| 1. |
- Mishra, A, et al.
(författare)
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Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents' growth and development
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1476-4687 .- 0028-0836. ; 615:7954, s. 874-883
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Optimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was <1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified.
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| 4. |
- Gaffney, L. P., et al.
(författare)
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Studies of pear-shaped nuclei using accelerated radioactive beams
- 2013
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 497:7448, s. 199-204
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is strong circumstantial evidence that certain heavy, unstable atomic nuclei are 'octupole deformed', that is, distorted into a pear shape. This contrasts with the more prevalent rugby-ball shape of nuclei with reflection-symmetric, quadrupole deformations. The elusive octupole deformed nuclei are of importance for nuclear structure theory, and also in searches for physics beyond the standard model; any measurable electric-dipole moment (a signature of the latter) is expected to be amplified in such nuclei. Here we determine electric octupole transition strengths (a direct measure of octupole correlations) for short-lived isotopes of radon and radium. Coulomb excitation experiments were performed using accelerated beams of heavy, radioactive ions. Our data on Rn-220 and Ra-224 show clear evidence for stronger octupole deformation in the latter. The results enable discrimination between differing theoretical approaches to octupole correlations, and help to constrain suitable candidates for experimental studies of atomic electric-dipole moments that might reveal extensions to the standard model.
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| 5. |
- Scheck, M., et al.
(författare)
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Do nuclei go pear-shaped? Coulomb excitation of Rn-220 and Ra-224 at REX-ISOLDE (CERN)
- 2015
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Ingår i: Cgs15 - Capture Gamma-ray Spectroscopy and Related Topics. - : EDP Sciences. - 2101-6275 .- 2100-014X. ; 93, s. 01038-01038
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The IS475 collaboration conducted Coulomb-excitation experiments with post-accelerated radioactive Rn-220 and Ra-224 beams at the REX-ISOLDE facility. The beam particles (E-beam: 2.83 MeV/u) were Coulomb excited using Ni-60, Cd-14, and Sn-120 scattering targets. De-excitation gamma-rays were detected employing the Miniball array and scattered particles were detected in a silicon detector. Exploiting the Coulomb-excitation code GOSIA for each nucleus several matrix elements could be obtained from the measured gamma-ray yields. The extracted < 3 parallel to E3 parallel to 0(+)> matrix element allows for the conclusion that, while Rn-220 represents an octupole vibrational system, Ra-224 has already substantial octupole correlations in its ground state. This finding has i(m)plications for the search of CP-violating Schiff moments in the atomic systems of the adjacent odd-mass nuclei.
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| 6. |
- Santangelo, James S., et al.
(författare)
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Global urban environmental change drives adaptation in white clover
- 2022
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Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 375
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Urbanization transforms environments in ways that alter biological evolution. We examined whether urban environmental change drives parallel evolution by sampling 110,019 white clover plants from 6169 populations in 160 cities globally. Plants were assayed for a Mendelian antiherbivore defense that also affects tolerance to abiotic stressors. Urban-rural gradients were associated with the evolution of clines in defense in 47% of cities throughout the world. Variation in the strength of clines was explained by environmental changes in drought stress and vegetation cover that varied among cities. Sequencing 2074 genomes from 26 cities revealed that the evolution of urban-rural dines was best explained by adaptive evolution, but the degree of parallel adaptation varied among cities. Our results demonstrate that urbanization leads to adaptation at a global scale.
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| 7. |
- Theuns, J., et al.
(författare)
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Global investigation and meta-analysis of the C9orf72 (G4C2)n repeat in Parkinson disease
- 2014
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Ingår i: Neurology. - : Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health). - 1526-632X .- 0028-3878. ; 83:21, s. 13-1906
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is to clarify the role of (G4C2)n expansions in the etiology of Parkinson disease (PD) in the worldwide multicenter Genetic Epidemiology of Parkinson's Disease (GEO-PD) cohort. METHODS: C9orf72 (G4C2)n repeats were assessed in a GEO-PD cohort of 7,494 patients diagnosed with PD and 5,886 neurologically healthy control individuals ascertained in Europe, Asia, North America, and Australia. RESULTS: A pathogenic (G4C2)n>60 expansion was detected in only 4 patients with PD (4/7,232; 0.055%), all with a positive family history of neurodegenerative dementia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or atypical parkinsonism, while no carriers were detected with typical sporadic or familial PD. Meta-analysis revealed a small increase in risk of PD with an increasing number of (G4C2)n repeats; however, we could not detect a robust association between the C9orf72 (G4C2)n repeat and PD, and the population attributable risk was low. CONCLUSIONS: Together, these findings indicate that expansions in C9orf72 do not have a major role in the pathogenesis of PD. Testing for C9orf72 repeat expansions should only be considered in patients with PD who have overt symptoms of frontotemporal lobar degeneration/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or apparent family history of neurodegenerative dementia or motor neuron disease.
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| 8. |
- Glimelius, Bengt, et al.
