Schwere Lithiumintoxikationen bei normalen Serumspiegeln

Anliegen Unser Ziel ist es, Faktoren zu identifizieren, die das Risiko einer Lithiumintoxikation trotz normaler Serumspiegel erhöhen. Methode Wir beschreiben zwei eigene Fälle und bewerten diese im Kontext der Literatur. Ergebnisse Alter, Begleiterkrankungen und psychopharmakologische Komedikation erhöhen das Risiko einer Lithiumintoxikation bei normalen Serumspiegeln. Diskussion Bei älteren, multimorbiden Patienten sollte eine engmaschige klinische Kontrolle inklusive Spiegelbestimmung und EEG erfolgen, bei klinischen Anzeichen der Intoxikation sollte auch bei unauffälligen Spiegeln ein Absetzen erwogen werden

The Young Stellar Population of the Nearby Late-Type Galaxy NGC 1311

We have extracted PSF-fitted stellar photometry from near-ultraviolet, optical and near-infrared images, obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope, of the nearby (D ~ 5.5 Mpc) SBm galaxy NGC 1311. The ultraviolet and optical data reveal a population of hot main sequence stars with ages of 2-10 Myr. We also find populations of blue supergiants with ages between 10 and 40 Myr and red supergiants with ages between 10 and 100 Myr. Our near-infrared data shows evidence of star formation going back ~1 Gyr, in agreement with previous work. Fits to isochrones indicate a metallicity of Z ~ 0.004. The ratio of blue to red supergiants is consistent with this metallicity. This indicates that NGC 1311 follows the well-known luminosity-metallicity relation for late-type dwarf galaxies. About half of the hot main sequence stars and blue supergiants are found in two regions in the inner part of NGC 1311. These two regions are each about 200 pc across, and thus have crossing times roughly equal to the 10 Myr age we find for the dominant young population. The Luminosity Functions of the supergiants indicate a slowly rising star formation rate (of 0.001 Solar masses per year) from ~100 Myr ago until ~15 Myr ago, followed by a strong enhancement (to 0.01 Solar Masses per year) at ~10 Myr ago. We see no compelling evidence for gaps in the star-forming history of NGC 1311 over the last 100 Myr, and, with lower significance, none over the last Gyr. This argues against a bursting mode, and in favor of a gasping or breathing mode for the recent star-formation history.Comment: AASTex, 34 pages, 13 postscript figures. Accepted for publication by The Astronomical Journa

A geographic information system for characterizing exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam.

Between 1961 and 1971, U.S. military forces dispersed more than 19 million gallons of phenoxy and other herbicidal agents in the Republic of Vietnam, including more than 12 million gallons of dioxin-contaminated Agent Orange, yet only comparatively limited epidemiologic and environmental research has been carried out on the distribution and health effects of this contamination. As part of a response to a National Academy of Sciences' request for development of exposure methodologies for carrying out epidemiologic research, a conceptual framework for estimating exposure opportunity to herbicides and a geographic information system (GIS) have been developed. The GIS is based on a relational database system that integrates extensive data resources on dispersal of herbicides (e.g., HERBS records of Ranch Hand aircraft flight paths, gallonage, and chemical agent), locations of military units and bases, dynamic movement of combat troops in Vietnam, and locations of civilian population centers. The GIS can provide a variety of proximity counts for exposure to 9,141 herbicide application missions. In addition, the GIS can be used to generate a quantitative exposure opportunity index that accounts for quantity of herbicide sprayed, distance, and environmental decay of a toxic factor such as dioxin, and is flexible enough to permit substitution of other mathematical exposure models by the user. The GIS thus provides a basis for estimation of herbicide exposure for use in large-scale epidemiologic studies. To facilitate widespread use of the GIS, a user-friendly software package was developed to permit researchers to assign exposure opportunity indexes to troops, locations, or individuals

How was it for you? Experiences of participatory design in the UK health service

Improving co-design methods implies that we need to understand those methods, paying attention to not only the effect of method choices on design outcomes, but also how methods affect the people involved in co-design. In this article, we explore participants' experiences from a year-long participatory health service design project to develop ‘Better Outpatient Services for Older People’. The project followed a defined method called experience-based design (EBD), which represented the state of the art in participatory service design within the UK National Health Service. A sample of participants in the project took part in semi-structured interviews reflecting on their involvement in and their feelings about the project. Our findings suggest that the EBD method that we employed was successful in establishing positive working relationships among the different groups of stakeholders (staff, patients, carers, advocates and design researchers), although conflicts remained throughout the project. Participants' experiences highlighted issues of wider relevance in such participatory design: cost versus benefit, sense of project momentum, locus of control, and assumptions about how change takes place in a complex environment. We propose tactics for dealing with these issues that inform the future development of techniques in user-centred healthcare design

