The structure and phase behavior of oppositely charged macroions in solution have been studied with Monte Carlo simulations using the primitive model where the macroions and small ions are described as charged hard spheres. Size and charge symmetric, size asymmetric, and charge asymmetric macroions at different electrostatic coupling strengths are considered, and the properties of the solutions ha

Aim: To identify important predictors among lifestyle behaviours and physiological factors of bone mineral density (BMD) in relation to body mass index (BMI) among young women over a 2-year period. Design, sample and measurements: Data were collected in 1999 and 2001. Healthy young women (n=152) completed a questionnaire. BMD measurements were performed by DEXA in the calcaneus. The women were su

Objective. To investigate the occurrence of extraarticular manifestations (ExRA) in it well defined community based cohort of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and to examine their effect on mortality, Methods. Using the resources of the Rochester Epidemiology Project. a retrospective medical record review was conducted of a cohort of 424 cases of RA in Olmsted County, MN, USA, diagnosed du

The organization of the mitochondrial genome is generally very conserved among vertebrates. Because of this, examination of the rare rearrangements which do occur has been suggested as offering a powerful alternative to phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial DNA sequences. Here, we report on an avian mitochondrial rearrangement in a group of oscine passerines (warblers of the genus Phylloscopus).

Inter-atrial conduction delay in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) has been reported. However, the area of this conduction delay has not been well identified. The activation time and conduction velocity over the right atrial endocardium were evaluated during sinus rhythm using the CARTO mapping technique in 6 patients with paroxysmal AF (AF group) and 11 patients without history of AF (contro

A major reason for the increased incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) across the world is the so-called obesity epidemic, which occurs both in developed and developing countries. However, a large proportion of patients with T2DM in European and, in particular, Asian countries are non-obese. The non-obese T2DM phenotype is characterized by disproportionally reduced insulin secretion and les

Molecular evolution approaches to developing molecules with characteristics particularly suited for specific applications have become important tools in biomedicine and biotechnology. Not only is it possible to identify molecules with specificities that cannot easily be obtained by other means, but it is also possible to fine-tune in an efficient manner the properties for, in principle, any specif

Objective. Our hypothesis states that the reactivity of the cutaneous microcirculation is reduced in patients with hypertension compared with healthy subjects. The objective was to verify the hypothesis by measuring microvascular function in hypertensive patients. Design. The study was a controlled trial with two arms: 15 hypertensives and 15 normotensives were enrolled, aged 30-60 years, and in h

Alarm analysis is the task of finding the root cause of a failure situation in an industrial process. In this article, a new approach for performing alarm analysis using multilevel flow models (MFM) is introduced. This approach is compared with existing methods for alarm analysis using MFM. The result of the alarm analysis presented in this article is a set of explanations that fits the observed s

We propose a rational fabrication method for nanoimprinting moulds by scanning probe lithography. By wet chemical etching, different kinds of moulds are realized on Si( 110) and Si( 100) surfaces according to the Si crystalline orientation. The structures have line widths of about 200 nm with a high aspect ratio. By reactive ion etching, moulds with patterns free from the limitation of Si crystall

Editorial of Film International issue 38: Crime Film & TV

The present study examined the influences of the muscle contraction (MCP) and relaxation (MRP) phases, as well as systole and diastole, on the blood velocity profile and flow in the conduit artery at different dynamic muscle contraction forces. Eight healthy volunteers performed one-legged dynamic knee-extensor exercise at work rates of 5, 10, 20, 30, and 40 W at 60 contractions per minute. The ti

Insulin stimulation of adipocytes results in serine phosphorylation/activation of phosphodiesterase 3B (PDE 3B) and activation of a kinase that phosphorylates PDE 3B in vitro, key events in the antilipolytic action of this hormone. We have investigated the role for p70 S6 kinase, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAP kinases), and protein kinase B (PKB) in the insulin signaling pathway leading to

Molecularly imprinted polymer coatings were synthesized in fused-silica capillary columns by the use of a surface-coupled radical initiator. The coatings were prepared using either toluene, dichloromethane, or acetonitrile in the prepolymerization mixtures and were 0.15-2 microm thick as determined by scanning electron microscopy. Solvent-dependent differences in appearance were observed. All the

The regulation of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS) mRNA levels during kindling epileptogenesis in the rat brain was investigated using in situ hybridization. Following 40 rapidly recurring seizures evoked by hippocampal stimulations, NOS mRNA expression decreased by 56% in the dentate granule cell layer (maximum at 2 h) and increased by 420,105 and 1260% in the CA1 and CA3 pyramidal layers and