Effects of low-temperature catalytic pretreatments on coal structure and reactivity in liquefaction. Technical progress report, July--September 1993

In this quarter, progress has been made in the following two aspects: (1) spectroscopic and chemical reaction studies on the effects of drying and mild oxidation of a Wyodak subbituminous coal on its structure and pretreatment/liquefaction at 350{degrees}C; and (2) effects of dispersed catalyst and solvent on conversion and structural changes of a North Dakota lignite. Drying and oxidation of Wyodak subbituminous coal at 100-150{degrees}C have been shown to have significant effects on its structure and on its catalytic and non-catalytic low-severity liquefaction at 350{degrees}C for 30 min under 6.9 MPa H{sub 2}. Spectroscopic analyses using solid-state {sup 13}C NMR, Pyrolysis-GC-MS, and FT-IR revealed that oxidative drying at 100-150{degrees}C causes the transformation of phenolics and catechol into other related structures (presumably via condensation) and high-severity air drying at 150{degrees}C for 20 h leads to disappearance of catechol-like structure. Increasing air drying time or temperature increases oxidation to form more oxygen functional groups at the expense of aliphatic carbons. Such a clearly negative impact of severe oxidation is considered to arise from significantly increased oxygen functionality which enhances the cross-link formation in the early stage of coal liquefaction. Physical, chemical, and surface physicochemical aspects of drying and oxidation and the role of water are also discussed. A North Dakota lignite (DECS-1) coal was studied for its behaviors in non-catalytic and catalytic liquefaction. Reactions were carried out at temperatures between 250 and 450{degrees}C. Regardless the reaction solvents and the catalyst being used, the optimum temperature was found to be 400{degrees}C. The donor solvent has a significant effect over the conversion especially at temperatures higher than 350{degrees}C

Total synthesis and biological evaluation of the tetramic acid based natural product harzianic acid and its stereoisomers

Financial support for this project was provided by Cancer Research UK (Grant No. C21383/A6950)The bioactive natural product harzianic acid was prepared for the first time in just six steps (longest linear sequence) with an overall yield of 22%. The identification of conditions to telescope amide bond formation and a Lacey-Dieckmann reaction into one pot proved important. The three stereoisomers of harzianic acid were also prepared, providing material for comparison of their biological activity. While all of the isomers promoted root growth, improved antifungal activity was unexpectedly associated with isomers in the enantiomeric series opposite that of harzianic acid.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Effects of low-temperature catalytic pretreatments on coal structure and reactivity in liquefaction

This work is a fundamental study of catalytic pretreatments as a potential preconversion step to low-severity liquefaction. The ultimate goal of this work is to provide the basis for the design of an improved liquefaction process and to facilitate our understanding of those processes that occur when coals are initially dissolved. The main objectives of this project are to study the effects of low-temperature pretreatments on coal structure and their impacts on the subsequent liquefaction. The effects of pretreatment temperatures, catalyst type, coal rank and influence of solvent will be examined. We have made significant progress in the following four aspects during this quarterly period: (1) influence of drying and oxidation of coal on the conversion and product distribution in catalytic liquefaction of Wyodak subbituminous coal using a dispersed catalyst; (2) spectroscopic characterization of dried and oxidized Wyodak coal and the insoluble residues from catalytic and thermal liquefaction; (3) the structural alteration of low-rank coal in low-severity liquefaction with the emphasis on the oxygen-containing functional groups; and (4) effects of solvents and catalyst dispersion methods in temperature-programmed and non-programmed liquefaction of three low-rank coals

Reinstated p53 response and high anti-T-cell leukemia activity by the novel alkylating deacetylase inhibitor tinostamustine

Non peer reviewe

Protein Conformational Changes in the Bacteriorhodopsin Photocycle: Comparison of Findings from Electron and X-Ray Crystallographic Analyses

Light-driven conformational changes in the membrane protein bacteriorhodopsin have been studied extensively using X-ray and electron crystallography, resulting in the deposition of >30 sets of coordinates describing structural changes at various stages of proton transport. Using projection difference Fourier maps, we show that coordinates reported by different groups for the same photocycle intermediates vary considerably in the extent and nature of conformational changes. The different structures reported for the same intermediate cannot be reconciled in terms of differing extents of change on a single conformational trajectory. New measurements of image phases obtained by cryo-electron microscopy of the D96G/F171C/F219L triple mutant provide independent validation for the description of the large protein conformational change derived at 3.2 Å resolution by electron crystallography of 2D crystals, but do not support atomic models for light-driven conformational changes derived using X-ray crystallography of 3D crystals. Our findings suggest that independent determination of phase information from 2D crystals can be an important tool for testing the accuracy of atomic models for membrane protein conformational changes

