Effect of Tβ4 on cardiac fibroblast apoptosis under oxidative stress.

<p>(<b>A</b>) Representative fluorescent microscopy images of TUNEL staining in rat neonatal cardiac fibroblasts. Bright TUNEL-positive staining (FITC) was observed in H₂O₂ treatment which was not observed in control cells and cells pretreated with Tβ4. DAPI was used to stain the intact nuclei and counterstaining of filamentous actin was done with Texas Red®-X phalloidin. (<b>B</b>) Representative fluorescent microscopy images showing the effect of Tβ4 treatment in presence and absence H₂O₂-induced oxidative stress on cardiac fibroblasts transfected with siRNAs of Cu/Zn-SOD, catalase and Bcl₂<i>vs</i>. scrambled siRNA, respectively. (<b>C</b>) Bar graph shows the percent TUNEL-positive nuclei under similar experimental condition. Data represent the means±SE of at least three separate experiments. A total of 65 to 82 nuclei were counted for each observation. * denotes p<0.05 compared to controls while^# denotes p<0.05, compared to the H₂O₂-treated group.</p

Effect of Tβ4 on pro- and anti-apoptotic genes under oxidative stress in cardiac fibroblasts.

<p>Cells were treated with H₂O₂ in the presence and absence of Tβ4 and (<b>A</b>) Caspase-3, (<b>B</b>) Bax and (<b>C</b>) Bcl₂ mRNA expression were analyzed at 12 h and 24 h, respectively by qRT-PCR. Data represent the means±SEM of at least three separate experiments. (<b>D</b>) Protein expression of Caspase-3, Bax and Bcl₂ at 12 h and 24 h, respectively. GAPDH was used as loading control for the experiment. (<b>E</b>) GAPDH was used as internal loading control for the experiment. (<b>E</b>) Graph shows the relative fold change in the protein expression of Bax, Bcl₂ and caspase-3, respectively by densitometry. Data represent means±SEM from 3 individual experiments. * denotes p<0.05 compared to controls while^# denotes p<0.05, compared to the H₂O₂-treated group and ^@ means p = ns compared, to the H₂O₂-treated group.</p

Ethylenedioxythiophene as a novel central unit for bent-core liquid crystals

<p>We have discovered that ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) can be used as a central unit for the synthesis of bent-core liquid crystals (BC LCs). Two series of EDOT-based BC LCs are prepared via Sonogashira coupling reaction. The mesophase behaviour of all the compounds was characterised using a combination of polarising optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction measurements. EDOT-based three-ring compounds were found to be nonliquid crystalline, while all the four derivatives of five-ring series, including a branched alkoxy chain derivative, display enantiotropic nematic phase over wide temperature range. The bent angle of these compounds is about 153°, which falls in between typical rod-like and banana liquid crystals. The transition temperature of branched alkoxy chain compound is lower than straight alkoxy chain compounds. The detailed XRD investigations of all the mesogens corroborate the presence of nematic phase.</p

Effect of Tβ4 on cell viability in H₂O₂ treated fibroblasts.

<p>(<b>A</b>) The MTT assay was performed with increasing H₂O₂ concentration (1 to 250 µM) in presence (dotted lines) and absence (solid lines) of Tβ4 (1 µg/mL). Data represent means±SEM of 3 individual experiments. (<b>B</b>) Representative confocal laser scanning microscopy images of cardiac fibroblasts stained with DCF-DA showing the effect of Tβ4 on intracellular ROS upon treatment with H₂O₂. (<b>C</b>). Effect of Tβ4 on generation of ROS in fibroblasts treated with H₂O₂ by fluorimetry. The graph represents the percentage of fluorescence positive fibroblasts upon staining with DCF-DA. Data represent the mean±SE of at least three separate experiments. * means p<0.05 compared to the controls and # represents p<0.05 compared to the respective H₂O₂ treated group (<b>D</b>) Representative confocal laser scanning microscopy images of cells stained with DHE Red showing the effect of Tβ4 on generation of superoxide radicals upon treatment with H₂O₂ in fibroblast. (<b>E</b>). Representative confocal laser scanning microscopy images of cells stained with DAF-2DA showing the effect of Tβ4 on generation of nitric oxide upon treatment with H₂O₂ in fibroblast. (<b>F</b>). Representative confocal laser scanning microscopy images of cells stained with Mitotracker Red showing the effect of Tβ4 on loss of mitochondrial membrane potential upon treatment with H₂O₂ in fibroblast.</p

