Many essential biological processes are controlled by posttranslationai protein modifications. The inability to synthetically attain the diversity enabled by these modifications limits functional ...studies of many proteins. We designed a three-step approach for installing authentic posttranslationai modifications in recombinant proteins. We first use the established O-phosphoserine (Sep) orthogonal translation system to create a Sep-containing recombinant protein. The Sep residue is then dephosphorylated to dehydroalanine (Dha). Last conjugate addition of alkyl iodides to Dha, promoted by zinc and copper, enables chemoselective carbon-carbon bond formation. To validate our approach, we produced histone H3, ubiquitin, and green fluorescent protein variants with site-specific modifications, including different methylations of H3K79.The methylated histones stimulate transcription through histone acetylation. This approach offers a powerful tool to engineer diverse designer proteins.
Hydrogen is regarded as an ideal fuel for vehicle applications owing to its high chemical energy. However, for on-board energy storage, fuel cell electric vehicles need compact, light, and affordable ...hydrogen storage system to replace the pressurized hydrogen tanks. In this regard, various materials and composites have been developed for denser and safer hydrogen storage. Among them, Mg is considered as a highly promising material to store the hydrogen in terms of gravimetric and volumetric capacity. However, because of its higher thermodynamic stability and sluggish hydrogen sorption kinetics, the sorption temperature is high and the sorption time is long, limiting for practical usage. Nanoscale material designs with various dimensionalities that have been extensively studied and used in countless research and development sectors, which can provide new strategies to tackle the limitations of Mg based hydrogen storage system. This review describes the fundamental properties, preparation, activation kinetics and thermodynamic stability of various nanostructured Mg/MgH2 materials (including bulk particles, nanofilms, nanowires and nanoparticles confined in nanoporous carbon structures and encapsulated by polymers) for feasible hydrogen storage applications, and summarizes their dimensional effects.
Numerous biopolymer-based functional composites have been developed for medical applications. Poly(glutamic acid) (PGA) is an amino acid biopolymer that has recently attracted attention due to its ...biocompatibility, non-immunogenicity, and biodegradability. PGA and its composites have been studied to improve their function as medical materials. This review briefly introduces chemically and microbiologically synthesized PGA. In addition, this article provides general and advanced preparation methods for various PGA-based composites, including hydrogels, nanofibers, monoliths, and nanoparticles. Furthermore, it covers recent advances in PGA-based functional composites for medical applications, such as active antimicrobial materials as well as the use of PGA composites for vaccine adjuvants, cancer therapy, medical devices, and tissue regeneration. Anticancer agent delivery and cancer immunotherapy are included in the PGA-based cancer therapy system section. Barrier membranes and stent applications are summarized within the medical devices section. Furthermore, various tissue regeneration topics are introduced, including applications in wound healing, as well as the tissue-specific regeneration of bone, cartilage, intervertebral discs, corneas, kidneys, and neurons. In summary, this is an overview of the various challenges of using PGA and the scope of emerging research.
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This study offers insights into lifetime earnings growth differences between individuals with and without childhood‐onset disabilities (COD) defined as disabilities whose onset occurred before an ...individual's 16th birthday. We use a newly available database linking data from the 2017 Canadian Survey of Disability with individual income tax records covering a period of over 3 decades. We estimate the average earnings growth profiles of individuals with COD from the age when individuals generally enter the labor market to the age when most retire. The main finding of our study is that individuals with COD experience very little earnings growth when they are in their mid‐30 and 40s while the earnings of those without COD grow steadily until they reach their late 40s and early 50s. The largest earnings growth differences between individuals with and without COD are observed for male university graduates.
Summary
Background and Aims
An immersive virtual reality tour of the operating theater could reduce preoperative anxiety. This study was designed to determine whether a preoperative immersive virtual ...reality tour demonstrates a reduction in emergence delirium through reducing the preoperative anxiety in children undergoing general anesthesia.
Methods
Eighty‐six children were randomly allocated into either the control or virtual reality group. The control group received conventional education regarding the perioperative process. The virtual reality group watched a 4‐minute virtual reality video showing the operating theater and explaining the perioperative process. Incidence and severity of emergence delirium were the main outcomes. Secondary outcomes included preoperative anxiety using modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale and postoperative behavioral disturbance.
Results
Eighty children completed the final analysis (control group = 39, virtual reality group = 41). The incidence (risk ratio 95% CI: 1.1 0.5‐2.8, P = 0.773) and severity of emergence delirium (mean difference 95% CI: −0.2 −2.7 to 2.2, P = 0.791) were similar in the two groups. After the intervention, children in the virtual reality group had a significantly lower modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety score than those in the control group (mean difference 95% CI: 9.2 0.3‐18.2, P = 0.022). No difference was observed regarding postoperative behavioral disturbance between the two groups at postoperative 1 day (mean difference 95% CI: −0.1 −0.3 to 0.1, P = 0.671) and 14 day (mean difference 95% CI: −0.0 −0.1 to 0.0, P = 0.329).
