Familial clustering of a disease is defined as the occurrence of the disease within some families in excess of what would be expected from the occurrence in the population. It has been demonstrated ...for several cancer types, ranging from rare cancers as the adenomatosis-coli-associated colon cancer or the Li-Fraumeni syndrome to more common cancers as breast cancer and colon cancer. Familial clustering, however, is merely an epidemiological pattern, and it does not tell whether genetic or environmental causes or both in combination are responsible for the familial clustering. Familial clustering may be due to genetic predisposition to the disease, but exposure to environmental factors--shared by members of some families, but not by members of other families--may also cause familial clustering and hence mimic genetic inheritance in the study of nuclear families. Based on assumptions regarding the individual steps in the biological process starting with exposure to carcinogens and ending with death from disseminated cancer we suggest that genetic and environmental factors may both be involved in most of these steps. The present paper focuses on research methodologies necessary to discriminate between the effect of genes and family environment in the development of cancer.
Signatures of vessels in ENVISAT AP-mode imagery Olsen, R.B.; Arnesen, T.N.; Eldhuset, K.
IGARSS 2004. 2004 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium,
2004, Volume:
6
Conference Proceeding
A series of ENVISAT AP mode data has been collected over the Nome field off the coast of central Norway. An oil production vessel has been imaged with different ASAR beams and polarisations to study ...how its signature changes with varying imaging parameters. Cross-polarised data gives better contrast for automated detection compared to co-polarised data, when the incidence angle is small.
The renal hemodynamic and excretory effects of atriopeptin III were studied in normal rat kidneys and in kidneys made dysfunctional by the application and release of a 24 h unilateral ureteral ...obstruction (UO24h), which decreased baseline glomerular filtration rate (GFR) by 80%. Atriopeptin III (0.5 nmol/kg i.v.) decreased blood pressure (10-15%) for more than 30 min, and increased urine flow rate and sodium excretion in normal and diseased kidneys for ca. 15 min. An initial enhancement of renal blood flow (ca. 20%) was apparent for less than 5 min. Atriopeptin III (bolus injection) temporarily enhanced the GFR 2-3-fold in the diseased (UO24h) kidneys, whereas no changes of GFR were noted in control kidneys. When atriopeptin III was continuously infused at a rate of 0.1 nmol/kg per min, GFR in UO24h kidneys increased from 0.28 +/- 0.08 ml/g per min to a stable level of 0.82 +/- 0.10 ml/g per min. Again, GFR in the control kidneys remained unaffected (1.25 +/- 0.08 ml/g per min). The enhancement of GFR in the UO24h kidney was associated with large increases of urine flow rate and sodium excretion.
In two enclosure experiments, Daphnia pulex ingested cryptophytes, bacteria, and probably detritus particles. The specific clearance rate of the zooplankton increased when the concentration of food ...decreased. The P : C ratio of the food also increased. More than 92% of the particulate phosphorus was located in the living cells (algae and bacteria); the detritus was practically phosphorus-free. The specific release rate of phosphorus estimated for the daphnids by use of the recycling model increased as the P : C ratio of the food increased and became zero at a critical low P : C ratio, Q, of 6-8 mu g P mg super(-1) C. At this concentration, all the ingested phosphorus is needed for growth and reproduction, and no release of the element can be expected. This indicates that Daphnia may experience P limitation in nature, since the P : C ratio of P-starved algae and detritus may be considerably <6-8 mu g P mg super(-1) C. The use of mass balance also appears to be suitable for modeling phosphorus and carbon fluxes super(through zooplankton in pelagic ecosystems.)
In two enclosure experiments, Daphnia pulex ingested cryptophytes, bacteria, and probably detritus particles. The specific clearance rate of the zooplankton increased when the concentration of food ...decreased. The P : C ratio of the food also increased. More than 92% of the particulate phosphorus was located in the living cells (algae and bacteria); the detritus was practically phosphorus‐free. The specific release rate of phosphorus estimated for the daphnids by use of the recycling model increased as the P : C ratio of the food increased and became zero at a critical low P : C ratio, Q, of 6–8 µg P mg−1 C. At this concentration, all the ingested phosphorus is needed for growth and reproduction, and no release of the element can be expected. This indicates that Daphnia may experience P limitation in nature, since the P : C ratio of P‐starved algae and detritus may be considerably <6–8 µg P mg−1 C.
The use of mass balance also appears to be suitable for modeling phosphorus and carbon fluxes through zooplankton in pelagic ecosystems.
Correspondence analysis is put forward as a statistical tool of the data reduction type, useful for abundance data. The method is applied to three research examples from the archaeology of northern ...Norway. It is pointed out that the method can be used as a device for automatic seriation.
A paraprotein has been isolated from the urine of a patient with primary amyloidosis. Immunologically it was classified as a free lambda light chain. The molecular weight was 22500 daltons. ...N-terminal amino acid analysis demonstrated homology with lambda IV variable subgroup in 19 of the first 20 amino acids. Extensive homology with lambda IV chains was demonstrated also in the hypervariable region of the light chain. An antiserum produced against the paraprotein was rendered idiotype-specific by absorption with pooled human light chains. This antiserum stained tissue specimen from the rectum and liver of the patient by the indirect immunofluorescence technique. This strongly indicates that the free lambda light chains that can be isolated from the urine are also deposited in the tissues as amyloid substance.
Background: Diabetes has been associated with an increased risk of several cancers, notably cancers of the pancreas, liver, endometrium, and kidney. Since most previous studies have involved a ...limited sample size or focused on specific cancer sites, we conducted a comprehensive assessment of the risk of cancer in a nationwide cohort of diabetics in Denmark. Methods: Discharge records of 109 581 individuals hospitalized with a diagnosis of diabetes from 1977 through 1989 were linked with national cancer registry records through 1993. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for specific cancer sites. Results: The SIRs for primary liver cancer were 4.0 (95% confidence interval CI = 3.5–4.6) in males and 2.1 (95% CI = 1.6–2.7) in females. These SIRs remained elevated with increasing years of follow-up and after exclusion of patients with reported risk factors (e.g., cirrhosis and hepatitis) or patients whose cancers were diagnosed at autopsy. Kidney cancer risk was also elevated, with SIRs of 1.4 (95% CI = 1.2–1.6) in males and 1.7 (95% CI = 1.4–1.9) in females. For both sexes combined, the SIR for pancreatic cancer was 2.1 (95% CI = 1.9–2.4), with a follow-up time of 1–4 years; this SIR declined to 1.3 (95% CI = 1.1–1.6) after 5–9 years of follow-up. Excess risks were also observed for biliary tract and endometrial cancers. The SIRs for kidney and endometrial cancers declined somewhat after exclusion of diabetics with reported obesity. Conclusions: Patients hospitalized with a diagnosis of diabetes appear to be at higher risk of developing cancers of the liver, biliary tract, pancreas, endometrium, and kidney. The elevated risks of endometrial and kidney cancers, however, may be confounded by obesity.
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