Fire functional traits (postfire resprouting and seeding) are considered to be adaptations for persisting in fire-prone environments. Although ecological and evolutionary consequences of sprouting have been extensively discussed, within-species genetic variability and structure are unknown. Here we report levels and distribution patterns of genetic polymorphisms in postfire stands of the predomina

We investigate the possibilities of light detection and ranging (lidar) techniques to study migration of the damselfly species Calopteryx splendens and C. virgo. Laboratory and testing-range measurements at a distance of 60 m were performed using dried, mounted damselfly specimens. Laboratory measurements, including color photography in polarized light and spectroscopy of reflectance and induced f

Despite significant advances in the understanding and modelling of turbulent combustion, no general model has been proposed for simulating flames in industrial combustion devices. Recently, the increase in computational possibilities has raised the hope of directly solving the large turbulent scales using large eddy simulation (LES) and capturing the important time-dependant phenomena. However, th

Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to a single X-ray dose of 30 Gy over the lungs and examined at 1-wk intervals during the following 3 to 8 wk. Mast cells were counted after specific staining with toluidine blue at a low pH and the mast-cell amines, histamine (Hi) and serotonin (5-HT), were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography. Irradiation induced pneumonitis followed by pulmonary

Subject reports of efficacy of treatment of haemophilia-related joint bleeding are by definition subjective, yet are often the primary outcome in studies comparing therapies. Verbal descriptors such as effective, partially effective, poorly effective, not effective are treated as dichotomous or categorical variables in analyses, lowering the statistical power relative to that which might be achiev

This paper deals with the peritoneal microcirculation and with peritoneal exchange occurring in peritoneal dialysis (PD). The capillary wall is a major barrier to solute and water exchange across the peritoneal membrane. There is a bimodal size-selectivity of solute transport between blood and the peritoneal cavity, through pores of radius approximately 40-50 A as well as through a very low number

White matter disease (WMD) with pervasive non-focal subtotal tissue loss is frequently seen in Alzheimer's disease (AD) upon neuropatholooical examination. Although WMD has varying effects on AD symptoms, accurate clinical detection is difficult due partly to scarcity of correlative structural imaging and histopathological studies. Neuropathological Studies of WMD severity and distribution have be

In this paper we provide necessary and sufficient conditions for strongly group graded rings to be simple. For a strongly group graded ring R = circle plus(g is an element of G)R(g) the grading group G acts, in a natural way, as automorphisms of the comrnutant of the neutral component subring R(e) in R and of the center of R(e). We show that if R. is a strongly G-graded ring where R(e), is maximal

This paper presents technical developments for the detection of formaldehyde (CH2O) using laser-induced fluorescence. The easily accessible third harmonic of the Nd:YAG laser at 355 nm was used for excitation of formaldehyde. In order to investigate potential background fluorescence, e.g., from large molecules such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, special attention was paid to investigating the possi

We investigate the structure and evolution of blue straggler stars, which were formed from direct stellar collisions between main-sequence stars in globular clusters. In particular, we look at the rotational evolution of the products of off-axis collisions. As found in previous work, such blue stragglers initially have too high an angular momentum to contract down to the main sequence. We consider

Sexual selection has traditionally been used to explain exaggerated sexual traits in male animals. Today the concept has been developed and various other sexually related traits have been suggested to evolve in the same manner. In nearly all new areas where the theory of sexual selection has been applied, there has been an intense debate as to whether the application is justified. Is it the case t

In a biological environment, nanoparticles immediately become covered by an evolving corona of biomolecules, which gives a biological identity to the nanoparticle and determines its biological impact and fate. Previous efforts at describing the corona have concerned only its protein content. Here, for the first time, we show, using size exclusion chromatography, NMR, and pull-down experiments, tha

Surfactants have been extensively used in ultrafiltration processes such as membrane cleaning,removal of surfactants or other organic toxic compounds and metal ions from solutions and estimation of interactions at surfactant and membrane interface. The aim of this review is to present the possibilities that arise from the data reported in the literature on the field of ultrafiltration (UF) membran

Previous studies have suggested that plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) released from platelets convey resistance of platelet-rich blood clots to thrombolysis. However, the majority of PAI-1 in platelets is inactive and therefore its role in clot stabilization is unclear. Because platelets retain mRNA and capacity for synthesis of some proteins, we investigated if platelets can de novo synt

Several transporter systems in the liver and intestine are known to change their expression and function during cholestatic disease states. The objective of the-present in vivo study-was to investigate the effect of biliary depletion, as a method to mimic cholestasis, on the bioavailability and disposition of digoxin in biliary and pancreatic duct cannulated pigs. The study was divided in two part

The influence of lipid concentration on hydrolysis and biomethanation of a lipid-rich (triolein) model waste was evaluated in batch. The effect of increasing the concentration of lipid from 5% to 47% (w/w), based on chemical oxygen demand (COD), was investigated. The methane recovery observed was above 93% for all tests. An initial lag phase of approximately 6-10 days was observed for all tests. T