TP63 Is Significantly Upregulated in Diabetic Kidney

The role of tumor protein 63 (TP63) in regulating insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) and other downstream signal proteins in diabetes has not been characterized. RNAs extracted from kidneys of diabetic mice (db/db) were sequenced to identify genes that are involved in kidney complications. RNA sequence analysis showed more than 4- to 6-fold increases in TP63 expression in the diabetic mice’s kidneys, compared to wild-type mice at age 10 and 12 months old. In addition, the kidneys from diabetic mice showed significant increases in TP63 mRNA and protein expression compared to WT mice. Mouse proximal tubular cells exposed to high glucose (HG) for 48 h showed significant decreases in IRS-1 expression and increases in TP63, compared to cells grown in normal glucose (NG). When TP63 was downregulated by siRNA, significant increases in IRS-1 and activation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK (p-AMPK-Th¹⁷²)) occurred under NG and HG conditions. Moreover, activation of AMPK by pretreating the cells with AICAR resulted in significant downregulation of TP63 and increased IRS-1 expression. Ad-cDNA-mediated over-expression of tuberin resulted in significantly decreased TP63 levels and upregulation of IRS-1 expression. Furthermore, TP63 knockdown resulted in increased glucose uptake, whereas IRS-1 knockdown resulted in a decrease in the glucose uptake. Altogether, animal and cell culture data showed a potential role of TP63 as a new candidate gene involved in regulating IRS-1 that may be used as a new therapeutic target to prevent kidney complications in diabetes.     

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy of nanostructured maleated polypropylene/polycarbonate blends prepared by in situ polymerization and compatibilization

The miscibility and molecular dynamics of nanostructured maleated polypropylene (mPP)/polycarbonate (PC) blends prepared by in situ polymerization of macrocyclic carbonates with polypropylene modified with 0.5 wt% of maleic anhydride-reactive groups were investigated over a wide range of frequencies (10⁻²-0.5 × 10⁷ Hz) at different constant temperatures using broadband dielectric spectroscopy and scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). The molecular dynamics of the glass relaxation process of the blend (α-relaxation process) appeared at a lower temperature range compared with that of the pure PC. This shift in the molecular relaxation process is attributed to the partial miscibility of the two polymer components in the blends as previously confirmed by the morphology via STEM. Nanoscale morphologies with average domain diameters as small as 50 nm were obtained for the different blend compositions studied. The STEM photographs show that the graft mPP-g-PC prefers to locate at the interfaces as previously reported. The relaxation spectrum of pure PC and mPP/PC blends was resolved into α- and β-relaxation processes using the Havriliak-Negami equation and ionic conductivity. The dielectric relaxation parameters, such as relaxation peak broadness, maximum frequency, f_max, and dielectric strength, Δ? (for the α- and β-relaxation processes), were found to be blend composition dependent. The kinetics of the α-relaxation processes of the blends were well described by Vogel-Fulcher-Tammann (VFT) equation. The local process of PC was resolved into two relaxation processes β₁ and β₂, associated with the carbonyl groups' motion and the combined motions of carbonyl and phenylene groups, respectively. Only β₂ shifted to lower frequency in the blend while β₁ was relatively not affected by blending. The electric modulus of the blends was used to get a sufficient resolution of the different relaxation processes in the samples, i.e., α-, β-relaxation processes, ionic conductivity, and interfacial polarization. In addition, the blending method used was found to increase the d.c. conductivity without affecting the charge carrier transport mechanism, making it possible to develop novel polymer blends with tunable dielectric properties and morphology from existing polymers.     

Line-shape studies for single- and triple-pass Fabry-Perot interferometer systems

To test the model developed in the preceding paper [Appl. Opt. 34, this issue (1994)] regarding the line shape produced by a Fabry-Perot interferometer system in a multipass mode, we have used three Lorentzian line shapes formed in scattering processes and subjected them to single and triple passes with some variation in the pinhole diameter. In most cases we find good agreement with the calculations with the only adjustable parameter being the single-pass contrast C(1). Where differences occur, plausible explanations are offered.     

Fatty Acids in Heterocyclic Synthesis Part XII: Synthesis of Surfactants from Pyrazole, Isoxazole, Pyrimidine and Triazine, Incorporating the 1,3,4-Thiadiazole Moiety Having Dyeing and Antimicrobial Activities

The titled compounds were prepared from 2-amino-5-heptadecyl[1,3,4]thiadiazole (1). Diazotization of (1) produced (2) which was coupled with active methylene compounds and gave azo ⇌ hydrazono derivatives (3A, 3B) _a–d . It was found that there is regio-specificity for addition of different nucleophiles to these tautomers; thus, nitrogen nucleophiles such as hydrazine hydrate, hydroxylamine hydrochloride and thiourea were reacted via Azo tautomer (3A) to yield pyrazole, isoxazole and pyrimidine respectively (5-7), while carbon nucleophiles as phenylisocyanate was reacted via the hydrazono tautomer (3B) and produced triazine derivatives (4). Additionally, the diazonium chloride (2) was coupled with alkaline 2-naphthol and produced 2-(5-heptadecyl-[1,3,4]thiadiazol-2-yl)-1,2-dihydro-3-oxa-1,2-diaza-cyclopenta[a]naphthalene (8). UV–visible spectra of the synthesized colored compounds (2-8) showed λ _max at 374–398 nm, while screening these compounds in vitro against micro-organisms (including structure-activity relationship SAR study) revealed high antibacterial and moderate antifungal activities. Propoxylation of compounds 1, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8 with 3, 5, 7 mol of propylene oxide produced nonionic surfactants I(a–c)–IX(a–c) having surface active properties so, it is clear that the tested surfactants can be used in the manufacture of dyes, drugs, cosmetics, emulsifiers, pesticides, luminphores for optical applications and many other industries with low toxicity to human beings and the environment owing to their high solubility and good biodegradability.     

