Large-Scale Preparation of Giant Vesicles by Squeezing a Lipid-Coated Marshmallow-like Silicone Gel in a Buffer

Giant vesicles were efficiently produced by squeezing a lipid (l-α-phosphatidylcholine from egg yolk)-coated marshmallow-like flexible macroporous silicone monolith in a buffer. The mean diameter of the obtained vesicles was 2 μm, showing a wide distribution, up to tens of micrometers, which was similar to that of vesicles formed by a natural swelling method. It was possible to prepare vesicle dispersions on a scale from several microliters to several hundred milliliters. A protein synthesis system (PURE system) contained in vesicles prepared using this method functioned effectively. Our absorbing–squeezing method is expected to help in studies that use giant vesicles such as artificial cells and drug delivery systems

Measurements of Vegetation Distribution Using Various Local Remote Sensing Techniques

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

HCE, a constituent of the hatching enzymes of Oryzias latipes embryos, releases unique proline-rich polypeptides from its natural substrate, the hardened chorion

AbstractHCE, a constituent protease of the hatching enzymes of Oryzias latipes embryos [1,2], releases unique proline-rich polypeptides from its natural substrate, the hardened chorion. The polypeptides consist of repeats of Pro-X-Y, mainly Pro-Glx-X. In addition, the polypeptides contain abundant γ-glutamyi ϵ-lysine isopeptides which are regarded to be responsible for chorion hardening. These findings suggest that HCE recognizes specific site(s) of the chorion, releases the proline-rich polypeptides from it, and makes the substrate accessible to LCE, another protease of the hatching enzymes

A Case of 48, XYY, +21

A 3 month-old boy with a karyotype of 48, XYY, + 21 is reported. The patient had the typical features of Down syndrome and normal male genitalia. Analysis of Q- and R-banded chromosome heteromorphisms of the patient and the parents showed that two of the three chromosomes 21 in the patient originated as a result of failure of the paternal second meiotic division. Therefore both additional chromosomes in the patient resulted from nondisjunction at paternal meiosis II

Chemo-Sensitive Running Droplet

Chemical control of the spontaneous motion of a reactive oil droplet moving on a glass substrate under an aqueous phase is reported. Experimental results show that the self-motion of an oil droplet is confined on an acid-treated glass surface. The transient behavior of oil-droplet motion is also observed with a high-speed video camera. A mathematical model that incorporates the effect of the glass surface charge is built based on the experimental observation of oil-droplet motion. A numerical simulation of this mathematical model reproduced the essential features concerning confinement within a certain chemical territory of oil-droplet motion, and also its transient behavior. Our results may shed light on physical aspects of reactive spreading and a chemotaxis in living things.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figure

Induction of neuron-like tubes and liposome networks by cooperative effect of gangliosides and phospholipids

AbstractAlthough there is a rather large abundance of gangliosides in neurons, their functional role is still unclear. We focused on a physicochemical role of gangliosides in the formation of tubular structures, such as axons or dendrites in neurons. When a ganglioside, GM3, was added to cell-size liposomes that consisted of dioleoylphosphatidyl-choline, tubular structures were induced and liposome networks connected by the tubes were observed by differential interference microscopy and fluorescence microscopy. The potential for various gangliosides to induce tubes was dependent on the structures of their hydrophilic head group. With a large excess of gangliosides, the tubes are destabilized and small fragments, or micelles, are generated. The phenomenon was suggested by physical model calculation. Gangliosides may play a role as building material in neural unique tubular structures