We have previously demonstrated that a strong correlation exists between systemic vasculitis with proteinase 3-anti-neutrophil cytoplasm antibodies (PR3-ANCA) and heterozygosity for α1-antitrypsin (α1-AT) deficiency, PiZ. In the present study we characterized the PiZ-positive subgroup by laboratory findings, clinical features and outcome. The series studied consisted of 18 PiZ-positive and 81 PiZ-

We describe the clinical presentation and outcome in a series of eight patients with systemic necrotizing vasculitis and severe alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency followed up at three Swedish hospitals during 1968-92. We also review six other cases reported in the literature during the same period. Diagnosis of severe AAT deficiency was based on the presence of the PiZZ phenotype, or low plasma t

Detection of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA) has become a useful tool in the diagnosis of Wegener's granulomatosis and microscopic polyangiitis. However, the results obtained with indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) and by ELISA for ANCA demonstration do not always correlate. A possible explanation for this finding could be that proteins are denatured during the process of antigen purif

Background. Recurrent antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)- associated small vessel vasculitis (ANCA-SVV) after renal transplantation has been described in case series. However, general information regarding the frequency, character, and predictors of recurrent disease after transplantation is currently lacking. We considered the rate of relapse, whether a positive ANCA at the time of transp

In ANCA-associated small vessel vasculitis few genetic factors have proven to be of importance for disease susceptibility, an exception being deficiency of α1-anti-trypsin, the main inhibitor of proteinase 3 (PR3). Alerted by our finding that myeloperoxidase has affinity for C3, and the finding of an increased frequency of the C3F allele in systemic vasculitis in a British cohort, we examined poly

New rolling technique, i.e. asymmetric rolling combined with cross rolling is adopted to produce Ta sputtering targets in this study. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis suggests that (111) and (100) deformed grains distribute alternately along normal direction in cross rolling (CR) and asymmetric cross rolling (ACR) samples. Misorientation angle distribution indicates that severe ori

Mechanical changes within cells and viruses have been shown to be of great importance for various mechano-signaling processes. In phage and herpesviruses, strong confinement of double-stranded DNA inside the capsid generates tens of atmospheres of pressure. This confinement leads to electrostatic sliding friction between neighboring DNA strands. This affects the mobility of the encapsidated genome

Sweden is considered an environmental sustainability pioneer, targeting a 50% reduction in energy use in buildings by 2050. This ambitious goal requires the active engagement of municipal actors and the building sector. Dialogue processes have been identified as a way to mobilize such engagement, but in earlier research, there has been a lack of studies where dialogue practices are analyzed in rea

In claiming that metadata possess the power to put historical awareness into the act of listening, this article examines digital music use as an aesthetic situation driven by potentialities of becoming. Working from a theoretical foundation amalgamating digital music archives and metadata as environments the article discusses Georgina Born’s notion of musical assemblages alongside the concept of v

Obesity is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D); however, not all obese individuals develop the disease. In this study, we aimed to investigate the cause of differential insulin secretion capacity of pancreatic islets from donors with T2D and non-T2D (ND), especially obese donors (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). Islets from obese donors with T2D had reduced insulin secretion, decreased β-cell exocytosis, and h

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is recognized as a driving force for phenotypic divergence. Here, we aim at assessing the ability of zooplankton to induce UVR tolerance and disentangle the relative importance of local adaptations behind the expression of such tolerance. Two populations of Daphnia pulex, derived from environments strongly differing in UVR conditions, were exposed to UVR for 70 d to ind

This study presents a new land cover map for the Upper Paraná River Basin (UPRB-2015), with high spatial resolution (30 m), and a high number of calibration and validation sites. To the new map, 50 Landsat-8 scenes were classified with the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm and their level of agreement was assessed using overall accuracy and Kappa coefficient. The generated map was compared by

The first bone marrow transplant in a human was performed in 1959, providing evidence that cells can be used for transplantation and treatment, revealing that healing capacities lie within the human body that ought to be understood. Since then hematopoietic stem cell transplantation has developed as a standard treatment for many cancers besides other malignancies. Much research is done to understa

We have recently presented a sequential treatment method, in which steam explosion (STEX) was followed by hydrotropic extraction (HEX), to selectively fractionate cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in hardwood into separate process streams. However, above a treatment severity threshold, the structural alterations in the cellulose-enriched fraction appeared to restrict the enzymatic hydrolyzabili

Biogas production from wheat straw is one strategy of converting biomass to bioenergy, but pretreatment of the lignocellulosic material is necessary in order to render the substrate biodegradable. In this study, four different mechanical pretreatments of wheat straw were investigated: roll milling, extrusion, pelletization, and hammer milling. The effects of the pretreatments on anaerobic digestio