This article proposes a Dual Complexity Gradient theory of speech perception in the brain. The theory unifies a previously proposed phonetic-to-phonological complexity gradient along the ventral auditory processing stream in the temporal lobe with a recently suggested cortical structure complexity gradient. Findings supporting the theory are discussed as well as its predictions.

Seagrass ecosystems have been identified as important marine ecosystem service (ES) providers, they contribute to coastal protection, fisheries provision and mitigate climate change among others. Yet, they are declining globally at alarming rates. While the ecological dimensions of this social-ecological system have been well studied, its associated social aspects remain largely unexplored. Here,

Background: In patients with arm or leg lymphedema, more fat has been found in the epifascial compartment of the edematous limb compared to the healthy limb. However, not much is known about subfascial fat accumulation in these patients. This study aims to investigate the intramuscular and intermuscular fat and muscle/water volume in lymphedema patients. The excess of intramuscular and intermuscu

How the concept of value is defined within ecosystem services operates as a filter through which important ecosystem features are identified by the specific benefits they provide to society and individuals. This value narrative reflects intrinsic and instrumental concepts which have been challenged by the Nature’s Contribution to People approach in additionally highlighting the importance of relat

BACKGROUND: To analyze the potential effect of social inequality on pancreatic cancer risk in Western Europe, by reassessing the association within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) Study, including a larger number of cases and an extended follow-up.METHODS: Data on highest education attained were gathered for 459,170 participants (70% women) from 10 European

OBJECTIVE: Because elevated copeptin, a marker of vasopressin, is linked to low water intake and high diabetes risk, we tested the effect of water supplementation on copeptin and fasting glucose.DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one healthy adults with high copeptin (>10.7 pmol · L-1 in men and >6.1 pmol·L-1 in women) identified in a population-based survey from 2013 to 2015 and with a cur

BACKGROUND: Higher fasting Growth Hormone (GH) has been associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Our objective was to find genetic determinants of fasting GH in order to facilitate future efforts of analyzing the association between fasting growth hormone and cardiovascular disease. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed in a discovery cohort of 4134 persons

Background Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2), an inflammatory enzyme expressed in atherosclerotic plaques, is a therapeutic target being assessed in trials of vascular disease prevention. We investigated associations of circulating Lp-PLA2 mass and activity with risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, and mortality under different circumstances. Methods With use of individual recor

Smoking is rare in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Onsets are common after stopping smoking. Several observations suggest possible immunologic mechanisms in UC. As smoking has an immunosuppressive effect, a possible role of smoking in UC could be immunosuppression. In this study an analogous hypothesis was investigated by studying smoking habits in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

In a case-control study there were significantly fewer smokers among patients with ulcerative colitis both at disease onset and at interview, the relative risk compared with non-smokers being 0.33 and 0.12, respectively. Among female patients with Crohn's disease there were significantly more smokers, the relative risk being 2.70 and 2.33, respectively. Of the ex-smokers with ulcerative colitis, t

The proportion of smokers in this study was significantly lower among patients with ulcerative colitis (13%) than among patients with Crohn's disease (47%), the difference being significant for both sexes and for the age groups both below and above 40 years. The proportion of male ex-smokers among patients with ulcerative colitis (28%) was higher than among patients with Crohn's disease (8%), wher