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Selected AbstractsCharacterization of the polysensitized patient: a matched case,control studyCONTACT DERMATITIS, Issue 1 2009Berit Christina Carlsen Background: Polysensitization ( , 3 contact allergies) may be regarded as a special entity in patients with contact allergies. However, this group of polysensitized patients is poorly characterized. Filaggrin mutations are associated with atopic eczema and lead to impaired skin barrier which may predispose to contact allergy. Therefore, it is of interest to consider atopic eczema and contact allergies, especially in patients with multiple allergies. Objective: To characterize polysensitized patients regarding occurrence, duration and course of dermatitis, and examine potential risk factors for polysensitization, including atopic eczema. Methods: A questionnaire case,control study of 562 polysensitized and 1124 single/double-sensitized individuals was performed. Results: The results show that 45% of polysensitized and 31% of single/double-sensitized patients had or had had atopic eczema, and atopic eczema was identified as a risk factor for polysensitization. Patients with leg ulcer constituted only a minor part of the polysensitized group and leg ulcers were not identified as a risk factor for polysensitization in this study. The influence of contact allergies on duration and course of disease diverged between the group of patients with atopic eczema and the group without atopic eczema. Conclusion: Patients with atopic eczema were overrepresented in the group of polysensitized patients and polysensitized patients should be viewed in the light of occurrence or lack of atopic eczema. [source] Vegetation responses in Alaskan arctic tundra after 8 years of a summer warming and winter snow manipulation experimentGLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2005C.-H. A. Wahren Abstract We used snow fences and small (1 m2) open-topped fiberglass chambers (OTCs) to study the effects of changes in winter snow cover and summer air temperatures on arctic tundra. In 1994, two 60 m long, 2.8 m high snow fences, one in moist and the other in dry tundra, were erected at Toolik Lake, Alaska. OTCs paired with unwarmed plots, were placed along each experimental snow gradient and in control areas adjacent to the snowdrifts. After 8 years, the vegetation of the two sites, including that in control plots, had changed significantly. At both sites, the cover of shrubs, live vegetation, and litter, together with canopy height, had all increased, while lichen cover and diversity had decreased. At the moist site, bryophytes decreased in cover, while an increase in graminoids was almost entirely because of the response of the sedge Eriophorum vaginatum. These community changes were consistent with results found in studies of responses to warming and increased nutrient availability in the Arctic. However, during the time period of the experiment, summer temperature did not increase, but summer precipitation increased by 28%. The snow addition treatment affected species abundance, canopy height, and diversity, whereas the summer warming treatment had few measurable effects on vegetation. The interannual temperature fluctuation was considerably larger than the temperature increases within OTCs (<2°C), however. Snow addition also had a greater effect on microclimate by insulating vegetation from winter wind and temperature extremes, modifying winter soil temperatures, and increasing spring run-off. Most increases in shrub cover and canopy height occurred in the medium snow-depth zone (0.5,2 m) of the moist site, and the medium to deep snow-depth zone (2,3 m) of the dry site. At the moist tundra site, deciduous shrubs, particularly Betula nana, increased in cover, while evergreen shrubs decreased. These differential responses were likely because of the larger production to biomass ratio in deciduous shrubs, combined with their more flexible growth response under changing environmental conditions. At the dry site, where deciduous shrubs were a minor part of the vegetation, evergreen shrubs increased in both cover and canopy height. These changes in abundance of functional groups are expected to affect most ecological processes, particularly the rate of litter decomposition, nutrient cycling, and both soil carbon and nitrogen pools. Also, changes in canopy structure, associated with increases in shrub abundance, are expected to alter the summer energy balance by increasing net radiation and evapotranspiration, thus altering soil moisture regimes. [source] Non-pecuniary returns to higher education: the effect on smoking intensity in the UKHEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 8 2010Massimiliano Bratti Abstract This paper investigates whether higher education (HE) produces non-pecuniary returns via a reduction in the intensity of consumption of health-damaging substances. In particular, it focuses on current smoking intensity of the British individuals sampled in the 29-year follow-up survey of the 1970 British Cohort Study. We estimate endogenous dummy ordinal response models for cigarette consumption and show that HE is endogenous with respect to smoking intensity and that even when endogeneity is accounted for, HE is found to have a strong negative effect on smoking intensity. Moreover, pecuniary channels, such as occupation and income, mediate only a minor part of the effect of HE. Our results are robust to modelling individual self-selection into current smoking participation (at age 29) and to estimating a dynamic model in which past smoking levels affect current smoking levels. