BACKGROUND: Polymorphisms of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene have been implicated in the genetic regulation of bone mineral density (BMD). However, the clinical impact of these variants remains unclear.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relation between VDR polymorphisms, BMD, and fractures.DESIGN: Prospective multicenter large-scale association study.SETTING: The Genetic Markers for Osteoporosis consor

The clinical significance and the effects of pharmacological treatment of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) were evaluated by measurement of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). CSF-AChE of AD patients was lower, not significantly, compared with controls. However, CSF-AChE was significantly increased after treatment of AD patients with AChE inhibitors (donepezil and g

Of main concern in agent based computing is the conception that software agents can attain socially responsible behavior. This idea has its origin in the need for agents to interact with one another in a cooperating manner. Such interplay between several agents can be seen as a combinatorial play where the rules are fixed and the actors are supposed to closely analyze the play in order to behave r

Abstract in UndeterminedBearing in mind the potential and importance of enzymatic processes it is somewhat surprising that we are not yet able to fully exploit the possibilities that such processes offer. The main reason is that we do not know the mechanism on the molecular scale in terms of the interaction between the enzyme and the substrate or rather the assembly of substrate molecules (see Fig

The organization of conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) interacting with biomolecules sets conditions for the biodetection of biological processes and identity, through the use of optical emission from the CPE. Herein, a well-defined CPE and its binding to DNA is studied. By using dynamic light scattering and circular dichroism spectroscopy, it is shown that the CPE forms a multimolecule ensemble i

Progesterone receptor (PR) was investigated immunohistochemically in the lower urinary tract of the male and female mouse. Estrogen receptor (ER)-subtype-deficient mice (ERKO, BERKO) were used to determine the possible regulation of PR expression in an ER-subtype-specific manner. PR was found to be co-expressed with ERgreek small letter alpha in cell nuclei of urothelium, lamina propria fibroblas

Measurements of the net CO2 flux between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere using the eddy covariance technique have the potential to underpin our interpretation of regional CO2 source-sink patterns, CO2 flux responses to forcings, and predictions of the future terrestrial C balance. Information contained in FLUXNET eddy covariance data has multiple uses for the development and application

Background. It is of importance to study the risk factor control in treated hypertensives (tHT), both longitudinally within one country and between neighbouring countries, as hypertensive patients still run an increased cardiovascular risk in spite of treatment. Methods. In sample of 1135 tHT from Estonia and a similar number of age- and sex- matched Swedish tHT, the control of blood pressure and

1. Mossy fibre evoked activity in the cerebellar cortex elicited by peripheral electrical stimulation was studied in chloralose anesthetized cats. The distribution of intracortical field potentials in the C3 and D zones was mapped in order to determine if there is a spread of synaptic activity outside the mossy fibre termination area. This area was identified by the presence of short latency synap

Aim To assess at a broad scale the vulnerability of Mediterranean vegetation to alien plant invasion under different climatic and disturbance scenarios. Location We simulated the vegetation biogeography and dynamics on five of the main islands of the Mediterranean Basin: Mallorca, Corsica, Sardinia, Crete and Lesvos. Methods We used LPJ-GUESS, a generalized ecosystem model based on dynamic process

Females of many songbird species show a preference for mating with males that have larger song repertoires, but the advantages associated with this preference are uncertain. We tested the hypothesis that song complexity can serve as an indicator of male quality because the development of the brain regions underlying song learning and production occurs when young birds typically face nutritional an

Reflectance spectrophotometry from 420 to 780 nm on 31 primary melanoma and 31 benign nevi has been performed by using an external integrating sphere coupled to a spectrophotometer. Measurements show that reflectance spectra of melanoma and nevi manifest dissimilar patterns. From these spectra four variables, whose physical and/or physiological meanings remain to be investigated, have been derived

Phosphorus uptake and translocation through intact mycelial systems of Paxillus involutus and Suillus variegatus infecting Pinus contorta seedlings was monitored non-destructively using a beta-scanner. Mycorrhizal plants were grown in flat perspex chambers (20 x 6 cm(2)) and root growth was restricted to the upper portion of each chamber enabling mycelial translocation to be studied over distances

One of the challenges that must be overcome to realize the practical benefits of ad hoc networks is quality of service (QoS). However, the IEEE 802.11 standard, which undeniably is the most widespread wireless technology of choice for WLANs and ad hoc networks, does not address this issue. In order to support applications with QoS requirements, the upcoming IEEE 802.11e standard enhances the origi

Background There are limited data available on tumour subtype-specific familial risks for nervous-system tumours. We aimed to provide such data at the population level. Methods We used data from the nationwide Swedish and Norwegian databases on familial cancer to calculate standardised incidence ratios (SIRS) for the familial risk of developing a nervous-system tumour in offspring born after 1931