Effect of Tβ4 on antioxidant and antiapoptotic genes under siRNA knock down of catalase, Cu/Zn-SOD and Bcl₂ genes in cardiac fibroblasts under normal and oxidative stress condition.

<p>Representative western blot illustrating the restoration of the expression of catalase, Cu/Zn-SOD and Bcl₂ in the cardiac fibroblasts upon knockdown of antioxidant and antiapoptotic genes, viz., (<b>A</b>) siRNA-catalase <i>vs</i>. (<b>B</b>) scrambled siRNA; (<b>C</b>) siRNA-Cu/Zn-SOD <i>vs</i>. (<b>D</b>) scrambled siRNA and (<b>E</b>) siRNA-Bcl₂<i>vs</i>. (<b>F</b>) scrambled siRNA, respectively. (<b>G and H</b>) GAPDH was used as an internal loading control for the above experiments. (<b>I</b>) Effect of Tβ4 on antioxidant and antiapoptotic genes under control and siRNA knock down of catalase, Cu/Zn-SOD and Bcl₂ genes in cardiac fibroblasts under normal and oxidative stress condition. Data represent the means±SE of at least three separate experiments. Clear bars represent the normalized protein expression of respective proteins in the si-scrambled RNA condition while the color bars represent the normalized protein expression under the respective siRNA knockdown conditions. * denotes p<0.05, compared to si-scramble control, ^# denotes p<0.05, compared to si-scramble and H₂O₂ treated group, ** denotes p<0.05, compared to si-RNA control group and ^## denotes p<0.05, compared to the respective si-RNA and H₂O₂ treated group while ^@ denotes p = ns, compared to si-RNA and H₂O₂ treated group. (<b>J</b>) Bar graph shows relative fold-change in the mRNA expression of caspase-3 in Tβ4 pretreated cardiac fibroblasts under respective siRNA knockdown and H₂O₂ induced oxidative stress. Data represent the means±SE of at least three separate experiments. * denotes p<0.05, compared to controls while^# denotes p<0.05 compared to the H₂O₂-treated group.</p

Rapid Hydrothermal Deoxygenation of Oleic Acid over Activated Carbon in a Continuous Flow Process

In this study, a novel approach to converting fatty acids into <i>n</i>-alkanes was investigated. Fuel range hydrocarbons were obtained in a continuous flow process from oleic acid using near- and supercritical water as the reaction medium, granulated activated carbon as a catalyst, and 1% v/v formic acid as an in situ source of hydrogen. Experiments were conducted in a packed tubular reactor with the weight hourly space velocity of 4 h^–1 at temperatures from 350 to 400 °C and pressure 3500 psi (24.1 MPa). The oil to water to formic acid ratio was 1:5:0.05 by volume. The main reaction pathways were hydrogenation of oleic acid and decarboxylation/decarbonylation of the resulting stearic acid to form heptadecane. The yield of heptadecane of above 70% with a selectivity 80% was observed between 370 and 380 °C. The results of the study show that efficient hydrothermal deoxygenation of fatty acids can be achieved with activated carbon as a catalyst and formic acid as an in situ source of hydrogen within minutes. Kinetics study showed that the rates of oleic acid conversion displayed Arrhenius behavior with an activation energy of 120 kJ/mol

Fundamental Study of Reversible Hydrogen Storage in Titanium- and Lithium-Functionalized Calix[4]arene

