BACKGROUND: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT) reduces relapse rates in acute leukemia, but outcome is hampered by toxicity. Population-based data avoid patient selection and may therefore substitute for lack of randomized trials. METHODS: We evaluated alloSCT rates within the Swedish Acute Leukemia Registry, including 3899 adult patients diagnosed from 1997 through 2006 with a coverag

For a CD8 epitope-based vaccine to match different geographic locations, the targeted epitopes for cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs) must be present in the local circulating HIV-1 strains. Secondly, the vaccine epitopes should match the host population HLA types. We characterized two new HIV-1 isolates from Guinea-Bissau. Also, we have identified 15 subdominant CD8 epitopes representing common HLA su

Huntington's disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expanded CAG repeat in the huntingtin (htt) gene. Neuropathology is most severe in the striatum and cerebral cortex. As mutant htt is ubiquitously expressed, it has not been possible to establish clear structure-to-function relationships for the clinical aspects. In the present study, we have injected recombinant adeno-as

Mesh fixation is used to prevent recurrence at the potential risk for chronic pain in TEP. The aim was to compare the impact of permanent fixation (PF) with no fixation (NF)/nonpermanent fixation (NPF) of mesh on chronic pain after TEP repair for primary inguinal hernia.

By tightly focusing ultra-short pulses from a Ti:sapphire terawatt laser onto a high-Z metallic target, hard x-ray pulses of short duration are produced. In most of our previous work concerning x-rays, a 150 mJ laser pulse with a 110 A duration has been used. Using mostly tin and tantalum targets, hard x-rays in the 10-60 keV range have been produced and used in differential absorption imaging aro

A fully coupled computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach based on the finite element method, in two-dimensions, is developed to describe a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). Both hydrogen and carbon monoxide are considered as electrochemical reactants within the anode. The dimensionless number of electrochemical active sites (EAS), the pore radius (indirectly proportional to the particle radius) and

Jon Elster worries about the explanatory power of the social sciences. His main concern is that they have so few well-established laws. Elster (2007) develops an interesting substitute: a special kind of mechanism designed to fill the explanatory gap between laws and mere description. However, his mechanisms suffer from a characteristic problem which I will explore in this article. As our causal k

In a world with imperfectly integrated national capital markets the cost of funds is, in general, different across markets. If individual countries, by mutual agreement, or forced by factors outside their control, embark on a process of deregulation and financial integration, the spread in the cost of funds across markets will narrow. Some types of impediments, such as explicit capital controls, w

Maturity models are widely used in process improvement. The users of a maturity model should be confident that the weak points of the assessed processes can be found, and that the most valuable changes are introduced. Therefore, the evaluation of maturity models is an important activity. In this paper, a mapping study of the literature on the evaluation of maturity models is presented. Two databas

We report herein the coronary flow (CF) pattern determined by transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE) in two children with biventricular endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF). Endomyocardial biopsy showed various degrees of cardiac fibrosis in both patients as well as signs of chronic inflammation in one of the patients. TTDE showed a significant increase in CF in both the left anterior descending c

Delli AJ, Lindblad B, Carlsson A, Forsander G, Ivarsson S-A, Ludvigsson J, Marcus C, Lernmark A; for the Better Diabetes Diagnosis (BDD) Study Group. Type 1 diabetes patients born to immigrants to Sweden increase their native diabetes risk and differ from Swedish patients in HLA types and islet autoantibodies. Aim: To determine whether type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) patients, having parents who i

The article starts with a general reflection on the social relevance of theory, and moves on to develop four arguments in this regard. We discuss theory’s ability to produce conceptual frameworks and to provide semi-autonomous reflective moments. The text also conceptualises theory as an opportunity to reflect on illegitimate imbalances of power relations, set against the normative visions of demo

OBJECTIVE: To investigate parents' expectations, experiences and reactions, sense of coherence and anxiety before and after a second-trimester routine ultrasound examination, with normal findings. METHODS: Before and after ultrasound questionnaires including the scales parents' expectations, experiences and reactions to routine ultrasound examination (PEER-U state of mind index), sense of coherenc

The strict orthology of mitochondrial (mt) coding sequences has promoted their use in phylogenetic analyses at different levels. Here we present the results of a mitogenomic study (i.e., analysis based on the set of protein-coding genes from complete mt genomes) of 60 mammalian species. This number includes 11 new mt genomes. The sampling comprises all but one of the traditional eutherian orders.

Objectives: To study the prevalence of comorbid conditions at diagnosis and during follow-up in a cohort of patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) followed prospectively over 20 years, and to identify possible early predictive factors for future comorbidities. Methods: A community-based cohort of 183 patients (mean age 52 years, 63% female) with early RA was recruited between 1985 and 1989.