Molecular simulations of Taxawallin I inside classical taxol binding site of β-tubulin

A new taxoid Taxawallin I (1) along with two known taxoids (2-3) were isolated from methanolic bark extract of Taxus wallichiana Zucc. Structural characterization was confirmed by mass and NMR spectral techniques. Taxawallin I exhibited significant in-vitro anticancer activity against HepG2, A498, NCI-H226 and MDR 2780AD cancer lines. Tubulin binding assay was performed to assess its tubulin binding activity. Molecular docking analysis was performed to study the potential binding mode inside the taxol binding site of β-tubulin.     

Genetic diversity of Syrian pistachio (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pistacia vera</Emphasis> L.) varieties evaluated by AFLP markers

Pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) is a strategic nut tree species in the Middle East which holds comparative advantage over other fruit trees in view of its hardiness, income generation opportunities and benefits for the ecosystem. Yet pistachio cultivation depends on a very narrow genetic base, in spite of the existence of many varieties still marginally exploited. Syria is an important center of diversity for pistachio. A country wide ecogeographic survey in this country was carried out to determine the extent of pistachio genetic diversity and its use. As a whole, 114 accessions were collected from 37 farms to assess diversity at morphological and molecular level. Molecular evaluation was carried out using Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) technique and performed using seven primer pair combinations. Results from the studies allowed the identification of 25 pistachio female varieties in Syria, some of which unique and described for the first time. Three groups of pistachio diversity were identified by cluster analysis which provides useful information about the distribution of genetic diversity in Syria for enhanced use and sustainable conservation.     

饲粮高钙对雏鸡锌利用的影响

试验采用含钙0.88％和1.78％的玉米—豆饼型基础饲粮(含锌29ppm,添加0.10和40ppm锌(ZnSO_4·7H_2O)。结果表明,随着饲粮锌水平的提高,雏鸡增重显著提高(P<0.01),这种效应随着雏鸡周龄的增长愈趋明显。饲粮高钙使雏鸡前期增重显著降低(P<0.01),后期效应愈趋缓解。血清碱性磷酸酶的活性随着饲粮锌水平的提高而显著提高(P<0.01),饲粮高钙使之显著降低(P<0.01)。饲粮加锌使血清白蛋白含量显著高于未加锌组(P<0.05),饲粮高钙使血清白蛋白含量显著降低(P<0.01),使血清球蛋白含量显著提高(P<0.01),而血清总蛋白含量不受饲粮钙水平显著影响(P>0.05)。肝脏(P<0.05)、肾脏(P<0.01)、胰脏(P<0.01)、胫骨(P<0.01)以及粪便排泄物(P<0.01)中锌含量随饲粮锌水平的提高而显著提高,肺脏锌含量没有明显变化(P>0.05)。饲粮高钙使肾脏(P<0.05)、肺脏(P<0.01)、胫骨(P<0.05)锌含量显著降低,使粪便排泄物中锌含量显著提高(P<0.05)。饲粮中含锌29ppm,不能满足雏鸡维持正常代谢和生长发育的营养需要,饲粮高钙时,饲粮总锌69ppm为宜。     

Laser ablation and the production of polymer films

The formation of high-quality thin films of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is important in many applications ranging from material reinforcement to molecular electronics. Laser ablation, a technique widely used to deposit a variety of inorganic materials, can also be used as a simple and highly versatile method for forming thin polymer films. The data presented show that PTFE films can be produced on various supports by the evaporation of a solid PTFE target with a pulsed ultraviolet laser. The composition of the ablation plume suggests that PTFE ablation and subsequent film formation occur by way of a laser-induced pyrolitic decomposition with subsequent repolymerization. The polymer films produced by this method are composed of amorphous and highly crystalline regions, the latter being predominantly in a chain-folded configuration with the molecular axis aligned parallel to the substrate surface.     

Community proteomics of a natural microbial biofilm

Using genomic and mass spectrometry-based proteomic methods, we evaluated gene expression, identified key activities, and examined partitioning of metabolic functions in a natural acid mine drainage (AMD) microbial biofilm community. We detected 2033 proteins from the five most abundant species in the biofilm, including 48% of the predicted proteins from the dominant biofilm organism, Leptospirillum group II. Proteins involved in protein refolding and response to oxidative stress appeared to be highly expressed, which suggests that damage to biomolecules is a key challenge for survival. We validated and estimated the relative abundance and cellular localization of 357 unique and 215 conserved novel proteins and determined that one abundant novel protein is a cytochrome central to iron oxidation and AMD formation.     

Using leaf tip necrosis as a phenotypic marker to predict the presence of durable rust resistance gene pair <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lr34</Emphasis>/<Emphasis Type="Italic">Yr18</Emphasis> in wheat

Fifty wheat varieties along with Jupateco-73 and Morocco were studied for the expression of leaf tip necrosis (LTN), a trait linked with the durable rust resistance gene pair Lr34/Yr18. LTN was frequent (i.e., ≥6) in nine replications of a field experiment over 3 years in 17 genotypes, and the varieties were considered positive for LTN. In molecular analyses of these varieties, having relative severity values up to 78 for yellow rust and 45 for leaf rust, the 150-bp Lr34/Yr18-linked allele was consistently amplified. Expression of LTN in six of nine replications is an appropriate threshold for predicting the presence of Lr34/Yr18 gene pair, and genotypes can be selected using this trait.