A "pulse like" increase of cytoplasmic calcium concentration, which is proportional to ionophore concentration, is induced in red cells by exposure to A23187- Different Ca2+ levels are attained depending on cellular calcium buffering power and/or primary active calcium transport activation. We examined the effect of A23187 concentration on potassium loss in neonatal (nRC) as well as in adult red cells (aRC). The increase in ionophore concentration produced an "all- or -none" recruitment in adult cells and a "gradual" one in neonatal red cells. The "gradual" response observed in nRC would suggest that the "all or none" character of the response is not present in red cells during the foetal stages of haematopoiesis.
The Dutch Cabinet published its Housing Market Reform Agenda on 17 September 2013. This paper describes the main features of the Agenda and presents an ex-ante evaluation of this policy document. The introduction of a landlord levy is one of the biggest inconsistencies in this Agenda. The Housing Market Reform Agenda is particularly critical of housing associations. There are good reasons to throw away the bath water, but the baby (= the housing association) should be nurtured.
The level of satisfaction that households have with their housing is important for people to function properly, as it largely determines their life satisfaction. Housing satisfaction is a multidimensional concept that can be defined, measured, and analysed in various ways. The aim of the article is to identify the housing satisfaction of Polish households in terms of living space, housing standard, and housing expenses, and to identify the main determinants of housing satisfaction. Factors that have a major impact on housing satisfaction are classified based on a literature review. The sources of Poles’ housing satisfaction are identified using ordered logistic regression. This article is one of the first attempts to analyse housing satisfaction in a post-socialist Central and Eastern European economy.
A mathematical and physical model of thermoregulatory mechanisms has been derived and experimental data are presented for the elements of the model. The thermoregulatory range within the neutral zone has been analyzed by regression analysis of the experimental data. The optimal globe temperature and the adaptational shifts in temperature for winter and summer are also given.
The ultrastructural cytology and reproduction of Amphiacantha longa Caullery et Mesnil, 1914 is described. Mcrogonial reproduction was not observed. The sporogony follows two lines: free disporoblastic. and enveloped, polysporoblastic, involving sporoblast mother cells. The enveloped sporogony is endogenous in spore sacs of sporont origin, daughter cells are formed by vacuolation. Probably all stages have coupled nuclei. Both free and enveloped spores are equipped with an extrusion apparatus composed of a flat polar sac, a straight polar filament of manubrium type, and a posterior globular appendix. Manubrium and appendix are enclosed in a membraneous coat. Circular elements of coat material occur in the proximity of the extrusion apparatus. The membraneous coat and the surface layer of the manubrium penetrate the polar sac. The extrusion apparatus is located at the wide pole of the spore, the nuclei at the narrower pole. Hosts are gregarines of the genus Lecudina Mingazzini, living in the gut of the polychaete Lumbrinereis fragilis (O. F. Muller). The cytology and reproduction are discussed and compared to other genera of metchnikovellideans, to the chytridiopsid genera, and to microsporidia expressing the typical cytology for the group. Metchnikovellideans and chytridiopsids exhibit cytological and reproductive similarities. The species is redescribed, the diagnosis of the genus Amphiacantha Caullery et Mesnil, 1914 is emended, and the new family Amphiacanthidae, comprising the genera Amphiacantha and Amphiamblys Caullery et Mesnil, 1914, is established.
This paper combines morphostructural analysis and geophysical methods in order to link the faults monitored inside Strašín Cave with faults and lineaments in the vicinity of the cave. The studied site is situated in SW Bohemia, at the foothills of the Bohemian Forest Mts. Main goal is to combine the morphostructural, morphometrical and geophysical methods in order to identify the fault system, monitored inside the cave. This will allow relevant interpretation of the observed movements in the frame of the local tectonic environment. The results show that the monitored faults are observable in the geophysical profiles and, using our knowledge of the structural setting, we have been able to link them with mapped tectonic structures in the vicinity of the cave. Thus, it has been demonstrated that even where outcrops are absent, the faults can be traced and that the monitored faults are significant enough to yield relevant data on tectonic movements. In addition, the combined resistivity and gravimetry profiles reveal a possible new, presently unknown, cave located 20 m below the surface about 200 m northnortheast of Strašín Cave., Filip Hartvich and Jan Valenta., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The impact of atrial fibrillation and atrial tachycardias (AF/AT), and their optimal treatment strategy in PH patients is still being discussed. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of AF/AT termination on the hemodynamic parameters in PH patients. We compared patients with pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension (PH group), left ventricular heart failure (LV-HF group), and a Control group. A repeated right heart catheterization was performed during the catheter ablation (CA) procedure. The first measurement was done in arrhythmia, the second after the sinus rhythm (SR) was restored. High frequency atrial stimulation was used to simulate AT in patients without arrhythmia presence at the time of the CA. The variation of pressure parameters in PH patients did not differ significantly from the Controls. There was a significant increase in the right ventricle pressure after the SR restoration in the LV-HF group compared to the Controls and PH group (+4 vs. -2 vs. -3 mmHg, p<0.05). The cardiac index (CI) variation was not significant when compared between the study groups. An increase of the CI after the SR restoration was found in those patients with AF (+0.31 l/min/m² [IQR 0.18; 0.58]) in contrast to those patients with organized AT/high frequency atrial stimulation (-0.09 l/min/m², [IQR - 0.45; 0.19]). This difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). The acute hemodynamic response to arrhythmia termination was not significantly different in the PH patients when compared to the Controls. In contrast to AT/high frequency stimulation, the restoration of SR in AF patients leads to an increased CI, irrespective of the presence or absence of PH.
The ice jam in a river can significantly change the flow field in winter and early spring. The presence of bridge piers further complicates the hydraulic process by interacting between the ice jam and bridge piers. Using the data collected from experiments in a laboratory flume, the evolution of an ice jam around bridge piers having three different diameters has been investigated in this study. Compared to results without-pier, it was found that the formation of an ice jam in the downstream of bridge pier is faster than that in the upstream. The thickness distribution of the ice jam shows clearly different characteristics in front and behind of bridge piers at different stages of the ice jam.
Atmospheric CO2 concentration continues to rise and is predicted to reach approximately 700 ppm by 2100. Some predictions suggest that the dry season in West Africa could be extended with climate change. This study examined the effects of elevated CO2 concentration and water deficit on growth and photosynthesis of juvenile cacao. Light-saturated photosynthesis (Pmax), quantum efficiency, and intrinsic water-use efficiency increased significantly in response to elevated CO2, as did a range of growth and development responses (e.g. leaf area and leaf number), but the magnitude of the increase was dependent on the water treatment. Stomatal index was significantly greater in the elevated CO2 treatment; an atypical response which may be a reflection of the environment in which cacao evolved. This study shows a positive effect of elevated CO2 on juvenile cacao which may help to alleviate some of the negative impacts of water deficit stress., F. Lahive, P. Hadley, A. J. Daymond., and Obsahuje bibliografii