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China's natural wetlands occupy 3.77% of the land and provide 54.9% of China's ecosystem services. Healthy natural wetland ecosystems play an important role in the sustainable development of China, which was realized by the Chinese government in the early 1970s. In the past 5 years, China has made great efforts in wetlands conservation, which is signified by the funding of billions of dollars to r
Background/Aims: Survival for patients on renal replacement therapy (RRT) has been shown to correlate to the level of physical activity and exercise capacity. We examined whether composite measures of functional status at the start of RRT predict survival. Methods: In this retrospective study, the same physiotherapist, using a standardized battery of tests for functional status, tested 134 patient
"Inflammation resolution" has of late become a topical research area. Activation of resolution phase mechanisms, involving select post-transcriptional regulons, transcription factors, 'autacoids', and cell phenotypes, is now considered to resolve inflammatory diseases. Critical to this discourse on resolution is the elimination of inflammatory cells through apoptosis and phagocytosis. For major in
The colorimetric 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was standardized for direct detection of rifampin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in sputum samples. The sensitivity and specificity of the direct MTT assay matched those of the standard indirect susceptibility assay on 7H10 medium, and interpretable results were obtained for 98.5% of the samples within
"Foreword: The durability of building materials, especially the corrosion of reinforcement in concrete structures, has been a main research area in Scandinavia during the last decades. Results from many laboratories in the Scandinavian countries, and outside of Scandinavia, indicate that there are certain relationships between the service life and different concrete parameters, such as the water/b
The immunodeficiency, centromeric region instability, facial anomalies (ICF) syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disease. Usually, it is caused by mutations in the DNA methyltransferase 3B gene, which result in decreased methylation of satellite DNA in the juxtacentromeric heterochromatin at 1qh, 16qh, and 9qh. Satellite II-rich 1qh and 16qh display high frequencies of abnormalities in mitogen-
The idea behind the service life model presented in this report was published in 1979. It has thereafter been described and developed in a number of reports and papers. The basis of the model is the observation that a well-defined critical, or maximum allowable, moisture content exists, above which the material is severely damaged by frost, and below which it is unharmed also when freezing is repe
Earlier research performed on axially loaded concrete prisms shows that crack widths close to reinforcement are smaller and less dependent on concrete cover than crack widths at the concrete surface. To check practical applicability of these results a similar experimental investigation of cracking behaviour has been undertaken for beams loaded in bending. The influence of steel stress and concrete
The Bloodgen project was funded by the European Commission between 2003 and 2006, and involved academic blood centres, universities, and Progenika Biopharma S. A., a commercial supplier of genotyping platforms that incorporate glass arrays. The project has led to the development of a commercially available product, BLOODchip, that can be used to comprehensively genotype an individual for all clini
The dogroses (Rosa Sect. Caninae) are characterized by a unique meiosis - the canina meiosis - that results in restricted recombination. In the present study, we investigate population differentiation and morphometric diversity within six taxa, of Nordic dogroses, with the help of automated image analysis of leaflet shape and manually-measured reproductive characters. The total morphometric divers
A major limitation to clinical stem cell-mediated gene therapy protocols is the low levels of engraftment by transduced progenitors. We report that CXCR4 overexpression on human CD34(+) progenitors using a lentiviral gene transfer technique helped navigate these cells to the murine bone marrow and spleen in response to stromal-derived factor 1 (SDF-1) signaling. Cells overexpressing CXCR4 exhibite
It is assumed that the Id helix-loop-helix (HLH) proteins act by associating with ubiquitously expressed basic HLH (bHLH) transcription factors, such as E47 and E2-2, which prevents these factors from forming functional hetero- or homodimeric DNA binding complexes. Several tissue-specific bHLH proteins, including HASH-1, dHAND, and HES-1, are important for development of the nervous system. Neurob
As genetic factors can hardly explain the changes taking place during short time spans, environmental and lifestyle-related factors have been suggested as the causes of time-related deterioration of male reproductive function. However, considering the strong heterogeneity of male fecundity between and within populations, genetic variants might be important determinants of the individual susceptibi
Protein drugs, such as therapeutic antibodies, are complex and require careful handling to maintain their efficacy and quality. Stress factors in hospitals, like temperature variations and mechanical shocks during transport, may negatively impact the stability of protein drugs (e.g. various monoclonal antibodies). The pharmaceutical industry possesses extensive knowledge about their product formul
Extreme conditions caused by climate change and other crises call for enhancing the resilience of buildings and urban energy systems. This paper investigates the role of collaborative decision-making to improve the performance of single buildings and the unified whole in the form of a cohesive cluster of energy consumers to enhance resilience. CIRLEM, the previously developed energy management app
In schools the temperature of the indoor air is one of the most important factors in terms of the indoor climate. The resulting indoor air temperature is depending on many factors; the temperature of the supply air being one of the more significant one. One fan-assisted natural ventilation system includes a supply air system where the outdoor air should be passively heated respectively cooled when
The continuous increase in global energy consumption has led to a greater focus on the energy required for heating buildings. This thesis presents a techno-economic model for analysing low-temperature district heating networks coupled with a geothermal heat source. The model was used to analyse an existing system in Denmark with 15 connected single-family detached houses. Each of the houses has a
In Sweden and in other countries, building owners are encouraged to help reduce energy consumption, both in order to contribute to national energy saving goals and, in terms of their own interests, to reduce the costs of heating and operation of the building. However, it is important to pursue the most optimal strategy available so as to achieve cost-effective energy usage while simultaneously mai
Surging outlet glaciers are important in draining large ice caps, but the mechanisms controlling surge periodicities are poorly known. We investigated a sediment sequence from the glacier-fed Lake Logurinn in eastern Iceland, and our unique annually resolved data, based on sedimentary varves, imply that Eyjabakkajokull, an outlet glacier of Vatnajokull, began surging about 2200 cal a BP (before 19
The scale at which greenhouse gases are produced by human activities is a global problem, and as such it is being targeted broadly both by political means as well as technologically. One of the major contributors to the emission of green house gases globally, as well as in Sweden, is the transportation sector. This poses an opportunity for technologies that aim to reduce impact of the transport se