(författare)
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A randomized phase III multicenter trial comparing irinotecan in combination with the Nordic bolus 5-FU and folinic acid schedule or the bolus/infused de Gramont schedule (Lv5FU2) in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer
- 2008
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Ingår i: Annals of Oncology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0923-7534 .- 1569-8041. ; 19:5, s. 909-914
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: To compare irinotecan with the Nordic 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and folinic acid (FA) bolus schedule [irinotecan 180 mg/m2 on day 1, 5-FU 500 mg/m2 and FA 60 mg/m2 on day 1 and 2 (FLIRI)] or the Lv5FU2 schedule [irinotecan 180 mg/m2 on day 1, FA 200 mg/m2, 5-FU bolus 400 mg/m2 and infused 5-FU 600 mg/m2 on day 1 and 2 (Lv5FU2-IRI)] due to uncertainties about how to administrate 5-FU with irinotecan. Patients and methods: Patients (n = 567) with metastatic colorectal cancer were randomly assigned to receive FLIRI or Lv5FU2-IRI. Primary end point was progression-free survival (PFS). Results: Patient characteristics were well balanced. PFS did not differ between groups (median 9 months, P = 0.22). Overall survival (OS) was also similar (median 19 months, P = 0.9). Fewer objective responses were seen in the FLIRI group (35% versus 49%, P = 0.001) but the metastatic resection rate did not differ (4% versus 6%, P = 0.3). Grade 3/4 neutropenia (11% versus 5%, P = 0.01) and grade 2 alopecia (18% versus 9%, P = 0.002) were more common in the FLIRI group. The 60-day mortality was 2.4% versus 2.1%. Conclusions: Irinotecan with the bolus Nordic schedule (FLIRI) is a convenient treatment with PFS and OS comparable to irinotecan with the Lv5FU2 schedule. Neutropenia and alopecia are more prevalent, but both regimens are equally well tolerated. © The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved.
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| 9. |
- Wenning, Gregor K., et al.
(författare)
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The natural history of multiple system atrophy: a prospective European cohort study
- 2013
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Ingår i: Lancet Neurology. - 1474-4465. ; 12:3, s. 264-274
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is a fatal and still poorly understood degenerative movement disorder that is characterised by autonomic failure, cerebellar ataxia, and parkinsonism in various combinations. Here we present the final analysis of a prospective multicentre study by the European MSA Study Group to investigate the natural history of MSA. Methods Patients with a clinical diagnosis of MSA were recruited and followed up clinically for 2 years. Vital status was ascertained 2 years after study completion. Disease progression was assessed using the unified MSA rating scale (UMSARS), a disease-specific questionnaire that enables the semiquantitative rating of autonomic and motor impairment in patients with MSA. Additional rating methods were applied to grade global disease severity, autonomic symptoms, and quality of life. Survival was calculated using a Kaplan-Meier analysis and predictors were identified in a Cox regression model. Group differences were analysed by parametric tests and non-parametric tests as appropriate. Sample size estimates were calculated using a paired two-group t test. Findings 141 patients with moderately severe disease fulfilled the consensus criteria for MSA. Mean age at symptom onset was 56.2 (SD 8.4) years. Median survival from symptom onset as determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis was 9.8 years (95% CI 8.1-11.4). The parkinsonian variant of MSA (hazard ratio [HR] 2.08,95% CI 1.09-3.97; p=0.026) and incomplete bladder emptying (HR 2.10,1.02-4.30; p=0.044) predicted shorter survival. 24-month progression rates of UMSARS activities of daily living, motor examination, and total scores were 49% (9.4 [SD 5.9]), 74% (12.9 [8.5]), and 57% (21.9 [11.9]), respectively, relative to baseline scores. Autonomic symptom scores progressed throughout the follow-up. Shorter symptom duration at baseline (OR 0.68, 0.5-0.9; p=0.006) and absent levodopa response (OR 3.4, 1.1-10.2; p=0.03) predicted rapid UMSARS progression. Sample size estimation showed that an interventional trial with 258 patients (129 per group) would be able to detect a 30% effect size in 1-year UMSARS motor examination decline rates at 80% power. Interpretation Our prospective dataset provides new insights into the evolution of MSA based on a follow-up period that exceeds that of previous studies. It also represents a useful resource for patient counselling and planning of multicentre trials.
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| 10. |
- Ball, A., et al.
(författare)
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Design, implementation and first measurements with the Medipix2-MXR detector at the Compact Muon Solenoid experiment
- 2011
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Ingår i: Journal of Instrumentation. - 1748-0221. ; 6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Medipix detector is the first device dedicated to measuring mixed-field radiation in the CMS (Compact Muon Solenoid) experiment cavern and able to distinguish between different particle types. Medipix2-MXR chips bump bonded to silicon sensors with various neutron conversion layers developed by the IEAP CTU in Prague were successfully installed for the 2008 LHC start-up in the CMS experimental and services caverns to measure the flux of various particle types, in particular neutrons. They have operated almost continuously during the 2010 run period, and the results shown here are from the proton run between the beginning of July and the end of October 2010. Clear signals are seen and different particle types have been observed during regular LHC luminosity running, and an agreement in the measured flux is found with the simulations. These initial results are promising, and indicate that these devices have the potential for further and future LHC and high energy physics applications as radiation monitoring devices for mixed field environments, including neutron flux monitoring. Further extensions are foreseen in the near future to increase the performance of the detector and its coverage for monitoring in CMS.
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