ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The conditions for steam pretreatment of sugar cane bagasse and leaves were studied using CO2 as an impregnating agent. The following conditions were investigated: time (5 to 15 min) and temperature (190 to 220 degrees C). The pretreatment was assessed in terms of glucose and xylose yields after enzymatic hydrolysis and inhibitor formation (furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural)

Background: Dystroglycan (Dg) is a transmembrane protein that is a part of the Dystrophin Glycoprotein Complex (DGC) which connects the extracellular matrix to the actin cytoskeleton. The C-terminal end of Dg contains a number of putative SH3, SH2 and WW domain binding sites. The most C-terminal PPXY motif has been established as a binding site for Dystrophin (Dys) WW-domain. However, our previous

Health assessment measurements for patients with Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have to be meaningful, valid and relevant. A commonly used questionnaire for patients with RA is the Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ), which has been available in Swedish since 1988. The HAQ has been revised and improved several times and the latest version is the Multi Dimensional Health Asse

“In the middle of eternity”. Representation of the Cosmos of Modern Science in Peter Nilson’s Stjärnvägar. In this article, I analyse Peter Nilson’s essay book Stjärnvägar. The book is about the world view of modern science, and my point of departure is the question of how perspectives and theories from modern science are represented. In Stjärnvägar, Nilson repeatedly refers to the book itself as

Renal function is often estimated using one of several glomerular filtration rate (GFR) estimating equations. However, there is no consensus which estimating equation performs best in patients with advanced renal failure. We compared the performance of five different estimated GFR (eGFR) equations [Cockcroft-Gault, Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD), Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Epidemio

The results of a search for pair production of the lighter scalar partners of top quarks ((t) over bar (1)) in 2.05 fb(-1) of pp collisions at root s = 7 TeV using the ATLAS experiment at the LHC are reported. Scalar top quarks are searched for in events with two same flavour opposite-sign leptons (e, mu) with invariant mass consistent with the Z boson mass, large missing transverse momentum and j

Patients' problematic substance use prevalence and effects were explored in relation to internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) outcomes for depression, panic disorder and social anxiety disorder.

The Nordic countries have a long tradition of providing comparable and high quality cancer data through the national population-based cancer registries and the capability to link the diverse large-scale biobanks currently in operation. The joining of these two infrastructural resources can provide a study base for large-scale studies of etiology, treatment and early detection of cancer. Research p

Aim: Little is known on the possible existence of socioeconomic and geographical differences in early coeliac disease (CD) risk. Therefore, we investigated these aspects in children before age two. Methods: Linking the Swedish Medical Birth Registry to several other national registries, we identified all singletons born in Sweden from 1987 to 1993 (n = 792 401) and followed them until 2 years of a

Graves' disease (GD) is a complex autoimmune disorder characterized by hyperthyroidism and diffuse goitre. 25-50% of the patients with GD develop eye symptoms, Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO). The overall aim of this thesis was to explore the molecular etiology of GD and GO. By studying gene expression in Studies I, III, and IV, we demonstrated that adipocyte-related immediate early genes (IEGs) incl

National laws and regulations on service delivery systems (SDS) for assistive technology (AT) in Europe aim to support the activity and participation of people with disabilities. The aim of this paper was to study similarities and differences in the SDS for AT of one Eastern and one Western EU member state. The legislation and regulations, and their operationalization were described from the persp

Magnetoreception has been demonstrated in all five vertebrate classes. In rodents, nest building experiments have shown the use of magnetic cues by two families of molerats, Siberian hamsters and C57BL/6 mice. However, assays widely used to study rodent spatial cognition (e.g. water maze, radial arm maze) have failed to provide evidence for the use of magnetic cues. Here we show that C57BL/6 mice

A tradeoff between immune response and life history traits, in particular growth rate, has been documented in various bird species. Ostriches are fast-growing birds and a typical feature of cohorts is that offspring often differ greatly in size. We investigated the relationship between hatching date and growth rate of chicks and both cell-mediated (measured using a phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) inject