Background: As new combinations of inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) and long-acting beta(2)-agonists (LABAs) become available for the treatment of asthma, it will be important to determine criteria against which they can be evaluated. The aim of this study was to assess which attributes of combination therapy physicians consider most important. Methods: Primary and secondary care asthma specialists

In the Bas-Draa Inlier (Anti-Atlas, Morocco), the Paleoproterozoic basement which is cut by the Ediacaran Taourgha granite is also crosscut by numerous dykes of a variety of trends, mostly of uncertain age. Two doleritic dykes are dated by the ID-TIMS U-Pb method on baddeleyite and yield emplacement ages of 1381 +/- 8 Ma (MSWD = 0.84) and 1384 +/- 6 Ma (MSWD = 1.4) determined for a N135 degrees E

Bipolar disorder type I (BP-I) belongs to a spectrum of affective disorders that are expressed in many different ways and therefore can be difficult to distinguish from other conditions, especially unipolar depression, schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia (SZ), but also anxiety and personality disorders. Since early diagnosis and treatment have shown to improve the long-term prognosis, compleme

The relative complexity of the mechanisms underlying savanna ecosystem dynamics, in comparison to other biomes such as temperate and tropical forests, challenges the representation of such dynamics in ecosystem and Earth system models. A realistic representation of processes governing carbon allocation and phenology for the two defining elements of savanna vegetation (namely trees and grasses) may

In this work 80-picosecond laser pulses of 266-nm wavelength with intensities up to (2.0 +/- A 0.5) x 10(11) W/cm(2) were used for fragmentation of methane/air gas mixtures at ambient pressure and temperature. Emission spectra are, for the first time, studied with ultrahigh temporal resolution using a streak camera. Fluorescence spectra from CH(A(2)Delta-(XI)-I-2 , (BI)-I-2 (-)-(XI)-I-2 pound , (C

The results of a search for top squark (stop) pair production in final states with one isolated lepton, jets, and missing transverse momentum are reported. The analysis is performed with proton-proton collision data at root s = 8 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the LHC in 2012 corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 fb(-1). The lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) is taken to be

Accurate modelling of the carbon cycle strongly depends on the parametrization of its underlying processes. The Carbon Cycle Data Assimilation System (CCDAS) can be used as an estimator algorithm to derive posterior parameter values and uncertainties for the Biosphere Energy Transfer and Hydrology scheme (BETHY). However, the simultaneous optimization of all process parameters can be challenging,

Boronate affinity gel was prepared by immobilizing azide-functionalized boronic acid on alkyne-modified Sepharose. Different azide-functionalized boronic acids were synthesized from 2-, 3-, and 4-aminophenylboronic acids. One of the azide-functionalized boronic acids, 3BII, displayed weak and unexpected fluorescence emission. Using Cu(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) rea

Wood specimens to each of which alaminate of carbon fibre reinforcement polymers(FRP) was glued (creating a lap joint in each case)were loaded to failure. A total of 15 specimens ofthree types differing in the glued length (anchoragelength) of the FRP laminate (50, 150 and 250 mmrespectively) were tested, their strength, stiffness andstrain distribution being evaluated. Synchronizeddigital cameras

A Geant4-based Python/C++ simulation and coding framework, which has been developed and used in order to aid the R&D efforts for thermal neutron detectors at neutron scattering facilities, is described. Built upon configurable geometry and generator modules, it integrates a general purpose object oriented output file format with meta-data, developed to facilitate a faster turn-around time when

A search for a Higgs boson has been performed in the H -> WW -> l nu jj channel in 1.04 fb(-1) of pp collision data at root s = 7 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. No significant excess of events is observed over the expected background and limits on the Higgs boson production cross section are derived for a Higgs boson mass in the range 240 GeV < m(H) < 600 GeV. T

Thermal adaptation of gross primary production and ecosystem respiration has been well documented over broad thermal gradients. However, no study has examined their interaction as a function of temperature, i.e. the thermal responses of net ecosystem exchange of carbon (NEE). In this study, we constructed temperature response curves of NEE against temperature using 380 site-years of eddy covarianc

Helianthemum nummularium (L.) Mill. has two subspecies in southern Scandinavia, which differ in an indumentum character that is inherited as a Mendelian gene with two alleles. The dominant allele is the genetic basis for the key character of subsp. obscurum (absence of a dense felt of stellate hairs on the abaxial surface of the leaf), whereas the recessive allele is the genetic basis for the key

OBJECTIVES: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is less common among men than women, and sex hormones have been suggested to play a part in the pathogenesis. Lower levels of testosterone have been demonstrated in men with RA, but it is not known if these changes precede the disease. METHODS: In a nested case-control study, using information and blood samples from a population-based health survey, we identif

Objective: To investigate the hypothesis that cardiovascular risk factors increase the likelihood of future osteoarthritis (OA)-related arthroplasty in adult men and women. Methods: Baseline cohort data on cardiovascular risk factors [age, socio-economic class, family history, obesity, smoking, glucose, cholesterol, blood pressure, and early cardiovascular disease (CVD) history] were linked to cli

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and HER2 are associated with cancer although the role of HER2 in T2DM is not well defined. Our aim was to investigate the association between HER2 levels and T2DM and whether that association was different in Swedish people born in Iraq or Sweden.

New laminar burning velocity measurements of 85: 15% (by volume) H-2-CO and H-2-N-2 mixtures with O-2-He oxidizer are reported at lean conditions and elevated pressures (1-10 atm). Experiments are conducted using the heat flux method at initial temperature of 298 K. In this technique a near adiabatic flame is stabilized by balancing the heat loss from the flame to the burner with heat gain to the

Abstract Global change and GHG emission modelling are dependent on accurate wetness estimations for predictions of e.g. methane emissions. This study aims to quantify how the slope, drainage area and the TWI vary with the resolution of DEMs for a flat peatland area. Six DEMs with spatial resolutions from 0.5 to 90 m were interpolated with four different search radiuses. The relationship between ac

Accumulation of amyloid-beta (A beta), believed to be a key trigger of Alzheimer disease (AD), could result from impaired clearance mechanisms. Previously, we showed that the cysteine protease cathepsin B (CatB) degrades A beta, most likely by C-terminal truncation, in mice expressing human amyloid precursor protein with familial AD-linked mutations (hAPP(FAD)). In addition, the A beta-degrading a