Investigation of the conformation of human prion protein in ethanol solution using molecular dynamics simulations.

When the conformation of protein is changed from its natural state to a misfolded state, some diseases will happen like prion disease. Prion diseases are a set of deadly neurodegenerative diseases caused by prion protein misfolding and aggregation. Monohydric alcohols have a strong influence on the structure of protein. However, whether monohydric alcohols inhibit amyloid fibrosis remains uncertain. Here, to elucidate the effect of ethanol on the structural stability of human prion protein, molecular dynamics simulations were employed to analyze the conformational changes and dynamics characteristics of human prion proteins at different temperatures. The results show that the extension of ß-sheet occurs more easily and the α-helix is more easily disrupted at high temperatures. We found that ethanol can destroy the hydrophobic interactions and make the hydrogen bonds stable, which protects the secondary structure of the protein, especially at 500 K.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

K-doped Li2ZnTi3O8/C as an efficient anode material with high performance for Li-ion batteries.

Li2ZnTi3O8/C and Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8/C were successfully synthesized using the sol-gel method. Doping K apparently yielded a wider tunnel, helpful for increasing the rate of transport of lithium ions, and furthermore yielded excellent electrochemical properties. The first discharge capacity for Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8/C was 352.9 mA h g-1 at a current density of 200 mA g-1. Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8/C also performed stably, retaining a capacity of 323.7 mA h g-1 at the 100th cycle, indicative of its excellent cycling properties. In the rate performance test, Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8/C showed at the first cycle a high discharge capacity of 379.5 mA h g-1 for a current density of 50 mA g-1 and a capacity of 258.9 mA h g-1 at 1000 mA g-1. The results indicated that K-doping should be considered a useful method for improving electrochemical performances.

ZrO2 coated Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8 as an anode material for high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

The Li1.9K0.1ZnTi3O8@ZrO2 (1 wt%, 3 wt%, and 5 wt%) anode material was synthesized by doping Li2ZnTi3O8 with potassium and coating ZrO2, where the ZrO2 coating layer was prepared by citric acid and zirconium acetate, and the potassium source was KCl. When the added ZrO2 amount is 3%, the material has the most uniform size, reduced polarization, and reduced charge transfer resistance, and the specific capacity of LKZTO@ZrO2 (3 w%) was 361.5 mA h g-1 at 200 mA g-1 at the 100th cycle, which is higher than that of LKZTO, of 311.3 mA h g-1. The specific capacities of LKZTO@ZrO2 (3 w%) at 50, 100, 200, 500, and 1000 mA g-1 after 10 cycles were 424.9, 410.7, 394.1, 337.6 and 270.6 mA h g-1, indicating that LKZTO@ZrO2 (3 w%) has excellent electrochemical performance.

A randomized, controlled multicentric study of inhaled budesonide and intravenous methylprednisolone in the treatment on acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

BACKGROUND: Almost all international guidelines recommend corticosteroids for management of exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), because it leads to improved outcomes of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Nevertheless, due to its side effects, there are still concerns regarding the use of systemic corticosteroid (SC). Inhaled corticosteroids (IC) can be used as an alternative to SC, while reducing the risk of occurrence of side effects. PURPOSE: To measure the clinical efficacy and side effects of nebulized budesonide and systemic methylprednisolone in AECOPD. METHODS: Valid data from 410 AECOPD patients in 10 hospitals was collected. Patients were randomly divided into 2 groups; budesonide group, treated with nebulized budesonide (2 mg 3 times/day); and methylprednisolone group, treated with intravenously injected methylprednisolone (40 mg/day). COPD assessment test (CAT), arterial blood gas analysis, hospitalization days, adverse effects, fasting blood glucose, serum creatinine, alanine aminotransferase levels, and blood drug were measured and analyzed in both groups. RESULTS: Symptoms, pulmonary function and arterial blood gas analysis were significantly improved after treatment in both groups (P < 0.05), with no significant differences between them (P > 0.05), while incidence of adverse events in the budesonide group was lower (P < 0.05). No significant differences in CAT score, days of admission, blood gas analysis results and physiological and biochemical indexes were found between the two groups. Patients treated with methylprednisolone showed a higher degree of PaO2 level improvement. CONCLUSION: Results show that inhalation of budesonide (2 mg 3 times/day) and systemic methylprednisolone (40 mg/day) had similar clinical outcome in AECOPD. In conclusion, inhaled budesonide is an alternative to systemic corticosteroids in AECOPD treatment.

Characterization of phenol degradation by high-efficiency binary mixed culture.

BACKGROUND, AIM, AND SCOPE: Two new high phenol-degrading strains, Micrococcus sp. and Alcaligenes faecalis JH 1013, were isolated. The two isolates could grow aerobically in mineral salts medium containing phenol as a sole carbon source at concentration of 3,000 mg L(-1). It was found that the binary mixed culture of the two isolates possessed good potential for phenol removal. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Phenol biodegradation using the binary mixed culture of the two isolates was studied. The optimal conditions were determined to be temperature 32 degrees C, pH 7.0, inoculum size 10.0%, and agitation rate 150 rpm in the synthetic wastewater. In addition, the kinetics of the cell growth and phenol degradation by the binary mixed culture were also investigated using Haldane model over a wide range of initial phenol concentrations from 20 to 2,400 mg L(-1). RESULTS: The experimental data indicated that the binary mixed culture had pretty high phenol degradation potential, which could thoroughly degrade the phenol in the synthetic wastewater containing phenol 2,400 mg L(-1) within 72 h under aerobic condition. Under the optimal conditions, the phenol concentration was reduced speedily from 1,000 to below 0.28 mg L(-1) in the presence of the binary mixed culture, and the phenol degradation rate reached 99.97% after 16 h. It was well below the standard value 0.28 mg L(-1) as described by Chinese Environmental Protection Agency. It was clear that the Haldane kinetic model adequately described the dynamic behavior of phenol degradation by the binary mixed culture with kinetic constants of q (max) = 0.45 h(-1), K (sq) = 64.28 mg L(-1), and K (iq) = 992.79 mg L(-1). The phenol concentration to avoid substrate inhibition had been inferred theoretically to be 252.62 mg L(-1). CONCLUSIONS: Phenol, as the only carbon source, could be degraded by the binary mixed culture at high initial phenol concentrations. Phenol exhibited inhibitory behavior, and the growth kinetics of the binary mixed culture could be correlated well by the simple Haldane's inhibitory model. The kinetics parameters were invariably required for the design and simulation of batch and continuous bioreactor treating phenolic wastewaters.