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PubMed1992

Effects of severe dehydration on leaf photosynthesis in Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.: photosystem II efficiency, photochemical and nonphotochemical fluorescence quenching and electrolyte leakage.

Leaf disks of oak (Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.) trees were subjected to rapid dehydration in air in the dark. Optimal photochemical efficiency of PS II (F(v)/F(M)), photochemical (q(P)) and nonphotochemical (q(NP)) quenchings of chlorophyll a fluorescence, and relative conductivity (C(r)) of leaf disk diffusate were measured in leaf disks with different water deficits (D). No effect of dehydration was detected before D reached values above 0.30. When D increased from 0.30 to 0.50, q(NP) increased without any change in q(P), which may indicate that thermal deexcitation of PS II increased, allowing reduced photochemical activity and maintenance of a large pool of oxidized primary acceptors (QA), although carbon reduction was impaired. Large changes in electron transport chain activity, leading to decreases in both q(P) and q(NP), appeared only in leaf disks subjected to severe water deficits (D > 0.60) and were correlated with a modification of membrane structure. However, stability of F(v)/F(M) indicated that the functional integrity of PS II was not altered until D reached values above 0.75. We conclude that the photosynthetic apparatus of Q. petraea is rather insensitive to leaf dehydration per se during drought under natural conditions.

Journal Article↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The importance of the motion of water for magnetic resonance imaging.

Since the water content of all soft tissues is about the same, contrast in magnetic resonance imaging depends principally on the parameters that govern nonequilibrium behavior of the nuclear spin system of the water protons of tissue, the longitudinal and transverse relaxation rates 1/T1 and 1/T2. A fundamental understanding of the determinants of both 1/T1 and 1/T2 at a cellular level, and ultimately at a molecular level (so that contrast can be optimized and perhaps manipulated), will require a model of the behavior of water that describes the dynamics of the motion of water molecules throughout tissue. A particular model is presented here, one in which tissue water is relatively free to diffuse randomly throughout the intracellular and extracellular regions of tissue, colliding with cellular and subcellular constituents along the way; this motion dominates 1/T1 at higher fields. When not in actual contact with interfaces, ie, within about 5 A of a macromolecular surface, the thermal motion of the water molecules is not influenced by the interfaces, but is altered slightly by the presence of solute macromolecules. However, this small difference is amplified 10(6)-fold, roughly the ratio of the macromolecular to solvent molecular weights, by a mechanism previously named the "slosh effect"; this effect dominates 1/T1 at low fields, and 1/T2 at all fields. It is shown how the foregoing view of tissue water follows quite naturally from NMRD profiles (measurements of the magnetic field dependence of 1/T1 of water protons) of a wide variety of protein solutions and samples of tissue, both native and containing added paramagnetic (Mn2+)ions.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Theory for formation of a low-pressure, current-free double layer.

A diffusion-controlled theory is developed for the formation of a low-pressure, current-free double layer just inside an upstream insulating source chamber connected to a larger diameter, downstream chamber. The double layer is described using four groups of charged particles: thermal ions, monoenergetic accelerated ions flowing downstream, accelerated electrons flowing upstream, and thermal electrons. The condition of particle balance upstream is found to determine the double layer potential. The double layer disappears at very low pressures due to loss of ionization balance upstream and due to energy relaxation processes for ionizing electrons at higher pressures, in good agreement with experiments.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2002

Biophysical study of a molecular intermediate preceding collapse of tight couple and Kaltschmidt-Wittmann ribosomes.

In previous works we evidenced, by different biophysical approaches, two levels of structural organization in Escherichia coli ribosomal particles. Thermal treatment up to a defined and non-denaturing temperature causes demolition of only one level of structural complexity. By consequence the ribosomal particle exists in an intermediate state between the native form and the completely collapsed one. In this communication we report on a structural comparison of this intermediate state in Kaltschmidt-Wittmann (LC) and 'tight couple' (TC) ribosomes. Three different biophysical approaches were adopted: dielectric spectroscopy, fluorescence and light scattering. Differential responses to thermal treatment are evidenced in the two ribosomal species. In particular TC show a more compact structure and the overall particle population is more homogeneous than LC in the native state. On the other hand, LC particles after thermal treatment undergo major alterations of geometry and/or phenomena of supra-particle aggregation.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1995

Oral-burn syndrome.

