Abstract  The inhibition of histone deacetylases (HDAC) has been recently suggested as a new mechanism of teratogenesis. Embryonic HDAC inhibition has been demonstrated after dosage of pregnant mice with valproic acid and trichostatin A, and has been correlated, at term of gestation, to typical foetal skeletal abnormalities (axial duplications and respecifications). To better define the relationship between HDAC inhibition and axial abnormalities, in the present work we intraperitoneally treated pregnant mice on day 8 post-coitum with molecules known as HDAC inhibitors in adult cells (butyric acid, apicidin, MS275) but unknown for their teratological profile, or with boric acid (a teratogenic agent able to induce axial malformations but with an unknown mechanism of action). Some females were killed a few hours after the treatment; embryos were processed for immunoblotting or immunohistochemistry by using an antibody anti-hyperacetylated histone H4. The remaining females were sacrificed at term of gestation; foetuses were processed for the skeletal double staining for bone and cartilage. All the tested molecules induced embryonic H4 hyperacetylation, as shown by immunoblot. Interestingly, the immunohistochemistry revealed somites as target organs (according to the results obtained after valproic acid and trichostatin A treatment). Axial malformations were observed in foetuses treated with all the tested substances. The data obtained: (1) confirm the relationship between HDAC inhibition and axial abnormalities; (2) confirm that the somites are the main target organs for this class of molecules; (3) suggest that the HDAC inhibition could be the mechanism on the basis of the boric acid-related axial abnormalities.

Abstract  The prospect of depletion of natural resources, petroleum products and rising prices of raw materials tend to look for fuels from renewable energy sources and biofuels. The focus so far has been on bioethanol due to the availability of raw materials for its production and well-developed methods for isolation and purification. Butyl alcohol - biobutanol can be regarded as a potential biofuel. Biobutanol is a very attractive energy source because - as opposed to the bioethanol - is non-hygroscopic, does not cause corrosion and has a higher calorific value. Production of butanol may be made by a fermentation process called ABE (from acetone, butanol, ethanol), carried Out mostly by the bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum. The basic problem of wider use of biobutanol lies in its production with sufficient efficiency and this in turn is limited by separation of butanol from fermentation broth. The distillation process is not applicable. The classical extraction requires the use of a flammable or toxic liquid. For separation and purification of biobutanol it is proposed to apply ionic liquids. Use of ionic liquids for the extraction of butanol (to remove from the fermentation environment) can be achieved either through direct application of the liquid in the bioreactor and separation of butanol on the outside of bioreactor or through directing fermentation broth outside the bioreactor and separation of butanol in the membrane contractor.

Abstract  In order to discuss the relative factors affecting the optical clearing effect of agents on skin tissues, six hydroxy-terminated and saturated alcohols with different refractive index and molecular weight were chosen as the optical clearing agents (OCAs). After being treated by different OCAs, the change of transmitted intensity of porcine skins in vitro was measured by single integrating sphere system. The results showed the optical clearing effects of six OCAs, i.e., glycerol, PEG400, PEG200, 1,3-propylene glycol, 1,4- butanediol and 1-butanol, arranged in the descending order. Based on the above results, the refractive index and molecular weight was further discussed. The optical clearing effect of alcohols has been deduced to have negative correlation with refractive index (r=-0.608), but no correlation with molecular weight (r=0.008).