scholarly journals PROTEIN TEACHING: AN APPROACH FOR TEACHER TRAINING APPLIED TO STUDENTS OF THE BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES COURSE AT UFRN

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 34
Author(s):  
J. K.S. NASCIMENTO et al
Keyword(s):  
Biological Sciences ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Lesson Plan ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Educational Models ◽  
Teaching Learning

Teaching biochemistry in higher education is increasingly becoming a challenge. It is notoriously difficult for students to assimilate the topic; in addition there are many complaints about the complexity of subjects and a lack of integration with the day-to-day. A recurrent problem in undergraduate courses is the absence of teaching practice in specific disciplines. This work aimed to stimulate students in the biological sciences course who were enrolled in the discipline of MOLECULAR DIVERSITY (MD), to create hypothetical classes focused on basic education highlighting the proteins topic. The methodology was applied in a class that contained 35 students. Seven groups were formed, and each group chose a protein to be used as a source of study for elementary school classes. A lesson plan was created focusing on the methodology that the group would use to manage a class. The class was to be presented orally. Students were induced to be creative and incorporate a teacher figure, and to propose teaching methodologies for research using the CTS approach (Science, Technology and Society). Each group presented a three-dimensional structure of the protein they had chosen, explained their structural features and functions and how they would develop the theme for a class of basic education, and what kind of methodology they would use for this purpose. At the end of the presentations, a questionnaire was given to students in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the methodology in the teaching-learning process. The activity improved the teacher’s training and developed skills and abilities, such as creativity, didactical planning, teaching ability, development of educational models and the use of new technologies. The methodology used in this work was extremely important to the training of future teachers, who were able to better understand the content covered in the discipline and relate it to day-to-day life.

Pupils' Creative Self-Expression in Visual Art

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-37
Author(s):  
Daiga Kaleja-Gasparovica
Keyword(s):  
Prospective Teachers ◽  
Visual Art ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Study Process ◽  
Pupil Learning ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Creative Self ◽  
Teaching Learning

The study is devoted to the organization of the teaching/learning content of visual art and self-expression process in practice. The article, based on theory, explains creative self-expression in the context of pupil's meaningful learning, based on the new education policy and the developed guidelines in basic education. The individual experience of prospective primary school teachers and their understanding of self-expression in visual art has been clarified during the reflection and pedagogical observation in the study process in methods of teaching visual art which led to stating the research problem. The theoretical account offered in the article reveals pedagogical possibilities for prospective teachers to organize purposefully self-expression classes in visual art during the teaching practice so that the pupil, learning visual art without professional literacy in art, improved his/her transversal skills acquiring the experience of self-guided learning, critical thinking and problem-solving, innovation, cooperation, and civic participation.

Crystal structure of the hinge domain of Smchd1 reveals its dimerization mode and nucleic acid–binding residues

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (636) ◽  
pp. eaaz5599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelan Chen ◽  
Richard W. Birkinshaw ◽  
Alexandra D. Gurzau ◽  
Iromi Wanigasuriya ◽  
Ruoyun Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acid ◽  
Muscular Dystrophy ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Nucleic Acid Binding ◽  
X Ray Crystallography ◽  
Hinge Domain

Structural maintenance of chromosomes flexible hinge domain containing 1 (SMCHD1) is an epigenetic regulator in which polymorphisms cause the human developmental disorder, Bosma arhinia micropthalmia syndrome, and the degenerative disease, facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. SMCHD1 is considered a noncanonical SMC family member because its hinge domain is C-terminal, because it homodimerizes rather than heterodimerizes, and because SMCHD1 contains a GHKL-type, rather than an ABC-type ATPase domain at its N terminus. The hinge domain has been previously implicated in chromatin association; however, the underlying mechanism involved and the basis for SMCHD1 homodimerization are unclear. Here, we used x-ray crystallography to solve the three-dimensional structure of the Smchd1 hinge domain. Together with structure-guided mutagenesis, we defined structural features of the hinge domain that participated in homodimerization and nucleic acid binding, and we identified a functional hotspot required for chromatin localization in cells. This structure provides a template for interpreting the mechanism by which patient polymorphisms within the SMCHD1 hinge domain could compromise function and lead to facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy.

scholarly journals Ações de Docência com Uso de Tecnologias Digitais na Formação Inicial de Professores de Matemática

