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Objectives: To compare the cost-effectiveness of the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) with infliximab in the United Kingdom over lifetime estimated from two different clinical trials and adjusted for clinical practice guidelines. Methods: A cost-effectiveness model was developed to incorporate clinical, epidemiological, and economic data and allow extrapolation of trial results and incorpo

Arsenic (As) contamination of rice grains and the generally low concentration of micronutrients in rice have been recognized as a major concern for human health. Here, we investigated the speciation and localization of As and the distribution of (micro) nutrients in rice grains because these are key factors controlling bioavailability of nutrients and contaminants. Bulk total and speciation analys

A series of azapeptides as potential inhibitors of cysteine proteases were synthesized. Their structures, based on the binding center of cystatins, contain an azaglycine residue (Agly) in place of the evolutionarily conserved glycine residue in the N-terminal part of the enzyme binding region of cystatins. Incorporation of Agly should lead to deactivation of the acyl-enzyme complex formed against

We investigated the effect of B-cell reconstitution in immune-deficient Rag-1 knockout (KO) mice subjected to arterial injury. After 21 days, injury induced a 4- to 5-fold increase in neointimal formation in Rag-1 KO mice fed normal chow compared with wild-type (WT) mice (0.020+/-0.0160 [n=8] versus 0.0049+/-0.0022 [n=8] mm(2), respectively; P<0.05) and in western-type diet-fed Rag-1 KO mice compa

Background: The GOLD classification of COPD severity introduces a stage 0 ( at risk) comprising individuals with productive cough and normal lung function. The aims of this study were to investigate total mortality risks in GOLD stages 0 - 4 with special focus on stage 0, and furthermore to assess the influence of symptoms of chronic bronchitis on mortality risks in GOLD stages 1 - 4. Method: Betw

A new species of Pegomya Robineau- Desvoidy, P. prisca sp. nov., is described from Europe ( Sweden, Czech Republic and Slovakia). It belongs to a species group together with the widespread West Palaearctic P. testacea ( De Geer) and P. hamata Wei described from China. Differential descriptions and illustrations of the terminalia are given for the two species of the Pegomya testacea species group f

The percentages of Type I muscle fibres were measured systematically in ATPase-stained, transverse cryostat sections of whole tibialis cranialis muscles from 8 young, adult beagles. The distance of the section from the origin of the muscle does not significantly affect the mean percentage. There are no identifiable differences in mean percentages between right and left muscles. Differences in mean

A general method to map and control thermal spray processes, ensuring predefined levels of selected final coating properties, is presented. The method relies on monitoring and individually controlling particle velocity and particle temperature through selected spray gun parameters. Mapping of the process results in process maps describing the individual effect of particle velocity and particle tem

The momentum distribution of electrons from decays of heavy flavor (charm and bottom) for midrapidity |y|< 0.35 in p+p collisions at s=200 GeV has been measured by the PHENIX experiment at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider over the transverse momentum range 0.3 < p(T)< 9 GeV/c. Two independent methods have been used to determine the heavy-flavor yields, and the results are in good agreement

Androgenic hormones occur naturally in bird egg yolk and are known to enhance growth in canary and gull chicks. Gil et al. (1999, Science, 286, 126-128) have recently proposed that female allocation of androgens to eggs represents a form of costly maternal investment. This hypothesis predicts that females of high quality or high reproductive potential should invest more yolk androgens in their egg

In recent work on international comparisons of income-related inequalities in health, the concentration index has been used as a measure of health inequality. A drawback of this measure is that it is sensitive to whether it is estimated with respect to health or morbidity. An alternative would be to use the generalized concentration index that is based on absolute rather than relative health diffe

Aims/hypothesis: We used oestrogen receptor-alpha (ER alpha) knockout (ERKO) and receptor-beta (ER beta) knockout (BERKO) mice to investigate the mechanism(s) behind the effects of oestrogens on glucose homeostasis. Methods: Endogenous glucose production (EGP) was measured in ERKO mice using a euglycaemic-hyperinsulinaemic clamp. Insulin secretion was determined from isolated islets. In isolated m

Probability distributions of daily maximum and minimum temperatures in a suite of ten RCMs are investigated for (1) biases compared to observations in the present day climate and (2) climate change signals compared to the simulated present day climate. The simulated inter-model differences and climate changes are also compared to the observed natural variability as reflected in some very long inst

The electron transport properties of photosystem II (PSII) from five different domains of the thylakoid membrane were analyzed by flash-induced fluorescence kinetics. These domains are the entire grana, the grana core, the margins from the grana, the stroma lamellae, and the Y100 fraction (which represent more purified stroma lamellae). The two first fractions originate from appressed grana membra

We analyze the crystallization and collapse transition of a simple model for flexible polymer chains on simple-cubic and face-centered-cubic lattices by means of sophisticated chain-growth methods. In contrast to the bond-fluctuation polymer model in certain parameter ranges, where these two conformational transitions were found to merge in the thermodynamic limit, we conclude from our results tha

Gastric bypass is a clinical option for obesity surgery. An increased susceptibility to Helicobacter pylori infection in the bypassed stomach has been speculated. The aim of the present study was to examine the susceptibility of the bypassed stomach to H. pylori infection in rats and mice. Adult Sprague-Dawley and Wistar rats and NMRI mice were subjected to either gastric bypass or laparotomy only

Previous epidemiologic studies found inconsistent associations between vegetables and fruit consumption and the risk of bladder cancer. We therefore investigated the association between vegetable and fruit consumption and the risk of bladder cancer among participants of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. Data on food consumption and complete follow-up fo