Background and objectives In accordance with clinical findings, myringoscterosis develops after otitis media (OM) and paracentesis in an experimental setting. The pathogenesis of this phenomenon of calcification is poorly understood. As the calcification process and the sclerotic plaques of the drum mimics features of bone tissue, this study explores tympanic membrane calcium deposition in associa

Substantial genetic variation is hypothesised to be necessary for the long-term survival of species. Therefore, a major aim in conservation is to maintain and restore variation in small and endangered populations. However, in most populations the amount of genetic variation and, thus, the potential threats posed by limited variation are unknown. In the present study, we assess genetic variation, b

The effects of autologous cytokine-induced killer (CIK) (CD3(+)CD56(+)) cells together with chemotherapy were investigated in patients who suffered from advanced gastric cancers (stage IV). Fifty-seven patients were divided into two groups: chemotherapy plus CIK biotherapy and chemotherapy alone. CIK cells were induced from autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells in vitro and separated by fl

Handheld mobile phones were introduced in Sweden during the late 1980s. The purpose of this population-based, case-control study was to test the hypothesis that long-term mobile phone use increases the risk of brain tumors. The authors identified all cases aged 20-69 years who were diagnosed with glioma or meningioma during 2000-2002 in certain parts of Sweden. Randomly selected controls were stra

In this paper, we study a regular rooted coloured tree with random labels assigned to its edges, where the distribution of the label assigned to an edge depends on the colours of its endpoints. We obtain some new results relevant to this model and also show how our model generalizes many other probabilistic models, including random walk in random environment on trees, recursive distributional equa

The melting dynamics of laser excited InSb have been studied with femtosecond x-ray diffraction. These measurements observe the delayed onset of diffusive atomic motion, signaling the appearance of liquidlike dynamics. They also demonstrate that the root-mean-squared displacement in the [111] direction increases faster than in the [110] direction after the first 500 fs. This structural anisotropy

Proghrelin, the precursor of the orexigenic and adipogenic peptide hormone ghrelin, is synthetized in endocrine (A-like) cells in the gastric mucosa. During its cellular processing, proghrelin gives rise to the 28-amino acid peptide desacyl ghrelin, which after octanoylation becomes active acyl ghrelin, and to the 23-amino acid peptide obestatin, claimed to be a physiological opponent of acyl ghre

The Schrodinger equation on a graph together with a set of self-adjoint boundary conditions at the vertices determine a quantum graph. If the graph has one or more infinite edges one can associate a scattering matrix to the quantum graph. It is proved that if such a graph has internal symmetries then the boundary conditions, and hence the self-adjoint operator describing the quantum system, in gen

The role of microglia recruited from bone marrow (BM) into the CNS during the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is poorly understood. To investigate whether beta-amyloid (Abeta) associated microglia are derived from blood monocytes, we transplanted BM cells from enhanced green fluorescent protein expressing mice into young or old transgenic AD mice and determined the engraftment of BM-derive

BACKGROUND: There is a need for prosthetic venous conduits in surgery for trauma, cancer and thrombotic disease. Such conduits in use today have a low patency rate, leaving room for much improvement. METHODS: This experimental study investigated the dynamics of the early attachment of radiolabelled platelets, leucocytes and fibrinogen to endothelial cell-seeded Dacron venous conduits in sheep. Gra

Solar mean magnetic field (SMMF) measurements from the Wilcox Solar Observatory and with the SOHO/MDI instrument are described and analyzed. Even though two completely different methods of observation are used, the two data sets obtained show a strong similarity. Using continuous wavelet transforms, SMMF variability is found at a number of temporal scales. Detected SMMF signals with a 1–2 year per

A simple optical dosimeter was used to measure the light intensity in rat liver and muscle in vivo with fibers positioned at different depths to investigate whether the light penetration changed during photodynamic therapy (PDT). The results were then correlated with measurements of the three optical-interaction coefficients mu(s), mu(a), and g for wavelengths in the range 500-800 nm for PDT-treat

In a periodically changing environment it is important for animals to properly time the major events of their life in order to maximise their lifetime fitness. For a non-migratory bird the timing of breeding and moult are thought to be the most crucial. We develop a state-dependent optimal annual routine model that incorporates explicit density dependence in the food supply. In the model the birds

Stratigraphical relationships, facies and petrographical evidences define a rocky shoreline in the Late Wenlock of Gotland. The major facies-elements forming the rocky shoreline are 1) several subaerially exposed reefs, which were eroded during falling base-level and which form the topography, and 2), onlap of oolite grainstones which were deposited during the subsequent rise of the base-level. Fi

A new pathway for triacylglycerol biosynthesis involving a phospholipid:diacylglycerol acyltransferase (PDAT) was recently described (Dahlqvist A, Stahl U, Lenman M, Banas A, Lee M, Sandager L, Ronne H, Stymne S, [2000] Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 97: 6487-6492). The LRO1 gene that encodes the PDAT was identified in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and shown to have homology with animal lecithin:choles

Proteins can adjust their structure and function in response to shifting environments. Functional diversity is created not only by the sequence but by changes in tertiary structure. Here we present evidence that lipid cofactors may enable otherwise unstable protein folding variants to maintain their conformation and to form novel, biologically active complexes. We have identified unsaturated C18 f