Larger spectral bandwidth and higher photon flux density are the major advantages of multilayer monochromators over crystal-based devices. Especially for synchrotron-based hard X-ray microimaging applications the increased photon flux density is important in order to achieve high contrast and resolution in space and/or time. However, the modifications on the beam profile induced by reflection on a multilayer are a drawback which can seriously harm the performance of such a monochromator. A recent study [A. Rack, T. Weitkamp, M. Riotte, D. Grigoriev, T. Rack, L. Helfen, T. Baumbach, R. Dietsch, T. Holz, M. Krämer, F. Siewert, M. Meduna, P. Cloetens, E. Ziegler, J. Synchrotron Radiat. 17 (2010) 496510] has shown that the modifications in terms of beam flatness and coherence preservation can be influenced via the material composition of the multilayer coating. The present article extends this knowledge by studying further material compositions used on a daily basis for hard X-ray monochromatization at the beamline ID19 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.
The early stages of catastrophic optical damage (COD) in 808 nm emitting diode lasers are mapped by simultaneously monitoring the optical emission with a 1 ns time resolution and deriving the device temperature from thermal images. COD occurs in highly localized damage regions on a 30 to 400 ns time scale which is determined by the accumulation of excess energy absorbed from the optical output. We identify regimes in which COD is avoided by the proper choice of operation parameters.
In vielen Umgebungen, besonders bei hohen Temperaturen, korrosiven Umgebungen oder auf bewegten oder schlecht zugänglichen Flächen, kann die Temperatur nicht oder nur mit nicht akzeptablem Aufwand mit Berührungsthermometern gemessen werden. Diese Umgebungsbedingungen sind unter anderem in der chemischen Industrie, der Lebensmittel-, Metall-, Glas-, Kunststoff- und Papierherstellung sowie bei der Lacktrocknung anzutreffen. In diesen Bereichen kommen Strahlungsthermometer zum Einsatz. Der VDI-Statusreport zeigt typische Anwendungsfelder von nicht radiometrisch kalibrierten Wärmebildkameras und von radiometrisch kalibrierten Thermografiekameras. Um verlässlich mit spezifizierten Messunsicherheiten berührungslos Temperaturen zu messen, müssen die Strahlungsthermometer und Thermografiekameras nicht nur kalibriert, sondern radiometrisch und strahlungsthermometrisch umfassend charakterisiert werden. Auch die optische Materialeigenschaft, der spektrale Emissionsgrad und die Gesamtstrahlungsbilanz (Strahlung des Messobjekts und der Umgebung) sind bei der industriellen Temperaturmessung von großer Bedeutung. In den letzten Jahrzehnten ist dazu ein umfassendes technisches Regelwerk entstanden, das wir Ihnen mit diesem VDI-Statusreport vorstellen. Manche in den Richtlinien beschriebenen Kennwerte mögen abstrakt wirken. In diesem Statusreport zeigen wir an konkreten Beispielen, was diese Kenngrößen für die berührungslose Temperaturmessung bedeuten. Beispiele von Anwendungen zeigen, wo temperaturmessende Thermografiekameras und ausschließlich bildgebende Wärmebildkameras in der Praxis eingesetzt werden. Mit einer Analyse, welche Themen und Anwendungen derzeit besonders intensiv diskutiert werden, versuchen wir Trends für zukünftige Entwicklungen herauszuarbeiten.
Numerous membrane importers rely on accessory water-soluble proteins to capture their substrates. These substrate-binding proteins (SBP) have a strong affinity for their ligands; yet, substrate release onto the low-affinity membrane transporter must occur for uptake to proceed. It is generally accepted that release is facilitated by the association of SBP and transporter, upon which the SBP adopts a conformation similar to the unliganded state, whose affinity is sufficiently reduced. Despite the appeal of this mechanism, however, direct supporting evidence is lacking. Here, we use experimental and theoretical methods to demonstrate that an allosteric mechanism of enhanced substrate release is indeed plausible. First, we report the atomic-resolution structure of apo TeaA, the SBP of the Na+-coupled ectoine TRAP transporter TeaBC from Halomonas elongata DSM2581T, and compare it with the substrate-bound structure previously reported. Conformational free-energy landscape calculations based upon molecular dynamics simulations are then used to dissect the mechanism that couples ectoine binding to structural change in TeaA. These insights allow us to design a triple mutation that biases TeaA toward apo-like conformations without directly perturbing the binding cleft, thus mimicking the influence of the membrane transporter. Calorimetric measurements demonstrate that the ectoine affinity of the conformationally biased triple mutant is 100-fold weaker than that of the wild type. By contrast, a control mutant predicted to be conformationally unbiased displays wild-type affinity. This work thus demonstrates that substrate release from SBPs onto their membrane transporters can be facilitated by the latter through a mechanism of allosteric modulation of the former.
