Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar o efeito da interesterificação enzimática da gordura de leite com óleos de canola e castanha-do-pará nas propriedades do produto alimentício obtido, empregando lipase de Rhizopus oryzae imobilizada em sílica-álcool polivinílico (SiO2-PVA) como catalisador. Considerou-se desejável a obtenção de um produto que, ao incorporar parte dos ácidos graxos insaturados e essenciais presentes nos óleos, apresentasse boa espalhabilidade sob temperatura de refrigeração. Na primeira etapa as propriedades das matérias-primas foram determinadas aplicando técnicas oficiais de análise e verificou-se que todas apresentaram características de acordo com a legislação brasileira para uso em produtos alimentícios. Em seguida, foram testados dois métodos (adsorção física e ligação covalente) para efetuar a imobilização da lipase selecionada em SiO2-PVA e os resultados obtidos indicaram a adequação do procedimento de adsorção física. As condições otimizadas para conduzir as reações de interesterificação enzimática de blendas binárias de gordura de leite e óleo de canola, e de gordura de leite e óleo de castanha-do-pará, foram determinadas por planejamento composto central (CCD) constituído de 11 experimentos. A influência das variáveis temperatura (45-65?C) e teor de gordura no meio reacional (50-80%) foi avaliada simultaneamente, considerando como variáveis-resposta o grau de interesterificação (GI) e a consistência dos produtos. Modelos empíricos que possibilitaram a seleção de condições para obtenção de produtos interesterificados com satisfatória espalhabilidade (consistência entre 200 e 800 gf/cm²) foram compostos e confirmados para cada caso. Para a blenda gordura de leite e óleo de canola, as condições selecionadas corresponderam a um meio contendo 65% de gordura e 35% de óleo e incubado a 45°C por 12 h. Nessas condições foram obtidos produtos com consistência de 700 gf/cm². No caso da blenda gordura de leite e óleo de castanha-dopará, produtos interesterificados que atendem o parâmetro desejado (200-800 gf/cm²) foram obtidos empregando-se um meio contendo 50% de gordura e 50% do óleo, incubados a 45°C por 24 h. Reações de interesterificação de blendas ternárias de gordura de leite, óleo de canola e óleo de castanha-do-pará foram também efetuadas de acordo com um planejamento de misturas, constituído de 17 experimentos visando avaliar a influência da proporção de cada componente da blenda na consistência do produto interesterificado. Na faixa de variação investigada, o uso de blendas contendo 56% de gordura de leite, 22% de óleo de canola e 22% de óleo de castanha-do-pará incubadas por 3 h a 45°C resultou em produtos interesterificados com satisfatória consistência e plasticidade (634 gf/cm²). O desempenho das reações enzimáticas conduzidas sob aquecimento convencional e não convencional (irradiação de micro-ondas) foi ainda avaliado para as blendas binárias nas condições preditas pelo planejamento composto central, não sendo observada interferência das micro-ondas na atuação da enzima, obtendo-se produtos interesterificados com valores similares de consistência. Os dados obtidos sugerem que o processo de interesterificação enzimática catalisado pela lipase de Rhizopus oryzae imobilizada em SiO2-PVA foi eficaz para a modulação das características de plasticidade dos produtos obtidos empregando tanto misturas binárias como ternárias. / The objective of this work was to assess the effect of the enzymatic interesterification of milkfat with canola oil and Brazil nut oil on the properties of the resulting food product, using Rhizopus oryzae lipase immobilized on silica-polyvinyl alcohol (SiO2-PVA) as catalyst. The work was carried out considering as desirable to obtain a more spreadable product under domestic refrigerated conditions as well as enriched with unsaturated and essential fatty acids. Firstly, the properties of the raw materials were determined by applying official analysis techniques and results indicated that all raw materials were in agreement with the Brazilian legislation to food products. Then, two methodologies (physical adsorption and covalent binding) were tested for immobilizing the selected lipase on SiO2-PVA and physical adsorption was found to be the most suitable procedure. The optimized conditions to perform the enzymatic interesterification reactions of binary blends (milkfat and canola oil and milkfat and Brazil nut oil) were determined by central composite design (CCD), leading to a set of 11 runs. The influence of the variables, temperature (45-65°C) and the content of milk fat in the reaction medium (50-80%), was assessed simultaneously, taking the interesterification degree (ID) and consistency (10°C) as response variables. Empiric models were composed and confirmed for each case to establish conditions at which products with satisfactory spreadability (consistency in the range from 200 and 800 gf/cm²) can be obtained. For the milkfat and canola oil blend, the established conditions corresponded to a medium containing 65% of milk fat and 35% of oil, and lipase incubated at 45°C for 12 h. In these conditions, products with consistency of 700 gf/cm² were obtained. In the case of milkfat and Brazil nut oil blend, interesterified products with desirable parameter (200 and 800 gf/cm²) were obtained from reactions carried out with medium containing 50% of milk fat and 50% of oil, and lipase incubated at 45°C for 24 h. Interesterification reactions of ternary blends of milkfat, canola oil and Brazil nut oil were also carried out according to a mixture design with 17 runs to assess the influence of the mass proportion of each compound in the blend on the consistency of the interesterified products. In the range studied, the use of blends with 56% of milkfat, 22% of canola oil and 22% of Brazil nut oil and incubation at 45°C for 3 h resulted in products with satisfactory consistency and plasticity (634 gf/cm²). The performance of enzymatic reactions carried out under conventional and non-conventional (microwave irradiation) heating was also assessed for binary blends under the conditions predicted by the central composite design, and no interference of the microwave in the enzyme action was observed, resulting in interesterified products with similar values of consistency. The results obtained suggested that the process of enzymatic interesterification catalyzed by Rhizopus oryzae immobilized on SiO2-PVA was effective in modulating the plasticity properties of the products obtained using both binary and ternary blends.

Chitosan, a copolymer of glucosamine and N-acetyl glucosamine, is a polycationic, biocompatible and biodegradable polymer. In addition, chitosan has different functional groups that can be modified with a wide array of ligands. Because of its unique physicochemical properties, chitosan has great potential in a range of biomedical applications, including tissue engineering, non-viral gene delivery and enzyme immobilization. In our work, the primary amine groups of chitosan were utilized for chitosan modification through biotinylation using N-hydroxysuccinimide chemistry. This was followed by the addition of avidin which strongly binds to biotin. Biotinylated ligands such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) and RGD peptide sequence, or biotinylated enzymes such as trypsin, were then added to modify the surface properties of the chitosan for a variety of purposes. Modified chitosans were formulated into nano-sized particles or cast into films. Different factors affecting fabrication of chitosan particles, such as the pH of the preparation, the inclusion of polyanions, the charge ratios and the degree of deacetylation and the molecular weight of chitosan were studied. Similarly, parameters affecting the fabrication of chitosan films, such as cross-linking, were investigated for potential applications in tissue engineering and enzyme immobilization. It was found that the inclusion of dextran sulfate resulted in optimum interaction between chitosan and DNA, as shown by the high stability of these nanoparticles and their high in vitro transfection efficiencies in HEK293 cells. When applying these formulations as DNA vaccines in vivo, chitosan nanoparticles loaded with the ovalbumin antigen and the plasmid DNA encoding the same antigen resulted in the highest antibody response in C57BL/6 mice. Furthermore, engineering of the surface of chitosan nanoparticles was done by utilizing the avidin-biotin interaction for attaching PEG and RGD. The modified formulations were tested for their in vitro gene delivery properties and it was found that these ligands improved gene transfection efficiencies significantly. Chitosan nanoparticles were optimized further for enzyme immobilization purposes using sodium sulfate and glutaraldehyde as physical and chemical cross-linking agents, respectively. These particles and chitosan films were used for immobilizing trypsin utilizing several techniques. Enzyme immobilization via avidin-biotin interaction resulted in high immobilization efficiency and high enzymatic activity in different reaction conditions. Additionally, the immobilized trypsin systems were stable and amenable to be regenerated for multiple uses. Finally, glutaraldehyde cross-linked chitosan films were modified with PEG and RGD for their cell repellant and cell adhesion properties, respectively, using avidin-biotin interaction. This method was again effective in engineering chitosan surfaces for modulating cell adhesion and proliferation. In conclusion, using avidin-biotin technique to modify biotinylated chitosan surfaces is a facile method to attach a wide variety of ligands in mild reaction conditions, while preserving the functionality of these ligands.

