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ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The two-step dilute acid hydrolysis (DAH) of softwood is costly in energy demands and capital costs. However, it has the advantage that hydrolysis and subsequent removal of hemicellulose-derived sugars can be carried out under conditions of low severity, resulting in a reduction in the level of sugar degradation products during the more severe subsequent steps of cellulose hy
Autochthonous blockfield mantles may indicate alpine surfaces that have not been glacially eroded. These surfaces may therefore serve as markers against which to determine Quaternary erosion volumes in adjacent glacially eroded sectors. To explore these potential utilities, chemical weathering features, erosion rates, and regolith residence durations of mountain blockfields are investigated in the
Background: The metabolic syndrome describes a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors that frequently appear together. Its diagnosis is generally based on several well-recognized indicators in clinical practice, such as abdominal obesity, elevated triglycerides, reduced high-density lipoprotein, raised blood pressure, and elevated fasting plasma glucose. Today, decisive importance must be attached
Background: Topical negative pressure (TNP), widely used in wound therapy, is known to stimulate wound edge blood flow, granulation tissue formation, angiogenesis, and revascularization. We have previously shown that application of a TNP of -50 mmHg to the myocardium significantly increases microvascular blood flow in the underlying tissue. We have also shown that a myocardial TNP levels between -
Despite declining incidence rates, gastric cancer (GC) is a major cause of death worldwide. Its aetiology may involve dietary antioxidant micronutrients such as carotenoids and tocopherols. The objective of this study was to determine the association of plasma levels of seven common carotenoids, their total plasma concentration, retinol and alpha- and gamma-tocopherol, with the risk of gastric ade
Purpose: The purpose of this work was to evaluate the visibility of simulated lesions in 2D digital mammography (DM) and breast tomosynthesis (BT) images of patients. Methods: Images of the same women were acquired on both a DM system (Mammomat Novation, Siemens Healthcare, Erlangen, Germany) and a BT prototype system adapted from the same type of DM system. Using the geometrical properties of the
OBJECTIVES: To clarify whether the intensity of exposure to organic acid anhydrides (OAAs) is associated with the risk of sensitisation to these allergens. METHODS: The investigations were carried out in three different manufacturing plants (A, B, and C) where OAAs were used in the production of epoxy resins. Methyltetrahydrophthalic acid anhydride (MTHPA) was used in all three plants. The exposur
Purpose: To examine whether panretinal photocoagulation for severe non-proliferative retinopathy in type 1 diabetes patients could halt the progression of retinopathy with subsequent vitreous haemorrhages and visual impairment. Methods: During a 10-year follow-up study period of 344 type 1 diabetes patients, 81 subjects went through panretinal photocoagulation. Forty patients were treated for sev
Dietary flavanols and flavonols, flavonoid subclasses, have been recently associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Europe. Even within the same subclass, flavonoids may differ considerably in bioavailability and bioactivity. We aimed to examine the association between individual flavanol and flavonol intakes and risk of developing T2D across European countries. The European Prospec
Weight-loss interventions generally improve lipid profiles and reduce cardiovascular disease risk, but effects are variable and may depend on genetic factors. We performed a genetic association analysis of data from 2,993 participants in the Diabetes Prevention Program to test the hypotheses that a genetic risk score (GRS) based on deleterious alleles at 32 lipid-associated single-nucleotide polym
BACKGROUND: In the absence of long-term, placebo-controlled studies of cholinesterase inhibitors in Alzheimer's disease (AD), analysis of the results of open-label trials becomes crucial. This study aimed to explore the three-year effects of galantamine treatment, as well as subgroups of response and adherence to treatment. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty patients with a clinical diagnosis of AD
Immunoassays for haptens depend on competitive hapten-anti-hapten reactions, and consequently their sensitivities are significantly influenced by the affinities of anti-hapten antibodies. Thus, genetically engineered antibodies, which have much higher affinities than native antibodies, should increase assay sensitivities. Here, we created a mutated single-chain Fv fragment (scFv) against estradiol
Background Cancer is associated with an increased risk of thromboembolic diseases, but data on the association between prostate cancer and thromboembolic diseases are scarce. We investigated the risk of thromboembolic disease in men with prostate cancer who were receiving endocrine treatment, curative treatment, or surveillance. Methods We analysed data from PCBaSe Sweden, a database based on the
FTO is the strongest known genetic susceptibility locus for obesity. Experimental studies in animals suggest the potential roles of FTO in regulating food intake. The interactive relation among FTO variants, dietary intake and body mass index (BMI) is complex and results from previous often small-scale studies in humans are highly inconsistent. We performed large-scale analyses based on data from
Degenerative changes of the lumbar spine may lead to misinterpretation of bone mineral density (BMD) measurements and cause underdiagnosis of osteoporosis. This longitudinal study of 1,044 women, 75 years at inclusion and followed for 10 years, shows that identification of apparent degenerative changes on the dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan can increase the proportion diagnosed. INTR
Objectives The purpose of this study is investigate the effects of variants in the apolipoprotein(a) gene (LPA) on vascular diseases with different atherosclerotic and thrombotic components. Background It is unclear whether the LPA variants rs10455872 and rs3798220, which correlate with lipoprotein(a) levels and coronary artery disease (CAD), confer susceptibility predominantly via atherosclerosis
Background: The pathogenesis of COPD is complex and remains poorly understood. The European Respiratory Society Study on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (EUROSCOP) investigated long-term effects of budesonide; 18% of the COPD participants were atopic. So far effects of atopy on the long-term course of COPD have not been elucidated. Methods: Factors related to the presence of atopy (positive
Introduction: Many individuals with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) live alone, and this figure is expected to increase. This study aimed to describe the cognitive and functional abilities of solitary-living AD patients, and the potential predictors of their usage of community-based services. Methods: This 3-year, prospective, multicenter study included 1,021 participants with mild-to-moderate AD (Mini-M
Focused ion beam is a powerful method for cross-sectional transmission electron microscope sample preparation due to being site specific and not limited to certain materials. It has, however, been difficult to apply to many nanostructured materials as they are prone to damage due to extending from the surface. Here we show methods for focused ion beam sample preparation for transmission electron m
