A Novel RNA Aptamer as Synthetic Inducer of DasR Controlled Transcription.

Progress in the synthetic biology field is driven by the development of new tools for synthetic circuit engineering. Traditionally, the focus has relied on protein-based designs. In recent years, the use of RNA-based tools has tremendously increased, due to their versatile functionality and applicability.

Structural Changes in Aptamers are Essential for Synthetic Riboswitch Engineering.

Synthetic riboswitches are powerful tools in synthetic biology in which sensing and execution are consolidated in a single RNA molecule. By using SELEX to select aptamers in vitro, synthetic riboswitches can in theory be engineered against any ligand of choice. Surprisingly, very few in vitro selected aptamers have been used for the engineering of synthetic riboswitches.

Knee injuries in children and adolescents.

As more children and adolescents are involved in sporting activities, the number of injuries to immature knees rises. We will focus on three entities: ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament, patellar dislocation, and meniscal injuries. There is a trend in recent literature toward early reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament in children and adolescents.

Limitation of treatment at the end of life: an empirical-ethical analysis regarding the practices of physician members of the German Society for Palliative Medicine.

Objectives: To determine the frequencies and types of limitation of medical treatment performed by physician members of the German Society for Palliative Medicine and to analyse the findings with respect to clinical and ethical aspects of end-of-life practices.

Design: Cross-sectional postal survey.

Setting: Data collection via the secretary of the German Society for Palliative Medicine using the German language version of the EURELD survey instrument.