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FUNDAMENTO: Las hepatitis virales son uno de los grupos de enfermedades infecciosas más frecuentes en patología humana y aunque la mayoría son benignas algunas pueden evolucionar hacia formas crónicas. El objetivo del estudio fue conocer la prevalencia de la infección por los virus de la hepatitis C, Epstein-Barr y herpesvirus humano tipo 6, en los escolares de 8º de EGB (13-14 años), y relacionarla con las variables sexo y el hábitat (rural o urbano) en el que vivían. MÉTODOS: Estudio descriptivo de tipo transversal, en una muestra representativa de la población escolar de 8º de EGB de la provincia de Guadalajara en 1998-1999. Muestreo aleatorio sistemático estratificado según sexo y centro escolar (diseño muestral polietápico). Se determinó la tasa de anticuerpos específicos de la clase IgG, mediante técnica de ELISA. RESULTADOS: Se estudió a 268 escolares (46,6% varones). La prevalencia de anticuerpos frente al virus de Epstein-Barr fue de 73,5% (IC: 67,9%-78,5%); el 72% (IC: 64%-80%) entre los varones y el 74,8% (IC: 67,7%-81,9%) entre las mujeres (NS); el 65,6% (IC: 57,4%-73,8%) vivían en medio urbano y el 80,7% (IC: 74,2%-87,2%) en el rural (p

En este artículo se valora el hallazgo en el poblado calcolítico de Les Moreres de una cerámica roja monocroma hecha a molde. Sus características tecnológicas delatan un origen alóctono, que los autores sitúan en la península anatólica, dentro del Bronce Antiguo (2700-2100 a.C.), barajándose tres áreas de elaboración posibles: Cilicia, la llanura de Konya y el occidente de Anatolia (Troya II-Demirci Höyük). La cerámica roja de Les Moreres permite probar la existencia de importaciones orientales en la Península Ibérica y, por tanto, de relaciones comerciales en el III milenio a.C. entre ambos extremos del Mediterráneo.

Realizamos en este artículo una revisión de unas piezas planas de cobre y bronce consideradas tradicionalmente como un tipo especial de hachas de apéndices laterales, insistiendo en su identificación como verdaderos lingotes de metal. La presencia de piezas de plomo nos lleva a realizar unas consideraciones acerca del uso de este elemento en la metalurgia del bronce. Todo ello nos induce a subrayar la producción metalúrgica del Bronce Atlántico considerando a sus principales depósitos como la fuente de abastecimiento de metal, en forma de hachas-lingotes o de piezas inutilizadas, de la que se nutría el comercio fenicio a partir de la fundación de Cádiz.

Presentamos un método de análisis de variabilidad tipológica de los cuencos y cazuelas carenados de Peña Negra I, atendiendo a la forma completa («factores primarios ») y, en su defecto, a las diferencias en la inclinación, grosor y delineación del borde y modo de desarrollarse la carena («factores secundarios»). La finalidad que se persigue es tanto establecer una pauta tipológica con que operar en el futuro, como lograr detectar alguna variante significativa con posible valor cultural o cronológico. Algunos de estos caracteres tipológicos nos conducen a realizar una rápida panorámica de los posibles precedentes y de sus relaciones con otras áreas peninsulares.

La ocultación monetal de La D'Eula (Crevillente, Alicante), contiene un conjunto de monedas datables entre los años 222 y 260, asociadas a algunos ejemplares más antiguos; las circunstancias del hallazgo y el análisis del mismo sugieren que el conjunto sea otro testimonio de las invasiones germánicas del siglo III d. C.

Se ofrece en estas líneas un resumen de los resultados del registro arqueológico realizado en 1986 en La Peña Negra. En el campo arquitectónico constituye una continuación de la urbanística aflorada en 1980-81, incluyendo la presencia de una vivienda circular en el Bronce Final. La cultura material cuenta con nuevas aportaciones: formas cerámicas nuevas, aparición de cerámicas grafitadas, distinción de tres grupos principales de importación en la cerámica a torno, nuevas marcas de alfarero sobre ánfora y la existencia de un lingote-moneda en el depósito del Bronce Final.

