1. A wastewater treatment apparatus to decontaminate a wastewater comprising:
a wastewater intake unit;
a decontaminated water discharge unit; and
a plurality of gravity separation air flotation units connected together and connected between the intake unit and the discharge unit;
a rake having an attached blade to remove a floc blanket from the top of at least one of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units, the attached blade having a roller attached to each of its two ends; and
supports for the rollers attached to the apparatus to support the rollers at each of the two ends of the blade.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is a modular apparatus formed of modular units having compatible sizes, shapes, and configurations.
3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each of the modular units have modular support structures.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units comprises a gravity separation air flotation unit that has been inserted between the intake unit and the discharge unit.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain a standard housing element having a standard shape, size, and configuration in the unit.
6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain an identical rectangular side panel.
7. The apparatus of claim 1:
wherein the intake unit and the discharge unit each contain an end panel having a particular horizontal length;
wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units have a side panel having a second horizontal length that is the same as the particular length; and
wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain four identical trapezoidal panels that have a third horizontal length along a longest side thereof that is the same as the particular length.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a gravity separation air floatation unit of the plurality is connected to another unit by nuts and bolts to allow the gravity separation air floatation unit to be separated from the other unit.
9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the intake unit comprises a split manifold.
10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the intake unit comprises an opening to accommodate flow from a conduit.
11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the discharge unit comprises a filter.
12. A wastewater treatment apparatus to remove particulate contaminants from a wastewater, comprising:
a plurality of gravity separation air flotation units that each contain an upper housing to remove floatable particulate contaminants and a lower conical housing to remove gravity separable particulate contaminants;
a plurality of rakes corresponding to the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units, the rakes each having an attached blade to remove a floc blanket from the top of one of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units, the attached blade having a roller attached to each of its two ends; and
supports for the rollers attached to the apparatus at each of the ends of the blades for each of the rakes.
13. The apparatus of claim 12:
wherein the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units each comprise a plurality of standard housing elements; and
wherein the plurality of standard housing elements comprise a rectangular side panel belonging to the upper housing and a trapezoidal side panel belonging to the lower conical housing.
14. The apparatus of claim 12:
wherein each of the upper housings are formed of a first plurality of standardized housing elements; and
wherein each of the lower housings are formed of a second plurality of standardized housing elements.
15. The apparatus of claim 14:
wherein the first plurality of standardized housing elements comprise a pair of identical side panels; and
wherein the second plurality of standardized housing elements comprise four identical trapezoidal panels.
16. The apparatus of claim 12:
wherein a first lower conical housing of the plurality comprises a first plurality of identical panels that are each attached to two other panels of the first plurality along edges thereof;
further comprising a tank coupled with the lower conical housing by a line to receive sludge from the lower conical housing, the tank containing a second lower conical housing comprising a second plurality of identical panels that are each attached to two other panels of the second plurality along edges thereof; and
wherein each of the first plurality of panels have the same shape and size as each of the second plurality of panels.
17. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising an intake unit containing a split manifold and an opening to accommodate flow from a conduit.
18. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising a discharge unit containing a filter.
19. A wastewater treatment apparatus to decontaminate a wastewater comprising:
a wastewater intake unit;
a decontaminated water discharge unit;
a plurality of gravity separation air flotation units connected together and connected between the intake unit and the discharge unit;
a plurality of rakes corresponding to the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units, the rakes each having an attached blade to remove a floc blanket from the top of one of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units, the attached blade having a roller attached to each of its two ends; and
supports for the rollers attached to the apparatus at each of the ends of the blades for each of the rakes.
20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the apparatus is a modular apparatus formed of modular units having compatible sizes, shapes, and configurations.
21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein each of the modular units have modular support structures.
22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units comprises a gravity separation air flotation unit that has been inserted between the intake unit and the discharge unit.
23. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain a standard housing element having a standard shape, size, and configuration in the unit.
24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain an identical rectangular side panel.
25. The apparatus of claim 19:
wherein the intake unit and the discharge unit each contain an end panel having a particular horizontal length;
wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units have a side panel having a second horizontal length that is the same as the particular length; and
wherein each of the plurality of gravity separation air flotation units contain four identical trapezoidal panels that have a third horizontal length along a longest side thereof that is the same as the particular length.
26. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein a gravity separation air floatation unit of the plurality is connected to another unit by nuts and bolts to allow the gravity separation air floatation unit to be separated from the other unit.
27. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the intake unit comprises a split manifold.
28. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the intake unit comprises an opening to accommodate flow from a conduit.
29. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the discharge unit comprises a filter.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. Purified human metabotropic glutamate receptor (hmGluR) which is a member of the hmGluR4 subfamily selected from the group consisting of subtypes hmGluR4, hmGluR6 and hmGluR7, wherein hmGluR 4 has the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 2; hmGluR7 is selected from the group consisting of hmGluR7a having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 12, hmGluR7b having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 14 and a hmGluR7 subtype comprising a polypeptide having an amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 6, 8 or 10, respectively; and hmGluR6 comprises a polypeptide having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 16.
