Laminins (comprised of alpha, beta, and gamma chains) are heterotrimeric glycoproteins integral to all basement membranes. The function of the lammin alpha5 chain in the developing intestine was defined by analysing laminin alpha5(-/-) mutants and by grafting experiments. We show that lammin alpha5 plays a major role in smooth muscle organisation and differentiation, as excessive folding of intest

Laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the ability of several clay minerals from Sweden to remove the fish-killing microalga, Prymnesium parvum Carter, from suspension. In their commercial form (i.e. after incineration at 400degreesC), seawater slurries (salinity = 26) of the three minerals tested were generally ineffective at removing P. parvum from culture within a range of 0.01 to 0.5

Background Local pain on injection of propofol remains a considerable problem in clinical anaesthesiology. As slow infusion of a low dose of propofol induces little or no pain at the site of injection, and as propofol-induced pain fades during prolonged exposure, this randomized, double-blind, clinical cross-over study was designed to test whether pain on injection of propofol is attenuated by ini

A superdeformed rotational structure is reported in the stable nucleus Zn-68. It has a transition quadrupole moment (Q(t)) of 2.5(-0.4)(+0.7) e b (beta(2) approximate to 0.4), as measured by the residual Doppler shift method. Theoretical calculations suggest that two different configurations are possible candidates for this band. One is built without h(11/2) neutrons, as seen in superdeformed band

Helicobacter pylori is the most important cause of gastritis, peptic ulcers and the development of gastric cancer. The chronic active inflammation is dominated by neutrophils, macrophages, lymphocytes and plasma cells. Several interleukins (IL-8, IL-10 and IFN-gamma) are involved in the inflammatory process in the gastric mucosa. The aim of this study was to investigate the gastric inflammation in

Pressurised hot water extraction (PHWE) was coupled on-line with microporous membrane liquid-liquid extraction (MMLLE) and gas chromatography (GC) in the analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds in soil. The MMLLE serves as a trapping device after the PHWE. Water from PHWE is directed to the donor side of the membrane unit and the analytes are extracted to the acceptor solution

Rheumatoid arthritis as well as collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) is thought to involve T cell autoimmunity of the Th1 type and the Th2 cytokine IL-4 has been proposed to play a suppressive role. To exclude a possible skewing role of the mycobacteria used in the complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) we induced CIA with type II collagen (CII) in incomplete Freund's adjuvant (IFA). Ourresults show that IL

Identifying mechanisms behind assortative mating is central to the understanding of ecological divergence and speciation. Recent studies show that populations of the freshwater isopod Asellus aquaticus can rapidly become locally differentiated when submerged Chara vegetation expands in lakes. In the novel Chara habitat, isopods have become lighter pigmented and smaller than in ancestral reed stand

A model for simulating the drug release from a swelling and dissolving polymer tablet is presented and verified to data. The model is based on a mechanistic approach, and it can therefore be employed to study the sensitivity of true physical constants, for instance the drug diffusion coefficient or the drug solubility. The model generates the drug and polymer release profiles and the front positio

A method for calculating the wave load induced fatigue damage accumulated by a vessel sailing along the North Atlantic route (NAr) is presented. This method is based on the Palmgren-Miner additive rule and the rainflow cycle (RFC) count. For simplicity, the load the vessel experiences is assumed to be proportional to the encountered significant wave height process, H-s. The asymptotically normal c

The ability of in vitro-expanded neural precursor cells or cell lines to differentiate following transplantation has significant implications for current research on central nervous system repair. Recently, interest has been focussed on grafts of such neural precursors implanted also into the eye or retina. Here, we demonstrate with a non-traumatizing subretinal transplantation method, that grafts

Objective To determine the pharmacodynamic properties of a new oral lyophilisate formulation of desmopressin (in single doses of 30, 60, 120, 240, 360 or 480 mu g) in children with known primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE) and thus identify those dosages that could provide a duration of action corresponding to a typical length of night-time sleep in children with PNE; additional objectives were to de

Exopolyphosphatase/guanosine pentaphosphate phosphohydrolase (PPX/GPPA) enzymes play central roles in the bacterial stringent response induced by starvation. The high-resolution crystal structure of the putative Aquifex aeolicus PPX/GPPA phosphatase from the actin-like ATPase domain superfamily has been determined, providing the first insights to features of the common catalytic core of the PPX/GP

We examine the formation of vortices in a one- and two-component gas of bosonic atoms in a harmonic trap that is set rotating. Both the mean-field Gross-Pitaevskii approach, and the numerical diagonalization method are employed. For a two-component Bose gas, we show that beside the well-known coreless vortices of single quantization, the interatomic interactions between the two species may lead to

We have undertaken a number of experimental studies of the structure of singly ionized boron, B II. Much of this work was initially motivated by a search for the "missing" 2s3s S-1 term. There was a surprising disagreement between theory and experiment for this level. In this context lots of data for B II were collected over the years, from beam-foil experiments, high-resolution spark spectroscopy

This paper presents a new strategy for steam pressure control during web breaks in the paper machine. The aim was to restart paper production with the same drying properties of the cylinder as before the break. A detailed physical dynamic model of the drying cylinder has been developed. The accuracy of the model has been verified through experiments made at the M-real paper mill in Husum, Sweden.

Optimization of fed-batch conversion of lignocellulosic hydrolyzates by the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was studied. The feed rate was controlled using a step response strategy, in which the carbon dioxide evolution rate was used as input variable. The performance of the control strategy was examined using both an untreated and a detoxified dilute acid hydrolyzate, and the performance was compa

OBJECTIVE: The authors synthesize findings of previous studies implicating migration as a risk factor for the development of schizophrenia and provide a quantitative index of the associated effect size. METHOD: MEDLINE was searched for population-based incidence studies concerning migrants in English-language publications appearing between the years 1977 and 2003. Article bibliographies and an Aus