G/T Substitution in Intron 1 of the UNC13B Gene Is Associated With Increased Risk of Nephropathy in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes

OBJECTIVE— Genetic and environmental factors modulate the susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy, as initiating and/or progression factors. The objective of the European Rational Approach for the Genetics of Diabetic Complications (EURAGEDIC) study is to identify nephropathy susceptibility genes. We report molecular genetic studies for 127 candidate genes for nephropathy

Maternal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and the secondary sex ratio: an occupational cohort study

Though commercial production of polychlorinated biphenyls was banned in the United States in 1977, exposure continues due to their environmental persistence. Several studies have examined the association between environmental polychlorinated biphenyl exposure and modulations of the secondary sex ratio, with conflicting results. Our objective was to evaluate the association between maternal preconceptional occupational polychlorinated biphenyl exposure and the secondary sex ratio. We examined primipara singleton births of 2595 women, who worked in three capacitor plants at least one year during the period polychlorinated biphenyls were used. Cumulative estimated maternal occupational polychlorinated biphenyl exposure at the time of the infant's conception was calculated from plant-specific job-exposure matrices. A logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the association between maternal polychlorinated biphenyl exposure and male sex at birth (yes/no). Maternal body mass index at age 20, smoking status, and race did not vary between those occupationally exposed and those unexposed before the child's conception. Polychlorinated biphenyl-exposed mothers were, however, more likely to have used oral contraceptives and to have been older at the birth of their first child than non-occupationally exposed women. Among 1506 infants liveborn to polychlorinated biphenyl-exposed primiparous women, 49.8% were male; compared to 49.9% among those not exposed (n = 1089). Multivariate analyses controlling for mother's age and year of birth found no significant association between the odds of a male birth and mother's cumulative estimated polychlorinated biphenyl exposure to time of conception. Based on these data, we find no evidence of altered sex ratio among children born to primiparous polychlorinated biphenyl-exposed female workers

Porous Glass Microspheres from Alkali-Activated Fiber Glass Waste

Fiber glass waste (FGW) was subjected to alkali activation in an aqueous solution with different concentrations of sodium/potassium hydroxide. The activated materials were fed into a methane–oxygen flame with a temperature of around 1600 °C. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the formation of several hydrated compounds, which decomposed upon flame synthesis, leading to porous glass microspheres (PGMs). Pore formation was favored by using highly concentrated activating alkali solutions. The highest homogeneity and yield of PGMs corresponded to the activation with 9 M KOH aqueous solution

New glass-based binders from engineered mixtures of inorganic waste

Aluminum is one of the most important strategic resources, but the Bayer process, typically applied for the purification of ores, leads to vast amounts of alkaline slurry waste, known as red mud. Though interesting for potential reprocessing, red mud is still predominantly stored in big slurry pools, due to high levels of toxic metals. Toxic ions can be easily immobilized by vitrification, but the high costs of this solution need to be balanced by the reuse of the obtained glass. The present paper is dedicated to the transformation of waste-derived glass into new binders for the construction industry, according to both \u201cconventional melting\u201d and \u201csmelting\u201d approaches. In the first case, red mud was included in a mixture of waste, designed to yield a reactive glass (CMG), that is, forming stable gels after activation in an alkaline aqueous solution. In the second approach, red mud was subjected to a thermal treatment in a reductive atmosphere, implying the separation of molten iron alloy. The remaining glassy slag, according to its chemical composition (CaO and Al2O3-rich) underwent gelation by simple interaction with pure water, without any alkaline activator, thus configuring a new \u201cglass cement.\u201d