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Electron injection from the transition metal complex Ru(dcbpy)(2)(NCS)(2) (dcbpy = 2,2'-bipyridine-4,4'-dicarboxylate) into a titanium dioxide nanoparticle film occurs along two pathways. The dominating part of the electron injection proceeds from the initially excited singlet state of the sensitizer into the conduction band of the semiconductor on the sub-hundred-femtosecond time scale. The slowe
Aiming for better understanding of the large complexity of excited-state processes in carotenoids, we have studied the excitation wavelength dependence of the relaxation dynamics in the carotenoid zeaxanthin. Excitation into the lowest vibrational band of the S-2 state at 485 nm, into the 0-3 vibrational band of the S2 state at 400 nm, and into the B-2(u)+ state at 266 nm resulted in different rel
Haptoglobin phenotypes have been shown in human medicine to be related to the prevalence of various diseases. Furthermore, abnormal glycosylation of haptoglobin has been reported as a consequence of liver disease, cancer and immunological disorders in man. To our knowledge, similar findings have not, so far, been reported in canine disease. The present paper describes a method for investigation of
High achievement in school has been associated with increased risk of eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN), but causality of these relationships is unclear. We sought to examine the association between school achievement and AN or BN in a national cohort and to determine the possible contribution of familial confounding using a co-relative design.
The production of municipal solid waste is one central concern for environmental policy, and the socio-materiality of waste – how the organisation of waste streams affects households and other waste producers – is an important issue for sustainability. This article shows how the application of European Union waste policy through its waste hierarchy affects the socio-material status of waste. The w
Sexual selection is often viewed as a promoter of population divergence, although some forms of sexual selection could rather hamper divergence. In the present study, we investigated whether sexual selection promotes divergence in sexually-selected traits. We studied population variation in sexual selection in relation to colour morph and body size in islet and mainland populations of the Skyros w
Urban planning regulations influence not only the urban form; they also have a great impact on the microclimate in urban areas. This paper deals with the relationship between the urban planning regulations and microclimate in the hot dry city of Damascus. The main purpose is to highlight the shortcomings of the existing urban planning regulations. The microclimatic parameters necessary for the the
Upon tissue injury and infection both stressed and dying cells can release proteins that normally reside inside the cells. Some of the released proteins become ligands of various cell surface receptors expressed by local cells and such proteins are denoted damage associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). Binding of some DAMPs to certain cell surface receptors induces signals emanating in the producti
The interaction of water vapor with ice remains incompletely understood despite its importance in environmental processes. A particular concern is the probability for water accommodation on the ice surface, for which results from earlier studies vary by more than 2 orders of magnitude. Here, we apply an environmental molecular beam method to directly determine water accommodation and desorption ki
An absolute measure of the fat content in various organs is an important part of diagnostics in obesity and diabetes. Fat quantification using MR-imaging is a non-invasive technique which provides both quantitative and spatial information on fat accumulation. However, for absolute quantification, it is necessary to address the various sources of contrast in MR-imaging. This paper summarizes basic
Immunity against malaria develops slowly and only after repeated exposure to the parasite. Many of those that die of the disease are children under five years of age. Antibodies are an important part of immunity, but which antibodies that are protective and how these should be measured are still unclear. We discuss the pros and cons of ELISA, invasion inhibition assays/ADCI, and measurement of aff
Collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) is a well studied mouse model of the human disease rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Both CIA and RA are complex diseases affected by multiple genes as well as environmental factors. Identifying the genes that determine susceptibility to arthritis would give invaluable clues to the largely unknown aetiology of RA. In this study, we dissected a known locus, Cia6, as well a
Activation of the complement system and resulting opsonisation with C3b are key events of the innate immune defense against infections. However, a wide variety of bacterial pathogens subvert complement attack by binding host complement inhibitors such as C4b-binding protein, factor H and vitronectin, which results in diminished opsonophagocytosis and killing of bacteria by lysis. Another widely us
