Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:32:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2011-07-01Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:24:18Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 suhet_mi_dr_jabo.pdf: 911264 bytes, checksum: 71199b02b3ed48730d7b117d1868bb6d (MD5) / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) / Fundação para o Desenvolvimento da UNESP (FUNDUNESP) / A criação intensiva de peixes tem se tornado popular, mas a dependência de arraçoamento pode enriquecer o ambiente com nutrientes, comprometendo a qualidade da água e predispondo os peixes a doenças. Streptococcus e Aeromonas são bactérias que acometem peixe em criações intensivas, podendo ocasionar mortalidade. Nesse sentido, o presente trabalho objetivou avaliar a influência de uma criação de tilápias do nilo em tanques-rede nos parâmetros de qualidade da água e na ocorrência de Streptococcus spp. e Aeromonas spp. na água e nos peixes em uma lagoa na região Sudeste do Brasil. Foram definidos para as amostragens dois locais, a lagoa, para coleta de água e os tanques-rede, para coleta de água e peixes e dois períodos, seco e chuvoso. Os dados obtidos da qualidade da água foram avaliados por indicadores estabelecidos na Resolução Conama nº 357, para corpos de água doce de classe 2. A presença de Streptococcus spp. e Aeromonas spp. foi avaliada por identificação fenotípica e a identificação das espécies, por provas bioquímicas. Isolados foram avaliados para produção de hemolisina utilizando ágar sangue e teste de resistência a antimicrobianos conforme o método de difusão de discos. A atividade de criação intensiva de peixes aumentou a concentração de fósforo total da água no período seco, ocorrência de Streptococcus spp. no ambiente e a população de Aeromonas spp. na superfície dos peixes. No período chuvoso, houve maior isolamento das espécies potencialmente patogênicas, Aeromonas hydrophila na superfície e no rim dos peixes, A. caviae, A. sobria, A veronii, A. jandaei e Streptococcus agalactiae na superfície dos peixes, quando também ocorreu aumento da concentração de N-amoniacal e depleção acentuada da concentração de oxigênio dissolvido na água, e isso pode ter sido a causa da mortalidade de peixes nos tanquesrede... / Intensive fish farming is becoming more and more popular, but dependency on ration feeding increases nutrient load of the water, affects its quality and predisposes fish to diseases. Streptococcus and Aeromonas are bacteria that can affect fish in intensive farms and cause mortality. This study aims at evaluating the impact of a nile tilapia net-cage farm on the water quality parameters and the occurrence of Streptococcus spp. and Aeromonas spp. in the water and on the fish, in a pond in Southeastern Brazil. Two sampling sites were defined, one in the pond and another in the net cages to collect water, and water and fish, respectively. Sampling took place during two periods, dry and rainy. Water quality data were analyzed according to standards set by Conama resolution nº 357, for freshwater bodies class 2. Streptococcus spp. and Aeromonas spp. were determined by phenotypic and species identification using biochemical tests. Isolates were evaluated for hemolysin production using blood agar and antimicrobial resistance test according to disk diffusion method. Intensive fish farming increased the amount of phosphorus in water, Streptococcus spp. occurrence in the environment and Aeromonas spp. population on fish surface as well, during dry periods. During the rainy season, more potentially pathogenic bacteria were isolated such as, Aeromonas hydrophila on fish surface and kidneys, A. caviae, A. sobria, A veronii, A. jandaei and Streptococcus agalactiae on fish surface. An increase of N-ammoniacal was also observed together with severe depletion of dissolved oxygen, which may have caused fish mortality in the net-cages. Production of b-hemolysis was greater for aeromonas species isolated from the water and fish kidneys, while for streptococci it was higher in isolates from fish surface. The species Aeromonas veronii, A. hydrophila, A. jandaei, A. sobria A. caviae and Streptococcus agalactiae... