Identifying the molecular basis of environmentally induced phenotypic variation presents exciting opportunities for furthering our understanding of how ecological processes and the environment can shape the phenotype. Urban and rural environments present free-living organisms with different challenges and opportunities, which have marked consequences for the phenotype, yet little is known about re

Microbial translocation has been linked to systemic immune activation during human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 infection. Here, we show that an elevated level of microbial translocation, measured as plasma lipopolysaccharide (LPS) concentration, correlates with AIDS in both individuals infected with HIV type 1 and individuals infected with HIV type 2. LPS concentration also correlates with

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a new automated method for the interpretation of lung perfusion scintigrams using patients from a hospital other than that where the method was developed, and then to compare the performance of the technique against that of experienced physicians. A total of 1,087 scintigrams from patients with suspected pulmonary embolism comprised the training group. The

The concept of dynamical movement primitives (DMPs) has become popular for modeling of motion, commonly applied to robots. This paper presents a framework that allows a robot operator to adjust DMPs in an intuitive way. Given a generated trajectory with a faulty last part, the operator can use lead-through programming to demonstrate a corrective trajectory. A modified DMP is formed, based on the f

Parkinson's disease (PD) patients experience loss of normal motor function (hypokinesia), but can develop uncontrollable movements known as dyskinesia upon treatment with L-DOPA. Poverty or excess of movement in PD has been attributed to overactivity of striatal projection neurons forming either the indirect (iSPNs) or the direct (dSPNs) pathway, respectively. Here, we investigated the two pathway

This study investigates older inhabitants’ appreciation of environmental measures taken in their residential area and the effect on perceived difficulty as pedestrians and in outdoor activity. The study is based on data collected with a mailed questionnaire at baseline and at a 5-year follow-up (after intervention) posted to 195 people aged 65+ in a residential area in a medium-sized Swedish town,

This article asks what key concerns emerge from the way responsibility is framed in United Nations summit documents on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted in 2015. Our conceptual framework serves to make the study of SDG responsibility more systematic by distinguishing three main senses of responsibility: cause, obligation, and accountability. The framework structures our analysis of

This study empirically analyzes whether gender diversity enhances boards of directors’ independence and efficiency. Using data from 3,876 public firms in 47 countries and controlling for a wide set of corporate governance mechanisms, we find that firms with more female directors have higher firm performance by market (Tobin’s Q) and accounting (return on assets) measures. The results also suggest

Aim: DBS might be an appropriate microsampling technique for therapeutic drug monitoring of caffeine in infants. Nevertheless, its application presents several issues that still limit its use. This paper describes a validated DBS-LC-MS/MS method for caffeine. Results: The results of the method validation showed an hematocrit dependence. In the analysis of 96 paired plasma and DBS clinical samples,

The sharp rise in the incidence of Alzheimer's disease (AD) at an old age coincides with a reduction in energy metabolism and core body temperature. We found that the triple-transgenic mouse model of AD (3×Tg-AD) spontaneously develops a lower basal body temperature and is more vulnerable to a cold environment compared with age-matched controls. This was despite higher nonshivering thermogenic act