Antibody enhancement of free-flow electrophoresis

Specific T cell clones and antibodies (ABs) were developed to study the efficiency of purifying closely associated T cells using Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System. Enhanced separation is accomplished by tagging cells first with ABs directed against the antigenic determinants on the cell surface and then with ABs against the Fc portion of the first AB. This second AB protrudes sufficiently beyond the cell membrane and glycocalyx to become the major overall cell surface potential determinant and thus causes a reduction of electrophoretic mobility. This project was divided into three phases. Phase one included development of specific T cell clones and separation of these specific clones. Phase two extends these principles to the separation of T cells from spleen cells and immunized lymph node cells. Phase three applies this double antibody technique to the separation of T cytotoxic cells from bone marrow

Molecular-specific urokinase antibodies

Antibodies have been developed against the different molecular forms of urokinase using synthetic peptides as immunogens. The peptides were synthesized specifically to represent those regions of the urokinase molecules which are exposed in the three-dimensional configuration of the molecule and are uniquely homologous to urokinase. Antibodies are directed against the lysine 158-isoleucine 159 peptide bond which is cleaved during activation from the single-chain (ScuPA) form to the bioactive double chain (54 KDa and 33 KDa) forms of urokinase and against the lysine 135 lysine 136 bond that is cleaved in the process of removing the alpha-chain from the 54 KDa form to produce the 33 KDa form of urokinase. These antibodies enable the direct measurement of the different molecular forms of urokinase from small samples of conditioned medium harvested from cell cultures

Antibodies Against Three Forms of Urokinase

Antibodies that bind to preselected regions of the urokinase molecule have been developed. These antibodies can be used to measure small quantities of each of three molecular forms of urokinase that could be contained in microsamples or conditioned media harvested from cultures of mammalian cells. Previously available antibodies and assay techniques do not yield both clear distinctions among, and measurements of, all three forms. Urokinase is a zymogen that is synthesized in a single-chain form, called ScuPA, which is composed of 411 amino acid residues (see figure). ScuPA has very little enzyme activity, but it can be activated in two ways: (1) by cleavage of the peptide bond lysine 158/isoleucine 159 and the loss of lysine 158 to obtain the high molecular-weight (HMW) form of the enzyme or (2) by cleavage of the bond lysine 135/lysine 136 to obtain the low-molecular-weight (LMW) form of the enzyme. The antibodies in question were produced in mice and rabbits by use of peptides as immunogens. The peptides were selected to obtain antibodies that bind to regions of ScuPA that include the lysine 158/isoleucine 159 and the lysine 135/lysine 136 bonds. The antibodies include monoclonal and polyclonal ones that yield indications as to whether either of these bonds is intact. The polyclonal antibodies include ones that preferentially bind to the HMW or LMW forms of the urokinase molecule. The monoclonal antibodies include ones that discriminate between the ScuPA and the HMW form. A combination of these molecular-specific antibodies will enable simultaneous assays of the ScuPA, HMW, and LMW forms in the same specimen of culture medium

Distribution of the different species of the Pseudallescheria boydii/Scedosporium apiospermum complex in French patients with cystic fibrosis

As various new sibling species within the Pseudallescheria boydii/Scedosporium apiospermum complex have been described recently with differences in their susceptibility to antifungals, this study was conducted in order to determine their respective frequency in cystic fibrosis. Results indicated that P. boydii largely predominated (62%), followed by S. apiospermum (24%), Scedosporium aurantiacum (10%) and Pseudallescheria minutispora (4%). Scedosporium dehoogii was not recovered in this study. The multiple correspondence factor analysis highlighted geographical discrepancies within species distribution: P. boydii was rarely encountered in Northern France, while S. apiospermum was less represented in the west of the country. Additionally, we demonstrated that all species encountered in the cystic fibrosis context were capable to chronically colonize the respiratory tract of patients. Molecular typing of a large set of environmental and clinical isolates should be conducted to delineate the epidemiology of each sibling species in the complex

Identification des réservoirs du complexe Scedosporium apiospermum au Maroc

Communications libresNational audienc

The contribution of deep learning to the semantic segmentation of 3D point-clouds in urban areas

peer reviewedSemantic segmentation in a large-scale urban environment is crucial for a deep and rigorous understanding of urban environments. The development of Lidar tools in terms of resolution and precision offers a good opportunity to satisfy the need of developing 3D city models. In this context, deep learning revolutionizes the field of computer vision and demonstrates a good performance in semantic segmentation. To achieve this objective, we propose to design a scientific methodology involving a method of deep learning by integrating several data sources (Lidar data, aerial images, etc) to recognize objects semantically and automatically. We aim at extracting automatically the maximum amount of semantic information in a urban environment with a high accuracy and performance

Evaluation of 1,4-Benzothiazines in Steel Corrosion Inhibition in 15% HCl: Experimental and Theoretical Perspectives

Corrosion inhibitors are essential for metal protection. In this study, the efficacy of 1,4-Benzothiazine derivatives, particularly ethyl 3-hydroxy-2-(p-tolyl)-3,4-dihydro-2H-benzo[b][1,4]thiazine-3-carboxylate (EHBT) and 2-(4-chlorophenyl)-1,4-benzothiazin-3-one (CBT), was examined for carbon steel corrosion inhibition in 15 wt.% HCl. Techniques such as Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), Potentiodynamic Polarization (PDP), weight loss measurement, and Scanning Electron Microscopy assessed the inhibitors' performance. Results showed inhibitor efficiency increased with concentration, with CBT and EHBT achieving up to 97% and 98% effectiveness respectively. Both acted as mixed inhibitors, reducing anodic and cathodic reactions. Adsorption of these molecules onto the steel surface was consistent with the Langmuir isotherm model, suggesting physical and chemical interaction. SEM analysis confirmed the protective layer formation by 1,4-Benzothiazine derivatives. Additionally, Quantum Chemical Calculations and Molecular Dynamics simulations provided insights into their interaction mechanisms on the Fe(110) surface. This research highlights the potential of 1,4-Benzothiazine derivatives in corrosion protection and paves the way for their further development

Morphological and chemical characterization of carob pulps collected from four moroccan regions

The present research is included in a strategy of conservation and management of genetic resources for Carob tree (Ceratonia Siliqua L.) in Morocco. It has as one of its objectives, the evaluation of the morphological and chemical characteristics of four Moroccan ecotypes of carob pulps. The study related to morphological characterization reveals that there was a significant difference between the four populations from Meknes, Fez, Khemisset and Marrakech collected in 2018 and 2019. The lipid profile of carob pulp extracts analyzed by GC-MS is constituted of fatty acids, hydrocarbons, non-oxygenated compounds, sterols and tocopherols. The concentration of these compounds varies according to the population and year of collection. According to the results, the fatty acid contents are relatively high in 2019 with the dominance of palmitic acid. Additionally, our study approved the dominance of 1-Hexacosene, Tetracosane, Heptadecane. 1-iodo Hexadecane, 1-chloro Octadecane and 1, 54-dibromo Tetrapentacontane. Furthermore, it is noted that Stigmasterol, gamma-Sitosterol, beta-Sitosterol, alpha-Tocospiro A, alpha-Tocospiro B and Vitamin E are present in the samples. Moreover, the hierarchical analysis based on the results of the morphological and chromatographic characterization of the four populations’ pulps identify three groups. The first group included populations P3 and P4 respectively from Marrakech and Khemisset. The second group presented by the population P1 from Meknes. The population P2 from Fez constituted the third group