Optical Silencing of C. elegans Cells with Arch Proton Pump

BACKGROUND: Optogenetic techniques using light-driven ion channels or ion pumps for controlling excitable cells have greatly facilitated the investigation of nervous systems in vivo. A model organism, C. elegans, with its small transparent body and well-characterized neural circuits, is especially suitable for optogenetic analyses. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We describe the application of archaerhodopsin-3 (Arch), a recently reported optical neuronal silencer, to C. elegans. Arch::GFP expressed either in all neurons or body wall muscles of the entire body by means of transgenes were localized, at least partially, to the cell membrane without adverse effects, and caused locomotory paralysis of worms when illuminated by green light (550 nm). Pan-neuronal expression of Arch endowed worms with quick and sustained responsiveness to such light. Worms reliably responded to repeated periods of illumination and non-illumination, and remained paralyzed under continuous illumination for 30 seconds. Worms expressing Arch in different subsets of motor neurons exhibited distinct defects in the locomotory behavior under green light: selective silencing of A-type motor neurons affected backward movement while silencing of B-type motor neurons affected forward movement more severely. Our experiments using a heat-shock-mediated induction system also indicate that Arch becomes fully functional only 12 hours after induction and remains functional for more than 24 hour. CONCLUSIONS/SGNIFICANCE: Arch can be used for silencing neurons and muscles, and may be a useful alternative to currently widely used halorhodopsin (NpHR) in optogenetic studies of C. elegans

Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of 2-Methyl-4,5-Disubstituted Oxazoles as a Novel Class of Highly Potent Antitubulin Agents

Antimitotic agents that interfere with microtubule formation are one of the major classes of cytotoxic drugs for cancer treatment. Multiple 2-methyl-4-(3′,4′,5′-trimethoxyphenyl)-5-substituted oxazoles and their related 4-substituted-5-(3′,4′,5′-trimethoxyphenyl) regioisomeric derivatives designed as cis-constrained combretastatin A-4 (CA-4) analogues were synthesized and evaluated for their antiproliferative activity in vitro against a panel of cancer cell lines and, for selected highly active compounds, interaction with tubulin, cell cycle effects and in vivo potency. Both these series of compounds were characterized by the presence of a common 3′,4′,5′-trimethoxyphenyl ring at either the C-4 or C-5 position of the 2-methyloxazole ring. Compounds 4g and 4i, bearing a m-fluoro-p-methoxyphenyl or p-ethoxyphenyl moiety at the 5-position of 2-methyloxazole nucleus, respectively, exhibited the greatest antiproliferative activity, with IC50 values of 0.35-4.6 nM (4g) and 0.5–20.2 nM (4i), which are similar to those obtained with CA-4. These compounds bound to the colchicine site of tubulin and inhibited tubulin polymerization at submicromolar concentrations. Furthermore, 4i strongly induced apoptosis that follows the mitochondrial pathway. In vivo, 4i in a mouse syngeneic model demonstrated high antitumor activity which significantly reduced the tumor mass at doses ten times lower than that required for CA-4P, suggesting that 4i warrants further evaluation as a potential anticancer drug

In-Vivo Expression Profiling of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infections Reveals Niche-Specific and Strain-Independent Transcriptional Programs

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a threatening, opportunistic pathogen causing disease in immunocompromised individuals. The hallmark of P. aeruginosa virulence is its multi-factorial and combinatorial nature. It renders such bacteria infectious for many organisms and it is often resistant to antibiotics. To gain insights into the physiology of P. aeruginosa during infection, we assessed the transcriptional programs of three different P. aeruginosa strains directly after isolation from burn wounds of humans. We compared the programs to those of the same strains using two infection models: a plant model, which consisted of the infection of the midrib of lettuce leaves, and a murine tumor model, which was obtained by infection of mice with an induced tumor in the abdomen. All control conditions of P. aeruginosa cells growing in suspension and as a biofilm were added to the analysis. We found that these different P. aeruginosa strains express a pool of distinct genetic traits that are activated under particular infection conditions regardless of their genetic variability. The knowledge herein generated will advance our understanding of P. aeruginosa virulence and provide valuable cues for the definition of prospective targets to develop novel intervention strategies