Background: Dental caries is unevenly distributed within populations with a higher burden in low socio-economy groups. Several attempts have been made to allocate resources to those that need them the most; there is a need for convenient approaches to population-based monitoring of caries risk over time. The aim of this study was to develop the geo-map concept, addressing time trends in caries ris

BACKGROUND: Although parasitism has been acknowledged as an important selective force in the evolution of host life histories, studies of fitness effects of parasites in wild populations have yielded mixed results. One reason for this may be that most studies only test for a linear relationship between infection intensity and host fitness. If resistance to parasites is costly, however, fitness may

Caveolae are membrane organelles that play roles in glucose and lipid metabolism and in vascular function. Formation of caveolae requires caveolins and cavins. The make-up of caveolae and their density is considered to reflect cell-specific transcriptional control mechanisms for caveolins and cavins, but knowledge regarding regulation of caveolae genes is incomplete. Myocardin (MYOCD) and its rela

Disperse dyes are common sensitizers among textile dyes. Contact allergy to disperse dyes has been documented in studies carried out in southern Europe, however, corresponding studies have not been performed in the Scandinavian countries. The aim of this study was thus to evaluate the prevalence of allergic reactions to a mix of textile dyes consisting of 8 disperse dyes: Disperse (D) Blue 35, 10

Converging evidence indicates that women with pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PABC) have increased mortality compared to women with breast cancer not diagnosed near pregnancy (non-PABC). Our aim was to investigate if the stage distribution differs between PABC and non-PABC and if stage at diagnosis can explain the poorer prognosis observed among women with PABC. We identified 3,282 breast canc

Objective: Advanced glycation end products (AGE) have been implicated in diabetic vascular complications through activation of pro-inflammatory genes. AGE-modified proteins are also targeted by the immune system resulting in the generation of AGE-specific autoantibodies, but the association of these immune responses with diabetic vasculopathy remains to be fully elucidated. The aim of this study w

During recent decades, concern about the loss of biodiversity on agricultural land has increased, and semi-natural grasslands have been highlighted as critical habitats. Temperate European agricultural landscapes require distinct and appropriate management to prevent further impoverishment of the flora and fauna. This is especially urgent for pollinating insects that provide important ecosystem se

AIMS: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a frequent co-morbidity in heart failure (HF) associated with increased mortality, but little is known about the mechanisms underlying AF onset in HF patients. We evaluated the association of cardiovascular and genetic risk factors with AF in HF patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: Individuals hospitalized for HF (n = 1040; 500 with AF) were identified from a large, pop

Background The activity of the human enzyme thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) varies greatly between individuals because of genetic polymorphism. TPMT is involved in the detoxification and activation of thiopurines such as 6-mercaptopurine, 6-thioguanine, and azathioprine. These drugs are used in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and inflammatory bowel disease. A total of 29 sequence

The genetic polymorphism of Borrelia burgdorferi and Borrelia afzelii, two species that cause Lyme borreliosis, was estimated by sequence typing of four loci: the rrs-rrlA intergenic spacer (IGS) and the outer-membrane-protein gene p66 on the chromosome, and the outer-membrane-protein genes ospA and ospC on plasmids. The major sources of DNA for PCR amplification and sequencing were samples of the

Objective This study was undertaken to analyze standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and causes and predictors of death in primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) diagnosed according to 3 different classification criteria sets (the Copenhagen criteria, the European criteria, and the American-European consensus criteria (AECC). Methods A linked registry study using information from the Malmö Primary SS Reg

Exposure to hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) has consistently been associated with an increased incidence of breast cancer, particularly of small tumours. Other tumour characteristics in relation to HRT have received less scientific attention. Our aim in this population-based prospective cohort study was to assess whether HRT is associated with an increased incidence of breast-cancer subgroups de

Intracellular Ca2+ was determined with the fura-2 technique during electrically induced contractions in the rabbit rectococcygeus smooth muscle at 22 degreesC. The muscles were electrically activated to give short, reproducible contractions. Intracellular [Ca2+] increased during activation; the increase in [Ca2+] preceded force development by approximately 2 s. After cessation of stimulation Ca2+

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to investigate the level of agreement between the needs assessment made by professional on the one hand, and the older person's views on the other. A further aim was to explore if the estimations made by the professional were systematically lower or higher compared to the views of the older person. PARTICIPANTS: The study included 152 individuals, 65+, who recei

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) is secreted from the parathyroid glands in response to low plasma calcium levels. Besides its classical actions on bone and kidney, PTH may have other important effects, including metabolic effects, as suggested for instance by increased prevalence of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. Moreover, secondary hyperparathyroidi

Previous family and twin studies have indicated that Graves' disease has a heritable component. Family studies have also shown that some autoimmune disease cluster in families and genetic studies have been able to show shared susceptibility genes. In the present nation-wide study we describe familial risk for Graves' disease among parents and offspring, singleton siblings, twins and spouses with r

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: PPARGC1A and PPARGC1B encode transcriptional coactivators that regulate numerous type 2 diabetes-related metabolic processes. Common genetic variation across PPARGC1A/B was characterised by genotyping tagging variants. We then tested associations of these variants with diabetes incidence or change in quantifiable metabolic traits directly or via interactions (with metformin treatm