Fragmentation Studies of Lysine and Lysine Analog Containing Tetrapeptides

The fragmentation patterns of lysine and lysine-analog containing tetrapeptides were analyzed in this study using collision induced dissociation (CID) in an ESI-ion trap mass spectrometer. Understanding the fragmentation mechanisms of lysine-containing peptides is integral to improving bottom-up proteomics techniques and peptide sequencing and searching algorithms. Lysine and its non-protein amino acid (NPAA) analogs ornithine, DABA, and DAPA have been shown to affect fragmentation patterns based on their basicities in dipeptides and tripeptides. Studies have shown the occurrence of sequence scrambling due to macrocyclization of pentapeptides during fragmentation, which can result in inaccurate database matching. This study of the twenty tetrapeptides AAAX, AAXA, AXAA, XAAA, and YAGX (X = Lys, Orn, DABA, or DAPA) looked for macrocyclization leading to sequence scrambling and analyzed the effects of positional variance and of differing basicities between lysine and its analogs on tetrapeptide fragmentation patterns. Fragmentation studies confirmed the occurrence of the ornithine effect, where there is selective cleavage C-terminal to an ornithine residue within the tetrapeptides. Macrocyclic sequence scrambling was found to not occur in significant amounts for these tetrapeptides. The formation of bn + H2O ions was found to be most prevalent when the basic amino acid residues were at the C-terminus of the tetrapeptides. Positional variance and basicities of the lysine and its NPAA analogs affected the stabilities of the tetrapeptides, and influenced fragmentation patterns. Further investigations of lysine-containing peptides are necessary to better understand the fragmentation mechanisms at work and improve the robustness of proteomics experiments using mass spectrometry

ANALISIS TARIF ANGKUTAN UMUM BERDASARKAN BIAYA OPERASIONAL KENDARAAN DI KOTA AMBON (STUDI KASUS KONDISI PSBB)

Public transportation between the island seas is one of the economic backbones where Maluku Province is an archipelagic area. Ambon City as the capital of Maluku Province is a city with activities and interactions between communities using public transportation to support daily activities. However, due to the enactment of PSBB (Large-Scale Social Restrictions) from June 23 to November 22, 2020, the number of public transportations (Perwali No. 18) is limited, with odd-even implementations up to passenger restrictions (6 people per trip), resulting in operational costs. Vehicles will increase. This study aims to find out how much the upper and lower limit tariffs are used for the community and students. In this study, the calculation method was used according to the Standards of the Directorate General of Land Transportation (2002) SK 687/AJ.206/DRDJ/2002. The results of the study show that the upper and lower tariff rates for the community in Nusaniwe District are Rp. 16,592 – Rp. 11,061,-; Sirimau District IDR 5,138 – IDR 3,425,-; and Baguala and Teluk Ambon Districts Rp. 25,000 – Rp. 16,666,-. The upper and lower limit rates for students in Nusaniwe District are Rp. 8,296 – Rp. 5,531,-; Sirimau District IDR 2,569 – IDR 1,712,-; and Baguala and Teluk Ambon Districts Rp 12,500 – Rp 8,333,-. Tariffs based on the BOK during the PSBB period ranged from Rp. 25,000 – Rp. 5,138,-, while the real tariff was Rp. 3,000 – Rp. 5,000

Blended E85-diesel fuel droplet heating and evaporation

The multidimensional quasi-discrete (MDQD) model is applied to the analysis of heating and evaporation of mixtures of E85 (85 vol % ethanol and 15 vol % gasoline) with diesel fuel, commonly known as “E85–diesel” blends, using the universal quasi-chemical functional group activity coefficients model for the calculation of vapor pressure. The contribution of 119 components of E85–diesel fuel blends is taken into account, but replaced with smaller number of components/quasi-components, under conditions representative of diesel engines. Our results show that high fractions of E85–diesel fuel blends have a significant impact on the evolutions of droplet radii and surface temperatures. For instance, droplet lifetime and surface temperature for a blend of 50 vol % E85 and 50 vol % diesel are 23.2% and up to 3.4% less than those of pure diesel fuel, respectively. The application of the MDQD model has improved the computational efficiency significantly with minimal sacrifice to accuracy. This approach leads to a saving of up to 86.4% of CPU time when reducing the 119 components to 16 components/quasi-components without a sacrifice to the main features of the model

