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Several strains of group G streptococci (GGS) form aggregates when grown in vitro. Aggregating strains interact with fibrinogen, and this study reports the isolation of a novel self-associating and fibrinogen-binding protein of GGS, denoted protein FOG. Sequencing of the fog gene revealed structural similarity with M proteins of both GGS and group A streptococci (GAS). Analogous to GAS, GGS were f
Amphibian larvae often face two major sources of mortality: pond desiccation and predation. Tadpoles of seven anuran species with different preferences for type of breeding habitat, on a hydroperiod scale, were tested for responses to the presence of predators by raising them experimentally in the presence and absence of a separately caged invertebrate predator that was fed on conspecific tadpoles
Future adaptation to changes in the environment depends on the existence of additive genetic variances within populations. Recently, considerable attention has also been given to the non-additive component, which plays an important role in inbreeding depression and bottleneck situations. In this study, I used data from a North Carolina II crossing experiment, analysed with restricted maximum-likel
Chlorophyll biosynthesis is a process involving approximate to 20 different enzymatic steps. Half of these steps are common to the biosynthesis of other tetrapyrroles, such as heme. one of the least understood enzymatic steps is formation of the isocyclic ring, which is a characteristic feature of all (bacterio)chlorophyll molecules. In chloroplasts, formation of the isocyclic ring is an aerobic r
From August 1999 to April 2001, there was an outbreak of severe eczema at a factory manufacturing medical equipment. A glue, mainly based on the isocyanate dicyclohexylmethane-4,4'-diisocyanate (DMDI), was suspected as being the cause of the problem. 16 workers with recent episodes of eczema were patch tested with a standard series, an isocyanate series and work material. The latter consisted of,
In the weedy plant species Allium vineale (wild garlic), individuals may simultaneously produce sexually and asexually derived offspring, by seed and bulbils, respectively. In this study, genetic and genotypic diversity was determined in samples from 14 European A. vineale populations using nuclear (RAPD) and cytoplasmic (PCR-RFLP of cpDNA) markers to investigate the importance of the different re
Confidentiality is a major determinant of the accessibility and acceptability of sexual and reproductive health care for adolescents. Previous research has revealed that Lithuanian adolescents lack confidence in guarantees of confidentiality in primary health care settings. This study aimed to assess the factors that affect general practitioners' decisions whether to respect confidentiality for Li
In recent years, the formation of thin, well-ordered but complex surface oxides on late transition metals has been discovered. The driving force for this line of research has been the strong incentive to increase the partial pressure of oxygen from ultra-high vacuum to conditions more relevant for heterogeneous catalysis. Here we review the present status of the research field. Compared to oxygen
The RWAAI (Repository and Workspace for Austroasiatic Intangible heritage) project aims at building a digital archive out of existing legacy data from the austroasiatic language family. One aspect of the project is the preservation of analogue legacy data. In this context, we have at our hands a large number of mostly-phonemic transcriptions of narrative monologues, often with accompanying sound r
The subjects of this article are Kozhevnikov and Chistovitch's finding regarding the constancy of relative syllable durations and the inconstancy of relative speech sound durations for different rates of speech, and their proposal that vowels are elided because the necessary minimum duration of a consonant consumes all the time that happens to have been assigned to the syllable. The relative cons
Different theories have been proposed regarding the nature of the mental representations formed as a result of implicit learning of sequential regularities. Some theories postulate abstract surface-independent representations, while other theories postulate stimulus-specific representations. This article reports three experiments investigating the development of abstract representations in artific
Mutations in the PTEN gene are associated with a broad spectrum of disorders, including Cowden syndrome (CS), Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, Proteus syndrome, and Lhermitte-Duclos disease. In addition, PTEN mutations have been described in a few patients with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and macrocephaly. In this study, we screened the PTEN gene for mutations and deletions in 88 patients w
Copolymers of 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS) and N-tert-butylacrylamide (tBAA) have been evaluated as proton conducting materials. The water absorption of copolymers with varying equivalent weights (EW), i.e. g polymer/mol sulfonic acid groups, was studied at different relative humidities (rh) by gravimetry and calorimetry. Melt endotherms for water were detected by DSC in cop
All guidelines recommend short-acting inhaled beta 2-adrenoceptor agonists as the first-line drugs in acute asthma attacks and inhaled corticosteroids as the drugs of choice when regular daily treatment is needed. Short-acting inhaled beta 2-adrenoceptor agonists are not effective in reducing nocturnal awakenings because of their short duration of action. In addition there has been an intense deba
Through the past decades, new medical devices have been introduced at an increasing pace at the urge primarily of manufacturers, clinicians, and patients. Whereas it is mandatory to assess and approve new pharmaceuticals before their widespread use is allowed, innovations in medical devices generally have not been subject to the smae restrictions. The European Communitys program on completion of t
Collagen type II (CII) is a cartilage-specific target of pathologic humoral autoimmune responses in rheumatoid arthritis as well as in the collagen-induced arthritis model. The aim of the present study is to investigate the critical amino acid residues conferring CII epitope specificity of the prototypic arthritogenic murine mAb CIIC1. A homology model of the CIIC1 single-chain antibody fragment (
The impeller speed, the loss-on-drying of starch, and the added amount of water significantly influenced these response variables: granule fractions of less than 0.150 mm and more than 2.00 mm; and granule median diameter. The influence of the drug concentration on the response variables was less important. All the response variables showed significant interactions. At a fixed impeller speed, the
Impaired serotonin transmission has been suggested to be implicated in the pathophysiology of bulimia nervosa. As an indirect measure of brain serotonergic activity, the binding of tritiated ligands to platelet serotonin transporters has been studied in bulimia nervosa as well as in other putatively serotonin-related psychiatric disorders. In this study, the density and affinity of platelet seroto
The purpose of this study was to measure the pharmacokinetics and tissue accumulation of N-acetylamino-3-chloro-N-(2-diethylamino-ethyl) benzamide (NACPA) after oral or intravenous administration at a single dose of 25 mg/kg to female W/Fu rats. The serum pharmacokinetics of NACPA were characterized by rapid absorption, distribution and elimination. However, in comparison with its parent compound,