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-221
Author(s):  
Ivanete Fátima Blauth ◽  
Suely Scherer
Keyword(s):  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Pedagogical Knowledge ◽  
The Other ◽  
Mathematical Content ◽  
Initial Formation ◽  
Practice Teaching ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
School Space

ResumoNeste artigo discutimos resultados de uma pesquisa em que se analisou ações propostas em uma disciplina de Prática de Ensino, identificando aquelas que podem ter possibilitado a construção de conhecimentos tecnológicos e pedagógicos de conteúdo, por egressos de um curso de Licenciatura em Matemática. Dentre as ações identificadas, duas são relacionadas à aprendizagem da docência, uma vivenciada na sala de aula da disciplina, em que o acadêmico teve colegas como alunos, e a outra realizada no espaço da escola, em que o acadêmico assumiu a regência de uma aula de matemática em escolas de Educação Básica. O objetivo neste artigo é analisar essas duas ações e possíveis relações com a construção de conhecimentos tecnológicos e pedagógicos de conteúdo matemático. Os dados foram produzidos na pesquisa a partir de entrevistas realizadas com 27 egressos desse curso de Licenciatura em Matemática, que realizaram a disciplina de Prática de Ensino e concluíram o curso, no período de 2010 a 2015. A partir da análise de “falas de egressos”, concluiu se que as duas ações propostas na disciplina de Prática de Ensino, nas quais os professores em formação tiveram a oportunidade de praticar a docência, podem ter oportunizado a construção de conhecimentos tecnológicos e pedagógicos de conteúdo matemático. Nessas ações, esses egressos tiveram que estudar conteúdos matemáticos e tecnologias, de maneira a atender objetivos de aulas e favorecer a aprendizagem de seus alunos.Palavras-chave: Prática de Ensino. Formação Inicial. Matemática. Tecnologias Digitais.AbstractIn this paper we discuss the results of a research in which actions proposed in a Teaching Practice discipline were analyzed, identifying those may have made the construction of technological and pedagogical knowledge, by graduates of a Mathematics Degree. Among the actions identified, two are related to teaching learning, and other experienced in the classroom, in which the students was the academic’s colleagues, and the other was in the school space, in which the academic took over the conduct of a class of mathematics in Basic Education schools. The objective of this article is to analyze these two actions and possible relationships with the construction of technological and pedagogical knowledge of Mathematical content. The data were produced in the research based on interviews with 27 graduates of this Mathematics Degree, who took the Teaching Practice discipline and completed the course, from 2010 to 2015. From the analysis of the “speeches of graduates”, it was concluded that the two actions proposed in the Teaching Practice discipline, in which the teachers in training had the opportunity to practice teaching, may have given rise to the construction of technological and pedagogical knowledge of Mathematical content. In these actions, these graduates had to study Mathematical content and technologies, in order to meet class objectives and favor the learning of their students.Keywords: Teaching Practice. Initial Formation. Mathematics. Digital Technologies.

scholarly journals Repeat elements organize 3D genome structure and mediate transcription in the filamentous fungusEpichloë festucae

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J Winter ◽  
Austen RD Ganley ◽  
Carolyn A Young ◽  
Ivan Liachko ◽  
Christopher L Schardl ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genome Structure ◽  
Regulation Of Gene Expression ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
In Planta ◽  
Repeat Elements ◽  
Symbiotic Relationships ◽  
3D Genome ◽  
Transcriptional Changes

AbstractStructural features of genomes, including the three-dimensional arrangement of DNA in the nucleus, are increasingly seen as key contributors to the regulation of gene expression. However, studies on how genome structure and nuclear organization influence transcription have so far been limited to a handful of model species. This narrow focus limits our ability to draw general conclusions about the ways in which three-dimensional structures are encoded, and to integrate information from three-dimensional data to address a broader gamut of biological questions. Here, we generate a complete and gapless genome sequence for the filamentous fungus,Epichloë festucae. Coupling it with RNAseq and HiC data, we investigate how the structure of the genome contributes to the suite of transcriptional changes that anEpichloëspecies needs to maintain symbiotic relationships with its grass host. Our results reveal a unique “patchwork” genome, in which repeat-rich blocks of DNA with discrete boundaries are interspersed by gene-rich sequences. In contrast to other species, the three-dimensional structure of the genome is anchored by these repeat blocks, which act to isolate transcription in neighbouring gene-rich regions. Genes that are differentially expressed in planta are enriched near the boundaries of these repeat-rich blocks, suggesting that their three-dimensional orientation partly encodes and regulates the symbiotic relationship formed by this organism.

