• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.30-33
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• 2015

Enzymatic modification of proteins is often used to increase the biological activity of materials. Silkworm powder has been investigated as a functional food resource, but no study has been performed on its modification by commercial food enzyme. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the feasibility of such modification of silkworm powder by alkaline protease. The activity of the enzyme was confirmed using an azocasein assay. Subsequently the silkworm powder was hydrolyzed by enzymatic treatment. UV visible spectrometry showed that the supernatant of silkworm powder subjected to enzymatic treatment had a stronger absorption band than the untreated powder. SDS-PAGE electrophoresis showed that the molecular weight of silkworm powder decreased on enzymatic treatment. Thus the results indicate that commercial enzymes might be used to modify the characteristics of silkworm powder.

• BMB Reports
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• 제45권2호
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• pp.114-119
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• 2012

Salsolinol (1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline) is a compound derived from dopamine metabolism and is capable of causing dopaminergic neurodegeneration. Oxidative modification of neurofilament proteins has been implicated in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders. In this study, oxidative modification of neurofilament-L (NF-L) by salsolinol and the inhibitory effects of histidyl dipeptides on NF-L modification were investigated. When NF-L was incubated with 0.5 mM salsolinol, the aggregation of protein was increased in a time-dependent manner. We also found that the generation of hydroxyl radicals (${\bullet}OH$) was linear with respect to the concentrations of salsolinol as a function of incubation time. NF-L exposure to salsolinol produced losses of glutamate, lysine and proline residues. These results suggest that the aggregation of NF-L by salsolinol may be due to oxidative damage resulting from free radicals. Carnosine, histidyl dipeptide, is involved in many cellular defense processes, including free radical detoxification. Carnosine, and anserine were shown to significantly prevent salsolinol-mediated NF-L aggregation. Both compounds also inhibited the generation of ${\bullet}OH$ induced by salsolinol. The results indicated that carnosine and related compounds may prevent salsolinol-mediated NF-L modification via free radical scavenging.

• BMB Reports
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• 제46권10호
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• pp.495-500
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• 2013

Turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV) is a positive strand RNA virus. We have modified TYMV coat protein (CP) by inserting a c-Myc epitope peptide at the N- or C-terminus of the CP, and have examined its effect on assembly. We introduced the recombinant CP constructs into Nicotiana benthamiana leaves by agroinfiltration. Examination of the leaf extracts by agarose gel electrophoresis and Western blot analysis showed that the CP modified at the N-terminus produced a band co-migrating with wild-type virions. With C-terminal modification, however, the detected bands moved faster than the wild-type virions. To further examine the effect, TYMV constructs producing the modified CPs were prepared. With N-terminal modification, viral RNAs were protected from RNase A. In contrast, the viral RNAs were not protected with C-terminal modification. Overall, the results suggest that virion assembly and RNA packaging occur properly when the N-terminus of CP is modified, but not when the C-terminus is modified.

• 한국응용과학기술학회지
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• 제27권3호
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• pp.282-289
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• 2010

In preparation of silica aerogel-based hybrid coating materials, the combination of hydrophobic aerogel with organic polar binder material is shown to be very limited due to dissimilar surface property between two materials. Accordingly, the surface modification of the aerogel would be required to obtain compatibilized hybrid coating sols with homogeneous dispersion. In this study, the surface of silica aerogel particles was modified by using both surfactant adsorption and heat treatment methods. Four types of surfactants with different molecular weights and HLB values were used to examine the effect of chain length and hydrophilicity. The surface property of the modified aerogel was evaluated in terms of visible observation for aerogel dispersion in water, water contact angle measurement, and FT-IR analysis. In surface modification using surfactants, the effects of surfactant type and content, and mixing time as process parameter on the degree of hydrophilicity for the modified aerogel. In addition, the temperature condition in modification process via heat treatment was revealed to be significant factor to prepare aerogel with highly hydrophilic property.

• BMB Reports
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• 제36권4호
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• pp.409-416
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• 2003

The isoform 1 of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGTase, EC 2.4.1.19) from Paenibacillus sp. A11 was purified by a preparative gel electrophoresis. The importance of histidine, tryptophan, tyrosine, and carboxylic amino acids for isoform 1 activity is suggested by the modification of the isoform 1 with various group-specific reagents. Activity loss, when incubated with diethylpyrocarbonate (DEP), a histidine modifying reagent, could be protected by adding 25 mM methyl-$\beta$-cyclodextrin substrate prior to the modification. Inactivation kinetics of isoform 1 with DEP resulted in second-order rate constants ($k_{inactivation}$) of $29.5\;M^{-1}s^{-1}$. The specificity of the DEP-modified reaction for the histidine residue was shown by the correlation between the loss of isoform activity and the increase in the absorbance at 246 nm of N-carbethoxyhistidine. The number of histidines that were modified by DEP in the absence and presence of a protective substrate was estimated from the increase in the absorbance using a specific extinction coefficient of N-carbethoxyhistidine of $3,200\;M^{-1}cm^{-1}$. It was discovered that methyl-$\beta$-CD protected per mole of isoform 1, two histidine residues from the modification by DEP. To localize essential histidines, the native, the DEP-modified, and the protected forms of isoform 1 were digested by trypsin. The resulting peptides were separated by HPLC. The peptides of interest were those with $R_t$ 11.34 and 40.93 min. The molecular masses of the two peptides were 5,732 and 2,540 daltons, respectively. When the data from the peptide analysis were checked with the sequence of CGTase, then His-140 and His-327 were identified as essential histidines in the active site of isoform 1.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• 제44권2호
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• pp.122-133
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• 2009

