Combining hot-compressed water and ball milling pretreatments to improve the efficiency of the enzymatic hydrolysis of eucalyptus-0

Described in materials and methods. Various amounts of substrates were mixed and hydrolyzed for 72 hours with the same volume of enzyme cocktail (4 FPU/g substrate). Yields of hydrolyzed glucose and xylose are expressed as a percentage of the theoretical amount based on the glucan and xylan contents, respectively, in the dry weight of untreated biomass.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Combining hot-compressed water and ball milling pretreatments to improve the efficiency of the enzymatic hydrolysis of eucalyptus"</p><p>http://www.biotechnologyforbiofuels.com/1754-6834/1/2</p><p>Biotechnology for Biofuels 2008;1():2-2.</p><p>Published online 15 Apr 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2375867.</p><p></p

Combining hot-compressed water and ball milling pretreatments to improve the efficiency of the enzymatic hydrolysis of eucalyptus-1

Ment with pulverisette 7. The pretreated substrates (5%) were hydrolyzed with an enzyme cocktail (4 FPU/g substrate) for 72 hours. Yields of hydrolyzed glucose and xylose are expressed as a percentage of theoretical amount based on the glucan and xylan contents, respectively, in the dry weight of untreated biomass.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Combining hot-compressed water and ball milling pretreatments to improve the efficiency of the enzymatic hydrolysis of eucalyptus"</p><p>http://www.biotechnologyforbiofuels.com/1754-6834/1/2</p><p>Biotechnology for Biofuels 2008;1():2-2.</p><p>Published online 15 Apr 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2375867.</p><p></p

Drastic Connectivity Change in High Refractive Index Lanthanum Niobate Glasses

The highly ionic, high refractive index La₂O₃–Nb₂O₅ system has a La-rich glass forming region and another Nb-rich glass forming region. The La-rich and Nb-rich regions have markedly different structural and physical properties. Structural analyses using diffraction and spectroscopic measurements combined with structural modeling show that the Nb-rich glass, which has unusually high oxygen packing density, is a network of distorted NbO_<i>n</i> polyhedra with mainly corner-sharing, and LaO_<i>x</i> polyhedra with both corner-sharing and edge-sharing. Contrastingly, in the La-rich glass, small-sized symmetrical NbO_<i>n</i> polyhedra with a large amount of edge-sharing are inhomogenously distributed in the network of LaO_<i>x</i> polyhedra. The drastic connectivity change of cation–oxygen polyhedra and the dense oxygen packing due to edge-sharing polyhedra contravene long-established rules of oxide glass formation. These results raise the possibility that novel higher refractive index with lower wavelength dispersion glasses, which contain highly ionic heavy elements at the lower left in the periodic table, may be synthesized

Expansion of the Hexagonal Phase-Forming Region of Lu_1–<i>x</i>Sc_<i>x</i>FeO₃ by Containerless Processing

Hexagonal Lu_1–<i>x</i>Sc_<i>x</i>FeO₃ (0 ≤ <i>x</i> ≤ 0.8) was directly solidified from an undercooled melt by containerless processing with an aerodynamic levitation furnace. The hexagonal phase-forming region was considerably extended compared to that of the conventional solid-state reaction (<i>x</i> ∼ 0.5). Synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements revealed that the crystal structure of the hexagonal phase was isomorphous to hexagonal ferroelectric RMnO₃ (R = a rare earth ion) with a polar space group of <i>P</i>6₃<i>cm</i>. As <i>x</i> increased, the <i>a</i>-axis lattice constant decreased linearly, strengthening the antiferromagnetic interaction between the Fe³⁺ ions on the <i>a–b</i> plane. Accordingly, the weak ferromagnetic transition temperature increased from 150 K for <i>x</i> = 0 to 175 K for <i>x</i> = 0.7. These transition temperatures were much higher than those of hexagonal Lu_1–<i>x</i>Sc_<i>x</i>MnO₃. The results indicate that hexagonal Lu_1–<i>x</i>Sc_<i>x</i>FeO₃ is a suitable alternative magnetic dielectric for use at higher temperatures

Characterization of a feruloyl esterase B from <i>Talaromyces cellulolyticus</i>

<div><p>A feruloyl esterase catalyzes the hydrolysis of the 4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamoyl (feruloyl) group from esterified sugars in plant cell walls. <i>Talaromyces cellulolyticus</i> is a high cellulolytic-enzyme producing fungus. However, there is no report for feruloyl esterase activity of <i>T. cellulolyticus.</i> Analysis of the genome database of <i>T. cellulolyticus</i> identified a gene encoding a putative feruloyl esterase B. The recombinant enzyme was prepared using a <i>T. cellulolyticus</i> homologous expression system and characterized. The purified enzyme exhibited hydrolytic activity toward <i>p</i>-nitrophenyl acetate, <i>p</i>-nitrophenyl trans-ferulate, methyl ferulate, rice husk, and bagasse. HPLC assays showed that the enzyme released ferulic acid and <i>p</i>-coumaric acid from hydrothermal-treated rice husk and bagasse. <i>Trichoderma</i> sp. is well-known high cellulolytic-enzyme producing fungus useful for the lignocellulosic biomass saccharification. Interestingly, no feruloyl esterase has been reported from <i>Trichoderma</i> sp. The results show that this enzyme is expected to be industrially useful for biomass saccharification.</p></div

