| 1. |
- Almqvist, C, et al.
(författare)
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School as a risk environment for children allergic to cats and a site for transfer of cat allergen to homes
- 1999
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Ingår i: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - : Elsevier. - 0091-6749 .- 1097-6825. ; 103:6, s. 1012-1017
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Many children are allergic to furred pets and avoid direct pet contact. The school may be a site of indirect exposure to pet allergens, which may induce or maintain symptoms of allergic diseases.OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate airborne levels of cat allergen (Fel d 1) at schools and in homes with or without cats and to study clothes as a route for dissemination of allergens between homes and school.METHODS: Airborne cat allergen was collected with personal samplers from (1) children attending classes with many (>25%) or few (<10%) cat owners and (2) homes with or without cats. A recently developed amplified ELISA assay, which detects low levels of airborne cat allergen in pet-free environments, was used. Dust samples were collected from clothes and mattresses.RESULTS: There was a 5-fold difference in the median levels of airborne cat allergen between classes with many and few cat owners (2.94 vs 0.59 ng/m3; P <.001). The median airborne cat allergen concentration in classes with many cat owners was significantly higher than that found in the homes of non-cat owners (P <.001) but lower than that found in homes with cats (P <.001). Allergen levels in non-cat owners' clothes increased after a school day (P <.001). Non-cat owners in classes with many cat owners had higher levels of mattress-bound cat allergen (P =.01).CONCLUSION: The results indicate significant exposure to cat allergen at school. Allergen is spread through clothing from homes with cats to classrooms. There the allergen is dispersed in air and contaminates the clothes of children without cats. The allergen levels in non-cat owners' homes correlate with exposure to cat allergen at school.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Almqvist, Nils, et al.
(författare)
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Methods for fabricating and characterizing a new generation of biomimetic materials
- 1999
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Ingår i: Materials science & engineering. C, biomimetic materials, sensors and systems. - 0928-4931 .- 1873-0191. ; 7:1, s. 37-43
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Bringing together current ideas in the fields of biomineralization and composite laminate materials, we have attempted to fabricate model materials that mimic abalone nacre through the rapid assembly of inorganic tablets, such as talc. Several physical methods were tested to aid the orientation of the talc tablets in fluid suspensions with a low percentage, 10% by dry weight, of organic binding material. The orientation of talc tablets in the synthesized composites was characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The modulus of rupture of the materials was measured in a three-point bending test. We demonstrate that the alignment of tablets increases by the use of physical methods and from chemical surface treatment. Important factors to consider in making materials that mimic abalone nacre are discussed. Important factors to consider in making materials that mimic abalone nacre are discussed.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Aronsson, H., et al.
(författare)
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Characterization of the plastid import reaction of the pea NADPH-protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (POR)
- 1998
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Ingår i: The Chloroplast. - New York : Springer-Verlag. - 9780792355779 - 0792355776 ; , s. 167-170
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- NADPH: protochlorophyllide (POR) is a vital enzyme in the biosynthesis of chlorophyl where it catalyzes the reduction of Pchlide into Chlide in a light-dependent manner. POR is nucleus-encoded and imported into the plastids where it is found at the inner membranes. Together with its substrate and the co-factor NADPH it forms a ternary complex which is needed for catalytical activity. The anomaly of a decreasing POR level during active chlorophyll synthesis was cleared with the discovery of two different POR proteins, POR-A and POR-B, in barley and Arabidopsis thaliana. During greening, POR-A is negatively regulated by light both at transcriptional and proteolytical levels. In addition, the import of POR-A, but not POR-B, has been suggestedto require Pchlide in order to be translocated into the plastid. In this respect, POR-A differs from other known nucleus-encoded plastid proteins, and as it appears, this requirements represents a novel and exclusive import characteristic. In pea, only one POR gene has been found indicating that the situation for the regulation of POR import and accumulation is far from clear. We here present a characterization of the import conditions of the pea POR, including the potentional role of Pchlide inthe translocation step.
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| 6. |
- Bruland, O, et al.
(författare)
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Accurate determination of the number of CAG repeats in the Huntington disease gene using a sequence-specific internal DNA standard.
- 1999
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Ingår i: Clinical Genetics. - 0009-9163 .- 1399-0004. ; 55:3, s. 198-202
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have developed a sequence-specific internal DNA size standard for the accurate determination of the number of CAG repeats in the Huntington disease (HD) gene by cloning key fragments (between 15 and 64 CAG repeats) of the HD gene. These fragments, pooled to produce a sequence-specific DNA ladder, enabled us to observe the true number of CAG repeats directly, with no need for calculations. Comparison of the calculated numbers of CAG repeats in the HD gene using this sequence-specific DNA standard with a commercially available standard (GENESCAN-500 TAMRA) showed that the latter underestimated the number of CAG repeats by three when analyzed by capillary electrophoresis on the ABI 310 Genetic Analyzer (POP4 polymer). In contrast, the use of the same standard overestimated the number of CAG repeats by one when the samples were analyzed by denaturing polyacrylamide electrophoresis on ABI 377 DNA Sequencer (6% denaturing polyacrylamide gel). This suggests that our sequence-specific standard provides greater accuracy for the determination of the true number of CAG repeats in the HD gene than commercially available standards. The sequence-specific standard can be radioactively labeled and successfully replace conventional DNA size standards when analyzing polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified HD alleles by denaturing polyacrylamide electrophoresis.
