What Is New for an Old Molecule? Systematic Review and Recommendations on the Use of Resveratrol

BACKGROUND: Resveratrol is a natural compound suggested to have beneficial health effects. However, people are consuming resveratrol for this reason without having the adequate scientific evidence for its effects in humans. Therefore, scientific valid recommendations concerning the human intake of resveratrol based on available published scientific data are necessary. Such recommendations were formulated after the Resveratrol 2010 conference, held in September 2010 in Helsingør, Denmark. METHODOLOGY: Literature search in databases as PUBMED and ISI Web of Science in combination with manual search was used to answer the following five questions: (1)Can resveratrol be recommended in the prevention or treatment of human diseases?; (2)Are there observed side effects caused by the intake of resveratrol in humans?; (3)What is the relevant dose of resveratrol?; (4)What valid data are available regarding an effect in various species of experimental animals?; (5)Which relevant (overall) mechanisms of action of resveratrol have been documented? CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The overall conclusion is that the published evidence is not sufficiently strong to justify a recommendation for the administration of resveratrol to humans, beyond the dose which can be obtained from dietary sources. On the other hand, animal data are promising in prevention of various cancer types, coronary heart diseases and diabetes which strongly indicate the need for human clinical trials. Finally, we suggest directions for future research in resveratrol regarding its mechanism of action and its safety and toxicology in human subjects

Band structure and optical properties of germanium sheet polymers

The band structure of H-terminated Ge sheet polymers is calculated using density-functional theory in the local density approximation and compared to the optical properties of epitaxial polygermyne layers as determined from reflection, photoluminescence, and photoluminescence excitation measurements. A direct band gap of 1.7 eV is predicted and a near resonant excitation of the photoluminescence is observed experimentally close to this energy

Negotiating their right to play: Asian-specific cricket teams and leagues in the UK and Norway

The cultural significance of ‘ethnic-specific’ cricket teams and leagues has received limited scholarly attention, despite increasing evidence of their various social functions. This paper aims to contribute to this under-researched area by drawing upon two individual case studies of Pakistani Muslim cricket teams; the first is based in the UK and the second in Norway. In this paper we argue that leisure and sport are key spaces for the delineation of social identities and hierarchies. We identify how cricket represents a significant social network within both the British and Norwegian Pakistani communities. In particular, we articulate the role of cricket in establishing and maintaining friendships and relationships, bolstering a sense of belonging, initiating diasporic sentiments, as well as being significant in the development of social capital, and resisting institutionalised white privilege

Search for Branons at LEP

We search, in the context of extra-dimension scenarios, for the possible existence of brane fluctuations, called branons. Events with a single photon or a single Z-boson and missing energy and momentum collected with the L3 detector in e^+ e^- collisions at centre-of-mass energies sqrt{s}=189-209$ GeV are analysed. No excess over the Standard Model expectations is found and a lower limit at 95% confidence level of 103 GeV is derived for the mass of branons, for a scenario with small brane tensions. Alternatively, under the assumption of a light branon, brane tensions below 180 GeV are excluded

Search for Branons at LEP

We search, in the context of extra-dimension scenarios, for the possible existence of brane fluctuations, called branons. Events with a single photon or a single Z-boson and missing energy and momentum collected with the L3 detector in e^+ e^- collisions at centre-of-mass energies sqrt{s}=189-209$ GeV are analysed. No excess over the Standard Model expectations is found and a lower limit at 95% confidence level of 103 GeV is derived for the mass of branons, for a scenario with small brane tensions. Alternatively, under the assumption of a light branon, brane tensions below 180 GeV are excluded

Measurement of Exclusive rho^0 rho^0 Production in Two-Photon Collisions at High Q^2 at LEP

Exclusive rho rho production in two-photon collisions involving a single highly virtual photon is studied with data collected at LEP at centre-of-mass energies 89GeV < \sqrt{s} < 209GeV with a total integrated luminosity of 854.7pb^-1 The cross section of the process gamma gamma^* -> rho rho is determined as a function of the photon virtuality, Q^2 and the two-photon centre-of-mass energy, Wgg, in the kinematic region: 1.2GeV^2 < Q^2 < 30GeV^2 and 1.1GeV < Wgg < 3GeV

