Chinikomycins A and B: Isolation, structure elucidation, and biological activity of novel antibiotics from a marine Streptomyces sp isolate M045

In our screening of marine Streptomycetes for bioactive principles, two novel antitumor antibiotics designated as chinikomycins A (2a) and B (2b) were isolated together with manumycin A (1), and their structures were elucidated by a detailed interpretation of their spectra. Chinikomycins A (2a) and B (2b) are chlorine-containing aromatized manumycin derivatives of the type 64-pABA-2 with an unusual para orientation of the side chains. They exhibited antitumor activity against different human cancer cell lines, but were inactive in antiviral, antimicrobial, and phytotoxicity tests.

Characterization of the main light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b-protein complex of green alga, Bryopsis corticulans

The main light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b -protein complex (LHC II) has been isolated directly from thylakoid membranes of shiphonous green alga, Bryopsis corticulans Setch. by using two consecutive runs of anion exchange and gel-filtration chromatography. Monomeric and trimeric subcomplexes of LHC 11 were obtained by using sucrose gradient ultracentrifugation. Pigment analysis by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography showed that chlorophyll a (Chl a), chlorophyll b (Chl b), neoxanthin, violaxanthin and siphonaxanthin were involved in LHC 11 from B. corticulans. The properties of electronic transition of monomeric LHC II showed similarities to those of trimeric LHC II. Circular dichroism spectroscopy showed that strong intramolecular interaction of excitonic dipoles between Chl a and between Chl b exist in one LHC II apoprotein, while the intermolecular interaction of these dipoles can be intensified in the trimeric structure. The monomer has high efficient energy transfer from Chl b and siphonaxanthin to Chl a similarly to that of the trimer. Our results suggest that in B. corticulans, LHC II monomer has high ordered pigment organization that play effective physiological function as the trimer, and thus it might be also a functional organization existing in thylakoid membrane of B. corticulans.

Isolation of the main light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b-protein complex from thylakoid membranes of marine alga, Bryopsis corticulans by a direct method

The main chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complex (LHC 11) has been isolated directly from thylakoid membranes of marine green alga (Bryopsis corticulans Setch.) by two consecutive runs of anion exchange and gel-filtration chromatography. LHC 11 proteins in the membrane extracts treated with 3% n-Octyl-b-D-glucopyranoside (OG) obtained specific binding ability on Q Sepharose column, and thus were isolated from the thylakoid membranes in a highly selective fraction. The monomeric, trimeric and oligomeric subcomplexes of LHC 11 have been obtained by fractionation of the LHC 11 mixes with sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation. The SDS-PAGE analysis of peptide composition and absorption spectrum showed that LHC 11 monomers, trimers and oligomers prepared through this work were intact and in high purity. Our report is the first to show that it is possible to purify LHC If directly from thylakoid membranes without extensively biochemical purification.

Scophthalmus maximus cystatin B enhances head kidney macrophage-mediated bacterial killing

Cystatins form a large family of cysteine protease inhibitors found in a wide arrange of organisms. Studies have indicated that mammalian cystatins play important roles under both physiological and pathological conditions. However, much less is known about fish cystatins. In this report, we described the identification and analysis of a cystatin B homologue, SmCytB, from turbot Scophthalmus maximus. The open reading frame of SmCytB is 300 bp, which encodes a 99-residue protein that shares high levels of sequence identities with the cystatin B of a number of fish species and contains the conserved cysteine protease inhibitor motif of cystatin B. Constitutive expression of SmCytB is high in muscle, brain, heart and liver, and low in spleen. blood, gill and kidney. Bacterial infection upregulates SmCytB expression in kidney, spleen, liver and brain but not in muscle or heart. Functional analysis showed that recombinant SmCytB purified from Escherichia colt exhibits apparent cysteine protease inhibitor activity. Transient overexpression of SmCytB in head kidney macrophages enhances macrophage bactericidal activity probably through a nitric oxide-independent mechanism. These results indicate that SmCytB is involved in the immune defense of turbot against bacterial infection. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Proteasome and NF-kappa B inhibiting phaeophytins from the green alga Cladophora fascicularis

Chemical examination of the green alga Cladophora fascicularis resulted in the isolation and characterization of a new porphyrin derivative, porphyrinolactone (1), along with five known phaeophytins 2-6 and fourteen sterols and cycloartanes. The structure of 1 was determined on the basis of spectroscopic analyses and by comparison of its NMR data with those of known phaeophytins. Compounds 1-6 displayed moderate inhibition of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) induced nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) activation, while 2 and 4 displayed potential inhibitory activity toward proteasome chymotripsin-like activation. The primary structure-activity relationship was also discussed.

Mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variation and phylogenetics of the highly specialized schizothoracine fishes (Teleostei : Cyprinidae) in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

The complete 1140 bp mitochondial cytochrome b sequences were obtained from 39 individuals representing five species of all four genera of highly specialized schizothoracine fishes distributed in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. Sequence variation of the cytochrome b gene was surveyed among the 39 individuals as well as three primitive schizothoracines and one outgroup. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that the group assignment based on 1140 bp of the cytochrome b sequence is obviously; different from previous assignments, and the highly specialized schizothoracine fishes (Schizopygopsis pylzovi, Gymnocypris przewalskii, G. eckloni, Chuanchia lablosa, and Platypharodon extremus) form a monophyletic group that is sister to the clade formed by the primitive schizothoracine fishes (Schizothorax prenanti, S. pseudaksaiensis, and S. argentatus). The haplotypes of Schizopygopsis pylzovi and G. przewalskii were paraphyletic based on cytochrome b data, which most likely reflected incomplete sorting of mitochondrial DNA lineages. The diploid chromosome numbers of Schizofhoracinae were considered in phylogenetic analysis and provided a clear pattern of relationships. Molecular dating estimated for highly specialized schizothoracine fishes suggested that the highly specialized schizothoracine fishes diverged in the late Miocene Pliocene to Pleistocene (4.5x10(4)-4.05x10(6) Years BP). The relationship between the cladogenesis of highly specialized schizothoracine fishes and geographical events of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau is discussed.

Photosynthesis of Saussurea superba and Gentiana straminea is not reduced after long-term enhancement of UV-B radiation

Experiments were conducted in an alpine Kobresia humilis meadow near Haibei Alpine Meadow Ecosystem Research Station (37degrees29'-37degrees45'N, 101degrees12'-101degrees33'E; altitude 3200 m). Effects of enhanced ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation on photosynthesis of the alpine plants of Saussurea superba and Gentiana straminea were investigated. Both species were exposed to a UV-B-BE density at 15.80 kJ m(-2) per day, simulating nearly 14% ozone (O-3) reduction during the plant growing season. Neither photosynthetic CO2 uptake rate nor photosynthetic O-2 evolution rate were decreased after a long period of enhanced UV-B radiation treatment. On the contrary, there was a tendency to increase of both parameters in both species. The photosynthetic pigments were also increased, when expressed on a leaf area basis. UV-B absorbing compounds, detected by the absorbance values at 300 mm, had a tendency to increase in both species after enhanced UV-B radiation. After long-term exposure of plants to enhanced UV-B radiation, leaf morphology was also affected. Leaf thickness in both S. superba and G. straminea were increased significantly (P < 0.001). This supports our hypothesis that the increase of leaf thickness in both species after long-term exposure of enhanced UV-B radiation could compensate for the photodestruction of photosynthetic pigments when light passes through the leaf. Therefore, photosynthesis is not reduced in either species when expressed on leaf area basis. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Li+ Diffusion and its Structural Basis in the Nanocrystalline and Amorphous Forms of Two-dimensionally Ion-conducting LixTiS2

Winter, Rudolf; Heitjans, P., (2001) 'Li+ Diffusion and its Structural Basis in the Nanocrystalline and Amorphous Forms of Two-dimensionally Ion-conducting LixTiS2', Journal of Physical Chemistry B 105(26) pp.6108-6115 RAE2008

Autonomia w nauce języka obcego – co osiągnęliśmy i dokąd zmierzamy?

