Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) facilitates the synthesis of adrenal glucocorticoids by maintaining the enzymes that control the side-chain cleavage of cholesterol, the rate-limiting step in the biosynthesis of steroids 1]. Thus, ACTH is involved in the control of adrenal lipid metabolism. Recent studies have revealed that treatment with ACTH in pharmacological dosage also influences plasma li

A human milk fraction containing multimeric alpha-lactalbumin (MAL) is able to kill cells via apoptosis. MAL is a protein complex of a folding variant of alpha-lactalbumin and lipids. Previous results have shown that upon treatment of transformed cells, MAL localizes to the mitochondria and cytochrome c is released into the cytosol. This is followed by activation of the caspase cascade. In this st

Studies focusing on genetic and social influences on maternal adjustment will illumine mother's marriage, parenting, and the development of psychopathology in her children. Recent behavioral genetic research suggests mechanisms by which genetic and social influences determine psychological development and adjustment. First, heritable, personal attributes may influence individuals' relationships wi

Variability in solute transport properties in the unsaturated zone is of growing concern due to environmental hazards. By combining dye and salt tracers, a detailed description of the solute transport can be made in both time and space. In this paper, qualitative and quantitative effects of preferential flow were investigated in a sandy loam. The experimental site was equipped with 64 TDR probes.

1. Mechanical transients in fibre bundles of skinned smooth muscle of guinea-pig taenia coli at 21-22 degrees C were investigated by recording tension responses to length changes of up to 9%, complete within 0.3 ms. 2. The length-force relationship, recorded continuously during rapid stretch of a Ca(2+)-activated contracted muscle, was linear up to at least 2.5 times the isometric force, correspon

The study of quark jets in e(+)e(-) reactions at LEP has demonstrated that the hadronisation process is reproduced well by the Lund string model. However. our understanding of gluon fragmentation is less complete. In this study enriched quark and gluon jet samples of different purities are selected in three-jet events from hadronic decays of the Z collected by the DELPHI experiment in the LEP runs

Graft polymerization using potassium diperiodatocuprate as initiator was found to be an effective and convenient method for grafting functional polymer of N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) onto superporous polyacrylamide gels, so-called cryogels (pAAm cryogels). It was possible to achieve grafting degrees up to 110% (w/w). The two-step graft polymerization i.e. first activation of the m

In 48 patients with a history of a pneumococcal bacteremia, serum taken during the acute phase of the infection was analyzed for IgG and IgG subclasses. Once the patients were free of infection, a serum sample was analyzed for IgG, IgG subclasses, IgA and IgM. In an additional 20 patients, it was only possible to analyze serum from the infection-free phase. Seventeen of 48 (35%) patients had reduc

We measured angular distributions of differential cross section, beam analyzing power, and recoil polarization for neutral pion electroproduction at Q(2)=1.0 (GeV/c)(2) in 10 bins of 1.17

A box-tree is a bounding-volume hierarchy that uses axis-aligned boxes as bounding volumes. The query complexity of a box-tree with respect to a given type of query is the maximum number of nodes visited when answering such a query. We describe several new algorithms for constructing box-trees with small worst-case query complexity with respect to queries with axis-parallel boxes and with points.

Corporate growth is often viewed as being either internally generated or externally achieved through mergers and acquisitions (M&As). During the last decade, strategic alliances have become an increasingly popular third alternative to either internal or acquired growth. Alliances can be cheaper, more flexible, and faster than internal or M&A growth. However, they suffer from a major drawba