Avian malaria (Plasmodium spp.) and other blood parasitic infections of birds constitute increasingly popular model systems in ecological and evolutionary host-parasite studies. Field studies of these parasites commonly use two traits in hypothesis testing: infection status (or prevalence at the population level) and parasitaemia, yet the causes of variation in these traits remain poorly understoo

In a multicentre study consecutively patch-tested dermatitis patients were tested simultaneously with 1.0% and 2.0% (w/v) formaldehyde in aqua applied with a micropipette (15 µl) to the filter paper disc in Finn Chambers (0.30 mg/cm2 and 0.60 mg/cm2, respectively). A total of 2,122 dermatitis patients were patch-tested. In all, 77 (3.6%) patients reacted positively to formaldehyde; 37 reacted only

We present a convergence analysis for the implicit-explicit (IMEX) Euler discretization of nonlinear evolution equations. The governing vector field of such an equation is assumed to be the sum of an unbounded dissipative operator and a Lipschitz continuous perturbation. By employing the theory of dissipative operators on Banach spaces, we prove that the IMEX Euler and the implicit Euler schemes h

Song divergence between populations of a species can lead to reproductive isolation and speciation. However, birds may have different singing styles used in distinct social contexts, and songs of each style may change at different rates over time and space. Here, we tested whether song divergence between subspecies of reed bunting, Emberiza schoeniclus, differs with singing style, by comparing son

The ALICE Collaboration has measured the inclusive production of muons from heavy-flavor decays at forward rapidity, 2.5 < y < 4, in pp and Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN) = 2.76 TeV. The p(t)-differential inclusive cross section of muons from heavy-flavor decays in pp collisions is compared to perturbative QCD calculations. The nuclear modification factor is studied as a function of p(t) and colli

To assess satisfaction with life as a whole and with ten domains of life satisfaction in Swedish persons with late effects of polio, to describe the relationship with sex, age, marital status, use of mobility aids and self-perceived needs of instrumental support, and to compare the level of life satisfaction with a Swedish reference sample. A cross-sectional study of 160 persons with verified late

The carbon cycle of a lake is a balance between supply from the atmosphere and catchment, and the net demand exerted by primary producers, minus losses back to the atmosphere and to sediment storage. Evaluating the sum of these processes and reconstructing them from sediment records of lake history requires a range of methods and a multi-proxy approach. One promising technique is to explore the ca

This study investigates the role of political as well as economic institutions, factor endowments and geography as main drivers of change in Botswana’s long-term economic development, from 1850 to the present. The claim that we need to embrace multi-causal explanations giving equal explanatory value to all mentioned potential drivers is made. Further, in order not to compress history, we should gi

Background/Aims: We examined the potential impact of vascular risk factors including copeptin - a robust surrogate marker of arginine vasopressin associated with the metabolic syndrome and diabetes risk - on future cognitive abilities in a population-based cohort. Methods: Participants (n = 933) were investigated using baseline data, including copeptin levels, and data collected 16 years later usi

Constraining past changes in the strength and configuration of the geomagnetic field provides a valuable perspective on the processes that govern the geodynamo. Here we update a modelled dipole tilt reconstruction for the last 9000 years by using palaeomagnetic records that originate from globally well-distributed sites. Some features predicted by earlier dipole models become more distinct due to

In the human gut, millions of bacteria contribute to the microbiota, whose composition is specific for every individual. Although we are just at the very beginning of understanding the microbiota concept, we already know that the composition of the microbiota has a profound impact on human health. A key factor in determining gut microbiota composition is diet. Preliminary evidence suggests that di

To date, rational redesign of glycosidase active-site clefts has been mainly limited to the removal of essential functionalities rather than their introduction. The glycoside hydrolase family 26 endo-beta-1, 4-mannanase from the soil bacterium Cellulomonas fimi depolymerizes various abundant plant mannans. On the basis of differences in the structures and hydrolytic action patterns of this wild-ty

Hybridization between populations or species can have pronounced fitness consequences. Yet little is known about how hybridization affects gene regulation. Three main models have been put forward to explain gene expression patterns in hybrids: additive, dominance or parental effects. Here we use high throughput RNA-sequencing to examine the extent to which hybrid gene expression follows prediction

BACKGROUND: The need for completion axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in breast cancer patients with micrometastases in the sentinel nodes (SNs) is controversial. The aim of this retrospective observational study is to determine if the method of detection of early breast cancer is predictive for additional positive nodes in patients with micrometastases in the SNs. METHODS: Between 2001 and 20

Abstract The tick-borne bacterium 'Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis' has recently been recognized as a human pathogen in Europe and appears to be the second most common pathogenic bacterium in Ixodes ricinus ticks in central Europe, second to Borrelia afzelii. Here, we investigate the prevalence of 'Candidatus N. mikurensis' in host-seeking ticks in southern Sweden and the rate of co-infection w

The pathophysiological process in amyloid disorders usually involves the transformation of a functional monomeric protein via potentially toxic oligomers into amyloid fibrils. The structure and properties of the intermediary oligomers have been difficult to study due to their instability and dynamic equilibrium with smaller and larger species. In hereditary cystatin C amyloid angiopathy, a cystati

Objective: Data remain divergent regarding the activational effects of endogenous hormones on adult cognitive function. We examined the association between cognition, hormones and androgen receptor (AR) CAG repeat length in a large cohort of men. Design: Community-based, cross-sectional study of 3369 men aged 40-79 years. Methods: Cognition tests were the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure, Camden Topo

Saccharomyces cerevisiae was exposed to inhibitory concentrations of the three phenolic phenylpropanoids: coniferyl aldehyde, ferulic acid, and isoeugenol. Deoxyribonucleic acid microarray analysis was employed as one approach to generate a set of candidate genes for deletion mutant analysis to determine the potential contribution of the corresponding gene products to the resistance against toxic