| 1. |
- Lundell, Anna-Carin, 1976, et al.
(författare)
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Low Serum IGF-1 in Boys with Recent Onset of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Immunology Research. - : Hindawi Limited. - 2314-8861 .- 2314-7156.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background. Liver-derived insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) contributes bone formation. Decreased IGF-1 levels are common in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), but whether IGF-1 is related to sex and differ during the pathogenic progress of JIA is unknown. Objective. The aim of this study was to examine IGF-1 levels in boys and girls with newly diagnosed JIA, with established JIA and in controls. Methods. The study group included 131 patients from the Estonian population-based prevalence JIA study. Blood samples were obtained from 27 boys and 38 girls with early JIA (<= 1 month from the diagnosis), 29 boys and 36 girls with established JIA (mean disease duration 18 months), and from 47 age- and sex-matched controls. Results. IGF-1 levels in boys were significantly decreased in early JIA compared to male controls, while IGF-1 levels in girls were comparable between JIA and controls. In early JIA, IGF-1 levels were 12-fold lower in boys relative to girls. In controls, IGF-1 levels correlated with both age and height, while these correlations were lost in boys with early JIA. Conclusion. We report a sex-dependent deficiency in serum IGF-1 in boys with early JIA, which argues for sex-related differences in biological mechanisms involved in the disease pathogenesis.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Bokareva, O. S., et al.
(författare)
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Optimized long-range corrected density functionals for electronic and optical properties of bare and ligated CdSe quantum dots
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1549-9618 .- 1549-9626. ; 13:1, s. 110-116
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The reliable prediction of optical and fundamental gaps of finite size systems using density functional theory requires to account for the potential self-interaction error, which is notorious for degrading the description of charge transfer transitions. One solution is provided by parametrized long-range corrected functionals such as LC-BLYP, which can be tuned such as to describe certain properties of the particular system at hand. Here, bare and 3-mercaptoprotionic acid covered Cd33Se33 quantum dots are investigated using the optimally tuned LC-BLYP functional. The range separation parameter, which determines the switching on of the exact exchange contribution, is found to be 0.12 bohr-1 and 0.09 bohr-1 for the bare and covered quantum dot, respectively. It is shown that density functional optimization indeed yields optical and fundamental gaps and thus exciton binding energies, considerably different compared with standard functionals such as the popular PBE and B3LYP ones. This holds true, despite the well established fact that the leading transitions are localized on the quantum dot and do not show pronounced long-range charge transfer character.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Eriksson, Axl, et al.
(författare)
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Synthesis of Well-Ordered Functionalized Silicon Microwires Using Displacement Talbot Lithography for Photocatalysis
- 2024
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Ingår i: ACS Omega. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 2470-1343. ; 9:18, s. 20623-20628
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) is a cheap and scalable method that is commonly used to obtain silicon nano- or microwires but lacks spatial control. Herein, we present a synthesis method for producing vertical and highly periodic silicon microwires, using displacement Talbot lithography before wet etching with MACE. The functionalized periodic silicon microwires show 65% higher PEC performance and 2.3 mA/cm2 higher net photocurrent at 0 V compared to functionalized, randomly distributed microwires obtained by conventional MACE at the same potentials.
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| 6. |
- Grage, M.M.-L., et al.
(författare)
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Conformational disorder of a substituted polythiophene in solution revealed by excitation transfer
- 2001
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Ingår i: Chemical Physics Letters. - 0009-2614 .- 1873-4448. ; 339:1-2, s. 96-102
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Anisotropy and isotropic transient absorption decays of a polythiophene derivative in dilute solution have been measured and compared to calculated decays on Monte Carlo simulated polymer chains to obtain knowledge about the geometrical conformation of the polymer. The polymer chain conformations are generated by a partially correlated self-avoiding random walk. Excitation migration along the isolated chain is modeled assuming a hopping mechanism. This approach can be used to determine conformational disorder and possible realizations of the polymer chains in solution as well as the trapping time and migration length of the excitation. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V.
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| 7. |
- Laisaar, T., et al.
