Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the knee is often performed in patients who have knee symptoms of unclear cause. When meniscal tears are found, it is commonly assumed that the symptoms are attributable to them. However, there is a paucity of data regarding the prevalence of meniscal damage in the general population and the association of meniscal tears with knee symptoms and with r

Two two-stage systems, one consisting of a solid-bed reactor for hydrolysis/acidification connected to an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket methanogenic reactor, and the other consisting of a solid-bed reactor connected to a methanogenic reactor packed with wheat straw biofilm carriers, were investigated with regard to hydrolytic enzymes and methane production during mesophilic anaerobic digestion o

The aim of this study was to investigate the short-term (2 weeks) effects of the herbicide metsulfuron methyl alone and in combination with the insecticide cypermethrin in freshwater enclosures (80 1). We used a factorial design with four levels of herbicide (0, 1, 5, 20 mug/1) and two levels of insecticide (0 and 0.05 mug/1). The root growth of the macrophyte species Elodea canadensis and Myrioph

In the present paper, we have studied particle dissolution and crystal growth of the poorly water soluble drug felodipine, using fluorescence as a probe for the amount of crystalline material. Dissolution kinetics is essentially diffusion-controlled, while the rate of crystal growth is significantly slower compared to the diffusion-controlled limit. The deviation from diffusion control was charact

Impulse drying was simulated with a platen press equipped with a heated pressing head. The heat transferred to the wet paper sheet and the temperature gradient achieved in the thickness direction of the sheet during the press pulse were measured. The influence of the basis weight, the applied pressure, and the hot surface temperature on the temperature gradient and the total amount of heat transfe

The detailed mechanisms which can explain the inherent radiosensitivity of salivary glands remain to be elucidated. Although DNA is the most plausible critical target for the lethal effects of irradiation, interactions with other constituents, such as cell membrane and neuropeptides, have been suggested to cause important physiological changes. Moreover, mast cells seem to be closely linked to rad

The character and quantity of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were studied in nine small boreal streams and adjacent soils during two years, with focus on the spring snowmelt period. The streams cover a forest-wetland gradient, spanning from 0% to 69% wetland coverage. Lower values of the absorbance ratio measured at 254 nm and 365 nm (A(254)/A(365)), in both soil plots and streams, indicated that

In the present study, the objective was to evaluate the long-term metabolic impact of adding lactic acid to a bread-based diet in obese, hyperinsulinaemic Zucker (fa/fa) rats. All diets were based on a white wheat bread, and the lactic acid was added either prior to, or after the baking process. In addition, a diet with addition of Lactobacillus plantarum 299v was included to investigate the possi

The performance of a miniaturized sample processing platform for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS), manufactured by silicon microfabrication, called integrated selective enrichment target (ISET) technology was evaluated in a biological context. The ISET serves as both sample treatment device and MALDI-MS target, and contains an array of 96 perforated nanovial

The general case for a linear approximation of the form "X-1+(...)+X-k mod 2(n'') -->"X-1 circle plus(...)circle plus X-k circle plus N" is investigated, where the variables and operations are n-bit based, and the noise variable N is introduced due to the approximation. An efficient and practical algorithm of complexity 0(n (.) 2(3(k-1))) to calculate the probability Pr{N} is given, and in some ca

The present study was devoted to investigate the effects of the metabotropic glutamate receptor(mGluR)5 antagonist [(2-methyl-1,3-thiazol-4-yl)ethynyl]pyridine (MTEP) and the mGluR1 antagonist, (3-ethyl-2-methyl-quinolin-6-yl)-(4-methoxy-cyclohexyl)-methanone methanesulfonate (EMQMCM), in animal studies indicative of antiparkinsonian-like activity such as haloperidol-induced catalepsy, hypoactivit

In the Swedish Hernia Register 2834 inguinal hernia repairs in 2583 patients were registered in the county of Uppsala 1998-2004. In May 2005 the 2421 patients still alive were requested by mail to fill in a validated questionnaire concerning postherniorrhaphy pain. The final response rate became 72%. Altogether 519 patients (29%) stated that they had pain in the operated groin to some extent durin

Motivation: CoGenT++ is a data environment for computational research in comparative and functional genomics, designed to address issues of consistency, reproducibility, scalability and accessibility. Description: CoGenT++ facilitates the re-distribution of all fully sequenced and published genomes, storing information about species, gene names and protein sequences. We describe our scalable imp

We compare weak- and strong-coupling theory of counterion-mediated electrostatic interactions between two asymmetrically charged plates with extensive Monte Carlo simulations. Analytical results in both weak- and strong-coupling limits compare excellently with simulations in their respective regimes of validity. The system shows a surprisingly rich structure in terms of interactions between the su

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES. Elevated intrabolus pressure above a pharyngeal narrowing has been postulated as an important finding in patients with cricopharyngeal bars. To elucidate the significance of intrabolus pressure around lumen narrowings in the pharynx, intraluminal pressure characteristics were evaluated in a laboratory model simulating upper esophageal sphincter narrowing. METHODS. Intralu

Here we present a Zn transporter cDNA named MtZIP2 from the model legume Medicago truncatula. MtZIP2 encodes a putative 37 kDa protein with 8-membrane spanning domains and has moderate amino acid identity with the Arabidopsis thaliana Zn transporter AtZIP2p. MtZIP2 complemented a Zn-uptake mutant of yeast implying that the protein encoded by this gene can transport Zn across the yeast's plasma mem

Background: Delayed enhancement magnetic resonance imaging depicts scar in the left ventricle which can be quantitatively measured. Manual segmentation and scar determination is time consuming. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a software for infarct quantification, to compare with manual scar determination, and to measure the time saved. Methods: Delayed enhancement magnetic resonance ima