Politicians and policy-makers, as well as modellers, often nurses an expectation that model derived results is an objective source of information that can be used to support decisions. However, several prerequisites have to be dealt with in order to ensure that models can be used as legitimate and efficient tools in water resource management. Based on empirical material from recent studies on the

Despite being used extensively for the diagnosis and management of prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing remains controversial. Doubts have been raised over the continued use of PSA in the detection of clinically significant prostate cancer because many men now present with early-stage, small-volume tumours. This article examines the limitations of using a single PSA value in di

INTRODUCTION: General practitioners are often interested in doing research but are hampered by lack of time and research training. Interpreting the results of others can also be difficult. For this reason a course in basic research methods for GPs was started in Sweden in 1989. It was originally aimed at GPs but was later extended to hospital physicians as well. The course is given regionally and

It is currently unclear how often genes that are mutated to cause rare, early-onset monogenic forms of disease also harbor common variants that contribute to the more typical polygenic form of each disease. The gene for MODY3 diabetes, HNF1 alpha, lies in a region that has shown linkage to late-onset type 2 diabetes (12q24, NIDDM2), and previous association studies have suggested a weak trend towa

The evolution of carbon-oxygen-related defects upon isochronal annealing (75-325 degrees C in 25 degrees C steps for 30 min at each temperature) in electron irradiated Si crystals has been studied by means of local vibrational mode (LVM) spectroscopy. A complicated annealing behaviour of the LVMs related to the C4 (ICiOi) defect has been observed. At about 200 degrees C the bands at 940 and 1024 c

We report a case of a 5-year-old child who suffered an oral allergy syndrome and lip angiedema after eating grapes. We obtained a positive prick test with commercial grape extract and a positive prick-by-prick test with pulp and peel of fresh white grape (Moscatel variety) and pulp and peel of blue grape. Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by immunoblotting reveale

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is recognized as a rapid, sensitive, and specific molecular diagnostic tool for the analysis of nucleic acids. However, the sensitivity and kinetics of diagnostic PCR may be dramatically reduced when applied directly to biological samples, such as blood and feces, owing to PCR-inhibitory components. As a result, pre-PCR processing procedures have been developed to r

Background: The selectin family of adhesion molecules (P-, E- and L-selectin) plays an important role in inflammatory reactions by mediating interactions between leukocytes and activated endothelial cells. However, a recent study using gene-targeted mice has suggested that adhesion molecules (P- and E-selectin and ICAM-1) may not be relevant targets in intestinal inflammation. The objective of the

Set yoghurts produced with seven different exopolysaccharide-producing starter cultures were subjected to sensory texture profiling including texture evaluation before and after a stirring procedure carried out by trained assessors. The microstructure of four selected yoghurts was investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy with special focus on the distribution of exopolysaccharides (EPS)

Insertion of metals into various tetrapyrroles is catalysed by a group of enzymes called chelatases, e.g. nickel, cobalt, magnesium and ferrochelatase. It has been proposed that catalytic metallation includes distorting the porphyrin substrate by the enzyme towards a transition state-like geometry in which at least one of the pyrrole rings will be available for metal chelation. Here, we present a

Sophisticated packaging solutions can be used in order to preserve vegetables during storage and transport. Polymeric films with selective barriers matching the respiration of the produce, thereby creating an ideal atmosphere inside the package, are available on the market. Fresh broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica ‘Monterey’) heads were packed in 4 different commercially available polymer

Mollisianitrile (1), a new antibiotic was isolated from the fermentation broth of Mollisa sp. A59-96 together with the two known isocoumarins 2 and 3. 1 exhibited antimicrobial, cytotoxic, and phytotoxic activities. 1 contains a reactive propiolonitrile moiety which is believed to be responsible for its antibiotic activities. Upon incubation with L-cysteine the biological activity was lost.

The fluorescence anisotropic decay is modeled for the B850 bacteriochlorophyll a complex of the purple bacterium Rhodopseudomonas acidophila. Structural information is combined with experimental data to derive a Hamilton operator which models the S-0-S-1 excitation energy transfer between the pigments as well as the energy dissipation into the protein environment. The time-resolved fluorescence si

Various quantities such as plate height (HETP), number of plates (N), axial dispersion coefficient (D-ax) and Bodenstein number (Bo) are used to describe the efficiency of, and dispersion in chromatographic columns. Different quantities highlight different aspects of the performance. Due to the expansion of expanded-bed columns, the information contained in some of these quantities is not the same

Developing guidelines for quality assurance in the management of head injury requires knowledge concerning present management practice. We studied management of minor head injury (MHI) using a cross-sectional mail survey of 76 Swedish hospitals. In 96% of the hospitals, initial patient evaluation, frequently performed by inexperienced physicians, entails neurological assessment according to the Sw

The European shore crab Carcinus maenas is considered to rely on a female pheromone when mating. Evidence, however, is scarce on how the urine pheromone in itself affects males. We investigated male primer and releaser responses to female pheromones with methods that minimized effects from females, delivering female urine either as a pump-generated plume or deposited on a polyurethane sponge. We d

This report describes a language and an interactive environment, called LICS, for implementation of control systems and dynamic modelling. It used graphics for representation of the structural properties: hierarchical decomposition, interconnection structure, and structure of the interfaces. The decomposition and interconnection structures are described by block diagrams. Low level modules are des