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Objectives: Despite successful antiretroviral (ARV) therapy, people living with HIV (PLWH) may show signs of premature/accentuated aging. We compared established biomarkers of aging in PLWH, appropriately-chosen HIV-negative individuals, and blood donors, and explored factors associated with biological age advancement.Design: Cross-sectional analysis of 134 PLWH on suppressive ARV therapy, 79 lifestyle-comparable HIV-negative controls aged ≥45 years from the Co-morBidity in Relation to AIDS (COBRA) cohort, and 35 age-matched blood donors (BD).Methods: Biological age was estimated using a validated algorithm based on ten biomarkers. Associations between ‘age advancement’ (biological minus chronological age) and HIV status/parameters, lifestyle, cytomegalovirus (CMV), hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections were investigated using linear regression.Results: The average (95% CI) age advancement was greater in both HIV-positive [13.2 (11.6, 14.9) years] and HIV-negative [5.5 (3.8, 7.2) years] COBRA participants compared to BD [-7.0 (-4.1, -9.9) years, both p's < 0.001)], but also in HIV-positive compared to HIV-negative participants (p < 0.001). Chronic HBV, higher anti-CMV IgG titer and CD8+ T-cell count were each associated with increased age advancement, independently of HIV-status/group. Among HIV-positive participants, age advancement was increased by 3.5 (0.1, 6.8) years among those with nadir CD4+ < 200 cells/μL and by 0.1 (0.06, 0.2) years for each additional month of exposure to saquinavir.Conclusions: Both treated PLWH and lifestyle-comparable HIV-negative individuals show signs of age advancement compared to BD, to which persistent CMV, HBV co-infection and CD8+ T-cell activation may have contributed. Age advancement remained greatest in PLWH and was related to prior immunodeficiency and cumulative saquinavir exposure. published

This study examines the prevalence, reasons, and predictors of unwanted pregnancies and induced abortions among ever married HIV-infected women attending a care facility in Maharashtra, Western India, and discusses its programmatic and policy implications. Retrospectively collected data of pregnancies conceived after the diagnosis of HIV were analyzed using descriptive and logistic regression techniques. Among the 622 women interviewed, 113 women had 158 pregnancies with known outcomes after HIV diagnosis. Among these pregnancies, 80 (51%) were unwanted and 79 (50%) were voluntarily terminated. Fear of transmitting HIV to the child was a frequently mentioned reason for an unwanted pregnancy (71.8%) and induced abortion (59.5%). Women from urban areas [OR 2.43 (95% CI 1.23-4.79)] and with two or more live births before HIV diagnosis [OR 3.33 (95% CI 1.36-8.20)] were significantly more likely to report an unwanted pregnancy. Women with two or more live births before HIV diagnosis [OR 3.16 (95% CI 1.20-8.35)], who did not know that HIV transmission to the baby can be prevented [OR 3.29 (95% CI 1.48-7.34)] and with an unwanted pregnancy [OR 4.82 (95% CI 2.33-10.00)], were significantly more likely to terminate the pregnancy. Despite increased coverage of antiretroviral treatment, effective provision of reproductive healthcare services to HIV-infected women remains challenging. A high prevalence of unwanted pregnancies and induced abortions and a low level of knowledge about prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) underscore the need for preconception counseling and provision of comprehensive family planning services to HIV-infected women. Enrolling all HIV-infected pregnant women, irrespective of their decision to continue with their pregnancy, in the PMTCT program and discussing with HIV-infected women and their partners at HIV diagnosis a full array of contraceptive methods and not just consistent use of condoms might be helpful in reducing unwanted pregnancies.