Conclusion
Preoperative immersive virtual reality tour of the operating theater did not reduce the incidence and severity of emergence delirium, although it was effective in alleviating preoperative anxiety in children.
To determine whether the TyG index, a product of the levels of triglycerides and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) might be a valuable marker for predicting future diabetes.
A total of 5,354 nondiabetic ...subjects who had completed their follow-up visit for evaluating diabetes status were selected from a large cohort of middle-aged Koreans in the Chungju Metabolic Disease Cohort study. The risk of diabetes was assessed according to the baseline TyG index, calculated as lnfasting triglycerides (mg/dL) × FPG (mg/dL)/2. The median follow-up period was 4.6 years.
During the follow-up period, 420 subjects (7.8%) developed diabetes. The baseline values of the TyG index were significantly higher in these subjects compared with nondiabetic subjects (8.9 ± 0.6 vs. 8.6 ± 0.6; P<0.0001) and the incidence of diabetes increased in proportion to TyG index quartiles. After adjusting for age, gender, body mass index, waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol level, a family history of diabetes, smoking, alcohol drinking, education level and serum insulin level, the risk of diabetes onset was more than fourfold higher in the highest vs. the lowest quartile of the TyG index (relative risk, 4.095; 95% CI, 2.701-6.207). The predictive power of the TyG index was better than the triglyceride/HDL-cholesterol ratio or the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance.
The TyG index, a simple measure reflecting insulin resistance, might be useful in identifying individuals at high risk of developing diabetes.
The incorporation of noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) has been extensively studied because of its broad applicability. In the past decades, various in vitro and in vivo ncAA incorporation approaches ...have been developed to generate synthetic recombinant proteins. Herein, we discuss the methodologies for ncAA incorporation, and their use in diverse research areas, such as in synthetic biosafety and for studies of post‐translational modifications.
Trying something different: Specially designed noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) are highly useful building blocks. This minireview explores how noncanonical chemical groups can be incorporated into proteins, and how these methodologies may be applied in studies of post‐translational modifications and synthetic biosafety.
The paradigm shift of information carriers from charge to spin has long been awaited in modern electronics. The invention of the spin‐information transistor is expected to be an essential building ...block for the future development of spintronics. Here, a proof‐of‐concept experiment of a magnetic skyrmion transistor working at room temperature, which has never been demonstrated experimentally, is introduced. With the spatially uniform control of magnetic anisotropy, the shape and topology of a skyrmion when passing the controlled area can be maintained. The findings will open a new route toward the design and realization of skyrmion‐based spintronic devices in the near future.
A proof‐of‐concept experiment of a magnetic skyrmion transistor is presented using spatially uniform voltage‐controlled magnetic anisotropy. A gate operation can control the translational motion of a magnetic skyrmion. Utilizing the gate‐controlled skyrmion motion technique, the authors expect various skyrmion logic devices to be demonstrated in the future.
To date, small molecules and macromolecules, including antibodies, have been the most pursued substances in drug screening and development efforts. Despite numerous favorable features as a drug, ...these molecules still have limitations and are not complementary in many regards. Recently, peptide-based chemical structures that lie between these two categories in terms of both structural and functional properties have gained increasing attention as potential alternatives. In particular, peptides in a circular form provide a promising scaffold for the development of a novel drug class owing to their adjustable and expandable ability to bind a wide range of target molecules. In this review, we discuss recent progress in methodologies for peptide cyclization and screening and use of bioactive cyclic peptides in various applications.
The effect of salt concentration (3%, 6%, and 9%) on the mass transfer kinetics of Kimchi cabbage during osmotic dehydration was investigated, including its influence on textural and microstructural ...properties and salt distribution. First, kinetics was analyzed using diffusion theory to determine the impact of the factors on moisture and salt transfer. Subsequently, using the Peleg, Azuara, Henderson–Pabis, and Page models, mathematical modeling of mass transfer (water loss and salt gain) was investigated. According to the statistical analysis, the Peleg model provided the best fit for the experimental results under the operating conditions. In addition, a novel viewpoint was proposed in which the salt content of Kimchi cabbage may be indirectly forecasted by monitoring solution salinity during osmotic dehydration. Higher salt concentration resulted in decreased hardness, gumminess, and chewiness in Kimchi cabbage. Scanning electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive X‐ray mapping images showed an intensification of moisture and salt transport with increasing salt content, which were confirmed using modeling studies. The results could be applied in the prediction of the target salinity of Kimchi cabbage during the salting process and could facilitate the improvement of final Kimchi product quality by producing salted Kimchi cabbage with uniform salinity.
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