Serum fatty acids, antioxidants, and treatment response in hepatitis C infection: greater polyunsaturated fatty acid and antioxidant levels in hepatitis C responders.

Background: Patients suffering from chronic hepatitis C (CHC) may exhibit impaired liver functions such as disturbances of fatty acid storage, synthesis and degradation.

Objective: Possible associations between serum fatty acid (SFA) profiles, antioxidant status and treatment response were investigated in a trans-sectional study of untreated and treated CHC patients in comparison to a healthy control group.

Methods: SFA composition and antioxidant status were examined in female patients with CHC: 9 were naïve to Interferon-α and ribavirin treatment (IFR), 21 sustained treatment responders, 21 were nonresponders, and 21 were healthy control group members.

Dilemma of concepts and strategies for the prevention of spread of HIV in relation to human behavior, law and human rights.

The new prevalence data regarding the estimated global number of human immunodeficiency virus positive (HIV+) cases, i.e., including people who are either aware or unaware of their HIV infection in 2010, lead many to wonder why the increase in incidence has reached today's unprecedented level and escalated within such a short time.

[Knowledge of school pupils about the HIV/AIDS topic at selected schools in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania].

Aim Of The Study: The increasing numbers of new HIV diagnoses in Germany generate a need to measure the level of knowledge of the young generation about the issue of HIV/AIDS.

Methodology: A survey was conducted of 769 pupils of different age groups and from different schools in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Data analysis was performed using SPSS; statistically significant differences (p<0.

Perceptions of wood in rivers and challenges for stream restoration in the United States.

This article reports a study of the public perception of large wood in rivers and streams in the United States. Large wood is an element of freshwater aquatic ecosystems that has attracted much scientific interest in recent years because of its value in biological and geomorphological processes. At the heart of the issue is the nature of the relationship between scientific recognition of the ecological and geomorphological benefits of wood in rivers, management practices utilizing wood for river remediation progress, and public perceptions of in-channel wood.

Safety, tolerability and efficacy of peginterferon alpha-2a and ribavirin in chronic hepatitis C in clinical practice: The German Open Safety Trial.

The combination treatment of peginterferon alpha-2a (PEG-IFN alpha-2a; Pegasys) plus ribavirin (RBV) is recommended as a standard care for HCV infections. Side effects and aspects of efficacy and safety have to be balanced. This study evaluates clinical practice data on safety and efficacy of HCV treatment with PEG-IFN in combination with RBV over 24 and 48 weeks.