BACKGROUND: Cancer of the pancreas is a common disease, but the large majority of patients have tumours that are irresectable at the time of diagnosis. Moreover, patients whose tumours are clearly beyond surgical cure are best treated non-operatively, if possible, by relief of biliary obstruction and percutaneous biopsy to confirm the diagnosis and then consideration of oncological treatment, nota

Objective: To develop an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to quantify the levels of specific aggrecan fragments generated by aggrecanase-mediated cleavage at the (373)Glu-(374)Ala bond within the aggrecan interglobular domain. Methods: The ELISA employs a commercially available monoclonal antibody to capture aggrecan fragments containing keratan sulfate (KS). Aggrecan fragments generated

Background/Aims: Linomide is an immunomodulator that ameliorates several autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. We assessed the effect of Linomide on microvascular perfusion failure, leukocyte recruitment and hepatocellular injury induced by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and D-Galactosamine (Gal).Methods: After 3 days of Linomide pretreatment (1, 10 and 100mg/kg/day), rats were challenged

An adsorbent was developed from mature leaves and stem bark of the Neem (Azadirachta indica) tree for removing zinc from water. Adsorption was carried out in a batch process with several different concentrations of zinc by varying pH. The uptake of metal was very fast initially, but gradually slowed down indicating penetration into the interior of the adsorbent particles. The data showed that opti

Twenty-four individuals, who were 16 years of age or younger when they sustained a fracture of the radial head or neck, were examined at a mean of 19 years (range 14-25 years) after injury. The 12 girls and 12 boys were a mean age of 11 years (range 5-16 years) when the fracture was sustained. Two were excluded due to late resection of the radial head following persisting pain. The fractures, whic

In the existing literature on welfare state typologies, the concept of the universal welfare state is not defined precisely enough to allow for comparisons of universality over time and between countries. In this paper, I discuss some problems with the way the term 'the universal welfare state' has been used and I suggest possible solutions. Among other things, I propose that the term 'universalit

Let S be a set of n points in a metric space, and let k be a positive integer. Algorithms are given that construct k-fault-tolerant spanners for S. If in such a spanner at most k vertices and/or edges are removed, then each pair of points in the remaining graph is still connected by a "short" path. First, an algorithm is given that transforms an arbitrary spanner into a k-fault-tolerant spanner. F

In sections of paraformaldehyde, fixed brain tissue, stained using immunohistochemical methods, the distribution of staining within the sections is not uniform. Whilst stained cells are seen at the top and bottom surfaces, the central thicknesses of the sections contain little or no immunoreactivity. This presents a major problem for quantification, as each section contains a population of cells t

Detergent given as an aerosol and large tidal volume ventilation (LTVV) have been observed, by us, to promote lung injury by an additive effect on alveolocapillary barrier function. The surfactant system may be further damaged if protein leakage occurs into the alveoli. The aim was to study the effect of detergent and LTVV on the alveolar leakage of albumin and also the effect of detergent on surf

Retroviral transduction of CD34(+) cells on Retronectin using gibbon ape leukemia virus (GALV) pseudotyped vectors is inhibited by high concentrations of vector containing medium (VCM). Furthermore, this inhibitory activity is stable for at least 48 hours at 37 degrees C and partially blocks a second hit with a GALV pseudotyped vector. We hypothesized that this inhibition was due to interference a

In order to understand the expression and evolution of host resistance to pathogens, we need to examine the links between genetic variability at the major histocompatibility complex (Mhc), phenotypic expression of the immune response and parasite resistance in natural populations. To do so, we characterized the Mhc class I and IIB genes of house sparrows with the goal of designing a PCR-based geno

Hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) has been developed as a powerful technique for separating and purifying proteins. In this study, we have characterized the ability of new multimodal pH-HIC media to resolve proteins with only small differences in their primary structures. This was done by determining the retention times of different green fluorescent protein (GFP) mutants prepared from

Two hundred one consecutive, primary, noninfected Charnley (Thackray, Leeds) hip arthroplasties, implanted from 1968 to 1985 due to adult-onset rheumatoid arthritis, were matched in pairs with respect to year of operation, age, and sex with 201 Charnley prostheses implanted due to osteoarthritis. The 10-year survival estimate for nonrevisions was 95% in the rheumatoid group and 89% in the osteoart

Mps1 kinase plays an evolutionary conserved role in the mitotic spindle checkpoint [1-8]. This system precludes anaphase onset until all chromosomes have successfully attached to spindle microtubules via their kinetochores [9]. Mps1 overexpression in budding yeast is sufficient to trigger a mitotic arrest, which is dependent on the other mitotic. checkpoint components, Bub1, Bub3, Mad1, Mad2, and

Subsolidus phase relations have been determined for the BaO:TiO2:Ta2O5 system by X-ray diffraction analysis of ~100 specimens prepared in air at temperatures near but below the solidus (1275 °C to 1500 °C). For the BaO:Ta2O5 subsystem, the formation of all three polymorphs of BaTa2O6 (orthorhombic, tetragonal, and hexagonal) was confirmed. The present study found no stable phases forming between B