scholarly journals Structural Features of a Bacteroidetes-Affiliated Cellulase Linked with a Polysaccharide Utilization Locus

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A.E. Naas ◽  
A.K. MacKenzie ◽  
B. Dalhus ◽  
V.G.H. Eijsink ◽  
P.B. Pope
Keyword(s):  
Active Site ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Active Site Cleft ◽  
Polysaccharide Utilization Locus ◽  
And Function ◽  
Rumen Metagenome

Abstract Previous gene-centric analysis of a cow rumen metagenome revealed the first potentially cellulolytic polysaccharide utilization locus, of which the main catalytic enzyme (AC2aCel5A) was identified as a glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 5 endo-cellulase. Here we present the 1.8 Å three-dimensional structure of AC2aCel5A and characterization of its enzymatic activities. The enzyme possesses the archetypical (β/α)8-barrel found throughout the GH5 family and contains the two strictly conserved catalytic glutamates located at the C-terminal ends of β-strands 4 and 7. The enzyme is active on insoluble cellulose and acts exclusively on linear β-(1,4)-linked glucans. Co-crystallization of a catalytically inactive mutant with substrate yielded a 2.4 Å structure showing cellotriose bound in the −3 to −1 subsites. Additional electron density was observed between Trp178 and Trp254, two residues that form a hydrophobic “clamp”, potentially interacting with sugars at the +1 and +2 subsites. The enzyme’s active-site cleft was narrower compared to the closest structural relatives, which in contrast to AC2aCel5A, are also active on xylans, mannans and/or xyloglucans. Interestingly, the structure and function of this enzyme seem adapted to less-substituted substrates such as cellulose, presumably due to the insufficient space to accommodate the side-chains of branched glucans in the active-site cleft.

Structural characterization of intrinsically disordered proteins by the combined use of NMR and SAXS

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 955-962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathalie Sibille ◽  
Pau Bernadó
Keyword(s):  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Dynamic Models ◽  
Dimensional Space ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Main Tool ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Conformational Preferences

In recent years, IDPs (intrinsically disordered proteins) have emerged as pivotal actors in biology. Despite IDPs being present in all kingdoms of life, they are more abundant in eukaryotes where they are involved in the vast majority of regulation and signalling processes. The realization that, in some cases, functional states of proteins were partly or fully disordered was in contradiction to the traditional view where a well defined three-dimensional structure was required for activity. Several experimental evidences indicate, however, that structural features in IDPs such as transient secondary-structural elements and overall dimensions are crucial to their function. NMR has been the main tool to study IDP structure by probing conformational preferences at residue level. Additionally, SAXS (small-angle X-ray scattering) has the capacity to report on the three-dimensional space sampled by disordered states and therefore complements the local information provided by NMR. The present review describes how the synergy between NMR and SAXS can be exploited to obtain more detailed structural and dynamic models of IDPs in solution. These combined strategies, embedded into computational approaches, promise the elucidation of the structure–function properties of this important, but elusive, family of biomolecules.

Zona Pellucida Proteins, Fibrils, and Matrix

2020 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. 695-715
Author(s):  
Eveline S. Litscher ◽  
Paul M. Wassarman
Keyword(s):  
Extracellular Matrix ◽  
Zona Pellucida ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Biological Properties ◽  
Preimplantation Development ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Three Dimensional Structure ◽  
Early Embryos ◽  
N Terminus

The zona pellucida (ZP) is an extracellular matrix that surrounds all mammalian oocytes, eggs, and early embryos and plays vital roles during oogenesis, fertilization, and preimplantation development. The ZP is composed of three or four glycosylated proteins, ZP1–4, that are synthesized, processed, secreted, and assembled into long, cross-linked fibrils by growing oocytes. ZP proteins have an immunoglobulin-like three-dimensional structure and a ZP domain that consists of two subdomains, ZP-N and ZP-C, with ZP-N of ZP2 and ZP3 required for fibril assembly. A ZP2–ZP3 dimer is located periodically along ZP fibrils that are cross-linked by ZP1, a protein with a proline-rich N terminus. Fibrils in the inner and outer regions of the ZP are oriented perpendicular and parallel to the oolemma, respectively, giving the ZP a multilayered appearance. Upon fertilization of eggs, modification of ZP2 and ZP3 results in changes in the ZP's physical and biological properties that have important consequences. Certain structural features of ZP proteins suggest that they may be amyloid-like proteins.

