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Protein dynamics on the micro- to millisecond time scale is increasingly found to be critical for biological function, as demonstrated by numerous NMR relaxation dispersion studies. Methyl groups are excellent probes of protein interactions and dynamics because of their favorable NMR relaxation properties, which lead to sharp signals in the H-1 and C-13 NMR spectra. Out of the six different methyl

We have estimated the activation energy for aromatic oxidation by compound I in cytochrome P450 for a diverse set of 17 substrates using state-of-the-art density functional theory (B3LYP) with large basis sets. The activation energies vary from 60 to 87 kJ/mol. We then test if these results can be reproduced by computationally less demanding methods. The best methods (a B3LYP calculation of the ac

Understanding of Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) in thin films composed of quantum dots (QDs) is of fundamental and technological significance in optimal design of QD based optoelectronic devices. The separation between QDs in the densely packed films is usually smaller than the size of QDs, so that the simple point dipole approximation, widely used in the conventional approach, can no lo

The concept of “style of thought” or Denkstil is today probably primarily associated with the Polish microbiologist and philosopher of science Ludwik Fleck and his writings from the 1930s. It was however used quite extensively already by Karl Mannheim in his writings on the sociology of knowledge from the 1920s. Quite interestingly, the concept of style of thought was also used twice by Rudolf Car

Public health policies in most European countries are concerned with how to keep older people living independently with a qualitatively good life in the community as long as possible. However, knowledge about what may characterise those seemingly 'healthy' older people is sparse. The aim of the study was to investigate the characteristics of a sample of people (75+) reporting various degrees of Qu

Insertions and deletions of entire codons have recently been discovered as a mechanism by which B cells, in addition to conventional base substitution, evolve the antibodies produced by their immunoglobulin genes. These events frequently seem to involve repetitive sequence motifs in the antibody-encoding genes, and it has been suggested that they occur through polymerase slippage. In order to bett

The Sanfilippo syndrome type B is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by deficiency of alpha-N-acetylglucosaminidase; it is characterized by profound mental deterioration in childhood and death in the second decade. For understanding the molecular genetics of the disease and for future development of DNA-based therapy, we have cloned the cDNA and gene encoding alpha-N-acetylglucosaminidase. Clonin

Isothermal titration calorimetry is increasingly becoming a common tool for the investigation of surfactant association processes. This can be associated with the development of new, sensitive and easy-to-operate commercial equipment, allied with the advantage of producing simultaneous information on the main thermodynamic parameters associated with the process under investigation. However, a sign

Autoantibodies to the non-collagenous (NC1) domain of the alpha 3(IV)-chain of type IV collagen are found in sera from patients with anti-GBM nephritis. These antibodies have been shown to be pathogenic. In this study the antibody specificity has been investigated in patients with Goodpasture's syndrome and from a patient with atypical anti-GBM antibodies, recognizing the alpha 1(IV)-chain only. O

Antibodies provide some protection against cytomegalovirus-mediated disease. All aspects of antibody recognition of important viral antigens are however not fully appreciated. Glycoprotein B (gB), a key protein in the viral membrane, participates in viral infection and it is a component of prototype vaccines. By using combinatorial antibody library and selection technology, novel antibody specific

Large international biobank studies can make substantial contributions to scientific research by validation of the biological importance of previous research and by identification of previously unknown causes of disease. However, regulations for patient consent that are too strict and discrepancies in national policies on informed consent might hinder progress. Therefore, establishment of common g

We investigate the observed depletion of red giants in the cores ofpost-core-collapse globular clusters. In particular, the evolutionaryscenario we consider is a binary consisting of two low-mass stars whichundergoes two common-envelope phases. The first common-envelope phaseoccurs when the primary is a red giant resulting in a helium white dwarfand main-sequence star in a detached binary. The sec

We show that collisions with stellar-mass black holes can partially explain the absence of bright giant stars in the Galactic Centre, first noted by Genzel et al. We show that the missing objects are low-mass giants and asymptotic giant branch stars in the range 1-3 M-circle dot. Using detailed stellar evolution calculations, we find that to prevent these objects from evolving to become visible in

Fimbriae target bacteria to different mucosal surfaces and enhance the inflammatory response at these sites. Inflammation may be triggered by the fimbriae themselves or by fimbriae-dependent delivery of other host activating molecules such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Although LPS activates systemic inflammation through the CD14 and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) pathways, mechanisms of epithelial ce

Positional cloning of the underlying genes for the rare syndrome autoimmune polyendocrinopathy candidadiasis extrodermal dystrophy (APECED) opened a new venue of research on the role of central tolerance in autoimmunity. The associated autoimmune regulator gene (AIRE), was found to be expressed in medullary thymus epithelial cells (mTEC) in both man and mice, and to control promiscuous expression

We discuss the age of the stellar disks in the solar neighborhood. After reviewing the various methods for age dating, we discuss current estimates of the ages of both the thin- and the thick disks. We present preliminary results for kineymatically-selected stars that belong to the thin- as well as the thick disk. All of these dwarf and sub-giant stars have been studied spectroscopically and we ha