Ofrecemos los resultados obtenidos del análisis de las pastas cerámicas de 64 muestras de vasos hechos a torno de Peña Negra II, llevado a cabo en el Departamento de Geología de la Facultad de Ciencias de la Universidad de Alicante mediante técnicas petrológicas y mineralógicas. El objetivo consistía en dilucidar a través del elemento desengrasante añadido a la arcilla de las pastas, el origen de las cerámicas en cuestión. Los datos obtenidos se han procesado mediante el Análisis Factorial de Correspondencias, discriminándose las muestras claramente en dos grupos bien definidos: A y B. El primero representa a las cerámicas importadas y el segundo a la producción alfarera local. Las escasas muestras que se apartan de estos dos grupos conforman un Grupo C, desconectado del grupo local pero sin ajustarse tampoco al grupo de importación A. En base a estos resultados se realizan algunas consideraciones acerca de la problemática ceramológica inherente a la fase orientalizante de Peña Negra.

En el presente artículo se valora el hallazgo de unas formas cerámicas de inspiración griega procedentes de la segunda fase de habitación del Sector VII del yacimiento de Peña Negra, con el fin de ilustrar la presencia de una componente tipológica de carácter griego en el contexto general de cerámicas de tipología fenicia. A su vez, relacionando estos vasos con otros aparecidos en el Sector IA, cabe la posibilidad de un encuadre cronológico de la llegada de la componente estilística helénica, que situamos entre 600 y 550 a. de C., caracterizando la segunda etapa orientalizante de Peña Negra II.

En este trabajo se ofrece una reseña de las excavaciones de urgencia realizadas en 1976 en el Portus Illicitanus, con una visión de las fases culturales que allí se desarrollaron. Se presenta un catálogo de las cerámicas romanas imperiales halladas durante los trabajos, destacando los ejemplares de Clara Lucente y Clara B, así como los vasos con relieves aplicados, documentos que venían siendo considerados raros o inexistentes en esta parte del País Valenciano.

The thermoluminescent (TL) response of MgO doped with different rare earths was investigated. The TL material was synthesized by the solution combustion method and sintered at 1173 K; the obtained powders were prepared in pellet form. Before irradiation, the dosimeters were annealed at 623 K for 30 min to eliminate any TL signal generated during their manufacture. Independent tests were performed doping the MgO with Tm, Dy, Ce and Sm. The highest TL response was found for Sm-doped MgO (MgO:Sm) reaching the highest sensitivity for 0.4 mol% of Sm. For this sample, the TL response showed linearity from 0.001 to 500 Gy of 60 Co gamma radiation. The lower detection limit was found to be equal to 1.17 μGy. The sensitivity of the MgO:Sm prepared dosimeter was approximately 10% the sensitivity of the commercial TLD-100. The TL signal fading was found to be 6% after one month. The deconvolution of the glow curve showed a symmetric peak with a general order kinetics, b, centered at 474 K. These results suggest that this new TL material could be a promising detector to use in diverse dosimetry applications., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

