There is an apparent dichotomy between the metal-poor ([Fe/H] ≤ -2) yet carbon-normal giants and their carbon-rich counterparts. The former undergo significant depletion of carbon on the red giant branch after they have undergone first dredge-up, whereas the latter do not appear to experience significant depletion. We investigate this in the context that the extra mixing occurs via the thermohalin

Paenibacillus larvae, causative agent of American Foulbrood (AFB), is the primary bacterial pathogen affecting honeybees and beekeeping. The main methods for controlling AFB are incineration of diseased colonies or prophylactic antibiotic treatment (e.g. tylosin), neither of which is fully satisfactory. The search for superior means for controlling AFB has led to an increased interest in the natur

Type 2 diabetes can often be managed by healthier diet and exercise in early stages of the disease, but as it progresses oral medication is needed and later on the patients will require insulin to survive. Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that is a cofactor in gamma-carboxylation and activation of coagulation proteins produced in the liver. There are also extrahepatic proteins named Gla proteins

"Fright moulting" has been recorded in several orders of birds and interpreted as a way of escaping a predator when already caught. Two observations suggest that the behaviour may have another function, viz. when an aerial predator chases the prey. By shedding body feathers in the air the bird creates a cloud behind it; this might confuse the predator in the same way as the ink of octopuses confus

The frequency of laying gaps was studied in a nestbox breeding population of Blue Tits Parus caeruleus during the breeding season of 1990. In as many as 27% of the 55 clutches studied, laying was interrupted for at least one day. It is concluded that the interruption of egg laying depends on food availability since the frequency of laying gaps decreased in clutches laid by females experimentally p

The total number of acquired melanocytic nevi on the skin is strongly correlated with melanoma risk. Here we report a meta-analysis of 11 nevus GWAS from Australia, Netherlands, UK, and USA comprising 52,506 individuals. We confirm known loci including MTAP, PLA2G6, and IRF4, and detect novel SNPs in KITLG and a region of 9q32. In a bivariate analysis combining the nevus results with a recent mela

Models of stellar clusters link the theoretical gravitational N-body problem to the study of real astrophysical systems. Such models require a description of the stars contained within the cluster. Stars are interesting objects in their own right, and the study of stellar evolution is important across astronomy, from the formation of exotic objects such as X-ray binaries and gamma-ray bursts to me

Binding studies with 125I-Tyr labelled hyaluronan (HA) on a cultured rat colon cancer cell line were performed to characterize the association of HA to tumour cells in vitro. Results show a specific and saturable binding (Kd=1.36 nM) which indicates the presence of an HA binding receptor on the tumour cells. There is a specific constant increase of cell-associated HA over time, which indicates tha

Objective: Hereditary autoinflammatory syndromes are characterized by recurrent episodes of fever and inflammation. Seven subtypes have been described, caused by mutations in four different genes. Apart from a common phenotype of lifelong recurrent inflammatory attacks, all subtypes have distinct features and specific therapeutic options, which emphasizes the need for a specific diagnosis in each

Aside from their critical role in thrombosis, activated coagulation factors also have inflammatory properties and these may be important during delayed xenograft rejection (DXR). This study assessed whether porcine EC could be activated by factor Xa (FXa) and thrombin (FIIa) and whether expression of tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI)-CD4 and hirudin-CD4 fusion proteins could prevent such acti

The bacterial superantigen (SAg) staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA) is a potent inducer of CTL activity and cytokine production in vivo. To engineer SAg for cancer immunotherapy, we genetically fused SEA to a Fab fragment of the C215 tumor-reactive antibody. Strong reduction of lung metastasis was seen in mice carrying established lung metastases of the poorly immunogenic B16-C215 melanoma after F

In this work, we propose a novel measure of distance for quantifying dissimilarities between signals observed on a graph. Building on a recently introduced optimal mass transport framework, the distance measure is formed using the second-order statistics of the graph signals, allowing for comparison of graph processes without direct access to the signals themselves, while explicitly taking the dyn

There is a scarcity of work examining the relationship between culture and pain-related caregiver behaviors. Moreover, no pediatric pain studies have examined the relationship between caregiver cultural values and pain-related caregiver behaviors nor discern if this process is mediated by caregiver parenting styles and moderated by ecosocial context. Based on cross-cultural developmental theories,