The enrichment of Fe, relative to alpha elements such as O and Mg, represents a potential means to measure the ages of quasi-stellar object (QSO) host galaxies and probe nucleosynthesis in the early universe. QSOs exhibit prominent Fe II features and Mg II 2800 angstrom resonance doublet emission in the ultraviolet. Although chemical evolutionary models predict that the Fe/Mg abundance ratio decre

Dysfunction in various parts of immune defence, such as immune response, immune complex clearance, and inflammation, has an impact on pathogenesis in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We hypothesised that combinations of common variants of genes involved in these immune functions are associated with susceptibility to SLE. The following variants were analysed: HLA DR3, HLA DQ2, C4AQ0, Fcgamma rec

Production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) is an important part of the inflammatory response, but prolonged elevated levels of ROS/RNS as under chronic inflammation can contribute to the development of disease. Monitoring ROS/RNS in living animals is challenging due to the rapid turnover of ROS/RNS and the limited sensitivity and specificity of ROS/RNS probes. We have explored th

We have investigated possible signaling pathways coupled to injury-induced ERK1/2 activation and the subsequent initiation of vascular rat smooth muscle cell migration and proliferation. Aortic smooth muscle cells were cultured to confluency and subjected to in vitro injury under serum-free conditions. In fluo-4-loaded cells, injury induced a rapid wave of intracellular Ca(2+) release that propaga

We describe a statistical measure, Mass Distance Fingerprint, for automatic de novo detection of predominant peptide mass distances, i.e., putative protein modifications. The method's focus is to globally detect mass differences, not to assign peptide sequences or modifications to individual spectra. The Mass Distance Fingerprint is calculated from high accuracy measured peptide masses. For the da

Nonaqueous CE (NACE) methodology was developed for the separation and determination of phosphatidylethanol (Peth), a new biomarker of ethanol intake. Peth is an abnormal phospholipid formed in cell membranes only in the presence of ethanol, via the transphosphatidylation reaction of phospholipase D. The NACE separation medium consisted of 80 mM ammonium acetate in 50% ACN, 33% 2-propanol, 12% hexa

Previous studies of high-risk breast cancer families have proposed that two major breast cancer-susceptibility genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, may account for at least two-thirds of all hereditary breast cancer. We have screened index cases from 106 Scandinavian (mainly southern Swedish) breast cancer and breast-ovarian cancer families for germ-line mutations in all coding exons of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gen

The interference between vascular plants and peat mosses with respect to nitrogen and phosphorus was studied in a fertilization experiment and with respect to competition for light in a removal experiment in poor fens with either soligenous or topogenous hydrology using Narthecium ossifragum (L.) Huds. and three species of Sphagnum sect. Sphagnum as targets. Adding fertilizer either on the moss su

The combination of quantum mechanics and molecular mechanics (QM/MM) methods is one of the most promising approaches to study the structure, function and properties of proteins. The number of QM/MM applications on metalloproteins is steadily increasing, especially studies with density functional methods on redox-active metal centres. Recent developments include new parameterised methods to treat c

Apart from providing some new experimental data the paper reviews previous investigations concerning fluctuating lift acting on a stationary circular cylinder in cross-flow. In particular, effects of Reynolds number in the nominal case of an infinitely long and nonconfined cylinder in a smooth oncoming flow are discussed. The Reynolds number range covered is from about Re = 47 to 2 x 10(5), i.e.,

The International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD) has published position statements on topics relating to the use and interpretation of measurements of bone mineral density (BMD). The most recent appeared in the Journal of Clinical Densitometry (1) and was republished in the Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism and in Osteoporosis International (2,3). The topics included the indication

Genome-wide association scans in type 2 diabetes (T2D) have identified a risk variant, rs13266634 (Arg325Trp), in SLC30A8 on chromosome 8. SLC30A8 encodes a beta-cell specific zinc-ion transporter and rs13266634 has been shown to affect insulin secretion. Recently, autoantibodies for Slc30A8 with high predictive value were demonstrated in individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1 D), making this gene a

A study was undertaken to measure changes in oxygen consumption and metabolite concentration (ammonia, free amino acids, glucose, glycogen, ninhydrin positive substances and protein) in embryos of yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) incubated at different temperatures (17, 19, 21 and 23 °C). The oxygen uptake at hatch and total oxygen consumed during embryogenesis was negatively correlated with

Early age at first birth and multiparity have been associated with a decrease in the risk of breast cancer in women in the general population. We examined whether this relationship is also present in women at high risk of breast cancer due to the presence of a mutation in either of the 2 breast cancer susceptibility genes, BRCA1 or BRCA2. We performed a matched case-control study of 1,260 pairs of

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), optical microscopy and turbidity measurements were used to define experimental conditions (time, temperature and shearing) for dissolving high amylopectin potato starch (HAPP) granules. A simple, less time consuming and non-chemical method for preparing starch samples was established. Small-amplitude oscillation measurements were used to characterise the be

Objective To evaluate the impact of demographic and psychosocial background factors and psychiatric and functional status before and at admission on the patients' satisfaction with care (PSC) among first-episode psychosis (FEP) patients. Method One year after entering the Parachute Project, 134 FEP patients completed a patient satisfaction questionnaire. The association with demographic and psycho

Foraging range, an important component of bee ecology, is of considerable interest for insect-pollinated plants because it determines the potential for outcrossing among individuals. However, long-distance pollen flow is difficuit to assess, especially when the plant also relies on self-pollination. Pollen movement can be estimated indirectly through population genetic data, but complementary data

Endo-1,4-beta-mannanases (beta-mannanases) randomly hydrolyse the mannosidic bonds within the main chain of various mannans and heteromannans. Some of these polysaccharides are hemicelluloses, a major part of the plant cell-wall. The beta-mannanases have been assigned to family 5 and 26 of the glycoside hydrolase clan A. This work presents a detailed kinetic analysis of the family 26 beta-mannanas

The analysis of chromosomal imbalances in solid tumors using comparative genetic hybridization (CGH) has gained much attention. A survey of the literature suggests that CGH is more sensitive in detecting copy number aberrations than is karyotyping, although careful comparisons between CGH and cytogenetics have not been performed. Here, we compared cytogenetics and CGH in 29 invasive breast cancers