Niniejszy tom poświęcony jest niezwykle istotnemu zagadnieniu w dydaktyce języków obcych, jakim jest autonomia, rozumiana nie tylko jako zdolność i chęć uczniów do przejęcia choćby części odpowiedzialności za własną naukę, ale również jako gotowość nauczycieli do wyjścia poza ramy instytucjonalne i stworzenia warunków, w których postawy i zachowania o charakterze autonomicznym mogą być rozwijane. Książka stanowi zbiór artykułów opartych na wybranych referatach wygłoszonych podczas konferencji pod hasłem Autonomia ucznia w nauczaniu języków obcych – co osiągnęliśmy i dokąd zmierzamy, zorganizowanej w maju 2007 roku przez Instytut Neofilologii Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Koninie oraz Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydziału Pedagogiczno-Artystycznego UAM w Kaliszu. Można ją również uznać za kontynuację rozważań nad autonomią zawartych w publikacji z 2004 roku, zatytułowanej Autonomia w nauce języka obcego i będącej pokłosiem pierwszej konferencji poświęconej tej właśnie tematyce.

Wszyscy będziemy cyborgami. Wokół Antropologii cyborgów Grażyny Gajewskiej

Książka jest interesująca – sam projekt stworzenia antropologii cyborgów należy uznać za zadanie bardzo ambitne, które, mam nadzieję, znajdzie kontynuację czy to w kolejnych pracach autorki, czy innych badaczy, dla których to zagadnienie okaże się dostatecznie interesujące. Należy też docenić całe spektrum poruszanych w niej analiz, które stanowią reprezentatywną próbę, ekstrakt cyborga i jego wizerunku w kulturze audiowizualnej, a także podkreślić charakter kulturoznawczych i literaturoznawczych analiz, które dookreślają projekt antropologii cyborgów. Paradoksalnie – antropologia cyborgów może okrzepnąć do postaci antropologii, skoro i tak wszyscy byliśmy, stajemy się czy też w niedalekiej przyszłości będziemy cyborgami.

Interpretacja myśli Pseudo-Dionizego w wybranych dziełach Grzegorza Palamasa

Wydział Nauk Społecznych

Four-decade responses of soil trace elements to an aggrading old-field forest: B, Mn, Zn, Cu, and Fe.

In the ancient and acidic Ultisol soils of the Southern Piedmont, USA, we studied changes in trace element biogeochemistry over four decades, a period during which formerly cultivated cotton fields were planted with pine seedlings that grew into mature forest stands. In 16 permanent plots, we estimated 40-year accumulations of trace elements in forest biomass and O horizons (between 1957 and 1997), and changes in bioavailable soil fractions indexed by extractions of 0.05 mol/L HCl and 0.2 mol/L acid ammonium oxalate (AAO). Element accumulations in 40-year tree biomass plus O horizons totaled 0.9, 2.9, 4.8, 49.6, and 501.3 kg/ha for Cu, B, Zn, Mn, and Fe, respectively. In response to this forest development, samples of the upper 0.6-m of mineral soil archived in 1962 and 1997 followed one of three patterns. (1) Extractable B and Mn were significantly depleted, by -4.1 and -57.7 kg/ha with AAO, depletions comparable to accumulations in biomass plus O horizons, 2.9 and 49.6 kg/ha, respectively. Tree uptake of B and Mn from mineral soil greatly outpaced resupplies from atmospheric deposition, mineral weathering, and deep-root uptake. (2) Extractable Zn and Cu changed little during forest growth, indicating that nutrient resupplies kept pace with accumulations by the aggrading forest. (3) Oxalate-extractable Fe increased substantially during forest growth, by 275.8 kg/ha, about 10-fold more than accumulations in tree biomass (28.7 kg/ha). The large increases in AAO-extractable Fe in surficial 0.35-m mineral soils were accompanied by substantial accretions of Fe in the forest's O horizon, by 473 kg/ha, amounts that dwarfed inputs via litterfall and canopy throughfall, indicating that forest Fe cycling is qualitatively different from that of other macro- and micronutrients. Bioturbation of surficial forest soil layers cannot account for these fractions and transformations of Fe, and we hypothesize that the secondary forest's large inputs of organic additions over four decades has fundamentally altered soil Fe oxides, potentially altering the bioavailability and retention of macro- and micronutrients, contaminants, and organic matter itself. The wide range of responses among the ecosystem's trace elements illustrates the great dynamics of the soil system over time scales of decades.