Copper Homeostasis in the Filamentous Ascomycete Aspergillus nidulans.

237 p.El objetivo de esta tesis doctoral ha sido el estudio de la homeostasis del cobre en el hongo filamentoso Aspergillus nidulans. El cobre es un oligoelemento necesario para la vida, pero en cantidades superiores a las necesarias tiene efectos nocivos. Debido a esta propiedad el cobre ha sido utilizado como antimicrobiano en la agricultura en cantidades inconmensurables generando un problema medioambiental. Los resultados de la tesis están divididos en tres capítulos: En el primero, por una parte se detallan los resultados de un experimento de RNA-seq que compara el transcriptoma del hongo en condiciones vegetativas y condiciones de toxicidad por cobre, y por la otra, se describe el sistema de internalización de cobre de alta afinidad que posee el organismo, las proteínas responsables de dicha internalización, su regulación y su sublocalización celular. El segundo capítulo se centra en el mecanismo de detoxificación que el hongo posee para evitar un exceso de cobre dentro de la célula. Se describe el método de detoxificación que posee el hongo, la proteína que lleva a cabo el proceso, su regulación, su localización subcelular y la regulación de todo el sistema mediante un factor de transcripción. En el último capítulo, se describe la metodología seguida para buscar posibles inhibidores de posibles ¿targets¿ del sistema de homeostasis del cobre para potenciar el efecto de fungicidas basados en cobre y así poder bajar las dosis de cobre

Generalized Fokker-Planck equations and effective thermodynamics

We introduce a new class of Fokker-Planck equations associated with an effective generalized thermodynamical framework. These equations describe a gas of Langevin particles in interaction. The free energy can take various forms which can account for anomalous diffusion, quantum statistics, lattice models... When the potential of interaction is long-ranged, these equations display a rich structure associated with canonical phase transitions and blow-up phenomena. In the limit of short-range interactions, they reduce to Cahn-Hilliard equations

Cloning and analysis of laccases from acinetobacter baumannii isolates

Laccases (benzenediol : oxygen oxi doreductases; EC 1.10.3.2) are wide spread i n nature. They are usually found in higher plants and fungi (Thurston 19 94; Mayer and Staples 2002), but recently some bacterial laccases have also been found . The first laccase studied was from Rhus vernicifera in 1883, a Japanese lacquer tree, fr om which the name laccase was derived (Yoshida , 1883). These enzymes belong to the group of bl ue multi - copper oxidases (MCOs) . They usually contain four copper atoms located in three distinct sites. Each site reacts differently to light. The Type 1 (T1) site copper atom absorbs intensely at 600 nm and emits the blue light , the Type 2 (T2) site copper atom is not visible in the absorption spectr um and last, the Type 3 (T3) site has two c opper atoms and absorbs at 330 nm ( Santhanam et al . , 2011; Quintanar et al . , 2007 ) . The protei n structure acts as a complex ligand for the catalytic coppers, providing them the right structure where changes between the reduction states are thermodynamically possible (Dub é , 2008 ) . These enzymes oxidize a surprisingly wide variety of organic and inorganic compounds like, diphenols, polyphenols, substituted phenols, diamines and a romatic amines, with concomitant reduction of molecular oxygen to water (Thurston ,

Incidencia de la pacificación vial sobre el tejido comercial y actividades a pie de calle en el distrito barcelonés del Eixample: análisis de evolución comercial en un contexto de regulación de usos

MBArch - Màster Universitari en Estudis Avançats en Arquitectura-Barcelona: Gestió i Valoració Urbana i ArquitectònicaDesde la implantación del modelo de Superilla, Barcelona está en plena transformación de modelo urbano, para acercar el funcionamiento de la ciudad a los nuevos retos ambientales y a las oportunidades de mejora de la vida de las personas. Sin embargo, el distrito Eixample barcelonés, está sufriendo un problema de desaparición del comercio tradicional a favor de la generalización de bares, restaurantes y locales de ocio, así como de tiendas que están enfocadas más en un cliente turista que en los propios residentes del barrio. Por todo ello, el consistorio ha creado un Nuevo Plan de Usos para el distrito que regule las actividades de los locales que están a pie de calle. Esta tesis aborda un análisis comercial del distrito barcelonés del Eixample. El tema está estrechamente ligado con la publicación del nuevo plan de usos, y para poder dar un mayor sustento a éste y dotarlo de una visión más histórica para su justificación, viendo la evolución de las calles que han mejorado para el peatón y viendo su comportamiento comercial derivado. Para poder comprobar que efectívame se está ante un fenómeno de gentrificación comercial a raíz de la pacificación, se hará un análisis y cuantificación de la diversidad de usos de todas las calles del distrito viendo su intensidad y la especialización de uso. Para notar una evolución del cambio de uso, se compararán las calles pacificadas en un periodo aproximado de 10 años hasta el año actual (2008-2022) en la zona más conocida del distrito por su pacificación: Sant Antoni. Para ello, se utilizará el censo de actividades más reciente que se tiene (2019) y se contrastará con trabajo de observación de imágenes históricas de las calles en el año 2008 y una actualización del censo al 2022 mediante trabajo de campo.Award-winnin

