Universal features of polymer shapes in crowded environment

We study the universal characteristics of the shape of a polymer chain in an environment with correlated structural obstacles, applying the field-theoretical renormalization group approach. Our results qualitatively indicate an increase of the asymmetry of the polymer shape in crowded environment comparing with the pure solution case.Comment: 9 page

Characterizing the Behavior of Mutated Proteins with EMCAP: the Energy Minimization Curve Analysis Pipeline

Studies of protein mutants in wet laboratory experiments are expensive and time consuming. Computational experiments that simulate the motions of protein with amino acid substitutions can complement wet lab experiments for studying the effects of mutations. In this work we present a computational pipeline that performs exhaustive single-point amino acid substitutions in silico. We perform energy minimization as part of molecular dynamics (MD) of our generated mutant proteins, and the wild type, and log the energy potentials for each step of the simulations. We motivate several metrics that rely on the energy minimization curves of the wild type and mutant, to explore quantitatively the effects of the mutations. Two case studies are discussed and analyzed to showcase the utility of our approach to identify the least and most impactful mutations. Index Terms—Energy minimization, mutation, computational biochemistry, structural biolog

A systematic mapping literature review of ethics in healthcare simulation and its methodological feasibility

Both the ethics of simulation and how it may be used to explore, train and assess ethical issues in a clinical context have received growing interest in recent years. As ethical considerations permeate almost every element of simulation and clinical practice, the emerging literature in this field remains relatively fragmented, lacking a common vocabulary or standardized practice and methodology. Given this, the primary aim of this paper was to systematically map the literature related to ethics in healthcare simulation, guided by the research question of ‘how is ethics in healthcare simulation recorded in current literature?’. Our secondary aim was to explore the feasibility of conducting a systematic mapping review. One hundred four papers were included and analyzed. Results suggest that this is relatively small, but rapidly growing field. Most research was carried out in the US and with variety of research methods employed. Research involving samples of nurses relied more heavily on qualitative methods and students in their samples than that of medical doctors or other professions. Keyword co-occurrence suggested that studies utilized simulation overwhelmingly in an educational context

Beyond Acid Strength in Zeolites: Soft Framework Counteranions for Stabilization of Carbocations on Zeolites and Its Implication in Organic Synthesis

[EN] The generation of a carbocation with an acid depends not only on the acid strength but also on the ability of the counteranion to stabilize the positive charge left behind. Here we report that despite their relatively weak acidity, zeolites are able to generate and stabilize medium-size (molecular weight approximate to 300 Da) delocalized carbocations on their surface under mild reaction conditions, as it can be done by strong Bronsted or Lewis acids in solution. The zeolite thus acts as a soft macroanion, prolonging the lifetime of the carbocation sufficiently to perform multifunctionalization reactions with amides, thioamides, and phenols, with high yield and selectivity. Biological studies show that some of the products obtained here present significant inhibition activity against colon cancer cells, illustrating the new possibilities of zeolites to prepare complex organic molecules.This work was supported by Consolider-Ingenio 2010 (proyecto MULTICAT) and Severo Ochoa program. J.R.C.-A. and A. L.-P. thank ITQ for a fellowship. We thank Dr. S. Valencia for providing H-Beta nanocrystalline zeolite and Dr. U. Diaz for providing ITQ-2 zeolite. OIDD screening data supplied by courtesy of Eli Lilly and Company-used with Lilly's permission.Cabrero Antonino, JR.; Leyva Perez, A.; Corma Canós, A. (2015). Beyond Acid Strength in Zeolites: Soft Framework Counteranions for Stabilization of Carbocations on Zeolites and Its Implication in Organic Synthesis. Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 54(19):5658-5661. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201500864S56585661541

TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives

Absorbance response of graphene oxide coated on tapered multimode optical fiber towards liquid ethanol

The investigation of graphene oxide (GO) for sensing applications is attractive due to its nanoscale structure and its sensing properties has yet to be fully understood. In this paper, optical response of GO coated optical fiber sensor towards ethanol is described. GO was coated onto a multimode tapered optical fiber by drop-casting technique. The coated fiber was exposed to 5–40% of ethanol in water. The films were characterized with field emission scanning electron microscope, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The sensing is based on changes following the absorbance of the GO coated optical fiber upon exposure to ethanol. The developed sensor shows fast response and recovery with duration of 22 and 20 s, respectively. The sensor also displays high repeatability and reversibility

The number of tree species on Earth

One of the most fundamental questions in ecology is how many species inhabit the Earth. However, due to massive logistical and financial challenges and taxonomic difficulties connected to the species concept definition, the global numbers of species, including those of important and well-studied life forms such as trees, still remain largely unknown. Here, based on global ground-sourced data, we estimate the total tree species richness at global, continental, and biome levels. Our results indicate that there are ∼73,000 tree species globally, among which ∼9,000 tree species are yet to be discovered. Roughly 40% of undiscovered tree species are in South America. Moreover, almost one-third of all tree species to be discovered may be rare, with very low populations and limited spatial distribution (likely in remote tropical lowlands and mountains). These findings highlight the vulnerability of global forest biodiversity to anthropogenic changes in land use and climate, which disproportionately threaten rare species and thus, global tree richness