| 1. |
- Delrez, Laetitia, et al.
(författare)
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Transit detection of the long-period volatile-rich super-Earth nu(2) Lupi d with CHEOPS
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nature Astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2397-3366. ; :5, s. 775-787
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Exoplanets transiting bright nearby stars are key objects for advancing our knowledge of planetary formation and evolution. The wealth of photons from the host star gives detailed access to the atmospheric, interior and orbital properties of the planetary companions. nu(2) Lupi (HD 136352) is a naked-eye (V = 5.78) Sun-like star that was discovered to host three low-mass planets with orbital periods of 11.6, 27.6 and 107.6 d via radial-velocity monitoring(1). The two inner planets (b and c) were recently found to transit(2), prompting a photometric follow-up by the brand new Characterising Exoplanets Satellite (CHEOPS). Here, we report that the outer planet d is also transiting, and measure its radius and mass to be 2.56 +/- 0.09 R-circle plus and 8.82 +/- 0.94 M-circle plus, respectively. With its bright Sun-like star, long period and mild irradiation (similar to 5.7 times the irradiation of Earth), nu(2) Lupi d unlocks a completely new region in the parameter space of exoplanets amenable to detailed characterization. We refine the properties of all three planets: planet b probably has a rocky mostly dry composition, while planets c and d seem to have retained small hydrogen-helium envelopes and a possibly large water fraction. This diversity of planetary compositions makes the nu(2) Lupi system an excellent laboratory for testing formation and evolution models of low-mass planets.
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| 2. |
- Blöschl, Günter, et al.
(författare)
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Current European flood-rich period exceptional compared with past 500 years
- 2020
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 583:7817, s. 560-566
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There are concerns that recent climate change is altering the frequency and magnitude of river floods in an unprecedented way(1). Historical studies have identified flood-rich periods in the past half millennium in various regions of Europe(2). However, because of the low temporal resolution of existing datasets and the relatively low number of series, it has remained unclear whether Europe is currently in a flood-rich period from a long-term perspective. Here we analyse how recent decades compare with the flood history of Europe, using a new database composed of more than 100 high-resolution (sub-annual) historical flood series based on documentary evidence covering all major regions of Europe. We show that the past three decades were among the most flood-rich periods in Europe in the past 500 years, and that this period differs from other flood-rich periods in terms of its extent, air temperatures and flood seasonality. We identified nine flood-rich periods and associated regions. Among the periods richest in floods are 1560-1580 (western and central Europe), 1760-1800 (most of Europe), 1840-1870 (western and southern Europe) and 1990-2016 (western and central Europe). In most parts of Europe, previous flood-rich periods occurred during cooler-than-usual phases, but the current flood-rich period has been much warmer. Flood seasonality is also more pronounced in the recent period. For example, during previous flood and interflood periods, 41 per cent and 42 per cent of central European floods occurred in summer, respectively, compared with 55 per cent of floods in the recent period. The exceptional nature of the present-day flood-rich period calls for process-based tools for flood-risk assessment that capture the physical mechanisms involved, and management strategies that can incorporate the recent changes in risk. Analysis of thousands of historical documents recording floods in Europe shows that flooding characteristics in recent decades are unlike those of previous centuries.
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| 3. |
- Brönnimann, Stefan, et al.
(författare)
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Unlocking Pre-1850 Instrumental Meteorological Records : A Global Inventory
- 2019
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Ingår i: Bulletin of The American Meteorological Society - (BAMS). - 0003-0007 .- 1520-0477. ; 100:12, s. ES389-ES413
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Instrumental meteorological measurements from periods prior to the start of national weather services are designated early instrumental data. They have played an important role in climate research as they allow daily to decadal variability and changes of temperature, pressure, and precipitation, including extremes, to be addressed. Early instrumental data can also help place twenty-first century climatic changes into a historical context such as defining preindustrial climate and its variability. Until recently, the focus was on long, high-quality series, while the large number of shorter series (which together also cover long periods) received little to no attention. The shift in climate and climate impact research from mean climate characteristics toward weather variability and extremes, as well as the success of historical reanalyses that make use of short series, generates a need for locating and exploring further early instrumental measurements. However, information on early instrumental series has never been electronically compiled on a global scale. Here we attempt a worldwide compilation of metadata on early instrumental meteorological records prior to 1850 (1890 for Africa and the Arctic). Our global inventory comprises information on several thousand records, about half of which have not yet been digitized (not even as monthly means), and only approximately 20% of which have made it to global repositories. The inventory will help to prioritize data rescue efforts and can be used to analyze the potential feasibility of historical weather data products. The inventory will be maintained as a living document and is a first, critical, step toward the systematic rescue and reevaluation of these highly valuable early records. Additions to the inventory are welcome.
