scholarly journals Methane production by the membranous fraction of Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum

1980 ◽  
Vol 190 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
F D Sauer ◽  
J D Erfle ◽  
S Mahadevan

Intact membrane vesicles are required to synthesize methane from CO2 and H2 by disrupted preparations of Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum cells. When membrane vesicles were removed by high-speed centrifugation at 226 600 g, the remaining supernatant fraction no longer synthesized methane. Alternatively, if vesicle structure was disrupted by passage through a Ribi cell fractionator at very high pressures (345 MPa), the bacterial cell extract, with all the particulate fraction in it, did not synthesize methane. Methyl-coenzyme M, a new coenzyme first described by McBride & Wolfe [(1971) Biochemistry 10, 2317–2324], was shown to stimulate methane production from CO2 and H2, as previously reported, but the methyl group of the coenzyme did not appear to be a precursor of methane in this reaction. No methyl-coenzyme M reductase activity was detected in the cytoplasmic fraction of M. thermoautotrophicum cells.

1969 ◽  
Vol 47 (6) ◽  
pp. 631-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. J. Lupien ◽  
C. M. Hinse ◽  
M. Avery

Hepatic cholesterogenesis was studied in pair-fed and pyridoxine-deficient rats as well as in rat liver homogenate systems. Crossover of various subcellular components from pair-fed homogenates into pyridoxine-deficient homogenate systems and vice versa was also done.On 8 weeks of pyridoxine deficiency, acetate-14C incorporation rates into liver cholesterol increased by a factor of approximately 10. The same phenomenon was observed with the total liver homogenate systems.Pyridoxine deficiency does not appear to affect HMG-CoA reductase activity of pyridoxine-deficient liver microsomes sufficiently to explain the rapid acetate-1-14C incorporation rates in this same tissue. The activating system(s) responsible for the 10-fold increase in acetate-14C incorporation rates into pyridoxine-deficient rat liver cholesterol appears to be located in the high-speed supernatant fraction. Other subcellular components such as lysosomes and mitochondria are probably implicated to some extent in this phenomenon. The results indicate that vitamin B6 is necessary for normal hepatic cholesterogenesis in the rat.The significance of these findings and the possible relationship between these factors are discussed.


1989 ◽  
Vol 263 (2) ◽  
pp. 355-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Shaw ◽  
R Schauer

The finding that N-glycoloylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc) in pig submandibular gland is synthesized by hydroxylation of the sugar nucleotide CMP-Neu5Ac [Shaw & Schauer (1988) Biol. Chem. Hoppe-Seyler 369, 477-486] prompted us to investigate further the biosynthesis of this sialic acid in mouse liver. Free [14C]Neu5Ac, CMP-[14C]Neu5Ac and [14C]Neu5Ac glycosidically bound by Gal alpha 2-3- and Gal alpha 2-6-GlcNAc beta 1-4 linkages to fetuin were employed as potential substrates in experiments with fractionated mouse liver homogenates. The only substrate to be hydroxylated was the CMP-Neu5Ac glycoside. The product of the reaction was identified by chemical and enzymic methods as CMP-Neu5Gc. All of the CMP-Neu5Ac hydroxylase activity was detected in the high-speed supernatant fraction. The hydroxylase required a reduced nicotinamide nucleotide [NAD(P)H] coenzyme and molecular oxygen for activity. Furthermore, the activity of this enzyme was enhanced by exogenously added Fe2+ or Fe3+ ions, all other metal salts tested having a negligible or inhibitory influence. This hydroxylase is therefore tentatively classified as a monooxygenase. The cofactor requirement and CMP-Neu5Ac substrate specificity are identical to those of the enzyme in high-speed supernatants of pig submandibular gland, suggesting that this is a common route of Neu5Gc biosynthesis. The relevance of these results to the regulation of Neu5Gc expression in sialoglycoconjugates is discussed.


1989 ◽  
Vol 263 (2) ◽  
pp. 565-572 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Riendeau ◽  
D Denis ◽  
L Y Choo ◽  
D J Nathaniel

The characteristics of hydroperoxide activation of 5-lipoxygenase were examined in the high speed supernatant fraction prepared from rat polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Stimulation of 5-lipoxygenase activity by the 5-hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HPETE) reaction product was strongly dependent on the presence of thiol compounds. Various reducing agents such as mercaptoethanol and glutathione (0.5-2 mM) inhibited the reaction and increased the concentrations of 5-HPETE (1-10 microM) necessary to achieve maximal arachidonic acid oxidation. The requirement for 5-HPETE was not specific and could be replaced by H2O2 (10 microM) but not by the 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) analogue. Furthermore, gel filtration chromatography of the soluble extract from leukocytes resolved different fractions which can increase the hydroperoxide dependence or fully replace the stimulation by 5-HPETE. Maximal activity of the 5-HPETE-stimulated reaction required Ca2+ ions (0.2-1 mM) and ATP with the elimination of the HPETE requirement at high ATP concentrations (2-4 mM). In addition, NADPH (1-2 mM), FAD (1 mM), Fe2+ ions (20-100 microM) and chelated Fe3+ (0.1 mM-EDTA/0.1 mM-FeCl3) all markedly increased product formation by 5-lipoxygenase whereas NADH (1 mM) was inhibitory and Fe3+ (20-100 microM) alone had no effect on the reaction. The stimulation by Fe2+ ions and NADPH was also observed under various conditions which increase the hydroperoxide dependence such as pretreatment of the enzyme preparation with glutathione peroxidase or chemical reduction with 0.015% NaBH4. These results provide evidence for an hydroperoxide activation of 5-lipoxygenase which is not product-specific and is modulated by thiol levels and several soluble components of the leukocytes. They also indicate that stimulation of 5-lipoxygenase activity can contribute to increase lipid peroxidation in iron and nucleotide-promoted reactions.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.N. Basavarajappa ◽  
N. R. Banapurmath ◽  
S.V. Khandal ◽  
G. Manavendra

