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Background: High-altitude adaptation provides an excellent system for studying how organisms cope with multiple environmental stressors and interacting genetic modifications. To explore the genetic basis of high-altitude adaptation in poikilothermic animals, we acquired transcriptome sequences from a high-altitude population and a low-altitude population of the Asiatic toad (Bufo gargarizans). Tra
The wine and beer yeast Dekkera bruxellensis thrives in environments that are harsh and limiting, especially in concentrations with low oxygen and high ethanol. Its different strains' chromosomes greatly vary in number (karyotype). This study isolates two novel centromeric loci (CEN1 and CEN2), which support both the yeast's autonomous replication and the stable maintenance of plasmids. In the seq
As part of efforts to identify native herbivores of Mexican palo verde, Parkinsonia aculeata L. (Leguminosae: Caesalpinioideae), as potential biological control agents against this invasive weed in Australia, ten species of Tortricidae (Lepidoptera) were reared from Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Venezuela: Amorbia concavana (Zeller), Platynota rostrana (Walker), Platynota helianthes (Meyrick),
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between vascular disease (and vascular risk factors), cognition and motor phenotype in Parkinson's disease (PD).METHODS: Recently diagnosed PD cases were enrolled in a multicenter prospective observational longitudinal cohort study. Montreal cognitive assessment (normal >23, mild cognitive impairment 22 to 23 or lower but without
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) on the induction of apoptosis by the chemotherapeutic agent etoposide (VP16), and to examine the effect of combining VP16 with gefitinib to see if the cell-survival mechanism can be prevented.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The bladder cancer cell lines RT4 and T24, representing low- and high-malignancy grades respectively,
Human communication can be either monosemiotic or polysemiotic, depending on whether it combines ensembles of representations from one or more semiotic systems such as language, gesture and depiction. Each semiotic system has its unique storytelling potentials, which makes intersemiotic translation from one system to another challenging. We investigated the influence of the source semiotic system,
Enzymes of the xanthine oxidase family are among the best characterized mononuclear molybdenum enzymes. Open questions about their mechanism of transfer of an oxygen atom to the substrate remain. The enzymes share a molybdenum cofactor (Moco) with the metal ion binding a molybdopterin (MPT) molecule via its dithiolene function and terminal sulfur and oxygen groups. For xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH)
An investigation of the fundamental frequency in Swedish feedback words is presented. It is hypothesised that the F0-pattern differs between words signalling positive and negative feedback-i.e. agreement and disagreement with the utterance of the preceding speaker. When imitating the contrast, the negative feedback word nej 'no' is often produced with a falling F0, stretching over a larger range,
This paper focuses on carbon, which is one of the most abundant elements in the universe and is of high importance in the field of nucleosynthesis and galactic and stellar evolution. The origin of carbon and the relative importance of massive and low-to intermediate-mass stars in producing it is still a matter of debate. We aim at better understanding the origin of carbon by studying the trends of
The aim of this study was to test the usefulness of polyurethane foam (PUF) passive air samplers as stationary, and, for the first time, as personal samplers for one week’s sampling period of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in occupational air. Routine monitoring of workplace exposure is commonly performed with active sampling. However, active samplers can sometimes be unsuitable; e.g., it
Objectives: The aims of this study were to quantify salivary concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) and to assess if presence of dental composite fillings is associated with higher BPA levels in saliva. Materials and methods: Twenty individuals with six or more tooth surfaces filled with polymer-based dental materials (composite group) and 20 individuals without any polymer-based materials (control g
At the end of 2014, a Major Baltic Inflow (MBI) brought oxygenated, salty water into the Baltic proper and reached the long-term anoxic Eastern Gotland Basin (EGB) by March 2015. In July 2015, we measured benthic fluxes of phosphorus (P), nitrogen (N) and silicon (Si) nutrients and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in situ using an autonomous benthic lander at deep sites (170-210 m) in the EGB, whe
BACKGROUND: Technetium 99m sestamibi was recently introduced for the preoperative localization of abnormal parathyroid glands in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism with promising results. However, the sensitivity of sestamibi and thallium to detect abnormal parathyroid glands is partly dependent on the gland size. In this study we compared the sensitivity of sestamibi subtraction scintigrap
BACKGROUND: Due to significant achievements in reducing mortality and increasing life expectancy, the issue of disability from diseases and injuries, and their related interventions, has become one of the most important concerns of health-related research.METHODS: Using data obtained from the GBD 2015 study, the present report provides prevalence and years lived with disability (YLDs) of 310 disea
BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether estrogen receptor (ER)-status of first primary breast cancer is associated with risk of metachronous (non-simultaneous) contralateral breast cancer (CBC), and to what extent endocrine therapy affects this association.METHODS: We studied the effect of ER-status of the first cancer on the risk of CBC overall, and for different ER-subtypes of CBC, using a large, popu
Background: Echocardiography involves strenuous postures of the upper limbs. This study explored the physical workload in the neck and upper limbs in sonographers performing echocardiography, and the extent to which the workload differs from than in other work tasks (other sonographic examinations, and nonsonographic tasks). Methods: The physical load was assessed by inclinometry, goniometry, and
OBJECTIVES: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who also have acute coronary syndromes are a high-risk population with a high mortality rate. Little is known about these patients following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). METHODS: Patients presenting with acute coronary syndromes between 2006 and 2014 with an angiogram showing 3-vessel disease or left main coronary ar
We model collisions between pre-main-sequence stars using a smoothed particle hydrodynamics method. Assuming that all collisions lead to simple mergers, we use derived merger cross-sections to calculate the time-scale to make a 50-M-circle dot star by collisions within the core of a stellar cluster as a function of stellar number density. We show that a 50-M-circle dot star may be produced in this
Despite the widespread dissemination of clinical practice guidelines on the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease (CVD), CVD causes one third of deaths worldwide and almost half of all deaths in the developed world. It is therefore likely that, although some aspects of CVD management have improved, there is still a significant shortfall between what is known about CVD prevention and w
Aims: To determine the number of patients needed to be screened (NNS) and allocated (NNA) in order to include one participant in a randomized clinical trial (RCT), and to compare the characteristics of patients accepting or declining participation in the RCT. Methods: The recruitment process of an ongoing multicenter RCT, comparing surgical and non-surgical interventions after acute anterior cruci