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| 4. |
- Camenisch, Chantal, et al.
(författare)
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Extreme heat and drought in 1473 and their impacts in Europe in the context of the early 1470s
- 2020
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Ingår i: Regional Environmental Change. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1436-3798 .- 1436-378X. ; 20:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Droughts and heatwaves are both dangerous natural hazards with a potential significant impact on human societies. In order to understand these hazards, it is important to examine such extreme events in the past. During the years 1471 to 1474, warm and dry weather conditions are described in most parts of Europe. Until now, these extraordinary years have not been examined in depth. Moreover, in spring 1473, a great drought and heat occurred in Europe. This heatwave facilitated a fast phenological development. During the summer and the autumn, temperatures were unusually high, and extremely dry weather conditions continued. In many places, the harvest began remarkably early, and there was abundant wine of a good quality. Fruit trees even bloomed for the second time in autumn. The heat and drought had a considerable impact on the environment and also caused damage to agriculture and society, including water shortages, harvest failures and rising food prices. The weather conditions of the years from 1471 to 1474 were outstanding during the fifteenth century and the heatwave and drought, as well as impacts on environment, economy, and society in the year 1473, were comparable to-if not more severe-than those in the year 1540. Learning from past climate anomalies like the 1473 drought in Europe is important for evaluating more recent and future climate extremes under increasing anthropogenic pressure.
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| 5. |
- Dedinszki, Dora, et al.
(författare)
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Inhibition of protein phosphatase-1 and -2A decreases the chemosensitivity of leukemic cells to chemotherapeutic drugs
- 2015
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Ingår i: Cellular Signalling. - : Elsevier BV. - 0898-6568 .- 1873-3913. ; 27:2, s. 363-372
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The phosphorylation of key proteins balanced by protein kinases and phosphatases are implicated in the regulation of cell cycle and apoptosis of malignant cells and influences anticancer drug actions. The efficacy of daunorubicin (DNR) in suppression of leukemic cell survival was investigated in the presence of tautomycin (TM) and calyculin A (CIA), specific membrane permeable inhibitors of protein phosphatase-1 (PP1) and -2A (PP2A), respectively. CIA (50 nM) or TM (1 mu M) suppressed viability of THP-1 and KG-1 myeloid leukemia cell lines to moderate extents; however, they significantly increased survival upon DNR-induced cell death. CLA increased the phosphorylation level of Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt kinases, the retinoblastoma protein (pRb), decreased caspase3 activation by DNR and increased the phosphorylation level of the inhibitory sites (Thr696 and Thr853) in the myosin phosphatase (MP) target subunit (MYPT1) as well as in a 25 kDa kinase-enhanced phosphatase inhibitor (KEPI)-like protein. TM induced enhanced phosphorylation of pRb only, suggesting that this event may be a common factor upon CIA-induced PP2A and TM-induced PP1 inhibitory influences on cell survival. Silencing PP1 by siRNA in HeLa cells, or overexpression of Flag-KEPI in MCF-7 cells coupled with inducing its phosphorylation by PMA or CIA, resulted in increased phosphorylation of pRb. Our results indicate that PP1 directly dephosphorylates pRb, while PP2A might have an indirect influence via mediating the phosphorylation level of PP1 inhibitory proteins:These data imply the importance of PP1 inhibitory proteins in controlling the phosphorylation state of key proteins and regulating drug sensitivity and apoptosis in leukemic cells.
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| 6. |
- Dobrovolný, Petr, et al.
