Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is a rare, deadly demyelinating disease of the central nervous system, which is caused by a reactivation of the DNA polyomavirus JC and occurs in immunosuppressed individuals. So far, only 25 cases have been described in patients with SLE and none survived without antiviral therapy and only two cases in RA. We present four additional cases from a de

To evaluate the performance of dried blood spots (DBSs) with subsequent analyses of glutamic acid decarboxylase (GADA) and islet antigen-2 (IA-2A) with the RSR-ELISAs, we selected 80 children newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and 120 healthy women. DBSs from patients and controls were used for RSR-ELISAs while patients samples were analysed also with in-house RIAs. The RSR-ELISA-GADA performed

The two incretin hormones glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) are key factors in the regulation of islet function and glucose metabolism, and incretin-based therapy for type 2 diabetes has gained considerable interest during recent years. Regulation of incretin hormone secretion is less well characterized. The main stimulus for incretin hormone se

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and systemic sclerosis (SSc) are two severe autoimmune connective tissue diseases. The fundamental knowledge about their aetiology is limited and the conditions display complex pathogenesis, multifaceted presentations, and unpredictable courses. Despite significant efforts, the lack of fully validated biomarkers enabling diagnosis, classification, and monitoring

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is characterized by the t(11;14)(q13;q32) and numerous copy number aberrations (CNAs). Recently, gene expression profiling defined a proliferation gene expression signature in MCL where high scores predict shorter survival. We investigated 31 MCL cases using high-density single nucleotide polymorphism arrays and correlated CNA patterns with the proliferation signature an

Objectives: The aim was to investigate the prevalence of chronic pain in different age groups and pain locations, as well as to identify variables associated with chronic pain. Methods: This cross-sectional survey had a randomized age-stratified sample comprising 826 respondents aged 18-102 years. Comparisons were made across age groups and pain locations. Multiple logistic regression analysis was

The use of microfluidic components to create an analytical toolbox for the very rapidly growing field of proteomics is described. This toolbox provides novel generic analytical solutions that are highly adaptable for analysis of various biomolecules, ranging from high to low abundant. The components are fabricated using silicon micromachining and consist of a microchip immobilised enzyme reactor (

Vietnam is undertaking health financing reform with a view to achieve universal coverage of health insurance within the coming years. To date, around half of the population is covered with some type of health insurance or prepayment. This review applies a conceptual framework of health financing to provide a coherent assessment of the reforms to date with respect to a set of key policy objectives

This paper considers the increased risk of the development of lymphoma in patients with chronic inflammatory disease who undergo metal-on-metal arthroplasty.

Summary. Assessing response to treatment with bypassing agents presents a substantial challenge in the treatment of patients with haemophilia and inhibitors. Rapid and accurate identification of bleeding episodes that are non-responsive to bypassing therapy with either Factor Eight Inhibitor Bypassing Activity (FEIBA; Baxter AG) or recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa; NovoSeven(®), Novo Nordi

Huntington disease is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expanded CAG repeat in the Huntington disease gene. The symptomatic phase of the disease is defined by the onset of motor symptoms. However, psychiatric disturbances, including depression, are common features of Huntington disease and recent studies indicate that depression can occur long before the manifestation of motor symptoms. Th

In order to preserve the quadratic convergence of the Newton-Raphson method applied to elasto-plastic finite element calculations, the consistent stiffness matrix must be used. Here, the consistent stiffness matrix is derived for the generalized trapezoidal rule. Special attention is paid to the case in which the integration is performed from an elastic to an elasto-plastic state and it is shown t

While scientific community disagrees about similarities and differences between human embryonic stem (hES) cells and human induced pluripotent stem (hiPS) cells, some politicians embrace translational hiPS cell research as a replacement for translational hES cell research. We examine the ethical relevance of the main differences between hES and hiPS cell-based therapies and discuss whether, given

Exhaustion is hypothesised to be a risk-factor for coronary heart disease (CHD), but as such its independence from emotional states, in particular depression, has not been established in previous investigations. This study aimed to explore the unique contribution of exhaustion, independent from symptoms of depression and anxiety, to CHD development.