BACKGROUND Snake bite causes greater mortality than most of the other neglected tropical diseases. Snake antivenom, although effective in minimizing mortality in developed countries, is not equally so in developing countries due to its poor availability in remote snake infested areas as, and when, required. An alternative approach in this direction could be taken by making orally deliverable po...

In an attempt to develop a probiotic formulation for poultry feed, a number of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were isolated from chicken intestinal specimens and a series of in vitro experiments were performed to evaluate their efficacy as a potential probiotic candidate. A total of 650 LAB strains were isolated and screened for their antagonistic potential against each other. Among all the isolate...

The rotavirus spike protein, VP4, is a major determinant of infectivity and neutralization. Previously, we have shown that trypsin-enhanced infectivity of rotavirus involves a transformation of the VP4 spike from a flexible to a rigid bilobed structure. Here we show that at elevated pH the spike undergoes a drastic, irreversible conformational change and becomes stunted, with a pronounced trilo...

Under certain conditions, the prion protein (PrP) undergoes a conformational change from the normal cellular isoform, PrP(C), to PrP(Sc), an infectious isoform capable of causing neurodegenerative diseases in many mammals. Conversion can be triggered by low pH, and in vivo this appears to take place in an endocytic pathway and/or caveolae-like domains. It has thus far been impossible to charact...

A study of sulfur-rich sludge (71.6% pyrite) dissolution at alkaline conditions (pH ca.9) was investigated using non-stirred and stirred flow-through experiments at room temperature (26 ± 1.2oC) and O2 partial pressure of 0.20 atm. The dissolution rate of pyrite-rich sludge was calculated based on the S release (aqueous SO4) at the steady-state. Results show that: (1) in the nonstirred reactor ...

To assess the chemical stability of sludges generated by neutralizing acid rock drainage (ARD) with alkaline reagents, synthetic ARD was treated with hydrated lime (batch and high-density sludge process), limestone, and two proprietary reagents (KB-1 and Bauxsol). The amorphous metal hydroxide sludge produced was leached using deionized water, U.S. EPA methods (toxicity characteristic leaching ...

Abstract In this study, the influence of direct electric current on a microcapsule was investigated. The consisted core from calcium ion and sodium alginate (SA) complex membrane formed by polyionic complexation poly(methylene-co-guanidine) (PMCG) cellulose sulfate (CS). Microcapsules showed swelling decreasing mechanical properties under applied current, anisotropic electrode side. effect is a...

Extracellular pH (pHe) of tumor cells is characteristic microenvironment (TME). Acidic TME impairs the responses tumors to some anti-cancer chemotherapies. In this study, we showed that daily oral dosing sodium potassium citrate (K/Na citrate) increased blood HCO3− concentrations, corresponding increase concentrations and pHs in urine, neutralized pHe. Neutralization acidic by alkaline substanc...

Soil acidity is a major constraint on plant productivity. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi support plant colonization in acidic soil, but soil acidity also constrains fungal growth and diversity. Fungi in extreme environments generally evolve towards specialists, suggesting that AM fungi in acidic soil are acidic-soil specialists. In our previous surveys, however, some AM fungi detected in str...

Hypoxia and acidosis are hallmarks of tumors as well as critical determinants of response to cancer treatments. The development of tumor hypoxia has been shown to be a critical step in tumorigenesis and cancer cell metastasis. Low tumor pO2 has been correlated with poor patient survival and metastasis in several types of cancer. Specifically, cyclical hypoxia was found to be associated with sig...