(författare)
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Monthly, seasonal and annual temperature reconstructions for Central Europe derived from documentary evidence and instrumental records since AD 1500
- 2010
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Ingår i: Climatic Change. - Netherlands : Springer. - 0165-0009 .- 1573-1480. ; 101:1-2, s. 69-107
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Monthly temperature series for Central Europe back to AD 1500 aredeveloped from documentary index series from Germany, Switzerland and theCzech Republic (1500–1854) and 11 instrumental temperature records (1760–2007).Documentary evidence from the Low Countries, the Carpathian Basin and Polandare used for cross-checking for earlier centuries. The instrumental station recordsare corrected for inhomogeneities, including insufficient radiation protection ofearly thermometers and the urban heat island effect. For overlapping period (1760–1854), the documentary data series correlate with instrumental temperatures, moststrongly in winter (86% explained variance in January) and least in autumn (56%in September). For annual average temperatures, 81% of the variance is explained.Verification statistics indicate high reconstruction skill for most months and seasons.The last 20 years (since 1988) stand out as very likely the warmest 20-year period,accounting for the calibration uncertainty and decreases in proxy data quality beforethe calibration period. The new reconstruction displays a previously unobserved long-term decrease in DJF, MAM and JJA temperature variability over last fivecenturies. Compiled monthly, seasonal and annual series can be used to improve therobustness of gridded large-scale European temperature reconstructions and possibleimpact studies. Further improvement of the reconstruction would be achieved ifdocumentary data from other European countries are further developed.
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| 7. |
- Duelli, Annette, 1980, et al.
(författare)
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The C-Terminal Random Coil Region Tunes the Ca2+-Binding Affinity of S100A4 through Conformational Activation.
- 2014
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Ingår i: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 9:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- S100A4 interacts with many binding partners upon Ca2+ activation and is strongly associated with increased metastasis formation. In order to understand the role of the C-terminal random coil for the protein function we examined how small angle X-ray scattering of the wild-type S100A4 and its C-terminal deletion mutant (residues 1-88, Δ13) changes upon Ca2+ binding. We found that the scattering intensity of wild-type S100A4 changes substantially in the 0.15-0.25 Å-1 q-range whereas a similar change is not visible in the C-terminus deleted mutant. Ensemble optimization SAXS modeling indicates that the entire C-terminus is extended when Ca2+ is bound. Pulsed field gradient NMR measurements provide further support as the hydrodynamic radius in the wild-type protein increases upon Ca2+ binding while the radius of Δ13 mutant does not change. Molecular dynamics simulations provide a rational explanation of the structural transition: the positively charged C-terminal residues associate with the negatively charged residues of the Ca2+-free EF-hands and these interactions loosen up considerably upon Ca2+-binding. As a consequence the Δ13 mutant has increased Ca2+ affinity and is constantly loaded at Ca2+ concentration ranges typically present in cells. The activation of the entire C-terminal random coil may play a role in mediating interaction with selected partner proteins of S100A4.
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| 8. |
- Gógl, Gergö, et al.
(författare)
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Structural basis of Ribosomal S6 Kinase 1 (RSK1) inhibition by S100B Protein: modulation of the Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase (ERK) signaling cascade in a calcium-dependent way.
- 2016
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Ingår i: The Journal of biological chemistry. - 1083-351X. ; 291:1, s. 11-27
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) promote MAPK activated protein kinase (MAPKAPK) activation. In the MAPK pathway responsible to cell growth, ERK2 initiates the first phosphorylation event on RSK1, which is inhibited by calcium-binding S100 proteins in malignant melanomas. Here we present a detailed in vitro biochemical and structural characterization of the S100B-RSK1 interaction. The calcium-dependent binding of S100B to the calcium/calmodulin dependent protein kinase (CaMK)-type domain of RSK1 is reminiscent to the better known binding of calmodulin to CaMKII. Although S100B-RSK1 and the calmodulin-CAMKII system are clearly distinct functionally, they demonstrate how unrelated intracellular Ca(2+) binding proteins could influence the activity of CaMK domain containing protein kinases. Our crystallographic, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and NMR analysis revealed that S100B forms a ″fuzzy″ complex with RSK1 peptide ligands. Based on fast-kinetics experiments we conclude that the binding involves both conformation selection and induced fit steps. Knowledge of the structural basis of this interaction could facilitate therapeutic targeting of melanomas.
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| 9. |
- Hedman, Linnea, et al.
