X-ray and neutron crystallography, as well as cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), are the most common methods to obtain atomic structures of biological macromolecules. A feature they all have in common is that, at typical resolutions, the experimental data need to be supplemented by empirical restraints, ensuring that the final structure is chemically reasonable. The restraints are accurate for amino acids and nucleic acids, but often less accurate for substrates, inhibitors, small-molecule ligands and metal sites, for which experimental data are scarce or empirical potentials are harder to formulate. This can be solved using quantum mechanical calculations for a small but interesting part of the structure. Such an approach, called quantum refinement, has been shown to improve structures locally, allow the determination of the protonation and oxidation states of ligands and metals, and discriminate between different interpretations of the structure. Here, we present a new implementation of quantum refinement interfacing the widely used structure-refinement software Phenix and the freely available quantum mechanical software ORCA. Through application to manganese superoxide dismutase and V- and Fe-nitro­genase, we show that the approach works effectively for X-ray and neutron crystal structures, that old results can be reproduced and structural discrimination can be performed. We discuss how the weight factor between the experimental data and the empirical restraints should be selected and how quantum mechanical quality measures such as strain energies should be calculated. We also present an application of quantum refinement to cryo-EM data for particulate methane monooxygenase and show that this may be the method of choice for metal sites in such structures because no accurate empirical restraints are currently available for metals.

Onchocerca volvulus causes blindness, onchocerciasis, skin infections and devastating neurological diseases such as nodding syndrome. New treatments are needed because the currently used drug, ivermectin, is contraindicated in pregnant women and those co-infected with Loa loa. The Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Disease (SSGCID) produced, crystallized and determined the apo structure of N-terminally hexahistidine-tagged O. volvulus macrophage migration inhibitory factor-1 (His-OvMIF-1). OvMIF-1 is a possible drug target. His-OvMIF-1 has a unique jellyfish-like structure with a prototypical macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) trimer as the `head' and a unique C-terminal `tail'. Deleting the N-terminal tag reveals an OvMIF-1 structure with a larger cavity than that observed in human MIF that can be targeted for drug repurposing and discovery. Removal of the tag will be necessary to determine the actual biological oligomer of OvMIF-1 because size-exclusion chomatographic analysis of His-OvMIF-1 suggests a monomer, while PISA analysis suggests a hexamer stabilized by the unique C-terminal tails.

Mastercard has launched the Mastercard Move Commercial...

Mastercard has joined

FOMO Pay, a payment institution based in Singapore, has...

Premier Bank, in partnership with

Mastercard has expanded its US...

Emirates NBD and...

US-based fintech Felix Pago has announced a partnership...

Mastercard has entered into a partnership with Tap Payments to launch a Click to Pay with Payment Passkey service for optimised ecommerce transactions. 

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has announced the launch of the Bakong Tourists App with Mastercard, with the institution aiming to optimise digital payments for tourists visiting Cambodia. 

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have been awarded a grant for $100,000 from Arcadia — a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin — to support the work of the Academies’ Roundtable on Aligning Incentives for Open Science.

Arcadia Biosciences, Inc. announced it is expanding its better-for-you, fiber-forward brand, GoodWheat, with the upcoming launch of GoodWheat Quikcakes and GoodWheat Pancake & Waffle Mixes.

The retailer’s new line includes snacks, desserts, beverages, and other items.

On Feb. 1, NIBCO announced it acquired Matco-Norca and its subsidiary SVF Flow Controls.
NIBCO Chairman Rex Martin stated, “This acquisition supports our strategic long-range goal of growth through acquisition, expanding our market reach and providing customers with access to a broader portfolio of products.This is an extraordinary time in NIBCO’s evolving history.”

Matco-Norca has added a new eccentric plug valve to their vast product offering.

This year marked the 29th iteration of the New Product Pacesetters report from Circana. The 2023 New Product Pacesetters garnered a $6.1 billion in combined year-one sales across food, beverage and nonfood products, which was slightly less than the $7 billion achieved by 2022 Pacesetter sales.

Market research firm Circana released its report “Tapping Into the Global Consumer Well-Being Opportunity,” where it identified ways consumers pursue their well-being across various sectors, including hydration and increased energy.

Circana, an advisor on the complexity of consumer behavior, released new Circana Compass insights, providing a comprehensive update on the 2024 performance of the global retail food and beverage (F&B) industry and an outlook for 2025.

Key Housing is a best-in-class provider of corporate rentals throughout California from Walnut Creek to Long Beach.

