Carotenoids undergo a wide range of photochemical reactions in animal, plant, and microbial systems. In photosynthetic organisms, in addition to light harvesting, they perform an essential role in protecting against light-induced damage by quenching singlet oxygen, superoxide anion radicals, or triplet-state chlorophyll. We have determined the crystal structure of a water-soluble orange carotenoid protein (OCP) isolated from the cyanobacterium Arthrospira maxima at a resolution of 2.1 A. OCP forms a homodimer with one carotenoid molecule per monomer. The carotenoid binding site is lined by a striking number of methionine residues. The structure reveals several possible ways in which the protein environment influences the spectral properties of the pigment and provides insight into how the OCP carries out its putative functions in photoprotection.

The prevalence of all types of chronic gastrointestinal symptoms in the general population of Singapore was low compared with those in the West. Chronic gastrointestinal symptoms were equally prevalent in the three major ethnic groups except for reflux-type symptoms, which were more common among Indians than Chinese or Malays.

This study extends prior studies by examining how managerial ownership and external unrelated blockholdings affect the informativeness of earnings. The results are in contrast to prior studies. A non-linear relation exists between managerial ownership and earnings informativeness. Earnings informativeness increases with managerial ownership at low levels but not at higher levels of managerial ownership where the entrenchment effect sets in. Consistent with the role of large shareholder monitoring, the evidence shows a strong positive relationship between external unrelated blockholdings and earnings informativeness. These results are supported when income-increasing and absolute discretionary accruals are used to measure the extent of earnings management Copyright Blackwell Publishers Ltd 2002.

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