This paper presents a flexible architecture suitable for concurrent processing of multiple radio standards. The proposed architecture is based on a coarse-grained reconfigurable cell array, consisting of distinct processing and memory cells. Flexibility of the architecture is demonstrated by performing a coarse time synchronization and fractional frequency offset estimation for multiple OFDM stand

An association between low serum vitamin D levels and poorer melanoma survival has been reported. We have studied inheritance of a polymorphism of the GC gene, rs2282679, coding for the vitamin D-binding protein, which is associated with lower serum levels of vitamin D, in a meta-analysis of 3137 melanoma patients. The aim was to investigate evidence for a causal relationship between vitamin D and

The yeast pathogen Candida glabrata is the second most frequent cause of Candida infections. However, from the phylogenetic point of view, C. glabrata is much closer to Saccharomyces cerevisiae than to Candida albicans. Apparently, this yeast has relatively recently changed its life style and become a successful opportunistic pathogen. Recently, several C. glabrata sister-species, among them clini

This paper aims to develop a framework for an integrated empirical and normative policy analysis practicable for evaluating environmental and forest sub-policies regarding their contribution to democratic policy-making. For this reason Habermas meta-model on deliberative democracy is translated to the policy level by merging it with the Policy Arrangement Approach (PAA) of Arts and Van Tatenhove.

Sore throat is common in primary healthcare. Aetiological studies have focused on the presence of a limited number of pathogens. The aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of a wide range of bacteria and viruses, including Fusobacterium necrophorum, in patients with pharyngotonsillitis and in asymptomatic controls. A prospective case control study was performed in primary healthc

BACKGROUND: The 2011 European Society of Cardiology guidelines state that acute coronary syndrome (ACS) may be excluded with a rapid 3 h high-sensitivity troponin T (HsTnT) sampling protocol. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic and prognostic performance of HsTnT in patients with chest pain admitted with possible ACS in routine care. METHODS: A total of 773 consecutive patients admitted for in-hos

Within the family of voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs), L-type channels (L-VGCCs) represent a well-established therapeutic target for calcium channel blockers, which are widely used to treat hypertension and myocardial ischemia. L-VGCCs outside the cardiovascular system also control key physiological processes such as neuronal plasticity, sensory cell function (e.g. in the inner ear and retin

The exposure of bacterial cells to pulsed electric fields (PEF) leads to the reversible formation of pores in the cell membrane if an applied energy is below the critical level. Therefore, the effect of electric field pulses with amplitudes below 14 kV/cm and the applied energy up to 12.2 J/cm(3) on the growth of Lactobacillus plantarum 564 cells was investigated. After PEF treatments, the growth

Objective: To study serum type I interferon (IFN) activity in patients with early systemic sclerosis (SSc). Method: Serum type I IFN activity was measured in 33 consecutive patients with SSc and a disease duration of < 2 years and in 13 healthy individuals by calculating a type I IFN score according to the induction of six IFN-α regulated genes in a reporter cell line. Results: Twenty-seven per ce

We combine a novel measure of export-related financial needs at the product level with a unique database of firm-product export data (including names of the exporting firms) from five developing countries. Using the tools of survival analysis and taking into account firms’ and products’ heterogeneity, we then examine the impact of financial development on the long-term trade. Finance matters for s

The question whether very weak, low frequency magnetic fields can affect biological matter is still under debate. The theoretical possibility of such an interaction is often questioned and the site of interaction in the cell is unknown. In the present study, the influence of extremely weak 60?Hz magnetic fields on the transport of Ca2+ was studied in a biological system consisting of highly purifi

One feature of climate change is the increasing heat exposure in many workplaces where efficient cooling systems cannot be applied. Excessive heat exposure is a particular problem for working people because of the internal heat production when muscle work is carried out. The physiological basis for severe heat stroke, other clinical effects, and heat exhaustion is well known. One feature of this h

JavaScript is a sequential programming language that has a large potential for parallel execution in Web applications. Thread-level speculation can take advantage of this, but it has a large memory overhead. In this article, we evaluate the effects of adjusting various parameters for thread-level speculation. Our results clearly show that thread-level speculation is a useful technique for taking a

Studies have shown that lion (Panthera leo) populations in West Africa are small, isolated and fragmented. In Nigeria, lions have disappeared from unprotected areas and are nowadays found only in parks and reserves where these populations may still decline. It is therefore urgent to obtain reliable estimates of population sizes at different localities. Direct observational surveys may either fail

In this study, a computational model has been developed to predict condensation heat transfer between vertical parallel plates. Transient simulations of filmwise condensation in a small two-dimensional parallel plate passage are performed. The Volume of Fluid (VOF) method is used to track the vapor liquid interface. The Geometric Reconstruction Scheme, which is a Piecewise Linear Interface Calcula

Despite the favorable prognosis of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a substantial subset of patients relapses. Since this occurs not only in the high risk but also in the standard/intermediate groups, the presently used risk stratification is suboptimal. The underlying mechanisms for treatment failure include presence of genetic changes causing insensitivity to the therapy administere

Brain–machine interfaces (BMIs) may be used to investigate neural mechanisms or to treat the symptoms of neurological disease and are hence powerful tools in research and clinical practice. Wireless BMIs add flexibility to both types of applications by reducing movement restrictions and risks associated with transcutaneous leads. However, since wireless implementations are typically limited in ter

Temperatures in the Arctic regions are rising, thawing permafrost and exposing previously stable soil organic carbon (OC) to decomposition. This can result in northern latitude soils, which have accumulated large amounts of OC potentially shifting from atmospheric C sinks to C sources with positive feedback on climate warming. In this paper, we estimate the annual net C gas balance (NCB) of the su