(författare)
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Receiving support to quit smoking and quit attempts among smokers with and without smoking related diseases : Findings from the EUREST-PLUS ITC Europe Surveys
- 2018
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Ingår i: Tobacco Induced Diseases. - Heraklion : European Publishing. - 1617-9625. ; 16
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- INTRODUCTION Having a chronic disease either caused or worsened by tobacco smoking does not always translate into quitting smoking. Although smoking cessation is one of the most cost-effective medical interventions, it remains poorly implemented in healthcare settings. The aim was to examine whether smokers with chronic and respiratory diseases were more likely to receive support to quit smoking by a healthcare provider or make a quit attempt than smokers without these diseases.METHODS This population-based study included a sample of 6011 adult smokers in six European countries. The participants were interviewed face-to-face and asked questions on sociodemographic characteristics, current diagnoses for chronic diseases, healthcare visits in the last 12 months and, if so, whether they had received any support to quit smoking. Questions on smoking behavior included nicotine dependence, motivation to quit smoking and quit attempts in the last 12 months. The results are presented as weighted percentages with 95% confidence intervals (CI) and as adjusted odds ratios with 95% CI based on logistic regression analyses.RESULTS Smokers with chronic respiratory disease, those aged 55 years and older, as well as those with one or more chronic diseases were more likely to receive smoking cessation advice from a healthcare professional. Making a quit attempt in the last year was related to younger age, high educational level, higher motivation to quit, lower nicotine dependence and having received advice to quit from a healthcare professional but not with having chronic diseases. There were significant differences between countries with smokers in Romania consistently reporting more support to quit as well as quit attempts.CONCLUSIONS Although smokers with respiratory disease did indeed receive smoking cessation support more often than smokers without disease, many smokers did not receive any advice or support to quit during a healthcare visit.
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| 10. |
- Rodríguez-González, Patricia M., et al.
(författare)
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Bringing the margin to the focus : 10 challenges for riparian vegetation science and management
- 2022
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Ingår i: WIREs Water. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 2049-1948. ; 9:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Riparian zones are the paragon of transitional ecosystems, providing critical habitat and ecosystem services that are especially threatened by global change. Following consultation with experts, 10 key challenges were identified to be addressed for riparian vegetation science and management improvement: (1) Create a distinct scientific community by establishing stronger bridges between disciplines; (2) Make riparian vegetation more visible and appreciated in society and policies; (3) Improve knowledge regarding biodiversity—ecosystem functioning links; (4) Manage spatial scale and context-based issues; (5) Improve knowledge on social dimensions of riparian vegetation; (6) Anticipate responses to emergent issues and future trajectories; (7) Enhance tools to quantify and prioritize ecosystem services; (8) Improve numerical modeling and simulation tools; (9) Calibrate methods and increase data availability for better indicators and monitoring practices and transferability; and (10) Undertake scientific validation of best management practices. These challenges are discussed and critiqued here, to guide future research into riparian vegetation.
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| 11. |
- Wetter, Oliver, et al.
(författare)
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The year-long unprecedented European heat and drought of 1540-a worst case
- 2014
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Ingår i: Climatic Change. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0165-0009 .- 1573-1480. ; 125:3-4, s. 349-363
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The heat waves of 2003 in Western Europe and 2010 in Russia, commonly labelled as rare climatic anomalies outside of previous experience, are often taken as harbingers of more frequent extremes in the global warming-influenced future. However, a recent reconstruction of spring-summer temperatures for WE resulted in the likelihood of significantly higher temperatures in 1540. In order to check the plausibility of this result we investigated the severity of the 1540 drought by putting forward the argument of the known soil desiccation-temperature feedback. Based on more than 300 first-hand documentary weather report sources originating from an area of 2 to 3 million km(2), we show that Europe was affected by an unprecedented 11-month-long Megadrought. The estimated number of precipitation days and precipitation amount for Central and Western Europe in 1540 is significantly lower than the 100-year minima of the instrumental measurement period for spring, summer and autumn. This result is supported by independent documentary evidence about extremely low river flows and Europe-wide wild-, forest- and settlement fires. We found that an event of this severity cannot be simulated by state-of-the-art climate models.
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| 12. |
- Aad, G, et al.
(författare)
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- 2015
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swepub:Mat__t
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