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Ectomycorrhizae are formed by mutualistic interactions between fungi and the roots of woody plants. During symbiosis the two organisms exchange carbon and nutrients in a specific tissue that is formed at the contact between a compatible fungus and plant. There is considerable variation in the degree of host specificity among species and strains of ectomycorrhizal fungi. In this study, we have for
In 1997, the World Health Organization recommended establishing an international registry of alpha(1)-antitrypsin deficiency. The objective of the present article is to describe the Organisation of an international network of registries, the Alpha One International Registry (AIR), and the processes of enrolling and entering data. By the end of 2005, the registry included individuals from 21 countr
Transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) inhibits proliferation and promotes the migration of primordial germ cells (PGCs) towards explants of gonadal ridges in vitro. However, its effects in vivo are still unclear. Here, we analyzed the behavior of PGCs in embryos lacking TGF beta signaling via the type I receptor ALK5. TGF beta in vivo was neither a chemoattractant for PGCs, nor did it affect
Background - Circulating adiponectin is a marker for insulin sensitivity, derived from fat cells. It is largely unknown if adiponectin is also an independent marker for early atherosclerosis. Methods and Results - Plasma adiponectin levels were measured in 373 men and 514 women of middle-age by a time-resolved immunofluorometric assay. The subjects were sampled stratified for degree of insulin sen
Surface samples from Vancouver Island, Canada, were used to assess the relationship between discrete seasonal temperate rainforest (STR) plant communities and their corresponding pollen signatures. Pollen from ten sediment cores was further used to evaluate the postglacial development of these communities. Principal components analysis (PCA) of the surface data revealed the distinctiveness of the
During the past two years, significant advances have been made in the development of NMR methods for studying biomolecular dynamics on the microsecond to millisecond timescale. Applications of these methods to biologically relevant systems have provided compelling evidence that, in many cases, conformational dynamics on these timescales govern the rates of biomolecular recognition and catalysis.
Cut-off levels for serum retinol levels of 20 micrograms/dl for marginal and 10 micrograms/dl for definite deficiency have been advocated and extensively used in population studies. However, the blood serum levels of retinol of the newborn are known to be very low and although the age dependency of the retinol binding protein has been described, the normal levels of serum retinol at different ages
Chemotherapy resistance remains a major obstacle to successful treatment of ovarian cancer patients. Therefore, increased knowledge of underlying mechanisms and identification of predictive factors are of great importance. Standard treatment for ovarian carcinoma is surgery followed by platinum-based chemotherapy. In this study, we aimed to search for genes or genomic regions involved in platinum
Levels of persistent pollutants, including PCBs, SIGMADDT, and gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane, were examined in a pike population inhabiting a eutrophic lake in southern Scandinavia. For females, levels of persistent pollutants decreased linearly with age, weight, or length. This decline was ascribed to the seasonal elimination of the lipophilic pollutants in roe, which contained up to 10 times highe
Pregnancy is rare in Parkinson's disease (PD). In the literature on studies of antiparkinsonian drugs in animals during pregnancy, there are reports on malformations of the skeletal and circulatory system. However, the majority of studies in animals have not shown any teratogenicity. Amantadine has been teratogenic in rats and selegiline has caused neurochemical and behavioral alterations in rats
The ADAMs (a disintegrin and metalloprotease) comprise a large family of multidomain proteins with cell-binding and metalloprotease activities. The ADAM12 cysteine-rich domain (rADAM12-cys) supports cell attachment using syndecan-4 as a primary cell surface receptor that subsequently triggers beta(1) integrin-dependent cell spreading, stress fiber assembly, and focal adhesion formation. This proce
Few studies have examined the relationship between social, cultural and religious participation, political empowerment and coronary heart disease (CHD). The aim of this study was to examine whether low social participation, as described in a social participation index, predicted incidence rates of CHD. This is a follow-up study, from 1990-91 to 31 December 2000, of 6861 Swedish women and men, who
The antennal lobe of insects has emerged as an excellent model for olfactory processing in the CNS. In the present review we compile data from areas where substantial progress has been made during recent years: structure-function relationships within the glomerular array, integration and blend specificity, time coding and the effects of neuroactive substances and hormones on antennal lobe processi
The classical theory of the ideal free distribution (IFD) predicts that the spatial distribution of consumers should follow the distribution of the resources they depend on. Here, we study consumer-resource matching in a community context. Our model for the community is a food chain with three levels. We study whether the primary consumers are able to match resources both under predation risk and
In peatlands the balance between litter input and decay loss in the oxic acrotelm determines the rate of carbon input to the anoxic catotelm with carbon lost at very slow rate. In the acrotelm the C/N-quotient decreases with depth and indicates the loss of carbon from the acrotelm. On one boreo-nemoral and three subalpine ombrotrophic bogs in Sweden the carbon losses in the acrotelm plus the appar
