16-BAC/SDS-PAGE analysis of membrane proteins of yeast mitochondria purified by free flow electrophoresis.

Mitochondria are essential organelles in cellular metabolism. These organelles are bounded by two membranes, the outer and inner membrane. Especially the inner membrane comprises a high content of proteins, for example, the protein complexes of the respiratory chain.

KEGG spider: interpretation of genomics data in the context of the global gene metabolic network.

KEGG spider is a web-based tool for interpretation of experimentally derived gene lists in order to gain understanding of metabolism variations at a genomic level. KEGG spider implements a 'pathway-free' framework that overcomes a major bottleneck of enrichment analyses: it provides global models uniting genes from different metabolic pathways. Analyzing a number of experimentally derived gene lists, we demonstrate that KEGG spider provides deeper insights into metabolism variations in comparison to existing methods.

Domestic cat allergen and allergic sensitisation in young children.

Studies have presented conflicting associations between cat allergen exposure and sensitisation and atopic disease. We therefore investigated the association between the observed domestic cat allergen level and cat sensitisation in young children in four study populations from three European countries. We recruited children from a nested case-control study, which is composed of four ongoing birth cohorts conducted in three European countries.

Concentration of oxygenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygen free radical formation from urban particulate matter.

PM2.5 filter samples were collected in summer 2005 at an urban background site in Augsburg, Germany. They were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and their oxygenated derivatives (O-PAH) using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

Social factors, allergen, endotoxin, and dust mass in mattress.

Unlabelled: Indoor environment has been associated with allergic disease. Further, it has been observed that the prevalences of allergic sensitization are different in different social groups. We therefore investigated the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and indoor bio-contaminants.

Modeling the Hes1 oscillator.

Somitogenesis describes the segmentation of vertebrate embryonic bodies, which is thought to be induced by ultradian clocks (i.e., clocks with relatively short cycles compared to circadian clocks).

Fine particles, a major threat to children.

Background: There is a growing body of evidence for serious health consequences of exposure to ambient air pollution. The general question of who is susceptible is one of the most important gaps in current knowledge regarding particulate matter (PM)-related health effects. Who is susceptible depends on the specific health endpoint being evaluated and the level and length of exposure.

Selenium status alters tumour differentiation but not incidence or latency of pancreatic adenocarcinomas in Ela-TGF-alpha p53+/ mice.

Genetic predisposition and environmental factors act in concert in the pathogenesis of multi-factorial diseases. Selenoproteins represent fundamental antioxidative systems for the maintenance of cellular redox homeostasis, which is altered in various disease processes. Optimal function of selenoproteins requires availability of sufficient amounts of the essential trace element selenium, but in many countries the nutritive selenium supply is regarded insufficient.

Air pollution and inflammation (interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, fibrinogen) in myocardial infarction survivors.

Background: Numerous studies have found that ambient air pollution has been associated with cardiovascular disease exacerbation.

Objectives: Given previous findings, we hypothesized that particulate air pollution might induce systemic inflammation in myocardial infarction (MI) survivors, contributing to an increased vulnerability to elevated concentrations of ambient particles.

Methods: A prospective longitudinal study of 1,003 MI survivors was performed in six European cities between May 2003 and July 2004.

Cell-based simulation of dynamic expression patterns in the presomitic mesoderm.

To model dynamic expression patterns in somitogenesis we developed a Java-application for simulating gene regulatory networks in many cells in parallel and visualising the results using the Java3D API, thus simulating the collective behaviour of many thousand cells. According to the 'clock-and-wave-front' model mesodermal segmentation of vertebrate embryos is regulated by a 'segmentation clock', which oscillates with a period of about 2h in mice, and a 'wave front' moving back with the growing caudal end of the presomitic mesoderm. The clock is realised through cycling expression of genes such as Hes1 and Hes7, whose gene products repress the transcription of their encoding genes in a negative feedback loop.

Trends in the human sex odds at birth in Europe and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident.

To investigate trends in the sex odds before and after the Chernobyl accident, gender-specific annual birth statistics were obtained from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Norway, Poland, and Sweden between 1982 and 1992. For parts of Germany, annual birth statistics and fallout measurements after Chernobyl are available at the district level. Trend models allowing for discontinuities of the male birth proportions are suggested.

Quantification of bacterial RubisCO genes in soils by cbbL targeted real-time PCR.

Soils harbor a high diversity of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) large subunit coding genes (cbbL). Real-time PCR was used to quantify this gene in differently managed agricultural soils and soil microhabitats. We developed primers and a TaqMan probe that target the "red-like" RubisCO gene cbbL.

Response of soil microbial biomass and community structures to conventional and organic farming systems under identical crop rotations.

In this study the influence of different farming systems on microbial community structure was analyzed using soil samples from the DOK long-term field experiment in Switzerland, which comprises organic (BIODYN and BIOORG) and conventional (CONFYM and CONMIN) farming systems as well as an unfertilized control (NOFERT). We examined microbial communities in winter wheat plots at two different points in the crop rotation (after potatoes and after maize). Employing extended polar lipid analysis up to 244 different phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) and phospholipid ether lipids (PLEL) were detected.

