Some insulin-dependent diabetic (IDDM) patients develop severe forms of retinopathy. Putative risk factors such as hypertension, poor metabolic control, nephropathy and growth hormone levels do not fully explain the progress of retinopathy in these patients. It has been discussed whether there is a genetic marker, since some diabetic patients without any known predisposing risk factors develop sev

BACKGROUND: Persistent organochlorine pollutants ( POP), such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p'-DDE), are widely found in the environment and considered potential endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDC). Their impact on male fertility is still unknown. METHODS: To explore the hypothesis that POP is associated with altered sperm chromatin integrity, a cross-

This paper describes a general picture of efforts to provide women with equal opportunity both on a national political level, and within academia. A report of recent activities within the newly formed National Division for Women in Physics within the Swedish Physical Society is also given

The intraobserver reproducibility of ultrasonic volume blood flow measurements in the human fetus was evaluated in this study. A new approach, simultaneous measurement of the vessel diameter and the flow velocity with a pulsed-wave Doppler ultrasound synchronized with a real-time ultrasound phase-locked echo-tracking system, was used to estimate volume blood flow (VBF) in the fetal descending aort

Different types of optical light guides were constructed and tested to enable convenient multiple angle of incidence ellipsometry, on solid and liquid interfaces in liquid solutions. Two light guides are needed on an ellipsometer, one to guide the incoming light and one to guide the light that is reflected at the test surface, and therefore one light guide was mounted on the laser arm and one on t

Fungal laccases are remarkable green catalysts that have a broad substrate specificity and many potential applications in bioremediation, lignocellulose processing, organic synthesis, and more. However, most of these transformations must be carried out at high concentrations of organic cosolvents in which laccases undergo unfolding, thereby losing their activity. We have tailored a thermostable la

A recently developed multiple fibre system for treating malignant tumours with interstitial photodynamic therapy was used in studies on rats with colon adenocarcinoma inoculated into the muscles of the hind legs. The animals were intraperitonially administrated delta -aminolevulinic acid (ALA), which is metabolised to protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) in the tissue. The treatment system consists of a laser

The original immunocompetence handicap hypothesis (ICHH) suggested that testosterone has a handicapping effect in males by both promoting the development of sexual signals and suppressing immune function. A modified version, the stress-linked ICHH, has recently proposed that testosterone is immunosuppressive indirectly by increasing production of corticosterone. To test both the original and stres

Background: To show results of a prespecified pooled analysis of the studies SPORTIF III (open-label) and SPORTIF V (double-blind), to assess the homogeneity of the results and to explore subgroup analyses and adverse events. Methods and Results: 7,329 patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and 1 additional stroke risk factor were randomized to warfarin (international normalized ratio 2.0-3.0) or

Introduction: The timed 'Up & Go' (TUG) is a performance test identifying problems in functional mobility. More knowledge on how the type of chair used influences test results is needed. Objective: To investigate inter-rater agreement on the time score and to assess if chair type used influenced the performance of the test. Setting: (1) Inter-rater agreement investigation on the time score was

The EPR and thermodynamic properties of semiquinone (SQ) species stabilized by mammalian succinate:quinone reductase (SQR) in situ in the mitochondrial membrane and in the isolated enzyme have been well documented. The equivalent semiquinones in bacterial membranes have not yet been characterized, either in SQR or quinol:fumarate reductase (QFR) in situ. In this work, we describe an EPR-detectable

We examined the effects of main clause verb pragmatics and left-edge boundary tones on syntactic processing in Swedish embedded clauses, using listener judgments and Event-Related Potentials. When the syntactic structure did not match the expectation based on the occurrence of a left-edge boundary tone, the acceptance rate decreased significantly, and a biphasic positive effect with an early peak

Abstract in Undetermined Previous work has presented contrasting views of the last glaciation on Jameson Land, central East Greenland, and still there is debate about whether the area was: (i) ice-free, (ii) covered with a local non-erosive ice cap(s), or (iii) overridden by the Greenland Ice Sheet during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Here, we use cosmogenic exposure ages from erratics to reconc

Clinical decisions often entail in intertemporal trade-off. Moreover, they often involve physicians of different specialities. In an experiment dealing with the management of small asymptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysms (a clinically relevant problem) we find that specialists in internal medicine exhibit higher implicit discount rates than vascular surgeons, general practitioners, and actual and

Challenges with an ageing population are increasingly becoming a reality in the Western world. Since cognitive impairment increases with age, we can expect an increasing number of older people in need of care. The aim of this article is to describe, analyse and compare different focuses on care of older people with dementia, using examples from France, Portugal and Sweden. The questions are princi

Background: Impaired trophoblast invasion is suggested as the main cause of reduced placental perfusion, which results in fetal growth restriction and preeclampsia. Immunological response against the invading tissue has been given as the explanation. Preeclampsia frequently recurs during the next pregnancy. Doppler ultrasound can predict increased vascular impedance in the uteroplacental circulati

In this paper, the effect of two polysaccharides (chitosan and dextran) on latex film morphology and porosity is investigated with atomic force microscopy, and the water permeability of the films is examined as well. Furthermore, latex films formed with mixtures of dextran and poly(ethylene glycol), PEG, are investigated.