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BACKGROUND: We investigated the causality of IL-8 on carotid intima-media thickness (c-IMT), a measure of sub-clinical atherosclerosis.METHODS: The IMPROVE is a multicenter European study (n = 3,711). The association of plasma IL-8 with c-IMT (mm) was estimated by quantile regression. Genotyping was performed using the Illumina CardioMetabo and Immuno chips. Replication was attempted in three inde

Background: The existence of a “minority tax,” defined as the burden of extra responsibilities placed on minorities relative to non-minorities of the same position, has been documented across various fields, including and beyond medicine. This study sought to quantify the types and extent of the minority tax faced by minority orthopaedic surgeons, as well as evaluate the degree to which this work

Skin barrier damage and subsequent development of harmful microbiota contribute to conditions such as wound infections, atopic dermatitis and chronic wounds, which impact millions of people globally and pose a significant economic burden on healthcare systems. Established microbial sampling methods, such as swabs and tissue biopsies, provide limited information on the spatial distribution of bacte

Bacterial arylmalonate decarboxylase (AMDase) and evolved variants have become a valuable tool with which to access both enantiomers of a broad range of chiral arylaliphatic acids with high optical purity. Yet, the molecular principles responsible for the substrate scope, activity, and selectivity of this enzyme are only poorly understood to date, greatly hampering the predictability and design of

Objective: As a result of conflicting, inadequate or controversial data in the literature, several issues concerning the management of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) remain unanswered. The aim of this international, expert-based Delphi consensus document was to provide some guidance for clinicians on these controversial topics. Methods: A three-round Delphi consensus document was

Evidence shows psychological factors (e.g. stress) are linked to immunity, yet there is a lack of research investigating the complex interactions between psychological factors and immune function. Network analysis is useful to investigate complex interrelations between relevant health-related variables. This study applied network analyses to examine associations between psychological protective fa

The sense of smell is a central sensory modality of most terrestrial species. However, our knowledge of olfaction is based on vertebrates and insects. In contrast, little is known about the chemosensory world of spiders and nothing about how they perform olfaction despite their important ecological role. The orb-weaving spider Argiope bruennichi lends itself to an in-depth study on olfaction as it

Pancreas transplantation is a successful treatment for a selected group of people with type 1 diabetes. Continued insulin production can decrease over time and identifying predictors of long-term graft function is key to improving survival. The aim of this study was to screen subjects for variation in the Caveolin-1 gene (Cav1), previously shown to correlate with long-term kidney transplant functi

Fatal intoxications with opioids are known to be associated with an increased lung weight, as well as with brain and pulmonary edema and urinary retention. However, there is evidence to suggest that fatal intoxications with non-opioid substances are also associated with increased lung weight; however, the latter aspect has not been comprehensively analyzed. To determine to what extent opioid and n

Objective: The primary objective of this study was to determine the association between longitudinal continuity of care (CoC) in Swedish primary care (PC) and emergency services (ES) utilisation.Study design: A cross-sectional analysis of longitudinal population data. Setting. PC centres, out-of-hours PC facilities and emergency departments (EDs) in Blekinge County in southern Sweden. Subjects: Pe

Forests play a vital role in maintaining the global carbon balance. However, globally, forest ecosystems are increasingly threatened by climate change and deforestation in recent years. Monitoring forests, specifically forest biomass is essential for tracking changes in carbon stocks and the global carbon cycle. However, developing countries lack the capacity to actively monitor forest carbon stoc

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate bony fusion with Low Dose CT (LDCT) over time following posterior scoliosis surgery in an all screw construct in patients with AIS with special focus on whether the spinal fusion process continue to develop beyond 2 years after scoliosis surgery and to evaluate if LDCT is an adequate radiological method to assess fusion maturation. Methods: Twenty fiv

Neisseria gonorrhoeae is the causative agent of gonorrhea, a disease that is restricted to humans. Complement forms a key arm of the innate immune system that combats gonococcal infections. N. gonorrhoeae uses its outer membrane porin (Por) molecules to bind the classical pathway of complement down-regulatory protein C4b-binding protein (C4bp) to evade killing by human complement. Strains of N. go

The c-myc proto-oncogene was analyzed in 311 cases of primary breast cancer, in 8% of which it was found to be amplified, usually at moderately increased copy number (2-5 copies). The adjacent pvt gene was co-amplified with c-myc in all tumors analyzed. C-myc amplification was significantly correlated to a high S-phase fraction and to amplification of the c-erbB-2 proto-oncogene. Weak relationship

Organ-specific lymphocyte homing is dependent on the expression of tissue-specific homing receptors and selected chemokine receptors. During the effector phase of an immune response, IgA and IgG antibody-secreting cells (ASC) are differently distributed in the body. Still, B cell expression of L-selectin and the mucosal homing receptor integrin alpha 4 beta 7 is not related to the isotype produced

Background: In Malmo approximately 250 000 citizens live in 17 administrative areas with substantial socioeconomic differences. At the single centre for arterial reconstruction, Malmo University Hospital, all procedures are registered prospectively. Methods: Between 1987 and 2002, 1832 Malmo citizens underwent reconstruction for peripheral arterial disease, either intermittent claudication (IQ or

5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) has a variety of biological effects, e.g. it induces and modulates vascular smooth muscle activity. The effects are mainly mediated via a hetergenous group of 5-HT receptor subtypes. In order to elucidate the 5-HT receptor mechanisms in the human splanchnic circulation, in vitro studies were carried out on omental arteries obtained from patients undergoing abdominal surg

To, address; he possibility, that genes specifically control the chronic phase of arthritis we have isolated a congenic fragment from the resistant E3; rat cm the, susceptible DA rat background. The isolated fragment covers the Pia6 quantitative trait locus on chromosome 14, which previously has been identified to be linked to chronic pristane induced arthritis (PIA) in gene segregation experiment

Cysteine proteinases are important not only in the intracellular catabolism of peptides and proteins1 and in the processing of prohormones and proenzymes2,3, but also in the penetration of normal human tissue by malignant cells4 and possibly microorganisms5, including viruses. Cystatin C is a human cysteine proteinase inhibitor present in extracellular fluids6. We have synthesized peptide derivati

The sensory innervation of intracranial vessels originates in the trigeminal ganglion with calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), substance P (SP) and pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (PACAP) as frequent neuronal messengers. The present study was designed to study the expression of these neuropeptides (a) in primary culture of adult rat trigeminal ganglion neuronal cells and (b) in