The indoor climate system, which serves a building with a proper indoor air quality and thermal comfort, has been predominantly designed based on the initial investment costs. A life cycle approach could improve both the economic and environmental performance since the energy use would decrease. Currently, there is a lack of knowledge, models and tools for determining the life cycle cost (LCC) for

The aim of this study was to examine a possible role for extracellular pyrimidines as inotropic factors for the heart. First, nucleotide plasma levels were measured to evaluate whether UTP is released in patients with coronary heart disease. Then, inotropic effects of pyrimidines were examined in isolated mouse cardiomyocytes. Finally, expression of pyrimidine-selective receptors ( a subgroup of t

PURPOSE: A new type of liposomal liver-specific contrast medium (CM) in CT was studied, and the results were compared with those obtained with Mn-DPDP, a paramagnetic hepatobiliary CM, in MR imaging. The contrasts of normal liver tissue to tumorous tissue and the importance of the CM for tumour detection in the 2 modalities were studied in a rabbit tumour model. CT and T1-weighted pre- and postcon

The purpose of this study was to explore neuroretinal transplantation in a large animal model of severe retinitis pigmentosa and to establish graft development, long-term survival, graft-host integration, and effects on the host retina. Methods Rhodopsin transgenic pigs, aged 6 months, received in one eye a fetal full-thickness neuroretinal sheet in the subretinal space by means of vitrectomy and

Sunni Muslims have immigrated to and lived in Chicago for more than a hundred years. In her book Schmidt seeks, on basis of two periods of extended fieldwork, to provide a description of some activist strata of these religious communities. The description is framed by the portrayal of a number of Muslim institutions existing within the city and the interpretation of Islam that takes place within t

A nonlinear dynamic model for natural circulation drum-boilers is presented. The model describes the complicated dynamics of the drum, downcomer, and riser components. It is derived from first principles, and is characterized by a few physical parameters. A strong effort has been made to strike a balance between fidelity and simplicity. Results from validation of the model against unique plant dat

Endovascular treatment of aneurysmal disease of descending thoracic aorta and infra-renal abdominal aorta, has become an accepted technique, in selected cases due to the reduction of neurological morbidity, paraparesis or paraplegic and renal ischemia, associated with conventional surgery. The authors describe the first case performed in Portugal of a 75-year-old female with an expanding thoracic

X-rays from a laser-produced plasma were analysed using single-photon counting germanium detectors. Special attention was given to the extremely high photon flux, requiring either a long source-detector distance and narrow collimated measurement geometry in order to avoid severe pile-up of pulses in the spectrometer, or the use of a Compton scattering geometry. With the use of these techniques, in

Fractionation of 3T3-L1 adipocyte membranes revealed that PDE3B (phosphodiesterase 3B) was associated with PM (plasma membrane) and ER (endoplasmic reticulum)/Golgi fractions, that insulin-induced phosphorylation/activation of PDE3B was greater in internal membranes than PM fractions, and that there was no significant translocation of PDE3B between membrane fractions. Insulin also induced formatio

Popular Abstract in Swedish Efter den senaste istiden har klimatet varit dynamiskt med både stora och snabba klimatförändringar, om än inte av samma storlek som under istiden. Hur utbredda och vilka effekter dessa klimatförändringar har haft är dock inte helt kartlagt. Målet med denna avhandling är att i detalj rekonstruera de klimat- och miljöförändringar som har påverkat ögruppen Tristan da CunhIt has been shown that the present interglacial has been climatically dynamic with both rapid and severe climatic fluctuations. The spatial and temporal differences of these changes are however not fully resolved. The aim of this thesis is to present a detail high resolution record of past climate changes from the central South Atlantic. Peat and lacustrine sediment sequences were retrieved from

The generation of mice lacking specific components of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) signal tranduction pathway shows that TGF-beta is a key player in the development and physiology of the cardiovascular system. Both pro- and anti-angiogenic properties have been ascribed to TGF-beta, for which the molecular mechanisms are unclear. Here we report that TGF-beta can activate two disti

The aim of the present study was to analyse quantitatively, on a cat gastrocnemius muscle preparation in vivo, the effects of local angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition by enalaprilat on total regional vascular resistance (tone) and its distribution to the large-bore arterial resistance vessels (> 25 microns), the small arterioles (< 25 microns) and the veins. Associated effects on capil

From cultures of Mycogone cervina, a mycophilic fungus growing on the fruit bodies of ascomycete Paxina acetabulum, two new peptaibols (cervinin, N-Ac-Leu-Aib-Pro-Aib-Leu-Aib-Pro-Ala-Aib-Pro-Val-red-Leu (1) and the red-Leu O-acetylated derivative 2) were isolated. The structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated by spectroscopic techniques. They exhibited weak antibacterial as well as cytotoxic activitie