Longitudinal study on cat allergen exposure and the development of allergy in young children.

Background: The influence of cat allergen exposure in early childhood on the development of sensitization and allergic diseases is complex. Little is known about the natural course of the sensitization development within individuals.

Objective: We investigated the association between cat allergen exposure in infancy and cat ownership and cat contact during childhood and the development of cat sensitization and allergic diseases up to age 6 years using a longitudinal analysis approach.

The big ban on bituminous coal sales revisited: serious epidemics and pronounced trends feign excess mortality previously attributed to heavy black-smoke exposure.

The effect of banning bituminous coal sales on the black-smoke concentration and the mortality rates in Dublin, Ireland, has been analyzed recently. Based on the application of standard epidemiological procedures, the authors concluded that, as a result of the ban, the total nontrauma death rate was reduced strongly (-8.0% unadjusted, -5.

Embryonic stem cells produce neurotrophins in response to cerebral tissue extract: Cell line-dependent differences.

In the present study, we compare the capacity of two different embryonic stem (ES) cell lines to secrete neurotrophins in response to cerebral tissue extract derived from healthy or injured rat brains. The intrinsic capacity of the embryonic cell lines BAC7 (feeder cell-dependent cultivation) to release brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) or neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) exceeded the release of these factors by CGR8 cells (feeder cell-free growth) by factors of 10 and 4, respectively. Nerve growth factor (NGF) was secreted only by BAC7 cells.

Gene variants of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 and components of metabolic syndrome in KORA S4, Augsburg.

Objective: Monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1) has been suggested to be involved in the development of several components of metabolic syndrome (MetS). The present study investigated the association of nine MCP-1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with MetS, type 2 diabetes mellitus and metabolic risk factors.

Subjects And Methods: The population-based study sample comprised 1630 subjects aged 55-74 years from KORA S4 (Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg Survey 4).

Ultrafine particles and platelet activation in patients with coronary heart disease--results from a prospective panel study.

Background: Epidemiological studies on health effects of air pollution have consistently shown adverse cardiovascular effects. Toxicological studies have provided evidence for thrombogenic effects of particles.A prospective panel study in a susceptible population was conducted in Erfurt, Germany, to study the effects of daily changes in ambient particles on various blood cells and soluble CD40ligand (sCD40L, also known as CD154), a marker for platelet activation that can cause increased coagulation and inflammation.

Impact of parental education and income inequality on children's food intake.

Objective: To analyse the association between socio-economic indicators and diet among 2-year-old children, by assessing the independent contribution of parental education and equivalent income to food intake.

Design: The analysis was based on data from a prospective birth cohort study. Information on diet was obtained using a semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire.

Soluble thrombomodulin as a predictor of type 2 diabetes: results from the MONICA/KORA Augsburg case-cohort study, 1984-1998.

Aims/hypothesis: Previous studies have shown an inverse association between soluble thrombomodulin (sTM) and incident CHD, but there is a lack of data on the association between sTM and type 2 diabetes. Since CHD and type 2 diabetes share many risk factors, the aim of this study was to assess whether elevated sTM levels are associated with a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes.

Materials And Methods: A case-cohort study was performed in initially healthy middle-aged men and women based on data from the Monitoring of Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Disease/Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (MONICA/KORA) studies conducted between 1984 and 1998.

Daytime resolved analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in urban aerosol samples - impact of sources and meteorological conditions.

Urban aerosol was collected in a summer and a winter campaign for 7 and 3 days, respectively. Low volume samples were taken with a time resolution of 160 min using a filter/sorption cartridge system extended by an ozone scrubber. Concentrations of mainly particle associated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and oxidised PAH (O-PAH) were determined by gas chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry.

Urban background particulate matter and allergic sensitization in adults of ECRHS II.

Background: Epidemiological studies have shown weak or inconsistent associations between ambient air pollutants and allergic sensitization. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether regional urban air pollution may partly explain the large variation in the prevalence of allergic sensitization across cities of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) II.

Methods: ECRHS is a cross-sectional survey initiated in 29 countries across Europe in the 1990s (ECRHS I) with a follow-up conducted 10 years later (ECRHS II).

Neural differentiation of embryonic stem cells is induced by signalling from non-neural niche cells.

Background/aims: Embryonic stem cell (ESC) transplantation offers new therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative diseases and injury. However, the mechanisms underlying integration and differentiation of engrafted ESCs are poorly understood. This study elucidates the influence of exogenous signals on ESC differentiation using in vitro modelling of non-stem/stem cell interactions.

How can immunochemical methods contribute to the implementation of the Water Framework Directive?

Immunochemical methods (in particular immunoassays) have been applied to spring and surface water samples, respectively, which were set-up as reference materials (RM) within two proficiency testing campaigns. For the first set of proficiency tests (PTs) described here (which were actually the second round of PTs organized, spring 2005), three ELISAs (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays) were employed in the enzyme tracer format for isoproturon, diuron, and atrazine, respectively. Results were evaluated in comparison with conventional reference methods (LC, GC).