Skeletal muscle atrophy is a common, debilitating consequence of muscle disuse, malnutrition, critical illness, musculoskeletal conditions, neurological disease, cancer, and organ failure. Despite its prevalence, little is known about the molecular pathogenesis of this devastating condition due in large part to an incomplete understanding of the molecular mechanisms that drive the atrophy process. In previous studies, we identified the transcription factor ATF4 as a critical mediator of skeletal muscle atrophy. We found that ATF4 is necessary and sufficient for skeletal muscle atrophy during limb immobilization. However, ATF4 mKO mice were only partially protected from skeletal muscle atrophy during limb immobilization, indicating the existence of another pro-atrophy factor that acts independently of the ATF4 pathway. Using mouse models, we identify p53 as this ATF4-independent factor. We show that skeletal muscle atrophy increases p53 expression in skeletal muscle fibers. In addition, overexpression of p53 causes skeletal muscle atrophy. Further, p53 mKO mice are partially resistant to muscle atrophy during limb immobilization. Taken together, these data indicate that like ATF4, p53 is sufficient and required for skeletal muscle atrophy during limb immobilization. Importantly, overexpression of p53 induces muscle atrophy in the absence of ATF4, whereas ATF4-mediated muscle atrophy does not require p53. Furthermore, overexpression of p53 and ATF4 induces greater muscle atrophy than p53 or ATF4 alone. Moreover, skeletal muscle lacking both p53 and ATF4 is more resistant to skeletal muscle atrophy than muscle lacking either p53 or ATF4 alone. Taken together, these data indicate that p53 and ATF4 mediate distinct and additive mechanisms to skeletal muscle atrophy. However, the precise mechanism by which p53 and ATF4 cause skeletal muscle atrophy remained unclear. Using genome-wide expression arrays, we identify p21 as a skeletal muscle mRNA that is highly induced by p53 and ATF4 during limb immobilization. Further, overexpression of p21 causes skeletal muscle atrophy. In addition, p21 is required for muscle atrophy due to limb immobilization, p53, and ATF4. Collectively, these results identify p53 and ATF4 as critical and complementary mediators of skeletal muscle atrophy during limb immobilization, and discover p21 as an essential downstream mediator of the p53 and ATF4 pathways.

Proteins are large macromolecules that play important roles in nature. With the development of modern molecular biology techniques, protein engineering has emerged as a useful tool and found many applications in areas ranging from food industry, environmental protection, to medical and life science. Biomimetic membrane incorporates biological elements, such as proteins, to form membranes that mimic the high specificity and conductance of natural biological membranes. For any application involving the usage of proteins, the first barrier is always the production of proteins with sufficient stability, and the incorporation of proteins into the artificial matrix. This thesis contains two major parts, the first part is focused on the development and testing of method to immobilize active enzymes. The second part is devoted to study the degradation of membrane proteins in E. coli cells. In the immobilization study, Pyrophosphatase (PpaC) was chose as a model enzyme. A dual functional tag consist of histidine and methionine has been developed, in which histidine is used for purification while methionine is metabolically replaced with azidohomoalanine (AHA) for immobilization. We found that the addition of the tag and the incorporation of AHA did not significantly impair the properties of proteins, and the histidine–AHA tag can facilitate protein purification, immobilization, and labeling. This tag is expected to be useful in general for many proteins. Degradation of soluble protein has been well characterized, but the membrane protein degradation process remains elusive. SsrA tag is a well-known recognition sequence for soluble protein degradation, which marks prematurely terminated protein products translated from damaged mRNA. SsrA tagged membrane proteins was found to be substrate of a cytosolic protease complex ClpXP, which mediated complete degradation.

