We wanted to investigate the relationship of N-terminal pro brain natriuretic peptide (Nt-proBNP) to metabolic and hemodynamic cardiovascular (CV) risk factors in the general population. From a population-based sample of 2656 people 41, 51, 61, or 71 years of age, we selected 2070 patients without previous stroke or myocardial infarction who did not receive any CV, antidiabetic, or lipid-loweri...

The teaching of Languages for Specific Purposes (LSP) in the second half of the twentieth centuryhas been greatly influenced both by the communicative approach and by developments inresearch in discourse analysis, particularly with reference to genre. The integration of researchin corpus linguistics in the language-learning environment has been a more recent phenomenon,with publ...

The conditional expression of hairpin constructs in Drosophila melanogaster has emerged in recent years as a method of choice in functional genomic studies. To date, upstream activating site– driven RNA interference constructs have been inserted into the genome randomly using P-element–mediated transformation, which can result in false negatives due to variable expression. To avoid this problem...

This article examines the issues of learning engagement and describes the socio-cultural context of Quest Atlantis’ (QA) implementation in a series of science lessons among primary Four (10 to 11 years old) students in Singapore. QA is a Multi-user Virtual Environment (MUVE). It uses 3D virtual technology to create an interactive environment to immerse children aged between 8 and 12 years in ed...

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is an intercellular signalling mechanism that is present in the islets of Langerhans and plays a role in the modulation of insulin secretion and expansion of the β-cell mass. The downstream signalling pathways mediating these effects are poorly understood. Mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) signalling is a key intracellular pathway involved in ener...

Aloe arborescens Miller var. natalensis Berger (Japanese name Kidachi aloe) is widely used in Japan, not only as a traditional remedy for gastrointestinal complaints, skin injury and burns, but also as an ingredient in health foods (Fujita, 1993; Yamamoto et al., 1995; Beppu et al., 2003). Previously, we demonstrated that freeze-dried whole leaves of Aloe arborescens var. natalensis (hereinafte...

beta-thalassemia (beta-thal) is characterized by disturbances of the reproductive system. The aim of the present study was: 1) to assess the hypothalamic- pituitary-gonadal axis in patients with beta-thal in relation to their phenotype and 2) to determine prognostic features of current gonadal status. We studied 135 patients (67 males and 68 females) with beta-thal through history, physical exa...

We previously found that prolonged isoproterenol (Iso) infusion in rats impaired the ability of beta-adrenoceptor (beta-AR) agonists to increase alveolar liquid clearance (ALC). Here, we determined if postreceptor defects in beta-AR signaling contribute to this impairment. Iso was infused using subcutaneous miniosmotic pumps (4, 40, or 400 microg. kg-1. h-1) in rats for 48 h. At this time, fors...