Shabazz Arts will launch a Kickstarter campaign for their new graphic novel, Bearcat Wright & The Kayfable Chronicles. The book tells the story of Wright, the first African American pro-wrestling champion.

Specializing in audio content, Dollarcasts.com is easy-to-use and affordable for any user looking to expand their skills.

Yodda Elder Care Technologies today announced the launch of their operations in the city of Hyderabad, India. Yodda, a premium parent care company, will now offer emergency services, healthcare services and convenience services to senior citizens.

Introducing 3DPrinterOS' TinkerCAD integration to help students submit all their print jobs directly through the browser.

AINEX, a company specialized in 3D controller development, is launching the Nextick Lightgun, which can be enjoyed like an arcade game through the global crowdfunding platform, Indiegogo.

Games are essential for our lives! Kiddleton Inc. proudly announced a strategic partnership with Japan Village New York, the grand-opening in June.

Kiddleton's momentum shows no signs of slowing down!

Arcadia Senior Living, a beloved locally owned and operated assisted living community in Portland, celebrated its dedicated nursing staff this week in honor of National Nurses Week.

Yodda announced the launch of their elder care services in the cities of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai today. It will now offer emergency services, healthcare services and convenience services to senior citizens living in these cities.

John Florez began his career in the late 1960's as a Los Angeles record producer. Throughout his career, one out of every three songs he produced was nationally charted.

Precise Design and Installation of Spiral Staircases: Achieving the Perfect Balance of Space and Aesthetics

Race at Work is an HBR Presents podcast hosted by Porter Braswell about the role race plays in our careers and lives. In this episode, he speaks with Donna Johnson, former chief diversity officer at Mastercard, about leading the charge on changing company culture and how diversity can drive real business results.

Ajay Banga, the executive chairman and former CEO of Mastercard, has spearheaded a strategy focused on serving the previously unbanked via new technologies. During his 11-year tenure as president and chief executive, the company tripled revenues, increased net income six-fold, and saw its market cap rise from below $30 billion to more than $300 billion. He attributes this growth to setting ambitious goals, planning for the long term, and ensuring that all employees and customers feel valued.

"Raised from a kitten by a kindly old ninja master, Claude now spends his days as the pampered house cat of an eleven-year-old boy. But when trouble arises, Claude dons his mask and springs into action as Cat Ninja— Metro City's secret protector." -- Provided by publisher

Mastercam announced the appointment of Oscar Elizaga as vice president of global sales and services.

Orca Wave by Kitty Cantrell is a(n) Open Edition. The Edition is Limited to Limited Edition pcs

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Last month Boeing [BA] said its Orca Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (XLUUV) finished a 48-hour endurance sailing run. During this exercise, the vehicle operated fully autonomously below the sea […]

A new, national program from Carrier and Orca Energy, a leading geothermal utility provider, is designed to makes geothermal heating and cooling more accessible in new construction homes. Orca Energy will provide financing for geothermal earth loops in new residential developments with the purchase of a Carrier geothermal system.

Street selling is a risky activity in Mexico City. But the mercaditas movement aims to empower women and nonbinary sellers to protect themselves from economic exploitation.

13-year-old Nasser has experienced racism and bullying - he explains how he's dealt with it.

As part of our announcement that we have entered a global partnership with MasterCard, Masabi’s Head of Innovation Ben Whitaker and MasterCard’s Head of Transit Centre of Excellence sat down to explain why we believe working together will help customers get around cities and how this benefits transit operators. If […]

The post Masabi and MasterCard Partnership Video appeared first on Masabi.

LINDAL Group’s Flip440 is a new spray head with an attached overcap, suitable for both technical and home care applications.

Meet Amy Mercante, General Manager of Specialty Products at PPG.

Legend of Arcadia (LoA), a new card-based RPG set in an expansive universe inspired by Kingdom Hearts, is bringing a community-driven operational model to Web3 gaming. With a focus on sustainable growth, LoA aims to establish itself as a leading platform by integrating blockchain technology, unique NFT mechanics, and community-centric features that foster long-term player engagement.

As the Web3 gaming industry is forecasted to grow to $305 billion by 2030, LoA stands out by addressing key sustainability issues that have previously limited the success of Web3 gaming ventures. Many blockchain-based games have struggled with player retention and engagement, often due to unsustainable reward systems. LoA’s approach, built on years of gaming experience from its team’s work with industry leaders like Tencent, Hero Entertainment, and Seasun Studios, centers on creating an inclusive, feedback-driven community.

