Nutritional status, quality of life and CD4 cell count of adults living with HIV/AIDS in the Ga-Rankuwa area (South Africa)

Objective: To determine if there was a relationship between CD4 cell count, nutritional status and self-reported quality of life (QoL) in HIV-infected adults.Design: Descriptive study in the quantitative research domain.Setting: The out-patient antiretroviral (ARV) clinic at Dr George Mukhari Hospital (Ga-Rankuwa) (institutional).Subjects: The study group (n = 90) consisted of male (n = 34) and female patients (18–50 years) diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Convenience sampling was used.Outcome measures: Anthropometry (weight, height, BMI, MUAC, TSF),  dietary intake (habitual food intake recall) and QoL (WHOQoL-HIV questionnaire) were assessed. Data collection was done from January–April 2007.Results: Significant, but poor, positive correlation was found for the  following anthropometrical parameters and the CD4 cell count: weight(r = 0.37; ρ = 0.00), BMI (r = 0.39; ρ = 0.00), and MUAC (r = 0.36; ρ = 0.00). The study group had a poor dietary quality. Significant correlation with the CD4 cell count was found for the following domains of the QoL: physical activity (r = 0.27; ρ = 0.01), psychological (r = 0.27; ρ = 0.01), level of independence (r = 0.36; ρ = 0.00), and environmental (r = 0.27; ρ = 0.01). The overall QoL assessment was average, according to the WHOQoL-HIV questionnaire score. Conclusion: Significant positive relationships existed between specific anthropometry and the CD4 cell count, and also between certain QoL domains and the CD4 cell count. Strategies for increasing dietary diversity and QoL ought to be identified and implemented in communities.Recommendation: A longitudinal study would give better understanding of the relationship between nutritional status, the CD4 cell count and Qo

Probing the hydrogen melting line at high pressures by dynamic compression

We investigate the capabilities of dynamic compression by intense heavy ion beams to yield information about the high pressure phases of hydrogen. Employing ab initio simulations and experimental data, a new wide range equation of state for hydrogen is constructed. The results show that the melting line up to its maximum as well as the transition from molecular fluids to fully ionized plasmas can be tested with the beam parameters soon to be available. We demonstrate that x-ray scattering can distinguish between phases and dissociation states

Biographische Berufsorientierungen deutscher und englischer Kfz-Mechatroniker

"Biographische Berufsorientierungen deutscher und englischer Kfz-Mechatroniker sind Forschungsgegenstand des dargestellten Projekts. Mittels autobiographisch-narrativer Interviews mit den Kfz-Mechatronikern und der Auswertung mittels der Narrationsanalyse und Grounded Theory wurden drei Muster biographischer Berufsorientierungen sowie die subjektive Wahrnehmung der nationalen Strukturen der beruflichen Bildung rekonstruiert." (Autorenreferat)"Biographical orientations towards vocation of German and English car mechatronics are the object of research. The analysis of the autobiographical-narrative interviews conducted with car mechatronics resulted in the reconstruction of three patterns of biographical orientations towards vocation as well as the reconstruction of the subjective perception of national structures." (author's abstract

Water adsorption on vanadium oxide thin films in ambient relative humidity.

In this work, ambient pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (APXPS) is used to study the initial stages of water adsorption on vanadium oxide surfaces. V 2p, O 1s, C 1s, and valence band XPS spectra were collected as a function of relative humidity in a series of isotherm and isobar experiments. Experiments were carried out on two VO2 thin films on TiO2 (100) substrates, prepared with different surface cleaning procedures. Hydroxyl and molecular water surface species were identified, with up to 0.5 ML hydroxide present at the minimum relative humidity, and a consistent molecular water adsorption onset occurring around 0.01% relative humidity. The work function was found to increase with increasing relative humidity, suggesting that surface water and hydroxyl species are oriented with the hydrogen atoms directed away from the surface. Changes in the valence band were also observed as a function of relative humidity. The results were similar to those observed in APXPS experiments on other transition metal oxide surfaces, suggesting that H2O-OH and H2O-H2O surface complex formation plays an important role in the oxide wetting process and water dissociation. Compared to polycrystalline vanadium metal, these vanadium oxide films generate less hydroxide and appear to be more favorable for molecular water adsorption

The role of carbon species in heterogeneous catalytic processes: an in situ soft x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study

High pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is used to characterize heterogeneous catalytic processes. The success of the new technique based on the possibility to correlate the catalytic activity and the electronic structure of an active surface. The dynamic character of a catalyst surface can be demonstrated impressively by this technique. In this contribution the basics of high pressure XPS will be discussed. Three examples of heterogeneous catalytic reactions are presented in this contribution. The selective hydrogenation of 1-pentyne over Pd based catalysts and the dehydrogenation of n-butane and the oxidation of ethylene over V based catalysts. It is shown, that the formation of subsurface carbons plays an important role in all the examples. The incorporated carbon changes the electronic structure of the surface and so controls the selectivity of the reaction. A change of the educts in the reaction atmosphere induces modifications of the electronic surface structure of the operation catalysts