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CO2-free power generation in combined cycles - Integration of post-combustion separation of carbon dioxide in the steam cycle

Ever since the release of the Kyoto protocol the demand for CO2-free processes have been increasing. One of the most expanding sources of electric power in the industrialised world today is the gas-fired combined cycle, combining high efficiency and low investment cost. In this paper, the integration of a post-combustion CO2-separation unit into a combined cycle is studied from a thermodynamic and

Driving to learn: powered wheelchair training for those with cognitive disabilities

The Driving to Learn project was an exploration of how those with significant cognitive disabilities could benefit from training in a joystick-operated powered wheelchair. This study focuses on a particular part of the wider Driving to Learn project, mainly looking at the relationship between characteristics connected to powered wheelchair-use and the trainees' success or failure in developing a c

Prediction of post-operative pain after a laparoscopic tubal ligation procedure.

Background: Pre-operative identification of reliable predictors of post-operative pain may lead to improved pain management strategies. We investigated the correlation between pre-operative pain, psychometric variables, response to heat stimuli and post-operative pain following a laparoscopic tubal ligation procedure. Methods: Assessments of anxiety, mood, psychological vulnerability and pre-opera

Professions and the Pursuit of Transparency in Healthcare: Two Cases of Soft Autonomy

Contemporary professions are increasingly challenged to open up to scrutiny from the outside. Earlier research is focused on two main types of responses and consequences: colonization by a managerial logic of self-monitoring and decoupling of auditing and professional practice. his paper describes a different type of response which implies that professionals get actively involved in monitoring the

Love thy neighbour? Social nesting pattern, host mass and nest size affect ectoparasite intensity in Darwin’s tree finches

Social nesting behaviour is commonly associated with high prevalence and intensity of parasites in intraspecific comparisons. Little is known about the effects of interspecific host breeding density for parasite intensity in generalist host–parasite systems. Darwin’s small tree finch (Camarhynchus parvulus) on Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos Islands, nests in both heterospecific aggregations and at s

Low serum testosterone and high serum estradiol associate with lower extremity peripheral arterial disease in elderly men - The MrOS study in Sweden

Objectives This study sought to determine whether serum levels of testosterone and estradiol associate with lower extremity peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in a large population-based cohort of elderly men. Background Few studies have explored the relationship between serum sex steroids and lower extremity PAD in men. Methods The Swedish arm of the MrOS (Osteoporotic Fractures in Men) study (n =

Smad7 promotes self-renewal of hematopoietic stem cells in vivo.

The Smad-signaling pathway downstream of the transforming growth factor–beta superfamily of ligands is an evolutionarily conserved signaling circuitry with critical functions in a wide variety of biologic processes. To investigate the role of this pathway in the regulation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), we have blocked Smad signaling by retroviral gene transfer of the inhibitory Smad7 to muri

Limited male dispersal in a social spider with extreme inbreeding

Cooperatively breeding animals commonly avoid incestuous mating through pre-mating dispersal. However, a few group-living organisms, including the social spiders, have low pre-mating dispersal, intra-colony mating, and inbreeding. This results in limited gene flow among colonies and sub-structured populations. The social spiders also exhibit female-biased sex ratios because survival benefits to la

Enterochromaffin-like cells in the rat stomach: effect of depletion. A chemical, histochemical and electron-microscopic study

In the rat, gastric histamine is stored predominantly in the enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cells, which are located basally in the oxyntic mucosa. The functional significance of histamine in the ECL cells is a matter of speculation. In this study the effect of depletion of histamine on the properties and ultrastructure of the ECL cells was examined. Histamine synthesis was inhibited with alpha-fluor

Characterisation of genomic translocation breakpoints and identification of an alternative TCF3/PBX1 fusion transcript in t(1;19)(q23;p13)-positive acute lymphoblastic leukaemias.

The t(1;19)(q23; p13), one of the most common translocations in childhoodand adult acute lymphoblastic leukaemias (ALLs), usually results in fusion of exons 1-16 of TCF3 (previously E2A) and exons 3-9 of PBX1. However, some t(1;19)-positive ALLs are negative for this chimaera. We here report an alternative TCF3/PBX1 transcript, fusing exon 17 of TCF3 with exon 5 of PBX1, in a paediatric t(1;19)-po

Validation of the use of Pap-stained vaginal smears for diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis

Papanicolaou-stained cervicovaginal smears (Pap smears) are used to screen for cervical cancer. Since there is a lack of consensus in published reports respecting the efficacy of Pap-stained smears in BV diagnostics, there is a need to validate their use for diagnosis of BV. Slides from the international BV00 workshop were Pap stained and independently analyzed by four investigators under a phase-

Pungent products from garlic activate the sensory ion channel TRPA1

Garlic belongs to the Allium family of plants that produce organosulfur compounds, such as allicin and diallyl disulfide (DADS), which account for their pungency and spicy aroma. Many health benefits have been ascribed to Allium extracts, including hypotensive and vasorelaxant activities. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects remain unknown. Intriguingly, allicin and DADS shar

Cognitive development in children with cochlear implants: Relations to reading and communication

The purpose of the present article is to present an overview of a set of studies conducted in our own laboratory on cognitive and communicative development in children with cochlear implants (CI). The results demonstrate that children with CIs perform at significantly lower levels on the majority of the cognitive tasks. The exceptions to this trend are tasks with relatively lower demands on phonol

SWAp dynamics in a decentralized context: experiences from Uganda

This paper examines the role of the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Uganda in the process of developing a Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) within the health sector. Power dynamics are integral to any understanding of development assistance, and SWAps bring with them new opportunities for the deployment of influence. The SWAp process has changed the interaction between the donors and the Government, and the

Calmidazolium inhibits muscarinic receptor-mediated PLC activation in SH-SY5Y cells

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a calmodulin antagonist, calmidazolium, on the muscarinic receptor-mediated increase in inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate [I(1,4,5)P3] in SH-SY5Y cells. Exposure to 10 microM calmidazolium suppressed the initial I(1,4,5)P3 peak increase (IC50 1 microM) whereas the steady-state was less affected. Furthermore, calmidazolium displayed non-competitive

Does pond quality limit frogs Rana arvalis and Rana temporaria in agricultural landscapes? A field experiment

1. When assessing the cause of population absence or decline, it is important to understand the relative effect of local, regional and global factors. In this study we evaluated the first of these factors for two frog populations. 2. Amphibians are often absent from intensively farmed areas. There could be several reasons for this, one of them being the quality of the aquatic habitat available fo

Assessing phonologies in bilingual Swedish-Arabic children with and without language impairment

Ten Swedish-Arabic children with severe language impairment (LI) and 10 matched controls were tested with Swedish and Arabic phonology tests. The children with severe LI displayed significantly more of both syntagmatic and paradigmatic processes in both languages. The results are also discussed in relation to monolingual children in Swedish and Arabic, both children with a normal language developm

Total antioxidant capacity and content of flavonoids and other phenolic compounds in canihua (Chenopodium pallidicaule): An Andean pseudocereal

Total antioxidant capacity (TAC), total phenolic compounds (TPH), total flavonoids (TF) and individual phenolic compounds were determined in canihua collected at approx. 3850 in altitude. The TAC values varied among samples from 2.7 to 44.7 by the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) method and from 1.8 to 41 by the 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) method expresse