Background Epidemiological studies have, so far, identified factors associated with increased risk for incident or progressive OA, such as age, sex, heredity, obesity, and joint injury. There is, however, a paucity of long-term data that provide information on the nature of disease progression on either group or individual levels. Such information is needed for identification of study cohorts and

Questions on Life Satisfaction-Hypopituitarism (QLS-H) is a new quality-of-life (QoL) questionnaire developed for adults with hypopituitarism. To determine the effects of long-term GH treatment on QoL, we evaluated QLS-H Z-scores in 576 adult patients with GH deficiency (GHD) enrolled in HypoCCS, an international observational study, using data from five countries in which comparative QLS-H data f

Several reports indicate that hypoglycemic sulfonylureas augment Ca(2+)-dependent insulin secretion via mechanisms other than inhibition of the ATP-sensitive K(+) channel. The effect involves a 65-kd protein in the granule membrane and culminates in intragranular acidification. Lowering of granule pH is necessary for the insulin granule to gain release competence. Proton pumping into the granule i

A number of reports have been examined of tests undertaken by FRS and by FIRTO for the purpose of studying the behaviour of sprinkler systems in controlling fires in piles of stacked cardboard cartons. Mean speeds of the rising flame tip have been estimated and found to be very variable. Typically if ignition is on the vertical outside "face" speeds are 1-3 cm/sec. Ignition in a "face" is typicall

Abstract is not available.

Chromatofocusing of proteins in a microcolumn format (750 mum i.d.) was evaluated with slurry-packed Mono P anion-exchanger beads (10 pin bead size) as chromatographic matrix. Evaluation was performed with three standard proteins in terms of flow rate, Polybuffer 96-acetic acid, pH 6.0, concentration (eluent buffer strength), and detection limit. A column with the dimension 750 pin i.d. x 50 mm le

Malignant melanoma and breast cancer are common malignant diseases characterized by considerable heterogeneity with respect to genetics, histopathology, biology and clinical course. In breast cancer, two major susceptibility genes have been identified, BRCA1 and BRCA2, which account for a significant proportion of high-risk breast cancer families. Breast tumors arising in BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation c

Background: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease encompassing a wide range of symptoms that can emanate from pathology in virtually any organ system. Severe SLE includes involvement of the central nervous system and kidneys. One of the hallmarks of the disease is a multitude of autoantibodies, indicating a breakdown in self tolerance. The corresponding antigens have been fou

Pb-195 was investigated utilizing the reactions Dy-164(S-36, 5n)Pb-195 and Dy-164(S-34, 3n)Pb-195 at beam energies of 170 and 160MeV respectively. Two new dipole bands which feed into the yrast 25/2(+) state, were found in Pb-195. The connection between the bands and the spherical states was established and thus spins and energies of the involved collective states were determined. The deformation

Abstract is not available

Irritable bowel syndrome has a negative impact on a person's quality of life, but only a few existing studies have been based on patients' own perceptions. This study therefore aimed to collect information on the view of female patients with irritable bowel syndrome regarding what constitutes a good quality of life for them and to create a healthcare model for these patients. For the study, 30 wom

The recognition of microbes or microbial products by leukocytes is a key event in innate immunity. Binding of microbial products to cell surface receptors on phagocytes induce a response that includes the production of inflammatory mediators. One such mediator is the cytokine tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF). TNF is a pleotropic cytokine with actions ranging from tissue injury to septic chock. T