Background: Overlap syndrome is a term used for overlapping features of autoimmune hepatitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis or primary biliary cirrhosis and for autoimmune cholangitis. We describe a high prevalence of small duct primary sclerosing cholangitis among patients with overlapping autoimmune hepatitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Methods: We sought to retrieve all patients wit

To more precisely measure the mechanical properties of the lung periphery in asthma, we have developed a forced oscillation technique that applies a broad-band flow signal through a wedged bronchoscope. We interpreted the data from four healthy and eight mildly asthmatic subjects in terms of an anatomically accurate computer model of the wedged segment. There was substantial overlap in impedance b

Cereals accumulate starch in the endosperm as their major energy reserve in the grain. In most cereals the embryo, scutellum, and aleurone layer are high in oil, but these tissues constitute a very small part of the total seed weight. However, in oat (Avena sativa L.) most of the oil in kernels is deposited in the same endosperm cells that accumulate starch. Thus oat endosperm is a desirable model

Fungal laccases from Trametes hirsuta and Cerrena unicolor were immobilized on spectroscopic graphite electrodes using physical absorption. The laccase-modified graphite electrodes were mounted as the working electrodes into a wall jet flow through an electrochemical cell and then used for flow injection amperometric determination of different phenolic compounds of relevance both for environmental

Fifteen polymorphic markers were developed from a microsatellite-enriched library for the lizard Podarcis gaigeae. The loci were checked for variability in 68 individuals from a population on the island of Skyros, Greece. The number of alleles ranged from 3 to 23 per locus and expected heterozygosity from 0.29 and 0.94. Most markers were also polymorphic in three closely related Podarcis species,

Characterizing population fluctuations and their causes is a major theme in population ecology. The debate is on the relative merits of density-dependent and density-independent effects. One paradigm (revived by the research on global warming and its relation to long-term population data) states that fluctuations in population densities can often be accounted for by external noise. Several empiric

Self-organized Ga(Mn)As nanoclusters, embedded in GaAs, were formed during post-growth thermal annealing of Ga1-xMnxAs layers. Structural and magnetic properties of such composites were systematically studied as a function of the annealing temperature. Small (similar to 3 nm) Mn-rich zinc-blende Mn(Ga)As clusters, coherent with the GaAs matrix, were formed at the annealing temperature of 500 degre

Inherent difficulties in growing protein crystals are major concerns within structural biology and particularly in structural proteomics. Here, we describe a novel approach of engineering target proteins by surface mutagenesis to increase the odds of crystallizing the molecules. To this end, we have exploited our recent triad-hypothesis using proteins with crystallographically defined beta-structu

The energetic cost of immune responses has been proposed to be an important basis for trade-offs between life-history traits, such as between survival and reproduction. A critical assumption of this hypothesis is that the magnitude of the energetic cost increases with the strength of an immune response, so that energy can be saved by partly suppressing a response. Here, we test this assumption exp

Objective. To examine mortality rates in the largest systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) cohort ever assembled. Methods. Our sample was a multisite international SLE cohort (23 centers, 9,547 patients). Deaths were ascertained by vital statistics registry linkage. Standardized mortality ratio (SMR; ratio of deaths observed to deaths expected) estimates were calculated for-all deaths and by cause. T

Respiratory response to inhalation of fine particles has been investigated for the aerosol generated by welding. Particles were sampled using a pair of 5-stage cascade impactors operating at 1 l./min flow rate. The subject exhaled into one impactor through an air ballast arrangement, and the other impactor simultaneously sampled the surrounding air. Particle size fractions were analyzed for princi

This article proposes that people working with integration projects in Sweden are driven by a wish to help immigrants integrate into the host society. At the same time, however, the practices of multiculturalism tend to reproduce narratives that depict immigrants as threats to the host society and as inherently different from it. This tension can be analyzed through the intersections of a dilemma

We have studied interhalogen/silver trifluoromethanesulfonate (IX/AgOTf) promoted glycosylations and found differences in the sensitivity of the formed oxocarbenium ions (e.g. from compounds with or without participating groups) toward halide nucleophiles. These differences can be explained using the HSAB theory. By applying this theory on sialylations, we increased the yield for a model reaction

Using data on Swedish adolescents, this study examines (1) perceptions of the addictiveness and mortality risk of smoking, (2) the effects of these perceptions on smoking behaviour, and (3) the role of various smoking risk information sources. The average respondent believed that 46 out of 100 smokers would die from diseases caused by their smoking. As to addictiveness perceptions, the average res

Objectives: In mammals, the postnatal development of the gastrointestinal tract is characterized by vast structural and functional changes. Using a suckling rat model, we investigated whether red kidney bean lectin, phytohemagglutinin (PHA), a potent gut mitogen in adult rats, can accelerate the growth and maturation of the gastrointestinal tract. Methods: At either 10 or 14 days of age, suckling

This paper demonstrates that light diffraction tomography can be used to measure the acoustic field of micromachined ultrasonic transducers (MUT) in cases in which standard methods like hydrophone and microphone measurements fail. Two types of MUTs have been characterized with the method, one air-coupled capacitive MUT (cMUT) and one waterloaded continuous wave (CW) miniature multilayer lead zirco