Semiconductor nanowires are increasingly used for biological applications and their small dimensions make them a promising tool for sensing and manipulating cells with minimal perturbation. In order to interface cells with nanowires in a controlled fashion, it is essential to understand the interactions between nanowires and living cells. The present paper reviews current progress in the understan

The role of inflammation in atherosclerosis and plaque vulnerability is well recognized. However, it is only during recent years it has become evident that this inflammation is modulated by immune responses against plaque antigens such as oxidized LDL. Interestingly, both protective and pathogenic immune responses exist and experimental data from animal studies suggest that modulation of these imm

Spatio-temporal regulation of the balance between cell renewal and cell differentiation is of vital importance for embryonic development and adult homeostasis. Fibroblast growth factor signaling relayed from the mesenchyme to the epithelium is necessary for progenitor maintenance during organogenesis of most endoderm-derived organs, but it is still ambiguous whether the signal is exclusively mitog

Owing to complex direct and indirect effects, impacts of higher trophic levels on plants is poorly understood. In tropical agroecosystems, ants interact with crop mutualists and antagonists, but little is known about how this integrates into the final ecosystem service, crop yield. We combined ant exclusion and introduction of invasive and native-dominant species in cacao agroecosystems to test wh

Currently 80% of donor lungs are not accepted for transplantation, often due to fluid overload. Our aim was to investigate if forced fluid infusion may be replaced by a new pharmacological therapy to stabilize circulation after brain death in an animal model, and to assess therapy effects on lung function and morphology trough blood gas parameters and state-of-the-art High-resolution CT (HRCT).

Intestinal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) results in oxidative stress, inflammation, and tissue injuries. The present study investigates the antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of a dietary supplement of bilberry, either alone or in combination with Lactobacillus plantarum RESO56, L. plantarum HEAL19, or Pediococcus acidilactici JAM046, in an I/R-induced model for oxidative stress in mice. A b

Moraxella catarrhalis is an emerging human-restricted respiratory tract pathogen that is a common cause of childhood otitis media and exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adults. Here, we report the first completely assembled and annotated genome sequence of an isolate of M. catarrhalis: strain RH4, originally isolated from blood of an infected patient. The RH4 genome consists

P>This article reviews and discusses the contribution of William Starbuck's 'Learning by Knowledge-Intensive Firms'. Apart from situating Starbuck's article in its historical context and contemporary debates it is argued that the concept of esoteric knowledge and the focus on persuasion provides untapped potential for enhancing our understanding of knowledge work and knowledge-intensive firms. In

Objective: An increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in adult GH deficiency (GHD) may be related to hypopituitarism but also to the presence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS). Our objective was to investigate the characteristics and prevalence of MetS as well as its comorbidities in adult GHD. Design: In KIMS (Pfizer International Metabolic Database) 2479 patients with severe adul

The Human Variome Project (http://www.humanvariomeproject.org) is an international effort aiming to systematically collect and share information on all human genetic variation. The two main pillars of this effort are gene/disease-specific databases and a network of Human Variome Project Country Nodes. The latter are nationwide efforts to document the genomic variation reported within a specific po

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the association between structural changes in human atria, age, and history of atrial fibrillation (AF). BACKGROUND: Development of fibrosis in atrial walls is associated with deterioration of atrial conduction and predisposes to AF in experiment. Human data, however, are scarce, and whether fibrosis is a cause or consequence of AF is not known.

This paper synthesizes the available scientific information connecting atmospheric nucleation with subsequent cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) formation. We review both observations and model studies related to this topic, and discuss the potential climatic implications. We conclude that CCN production associated with atmospheric nucleation is both frequent and widespread phenomenon in many types o

ObjectiveHematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is curative in several life-threatening pediatric diseases but may affect children and their families inducing depression, anxiety, burnout symptoms, and post-traumatic stress symptoms, as well as post-traumatic growth (PTG). The aim of this study was to investigate the co-occurrence of different aspects of such responses in parents of childr

We present studies of W and Z bosons with associated high energy photons produced in pp collisions at root s = 7 TeV. The analysis uses 35 pb(-1) of data collected by the ATLAS experiment in 2010. The event selection requires W and Z bosons decaying into high pT leptons (electrons or muons) and a photon with E-T > 15 GeV separated from the lepton(s) by a distance Delta R(l, gamma) > 0.7 in eta-phi

The blade tip region encounters high thermal loads because of the hot gas leakage flows, and it must therefore be cooled to ensure a long durability and safe operation. A common way to cool a blade tip is to design serpentine passages with 180 deg turns under the blade tip-cap inside the turbine blade. Improved internal convective cooling is therefore required to increase the blade tip lifetime. D

The evolution of multicellular organisms represents one of approximately eight major evolutionary transitions that have occurred on earth [1-4]. The major challenge raised by this transition is to explain why single cells should join together and become mutually dependent, in a way that leads to a more complex multicellular life form that can only replicate as a whole. It has been argued that a hi

Introduction. Significant progress has been made in the understanding of physiological and pharmacological mechanisms of human sexual functioning through preclinical research in animal models. Aim. To provide an evidence-based documentation of the experimental models evaluating male and female sexual function for useful clinical translation. Methods. Consensus discussion over the past 18 months le

The Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) assesses parental feeding attitudes, beliefs and practices concerned with child feeding and obesity proneness. While the questionnaire has been developed and primarily used in the U.S., validation studies in other countries are limited. The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the CFQ among mothers with preschoolers in Sweden and the

In our continuing program to develop Plasmodium falciparum dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (PfDHODH) inhibitors, a series of N-substituted salicylamides were synthesized and their ability to selectively inhibit PfDHODH was examined. The synthetic program was based on 2-hydroxy-N-(2-phenylethyl)benzamide (1) that weakly inhibits both PfDHODH and human DHODH (hDHODH). Structure activity relationships w