Calbindin D28k (calbindin) is a member of the calmodulin superfamily of Ca2+ -binding proteins. An intracellular target of calbindin was discovered using bacteriophage display. Human recombinant calbindin was immobilized on magnetic beads and used in affinity purification of phage-displayed peptides from a random 12-mer peptide library. One sequence, SYSSIAKYPSHS, was strongly selected both in the

We develop a density-functional theory for polydisperse polymer fluids satisfying the Schulz-Flory distribution. The resulting equations are remarkably simple and quickly solved, the computational effort scaling with the polydispersity index, rather than the average molecular weight. Equilibrium, or "living", polymers enter naturally as very polydisperse samples. We illustrate the importance of po

A model of human eye for experiments in vision research has been developed using PLZT ceramics. This ``artificial eye{''} allows to simulate light scattering caused by cataract in the eye lens. Light scattering of a composite eye lens of the model depends on the electric field applied to a transparent electrooptic PLZT ceramics plate that is attached directly to the lens. The image degradation in

Murine monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) which specifically react, in immunoblot and immunolocalization experiments, with the human desmosomal cadherins, desmocollins Dsc1 (mAb Dsc1-U100) and Dsc3 (mAb Dsc3-U114), have allowed to study systematically the synthesis of these proteins in tissues and cultured cells. Application of these mAbs in immunofluorescence microscopy on human skin has shown the pres

Although sexual reproduction appears to be rare in many clonal plant species, the majority of clonal species show similar levels of genetic variation to non-clonal plant species. Aegopodium podagraria is a noxious garden weed and has become a successful invader in many natural habitats. Earlier studies have demonstrated population differentiation in life-history traits between different A. podagra

Superior androgen receptor (AR) function in subjects carrying a GGN repeat length of 23 (GGN23) has been indicated in vivo. Therefore, the activity of the AR carrying GGN23 combined with CAG22 was compared to the AR with GGN10, 24 and 27, respectively, in the presence of 0.1-100 nM testosterone or DHT. At 100 nM DHT, GGN24 showed 35% lower transactivating activity (95% [CI]: 20-50%) than GGN23. GG

We previously showed that conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) increases 15-keto-dihydro-prostaglandin F-2 alpha, a marker for cyclooxygenase-mediated lipid peroxidation and thus an indicator of cyclooxygenase-mediated inflammation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of CLA on other indicators of inflammation in human subjects, including C-reactive protein, TNF-alpha, TNF-alpha

Species of Haemoproteus (Haemosporida: Haemoproteidae), avian haemosporidians, have traditionally been described based on morphology of their gametocytes and on limited experimental information on their vertebrate host specificity. We investigated to what extent the morphological species are represented by monophyletic groups based on DNA sequence data using 2 different fragment lengths of the cyt

We study deterministic algorithms for the gossiping problem in ad hoc radio networks under the assumption that each combined message contains at most b(n) single messages or bits of auxiliary information, where b is an integer function and n is the number of nodes in the network. We term such a restricted gossiping problem b(n) -gossiping. We show that rootn-gossiping in an ad hoc radio network on

Eighty-five evaluable superficial recurrent malignant tumours, mainly adenocarcinomas (78 per cent), in 38 patients were treated with either combined local hyperthermia (41-45 degrees C for four sessions) and low dose radiotherapy (30.0 Gy) or the same low dose radiotherapy alone. The treatment was given for two weeks. Hyperthermia was induced externally with 2450 MHz or 915 MHz microwaves. Totall

The Department of Urology in Lund, Sweden, has a long association with innovations in reconstructive urology. The authors from that department describe their experience over a long period with orthotopic bladder substitution and continent cutaneous urinary diversion. They conclude that continent urinary tract reconstruction is associated with a high incidence of early and late complications. They

Heart failure occurs in 2 - 3% of the adult population in the developed world. With decompensation of cardiac function, haemodynamic stability can be achieved by using intravenous vasodilators, diuretics and inotropes. Unlike traditional inotropes, Ca2+, sensitisers enhance cardiac function without significantly increasing cardiac oxygen consumption, promoting arrhythmia or impairing lusitropy. Th

Review of Deborah Jermyn & Sean Redmond (eds.), The Cinema of Kathryn Bigelow: Hollywood Transgressor-

Chicken breast muscle is usually considered to be a relatively homogeneous white muscle and has therefore been widely used for studies of muscle proteins. In a previous study, however, we have found different M-region structures in different fibres from this muscle. Because of this result, we have now carried out a combined histochemical and ultrastructural survey of this muscle. In particular, we

The food intake rate of foragers may be reduced as a result of interference, which may be asymmetric among individuals and occur as a result of intimidation, direct aggression or filtering. It is important to distinguish among these types of interference, because each can have different consequences for individuals, foraging groups and populations. We demonstrate the application of the functional

Objective and design: Heparin has been shown to improve survival of surgical skin flaps. However, it is not known whether the protective effect of heparin is related to it's anticoagulative or anti-inflammatory effects. Methods: Surgical flaps were raised in the dorsal skin of Sprague-Dawley rats. Neutrophil recruitment was determined by measuring the tissue content of myeloperoxidase (MPO) and cl

A new Coccidia species is reported from the natural population of Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) in northern Germany. Sporulated oocysts were found in faeces from 6 of 8 sampled adults. The spherical oocysts of the new Isopora species have a brownish, smooth, bi-layered wall. Average size of sporulated oocysts was 19.4 x 19.3 mu m (17.5-22.8 mu m x 17.5-22.8 mu m) with a shape index (length/