Production and characterization of virus-like particles and the P domain protein of GII.4 norovirus.

Noroviruses are an important cause of epidemic acute gastroenteritis in humans. In this study the production and characterization of GII.4 norovirus virus-like particles (VLPs) in insect cells is reported.

Combined anterior vaginal wall mesh with sacrospinous ligament fixation or with posterior intravaginal slingplasty for uterovaginal or vaginal vault prolapse.

Objective: To evaluate outcomes of anterior vaginal wall mesh augmentation with concomitant sacrospinous ligament fixation (SSLF) or with concomitant posterior intravaginal slingplasty (IVS) for uterovaginal or vaginal vault prolapse.

Study Design: Women with symptomatic uterovaginal or vaginal vault prolapse were randomly allocated to SSLF or IVS. All underwent concomitant anterior repair augmented with self-tailored multifilament polypropylene and polyglactin composite mesh.

Comparison of machine learning methods for classifying aphasic and non-aphasic speakers.

The performance of eight machine learning classifiers were compared with three aphasia related classification problems. The first problem contained naming data of aphasic and non-aphasic speakers tested with the Philadelphia Naming Test. The second problem included the naming data of Alzheimer and vascular disease patients tested with Finnish version of the Boston Naming Test.

Dementia as a determinant of social and health service use in the last two years of life 1996-2003.

Background: Dementia is one of the most common causes of death among old people in Finland and other countries with high life expectancies. Dementing illnesses are the most important disease group behind the need for long-term care and therefore place a considerable burden on the health and social care system. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of dementia and year of death (1998-2003) on health and social service use in the last two years of life among old people.

Performance of mutation pathogenicity prediction methods on missense variants.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are the most common form of genetic variation in humans. The number of SNPs identified in the human genome is growing rapidly, but attaining experimental knowledge about the possible disease association of variants is laborious and time-consuming. Several computational methods have been developed for the classification of SNPs according to their predicted pathogenicity.

Mental health in complex health promotion policy programmes: the contribution of programme evaluations.

Background: In order to develop policymaking, evaluation is required. The research project studied national health promotion policies concentrating on mental health promotion policy. In this paper the focus is on the position of evaluation.

Salbutamol delays human eosinophil apoptosis via a cAMP-dependent mechanism.

Eosinophils play a major role in asthma. One described mechanism leading to the impaired clearance of these cells from the lung is the delay in their programmed cell death (apoptosis). β(2)-Adrenoceptor agonists have been shown to prolong survival and delay apoptosis of eosinophils.

Lens opacities among physicians occupationally exposed to ionizing radiation--a pilot study in Finland.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of lens opacities among physicians occupationally exposed to radiation - overall and by occupational factors - and to assess the feasibility of a large-scale study for risk assessment.

Methods: Based on a nationwide registry of 1312 physicians, mostly radiologists with occupational exposure to ionizing radiation, 120 subjects were invited to participate, of which 59 (49%) consented. The inclusion criteria included (i) age 45-70 years, (ii) cumulative recorded radiation dose >10 mSv, and (iii) duration of work with dose monitoring >15 years.

P2RX7 polymorphisms Gln460Arg and His155Tyr are not associated with major depressive disorder or remission after SSRI or ECT.

Purinergic receptor P2X, ligand-gated ion channel, 7 (P2RX7) gene polymorphism, has been suggested to be associated with major depressive disorder (MDD). The association between P2RX7 gene polymorphism and remission after serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has not previously been studied. The aims of the present study were to test for an association between P2RX7 polymorphisms Gln460Arg (rs2230912) and His155Tyr (rs208294) and MDD in two patient populations compared to controls.

Testing for cubic smoothing splines under dependent data.

In most research on smoothing splines the focus has been on estimation, while inference, especially hypothesis testing, has received less attention. By defining design matrices for fixed and random effects and the structure of the covariance matrices of random errors in an appropriate way, the cubic smoothing spline admits a mixed model formulation, which places this nonparametric smoother firmly in a parametric setting. Thus nonlinear curves can be included with random effects and random coefficients.

Do socioeconomic differences in tobacco use exist also in developing countries? A study of Ghanaian adolescents.

Background: In Western countries, tobacco use is most prevalent among adolescents in lower socioeconomic groups. The association between socioeconomic status (SES) and tobacco use among adolescents in developing countries is unexplored. Using multiple SES measures, we investigated this association among adolescents in Ghana.

The role of parents, friends and teachers in adolescents' cigarette smoking and tombak dipping in Sudan.

Objective: To assess the influence of smoking and tombak (local smokeless tobacco) dipping by parents, teachers and friends on cigarette smoking and tombak dipping by school-going Sudanese adolescents.

Methods: This was a school-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2005-2006. Logistic regression was used for the analysis.

Effects on mitochondrial transcription of manipulating mTERF protein levels in cultured human HEK293 cells.

