The XXVIII International Conference on Phenomena in Ionized Gases (ICPIG), a traditional conference with a remarkably long history, took place on 15 to 20 July 2007 in Prague. It explored not only the fundamentals of all kinds of plasmas and disarges, but also many applications such as plasma semiconductor processing, surface treatment and thin film technology, light sources and gaseous lasers, environmental protection and pollution control, sterilization and tissue engineering. and Milan Šimek.
The purpose of the workshop, which took place in 8-15 June 2008, was to train scientists to manage and exploit large EST datasets as well as compare whole genome sequences, with the aim of faciliting the application of genomic technologies to ticks and tickbornepathogens. The course provided an overview of the mehods used to sequence, assemble, and annotate tick borne disease related genomes and EST datasets. and Libor Grubhoffer.
In this paper a comparison is made between the Czech Republic and other European countries regarding attitudes toward the ideal timing for childbirth. In 1990s there was a sharp increase in the postponement of the transition to parenthood in the Czech Republic. This development raises the question: Are normative beliefs in the Czech Republic regarding the timing of childbirth changing, and if so, are they becoming similar to the attitudes present in Western Europe? After a brief outline of the concept of age norms, beliefs regarding the ideal age of when to become a parent in European countries are explored using data from the European Social Survey 2006. In the final part of this paper there is a detailed analysis of Czech attitudes toward the ideal timing of the birth of the first child, using CVVM survey data from 2006, with a specific focus on cohort and educational differences. This research reveals that Czech attitudes toward the ideal age for mothers having a first child is intermediate between the patterns observed in (a) East European countries where the ideal is for a younger age, and (b) West European states where an older age preference is prevalent. In contrast, the ideal age for becoming a father for the first time in the Czech Republic is one of the oldest in Europe. Significantly, the proportion of the population that rejects age norms for reproduction exhibits little systematic pattern across Europe. Within the Czech Republic the survey evidence indicates that those who are less than 35 years old, and those who are most educated have a significantly older ideal age for having a first child than all others., Jana Chaloupková., 2 grafy, 6 tabulek, Obsahuje bibliografii, and Anglické resumé
The sex determination cascades in insects are diversified at the top of the cascade, where different primary molecular signals are employed, while at the bottom of the cascades, particularly the doublesex genes, are highly conserved. Here, we identified the doublesex ortholog (Btau-dsx) of Bactrocera tau, a pumpkin fruit fly, and found that Btau-dsx is composed of six exons and five introns with an additional short "m" exon located in the second intron. Btau-dsx is different from its orthologs in most dipteran insects: Its pre-mRNA is sex-specifically spliced to yield three (two male and one female) instead of two transcript variants. The two deduced proteins produced by the male-specific transcripts are a functional (Btau-DSXM1) and a truncated (Btau-DSXM2) protein, while the female-specific transcript produces the functional Btau-DSXF protein. These three proteins contain all conserved domains except Btau-DSXM2 which has no OD2 domain. The female-specific transcript is detected in both fertilized and unfertilized eggs and in both somatic and germ cells of the adult females, while the male-specific transcript is detected only in fertilized eggs and in the abdominal tissues and testes of adult males. The presence of the Btau-dsxM1 transcript in fertilized eggs at the early syncytium stage suggests that in XY embryos, the Y-linked M factor gene may function quite soon after fertilization to alter the splicing pattern of Btau-dsx pre-mRNA from the female-specific to the male-specific mode. Injection of Btau-dsxF dsRNA into recently emerging females can reduce the expression of vitellogenin (Btau-Vg) and causes some defects in the ovaries, indicating that Btau-dsxF works upstream of Btau-Vg., Thanaset Thongsaiklaing, Hataichanok Passara, Mingkwan Nipitwathanaphon, Lertluk Ngersiri., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Four precise leveling campaigns has been carried out in Poland, and for several years there is a functioning system of permanent GNSS stations determining the height of network points. On the basis of these data, several variants of vertical crustal movements models have been developed (Wyrzykowski, 1987; Kowalczyk, 2005; Kontny and Bogusz, 2012). In order to develop a kinematic model of vertical crustal movements, one of the possibilities is an adjustment of the network formed simultaneously with the leveling data and GNSS stations data. The main problem is a need to identify fiducial points between the datasets. This problem can be solved by creation of coherent database containing attributes of both types of data and automatization of the joint point identification process. The article shows the results of such identification process, depending on the amount of data, on the example of the area of Poland. and Bednarczyk Michal, Kowalczyk Kamil, Kowalczyk Anna.
Spinal deformities such as scoliosis and kyphosis are incurable, and can lead to decreased physical function, pain, and reduced quality of life. Despite much effort, no clear therapies for the treatment of these conditions have been found. Therefore, the development of an animal model for spinal deformity would be extremely valuable to our understanding of vertebral diseases. In this study, we demonstrate that mice deficient in the mitochondrial enzyme isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2) develop spinal deformities with aging. We use morphological analysis as well as radiographic and micro-CT imaging of IDH2-deficient mice to characterize these deformities. Histological analysis showed increased abnormalities in IDH2-deficient mice compared to wild type mice. Taken together, the results suggest that IDH2 plays a critical role in maintaining the spinal structure by affecting the homeostatic balance between osteoclasts and osteoblasts. This indicates that IDH2 might be a potent target for the development of therapies for spinal deformities. Our findings also provide a novel animal model for vertebral disease research., U. Chae, N.-R. Park, E. S. Kim, J.-Y. Choi, M. Yim, H.-S. Lee, S.-R. Lee, S. Lee, J.-W. Park, D.-S. Lee., and Obsahuje bibliografii