For economic and social development of any country energy is one of the most essential requirements. Continuously increasing price of crude petroleum fuels in the present days coupled with alarming emissions and stringent emission regulations has led to growing attention towards use of alternative fuels like vegetable oils, alcoholic and gaseous fuels for diesel engine applications. Use of such fuels can ease the burden on the economy by curtailing the fuel imports. Diesel engines are highly efficient and the main problems associated with them is their high smoke and NOx emissions.  Hence there is an urgent need to promote the use of alternative fuels in place of high speed diesel (HSD) as substitute. India has a large agriculture base that can be used as a feed stock to obtain newer fuel which is renewable and sustainable. Accordingly Uppage oil methyl ester (UOME) biodiesel was selected as an alternative fuel. Use of biodiesels in diesel engines fitted with mechanical fuel injection systems has limitation on the injector opening pressure (300 bar). CRDI system can overcome this drawback by injecting fuel at very high pressures (1500-2500 bar) and is most suitable for biodiesel fuels which are high viscous. This paper presents the performance and emission characteristics of a CRDI diesel engine fuelled with UOME biodiesel at different injection timings and injection pressures. From the experimental evidence it was revealed that UOME biodiesel yielded overall better performance with reduced emissions at retarded injection timing of -10° BTDC in CRDI mode of engine operation.


Processes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 853 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Huang ◽  
Jian Ruan ◽  
Chenchen Zhang ◽  
Chuan Ding ◽  
Sheng Li

Since many studies on axial piston pumps aim at enhancing their high power-weight ratio, many researchers have focused on the generated mechanical losses by the three friction pairs in such pumps and attempted to diminish them through abundant and new structural designs of the pump’s components. In this paper, a high-speed 2D piston pump is introduced and its architecture is specifically described. Afterward, a mathematical model is established to study the pump’s mechanical efficiency, including the mechanical losses caused by the viscosity and stirring oil. Additionally, in this study the influences of the rotational speed, the different load pressures, and the rolling friction coefficient between the cone roller and the guiding rail are considered and discussed. By building a test rig, a series of experiments were carried out to prove that the mechanical efficiency was accurately predicted by this model at low load pressures. However, there was an increasing difference between the test results and the analytical outcomes at high pressures. Nevertheless, it is still reasonable to conclude that the rolling friction coefficient changes as the load pressure increases, which leads to a major decrease in the mechanical efficiency in experiments.


1992 ◽  
Vol 47 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 929-931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio del Castillo-Olivares ◽  
Javier Márquez ◽  
Ignacio Núñez de Castro ◽  
Miguel Angel Medina

Ehrlich cell plasma membrane vesicles have a ferricyanide reductase activity that shows two phases. These two phases were kinetically characterized. Evidence is presented for a differential effect of trypsin on both phases


1976 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
ÅKE STENBERG

SUMMARY The metabolism of [4-14C]4-androstene-3,17-dione was studied in the 105000 g microsomal and supernatant fractions of liver from developing rats of both sexes. The following enzyme activities were measured: 5β-reductase (supernatant fraction) and 5α-reductase, 17α- and 17β-hydroxysteroid reductases, 6β-, 7α- and 16α-hydroxylases (microsomal fraction). The activities of the 3α- and 3β-hydroxysteroid reductases were estimated by calculating the ratios of 3α-:5α- and 3β-: 5α-reduced metabolites formed, respectively. Most enzyme activities present at birth (i.e. 5β-reductase, 5α-reductase, 17β-hydroxysteroid reductase, 6β- and 7α-hydroxylase) increased until 20 days of age in both male and female rats. Between 20 and 30 days of age a number of masculine metabolic characteristics appeared in both sexes, i.e. the 16α-hydroxylase and the 17α-hydroxysteroid reductase were induced, the 5β-reductase activity rapidly increased and the 5α-reductase activity slightly decreased. During a third period beginning 30 days after birth the adult male enzyme activity pattern was completed by the induction of 3β-hydroxysteroid reductase and a further increase in the activity of 16α-hydroxylase. After 30 days of age a feminine type of liver metabolism also rapidly developed in female rats; the 16α-hydroxylase and the 17α-hydroxysteroid reductase activities disappeared, the 6β-hydroxylase and the 5β-reductase activities decreased and the 5α-reductase activity increased six times. The developmental patterns of enzyme activities in the rat liver are consistent with a first developmental phase (0–30 days of age) independent of hypophysial control and probably determined primarily by the genome of the liver cell and a second phase (from 30 days onwards) with increasing sexual differentiation under hypophysial control. This control is mediated by some kind of feminizing factor in female rats and possibly by some kind of androgen-elicited secretion of masculinizing factor(s) in male rats. The metabolism of [4-14C]4-androstene-3,17-dione was also studied during different times of the day and during different phases of the oestrous cycle. The 16α-hydroxylase activity showed a diurnal variation with higher values at noon than at midnight. The 5β-reductase activity reached a maximal activity during metoestrus.


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