Identification of non-tuberculous mycobacteria isolated from clinical specimens at a tertiary care hospital: a cross-sectional study

Background: Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are opportunistic pathogens in immuno-compromised patients. They are also increasingly recognized as pathogens in immuno-competent individuals. Globally, an increase in NTM isolation is being reported with a varied geographic prevalence of different species around the world. There is lack of data on species distribution of these organisms from Pakistan. Treatment options differ according to the species isolated and its susceptibility profile. Knowledge of local species variation would help targeted therapy. This study was performed to determine frequencies of different NTM species isolated from various clinical specimens submitted at a tertiary care hospital laboratory. Methods: NTM isolated from 25955 clinical specimens over a period of two years (2010 to 2011) were included. All NTM were identified using conventional tests. Drug susceptibility testing (DST) was performed by broth microdilution and interpreted according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute\u27s document M24-A2. Results: A total of 104 NTM were included in the study. Of these, 76% (54/71) rapidly growing mycobacteria (RGM) and 57.6% (19/33) slow growing mycobacteria (SGM) could be further identified. Mycobacterium fortuitum (21/54) was the commonest NTM identified among RGM followed by M. mucogenicum (12/54) and M. smegmatis (11/54). Among SGM, M. avium complex (MAC) was the most frequent (14/19). Clinical significance could be assessed in a limited number (52/104) of NTM isolates and MAC appeared to be the commonest significant NTM. Three extra-pulmonary cases were found to be healthcare associated infections. DST results for RGM showed susceptibility to amikacin (100%), clarithromycin (100%, except M. fortuitum where it is not reportable), linezolid (90%) and moxifloxacin (75%). Whereas SGM were susceptible to clarithromycin (100%), linezolid (58.8%) and moxifloxacin (64.7%). Conculsion: This is the first study reporting NTM species and their clinical significance isolated from clinical specimens from Pakistan. Isolation of NTM from clinical specimens should prompt to evaluate their clinical significance

Effect of Optimum Utilization of Silica Fume and Lime On the Stabilization of Problematic Soils

Chemically stabilized soil studies have revealed that the efficiency of stabilization is primarily depends on the natural environment of the soil. Because of its poor qualities, this sort of soil is classified as problematic. Expansive soils such as clay soil does not satisfy the standards for structural applications at this stage because its load applied from the building's apex will be transmitted to the soil layers. This study aims at the soft kaolin clay stabilization by utilizing 4% and 6% of silica fume and several percentage inclusion of lime. The lime percentages of 3%, 5%, 7%, and 9%, whereas the ratio of silica fume is set at 4% and 6%. The primary goal of this study is to increase the shear strength of soft kaolin clay soil blended with 4% and 6% of silica fume (SF) and varying amounts of lime (L). The soil parameters were evaluated for soft kaolin alone and for 4% and 6% of silica fume blended with varying percentages of lime. The findings disclose that the optimal percentages of silica fume and lime in terms of maximum shear strength at 176.91 kPa of improvement were 4% and 7% respectively due to the pozzolanic reaction between silica fume and lime was more successful with soil particles. The combination of silica fume and lime blended with the soft kaolin clay can highly enhanced the strength and the internal friction angle of the soil compared to the lime and silica fume mixed alone. The optimal proportion for increasing the undrained shear strength and friction angle was 4% of silica fume and 7% of Lime which can cut costs, reduce environmental disturbance, and act as an eco-friendly substance in soil stabilization

Effectiveness of Silica Fume Eggshell Ash and Lime Use on the Properties of Kaolinitic Clay

The study aims to investigate the properties of kaolinitic clay using silica fume, eggshell ash, and lime. The experiment employs varying amounts of silica fume (2%, 4%, and 6%), eggshell ash, lime (3%, 6%, and 9%), and combinations of silica fume, eggshell ash, and lime, which are cured for 1, 7, 14, and 30 days. The investigated properties of the soils include the improvement of Atterberg limits, maximum dry density (MDD), optimum moisture content (OMC), specific gravity, compressive strength, morphology characteristics, and chemical compositions. The results reveal that the optimal application of these materials can be achieved at 6% silica fume, 6% eggshell ash, and 9% lime mixture into the soils and increase the shear strength by as much as 88.74% at 30 days of curing