The luminescent and dosimetric properties of the MgB 4 O 7 phosphor co-doped with Tm and Dy ions (MgB 4 O 7 :Tm,Dy) obtained by the solution combustion technique were investigated. With the prepared material, sintered dosimeters in pellet form were made. The MgB 4 O 7 dosimeters doped with Tm and Dy with 0.25 and 0.10 mol% respectively and sintered at 1223 K for 3 h showed a sensitivity almost 11 times greater than the sensitivity of the TLD-100 commercial dosimeter. The TL response as a function of the gamma dose showed linearity up to 50 Gy followed by a supralinearity region and, above 500 Gy, the saturation region of the electron traps is reached. The fading of the main TL peak was negligible in the first five days after irradiation reaching 13% after 60 days and the lower detection limit was 43 μGy. The kinetic parameters were determined using the deconvolution method revealing general and second order kinetics. The morphology, crystallography and photoluminescence of the prepared phosphor samples are also reported., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Microplastics are one of the major pollutants in aquatic environments. Among their components, Bisphenol A (BPA) is one of the most abundant and dangerous, leading to endocrine disorders deriving even in different types of cancer in mammals. However, despite this evidence, the xenobiotic effects of BPA over plantae and microalgae still need to be better understood at the molecular level. To fill this gap, we characterized the physiological and proteomic response of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii during long-term BPA exposure by analyzing physiological and biochemical parameters combined with proteomics. BPA imbalanced iron and redox homeostasis, disrupting cell function and triggering ferroptosis. Intriguingly, this microalgae defense against this pollutant is recovering at both molecular and physiological levels while starch accumulation at 72 h of BPA exposure. In this work, we addressed the molecular mechanisms involved in BPA exposure, demonstrating for the first time the induction of ferroptosis in a eukaryotic alga and how ROS detoxification mechanisms and other specific proteomic rearrangements reverted this situation. These results are of great significance not only for understanding the BPA toxicology or exploring the molecular mechanisms of ferroptosis in microalgae but also for defining novel target genes for microplastic bioremediation efficient strain development., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This paper presents the results of a long experimental work carried out to study the influence of the heating rate (H.R.) on thermally stimulated light emission phenomenon, well known as thermoluminescence (TL) of MgB 4 O 7 activated by Tm and Dy ions (MgB 4 O 7 :Tm.Dy) in pellet form. The kinetics parameters, i.e. the activation energy, E, the frequency factor, s, the kinetics order, b and the number of trapped electrons, n 0 , were determined using the algorithm of sequential quadratic programming glow curve deconvolution (SQPGCD). The results obtained for the kinetics parameters, were compared with those obtained by other methods like Initial Rise (IR), Chen General-Order Kinetics (PS-GOK) and variable heating rate (VHR). These results suggest that SQPGCD method gives more accurate kinetics parameters values for the experimental glow curves., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This work reports the luminescence and kinetics parameters of high sensitivity MgB 4 O 7 phosphor co-doped with Tm and Dy ions (MgB 4 O 7 :Tm,Dy) obtained by the solution combustion technique. With the obtained material, sintered dosimeters in form of discs were made and subjected to 1223 K for 3 h and exposed to gamma radiation from a 60 Co source. It was found that these dosimeters show a sensitivity approximately 10 times higher than that shown by the commercial dosimeter TLD-100 (LiF:Mg,Ti). The kinetic parameters from three samples with different concentration of dopants were determined using the initial rise, peak shape and deconvolution methods. Initial rise and peak shape methods showed lower values than those found by the deconvolution method for the main peak (Peak 1). MgB 4 O 7 :Tm, Dy shows a wide linearity interval of TL response with respect to gamma dose and low coefficient of variability (1.5%). These results suggest that this new high sensitivity phosphor could be a promising material to be used in clinical dosimetry., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Borates are appropriate TL materials for radiation dosimetry, because of their equivalence with tissue. Magnesium borate is a tissue equivalent material and its most important advantage over lithium borate, is that this material is insoluble in water. In this work the effect of sintering temperature on the sensitivity of magnesium borate obtained by the solution combustion technique is presented. The results showed that the material doped with Tm and Ag, subjected to 1223 K, for 3 h, had a sensitivity between two and four times higher than that of the commercial dosimeter TLD-100 making it highly appropriate for applications in clinical dosimetry., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This work presents results obtained following the preparation of lithium borate by the chemical reaction between lithium carbonate (Li 2 CO 3 ) and boric acid (H 3 BO 3 ), doping the host salt of lithium borate (Li 2 B 4 O 7 ) with ions of copper, silver and phosphorus. With the obtained material dosimeters were produced in sintered pellet form which were exposed by gamma radiation that emitted from 60 Co source. The highest sensitivity was found for the sample of Li 2 B 4 O 7 :Cu,Ag,P (in pellet form) with 0.45, 0.45 and 12 mol% of Cu, Ag and P, respectively, subjected to a thermal treatment at 1123 K during 2 h. The TL response shows linearity in the dose range from 0.005 to 100 Gy. The lower detection limit (LDL) was equal to 6.10 μGy. The fading was found to be 3% in the first ten days and 9% at the end of thirty days. The repeatability of TL measurements for twenty cycles, showed a variability coefficient equal to 4.15%. The glow curve shape of Li 2 B 4 O 7 :Cu,Ag,P sintered pellet shows two peaks with general-kinetics order. This new material could be appropriate for dosimetry in clinical radiation applications., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest Authors of this manuscript confirm that they do not have any conflict of interest, (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Introduction & Objectives: Liver cirrhosis is a major cause of mortality worldwide. Adequate diagnosis and treatment of decompensating events requires of both medical skills and updated technical resources. The objectives of this study were to search the demographic profile of hospitalized cirrhotic patients in a group of Latin American hospitals and the availability of expertise/facilities for the diagnosis and therapy of decompensation episodes., Methods: A cross sectional, multicenter survey of hospitalized cirrhotic patients., Results: 377 patients, (62% males; 58±11 years) (BMI>25, 57%; diabetes 32%) were hospitalized at 65 centers (63 urbans; 57 academically affiliated) in 13 countries on the survey date. Main admission causes were ascites, gastrointestinal bleeding, hepatic encephalopathy and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis/other infections. Most prevalent etiologies were alcohol-related (AR) (40%); non-alcoholic-steatohepatitis (NASH) (23%), hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) (7%) and autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) (6%). The most frequent concurrent etiologies were AR+NASH. Expertise and resources in every analyzed issue were highly available among participating centers, mostly accomplishing valid guidelines. However, availability of these facilities was significantly higher at institutions located in areas with population>500,000 (n=45) and in those having a higher complexity level (Gastrointestinal, Liver and Internal Medicine Departments at the same hospital (n=22)., Conclusions: The epidemiological etiologic profile in hospitalized, decompensated cirrhotic patients in Latin America is similar to main contemporary emergent agents worldwide. Medical and technical resources are highly available, mostly at great population urban areas and high complexity medical centers. Main diagnostic and therapeutic approaches accomplish current guidelines recommendations., (Copyright © 2020 Fundación Clínica Médica Sur, A.C. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Between November 19th, 2012 and December 3rd, 2012, 50 workers were intoxicated with gaseous Hg in San Juan de Nieva (Asturias, Spain) during the maintenance of a heat exchanger of a zinc manufacturer. We have quantified the concentration of methylmercury (MeHg), ethylmercury (EtHg) and Hg(II) in blood, hair and urine samples of those individuals taken three years after the accident. Blood, hair and urine of their closest relatives were also analyzed to assess whether the mercury burden present in the intoxicated individuals was due to the occupational exposure or to environmental or lifestyle-related factors. The determination of the mercury species in the samples was carried out applying multiple spiking Isotope Dilution GC-ICP-MS. This procedure corrects for possible interconversion reactions between the Hg species during the sample preparation procedure. Linear correlations were observed for both groups when plotting MeHg in blood vs MeHg in hair, and MeHg in hair vs Hg (II) in urine. The concentrations of Hg species in the intoxicated individuals were not significantly different from those obtained in the control group except for MeHg in blood. Significantly higher levels of MeHg in blood were obtained in some of the intoxicated individuals who had not consumed fish or seafood since the accident. A different correlation between MeHg in hair and MeHg in blood was obtained for these individuals compared to the control group who showed a hair-to-blood ratio consistent with the reported value for people exposed to Hg via fish consumption. Our results suggest that ingested MeHg followed the same pathway of deposition in hair in exposed and non-exposed individuals. However, the exposed individuals with high MeHg levels in blood showed a significantly different extent of MeHg deposition in hair compared to the control group., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This work presents the results obtained from the dosimetric properties of the new radiation detectors of KMgF 3 :Tb + PTFE. The thermoluminescent material was obtained by microwave technique. The polycrystalline powder obtained was mixed with polytetrafluoroethylene resin powder in the ratio 2:3 to make dosimeters in pellet form. The thermoluminescent response of these new detectors presented a linear behavior, in the dose range between 1 and 1000 Gy 60 Co gamma radiation, the repeatability test in the measurements, during ten cycles of heat treatment, irradiation and readouts, showed ± 3.7% DS, the stability test of thermoluminescent signal, during two months showed that the fading is practically null. For the results obtained, this new detector could be very useful for radiation dosimetry, in clinical applications., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