Mean-Field Treatment of the Many-Body Fokker-Planck Equation

We review some properties of the stationary states of the Fokker - Planck equation for N interacting particles within a mean field approximation, which yields a non-linear integrodifferential equation for the particle density. Analytical results show that for attractive long range potentials the steady state is always a precipitate containing one cluster of small size. For arbitrary potential, linear stability analysis allows to state the conditions under which the uniform equilibrium state is unstable against small perturbations and, via the Einstein relation, to define a critical temperature Tc separating two phases, uniform and precipitate. The corresponding phase diagram turns out to be strongly dependent on the pair-potential. In addition, numerical calculations reveal that the transition is hysteretic. We finally discuss the dynamics of relaxation for the uniform state suddenly cooled below Tc.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure

Life cycle assessment and economic analysis of the electric motorcycle in the city of Barcelona and the impact on air pollution

In this work, the evaluation of the life cycle of the service provided by a medium-power motorcycle in a Spanish urban environment was carried out, comparing two motorcycles, a battery electric vehicle (BEV) is compared with an internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV). The economic study of the total costs of ownership is also carried out considering the environmental costs associated with each type of vehicle. A comprehensive inventory is compiled for both vehicles (motorcycles) that describes the most relevant components and includes two types of batteries for the BEV. A sensitivity analysis of the most impactful parameters is also considered. The results indicate that the ICEV contributes approximately 5 times more in the global warming potential impact category mainly due to the consumption of fossil fuels. The BEV also impacts some categories in the manufacturing stage, a fact that is strongly related to the battery. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the total distance travelled plays an important role, but the electricity mix is probably the most relevant factor in terms of climate change impact category. The economic analysis reported lower environmental externality costs for the BEV, making it more affordable than the ICEV and highlighting the benefit in terms of air pollution. The BEV is presented as a suitable option vehicle from environmental and economic point of view and one of the actors to accelerate the transition towards a more sustainable urban mobility model.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Post-collapse dynamics of self-gravitating Brownian particles in D dimensions

We address the post-collapse dynamics of a self-gravitating gas of Brownian particles in D dimensions, in both canonical and microcanonical ensembles. In the canonical ensemble, the post-collapse evolution is marked by the formation of a Dirac peak with increasing mass. The density profile outside the peak evolves self-similarly with decreasing central density and increasing core radius. In the microcanonical ensemble, the post-collapse regime is marked by the formation of a ``binary''-like structure surrounded by an almost uniform halo with high temperature. These results are consistent with thermodynamical predictions

Hamiltonian and Brownian systems with long-range interactions

We discuss the dynamics and thermodynamics of systems with long-range interactions. We contrast the microcanonical description of an isolated Hamiltonian system to the canonical description of a stochastically forced Brownian system. We show that the mean-field approximation is exact in a proper thermodynamic limit. The equilibrium distribution function is solution of an integrodifferential equation obtained from a static BBGKY-like hierarchy. It also optimizes a thermodynamical potential (entropy or free energy) under appropriate constraints. We discuss the kinetic theory of these systems. In the $N\to +\infty$ limit, a Hamiltonian system is described by the Vlasov equation. To order 1/N, the collision term of a homogeneous system has the form of the Lenard-Balescu operator. It reduces to the Landau operator when collective effects are neglected. We also consider the motion of a test particle in a bath of field particles and derive the general form of the Fokker-Planck equation. The diffusion coefficient is anisotropic and depends on the velocity of the test particle. This can lead to anomalous diffusion. For Brownian systems, in the $N\to +\infty$ limit, the kinetic equation is a non-local Kramers equation. In the strong friction limit $\xi\to +\infty$, or for large times $t\gg \xi^{-1}$, it reduces to a non-local Smoluchowski equation. We give explicit results for self-gravitating systems, two-dimensional vortices and for the HMF model. We also introduce a generalized class of stochastic processes and derive the corresponding generalized Fokker-Planck equations. We discuss how a notion of generalized thermodynamics can emerge in complex systems displaying anomalous diffusion.Comment: The original paper has been split in two parts with some new material and correction

Enantiomerically Pure [2.2]Paracyclophane-4-thiol: A Planar Chiral Sulfur-Based Building Block Readily Available by Resolution with an Amino Acid Chiral Auxiliary

Acyl chloride of N-phthaloyl-(S)-isoleucine is an efficient chiral auxiliary for the resolution of (+/-)-[2.2]paracyclophane-4-thiol. A preparative protocol, based on the conversion into diastereoisomeric thiolesters and separation by two fractional crystallizations and column chromatography, was developed. Deprotection with LiAlH4 allowed isolation of the individual thiol enantiomers in good yield (similar to 40%) and high enantiomeric purity (ee >93%). The absolute configurations were determined by comparison of the optical rotation value of the products with literature data and were confirmed by X-ray crystallography

The McKean-Vlasov Equation in Finite Volume

We study the McKean--Vlasov equation on the finite tori of length scale $L$ in $d$--dimensions. We derive the necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a phase transition, which are based on the criteria first uncovered in \cite{GP} and \cite{KM}. Therein and in subsequent works, one finds indications pointing to critical transitions at a particular model dependent value, $\theta^{\sharp}$ of the interaction parameter. We show that the uniform density (which may be interpreted as the liquid phase) is dynamically stable for $\theta < \theta^{\sharp}$ and prove, abstractly, that a {\it critical} transition must occur at $\theta = \theta^{\sharp}$. However for this system we show that under generic conditions -- $L$ large, $d \geq 2$ and isotropic interactions -- the phase transition is in fact discontinuous and occurs at some \theta\t < \theta^{\sharp}. Finally, for H--stable, bounded interactions with discontinuous transitions we show that, with suitable scaling, the \theta\t(L) tend to a definitive non--trivial limit as $L\to\infty$