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Environmental conditions impinge on dragline silk protein compositionINSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2008K.-H. Guehrs Abstract The silk formed in the major ampullate (MA) gland of the orb weaving spider Nephila clavipes is composed of two silk fibroins, which are called major ampullate spidroins 1 (MaSp1) and 2 (MaSp2). Analysis of proteolytic peptides and reactivity to spidroin type specific antibodies indicated that MaSp2 constituted only a minor part in the spinning dope as well as in the spun filaments. Upon starvation, a change in the silk's characteristic features was observed that was concomitant of a decrease in the contribution of MaSp2. The silk became less elastic and stiffer, which will better tailor its usability for the safety line, albeit at the expense of its employment as the web frame threads. In addition, since MaSp2 production requires greater ATP consumption, such a shift in the protein ratio cuts down on the energy costs to produce the silk. From this change in protein composition the spider might therefore benefit twice, by synthesizing ,cheaper' silk that into the bargain has properties that potentially can better support foraging in times of food shortage. [source] Estimation of number of follicles, volume of colloid and inner follicular surface area in the thyroid gland of ratsJOURNAL OF ANATOMY, Issue 2 2005M. L. Hartoft-Nielsen Abstract Volume is an important variable in assessing the growth and involution of the thyroid gland. The functional unit in the thyroid is the follicle, which consists of thyrocytes surrounding colloid. The size of a follicle depends on the number of cells and the amount of colloid. These are interchangeable and vary according to biological activity. Direct measurements of these variables provide information on structures involved in thyroid hormone synthesis, storage and secretion, and also on changes at the morphological and functional levels. Stereological methods are developed to obtain information on three-dimensional structures from two-dimensional sections and to achieve information on an entire organ by examining a minor part of it. Full-grown male Sprague,Dawley rats were used to develop a set of methods relying on unbiased stereological principles to determine the number of follicles, the total volume of colloid and the inner follicular surface area in the thyroid gland. The total volume of colloid was positively correlated (P < 0.021) with the number of follicles and the inner follicular surface area (P < 0.002) but not to the mean volume of colloid in each follicle. Thus under physiological conditions an increase in the total volume of colloid is associated with an increased number of follicles with a constant size distribution rather than a larger volume of colloid in each follicle. This implies that under physiological conditions there is equilibrium in the size distribution of the volume of colloid in each follicle. [source] Variation of Apigenin Quantity in Diploid and Tetraploid Chamomilla recutita (L.) RauschertPLANT BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2000vehlíková Abstract: Apigenin, a pharmacologically important flavonoid of the chamomile plant, was analyzed at two ploidy levels during a three-year period. This flavonoid accumulates in the ligulate florets of the anthodium. Higher percentages of apigenin were found in the ligulate florets of a diploid cultivar, in comparison with tetraploid plants. However, when the total apigenin (mg of compound) in the anthodium was evaluated, tetraploid individuals accumulated significantly more flavonoid. Moreover, in contrast to morphological quantitative characteristics of the anthodium, which varied significantly in different years, apigenin percentage in the ligulate florets was constant and not influenced by environmental conditions. Apigenin content was also found to change during inflorescence ontogeny. It represents the highest percentage of dry mass in young developing florets and anthodia of both cultivars. The total apigenin content of the anthodium, however, increases during flowering, although at later stages apigenin forms only a minor part of ligulate floret and anthodium dry mass. [source] Feeding ecology of a group of buffy-headed marmosets (Callithrix flaviceps): fungi as a preferred resourceAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2010Renato R. Hilário Abstract Mycophagy is a relatively rare behavior in primates and has only been recorded in five callitrichid species. Here, we present data on the feeding ecology of a free-ranging group of Callithrix flaviceps, which was studied in the Augusto Ruschi Biological Reserve, Southeastern Brazil, in 2008. In contrast with other marmosets, which are typically gummivorous, the study group was predominantly mycophagous,insectivorous, with fungi corresponding to 64.8% of total feeding records, and