University of Lorraine

About: University of Lorraine is a education organization based out in Nancy, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 11942 authors who have published 25010 publications receiving 425227 citations. The organization is also known as: Lorraine University.

The Distribution of Coumarins and Furanocoumarins in Citrus Species Closely Matches Citrus Phylogeny and Reflects the Organization of Biosynthetic Pathways

Abstract: Citrus plants are able to produce defense compounds such as coumarins and furanocoumarins to cope with herbivorous insects and pathogens. In humans, these chemical compounds are strong photosensitizers and can interact with medications, leading to the “grapefruit juice effect”. Removing coumarins and furanocoumarins from food and cosmetics imply additional costs and might alter product quality. Thus, the selection of Citrus cultivars displaying low coumarin and furanocoumarin contents constitutes a valuable alternative. In this study, we performed ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry analyses to determine the contents of these compounds within the peel and the pulp of 61 Citrus species representative of the genetic diversity all Citrus. Generally, Citrus peel contains larger diversity and higher concentrations of coumarin/furanocoumarin than the pulp of the same fruits. According to the chemotypes found in the peel, Citrus species can be separated into 4 groups that correspond to the 4 ancestral taxa (pummelos, mandarins, citrons and papedas) and extended with their respective secondary species descendants. Three of the 4 ancestral taxa (pummelos, citrons and papedas) synthesize high amounts of these compounds, whereas mandarins appear practically devoid of them. Additionally, all ancestral taxa and their hybrids are logically organized according to the coumarin and furanocoumarin pathways described in the literature. This organization allows hypotheses to be drawn regarding the biosynthetic origin of compounds for which the biogenesis remains unresolved. Determining coumarin and furanocoumarin contents is also helpful for hypothesizing the origin of Citrus species for which the phylogeny is presently not firmly established. Finally, this work also notes favorable hybridization schemes that will lead to low coumarin and furanocoumarin contents, and we propose to select mandarins and Ichang papeda as Citrus varieties for use in creating species devoid of these toxic compounds in future breeding programs.

Blind prediction of homo- and hetero-protein complexes: The CASP13-CAPRI experiment.

Abstract: We present the results for CAPRI Round 46, the third joint CASP‐CAPRI protein assembly prediction challenge. The Round comprised a total of 20 targets including 14 homo‐oligomers and 6 heterocomplexes. Eight of the homo‐oligomer targets and one heterodimer comprised proteins that could be readily modeled using templates from the Protein Data Bank, often available for the full assembly. The remaining 11 targets comprised 5 homodimers, 3 heterodimers, and two higher‐order assemblies. These were more difficult to model, as their prediction mainly involved “ab‐initio” docking of subunit models derived from distantly related templates. A total of ~30 CAPRI groups, including 9 automatic servers, submitted on average ~2000 models per target. About 17 groups participated in the CAPRI scoring rounds, offered for most targets, submitting ~170 models per target. The prediction performance, measured by the fraction of models of acceptable quality or higher submitted across all predictors groups, was very good to excellent for the nine easy targets. Poorer performance was achieved by predictors for the 11 difficult targets, with medium and high quality models submitted for only 3 of these targets. A similar performance “gap” was displayed by scorer groups, highlighting yet again the unmet challenge of modeling the conformational changes of the protein components that occur upon binding or that must be accounted for in template‐based modeling. Our analysis also indicates that residues in binding interfaces were less well predicted in this set of targets than in previous Rounds, providing useful insights for directions of future improvements.

An experimental and modelling study of n-pentane oxidation in two jet-stirred reactors: The importance of pressure-dependent kinetics and new reaction pathways

Abstract: The work at NUIG was supported by the Irish Research Council under Grant number EPSPG/2012/380. The collaboration between LRGP and NUIG was supported by COST Action 1404. The work at CNRS Orleans was supported by the ERC Advanced Researcher Grant no. 291049-2G-CSafe.

Mechanism of self-assembly in the synthesis of silica mesoporous materials: in situ studies by X-ray and neutron scattering

Abstract: In this review, recent progress in the understanding of the formation of various silica mesoporous materials is reported. Owing to time-resolved experiments using Small Angle X-ray or Neutron Scattering (SAXS or SANS), it is possible to follow in situ the formation of a material during its synthesis via the Cooperative Templating Mechanism (CTM). Such experiments directly provide unique information about the structural properties of the material inside the synthesis solution. One of the main findings is that phase transformations often occur in the material prior to the stabilisation of its final structure. Moreover, during the very early stages of the synthesis, it is also possible to detect the first hybrid silica–surfactant micellar aggregates, prior to the precipitation of the material, as reported in the case of the SBA-15 materials. All these experiments allow a better understanding of the formation mechanisms and of the influence of the many synthesis parameters. These results open the way to a better prediction and control of the structure of mesoporous materials.

Alginate coatings containing grapefruit essential oil or grapefruit seed extract for grapes preservation

Abstract: Summary Biodegradable coatings based on 1% and 2% sodium alginate (NaAlg) with and without grapefruit seed extract (GSE) or grapefruit essential oil (GEO) were applied to table grapes to preserve their quality. Changes in weight loss, firmness and antioxidant activity were assessed over 15 days of cold storage. The effectiveness of developed coatings to control postharvest decay of inoculated grape berries stored for 5 days at 20 °C was also investigated. Biodegradable coatings based on pure NaAlg and those containing GSE were efficient in reducing weight loss and maintaining firmness during storage. Coatings incorporating either GEO or GSE were able to preserve the antioxidant activity of treated grapes and to reduce decay incidence in inoculated fruits. Coatings formulated with 2% NaAlg-1% GSE showed the greatest preservation of antioxidant activity and the highest antifungal effect, with an effective control of water and firmness losses. These coatings can be recommended for maintaining table grapes quality.