The importance of both catalyst and process design in unlocking sustainable carbon feedstocks through syngas.

As part of its move towards net zero, the chemical industry, over time, will transition away from fossil-based chemical feedstocks towards more sustainable, 'green' carbon-biomass, recycled waste and captured carbon dioxide. One gateway to transforming these feedstocks into the vital chemicals and fuels society relies on is via synthesis gas or 'syngas'-a gaseous mixture of chemical building blocks (H2, CO and CO2). While today the majority of syngas is produced via steam reforming of natural gas, commercially available technologies are enabling syngas production and transformation from sustainable feedstocks. The optimization of sustainable syngas technologies would not be possible without the integrated development of both catalyst and process technology and the associated skills in chemistry and chemical engineering. This paper covers three example technologies that are unlocking the role of syngas as a gateway to sustainable fuels and chemicals and highlights the innovative developments in catalyst and process design that have enabled their optimization and commercialization. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'Green carbon for the chemical industry of the future'.

Nonrecurrent 17p11.2p12 Rearrangement Events that Result in Two Concomitant Genomic Disorders: The PMP22-RAI1 Contiguous Gene Duplication Syndrome.

The genomic duplication associated with Potocki-Lupski syndrome (PTLS) maps in close proximity to the duplication associated with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A (CMT1A). PTLS is characterized by hypotonia, failure to thrive, reduced body weight, intellectual disability, and autistic features. CMT1A is a common autosomal dominant distal symmetric peripheral polyneuropathy. The key dosage-sensitive genes RAI1 and PMP22 are respectively associated with PTLS and CMT1A. Recurrent duplications accounting for the majority of subjects with these conditions are mediated by nonallelic homologous recombination between distinct low-copy repeat (LCR) substrates. The LCRs flanking a contiguous genomic interval encompassing both RAI1 and PMP22 do not share extensive homology; thus, duplications encompassing both loci are rare and potentially generated by a different mutational mechanism. We characterized genomic rearrangements that simultaneously duplicate PMP22 and RAI1, including nine potential complex genomic rearrangements, in 23 subjects by high-resolution array comparative genomic hybridization and breakpoint junction sequencing. Insertions and microhomologies were found at the breakpoint junctions, suggesting potential replicative mechanisms for rearrangement formation. At the breakpoint junctions of these nonrecurrent rearrangements, enrichment of repetitive DNA sequences was observed, indicating that they might predispose to genomic instability and rearrangement. Clinical evaluation revealed blended PTLS and CMT1A phenotypes with a potential earlier onset of neuropathy. Moreover, additional clinical findings might be observed due to the extra duplicated material included in the rearrangements. Our genomic analysis suggests replicative mechanisms as a predominant mechanism underlying PMP22-RAI1 contiguous gene duplications and provides further evidence supporting the role of complex genomic architecture in genomic instability.

Development of a rapid, multi-organisational, multi-modal assessment of a newly available disposable respirator.

BACKGROUND: A rapid large-scale evaluation of a newly available duckbill style P2/N95 respirator, the Care Essentials (CE) MSK-003, was required to determine its suitability for deployment into the Victorian healthcare service. The aims of this study were to assess the feasibility of establishing a rapid, multi-organisational and multi-modal evaluation of the respirator, and to investigate whether this respirator would meet the needs of healthcare workers. METHODS: The evaluation was a collaboration among three healthcare organisations - two tertiary hospitals in metropolitan Melbourne and a rural-based hospital. Participants were healthcare workers undertaking their routine fit tests. They were required to complete quantitative fit testing and a usability assessment survey on the CE MSK-003 respirator. The a priori performance criteria were set as fit test pass rate of >70%, plus satisfactory subjective overall comfort and performance assessments, defined as a rating of adequate, good, or very good in >90% of the cohort. RESULTS: A total of 1070 participants completed the multi-modal assessment within a month. Seventy-eight percent of participants passed their quantitative fit test. Over 90% of survey respondents reported that the CE MSK-003 was adequate, good or very good in terms of its overall comfort and performance assessments. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated that a multi-modal evaluation of a new respirator can be rapidly conducted with a high level of participation in a controlled, consistent manner across multiple organisations. The evaluation results of the CE MSK-003 respirator exceeded our predetermined (a priori) minimal criteria, making it suitable for broad distribution to healthcare organisations.

Cucurbituril binding of trans-[{PtCl(NH3)2}2(micro-NH2(CH2)8NH2)]2+ and the effect on the reaction with cysteine.

The effect of encapsulation by cucurbiturils Q[7] and Q[8] on the rate of reaction of the anti-cancer dinuclear platinum complex trans-[{PtCl(NH3)2}2(micro-NH2(CH2)8NH2)]2+ with the model biological nucleophiles glutathione and cysteine has been examined by NMR spectroscopy. It was expected that the octamethylene linking chain would fold inside the cucurbituril host and hence position the reactive platinum centres close to the cucurbituril portals, and thereby, confer resistance to degradation by biological nucleophiles. The upfield shifts of the resonances from the methylene protons in the linking ligand observed in 1H NMR spectra of the platinum complex upon addition of either Q[7] or Q[8] indicate that the cucurbituril is positioned over the linking ligand, with the Pt(II) centres projecting out of the portal. Furthermore, the relative changes in chemical shift of the methylene resonances suggest that the octamethylene linking chain folds within the cucurbituril cavity, particularly in Q[8]. Simple molecular models, based on the observed relative changes in chemical shift, could be constructed that were consistent with the proposed folding of the linking ligand within the cucurbituril cavity. Encapsulation by Q[7] was found to reduce the rate of reaction of the platinum complex with glutathione. Encapsulation by Q[7] and Q[8] was also found to reduce the rate of reaction of the platinum complex with cysteine, with Q[8] slowing the reaction to a greater extent than Q[7], consistent with the inferred encapsulation geometries. Encapsulation of dinuclear platinum complexes within the cucurbituril cavity may provide a novel way of reducing the reactivity and degradation of these promising chemotherapeutic agents with blood plasma proteins.