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This paper considers the long-term effects of smoking on disability retirement in Sweden. Smoking is known to have damaging effects on health, but there is limited evidence on how the effects of smoking translate into worse labour market outcomes, such as the inability to work. In contrast to the few previous studies on smoking and disability retirement, we use a large population sample with regis

The human host defense peptide, LL-37, is an important player in the first line of defense against invading microorganisms. LL-37 and its precursor, hCAP18, have been detected in unstimulated whole saliva but no reports showing hCAP18/LL-37 in isolated, parotid, and/or submandibular/sublingual saliva have been presented. Here, we measured the levels of hCAP18/LL-37 in human parotid and submandibul

All experimental models of traumatic brain injury (TBI) result in a progressive loss of brain tissue. The extent of tissue loss reflects the injury severity and can be measured to evaluate the potential neuroprotective effect of experimental treatments. Quantitation of tissue volumes is commonly performed using evenly spaced brain sections stained using routine histochemical methods and digitally

Familial myelodysplastic syndromes arise from haploinsufficiency of genes involved in hematopoiesis and are primarily associated with early-onset disease. Here we describe a familial syndrome in seven patients from four unrelated pedigrees presenting with myelodysplastic syndrome and loss of chromosome 7/7q. Their median age at diagnosis was 2.1 years (range, 1-42). All patients presented with thr

Background--Both the adrenergic and renin-angiotensin systems contribute to orthostatic circulatory homeostasis, which is impaired in postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). Activating autoantibodies to the α1-adrenergic and β1/2-adrenergic receptors have previously been found in sera from patients with POTS. We hypothesized that patients with POTS might also harbor activating autoantibo

Using four bacterial immunoglobulin-binding proteins, we have analyzed the binding characteristics of a panel of 34 human single chain Fv antibodies, expressed in E. coli and with known specificity and sequence. Several of the single chain Fv antibodies showed affinity for staphylococcal protein A and peptostreptococcal protein L, but not for the streptococcal proteins G or H. The affinity of the

One of the central issues in ecology is the identification of processes affecting the population structure and dynamics of species with complex life cycles. In such species, variation in both the number of larvae that enter a population and their phenotype are important drivers of survival and growth after metamorphosis. Larval experience can have strong effects on key postmetamorphic traits, but

Introduction: Endometriosis is a benign disease that affects women of reproductive age. Laparoscopic excision of endometriotic implants is considered one of the most effective therapeutic options. The disease and its treatment can have a major impact on psychosexual well-being but this is often overlooked as most studies focus on pain instead of sexuality in a holistic approach. The aim of this st

This study compares the historical evolution of Total Quality Management (TQM) to eight well-known management theories to investigate whether there are affinities between TQM and the selected management theories. The study uses the core values and components of the EFQM Excellence Model as the framework for the analysis which reveals that most of the ingredients in the selected management theories

The dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans family of tumors (DPFT) comprises cutaneous soft tissue neoplasms associated with aberrant PDGFBR signaling, typically through a COL1A1-PDGFB fusion. The aim of the present study was to obtain a better understanding of the chromosomal origin of this fusion and to assess the spectrum of secondary mutations at the chromosome and nucleotide levels. We thus investig

The class of [NiFe]-hydrogenases comprises oxygen-sensitive periplasmic (PH) and oxygen-tolerant membrane-bound (MBH) enzymes. For three PHs and four MBHs from six bacterial species, structural features of the nickel-iron active site of hydrogen turnover and of the iron-sulfur clusters functioning in electron transfer were determined using X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). Fe-XAS indicated surp

An experimental study on the duration of load effects in a glued shear plate dowel joint was conducted. The joint design features a single large diameter dowel for load transfers between members, via external steel plates, which are bonded to the timber with a low stiffness bond line. Due to the low bond line stiffness, the timber element is subjected to a close to uniform shear stress distributio

Background and purpose — Children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP) have an increased risk of developing scoliosis, with a prevalence ranging from 11% to 29%. Information on risk factors for the emergence and progression of scoliosis is inconclusive. This study aimed to develop a risk score based on 5-year-old children with CP to predict the risk of scoliosis before the age of 16. Patients

Hurler syndrome (HS), the most severe phenotype in the spectrum of mucopolysaccharidosis type I, is caused by a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme alpha-L-iduronidase (IDUA). At present, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the only treatment able to prevent disease progression in the central nervous system, and therefore considered the treatment of choice in HS patients. Because IDUA

INTRODUCTION: Genetic screening using high-throughput DNA sequencing has become a tool in diagnosing patients with suspected inherited bleeding disorders (IBD). However, its usefulness and diagnostic efficacy in children is unclear.AIM: To evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of genetic screening for IBD in children and downstream further testing.METHODS: After informed consent, children (<18 years) w

Background: A study was designed to assess a computer-based program for continuous registration of antibiotic resistance, statistics concerning severity of illness, and consumption of antibacterial drugs. Methods: The frequency of antibiotic resistance among bacteria in eight ICUs in southeastern Sweden was investigated yearly from 1995 through 1997. The antibiotic consumption in the ICUs was regi

Objective: Morbidity and mortality due to heart failure (HF) as a complication of myocardial infarction (MI) is high, and remains among the leading causes of death and hospitalisation. This study investigated the association between family history of MI with or without HF, and the risk of developing HF after first MI. Methods: Through nationwide registries, we identified all individuals aged 18-50

It has been proposed that sleep readies the brain for novel learning, and previous work has shown that sleep loss impairs the ability to encode new memories. In the present study, we examined if a daytime nap would increase mnemonic discrimination (MD) performance. MD is the ability to differentiate between memories that are similar but not identical. Participants performed the Mnemonic Similarity

PURPOSE: Reliable molecular diagnostic tools are still unavailable for making informed treatment decisions and monitoring the response in patients with castration resistant prostate cancer. We evaluated the significance of whole blood circulating androgen receptor transcripts of full length (AR-FL) and splice variants (AR-V1, AR-V3 and AR-V7) as biomarkers of abiraterone acetate treatment resistan