[Estimation of rate constant for dissolution of radioactive fuel particles].

Some theoretical of the experimental investigation of solubility of radioactive aerosols were examined. Filters, which were exposed during October-November 1987 in Pripyat town, were studied. Measurements on 22 November 1987 showed that an activity in the air was 12.

Synthesis of germanium oxide nanoparticles in low-pressure premixed flames.

Germanium oxide (GeOx) nanoparticles in the size range from 1 nm to 5 nm were synthesized in a low-pressure premixed H2/O2/Ar flat flame of 30 mbar. The premixed flame was doped with different amounts of tetramethyl germanium (Ge(CH3)4) ranging from 250 ppm to 2000 ppm. The influence of process parameters such as the amount of oxygen in the reaction gas, the condensation and reaction time, standoff, and precursor concentration with respect to growth of germanium oxide particles were investigated.

Solubility of airborne radioactive fuel particles from the Chernobyl reactor and implication to dose.

Airborne particles of nuclear fuel from the Chernobyl reactor that had been collected on air filters and stored, were characterised using in vitro dissolution tests to assess effective doses after their inhalation. As solvent, the Gamble biological fluid was used to simulate lung fluid. The solubility of the measured radionuclides decreased in the order (137)Cs>(90)Sr>>(241)Am>or=(239+240)Pu in the simulated lung fluid.

The effect of intravenous quinaprilat on plasma cytokines and hemodynamic variables during cardiac surgery.

Objectives: Perioperative treatment with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors in cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass is still controversial. Using ACE inhibitors during cardiac surgery might be associated with an increased risk of critical hypotensive episodes. On the other hand, ACE inhibitors could have beneficial effects with respect to the development of the systemic inflammatory response syndrome.

Reliance on visual information after stroke. Part II: Effectiveness of a balance rehabilitation program with visual cue deprivation after stroke: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: To test the hypothesis that balance rehabilitation with visual cue deprivation improves balance more effectively than rehabilitation with free vision.

Design: Single-blind, randomized controlled trial.

Setting: Public rehabilitation center in France.

Data quality affects meta-analytic conclusions: a response to Miner and Raju (2004) concerning entrepreneurial risk propensity.

J. B. Miner and N.

Strontium biokinetics in humans: influence of alginate on the uptake of ingested strontium.

Radioactive isotopes of strontium, mainly 90Sr, released into the environment due to nuclear accidents may contribute significantly to the internal radiation exposure of members of the public after ingestion of strontium with contaminated foodstuffs. The committed radiation dose is significantly dependent on the fraction of the ingested activity that crossed the gut wall (f1 value). In tracer kinetic investigations, the effect of sodium alginate on the gastrointestinal absorption of strontium was studied in human subjects.

Influence of the chemical form on the plasma clearance of ruthenium in humans.

The radioisotopes of ruthenium (103Ru and 106Ru) are abundant fission products and represent a radiological risk for the population in case of nuclear accidents. Few biokinetic studies have been performed on humans up to now and consequently the current model recommended by ICRP for ruthenium is derived mainly by extrapolation from animal data. The stable isotope 101Ru and proton activation analysis have been used to study the biokinetics of Ru in blood plasma samples taken during 8 studies in three healthy volunteers.

The Drosophila nucleoporin DNup88 localizes DNup214 and CRM1 on the nuclear envelope and attenuates NES-mediated nuclear export.

Many cellular responses rely on the control of nucleocytoplasmic transport of transcriptional regulators. The Drosophila nucleoporin Nup88 is selectively required for nuclear accumulation of Rel proteins and full activation of the innate immune response. Here, we investigate the mechanisms underlying its role in nucleocytoplasmic transport.

French multicentric survey of outcome of pregnancy in women with pregestational diabetes.

Objective: To evaluate perinatal outcome in pregnancies in women with type 1 and type 2 diabetes and the influence of preconception care 10 years after the St. Vincent's declaration.

Research Design And Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 12 perinatal centers in France in 2000-2001.

Thorium and uranium contents in human urine: influence of age and residential area.

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has been used for the determination of (232)Th and (238)U in urine of unexposed Jordanian subjects living in six cities. The range of (232)Th excretion in all subjects was found to be 1.4-640 microBq d(-1) with an average of 34.

Estimation of human exposure to natural radionuclides using in vivo skull measurements.

In a preliminary study, in vivo skull measurements and in vitro urine measurements of 210Pb and nulU have been performed to find out the individual, chronic exposure to waterborne natural radionuclides of a small group of Finnish people. For their domestic water, the studied individuals use water from drilled wells containing elevated concentrations of natural uranium and its daughter nuclides ((234,235,238)U, 222Rn, (226,228)Ra, 210Po, 210Pb). Enhanced 210Pb and 235U activities were observed in several people.

Developments in internal monitoring techniques.

In an effort to increase accuracy and speed, improve detection limits and reduce uncertainties in internal dosimetry, laboratories have developed improved or new internal monitoring techniques in both in vivo measurements and bioassay analyses. Most of these techniques have not yet entered routine monitoring programmes. This paper intends to summarise these new techniques, show their potential improvements compared to the currently employed monitoring routines and discuss the main aspects of the EC-funded IDEA project, which aims at a comprehensive assessment of these techniques and the enhancements necessary to bring them to broader acceptance in the routine monitoring community.

Stable tracer investigations in humans for assessing the biokinetics of ruthenium and zirconium radionuclides.