A new α-Al 2 O 3 doped with Tm 3+ ions was obtained by combustion method; doped α-Al 2 O 3 in the powder form was mixed with polytetrafluoroethylene resin (PTFE) to obtain dosimeters in pellet form, in order to be used as radiation dosimeter. The glow curve, linearity, lower detection limit, repeatability and fading, were studied. The kinetic parameters were determined by deconvolution method. Morphological characteristics were studied by low vacuum scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Results showed that α-Al 2 O 3 +PTFE obtained is a promising material to radiation dosimetry., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Background: The use of enriched stable isotopes is of outstanding importance in chemical metrology as it allows the application of isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS). Primary methods based on IDMS ensure the quality of the analytical measurements and traceability of the results to the international system of units. However, the synthesis of isotopically labelled molecules from enriched stable isotopes is an expensive and a difficult task. Either chemical and biochemical methods to produce labelled molecules have been proposed, but so far, few cost-effective methods have been described., Results: The aim of this study was to use the microalgae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to produce, at laboratory scale, 15 N-labelled amino acids with a high isotopic enrichment. To do that, a culture media containing 15 NH 4 Cl was used. No kinetic isotope effect (KIE) was observed. The labelled proteins biosynthesized by the microorganism were extracted from the biomass and the 15 N-labelled amino acids were obtained after a protein hydrolysis with HCl. The use of the wall deficient strain CC503 cw92 mt+ is fit for purpose, as it only assimilates ammonia as nitrogen source, avoiding isotope contamination with nitrogen from the atmosphere or the reagents used in the culture medium, and enhancing the protein extraction efficiency compared to cell-walled wild type Chlamydomonas. The isotopic enrichment of the labelled amino acids was calculated from their isotopic composition measured by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The average isotopic enrichment for the 16 amino acids characterized was 99.56 ± 0.05% and the concentration of the amino acids in the hydrolysate ranged from 18 to 90 µg/mL., Conclusions: Previously reported biochemical methods to produce isotopically labelled proteins have been applied in the fields of proteomics and fluxomics. For these approaches, low amounts of products are required and the isotopic enrichment of the molecules has never been properly determined. So far, only 13 C-labelled fatty acids have been isolated from labelled microalga biomass as valuable industrial products. In this study, we propose Chlamydomonas reinhardtii CC503 as a feasible microorganism and strain to produce labelled biomass from which a standard containing sixteen 15 N-labelled amino acids could be obtained.