Atomic-Scale Identification of Individual Lanthanide Dopants in Optical Glass Fiber

Various dopants are added in commercially available optical glass fibers. The specific atomic species and charge state of lanthanide dopants are known to significantly influence the fiber’s optical properties. For understanding the role of dopants on the optical properties, atomic-scale identification of the lanthanide dopants in the optical fiber is crucial. Aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) is especially powerful for visualizing individual atoms of heavy elements buried in a matrix composed of light elements. Here, we apply aberration-corrected high-angle annular dark field (HAADF)-STEM to directly visualize individual erbium (Er) dopants buried in the optical glass fiber. Molecular dynamics and image simulations are used to interpret the experimental images and draw quantitative conclusions. The visibility of the buried Er atoms in the amorphous glass is strongly dependent on the defocus and specimen thickness, and only Er atoms in very thin regions can be reliably identified

Characterization of cellulolytic enzyme system of <i>Schizophyllum commune</i> mutant and evaluation of its efficiency on biomass hydrolysis

<p><i>Schizophyllum commune</i> is a basidiomycete equipped with an efficient cellulolytic enzyme system capable of growth on decaying woods. In this study, production of lignocellulose-degrading enzymes from <i>S. commune</i> mutant G-135 (SC-Cel) on various cellulosic substrates was examined. The highest cellulase activities including CMCase, FPase, and β-glucosidase were obtained on Avicel-PH101 while a wider range of enzymes attacking non-cellulosic polysaccharides and lignin were found when grown on alkaline-pretreated biomass. Proteomic analysis of SC-Cel also revealed a complex enzyme system comprising seven glycosyl hydrolase families with an accessory carbohydrate esterase, polysaccharide lyase, and auxiliary redox enzymes. SC-Cel obtained on Avicel-PH101 effectively hydrolyzed all agricultural residues with the maximum glucan conversion of 98.0% using corn cobs with an enzyme dosage of 5 FPU/g-biomass. The work showed potential of SC-Cel on hydrolysis of various herbaceous biomass with enhanced efficiency by addition external β-xylosidase.</p> <p>Enzymatic hydrolysis of alkaline-pretreated biomass by Sc-Cel and yield enhancement by external β-xylosidase (BX).</p

Mathias's String Quartet No.1. Something to shout about

Effect of Ertredin on HIF-1α protein levels under 3D or 2D conditions. Cells were cultured with the indicated substances for 24 h under 3D or 2D conditions. Sixteen micrograms of protein in each cell lysate were applied on SDS-PAGE and the HIF-1α protein level was estimated by western blotting. Dimethyloxaloylglycine (DMOG) is an inhibitor of prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) bringing that transports HIF-1α proteoasome systems. (PDF 235 kb

A phase I clinical trial of RNF43 peptide-related immune cell therapy combined with low-dose cyclophosphamide in patients with advanced solid tumors

<div><p>The objective of this study was to investigate the safety and the tolerability of combined cellular immunotherapy with low-dose cyclophosphamide (CPA) in patients with advanced solid tumors. This study targeted a novel tumor-associated antigen, ring finger protein 43 (RNF43). Eligible patients were resistant to standard therapy, HLA-A*24:02- or A*02:01-positive and exhibiting high RNF43 expression in their tumor cells. They were administered 300 mg/m² CPA followed by autologous lymphocytes, preliminarily cultured with autologous RNF43 peptide-pulsed dendritic cells (DCs), RNF43 peptide-pulsed DCs and systemic low dose interleukin-2. The primary endpoint was safety whereas the secondary endpoint was immunological and clinical response to treatment. Ten patients, in total, were enrolled in this trial. Primarily, no adverse events greater than Grade 3 were observed. Six out of 10 patients showed stable disease (SD) on day 49, while 4 other patients showed progressive disease. In addition, one patient with SD exhibited a partial response after the second trial. The frequency of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in patients with SD significantly decreased after CPA administration. The ratio of interferon-γ-producing, tumor-reactive CD8⁺ T cells increased with time in patients with SD. We successfully showed that the combination of immune cell therapy and CPA was safe, might induce tumor-specific immune responses and clinical efficacy, and was accompanied by a decreased ratio of Tregs in patients with RNF43-positive advanced solid tumors.</p></div

Stromal Cells Positively and Negatively Modulate the Growth of Cancer Cells: Stimulation via the PGE2-TNFα-IL-6 Pathway and Inhibition via Secreted GAPDH-E-Cadherin Interaction

<div><p>Fibroblast-like stromal cells modulate cancer cells through secreted factors and adhesion, but those factors are not fully understood. Here, we have identified critical stromal factors that modulate cancer growth positively and negatively. Using a cell co-culture system, we found that gastric stromal cells secreted IL-6 as a growth and survival factor for gastric cancer cells. Moreover, gastric cancer cells secreted PGE2 and TNFα that stimulated IL-6 secretion by the stromal cells. Furthermore, we found that stromal cells secreted glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Extracellular GAPDH, or its N-terminal domain, inhibited gastric cancer cell growth, a finding confirmed in other cell systems. GAPDH bound to E-cadherin and downregulated the mTOR-p70S6 kinase pathway. These results demonstrate that stromal cells could regulate cancer cell growth through the balance of these secreted factors. We propose that negative regulation of cancer growth using GAPDH could be a new anti-cancer strategy.</p></div