A possible major etiology is presented for previously unexplained throat and oral ulceration, inflammation and scarring, and also tissue loss associated with dental implant fixtures, oral surgery and periodontal flaps, and diffuse facial and pulpal pain. A simple solution is suggested.

Burns↗
PubMed1983

Effects of porcelain/alloy interfacial diffusion zones on thermo-mechanical strain.

Chemical bonding between dental porcelains and alloys results from interdiffusion of porcelain and metal ions. An interfacial diffusion zone is created which, most likely, has properties different from those of bulk materials. The changed interface might affect experimental measurements of thermo-mechanical strain. To determine the magnitude and conditions under which this would occur, the interface was modeled as the intermediate layer of a three-layered porcelain-veneered split-metal ring. Layer thicknesses and coefficients of thermal expansion were varied, and the effects on gap change after cooling through 500 degrees C were calculated. Results are presented in a series of 14 Figs., ten curves each, which depict not only interfacial effects, but are extended for use in interpretation of the effects of properties of opaques and glazes as well. Under most conditions, the interface will not affect experimental measurements; some special exceptions are noted.

Chemical Phenomena↗
PubMed1986

Indirect effects of intrathecal morphine upon diffuse noxious inhibitory controls (DNICs) in the rat.

Diffuse noxious inhibitory controls (DNICs) affect all convergent neurones recorded in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord or the nucleus caudalis of the trigeminal system. They are triggered specifically by heterotopic noxious stimulation. DNICs acting at the trigeminal level were triggered by noxious thermal stimulation of caudal parts of the body, and the effects of intrathecal morphine applied at the coccygeal level were tested. The immersion of the right hind paw or of the tail induced inhibitions on C-fibre responses of trigeminal convergent neurones of 95.8 +/- 2.8% and 93.8 +/- 2.4+ respectively. Intrathecal morphine (15 micrograms; 20 microliters) produced an almost complete blockade of inhibitions triggered from the tail without significantly affecting those triggered from the hind paw. A reversal by systemic naloxone (0.4 mg/kg i.v.) was obtained in all cases. These results indicate that intrathecal morphine induced a segmental depression of nociceptive messages strong enough to prevent the spinal initiation of DNICs. We suggest that the segmental depression of nociceptive transmission induced by morphine led to a consequent blockade of DNICs acting on the whole population of convergent neurones not initially affected by the noxious stimulus. These findings are discussed with regard to the strong analgesic effects of intrathecal morphine observed in both behavioural and clinical studies.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Mechanism for electron transfer within and between proteins.

Examination of a growing range of electron transfer proteins is clarifying what design elements are and are not naturally selected. Intraprotein electron transfer between natural redox centers is generally engineered to be robust and resistant to mutational changes and thermal fluctuations, by using chains of redox centers connected by electron tunneling distances of 14 A or less. This assures that tunneling rates are faster than the typical millisecond bond-breaking at catalytic sites. Interprotein electron transfer addresses the potential problem of slow diffusion by designing attractive docking sites that permit a conformational search for short tunneling distances.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Solid stress generated by spheroid growth estimated using a linear poroelasticity model.