Background: Based on its activities in vitro, the mammalian mitochondrial transcription termination factor mTERF has been proposed to regulate mitochondrial transcription by favouring termination at its high-affinity binding immediately downstream of the rDNA segment of mitochondrial DNA, and initiation selectively at the PH1 site of the heavy-strand promoter. This defines an rDNA transcription unit distinct from the 'global' heavy-strand transcription unit initiating at PH2. However, evidence that the relative activities of the two heavy-strand transcription units are modulated by mTERF in vivo is thus far lacking.

Expression of the yeast NADH dehydrogenase Ndi1 in Drosophila confers increased lifespan independently of dietary restriction.

Mutations in mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation complex I are associated with multiple pathologies, and complex I has been proposed as a crucial regulator of animal longevity. In yeast, the single-subunit NADH dehydrogenase Ndi1 serves as a non-proton-translocating alternative enzyme that replaces complex I, bringing about the reoxidation of intramitochondrial NADH. We have created transgenic strains of Drosophila that express yeast NDI1 ubiquitously.

Inflammatory markers and physical performance among nonagenarians.

Background: Recent studies have suggested that inflammation may play an important role in aging and the development of disabilities, but knowledge about its importance in the development of muscle weakness and functional disabilities in very old people is limited. This study examined associations between inflammatory markers and physical performance among nonagenarians.

Methods: The population-based sample consisted of 197 women and 65 men aged 90 years.

Phylogeny and expression of carbonic anhydrase-related proteins.

Background: Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are found in many organisms, in which they contribute to several important biological processes. The vertebrate alpha-CA family consists of 16 subfamilies, three of which (VIII, X and XI) consist of acatalytic proteins. These are named carbonic anhydrase related proteins (CARPs), and their inactivity is due to absence of one or more Zn-binding histidine residues.

Indoors forensic entomology: colonization of human remains in closed environments by specific species of sarcosaprophagous flies.

Fly species that are commonly recovered on human corpses concealed in houses or other dwellings are often dependent on human created environments and might have special features in their biology that allow them to colonize indoor cadavers. In this study we describe nine typical cases involving forensically relevant flies on human remains found indoors in southern Finland. Eggs, larvae and puparia were reared to adult stage and determined to species.

Detection of human coronaviruses in children with acute gastroenteritis.

Background: Human coronaviruses (HCoVs) are known respiratory pathogens. Moreover, coronavirus-like particles have been seen by electron microscope in stools, and SARS-HCoV has been isolated from intestinal tissue and detected in stool samples.

Objectives: To find out if HCoVs can be found in stools of children with acute gastroenteritis and to assess the significance of HCoVs in the etiology of acute gastroenteritis in children.

Performance of protein stability predictors.

Stability is a fundamental property affecting function, activity, and regulation of biomolecules. Stability changes are often found for mutated proteins involved in diseases. Stability predictors computationally predict protein-stability changes caused by mutations.

Mammalian mitochondrial DNA replication intermediates are essentially duplex but contain extensive tracts of RNA/DNA hybrid.

We demonstrate, using transmission electron microscopy and immunopurification with an antibody specific for RNA/DNA hybrid, that intact mitochondrial DNA replication intermediates are essentially duplex throughout their length but contain extensive RNA tracts on one strand. However, the extent of preservation of RNA in such molecules is highly dependent on the preparative method used. These findings strongly support the strand-coupled model of mitochondrial DNA replication involving RNA incorporation throughout the lagging strand.

Favorite green, waterside and urban environments, restorative experiences and perceived health in Finland.

The study investigated restorative experiences in relation to respondents' everyday favorite places and analysed the associations between the use of favorite places, restorative experiences, their determinants and aspects of self-rated health. A simple random sample of 1273 inhabitants, aged between 15 and 75 years, of two major cities in Finland (Helsinki and Tampere) completed a postal questionnaire. A subsample of the answers from inhabitants with a self-reported distance from home to a favorite place of 15 km or less (n = 1089) was analysed.

Feeding patterns and behaviors during home supplementation of underweight Malawian children with lipid-based nutrient supplements or corn-soy blend.

The way caregivers use supplementary food for undernourished children and integrate it into feeding patterns may influence the benefits achieved by supplementation. We studied feeding patterns and behaviors in 170 underweight 6-17-month-olds who received either lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) (n=85) or corn-soy blend (CSB) (n=85) during a 12-week intervention trial in southern Malawi. Observational data were collected during one 11h home visit per participant.

Computer-associated health complaints and sources of ergonomic instructions in computer-related issues among Finnish adolescents: a cross-sectional study.

Background: The use of computers has increased among adolescents, as have musculoskeletal symptoms. There is evidence that these symptoms can be reduced through an ergonomics approach and through education. The purpose of this study was to examine where adolescents had received ergonomic instructions related to computer use, and whether receiving these instructions was associated with a reduced prevalence of computer-associated health complaints.

Structural and functional characteristics of xenavidin, the first frog avidin from Xenopus tropicalis.

Background: Avidins are proteins with extraordinarily high ligand-binding affinity, a property which is used in a wide array of life science applications. Even though useful for biotechnology and nanotechnology, the biological function of avidins is not fully understood. Here we structurally and functionally characterise a novel avidin named xenavidin, which is to our knowledge the first reported avidin from a frog.