Prospective Association Between Tobacco Use and at-Risk Alcohol Consumption Among Swedish Adolescents: Outlining the Influence of Tobacco Product, Frequency of Use and Gender in the LoRDIA Cohort.

Tobacco use is not only a major risk factor for morbidity and mortality but also associated with alcohol misuse. While personality traits may be driving this association, the psychoactive component of tobacco, nicotine, may also be a major risk factor. The aim with this study was to further assess the prospective association between tobacco use and alcohol consumption, with special emphasis on the role of the tobacco product used (cigarettes and Swedish snus), frequency of use, and gender.

Depressive symptoms, functional impairment, and health-related quality of life in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: A population-based study.

Background: Maximising quality of life is a central goal for all healthcare, especially when dealing with dementing disorders. In this study we aimed to compare health-related quality of life (HRQoL), depressive symptoms and functional impairment between individuals with and without idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) from the general population.

Methods: A total of 122 individuals, 30 with iNPH (median age 75 years, 67 females) underwent neurological examinations and computed tomography of the brain with standardised rating of imaging findings and clinical symptoms.

Obstetric outcomes and uptake of care among 149 non-Swedish speaking migrant women attending a birth preparation visit during pregnancy - An observational study from Sweden.

Introduction: In Sweden almost one third of the population is born in another country and a large number of the women who do not speak Swedish are of reproductive age. Women migrating from low-income countries have higher risks for poor obstetric outcomes than receiving country-born citizens. INFOR (a Swedish word for "before" or "ahead of") is an intervention offering language-assisted, individual birth preparation for non-Swedish speaking pregnant women unfamiliar with the maternity care system.

Legal assessment of ingrown horns and other horn-related anomalies in cattle and sheep.

Cattle and sheep horns have the potential to grow in such a way that the horn bends toward the animal's head and, if left untreated, may penetrate the skin, causing pressure, pain, and suffering. According to the Swedish Animal Welfare Act, animals must be looked after in a way that prevents ingrown horns; otherwise, the person responsible for the animal may be prosecuted. Here, we present a review of 32 legal cases that occurred in Sweden between 2008 and 2022 for which the charge involved horn-related anomalies in cattle or sheep.

Bolus rheology of texture adjusted food-Effect of age.

Swallowing disorders, or dysphagia, affect a large part of the population due to factors such as degenerative diseases, medication side effects or simply age-related impairment of physiological oropharyngeal function. The management of dysphagia is mainly handles through texture-modified foods of progressively softer, smoother, moister textures, depending on the severity of the disorder. Rheological and physiological-related properties of boluses were determined for a group of five older persons (average age, 74) for a set of texture-modified foods: bread, cheese and tomato and the combination into a sandwich.

Inter-Rater Agreement for Diagnosing Adenomyosis Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Transvaginal Ultrasonography.

Our aim was to compare the inter-rater agreement about transvaginal ultrasonography (TVS) with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with regard to diagnosing adenomyosis and for assessing various predefined imaging features of adenomyosis, in the same set of women. The study cohort included 51 women, prospectively, consecutively recruited based on a clinical suspicion of adenomyosis. MRIs and TVS videoclips and 3D volumes were retrospectively assessed by four experienced radiologists and five experienced sonographers, respectively.

Bromocriptine inhibits proliferation in the endometrium from women with adenomyosis.

Objective: Bromocriptine treatment has been shown to reduce menstrual bleeding and pain in women with adenomyosis in a pilot clinical trial. The underlying mechanism contributing to the treatment effect is however unknown. The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of bromocriptine on the proliferation and migration properties of the endometrium in women with adenomyosis, by assessing cellular and molecular changes after six months of vaginal bromocriptine treatment.

Longitudinal neuropsychological trajectories in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: a population-based study.

Background: Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is a progressive syndrome affecting gait, incontinence, and cognition in a significant number of older adults. Still, prospective studies on early development of symptoms are scarce.

Aim: To investigate how neuropsychological functions develop before and in already diagnosed iNPH over a two-year period in a population-based material.

Remote Sensing of the Nano-Rheological Properties of Soft Materials Using Magnetic Nanoparticles and Magnetic AC Susceptometry.

