Objectives. Only a little research has focused on the evaluation of female sexual function. With sexual stimulation, the clitoris becomes engorged with blood and tumescent. Nevertheless, only little is known about the significance of the cyclic nucleotide-mediated signal transduction in the control of this process. We sought to elucidate the presence of the phosphodiesterase (PDE) isoenzymes 3, 4,

Simulations of one maritime and four continental observed cases of deep convection are performed with the Hebrew University Cloud Model that has spectral bin microphysics. The maritime case is from observations made on 18 September 1974 during the Global Atmospheric Research Program's Atlantic Tropical Experiment ( GATE). The continental storm cases are those of summertime Texas clouds observed on

The uniaxial chain alignment and equatorial patterning of poly [9,9-bis(2-ethylhexyl)fluorene-2,7-diyl] (M-n = 29 kg/mol, M-w = 68 kg/mol) thin films atop rubbed polyimide substrates have been studied by grazing incidence X-ray diffraction. This specific molecular weight yields among the highest observed levels of chain alignment and optical anisotropy and, after thermal annealing, the sample unde

A system for interstitial photodynamic therapy is used in the treatment of thick skin tumors. The system allows simultaneous measurements of light fluence rate, sensitizer fluorescence, and tissue oxygen saturation by using the same fibers as for therapeutic light delivery. Results from ten tumor treatments using delta-aminolevulinic acid (ALA)-induced protoporphyrin IX show a significant, treatme

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and rheological analysis have been used to investigate the stability of mechanically induced tri-ethylene-glycol-mono-n-decyl-ether (C10E3)/deuterium oxide (D2O) multi-lamellar vesicles (MLVs) and the transition from MLVs to planar lamellae. It was found that MLVs prepared by vortex stirring, relax back to the lamellar phase in a few hours while the relaxati

1. High breeding density can cause elevated plasma androgen levels in adult birds. Since maternal androgens are deposited into egg yolk, high breeding density may result in elevated yolk androgen levels as well. 2. The relationship between breeding density and yolk androgen levels was examined in the European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris. The concentration and total content of yolk androstenedione a

Nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) is a solid-state radio frequency (RF) spectroscopic technique that allows for the detection of many narcotics and highly explosive substances. Unfortunately, the practical use of NQR is often restricted by the presence of strong RF interference (RFI). In this letter, extending our recent work on stochastic NQR (sNQR), we propose acquiring signal-of-interest free

Constitutive activation of tyrosine kinases as a consequence of chromosomal translocations, forming fusion genes, plays an important role in the development of hematologic malignancies, in particular, myeloproliferative syndromes (MPSs). In this respect, the t(9;22)(q34;q11) that results in the BCR/ABL fusion gene in chronic myeloid leukemia is one of the best-studied examples. The fibroblast grow

Antibodies directed against a pathogenic microorganism may recognize either protective or non-protective epitopes. Because antibodies elicited by a vaccine must be directed against protective epitopes, it is essential to understand the molecular properties that distinguish the two types of epitope. Here we analyse this problem for the antiphagocytic M protein of Streptococcus pyogenes, using the o

The Ncf1 gene was recently identified as a strong regulator of severe arthritis in rat. This finding was surprising, because the disease-promoting allele mediated a lower level of reactive oxygen species in NADPH oxidase-expressing cells. We have now investigated a splice mutation of the Ncf1 gene in B10.Q mice, causing a truncated and nonfunctional Ncf1 protein. We found that the mutated Ncf1 led

The properties of jets produced in p+p collisions at root s=200 GeV are measured using the method of two-particle correlations. The trigger particle is a leading particle from a large transverse momentum jet while the associated particle comes from either the same jet or the away-side jet. Analysis of the angular width of the near-side peak in the correlation function determines the jet-fragmentat

The direct effects of CO2 level changes on plant water availability are usually ignored in plant habitat models. We compare traditional proxies for water availability with changes in soil water (fAWC) predicted by a process-based ecosystem model, which simulates changes in vegetation structure and functioning, including CO2 physiological effects. We modelled current and future habitats of 108 Euro

All colonies of the fungus-growing termite Macrotermes natalensis studied so far are associated with a single genetically variable lineage of Termitomyces symbionts. Such limited genetic variation of symbionts and the absence of sexual fruiting bodies (mushrooms) on M. natalensis mounds would be compatible with clonal vertical transmission, as is known to occur in Macrotermes bellicosus. We invest