Development of a Quickly Erectable Prefabricated Collapsible Construction System for Temporary Accommodation

2018 ◽  
Vol 931 ◽  
pp. 411-416
Author(s):  
S.G. Abramyan ◽  
Vladimir G. Polyakov ◽  
Svetlana I. Lipatova ◽  
O.V. Oganesyan
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Environmental Safety ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Labor Costs ◽  
Scientific Publications ◽  
Space Planning ◽  
Covering Set ◽  
Temporary Accommodation ◽  
Construction System

This paper considers the importance of quickly erectable construction systems, as well as their main purpose and applicability in various situations. Based on the analysis of scientific publications and the results of patent search, the authors suggest the structural features and technological solutions for installation of a new small-size quickly erectable collapsible construction system. The system is designed for temporary accommodation of a group of people involved in construction, geological exploration and other works in hard-to-reach areas, for tourists etc. Such a collapsible construction system can be adapted to serve as a temporary shelter for people surviving natural calamities. The foundation of the suggested system is an enclosed three-dimensional structure (crate) where the necessary structural elements are kept pending the assembly of the construction system, including telescopic legs and other tubular framing structures, rolls of tent covering, set of coupling elements, and supports. The specific features of this new system, as compared to similar space planning solutions, are low labor costs involved in its assembly and dismantling, small weight ensuring transportability of a collapsed and packed system, and reusability. Other benefits of the new small-size construction system include its low overall cost, environmental safety and energy efficiency.

scholarly journals Single particle cryo-EM structure of the outer hair cell motor protein prestin

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen BUtan ◽  
Qiang Song ◽  
Jun-ping Bai ◽  
Winston Tan ◽  
Dhasakumar S Navaratnam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hair Cell ◽  
Binding Site ◽  
Outer Hair Cell ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Meriones Unguiculatus ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Transmembrane Segments ◽  
Anion Transporter ◽  
Mechanistic Basis

The mammalian outer hair cell (OHC) protein prestin (Slc26a5), a member of the solute carrier 26 (Slc26) family of membrane proteins, differs from other members of the family owing to its unique piezoelectric-like property that drives OHC electromotility. Prestin is required by OHCs for cochlear amplification, a process that enhances mammalian hearing. Despite substantial biophysical characterization, the mechanistic basis for the prestins electro-mechanical behavior is not fully understood. To gain insight into such behavior, we have used cryo-electron microscopy at subnanometer resolution (overall resolution of 4.0 Å) to investigate the three-dimensional structure of prestin from gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus). Our studies show that prestin dimerizes with a 3D architecture strikingly similar to the dimeric conformation observed in the Slc26a9 anion transporter in an inside open/intermediate state, which we infer, based on patch clamp recordings, to reflect the contracted state of prestin. The structure shows two well separated transmembrane (TM) subunits and two cytoplasmic sulfate transporter and anti-sigma factor antagonist (STAS) domains forming a swapped dimer. The dimerization interface is defined by interactions between the domain-swapped STAS dimer and the transmembrane domains of the opposing half unit, further strengthened by an antiparallel beta strand at its N terminus. The structure also shows that each one of its two transmembrane subunits consists of 14 transmembrane segments organized in two inverted 7-segment repeats with a topology that was first observed in the structure of the bacterial symporter UraA (Lu F, et al., Nature 472, 2011). Finally, the solved anion binding site structural features of prestin are quite similar to that of SLC26a9 and other family members. Despite this similarity, we find that SLC26a9 lacks the characteristic displacement currents (or NonLinear Capacitance(NLC)) found with prestin, and we show that mutation of prestins Cl- binding site removes salicylate competition with anions in the face of normal NLC, thus refuting the yet accepted extrinsic voltage sensor hypothesis and any associated transport-like requirements for voltage-driven electromotility.

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