Origins of the First Cell. A New Model for the Spontaneous Formation of the First Living Cell Based on a Novel Approach

1977 ◽  
Vol 32 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 1003-1010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Semih Erhan

Abstract Whether proteins or nucleic acids were responsible for the emergence of life has been debated for a long time. Taking the observation that families of proteins display a remarkable invariance of their amino acid sequence around critical regions, such as active/binding sites, even though these proteins may represent considerable evolutionary diversity, as the naturally provided evidence of evolutionary selection of a working system, the idea is developed that: 1. Proteins had to have been first informational macromolecules that were necessary and sufficient to lead to the emergence of life; 2. it is impossible for a nucleic acid molecules to have formed, by chance, whose base sequence could yield a biologically active protein. A model is proposed to account for the emergence of the first sucessful cell according to this approach.

1969 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 521-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. L. Aubert ◽  
J.-P. Felber

ABSTRACT In investigations on the production and the specificity of anti-ACTH antibodies used for radioimmunoassay, differences have been observed between the various antibodies obtained. It was shown by means of competitive inhibition with different ACTH fragments that the binding of the ACTH molecule to its antibody can occur at different sites along the ACTH peptide. By varying the concentrations of the fragments and the conditions of the assays, it was possible to study the properties of each antibody. Thus antibodies which bind the N-terminal portion, or which exclusively bind the biologically active part of the ACTH chain (1–20), are the most suitable for radioimmunoassay. It was found, however, that the production of antiserum was generally more frequent when binding occurred to the C-terminal portion of the ACTH peptide. Should the presence of such fragments in plasma be confirmed, then the use of these antisera could lead to erroneous measurement of biologically inactive ACTH fragments. Thus, this study reveals that a selection of the antibody for specificity might be necessary for its application to the radioimmunoassay of plasma ACTH, and that this selection could be performed with the use of ACTH fragments. An approach to the problem of binding sites between antigen and antibody has been described and the possibility of introducing a radioimmunoassay for plasma ACTH fragments discussed.


Author(s):  
Elena Victorovna Ulrikh ◽  
Tatyana Vladimirovna Zubova ◽  
Olga Borisovna Konstantinova ◽  
Oksana Vladimirovna Smolovskaya ◽  
Ekaterina Aleksandrovna Izhmulkina

Medicinal plants and phytopreparations on their basis have been for a long time used for prevention of numerous diseases of springer cows. Phytobiotics supply a set of biologically active substances into organism, including micro- and macroelements. In comparison with synthetic preparations, the phytobiotics and bioadditives based on herbal stuff are characterized by certain advantages: lower risk of allergic reactions, soft effect, wide therapeutic action, efficiency and safety for use upon management of springer cows.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea N. Bootsma ◽  
Analise C. Doney ◽  
Steven Wheeler

<p>Despite the ubiquity of stacking interactions between heterocycles and aromatic amino acids in biological systems, our ability to predict their strength, even qualitatively, is limited. Based on rigorous <i>ab initio</i> data, we have devised a simple predictive model of the strength of stacking interactions between heterocycles commonly found in biologically active molecules and the amino acid side chains Phe, Tyr, and Trp. This model provides rapid predictions of the stacking ability of a given heterocycle based on readily-computed heterocycle descriptors. We show that the values of these descriptors, and therefore the strength of stacking interactions with aromatic amino acid side chains, follow simple predictable trends and can be modulated by changing the number and distribution of heteroatoms within the heterocycle. This provides a simple conceptual model for understanding stacking interactions in protein binding sites and optimizing inhibitor binding in drug design.</p>


Author(s):  
Betrik J Hutapea ◽  
Mesran Mesran ◽  
Siti Nurhabibah

SUMUT Bank is one of the Banks in Indonesia with the name of the company PT. Regional Development Bank of North Sumatra. The North Sumatra Bank has branches in each region in North Sumatra both in the district and in the sub-district, and each of these branches is led by a branch leader or branch head. The head of this branch is responsible for the reversal of the Bank being led. The best and most accomplished branch heads deserve more and more awards. The selection of the best branch heads is selected transparently and structured in the hope that it can be a motivation for all branch heads to be able to further improve the quality and service of the Bank they lead. Making the best branch head selection done manually will take a long time and tends to be less transparent and structured. One solution so that the implementation of the selection can be carried out easily and quickly, it requires a Decision Support System that can provide consistency of assessment. In this study the method used is the VIKOR method (Visekriterijumsko Kompromisno Rangiranje). This method makes cracking on alternatives based on criteria that have been determined with an ideal compromise solution or the best solution, so that this system can later be beneficial for the SUMUT Bank to get the title in determining the best branch head.Keywords: Decision Support System, North Sumatra Bank, Branch Head, Vikor


