The time trends of exposure to heavy metals are not adequately known. This is a worldwide problem with regard to the basis for preventive actions and evaluation of their effects. This study addresses time trends for the three toxic elements cadmium (U), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb). Concentrations in erythrocytes (Ery) were determined in a subsample of the population-based MONICA surveys from 1990,

OBJECTIVE: To study the outcome after acidaemia at term birth, and the relation to gender and duration of pathological fetal heart rate changes. DESIGN: Population based study of 154 infants with umbilical artery pH < 7.05 at term birth. Neonatal outcome and the result of developmental screening at age four years were compared with a control group with pH > 7.10. Fetal heart rate traces in infants

OBJECTIVES: To study the rates of elimination of total prostate-specific antigen (PSA-T), free PSA (PSA-F), and PSA complexed to alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (PSA-ACT) from blood after radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP). METHODS: We obtained venous blood from 10 patients with prostate cancer who were undergoing RRP. We analyzed PSA-F and PSA-ACT and equimolar detection of both of these forms toget

Proton motions in hydrated proton conducting perovskites BaZr(0.90)A(0.10)O(2.95) (A = Y and Sc) have been investigated using quasielastic neutron scattering. The results reveal a localized motion on the ps time scale and with an activation energy of similar to 10-30 meV, in both materials. The temperature dependence of the total mean square displacement of the protons shows an onset of this motio

The antral hormone gastrin and its intestinal relative, cholecystokinin (CCK), are pivotal in the regulation of gastric functions. Other gastric hormones like ghrelin, peptide YY (PYY), and islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP), however, also contribute to the regulation of acid secretion, motility, and feeding. Because gastrin and CCK are crucial for gastric homeostasis, we examined how loss of gastri

After oral intake, small amounts of intact protein may be absorbed into the blood circulation. The current study investigated whether orally administered pancreatic enzymes were absorbed from the intestine. The study included 28 pigs; 3 control pigs with intact pancreatic function and 25 pigs that were made exocrine pancreas insufficient by duct ligation (20 pigs) or total pancreatectomy (5 pigs).

Objective: Behavioral experiments show that infants use both prosodic and statistical cues in acquiring language. However, it is not yet clear whether these prosodic and statistical tools are already present at birth. Methods: We recorded brain responses of sleeping newborns to natural sounds rich in prosody, namely singing and continuous speech, and to two impoverished manipulations of speech. A

During translation, the ribosome and several of its constituent proteins undergo structural transitions between different functional states. Protein L12, present in four copies in prokaryotic ribosomes, forms a flexible "stalk" with key functions in factor-dependent GTP hydrolysis during translocation. Here we have used heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy to characterize L12 conformation and dynamics i

The formation, shaping and evolution of galaxies are processes of high interest but poorly known. This is true also for our closest galactic neighbours. Of key importance is a representative sample of all major types of galaxies with solid evolutionary parameters. Stellar clusters are excellent probes of galactic evolution, albeit so far useful at smaller distances only, mainly due to the limiting

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a co-transmitter in sympathetic nerves and released from platelets, has recently been shown to stimulate growth of vascular smooth muscle cells. It might therefore contribute to the development of vascular hypertrophy seen in hypertension and atherosclerosis. We aimed at characterising the receptor mediating this mitogenic effect in rat aorta smooth muscle cells. The

The effects of enzyme structure and activity on the degradation of model cellulose substrates were investigated by ellipsometry for the cellulase Humicola insolens GH45. The inactive variant D10N was found to adsorb at the cellulose surface but also to be incorporated into the cellulose films to an extent that depended on pH. For the native protein, the initial adsorption monitored for the inactiv

The proportions of different fiber types (type 1 and type 2) on the borders of fascicles are shown to differ from the proportions internally. This finding is based on the analysis of a total of 245 fascicles from whole cross-sections of the vastus lateralis muscle from 13 men, aged from 26-80 years. Generally, the difference is more marked in the young than in the old. It is argued that the causes

Affinity precipitation is a highly selective bioseparation method, which has been successfully used in the purification of various enzymes/proteins. The separation of (His)6-tagged lactate dehydrogenase ((His)6-LDH) was carried through affinity precipitation technique using thermoresponsive copolymer poly(vinylimidazole-co-N-isopropyl-acrylamide) (poly(VI-NIPAM)). Nearly quantitative recovery of (

We report comprehensive microwave measurements on a T-branch switch; a GaInAs/InP electron waveguide based structure. The study includes a small signal model of the device where limitations of high frequency operation are discussed. An example of large signal operation where the nonlinearity of the device is exploited by operating the T-branch switch as a frequency multiplier is demonstrated.

We investigated intravoxel phase dispersion caused by pulsatile brain motion in diffusion spin-echo pulse sequences. Mathematical models were used to describe the spatial and temporal velocity distributions of human brain motion. The spatial distribution of brain-tissue velocity introduces a phase spread over one voxel, leading to signal loss. This signal loss was estimated theoretically, and effe