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Orientador: Rubén Pablo Schocken-Iturrino / Banca: Clovis Wesley Oliveira de Souza / Banca: Fabiana Garcia / Banca: Fabiana Pilarski / Banca: Oswaldo Durival Rossi Junior / Resumo: A criação intensiva de peixes tem se tornado popular, mas a dependência de arraçoamento pode enriquecer o ambiente com nutrientes, comprometendo a qualidade da água e predispondo os peixes a doenças. Streptococcus e Aeromonas são bactérias que acometem peixe em criações intensivas, podendo ocasionar mortalidade. Nesse sentido, o presente trabalho objetivou avaliar a influência de uma criação de tilápias do nilo em tanques-rede nos parâmetros de qualidade da água e na ocorrência de Streptococcus spp. e Aeromonas spp. na água e nos peixes em uma lagoa na região Sudeste do Brasil. Foram definidos para as amostragens dois locais, a lagoa, para coleta de água e os tanques-rede, para coleta de água e peixes e dois períodos, seco e chuvoso. Os dados obtidos da qualidade da água foram avaliados por indicadores estabelecidos na Resolução Conama nº 357, para corpos de água doce de classe 2. A presença de Streptococcus spp. e Aeromonas spp. foi avaliada por identificação fenotípica e a identificação das espécies, por provas bioquímicas. Isolados foram avaliados para produção de hemolisina utilizando ágar sangue e teste de resistência a antimicrobianos conforme o método de difusão de discos. A atividade de criação intensiva de peixes aumentou a concentração de fósforo total da água no período seco, ocorrência de Streptococcus spp. no ambiente e a população de Aeromonas spp. na superfície dos peixes. No período chuvoso, houve maior isolamento das espécies potencialmente patogênicas, Aeromonas hydrophila na superfície e no rim dos peixes, A. caviae, A. sobria, A veronii, A. jandaei e Streptococcus agalactiae na superfície dos peixes, quando também ocorreu aumento da concentração de N-amoniacal e depleção acentuada da concentração de oxigênio dissolvido na água, e isso pode ter sido a causa da mortalidade de peixes nos tanquesrede... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Intensive fish farming is becoming more and more popular, but dependency on ration feeding increases nutrient load of the water, affects its quality and predisposes fish to diseases. Streptococcus and Aeromonas are bacteria that can affect fish in intensive farms and cause mortality. This study aims at evaluating the impact of a nile tilapia net-cage farm on the water quality parameters and the occurrence of Streptococcus spp. and Aeromonas spp. in the water and on the fish, in a pond in Southeastern Brazil. Two sampling sites were defined, one in the pond and another in the net cages to collect water, and water and fish, respectively. Sampling took place during two periods, dry and rainy. Water quality data were analyzed according to standards set by Conama resolution nº 357, for freshwater bodies class 2. Streptococcus spp. and Aeromonas spp. were determined by phenotypic and species identification using biochemical tests. Isolates were evaluated for hemolysin production using blood agar and antimicrobial resistance test according to disk diffusion method. Intensive fish farming increased the amount of phosphorus in water, Streptococcus spp. occurrence in the environment and Aeromonas spp. population on fish surface as well, during dry periods. During the rainy season, more potentially pathogenic bacteria were isolated such as, Aeromonas hydrophila on fish surface and kidneys, A. caviae, A. sobria, A veronii, A. jandaei and Streptococcus agalactiae on fish surface. An increase of N-ammoniacal was also observed together with severe depletion of dissolved oxygen, which may have caused fish mortality in the net-cages. Production of b-hemolysis was greater for aeromonas species isolated from the water and fish kidneys, while for streptococci it was higher in isolates from fish surface. The species Aeromonas veronii, A. hydrophila, A. jandaei, A. sobria A. caviae and Streptococcus agalactiae... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Orientadores: Arnaldo Yoshiteru Kuaye, Maria de Fátima Borges / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-17T19:34:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Fujimoto_Graciela_M.pdf: 2012969 bytes, checksum: 0410bde829c4461172a6ed4e7332f4dc (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: Enterococcus spp são bactérias conhecidas pela sua natureza ambígua, uma vez que podem promover características de interesse tecnológico em produtos fermentados, mas também, estão entre os principais patógenos nosocomiais. São bactérias onipresentes e sua prevalência ocorre principalmente em queijos de produção artesanal, como o queijo de coalho, produto bastante consumido na região nordeste do Brasil. Assim, o presente estudo objetivou: avaliar os principais determinantes