Swedish Institute

About: Swedish Institute is a government organization based out in Stockholm, Sweden. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Health care. The organization has 1657 authors who have published 2301 publications receiving 103682 citations. The organization is also known as: Svenska Institutet.

Efficacy of the biocontrol yeast Pichia anomala during long-term storage of moist feed grain under different oxygen and carbon dioxide regimens.

Abstract: The yeast Pichia anomala inhibits the spoilage mold Penicillium roqueforti in laboratory experiments with high-moisture wheat in malfunctioning airtight storage. The ability of P. anomala to prevent mold growth during 14 months of grain storage was evaluated in outdoor silos with different air permeabilities. Freshly harvested wheat in 160-kg portions was inoculated with 102 colony-forming units (cfu) g−1P. roqueforti, alone or together with 104 cfu g−1P. anomala. During the first month P. anomala increased to about 106 cfu g−1 in the treated silos to reach 107 cfu g −1 after 9 months. Naturally occurring P. anomala in the untreated silos increased from 102 to about 103 cfu g−1 during the first month and reached the same level as the treated silos after 9 months. Oxygen levels were reduced below the detection limit within 1 day, while carbon dioxide levels increased to 80–90% during the first month. P. roqueforti did not grow in wheat treated with P. anomala, regardless of silo permeability, but had increased to 105 cfu g−1 in the untreated silos after 14 months of storage.

Measurement of the Shearing Properties of Fabrics

Abstract: F()IZ fabrics in ordinary use it may be assumed that the stresses applied are small. A suit, for instance, must follow the wearer’s movements without uncomfortable hindrance. The fact that relatively large deformations may be produced 1>v small -,tresses i....1B1(’ to the pliability of fabric structures. Small forces can alter the angle between warp and weft, i.e., give rise to &dquo;shear&dquo; (Figure 1), until creasing occurs. This property of course varies from one type of fabric to another. Together with the bending properties and weight of a fabric, the shear properties should 1>e of great importance for the pliability and drape, or hand. Methods for measuring the bending and drape properties of fabrics are described in the literature 11, 5 ~ . liut there is no published method for determining the relation shearing force and shear deformation. The t’tanonex of I)reby ( 2, 31 1 (FigUft’ 2) merely measures the deformation in degree at which creasing begins, and is designed to evaluate the stiffness of similar fabrics nnished in various

Broadly immunogenic HLA class I supertype-restricted elite CTL epitopes recognized in a diverse population infected with different HIV-1 subtypes.

Abstract: The genetic variations of the HIV-1 virus and its human host constitute major obstacles for obtaining potent HIV-1-specific CTL responses in individuals of diverse ethnic backgrounds infected with different HIV-1 variants. In this study, we developed and used a novel algorithm to select 184 predicted epitopes representing seven different HLA class I supertypes that together constitute a broad coverage of the different HIV-1 strains as well as the human HLA alleles. Of the tested 184 HLA class I-restricted epitopes, 114 were recognized by at least one study subject, and 45 were novel epitopes, not previously described in the HIV-1 immunology database. In addition, we identified 21 “elite” epitopes that induced CTL responses in at least 4 of the 31 patients. A majority (27 of 31) of the study population recognized one or more of these highly immunogenic epitopes. We also found a limited set of 9 epitopes that together induced HIV-1-specific CTL responses in all HIV-1-responsive patients in this study. Our results have important implications for the validation of potent CTL responses and show that the goal for a vaccine candidate in inducing broadly reactive CTL immune responses is attainable.

Catquest questionnaire for use in cataract surgery care: Assessment of surgical outcomes

Abstract: Purpose: To demonstrate the outcome for patients after cataract extraction using the Catquest cataract questionnaire and discuss the model's validity in assessing outcomes Setting: Thirty-five Swedish departments of ophthalmology Methods: Patients having cataract extraction performed by surgeons from 35 Swedish departments of ophthalmology participated in the study The questionnaire was given to 2970 consecutive patients having surgery during March 1995 at the participating surgical units The questionnaire was sent by mail to patients and completed on a voluntary basis It focuses on visual disabilities in daily life, activity level, cataract symptoms, and degree of independence The results from the questionnaire are interpreted using a benefit matrix that credits not only a decrease in visual disabilities and cataract symptoms but also an improvement in or maintenance of a preoperative activity level Results: Complete surgical outcome data and completed preoperative and postoperative questionnaires were available in 1933 cases (651%) Benefit from surgery according to the model was achieved by 909% of the patients Patients having their second cataract extraction had the highest frequency of the greatest benefit from surgery There was good agreement between the different levels of benefit from surgery according to the model and the patient's global rating of his or her vision or achieved visual acuity after surgery, respectively Patients with missing data (did not return postoperative questionnaire or had missing surgical result variables) were older and had a higher frequency of other diseases and handicaps Conclusion: The Catquest cataract questionnaire allowed the outcome of cataract surgery to be graded by different levels of benefit There seemed to be good agreement between this model of assessment and the patient's global rating of his or her vision Missing data may be a problem when a postal questionnaire is used