Item does not contain fulltext BACKGROUND: Unsaturated fatty acids are known as neutrophil activators. In the present study we investigated whether saturated triglycerides and fatty acids may also contribute to the previously observed activation of neutrophils by nutritional lipid emulsions. Furthermore we tested the hypothesis that carbon-chain length is of importance in this respect. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Neutrophils (1 x 10(6) mL(-1)) were isolated from the blood of nine volunteers. Chemiluminescence was used to evaluate neutrophil activation, characterized by the production of oxygen radicals by neutrophils during incubation with 1 mmol L(-1) saturated fatty acid (6-20 carbon) or triglycerides (6-12 carbon fatty acid), dissolved in aqueous medium by preparing micelles with dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC). Results were expressed as means +/- SEMs of the overall luminescence signal relative to the signal of cells incubated in medium. RESULTS: Similar to a positive control, the polyunsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid (C20 : 4), the triglycerides tricaproin (TC6 : 0), tricaprylin (TC8 : 0) and trilaurin (TC12 : 0) as well as the fatty acids lauric acid (C12 : 0), palmitic acid (C16 : 0), stearic acid (C18 : 0) and arachidic acid (C20 : 0) all induced oxygen radical production in neutrophils, while the medium-chain triglyceride tricaprin (TC10 : 0) and fatty acids caproic acid (C6 : 0), caprylic acid (C8 : 0) and capric acid (C10 : 0) exerted no clear effects, similar to negative controls (DPPC and glycerol). CONCLUSIONS: Besides their (poly)-unsaturated counterparts, saturated triglycerides and fatty acids also activate neutrophils. Carbon chain-length is pivotal in the interaction of fatty acids and triglycerides and cells of the immune system.

We describe a novel, field-deployable hyperspectral imaging system, called Hypersub, that allows noninvasive in situ mapping of the microphytobenthos (MPB) biomass distribution with a high spatial (sub-millimeter) and temporal (minutes) resolution over areas of 1 x 1 m. The biomass is derived from a log-transformed and near-infrared corrected reflectance hyperspectral index, which exhibits a linear relationship (R-2 > 0.97) with the chlorophyll a (Ch1 a) concentration in the euphotic zone of the sediment and depends on the sediment grain size. Deployments of the system revealed that due to factors such as sediment topography, bioturbation, and grazing, the distribution of MPB in intertidal sediments is remarkably heterogeneous, with Ch1 a concentrations varying laterally by up to 400% of the average value over a distance of 1 cm. Furthermore, due to tidal cycling and diel light variability, MPB concentrations in the top 1 mm of sediments are very dynamic, changing by 40-80% over a few hours due to vertical migration. We argue that the high-resolution hyperspectral imaging method overcomes the inadequate resolution of traditional methods based on sedimentary Ch1 a extraction, and thus helps improve our understanding of the processes that control benthic primary production in coastal sediments.

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Contains fulltext : 91884.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access) 14 p.

Within the GMES-related project DeMarine Environment, the operational circulation model of the German Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) is extended into a data assimilation system. The aim of the data assimilation is to improve the forecast of sea surface height, temperatura, currents and salinity in the North and Baltic Seas. For the data assimilation component, the Parallel Data Assimilation Framework (PDAF, http://pdaf.awi.de) is coupled to the operational circulation model. PDAF provides the assimilation environment as well as fully implemented and optimized filter algorithms. We discuss technical aspects of the data assimilation system used with the BSH operational circulation model.

In the last years the application of high-quality terrestrial gravity observations to studies of mass transport has become more and more a focus of interest. This goes hand in hand with efforts to enhance the signal-to-noise ratios in the time series by more comprehensive and sophisticated reductions for geodynamic studies. In addition a precondition for a consistent combination of terrestrial and satellite-derived gravity field variations comprehends not only to apply reductions to the data sets as good as possible, but also to ensure that reductions for the same influences either are applied or evidence is provided that the respective effect is negligible. One of the effects which thus moved into focus encompasses non-tidal mass shifts in the oceans. A major benefit of including this effect in the reductions is the appropriate response of the oceans with respect to changes in atmospheric loading, when sea surface pressure anomalies are applied as additional forcing in the ocean simulations, redundantising assumptions with regard to inverted or non-inverted barometer response. For example from a study by Fratepietro et al. (2006) a significant influence of storm surge-related effects in the North Sea on gravity even for inland sites emerged. Based on the OMCT and the ECCO model the gravity effect of non-tidal oceanic mass shifts is computed for various sites equipped with a superconducting gravimeter (SG) esp. with a view on seasonal variations. A five year-long period covering the years 2002 through 2006 is considered. The results so far are ambiguous: The systematic seasonal change of about 10 nm/s2 peak-to-peak in gravity found for mid-European stations is presently not found in the observed gravity variations. Generally, the order of magnitude of the total effect of 22 to 27 nm/s2 peak-to-peak is quite large for stations at a distance of some 100 km from the coast. In some data sections an agreement between observed and modelled gravity variation can be found which then results in the removal of larger residuals. For the South-African station Sutherland a different result is obtained. Here the seasonal variation caused by the non-tidal oceanic mass shifts and gravity residuals correlate. In this instance the application of the additional reduction leads to an overall substantial improvement of the signal-to-noise ratio in the gravity observations. One explanation for the different results might be found in the principle accuracy of the global continental hydrological models. Such a model is needed in order to remove the effect of large-scale variations in continental water storage in the gravity observations in order to obtain residuals which contain mainly variations related to the non-tidal oceanic mass shifts. This reduction plays a greater role for European stations than for the South African site. A possible critical impact of the land-sea-mask of the oceanic models resp. the negligence of the shelf areas could not be confirmed. The OMCT and the ECCO model have with 1.875° and 1° a different spatial resolution. The incorporation of a regional high resolution model (5’ x 3’, resp. 50” x 30”) for the North and Baltic Sea from the BSH (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie) does not change the principle order of magnitude of the seasonal effect. Thus, there are presently strong indications that the order of magnitude of the long-period contribution is real. This means the influence of non-tidal mass shifts in the oceans should not only be considered for studies in the short periods, but also in the long-period spectral range.

