In situ spectroscopy of ligand exchange reactions at the surface of colloidal gold and silver nanoparticles.

Gold and silver nanoparticles with their tunable optical and electronic properties are of great interest for a wide range of applications. Often the ligands at the surface of the nanoparticles have to be exchanged in a second step after particle formation in order to obtain a desired surface functionalization. For many techniques, this process is not accessible in situ.

Delineation of multiple chlorinated ethene sources in an industrialized area--a forensic field study using compound-specific isotope analysis.

Identification of polluters and the allocation of contaminant sources are key tasks when evaluating complex subsurface contamination with multiple and overlapping plumes, as frequently found in industrial areas. Under certain conditions, compound-specific stable isotope analysis (CSIA) may provide decisive information in such environmental litigation studies. Here, we present an illustrative case study highlighting the potential and limitations of using delta13C values of halogenated hydrocarbons (tetrachloroethene and its transformation products) as a keytracer for discriminating different contaminant sources, even in the presence of biodegradation and a complex hydrogeology.

In-vivo metabolism of VLDL-apolipoprotein-B, -CIII and -E in normolipidemic subjects.

Background And Aim: ApoE and apoC-III are important components of lipoprotein metabolism. While the function of both apoproteins is relatively well understood, little is known about the in vivo metabolism of these proteins, partly because of the lack of a standardized method to isolate these apoproteins in large sample numbers.

Methods And Results: We developed a new reverse phase HPLC method (acetonitril/phosphate gradient; Aquapore RP-300, 7 microm, 220 x 4.

[The long-run development of mortality in Germany].

The paper deals with the long-run development in mortality at individual ages in Germany by using a relative index of change in probabilities to die. The mortality at early childhood ages diminished to about one percent of what it was in the first German life table of 1871/81. Changes in infant mortality alone were responsible for 25 percent of the total increase in "life expectancy at birth" in the observation period.

Evaluation of the potential clinical and economic effects of bodyweight stabilisation with acarbose in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A decision-analytical approach.

Bodyweight is an acknowledged independent risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). The present model analysis was undertaken to investigate the clinical and economic impact of bodyweight gain in patients with type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus and its effects on the development of CHD. Based on a retrospective re-evaluation of data from the Diabetes Intervention Study (DIS), patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and stable bodyweight (group A) had a significantly lower rate of combined CHD events (30.