gum (6.1%) and fruit (3.3%) together providing only a minor part of the diet. Prey corresponded to 25.8% of the group's diet. The fungi (Mycocitrus spp.) consumed by the marmosets were found attached to the stems of Merostachys bamboo. As the animal component of the group's diet was similar to that recorded in studies of other marmosets, we propose that fungi were exploited primarily as a substitute for plant material, in particular exudates. This highly mycophagous diet may be determined by two principal factors: (1) the abundance of fungi within the study area, and (2) the avoidance of bark gouging, for which C. flaviceps may be less specialized than most other marmosets. These conclusions are supported by comparisons with other marmoset groups, which indicate an ecological specialization for mycophagy in C. flaviceps, and that the species will resort to gummivory in habitats where fungi are scarce. Am. J. Primatol. 72:515,521, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Manually controlled human balancing using visual, vestibular and proprioceptive senses involves a common, low frequency neural processTHE JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 1 2006Martin Lakie Ten subjects balanced their own body or a mechanically equivalent unstable inverted pendulum by hand, through a compliant spring linkage. Their balancing process was always characterized by repeated small reciprocating hand movements. These bias adjustments were an observable sign of intermittent alterations in neural output. On average, the adjustments occurred at intervals of ,400 ms. To generate appropriate stabilizing bias adjustments, sensory information about body or load movement is needed. Subjects used visual, vestibular or proprioceptive sensation alone and in combination to perform the tasks. We first ask, is the time between adjustments (bias duration) sensory specific? Vision is associated with slow responses. Other senses involved with balance are known to be faster. Our second question is; does bias duration depend on sensory abundance? An appropriate bias adjustment cannot occur until unplanned motion is unambiguously perceived (a sensory threshold). The addition of more sensory data should therefore expedite action, decreasing the mean bias adjustment duration. Statistical analysis showed that (1) the mean bias adjustment duration was remarkably independent of the sensory modality and (2) the addition of one or two sensory modalities made a small, but significant, decrease in the mean bias adjustment duration. Thus, a threshold effect can alter only a very minor part of the bias duration. The bias adjustment duration in manual balancing must reflect something more than visual sensation and perceptual thresholds; our suggestion is that it is a common central motor planning process. We predict that similar processes may be identified in the control of standing. [source] Origin of Hungarian indigenous chicken breeds inferred from mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequencesANIMAL GENETICS, Issue 5 2010T. Revay Summary In this study, we assessed the maternal origin of six Hungarian indigenous chicken breeds using mitochondrial DNA information. Sequences of Hungarian chickens were compared with the D-loop chicken sequences annotated in the GenBank and to nine previously described reference haplotypes representing the main haplogroups of chicken. The first 530 bases of the D-loop region were sequenced in 74 chickens of nine populations. Eleven haplotypes (HIC1 - HIC11) were observed from 17 variable sites. Three sequences (HIC3, HIC8 and HIC9) of our chickens were found as unique to Hungary when searched against the NCBI GenBank database. Hungarian domestic chicken mtDNA sequences could be assigned into three clades and probably two maternal lineages. Results indicated that 86% of the Hungarian haplotypes are related to the reference sequence that likely originated from the Indian subcontinent, while the minor part of our sequences presumably derive from South East Asia, China and Japan. [source] Interaction between diet and genetic aptitude for weight and growth in juvenile rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum)AQUACULTURE RESEARCH, Issue 8 2002J M Blanc Abstract Samples of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum) alevins from 17 independent families (full-sib-groups) were raised from the start of feeding until the age of 18 weeks post-hatching with three diets (C, G and S) differing in protein content (fish soluble protein concentrate: 84% in C, 54% in G and 44% in S) and carbohydrates (none in C, 30% glucose in G and 40% crude corn starch in S). Fish were fed to near satiation, and their body weight and growth were measured. Diet effect was highly significant (G<,C < S), as well as the familial effect. The major part of the familial variance (80,90%) was common to the three diets. However, a minor part of the familial variance was observed to be diet dependent (family × diet interaction), and was found to result mainly from relative performances with carbohydrates (G and S diets) vs. pure protein (C diet). These results indicate that genetic improvement of growth should suffer little impairment from possible changes in future feed formulations. [source] | |||||||||||||