Life Insurance Consumption as a Function of Wealth Change

This article used a large nationally representative longitudinal dataset to explore the association between changing socioeconomic factors and household consumption of life insurance across time. This study specifically examined the association between changes in wealth and life insurance consumption controlling for household characteristics and psychosocial factors. Empirical results indicate that during the 2004-2008 period, an increase in net worth was positively associated with purchases of additional cash value life insurance at the household level. Women and Black households were also more likely to increase their life insurance consumption during this period. Saving intention was likewise found to be positively associated with an increase in household life insurance consumption. Results suggest that life insurance acts a complement to, rather than substitute for, wealth. Implications of the findings of this study for individual investors, scholars and practitioners have been included

Evaluation of the efficacy of d-penicillamine and trientine as copper chelators using an in vitro technique involving ovine red blood cells

An in vitro technique for haemolysing ovine red blood cells with copper sulphate was standardized to induce c 50% haemolysis with 0,5 mM CuSO₄ after incubation for 14 h at 38°C. This technique was then applied to test the efficacy of trientine and d-penicillamine in preventing haemolysis. Trientine concentrations of 0,5; 1,0 and 1,5 mM were found to be the most effective (P<0,05) in reducing copper-induced haemolysis. One and 1,5 mM concentrations of d-penicillamine were also effective (P< 0,05), but in this experiment a 0,5 mM concentration failed to protect the erythrocytes.The articles have been scanned in colour with a HP Scanjet 5590; 600dpi. Adobe Acrobat XI Pro was used to OCR the text and also for the merging and conversion to the final presentation PDF-format.Palabora Mining Company.mn201

Epitaxial growth of Cu on Cu(001): experiments and simulations

A quantitative comparison between experimental and Monte Carlo simulation results for the epitaxial growth of Cu/Cu(001) in the submonolayer regime is presented. The simulations take into account a complete set of hopping processes whose activation energies are derived from semi-empirical calculations using the embedded-atom method. The island separation is measured as a function of the incoming flux and the temperature. A good quantitative agreement between the experiment and simulation is found for the island separation, the activation energies for the dominant processes, and the exponents that characterize the growth. The simulation results are then analyzed at lower coverages, which are not accessible experimentally, providing good agreement with theoretical predictions as well.Comment: Latex document. 7 pages. 3 embedded figures in separate PS files. One bbl fil

Assessment of FIV-C infection of cats as a function of treatment with the protease inhibitor, TL-3

BACKGROUND: The protease inhibitor, TL-3, demonstrated broad efficacy in vitro against FIV, HIV and SIV (simian immunodeficiency virus), and exhibited very strong protective effects on early neurologic alterations in the CNS of FIV-PPR infected cats. In this study, we analyzed TL-3 efficacy using a highly pathogenic FIV-C isolate, which causes a severe acute phase immunodeficiency syndrome, with high early mortality rates. RESULTS: Twenty cats were infected with uncloned FIV-C and half were treated with TL-3 while the other half were left untreated. Two uninfected cats were used as controls. The general health and the immunological and virological status of the animals was monitored for eight weeks following infection. All infected animals became viremic independent of TL-3 treatment and seven of 20 FIV-C infected animals developed severe immunodepletive disease in conjunction with significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher viral RNA loads as compared to asymptomatic animals. A marked and progressive increase in CD8(+ )T lymphocytes in animals surviving acute phase infection was noted, which was not evident in symptomatic animals (p ≤ 0.05). Average viral loads were lower in TL-3 treated animals and of the 6 animals requiring euthanasia, four were from the untreated cohort. At eight weeks post infection, half of the TL-3 treated animals and only one of six untreated animals had viral loads below detection limits. Analysis of protease genes in TL-3 treated animals with higher than average viral loads revealed sequence variations relative to wild type protease. In particular, one mutant, D105G, imparted 5-fold resistance against TL-3 relative to wild type protease. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that the protease inhibitor, TL-3, when administered orally as a monotherapy, did not prevent viremia in cats infected with high dose FIV-C. However, the modest lowering of viral loads with TL-3 treatment, the greater survival rate in symptomatic animals of the treated cohort, and the lower average viral load in TL-3 treated animals at eight weeks post infection is indicative of a therapeutic effect of the compound on virus infection

Assessment of Exploration Exercise Concepts and Operations Methodology in a BAA Habitat Test Environment

No abstract availabl

Meeting Report: Measuring Endocrine-Sensitive Endpoints within the First Years of Life

An international workshop titled “Assessing Endocrine-Related Endpoints within the First Years of Life” was held 30 April–1 May 2007, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Representatives from a number of pregnancy cohort studies in North America and Europe presented options for measuring various endocrine-sensitive endpoints in early life and discussed issues related to performing and using those measures. The workshop focused on measuring reproductive tract developmental endpoints [e.g., anogenital distance (AGD)], endocrine status, and infant anthropometry. To the extent possible, workshop participants strove to develop or recommend standardized measurements that would allow comparisons and pooling of data across studies. The recommended outcomes include thigh fat fold, breast size, vaginal cytology, AGD, location of the testis, testicular size, and growth of the penis, with most of the discussion focusing on the genital exam. Although a number of outcome measures recommended during the genital exam have been associated with exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, little is known about how predictive these effects are of later reproductive health or other chronic health conditions

