Vascular smooth muscle endothelin type B (ETB) receptor is involved in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Hyperhomocysteinemia is an independent risk factor for CVDs. The present study was designed to examine the hypothesis that homocysteine (Hcy) up-regulates vascular smooth muscle ETB receptors. In vitro experiments were performed in rat superior mesenteric artery (SMA) and vasc

The distribution of serotonin-like and FMRFamide-like immunoreactive (5HT-ir and FMRFa-ir, respectively) neurons in the nervous system of the chiton Lepidopleurus asellus (Mollusca, Polyplacophora) was studied using an immunocytochemical technique. The neurons were distributed in characteristic patterns in the central nervous system, the 5HT-ir neurons predominating in the ventral (pedal) cords an

In the land pulmonate snailCepaea nemoralis, immunocytochemical localization of methionine- and leucine-enkephalin-like substances was demonstrated in specific populations of brain neurons. Methionine-enkephalin reactivity is also present in the peripheral nervous system as (i) abundant axonal projections of central neurons to the sole of the foot, and (ii) sparse local neurons of the head and man

Bacterial polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are expensive partly due to the recovery and purification processes. Thus, many studies have been carried out in order to minimize the cost. Here we report on the use of mealworm, which is the larva of mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) to recover PHA granules from Cupriavidus necator. Mealworms were shown to readily consume the freeze-dried C. necator cells a

In this study we conceptualise how a capability approach could be used for analysing the conditions for preserving security of energy supply. We derive a concept, ‘energy system capability’, to describe how well the system is designed for this purpose. Based on a socio-technical systems perspective, we suggest that this capability is composed of five categories of ‘building blocks’: technical stru

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) activates receptors on osteocytes to orchestrate bone formation and resorption. Here we show that PTH inhibition of SOST (sclerostin), a WNT antagonist, requires HDAC4 and HDAC5, whereas PTH stimulation of RANKL, a stimulator of bone resorption, requires CRTC2. Salt inducible kinases (SIKs) control subcellular localization of HDAC4/5 and CRTC2. PTH regulates both HDAC4/5

This paper reviews path-creation processes in road transport systems in the Nordic countries: e-mobility in Denmark, hydrogen and fuel-cell electrical vehicles in Norway, and advanced biofuels in Finland and Sweden. The study builds on the path creation literature, which seeks to explain the emergence of new technological pathways. Drawing on recent insights concerning the differences between desi

OBJECTIVE: To describe powered wheelchair (PW) and powered scooter (PS) users' experiences of accessibility and housing adaptions in their homes.METHOD: A qualitative research approach with focus group methodology was used. Four focus groups were created, with men and women as well as PW and PS users in different groups. Applying a descriptive approach, data were analysed according to the principl

Collaborative filtering for recommender systems seeks to learn and predict user preferences for a collection of items by identifying similarities between users on the basis of their past interest or interaction with the items in question. In this work, we present a conjugate prior regularized extension of Hofmann's Gaussian emission probabilistic latent semantic analysis model, able to overcome th

Next generation sequencing (NGS) methods have been widely used for diagnosis. As time and cost of sequencing has reduced sharply during the last decade, genome and exome-wide sequencing have increasingly been used. The genome and exome projects produce large amounts of variation data and the clinical relevance of large proportions of them are not known. Among various types of genetic variations, t

Cognitively-normal people with evidence of β-amyloid (Aβ) pathology and subtle cognitive dysfunction are believed to be at high risk for progression to mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Clinical trials in later stages of AD typically include a coprimary endpoint to demonstrate efficacy on both cognitive and functional assessments. Recent trials focus on cognitively-normal

The mutations of 76 haemophilia B patients representing the whole population registered with the Malmö haemophilia centre (42) and referrals from the UK, were characterised. RFLP haplotype analysis of the defective genes indicated that 51 single base pair substitutions were definitely of independent origin and 27 of these were CpG----TpG or CpA transitions. This represents a 38-fold excess over ot

At Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) the end-station PEAXIS (Photo Electron Analysis and X-ray resonant Inelastic Spectroscopy) combining Angle-dependent X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (AdXPS) and Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering (RIXS) is currently built. The latter method uses a spherical variable line space (VLS) grating to focus the beam onto the detector. Working in first-order diffraction

The role of increased dispersion of repolarization in the genesis of torsade de pointes and ventricular fibrillation has been well recognized generally, but not in the genesis of monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT). Monophasic action potentials (MAP) were therefore recorded simultaneously from the right ventricular (RV) apex (RVA) and outflow tract (RVOT) during sinus rhythm, RV pacing and pr

The genus Bicyclus is one of the largest groups of African butterflies, but due to the generally cryptic nature and seasonal variation of adult wing patterns, there has been a lot of systematic confusion. With a large research community working with the model species Bicyclus anynana there has been increasing interest in the evolutionary history of the genus. A previous phylogeny started to unrave

Antibody-based proteomics offers distinct advantages in the analysis of complex samples for discovery and validation of biomarkers associated with disease. However, its large-scale implementation requires tools and technologies that allow development of suitable antibody or antibody fragments in a high-throughput manner. To address this we designed and constructed two human synthetic antibody frag

We report growth and characterization of a coupled quantum dot structure that utilizes nanowire templates for selective epitaxy of radial heterostructures. The starting point is a zinc blende InAs nanowire with thin segments of wurtzite structure. These segments have dual roles: they act as tunnel barriers for electron transport in the InAs core, and they also locally suppress growth of a GaSb she

Extracellular vesicles (ECVs), including microparticles and exosomes, are submicrometer membrane vesicles released by diverse cell types upon activation or stress. Circulating ECVs are potential reservoirs of disease biomarkers, and the complexity of these vesicles is significantly lower compared to their source, blood plasma, which makes ECV-based biomarker studies more promising. Proteomic profi