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Ethical issues in modern obstetrics commonly relate to a conflict between the rights and possibilities of the fetus versus those of the mother. After delivery, when the fetus by definition is a child, all legal rights are granted to this new individual. Whether any rights should be given or offered to the fetus is dependent on the prevailing situation. General rules are difficult to give due to th
Background High plasma HDL cholesterol is associated with reduced risk of myocardial infarction, but whether this association is causal is unclear. Exploiting the fact that genotypes are randomly assigned at meiosis, are independent of non-genetic confounding, and are unmodified by disease processes, mendelian randomisation can be used to test the hypothesis that the association of a plasma biomar
The current epidemiologic evidence suggests that men with type 2 diabetes mellitus may be at lower risk of developing prostate cancer, but little is known about its association with stage and grade of the disease. The association between self-reported diabetes mellitus at recruitment and risk of prostate cancer was examined in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)
Common diseases such as type 2 diabetes are phenotypically heterogeneous. Obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, but patients vary appreciably in body mass index. We hypothesized that the genetic predisposition to the disease may be different in lean (BMI<25 Kg/m(2)) compared to obese cases (BMI >= 30 Kg/m(2)). We performed two case-control genome-wide studies using two accepted cut-o
Human land use changes perturb biogeochemical silica (Si) cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. This directly affects Si mobilisation and Si storage and influences Si export from the continents, although the magnitude of the impact is unknown. A major reason for our lack of understanding is that very little information exists on how land use affects amorphous silica (ASi) storage in soils. We have qu
The rs738409 C > G single-nucleotide polymorphism in PNPLA3 leads to a missense mutation (I148M) which increases liver fat but does not cause insulin resistance. We hypothesised that patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) due to the PNPLA3 variant ('PNPLA3 NAFLD'aEuro parts per thousand= PNPLA3-148MM) do not have adipose tissue (AT) inflammation in contrast with those with NAFLD d
BACKGROUND: Muscle weakness in one or both upper limbs is common in persons with previous polio, but there is very limited knowledge how it influences daily life. OBJECTIVE: To assess muscle weakness and self-perceived disability of the upper limbs in persons with late effects of polio and evaluate their association. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTINGS: University hospital outpatient clini
Background Olaparib, a novel, orally active poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, induced synthetic lethality in BRCA-deficient cells. A maximum tolerated dose and initial signal of efficacy in BRCA-deficient ovarian cancers have been reported. We therefore assessed the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of olaparib alone in women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations and advanced breast cancer. M
What is the central question of this study? Does the exocrine pancreas have an impact on endocrine pancreatic function and peripheral nutrient utilization? What is the main finding and its importance? In an exocrine pancreas-insufficient pig model, the insulin response to a glucose load was delayed. Oral enzyme supplementation did not improve the insulin release but facilitated blood glucose clear
BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in women after menopause. In essence major risk factors for CVD are similar in women as for men inclusive of serum lipid perturbations. The effects of estrogens and hormone replacement therapy on lipid metabolism is widely discussed and warrant further evaluation especially when combined with other lipid lowering drugs. STUDY D
OBJECTIVES: To investigate the significance of ACE gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism in the frequency of autoimmune manifestations in sarcoidosis. DESIGN: In patients with sarcoidosis the ACE gene I/D polymorphism was detected with PCR on genomic DNA. The patients with sarcoidosis were divided according to the presence (n = 30) or absence (n = 32) of autoimmune manifestations. The former
Conclusions. The results confirm that tumour stage influences the risk of recurrence/second primary tumour (SPT). High-risk human papillomavirus (HPV)-infected patients have a significantly higher risk of recurrence/SPT compared with high-risk HPV-negative patients. High alcohol consumption was associated with a higher risk of recurrence/SPT. In this study, the competing risk of death in intercurr
The research described in this thesis, focuses on some activities on the demand side that could reduce peak load in electricity system by using consumer flexibility i.e. by increasing the demand side response to signals coming from the energy market. The major objective is to test and analyse different strategies to reduce peak load at the demand side considering their techno-economic, environment
1. The survey has mainly concentrated on the following items: the false alarm problem, the problem of the fire not being detected due to the fact that pre-fire heating and ventilation dominate flow inside the compartment, a description of detector sensitivity to fire signatures. engineering design methods for the siting of detectors. 2. The statistical as well as practical experience suggests that
The hypothesis of this thesis is that climate models should take structural vegetation changes that operate on interannual to centennial time scales into account in order to simulate climate change in a more realistic manner. To evaluate this hypothesis, a regional Earth System Model (ESM) has been developed, validated and applied over Europe. The model has enabled the identification of a number o
Background: Evolutionary processes can cause strong spatial genetic signatures, such as local loss of genetic diversity, or conflicting histories from mitochondrial versus nuclear markers. Investigating these genetic patterns is important, as they may reveal obscured processes and players. The maternally inherited bacterium Wolbachia is among the most widespread symbionts in insects. Wolbachia typ
Background: Radical prostatectomy reduces mortality among patients with localised prostate cancer. Evidence on whether different surgical techniques can affect mortality rates is lacking. Objective: To evaluate functional and oncological outcomes 8 yr after robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) and open retropubic radical prostatectomy (RRP). Design, setting, and participants: We enroll