fenotípicos (_-hemólise e gelatinase) e genotípicos (ace, as, cylA, cylB, cylM, efaA, esp, gelE e vanA) de virulência; verificar a atuação do gênero como cultura iniciadora no queijo de coalho (produção de diacetil, proteólise, lipólise e perfil em leite tornassolado); avaliar a produção de atividade antimicrobiana por isolados sem potencial de patogenicidade. A avaliação de determinantes de virulência foi realizada com 150 Enterococcus spp isolados de 14 amostras de queijos de coalho provenientes de duas regiões de produção artesanal do estado do Ceará. Utilizando-se a técnica molecular da PCR (Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase), identificou-se a presença de 90% (135/150) de E. faecium, 2,7% (4/150) de E. faecalis e 7,3% (11/150) de Enterococcus spp. Entre os determinantes genotípicos avaliados por PCR, apenas o gene as, foi negativo para todos os 150 isolados. Todos os E. faecalis apresentaram pelo menos um determinante genotípico de virulência, com 25% (1/4) para ace e gelE, 50% (2/4) e 100% (4/4), para efaA e esp, respectivamente. Entre os E. faecium também se observou que 16,3% (22/135) foram positivos para os genes efaA e esp. A atividade _-hemolítica foi observada em 36,3% (49/135) dos E. faecium e 50,0% (2/4) dos E. faecalis, destes, apenas, 1 E. faecium apresentou todos os genes do operon da citolisina (cylA, B, M). Outros 12 E. faecium apresentaram um ou dois genes cyl, mas não expressaram atividade _-hemolítica. A atividade da gelatinase foi observada para 2,9% (4/135) dos E. faecium, no entanto, o gene gelE, foi confirmado para apenas 2 desses E. faecium. O gene gelE foi confirmado por sequenciamento para 25% (1/4) dos E. faecalis e 20% (27/135) dos E. faecium que não expressaram a atividade gelatinase. A resistência a antibióticos foi determinada para 129 enterococos. Para os isolados de E. faecium 17,5 % (20/114) foram resistentes a eritromicina, 10,5 % (12/114) a tetraciclina e 0,9 % (1/114) a teicoplanina e a vancomicina (que não apresentou o gene vanA). O gene vanA foi observado em 6 E. faecium que foram sensíveis a vancomicina. Para os isolados de E. faecalis, 75 % (3/4) foram resistentes a tetraciclina. O perfil de características tecnológicas de 43 E. faecium e 2 E. faecalis, demonstrou que tanto isolados que não apresentaram determinantes de virulência quanto os que apresentaram múltiplos determinantes de virulência, foram capazes de produzir ácido lático, diacetil e atividade lipolítica. Apenas 1 isolado de E. faecium foi capaz de produzir atividade antimicrobiana contra L. monocytogenes. A presença de pelo menos um fator de virulência ou resistência a antibióticos foi observada em 82% dos enterococos, alertando sobre a necessidade de estudos cuidadosos quanto ao uso destes no processamento de alimentos / Abstract: Enterococcus spp bacteria are known for their ambiguous nature, since they can promote features of technological interest in fermented products, but also are among the leading nosocomial pathogens. They are ubiquitous and their prevalence occurs mainly in artisanal cheeses production, like ¿Coalho¿ cheese, product pretty consumed in the northeastern region of Brazil. Thus, this stud aimed to evaluate the major phenotypic (_-hemolysin and gelatinase) and genotypic (ace, as, cylA, cylB, cylM, efaA, esp, gelE e vanA) virulence determinants; check the performance of the genre as starter culture in Coalho cheese (production of proteolysis, diacetyl, lipolysis and profile on Litmus Milk); evaluate the production of antimicrobial activity by isolated without potential for pathogenicity. The assessment of virulence determinants was made with 150 strains of enterococci obtained from 14 samples of Coalho cheese made by artisanal production from two different regions in the state of Ceara. Using molecular technique of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), it was identified the presence of 90% (135/150) E. faecium, 2.7% (4/150) E. faecalis and 7.3% (11/150) Enterococcus spp. Among genotypic determinants evaluated by PCR only as gene was negative for all 150 isolates. All E. faecalis showed at least one genotypic virulence determinant, with 25% (1/4) to ace and gelE, 50% (2 / 4) and 100% (4/4), respectively for efaA and esp. Amongst E. faecium was also noted that 16.3% (22/135) were positive for efaA and esp. genes _-hemolytic activity was observed in 36.3% (49/135) of E. faecium and 50.0% (2/4) of E. faecalis, however only one E. faecium strains, showed all cytolysin genes (cylA, B, M). Another 12 E. faecium showed