We have developed a nano-rheological characterization tool to extract the frequency- and scale-dependent rheological properties of soft materials during oral processing. Taking advantage of AC susceptometry, the dynamic magnetization of magnetic nanoparticles blended in the matrix material is measured. The magnetic AC susceptibility spectra of the particles are affected by the viscosity and mechanical modulus of the matrix material and provide the rheological properties of the matrix.

Sustained inhibitory transmission but dysfunctional dopamine D2 receptor signaling in dorsal striatal subregions following protracted abstinence from amphetamine.

Behavioral sensitization to amphetamine is a complex phenomenon that engages several neurotransmitter systems and brain regions. While dysregulated signaling in the mesolimbic dopamine system repeatedly has been linked to behavioral sensitization, later research has implicated dorsal striatal circuits and GABAergic neurotransmission in contributing to behavioral transformation elicited by amphetamine. The aim of this study was thus to determine if repeated amphetamine exposure followed by abstinence would alter inhibitory neurotransmission in dorsal striatal subregions.

Liver health literacy and social stigma of liver disease: A general population e-survey.

Background: Health literacy is increasingly recognized as an essential determinant for the health of the population. Liver patients report perceived stigma to be a considerable problem. Little is however known about liver health literacy in the general population and to what extent liver disease is considered stigmatizing in comparison with other chronic diseases.

Vaginal bromocriptine for treatment of adenomyosis: Impact on magnetic resonance imaging and transvaginal ultrasound.

Objective: Vaginal bromocriptine significantly reduces heavy menstrual bleeding and pain in women with diffuse adenomyosis. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate whether imaging findings of adenomyosis, as assessed by transvaginal ultrasound (TVU) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reflect changes induced by the bromocriptine treatment.

Study Design: Eighteen women, aged 35-50, with heavy menstrual bleeding reporting Pictorial Blood Loss Assessment Chart (PBLAC) scores >100 and diffuse adenomyosis according to both MRI and TVU were included.

Prevalence of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: A prospective, population-based study.

Background: Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) causing gait impairment, dementia and urinary incontinence among the elderly, is probably under-diagnosed and under-treated. Despite being known since the 1960s, there is still a lack of prospective, population-based studies on the prevalence of iNPH. Such studies are warranted to minimize selection bias and estimate the true prevalence of the disease.

Vaginal bromocriptine improves pain, menstrual bleeding and quality of life in women with adenomyosis: A pilot study.

Introduction: Adenomyosis is a benign uterine disease where endometrial glands and stroma are found within the myometrium surrounded by an area of hypertrophic myometrium. Symptomatology includes heavy menstrual bleeding and pelvic pain. The pathogenesis of adenomyosis is not known; however, animal models have shown increased uterine concentration of prolactin as a risk factor.

Stick-slip motion and controlled filling speed by the geometric design of soft micro-channels.

Hypothesis: Liquid can move by capillary action through interconnected porous materials, as in fabric or paper towels. Today mass transport is controlled by chemical modification. It is, however, possible to direct mass transport by geometrical modifications.

Dynamics of capillary transport in semi-solid channels.

Capillary action has been described by Lucas and Washburn and extensively studied experimentally in hard materials, but few studies have examined capillary action in soft materials such as hydrogels. In tissue engineering, cells or dispersions must be often distributed within a hydrogel via microporous paths. Capillary action is one way to disperse such substances.

Guanine Can Direct Binding Specificity of Ru-dipyridophenazine (dppz) Complexes to DNA through Steric Effects.

X-ray crystal structures of three Λ-[Ru(L) dppz] complexes (dppz=dipyridophenazine; L=1,10-phenanthroline (phen), 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy)) bound to d((5BrC)GGC/GCCG) showed the compounds intercalated at a 5'-CG-3' step. The compounds bind through canted intercalation, with the binding angle determined by the guanine NH group, in contrast to symmetrical intercalation previously observed at 5'-TA-3' sites. This result suggests that canted intercalation is preferred at 5'-CG-3' sites even though the site itself is symmetrical, and we hypothesise that symmetrical intercalation in a 5'-CG-3' step could give rise to a longer luminescence lifetime than canted intercalation.

DNA intercalation optimized by two-step molecular lock mechanism.

