β-Alanine synthase is the final enzyme of the reductive pyrimidine catabolic pathway, which is responsible for the breakdown of uracil and thymine in higher organisms. The fold of the homodimeric enzyme from the yeast Saccharomyces kluyveri identifies it as a member of the AcyI/M20 family of metallopeptidases. Its subunit consists of a catalytic domain harboring a di-zinc center and a smaller dime

The preservatives imidazolidinyl urea (IMID, Germall 115) and diazolidinyl urea (DU, Germall II) are commonly used in cosmetic products and are well-known sensitizers. The aim of the present study was to establish the optimal patch test concentration in hydrophilic dried-in vehicle (TRUE Test) for IMID and DU. 181 patients were included in the study. Of these, 150 were patients referred for patch

Intrastriatal transplantation of embryonic dopaminergic tissue is a new, experimental approach for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD). Clinical trials have shown longterm graft survival and therapeutically valuable improvements with decreased L-dopa dose and time spent in the "off"-phase, and reduced rigidity and hypokinesia. We have measured health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using the

This paper analyzes the multi-period base-stock problem where there is a financial risk associated with a stochastic demand. For the single-period problem, it is known that the optimal inventory policy can be obtained with the Black and Scholes option pricing formula. This paper pushes the analysis further by applying the options valuation framework to the multi-period problem and presenting an al

Trypsinogen is a serine proteinase produced mainly by the pancreas, but it has recently been found to be expressed also in several cancers such as ovarian and colon cancer and in vascular endothelial cells. In this study, we found that trypsinogen-1 and -2 are present at high concentrations (median levels, 0.4 and 0.5 mg/L, respectively) in human seminal fluid and purified them to homogeneity by i

The performance of a miniaturized sample processing platform for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS), manufactured by silicon microfabrication, called integrated selective enrichment target (ISET) technology was evaluated in a biological context. The ISET serves as both sample treatment device and MALDI-MS target, and contains an array of 96 perforated nanovial

1. We hypothesised that adult insects actively monitor potential habitats for the presence of fish by means of chemical cues and avoid sites that pose significant risks. This was examined by quantifying colonisation of insects in outdoor pools with no fish (controls), fish (direct predation effect) or caged fish (chemical predator cues). 2. A significant direct effect of predation was found, but n

Background: There is a certain difference in opinion regarding the optimal choice of housekeeping genes used as normalization factors in gene expression analysis. We have therefore examined the suitability of three housekeeping genes, hypoxanthine phosphoribosyl transferase, beta(2)-glucuronidase and beta(2)-microglobulin, for normalization of expression data from melanoma metastases. Methods: The

The aim of this study was to investigate the short-term (2 weeks) effects of the herbicide metsulfuron methyl alone and in combination with the insecticide cypermethrin in freshwater enclosures (80 1). We used a factorial design with four levels of herbicide (0, 1, 5, 20 mug/1) and two levels of insecticide (0 and 0.05 mug/1). The root growth of the macrophyte species Elodea canadensis and Myrioph

In cubomedusae, the central nervous system (CNS) is found both in the bell (the ring nerve) and in the four eye-bearing sensory structures (the rhopalia). The ring nerve and the rhopalia are connected via the rhopalial stalks and examination of the structure of the rhopalial stalks therefore becomes important when trying to comprehend visual processing. In the present study, the rhopalial stalk of

Objectives. The first aim was to describe some aspects of each of the three perspectives in the triangular meeting between immigrant patients, interpreters and GPs, including their experiences, reflections and interactions during the consultation in primary health care. The second aim was to analyse patients' satisfaction with the consultation; whether satisfaction is influenced by respect for pat

In the present paper, we have studied particle dissolution and crystal growth of the poorly water soluble drug felodipine, using fluorescence as a probe for the amount of crystalline material. Dissolution kinetics is essentially diffusion-controlled, while the rate of crystal growth is significantly slower compared to the diffusion-controlled limit. The deviation from diffusion control was charact

A kinematic approach is applied to compute moisture flux and particle velocities in the unsaturated zone. The computations are compared with observations of tracer marked meltwater particles. Groundwater flow is computed accounting for storage and assuming constant particle velocity. It is found that meltwater particles that reach the groundwater not very close to the ground surface do not contrib

The New Basel Capital Accord, Basel II, promotes standards for measurement of financial and operational risk in the banking industry. Its approach to Such risk measurement has been severely criticized in the literature, inevitably raising doubts concerning the effectiveness of Basel II. Using data from 25 semi-structured interviews with banking staff in four Swedish banks, the study suggests that

Objective - Degradation of extracellular matrix plays an important role in growth and destabilization of atherosclerotic plaques. Cystatin C, inhibitor of the collagen- and elastin-degrading cysteine proteases of the cathepsin family, is produced by virtually all cell types. It is present in the normal artery wall but severely reduced in human atherosclerotic lesions. Methods and Results - To dete

BACKGROUND: The Case Method (Case) and Problem Based Learning (PBL) are two student active methods, increasingly used in medical education. AIM: The aim of this study was to compare medical student satisfaction with the two different active methods of learning and to see if there was any variation in preference between two stages in medical training. METHODS: A short questionnaire was given out to

All sesquiterpenes present in a sample of scented myrrh were isolated and characterised. Seven compounds, with cadinane, guaiane, oplopane, and eudesmane skeletons, were obtained, of which two are new and two are reported from a natural source for the first time. The major component, T-cadinol, has previously been shown to possess smooth muscle-relaxing properties, and the major purpose of the inv

Objective. To describe the change of pain reports over time in 3 cohorts derived from the general population: (1) no chronic pain (NCP, n = 1156); (2) chronic regional pain (CRP n = 502) and (3) chronic widespread pain (CWP; n = 242). To identify risk factors that predict the development or persistence of chronic widespread pain. Methods. A 3-year followup from 1995 to 1998 with postal questionnai