The characterization of new materials thermoluminescent used in radiation dosimetry, require the determination of kinetic parameters, which are associated with the number and shape of the peaks which presents its glow curve, among the most important are: the activation energy, E, or depth of the traps, the frequency factor, s, and the kinetics order, b. These parameters are necessary to predict the stability of thermoluminescent information after irradiation of the material. In this work, we present the results obtained for the determination of kinetic parameters of Tm 3+ -doped CaF 2 , the methods used for the determination of kinetic parameters were; initial growth signal TL, General order Chen method, and Deconvolution of glow curve. The results showed that the glow curve of CaF 2 presents three glow peaks, 492K main peak and two smaller peaks, one at 430K and another to 566K. The dosimetric glow peak fits to the general-order kinetics model., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Exposure among dentistry students has not been assessed or regulated in Mexico. This work assessed the average exposure of 35 dentistry students during their training with the aid of LiF:Mg,Cu,P+PTFE thermoluminescent dosimeters. For the students in the roles of dentist and observers, maximum accumulated equivalent dose obtained was 2.59±0.11 and 4.64±0.39 mSv, respectively. Students in the role as patients received a maximum accumulated effective dose of 28.41±0.31 mSv. If compared to occupational dose limits, this latter value is 56% of the recommended value of 50 mSv in any year. It was found that in all cases, values of equivalent dose to the women breasts were equal to the background dose. Results are discussed and compared to previous published work. Suggested recommendations were given to authorities in order to minimize exposure of the students in the role as patients., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this work, the results on determination of kinetic parameters using the method of deconvolution of glow curves obtained from the LiF doped with Mg(2+) ions, after having been irradiated to 5, 10 and 25 Gy of (60)Co gamma radiation, corresponding to the range of TL-vs-dose response linearity, are presented. The deconvolution is performed using two functions obtained by the method of asymptotic series and by the method based on the approximation of continued fractions. The glow curve of the studied material shows a dosimetric glow peak at 518 K and three peaks of very low intensity at 383, 423 and 463 K, all of a general-order kinetics. Kinetic parameters obtained with both methods showed that the values of kinetics, b, the energy of the traps, E, and the factor of frequency, s, do not differ significantly. However, the figure of merit, FOM, and the second derivative criteria indicate that the accuracy of the calculations with the second method improves considerably., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The isothermal decay method is useful for determining the trap activation energy in thermoluminescent material for dosimetry purposes. Recently we proposed new modified expressions for isothermal decay method. As validation of the modified expressions, after long-term (4 h) high temperature storage, the activation energy of experimental TL glow peaks, KMgF3:Lu (0.17 and 0.34 mol%) and LiF:Mg (0.04 mol%), in the framework of the general-order kinetic was calculated. The results of the kinetics parameters were compared with those obtained by the other methods like Initial Rise (IR), Sequential Quadratic Programming Glow Curve Deconvolution (SQPGCD), deconvolution of the TL glow curves by assuming the General Order Kinetic (GOK), and Chen General-Order Kinetics method. It seems that both SQPGCD and GOK deconvolution methods give more accurate kinetics parameters values for the experimental glow curves., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

