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Despite the potentially strong effect of wind on bird orientation, our understanding of how wind drift affects migrating birds is still very limited. Using data from satellite-based radio telemetry, we analysed the effect of changing winds on the variation of the track direction of individual birds. We studied adults and juveniles of two raptor species, osprey Pandion haliaetus and honey buzzard P

Bacterial engagement of specific host tissue structures can be a means of targeting a pathogen to a particular niche, establishing persistent infections and inducing invasion. In this context, primary adhesion is often the first crucial colonization step allowing pathogens to withstand the mechanical clearing mechanisms of the host. As a consequence, bacteria have evolved adhesins with the capacit

Bacillus subtilis is an endospore-forming bacterium. There are indications that protein disulfide linkages occur in spores, but the role of thiol-disulfide chemistry in spore synthesis is not understood. Thiol-disulfide oxidoreductases catalyze formation or breakage of disulfide bonds in proteins. CcdA is the only B. subtilis thiol-disulfide oxidoreductase that has previously been shown to play so

The Homeobox (Hox) transcription factors are important regulators of normal and malignant hematopoiesis because they control proliferation, differentiation, and self-renewal of hematopoietic cells at different levels of the hematopoietic hierarchy. In transgenic mice we show that the expression of HOXA10 is tightly regulated by doxycycline. Intermediate concentrations of HOXA10 induced a 15-fold i

Although the assembly of a ternary complex between the SNARE proteins syntaxin-1, SNAP25 and VAMP2 is known to be crucial for insulin exocytosis, the mechanisms controlling this key event are poorly understood. We found that pancreatic beta-cells express different isoforms of tomosyn-1, a syntaxin-1-binding protein possessing a SNARE-like motif. Using atomic force microscopy we show that the SNARE

Abstract is not available

Identifying mechanisms behind assortative mating is central to the understanding of ecological divergence and speciation. Recent studies show that populations of the freshwater isopod Asellus aquaticus can rapidly become locally differentiated when submerged Chara vegetation expands in lakes. In the novel Chara habitat, isopods have become lighter pigmented and smaller than in ancestral reed stand

Background: Noise is typically conceived of as being detrimental to cognitive performance. However, given the mechanism of stochastic resonance, a certain amount of noise can benefit performance. We investigate cognitive performance in noisy environments in relation to a neurocomputational model of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dopamine. The Moderate Brain Arousal model (MBA;

Macrophages are involved in the pathological process underlying atherosclerosis and constitutively express the multifunctional protein osteopontin which has important exogenous effects on these cells. However, the effect of the endogenous osteopontin expression on macrophage function has been sparsely studied. To shed light on the importance of the endogenous osteopontin expression, RAW 264.7 macr

By sending a questionnaire (response rate 93%) to 321 women with a history of venous thromboembolism and previous coagulation tests, 72 patients were identified who had a total of 87 pregnancies after the thromboembolic episode. The main aim of the study was to analyze the influence of prophylaxis during pregnancy and delivery on the development of further thromboembolic complications. During preg

For the working muscle there are a number of fuels available for oxidative metabolism, including glycogen, glucose and non-esterified fatty acids. Non-esterified fatty acids originate from lipolysis in white adipose tissue, from hydrolysis of VLDL-triglycerides or from hydrolysis of intramyocellular triglyceride stores. A key enzyme in the mobilization of fatty acids from intracellular lipid store

Background: Clinicopathologic stage is still the main parameter to evaluate the prognosis of newly diagnosed colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. Although molecular markers have been suggested for follow up of treated CRC patients, their complete clinical application is still under evaluation. Materials and methods: To evaluate the association of immune-related genes with CRC prognosis and survival,