Few studies are performed on the sustainability of the pelvic floor extracellular matrix important for preventing development of pelvic organ prolapse (POP). Collagens I and III, the elastin-associated proteins fibrillin-1 and fibulin-5 and the small leucine-rich repeat proteoglycans (SLRPs) decorin, lumican and fibromodulin are involved in giving the tissue its mechanical properties. Para-urethra

The stability of a colloidal solution consisting of a mixture of charged spherical aggregates and polyampholytes is investigated by means of Monte Carlo simulations. The double-layer repulsion between the charged macroions is reduced upon addition of neutral polyampholyte and for sufficiently highly charged colloids it is converted into a net attractive interaction. Attractive interactions can als

Aims. To study the influence of low-intensity solution-focused family therapy with obese and extremely obese pediatric subjects on body mass index (BMI) z-scores and self-esteem. Materials and Methods. Fifty-four obese children, aged 6-17 years, were referred to an outpatient obesity clinic. The families received solution-focused family therapy provided by a multidisciplinary team. Height and weig

Smoking is the main risk factor for COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) but genetic factors are of importance, since only a subset of smokers develops the disease. Sex differences have been suggested both in disease prevalence and response to environmental exposures. Furthermore, it has been shown that acquisition of 'addiction' to smoking is partly genetically mediated. Disease cases and

Screening for cervical cancer precursors by cytology has been very successful in countries where adequate resources exist to ensure high quality and good coverage of the population at risk. Mortality reductions in excess of 50% have been achieved in many developed countries; however the procedure is generally inefficient and unworkable in many parts of the world where the appropriate infrastructur

Eight oligosaccharides have been isolated from faeces of a blood group B, secretor, breast-fed infant and characterized by sugar and methylation analysis, f.a.b. mass spectrometry and 1H-n.m.r. spectroscopy. One of these oligosaccharides has not previously been reported and is a tri-L-fucosyl derivative of lacto-N-hexaose. The other compounds were identical to oligosaccharides found in human milk.

A thoracic chimney graft is a stent or stent graft that is deployed in a supraaortic branch vessel, protruding somewhat proximally into the free aortic lumen like a chimney parallel to the main aortic stent graft. The chimney graft is used to preserve flow to vital aortic side branches covered by the main aortic stent graft. Standard off-the-shelf stent grafts can be used to instantly treat lesion

Aims/hypothesis The aim of the present study was to investigate resource utilisation and associated costs in patients with diabetic foot ulcers and to analyse differences in resource utilisation between individuals with or without peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and/or infection. Methods Data on resource utilisation were collected prospectively in a European multicentre study. Data on 1,088 pati

We present a laser lithography technique based on lift-off, for fast and flexible prototyping of micro and nanoelectromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS). The technique is based on direct laser writing on substrates coated with a resist bi-layer consisting of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) on lift-off resist (LOR). Laser writing melts and evaporates the PMMA exposing the LOR. Oxygen ashing removes PMMA

In order to reconstruct the late Pleistocene seismic stratigraphy, 550 km of high-density 3.5 kHz subbottom seismic-reflection profiles were recorded within a 70 km(2) area in the narrow offshore border zone between Germany and Denmark. A depositional unit 3 was analysed for its seismic facies association, and in the central study area mound, oblique, channel, reflection-free, shingled, hummocky,

In addition to proton-pumping complex I, plant mitochondria contain several type II NAD(P)H dehydrogenases in the electron transport chain. The extra enzymes allow the nonenergy-conserving electron transfer from cytoplasmic and matrix NAD(P)H to ubiquinone. We have investigated the type II NAD(P)H dehydrogenase gene families in Arabidopsis. This model plant contains two and four genes closely rela

InAs has been grown on W-GaAs patterned substrates using MOVPE. The selectivity of the growth and the nucleation process has been studied as a function of the temperature and the V/III-ratio in the MOVPE reactor. It is shown that the W guides the nucleation of the InAs on the GaAs and that the islands formed may be used to embed metal features in a hybride InAs/GaAs structure in agreement with pre

The composition of the dominating population of freshly cut beef, and beef stored at 4 degrees C for 8 d, was studied by direct analysis of the 16S rRNA gene (PCR amplification, cloning and sequencing) and compared with pure culture technique where the isolates picked from the viable plate count were identified by sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. The composition of the bacterial population was rec

Linear pentadecamer and cyclic hexamer peptide phage libraries were used to isolate phage clones with binding affinity toward lactoferrins purified from human and bovine milk. Phage clones with high specificity toward lactoferrin were selected with different binding strengths depending on the sequence of the peptide displayed by the phage. Phages coated to a microtiterplate were able to capture la

OBJECTIVE: Based on the hypothesis that blood flow in the inflamed joint is inadequate to maintain aerobic glycolysis, we sought to estimate the correlation between blood flow, glucose metabolism, and cellular proliferation rate in the arthritic joint. METHODS: Experiments were performed on rats with antigen induced arthritis (AIA). Regional blood flows (RBF) were measured with the microsphere tec

The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of thromboxane A2 in bradykinin-induced airflow obstruction in guinea pig in vivo. Airway insufflation pressure (Pi) was measured to assess airflow obstruction and the thromboxane B2 (a stable metabolite of thromboxane A2) concentration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was determined by radioimmunoassay. The animals were pretreated with propranolol (1

Adenoviral vector-mediated treatment is a potential therapy for tumors of the central nervous system. To obtain a significant therapeutic effect by adenoviral vectors, a sufficient infection is required, the power of which depends predominantly on the level of Coxsackie adenovirus receptors. We stained surgical biopsies of central nervous system tumors and neuroblastomas for Coxsackie adenovirus r

This article investigates the importance of using draft curtains to obtain faster sprinkler activation with three different models-two computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models (CFX 4.4 and fire dynamics simulator (FDS) 4.07) and a zone model (Argos) containing a ceiling-jet formula - for an actual scenario in an entertainment center in Denmark. It is found that a draft curtain has some effect on

BACKGROUND: There is a wide range (5-50 per 100 000) in the reported annual incidence of acute pancreatitis. Furthermore, the predominant aetiology varies in different reports. This study was undertaken to establish the current incidence, aetiology and associated mortality rate in a defined population. METHODS: A retrospective study of all cases of acute pancreatitis admitted over a 10-year p