Natural deep eutectic solvents (NADESs) comprised of osmolytes are of interest as potential biomolecular (cryo)protectants. However, the way these solvents influence the structure and dynamics of biomolecules as well as the role of water remains poorly understood. We carried out principal component analysis of various secondary structure elements of ubiquitin in water and a betaine : glycerol : water (1 : 2 : ; = 0, 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 45) NADES, from molecular dynamics trajectories, to gain insight into the protein dynamics as it undergoes a transition from a highly viscous anhydrous to an aqueous environment. A crossover of the protein's essential dynamics at ∼ 5, induced by solvent-shell coupled fluctuations, is observed, indicating that ubiquitin might (re)fold in the NADES upon water addition at > ∼5. Further, in contrast to water, the anhydrous NADES preserves ubiquitin's essential modes at high temperatures explaining the protein's seemingly enhanced thermal stability.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/d4cp01773k | DOI Listing |
Biochemistry
January 2025
Department of Microbiology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-8101, United States.
Metal ions are essential for all life. In microbial cells, potassium (K) is the most abundant cation and plays a key role in maintaining osmotic balance. Magnesium (Mg) is the dominant divalent cation and is required for nucleic acid structure and as an enzyme cofactor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Pollut
January 2025
Olaf Malm Laboratory of Environmental Studies (LEA-OM), Carlos Chagas Filho Biophysics Institute (IBCCF), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), 21941-902, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Laboratory of Oceanology, Freshwater and Oceanic Sciences Unit of Research (FOCUS), University of Liege, Belgium.
This study investigates essential (Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Se, Ni) and non-essential (Li, Be, Cr, Rb, Sr, Cs, Cd, Sn, Ba, and Pb) element concentrations and stable isotope (δC, δN, δS) compositions in feathers of Brown Boobies (Sula leucogaster) from three distinct Atlantic islands: the Archipelagos of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (SPSP), Abrolhos, and Cagarras. We aimed to investigate the ecological and environmental factors influencing these seabird populations and assess potential variations in contaminant exposure and dietary habits based on location, sex, and maturity stages. Our finding revealed significant geographical differences in trace element concentrations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt Immunopharmacol
January 2025
Immunology Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, Paraíba 58051-900, Brazil. Electronic address:
Obesity is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects more than 1 billion people worldwide and is associated with various metabolic and physiological dysfunctions, directly impacting the dynamics of the immune response, partly due to elevated leptin levels. Leptin is an important peptide hormone that regulates neuroendocrine function and energy homeostasis, with its blood levels reflecting energy reserves, fat mass, or energy deprivation. This hormone also plays a fundamental role in regulating immune function, including the activity of NK cells, which are essential components in antiviral and antitumor activity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAccid Anal Prev
January 2025
School of Computer Science and Informatics, De Montfort University, Leicester LE1 9BH, UK.
With the continuous development of intelligent transportation systems, traffic safety has become a major societal concern, and vehicle trajectory anomaly detection technology has emerged as a crucial method to ensure safety. However, current technologies face significant challenges in handling spatiotemporal data and multi-feature fusion, including difficulties in big data processing, and have room for improvement in these areas. To address these issues, this paper proposes a novel method that combines autoencoders, Mahalanobis distance, and dynamic Bayesian networks for anomaly detection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCurr Pharm Des
January 2025
Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Erciyes University, Kayseri 38039, Turkey.
Background: Psychosis, marked by detachment from reality, includes symptoms like hallucinations and delusions. Traditional herbal remedies like kratom are gaining attention for psychiatric conditions. This was aimed at comprehending the molecular mechanisms of Kratom's antipsychotic effects utilizing a multi-modal computational approach.
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