| 1. |
- de Monchy, J., et al.
(författare)
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Living & learning with allergy: a European perception study on respiratory allergic disorders
- 2004
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Ingår i: Respir Med. ; 98:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Knowledge of allergy patients' perception of own disease is inadequate, and understanding of the impact of local environment, including family and health-care system, on patients' management of disease is insufficient. We examined the potential of telephone-based survey techniques for establishing this knowledge in 10 European countries. METHODS: A two-phased questionnaire developed by use of focus groups in seven countries was translated into 10 languages. To ensure that the true values of the populations were restored in randomly selected populations, 75,343 telephone numbers selected for screening represented balanced national distributions of households. RESULTS: Eight thousand two hundred and sixty-eight respiratory allergy sufferers were identified by the telephone screening process. 85.4% accepted to participate in the survey and 89.6% completed both phases comprising 34 questions and rating of 49 statements. Data for each country were weighted in terms of age, sex and the recorded allergy prevalence within age intervals. CONCLUSIONS: The telephone survey technique allowed for establishment of random representative samples, and application of mathematical weighting procedures assured that the true national values were restored in the data set. As all interviews were performed in a standardised manner we conclude that the telephone-based survey methodology enables national representative data set to be established and compared.
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| 2. |
- Ronneteg, Sabina, et al.
(författare)
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Antiferro- to ferromagnetic transition in TlCo2Se(2-x)S(x)
- 2003
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Ingår i: 14th International Conference on Solid Compounds of Transition Elements. ; , s. PO I-28
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Materials with the ThCr2Si2 structure type often have many interesting properties, exemplified by silicides and germanides. [...] Neutron powder diffraction experiments on different compositions have been performed and show that the magnetix helix is still obtained even at x= 1.0 (TlCo2SeS). The q-value increases when the distance between the cobalt layers decreases.
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| 3. |
- Santesson, Sabina, et al.
(författare)
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Airborne chemistry coupled to Raman spectroscopy
- 2003
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Ingår i: Analytical Chemistry. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1520-6882 .- 0003-2700. ; 75:9, s. 2177-2180
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper, the use of airborne chemistry (acoustically levitated drops) in combination with Raman spectroscopy is explored. We report herein the first Raman studies of crystallization processes in levitated drops and the first demonstration of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection in this medium. Crystallization studies on the model compounds benzamide and indomethacin resulted in the formation of two crystal modifications for each compound, suggesting that this methodology may be useful for investigation of polymorphs. SERS detection resulted in a signal enhancement of 27 000 for benzoic acid and 11 000 for rhodamine 6-G. The preliminary results presented here clearly indicate that several important applications of the combination between Raman spectroscopy and acoustic drop levitation can be expected in the future.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Seymour, M. L., et al.
(författare)
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Leukotriene and prostanoid pathway enzymes in bronchial biopsies of seasonal allergic asthmatics
- 2001
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Ingår i: Am J Respir Crit Care Med. - 1073-449X. ; 164:11, s. 2051-6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Cysteinyl-leukotrienes and prostaglandin D2 generated by the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) and cyclooxygenase (COX) pathways, respectively, cause bronchoconstriction, leukocyte recruitment, and bronchial hyperresponsiveness in asthma. We characterized the cellular expression of 5-LO and COX enzymes using immunohistochemistry on bronchial biopsies from 12 allergic asthmatic patients before and during seasonal exposure to birch pollen. Bronchial responsiveness (p = 0.004) and symptoms (p < 0.005) increased and peak expiratory flow (PEF; p < or = 0.02) decreased in the pollen season. In-season biopsies had 2-fold more cells immunostaining for 5-LO (p = 0.02), 5-LO-activating protein (FLAP; p = 0.04), and leukotriene (LT)A4 hydrolase (p = 0.05), and 4-fold more for the terminal enzyme for cysteinyl-leukotriene synthesis, LTC4 synthase (p = 0.02). Immunostaining for COX-1, COX-2, and PGD2 synthase was unchanged. Increased staining for LTC4 synthase was due to increased eosinophils (p = 0.035) and an increased proportion of eosinophils expressing the enzyme (p = 0.047). Macrophages also increased (p = 0.019), but mast cells and T-lymphocyte subsets were unchanged. Inverse correlations between PEF and 5-LO(+) cell counts link increased expression of 5-LO pathway enzymes in eosinophils and macrophages within the bronchial mucosa to deterioration of lung function during seasonal allergen exposure.
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| 6. |
- Van Neerven, R., et al.
(författare)
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A double-blind, placebo-controlled birch allergy vaccination study: inhibition of CD23-mediated serum-immunoglobulin E-facilitated allergen presentation
- 2004
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Ingår i: Clin Exp Allergy. ; 34:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND : The clinical efficacy of specific allergy vaccination (SAV), previously called specific immunotherapy is well documented. The working mechanism of this treatment is not completely known at present. Allergen-specific CD4+ T lymphocytes are activated at extremely low allergen concentrations in vivo possibly as a result of serum IgE-facilitated allergen presentation (S-FAP). Previously, we have shown that this process can be inhibited by long-term birch SAV sera. METHODS : In the present study, we have analysed sera from birch-allergic patients in a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial for their ability to mediate S-FAP. Birch-specific IgE levels were not changed after SAV. Bet v 1-specific IgE levels, however, were significantly decreased (P<0.05) and Bet v 1-specific IgG4 levels were strongly increased after SAV (P<0.001). None of these changes were observed in the placebo group. When the sera were tested for their ability to induce S-FAP, a complete abrogation of this effect was noted in the sera from patients receiving active treatment (P<0.001), but not in the control group. This inhibition of S-FAP seemed to be associated with the reduction in the ratio between Bet v 1-specific IgE and IgG4 antibodies in serum, but a clear correlation could not be demonstrated. CONCLUSION : In conclusion, the present study clearly shows that SAV leads to an inhibition of the S-FAP needed to obtain optimal T cell activation at the low allergen concentrations present in vivo. This novel mechanism may explain the increased allergen threshold levels found in allergen provocation tests and the reduction of late-phase reactions observed after SAV.
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