The marketplace for probiotic foods is burgeoning, measured in billions of euro per annum. It is imperative, however, that all bacterial strains are fully assessed for human safety. The ability to bind fibrinogen is considered a potential pathogenicity trait that can lead to platelet aggregation, serious medical complications, and in some instances, death. Here we examined strains from species fre

The aim of this work was to study the diffusion-related signal attenuation curves (signal-vs.-b curves) measured perpendicular and parallel to the neuronal fibers of the corticospinal tract in vivo and to determine whether effects of restricted diffusion could be observed when varying the diffusion time (T(D)). A biexponential model and a two-compartment model including exchange according to the K

The arthritis-susceptible DA rat is one of the most commonly used rat strains for genetic linkage analysis and is instrumental for the identification of many genetic loci. Even though DA rats were kept as inbred lines at different institutes and suppliers, it became obvious that the various breeding stocks differed genetically. To be able to compare the results from different linkage studies it is

The ability to subfractionate minor cellular subsets by multiparameter flow cytometry and to evaluate such cells for functional properties has been used to ascertain lineal relationships and detail developmental hierarchies in the hematopoietic system for more than 20 years. However, steady advances in technology combined with the use of novel cell surface markers continues to redefine the develop

Purpose In numerous studies vigabatrin medication has been associated with visual field constriction and alterations in the full-field electroretinogram (ff-ERG), but it is not clear whether these changes are reversible or not. The purpose of this study was to examine patients with visual field loss and reduced ff-ERG several years after discontinuing vigabatrin therapy, in order to investigate re

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the arthritis-modulating effects of 3 non-major histocompatibility complex (MHC) quantitative trait loci (QTLs) in rat experimental arthritis in the disease-resistant E3 strain, and to investigate the disease-modulating effects of the MHC region (RT1) in various genetic backgrounds. METHODS: A congenic fragment containing Ncf1 along with congenic fragments containing the

The performance of a binary phase shift keyed random time-hopping impulse radio system with pulse-based polarity randomization is analyzed. The effects of multiple access interference are investigated for both chip-synchronous and asynchronous systems. It is shown that the performance of a chip-synchronous system is the same as that for the symbol-synchronous case studied in E. Fisher and H. V. Po

The purpose of this study was to investigate the early alterations of retinal function, assessed with electrophysiology, in newly onset type 2 diabetes patients without vascular retinopathy. Seventeen patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes (duration 7 ± 3 months), without any vascular retinopathy in fundus photographs, were examined with full-field electroretinogram (ERG) and multifocal ERG

The use of a rigid disc as a barrier between the wound bed and the wound filler during negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been suggested to prevent damage to exposed organs. However, it is important to determine that the effects of NPWT, such as wound contraction and fluid removal, are maintained during treatment despite the use of a barrier. This study was performed to examine the effect

Gene therapy using recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors overexpressing neuropeptide Y in the hippocampus exerts seizure-suppressant effects in rodent epilepsy models and is currently considered for clinical application in patients with intractable mesial temporal lobe epilepsy. Seizure suppression by neuropeptide Y in the hippocampus is predominantly mediated by Y2 receptors, which, together

Purpose. To assess if 3T MRI can be further improved by adding surface coil imaging, in the context of detection and characterization of cerebral lesions in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy. Methods. Twenty five patients with drug-resistant epilepsy undergoing evaluation for epilepsy surgery were examined with high resolution 3T MRI. The patients were MRI-negative (n = 15), or had unclear fin

Abstract PURPOSE: Low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma (LGFMS) is typically characterized by the specific translocation t(7;16)(q33;p11) and the corresponding fusion gene FUS-CREB3L2. The present study aimed to extract LGFMS-specific, and putatively FUS-CREB3L2-dependent, gene expression patterns to learn more about the pathogenesis of this tumor. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We carried out single nucleotide po

The tubules of the kidney display a remarkable capacity for self-renewal on damage. Whether this regeneration is mediated by dedifferentiating surviving cells or, as recently suggested, by stem cells has not been unequivocally settled. Herein, we demonstrate that aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity may be used for isolation of cells with progenitor characteristics from adult human renal cortica

There seems to be a double track in the relationship to the other. On the one hand, there is dialogue—an attitude of seeing the other as she is. On the other hand, we all seem to have some kind of worldview implying that My Way is the Best Way, at least in a certain respect—there seem to be certain points where I would like other people to see things in the same way as I do. I argue that these two

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Although recent studies propose that epigenetic factors influence insulin expression, the regulation of the insulin gene in type 2 diabetic islets is still not fully understood. Here, we examined DNA methylation of the insulin gene promoter in pancreatic islets from patients with type 2 diabetes and non-diabetic human donors and related it to insulin expression, HbA(1c) levels, BM

INTRODUCTION: Critical limb ischemia (CLI) is a severe peripheral arterial disease, characterized by rest pain, ulcers and gangrene in the legs. Gas6 is a vitamin K-dependent protein, which binds and activates the tyrosine kinase receptor Axl. Gas6-mediated Axl-signaling influences endothelial activation, neointima formation and immune regulation. Axl can be cleaved and soluble Axl (sAxl) is detec