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| 7. |
- Chong, S S, et al.
(författare)
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Contribution of DNA sequence and CAG size to mutation frequencies of intermediate alleles for Huntington disease : evidence from single sperm analyses.
- 1997
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Ingår i: Human Molecular Genetics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0964-6906 .- 1460-2083. ; 6:2, s. 301-9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- New mutations for Huntington disease (HD) arise from intermediate alleles (IAs) with between 29 and 35 CAG repeats that expand on transmission through the paternal germline to 36 CAGs or greater. Using single sperm analysis, we have assessed CAG mutation frequencies for four IAs in families with sporadic HD (IANM) and IAs ascertained from the general population (IAGP) by analyzing 1161 single sperm from three persons. We show that IANM are more unstable than IAGP with identical size and sequence. Furthermore, comparison of different sized IAs and IAs with different sequences between the CAG and the adjacent CCG tracts indicates that DNA sequence is a major influence on CAG stability. These studies provide estimates of the likelihood of expansion of IANM and IAGP to > or = 36 CAG repeats for these individuals. For an IA with a CAG of 35 in this family with sporadic HD, the likelihood for siblings to inherit a recurrent mutation > or = 36 CAG is approximately 10%. For IAGP of a similar size, the risk of inheriting an expanded allele of > or = 36 CAG through the paternal germline is approximately 6%. These risk estimates are higher than previously reported and provide additional information for counselling in these families. Further studies on persons with IAs will be needed to determine whether these results can be generalized to other families.
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
- Goldberg, Y P, et al.
(författare)
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Increased instability of intermediate alleles in families with sporadic Huntington disease compared to similar sized intermediate alleles in the general population.
- 1995
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Ingår i: Human Molecular Genetics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0964-6906 .- 1460-2083. ; 4:10, s. 1911-8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have directly compared intergenerational stability of intermediate alleles (IAs) derived from new mutation families (IANM) for Huntington disease (HD) with IAs in the general population (IAGP) which occur in approximately 1 in 50 persons. Analysis of meiotic events in blood and sperm reveals that IANM are significantly more unstable than IAGP despite similar size. However, for both IANM and IAGP CAG changes were small and risks for inheriting an expansion into the HD affected range were low. Sequence analysis reveals that the CAG tract is generally interrupted by a penultimate CAA in IAGP, IANM and alleles in the affected range. In one new mutation family, however, two A-->G mutations result in a pure CAG tract which is associated with very marked instability. These mutations alter the predicted DNA hairpin structure with a predicted increase in the likelihood of large expansion, supporting the model that hairpin loop formation plays an important role in trinucleotide instability.
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| 10. |
- Kremer, B, et al.
(författare)
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Sex-dependent mechanisms for expansions and contractions of the CAG repeat on affected Huntington disease chromosomes.
- 1995
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Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 57:2, s. 343-50
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A total of 254 affected parent-child pairs with Huntington disease (HD) and 440 parent-child pairs with CAG size in the normal range were assessed to determine the nature and frequency of intergenerational CAG changes in the HD gene. Intergenerational CAG changes are extremely rare (3/440 [0.68%]) on normal chromosomes. In contrast, on HD chromosomes, changes in CAG size occur in approximately 70% of meioses on HD chromosomes, with expansions accounting for 73% of these changes. These intergenerational CAG changes make a significant but minor contribution to changes in age at onset (r2 = .19). The size of the CAG repeat influenced larger intergenerational expansions (> 7 CAG repeats), but the likelihood of smaller expansions or contractions was not influenced by CAG size. Large expansions (> 7 CAG repeats) occur almost exclusively through paternal transmission (0.96%; P < 10(-7)), while offspring of affected mothers are more likely to show no change (P = .01) or contractions in CAG size (P = .002). This study demonstrates that sex of the transmitting parent is the major determinant for CAG intergenerational changes in the HD gene. Similar paternal sex effects are seen in the evolution of new mutations for HD from intermediate alleles and for large expansions on affected chromosomes. Affected mothers almost never transmit a significantly expanded CAG repeat, despite the fact that many have similar large-sized alleles, compared with affected fathers. The sex-dependent effects of major expansion and contractions of the CAG repeat in the HD gene implicate different effects of gametogenesis, in males versus females, on intergenerational CAG repeat stability.
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