Effect of magnetic disorder and strong electron correlations on the thermodynamics of CrN

We use first-principles calculations to study the effect of magnetic disorder and electron correlations on the structural and thermodynamic properties of CrN. We illustrate the usability of a special quasirandom structure supercell treatment of the magnetic disorder by comparing with coherent potential approximation calculations and with a complementary magnetic sampling method. The need of a treatment of electron correlations effects beyond the local density approximation is proven by a comparison of LDA+U calculations of structural and electronic properties with experimental results. When magnetic disorder and strong electron correlations are taken into account simultaneously, pressure and temperature induced structural and magnetic transitions in CrN can be understood.Comment: 23 pages, 7 figure

Pay32p of the Yeast Yarrowia lipolytica Is an Intraperoxisomal Component of the Matrix Protein Translocation Machinery

Pay mutants of the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica fail to assemble functional peroxisomes. One mutant strain, pay32-1, has abnormally small peroxisomes that are often found in clusters surrounded by membranous material. The functionally complementing gene PAY32 encodes a protein, Pay32p, of 598 amino acids (66,733 D) that is a member of the tetratricopeptide repeat family. Pay32p is intraperoxisomal. In wild-type peroxisomes, Pay32p is associated primarily with the inner surface of the peroxisomal membrane, but ~30% of Pay32p is localized to the peroxisomal matrix. The majority of Pay32p in the matrix is complexed with two polypeptides of 62 and 64 kD recognized by antibodies to SKL (peroxisomal targeting signal-1). In contrast, in peroxisomes of the pay32-1 mutant, Pay32p is localized exclusively to the matrix and forms no complex. Biochemical characterization of the mutants pay32-1 and pay32-KO (a PAY32 gene disruption strain) showed that Pay32p is a component of the peroxisomal translocation machinery. Mutations in the PAY32 gene prevent the translocation of most peroxisome-bound proteins into the peroxisomal matrix. These proteins, including the 62-kD anti-SKL-reactive polypeptide, are trapped in the peroxisomal membrane at an intermediate stage of translocation in pay32 mutants. Our results suggest that there are at least two distinct translocation machineries involved in the import of proteins into peroxisomes.

Peroxisome biogenesis in Hansenula polymorpha: different mutations in genes, essential for peroxisome biogenesis, cause different peroxisomal mutant phenotypes

In Hansenula polymorpha, different monogenic recessive mutations mapped in either of two previously identified genes, PER1 and PER3, produced different peroxisomal mutant phenotypes. Among five per1 mutants, four showed a Pim- phenotype: the cells contained few small peroxisomes while the bulk of the matrix enzymes resided in the cytosol. One of these mutants, per1-124 had an enhanced rate of peroxisome proliferation. The fifth mutant completely lacked peroxisomes (Per- phenotype). Of seven per3 mutants, four displayed a Pim- phenotype, two others a Per- phenotype, while one mutant showed pH-dependent growth on methanol and was affected in oligomerization of peroxisomal matrix protein. Thus, the protein products of both PER1 and PER3 genes appear to be essential in different aspects of peroxisome assembly/proliferation.

Batumarta : Etude agro-économique d'un centre de transmigration à Sumatra Sud

Cette étude concerne le centre de transmigration localisé dans la zone de Baturaja-Martapura appelée Batumarta.Les opérations de transmigration à Sumatra font partie du projet pilote initié par la Banque mondiale.Le centre de Sumatra compte 14 unités de 400 à 700 familles déjà installées en 1983.Les premières unités sont arrivées en 1976.L'enquête ci-après a été réalisée entre septembre 1982 et juin 1983 auprès d'un échantillon de 60 familles de colons,avec observation de terrain en quatre passages espacés de 2 mois.Trois points sont développés.Le premier présente un état des conditions de vie,du niveau des connaissances techniques en agriculture des migrants dans leurs provinces d'origine.Dans le second,il est fait état de la manière dont les transmigrants s'insèrent dans le projet de colonisation agricole du point de vue des activités agricoles : utilisation d'intrants,rendements des cultures...Les revenus,le budget des familles,le niveau d'alimentation font l'objet d'une présentation statistique.Dans le troisième point,les auteurs analysent les facteurs de succès du projet en proposant pour l'avenir un certain nombre de recommandations

Editorial for special section of grid computing journal on "Cloud Computing and Services Science"

This editorial briefly discusses characteristics, technology developments and challenges of cloud computing. It then introduces the papers included in the special issue on "Cloud Computing and Services Science" and positions the work reported in these papers with respect to the previously mentioned challenges

