1,721,184 research outputs found
The Olney Enterprise
No full textWeekly newspaper from Olney, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising
Effect of Point Mutations on Structural and Allergenic Properties of the Lentil Allergen Len c 3
No full textPlant lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) are known to be clinically significant allergens capable of binding various lipid ligands. Recent data showed that lipid ligands affected the allergenic properties of plant LTPs. In this work, we checked the assumption that specific amino acid residues in the Len c 3 structure can play a key role both in the interaction with lipid ligands and IgE-binding capacity of the allergen. The recombinant analogues of Len c 3 with the single or double substitutions of Thr41, Arg45 and/or Tyr80 were obtained by site-directed mutagenesis. All these amino acid residues are located near the “bottom” entrance to the hydrophobic cavity of Len c 3 and are likely included in the IgE-binding epitope of the allergen. Using a bioinformatic approach, circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopies, ELISA, and experiments mimicking the allergen Len c 3 gastroduodenal digestion we showed that the substitution of all the three amino acid residues significantly affected structural organization of this region and led both to a change of the ligand-binding capacity and the allergenic potential of Len c 3
Lentil (Lens culinaris) Lipid Transfer Protein Len c 3: A Novel Legume Allergen
No full textBackground: Lentils are increasingly consumed in many parts of the world. Two allergens, Len c 1 and 2, have been reported previously. Recently, peanut and green bean lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) have been identified as the first two members of an important group of allergens that might be associated with severe food allergies. Objective:To investigate lentil LIP as a potential new allergen. Methods: Efficacy of LIP extraction was monitored at different acidic pH values, using immunoblotting with cross-reactive anti-peach LIP antiserum. Natural LIP was purified from lentil extract and expressed as recombinant allergen in Escherichia Sera from 10 lentil-allergic and/or-sensitized patients (Spain: 6, Italy: 1 and the Netherlands: 3) were used to further characterize lentil LIP. Results: Natural lentil LIP, purified from the homogenized germinated seeds and optimally extracted at pH 3, was identified and designated as allergen Len c 3. By CAP, 9/10 sera showed specific IgE to Len c 3. Recombinant (r) Len c 3 was successfully purified. The natural (n) Len c 3 CAP was completely inhibited by rLen c 3/rPru p 3. IgE binding to lentil pH 3 extract blot was completely inhibited by rLen c 3. Conclusion: The availability of immunochemically active nLen/rLen c 3 as a novel legume allergen facilitates further development and implementation of a third (next to peanut and green bean) legume LIP in component-resolved diagnosis strategies and contributes to evaluate the clinical importance of legume LTPs. Preferential extraction of Len c 3 (pH 3) will affect the production of sensitive extract-based diagnostic tests. Copyright (C) 2011 S. Karger AG, Base
Impact of Different Lipid Ligands on the Stability and IgE-Binding Capacity of the Lentil Allergen Len c 3
No full textPreviously, we isolated the lentil allergen Len c 3, belonging to the class of lipid transfer proteins, cross-reacting with the major peach allergen Pru p 3 and binding lipid ligands. In this work, the allergenic capacity of Len c 3 and effects of different lipid ligands on the protein stability and IgE-binding capacity were investigated. Impacts of pH and heat treating on ligand binding with Len c 3 were also studied. It was shown that the recombinant Len c 3 (rLen c 3) IgE-binding capacity is sensitive to heating and simulating of gastroduodenal digestion. While being heated or digested, the protein showed a considerably lower capacity to bind specific IgE in sera of allergic patients. The presence of lipid ligands increased the thermostability and resistance of rLen c 3 to digestion, but the level of these effects was dependent upon the ligand’s nature. The anionic lysolipid LPPG showed the most pronounced protective effect which correlated well with experimental data on ligand binding. Thus, the Len c 3 stability and allergenic capacity can be retained in the conditions of food heat cooking and gastroduodenal digestion due to the presence of certain lipid ligands
Lentil <i>(Lens culinaris)</i> Lipid Transfer Protein Len c 3: A Novel Legume Allergen
No full text<i>Background:</i> Lentils are increasingly consumed in many parts of the world.Two allergens, Len c 1 and 2, have been reported previously. Recently, peanut and green bean lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) have been identified as the first two members of an important group of allergens that might be associated with severe food allergies. <i>Objective: </i>To investigate lentil LTP as a potential new allergen. <i>Methods:</i> Efficacy of LTP extraction was monitored at different acidic pH values, using immunoblotting with cross-reactive anti-peach LTP antiserum. Natural LTP was purified from lentil extract and expressed as recombinant allergen in <i>Escherichia coli.</i> Sera from 10 lentil-allergic and/or -sensitized patients (Spain: 6, Italy: 1 and the Netherlands: 3) were used to further characterize lentil LTP. <i>Results:</i> Natural lentil LTP, purified from the homogenized germinated seeds and optimally extracted at pH 3, was identified and designated as allergen Len c 3. By CAP, 9/10 sera showed specific IgE to Len c 3. Recombinant (r) Len c 3 was successfully purified. The natural (n) Len c 3 CAP was completely inhibited by rLen c 3/rPru p 3. IgE binding to lentil pH 3 extract blot was completely inhibited by rLen c 3. <i>Conclusion:</i> The availability of immunochemically active nLen/rLen c 3 as a novel legume allergen facilitates further development and implementation of a third (next to peanut and green bean) legume LTP in component-resolved diagnosis strategies and contributes to evaluate the clinical importance of legume LTPs. Preferential extraction of Len c 3 (pH 3) will affect the production of sensitive extract-based diagnostic tests.</jats:p
Silica-Based materials as catalysts or supports in solvent-free organic reactions
Full text linkThis chapter summarizes recent developments in solvent-free organic synthesis. In particular, the chapter focuses on the reactions conducted under neat conditions and in the presence of silica-based reagents or catalysts. The chapter describes the synthesis of those materials and salient features that are responsible for the enhanced reaction rates and greater selectivity. The discussion demonstrates that silica-based solids can be used to carry out a wide range of reactions and the approach can prove beneficial, leading to no solvent waste, in line with modern green chemistry metrics
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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