We report the effect of thermal treatment on thermoluminescent (TL) sensitivity property of CaSO4:Dy obtained by a new preparation method at Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ) of Mexico. Samples of phosphor powder were subjected to different thermal treatments respectively at 773, 873, 973 and 1,173K for 1h and then irradiated from 0.1 to 1,000 Gy gamma doses. Low energy dependence was analyzed too by irradiating with X-rays in the range of 16-145 keV. The results were normalized to the energy (1,252 keV) of (60)Co and they were compared with those obtained using the commercial dosimeters TLD-100. Also the kinetic parameters were determined by deconvolution of glow curve., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The influence of heating rate on the thermoluminescence (TL) property of LiF:Mg,Cu,P+PTFE was analyzed. The activation energy and the frequency factor as a function of the heating rate were determined. The kinetic parameters and their dependence on the heating rate were evaluated using the sequential quadratic programming glow curve deconvolution (SQPGCD). The results showed that as the heating rate increases, the peak intensity at the maximum (I(M)) decreases and shifts to higher temperature; similar behavior of the kinetics parameters was observed., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Imposex and tributyltin (TBT) body burden were quantified in the gastropod Hexaplex trunculus collected from the Bizerta channel between 2002 and 2010. Except for the imposex frequency that remained maximal (100%), all the other imposex indices decreased throughout the study period. Similarly, TBT levels also decreased over time, being the less frequent compound among butyltins, with a proportion of 22.2%, against 42.9% for dibutyltin (DBT) and 34.9% for monobutyltin (MBT). These findings reflect the effectiveness of new generation of TBT-free antifouling paint introduced in the Tunisian market and global ban of TBT on reducing the environmental impact of this biocide., (© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2011)

