BACKGROUND: Our aim was to describe changes in the volume and vascularization of both ovaries, the dominant follicle and the corpus luteum during the normal menstrual cycle using three-dimensional (3D) power Doppler ultrasound. METHODS: Fourteen healthy volunteers underwent serial transvaginal 3D ultrasound examinations of both ovaries on cycle day 2, 3 or 4, then daily from cycle day 9 until foll

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relation between low Apgar score in breech infants and handicap in childhood. STUDY DESIGN: A case-control study. A questionnaire to mothers of 323 non-malformed, singleton infants delivered in breech presentation at term, 105 cases with Apgar score below 7 at 5 min and 218 controls. RESULTS: Four cases (4.6%) and one control (0.5%) had cerebral palsy. In infants with

Let H-1 = (V, F-1) be a collection of N pairwise vertex disjoint O(1)-spanners where the weight of an edge is equal to the Euclidean distance between its endpoints. Let H-2 = (V, F-2) be a graph on V with M edges of non-negative weight. The union of the two graphs is denoted G = (V, F-1 boolean OR F-2). We present a data structure of size O(M-2 + V log V) that answers (1 + epsilon)-approximate sho

The production of polyamines has been shown to be an effective target for a drug against the West African form of sleeping sickness caused by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense. T. brucei belongs to the group of protozoan parasites classed as trypanosomatids. Parasitic species of this group are the causative agents of various tropical diseases besides African sleeping sickness, e.g. Chagas' disease (Try

Clinical islet transplantation is currently being explored as a treatment for persons with type 1 diabetes and hypoglycaemia unawareness. Although 'proof-of-principle' has been established in recent clinical studies, the procedure suffers from low efficacy. At the time of transplantation, the isolated islets are allowed to embolise the liver after injection in the portal vein, a procedure that is

The effects of aging on the total number and size of fibers, and the proportion and distribution of type 1 (slow twitch) and type 2 (fast twitch) fibers were studied in cross sections (15 mu thick) of autopsied whole m. vastus lateralis from two age groups. Each group consisted of six, previously physically healthy males (mean age 72 +/- 1 years and 30 +/- 6 years, respectively). The size of the m

A green house experiment was designed to test the idea that competition for inorganic nitrogen (N) between plants and heterotrophic microorganisms occurs in soils with high C:N ratios, qualifying for N limited microbial activity, but not at low C:N ratios. The short- term (24 h) N-15 uptake by the grass Festuca gigantea and microorganisms in planted and unplanted soils was determined, and the bact

Differences in physiological functioning in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis and the autonomic nervous system have been suggested to contribute to many of the health differences that may be observed between men and women as well as being relevant for the development of musculoskeletal pain. To clarify whether men and women with identical work tasks reacted differently when doing work

The three superdeformed (SD) bands in Ce-132 and the two SD bands in Ce-131 have been extended to higher spin following experiments with the EUROBALL IV spectrometer. The two SD bands in 131Ce have been linked together. However, despite the relatively high population intensity of the bands ( up to 5% of the respective channel), it has not been possible to unambiguously link any of the five SD band

Complex intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) treatment plans require rigorous quality assurance tests. The aim of this study was to independently verify the delivered dose inside the patient in the region of the treatment site. A flexible naso-gastric tube containing thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) was inserted into the oesophagus via the sinus cavity before the patient's first treatme

The increasing prevalence of obesity in the Western world has stimulated an intense search for mechanisms regulating food intake and energy balance. A number of appetite-regulating peptides have been identified, their receptors cloned and the intracellular events characterized. One possible energy-dissipating mechanism is the mitochondrial uncoupling of ATP-synthesis from respiratory chain oxidati

EF-hand Ca2+-binding proteins participate in both modulation of Ca2+ signals and direct transduction of the ionic signal into downstream biochemical events. The range of biochemical. functions of these proteins is correlated with differences in the way in which they respond to the binding of Ca2+. The EF-hand domains of calbindin D-9k and calmodulin are homologous, yet they respond to the binding

In this article the caring power in the Swedish probation service is discussed. By exploring the history of probation, formed since the early 19 th century, the structure that is constructed through human interaction and that defines the role of helper and helped is shown. Within this structure, different interpretations exist and different stories are told. This variation is highlighted through s

The aim of the present study was to compare cellular and noncellular components of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) in a group of children with a diagnosis of chronic diffuse parenchymal lung disease (cDPLD) and a group of children without parenchymal lung disease undergoing BAL for various clinical indications (control group). We evaluated cellular and non-cellular components (total proteins, a

Introduction P-32 phosphate was the first therapeutic radioisotope, used in leukaemia about 70 years ago. Since then, many new agents for haematological proliferations have been introduced successfully. Today there remains a distinct subgroup of elderly patients with polycythaemia vera and essential thrombocythaemia for whom P-32 is the most optimal treatment option, an assertion supported by two

The salamander Ensatina eschscholtzii Gray is a classic example of a ring species, or a species that has expanded around a central barrier to form a secondary contact characterized by species-level divergence. In the original formulation of the ring species scenario, an explicit biogeographical model was proposed to account for the occurrence of intraspecific sympatry between two subspecies in sou

The role of intercellular tight junctions in breast epithelia[ cells is traditionaliy thought to be in maintaining polarity and barrier function. However, claudin-4, a tight junction protein, is overexpressed in breast tumour cells compared to normal epithelial cells, which generally corresponds to a loss in polarity. The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution and potential clinical