2. Receptor according to claim 1 which is the hmGluR4 subtype having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 2.
3. Receptor according to claim 1 which is a hmGluR7 subtype selected from the group consisting of hmGluR7a having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 12 and hmGluR7b having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 14.
4. Receptor according to claim 1 which is a hmGluR7 subtype comprising a polypeptide selected from the group consisting of the polypeptides having the amino acid sequences set forth in SEQ ID NOs. 6, 8 and 10, respectively.
5. Receptor according to claim 1 which is a hmGluR6 subtype comprising a polypeptide having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 16.
6. Variant of a receptor according to claim 1 selected from the group consisting of splice variants, amino acid mutants, glycosylation variants, membrane-bound and soluble fragments and covalent or aggregative moieties with other chemical entities.
7. Process for the preparation of a receptor according to claim 1 comprising multiplication in vitro or in vivo of a suitable host cell transformed with a hybrid vector comprising an expression cassette comprising a promoter and a DNA coding for such receptor which DNA is controlled by said promoter.
8. Use of a receptor according to claim 1 for screening of a compound which modulates the activity of said receptor.
9. Nucleic acid comprising an isolated nucleic acid coding for a receptor according to claim 1, or a fragment of said nucleic acid.
10. Nucleic acid according to claim 9, which is a DNA.
11. A DNA according to claim 10 selected from the group consisting of the DNAs having substantially the nucleotide sequences set forth in SEQ ID Nos. 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15, respectively.
12. Nucleic acid probe comprising at least 14 contiguous bases of the DNA according to claim 10 or 11, or the complement thereof.
13. Process for the preparation of a nucleic acid according to claim 10 comprising chemical synthesis, recombinant DNA technology or polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
14. A DNA according to claim 10 which is a hybrid vector.
15. A host cell comprising the DNA of claim 10.
16. A eukaryotic host cell expressing the DNA of claim 10.
17. A host cell according to claims 15 or 16 which is a mammalian cell.
18. Use of a host cell according to claim 15 for the screening of a compound which modulates the activity of a receptor according to claim 1.
19. Process for the preparation of a host cell according to claim 15 comprising transfection or transformation of the host cell with the hybrid vector of claim 14.
20. Purified mRNA complementary to the DNA according to claim 11.
21. A method for identifying DNA encoding a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 comprising contacting human DNA with a probe according to claim 12, and identifying DNA(s) which substantially hybridize to said probe.
22. A method for identifying compounds binding to a hmGluR subtype comprising use of a receptor protein according to claim 1 in a competitive binding assay.
23. An assay for identifying compounds which modulate the activity of a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 comprising
contacting the cells of claim 16 with at least one compound or signal whose ability to modulate the activity of said receptor subtype is sought to be determined, and subsequently
analyzing cells for a difference in functional response attributable to said receptor.
24. Assay according to claim 23 comprising
contacting the cells of claim 16 with at least one compound or signal whose ability to modulate the second messenger activity of a receptor subtype of the invention is sought to be determined, and subsequently
monitoring said cells for a change in the level of a particular second messenger.
25. A Method for modulating the signal transduction activity of a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 comprising contacting said subtype with an effective amount of at least one compound identified in the assay of claim 24.
26. A Method for detecting a glutamate agonist or an allosteric modulator of a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 having agonistic activity comprising the steps of (a) exposing a compound to a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 coupled to a response pathway, under conditions and for a time sufficient to allow interaction of the compound with the receptor and an associated response through the pathway, and (b) detecting an increase or decrease in the stimulation of the response pathway resulting from the interaction of the compound with the hmGluR subtype, relative to the absence of the tested compound and therefrom determining the presence of an agonist or an allosteric modulator having agonist-like activity.
27. A method for identifying a glutamate antagonist or an allosteric modulator of a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 having antagonistic activity, said method comprising the steps of (a) exposing a compound in the presence of a known glutamate agonist to a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 to a response pathway, under conditions and for a time sufficient to allow interaction of the agonist with the receptor and an associated response through the pathway, and (b) detecting an inhibition of the stimulation of the response pathway by the agonist resulting from the interaction of the test compound with the hmGluR subtype, relative to the stimulation of the response pathway induced by the glutamate agonist alone, and therefrom determining the presence of a glutamate antagonist or an allosteric modulator having antagonist-like activity.
28. An antibody directed against a protein of claim 1.
29. An antibody according to claim 28 which is a polyclonal antibody.
30. An antibody according to claim 28 which is a monoclonal antibody.
31. A method for modulating the signal transduction activity of a hmGluR subtype according to claim 1 comprising contacting said receptor with an antibody of claim 28.
32. A receptor according to claim 1 obtainable by recombinant DNA technology.
33. A fusion protein comprising a receptor according to claim 1.