one or two cyl genes but haven¿t expressed _-hemolysin. Gelatinase activite was observed in 2.9% (4/135) of E. faecium, however gelE gene was observed in only two of these strains. The gelE gene was confirmed by sequencing for 25% (1/4) of E. faecalis and 20% (27/135) E. faecium that haven¿t expressed gelatinase activite. Antibiotic resistance was determined in 129 enterococci. For E. faecium strains, 17.5% (20/114) were resistant to erythromycin, 10.5% (12/114) to tetracycline and 0.9% (1/114) to teicoplanin and vancomycin (that haven¿t had vanA gene). About E.faecalis strains, 75% (3/4) were resistant to tetracycline. The vanA gene was observed in 6 E. faecium that were susceptible to vancomycin. Technological characteristics of 43 E. faecium and 2 E. faecalis were observed in nonpathogenic strains and in strains that showed multiple virulence determinants. All of this groups produced lactic acid, dyacetil and lypolisis. Only one E.faecium has showed antimicrobial activit against L. monocytogenes. The presence of at least a factor of virulence determinants or antibiotic resistence was observed in 82 % of Enterococcus strains, alerting about the necessity of careful studies regarding the use of enterococci in food processing / Mestrado / Engenharia de Alimentos / Mestre em Tecnologia de Alimentos

EPEC atípicas (EPECa) são isoladas de surtos diarréicos em crianças, adultos e animais em países industrializados e em desenvolvimento. Hemolisinas são toxinas que atuam sobre a membrana de eritrócitos e de diversos tipos celulares. Tal grupo de toxinas é reconhecido como importante fator de virulência envolvido na patogênese bacteriana, por isso o objetivo foi avaliar a expressão de enterohemolisina em isolados de EPECa e analisar características fenotípicas como interferência do meio de cultivo e adesão a componentes de matriz extracelular. Observou-se prevalência de 5,4% de isolados enterohemolíticos, e variações na expressão da toxina foram associadas à concentrações de lactose e caseína nos meios de cultivo. Além disso, verificou-se forte associação entre produção de enterohemolisina e ligação à fibronectina celular. / Atypical EPEC (aEPEC) are isolated from diarrheal outbreaks in children, adults and animals in industrialized and developing countries. Hemolysins are toxins that act on the red cell membrane and various cell types. This group of toxins is recognized as an important virulence factor involved in the bacterial pathogenesis. The aim of this study was the evaluation of the enterohemolysin expression in aEPEC isolates as interference of the culture media and adhesion to components of extracellular matrix. The prevalence of enterohemolytic isolates was 5.4%, and variations in toxin expression were associated with lactose and casein concentrations in culture media. Moreover, it was found association between production of enterohemolysin and adhesion to cellular fibronectin.

No description available.

The covalent chemistry of individual reactants bound within a protein nanopore can be monitored by observing the ionic current flow through the pore, which acts as a nanoreactor responding to bond-making and bond-breaking events. However, chemistry investigated in this way has been largely confined to the reactions of thiolates, presented by the side chains of cysteine residues. The introduction of unnatural amino acids would provide a large variety of reactive side chains with which additional single-molecule chemistry could be investigated. An efficient method to incorporate unnatural amino acid is semisynthesis, which allows site-specific modification with a chemically-defined functional group. However, relatively little work has been done on engineered membrane proteins. This deficiency stems from attributes inherent to proteins that interact with lipid bilayer, notably the poor solubility in aqueous buffer. In the present work, four different derivatives α-hemolysin (αHL) monomer were obtained either by two- or three-way native chemical ligation. The semisynthetic αHL monomers were successfully refolded to heptameric pores and used as nanoreactors to study single-molecule chemistry. The semisynthetic pores show similar biophysical properties to native αHL pores obtained from an in vitro transcription and translation technique. Interestingly, when αHL pores with one semisynthetic subunit containing a terminal alkyne group were used to study Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition, a long-lived intermediate in the reaction was directly observed.

