What, exactly, is it about jus cogens that distinguishes it from ordinary international law? In answering this question, international lawyers usually resort to the “the Legal-Consequences-as-Criterion Theory”: while ordinary international law can be rebutted or modified in accordance with the duly expressed will of states, jus cogens norms permit no derogation and allow modification only by the c

There is increasing evidence that gene copy number (CN) variation influences clinical phenotype. The low-affinity Fc receptor 3B (FCGR3B) located in the FCGR gene cluster is a CN polymorphic gene involved in the recruitment of polymorphonuclear neutrophils to sites of inflammation and their activation. Given the genetic overlap between systemic lupus erythematosus and systemic sclerosis (SSc) and

Circadian clocks optimize the timing of physiological processes in synchrony with daily recurring and therefore predictable changes in the environment. Until the late 1990s, circadian clocks were thought to exist only in the central nervous systems of animals; elegant studies in cultured fibroblasts and using genetically encoded reporters in Drosophila melanogaster and in mice showed that clocks a

Fast correlation attacks, pioneered by Meier and Staffelbach in 1988, constitute an important class of attacks on stream ciphers. They exploit a correlation between the keystream and the output of a linear feedback shift register (LFSR) within the cipher. Several factors affect the feasibility of such an attack, e.g., the amount of available keystream and the number of taps in the LFSR. Notably, f

Resection techniques are the established method for posterior mitral valve leaflet repair in degenerative mitral valve disease. However, implantation of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) neochordae is gaining acceptance. The aim of this study was to compare the durability and clinical outcome following mitral valve repair using ePTFE neochordae or leaflet resection.

The aim of this study was to assess knee extensor and flexor muscle torque in individuals with hemiparesis after stroke and determine the relationship with muscle tone. Fifty individuals (mean age 58 +/- 6.4 years), 6 to 48 months after stroke, participated in the study. Maximal concentric knee extension and flexion torque at 60 degrees/s and 120 degrees/s and maximal eccentric knee extension cont

Introduction Bladder exstrophy is a rare congenital malformation of the bladder and is believed to be a complex disorder with genetic and environmental background. We describe a young adult female with an isolated bladder exstrophy and with an X chromosome aberration. Patients and Methods Karyotyping identified an X chromosome rearrangement that was further characterized with array comparative gen

There is increasing awareness that the medications used to treat the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) contribute to the development of behavioral addictions, which have been clinically defined as impulsive compulsive behaviors (ICBs). These features include pathological gambling, compulsive sexual behavior, binge eating, compulsive shopping, excessive hobbyism or punding, and the excessi

A plant bioreactor has enormous capability as a system that supports many biological activities, that is, production of plant bodies, virus-like particles (VLPs), and vaccines. Foreign gene expression is an efficient mechanism for getting protein vaccines against different human viral and nonviral diseases. Plants make it easy to deal with safe, inexpensive, and provide trouble-free storage. The b

Researchers have called for the need to investigate the salesperson's role in customer value creation in the context of companies moving into service and solution businesses. Despite the indisputable importance of the sales function in the company's customer relationships and in value creation for these customers, relevant literature has not yet answered the question of what salespeople actually d

Primary health care resources for rehabilitation and secondary prevention after myocardial infarction - a questionnaire survey Background: During the first year after a cardiac event, many patients are offered participation in a cardiac rehabilitation programme, after which the patients are often not given the opportunity to continue to attend rehabilitation and secondary prevention programmes. Ai

A search for the weak production of charginos and neutralinos decaying to a final state with three leptons (electrons or muons) and missing transverse momentum is presented. The analysis uses 2.06 fb(-1) of root s = 7 TeV proton-proton collision data delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded with the ATLAS detector. Observations are consistent with standard model expectations in two sign

The use of telehealthcare systems to promote independent living for elderly people is growing. The results presented in this article, derived from an initial user lab test of a telecare system—GiraffPlus—indicate that the crucial factor for adoption of telehealthcare systems is not usability but the system's ability to support autonomy in everyday life. Eleven users tested the usability and report

Background High-dose aspirin (>= 500 mg daily) reduces long-term incidence of colorectal cancer, but adverse effects might limit its potential for long-term prevention. The long-term effectiveness of lower doses (75-300 mg daily) is unknown. We assessed the effects of aspirin on incidence and mortality due to colorectal cancer in relation to dose, duration of treatment, and site of tumour. Methods

We studied GVHD after donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) in 328 patients with relapsed CML between 1991 and 2004. A total of 122 patients (38%) developed some form of GVHD. We analyzed GVHD by clinical presentation (acute or chronic GVHD) and onset time after the first DLI (early (45 days)). There was a significant overlap between onset time and clinical presentation. Some form of GVHD occurred at a

Wheat straw was pretreated and fermented to ethanol. Two strains, which had been mutated from the genetically modified Saccharomyces cerevisiae TMB3400, KE6-12 and KE6-13i, have been used in this study and the results of performance were compared to that of the original strain. The glucose and xylose co-fermentation ability was investigated in batch fermentation of steam-pretreated wheat straw (SP

Young people create differentiated models of belonging. Their strategies reflect contexualized competences - the capacity to understand and negotiate the influence of national frameworks in specific situations. Theories that understand belonging as processual and intersectional offer useful frameworks with which to analyse this. This article uses data from empirical research with young people in a

Aim: To establish the current level of knowledge of the effect of drinking cessation on the risk of developing oesophageal cancer. Method: A meta-analysis was conducted based on relevant studies identified through a systematic literature review. A Generalised Least Squares model for trend estimation of summarised dose-response data were utilised in order to estimate the effect of years since drink

We describe a combined experimental, theoretical, and simulation study of the structural correlations between cross-linked highly monodisperse and swollen Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) microgel dispersions in the fluid phase in order to obtain the effective pair-interaction potential between the microgels. The density-dependent experimental pair distribution functions g(r)'s are deduced from real sp

Recent research has argued that urban policy has turned towards entrepreneurial forms of urban governance, resulting in a more fragmented and decentralized setting within which public policy is formulated and implemented. This implies that the context for public sector urban planning is also influenced by this "turn". This article questions this "turn" by arguing that, in Sweden and in practice, f