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International Journal of Molecular... Feb 2023The molecular dynamics method was used to study the structure and properties of dendrigrafts of the first and second generations in methanol-water mixtures with various...
The molecular dynamics method was used to study the structure and properties of dendrigrafts of the first and second generations in methanol-water mixtures with various volume fractions of methanol. At a small volume fraction of methanol, the size and other properties of both dendrigrafts are very similar to those in pure water. A decrease in the dielectric constant of the mixed solvent with an increase in the methanol fraction leads to the penetration of counterions into the dendrigrafts and a reduction of the effective charge. This leads to a gradual collapse of dendrigrafts: a decrease in their size, and an increase in the internal density and the number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds inside them. At the same time, the number of solvent molecules inside the dendrigraft and the number of hydrogen bonds between the dendrigraft and the solvent decrease. At small fractions of methanol in the mixture, the dominant secondary structure in both dendrigrafts is an elongated polyproline II (PPII) helix. At intermediate volume fractions of methanol, the proportion of the PPII helix decreases, while the proportion of another elongated β-sheet secondary structure gradually increases. However, at a high fraction of methanol, the proportion of compact α-helix conformations begins to increase, while the proportion of both elongated conformations decreases.
Topics: Methanol; Water; Lysine; Molecular Dynamics Simulation; Solvents; Protein Structure, Secondary
PubMed: 36834474
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043063 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Oct 2022Biodiesel is generally produced from vegetable oils and methanol, which also generates glycerol as byproduct. To improve the overall economic performance of the process,...
Biodiesel is generally produced from vegetable oils and methanol, which also generates glycerol as byproduct. To improve the overall economic performance of the process, the selective formation of methanol from glycerol is important in biodiesel production. In the present study, a CaO modified HZSM-5 zeolite was prepared by an impregnation method and used for the conversion of glycerol to methanol. We found that the 10%CaO/HZSM-5 with Si/Al ratio of 38 exhibited highest selectivity to methanol of 70%, with a glycerol conversion of 100% under 340 ℃ and atmospheric pressure. The characterization results showed that the introduction of a small amount of CaO into the HZSM-5 did not affect the structure of zeolite. The incorporation of HZSM-5 as an acidic catalyst and CaO as a basic catalyst in a synergistic catalysis system led to higher conversion of glycerol and selectivity of methanol.
Topics: Zeolites; Methanol; Biofuels; Glycerol; Catalysis
PubMed: 36364049
DOI: 10.3390/molecules27217221 -
Analytical Chemistry Jan 2021Methanol poisoning outbreaks after consumption of adulterated alcohol frequently overwhelm health care facilities in developing countries. Here, we present how a...
Methanol poisoning outbreaks after consumption of adulterated alcohol frequently overwhelm health care facilities in developing countries. Here, we present how a recently developed low-cost and handheld breath detector can serve as a noninvasive and rapid diagnostic tool for methanol poisoning. The detector combines a separation column and a micromachined chemoresistive gas sensor fully integrated into a device that communicates wirelessly with a smartphone. The performance of the detector is validated with methanol-spiked breath of 20 volunteers (105 breath samples) after consumption of alcoholic beverages. Breath methanol concentrations were quantified accurately within 2 min in the full breath-relevant range (10-1000 ppm) in excellent agreement ( = 0.966) with benchtop mass spectrometry. Bland-Altman analysis revealed sufficient limits of agreement (95% confidence intervals), promising to indicate reliably the clinical need for antidote and hemodialysis treatment. This simple-in-use detector features high diagnostic capability for accurate measurement of methanol in spiked breath, promising for rapid screening of methanol poisoning and assessment of severity. It can be applied readily by first responders to distinguish methanol from ethanol poisoning and monitor in real time the subsequent hospital treatment.
Topics: Breath Tests; Humans; Methanol; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
PubMed: 33315383
DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04230 -
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology Jan 2018The methylotrophic yeast Komagataella (Pichia) pastoris has become one of the most utilized cell factories for the production of recombinant proteins over the last three... (Review)
Review
The methylotrophic yeast Komagataella (Pichia) pastoris has become one of the most utilized cell factories for the production of recombinant proteins over the last three decades. This success story is linked to its specific physiological traits, i.e., the ability to grow at high cell density in inexpensive culture medium and to secrete proteins at high yield. Exploiting methanol metabolism is at the core of most P. pastoris-based processes but comes with its own challenges. Co-feeding cultures with glycerol/sorbitol and methanol is a promising approach, which can benefit from improved understanding and prediction of metabolic response. The development of profitable processes relies on the construction and selection of efficient producing strains from less efficient ones but also depends on the ability to master the bioreactor process itself. More specifically, how a bioreactor processes could be monitored and controlled to obtain high yield of production. In this review, new perspectives are detailed regarding a multi-faceted approach to recombinant protein production processes by P. pastoris; including gaining improved understanding of the metabolic pathways involved, accounting for variations in transcriptional and translational efficiency at the single cell level and efficient monitoring and control of methanol levels at the bioreactor level.