Ce travail concerne l'étude de la dégradation enzymatique de micropolluants pharmaceutiques récalcitrants présents dans l'eau. Tout d’abord, les efficacités de trois laccases différentes issues respectivement de : Pycnoporus sanguineus CS43, Trametes versicolor (Tv) et Myceliophtora thermophila ont été comparés lors d’essais de dépollution de solutions modèles renfermant trois antibiotiques (amoxicilline, ciprofloxacine et sulfaméthoxazole) et un antiépileptique (carbamazépine). Les essais ont été réalisés avec les laccases libres en présence ou non de médiateurs redox. L'impact de plusieurs paramètres opératoires sur les performances des enzymes a également été étudié. Puis, une nouvelle méthode d’immobilisation des laccases impliquant l’activation du support (microparticules à base de silice commerciales) par du glutaraldéhyde en phase vapeur a été mise au point et optimisée en utilisant la méthodologie de plans d’expériences. Après immobilisation, la laccase Tv s’est avérée être la plus active. Des essais de dégradation en présence de médiateurs redox ont confirmé l’efficacité de l’enzyme immobilisée et sa possible réutilisation lors de cycles successifs. La toxicité des solutions après traitement a été évaluée par des tests Microtox®. La laccase Tv a également été immobilisée sur des nanoparticules non commerciales à base de silice ou d’argile ainsi que sur des composites à base de silice et d’argile. La laccase Tv immobilisée sur les supports composites riches en silice a montré une plus grande réactivité et de meilleures performances pour l'élimination des composés cibles. / This work is focused on the study of the enzymatic depletion of recalcitrant pharmaceutical micropollutants in water. The potential degradation of three antibiotics (amoxicillin, ciprofloxacin and sulfamethoxazole) and one anti-epileptic (carbamazepine) was studied with three laccases: Pycnoporus sanguineus CS43, Trametes versicolor (Tv) and Myceliophtora thermophila. Free laccase systems were evaluated for pharmaceuticals depletion on model solutions in the presence or absence of redox mediators and the impact of several parameters on the performance of laccases for degradation were studied. The enzymes were then immobilized on different solid supports: commercial silica, laboratory synthetized nano-silica and clay based composite nanomaterials and used for degradation tests. A novel methodology for the covalent binding of laccases onto carriers was developed by using glutaraldehyde in vapour phase and the best immobilization conditions were determined through a 23 full factorial design. The immobilized Tv shown the highest activity and was tested in presence of redox mediators. Moreover, the reusability was evaluated in several degradation cycles and the toxicity of the solutions after treatment was assessed with the Microtox® test. In comparison to laccase immobilized on commercial silica, the Tv supported on laboratory synthetized materials showed higher activity and a better performance for the removal of target compounds.