The unchecked growth of a solid tumor produces solid stress, causing deformation of the surrounding tissue. This stress can result in clinical complications, especially in confined environments such as the brain, and may also be responsible for pathophysiological anomalies such as the collapse of blood and lymphatic vessels. High stress levels may also inhibit further cell division within tumors. Unfortunately, little is known about the dynamics of stress accumulation in tumors or its effects on cell biology. We present a mathematical model for tumor growth in a confined, elastic environment such as living tissue. The model, developed from theories of thermal expansion using the current configuration of the material element, allows the stresses within the growing tumor and the surrounding medium to be calculated. The experimental observation that confining environments limit the growth of tumor spheroids to less than the limit imposed by nutrient diffusion is incorporated into the model using a stress dependent rate for tumor growth. The model is validated against experiments for MU89 tumor spheroid growth in Type VII agarose gel. Using the mathematical model and the experimental evidence we show that the tumor cell size is reduced by solid stress inside the tumor spheroid. This leads to the interesting possibility that cell size could be a direct indicator of solid stress level inside the tumors in clinical setting.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Solvent Cage Effects in Organocobalt Corrinoid Chemistry: Thermal Homolysis of alpha- and beta-(Cyanomethyl)cobinamides(1).

The equilibrium constant for the thermal isomerization of the diastereomeric alpha- and beta-(cyanomethyl)cobinamides (NCCH(2)Cbi(+)'s) has been measured over the temperature range 70-95 degrees C. Although the beta diastereomer is the thermodynamically more stable isomer, it is favored by the entropy change, but disfavored by the enthalpy change. In the presence of >/=5 x 10(-)(3) M concentration of the radical trap 4-hydroxy-2,2,6,6,-tetramethylpiperidinyloxy (4-HTEMPO), thermolysis of either isomer leads to cob(II)inamide and the trapped NCCH(2)(*) radical (NCCH(2)-4-HTEMPO) in high yield and no isomerization can be detected. The kinetics of the 4-HTEMPO-trapped thermal homolysis of alpha- and beta-NCCH(2)Cbi(+) have been studied in anaerobic glycerol/water mixtures of varying viscosity. The observed first-order rate constants for thermolysis show the expected inverse dependence on viscosity indicating that the process is at least partially diffusion controlled. From these data, the primary rate constant, k(1), for carbon-cobalt bond homolysis and the ratio of the rate constants for in-cage recombination and diffusional separation (k(c)/k(d)) can be extracted. The enthalpies of activation for Co-C bond homolysis are identical (29.0 +/- 0.3 kcal mol(-)(1)) while the entropy of activation is 2-fold higher for the alpha diastereomer. In water, the fractional cage efficiencies, F(c), are quite small (0.12 +/- 0.01, alpha; 0.049 +/- 0.008, beta) and invariant for each complex in the temperature range 75-95 degrees C. Assuming that the rate constant for diffusional separation of the caged radical pairs is the same for both isomers, the ratio of the in-cage recombination rate constants, k(c)(alpha)/k(c)(beta), can be calculated to be 2.6 +/- 0.6. This surprising kinetic preference for the alpha diastereomer results from enthalpic stabilization of the recombination transition state for the alpha diastereomer, since the beta diastereomer is entropically favored.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2007

Microscopic description of elementary growth processes and classification of structural defects in pentacene thin films.

Elementary growth processes such as kink initiation, adding a molecule to a kink, and adding a molecule between two neighboring kinks and between two grains are theoretically studied in pentacene films by adding one molecule at a time to a predefined aggregate. For each molecule, the potential energy surface is calculated using the MM3 molecular mechanics force field, which allowed one to identify useful parameters like the energy barrier for diffusion and the energy to create kinks, as well as defect configurations. Depending on the properties of the potential energy surface and the resulting growth-condition-dependent probabilities of initiating defect configurations in the film, three types of pentacene defects are identified: a thermally activated defect, an intrinsic defect, and a kinetic defect. Upon film growth, most defects relax into the ideal crystal configuration. Bulk defects that resist relaxation have densities lower than 10(16) defects/cm3 at typical growth conditions. Grain boundary defects, on the other hand, are very stable. Moreover, interstitial molecules at grain boundaries are identified as a source of compressive stress.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2005

Two-phase computational fluid dynamics assessment of bubble plume in air-diffuser destratification.

