Zur Geltung des "Mythos Geld" im religiösen, ökonomischen und poetischen Diskurs

"Mythos" und "Geld" gehören zu den ältesten menschlichen Kommunikationsmedien und haben in Europa seit ihrer Ausprägung zu relativ eigenständigen "Diskursen", seit den Anfängen der schriftlichen Mythenüberlieferung und der Erfindung des geprägten Münzgeldes während des 7. Jahrhunderts v. Chr., einander wechselseitig zugearbeitet und bereichert. Die Mythisierung von Gold und Geld, von Schatzbildung und Reichtum spiegelt sich in den Märchen und Sagen der ganzen Welt, und aufgrund seiner hochgradigen Differenzierung und Komplexität als Kommunikationsmedium hat das Geld seinerseits, über alle metaphorischen Analogisierungen zwischen "Geld" und "Sprache" hinaus, seinen ideellen und realen Siegeszug in alle anderen Diskurse hinein angetreten, bis die bürgerliche Gesellschaft die gesamte Welt des Geistes und der Kunst den Gesetzen der Marktwirtschaft unterworfen und psychologisch sogar die "Omnipräsenz Gottes durch die Omnipräsenz des Geldes" ersetzt hat

Exploring marine carbohydrates: P450-catalyzed demethylation and identification of a complete PUL for polysaccharide degradation

Marine carbohydrates present in algal biomass are an emerging sustainable raw material for bioeconomy. The exploitation of algae as carbon source is hampered by our rather limited knowledge about the microbial pathways present in marine bacteria that can convert algal polysaccharides into oligo- and monosaccharides for fermentation into bioethanol or other compounds. We have recently shown a distinct metabolic function of P450-monooxygenases in the degradation of agarose or porphyran, where the P450 enzymes (originating from Formosa agariphila or Zobiella galactinovorans) together with appropriate redox partners catalyze the demethylation of 6-O-methyl-d-galactose [1]. Furthermore, we have determined the crystal structure of the P450 enzyme and identified key residues essential for catalysis and substrate recognition [2]. More recently, we could elucidate the entire metabolic pathway involved in the degradation of a major cell wall polysaccharide using a set of enzymes present in the marine flavobacterium Formosa agariphila in a distinct and so far unexplored polysaccharide utilization locus (PUL). The pathway consists of 12 carbohydrate-active enzymes, including lyases, sulfatases and glycoside hydrolases that sequentially break down the complex polysaccharide into fermentable monosaccharides. For all previously unknown enzymes we performed a detailed biochemical characterization, determined several crystal structures and could identify the structures of all oligosaccharide intermediates formed during the complex enzymatic degradation by NMR spectroscopy and MS analysis [3]. [1] Reisky, L., Büchsenschütz, H.C., Engel, J., Song, T., Schweder, T., Hehemann, J.H., Bornscheuer, U.T. Nature Chem. Biol., 14, 342-344 (2018). [2] Robb, C.S, Reisky, S., Bornscheuer, U.T, Hehemann, J.H., Biochem. J., 475, 3875-3886 (2018). [3] Reisky, L., Préchoux, A., Zühlke, A.K., Bäumgen, M., Robb, C.S., Gerlach, N., Roret, T., Stanetty, C., Larocque R., Michel, G., Tao, S., Markert, S., Unfried, F., Mihovilovic, M.D., Trautwein-Schulz, A., Becher, D., Schweder, T., Bornscheuer, U.T., Hehemann, J.H., submitted (2019)

Expanding substrate scope and altering stereopreference of enzymes through advanced protein engineering

