60 research outputs found
EMDABS : design and formal specification of a datamodel for a clinical research database system
Ontwerp en formale definitie van het 'study/subject/session' gedeelte van het datamodel voor het klinische informatiesysteem EMDABS
Premelting of Thin Wires
Recent work has raised considerable interest on the nature of thin metallic
wires. We have investigated the melting behavior of thin cylindrical Pb wires
with the axis along a (110) direction, using molecular dynamics and a
well-tested many-body potential. We find that---in analogy with cluster
melting---the melting temperature of a wire with radius is lower
than that of a bulk solid, , by . Surface melting
effects, with formation of a thin skin of highly diffusive atoms at the wire
surface, is observed. The diffusivity is lower where the wire surface has a
flat, local (111) orientation, and higher at (110) and (100) rounded areas. The
possible relevance to recent results on non-rupturing thin necks between an STM
tip and a warm surface is addressed.Comment: 10 pages, 4 postscript figures are appended, RevTeX, SISSA Ref.
131/94/CM/S
Differential regulation of amidase- and formamidase-mediated ammonia production by the Helicobacter pylori fur repressor.
The production of high levels of ammonia allows the human gastric pathogen
Helicobacter pylori to survive the acidic conditions in the human stomach.
H. pylori produces ammonia through urease-mediated degradation of urea,
but it is also able to convert a range of amide substrates into ammonia
via its AmiE amidase and AmiF formamidase enzymes. Here data are provided
that demonstrate that the iron-responsive regulatory protein Fur directly
and indirectly regulates the activity of the two H. pylori amidases. In
contrast to other amidase-positive bacteria, amidase and formamidase
enzyme activities were not induced by medium supplementation with their
respective substrates, acrylamide and formamide. AmiE protein expression
and amidase enzyme activity were iron-repressed in H. pylori 26695 but
constitutive in the isogenic fur mutant. This regulation was mediated at
the transcriptional level via the binding of Fur to the amiE promoter
region. In contrast, formamidase enzyme activity was not iron-repressed
but was significantly higher in the fur mutant. This effect was not
mediated at the transcriptional level, and Fur did not bind to the amiF
promoter region. These roles of Fur in regulation of the H. pylori
amidases suggest that the H. pylori Fur regulator may have acquired extra
functions to compensate for the absence of other regulatory systems
Does anaesthesia cause postoperative cognitive dysfunction? A randomised study of regional versus general anaesthesia in 438 elderly patients
Keywords:anesthesia;cognitive function;complications;postoperative period;regional anesthesia;surgery Background: Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is a common complication after cardiac and major non-cardiac surgery with general anaesthesia in the elderly. We hypothesized that the incidence of POCD would be less with regional anaesthesia rather than general. Methods: We included patients aged over 60 years undergoing major non-cardiac surgery. After giving written informed consent, patients were randomly allocated to general or regional anaesthesia. Cognitive function was assessed using four neuropsychological tests undertaken preoperatively and at 7 days and 3 months postoperatively. POCD was defined as a combined Z score >1.96 or a Z score >1.96 in two or more test parameters. Results: At 7 days, POCD was found in 37/188 patients (19.7%, [14.3–26.1%]) after general anaesthesia and in 22/176 (12.5%, [8.0–18.3%]) after regional anaesthesia, P = 0.06. After 3 months, POCD was present in 25/175 patients (14.3%, [9.5–20.4%]) after general anaesthesia vs. 23/165 (13.9%, [9.0–20.2%]) after regional anaesthesia, P = 0.93. The incidence of POCD after 1 week was significantly greater after general anaesthesia when we excluded patients who did not receive the allocated anaesthetic: 33/156 (21.2%[15.0–28.4%]) vs. 20/158 (12.7%[7.9–18.9%]) (P = 0.04). Mortality was significantly greater after general anaesthesia (4/217 vs. 0/211 (P <0.05)). Conclusion: No significant difference was found in the incidence of cognitive dysfunction 3 months after either general or regional anaesthesia in elderly patients. Thus, there seems to be no causative relationship between general anaesthesia and long-term POCD. Regional anaesthesia may decrease mortality and the incidence of POCD early after surgery
Personalized peptide-based vaccination for treatment of colorectal cancer: rational and progress
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers globally and is associated with a high rate of morbidity and mortality. A large proportion of patients with early stage CRC who undergo conventional treatments develop local recurrence or distant metastasis and in this group of advanced disease, the survival rate is low. Furthermore there is often a poor response and/or toxicity associated with chemotherapy and chemo-resistance may limit continuing conventional treatment alone. Choosing novel and targeted therapeutic approaches based on clinicopathological and molecular features of tumors in combination with conventional therapeutic approach could be used to eradicate residual micrometastasis and therefore improve patient prognosis and also be used preventively. Peptide-based vaccination therapy is one class of cancer treatment that could be used to induce tumor-specific immune responses, through the recognition of specific antigen-derived peptides in tumor cells, and this has emerged as a promising anti-cancer therapeutic strategy. The aim of this review was to summarize the main findings of recent studies in exciting field of peptide-based vaccination therapy in CRC patients as a novel therapeutic approach in treatment of CRC
Effects of carbohydrate (CHO) and fat supplementation on CHO metabolism during prolonged exercise
EMDABS : design and formal specification of a datamodel for a clinical research database system
The farmer as a main factor of structural change in rural area’s: examination of slovenian farmers’ characteristics, perceived opportunities and threats and strategies as part of rural development in Slovenia
Agriculture in Slovenia is characterized by less-favourable natural and structural conditions. The degree of competitiveness of the whole agro-food sector will eventually decide whether farmers and industry will be able to compete on the EU market. Slovenian agriculture at the moment still lacks competitiveness Farmers that want to stay into business will have to further develop their farm. For farm development, besides craftsmanship and management skills increasingly entrepreneurial competencies are needed.
To get insight into the entrepreneurial characteristics of Slovenian dairy farmers by investigating the opportunities and threats as perceived by farmers (external factors) to establish a future in rural Slovenia in the relation to internal factors (farmers’ and farm characteristics) and future strategy of the farmer
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