Osteopontin is a proinflammatory cytokine and plays a pathogenetic role in multiple sclerosis and its animal model, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), by recruiting autoreactive T cells into the central nervous system. Osteopontin functions are modulated by thrombin cleavage generating N- and C-terminal fragment, whose individual roles are only partly known. Published data are diffic

Background: Angioedema is a rare and serious adverse drug reaction (ADR) to angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor treatment. Dry cough is a common side effect of ACE inhibitors and has been identified as a possible risk factor for angioedema. Objective: We compared characteristics between patients with ACE inhibitor–induced angioedema and cough with the aim of identifying risk factors that

Background: Obesity-related diseases cause costs to society. We studied the cost of work absenteeism before and after gastric bypass and the effects of postoperative diabetes resolution. Patients and Methods: Data were obtained from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry (SOReg) (national coverage >98%) and cross-matched with data from the Social insurance Agency (coverage 100%) for the period

According to Boveri's hypothesis, chromosome abnormalities were the cellular changes causing the transition from normal to malignant proliferation. Technical difficulties prevented reliable visualization of mammalian chromosomes, in both normal and neoplastic cells, throughout the entire first half of the 20th century. Nowell and Hungerford's discovery greatly stimulated interest in cancer cytogen

This thesis consists of three empirical studies on the effects of exposure to heavy metal pollution in early childhood on a broad set of individual outcomes. The first study analyses how accumulated exposure to metal pollution during childhood affects long-run outcomes. Exploiting policy-driven reductions in metal pollution in Sweden, it shows that accumulated exposure to metals (including cadmium

Optical imaging with microarcsecond resolution will reveal details across and outside stellar surfaces but requires kilometer-scale interferometers, challenging to realize either on the ground or in space. Intensity interferometry, electronically connecting independent telescopes, has a noise budget that relates to the electronic time resolution, circumventing issues of atmospheric turbulence. Ext

Heavy-metal homeostasis and detoxification is crucial for cell viability. P-type ATPases of the class IB (PIB) are essential in these processes, actively extruding heavy metals from the cytoplasm of cells. Here we present the structure of a PIB-ATPase, a Legionella pneumophila CopA Cu(+)-ATPase, in a copper-free form, as determined by X-ray crystallography at 3.2 Å resolution. The structure indica

Nano and micro structured thin (μ m-scale) foils were designed, fabricated and irradiated with the high intensity laser system operating at LLC (Lund Laser Centre, Sweden) in order to systematically study and improve the main proton beam parameters. Nano-spheres deposited on the front (laser irradiated) surface of a flat Mylar foil enabled a small enhancement of the maximum energy and number of th

Background: Smoking is reported to affect the risk of a number of chronic disorders, including rheumatic diseases. Previous cross-sectional studies have shown a lower frequency of smoking in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of smoking and socioeconomic status on the risk of subsequent diagnosis of pSS in a nested case-control study

Stars in open clusters are expected to share an identical abundance pattern. Establishing the level of chemical homogeneity in a given open cluster deserves further study as it is the basis of the concept of chemical tagging to unravel the history of theMilkyWay.M67 is particularly interesting given its solar metallicity and age as well as being a dense cluster environment.We conducted a strictly

BACKGROUND: Autonomic disorders of the cardiovascular system, such as orthostatic hypotension and elevated resting heart rate, predict mortality and cardiovascular events in the population. Low-energy-fractures constitute a substantial clinical problem that may represent an additional risk related to such autonomic dysfunction.AIMS: To test the association between orthostatic hypotension, resting

The effects on renal sodium excretion of giving lithium chloride (LiCl; 0.75 mmol per kg body mass) by gavage or intravenously were investigated. The experiments were carried out on Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) or spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) rats in metabolic cages. The rats had been on a low-salt diet for 4 days. Urine excretion of water, sodium and potassium was followed before and for 24 h after giv

Background: We aimed to explore the effects of polypharmacy and specific drug classes on readmissions and mortality after hip surgery. Methods: We analyzed data on 272 consecutive hip fracture patients (72.1% females; age 82±9 years) who underwent acute hip replacement. We collected detailed data on the pharmacological treatment upon admission and discharge. Patients were followed up over a period

Environmental loads from the building and its services must be minimised. The study aims to determine material quantities, manufacturing energy and how material choice affect manufacturing energy. An inventory of materials in domestic water, waste water, space heating and ventilation services are made and manufacturing energy are calculated based on LCA’s. Finally energy need for alternative mater

Chemical potentials of quaternary liquid alloys are required for theoretical description of the composition and crystal structure of Au-catalyzed ternary III-V nanowires. However, such data are solely missing in the literature. Herein, we use a thermodynamic database for the quaternary Au-In-Ga-As system that has been developed using the CALPHAD (CALculation of PHAse Diagram) method. We present th