Efficient screening for ligands of seven-transmembrane, G-protein-coupled receptors, whether transfected or endogenously expressed, often involves cell-based reporter assays. Here we describe the development of reporter gene assays in HeLa cells. The reporter construct includes a synthetic multifunctional promoter with several different response motifs (NF-kappaB, STAT, and AP-1) and hence efficie

The cysteine protease cathepsin S is highly expressed in malignant tissues. By using a mouse model of multistage murine pancreatic islet cell carcinogenesis in which cysteine cathepsin activity has been functionally implicated, we demonstrated that selective cathepsin S deficiency impaired angiogenesis and tumor cell proliferation, thereby impairing angiogenic islet formation and the growth of sol

A successor of the present MAX facility is currently being studied. This proposed MAX IV facility will then have two new storage rings operated at 1.5 and 3 GeV respectively. The magnet lattices of the two storage rings are almost identical and the rings are placed coaxially, one on top of the other. A third ring, the MAX III ring, now under construction, should be transferred to the new facility.

Several U-based intermetallic compounds (UCoGe, UNiGe with the TiNiSi structure type and UNiAl with the ZrNiAl structure type) and their hydrides were studied from the point of view of compressibility and thermal expansion. Confronted with existing data for the compounds with the ZrNiAl structure type a common pattern emerges. The direction of the U-U bonds with participation of the 5f states is d

Abstract in UndeterminedThis paper presents a numerical study on the reduction of vibrations in the ground. The influence of landscape shaping to reduce vibration levels induced by traffic is investi-gated by means of the finite element method with dynamic analyses. Both two-dimensional as well as three-dimensional finite element models are employed for the investigations. A har-monic point force

There is no approved vaccine for malaria, and precisely how human antibody responses to malaria parasite components and potential vaccine molecules are developed and maintained remains poorly defined. In this study, antibody anamnestic or memory response elicited by a single episode of P. falciparum infection was investigated.

Polymorphisms in genes that encode for metabolic enzymes have been associated with variations in enzyme activity between individuals. Such variations could be associated with differences in individual exposure to carcinogens that are metabolized by these genes. In this study, we examine the association between polymorphisms in several metabolic genes and the consumption of tobacco in a large sampl

The essay collects and analyses sources on the Russian Orthodox monasteries of the Swedish province of Ingria (Ingermanland). These houses have rarely been treated; their very existence is largely unknown among specialists, although they are the only Orthodox religious houses to have existed in Scandinavia before the mid-20th century, apart from those of post-1809 Finland. On the basis of printe

In answer to recent experimental force measurements between oppositely charged surfaces we here reproduce the repulsion in the presence of multivalent salt using Monte Carlo simulations within the primitive model. Our osmotic pressure curves are in good agreement with experimental results. In contrast with Poisson-Boltzmann calculations, both repulsion and charge inversion are seen in the simulati

The authors describe a 9-year-old boy who had an accident with his bicycle. He presented with hematuria a few weeks later, and cystoscopy results showed a polypod lesion near the veru montanum. The lesion was resected, and histologic examination showed a nephrogenic adenoma (NA), which recurred 6 years later with hematuria. NA is a rare lesion in a child's urethra and can be a source of hematuria.

Tamoxifen (Tam) is widely used in chemotherapy of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. It inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of breast cancer cells by estrogen receptor-dependent modulation of gene expression, but recent reports have shown that Tam (especially at pharmacological concentrations) has also rapid nongenomic effects. Here we studied the mechanisms by which Tam exerts rap

The tense relationship between 'troublesome youth' and conventional society does not end with incarceration or institutional treatment. Rather, it is transformed into an abundance of interpersonal conflicts within incarceration and treatment. This article uses an interactionist perspective to critically assess five research approaches that account for these phenomena in various ways: 1) quarrels a

We introduce photons in partially quenched chiral perturbation theory and calculate the resulting electromagnetic loop-corrections at next-to-leading-order (NLO) for the charged meson masses and decay constants. We also present a numerical analysis to indicate the size of the different corrections. We show that several phenomenologically relevant quantities can be calculated consistently with phot

Congenic BioBreeding (BB) rats, homozygous for the autosomal lymphopenia (Lyp) gene (Lyp/Lyp), heterozygous (Lyp/+), or wild-type (+/+), were immunized with the T cell-dependent bacteriophage PhiX174 to determine effects of Lyp on primary and secondary antibody responses. The primary PhiX174 antibody response did not differ between the three different genotypes. In contrast, the secondary immune r

The retinoblastoma gene product (pRb) is the main substrate for cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) during the G1/S transition. Aberrations in cell cycle regulatory proteins, which have been observed in many malignancies, can theoretically cause increased phosphorylation of pRb due to unbalanced CDK activities. The expression and phosphorylation of pRb and potential associations to cell cycle aberrati

An aircraft-based, multi-channel aerosol sampler for studies of the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere from the CARIBIC ( Civil Aircraft for Regular Investigation of the Atmosphere Based on an Instrument Container) platform was designed and calibrated. The sampler operates with an impaction technique at a flow rate of 10.4 lpm and consists of sixteen sampling channels. Samples are collec

Objective: To evaluate the eYcacy of the essential omega-6 fatty acid Gammalinolenic acid (GLA) on fatigue associated with primary Sjo¨ gren’s syndrome. Methods: Ninety patients with primary Sjo¨ gren’s syndrome (with or without signs of autoimmunity) entered a 6-month double blind placebo-controlled randomised trial with high dose GLA (extracted from Evening Primrose Oil ) or corn oil. The primar

More than 11 million children under 15 years in sub-Saharan Africa have lost at least one parent to AIDS. In Uganda, about 2 million children are orphans, with one or both parents dead. The objective of this study was to investigate the psychosocial consequences of AIDS orphanhood in a rural district in Uganda and to identify potential areas for future interventions. The study was conducted in a r