OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of MgSO4 in combination with glucose, insulin, and potassium (GIK) on intrinsic AV-nodal properties during chronic atrial fibrillation. METHODS: The study included two patient groups--(a) control and intervention and (b) intervention--with different infusion times and concentrations of MgSO4. Ambulatory electrocardiographic recordings were analyzed using modified

A theoretical model has been developed that describes ultrafiltration of nonionic surfactants. The model takes into account the fact that surfactants start to aggregate and form micelles at the critical micelle concentration, The model can be used to predict the performance of the membrane if the transport properties inside and at the membrane surface as well as the surfactant association behavior

Recognizing the possible beneficial effect of prebiotics in food, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) convened a Technical meeting to start work on the evaluation of the functional and health properties of prebiotics. A group of international experts agreed on guidelines, recommended criteria, and methodology for conducting a systematic approach for the evaluation of

Viable suspended hepatocytes were prepared from surgical biopsy specimens of pig and human liver by digestion with collagenase. Initial perfusion of the tissue through cannulated blood vessels with 0.5 mM EGTA followed by 0.2% collagenase gave the best results. 20−870 × 106 cells of which 60–95 % excluded trypan blue were obtained from 5–30 g pig liver pieces, while results with human liver specim

The freeze-drying tolerance of Pseudomonas chlororaphis, an antifungal bacterium used as biocontrol agent was investigated. P. chlororaphis is freeze-drying sensitive and the viability drops more than 3 log units in the absence of protective freeze-drying medium. Of the freeze-drying media tested, lactose, sucrose, trehalose, glutamate, sucrose with glutamate, skimmed milk, and skimmed milk with t

We studied correlation between crown conditions and tree-ring widths in 260 trees of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) growing on 33 sites in southern Sweden. The tree-ring increment over 1998-2002 was highest in trees with healthy crowns, intermediate in trees with moderately declined crowns, and lowest in trees with heavily declining crowns. The time period with significant correlation between

Energy crops (willow, sugar beet and grass silage) were digested ill pilot scale two-stage anaerobic digesters. The specific methane yields obtained were 0.16, 0.38 and 0.39 m(3) kg(-1) added volatile solids (VSadded) for willow, sugar beet and grass, respectively, corresponding to yearly gross energy yields of 15, 53 and 26 megawatt-hours (MWh) per hectare. With grass and sugar beets as substrate

Food components modify the risk of cancer at a large number of sites but the mechanism of action is unknown. In the present investigation, we studied the effect of the peptide lactoferricin derived from bovine milk lactoferrin on human colon cancer CaCo-2 cells. The cells were either untreated or treated with 2.0, 0.2, or 0.02 microM lactoferricin. Cell cycle kinetics were investigated with a brom

We consider perturbations of a large Jordan matrix, either random and small in norm or of small rank. In the case of random perturbations we obtain explicit estimates which show that as the size of the matrix increases, most of the eigenvalues of the perturbed matrix converge to a certain circle with centre at the origin. In the case of finite rank perturbations we completely determine the spectra

The oxidation of Pd(100) and the formation of PdO was studied in situ using surface x-ray diffraction. A bulklike, epitaxial PdO film is formed at oxygen partial pressures beyond 1 mbar and sample temperatures exceeding 650 K. The main orientation is PdO(001)/Pd(001), based upon bulk reflections from the PdO film. By comparing with measurements from the Pd crystal truncation rods, we estimate an r

We present a batch method for recovering Euclidian camera motion from sparse image data. The main purpose of the algorithm is to recover the motion parameters using as much of the available information and as few computational steps as possible. The algorithm thus places itself in the gap between factorisation schemes, which make use of all available information in the initial recovery step, and s

Migratory birds use multiple sources of compass information for orientation, including the geomagnetic field, the sun, skylight polarization patterns and star patterns. In this paper we review the results of cue-conflict experiments designed to determine the relative importance of the different compass mechanisms, and how directional information from these compass mechanisms is integrated. We focu

Background: There are very few reports of airborne allergic contact dermatitis from methacrylates. Objectives: To report a dental nurse with facial eczema supposedly caused by airborne methacrylates present in the work environment. Methods: Patch testing with serial dilutions of several methacrylates and work provocations in environments containing methacrylates was performed. Results: Patch testi

Sub-micrometer atmospheric aerosol particles were studied in the Amazon region, 125 km northeast of Manaus, Brazil (-1degrees55.2'S, 59degrees28.1'W). The measurements were performed during the wet-to-dry transition period, 4-28 July 2001 as part of the LBA (Large-Scale Biosphere Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia) CLAIRE-2001 (Cooperative LBA Airborne Regional Experiment) experiment. The number si

Implantation of cells genetically modified to express therapeutic genes into the brain has been proposed as a potential treatment for neurodegenerative diseases. In the current study embryonic rat-derived astrocytes were cultured and transduced with a lentiviral vector expressing the reporter gene green fluorescent protein (GFP) and subsequently grafted into the adult rat brain. The proportion of

Objectives: Tissue transglutaminase (tTG) autoantibodies are serologic markers for celiac disease (CD). The aim was to determine the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of different immunoglobulin isotypes against tTG. Methods: Immunoglobulin A (IgA)-tTG, IgG-tTG, and IgGl-tTG were measured in radioligand binding assays in 67 children with untreated and 89 children with treated CD and compared

C4b-binding protein (C4BP), an important inhibitor of complement activation, has a unique spider-like shape. It is composed of six to seven identical alpha-chains with or without a single beta-chain, the chains being linked by disulfide bridges in their C-terminal parts. To elucidate the structural requirements for the assembly of the alpha-chains, recombinant C4BP was expressed in HEK 293 cells.

The efficiency of thermoelectric power generators and the coefficient of performance of thermoelectric refrigerators increase rapidly in the region of small ZT, and then level off to a flat curve in the region of large ZT, where ZT is the figure of merit. Therefore, simply because one-dimensional thermoelectric materials have high ZT predicted theoretically does not imply that efficient thermoelec