Occupational Radiation Protection in Interventional Radiology: A Joint Guideline of the Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiology Society of Europe and the Society of Interventional Radiology

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Why Functional Pre-Erythrocytic and Bloodstage Malaria Vaccines Fail: A Meta-Analysis of Fully Protective Immunizations and Novel Immunological Model

Background: Clinically protective malaria vaccines consistently fail to protect adults and children in endemic settings, and at best only partially protect infants. Methodology/Principal Findings: We identify and evaluate 1916 immunization studies between 1965-February 2010, and exclude partially or nonprotective results to find 177 completely protective immunization experiments. Detailed reexamination reveals an unexpectedly mundane basis for selective vaccine failure: live malaria parasites in the skin inhibit vaccine function. We next show published molecular and cellular data support a testable, novel model where parasite-host interactions in the skin induce malaria-specific regulatory T cells, and subvert early antigen-specific immunity to parasite-specific immunotolerance. This ensures infection and tolerance to reinfection. Exposure to Plasmodium-infected mosquito bites therefore systematically triggers immunosuppression of endemic vaccine-elicited responses. The extensive vaccine trial data solidly substantiate this model experimentally. Conclusions/Significance: We conclude skinstage-initiated immunosuppression, unassociated with bloodstage parasites, systematically blocks vaccine function in the field. Our model exposes novel molecular and procedural strategies to significantly and quickly increase protective efficacy in both pipeline and currently ineffective malaria vaccines, and forces fundamental reassessment of central precepts determining vaccine development. This has major implications fo

Geochemical evaluation of fluoride contamination of groundwater in the Thoothukudi District of Tamilnadu, India

Fluoride is a chemical element that has been shown to cause significant effects on human health through drinking water. Different forms of fluoride exposure are of importance and have shown to affect the body’s fluoride content and thus increasing the risks of fluoride-prone diseases. Fluoride has beneficial effects on teeth; however, low concentrations of fluoride intensify the risk of tooth decay. Fluoride can also be quite detrimental at higher concentrations at skeletal fluorosis. The Thoothukudi District is a hard rock and alluvial plain marked as one of the Fluoride-increase area in Tamilnadu due to occurrence of various rock types including fluoride-bearing minerals. The F− content of groundwater can thus originate from the dissolution of Fluoride-bearing minerals in the bed rock. Hundred representative groundwater samples from Thoothukudi District were collected during two different seasons. Samples were analysed for F−, other major cations and anions. The study area is chiefly composed of hornblende biotite gneiss, charnockite, alluvio marine, fluvial marine and granite with small patches of quartzite and sandstone. Higher concentration of fluoride is observed during pre-monsoon (3.3 mg l–1) compared to the post-monsoon (2.4 mg l–1) due to the dilution effect. Spatial distribution and factor score show that higher concentrations of F− are noted in the north and central part of the study area owing to lithology. Bicarbonate is well correlated with F− which explains that both ions were derived from the weathering. While F− has a very weak correlation with pH which may be due to the increase of alkalinity resulting from the increase of carbonate and bicarbonate ions

A study on the status of fluoride ion in groundwater of coastal hard rock aquifers of south India

India has an increasing incidence of fluorosis, dental and skeletal, with nearly about 62 million people at risk. High fluoride groundwaters are present especially in the hard rock areas of the country. This paper analyzes the most extensive database on fluoride and other chemical constituent distribution in the coastal hard rock aquifers of Thoothukudi district. A total of 135 samples were collected and analyzed for major cations and anions to assess the geochemical process. The fluoride concentration in drinking waters varied from BDL to 3.2 mg l-1 in the study area. Majority of the samples do not comply with WHO standards for most of the water quality parameters. The saturation index of fluorite saturation index was used to correlate with F- to identify their relationship to increase of fluoride levels. The correlation between the F- concentration and the water type was also attempted. Spatial distribution of fluoride in groundwater was studied to understand the influencing factors. The relationship of F- with HCO- 3, Na+ and pH concentrations were studied and found that HCO- 3, has good correlation with F- than the other parameters