Progressive sequence model refinement by means of iterative searches is an effective technique for high sensitivity database searches and is currently employed in popular tools such as PSI-BLAST and SAM. Recently, a novel alignment algorithm has been proposed that offers features expected to improve the sensitivity of such iterative approaches, specifically a well-characterized theory of its st...

Scanning electrochemical microscopy was used to examine electron transfer across a self-assembled monolayer of thiol-modified DNA duplexes on a gold electrode. The apparent rate constant for heterogeneous ET from a solution redox probe, Fe(CN)6(3-/4-), to the gold surface through ds-DNA was 4.6 (+/-0.2) x 10(-7) cm/s. With the addition of Zn2+, which resulted in the formation of a metalated DNA...

The electrical resistance breakdown of the Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cell monolayer provides a continuous assay system for cancer invasion that detects functional changes before morphological alterations. In this study, we address the question of whether physical contact between tumor cell and epithelial monolayer is a prerequisite for tumor cell invasion. When human melanoma cells were ...

The influence of the hydrophobic proteins SP-B and SP-C, isolated from pulmonary surfactant, on the morphology of binary monomolecular lipid films containing phosphocholine and phosphoglycerol (DPPC and DPPG) at the air-water interface has been studied using epifluorescence and dark-field microscopy. In contrast to previously published studies, the monolayer experiments used the entire hydropho...

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to address the permeability of defectless alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on charged and uncharged Au(111) surfaces in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium ([bmim][BF4]) room-temperature ionic liquid (IL). We demonstrate that ionic permeation into the monolayer does not start until a critical surface charge density value is attained (both for po...

BACKGROUND Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infection is a common contributor to pulmonary symptoms in children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Here we examined RSV infection in immortalized bronchial epithelial cells (CFBE41o-) expressing wild-type (wt) or F508del cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), for monolayer integrity and RSV replication. METHODS CFBE41o- monolayers ...

Vpu is an 81-residue HIV-1 accessory protein, its transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains each responsible for one of its two functions. Langmuir monolayers of phospholipid incorporating a membrane protein with a unidirectional vectorial orientation, on a semiinfinite aqueous subphase, provide one "membranelike" environment for the protein. The cytoplasmic domain's interaction with the surface of...

2014 Glycerol mono-oleate monolayers at the air-water interface have been investigated by quasielastic light scattering from thermally excited capillary waves over a wide range of wave numbers. Using a relatively novel data analysis procedure four surface viscoelastic properties were deduced ab initio from the light scattering data : surface elastic moduli and viscosities governing shear normal...

despite its numerous potential applications, two-dimensional monolayer graphyne, a novel form of carbon allotropes with sp and sp2 carbon atoms, has received little attention so far, perhaps as a result of its unknown properties. especially, determination of the exact values of its elastic properties can pave the way for future studies on this nanostructure. hence, this article describes a dens...

Mixed Langmuir monolayers are ideal systems to mimic biological membranes [1, 2]. Studies on mixed monolayers provide information about the interactions involved, miscibility and stability of the monolayer. It is known that cholesterol(Ch) is found in bilayer membranes and lipoproteins. Ch regulates the transport and barrier properties of the membranes [3]. Lung surfactant in the human body is ...