Although long-term repopulating hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) can self-renew and expand extensively in vivo, most efforts at expanding HSC in vitro have proved unsuccessful and have frequently resulted in compromised rather than improved HSC grafts. This has triggered the search for the optimal combination of cytokines for HSC expansion. Through such studies, c-kit ligand (KL), flt3 ligand (FL),

A major question in soil ecology is whether soil food webs are regulated by resources or by predators, i.e. bottom-up (donor) or top-down controlled. We tested the hypothesis that meso- and macrofaunal soil predators can regulate fungivore populations and, thereby cause a top-down cascade effect on fungal biomass and decomposition/mineralisation processes in boreal forest soils. The study was perf

During the last few decades, quality assurance has been a central issue in the societies, both in, for example the industrial area and in healthcare. It is a tool to measure the outcomes of product or service provided. A review of the literature during the last 17 years with respect to quality assurance work in psychiatric occupational therapy indicates that few articles have been published in the

This work aims to evaluate the predictive strength of the relative seriality, parallel and Lyman-Kutcher-Burman (LKB) normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) models regarding the incidence of radiation pneumonitis (RP), in a group of patients following lung cancer radiotherapy and also to examine their correlation with pulmonary function tests (PFTs). The study was based on 47 patients who r

BackgroundCells from primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) patients have been reported to show alterations in DNA repair and p53 expression. The DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) autoantigen may be involved in both of these alterations in relation to cellular DNA damage responses. We conducted this study of cell-cycle kinetics and p53 to find additional evidence for an abnormal stress response role

The performance of the Hartree-Fock method and the three density functionals B3LYP, PBE0, and CAM-B3LYP is compared to results based on the coupled cluster singles and doubles model in predictions of the solvatochromic effects on the vertical n-->pi(*) and pi-->pi(*) electronic excitation energies of acrolein. All electronic structure methods employed the same solvent model, which is based on the

Since the 1960s, physicians have been aware of electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities and cases of sudden death associated with the use of antipsychotic drugs in patients with schizophrenia. Explanations for Such deaths have traditionally focused on drug-induced prolongation of the QT interval leading to the development of life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias such as torsade de pointes (TdP)

The infrared spectrum of the complex between o-H-2 and H2O, D2O, or HDO, isolated in a matrix of solid p-H-2, has been studied between 20 and 4500 cm(-1). In addition the infrared spectrum of the complex between p-D-2 and H2O in solid o-D-2 has been studied. The spectral shifts are interpreted as the result of the quadrupole-dipole interaction between hydrogen and water. (c) 2006 American Institut

The dentate gyrus (DG) is one of the few regions in the brain that continues to produce new neurons throughout adulthood. Seizures not only increase neurogenesis, but also lead to death of DG neurons. We investigated the relationship between cell death and neurogenesis following seizures in the DG of adult rats by blocking caspases, which are key components of apoptotic cell death. Multiple intrac

Most filamentous bacteria in biological nutrient removal (BNR) processes have not been identified beyond their morphotype and simple staining reactions. Furthermore, the majority of sludge filaments observed under the microscope do not hybridize to commonly used phylogenetic probes for well characterized bacterial phyla such as the Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. Spec

A common way to formulate controlled-release (CR) pharmaceuticals is to coat pellets of active substance with a polymer film, decrease the size of the pellets and distribute them as multiple-unit dosages in capsules. To increase the understanding of the release mechanism, the pellet shape and surface structure of pellets, before and after release in microtitre plates, have been studied by scanning

The cdk-inhibitor p16 is a tumor suppressor gene that is inactivated in many forms of cancer. Despite numerous studies, the exact mechanism of regulation of p16 has not been clarified, although the status of retinoblastoma (Rb) seems to be one important factor that influences the p16 expression. The specificity and validity of cytoplasmic localization of p16 observed in some tumors has further bee

PURPOSE: To evaluate the midterm results of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) and stent placement in stenotic and occluded mesentesic arteries in five consecutive patients with chronic mesenteric ischemia. METHODS: Five patients with 70%-100% obliterations of all mesenteric vessels resulting in chronic mesenteric ischemia (n = 4) and as a prophylactic measure prior to abdominal aortic an

Decreased information processing speed (mental slowing) is a known sequelae of many brain disorders, and can be assessed by continuous naming tasks. Functional imaging studies have shown that pause and articulation times in continuous speech are normally associated with different brain regions, but knowledge about such association in dementia is lacking. We therefore tested the hypothesis that per

A method for the synthesis of novel fused tricyclic tetrazoles from allylic bromides generated by the recently discovered DiazAll reaction has been developed. This new tandem reaction comprises a cycloaddition between a nitrile and (TMS)N-3 followed by an intramolecular N-allylation. The variation of functionalities in the benzene moiety was well-tolerated, and only a moderate difference in yield

Approximately 5% to 10% of melanoma may be hereditary in nature, and about 2% of melanoma can be specifically attributed to pathogenic germline mutations in cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (CDKN2A). To appropriately identify the small proportion of patients Who benefit most from referral to a genetics specialist for consideration of genetic testing for CDKN2A, We have reviewed available publi

The objective of this work is to compare the adherence to therapy of patients receiving etanercept and infliximab during first tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-blocking treatment course in rheumatoid arthritis. Special emphasis is placed on potential predictors for treatment termination and the impact of concomitant methotrexate (MTX) or other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Patients (

Isotoma klovstadi Carpenter, 1902 was one of the first Collembola described from the Antarctic continent. It was first collected in November 1899 during the British Antarctic Expedition on the north coast of Victoria Land in the Ross Sea region. It is now known to occur in an extensive area of northern Victoria Land, including the offshore Possession, Coulman, and Foyn Islands. More recently, L kl