Hydrodynamic flow patterns and behavior induced by bubble plumes in a linearly stratified fluid are studied. To optimize an air-diffuser destratification system, we used computational fluid dynamics software to develop a two-phase (air-water) destratification model. The model enables us to simulate complicated stratification conditions with different densities and source strengths. We conducted laboratory experiments to verify the model in thermally stratified fresh water. The computational fluid dynamics model performs well when the plume number ranges from 30 to 600. We successfully explain various phenomena, including the hydrodynamic behavior of bubble plumes and turbulent three dimension flow patterns. Our approach provides a level of detail not possible with other one-dimensional plume models. Contrary to the findings of other researchers, our experiments and computational fluid dynamics simulation indicate that the energy conversion efficiency increases as plume number increases; moreover, the three flow types do not occur in the same plume number regimes defined in other research. The difference is apparently due to the effect of the bubble size.

Air Movements↗
PubMed1993

Stability, structure and complexity of yeast chromosome III.

The complete sequence of yeast chromosome III provides a model for studies relating DNA sequence and structure at different levels of organisation in eukaryotic chromosomes. DNA helical stability, intrinsic curvature and sequence complexity have been calculated for the complete chromosome. These features are compartmentalised at different levels of organisation. Compartmentalisation of thermal stability is observed from the level delineating coding/non-coding sequences, to higher levels of organisation which correspond to regions varying in G + C content. The three-dimensional path reveals a symmetrical structure for the chromosome, with a densely packed central region and more diffuse and linear subtelomeric regions. This interspersion of regions of high and low curvature is reflected at lower levels of organisation. Complexity of n-tuplets (n = 1 to 6) also reveals compartmentalisation of the chromosome at different levels of organisation, in many cases corresponding to the structural features. DNA stability, conformation and complexity delineate telomeres, centromere, autonomous replication sequences (ARS), transposition hotspots, recombination hotspots and the mating-type loci.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1976

Thermal polyamino acids: synthesis at less than 100 degrees C.

Thermally prepared polyamino acids, regarded as models for prebiotic protein, typically have been synthesized at 120 degrees to 200 degrees C. In this study, three different sets of amino acid mixtures were found to yield material of relatively high molecular weight (molecular sieving and diffusion techniques) when heated for up to 81 days at 85 degrees, 75 degrees, and 65 degrees C. These temperatures, which today are generated by radiation from the sun in some terrestrial locales, probably were more common on the prebiotic earth than those above the boiling point of water. The results thus suggest that prebiotic polyamino acids may have been relatively common and widespread.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1979

Growth and maturation of a vesicular stomatitis virus temperature-sensitive mutant and its central nervous system isolate.

A temperature-sensitive (ts) mutant of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), tsG31, produces a prolonged central nervous system disease in mice with pathological features similar to those of slow viral diseases. tsG31 and the subsequent virus recovered from the central nervous system (tsG31BP) of mice infected with tsG31 were compared with the parental wild-type (WT) VSV for plaque morphology, growth kinetics, thermal sensitivity of the virions, and viral protein synthesis and maturation. Several properties of the central nervous system isolate distinguished this virus from the original tsG31 and the WT VSV. The WT VSV produced clear plaques with complete cell lysis, and the tsG31 produced diffuse plaques and incomplete cell lysis, whereas the tsG31BP had clear plaques similar to those of the WT VSV. Although plaque morphology suggested that tsG31BP virus was a revertant to the WT, growth kinetics in either BHK-21 or neuroblastoma (N-18) cells indicated that this virus was similar to tsG31, with a productive cycle at 31 degrees C and no infectious virus at 39 degrees C. At 37 degrees C, however, the tsG31BP matured much slower than did the original tsG31 (and produced only 1% of the yield measured at 31 degrees C). WT VSV produced similar quantities of infectious virions at 31, 37, and 39 degrees C. The lack of infectious virions at 39 degrees C for the ts mutants was presumably not due to a greater rate of inactivation at 39 degrees C. Unlike WT VSV, which synthesized viral proteins equally well at all three temperatures, tsG31 had a reduced synthesis of all the structural proteins at 37 and 39 degrees C, compared with that at 31 degrees C; the formation of the M protein was most temperature sensitive. In addition, fractionation of the infected cells indicated that the incorporation of the M and N proteins into the cellular membranes was also disrupted at the higher, nonpermissive temperatures. Several characteristics of protein synthesis during tsG31BP infection at 39 degrees C distinguished this virus from tsG31: (i) no mature viral proteins were detected at 39 degrees C; (ii) several host proteins were [ill], suggesting that the virus was incapable of completely depressing host macromolecular synthesis; and (iii) a great proportion of the incorporated radioactivity was found in unusually high-molecular-weight proteins. In addition, at 37 degrees C, the tsG31BP virus showed a decreased synthesis of viral proteins and reduced assembly of the viral structural proteins.

