Heme oxygenase-1 may affect cell signalling via modulation of ganglioside composition

Heme oxygenase 1 (Hmox1), a ubiquitous enzyme degrading heme to carbon monoxide, iron, and biliverdin, is one of the cytoprotective enzymes induced in response to a variety of stimuli, including cellular oxidative stress. Gangliosides, sialic acid-containing glycosphingolipids expressed in all cells, are involved in cell recognition, signalling, and membrane stabilization. Their expression is often altered under many pathological and physiological conditions including cell death, proliferation, and differentiation. The aim of this study was to assess the possible role of Hmox1 in ganglioside metabolism in relation to oxidative stress. The content of liver and brain gangliosides, their cellular distribution, and mRNA as well as protein expression of key glycosyltransferases were determined in Hmox1 knockout mice as well as their wild-type littermates. To elucidate the possible underlying mechanisms between Hmox1 and ganglioside metabolism, hepatoblastoma HepG2 and neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell lines were used for in vitro experiments. Mice lacking Hmox1 exhibited a significant increase in concentrations of liver and brain gangliosides and in mRNA expression of the key enzymes of ganglioside metabolism. A marked shift of GM1 ganglioside from the subsinusoidal part of the intracellular compartment into sinusoidal membranes of hepatocytes was shown in Hmox1 knockout mice. Induction of oxidative stress by chenodeoxycholic acid in vitro resulted in a significant increase in GM3, GM2, and GD1a gangliosides in SH-SY5Y cells and GM3 and GM2 in the HepG2 cell line. These changes were abolished with administration of bilirubin, a potent antioxidant agent. These observations were closely related to oxidative stress-mediated changes in sialyltransferase expression regulated at least partially through the protein kinase C pathway. We conclude that oxidative stress is an important factor modulating synthesis and distribution of gangliosides in vivo and in vitro which might affect ganglioside signalling in higher organisms

Malting Quality of Spring Wheat Varieties

During a three-year testing period (2013 – 2015), totally 99 samples of spring wheat (11 varieties from three testing localities) were analyzed. The basic parameters (extract, relative extract at 45 °C, diastatic power, final attenuation, friability and β-glucan content in wort as well as some special parameters) were tested. The wheat varieties provided sufficiently high extract content, the average value of this parameter was 83.5%. Proteolytic modification given by the value of Kolbach Index was on average 35%. Compared to barley malt, the wheat varieties had higher viscosity. The viscosity varied from 1.61 – 1.78 mPa.s and the average arabinoxilan content in wort in the scope of 1306 – 1656 mg/l. Friability (brittleness) of malt was very low, moving within 28 – 36%. β-glucan content in wort was very low, with the average value of 25.9 mg/l

Cracking Piles of Brittle Grains

A model which accounts for cracking avalanches in piles of grains subject to external load is introduced and numerically simulated. The stress is stochastically transferred from higher layers to lower ones. Cracked areas exhibit various morphologies, depending on the degree of randomness in the packing and on the ductility of the grains. The external force necessary to continue the cracking process is constant in wide range of values of the fraction of already cracked grains. If the grains are very brittle, the force fluctuations become periodic in early stages of cracking. Distribution of cracking avalanches obeys a power law with exponent $\tau = 2.4 \pm 0.1$.Comment: RevTeX, 6 pages, 7 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Plant-derived products as effective inhibitors of diarrhea causing microorganisms

Since certain species are used in form of dietary supplements in developed world as antidiarrheal agents and because of presence of reports describing antidiarrheal properties of medicinal plants used in traditional African medicine, we can expect, that systematic microbiological and phytochemical research of plant derived products (extracts, essential oils and their constituents) can lead to the discovery of effective antidiarrheal low-cost agents applicable for elimination of diarrhea in certain African regains