Neisseria meningitidis, Auslöser der Meningokokken-Meningitis und Sepsis, trägt auch heute noch zur hohen Kindersterblichkeit in Entwicklungsländern bei und sorgt, vor allem im afrikanischen Meningitis-Gürtel, immer wieder für Epidemien mit gravierenden Folgen für die Betroffenen. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurden zwei an der Pathogenität von N. meningitidis beteiligte Proteine, der Transkriptionsregulator FarR und der Transportkanal HrpB, näher charakterisiert, um weitere Einblicke in die immer noch nicht vollständig entschlüsselte Pathogenese der Meningokokken-Meningitis zu erhalten. Das Neisseria adhesin A NadA ist Bestandteil der sich aktuell in der Entwicklung befindenden Impfung gegen Meningokokken der Serogruppe B. Im dem bekapselten B-Stamm MC58 wurde gezeigt, dass nadA unter der negativen Kontrolle des Transkriptionsregulators FarR steht (Schielke et al., 2009). In den ebenfalls zur Gattung Neisseria gehörenden Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ng) wurde bereits 2001 ein FarR-Homolog beschrieben (Shafer et al., 2001). NgFarR ist an der Resistenz gegenüber antimikrobiellen, langkettigen Fettsäuren beteiligt, indem es die Expression des FarABEffluxpumpen-Systems reguliert, welches eingedrungene Fettsäuren wieder nach extrazellulär befördert. Dagegen zeigten Palmitinsäure-Resistenztests, dass FarR nicht an der intrinsischen Fettsäure-Resistenz der Meningokokken beteiligt ist. Die Deletion und die Komplementierung von farR hatten weder in bekapselten noch in unbekapselten Meningokokken Einfluss auf das normale Wachstumsverhalten. Ein Western Blot- Nachweis des FarR-Proteins in der frühen, mittleren und späten exponentiellen Wachstumsphase von Wildtyp, Kapsel-Deletionsmutante und farR-Komplementante zeigte, dass die Menge an FarR im zeitlichen Verlauf kontinuierlich zunimmt und FarR damit Wachstumsphasen-abhängig exprimiert wird. Dabei scheint es einer posttranskriptionalen oder posttranslationalen Regulation zu unterliegen, da auch in dem farRkomplementierten Stamm unabhängig vom farR-Promotor eine entsprechende Hochregulation stattfindet. In Infektionsversuchen wurde die Interaktion zwischen Meningokokken und humanen polymorphkernigen Granulozyten untersucht. In den Infektionsassays wurde die farRDeletionsmutante innerhalb des dreistündigen Versuchsrahmens deutlich stärker durch die Granulozyten abgetötet als der Serogruppe B-Wildtyp. Als Mitglied der in Bakterien und Archaeen weit verbreiteten Familie der MarR-Transkriptionsregulatoren (Multiple antibiotic resistance Regulator, MarR) bindet FarR mit hoher Wahrscheinlichkeit auch als Homodimer an seine Bindesequenz auf der DNA. FarR erkennt eine 16 bp lange, palindromische Sequenz in der Promotorregion von nadA (NMB1994), wodurch die nadA-Expression verhindert wird. Außerdem erkennt FarR eine ähnliche Bindesequenz im Promotorbereich von farAB (NMB0318/0319), wobei es aber keinen regulatorischen Einfluss ausübt. Mit einer aus diesen beiden Bindestellen berechneten minimalen Bindesequenz wurde im Genom von MC58 weitere mögliche Bindepartner detektiert. Eine Auswahl dieser möglichen Bindestellen wurde in Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assays auf eine direkte Interaktion mit dem FarR-Protein hin untersucht, wobei sich allerdings keine direkte Bindung nachweisen ließ. Diese Ergebnisse darauf hin, dass der Transkriptionsregulator FarR hoch spezifisch bestimmte DNA-Bindesequenzen erkennt und die entsprechenden Gene reguliert. In der Promotorregion