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- Olsson, Anders, 1940-, et al.
(författare)
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Are early clinical effects of cholesterol lowering mediated through effects on inflammation?
- 2002
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Ingår i: Acta Physiologica Scandinavica. - 0001-6772 .- 1365-201X. ; 176:2, s. 147-150
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In a randomized, double-blind trial in 3086 patients with unstable angina pectoris or non-Q wave myocardial infarction we investigated if 80 mg of atorvastatin daily could improve outcome of cardiovascular events during a short period of time (16 weeks) compared with placebo. Baseline LDL cholesterol was 3.2 mmol L-1 (124 mg dL-1) and decreased by 40% to 1.9 mmol L-1 (72 mg dL-1) during atorvastatin treatment. The primary endpoint, which was a composite of death, non-fatal acute myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest with resuscitation or recurrent symptomatic myocardial ischaemia with objective evidence and requiring emergency rehospitalization occurred in 228 patients (14.8%) in the atorvastatin group and 269 patients (17.4%) in the placebo group. The relative risk was 0.84 and 95% confidence interval was 0.70-1.00 (P = 0.048). Thus for patients with acute coronary syndromes, lipid-lowering therapy with high dose atorvastatin reduces recurrent ischaemic events in the short-term. A possible mechanism behind this rapid clinical effect induced by statin treatment is on inflammatory processes. Recent studies strongly suggest that acute T-cell activation is involved in the pathogenesis of unstable angina. In another study we investigated whether circulating T cells showed signs of activation in patients with stable angina pectoris (SA). Systemic venous blood samples were taken from 38 men with SA and 42 healthy controls. The T-cell receptor expression was assessed by three-colour flow cytometry using monoclonal antibodies against CD3, CD4, CD8, CD25 and human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-DR. Soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) was measured as the circulating form in serum. Levels of circulating CD3+ and CD4+ T cells tended to be higher in patients compared with controls. Patients were also shown to have a significant increase in CD4+ T cells expressing the activation markers CD25 (P < 0.05) and HLA-DR (P < 0.01). Furthermore, serum levels of sIL-2R were significantly higher (P < 0.001) in patients than in controls. We also observed that the T-cell response was more pronounced in patients without simvastatin treatment (n = 18) compared with simvastatin-treated patients (n = 20). In conclusion, our findings indicate that a continuous immune system activation takes place in patients with chronic angina pectoris, predominantly involving proliferation of CD4+ T cells. Statin treatment seems to be able to decrease this inflammatory response.
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| 4. |
- Callaghan, TV, et al.
(författare)
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Key findings and extended summaries
- 2004
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Ingår i: Ambio: a Journal of Human Environment. - 0044-7447. ; 33:7, s. 386-392
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)
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| 5. |
- Callaghan, T. V., et al.
(författare)
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Effects on the function of arctic ecosystems in the short- and long-term perspectives
- 2004
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Ingår i: Ambio: a Journal of Human Environment. - : Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. - 0044-7447. ; 33, s. 448-458
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Abstract in UndeterminedHistorically, the function of Arctic ecosystems in terms of cycles of nutrients and carbon has led to low levels of primary production and exchanges of energy, water and greenhouse gases have led to low local and regional cooling. Sequestration of carbon from atmospheric CO2, in extensive, cold organic soils and the high albedo from low, snow-covered vegetation have had impacts on regional climate. However, many aspects of the functioning of Arctic ecosystems are sensitive to changes in climate and its impacts on biodiversity. The current Arctic climate results in slow rates of organic matter decomposition. Arctic ecosystems therefore tend to accumulate organic matter and elements despite low inputs. As a result, soil-available elements like nitrogen and phosphorus are key limitations to increases in carbon fixation and further biomass and organic matter accumulation. Climate warming is expected to increase carbon and element turnover, particularly in soils, which may lead to initial losses of elements but eventual, slow recovery. Individual species and species diversity have clear impacts on element inputs and retention in Arctic ecosystems. Effects of increased CO2 and UV-B on whole ecosystems, on the other hand, are likely to be small although effects on plant tissue chemisty, decomposition and nitrogen fixation may become important in the long-term. Cycling of carbon in trace gas form is mainly as CO2 and CH4. Most carbon loss is in the form of CO2, produced by both plants and soil biota. Carbon emissions as methane from wet and moist tundra ecosystems are about 5% of emissions as CO2 and are responsive to warming in the absence of any other changes. Winter processes and vegetation type also affect CH4 emissions as well as exchanges of energy between biosphere and atmosphere. Arctic ecosystems exhibit the largest seasonal changes in energy exchange of any terrestrial ecosystem because of the large changes in albedo from late winter, when snow reflects most incoming radiation, to summer when the ecosystem absorbs most incoming radiation. Vegetation profoundly influences the water and energy exchange of Arctic ecosystems. Albedo during the period of snow cover declines from tundra to forest tundra to deciduous forest to evergreen forest. Shrubs and trees increase snow depth which in turn increases winter soil temperatures. Future changes in vegetation driven by climate change are therefore, very likely to profoundly alter regional climate.
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| 6. |
- Cornelissen, C, et al.
