In Search of Theory and Criteria for the Practice of Distance-Supervision

The growing ease and efficiency of using electronic media for adacemic education promises to bring significant benefits to the field o clinical education. It appears that now is the time for us to ask what professional standards may need to be changed to assure the strong formation of future pastoral caregivers and minimize any possibility of eroding quality in supervision

LOOKING INTO THE ENERGY LANDSCAPE OF MYOGLOBIN

Using the haem group of myoglobin as a probe in optical experiments makes it possible to study its conformational fluctuations in real time. Results of these experiments can be directly interpreted in terms of the structure of the potential energy surface of the protein. The current view is that proteins have rough energy landscapes comprising a large number of minima which represent conformational substates, and that these substates are hierarchically organized. Here, we show that the energy landscape is characterized by a number of discrete distributions of;barrier heights each representing a tier within a hierarchy of conformational substates. Furthermore, we provide evidence that the energy surface is self-similar and offer suggestions for a characterization of the protein fluctuations

Hydrothermal Synthesis, Microstructure and Photoluminescence of Eu3+-Doped Mixed Rare Earth Nano-Orthophosphates

Eu3+-doped mixed rare earth orthophosphates (rare earth = La, Y, Gd) have been prepared by hydrothermal technology, whose crystal phase and microstructure both vary with the molar ratio of the mixed rare earth ions. For LaxY1–xPO4: Eu3+, the ion radius distinction between the La3+ and Y3+ is so large that only La0.9Y0.1PO4: Eu3+ shows the pure monoclinic phase. For LaxGd1–xPO4: Eu3+ system, with the increase in the La content, the crystal phase structure of the product changes from the hexagonal phase to the monoclinic phase and the microstructure of them changes from the nanorods to nanowires. Similarly, YxGd1–xPO4: Eu3+, Y0.1Gd0.9PO4: Eu3+ and Y0.5Gd0.5PO4: Eu3+ samples present the pure hexagonal phase and nanorods microstructure, while Y0.9Gd0.1PO4: Eu3+ exhibits the tetragonal phase and nanocubic micromorphology. The photoluminescence behaviors of Eu3+ in these hosts are strongly related to the nature of the host (composition, crystal phase and microstructure)

Surface modifications for antimicrobial effects in the healthcare setting: a critical overview

The spread of infections in healthcare environments is a persistent and growing problem in most countries, aggravated by the development of microbial resistance to antibiotics and disinfectants. In addition to indwelling medical devices (e.g. implants, catheters), such infections may also result from adhesion of microbes either to external solid–water interfaces such as shower caps, taps, drains, etc., or to external solid–gas interfaces such as door handles, clothes, curtains, computer keyboards, etc. The latter are the main focus of the present work, where an overview of antimicrobial coatings for such applications is presented. This review addresses well-established and novel methodologies, including chemical and physical functional modification of surfaces to reduce microbial contamination, as well as the potential risks associated with the implementation of such anticontamination measures. Different chemistry-based approaches are discussed, for instance anti-adhesive surfaces (e.g. superhydrophobic, zwitterions), contact-killing surfaces (e.g. polymer brushes, phages), and biocide-releasing surfaces (e.g. triggered release, quorum sensing-based systems). The review also assesses the impact of topographical modifications at distinct dimensions (micrometre and nanometre orders of magnitude) and the importance of applying safe-by-design criteria (e.g. toxicity, contribution for unwanted acquisition of antimicrobial resistance, long-term stability) when developing and implementing antimicrobial surfaces

Hochaufloesende Laserphotochemie an organischen Glaesern und Proteinen

Available from TIB Hannover: DW 6234 / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEDEGerman

Spectral hole burning study of protoporphyrin IX substituted myoglobin.

Protoporphyrin IX substituted myoglobin reveals excellent hole burning properties. We investigated the frequency shift of persistent spectral holes under isotropic pressure conditions in a range from 0 to 2.4 MPa. In this range, the protein behaves like an elastic solid. The shift of the holes under pressure shows a remarkable frequency dependence from which the compressibility of the protein can be determined. The compressibility, in turn, allows for an estimation of the equilibrium volume fluctuations. Within the frame of the model used to interpret the pressure data, it is possible to determine the absorption frequency of the isolated chromophore and the associated solvent shift in the protein environment

Softening of the packing density of horseradish peroxidase by a H-donor bound near the heme pocket

We use pressure tuning of spectral holes to estimate the compressibility of protein molecules by optical means. We found that the compressibility of mesoporphyrin-substituted horseradish peroxidase increases by a factor of three when it incorporates small aromatic H-donor molecules that bind in the vicinity of its heme pocket. Such a dramatic softening of its packing density corresponds to a jump from a compressibility range characteristic for the solid state into that characteristic for liquids