Search for Heavy Isosinglet Neutrino in e+e- Annihilation at LEP

We report on a search for the first generation heavy neutrino that is an isosinglet under the standard SU(2)_L gauge group. The data collected with the L3 detector at center-of-mass energies between 130 GeV and 208 GeV are used.The decay channel N_e --> eW is investigated and no evidence is found for a heavy neutrino, N_e, in a mass range between 80 GeV and 205 GeV. Upper limits on the mixing parameter between the heavy and light neutrino are derived

Search for a Higgs Boson Decaying into Two Photons at LEP

A Higgs particle produced in association with a Z boson and decaying into two photons is searched for in the data collected by the L3 experiment at LEP. All possible decay modes of the Z boson are investigated. No signal is observed in 447.5 pb^-1 of data recorded at centre-of-mass energies up to 209 GeV. Limits on the branching fraction of the Higgs boson decay into two photons as a function of the Higgs mass are derived. A lower limit on the mass of a fermiophobic Higgs boson is set at 105.4 GeV at 95% confidence level

Preventing socioeconomic inequalities in health behaviour in adolescents in Europe: Background, design and methods of project TEENAGE

Background Higher prevalence rates of unhealthy behaviours among lower socioeconomic groups contribute substantially to socioeconomic inequalities in health in adults. Preventing the development of these inequalities in unhealthy behaviours early in life is an important strategy to tackle socioeconomic inequalities in health. Little is known however, about health promotion strategies particularly effective in lower socioeconomic groups in youth. It is the purpose of project TEENAGE to improve knowledge on the prevention of socioeconomic inequalities in physical activity, diet, smoking and alcohol consumption among adolescents in Europe. This paper describes the background, design and methods to be used in the project. Methods/design Through a systematic literature search, existing interventions aimed at promoting physical activity, a healthy diet, preventing the uptake of smoking or alcohol, and evaluated in the general adolescent population in Europe will be identified. Studies in which indicators of socioeconomic position are included will be reanalysed by socioeconomic position. Results of such stratified analyses will be summarised by type of behaviour, across behaviours by type of intervention (health education, environmental interventions and policies) and by setting (individual, household, school, and neighbourhood). In addition, the degree to which effective interventions can be transferred to other European countries will be assessed. Discussion Although it is sometimes assumed that some health promotion strategies may be particularly effective in higher socioeconomic groups, thereby increasing socioeconomic inequalities in health-related behaviour, there is little knowledge about differential effects of health promotion across socioeconomic groups. Synthesizing stratified analyses of a number of interventions conducted in the general adolescent population may offer an efficient guidance for the development of strategies and interventions to prevent socioeconomic inequalities in health early in life

MAGUKs, scaffolding proteins at cell junctions, are substrates of different proteases during apoptosis

A major feature of apoptotic cell death is gross structural changes, one of which is the loss of cell–cell contacts. The caspases, executioners of apoptosis, were shown to cleave several proteins involved in the formation of cell junctions. The membrane-associated guanylate kinases (MAGUKs), which are typically associated with cell junctions, have a major role in the organization of protein–protein complexes at plasma membranes and are therefore potentially important caspase targets during apoptosis. We report here that MAGUKs are cleaved and/or degraded by executioner caspases, granzyme B and several cysteine cathepsins in vitro. When apoptosis was induced by UV-irradiation and staurosporine in different epithelial cell lines, caspases were found to efficiently cleave MAGUKs in these cell models, as the cleavages could be prevented by a pan-caspase inhibitor N-benzyloxycarbonyl-Val-Ala-Asp(OMe)fluoromethylketone. Using a selective lysosomal disrupting agent -leucyl--leucine methyl ester, which induces apoptosis through the lysosomal pathway, it was further shown that MAGUKs are also cleaved by the cathepsins in HaCaT and CaCo-2 cells. Immunohistological data showed rapid loss of MAGUKs at the sites of cell–cell contacts, preceding actual cell detachment, suggesting that cleavage of MAGUKs is an important step in fast and efficient cell detachment