The read-across hypothesis and environmental risk assessment of pharmaceuticals

This article is made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund. Copyright © 2013 American Chemical Society.Pharmaceuticals in the environment have received increased attention over the past decade, as they are ubiquitous in rivers and waterways. Concentrations are in sub-ng to low μg/L, well below acute toxic levels, but there are uncertainties regarding the effects of chronic exposures and there is a need to prioritise which pharmaceuticals may be of concern. The read-across hypothesis stipulates that a drug will have an effect in non-target organisms only if the molecular targets such as receptors and enzymes have been conserved, resulting in a (specific) pharmacological effect only if plasma concentrations are similar to human therapeutic concentrations. If this holds true for different classes of pharmaceuticals, it should be possible to predict the potential environmental impact from information obtained during the drug development process. This paper critically reviews the evidence for read-across, and finds that few studies include plasma concentrations and mode of action based effects. Thus, despite a large number of apparently relevant papers and a general acceptance of the hypothesis, there is an absence of documented evidence. There is a need for large-scale studies to generate robust data for testing the read-across hypothesis and developing predictive models, the only feasible approach to protecting the environment.BBSRC Industrial Partnership Award BB/ I00646X/1 and BBSRC Industrial CASE Partnership Studentship BB/I53257X/1 with AstraZeneca Safety Health and Environment Research Programme

Semen quality in Peruvian pesticide applicators: association between urinary organophosphate metabolites and semen parameters

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Organophosphates are broad class of chemicals widely used as pesticides throughout the world. We performed a cross-sectional study of associations between dialkylphosphate metabolites of organophosphates and semen quality among pesticide applicators in Majes (Arequipa), Peru.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty-one men exposed to organophosphate (OP) pesticides and 31 non-exposed were recruited (age, 20–60 years). In exposed subjects, semen and a blood sample were obtained one day after the last pesticide application. Subjects were grouped according to levels of OP metabolites in urine. Semen samples were analyzed for sperm concentration, percentage of sperm motility, percentage of normal morphology, semen leucocytes and concentrations of fructose and zinc. Exposure to OP was assessed by measuring six urinary OP metabolites (dimethyl and diethyl phosphates and thiophosphates) by gas chromatography using a single flame photometric detector.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Diethyldithiophosphate (p = 0.04) and diethylthiophosphate (p = 0.02) better reflected occupational pesticide exposure than other OP metabolites. Semen analysis revealed a significant reduction of semen volume and an increase in semen pH in men with OP metabolites. Multiple regression analysis showed that both occupational exposure to pesticides and the time of exposure to pesticides were more closely related to alterations in semen quality parameters than the single measurement of OP metabolites in urine.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The study demonstrated that occupational exposure to OP pesticides was more closely related to alterations in semen quality than a single measurement of urine OP metabolites. Current measurement of OP metabolites in urine may not reflect the full risk.</p

Single-cell insights into immune dysregulation in rheumatoid arthritis flare versus drug-free remission

Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) are typically characterised by relapsing and remitting flares of inflammation. However, the unpredictability of disease flares impedes their study. Addressing this critical knowledge gap, we use the experimental medicine approach of immunomodulatory drug withdrawal in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) remission to synchronise flare processes allowing detailed characterisation. Exploratory mass cytometry analyses reveal three circulating cellular subsets heralding the onset of arthritis flare – CD45RO+PD1hi CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, and CD27+CD86+CD21- B cells – further characterised by single-cell sequencing. Distinct lymphocyte subsets including cytotoxic and exhausted CD4+ memory T cells, memory CD8+CXCR5+ T cells, and IGHA1+ plasma cells are primed for activation in flare patients. Regulatory memory CD4+ T cells (Treg cells) increase at flare onset, but with dysfunctional regulatory marker expression compared to drug-free remission. Significant clonal expansion is observed in T cells, but not B cells, after drug cessation; this is widespread throughout memory CD8+ T cell subsets but limited to the granzyme-expressing cytotoxic subset within CD4+ memory T cells. Based on our observations, we suggest a model of immune dysregulation for understanding RA flare, with potential for further translational research towards novel avenues for its treatment and prevention

Sharing Detailed Research Data Is Associated with Increased Citation Rate

BACKGROUND: Sharing research data provides benefit to the general scientific community, but the benefit is less obvious for the investigator who makes his or her data available. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We examined the citation history of 85 cancer microarray clinical trial publications with respect to the availability of their data. The 48% of trials with publicly available microarray data received 85% of the aggregate citations. Publicly available data was significantly (p = 0.006) associated with a 69% increase in citations, independently of journal impact factor, date of publication, and author country of origin using linear regression. SIGNIFICANCE: This correlation between publicly available data and increased literature impact may further motivate investigators to share their detailed research data