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Effectors of the innate immune system, the anti-bacterial peptides, have pivotal roles in preventing infection at epithelial surfaces. Here we show that proteinases of the significant human pathogens Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, Proteus mirabilis and Streptococcus pyogenes, degrade the antibacterial peptide LL-37. Analysis by mass spectrometry of fragments generated by P. aerugin
c-jun activation has been implicated not only in neuronal apoptosis, but also in survival and regeneration. This Janus facet of c-Jun activation could be related to neuronal cell type or to the developmental stage of the neuron. We investigated c-Jun activation in E18 sensory neurons. Cultures of rat dorsal root ganglia neurons were maintained with or without the addition of nerve growth factor or
The wake structures of a bat in flight have a number of characteristics not associated with any of the bird species studied to this point. Unique features include discrete vortex rings generating negative lift at the end of the upstroke at medium and high speeds, each wing generating its own vortex loop, and a systematic variation in the circulation of the start and stop vortices along the wingspa
We use agarose gel electrophoresis to characterize how the monovalent catioinic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) compacts double-stranded DNA, which is detected as a reduction in electrophoretic DNA velocity. The velocity reaches a plateau at a ratio R = 1.8 of CTAB to DNA-phosphate charges, i.e., above the neutralization point, and the complexes retain a net negative charge at lea
[1] Mires are key landscape elements at high latitudes and have certainly accumulated carbon during the Holocene, but their current carbon balance at the present time is very unclear. The major carbon flux is the land-atmosphere CO2 exchange and full-year data are still limited. Here we present data from 3 a (2001-2003) of continuous Eddy Covariance measurements at Degero Stormyr (64 degrees 11'N,
Purpose: To evaluate the effect of treatment, visual function, and other factors on vision-targeted health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients with early glaucoma. Design: Randomized clinical trial. Participants: Two hundred fifty-five patients with newly detected open-angle glaucoma and repeatable early visual field (VF) defects, 50 to 80 years old (66% female). Methods: Patients were ran
Nocturnal animals relying on vision typically have eyes that are optically and morphologically adapted for both increased sensitivity and greater information capacity in dim light [1]. Here, we investigate whether adaptations for increased sensitivity also are found in their photoreceptors by using closely related and fast-flying nocturnal and diurnal bees as model animals. The nocturnal bee Megal
Maternal hormones can have substantial phenotypic effects in the progeny of many vertebrates. It has been proposed that mothers adaptively adjust hormone levels experienced by particular young to optimize their reproductive output. In birds, systematic variation in egg hormone levels has been related to different female reproductive strategies. Because in many bird species prospects of the offspri
SPECT projections are contaminated by scatter, resulting in reduced image contrast and quantitative errors. When tissue is present behind the source, some of the detected photons backscatter via this tissue. Particularly in dual-isotope SPECT and in combined emission-transmission SPECT, backscatter constitutes a major part of the down-scatter contamination in lower-energy windows. In this paper, t
Six species of Candelariella with polysporous asci are recognized from western North America. The species are: C. borealis sp. nov., C. efflorescens, C. lutella, C. placodizans, C. vitellina and C. xanthostigma. Candelariella vitellina is lectotypified. A key to the polysporous species in western North America is provided and their distribution in the study area is mapped.
Objectives. Our aim was to identify a group of patients with clinical signs of tonsillitis to whom antibiotics could be prescribed without further diagnostic actions, and to compare the outcome of clinical assessment with the result of an antigen detection test using culture as the gold standard. Methods. During two winter months, patients aged >=4 years attending for sore throat at three primary
The related Axl, Sky and Mer receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are increasingly being implicated in a host of discrete cellular responses including cell survival, proliferation, migration and phagocytosis. Furthermore, their ligands Gas6 and protein S are characteristically dependent on vitamin K for expression of their functions. The Gas6/Axl system is implicated in several types of human cancer a
1. The female-limited colour polymorphic damselfly Ischnura elegans has proven to be an interesting study organism both as an example of female sexual polymorphism, and in the context of the evolution of colour polymorphism, as a model of speciation processes. 2. Previous research suggests the existence of correlations between colour morph and other phenotypic traits, and the different female morp
This paper synthesizes and expands on the results of a recent series of investigations aimed at characterizing the interactions of orthophosphate, phenylphosphonate, and clodronate ions with hydrous alumina surfaces. The paper shows that gamma-Al2O3 is a thermodynamically unstable substance in water, which undergoes a (surface) phase transformation into bayerite, beta-Al(OH)(3). Furthermore, it al
One hundred sixty knees in 141 patients with the Primary Porous-Coated Anatomic prosthesis (Howmedica, Rutherford, NJ) were evaluated after a follow-up period of 5.6 years (range, 1–10 years). One hundred six knees were in the latest follow-up evaluation, including clinical examination and a defined standing radiograph with a follow-up period of 6.3 years (range, 3–10 years). Survivorship analysis
Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), optical microscopy and turbidity measurements were used to define experimental conditions (time, temperature and shearing) for dissolving high amylopectin potato starch (HAPP) granules. A simple, less time consuming and non-chemical method for preparing starch samples was established. Small-amplitude oscillation measurements were used to characterise the be
Multiconfigurational quantum chemical calculations on the R-diimines dichromium compound confirm that the Cr-Cr bond, 1.80 angstrom, is among the shortest Cr-I-Cr-I bonds. However, the bond between the two Cr atoms is only a quadruple bond rather than a quintuple bond. The reason why the bond is so short has to be attributed to the strain in the NCCN ligand moieties.
Stomach content analysis showed that Kyphosus sydneyanus collected by spearing from coastal reefs near Leigh, north-east New Zealand, is herbivorous throughout its post-settlement life. All size classes collected consumed a wide range of macroalgae, predominantly the phaeophytes Carpophyllum maschalocarpum and Ecklonia radiata, and the rhodophytes Gigartina macrocarpa and Caulacanthus ustulatus. M