des TpsB-Proteins HrpB wurde in den sequenzierten Referenzstämmen Z2491, MC58, FAM18 und α14 eine mit der minimalen FarR-Bindesequenz kompatible Sequenz gefunden. In Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assays konnte allerdings gezeigt werden, dass FarR nicht direkt daran bindet. Um das Transport-Protein HrpB näher zu charakterisieren, wurde das entsprechende Gen in 22 N. meningitidis-Isolaten sequenziert. Dabei zeigte sich, dass das Transportprotein hrpB in allen untersuchten invasiven und nicht-invasiven Stämmen vorhanden ist. Dieses äußerst konservierte Protein weist nur im seinem C-terminalen Bereich eine relativ variable Region auf, was vermutlich auf Rekombinationsereignisse zurückzuführen ist. Ein Alignment der Aminosäure-Sequenz des Serogruppe C-Stamms FAM18 mit der des homologen Bordetella pertussis TpsB-Proteins FhaC zeigte, dass die dreidimensionale Struktur des HrpB ebenfalls eine α-Helix, eine transmembranöse Domäne und variable extrazelluläre Loops enthält. Zusammengenommen erfüllt HrpB somit wichtige Bedingungen, um als Vakzine-Bestandteil in Betracht gezogen zu werden. / Function of the transcriptional regulator FarR in Neisseria meningitidis

Staphylococcal leukocidin pores are formed by the obligatory interaction of two distinct polypeptides, one of class F and one of class S, making them unique in the family of β-barrel pore-forming toxins (β-PFTs). By contrast, other β-PFTs form homooligomeric pores. For example, the staphylococcal α- hemolysin is a homoheptamer. Limited and controversial data exist on the assembly and molecular architecture of the leukocidin pore. In this work, biochemical and biophysical methods were used to characterize the leukocidin pore produced by the LukF (HlgB) and LukS (HlgC) components encoded by Staphylococcus aureus. I demonstrate that LukF and LukS assemble to form an SDS-stable pore on rabbit erythrocyte membranes. In addition, the pore-forming properties of recombinant leukocidin were investigated with planar lipid bilayers. Although leukocidins and staphylococcal α-hemolysin share partial sequence identity and related folds, LukF and LukS produce a pore with a unitary conductance of 2.5 nS (1 M KCl, 5 mM HEPES, pH 7.4), which is over three times greater than that of α-hemolysin measured under the same conditions. The subunit composition and stoichiometry of a leukocidin pore were determined by two independent methods, gel shift electrophoresis and sitespecific chemical modification during single channel recording. Four LukF and four LukS subunits were shown to co-assemble into an octameric transmembrane structure. The existence of an additional subunit in part explains properties of the leukocidin pore, such as its high conductance. Additionally, this is the first time that either technique has been applied successfully to assess the composition of a heteromeric membrane protein. It is also relevant to understanding the mechanism of assembly of β-PFT pores, and suggests new possibilities for engineering these proteins. In additional studies, the HlyII pore encoded by Bacillus cereus was found to form a homoheptameric transmembrane pore with properties conforming in general with those of other members of the class of β-PFTs. HlyII possesses additional properties which make it an attractive candidate for applications in biotechnology, such as an oligomer with a high thermal stability in the presence of SDS and the ability of the pore to remain open at high transmembrane potentials.

