Search results

Low B fractures and prevalent vertebral fractures are known risk factors for incident vertebral fractures. In 3001 men and women from the Rotterdam Study, prevalent nonvertebral fractures early for incident menopause, current smoking, and walking aid use were also strong risk factors for incident vertebral fractures.

This paper introduces a model of the atrioventricular node function during atrial fibrillation (AF), and describes the related ECG-based estimation method. The proposed model is defined by parameters that characterize the arrival rate of atrial impulses, the probability of an impulse choosing either one of the two atrioventricular nodal pathways, the refractory periods of these pathways, and the p

Oestrogen is not only a sex hormone but also an important regulator of the immune system. Expression of the heavy chain of IgM (mu) is essential for B-cell differentiation. However, a small number of IgA-positive B cells can be found in mice lacking the mu chain (mu MT-/-). The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of oestrogen on this alternative B-cell pathway in mu MT-/- mice. Our re

Understanding the uncertainty of climate models in space and time is necessary to help water resources managers and hydrologists in the selection of appropriate model for a specific application. In this paper, we use three separate methods to evaluate and compare the utility of 14 climate models for seven basins with area range of 2,656–26,355 km2 on the South Korean Peninsula. On the one hand, th

Service discovery is central in pervasive middleware systems, built on top of the communication substrate using the more fundamental mechanisms for device discovery. In mobile pervasive systems devices come and go, and switch network frequently, demanding support for device discovery across heterogeneous networks. We present the design of a device discovery mechanism for the PalCom middleware that

The results of a search for an excited bottom-quark b* in pp collisions at root s = 7 TeV, using 4.7 fb(-1) of data collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC are presented. In the model studied, a single b*-quark is produced through a chromomagnetic interaction and subsequently decays to a W boson and a top quark. The search is performed in the dilepton and lepton + jets final states, which are c

Hypoxic preconditioning is thought to rely on gene products regulated by hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1. Here, we show that the HIF-1 target gene cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1, p21(WAF1/CIP1), is essential for neuroprotection by hypoxic/aglycemic or erythropoietin preconditioning using wild-type and p21(WAF1/CIP1)-deficient neurons. Furthermore, overexpression of wild-type p21(WAF1/CIP1) o

We report the development of a high-level bacterial expression system for the Alzheimer's disease-associated amyloid beta-peptide (A beta), together with a scaleable and inexpensive purification procedure. A beta(1-40) and A beta(1-42) coding sequences together with added ATG codons were cloned directly into a Pet vector to facilitate production of Met-A beta(1-40) and Met-A beta(1-42), referred t

Rating scales are increasingly the primary outcome measures in clinical trials. However, clinically meaningful interpretation of such outcomes requires that the scales used satisfy basic requirements (scaling assumptions) within the data. These are rarely tested. The SF-36 is the most widely used patient-reported rating scale. Its scaling assumptions have been challenged in neurological disorders

Following the fragmentation of a 550 MeV u(-1)primary beam of Ni-58, time-and energy-correlated gamma decays from isomeric states in neutron-deficient nuclei in the 1f(7/2) shell have been identified using the GSI fragment separator in combination with the RISING Ge-detector array. The results on isomers in the mirror pairs Ti-43(22)21-Sc-43(21)22 (I-pi = 3/2(+) and 19/2(-)), Cr-45(24)21-Sc-45(21)

This doctoral thesis explores the implications of establishing tradable certificate schemes for improving energy efficiency (so-called ‘Tradable White Certificate’ [TWC] schemes). Carrying out different case studies, a set of complementary evaluation methods is applied in conducting ex-ante and ex-post evaluation studies. To analyse the attributes and complexities of TWC schemes, the thesis focuse

We have compared the predictions of ligand-binding affinities from several methods based on end-point molecular dynamics simulations and continuum solvation, i.e. methods related to MM/PBSA (molecular mechanics combined with Poisson-Boltzmann and surface area solvation). Two continuum-solvation models were considered, viz. the Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) and generalised Born (GB) approaches. The non-el

This paper investigates the gains harvested through base station cooperation in the up-link for a multi-user (MU) Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (MIMO-OFDM) system, operating in a real indoor environment. The base stations perform joint detection using an iterative receiver that carries out multi-user detection and channel estimation via soft information

A tree-ring-width chronology of Pinus tabulaeformis from Kalaqin, Inner Mongolia was developed using modern dendrochronological techniques. Based on the results of correlation function analysis, the total precipitation from the previous August to current July was reconstructed for 1771-2008 AD with an explained variance of 49.3%. The reconstruction correlated well with the dryness/wetness series d

The cliff-edge hypothesis introduces the counterintuitive idea that the trait value associated with the maximum of an asymmetrical fitness function is not necessarily the value that is selected for if the trait shows variability in its phenotypic expression. We develop a model of population dynamics to show that, in such a system, the evolutionary stable strategy depends on both the shape of the f

Current trends in industrial automation are the need for customizable production, vertical integration, more advanced sensors and actuators, and shorter time to market. The currently used control systems and languages for control were developed with a more static production in mind. More flexible languages and tools are needed to get a more flexible production. The flexible graphical programming l

Features below the first conductance plateau in ballistic quantum point contacts (QPCs) are often ascribed to electron interaction and spin effects within the single mode limit. In QPCs with a highly asymmetric geometry, we observe sharp resonance peaks when the point contacts are gated to the single mode regime, and surprisingly, under certain gating conditions, a complete destruction of the 2e(2