Activation of the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) beta-receptor leads to cell growth and chemotaxis. The PDGF alpha-receptor also mediates a mitogenic signal, but fails to induce cell migration in certain cell types. To examine this difference in signal transduction, a series of point-mutated PDGF alpha-receptors were analyzed. Porcine aortic endothelial cells expressing mutant PDGF alpha-re

We apply the Linked Dipole Chain model to hadronic collisions using a modified version of the LDCMC Monte Carlo program. In particular we investigate the effects of multiple scatterings, which in this framework are reformulated in terms of the production of multiple chains of dipoles. We find, among other things, that this way of describing multiple scatterings is less sensitive to the treatment o

The directional stability of an originally straight crack under symmetric remote loading is studied after introduction of an infinitesimal disturbance at one or both tips of the crack. The crack is assumed to grow slowly under vanishing mode II stress intensity factor. Directional stability is defined to prevail if the angle formed by the straight line between the crack tips and the original crack

OBJECTIVE: To investigate possible associations between occupation and hospitalization for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a nationwide study. METHODS: A nationwide database was constructed in Sweden by linking the Swedish Census to the Hospital Discharge Register to obtain data on all first hospitalizations with a primary or secondary diagnosis of SLE in adults during the study period (19

PURPOSE: Treatment with calcium channel blockers have been associated with increased colon cancer mortality in epidemiologic studies. We examined the potential expression and function of calcium channels in two human colon cancer cell lines. METHODS: Both primary (collected at operation) and commercially-available human colon cancer cell lines were used. The colon cancer cells were incubated with

Intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) is widely used during thyroid surgery. During both intermittent and continuous IONM stimulation of the vagus nerve is performed. This has previously been reported to be safe.

BACKGROUND: Prostacyclin is a potent vasodilator, inhibitor of leukocyte adhesion, and platelet aggregation, and has been suggested as therapy for cerebral ischemia. A case of focal traumatic brain lesion that was monitored using intracerebral microdialysis, and bedside analysis and display is reported here. When biochemical signs of cerebral ischemia progressed, i.v. infusion of prostacyclin was

Objectives The aim of this paper was to compare selected indication parameters for patients scheduled for hip and knee replacement at orthopaedic units in Sweden. Methods Swedish orthopaedic clinics performing joint replacement were invited to enrol in the study. The study time was set to 2 years (from June 2006 to June 2008). The study subjects were patients undergoing hip or knee replacement for

Evaluation of prophylactic treatment of haemophilia requires sensitive methods. To design and test a new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scale for haemophilic arthropathy, two scales of a combined MRI scoring scheme were merged into a single scale which includes soft tissue and osteochondral subscores. Sixty-one joint MRI's of 46 patients with haemophilia were evaluated by four radiologists using

We present a spatiotemporal analysis of high harmonic generation, showing evidence for the presence of several quantum path contributions to the atomic dipole moment. We show that the harmonic radiation can largely be described as a sum of two fields having a phase proportional to the intensity of the generating field. We compare our results to recent experimental results demonstrating this separa

We report measurements and calculations of the polarization state of high-order harmonics generated by a 790-nm Ti:sapphire laser. The problem of completely characterizing the polarization state of a partially polarized radiation in the XUV range is discussed in detail. The comparison between several gases, xenon, argon and neon, and different orders, from the 17th to the 33rd, shows that the rota

An experimental system has been developed to verify the possibility of detecting flow activity using a technique called ultrasound Doppler vector tomography. A tomography algorithm is used to reconstruct blood flow vector fields using data from computer-controlled ultrasound continuous-wave Doppler scanning equipment. The result is a picture in which the brightness variations represent the reconst

For reprint orders, please contact reprints@ future-science. com stakeholders, markets and institutions. Experience shows that straightforward regulation can be justifiable and effective in some areas (eg, building codes and appliance standards), benefit sharing schemes are often important to ensure stakeholder buy-in (eg, local acceptance for wind power) and public–private partnerships can be imp

Cystatin C and cathepsins could play a role in almost all processes involved in atherosclerotic lesion formation by their degradation of extracellular matrix proteins and apolipoprotein B100, the protein moiety of LDL. Several cysteine cathepsins are upregulated in human lesions accompanied by a decrease in cystatin C, the major inhibitor of cysteine cathepsins. Recent research show that atheroscl