Sausu - Malonas - Tolai ou les leçons d'une transmigration réussie : étude agro-économique de 3 Centres de Transmigration dans la Province de Sulawesi Tengah

Cette étude concerne 3 centres de transmigration situés à Sulawesi Centre : Sausu,Malonas,Tolai.L'essentiel des données de base a été obtenu auprès des transmigrants.Un échantillon de 160 familles de colons a été suivi par enquête en quatre passages répétés espacés de 2 mois et observation sur le terrain.En Indonésie,les transferts de population commencés sous l'administration coloniale hollandaise avaient pour objectifs de réduire les déséquilibres démographiques entre les différentes iles.En 1980,la densité de population était de 690 habitants au km2 à Java et de 18 km2 à Sulawesi Centre.Dans la première partie de cette étude,les auteurs analysent l'origine,les motivations des transmigrants,ce qui fait l'originalité des 3 Centres qui jouissent d'un environnement favorable du point de vue de la pluviométrie,du relief,de la fertilité du sol.Pour chacun des centres,il est signalé les surfaces cultivées,les cultures adoptées (riz,soja) et les revenus dont bénéficient les transmigrants grace aux activités agricoles et non agricoles.Dans la dernière partie,les auteurs analysent les causes de certains échecs et des succès de l'opération en signalant le nombre trés important des transmigrants spontanés dans cette région et présentent des recommandations pour l'avenir

Pmp27 Promotes Peroxisomal Proliferation

Peroxisomes perform many essential functions in eukaryotic cells. The weight of evidence indicates that these organelles divide by budding from preexisting peroxisomes. This process is not understood at the molecular level. Peroxisomal proliferation can be induced in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by oleate. This growth substrate is metabolized by peroxisomal enzymes. We have identified a protein, Pmp27, that promotes peroxisomal proliferation. This protein, previously termed Pmp24, was purified from peroxisomal membranes, and the corresponding gene, PMP27, was isolated and sequenced. Prop27 shares sequence similarity with the Pmp30 family in Candida boidinii. Pmp27 is a hydrophobic peroxisomal membrane protein but it can be extracted by high pH, suggesting that it does not fully span the bilayer. Its expression is regulated by oleate. The function of Pmp27 was probed by observing the phenotype of strains in which the protein was eliminated by gene disruption or overproduced by expression from a multicopy plasmid. The strain containing the disruption (3B) was able to grow on all carbon sources tested, including oleate, although growth on oleate, glycerol, and acetate was slower than wild type. Strain 3B contained peroxisomes with all of the enzymes of β-oxidation. However, in addition to the presence of a few modestly sized peroxisomes seen in a typical thin section of a cell growing on oleate-containing medium, cells of strain 3B also contained one or two very large peroxisomes. In contrast, cells in a strain in which Pmp27 was overexpressed contained an increased number of normal-sized peroxisomes. We suggest that Pmp27 promotes peroxisomal proliferation by participating in peroxisomal elongation or fission.

Psychophysiological correlates of peritraumatic dissociative responses in survivors of life-threatening cardiac events

The psychophysiological startle response pattern associated with peritraumatic dissociation (DISS) was studied in 103 survivors of a life-threatening cardiac event (mean age 61.0 years, SD 13.95). Mean time period since the cardiac event was 37 (79 IQD) months. All patients underwent a psychodiagnostic evaluation (including the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire) and a psychophysiological startle experience which comprised the delivery of 15 acoustic startle trials. Magnitude and habituation to trials were measured by means of electromyogram (EMG) and skin conductance responses (SCR). Thirty-two (31%) subjects were indexed as patients with a clinically significant level of DISS symptoms. High-level DISS was associated with a higher magnitude of SCR (ANOVA for repeated measures p = 0.017) and EMG (p = 0.055) and an impaired habituation (SCR slope p = 0.064; EMG slope p = 0.005) in comparison to subjects with no or low DISS. In a subgroup analysis, high-level DISS patients with severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; n = 11) in comparison to high-level DISS patients without subsequent PTSD (n = 19) exhibited higher EMG amplitudes during all trials (repeated measures analysis of variance IF = 5.511, p = 0.026). The results demonstrate exaggerated startle responses in SCR and EMG measures - an abnormal defensive response to high-intensity stimuli which indicates a steady state of increased arousal. DISS patients without PTSD exhibited balanced autonomic responses to the startle trials. DISS may, therefore, unfold malignant properties only in combination with persistent physiological hyperarousability. Copyright (C) 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel