It has been suggested that hyperhomocysteinemia observed in patients with occlusive vascular disease is caused by reduced renal function secondary to renovascular disease. We have therefore used serum cystatin C, a new sensitive marker for glomerular filtration, in 59 patients with acute coronary syndromes and high plasma homocysteine (tHcy) concentration to measure renal function. Samples were al

A gene encoding a sterol ester-synthesizing enzyme was identified in Arabidopsis. The cDNA of the Arabidopsis gene At1g04010 (AtPSAT) was overexpressed in Arabidopsis behind the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter. Microsomal membranes from the leaves of overexpresser lines catalyzed the transacylation of acyl groups from phosphatidylethanolamine to sterols. This activity correlated with the exp

Butyric acid and sphingomyelin (SM) affect colonic tumorigenesis. We examined the potential link between butyrate stimulation and SM metabolism in colonic and hepatic cancer cell lines. After incubating HT29 and HepG2 cells with butyrate and other short-chain fatty acids, we found that butyrate increased acid but not neutral or alkaline sphingomyelinase (SMase) activity by 10- to 20-fold. The effe

In this project a technique to optically measure the temperature is evaluated. The measurement is to be performed through optical fibres during photodynamic laser treatments or laser thermo therapy of malignant tumours. For this technique Cr3+-doped crystals were used. The lifetime of the ions' fluorescence were measured, since the fluorescence is strongly temperature dependent. A piece of a cryst

A model for the topological organization of the chloroplast thylakoid membrane is presented. A series of illustrations is provided, which outline a suggested 3-dimensional structure in cross-section and in full shape, which accounts both for the folding of one continuous membrane into multiple grana stacks as seen in cross-sectional electron micrographs and for the rapid reversible unfolding (dest

Blumenol A (1), blumenol B (2) and loliolide (3), together with the ubiquitous beta-sitosterol, alpha-amyrin and beta-amyrin, were isolated from the organic extract of the leaves of Heliotropium angiospermum. Structural elucidation of the metabolites was carried out by analysis of their spectroscopic data and/or by comparison with those reported in the literature.

In order to find sensitizers additional to the current fragrance mix (FM) a series of fragrance materials (series II) was evaluated in 6 dermatological centres in Europe. 11 of the test materials were essential oils, the remaining 7 being either mixtures of isomers or simple chemicals of frequent usage in the perfume industry. 1606 patients were consecutively tested with series II and 8% FM. Each

Here we studied the effects of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) in a rat model that represents the symptomatic stages of Parkinson's disease. GDNF was infused starting 2 weeks after an intrastriatal 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion in order to halt the ongoing degeneration of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons. GDNF or vehicle was infused in the striatum or the lateral ventr

The effects of environmental stress on the physiology and behaviour of higher vertebrates has become an important avenue of research in recent years. Evidence from recent studies has suggested that the avian stress-related hormone corticosterone (CORT) may play a role in immunocompetence and sexual selection. We tested whether CORT is immunosuppressive by studying humoral and cell-mediated immune

In the present work, a picosecond lidar system aiming at single-ended combustion diagnostics in full-scale combustion devices with limited optical access, such as power plants, is described. The highest overall range resolution of the system was found to be

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to transplant lungs that had been topically cooled in the non-heart-beating donor for 6 hours, using the most challenging evaluation method possible, namely single-lung transplantation followed by immediate contralateral pneumonectomy. METHODS: Domestic pigs were used (6 donors and 6 recipients) with a mean body weight of 59 +/- 3 kg. Ventricular fibrillation

Low-molecular weight aliphatic acids, furaldehydes and a broad range of different aromatic compounds are known to inhibit the fermentation of lignocellulose hydrolysates by yeasts. In this work, a cocktail of different lignocellulose-derived inhibitors was used to compare the inhibitor resistance of eleven different industrial and laboratory Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains and two Zygosaccharomyc

Antibody-mimicking synthetic polymers, selective for various optically active amino acid derivatives and peptides, were prepared by noncovalent molecular imprinting. A novel approach, in which the branched, trifunctional cross-linkers pentaerythritol triacrylate and 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)butanol trimethacrylate were copolymerized with methacrylic acid, is described. The polymers were subsequently

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is frequently accompanied by memory impairments and, although their bases are unknown, most research has focused on the hippocampus. The present study investigated the importance of another medial temporal lobe structure, the perirhinal cortex (Prh), in changes in memory in TLE using kindling as a model. Rats were kindled twice daily with anterior Prh stimulation until

In this article, John Locke's accounts of political liberty and legitimate government are read as expressions of a normative demand for non-arbitrariness. I argue that Locke locates infringements of political liberty in dependence on the arbitrary will of another, whether or not interference or restraint actually takes place. This way Locke is tentatively placed in that tradition of republican tho