Hydrogen is the most promising candidate for a sustainable energy source in the transport sector. However, the storage of hydrogen is a major problem. Calix[4]­arene (CX) is functionalized with Ti and Li metals on the delocalized π electrons of benzene rings, and the metal-functionalized system is studied for hydrogen storage efficiency by applying density functional theory using the M06 hybrid functional and 6-311G­(d,p) basis set. The calculated binding energy indicates Ti coordinates with CX strongly while Li coordinates weakly and the binding of CX and metal is through Dewar mechanism. On saturation with hydrogen, each Ti atom traps four H₂ molecules while each Li atom traps three H₂ molecules on CX. Hydrogen molecules are adsorbed on the metal atoms by Kubas–Niu–Rao–Jena interaction. The global reactivity index obtained for the system obeys the maximum hardness and minimum electrophilicity principle. Molecular dynamics simulations are performed using spin-polarized generalized gradient approximation with the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof functional including Grimme diffusion parameter on H₂ saturated systems. The dissociation of H₂ molecules in the Ti-functionalized CX system begins from 273 K, while all the H₂ molecules are desorbed by 473 K. The storage capacity is found to be 8.7 wt % for Ti and 10.1 wt % for Li-functionalized CX. When the Ti atom is intercalated between the two CX moieties, the storage capacity does not reduce significantly. This study reveals that the Ti-functionalized CX is a potential reversible hydrogen storage material

Role of Macromolecular Crowding on Stability and Iron Release Kinetics of Serum Transferrin

The macromolecular crowding influences the structural stability and functional properties of transferrin (Tf). The equilibrium as well as kinetic studies of Tf at different concentrations of crowding agents (dextran 40, dextran 70, and ficoll 70) and at a fixed concentration of dextran 40 under different concentrations of NaCl at pH 7.4 and 5.6 (±1) revealed that (i) the crowder environment increases the diferric-Tf (Fe₂Tf) stability against iron loss and overall denaturation of the protein, (ii) both in the absence and presence of crowder, the presence of salt promotes the loss of iron and overall denaturation of Fe₂Tf which is due to ionic screening of electrostatic interactions, (iii) the crowder environment retards iron release from monoferric N-lobe of Tf (Fe_NTf) by increasing enthalpic barrier, (iv) the retardation of iron release by crowding is enthalpically dominated than the entropic one, (v) both in the absence and presence of crowder, the presence of salt accelerates the iron release from Fe_NTf due to ionic screening of electrostatic interactions and anion binding to KISAB sites, and (vi) the crowders environment is unable to diminish (a) the salt-induced destabilization of Fe₂Tf against the loss of iron and overall denaturation and (b) the anion effect and ionic screening of diffusive counterions responsible to promote iron release from Fe_NTf

Special Attributes of Adolescent Behaviour and Communication

This thesis is based on theoretical findings in the area of developmental psychology and focuses on the period of adolescence. The aim of the thesis is the description of specific features of adolescence as a developmental period typically associated with certain types of behaviour and typical language usage, mainly in the area of vocabulary. The thesis aims at linking description of intellectual development with linguistic alasysis to specify norms of communication within the youth subculture. Theoretical claims are verified by data from empirical research in the form of a survey and linguistic analyses of both audio and video recordings and samples of written communication between adolescents. The thesis accentuates the term youth subculture and puts forward that one of its main characteristics is a specific area of vocabulary which helps to strengthen peer relationships

<i>acn-1</i> RNAi interactions with longevity pathways.

<p>Survival curves of mutant hermaphrodites cultured at 20°C with bacteria containing the control RNAi plasmid (L4440, blue) or the <i>acn-1</i> RNAi plasmid (red). Hermaphrodites were exposed to RNAi bacteria starting at the embryonic stage and monitored regularly until death. Genotypes were (A) <i>eat-2 (ad1116)</i>, (B) <i>isp-1 (qm150)</i>, (C) <i>sir-2</i>.<i>1 (ok434)</i>, (D) <i>daf-2 (e1370)</i>, (E) <i>daf-16 (mu86)</i>, (F) <i>age-1 (hx546)</i>, (G) <i>rict-1 (mg360)</i> and (H) <i>hsf-1 (sy441)</i>. See <a href="http://www.plosgenetics.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pgen.1005866#pgen.1005866.t002" target="_blank">Table 2</a> for summary statistics, number of animals and number of independent experiments.</p