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Many studies have found close relationships between accessibility and various socio-economic indicators. Yet, since accessibility tends to have differentiated effects, both socially and spatially, there is a need for a model which allows for a disaggregated analysis of accessibility. The model should be possible to use in areas where road network data is incomplete. In this paper such an accessibi
Stable isotope analysis provides a powerful tool for describing the energetic pathways in a variety of ecosystems. However, isotope ratios of animal tissues can be altered by preservation methods, potentially leading to biased estimates of energy pathways when they are not taken into account. Here, we investigated the direct preservation effects of formalin, ethanol, NaCl, and drying on the delta
Although heavy on labor and equipment, thus not often applied, cryoanalysis of frozen hydrated biological specimens can provide information that better reflects the living state of the organism, compared with analysis in the freeze-dried state. In this paper we report a study where the cryoanalysis facility with cryosectioning capabilities at Materials Research Department, iThemba LABS, South Afri
The spectroscopic properties of spirilloxanthin in an nhexane solution and bound to the core light-harvesting LH1) complex of Rhodospirillum rubrum were studied by near infrared ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy. Global analysis of the kinetic traces measured after excitation of spirilloxanthin to the S2 (1Bu +) state enabled us to estimate the species-associated difference spectra that
We recently demonstrated that the LKB1 tumour suppressor kinase, in complex with the pseudokinase STRAD and the scaffolding protein MO25, phosphorylates and activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). A total of 12 human kinases (NUAK1, NUAK2, BRSK1, BRSK2, QIK, QSK, SIK, MARK1, MARK2, MARK3, MARK4 and MELK) are related to AMPK. Here we demonstrate that LKB1 can phosphorylate the T-loop of all
To test the genetic relationship between alpine and subalpine forms of Hylocomium splendens, pairwise sampling was undertaken of populations from four areas, representing the southern and northern ranges of the Scandes. From each population I sampled 75 shoots in a hierarchical fashion, and these were screened for variation at 12 allozyme loci. The pairwise genetic identity (I) among subalpine and
Partial migration is often considered a transitory stage between migration and residency, and whether partial migrants take weather conditions into account during migration is largely unknown. To assess whether partial migrants differ from regular migrants in their responses to weather, we compared the migratory intensity of a partial migrant, the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), with more regular
Rhizotrons provide valuable information about plant root production, but measurements are usually made in units of root length per unit surface area of observation window surface. These measurement units are not easily comparable to above-ground plant growth. To address this deficiency, several techniques have been developed to convert rhizotron measurement units into root mass production per unit
The experience with radioimmunotherapy in B-cell lymphomas using the rapidly internalizing antibody, anti-CD22 (LL2), is limited. In this study we investigated the efficacy and toxicity of 131I-labelled-LL2 for radioimmunotherapy in patients with B-cell lymphomas that failed one or two cytostatic regimens. Eleven patients were treated with one or repeated cycles of 131I-anti-CD22 antibody, 1330 MB
Background.. Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity for reasons that are incompletely understood. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effects of parathyroidectomy on cardiac function especially in patients with mild PHPT Methods. Fifty patients with mild PHPT (serum calcium, 2.55 to 2.95 mmol/L) were randomized to parathyroidectomy eit
Conventionally, epoxidation of unsaturated fatty acids has been studied either with titrimetric methods or in a lengthy procedure involving derivatization followed by gas chromatography (GC). We have developed a more rapid and descriptive analysis procedure for the substances using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with evaporative light scattering detection (ELSD). Chemo-enzymatic epo
The kinetics of a catalyst for hydrocarbon-selective catalytic reduction (HC-SCR) exhaust aftertreatment has been examined by means of transient experiments on a heavy-duty diesel engine rig. The influences of temperature, NO2 concentration, and the transient injection of hydrocarbon on the conversion of NO,, CO, and hydrocarbon were studied in a systematic manner. Hydrocarbon conversion was high
Background Whether or not ankles can be replaced with reasonable safety has been the subject of debate. We present the results of a nationwide series of total ankle arthroplasties. Patients and methods All Swedish hospitals that implant or have implanted modern three-component ankle prostheses reported demographic data and date of index and revision surgery to a central register. After the data ha
Chlorophyll biosynthesis is a process involving approximate to 20 different enzymatic steps. Half of these steps are common to the biosynthesis of other tetrapyrroles, such as heme. one of the least understood enzymatic steps is formation of the isocyclic ring, which is a characteristic feature of all (bacterio)chlorophyll molecules. In chloroplasts, formation of the isocyclic ring is an aerobic r
Future adaptation to changes in the environment depends on the existence of additive genetic variances within populations. Recently, considerable attention has also been given to the non-additive component, which plays an important role in inbreeding depression and bottleneck situations. In this study, I used data from a North Carolina II crossing experiment, analysed with restricted maximum-likel
The viscoelastic behavior of the two different liquid crystalline lamellar phases and the liquid crystalline cubic phase of the mixed soybean lecithin/DDAB system in water was studied through rheology, with mechanical parameters studied as a function of composition. The swollen or diluted lamellar region is formed by vesicles, and its characteristic flow curve presents two-power law regions separa
Several strains of group G streptococci (GGS) form aggregates when grown in vitro. Aggregating strains interact with fibrinogen, and this study reports the isolation of a novel self-associating and fibrinogen-binding protein of GGS, denoted protein FOG. Sequencing of the fog gene revealed structural similarity with M proteins of both GGS and group A streptococci (GAS). Analogous to GAS, GGS were f
Amphibian larvae often face two major sources of mortality: pond desiccation and predation. Tadpoles of seven anuran species with different preferences for type of breeding habitat, on a hydroperiod scale, were tested for responses to the presence of predators by raising them experimentally in the presence and absence of a separately caged invertebrate predator that was fed on conspecific tadpoles
Low-molecular weight aromatic compounds were extracted from aqueous samples in a packed high-pressure stainless steel column with supercritical carbon dioxide. A countercurrent flow approach was utilised to remove several phenolic and two non-phenolic compounds with similar aromatic structures directly from aqueous standard solutions as well as a real sample (a lignocellulose dilute-acid hydrolysa
The long-lived, light-induced radical Y-D(.) of the Tyr161 residue in the D2 protein of Photosystem 11 (PSII) is known to magnetically interact with the CaMn4 cluster, situated similar to 30 angstrom away. In this study we report a transient step-change increase in YD EPR intensity upon the application of a single laser flash to S, state-synchronised PSII-enriched membranes from spinach. This tran
