BACKGROUND. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a multifunctional cytokine that has been implicated in the modulation of growth and progression of prostate cancer. Decreased expression of the tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1, involved in regulation of cytokine and tyrosine kinase receptor signaling, has been shown to be associated with less favorable outcome among prostate cancer patients. METHODS. Parental LNCaP c

Many historical accounts have asserted that containerization triggered complementary technological and organizational changes that revolutionized global freight transport. We are the first to suggest an identification strategy for estimating the effects of the container revolution on world trade. Our empirical strategy exploits time and cross-sectional variation in countries’ first adoption of con

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor through which organochlorine contaminants including 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), and some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons induce toxicity and altered gene expression. Atlantic salmon has multiple AHR genes, of which two belong to the AHR1 clade and four belong to the AHR2 clade. The four AHR2 forms (alph

To estimate the burden of disease due to congenital toxoplasmosis in Sweden the incidence of primary infections during pregnancy and birth prevalence of congenital toxoplasmosis in 40978 children born in two regions in Sweden was determined. Women possibly infected during pregnancy were identi®ed based on: 1, detection of speci®c IgG based on neonatal screening of the phenylketonuria (PKU) card bl

PURPOSE: To provide estimates of the diffusional kurtosis in the healthy brain in anatomically defined areas and list these along previously reported values in pathologies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-six volunteers (mean age = 33.1 years; range, 19-64 years) underwent diffusional kurtosis imaging. Mean kurtosis (MK), radial kurtosis (RK), mean diffusivity (MD), radial diffusivity (RD), and frac

Results of a search for decays of massive particles to fully hadronic final states are presented. This search uses 20.3 fb(-1) of data collected by the ATLAS detector in root s = 8 TeV proton-proton collisions at the LHC. Signatures based on high jet multiplicities without requirements on the missing transverse momentum are used to search for R-parity-violating supersymmetric gluino pair productio

Single-shot thermometry with dual-broadband rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy that employs amplified spontaneous emission from a broadband modeless dye laser has been examined. Evaluation of single-shot spectra of air, N-2, and O-2 showed an improved temperature precision at room temperature compared with the precision obtained with a conventional dye laser. A comparison was also

The effects of forest fire smoke on sky polarization and animal orientation are practically unknown. Using full-sky imaging polarimetry, we therefore measured the celestial polarization pattern under a smoky sky in Fairbanks, Alaska, during the forest fire season in August 2005. It is quantitatively documented here that the celestial polarization, a sky attribute that is necessary for orientation

The classical Gibbs-Donnan equilibrium describes excess osmotic pressure associated with confined colloidal charges embedded in an electrolyte solution. In this work, we extend this approach to describe the influence of multivalent ion binding on the equilibrium force acting on a charged rod translocating between two compartments, thereby mimicking ionic effects on force balance during in vitro DN

Background: Information about cost of multiple sclerosis (MS) is available from a number of European countries, but no data from the Czech Republic have been published so far. Objective: The objective of this study was to establish the cost of MS in the Czech Republic, overall and by level of disease severity. Methods: Data on demographics, disease history, resource consumption and production loss

The free volume sizes and interstitial mesopore sizes in poly(l-trimethylsilyl-l-propyne) (PTMSP)/silica nanocomposites and the correlation between nitrogen permeability and cavity sizes were studied with positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) at filler concentrations between 0 and 50 wt %. A bimodal free volume distribution was observed for PTMSP, and the size of the larger free volum

As an approach to determining the aetiology of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), we searched for a virus expressed in human CLL B-cells by combining high-throughput sequencing and digital subtraction. Pooled B-cell mRNA transcriptomes from five CLL patients and five healthy donors were sequenced with 454 Life Sciences technology. Human reads were excluded by BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search

Structures of Architectural Heritage are constantly exposed to natural and human-made threats that can compromise their cultural and artistic values. This is the case of the Roman city of Pompeii, whose preserving conditions nowadays are so critical to let a group of Unesco-appointed experts consider the possible inscription of the property on the list of “World Heritage in Danger”. In this respec

To examine the association between autonomic regulation and length of pain-related sick leave in subjects receiving a cognitive behavioural therapy-based return to work intervention. METHODS: Sixty-five persons (29 men, 36 women) on pain-related sick leave participated in the study. Electrocardiograms were recorded in the clinic during supine rest, passive head-up tilt, standing, and seated rest,

A new technique suitable for automated, large-scale fabrication of enzyme electrodes by air-spraying enzymes in organic inks is presented. Model oxidoreductases, tyrosinase (Tyr) and glucose oxidase (GOx), were adapted to octane-based ink by entrapment in a system of reverse micelles (RM) of surfactant AOT in octane to separate and stabilize the catalytically active forms of the enzymes in nonpola

Neurofibromatosis is associated with mid-aortic dysplasia, renal artery aneurysms and renal artery ostial stenosis, or occlusions in about 1% of cases. We describe a novel approach to recanalize an occluded renal artery in a 10-year-old girl with neurofibromatosis and difficulty in pharmacologically controlling her hypertension. Normally, when reconstruction is required, an open operative techniqu

Bacterial colonization of the lower respiratory tract is frequently seen in COPD and may cause exacerbations leading to deterioration of the disease. An important part of the innate lung immunity is antimicrobial peptides, not least the cathelicidin hCAP-18/LL-37. Peptidylarginine deiminases (PADI) posttranslationally modifies proteins by converting cationic peptidylarginine residues to neutral pe