Serum samples from patients referred for liver biopsy for investigation of suspected chronic liver disease (n = 286) and from healthy middle-aged volunteers (n = 445) were analyzed for markers of exposure to GB virus C/hepatitis G virus (GBV-C/HGV), hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus. GBV-C/HGV analyses included GBV-C/HGV PCR for detection of viremia and GBV-C/HGV enzyme-linked immunosorbent

Due to concerns related to treatment with erythropoietin (EPO) and possible negative effects on tumour control, a workshop was organised by the Medical Products Agency of Sweden with the aim to revise national treatment guidelines if needed. In patients with solid tumours, conflicting results have been reported with respect to tumour control and survival. Until further notice it is therefore recom

Abstract in UndeterminedThe dimeric CuA site found in cytochrome c oxidase and nitrous oxide reductase has been studied with the density functional B3LYP method. We have optimized the structure of the realistic (Im)(S(CH3)2)- Cu(SCH3)2Cu(Im)(CH3CONHCH3) model in the fully reduced, mixed-valence, and fully oxidized states. The optimized structures are very similar to crystal structures of the prote

A new biologically active triterpenoid, favolon B (1), was isolated from fermentation broths of Mycena sp. strain 96180. Favolon B showed antifungal activities towards Botrytis cinerea, Mucor miehei, Paecilomyces variotii and Penicillium notatum. No activities were observed against bacteria and yeasts. The structure of favolon B was elucidated by spectroscopic techniques.

We present a new technique, based on pulse-echo ultrasound, for monitoring the entire setting process of injectable bone cement. This research has been motivated by the lack of satisfying standards. The main problem with existing standards is the subjectivity, which leads to poor reproducibility. Because of this the results are not comparable between different research groups. A strong advantage w

Single channel currents were activated by GABA (0.5 to 5 microM) in cell-attached and inside-out patches from cells in the dentate gyrus of rat hippocampal slices. The currents reversed at the chloride equilibrium potential and were blocked by bicuculline (100 microM). Several different kinds of channel were seen: high conductance and low conductance, rectifying and "nonrectifying." Channels had m

The life cycles of sexually reproducing animals and flowering plants begin with male and female gametes and their fusion to form a zygote. Selection at this earliest stage is crucial for offspring quality and raises similar evolutionary issues, yet zoology and botany use dissimilar approaches. There are striking parallels in the role of prezygotic competition for sexual selection on males, cryptic

The two-dimensional three-pulse photon echo signals from a dimer system are investigated in detail. A perturbative approach is used to calculate the response of the system via a numerical propagation of the density matrix in exciton state representation. Exciton vibrational coupling is modeled by Redfield relaxation theory. The main goal of this paper is to dissect the two-dimensional spectrum of

The conditional variance function in a heteroscedastic, nonparametric regression model is estimated by linear smoothing of squared residuals. Attention is focused on local polynomial smoothers. Both the mean and variance functions are assumed to be smooth, but neither is assumed to be in a parametric family. The biasing effect of preliminary estimation of the mean is studied, and a degrees-of-free

Testicular cancer is the most common tumour type in young men. In Sweden the annual age-adjusted incidence increased significantly by 2.4% during the time period 1984-1993 and during 1994-2003 by 1.4%. Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals during the foetal period has been postulated to be a risk factor. In this investigation we studied the concentrations of chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), p,p'

The present study focuses on the role of the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system in the development of smooth muscle hypertrophy. Hypertrophy was initiated by partial ligation of portal vein or urethra in female Sprague-Dawley rats weighing approximately 220 g. Levels of mRNA were analyzed by solution hybridization. Seven days after ligation, the wet weight of the portal vein was increased abo

There is increasing evidence that territorial stream fish populations exhibit some degree of self-thinning. Four size-limit strategies were examined, under which a size-structured model population exhibiting self-thinning was exploited. The effects of: (1) increased minimum-size limits; (2) protection of spawners; (3) decreasing maximum-size limits; and (4) slot limits (prescribe lower and upper s