scholarly journals The effects of globotriaosylceramide tail saturation level on bilayer phases

Soft Matter ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1352-1361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weria Pezeshkian ◽  
Vitaly V. Chaban ◽  
Ludger Johannes ◽  
Julian Shillcock ◽  
John H. Ipsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saturation Level ◽  
Immobile Phase ◽  
Acyl Chains

The globotriaosylceramide acyl chains from one leaflet interdigitate into the opposing leaflet and lead to significant bilayer rigidification and immobilisation of the lipid tails. Globotriaosylceramide with saturated acyl chains can form a highly ordered, relatively immobile phase which is resistant to bending.

A Survey for Salinity Intrusion and Pollution Assessment in Maputo Estuary

1987 ◽  
Vol 19 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 823-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Salomão
Keyword(s):  
Dissolved Oxygen ◽  
Industrial Wastewater ◽  
Pollution Assessment ◽  
Saturation Level ◽  
Salinity Intrusion ◽  
Pollutant Load ◽  
Oxygen Levels ◽  
Salinity Gradients

Following surveys recently carried out in Maputo estuary, a survey with the purpose of acquiring data required to characterize the estuary was carried out in December 1983. After reviewing the hydrology of the tributaries to the estuary, the parameters to be monitored - salinity, conductivity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen, are referred. Finally, taking also into account previous information available, an evaluation of the results, and an assessment of the estuary are done. The estuary can be classified as well mixed, since the vertical salinity gradients found are small. The Umbeluzi estuary, however, is partially mixed. Temperature decreases with the depth, and when moving downstream. Some pollution was found along the lower part of the estuary, probably due to the discharge of domestic and industrial wastewater, which brings the dissolved oxygen figures below the saturation level. As for the upper part of the estuary, the dissolved oxygen levels are not only dependent on the pollutant load, but also on the growing of algae, which by photosynthesis under daylight produce oxygen that dissolves into the water. Quite often, the dissolved oxygen figures are above the saturation level. The growth of algae could be due to the input of phosphorus and nitrogen brought in by the tributary streams. A pollutant load discharged upstream could be the reason for some pollution seen in the Umbeluzi estuary.

scholarly journals Interactions of Linear Analogues of Battacin with Negatively Charged Lipid Membranes

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 192
Author(s):  
Kinga Burdach ◽  
Dagmara Tymecka ◽  
Aneta Urban ◽  
Robert Lasek ◽  
Dariusz Bartosik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lipid Membranes ◽  
Liquid Crystalline ◽  
Lipid Membrane ◽  
Attenuated Total Reflection ◽  
Gram Positive ◽  
Insertion Depth ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Acyl Chains ◽  
Hydrophobic Portion ◽  
Membrane Fluidization

The increasing resistance of bacteria to available antibiotics has stimulated the search for new antimicrobial compounds with less specific mechanisms of action. These include the ability to disrupt the structure of the cell membrane, which in turn leads to its damage. In this context, amphiphilic lipopeptides belong to the class of the compounds which may fulfill this requirement. In this paper, we describe two linear analogues of battacin with modified acyl chains to tune the balance between the hydrophilic and hydrophobic portion of lipopeptides. We demonstrate that both compounds display antimicrobial activity with the lowest values of minimum inhibitory concentrations found for Gram-positive pathogens. Therefore, their mechanism of action was evaluated on a molecular level using model lipid films mimicking the membrane of Gram-positive bacteria. The surface pressure measurements revealed that both lipopeptides show ability to bind and incorporate into the lipid monolayers, resulting in decreased ordering of lipids and membrane fluidization. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging demonstrated that the exposure of the model bilayers to lipopeptides leads to a transition from the ordered gel phase to disordered liquid crystalline phase. This observation was confirmed by attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) results, which revealed that lipopeptide action causes a substantial increase in the average tilt angle of lipid acyl chains with respect to the surface normal to compensate for lipopeptide insertion into the membrane. Moreover, the peptide moieties in both molecules do not adopt any well-defined secondary structure upon binding with the lipid membrane. It was also observed that a small difference in the structure of a lipophilic chain, altering the balance between hydrophobic and hydrophilic portion of the molecules, results in different insertion depth of the active compounds.

scholarly journals Integrated lipidomics and proteomics reveal cardiolipin alterations, upregulation of HADHA and long chain fatty acids in pancreatic cancer stem cells

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Di Carlo ◽  
Bebiana C. Sousa ◽  
Marcello Manfredi ◽  
Jessica Brandi ◽  
Elisa Dalla Pozza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pancreatic Cancer ◽  
Stem Cells ◽  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Cancer Stem Cells ◽  
Acyl Chain ◽  
Fatty Acid Elongase ◽  
Acyl Chains ◽  
A Chain ◽  
Pancreatic Cancer Stem Cells ◽  
Long Chain

AbstractPancreatic cancer stem cells (PCSCs) play a key role in the aggressiveness of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC); however, little is known about their signaling and metabolic pathways. Here we show that PCSCs have specific and common proteome and lipidome modulations. PCSCs displayed downregulation of lactate dehydrogenase A chain, and upregulation of trifunctional enzyme subunit alpha. The upregulated proteins of PCSCs are mainly involved in fatty acid (FA) elongation and biosynthesis of unsaturated FAs. Accordingly, lipidomics reveals an increase in long and very long-chain unsaturated FAs, which are products of fatty acid elongase-5 predicted as a key gene. Moreover, lipidomics showed the induction in PCSCs of molecular species of cardiolipin with mixed incorporation of 16:0, 18:1, and 18:2 acyl chains. Our data indicate a crucial role of FA elongation and alteration in cardiolipin acyl chain composition in PCSCs, representing attractive therapeutic targets in PDAC.

