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Climate change is increasingly posing a threat to biodiversity, both through its direct effects on organisms and through indirect effects resulting from changes in land use. Preserving biodiversity is an ethical obligation, but it is also increasingly being realised that biodiversity contributes to ecosystem services, i.e. ecosystem processes important for human needs and prosperity. In order to a
Purified hydroxynitrile lyase (HNL) from Manihot esculenta was crystallized by the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion method. The bipyramidal crystals formed (10-20 μm) were cross-linked with different amounts of glutaraldehyde and used as biocatalyst for the synthesis of optically active cyanohydrins. The cross-linked crystals were more stable than Celite-immobilized enzymes when incubated in organic
Different electron mediators were evaluated for the electromicrobial reduction of chloropyruvate to chlorolactate. The reaction was catalyzed by a mediatol-dependent D-lactate dehydrogenase in whole cells of Proteus vulgaris and yielded D-(S)-chlorolactate with high optical purity (> 97% e.e.). The ideal mediatol should favor a high rate in the enzymatic reaction and a low rate in the nonenzymatic
Gluconobacter oxydans (ATCC 621) were permeabilized with toluene and then lyophilized. This crude enzyme preparation was used to reduce eleven ketones to (S)-alcohols with high enantiomeric excess (for most alcohols 93%-99% e.e.). The coenzyme NADH was regenerated either by adding a second enzyme, formate dehydrogenase, and its substrate, formate, or with 2-butanol as a second substrate for the G.
This paper presents and discusses a method using a range of techniques for assessing sensorial perception of product design and interaction. Collectively denoted ‘Five Senses Testing’, the purpose of the method is to facilitate the assessment of sensory experience related to product design and product use. Furthermore, the outcomes of using the techniques inform product design development by conne
This review re-examines the use of accelerometer and oxygen uptake data for the assessment of activity intensity. Accelerometers capture mechanical work, while oxygen uptake captures the energy cost of this work. Frequency filtering needs to be considered when processing acceleration data. A too restrictive filter attenuates the acceleration signal for walking and, to a higher degree, for running.
2H-Chromene is an important structural motif present in many biologically active compounds, natural products and showed many other properties. Deep Eutectic Solvent (DES) an environmentally benign and alternative to the conventional organic volatile solvents has been utilized first time for the synthesis of the 2H-chromene derivatives in moderated to excellent yields. The DES is recycled for 5 tim
One important challenge of the wooden constructions is to achieve a high quality of acoustic insulation, especially decreasing the impact noise in the low-frequency range. In order to avoid over-designed solutions and expensive experimental tests in the design phase, reliable prediction tools are called for. This article is an initial investigation of modeling the ISO standardized tapping machine
Declines in European farmland birds over past decades have been attributed to the combined effects of agricultural intensification and abandonment. Consequently, aspirations to stop declines should focus attention on reversing these changes through voluntary or policy-driven interventions. The design of such interventions should ideally be informed by scientific knowledge of which aspects of the t
Earth system models (ESMs) are key tools for providing climate projections under different scenarios of human-induced forcing. ESMs include a large number of additional processes and feedbacks such as biogeochemical cycles that traditional physical climate models do not consider. Yet, some processes such as cloud dynamics and ecosystem functional response still have fairly high uncertainties. In t
One way of valorizing the lignin waste stream from the pulp and paper industries is depolymerizing it into low-molecular-mass compounds (LMMC). However, a common problem in the depolymerization of Kraft lignin is the low yields of small aromatic molecules obtained. In the present work, the combination of the repeated depolymerization of lignin and the separation of LMMC from depolymerized lignin t
Kindling, induced by repeated subconvulsive electrical or chemical stimulations leads to progressive and permanent amplification of seizure activity, culminating in generalized seizures. We report that kindling induced by electrical stimulation in the ventral hippocampus leads to a marked and transient increase of mRNA for NGF and BDNF in the dentate gyrus, the parietal cortex, and the piriform co
Gene therapy has reached the forefront of studies and research over the last 30 years because of its potential for curing, treating, and preventing diseases associated with DNA mutations. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are two examples of very common polygenic and multifactorial diseases. The huge amount of scientific literature on this topic reflects a growing general interest in the possibilities of
Unlike most neurodegenerative disorders, individuals at risk from Huntington's disease can be identified prior to the onset of clinical signs of the disease by virtue of it being an autosomal dominant condition. This provides the hypothetical opportunity to delay disease onset and/or slow down the progression of the disease in the very early stages ahead of overt features of disease. To help prepa
The built environment accounts for a significant share of energy consumption and energy efficiency in this sector is important for the Swedish environmental objectives. Only a limited share of the total new construction of multifamily houses are constructed as low-energy buildings. Current building regulations lay down requirements for energy efficiency for new construction, and these will be tigh
Reduction of the anticancer trans platinum(IV) prodrug JM335 by thiols in a moderately alkaline aqueous perchlorate medium is quite rapid and yields trans-[Pt(OH)2(c-C6H11NH2)(NH3)] as the reaction product. The mechanism of reduction involves reductive attack by thiol or thiolate on one of the mutually trans chloride ligands, leading to the formation of a chloride-bridged activated complex.The red