Topics: Biomass; Bioreactors; Culture Media; Glycerol; Metabolic Networks and Pathways; Methanol; Pichia; Recombinant Proteins; Sorbitol
PubMed: 29138907
DOI: 10.1007/s00253-017-8612-y -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Aug 2022Dimethyl carbonate is a generally used chemical substance which is environmentally sustainable in nature and used in a range of industrial applications as intermediate.... (Review)
Review
Dimethyl carbonate is a generally used chemical substance which is environmentally sustainable in nature and used in a range of industrial applications as intermediate. Although various methods, including methanol phosgenation, transesterification and oxidative carbonylation of methanol, have been developed for large-scale industrial production of DMC, they are expensive, unsafe and use noxious raw materials. Green production of DMC from CO and methanol is the most appropriate and eco-friendly method. Numerous catalysts were studied and tested in this regard. The issues of low yield and difficulty in tests have not been resolved fundamentally, which is caused by the inherent problems of the synthetic pathway and limitations imposed by thermodynamics. Electron-assisted activation of CO and membrane reactors which can separate products in real-time giving a maximum yield of DMC are also being used in the quest to find more effective production method. In this review paper, we deeply addressed green production methods of DMC using Zr/Ce/Cu-based nanocomposites as catalysts. Moreover, the relationship between the structure and activity of catalysts, catalytic mechanisms, molecular activation and active sites identification of catalysts are also discussed.
Topics: Carbon Dioxide; Formates; Methanol; Oxides
PubMed: 36080185
DOI: 10.3390/molecules27175417 -
Nature Feb 2015The most powerful oxidant found in nature is compound Q, an enzymatic intermediate that oxidizes methane. New spectroscopic data have resolved the long-running...
The most powerful oxidant found in nature is compound Q, an enzymatic intermediate that oxidizes methane. New spectroscopic data have resolved the long-running controversy about Q’s chemical structure.
Topics: Iron Compounds; Methane; Methanol; Oxygenases
PubMed: 25607367
DOI: 10.1038/nature14199 -
Current Issues in Molecular Biology 2019Methylotrophic yeasts, which are able to utilize methanol as the sole carbon and energy source, have been intensively studied in terms of physiological function and... (Review)
Review
Methylotrophic yeasts, which are able to utilize methanol as the sole carbon and energy source, have been intensively studied in terms of physiological function and practical applications. When these yeasts grow on methanol, the genes encoding enzymes and proteins involved in methanol metabolism are strongly induced. Simultaneously, peroxisomes, organelles that contain the key enzymes for methanol metabolism, massively proliferate. These characteristics have made methylotrophic yeasts efficient hosts for heterologous protein production using strong and methanol-inducible gene promoters and also model organisms for the study of peroxisome dynamics. Much attention has been paid to the interaction between methylotrophic microorganisms and plants. In this chapter, we describe how methylotrophic yeasts proliferate and survive on plant leaves, focusing on their physiological functions and lifestyle in the phyllosphere. Our current understanding of the molecular basis of methanol-inducible gene expression, including methanol-sensing and its applications, is also summarized.
Topics: Cell Survival; Fungi; Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; Metabolic Networks and Pathways; Methanol; Plant Leaves; Quorum Sensing
PubMed: 31166193
DOI: 10.21775/cimb.033.197 -
Arquivos de Neuro-psiquiatria Mar 2019
Topics: Humans; Methanol
PubMed: 30970137
DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X20190018 -
Biotechnology Advances 2020Methanol is a very promising feedstock alternative to sugar-based raw materials for biomanufacturing because it does not compete with food production, is abundant and... (Review)
Review
Methanol is a very promising feedstock alternative to sugar-based raw materials for biomanufacturing because it does not compete with food production, is abundant and potentially sustainable in the future. Although methylotrophic fermentations have been practiced for decades, their applications are limited by technical drawbacks and insufficient knowledge of the physiology and metabolic regulation of native methylotrophs. Synthetic biology offers great opportunities for engineering efficient methylotrophic microbial cell factories by enabling non-methylotrophic model organisms to utilize methanol via the introduction of C1 utilization pathways. This review critically comments C1 metabolism with a focus on comparing different methanol-utilization pathways in light of biomanufacturing, and highlights recent advances in the engineering of synthetic methylotrophs. Most importantly, the unique challenges in the engineering process and possible solutions are also discussed in detail.
Topics: Fermentation; Metabolic Engineering; Methanol; Synthetic Biology
PubMed: 31697995
DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2019.107467 -
Natural Product Research Feb 2022(water mimosa) is an edible medicinal plant used in treating various diseases. According to Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases, is used in curing earaches,...
(water mimosa) is an edible medicinal plant used in treating various diseases. According to Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases, is used in curing earaches, dysentery, syphilis, and tumour. The present study was aimed at demonstrating the anticancer activity of the methanolic extract. The methanolic extract was isolated and its anti-proliferative activity was studied on haematological cancer cell lines. The activity of the extract was further evaluated using cell cycle analysis and apoptosis assays. In addition to this, effect of the extract on c-Myc and PErk1/2 modulation was also evaluated. extract induced cell death in cancer cells while sparing normal cells. An increase in cleaved PARP and reduction in BCL-2 levels observed upon treatment causes reduction in c-Myc levels and pERK1/2 protein levels. Thus, our work highlights the methanolic extract of as a promising anti-cancer agent.
Topics: Apoptosis; Fabaceae; Methanol; Plant Extracts
PubMed: 33213226
DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2020.1844693