The aim of this study was to evaluate the antibody responses to different VIsE protein IR6 peptide variants and the synthetic C6 peptide in acute and convalescent (2-3 and 6 months) serum samples from Swedish patients with clinical erythema migrans (EM). Serum samples were prospectively collected from 148 patients with EM and compared to serum samples obtained from 200 healthy blood donors. The Ig

Although phenological matching between two and three trophic interactions has received some attention, it has largely been disregarded in explaining the lack of strong cascade dynamics in terrestrial systems. We studied the response of the specialist seed predator, Paroxyna plantaginis (Tephritidae) and associated generalist parasitoids (Chalcidoidea) to controlled fertilisation of individuals of

The exact elastodynamic scattering theory is constructed to describe the spectral properties of two- and more- cylindrical cavity systems, and compared to an elastodynamic generalization of the semi-classical Gutzwiller unstable periodic orbits formulas. In contrast to quantum mechanics, complex periodic orbits associated with the surface Rayleigh waves dominate the low-frequency spectrum, and alr

Cell replacement for restoration of neurological functions in patients with movement disorders has been investigated for more than 15 years. Initial attempts used autologous adrenal medulla grafts implanted into the denervated striatum of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). This approach was soon abandoned in favor of intrastriatal implantation of human embryonic mesencephalic tissue, rich in

Nuclear spin relaxation by intermolecular dipole–dipole interactions between macromolecular and solvent nuclear moments forms the basis of a widely used method for investigating macromolecular solvation. In particular, intermolecular cross-relaxation [or nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE)] between protein and water protons has been used to probe the mobility of water molecules interacting with the pr

Arsenic trioxide (As2O3) is toxic to multidrug-resistant neuroblastoma cells in vivo and in vitro. In neuroblastoma, As2O3 does not exert its cell death-promoting effects via a classical apoptotic pathway. A death mechanism involving proteolytic cleavage of Bax to a p18 form seems to be of importance, because inhibition of Bax cleavage coincides with diminished cell death. As existing models of ce

Background-Myocardial scarring from infarction or nonischemic fibrosis forms arrhythmogenic substrate. The Selvester QRS score has been extensively validated for estimating myocardial infarction scar size in the absence of ECG confounders. but has not been tested to quantify scar in patients with hypertrophy, bundle branch/fascicular blocks, or nonischemic cardiomyopathy. We assessed the hypothese

Bacterial endotoxins (BEs) are integrated part of Escherichia coli, a microorganism widely used for the production of recombinant proteins. BEs should be eliminated in the course of down stream processing of target protein produced by these bacteria. Supermacroporous monolith (continuous bed) columns, so called cryogel columns, with immobilized polyethyleneimine (PEI), polymyxin B (PMB) and lysozy

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify clinical characteristics of depression in elderly people that could be useful for case finding in general practice. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study of clinical characteristics through review of medical records. SETTING: Herrhagen health centre, Karlstad, Sweden. SUBJECTS: Seventy-one persons with a high depressive score in a screening of depressive

It is widely recognized that there is a discrepancy between principle and practice with respect to the health equity aim of public policy. This discrepancy is analyzed from two theoretical perspectives: the individualization of society and the fact that individual beliefs and values are connected to one’s position in the social structure. These mechanisms influence both the choice of health policy

An acceleration in the rate at which new aquaporin structures are determined means that structural models are now available for mammalian AQP0, AQP1, AQP2 and AQP4, bacterial GlpF, AqpM and AQPZ, and the plant SoPIP2;1. With an apparent consensus emerging concerning the mechanism of selective water transport and proton extrusion, emphasis has shifted towards the issues of substrate selectivity and

The linkages between climate change and sustainable development are multiple and profound. Nonetheless, their respective policy regimes have so far evolved along parallel, if not competing, paths. What is lacking to date is a detailed conceptual understanding of the practicability of their integration through cross-sectoral policies and programmes. We propose a synergistic adaptive capacity (SAC)

This article investigates three hypotheses suggested in the literature on women's political empowerment, operationalized here as increased legislative representation. These hypotheses are that (1) electoral systems manipulate women's political empowerment; (2) increased popular participation empowers women in particular; and (3) accumulated experience gained over several electoral cycles facilitat

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This is a review discussing the production and properties of cryogels (from the Greek κριoσ (kryos) meaning frost or ice), immobilization of ligands in cryogels and the application of affinity cryogels in bioseparation. Cryotropic gel formation proceeds in a non-frozen liquid microphase existing in the macroscopically frozen sample. Due to the cryoconcentration of gel precursors in the non-frozen

The M protein family of molecules in the group A streptococcus comprises a number of cell surface proteins that interact with the immune system of the host. One of the proteins in this family is the IgA receptor Arp4, which has C repeats similar to those that characterize the known M proteins. The streptococcal strain expressing Arp4 also expresses a second immunoglobulin-binding protein, Mrp4, wh