When an impurity interacts with a bath of phonons it forms a polaron. For increasing interaction strengths the mass of the polaron increases and it can become self-trapped. For impurity atoms inside an atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) the nature of this transition is not understood. While Feynman's variational approach to the Fröhlich model predicts a sharp transition for light impurities,...

Polarization-dependent phase-contrast imaging is used to resolve the spatial magnetization profile of an optically trapped ultracold gas. This probe is applied to Larmor precession of degenerate and nondegenerate spin-1 87Rb gases. Transverse magnetization of the Bose-Einstein condensate persists for the condensate lifetime, with a spatial response to magnetic field inhomogeneities consistent w...

BACKGROUND Chronic cough is a common problem, frequently caused or exacerbated by acid reflux. Diagnosis of acid reflux cough is haphazard currently, often relying on long therapeutic trials of expensive medications. We tested the hypothesis that the most relevant mechanistic component of acid reflux in chronic cough is when it rises to the level of the airway where acid can potentially be aspi...

Exhaled breath condensate collection is not yet standardised and biomarker measurements are often close to lower detection limits. In the current study, it was hypothesised that adhesive properties of different condenser coatings interfere with measurements of eicosanoids and proteins in breath condensate. In vitro, condensate was derived from a collection model using two test solutions (8-isop...

Leukotriene (LT)B4 in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) has been reported to be elevated in airway inflammation. The origin of leukotrienes in EBC is, however, not established. The aims of this study are to measure LTB4 levels in EBC collected in two challenges characterised by a strong neutrophilic airway inflammation and to compare LTB4 levels in EBC with levels in sputum and saliva. LTB4 and a...

INTRODUCTION The removal of highly viscous mucus from the airways is an important task in the treatment of chronic lung disease like in cystic fibrosis. The inhalation of recombinant human DNase- I (rhDNase-I) is used to facilitate the removal of tenacious airway secretions in different lung diseases and especially in CF. Little is known about endogenous DNase activity in the airway surface liq...

Nitrosothiols (RS-NOs) are formed by interaction of nitric oxide (NO) with glutathione and may limit the detrimental effect of NO. Because NO generation is increased in airway inflammation, we have measured RS-NOs in exhaled breath condensate in patients with asthma, cystic fibrosis, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We also measured exhaled NO and nitrite (NO(2-)) in the same su...

Objective: To investigate a relationship of asthma symptoms and exacerbations with systemic (high-sensitivity Creactive protein (hs-CRP), eosinophilic cationic protein (ECP), leukocytes) and local (exhaled NO (FENO), pH and urates in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and exhaled breath temperature (EBT)) inflammatory biomarkers (BMs) in asthmatic children. Methods: This cross-sectional study comp...

BACKGROUND Cystic fibrosis is characterised by oxidative stress in the airways. Isoprostanes are prostaglandin isomers formed by free radical catalysed peroxidation of arachidonic acid. 8-Isoprostane is increased in interstitial lung diseases, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and adult respiratory distress syndrome. Exhaled nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO) are biomarkers...