This lecture will highlight principle strategies and current challenges in enzyme discovery and protein engineering [1]. These will be exemplified for amine transaminases (ATA) and Baeyer-Villiger monooxygenases (BVMO). We took advantage of the vast number of protein sequences available from databases to facilitate the discovery of novel enzymes and guide the design of \u27small, but smart\u27 mutant libraries. For the synthesis of chiral amines, we performed an in silico analysis and identified a toolbox of novel (R)-selective ATAs [2] as well as (S)-selective enzymes from a structure-guided search [3]. We also performed an in-depth bioinformatic analysis of a PLP-dependent superfamily resulting in the identification of distinct motifs for 21 types of PLP-dependent enzymes [4]. More recently, we could engineer (S)-selective ATA for the acceptance of bulky ketones in the asymmetric synthesis of chiral amines [5, 6]. For BVMOs, we could recently engineer these enzymes to efficiently accept the cofactor NADH instead of NADPH [7]. Furthermore, we demonstrated how we could invert their stereopreference [8, unpublished]. [1] Bornscheuer, U.T., et al., Nature, 485, 185-194 (2012); Kazlauskas, R.J., Bornscheuer, U.T., Nat. Chem. Biol., 5, 526-529 (2009); Lutz, S., Bornscheuer, U.T. (Eds.) Protein Engineering Handbook, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim (2009, 2012). [2] Höhne, M. et al., Nature Chem. Biol., 6, 807-813 (2010); Schätzle, S. et al., Adv. Synth. Catal., 353, 2439-2445 (2011). [3] Steffen-Munsberg, F. et al., ChemCatChem, 5, 150-153 (2013); ChemCatChem, 5, 154-157 (2013) [4] Steffen-Munsberg, F. et al., Biotechnol. Adv., 33, 566-604 (2015). [5] Nobili, A. et al., ChemCatChem, 7, 757-760 (2015). [6] Pavlidis, I., et al., Nature Chem., 8, 1076-1082 (2016); Weiß, M.S. et al. Org. Biol. Chem., 14, 10249-10254 (2016). [7] Balke, K., et al., ACS Chem. Biol., 11, 38-43 (2016). [8] Beier, A., et al., ChemBioChem, 17, 2312-2315 (2016)

"... und suche das Gründliche was als Capital Interessen tragen muß" : zur historischen Existenzgründung des "Dichtergenies" auf dem Buchmarkt an den Beispielen Klopstocks und Goethes

Bis heute ist die konkrete finanzielle Kalkulation von Humankapital wenig erforscht und entwickelt, besonders in Deutschland, wo Bildung bis in unsere Zeit noch immer als ein "nicht-tarifäres öffentliches Gut" gilt. Um so bemerkenswerter erscheint der frühzeitige Versuch Goethes, sein eigenes Werk- und Autor-"Kapital" über die bloße ökonomische Metaphorik hinaus auch praktisch umzusetzen, und sich dafür manchen innovativen verwertungsstrategischen Schachzug einfallen gelassen zu haben

Beam investigations of D2 adsorption on Si(100): On the importance of lattice excitations in the reaction dynamics

The adsorption of D2 on Si(100) has been investigated by means of supersonic molecular beam techniques. We have succeeded in measuring the dependence of the molecular D2 sticking coefficient S on surface temperature Ts and nozzle temperature Tn. The sticking coefficient increases gradually in the range 300≤Tn≤1040 K. The influence of increased v=1 population has not been deconvoluted from the effects of translational energy alone. The dependence on Ts is more interesting. With an incident translational energy of 65 meV, S rises from a value insignificantly different from the background level to a maximum value of (1.5±0.1)×10−5 at Ts=630 K. The decrease in the effective sticking coefficient beyond this Ts is the result of desorption during the experiment. Having established that S increases with both increasing molecular energy and increasing sample temperature, we have demonstrated directly for the first time that the adsorption of molecular hydrogen on Si is activated and that lattice vibrational excitations play an important role in the adsorption process

Biocatalysis and enzyme engineering – a personal view on the last three decades

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Recombinant expression and purification of the 2,5-diketocamphane 1,2-monooxygenase from the camphor metabolizing Pseudomonas putida strain NCIMB 10007

Three different Baeyer-Villiger monooxygenases (BVMOs) were reported to be involved in the camphor metabolism by Pseudomonas putida NCIMB 10007. During (+)-camphor degradation, 2,5-diketocamphane is formed serving as substrate for the 2,5-diketocamphane 1,2-monooxygenase. This enzyme is encoded on the CAM plasmid and depends on the cofactors FMN and NADH and hence belongs to the group of type II BVMOs. We have cloned and recombinantly expressed the oxygenating subunit of the 2,5-diketocamphane 1,2-monooxygenase (2,5-DKCMO) in E. coli followed by His-tag-based affinity purification. A range of compounds representing different BVMO substrate classes were then investigated, but only bicyclic ketones were converted by 2,5-DKCMO used as crude cell extract or after purification. Interestingly, also (-)-camphor was oxidized, but conversion was about 3-fold lower compared to (+)-camphor. Moreover, activity of purified 2,5-DKCMO was observed in the absence of an NADH-dehydrogenase subunit