Surface and Biological Activity of Some Prepared Iminium Surfactants Based on Schiff Bases

A series of novel iminium surfactants were prepared through quaternization of different prepared fatty Schiff bases with benzyl chloride. The chemical structures were confirmed using FTIR, ¹H-NMR and mass spectroscopy. The surface properties and biological activity of these surfactants were investigated. The surface parameters including critical micelle concentration (CMC), maximum surface excess (Γ_max) and minimum surface area (A _min), Efficiency (PC₂₀) and Effectiveness (π_CMC) as well as the free energy of micellization ( $ \Updelta G_{\text{mic}}^{\text{o}} $ ) and adsorption ( $ \Updelta G_{\text{ads}}^{\text{o}} $ ) were calculated. It was found that the prepared compounds have good surface and biological activity.     

Effect of ionic content,solid content,degree of neutralization,and chain extension on aqueous polyurethane dispersions prepared by prepolymer method

There are many variables in the preparation of aqueous polyurethane (PU) dispersions. Carboxylic acid content, solid content, degree of pre/postneutralization of the carboxylic acids, and chain extension all impact dispersion particle size, viscosity, pH, molecular weights, and glass transition temperature. This study evaluated the impact of these variables on a given PU dispersion formulation prepared from isophorone diisocyanate, an aliphatic polyester polyol, dimethylol propionic acid, and hexamethylene diamine with triethyl amine as the neutralizing base and N‐methyl pyrrolidone as the cosolvent. Changes in carboxylic acid content, degree of preneutralization, and chain extension were found to have the expected impacts on dispersions properties. Increased ionic content in the dispersion step led to lower particle size and higher viscosity, increased chain extension with its concurrent increase in molecular improved subsequent film properties. Surprising results were obtained by varying the amount of postneutralization and from increased solids content at the time of dispersion. Unexpectedly, both of these variations led to much higher dispersion viscosities and particle size in solution. To have these changes take place, it is theorized that there is a major change in solution morphology caused by these modifications. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 98: 2514–2520, 2005     

An optimal control of a wastewater treatment reactor by catalytic ozonation

This paper deals with the control of a wastewater treatment pilot by catalytic ozonation. In general, catalytic ozonation processes operate with a deliberate ozone overproduction to obtain a treated water which respects discharge standards. But, in this case, the oxygen consumption is not optimal and the operating costs are important. The objective of this study focuses on the optimization of the catalytic ozonation reactor. A continuous-time transfer function model is identified to represent the pilot behavior, and an optimal control is proposed to obtain a significant abatement of the pollutant. In this application, the pollutant abatement is represented by the absorbance.     

Microporous Carbon and Carbon/Metal Composite Materials Derived from Bio-Benzoxazine-Linked Precursor for CO2 Capture and Energy Storage Applications

There is currently a pursuit of synthetic approaches for designing porous carbon materials with selective CO₂ capture and/or excellent energy storage performance that significantly impacts the environment and the sustainable development of circular economy. In this study we prepared a new bio-based benzoxazine (AP-BZ) in high yield through Mannich condensation of apigenin, a naturally occurring phenol, with 4-bromoaniline and paraformaldehyde. We then prepared a PA-BZ porous organic polymer (POP) through Sonogashira coupling of AP-BZ with 1,3,6,8-tetraethynylpyrene (P-T) in the presence of Pd(PPh₃)₄. In situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry revealed details of the thermal polymerization of the oxazine rings in the AP-BZ monomer and in the PA-BZ POP. Next, we prepared a microporous carbon/metal composite (PCMC) in three steps: Sonogashira coupling of AP-BZ with P-T in the presence of a zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-67) as a directing hard template, affording a PA-BZ POP/ZIF-67 composite; etching in acetic acid; and pyrolysis of the resulting PA-BZ POP/metal composite at 500 °C. Powder X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) measurements revealed the properties of the as-prepared PCMC. The PCMC material exhibited outstanding thermal stability (T_d10 = 660 °C and char yield = 75 wt%), a high BET surface area (1110 m² g^–1), high CO₂ adsorption (5.40 mmol g^–1 at 273 K), excellent capacitance (735 F g^–1), and a capacitance retention of up to 95% after 2000 galvanostatic charge–discharge (GCD) cycles; these characteristics were excellent when compared with those of the corresponding microporous carbon (MPC) prepared through pyrolysis of the PA-BZ POP precursors with a ZIF-67 template at 500 °C.