High-Pressure Iron-Sulfur Compound, Fe3S2, and Melting Relations in the Fe-FeS System

An iron-sulfur compound (Fe3S2) was synthesized at pressures greater than 14 gigapascals in the system Fe-FeS. The formation of Fe3S2 changed the melting relations from a simple binary eutectic system to a binary system with an intermediate compound that melted incongruently. The eutectic temperature in the system at 14 gigapascals was about 400°C lower than that extrapolated from Usselman's data, implying that previous thermal models of Fe-rich planetary cores could overestimate core temperature. If it is found in a meteorite, the Fe3S2 phase could also be used to infer the minimum size of a parent body.     

Citrus pectin: characterization and inhibitory effect on fibroblast growth factor-receptor interaction.

This study was undertaken to characterize the pectin from four citrus species and to determine their in vitro inhibitory activities on the binding of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) to the FGF receptor (FGFR). Pectin from various parts of lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, and orange were isolated and characterized. Tangerine had the highest pectin content among the four citrus species. Segment membrane contained as much as or more pectin than flavedo/albedo. Anhydrogalacturonic content was highest in pectin from segment membrane of tangerine and flavedo/albedo of grapefruit. Lemon pectin contained the highest methoxyl content (MC), and grapefruit contained the largest proportion of lower molecular weight (<10000 Da) pectin. Tangerine contained the highest neutral sugar in both flavedo/albedo and segment membrane. The interdependency of heparin on factor-receptor interaction provides a means for identifying new antagonists of growth factor activity and thus for treatment of various diseases. These results showed that pectin significantly inhibited the binding of FGF-1 to FGFR1 in the presence of 0.1 microg/mL heparin. The pectin from the segment membrane of lemon was the most potent inhibitor. The inhibition activity was significantly correlated with sugar content, MC, and size of pectin. Kinetic studies revealed a competitive nature of pectin inhibition with the heparin, a crucial component of the FGF signal transduction process. The observation that the heparin-dependent biological activity of FGF signal transduction is antagonized by citrus pectin should be further investigated for the use of these pectins as anti-growth factor agents for potential health benefits.     

Fibroblast growth factor receptors from liver vary in three structural domains.

Changes in heparin-binding fibroblast growth factor gene expression and receptor phenotype occur during liver regeneration and in hepatoma cells. The nucleotide sequence of complementary DNA predicts that three amino-terminal domain motifs, two juxtamembrane motifs, and two intracellular carboxyl-terminal domain motifs combine to form a minimum of 6 and potentially 12 homologous polypeptides that constitute the growth factor receptor family in a single human liver cell population. Amino-terminal variants consisted of two transmembrane molecules that contained three and two immunoglobulin-like disulfide loops, as well as a potential intracellular form of the receptor. The two intracellular juxtamembrane motifs differed in a potential serine-threonine kinase phosphorylation site. One carboxyl-terminal motif was a putative tyrosine kinase that contained potential tyrosine phosphorylation sites. The second carboxyl-terminal motif was probably not a tyrosine kinase and did not exhibit the same candidate carboxyl-terminal tyrosine phosphorylation sites.     

High-Pressure Framework Silicates

Recent syntheses of high-pressure alkali and alkaline earth silicates reveal a class of framework structures with corner-linked 4- and 6-coordinated silicon. These compounds possess the structural formula (A4-2x1+Bx2+)SimVI(SinIVO2(m+n)+2), where x, m, and n specify the amounts of alkaline earth, 6-coordinated silicon, and 4-coordinated silicon, respectively. Appropriate values of m and n yield a range of high-pressure structures, from fully 4-coordinated to fully 6-coordinated silicate frameworks. Recognition of this class of framework silicates leads to predictions of high-pressure structures as well as room-pressure isomorphs of high-pressure silicates.     

Induction of heat stress in beef cattle by feeding the ergots of Claviceps purpurea

Two groups of 4 Hereford steers were housed in a controlled environment room and exposed to simulated high summer temperatures. Both groups were fed a barley grain and hay diet ad libitum. The barley in one diet contained 0.5% w/w ergots of Claviceps purpurea. Within one week of feeding the ergot diet mean rectal temperature was significantly elevated (P less than 0.05) each afternoon (up to 41 degrees C) but returned to normal overnight. Elevated rectal temperature was accompanied by other signs of heat stress, reduced feed intake, body weight loss and depression or serum prolactin concentration. Symptoms disappeared within 1 week of ceasing to feed the ergot diet.