The interest in the biokinetics of ruthenium and zirconium in humans is justified by the potential radiological risk represented by their radionuclides. Only a few data related to the biokinetics of ruthenium and zirconium in humans are available and, accordingly, the biokinetic models currently recommended by the ICRP for these elements are mainly based on data from animal experiments. The use of stable isotopes as tracers, coupled with a proper analytical technique (nuclear activation analysis with protons) for their determination in biological samples, represents an ethically acceptable methodology for biokinetic investigations, being free from any radiation risk for the volunteer subjects.

Assessment of exposure to depleted uranium.

In most circumstances, measurement of uranium excreted in urine at known times after exposure is potentially the most sensitive method for determining the amount of depleted uranium (DU) incorporated. The problems associated with this approach are that natural uranium is always present in urine because of the ingestion of natural uranium in food and drink, and that the uncertainties in the intakes as assessed from excretion measurements can be quite large, because many assumptions concerning the exposure characteristics (time pattern of exposure, route of intake, chemical form, solubility, biokinetics within the body) must be made. Applying currently available methods and instruments for the measurement of uranium in urine samples, DU incorporations of levels relevant with respect to potential health hazards can be detected reliably, even a long time after exposure.

Adjunctive human papillomavirus testing in the 2-year follow-up of women with low-grade cervical cytologic abnormalities: a randomized trial and economic evaluation.

Context: Although human papillomavirus (HPV) testing may aid in managing low-grade abnormality on screening cervical cytology, patient compliance with repeat testing programs requires consideration.

Objectives: To determine effectiveness and costs of repeated Papanicolaou (Pap) test and oncogenic HPV testing for detecting cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2 or 3.

Design: We conducted a randomized controlled trial of combined Pap test and cervical HPV testing by Hybrid Capture 1 test compared with Pap test alone; tests were performed every 6 months for up to 2 years.

Ethnic group differences in measures of job performance: a new meta-analysis.

The authors conducted a new meta-analysis of ethnic group differences in job performance. Given a substantially increased set of data as compared with earlier analyses, the authors were able to conduct analyses of Black-White differences within more homogeneous categories of job performance and to reexamine findings on objective versus subjective measurement. Contrary to one perspective sometimes adopted in the field, objective measures are associated with very similar, if not somewhat larger, standardized ethnic group differences (ds) than subjective measures across a variety of indicators.

Synthesis and evaluation of N,S-compounds as chiral ligands for transfer hydrogenation of acetophenone.

New nitrogen- and sulfur-containing compounds, bicyclic and monocyclic, were prepared and evaluated as ligands in the transfer hydrogenation of acetophenone. Utilising [Ir(COD)Cl]2 as metal precursor the best result, 80% ee, was obtained using a bicyclic sulfoxide ligand.

Formation and in situ sizing of gamma-Fe2O3 nanoparticles in a microwave flow reactor.

Nanocrystalline gamma-Fe2O3 particles were produced in a microwave flow reactor. The reaction of iron pentacarbonyl [Fe(CO)5] with the plasma gases Ar/O2 to form nanosized particles was followed by in situ particle mass spectrometry. The particle mass spectrometer combines a nonintrusive sampling technique with a calibration-free mass determination.

Intracellular adhesion molecule-1 in patients developing pulmonary insufficiency after cardiopulmonary bypass.

Objectives: Cardiopulmonary bypass activates adhesion molecules, which are associated with systemic inflammation and organ dysfunction. The intracellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) has been evaluated in patients presenting pulmonary dysfunction after cardiac surgery.

Materials And Methods: Postoperative serum levels of the ICAM-1 were measured in 40 patients who underwent isolated coronary artery bypass grafting, in 28 with uneventful postoperative recovery (70 %) (Group 1), and in 12 (30 %) with postoperative respiratory insufficiency (Group 2), defined by the need for prolonged (> 24 hours) mechanical ventilation using a fractional oxygen concentration of > 40 %.

Effects of vitamin E supplementation during erythropoietin treatment of the anaemia of prematurity.

Aims: To evaluate the effects of vitamin E supplementation on haemoglobin concentration and the requirement for transfusion in premature infants treated with erythropoietin and iron.

Methods: Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trial. Thirty infants View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Left-lateralized fMRI activation in the temporal lobe of high repressive women during the identification of sad prosodies.

We investigated with fMRI whether different lateralization types of cortical activation in prosodic tasks are caused by individually different stress-related coping strategies. After healthy women had been classified as high or low repressive they performed four different identification tasks with acoustically presented speech material while being in the MR scanner. The two materials presented in blocks were emotionally irrelevant CV syllables and adjectives with a mix of different prosodic intonations.

A re-evaluation of the biokinetics of zirconium in humans.

There is much interest in understanding the biokinetics of zirconium in humans due to the potential radiological risk represented by the radionuclide 95Zr and by its daughter 95Nb. Despite the significance of zirconium, few data are available on the actual biokinetics of zirconium in humans. Accordingly the biokinetic model currently recommended by ICRP for this element is based mainly on data from animal experiments.

Influence of olive oil emulsions on dentin demineralization in vitro.

The effect of two different concentrations of olive oil emulsions on development of artificial caries-like dentin lesions under severe demineralizing conditions was investigated. Bovine dentin samples (n = 180) were ground flat, polished, divided into four groups, and subjected to three demineralization cycles per day. Samples were stored in one of the following solutions for 5 min prior to demineralization in a buffer solution (pH 5): Group 1: 50% oil emulsion (olive oil and distilled water); group 2: 5% oil emulsion; group 3: distilled water; and group 4: 1,500 ppm sodium fluoride.