Abstract: A method for treating ammonium-containing waste water by means of a single sludge system in an SBR reactor, in which ammonium is converted to nitrite in a first reaction and ammonium and nitrite are converted into molecular nitrogen in a second reaction carried out in parallel, the oxygen concentration in the reactor being maintained at a low level. A robust process is achieved by providing that the pH-value of the system is controlled and kept at a target value by controlled intermittent aeration, the fluctuation range of the pH-value amounting to 0.05 at most, and preferably 0.02 at most, and the O2-concentration being kept between 0.2 mg/l and 0.4 mg/l, and preferably between 0.25 mg/l and 0.35 mg/l.

Abstract: The invention relates to an in vitro or ex vivo method for increasing the immunoreactivity of cells of the immune system, which were contacted with an antigen, said method comprising the reduction or inhibition of the Cbl-b function of said cells, thereby increasing the immunoreactivity of the cells towards the antigen.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for the determination or prediction of the progression of chronic kidney disease in a subject suspected to suffer from chronic kidney disease, said method comprising the step of determining the expression levels of at least one marker selected from (a) FGF23; and (b) adiponectin in a biological sample. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a use of a specific detection molecule for FGF23 or use of a specific detection molecule for adiponectin for the preparation of a diagnostic composition for the detection of chronic kidney disease or the progression of chronic kidney diseases in a subject suspected to suffer from said disease. In particular, the present invention also provides for use of FGF23 and/or of adiponectin as an in vitro marker for the presence, absence or progression of a chronic kidney disease and kits comprising a specific detection molecule for FGF23 or a specific detection molecule for adiponectin for use in the method of the present invention.

Abstract: Particles and monoliths are used for providing an ionized analyte for mass analysis by photon desorption having a size in the range of 0.5-100 ?m, wherein the particles or monoliths are modified with a chemical compound capable of absorbing photons having a wave-length of at least 300 nm. The particles and monoliths allow the use of MALDI-MS for the high throughput screening of molecules having a molecular weight lower than 700 ? without interfering signals or with only a limited number of background signals.

Abstract: A method of machining a solid material using a water jet discharging from a nozzle is specified, wherein the water jet contains ice crystals and impacts on the solid material. In this case, a medium which is gaseous under standard conditions is dissolved in water at a mixing stage under pressure (1-150 bar) and is then compressed to 1000-4500 bar and pressed through a nozzle, under conditions which allow the dissolved gaseous medium to bubble out after leaving the nozzle, whereupon the heat of solution is withdrawn from the water and the ice crystals are formed.

Abstract: Monolithic organic copolymer prepared by copolymerisation of a phenyl (meth)acrylate and a phenylene di(meth)acrylate in the presence of a porogen, wherein said copolymerisation is carried out at a temperature of at least 70° C. This polymer can be used as chromatographic material for separating biopolymers and small molecules.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a monolithic organic copolymer prepared by copolymerization of at least one monomer of the group consisting of styrene, (C1-C3)alkylstyrene, (meth)acrylic acid and esters thereof with a crosslinker in the presence of a macroporogen and a microporogen, wherein a) the sum of said at least one monomer of the group and the crosslinker is 10-20%, preferably 10-15%, by volume of the reaction mixture, with the rest being essentially macroporogen and microporogen, and the degree of said copolymerization is at least 70%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 99%, or b) the sum of said at least one monomer of the group and the crosslinker is 30-50%, preferably 35-45%, by volume of the reaction mixture, with the rest being essentially macroporogen and microporogen, and the degree of said copolymerization is in the range of 25-60%, preferably 35-50%.

Abstract: The invention relates to particles and monoliths for providing an ionized analyte for mass analysis by photon desorption having a size in the range of 0.5-100 ?m, wherein said particles or monoliths are modified with a chemical compound capable of absorbing photons having a wave-length of at least 300 nm. Said particles and monoliths allow the use of MALDI-MS for the high throughput screening of molecules having a molecular weight lower than 700? without interfering signals or with only a limited number of background signals.

Abstract: Monolithic organic copolymer prepared by copolymerisation of an alkylstyrene and a divinylbenzene or a derivative thereof in the presence of a porogen, wherein said porogen comprises decanol and at least one of the group consisting of tetrahydrofuran and toluene.

Abstract: Monolithic organic copolymer prepared by copolymerisation of an alkylstyrene and a divinylbenzene or a derivative thereof in the presence of a porogen, wherein said porogen comprises decanol and at least one of the group consisting of tetrahydrofuran and toluene.

Abstract: A thermoacoustic tomographic method for imaging an object, wherein the object is thermally excited by a source and the acoustic waves from the object, which are caused by the thermal excitation, from different directions of the object are detected using at least one detector and an image of the object is reconstructed from the detected acoustic waves and the positional information, wherein the acoustic waves detected by the detector are integrated at least in one direction over a length of at least ?{square root over (8)}·d, where d denotes the maximum distance from a point of the object to be imaged to the detector.