In recent years the application of single-molecule techniques to probe biomolecules and intermolecular interactions at single-molecule resolution has expanded rapidly. Here, I investigate a series of peptides and proteins in an attempt to gain a better understanding of nanopore sensing as a single-molecule technique. The analysis of retro, inversed, and retro-inversed isomers of glucagon and α-helical Fmoc-D2A10K2 peptide showed that nanopore sensing utilizing a wild-type α-hemolysin pore can distinguish between all four isomers while circular dichroism can only distinguish between chiral isomers, but not between directional isomers. The investigation of a series of proteins of different chemical and physical properties revealed important information about nanopore analysis of proteins. Contrary to some reports in the literature, all proteins analysed here induced large blockade events. The frequency of total events and the proportion of large blockade events were significantly reduced in tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane or 4-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine-1-ethanesulfonic acid buffers and were only restored by the addition of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid or the use of phosphate buffer, both of which can sequester metal ions. Furthermore, the results obtained with the proteins in the presence of ligands demonstrated that transient or partial unfolding of proteins can be detected by nanopore analysis confirming the usefulness of this technique for conformational studies or for protein/ligand interactions. Interestingly, while the blockade current histograms were different for each protein there was no obvious correlation between the properties of the proteins and the blockade current histograms. In an attempt to identify whether the large blockade events were translocation or intercalation, both an indirect and a direct approach were taken. The indirect approach which relies on the effect of voltage on the interaction of the molecule with the pore provided no conclusive answer to the question of protein translocation through the α-hemolysin pore. In contrast, the direct approach in which ribonuclease A is added to the cis side of the pore and then the trans side is tested for enzyme activity showed that ribonuclease A doesn't translocate through the α-hemolysin pore.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:13:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MariaFPC.pdf: 4835234 bytes, checksum: 942393c30ace33adf0d4efd21ae5bc99 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-11-05 / To aureus α-HL channel, we used the cysteine-scanning mutagenesis technique. Twenty-four mutants were produced from the substitution of a single aminoacid of the primary structure of the α-HL pro this yzed after the incorporation of a mutant channel in planar lipid bilayer membranes. The modified proteins were studied in the absence and presence of watersoluble specific sulphydryl-specific reagents, in order to introduce a strong positive or negative harge at positions of substitution. The introduction of a negative charge in the stem region onverted the selectivity of the channel from weak anionic to more cationic. However, the troduction of a positive charge increased its selectivity to the anion. The degree of these alterations was inversely dependent on the channel radius at the position of the introduced harge (selectivity). As to the asymmetry of the conductance-voltage, the influence of the harge was more complex. The introduction of the negative charge in the stem region (the trans art of the pore) provoked a decrease. The intensity of these alterations depended on the radius, and on the type of free charge at the pore entrance. These results suggest that the free charge at surrounds the pore wall is responsible for the cation-anion selectivity of the channel. The istribution of the charges between the entrances is crucial for determining the asymmetry of e conductance-voltage curves. We hope that these results serve as a model for studies with other nanometric channels, in biological or planar lipid bilayer membranes or in iotechnological applications / Para investigar as influ?ncias das cargas sobre as propriedades do canal formado pela α-HL do Staphylococcus aureus, foi empregada a t?cnica de Escaneamento Mutagenese da Ciste?na . Vinte e quatro mutantes foram produzidos a partir da substitui??o de um ?nico amino?cido da estrutura prim?ria da prote?na α-HL pela ciste?na, em v?rias posi??es. As altera??es eletrofisiol?gicas, em decorr?ncia dessa modifica??o, foram analisadas, ap?s a incorpora??o do canal mutante em bicamada lip?dica plana. As prote?nas modificadas foram investigadas na aus?ncia e na presen?a de reagentes espec?ficos para sulfidrila, visando introduzir uma forte carga positiva ou negativa na posi??o da substitui??o. A introdu??o de uma carga negativa, na regi?o troncular (parte trans do poro) do canal formado pela α-HL, converteu a seletividade do canal de pouco ani?nico para mais cati?nico, entretanto a introdu??o de uma carga positiva aumentou, sua seletividade ao anion. A intensidade dessas altera??es foi inversamente dependente do raio do poro na posi??o da carga introduzida. Quanto ao par?metro assimetria da depend?ncia da condut?ncia-voltagem, a influ?ncia da carga foi mais complexa: a incorpora??o de uma carga negativa na regi?o troncular induziu aumento da assimetria, j? a incorpora??o ? regi?o copal (parte cis do poro) provocou uma diminui??o. A intensidade destas altera??es dependeu do raio, do tipo da carga m?vel introduzida sobre o eixo longitudinal do canal, sendo maior nas posi??es das cargas pr?xima das entradas do poro. Esses resultados sugerem que a carga livre que reveste a parede do lume do poro seja respons?vel pela seletividade c?tion-anion do canal. Considerando que a distribui??o das cargas entre as entradas seja fundamental, para determinar a assimetria da curva de depend?ncia condut?ncia-voltagem. N?s esperamos que esses resultados sirvam de modelo para estudos com outros canais de dimens?es nanom?tricas, em membranas biol?gicas ou bicamadas lip?dicas planas e para aplica??es biotecnol?gicas