First Results on In-Beam gamma Spectroscopy of Neutron-Rich Na and Mg Isotopes at REX-ISOLDE

After the successful commissioning of the radioactive beam experiment at ISOLDE (REX-ISOLDE) - an accelerator for exotic nuclei produced by ISOLDE - first physics experiments using these beams were performed. Initial experiments focused on the region of deformation in the vicinity of the neutron-rich Na and Mg isotopes. Preliminary results show the high potential and physics opportunities offered by the exotic isotope accelerator REX in conjunction with the modern Germanium gamma spectrometer MINIBALL.Comment: 7 pages, RNB6 conference contributio

Urine proteomics in the diagnosis of stable angina.

BACKGROUND: We have previously described a panel of 238 urinary polypeptides specific for established severe coronary artery disease (CAD). Here we studied this polypeptide panel in patients with a wider range of CAD severity. METHODS: We recruited 60 patients who underwent elective coronary angiography for investigation of stable angina. Patients were selected for either having angiographic evidence of CAD or not (NCA) following coronary angiography (n = 30/30; age, 55 ± 6 vs. 56 ± 7 years, P = 0.539) to cover the extremes of the CAD spectrum. A further 66 patients with severe CAD (age, 64 ± 9 years) prior to surgical coronary revascularization were added for correlation studies. The Gensini score was calculated from coronary angiograms as a measure of CAD severity. Urinary proteomic analyses were performed using capillary electrophoresis coupled online to micro time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The urinary polypeptide pattern was classified using a predefined algorithm and resulting in the CAD238 score, which expresses the pattern quantitatively. RESULTS: In the whole cohort of patients with CAD (Gensini score 60 [40; 98]) we found a close correlation between Gensini scores and CAD238 (ρ = 0.465, P < 0.001). After adjustment for age (β = 0.144; P = 0.135) the CAD238 score remained a significant predictor of the Gensini score (β =0.418; P < 0.001). In those with less severe CAD (Gensini score 40 [25; 61]), however, we could not detect a difference in CAD238 compared to patients with NCA (-0.487 ± 0.341 vs. -0.612 ± 0.269, P = 0.119). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion the urinary polypeptide CAD238 score is associated with CAD burden and has potential as a new cardiovascular biomarker

Autoantibodies against the chemokine receptor 3 predict cardiovascular risk

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Chronic inflammation and autoimmunity contribute to cardiovascular (CV) disease. Recently, autoantibodies (aAbs) against the CXC-motif-chemokine receptor 3 (CXCR3), a G protein-coupled receptor with a key role in atherosclerosis, have been identified. The role of anti-CXCR3 aAbs for CV risk and disease is unclear. METHODS: Anti-CXCR3 aAbs were quantified by a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 5000 participants (availability: 97.1%) of the population-based Gutenberg Health Study with extensive clinical phenotyping. Regression analyses were carried out to identify determinants of anti-CXCR3 aAbs and relevance for clinical outcome (i.e. all-cause mortality, cardiac death, heart failure, and major adverse cardiac events comprising incident coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, and cardiac death). Last, immunization with CXCR3 and passive transfer of aAbs were performed in ApoE(-/-) mice for preclinical validation. RESULTS: The analysis sample included 4195 individuals (48% female, mean age 55.5 ± 11 years) after exclusion of individuals with autoimmune disease, immunomodulatory medication, acute infection, and history of cancer. Independent of age, sex, renal function, and traditional CV risk factors, increasing concentrations of anti-CXCR3 aAbs translated into higher intima-media thickness, left ventricular mass, and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide. Adjusted for age and sex, anti-CXCR3 aAbs above the 75th percentile predicted all-cause death [hazard ratio (HR) (95% confidence interval) 1.25 (1.02, 1.52), P = .029], driven by excess cardiac mortality [HR 2.51 (1.21, 5.22), P = .014]. A trend towards a higher risk for major adverse cardiac events [HR 1.42 (1.0, 2.0), P = .05] along with increased risk of incident heart failure [HR per standard deviation increase of anti-CXCR3 aAbs: 1.26 (1.02, 1.56), P = .03] may contribute to this observation. Targeted proteomics revealed a molecular signature of anti-CXCR3 aAbs reflecting immune cell activation and cytokine-cytokine receptor interactions associated with an ongoing T helper cell 1 response. Finally, ApoE(-/-) mice immunized against CXCR3 displayed increased anti-CXCR3 aAbs and exhibited a higher burden of atherosclerosis compared to non-immunized controls, correlating with concentrations of anti-CXCR3 aAbs in the passive transfer model. CONCLUSIONS: In individuals free of autoimmune disease, anti-CXCR3 aAbs were abundant, related to CV end-organ damage, and predicted all-cause death as well as cardiac morbidity and mortality in conjunction with the acceleration of experimental atherosclerosis

Decrease in antibiotic resistance among invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) isolates in France from 2003 to 2007; On-going survey of the French Pneumococcus network (ORP)

Date du colloque&nbsp;: 10/2008</p

Design concepts for the Cherenkov Telescope Array CTA: an advanced facility for ground-based high-energy gamma-ray astronomy

Ground-based gamma-ray astronomy has had a major breakthrough with the impressive results obtained using systems of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes. Ground-based gamma-ray astronomy has a huge potential in astrophysics, particle physics and cosmology. CTA is an international initiative to build the next generation instrument, with a factor of 5-10 improvement in sensitivity in the 100 GeV-10 TeV range and the extension to energies well below 100 GeV and above 100 TeV. CTA will consist of two arrays (one in the north, one in the south) for full sky coverage and will be operated as open observatory. The design of CTA is based on currently available technology. This document reports on the status and presents the major design concepts of CTA

Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae in France in 2007: Data from the Pneumococcus Surveillance Network

Antimicrobial resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae in France is closely monitored by the pneumococcus surveillance network, founded in 1995, which collects data from regional observatories (Observatoire Régionaux du Pneumocoque [ORP]). In 2007, 23 ORPs analyzed the antibiotic susceptibility of 5,302 isolates of S. pneumoniae recovered in France from cerebrospinal fluid, blood, middle ear fluid, and pleural fluid, as well as from adult respiratory samples. The study showed that 38.2% of the strains were nonsusceptible to penicillin, 19.3% nonsusceptible to amoxicillin, and 10.5% nonsusceptible to cefotaxime. The percentage of pneumococcus nonsusceptible to penicillin varied according to both the sample and the age of the patient (child/adult): blood (27.8%/32.5%), cerebrospinal fluid (33.7%/34.6%), middle ear fluid (60.2%/27.5%), and pleural fluid (50.0%/31.0%). Between 2003 and 2007, the frequency of penicillin resistance in invasive pneumococcal disease gradually decreased from 46.4% to 29.0% in children and from 43.8% to 32.7% in adults. This decrease coincided with the introduction of a seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine into immunization programs and with a general reduction in levels of antibiotic consumption in France