The diverse properties of DNA intercalators, varying in affinity and kinetics over several orders of magnitude, provide a wide range of applications for DNA-ligand assemblies. Unconventional intercalation mechanisms may exhibit high affinity and slow kinetics, properties desired for potential therapeutics. We used single-molecule force spectroscopy to probe the free energy landscape for an unconventional intercalator that binds DNA through a novel two-step mechanism in which the intermediate and final states bind DNA through the same mono-intercalating moiety.

Dissecting the Dynamic Pathways of Stereoselective DNA Threading Intercalation.

DNA intercalators that have high affinity and slow kinetics are developed for potential DNA-targeted therapeutics. Although many natural intercalators contain multiple chiral subunits, only intercalators with a single chiral unit have been quantitatively probed. Dumbbell-shaped DNA threading intercalators represent the next order of structural complexity relative to simple intercalators, and can provide significant insights into the stereoselectivity of DNA-ligand intercalation.

Safer fluid prescribing at North Bristol Trust: Bringing practice in line with NICE Guidance with a redesign of the fluid prescription chart.

The National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) released new fluid guidelines following data suggesting 20% of patients receiving fluids suffer adversely (2013). This quality improvement group assessed fluid prescribing in a tertiary teaching centre and introduced a new fluid- prescribing chart to align practice with NICE recommendations. Notes and corresponding fluid prescription charts were reviewed for evidence of (1) indication, (2) co-morbidities, and (3) further management as surrogate markers of safe prescribing in accordance with NICE.

Constructing accountability in inter-organisational collaboration: the implications of a narrow performance-based focus.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse how accounts of collaboration practice were made and used to construct accountability in the empirical context of coordination associations, a Swedish form of collaboration between four authorities in health and social care. They feature pooled budgets, joint leadership and joint reporting systems, intended to facilitate both collaboration and (shared) accountability.

Design/methodology/approach: Empirical data were collected in field observations in local, regional and national settings.

Bridging ligand length controls at selectivity and enantioselectivity of binuclear ruthenium threading intercalators.

The slow dissociation of DNA threading intercalators makes them interesting as model compounds in the search for new DNA targeting drugs, as there appears to be a correlation between slow dissociation and biological activity. Thus, it would be of great value to understand the mechanisms controlling threading intercalation, and for this purpose we have investigated how the length of the bridging ligand of binuclear ruthenium threading intercalators affects their DNA binding properties. We have synthesised a new binuclear ruthenium threading intercalator with slower dissociation kinetics from ct-DNA than has ever been observed for any ruthenium complex with any type of DNA, a property that we attribute to the increased distance between the ruthenium centres of the new complex.

Lifetime heterogeneity of DNA-bound dppz complexes originates from distinct intercalation geometries determined by complex-complex interactions.

Despite the extensive interest in structurally explaining the photophysics of DNA-bound [Ru(phen)(2)dppz](2+) and [Ru(bpy)(2)dppz](2+), the origin of the two distinct emission lifetimes of the pure enantiomers when intercalated into DNA has remained elusive. In this report, we have combined a photophysical characterization with a detailed isothermal titration calorimetry study to investigate the binding of the pure Δ and Λ enantiomers of both complexes with [poly(dAdT)](2). We find that a binding model with two different binding geometries, proposed to be symmetric and canted intercalation from the minor groove, as recently reported in high-resolution X-ray structures, is required to appropriately explain the data.

Actor or arena: contrasting translations of a law on interorganizational integration.

Purpose: A Swedish framework law has enabled integration between public agencies in vocational rehabilitation. With the support of this law, coordination associations can be formed to fund and organize joint activities. The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze how the law has been interpreted and translated into local coordination associations and how local institutional logics have developed to guide the organization of these associations.

DNA sequence and ancillary ligand modulate the biexponential emission decay of intercalated [Ru(L)2dppz]2+ enantiomers.

The bi-exponential emission decay of [Ru(L)(2)dppz](2+) (L = N,N'-diimine ligand) bound to DNA has been studied as a function of polynucleotide sequence, enantiomer, and nature of L (phenanthroline vs. bipyridine). The lifetimes (τ(i)) and pre-exponential factors (α(i)) depend on all three parameters.