<p>The hypothetical assumption that chloride is conservative in the soil has been debated for the last decade. The results of the recent years of study in chlorine biogeochemistry show that chloride is non-conservative but rather participates in complex biogeochemical reactions in the soil. These interactions in nature inform the development of simplified hydrochemical model of chloride dynamics in the soil that is driven on soil routine component of HBV hydrological model. This novel attempt affords the opportunity to explore chlorine biogeochemistry further by evaluating the biological processes such as microbial biomass that predominate chlorine cycles in the same order of magnitude as earlier studied abiotic factors. Data from soil lysimeter experiment with different inputs treatments were used in the calibration and validation of both the hydrological and biogeochemical model. The results show that (1) model efficiency reduces with decreasing water residence and with increasing soil organic matter. (2) Longer water residence time (low water input), high chloride and high nitrogen input loads relatively enhance maximum biomass accumulation in a shorter time span. (3) Chloride retention time reduces with increasing chloride loads under short water residence. (4) Microbial biomass growth rate is highest under high chloride input treatments. (5) Biomass death rates shows reducing trend under short water residence (High water input). Further researches are therefore suggested for possible model expansion and to make the results of this model plausible under field conditions.</p>

Les substances perturbatrices du système endocrinien sont des substances qui, de par leur capacité à induire des changements hormonaux chez les organismes vivants, génèrent des préoccupations dans le domaine de la qualité des eaux et, par extension, dans le domaine du traitement des effluents aqueux. Particulièrement, ce projet de recherche s’est attardé sur l’élimination des perturbateurs endocriniens phénoliques nonylphénol (NP), bisphénol A (BPA) et triclosan (TCS) en solution aqueuse à l’aide de la laccase (E.C. 1.10.3.2) sécrétée par la souche fongique Coriolopsis polyzona. Cette oxydase est une métalloprotéine pouvant catalyser l’oxydation d’une vaste gamme de substances phénoliques. En premier lieu, l’impact du pH et de la température sur l’élimination de ces composés à l’aide de la laccase libre en utilisant un design factoriel. L’oxydation de ces composés produit des oligomères (dimère à pentamère) via le couplage des radicaux phénoxy produits par l’action de la laccase. Il s’avère que les substances produites suite à l’oxydation du NP et du BPA par la laccase ont perdu leurs similitudes structurales avec l’estrogène. Ainsi, l’élimination de l’activité estrogénique de ces substances est directement liée à la transformation des composés. Finalement, l’utilisation d’ABTS comme médiateur a permis d’augmenter le taux d’oxydation enzymatique de ces composés chimiques. Puis, de façon à augmenter la possibilité d’utilisation de la laccase dans des biotechnologies environnementales, cette enzyme a été immobilisée sur un support siliceux et via la réticulation d’agrégats. L’impact des conditions d’immobilisation sur l’activité enzymatique, la stabilité du catalyseur et les propriété biocatalytiques apparentes a été déterminé pour différentes stratégies d’immobilisation. Globalement, l’immobilisation génère un biocatalyseur stable vis-à-vis les dénaturations chimique, physique et biologique. Particulièrement, l’immobilisation sur un support solide produit un biocatalyseur facile à utiliser ayant une faible activité massique et des propriétés cinétiques moindres que celle de l’enzyme libre. La formation de CLEAs de laccase a permis d’obtenir une activité massique élevée et des propriétés cinétiques supérieures à celle de l’enzyme soluble. Ces biocatalyseurs solides ont étés utilisés pour éliminer en continu le NP, BPA et TCS dans différents types de bioréacteur. Le biocatalyseur sur silice a été utilisé pour éliminer ces substances dans un réacteur garni, tandis que les CLEAs ont été utilisés dans un réacteur à lit fluidisé et un réacteur à perfusion développé au cours de ce projet. Ces différentes configurations de bioréacteur ont permis d’éliminer efficacement ces différents perturbateurs endocriniens. Globalement, les différents résultats obtenus, à l’échelle de laboratoire, au cours de ce projet de recherche démontrent que la laccase et particulièrement les biocatalyseurs formés via les différentes stratégies d’immobilisation testées représentent des approches extrêmement prometteuses pour le développement de biotechnologies environnementales vouées à l’élimination des perturbateurs endocriniens phénoliques.