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Item does not contain fulltext Onderwijs Research Dagen, 25 juni 2001

The integration of colleagues from psychosocial occupations into the traditional team of doctors and nurses demands a holistic treatment concept, the general desire for interdisciplinary action, and readiness for patience in the process of mutual learning. The acceptance of the psychosocial services by the patient and his/her family is frequently determined by the acceptance by physicians and nurses. The members of the psychosocial team are confronted with the following tasks.: 1. Developing a trustful relationship with the patient and his/her parents, 2. Setting up a history of family dynamics, 3. Practical assistance in matters of hospital routines, 4. Assistance in the emotional aspects of coping with the disease, 5. Rendering support to a patient and his/her family at death, 6. Leading and moderating groups of parents who live with so called "residual fear" or are mourning a child. Colleagues of the psychosocial team, who have to be able to cope with these existentially demanding tasks within a relationship to patients and their families over an extended period of time should have sufficient professional identity, adequate professional competence, and a certain foundation of life experience.

32 children survived neurological complications during the treatment of ALL, AML or NHL (intracranial bleeding, convulsions, infections, severe neuropathy, severe EEG-slowing). Neurological, electroencephalographic and psychological examinations were performed 6 months to 6 years after the end of maintenance therapy. Findings were normal or borderline in about 70% of the patients. 20% presented with neurological signs, due to localised cerebral or peripheral lesions. However, these generally did not interfere to high degree with the daily living skills. The frequencies of school problems and of abnormal psychological findings were similar to these found in ALL patients without neurological complications.

Mesomelic dwarfism of the Langer type is described. This is characterised by shortening and bending of the middle portions of the extremities. This is compared with three cases of "mesomelic" changes in the forearm. The classification of this condition is discussed.

The surface model for solute ordering in nematics, which is based on the decomposition of the orientational potential according to the contributions of surface elements, leads to a simple procedure for the calculation of both orientational properties and the cholesteric order induced by a chiral compound. However, a realistic representation of the molecular surface accessible to the solvent is required. The rolling sphere algorithm, applied to the ensemble of atomic van der Waals spheres of a molecule, provides a natural determination of such a surface, sinceit smoothes away the smallscaledetails. Thesurfaceordering model implemented with the rolling sphere smoothing of the surface is described and applied to several molecular systems. It is shown that the orientational order parameters are substantially independent of the rolling sphere radius identified with the average curvature of the solvent molecular surface. On the contrary, a sensible dependence on such a parameter emerges for the chirality order ...

Automatically identifying the event type of event-related information in the sheer amount of social media data makes machine learning inevitable. However, this is highly dependent on (1) the number of correctly labeled instances and (2) labeling costs. Active learning has been proposed to reduce the number of instances to label. Albeit the thematic dimension is already used, other metadata such as spatial and temporal information that is helpful for achieving a more fine-grained clustering is currently not taken into account. In this paper, we present a novel event-based clustering strategy that makes use of temporal, spatial, and thematic metadata to determine instances to label. An evaluation on incident-related tweets shows that our selection strategy for active learning outperforms current state-of-the-art approaches even with few labeled instances.