Antibodies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 20
Author(s):  
Iftekhar Mahmood

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are biopharmaceutical products where a monoclonal antibody is linked to a biologically active drug (a small molecule) forming a conjugate. Since the approval of first ADC (Gemtuzumab ozogamicin (trade name: Mylotarg)) for the treatment of CD33-positive acute myelogenous leukemia, several ADCs have been developed for the treatment of cancer. The goal of an ADC as a cancer agent is to release the cytotoxic drug to kill the tumor cells without harming the normal or healthy cells. With time, it is being realized that ADCS can also be used to manage or cure other diseases such as inflammatory diseases, atherosclerosis, and bacteremia and some research in this direction is ongoing. The focus of this review is on the clinical pharmacology aspects of ADC development. From the selection of an appropriate antibody to the finished product, the entire process of the development of an ADC is a difficult and challenging task. Clinical pharmacology is one of the most important tools of drug development since this tool helps in finding the optimum dose of a product, thus preserving the safety and efficacy of the product in a patient population. Unlike other small or large molecules where only one moiety and/or metabolite(s) is generally measured for the pharmacokinetic profiling, there are several moieties that need to be measured for characterizing the PK profiles of an ADC. Therefore, knowledge and understanding of clinical pharmacology of ADCs is vital for the selection of a safe and efficacious dose in a patient population.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olli-Pekka Hilmola ◽  
Andres Tolli ◽  
Ain Kiisler

Abstract This study analyses 98 Internet pages of sea ports located in Sweden, Finland and Estonia during years 2017–2019. Aim of the study is to find, how website basic design is completed (colours and languages), how slogans, environmental issues, statistics and hinterland transports are reported. Based on the analysis, it appears as rather common that sea ports follow conservative selection of colours in their websites, where blue and white are clearly most popular. Typically, English and Swedish are as the most common used language, followed by Finnish, Russian and Estonian. In some rare cases, websites are offered in Chinese or German. Larger sea ports do have clear “slogans”, where smaller ones are just having lengthy justification for their existence. Environmental issues are increasing concern among sea ports, and these are mostly mentioned in details within Swedish actors. Providing statistics varies among companies, and in some sea ports these are provided from very long time period, where in others from just previous years or then only from last year (or even at all). It is common for companies to report that they have sustainable hinterland access, railway available.


Author(s):  
Behnam Jahangiri ◽  
Punyaslok Rath ◽  
Hamed Majidifard ◽  
William G. Buttlar

Various agencies have begun to research and introduce performance-related specifications (PRS) for the design of modern asphalt paving mixtures. The focus of most recent studies has been directed toward simplified cracking test development and evaluation. In some cases, development and validation of PRS has been performed, building on these new tests, often by comparison of test values to accelerated pavement test studies and/or to limited field data. This study describes the findings of a comprehensive research project conducted at Illinois Tollway, leading to a PRS for the design of mainline and shoulder asphalt mixtures. A novel approach was developed, involving the systematic establishment of specification requirements based on: 1) selection of baseline values based on minimally acceptable field performance thresholds; 2) elevation of thresholds to account for differences between short-term lab aging and expected long-term field aging; 3) further elevation of thresholds to account for variability in lab testing, plus variability in the testing of field cores; and 4) final adjustment and rounding of thresholds based on a consensus process. After a thorough evaluation of different candidate cracking tests in the course of the project, the Disk-shaped Compact Tension—DC(T)—test was chosen to be retained in the Illinois Tollway PRS and to be presented in this study for the design of crack-resistant mixtures. The DC(T) test was selected because of its high degree of correlation with field results and its excellent repeatability. Tailored Hamburg rut depth and stripping inflection point thresholds were also established for mainline and shoulder mixes.


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