A quantum chemical investigation was carried out to study the properties of intermolecular F•••F, Br•••Br and Br•••O interactions in crystalline 1-bromo-2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-nitrobenzene (BFNB). This system was selected to mimic the halogen-halogen as well as halogen bonding interactions found within crystal structures as well as within biological systems. We found that fluorine atoms have weak ...

We still know very little about how the environment influences coevolutionary dynamics. Here, we investigated both theoretically and empirically how nutrient availability affects the relative extent of escalation of resistance and infectivity (arms race dynamic; ARD) and fluctuating selection (fluctuating selection dynamic; FSD) in experimentally coevolving populations of bacteria and viruses. ...

Extracellular enzymes represent a public good for microbial communities, as they break down complex molecules into simple molecules that microbes can take up. These communities are vulnerable to cheating by microbes that do not produce enzymes, but benefit from those produced by others. However, extracellular enzymes are ubiquitous and play an important role in the depolymerization of nutrients...

Since its first description in dogs in 1984, the protozoan parasite Neospora caninum has been found to infect a wide range of animals, worldwide. In cattle, N. caninum has particular significance as a cause of abortion in which persistence of infection in the mother, recrudescence of the parasite during pregnancy, and the vulnerability of the placenta and foetus to invasion are important featur...

The potential of enzyme inhibition of a drug is frequently quantified in terms of IC(50) values. Although this is a suitable quantity for reversible inhibitors, concerns arise when dealing with irreversible or mechanism-based inhibitors (MBIs). IC(50) values of MBIs are time dependent, causing serious problems when aiming at ranking different compounds with respect to their inhibitory potential...

Explicit spatial analysis of infectious disease processes recognizes that host-pathogen interactions occur in specific locations at specific times and that often the nature, direction, intensity and outcome of these interactions depend upon the particular location and identity of both host and pathogen. Spatial context and geographical landscape contribute to the probability of initial disease ...

  Drug-food interactions can increase or decrease drug effects, resulting in therapeutic failure or toxicity. Activities that reduce these interactions play an important role for clinical pharmacists. This study was planned and performed in order to determine the role of clinical pharmacist in the prevention of absorption drug-food interactions through educating the nurses in a teaching hospita...