Community-driven growth and operations

Legend of Arcadia (LoA), a card-based RPG game built on a vast story universe inspired by Kingdom Hearts, has a strong vision for reimagining live operations in Web3, called community-driven operations. The formula combines building a sticky and vocal community driven by a strong feedback loop and nimble implementation of the ideas. This has helped LoA stand out from others.

The team has spent the past two years perfecting the formula based on their decade-long experience in driving high DAU and retention at leading game companies such as Tencent, Hero Entertainment, and Seasun Studios. At the same time, building a 60k+ strong community with users that actively interact with the team and provide them with feedback.

The right feedback loop between the community and the developer has led to innovative tactics for driving community engagement.

For example, rather than hosting traditional alpha tests, the team mixed the idea of esports and competition and invited people to form their own teams to compete during the test. This led to a brand-new Guild called Alter Ego Guild being formed in the community, and they remain some of the game’s biggest supporters, helping new players onboard and get deep into LoA.

During its three-month campaign, LoA had 100,000+ registered users with minimal marketing spend. It also has very high next-day and 7-day retention of 75% and 56%, respectively, higher than many traditional games' 50% and 20%. As it moves towards its TGE and official game launch, the community continues to provide feedback and support the team.

With backing from 10+ investors, including Animoca Brands and OKX Ventures, LoA can further develop the game's vastness, ensuring the community is constantly engaged with new content and utilities of its native token, $ARCA. This ranges from the endless possibilities of different NFT heroes to the countless actions and ways to earn $ARCA tokens.

Innovative NFT Mechanics and Extensive Gameplay

In LoA, each NFT hero is unique, with randomized genetic traits such as appearance and abilities drawn from a large gene pool of over five trillion combinations, including over 48 types of basic attributes, 40,000+ skill combinations, and more than 28 million gene combinations. This ensures that no two NFT heroes are the same.

The game team, supported by AI, has also created countless words and storylines, shaping different toy characters and enriching the stories of LoA. It also enhances player retention by implementing seasonal demands created by the in-game mechanics, which will eventually boost the trading volume.

$ARCA Token Distribution and Roadmap

In LoA, players can earn tokens through a variety of activities and strategies involving their NFT heroes. Inspired by a system commonly used in web2 games, by combining White Ores from mining with Black Ores earned in battles, they can produce $ARCA tokens. Heroes can also be customized through special events and features, which not only alter their appearance but can also provide gameplay advantages, such as enhanced mining power when using event-specific skins.

Players can also participate in PvE content by clearing dungeons and defeating bosses for valuable loot or diving into PvP battles to compete against others for rewards and climb seasonal leaderboards for even greater gains. To further boost their earnings, players can stake $ARCA tokens, unlocking additional rewards like free NFTs or a share of profits from NFT sales, adding another layer of value to their in-game investments.

In addition to earning tokens through in-game monetization, LoA further enhances sustainability by distinguishing between in-game and external economic factors. This structure allows players to monetize external elements, such as staking $ARCA tokens for special privileges and rewards or sharing in proceeds from NFT assets. This approach aims to foster long-term value creation over short-term speculative gains.

LoA will have a total supply of 40,000,000 $ARCA tokens that are distributed among seven pools where each pool will be further subdivided into different rank tiers based on the amount of Gacha Points earned.

With countless opportunities and activities in the world of LoA, the game constantly rejuvenates the excitement of its community and players, which will ensure its sustainability in the long run. The game also has plans for extensive single-player content (PVE mode) and multiplayer modes where players can form teams and challenge others in real-time battles. Legend of Arcadia is currently set to launch in November 2024.

About Legend of Arcadia

Legend of Arcadia (LOA) (https://legendofarcadia.io/) is a card-based RPG game built on a vast story universe inspired by Kingdom Hearts. LOA is built with the latest technology for the modern gamer, powered by blockchain. Players can enjoy the game for free, on the go, on a mobile device, and socialize in real-time with gamers from across the globe through immersive PvP game modes and by trading highly composable NFTs.

traducido por Angel Chavez Una de las partes más gratificantes de la creación de esta edición de Urtext ha sido descubrir una nueva pieza. Al principio pensé que debía ser un nombre alternativo para Capriccio di Bravura, pero al inspeccionarlo, era una obra sustancial que no había visto antes. A primera vista, la pieza parece […]

A review of the first half of the new season of Netflix's "Arcane".

Lolita, the 57-year-old orca who’s been held in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium on Virginia Key since the 1970s, is expected to be returned to her home waters in the Puget Sound, where she will live out the remainder of her days.

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