Through-plane morphologies of multiblock copolymers based on poly(arylene ether sulfone)s were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and through-plane conductivity measurements using a 4-probe method. The measured results showed that proton conductivity increased with a longer block length and that the optimal block length ranged from 5 to 7 K. TEM cross-sectional images also supp

In this study, five models, including the standard k-epsilon (SKE), realizable k-epsilon (RKE), SST k-omega, transition k-kl-omega, and the v(2)f model, are considered to simulate air flow and heat transfer of a turbine guide vane. The object in this paper is the well-studied NASA C3X turbine vane, for which experimental data are available. Ten internal cylindrical cooling channels are used to coo

To elucidate the genetic bases of mycorrhizal lifestyle evolution, we sequenced new fungal genomes, including 13 ectomycorrhizal (ECM), orchid (ORM) and ericoid (ERM) species, and five saprotrophs, which we analyzed along with other fungal genomes. Ectomycorrhizal fungi have a reduced complement of genes encoding plant cell wall-degrading enzymes (PCWDEs), as compared to their ancestral wood decay

Context: Blood hemoglobin (Hb) declines with age in healthy elderly men, in whom decreasing testosterone has been regarded as part of normal ageing. However, the association between Hb and serum estradiol is incompletely known. Objective: To determine whether estradiol is associated with anemia/Hb and established determinants of Hb in elderly men without prostate cancer. Design, Setting and Partic

Methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI) and methylisothiazolinone (MI) are the active ingredients in commonly used preservative systems (e.g. Kathon CG(®) ). MCI/MI is present in the European baseline patch test series at 100 ppm aq. Since 1986, 200 ppm (dose 0.006 mg/cm(2) ) has been used in Sweden without causing skin irritation. Centres in Spain, the United Kingdom and Ireland have also used 200 ppm

Chondroadherin, a leucine-rich repeat family member, contains a very C-terminal sequence CKFPTKRSKKAGRH(359), now shown to bind to heparin with a K-D of 13 mu M. This observation led us to investigate whether chondroadherin interacts via this C-terminal heparin-binding domain with glycosaminoglycan chains of proteoglycans at the cell surface. Cells were shown to bind this heparin-binding peptide i

Traditionally, economic geographers stress geographical proximity's positive impact on collaboration processes. However, effects of cognitive, organizational, social and institutional proximity dimensions have been emphasized recently. This paper examines the relations between geography and these non-spatial dimensions by distinguishing two mechanisms: the substitution mechanism, where non-spatial

Systematic background radiation variations can lead to both false positives and failures to detect an orphan source when searching using car-borne mobile gamma-ray spectrometry. The stochastic variation at each point is well described by Poisson statistics, but when moving in a background radiation gradient the mean count rate will continually change, leading to inaccurate background estimations.

We present a method for performing quantum state holography, with which we completely characterize the amplitude and phase of an attosecond electron wave packet. Our approach is an extension of a recent publication [J. Mauritsson et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 053001 (2010)] in which we demonstrated experimentally that the energies and amplitudes of an attosecond electron wave packet can be charact

Spleen T-lymphocytes, especially CD4(+) T-cells, have been demonstrated to be involved in broad immunomodulation and host-defense activity in vivo. Apolipoprotein M gene (apoM) may have an important role in the regulation of immunoprocess and inflammation, which could be hypothesized to the apoM containing sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P). In the present study we demonstrate that the splenic CD4(+) T

The aim of the study was to investigate the resting levels of novel cardiovascular biomarkers in common types of noncardiac syncope.

A central tenet of Rescorla and Wagner's model of associative learning is that the reinforcement value of a paired trial diminishes as the associative strength between the presented stimuli increases. Despite its fundamental importance to behavioral sciences, the neural mechanisms underlying the model have not been fully explored. Here, we present findings that, taken together, can explain why a s

Objectives: Angiotensin II (ANGII) is involved in vessel inflammation and is important in the development of cardiovascular disorders such as atherosclerosis. During active disease, patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA; Wegener's granulomatosis) have accelerated atherosclerosis and ANGII inhibitors are recommended to these patients to reduce atherosclerosis. We assessed the hypothes

Background We aimed to accurately estimate the frequency of a hexanucleotide repeat expansion in C9orf72 that has been associated with a large proportion of cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Methods We screened 4448 patients diagnosed with ALS (El Escorial criteria) and 1425 patients with FTD (Lund-Manchester criteria) from 17 regions worldwide for the

The anaesthetic conserving device (ACD) AnaConDa was developed to allow the reduced use of inhaled agents by conserving exhaled agent and allowing rebreathing. Elevated has been observed in patients when using this ACD, despite tidal volume compensation for the larger apparatus dead space. The aim of the present study was to determine whether CO2, like inhaled anaesthetics, adsorbs to the ACD duri

Surfactants with the cationic functionality based on an amino acid structure have been used to prepare novel biocompatible devices for the controlled encapsulation and release of DNA. We report here the formation of DNA gel particles mixing DNA (either single- (ssDNA) or double-stranded (dsDNA)) with two different single-chain amino acid-based surfactants: arginine-N-lauroyl amide dihydrochloride

A phytochemical study of the flowers of Kaunia lasiophthalma G. (Asteraceae) yielded a novel triterpene (1) together with several known sesquiterpenoids. The structure of the new compound was elucidated by analysis of the spectroscopic data. The biosynthetic origin of 1 is proposed to be a dimerization of an oxidized derivative (3) of the germacrane sesquiterpene costunolide (2), also present in t

This article adresses the problem of literary unity as is is posed by two late eighteenth century long poems, "Året 1783" by Bengt Lidner and Skördarne by Johan Gabriel Oxenstierna. By investigating the relations between poetry, poetics and practical criticism it seeks to document a situation in which new poems failed to achieve the kind of unity found in the traditional long poem, i.e. the epic.

The treatment durations for hepatitis C are guided by the analysis of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA in blood at certain time points. This multicentre, randomized open label trial evaluated the utility and performance of individualized treatment durations guided by viral decline rates in 103 patients with HCV genotype 1 infection. Pegylated interferon 2a and ribavirin were given as standard of care (