Optimizing technology, storage of spent nuclear fuel

Práce analyzuje návrhy, koncepce a předkládá možná řešení optimálního ukládání radioaktivního odpadu a vyhořelého jaderného paliva (RAO a VJP) používané v jaderných elektrárnách v České republice z pohledu rozsáhlých mezinárodních zkušeností a vlastních rozborů. Vychází z koncepce nakládání s RAO a VJP v ČR. Zpracována je v době, kdy se hledá vhodná lokalita pro umístění hlubinného úložiště. Podrobně analyzuje současné i budoucí možnosti ukládání RAO a VJP v ČR na základě výzkumných a vývojových zkušeností prováděných v ČR a v zahraničí.ObhájenoThe thesis analyzes the design, concept and presents possible solutions for optimal storage of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel (SNF and radioactive waste) used in nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic from the perspective of extensive international experience and their own analyzes. Based on the concept of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel in the country. Is processed at a time when it is looking for a suitable site for a deep geological repository. It analyzes in detail the current and future options for storing spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste in the Czech Republic on the basis of research and development experience carried out in the Czech Republic and abroad

Mean-risk optimal decision of a steel company under emission control

We propose a mean-risk decision model for a steel company facing emission limits and trading with emission allowances. The model is calibrated using data of a real-life steel company and is subsequently solved for five different scenarios of demand and different levels of risk aversion. It is found that while the limits are never reached, permit trading influences the decision to a great extent, especially given extremely low or extremely high demand, i.e., when large amounts of permits need to be traded. We demonstrate that the risk caused by emission trading may increase not only with an increasing demand but also when the demand is low and a great amount of allowances must be sold.Web of Science24245443

Multi-stage stochastic optimization of carbon risk management

Emissions trading within the Emissions Trading Scheme of the European Union (EU ETS) strongly influences European industrial companies. The companies must choose their strategy of reduction the costs of emissions allowances as possible. The changing system's conditions and volatile prices of allowances make this decision challenging. The main aim of this study is to compare different ways of risk management: banking (i.e., buying the allowances in forward) and using derivatives: futures and options. Despite several studies devoted to the relationship between the EU ETS and companies have already been published, there is still a gap in this field. Namely, the published studies have been substantially simplified so far by ignoring the risk of driving parameters. We construct a realistic large-scale stochastic optimization model, which avoids the mentioned simplifications. We use the Markov Stochastic Dual Dynamic Programming algorithm (MSDDP) to find the optimal solution. We apply the model to the data of a real-life industrial company. We find that banking is the most costly way of risk reduction, while using derivatives is efficient in risk reduction. Surprisingly, out of the derivatives, it is always optimal to use futures and not to use options. These results are confirmed by a thorough sensitivity analysis. The preference of the futures over options is mainly due to the less price of futures in comparison to options reducing risk equivalently.Web of Science201art. no. 11702

Which carbon derivatives are applicable in practice? A case study of a European steel company

This paper constructs and analyses a model for optimal production and emission covering of a real-life European steel company. The emissions may be covered by a combination of EUA and CER allowances and their derivatives. The company is assumed to be risk-averse, maximizing the Mean-CVaR criterion. The problem is analysed given continuum of risk-aversion coefficients and three scenarios of the demand. It is found that the production does not depend on the risk aversion and is always maximal, but the optimal composition of the (spot) allowances and their derivatives depends non-trivially on both the risk aversion and the demand. Out of all the derivatives, only futures are used. Surprisingly, options are never used.Web of Science5361085107

On interaction between carbon spot prices and Czech steel industry

Environmental policy in the European Union is a frequent topic when speaking about a strategic development of national economies, their sectors, or companies. This paper is focused on transmissions between the European carbon market and the Czech steel industry. This relationship is worth exploring for two main reasons - first, iron and steel industry is responsible for a substantial part of CO2 pollution covered by the European Union emissions trading system (EU ETS) and, second, this sector is a traditional and vital industry in the Czech Republic. We use the dynamic Factor Augmented Vector Autoregression (FAVAR) model and Granger causality analysis to identify and assess the interactions between the factors of the EU ETS (prices of emission allowances and grandfathering), and factors of the steel industry like prices and amounts of production. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first application of the FAVAR model to analyse an industrial sector, and it is also the first analysis of the given topic where so many influencing factors are involved (this is allowed by the FAVAR model). The main results show that steel companies in the Czech Republic pass through the emission costs to customers.Web of Scienc