Analyses of testate amoebae and aeolian sediment influx (ASI) were used to reconstruct effective humidity changes and aeolian activity in the coastal zone of south-west Sweden. Cores were taken from an ombrotrophic peat sequence from the Undarsmosse bog. Since both types of analysis were carried out on the same core, a direct comparison between humidity fluctuations in the bog and aeolian activity

The aim of this study was to describe the course of untreated or conservatively treated arthrosis of the knee joint. Of 265 patients presenting with knee pain who had weightbearing radiographs taken between 1970 and 1973, 132 (33 men and 99 women) responded to and participated in a clinical followup 20 years later using the Hospital for Special Surgery score and new weightbearing radiographs. Arth

In this article we describe Tibetan indigenous women's perceptions and experiences of their own health and life situation in Shichuan Province, China. Fifteen focus group discussions (FGDs) and 10 interviews were conducted. Repeat FGDs were used to empower the women and as a tool to collect data. Content analysis was used to analyze the data, and three subthemes were identified: 'shouldering respo

This study describes the outcome of patients receiving haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) to treat severe refractory autoimmune cytopenia. The registry of the European Group of Blood and Marrow Transplantation holds data on 36 patients receiving 38 transplants, the first transplant was autologous for 27 and allogeneic for nine patients. Patients had autoimmune haemolytic anaemia (auto

Basic helix-loop-helix PAS domain proteins form a growing family of transcription factors. These proteins are involved in the process of adaptation to cellular stresses and environmental factors such as a change in oxygen concentration. We describe the identification and characterization of a recently cloned PAS domain protein termed Npas4 in ischemic rat brain. Using gene expression profiling fol

We investigate the spectral and temporal structure of high harmonic emission from argon exposed to an infrared laser field and its second harmonic. For a wide range of generating conditions, trains of attosecond pulses with only one pulse per infrared cycle are generated. The synchronization necessary for producing such trains ensures that they have a stable pulse-to-pulse carrier envelope phase,

We compare assimilation and respiration rates, and water use strategies in four divergent ecosystems located in cold-continental central Siberia and in semi-arid southern Africa. These seemingly unrelated systems have in common a harsh and highly seasonal environment with a very sharp transition between the dormant and the active season, with vegetation facing dry air and soil conditions for at le

Smoking is a well-established risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Studies have indicated that smoking may outweigh the benefit of blood pressure (BP) control. Our aim was to compare cardiovascular risk factors in smokers vs non-smokers from a national sample of treated hypertensives. Data were collected on smoking habits, BP control, total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, diabete

The main problem discussed in this paper is that the legal system might be dysfunctional to various political participatory ambitions. Participation implies inclusion, but we see examples of exclusion that originate from internal operations of the legal system. Considering the many instances of participatory instruments embedded in legal frameworks in many sectors of society, it is important to as

Peripheral serotonergic parameters were studied in 17 patients with a history of suicidal behavior and in 17 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Serotonin2 receptor function in platelets, measured as serotonin-induced [32P]phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate hydrolysis, was significantly higher in patients than in age- and sex-matched controls. Increased serotonin2 receptor transduction was n

If exercise is to be recommended during growth, benefits in bone mineral density (BMD) must be maintained in old age and shown to prevent fractures. Our cross-sectional study of soccer players suggests that a high BMD is no longer recorded after retirement and fracture frequency is no less than predicted in old age.

A role for Helicobacter pylori infection in the development of gastric cancer in humans is well established; however, evidence for its carcinogenicity in animals remains inadequate. Mongolian gerbils and mice are commonly used to investigate the carcinogenicity of H. pylori, yet it is unclear whether H. pylori infection per se causes gastric cancer or duodenal ulcers in these animal models. Gastri

INTRODUCTION: Sympathomimetic (alpha-adrenergic) drugs are mainly used because of their vasoconstrictor properties, for nasal congestion, or as mydriatics. Although sympathomimetic drugs are used often, allergic reactions are rare, especially when the drugs are administered systemically. Cross-reactivity may exist among catecholamine derivatives, although reported data on this are contradictory. I

This paper extends Engle's LM test for ARCH affects to multivariate cases. The size and power properties of this multivariate test for ARCH effects in VAR models are investigated based on asymptotic and bootstrap distributions. Using the asymptotic distribution, deviations of actual size from nominal size do not appear to be very excessive. Nevertheless, there is a tendency for the actual size to

Molecular imprinting is a versatile technique providing functional materials able to recognize and in some cases respond to biological and chemical agents of interest. In contrast to biological antibodies, the best known receptors derived from biological combinatorial processes, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are obtained by template-directed synthesis. Thus, molecular imprinting can more p

This paper presents a rigorous time-variant analysis of the 1/f MOS device noise upconversion into 1/f^3 phase noise for two of the most popular parallel-coupled quadrature CMOS harmonic oscillators. Simple closed-form equations for the fundamental 1/f^3 phase-noise spectrum are derived and validated through SpectreRF simulations, proving that the two topologies display remarkably different sensit

The use of volatile anaesthetics has increased in situations where conventional anaesthetic machines are inadequate or unavailable, for example, cardiac surgery and intensive care. The disposable anaesthetic conserving device, AnaConDa (R), allows vaporization of liquid volatile anaesthetics from a syringe pump and rebreathing of exhaled anaesthetic. Clinical use requires understanding of device-s