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Excessive production of collagen is the hallmark of fatal diseases of fibrosis such as systemic sclerosis. Overexpression of the proteoglycan fibromodulin (FMOD) has been associated with improved wound healing and scarless repair. In this study we have investigated the consequences of FMOD deficiency on the development of experimental skin fibrosis. Using immunohistochemistry, we identified FMOD i
'Sustainability' is an emerging issue that product development engineers must engage with to remain relevant, competitive and, most importantly, responsible. Yet, on examining the term 'sustainable', a plethora of definitions emerges, many of which are contradictory and confusing. This confusion and a general lack of understanding means that sustainability often gets relegated to an afterthought o
Resolving complexes of closely related and cryptic insect species can be challenging, especially when dealing with rare and protected taxa that are difficult to collect for genetic and morphological analyses. Until recently, populations of the genus Osmoderma (Scarabaeidae), widespread in Europe, were treated as a single species O. eremita (Scopoli, 1763) in spite of observed geographic variation
We applied the new injury severity scoring system and studied mechanisms of injury and risk factors for mortality, in order to find potential preventive measures, in the present Scandinavian trauma cohort triaged through red trauma alarm according to the Medical Emergency Triage and Treatment System.
Oral anticoagulation is the recommended treatment for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation. Notwithstanding, many patients are treated with acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) as monotherapy. Our objective was to investigate if atrial fibrillation patients benefit from ASA as monotherapy for stroke prevention. Retrospective study of patients with a clinical diagnosis of atrial fibrillatio
What is already known about this subject Sagittal diameter (SAD), i.e. the mid height of the abdomen when lying down, has been reported to correlate to visceral fat, insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk factors in adults. SAD seems to be the best anthropometric predictor of cardiovascular risk, and also of more importance than waist circumference (WC) in adults. There has been no validation
A novel super-macroporous monolithic composite cryogel was prepared by embedding macroporous cellulose beads into poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) cryogel. The cellulose beads were fabricated by using a microchannel liquid-flow focusing and cryopolymerization method, while the composite cryogel was prepared by cryogenic radical polymerization of the hydroxyethyl methacrylate monomer with poly(ethyl
Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a common indication for lumbar spine surgery. The proportion of patients having a second surgery within 2 years varies in the literature between 0.5% and 24%, with recurrent herniation being the most common cause. Several studies have not found any relevant outcome differences between patients undergoing surgery for primary LDH and patients undergoing reoperation fo
This article is a largely constructivist revisit to the crisis of confidence between Iran and the West. It strives to investigate the chief historical, cultural, ideological, and identity-related, as well as geostrategic factors, involved in postrevolutionary Iran-West relations, and how they have caused an almost solidified sense of fear, suspicion, and mistrust between the two. The contemporary
The quality of spatial analyses of biodiversity is improved by (i) utilizing study areas with well defined physiogeographical boundaries, (ii) limiting the impact of widespread species, and (iii) using taxa with heterogeneous distributions. These conditions are typically met by ecosystems such as oceanic islands or ancient lakes and their biota. While research on ancient lakes has contributed sign
Global change may substantially affect biodiversity and ecosystem functioning but little is known about its effects on essential biotic interactions. Since different environmental drivers rarely act in isolation it is important to consider interactive effects. Here, we focus on how two key drivers of anthropogenic environmental change, climate change and the introduction of alien species, affect p
Aim: Our aim was to test the hypothesis that dual endothelin receptor blockade with tezosentan attenuates hypoxia induced pulmonary vasoconstriction. Methods: 14 anaesthetised, ventilated pigs, with a mean±SEM weight of 30,5±0,6 kg, were studied, in normoxia (FiO(2) â0,21) and with tezosentan (5mg·kg(-1) ) infusion during (n=7) or before (n=7) hypoxia (FiO(2) ∼0,10). Results: Compared to normoxia,
We have recorded extreme ultraviolet spectra from W11+ to W15+ ions using a flat-field spectrometer installed at the Shanghai high-temperature superconducting electron-beam ion trap. The spectra were recorded at beam energies ranging between 200 and 400 eV and showed spectral lines and transition arrays in the 170-260 angstrom region. The charge states and spectra transitions were identified by co
Fertility remains higher and contraceptive levels are substantially lower in Sub-Saharan Africa than elsewhere in the developing world. In this paper we use information on individuals and couples provided in recent Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS, fifth wave) undertaken in Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, and Zambia. We use bivariate and multivariate techniques to examine the determinants of contrace
We have previously shown analytically that the biologically effective dose (BED), including effects of repair during irradiation and of incomplete repair between fractions, can be formulated using a convolution between the absorbed dose rate function and the function describing repair. In this work, a discrete formalism is derived along with its implementation via the fast Fourier transform. The i
We apply the resummed version of the Luscher formula to analyze finite volume corrections to the mass of the nucleon and of heavy mesons. We show that by applying the subthreshold expansion of the scattering amplitudes one can express the finite volume corrections in terms of only a few physical observables and the size of the box. In the case of the nucleon, the available information about the qu
Streptomyces is a multicellular mycelial bacterium, which exhibits pronounced cell polarity and grows by extension of the hyphal tips. Similarly to other polarly growing walled cells, such as filamentous fungi or pollen tubes, Streptomyces hyphae face an intrinsic problem: addition of new cell wall material causes structural weakness of the elongating tip. Cellular strategies employed by walled ce
We introduce a lattice-free hard sphere exclusion stochastic process. The resulting stochastic rates are distance based instead of cell based. The corresponding Markov chain build for this many particle system is updated using an adaptation of the kinetic Monte Carlo method. It becomes quickly apparent that due to the lattice-free environment, and because of that alone, the dynamics behave differe