Star Clusters in the Nearby Late-Type Galaxy NGC 1311

Ultraviolet, optical and near infrared images of the nearby (D ~ 5.5 Mpc) SBm galaxy NGC 1311, obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope, reveal a small population of 13 candidate star clusters. We identify candidate star clusters based on a combination of their luminosity, extent and spectral energy distribution. The masses of the cluster candidates range from ~1000 up to ~100000 Solar masses, and show a strong positive trend of larger mass with increasing with cluster age. Such a trend follows from the fading and dissolution of old, low-mass clusters, and the lack of any young super star clusters of the sort often formed in strong starbursts. The cluster age distribution is consistent with a bursting mode of cluster formation, with active episodes of age ~10 Myr, ~100 Myr and ~1 Gyr. The ranges of age and mass we probe are consistent with those of the star clusters found in quiescent Local Group dwarf galaxies.Comment: 21 pages, 11 figures, accepted by A

Interferon-β 1a and SARS Coronavirus Replication

A global outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) caused by a novel coronavirus began in March 2003. The rapid emergence of SARS and the substantial illness and death it caused have made it a critical public health issue. Because no effective treatments are available, an intensive effort is under way to identify and test promising antiviral drugs. Here, we report that recombinant human interferon (IFN)-β 1a potently inhibits SARS coronavirus replication in vitro

A Wide Field Survey of Satellite Galaxies around the Spiral Galaxy M106

We present a wide field survey of satellite galaxies in M106 (NGC 4258) covering a 1.7\degr \times 2\degr field around M106 using Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope/MegaCam. We find 16 satellite galaxy candidates of M106. Eight of these galaxies are found to be dwarf galaxies that are much smaller and fainter than the remaining galaxies. Four of these galaxies are new findings. Surface brightness profiles of 15 out of 16 satellite galaxies can be represented well by an exponential disk profile with varying scale length. We derive the surface number density distribution of these satellite galaxies. The central number density profile (d $<100$ kpc) is well fitted by a power-law with a power index of $-2.1\pm0.5$, similar to the expected power index of isothermal distribution. The luminosity function of these satellites is represented well by the Schechter function with a faint end slope of $-1.19^{+0.03}_{-0.06}$. Integrated photometric properties (total luminosity, total colour, and disk scale length) and the spatial distribution of these satellite galaxies are found to be roughly similar to those of the Milky Way and M31.Comment: Accepted by MNRA

Engineered extracellular vesicle decoy receptor-mediated modulation of the IL6 trans-signalling pathway in muscle

The cytokine interleukin 6 (IL6) is a key mediator of inflammation that contributes to skeletal muscle pathophysiology. IL6 activates target cells by two main mechanisms, the classical and trans-signalling pathways. While classical signalling is associated with the anti-inflammatory activities of the cytokine, the IL6 trans-signalling pathway mediates chronic inflammation and is therefore a target for therapeutic intervention. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are natural, lipid-bound nanoparticles, with potential as targeted delivery vehicles for therapeutic macromolecules. Here, we engineered EVs to express IL6 signal transducer (IL6ST) decoy receptors to selectively inhibit the IL6 trans-signalling pathway. The potency of the IL6ST decoy receptor EVs was optimized by inclusion of a GCN4 dimerization domain and a peptide sequence derived from syntenin-1 which targets the decoy receptor to EVs. The resulting engineered EVs were able to efficiently inhibit activation of the IL6 trans-signalling pathway in reporter cells, while having no effect on the IL6 classical signalling. IL6ST decoy receptor EVs, were also capable of blocking the IL6 trans-signalling pathway in C2C12 myoblasts and myotubes, thereby inhibiting the phosphorylation of STAT3 and partially reversing the anti-differentiation effects observed when treating cells with IL6/IL6R complexes. Treatment of a Duchenne muscular dystrophy mouse model with IL6ST decoy receptor EVs resulted in a reduction in STAT3 phosphorylation in the quadriceps and gastrocnemius muscles of these mice, thereby demonstrating in vivo activity of the decoy receptor EVs as a potential therapy. Taken together, this study reveals the IL6 trans-signalling pathway as a promising therapeutic target in DMD, and demonstrates the therapeutic potential of IL6ST decoy receptor EVs

Trade-off between sex and growth in diatoms: Molecular mechanisms and demographic implications

Diatoms are fast-growing and winning competitors in aquatic environments, possibly due to optimized growth performance. However, their life cycles are complex, heteromorphic, and not fully understood. Here, we report on the fine control of cell growth and physiology during the sexual phase of the marine diatom Pseudo-nitzschia multistriata. We found that mating, under nutrient replete conditions, induces a prolonged growth arrest in parental cells. Transcriptomic analyses revealed down-regulation of genes related to major metabolic functions from the early phases of mating. Single-cell photophysiology also pinpointed an inhibition of photosynthesis and storage lipids accumulated in the arrested population, especially in gametes and zygotes. Numerical simulations revealed that growth arrest affects the balance between parental cells and their siblings, possibly favoring the new generation. Thus, in addition to resources availability, life cycle traits contribute to shaping the species ecological niches and must be considered to describe and understand the structure of plankton communities