results among the 181 anti-hcv ab negative patients, 13 (7.2%) were positive for hcv core ag and 11 (6%) had detectable hcv rna with a range of 40-336543 iu/ml by pcr. the two tests had a high measurement agreement (kappa=0.82, p<0.001). of the 13 patients with positive hcv core ag test results, 3 were negative for hcv rna. considering real time pcr for hcv rna as the gold standard for hcv infe...

Alaskan-type complexes in British Columbia are potentially important hosts for economic concentrations of platinum-group elements (PGEs: Ruhlee, 1986; Evenchick er al.. IYXh) as well as other commodities such as chrome, nickel, cobalt, gold. jade and asbestos. To date, only the platinum-rich placers of the Tulameen complex have been exploited economically, yielding some 680 000 grams of impure ...

The compositions of resistant indicator minerals are diagnostic their original host environment. They may be used to fingerprint different types mineral deposit as well vector towards them. We have characterised the composition apatite and Fe–Ti oxides in variably mineralised mafic–ultramafic rock units Montagnais Sill Complex Labrador Trough assess suitability for vectoring magmatic sulphide o...

Glaucophane-bearing rocks — indicators of high-pressure metamorphism were earlier found in the Polar Urals Neoproterozoic deposits Nyarovey series, northern part Marunkeu eclogite-amphibolite-gneiss complex, and foot ultramafic massifs Main Ural Fault (MUF) zone. We have discovered western endocontact Kharbey amphibolite-gneiss where they are represented by garnet-glaucophane, garnet-glaucophan...

In a second-price auction with costly bidding, bidders can deter others from participating by publicly pre-committing to bid. Such “bid deterrence” increases total welfare when the reserve price is given, but allows the seller to increase expected revenue when the seller can pre-commit to a reserve price. JEL Codes: D44.

We suggest a new explanation for the presence of crustally derived zircons in the upper-mantle rocks of ophiolitic complexes, as an alternative to subduction-related models. Integrated isotopic (U-Pb, Hf, and O isotopes) and trace-element data for zircons from the Tumut ophiolitic complex (southeast Australia) indicate that these grains are related to granitic magmatism and were introduced into...

Truncated Bid (tBid) releases cytochrome c from mitochondria by inducing Bak (and Bax) pore formation in the outer membrane. An important issue is whether a second tBid action, independent of Bak and Bax, is also required to enhance cytochrome c mobility in the intermembrane spaces. To investigate this, we developed a kinetic analysis enabling changes in the diffusibility of cytochrome c in the...

BACKGROUND The BH3-only protein Bid is an important component of death receptor-mediated caspase activation. Bid is cleaved by caspase-8 or -10 into t-Bid, which translocates to mitochondria and triggers the release of caspase-activating factors. Bid has also been reported to be cleaved by other proteases. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS To test the hypothesis that Bid is a central mediator of...

Voltage-gated potassium channel complex (VGKC-complex) antibody (Ab) encephalitis is a well-recognized form of limbic encephalitis in humans, usually occurring in the absence of an underlying tumor. The patients have a subacute onset of seizures, magnetic resonance imaging findings suggestive of hippocampal inflammation, and high serum titers of Abs against proteins of the VGKC-complex, particu...