BACKGROUND: Obesity has, in a number of studies, been found to correlate to disability and mortality, primarily due to diseases of the circulatory and musculoskeletal systems. In addition, an excess mortality among underweight subjects has been observed in previous studies. METHODS: Five complete birth-year cohorts (1926-1930) of male residents in Malmo (n = 7697) were invited to the survey at the

Biodegradable macroporous cryogels with highly open and interconnected pore structures were produced from dextran modified with oligo L-lactide bearing hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA) end groups in moderately frozen solutions. Tissue responses to these novel scaffolds were evaluated in rats after dorsal subcutaneous implantation, iliac submuscular implantation, auricular implantation, or in calvar

Core excitation from terminal oxygen O-T in O-3 is shown to be an excitation from a localized core orbital to a localized valence orbital. The valence orbital is localized to one of the two equivalent chemical bonds. We experimentally demonstrate this with the Auger-Doppler effect which is observable when O-3 is core excited to the highly dissociative O(T)1S(-)17a(1)(1) state. Auger electrons emit

Human C4b-binding protein (C4BP) protects host tissue, and those pathogens able to hijack this plasma glycoprotein, from complement-mediated destruction. We now show that the first two complement control protein (CCP) modules of the C4BP alpha-chain, plus the four residues connecting them, are necessary and sufficient for binding a bacterial virulence factor, the Streptococcus pyogenes M4 (Arp4) p

In this paper we shall concentrate on Gaussian (or close to Gaussian) loads acting on a structure. The goal is to compute a measure of risk for fatigue of a component during a specific time period and the so called "safety index" will be used to combine different types of uncertainties. The presented methodology can be applied in a more general situation of environmental loads which properties may

Costs of sperm production may lead to prudence in male sperm allocation and also to male mate choice. Here, we develop a life history-based mutual mate choice model that takes into account the lost-opportunity costs for males from time out in sperm recovery and lets mate competition be determined by the prevailing mate choice strategies. We assume that high mating rate may potentially lead to sper

Background: To improve dosing consistency and product features, budesonide inhalation powder delivered via a dry powder inhaler (DPI) (DPI-A* 200 mu g) was redesigned to include lactose, a newly shaped mouthpiece, and a new dose indicator (DPI-B dagger). Budesonide CPI-B is available in two strengths (90 mu g, 180 mu g). Objective: To compare the relative rate and extent of the systemic availabili

The models and theories of occupational therapy and occupational science to a great extent lack empirical support. We need an increased understanding of the construct of occupation and its predicting factors. The objectives of this study were to explore the construct of occupation in an ageing population, and to test the construct's relationships with underlying performance components and environm

The evaluation of the translation capacity of cells that produce recombinant proteins can be made by monitoring their ribosomal composition. In a previous use of asymmetrical flow field–flow fractionation (AsFlFFF) for this purpose the overall analysis time was more than 1 h and 40 min, based on a standard protocol for cell harvest, washing, cell disruption, and the final 8-min AsFlFFF determinati

1. Net primary production (NPP) by terrestrial ecosystems appears to be proportional to absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR) on a seasonal and annual basis. This observation has been used in 'diagnostic' models that estimate NPP from remotely sensed vegetation indices. In 'prognostic' process-based models carbon fluxes are more commonly integrated with respect to leaf area index ass

The objective was to evaluate the efficacy of the information policy given to all systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. One hundred consecutive SLE patients were asked to answer anonymously a questionnaire covering demographic issues including education, adherence with prescriptions and advice given and methods of sourcing information. Seventy-three females and ten males responded. The demo

At Forsmark, ca. 120 km north of Stockholm in central Sweden, ductile high-strain belts with WNW to NW trend anastomose around tectonic lenses with an inferred lower degree of ductile strain. Previous studies of ductile deformation zones with WNW to NW trend, elsewhere in the western part of the Svecofennian orogen in central Sweden, have yielded estimates for the timing of at least one phase of d

Individual genome-wide scans of blood pressure (BP) and hypertension (HT) have shown inconsistent results. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there was any consistent evidence of linkage across multiple studies with similar ethnicity. We applied the genome-search meta-analysis method (GSMA) to nine published genome-wide scans of BP (n=5) and HT (n=4) from Caucasian populations. For e

During liquefaction of the ejaculate, the semen coagulum proteins semenogelin I (SEMG1) and semenogelin II (SEMG2) are degraded to low molecular mass fragments by kallikrein-related peptidase 3 (KLK3), also known as prostate-specific antigen. Semenogelin molecules initiate their own destruction by chelating Zn2+ that normally would completely inhibit the proteolytic activity of KLK3. In a similar

The recently introduced Gas in Scattering Media Absorption Spectroscopy (GASMAS) technique is applied to the study of various wood samples. Molecular oxygen in the pores of the strongly scattering material is detected using diode laser spectroscopy around 760 nm. Diffuse light propagation in these media is studied by time-dispersion measurements. Furthermore, anisotropy related to the fibre struct

The problem addressed in this text is the problem of identifying conditions according to which it is possible to distinguish between a descriptive theory and a normative theory. What makes a descriptive theory descriptive and a normative theory normative? Focus is on subjective expected utility theories where it seems open to debate whether the appropriate use is normative or descriptive. My discu

Aims To investigate cognitive abilities and adaptive skills in children and adolescents with myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) and correlate the findings to the cytosine-thymine-guanine (CTG) repeat expansion size. Method Cognitive level was assessed in 55 children and adolescents with DM1 (31 males, 24 females; mean age 12y 1mo, SD 5y 1mo; range 2y 7mo-21y 5mo) divided into the following categories

PURPOSE: To identify regional arterial input functions (AIFs) using factor analysis of dynamic studies (FADS) when quantification of perfusion is performed using model-free arterial spin labelling. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Five healthy volunteers and one patient were examined on a 3-T Philips unit using quantitative STAR labelling of arterial regions (QUASAR). Two sets of images were retrieved, one w

The objective of this work is to present a musculo-skeletal model of the lumbar spine, which can be shared and lends itself to investigation in many locations by different researchers. This has the potential for greater reproducibility and subsequent improvement of its quality from the combined effort of different research groups. The model is defined in a text-based, declarative, object-oriented