scholarly journals Granulibacter bethesdensis, a Pathogen from Patients with Chronic Granulomatous Disease, Produces a Penta-Acylated Hypostimulatory Glycero-d-talo-oct-2-ulosonic Acid–Lipid A Glycolipid (Ko-Lipid A)

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 3303
Author(s):  
Artur Muszyński ◽  
Kol A. Zarember ◽  
Christian Heiss ◽  
Joseph Shiloach ◽  
Lars J. Berg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Granulomatous Disease ◽  
Human Blood ◽  
Lipid A ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Strong Acid ◽  
Granulomatous Disease ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Phagocyte Nadph Oxidase ◽  
Acyl Chains ◽  
Ulosonic Acid

Granulibacter bethesdensis can infect patients with chronic granulomatous disease, an immunodeficiency caused by reduced phagocyte NADPH oxidase function. Intact G. bethesdensis (Gb) is hypostimulatory compared to Escherichia coli, i.e., cytokine production in human blood requires 10–100 times more G. bethesdensis CFU/mL than E. coli. To better understand the pathogenicity of G. bethesdensis, we isolated its lipopolysaccharide (GbLPS) and characterized its lipid A. Unlike with typical Enterobacteriaceae, the release of presumptive Gb lipid A from its LPS required a strong acid. NMR and mass spectrometry demonstrated that the carbohydrate portion of the isolated glycolipid consists of α-Manp-(1→4)-β-GlcpN3N-(1→6)-α-GlcpN-(1⇿1)-α-GlcpA tetra-saccharide substituted with five acyl chains: the amide-linked N-3′ 14:0(3-OH), N-2′ 16:0(3-O16:0), and N-2 18:0(3-OH) and the ester-linked O-3 14:0(3-OH) and 16:0. The identification of glycero-d-talo-oct-2-ulosonic acid (Ko) as the first constituent of the core region of the LPS that is covalently attached to GlcpN3N of the lipid backbone may account for the acid resistance of GbLPS. In addition, the presence of Ko and only five acyl chains may explain the >10-fold lower proinflammatory potency of GbKo–lipidA compared to E. coli lipid A, as measured by cytokine induction in human blood. These unusual structural properties of the G.bethesdensis Ko–lipid A glycolipid likely contribute to immune evasion during pathogenesis and resistance to antimicrobial peptides.

scholarly journals Structure-Acid Lability Relationship of N-alkylated α,α-dialkylglycine Obtained via a Ugi Multicomponent Reaction

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 197
Author(s):  
Iván Ramos-Tomillero ◽  
Marisa K. Sánchez ◽  
Hortensia Rodríguez ◽  
Fernando Albericio
Keyword(s):  
Solid Phase Synthesis ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Amide Bond ◽  
Acidic Media ◽  
Phase Synthesis ◽  
Acyl Chains ◽  
Cyclic Compounds ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Fine Tune

Using the classical Ugi four-component reaction to fuse an amine, ketone, carboxylic acid, and isocyanide, here we prepared a short library of N-alkylated α,α-dialkylglycine derivatives. Due to the polyfunctionality of the dipeptidic scaffold, this highly steric hindered system shows an interesting acidolytic cleavage of the C-terminal amide. In this regard, we studied the structure-acid lability relationship of the C-terminal amide bond (cyclohexylamide) of N-alkylated α,α-dialkylglycine amides 1a–n in acidic media and, afterward, it was established that the most important structural features related to its cleavage. Then, it was demonstrated that electron-donating effects in the aromatic amines, flexible acyl chains (Gly) at the N-terminal and the introduction of cyclic compounds into dipeptide scaffolds, increased the rate of acidolysis. All these effects are related to the ease with which the oxazolonium ion intermediate forms and they promote the proximity of the central carbonyl group to the C-terminal amide, resulting in C-terminal amide cleavage. Consequently, these findings could be applied for the design of new protecting groups, handles for solid-phase synthesis, and linkers for conjugation, due to its easily modulable and the fact that it allows to fine tune its acid-lability.

scholarly journals Diethylstilbestrol Modifies the Structure of Model Membranes and Is Localized Close to the First Carbons of the Fatty Acyl Chains

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 220
Author(s):  
Alessio Ausili ◽  
Inés Rodríguez-González ◽  
Alejandro Torrecillas ◽  
José A. Teruel ◽  
Juan C. Gómez-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Water Layer ◽  
Fatty Acyl ◽  
31P Nmr Spectroscopy ◽  
Relaxation Rates ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Scanning Calorimetry ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Acyl Chains ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

The synthetic estrogen diethylstilbestrol (DES) is used to treat metastatic carcinomas and prostate cancer. We studied its interaction with membranes and its localization to understand its mechanism of action and side-effects. We used differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showing that DES fluidized the membrane and has poor solubility in DMPC (1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) in the fluid state. Using small-angle X-ray diffraction (SAXD), it was observed that DES increased the thickness of the water layer between phospholipid membranes, indicating effects on the membrane surface. DSC, X-ray diffraction, and 31P-NMR spectroscopy were used to study the effect of DES on the Lα-to-HII phase transition, and it was observed that negative curvature of the membrane is promoted by DES, and this effect may be significant to understand its action on membrane enzymes. Using the 1H-NOESY-NMR-MAS technique, cross-relaxation rates for different protons of DES with POPC (1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) protons were calculated, suggesting that the most likely location of DES in the membrane is with the main axis parallel to the surface and close to the first carbons of the fatty acyl chains of POPC. Molecular dynamics simulations were in close agreements with the experimental results regarding the location of DES in phospholipids bilayers.

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