Measurement of the properties of inelastic p-p events with the ATLAS detector

New measurements are presented from proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Minimum bias distributions are measured in distinct phase-space regions and compared with Monte Carlo model predictions. Activity in the underlying event is measured with respect to the track with the highest tranverse momentum in the event. Angular correlations between charged particles are studied to provide model-sensitive measurements.Comment: 3 pages, HCP 201

ATLAS SCT Commissioning

The Barrel and End-Cap SCT detectors are installed in the ATLAS cavern. This paper will focus on the assembly, installation and first tests of the SCT in-situ. The thermal, electrical and optical services were tested and the results will be reviewed. Problems with the cooling have led to a modification for the heaters on the cooling return lines. The first tests of the SCT in-situ will be described using the calibration scans. The performance of the SCT, in particular the fraction of working channels and the noise performance, is well within the ATLAS specification

Fungal infections in HIV/AIDS.

Fungi are major contributors to the opportunistic infections that affect patients with HIV/AIDS. Systemic infections are mainly with Pneumocystis jirovecii (pneumocystosis), Cryptococcus neoformans (cryptococcosis), Histoplasma capsulatum (histoplasmosis), and Talaromyces (Penicillium) marneffei (talaromycosis). The incidence of systemic fungal infections has decreased in people with HIV in high-income countries because of the widespread availability of antiretroviral drugs and early testing for HIV. However, in many areas with high HIV prevalence, patients present to care with advanced HIV infection and with a low CD4 cell count or re-present with persistent low CD4 cell counts because of poor adherence, resistance to antiretroviral drugs, or both. Affordable, rapid point-of-care diagnostic tests (as have been developed for cryptococcosis) are urgently needed for pneumocystosis, talaromycosis, and histoplasmosis. Additionally, antifungal drugs, including amphotericin B, liposomal amphotericin B, and flucytosine, need to be much more widely available. Such measures, together with continued international efforts in education and training in the management of fungal disease, have the potential to improve patient outcomes substantially

Evaluation and microanalytical study of ZVI /zeolite substrate mixtures for treating acid mine drainage using reactive barriers - removal mechanisms

Abstract: Batch and column experiments were performed to evaluate contaminant removal from acid mine drainage (AMD) using volcanic ash zeolite (VA) with or without zero-valent iron (ZVI) media. Two types of AMD were used i.e. WZ with pH of 2.43 taken from goldfields and TDB with pH of 2.93 collected from coalfields. It was found that VA substrate performed similarly or better than ZVI reactive media whose pH reached 7.0 to 8.5. VA was effective in removing heavy metals despite attaining a relatively lower maximum pH of 5.5. Metals Al, Fe, Zn were generally completely removed from both types of AMD by both the VA and ZVI substrates and their 50:50 mixtures. Removal of Mg and Mn was influenced by the type of AMD. Generally, the substrate comprising 50:50 ZVI/VA mixture was found to treat both AMD types fairly consistently, achieving complete removal of major elements in TDB and a majority of other elements in WZ..

Magnetic Resonance Investigation of the Human Brain after 6 Days of Acclimatization to 4554 m - Preliminary Results of the EFA study -

Objective: Hypoxia is the main trigger of acute mountain sickness (AMS). However it is not the cause of the actual symptoms of AMS. The biochemical mechanisms underlying the AMS development are not well understood what leads to a high uncertainty regarding the likeliness of AMS development in astronauts living in future moderate hypobaric hypoxic habitats on Mars or moon. The hypothesis of the EFA study (Edema Formation in the High Alps) was that hypoxia triggered inflammatory processes lead to a breakdown of the capillary barrier and edema formation in vulnerable tissues as the brain. Methods: 11 subjects (5 women) ascended within 48 h from 1154 m to the Capanna Regina Margherita in 4554 m. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed at sea level before the altitude exposure and within the first 12 h after descent. MRI included amongst others an anatomical 3D volumetric T1-weighted MPRAGE (magnetization-prepared rapid acquisition of gradient echo) scan, a susceptibility weighted gradient echo sequence, T2 weighted spin echo sequences and a diffusion weighted sequence to gain an apparent diffusion coefficient mapping and a trace image to test for volume changes of the different brain compartments, for hypoxic triggered brain edema and for micro-bleedings. Baseline measurements were performed at the DLR MRI lab in Cologne (77 m) whereas post line measurements were performed at the MRI department of the German Air Force in Fürstenfeldbruck (517 m) by applying identical sequences at both centers. Results: Neither mean global intracranial volume (p=7.97) nor mean volumes of the particular brain compartments grey (p=0.279) and white matter (p=0.758) or cerebrospinal fluid (p=0.586) showed any significant differences after the altitude exposure with respect to baseline. However 6 days of altitude exposure lead to the exacerbation of pre-existing white matter lesions in one subject and the occurrence of a local hypoxic edema in the splenium of a second subjects in the sense of a reversible splenial lesion syndrome (RESLES) (1, 2). Conclusion: Contradictory to the current literature (3) we were not able to show a general volume gain of the intracranial compartments after high altitude adaptation. However our findings of white matter lesions (4) and RESLES in two subjects not presenting any symptoms of a high altitude cerebral edema (HACE) have, as far as we know, not been described before (5)

Biomarkers of fever: from bench to bedside

__Abstract__ This thesis aims to study biomarkers in inflammation and infection, with a special focus on the distinction between infectious and non-infectious fever. The thesis consists of three parts, part I being this introduction, in which the concept of fever in infectious and non-infectious disease is discussed. Furthermore, in this part we provide an overview of the epidemiology of febrile disease, as studied both in a general hospital in the Netherlands and in a general hospital in Curaçao. Also, a review of current literature on biological markers in non-infectious fever is given. Part II describes our clinical studies with focus on biomarkers in different cohorts of patients with infectious and non-infectious fever. In part III, we summarize the findings of this thesis and discuss future research

Epidemiology of febrile diseases in the emergency department of a Caribbean Island: The Curaçao experience

Objective: The aetiology of febrile diseases in tropical countries often remains poorly characterized. We aim to describe the aetiology and outcome of febrile illnesses at the Emergency Department (ED) in Curaçao. Methods: From April 2008 - April 2009, all adult febrile patients (T > 38.5 oC) at the ED of the St Elisabeth Hospital, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles, were included. Clinical data were recorded, routine laboratory measurements and blood cultures were taken. Final diagnoses were made at discharge by an independent physician and in retrospect by the main investigator. Results: Four hundred and three patients were included: 223 patients (55.6%) were hospitalized, 32 patients (7.9%) died and 18 patients (4.5%) were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit. In 129 febrile patients (32.0%), infection was proven; 84.4% of patients had bacterial (29.0% urinary tract infection, 23.2% pneumonia infection), 5.6% viral and 10.0% parasitic or fungal infections. Twenty-one patients (5.2%) were discharged with a non-infectious diagnosis and 172 patients (42.7%) without a clear diagnosis. Conclusion: A high mortality rate of 7.9% was observed. We found a high prevalence of bacterial infections, with pneumonia and urinary tract infections as the most common causes of fever. One in 20 patients did not have an infectious disease