Numerous membrane importers rely on accessory water-soluble proteins to capture their substrates. These substrate-binding Proteins (SBP) have a strong affinity for their ligands; yet, Substrate release onto the low-affinity membrane transporter must occur for uptake to proceed. It is generally accepted that release is facilitated by the association of SBP and transporter, upon which the SBP adopts a conformation similar to the unliganded state, whose affinity is sufficiently reduced. Despite the appeal of this mechanism, however, direct supporting evidence is lacking. Here, we use experimental and theoretical methods to demonstrate that an allosteric mechanism of enhanced substrate release is indeed plausible.
First, we report the atomic-resolution structure of APO TeaA, the SBP of the Na!-coupled ectoine TRAP transporter TeaBC from Halomonas elongata DSM2581T, and compare it with the substrate-bound structure previously reported. Conformational freeenergy landscape calculations based upon molecular Dynamics simulations are then used to dissect the mechanism that couples ectoine binding to structural change in TeaA. These insights allow us to design a triple mutation that biases TeaA toward apo-like conformations without directly perturbing the binding cleft, thus mimicking the influence of the membrane transporter. Calorimetric measurements demonstrate that the ectoine affinity of the conformationally biased triple mutant is 100-fold weaker than that of the wild type. By contrast, a control mutant predicted to be conformationally unbiased displays wild-type affinity. This work thus demonstrates that substrate release from SBPs onto their Membrane transporters can be facilitated by the latter through a mechanism of allosteric modulation of the former.
The halophilic bacterium Halomonas elongata takes up the compatible solute ectoine via the osmoregulated TRAP transporter TeaABC. A fourth orf (teaD) is located adjacent to the teaABC locus that encodes a putative universal stress protein (USP). By RT-PCR experiments we proved a cotranscription of teaD along with teaABC. Deletion of teaD resulted in an enhanced uptake for ectoine by the Transporter TeaABC and hence a negative activity regulation of TeaABC by TeaD. Atranscriptional regulation viaDNA binding could be excluded. ATP binding to native TeaD was shown by HPLC, and the Crystal structure of TeaD was solved in complex with ATP to a resolution of 1.9 A ° by molecular replacement. TeaD forms a dimer-dimer complex with one ATP molecule bound to each monomer, which has a Rossmann-like R/β overall fold. Our results reveal an ATP-dependent oligomerization of TeaD, which might have a functional role in the regulatory mechanism of TeaD. USP-encoding orfs, which are located adjacent to genes Encoding for TeaABC homologues, could be identified in several other organisms, and their physiological role in balancing the internal cellular ectoine pool is discussed.
The halophilic bacterium Halomonas elongata takes up the compatible solute ectoine via the osmoregulated TRAP transporter TeaABC. A fourth orf (teaD) is located adjacent to the teaABC locus that encodes a putative universal stress protein (USP). By RT-PCR experiments we proved a cotranscription of teaD along with teaABC. Deletion of teaD resulted in an enhanced uptake for ectoine by the transporter TeaABC and hence a negative activity regulation of TeaABC by TeaD. A transcriptional regulation via DNA binding could be excluded. ATP binding to native TeaD was shown by HPLC, and the crystal structure of TeaD was solved in complex with ATP to a resolution of 1.9 Å by molecular replacement. TeaD forms a dimer–dimer complex with one ATP molecule bound to each monomer, which has a Rossmann-like α/β overall fold. Our results reveal an ATP-dependent oligomerization of TeaD, which might have a functional role in the regulatory mechanism of TeaD. USP-encoding orfs, which are located adjacent to genes encoding for TeaABC homologues, could be identified in several other organisms, and their physiological role in balancing the internal cellular ectoine pool is discussed.