We used a nested PCR protocol to examine the genetic diversity of cytochrome b (cyt b) lineages from blood parasites of the genera Plasmodium and Haemoproteus in birds in Bulgaria. In total, 460 birds of 43 species and 14 families (mostly passerines) were examined for the presence of infections. Of them, 267 were recognised as infected with haemosporidian parasites. Mixed infections were recorded

Background: Environmental barriers are associated with disability-related outcomes in older people but little is known of the effect of environmental barriers on mortality. The aim of this study was to examine whether objectively measured barriers in the outdoor, entrance and indoor environments are associated with mortality among community-dwelling 80- to 89-year-old single-living people. Methods

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This dissertation explores the nexus between sustainable tourism development and corporate social responsibility (CSR). It addresses the scope for CSR to promote sustainable tourism in an international development context. This objective was pursued by exploring three sub-questions: what tools have been used to stimulate social responsibility in tourism; how has ecotourism influenced social respon

Background: Overdiagnosis and subsequent overtreatment are important side effects of screening for, and early detection of, prostate cancer (PCa). Active surveillance (AS) is of growing interest as an alternative to radical treatment of low-risk PCa. Objective: To update our experience in the largest worldwide prospective AS cohort. Design, setting, and participants: Eligible patients had clinical

Objective: To describe the development, design and function of an innovative international clinical research network for neuroimaging research, based in Australia, within a joint state health service/medical school. This Australian, US, Scandinavian Imaging Exchange (AUSSIE) network focuses upon identifying neuroimaging biomarkers for neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disease. Methods: We des

We conducted a genome-wide association study of male breast cancer comprising 823 cases and 2,795 controls of European ancestry, with validation in independent sample sets totaling 438 cases and 474 controls. A SNP in RAD51B at 14q24.1 was significantly associated with male breast cancer risk (P = 3.02 x 10(-13); odds ratio (OR) = 1.57). We also refine association at 16q12.1 to a SNP within TOX3 (

Objective: The 4.2-day half-life I-124 favors its use for positron emission tomography (PET) of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). However, high positron energy and beta(+)-associated cascade gamma rays pose image resolution and background noise problems for I-124. This study evaluated quantitative PET of an I-124 mAb in tumor-bearing mice. Methods: An R4 microPET (TM) (Siemens/CTIMI, Knoxville, TN) wa

Electron beam optics (particle betatron motion) and trajectory (centroid secular motion) in the FERMI@Elettra free electron laser (FEL) are modeled and experimentally controlled by means of the ELEGANT particle tracking code. This powerful tool, well known to the accelerator community, is here for the first time fully integrated into the Tango-server based high level software of an FEL facility, t

A discussion of the concept and form of the state in early modern Europe, with Danish exemples, in a theme issue on conceptual history.

BACKGROUND: To determine if the common Pro12Ala polymorphism (rs1801282) of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPARG) gene is associated with the metabolic syndrome (MetS) or with its individual components in middle-aged Swedish individuals. METHODS: MetS was defined according to the National Cholesterol Education Program/Adult Panel III (NCEP/ATP III), the International Diabetes Fede

A search for highly ionising, penetrating particles with electric charges from vertical bar q vertical bar = 2e to 6e is performed using the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Proton-proton collision data taken at root s = 7 TeV during the 2011 running period, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.4 fb(-1), are analysed. No signal candidates are observed, and 95% confidence

Helsingborg, a coastal city in southern Sweden, initiated a long-term redevelopment project called H+ in 2009, aiming to convert industrial harbor space in the city's south into a new, livable urban neighborhood and city center. The project aims to create an open and ‘tolerant city’ in Helsingborg over the next twenty years. In 2010-2011, H+ used an open-source planning method as a strategy to inc

Sudden changes of channel coefficients in a wideband vectored wireline system (such as G.fast) due to changes in the terminating impedance of lines outside the vectored group can seriously degrade stability and throughput. This letter presents a model that predicts the impact of termination mismatch based exclusively on crosstalk data for the properly-terminated state. Experimental results confirm

Long-range, seasonal migration is a widespread phenomenon among insects, allowing them to track and exploit abundant but ephemeral resources over vast geographical areas. However, the basic patterns of how species shift across multiple locations and seasons are unknown in most cases, even though migrant species comprise an important component of the temperate-zone biota. The painted lady butterfly

Referring to historiographical tendencies and philosophical discourses on the use of history, the article presents a personal argument for the usefulness of the historian's craft today. Drawing on the research on violence, friendship, and silences in history, it would seem we need penetrating methods when examining the information and disinformation spread widely by the mass media and the Internet

Columnar cell hyperplasia (CCH) is the earliest histologically identifiable breast lesion linked to cancer progression and is characterized by increased proliferation, decreased apoptosis and elevated oestrogen receptor α (ERα) expression. The mechanisms underlying the initiation of these lesions have not been clarified but might involve early and fundamental changes in cancer progression. MiRNAs