.

The pectinase enzymes isolated from Aspergillus spp., A. indicus, A.

Arsenic removal from groundwater by pretreated waste tea fungal biomass.

Arsenic contamination in ground water poses a serious threat on human health. The tea fungus, a waste produced during black tea fermentation has been examined for its capacity to sequester the metal ions from ground water samples. Autoclaved tea fungal mat and autoclaving followed by FeCl3 pretreated tea fungal mat were exploited for removal of As(III), As(V) and Fe(II) from ground water sample collected from Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

Supplementation of waste tea fungal biomass as a dietary ingredient for broiler chicks.

The waste tea fungal biomass produced during black tea fermentation was investigated as a dietary ingredient in poultry feeds. A small portion of fungal mat was used as starter culture for the next cycle while the major portion is discarded as waste. Hence a trial study was carried out to utilize the waste fungal biomass as a supplementary diet for broiler chicks.

Purification, potency and immunogenicity analysis of Vero cell culture-derived rabies vaccine: a comparative study of single-step column chromatography and zonal centrifuge purification.

Continuous Vero cell lines are more suitable for large-scale production of rabies vaccine. The purification of Vero cell-derived rabies vaccine is critical because of the residual cellular DNA and serum proteins. The perfection of techniques using column chromatography with different matrix material, gel filtration and zonal centrifugation is of paramount importance for the optimal purification of rabies vaccine, leaving minimal residual cellular DNA, below the permissible level of 100 pg per dose and serum protein content of 1 ppm.

Implementation of national diabetes retinal screening programme is associated with a lower proportion of patients referred to ophthalmology.

Aims: To examine the impact of a new national retinal screening programme on screening attendance, technical quality of images, and referrals to the ophthalmology clinic.

Methods: Results from the previous ad hoc retinal screening service were compared with data from the first year of the new Scottish Diabetes Retinal Screening Programme in Dundee, which was administered according to criteria recommended by the Health Technology Board Scotland.

Results: Of 5150 patients invited for screening, 10.

Sorption of Cr(VI) from dilute solutions and wastewater by live and pretreated biomass of Aspergillus flavus.

Sorption of Cr(VI) was carried out from dilute solutions using live and pretreated biomass in a batch mode. Effects of agitation time, adsorbent dosage and pH were examined. The autoclaved biomass that showed maximum adsorption capacity (Q(0)=0.

Promoter addresses: revelations from oligonucleotide profiling applied to the Escherichia coli genome.

Background: Transcription is the first step in cellular information processing. It is regulated by cis-acting elements such as promoters and operators in the DNA, and trans-acting elements such as transcription factors and sigma factors. Identification of cis-acting regulatory elements on a genomic scale requires computational analysis.

Leaching of metals on stabilization of metal sludge using cement based materials.

Toxicity characteristic leaching procedure(TCLP) of zinc plating sludge was carried out to assess the leaching potential of the sludge and the leachates were analyzed for heavy metals. The concentration of zinc, chromium, and lead in the leachate were 371.5 mg/L, 1.

Structure and function comparison of Micropechis ikaheka snake venom phospholipase A2 isoenzymes.

Comparison of the crystal structures of three Micropechis ikaheka phospholipase A2 isoenzymes (MiPLA2, MiPLA3 and MiPLA4, which exhibit different levels of pharmacological effects) shows that their C-terminus (residues 110-124) is the most variable. M-Type receptor binding affinity of the isoenzymes has also been investigated and MiPLA4 binds to the rabbit M-type receptor with high affinity. Examination of surface charges of the isoenzymes reveals a trend of increase in positive charges with potency.

Efficacy of botulinum toxin A, serial casting, and combined treatment for spastic equinus: a retrospective analysis.

Botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A), serial casting, and combined treatment for spastic equinus were compared by chart review. Fifty-five patients with diplegia (n=21), hemiplegia (n=17), quadriplegia (n=6), and other diagnoses (n=11) were reviewed. Thirty-one patients had Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) scores of I or II, 10 had a GMFCS score of III, and eight had GMFCS scores of IV or V (for six there were no available data).

Assessment of the mechanical stability and chemical leachability of immobilized electroplating waste.

The effectiveness of cement based treatment technology, in immobilizing chromium laden electroplating sludge was assessed by conducting toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP). The mechanical stability of the blocks was tested by measuring the compressive strength. Other leaching tests such as NEN 7341 test, ANS 16.

Structural analysis uncovers a role for redox in regulating FKBP13, an immunophilin of the chloroplast thylakoid lumen.

Change in redox status has long been known to link light to the posttranslational regulation of chloroplast enzymes. So far, studies have been conducted primarily with thioredoxin-linked members of the stroma that function in a broad array of biosynthetic and degradatory processes. Consequently, little is known about the role of redox in regulating the growing number of enzymes found to occur in the lumen, the site of oxygen evolution in thylakoid membranes.

A dimerized coiled-coil domain and an adjoining part of geminin interact with two sites on Cdt1 for replication inhibition.

Geminin is a cellular protein that associates with Cdt1 and inhibits Mcm2-7 loading during S phase. It prevents multiple cycles of replication per cell cycle and prevents episome replication. It also directly inhibits the HoxA11 transcription factor.

Crystallization of a novel alpha-amylase, AmyB, from the thermophilic halophile Halothermothrix orenii.

This is a report on the structure determination of AmyB, the second alpha-amylase from Halothermothrix orenii, by X-ray crystallography. This bacterium was isolated from saltpans where conditions consisted of both high temperatures and high NaCl content. AmyB is a 599-residue protein which is stable and significantly active at 358 K in starch solution containing up to 10%(w/v) NaCl.

Comparison of decolorization of reactive microorganisms isolated from various sources.

Azo dyes are among the oldest man-made chemicals and they are still widely used in the textile, printing and the food industries. About 10% - 15% of the total dyes used in the industry is released into the environment during the manufacturing and usage. Some dyes and some of their N-substituted aromatic bio-transformation products are toxic and/or carcinogenic and therefore these dyes are considered to be envionmental pollutants and health hazards.

Biodegradation of p-nitrophenol in anaerobic fixed film fixed bed reactor.

Biodegradation of p-nitrophenol (PNP) was studied in upflow anaerobic fixed film fixed bed reactor. The studies showed that PNP was not degraded as a sole carbon source in the reactor. Addition of glucose as co-substrate increased the degradation of PNP.

Isomaltulose synthase (PalI) of Klebsiella sp. LX3. Crystal structure and implication of mechanism.

Isomaltulose synthase from Klebsiella sp. LX3 (PalI, EC 5.4.

Metabolic characteristics of an aerobe isolated from a methylotrophic methanogenic enrichment culture.

An anaerobic methylotrophic methanogenic enrichment culture, with sustained metabolic characteristics, including that of methanation for over a decade, was the choice of the present study on interspecies interactions. Growth and methanation by the enrichment were suppressed in the presence of antibiotics, and no methanogen grown on methanol could be isolated using stringent techniques. The present study confirmed syntrophic metabolic interactions in this enrichment with the isolation of a strain of Pseudomonas sp.

Decolorization and degradation of H-acid and other dyes using ferrous-hydrogen peroxide system.

In this study, advanced oxidation process utilizing Fenton's reaction was investigated for the decolorization and degradation of two commercial dyes viz., Red M5B, Blue MR and H-acid, a dye intermediate used in chemical industries for the synthesis of direct, reactive and azo dyes. Effect of Fe2 +, H2O2, pH, and contact time on the degradation of the dyes was studied.