(författare)
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Effect of intrapleural streptokinase administration on antistreptokinase antibody level in patients with loculated pleural effusions
- 2003
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Ingår i: Chest. ; 123:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Streptokinase is widely used IV for the treatment of myocardial infarction and intrapleurally for the treatment of loculated pleural effusions. IV administration of streptokinase is known to cause the production of antistreptokinase antibodies. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the intrapleural administration of streptokinase results in a similar elevation of the serum antistreptokinase antibody level. METHODS: During 1 year, venous blood samples were taken from 16 consecutive patients (10 men and 6 women; age range, 22 to 60 years) requiring intrapleural streptokinase administration (250,000 IU once a day, for 2 to 6 days). Blood samples were taken before treatment, on day 5, and day 14. Antistreptokinase antibodies were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and were expressed in arbitrary ELISA units. Four patients with myocardial infarction treated with IV streptokinase (1,500,000 IU) were included as control subjects for the method. RESULTS: Before treatment, the median antistreptokinase antibody level in patients with loculated pleural effusions was 729 ELISA units (range, 196 to 13,529 ELISA units) and increased to 9,240 ELISA units (range, 1,456 to 77,389 ELISA units) by day 14 (p < 0.0001). In the control group, the median pretreatment level was 119 ELISA units, and by day 14 it had increased to 20,495 ELISA units. Four patients who developed an elevated body temperature after intrapleural administration of streptokinase had a significantly higher pretreatment antistreptokinase antibody level compared to other patients. CONCLUSIONS: The intrapleural administration of streptokinase results in the elevation of the serum antistreptokinase antibody level, which is similar to the case with IV administration. An increased pretreatment antistreptokinase antibody level does not influence the result of intrapleural fibrinolysis but can cause an elevation of body temperature after the administration of streptokinase.
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| 8. |
- Laurell, H., et al.
(författare)
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Continuous-variable quantum state tomography of photoelectrons
- 2022
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Ingår i: Physical Review Research. - 2643-1564. ; 4:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We propose a continuous variable quantum state tomography protocol of electrons which result from the ionization of atoms or molecules by the absorption of extreme ultraviolet light pulses. Our protocol is benchmarked against a direct calculation of the quantum state of photoelectrons ejected from helium and argon in the vicinity of a Fano resonance. In the latter case, we furthermore distill ion-photoelectron entanglement due to spin-orbit splitting. This opens routes toward the investigation of quantum coherence and entanglement properties on the ultrafast timescale.
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| 9. |
- Peled, M., et al.
(författare)
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Baseline spirometry parameters as predictors of airway hyperreactivity in adults with suspected asthma
- 2021
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Ingår i: Bmc Pulmonary Medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2466. ; 21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Methacholine challenge tests (MCTs) are used to diagnose airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) in patients with suspected asthma where previous diagnostic testing has been inconclusive. The test is time consuming and usually requires referral to specialized centers. Simple methods to predict AHR could help determine which patients should be referred to MCTs, thus avoiding unnecessary testing. Here we investigated the potential use of baseline spirometry variables as surrogate markers for AHR in adults with suspected asthma. Methods Baseline spirometry and MCTs performed between 2013 and 2019 in a large tertiary center were retrospectively evaluated. Receiver-operating characteristic curves for the maximal expiratory flow-volume curve indices (angle beta, FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC, FEF50%, FEF25-75%) were constructed to assess their overall accuracy in predicting AHR and optimal cutoff values were identified. Results A total of 2983 tests were analyzed in adults aged 18-40 years. In total, 14% of all MCTs were positive (PC20 <= 16 mg/ml). All baseline spirometry parameters were significantly lower in the positive group (p < 0.001). FEF50% showed the best overall accuracy (AUC = 0.688) and proved to be useful as a negative predictor when applying FEF50% >= 110% as a cutoff level. Conclusions This study highlights the role of FEF50% in predicting AHR in patients with suspected asthma. A value of >= 110% for baseline FEF50% could be used to exclude AHR and would lead to a substantial decrease in MCT referrals.
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| 11. |
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| 12. |
- Rentzos, Georgios K., et al.
(författare)
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Use of a basophil activation test as a complementary diagnostic tool in the diagnosis of severe peanut allergy in adults
- 2015
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Ingår i: Clinical and Translational Allergy. - : Wiley. - 2045-7022. ; 5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Diagnosis of severe peanut allergy is difficult and delays in making an accurate diagnosis may place the patient at risk. Adults with a history of anaphylaxis must strictly avoid any contact with peanuts or products that may contain traces of peanuts. For these persons, conventional evaluations with skin prick testing (SPT) and IgE tests may not be sufficient to assess the risk of anaphylaxis. Therefore, we investigated whether the basophil activation test (BAT) could be used for the diagnosis of severe peanut allergy in adults. We compared the non-invasive BAT with conventional laboratory diagnostic tests, including SPT and specific IgE to allergen extracts and components, for the diagnosis of severe peanut allergy. Methods: Forty-seven persons with severe allergy to peanuts and a clinical diagnosis of anaphylaxis (PA-group), 22 subjects with peanut sensitization (PS-group) and 22 control (C-group) subjects, all in the age range of 18-60 years, were recruited retrospectively and prospectively into the study. Thirty-four patients with peanut allergy and 11 peanut-sensitized patients were sensitized to soy, while 36 patients in the PA-group and 20 patients in the PS-group were sensitized to birch pollen. All the patients and control subjects were investigated with BAT and SPT for responses to peanut, soy and birch extracts and their serum samples were assayed for the presence of specific IgE to peanut, soy and birch extracts, as well as IgE to allergen components (ISAC). Results: In a multivariate factor analysis, severe peanut allergy (PA) was positively associated with SPT to peanut, IgE to peanut, BAT to peanut and IgE to rAra h 1, 2, 3 and 6 peanut components, as well as to soy components (nGly m 5 and nGly m 6). In contrast, peanut sensitization was positively associated with increased levels of IgE to rAra h 8, birch and birch-related components. BAT-detected reactivity to peanut was significantly higher in patients who had a history of severe allergy to peanuts, as compared with patients who were sensitized to peanuts (p < 0.001), and the receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis showed that BAT had high sensitivity and specificity for predicting severe peanut allergy, with a ROC area under the curve of 0.862. However, in the PA-group, the BAT results for peanut correlated only weakly with the levels of IgE to rAra h 1, 2 and 3 and nAra h 6. Study limitations: oral provocation in the patients with a history of severe peanut allergy could not be performed to compare clinical reactivity with the BAT result due to ethical constraints. Neither was it possible to perform BAT with peanut recombinant allergens which were not available at the time the study commenced Conclusions: BAT is useful in determining the severity of peanut allergy and may be used as a complementary diagnostic tool to ensure accurate diagnosis of severe peanut allergy in adults. Thus, it may reduce the need to subject these patients to further tests, including an open challenge with peanuts. © 2015 Rentzos et al.; licensee BioMed Central.