(författare)
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Global change and arctic ecosystems : is lichen decline a function of increases in vascular plant biomass?
- 2001
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Ingår i: Journal of Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0022-0477 .- 1365-2745. ; 89:6, s. 984-994
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- 1 Macrolichens are important for the functioning and biodiversity of cold northern ecosystems and their reindeer-based cultures and economics. 2 We hypothesized that, in climatically milder parts of the Arctic, where ecosystems have relatively dense plant canopies, climate warming and/or increased nutrient availability leads to decline in macrolichen abundance as a function of increased abundance of vascular plants. In more open high-arctic or arctic-alpine plant communities such a relationship should be absent. To test this, we synthesized cross-continental arctic vegetation data from ecosystem manipulation experiments simulating mostly warming and increased nutrient availability, and compared these with similar data from natural environmental gradients. 3 Regressions between abundance or biomass of macrolichens and vascular plants were consistently negative across the subarctic and mid-arctic experimental studies. Such a pattern did not emerge in the coldest high-arctic or arctic-alpine sites. The slopes of the negative regressions increased across 10 sites as the climate became milder (as indicated by a simple climatic index) or the vegetation denser (greater site above-ground biomass). 4 Seven natural vegetation gradients in the lower-altitude sub- and mid-arctic zone confirmed the patterns seen in the experimental studies, showing consistent negative relationships between abundance of macrolichens and vascular plants. 5 We conclude that the data supported the hypothesis. Macrolichens in climatically milder arctic ecosystems may decline if and where global changes cause vascular plants to increase in abundance. 6 However, a refining of our findings is needed, for instance by integrating other abiotic and biotic effects such as reindeer grazing feedback on the balance between vascular plants and lichens.
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| 7. |
- Jonasson, Grethe, 1945, et al.
(författare)
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Estimation of skeletal bone mineral density by means of the trabecular pattern of the alveolar bone, its interdental thickness, and the bone mass of the mandible.
- 2001
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Ingår i: Oral surgery, oral medicine, oral pathology, oral radiology, and endodontics. - : Elsevier BV. - 1079-2104. ; 92:3, s. 346-52
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We sought to evaluate the use of the alveolar trabecular pattern, the mandibular alveolar bone mass (MABM) measured by photodensitometry, and the interdental alveolar thickness for prediction of the skeletal bone mineral density (BMD).
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| 8. |
- Jonasson, Hans G., et al.
(författare)
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Nord 2000. New Nordic prediction method for rail traffic noise
- 2001
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- A new Nordic method to predict rail traffic noise is proposed. It is based on a completeseparation of source emission and sound propagation. Each train is modelled as a numberof point sources each with a certain sound power with or without directivity. The sourcemodel is connected to point source sound propagation theory to yield the sound pressurelevel in an arbitrary receiver position. The propagation model is based on accurateanalytical models and it is capable of predicting propagation effects both with andwithout the influence of meteorological parameters. In this first version the predictionmethod has to rely on old data for the noise emission of trains.
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| 9. |
- Jonasson, Hans G., et al.
(författare)
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Nord 2000. New nordic prediction method for road traffic noise
- 2001
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- A new Nordic method to predict road traffic noise is proposed. It is based on a completeseparation of source emission and sound propagation. Each vehicle is modelled as anumber of point sources each with a certain sound power with or without directivity. Thesource model is connected to point source sound propagation theory to yield the soundpressure level in an arbitrary receiver position. The propagation model is based onaccurate analytical models and it is capable of predicting propagation effects both withand without the influence of meteorological parameters.
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| 11. |
- Monstein, Hans-Jurg, 1946-, et al.
(författare)
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Identification of enterococcal isolates by temperature gradient gel electrophoresis and partial sequence analysis of PCR-amplified 16S rDNA variable V6 regions
- 2001
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Ingår i: Acta Pathologica, Microbiologica et Immunologica Scandinavica (APMIS). - 0903-4641 .- 1600-0463. ; 109:3, s. 209-216
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Based on partial sequence analysis of PCR-amplified 16S rDNA variable V6 regions of 14 enterococcal type strains, Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus mundtii, Enterococcus gallinarum, Enterococcus avium, Enterococcus raffinosus and Enterococcus saccharolyticus showed characteristic sequence motifs which made it possible to separate them into six individual species lines. Furthermore, two species cluster groups could be identified, including (i) Enterococcus faecium, Enterococcus durans, Enterococcus hirae, Enterococcus malodoratus, and (ii) Enterococcus casseliflavus/Enterococcus flavescens, Enterococcus pseudoavium, Enterococcus dispar and Enterococcus sulfureus. There were identical DNA sequences in the V6 region within each group. Temporal temperature gradient gel electrophoresis (TTGE) of the PCR products from 16 type strains, 12 enterococcal reference strains and 8 clinical isolates revealed that a single nucleotide divergence in DNA sequences was sufficient for separation, identification and division of the studied enterococcal strains into corresponding TTGE profiles. It was concluded that partial DNA sequence analysis and TTGE profiling of PCR-amplified 16S rDNA variable V6 regions provide useful tools for the identification of clinically important Enterococcus spp.
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