This paper gives a full mathematical description of the kinetics expressions used in thermoluminescent isothermal decay experiments. The corresponding equations have been slightly modified considering the peak intensity at the maximum (I(M)) instead of the peak area Φ as proportional to absorbed dose, given normally in isothermal decay equations. The isothermal decay method was applied to the principal glow peaks of two different phosphors: LiF:Mg,Cu,P+PTFE, using first- and second-order kinetics, and BaSO(4):Eu+PTFE, using second-order kinetics., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: currently, 12% of the Spanish population is foreign-born, and a third of newly diagnosed HIV-infected patients are immigrants. We determined whether being an immigrant was associated with a poorer response to antiretroviral treatment., Methods: historical multicenter cohort study of naïve patients starting HAART. The primary endpoint was time to treatment failure (TTF) defined as virological failure (VF), death, opportunistic disease, treatment discontinuation (D/C), or missing patient. Secondary endpoints were TTF expressed as observed data (TFO; censoring missing patients) and time to virological failure (TVF; censoring missing patients and D/C not due to VF). A multivariate analysis was performed to control for confounders., Results: a total of 1090 treatment-naïve HIV-infected patients (387 immigrants and 703 autochthonous) from 33 hospitals were included. Most immigrants were from Sub-Saharan Africa (28.3%) or South-Central America/Caribbean (31%). Immigrants were significantly younger (34 y vs. 39 y), more frequently female (37.5% vs. 24.6%), with less HCV coinfection than autochthonous patients (7% vs. 31.3%). There were no differences in baseline viral load (4.95 Log(10) vs. 4.98 Log(10)), CD4 lymphocyte count (193.5/µL vs. 201.5/µL), late initiation of HAART (56.4% vs. 56.0%), or antiretrovirals used. Cox-regression analysis (HR; 95%CI) did not show differences in TTF (0.89; 0.66-1.20), TFO (0.95; 0.66-1.36), or TVF (1.00; 0.57-1.78) between immigrants and autochthonous patients. Losses to follow-up were more frequent among immigrants (17.8% vs. 12.1; p=0.009). Sub-Saharan African patients and immigrant females had a significantly shorter TTF., Conclusions: the response to HAART among immigrant patients was similar to that of autochthonous patients, although they had a higher rate of losses to follow-up. Sub-Saharan Africans and immigrant females may need particular measures to avoid barriers hindering antiviral efficacy.

Paracoccidioidomycosis is the most important systemic mycosis in South America. In Europe the disease is very rare and only found in returning travelers. Here we report on a 56-year-old Spanish missionary with respiratory symptoms but no other affected systems. Diagnosis was made based on serology and PCR for Paracoccidioides brasiliensis.

The aim of this work is to present the results concerning the photon irradiation of a new phosphor, the LiF:Mg,Cu,P+PTFE, produced at the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ-Mexico). The photon irradiations were performed using X-rays of 16, 24, 34.5, 42, 100 and 145keV, and gamma rays from (137)Cs (662keV) and from (60)Co (1 252keV). The results obtained are normalized to the (60)Co response. The experimental data are then compared to those obtained using the commercial dosimeters TLD-100 and GR-200A.

The capabilities of National Metrology Institutes (NMIs-those which are members of the Comité Consultatif pour la Quantité de Matière (CCQM)of the CIPM) and selected outside "expert" laboratories to quantitate (C(4)H(9))(3)Sn(+) (TBT) in a prepared marine sediment were assessed. This exercise was sanctioned by the 7th CCQM meeting, April 4-6, 2001, as an activity of the Inorganic Analysis Working Group and was jointly piloted by the Institute for National Measurement Standards of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the Laboratory of the Government Chemist (LGC), UK. A total of 11 laboratories submitted results (7 NMIs, and 4 external labs). Two external laboratories utilized a standard calibration approach based on a natural abundance TBT standard, whereas all NMIs relied upon isotope dilution mass spectrometry for quantitation. For this purpose, a species specific (117)Sn-enriched TBT standard was supplied by the LGC. No sample preparation methodology was prescribed by the piloting laboratories and, by consequence, a variety of approaches was adopted by the participants, including mechanical shaking, sonication, accelerated solvent extraction, microwave assisted extraction and heating in combination with Grignard derivatization, ethylation and direct sampling. Detection techniques included ICP-MS (with GC and HPLC sample introduction), GC-MS, GC-AED and GC-FPD. Recovery of TBT from a control standard (NRCC CRM PACS-2 marine sediment) averaged 93.5+/-2.4% ( n=14). Results for the pilot material averaged 0.680+/-0.015 micro mol kg(-1) ( n=14; 80.7+/-1.8 micro g kg(-1)) with a median value of 0.676 micro mol kg(-1). Overall, performance was substantially better than state-of-the-art expectations and the satisfactory agreement amongst participants permitted scheduling of a follow-up Key comparison for TBT (K-28), a Pilot intercomparison for DBT (P-43), and certification of the test sediment for TBT content and its release as a new Certified Reference Material (HIPA-1) with a TBT content of 0.679+/-0.089 micro mol kg(-1) (expanded uncertainty, k=2, as Sn) (80.5+/-10.6 micro g kg(-1)).