Cell Line↗
PubMed2006

[Case of polymer fume fever with interstitial pneumonia caused by inhalation of polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon)].

A 30-year old man was admitted to our hospital with cough, slight fever, and dyspnea that he had developed several hours after inhaling the fumes produced from a Teflon-coated pan, after evaporation of the water in the pan. Chest radiography revealed diffuse infiltrations, and a computed tomography (CT) scan revealed patchy interstitial shadows in both lungs. In pulmonary function tests, the diffusing capacity of the lungs showed a moderate decrease. Leukocytosis and slight hypoxemia were observed. The patient recovered clinically in a few days without any specific treatment. We speculated that the pulmonary problems in this patient may have been induced by the products of thermal degradation of Teflon that were present in the fumes. When Teflon is heated, the fumes generated cause an influenza like syndrome (polymer fume fever) or cause severe toxic effects such as pulmonary edema, pneumonitis, and death in the exposed individual.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Radiographic evidence of asbestos effects in American marine engineers.

Marine engineers undergoing routine annual chest roentgenography showed an unusual prevalence of pleural abnormalities including plaques suggestive of past asbestos exposure. A pilot survey, and a subsequent comprehensive study of the films of more than 5,000 men, showed an overall prevalence of 12% with pleural abnormality (typical calcification or plaque, or diffuse thickening). Prevalence of films classifiable for pneumoconiotic small opacities was negligible--1.2% in the pilot study. Prevalences of pleural abnormality were significantly higher among men with longer union membership, after controlling for age. Older merchant ships contain substantial amounts of asbestos-containing thermal insulation. Marine engineers often remove and reapply insulation, operations known to produce high airborne fiber concentrations. These roentgenographic survey results indicate significant past asbestos exposures of ships' engineering department personnel.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Transport, space, entropy, diffusion and flow. Elements underlying separation by electrophoresis, chromatography, field-flow fractionation and related methods.

We describe here some elements common among separation methods, including the requirement for separative transport, the sensitive utilization of space, and the dissipative (band broadening) roles of entropy, diffusion, and flow. We focus on the need to carefully manage the unceasing competition between separative and dissipative transport in all high resolution methods. We then examine the more specific roles these elements play in influencing separation in several important analytical separation techniques. We begin with electrophoresis and sedimentation, which are conceptually among the simplest of systems because they require no flow and only a single dimension of space. The conflict between separative and dissipative transport is examined closely for these systems and it is shown that the outcome is a theoretical plate number which can be expressed as a ratio of two energies: a structuring energy--delta mu ext, which organizes the separation, and thermal energy RT, which is responsible for its dissipation. It is explained why optimal separation is most often achieved in thin layers or in capillary tubes. Chromatography and field-flow fractionation are then described as two closely related methods in which flow is powerfully coupled with a simple enrichment process occurring at right angles to flow. Unlike electrophoresis, these systems are intrinsically two-dimensional. It is shown how flow and diffusion processes both assume two diametrically opposite roles: those of aiding separation and simultaneously causing its dissipation. With a few equations it is demonstrated that the dissipative role is best contained by reducing the thickness (diameter) of the system or of certain elements within the system.

Chemical Fractionation↗