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| 13. |
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| 14. |
- Schultz, Michelle, et al.
(författare)
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Lipoproteins Cause Bone Resorption in a Mouse Model of Staphylococcus aureus Septic Arthritis
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Microbiology. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1664-302X. ; 13
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Septic arthritis, most often caused by Staphylococcus aureus, is a rapidly progressive and destructive joint disease with substantial mortality and morbidity. Staphylococcus aureus lipoproteins (Lpps) are known to induce arthritis and bone destruction. Here, we aimed to investigate the bone resorptive effect of S. aureus Lpps in a murine arthritis model by intra-articular injection of purified S. aureus Lpps, synthetic lipopeptides, and live S. aureus strains. Analyses of the bone mineral density (BMD) of the distal femur bone were performed. Intra-articular injection of both live S. aureus and purified S. aureus Lpps were shown to significantly decrease total- and trabecular BMD. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses revealed that the Lpps expressed by S. aureus SA113 strain contain both diacyl and triacyl lipid moieties. Interestingly, synthetic diacylated lipopeptide, Pam(2)CSK(4), was more potent in inducing bone resorption than synthetic triacylated lipopeptide, Pam(3)CSK(4). Modified lipoproteins lacking the lipid moiety were deprived of their bone resorptive abilities. Monocyte depletion by clodronate liposomes fully abrogated the bone resorptive capacity of S. aureus lipoproteins. Our data suggest that S. aureus Lpps induce bone resorption in locally-induced murine arthritis, an effect mediated by their lipid-moiety through monocytes/macrophages.
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| 15. |
- Shen, T., et al.
(författare)
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Investigation of the role of Mn dopant in CdS quantum dot sensitized solar cell.
- 2016
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Ingår i: Electrochimica Acta. - 0013-4686. ; , s. 62-69
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mn-doping into CdS quantum dots (QDs) has been demonstrated a useful way to enhance the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of quantum dot sensitized solar cells (QDSCs), the detailed systematic study is needed to get a better fundamental understanding. This work focuses on the study of the effects of Mn dopant on light harvesting, charge transfer, and charge collection of the solar cells. The results indicate that the Mn-doping into CdS QDs increases the light absorbance and extends the light absorption range, which results in the enhancement of the photo-generated current density. In addition, both the electron transport rate and the electron diffusion length are also increased with the introduction of Mn dopant. So the charge collection efficiency (ηcc) of the solar cell increases from 89.9% for CdS sample to 96.7% for Mn/CdS sample. As a result, the PCE of Mn/CdS QDSC reaches 3.29%, which is much higher than that of CdS QDSC (2.01%).
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| 16. |
- Wu, Fan, et al.
(författare)
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Optical cavity-mediated exciton dynamics in photosynthetic light harvesting 2 complexes
- 2022
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 13:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Strong light-matter interaction leads to the formation of hybrid polariton states and alters the photophysical dynamics of organic materials and biological systems without modifying their chemical structure. Here, we experimentally investigated a well-known photosynthetic protein, light harvesting 2 complexes (LH2) from purple bacteria under strong coupling with the light mode of a Fabry-Perot optical microcavity. Using femtosecond pump probe spectroscopy, we analyzed the polariton dynamics of the strongly coupled system and observed a significant prolongation of the excited state lifetime compared with the bare exciton, which can be explained in terms of the exciton reservoir model. Our findings indicate the potential of tuning the dynamic of the whole photosynthetic unit, which contains several light harvesting complexes and reaction centers, with the help of strong exciton-photon coupling, and opening the discussion about possible design strategies of artificial photosynthetic devices.
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