The food safety and human diagnostics markets are in need of faster working, reliable, sensitive, specific, low cost bioassays and biosensors for bacterial detection. This thesis reports the use of P22 bacteriophage tailspike proteins (TSP) immobilized on silanized silicon surfaces, roughened at a nano-scale, for specific capture and detection of Salmonella. Towards developing TSP biosensors, TSP immobilization characteristics were studied, and methods to improve bacterial capture were explored. Atomic force microscopy was used to count TSP immobilized on gold thin-films. Surface density counts are dependent on the immobilization scheme used. TSP immobilized on flat silicon (Si), silanized with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane and activated with glutaraldehyde, showed half the bacterial capture of gold thin-films. To improve bacterial capture, roughened mountain-shaped ridge-covered silicon (MSRCS) surfaces were coated with TSP and tested. Measurements of their bacterial surface density show that such MSRCS surfaces can produce bacterial capture close to or better than TSP-coated gold thin-films. / Biomedical Engineering

The hypothetical assumption that chloride is conservative in the soil has been debated for the last decade. The results of the recent years of study in chlorine biogeochemistry show that chloride is non-conservative but rather participates in complex biogeochemical reactions in the soil. These interactions in nature inform the development of simplified hydrochemical model of chloride dynamics in the soil that is driven on soil routine component of HBV hydrological model. This novel attempt affords the opportunity to explore chlorine biogeochemistry further by evaluating the biological processes such as microbial biomass that predominate chlorine cycles in the same order of magnitude as earlier studied abiotic factors. Data from soil lysimeter experiment with different inputs treatments were used in the calibration and validation of both the hydrological and biogeochemical model. The results show that (1) model efficiency reduces with decreasing water residence and with increasing soil organic matter. (2) Longer water residence time (low water input), high chloride and high nitrogen input loads relatively enhance maximum biomass accumulation in a shorter time span. (3) Chloride retention time reduces with increasing chloride loads under short water residence. (4) Microbial biomass growth rate is highest under high chloride input treatments. (5) Biomass death rates shows reducing trend under short water residence (High water input). Further researches are therefore suggested for possible model expansion and to make the results of this model plausible under field conditions.

The topic of this doctoral thesis is the potential near field immobilization of the radionuclide 79Se after intrusion of groundwater into a spent nuclear fuel canister in a repository. 79Se is a non naturally occurring long lived selenium isotope formed as a result of fission in nuclear fuel. Given the long half life (~3 x 105 y) and that the oxyanions of selenium are expected to be highly mobile and potentially difficult toimmobilize the isotope is of interest for the long term safety assessment of high level waste repositories. In this work the near field has been limited to the study of processes at or near the UO2 surface of (simulated) spent nuclear fuel and to processes occurring at or near the surface of iron (canister material) corroding under anoxic conditions. Selenite (HSeO32-) was found to adsorb onto palladium (simulated noble metal inclusion in spent nuclear fuel). Under hydrogen atmosphere selenite was reduced to elemental selenium with a rate constant of ~2 x 10-9 m s-1 (with respect to the Pd surface, 24 bar H2) forming colloidal particles. The rate constant of selenite reduction was increased by about two orders of magnitude to ~2.5 x 10-7 m s-1 (with respect to the Pd surface, 10 bar H2) for a UO2 surface doped with Pd particles, indicating that UO2 is an efficient co-catalyst to Pd. Selenate (SeO42-) was neither adsorbed nor reduced in the presence of Pd, UO2 and hydrogen. In the iron corrosion studies selenate was found to become reduced to predominantly elemental Se in the presence of a pristine iron surface. Iron covered by a corrosion layer of magnetite did however appear inert with respect to selenate whereas selenite was reduced. The reduction of dissolved uranyl into UO2 by the corroding iron surfaces was found to significantly increase the removal rate of selenite as well as selenate. The uranyl was found to transiently transform the outer iron oxide layers on the iron, forming a reactive mixed Fe(II)/Fe(III) oxyhydroxide (Green rust). Exchanging the solution and increasing the carbonate content (from 2 mM to 20 mM NaHCO3) only resulted in a minor, transient remobilization of uranium. Addition of H2O2 did however result in a significant release of uranium as well as selenium from the iron oxide surfaces. An irradiation experiment was also performed confirming the one electron reduction barrier of selenate as an important factor in systems where selenate reduction would be thermodynamically favorable. / QC 20101208