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Biomedical subjects

D Peters

Publications and source records attributed to D Peters.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources

The sector-wide approach in health: what is it? Where is it leading?

This paper describes early experience with the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp), an emerging trend in development practice in low-income countries. The paper describes what a SWAp is, and why it is now being pursued. The SWAp is characterized as a sustained government-led partnership with donor agencies and other groups. By applying sector-wide policies to an expenditure framework and national implementation systems, explicit health sector reforms are undertaken to meet sectoral and national development objectives. The approach has changed the dynamic between governments and donor agencies, requiring systemic changes in policy-making and management in both governments and donor agencies. With the SWAp, ongoing joint assessment and negotiations around sectoral plans and review of performance replaces the old way of preparing and supervising projects. Early experiences in countries undergoing SWAps are discussed, including the problem of reconciling priority programs and old practices with broader health sector reforms and new ways of managing development assistance. The paper concludes by identifying some of the key challenges for the future of SWAps.

Developing Countries↗

Immuno-electron microscopical detection of tomato spotted wilt virus and its nucleocapsids in crude plant extracts.

Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) particles were identified in thin sections and in crude extracts of leaves from plants infected with different TSWV isolates, using gold labelled protein A and antibodies prepared against purified virus particles or against nucleocapsid preparations. In addition, both in thin sections and in dip preparations aggregates were detected using either gold-labelled antiserum. These aggregates were not detected using antisera against envelope proteins or against the non-structural protein NSs. They were the only detectably labelled material in preparations made from plants infected by morphologically defective isolates of TSWV, i.e. isolates that did not produce enveloped particles. The aggregates were discerned in dip preparations as cloudy amorphous structures having a cottonwool boll-like appearance. These 'cotton bolls' were interpreted as being the in vitro structures of the nucleocapsid aggregates occurring in plant cells infected by isolates maintained by mechanical inoculation and are the only structures in cells infected by morphologically defective isolates (Ie, 1982; Kitajima et al., 1992). The detection of the 'cotton boll-like' structures in crude extracts provides an adequate and rapid method to establish the presence of nucleocapsid aggregates in cells of infected plants, irrespective of whether they are infected by morphologically defective isolates or not.

Capsid↗

[Clonidine therapy of "paradoxical hypertension" following surgery of isolated stenosis of the aortic isthmus in childhood].

In the period from 1974 to 1983, altogether 234 children underwent surgery of isolated coarctation of the aorta at the Heart Center Munich. In 146 of these patients, a reactive increase of blood pressure has been noted following surgery, and in about half of them the blood pressure was considerably elevated above the 95-percentile. Since the success of surgery may be endangered by a critical increase of blood pressure, in 66 patients an antihypertensive therapy with clonidine has been started immediately after operation. By this treatment the intended decrease of blood pressure has been effected within the first two days after surgery, and in 91% of the patients the therapy could be stopped within the first two postoperative weeks. In 6 out of these 66 patients, the "paradoxical hypertension" persisted so that the clonidine therapy had to be continued after discharge from hospital. The empirically determined dosage and the duration of treatment have been modified by the clinical requirements, i.e. by the actual level of the blood pressure. The average duration of drug administration has been lengthened according to the advanced age at time of surgery, while the required clonidine dosage simultaneously showed a tendency to decrease. Since no side-effects have been registered in the course of this procedure, the use of clonidine suggests a promising therapeutical approach to "paradoxical hypertension".

Age Factors↗