고무는 천연 고무를 비롯하여 부타디엔 고무, 스티렌-부타디엔 고무, 니트릴-부타디엔 고무, EPDM, 염소화 고무 등 산업적 요구에 따라 발전하여 왔다. 광범위한 분야에서 고무가 사용됨에 따라 새로운 물성을 갖는 합성 고무나 개질 고무의 생산이 필요하게 되었다. 본 리뷰 논문에서는 이중 결합을 포함하는 고무의 화학적 개질을 통하여 고무의 구조를 변화시키거나, 관능기, 이종 고분자 등을 도입하는 몇 가지 방법들에 대하여 정리해 보고자 한다. 특히, 최근에 많은 응용이 시도되고 있는 리빙 라디칼 중합법에 의한 고무의 개질을 소개하고 이의 효과를 알아보고자 한다.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• 제6권1호
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• pp.1-13
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• 2015

The modification of ultrafiltration membranes with carbon nanotube (CNT) buckypaper on fouling control was investigated. Two types of commercially available flat-sheet membranes were used: PS35 and PES900C/D (PES) (the PS35 membranes were hydrophilic with a molecular weight cutoff of 20 kDa, and the PES membranes were hydrophobic with a molecular weight cutoff of 20 kDa). The CNT buckypaper modified ultrafiltration membranes were prepared by filtering a CNT suspension through the flat-sheet membrane in a dead-end ultrafiltration unit. After modification, the pure water flux of PES was significantly increased, while the pure water flux of PS35 was decreased. The properties of the CNT modified membranes were also investigated. Considering the antifouling properties, pure water flux of the modified membrane, and the stability of CNT buckypaper layer on the membrane surface, ethanol solution with a concentration of 50 wt.%, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with a larger diameter (30-50 nm), and the CNT loading with $7.5g/m^2$ was selected. The CNT buckypaper on the surface of ultrafiltration membranes can trap the pollutants in sewage effluent and prevent them reaching the surface of virgin membranes. Water quality analysis showed that the effluent quality of the modified membrane was obviously improved. The removal efficiency of humic acid and protein-like matters by the modified membrane was significant. These results indicate the potential application of the CNT buckypaper layer modified membranes in the field of wastewater reclaim.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• 제48권3호
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• pp.113-119
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• 2005

O-methylation mediated by O-methyltransferases (OMTs) is a common modification in natural product biosynthesis and contributes to diversity of secondary metabolites. OMTs use phenylpropanoids, flavonoids, other phenolics and alkaloids as substrates, and share common domains for S-adenosyl-L-methionine (AdoMet) and substrate binding. We searched Arabiposis genome and found 17 OMTs genes (AtOMTs). AdoMet- and substrate-binding sites were predicted. AdoMet binding domain of AtOMTs is highly conserved, while substrate-binding domain is diverse, indicating use of different substrates. In addition, expressions of six AtOMT genes in response to UV and in different tissues were investigated using real-time quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. All the AtOMTs investigated were expressed under normal growth condition and most, except AtOMT10, were induced after UV illumination. AtOMT1 and AtOMT8 were expressed in all the tissues, whereas AtOMT10 showed flower-specific expression. Analysis of these AtOMT gene expressions could provide some clues on AtOMT involvement in the cellular processes.

• BMB Reports
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• 제37권3호
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• pp.325-329
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• 2004

Oxidation of catecholamines may contribute to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). The effect of the oxidized products of catecholamines on the modification of Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) was investigated. When Cu,Zn-SOD was incubated with the oxidized 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) or dopamine, the protein was induced to be aggregated. The deoxyribose assay showed that hydroxyl radicals were generated during the oxidation of catecholamines in the presence of copper ion. Radical scavengers, azide, N-acetylcysteine, and catalase inhibited the oxidized catecholamine-mediated Cu,Zn-SOD aggregation. Therefore, the results indicate that free radicals may play a role in the aggregation of Cu,Zn-SOD. When Cu,Zn-SOD that had been exposed to catecholamines was subsequently analyzed by an amino acid analysis, the glycine and histidine residues were particularly sensitive. These results suggest that the modification of Cu,Zn-SOD by oxidized catecholamines might induce the perturbation of cellular antioxidant systems and led to a deleterious cell condition.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• 제8권3호
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• pp.103-109
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• 2009

An epoxy coating was designed to give a hydrophobic property on its surface by modifying it with three types of Amino Terminated Polydimethylsiloxane (ATP), and then effects of the modification on the structure, surface hydrophobic tendency, water transport behavior and hence corrosion protectiveness of the modified epoxy coating were examined using FT-IR spectroscopy, hydrothermal cyclic test, and impedance test. The surface of epoxy coating was changed from hydrophilic to hydrophobic property due primarily to a phase separation tendency between epoxy and modifier by the modification. The phase separation tendency is more appreciable when modified by ATP with higher molecular weight ATP at higher content. Water transport behavior of the modified epoxy coating decreased more in that with higher hydrophobic surface property. The resistance to localized corrosion of the modified epoxy coated carbon steel was well agreed with its water transport behavior and hydrophobic tendency.