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Biomedical subjects

S Mace

Publications and source records attributed to S Mace.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

Dry anaerobic digestion of differently sorted organic municipal solid waste: a full-scale experience.

This paper presents a comparison of dry anaerobic digestion reactors fed with differently sorted municipal organic solid wastes. One reactor was fed with source sorted organic wastes and a second reactor was fed with mixed organic wastes consisting of grey wastes, mechanically selected municipal solid wastes and sludge. The two reactors utilised the same process (Valorga) and operational conditions at full scale. The results of the study emphasise the influence of the kind of treated material on the process performances, especially in terms of biogas and methane production, thus, energy reclamation. The reactor treating the source sorted organic waste and the reactor treating the mixed organic wastes generated some 200 m3 and 60 m3 of biogas per ton of waste treated, respectively, while the specific methane production was some 0.40 and 0.13 m3CH4/kgTVS, respectively. The mass balance and the final fate of the digested material from the two reactors were also clearly different. As for the costs, these were some 29 Euro per ton of treated waste (50% for personnel) and 53 Euro/ton for disposing of the rejected materials. Incomes were some 100 Euro/ton (on average) and an other 15 Euro/ton came from green certificates. The initial investment was 16 million Euros.

Anaerobiosis↗

Association studies in candidate genes: strategies to select SNPs to be tested.

OBJECTIVE: When numerous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been identified in a candidate gene, a relevant and still unanswered question is to determine how many and which of these SNPs should be optimally tested to detect an association with the disease. Testing them all is expensive and often unnecessary. Alleles at different SNPs may be associated in the population because of the existence of linkage disequilibrium, so that knowing the alleles carried at one SNP could provide exact or partial knowledge of alleles carried at a second SNP. We present here a method to select the most appropriate subset of SNPs in a candidate gene based on the pairwise linkage disequilibrium between the different SNPs. METHOD: The best subset is identified through power computations performed under different genetic models, assuming that one of the SNPs identified is the disease susceptibility variant. RESULTS: We applied the method on two data sets, an empirical study of the APOE gene region and a simulated study concerning one of the major genes (MG1) from the Genetic Analysis Workshop 12. For these two genes, the sets of SNPs selected were compared to the ones obtained using two other methods that need the reconstruction of multilocus haplotypes in order to identify haplotype-tag SNPs (htSNPs). We showed that with both data sets, our method performed better than the other selection methods.

Algorithms↗

Comparison of the biodegradability of the grey fraction of municipal solid waste of Barcelona in mesophilic and thermophilic conditions.

The results of the start-up of two digesters in mesophilic and thermophilic conditions, together with its steady results at several organic loading rates are described. A kinetic study is also carried out which allows one to estimate the ultimate methane production, together with the first-order kinetic constant. Operation at thermophilic temperature yields better results as it allows a more loaded reactor and the methane production is slightly higher.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors: a review of efficacy and tolerability in depression.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are now generally regarded as effective and better tolerated alternatives to tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) for the treatment of depression. SSRIs also seem to be as well tolerated as moclobemide, mirtazapine, venlafaxine, reboxetine and nefazodone and show comparable efficacy. Minor differences have been observed between some SSRIs and some of the newer antidepressants but these findings are far from conclusive. Widespread use of the SSRIs has highlighted some unforseen adverse effects associated with SSRIs, namely hyponatraemia, EPSE and sexual dysfunction. Overall, differences in efficacy and tolerability between individual SSRIs are small and clinically insignificant.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗

Anaphylactic shock induced by intraarticular injection of methylprednisolone acetate.

There are numerous reports of hypersensitivity reactions to corticosteroids. However, cases of anaphylactic shock after intraarticular injection of corticosteroids are exceedingly rare. We describe a case of anaphylaxis in a 31-year-old woman after intraarticular injection of synthetic methylprednisolone acetate. Immediately after injection she developed sneezing, angioedema, tachycardia, and marked hypotension. She responded promptly to treatment with subcutaneous epinephrine. She had received uneventfully one intraarticular injection of the same compound 4 years earlier. Intradermal skin testing showed strong reactivity to methylprednisolone acetate suspension, moderate reactivity to hydrocortisone, and weak reactivity to betamethasone. Tests with dexamethasone, triamcinolone, lidocaine, latex and nonsteroid constituents of the injected suspension including polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, mono and dibasic sodium phosphate, and myristyl-gamma-picolinium chloride were negative. This patient had developed anaphylaxis due to methylprednisolone acetate alone. Although such events are very rare, it is advisable to keep injectable epinephrine in the offices of rheumatologists.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗

Hepatic dysfunction and cardiovascular abnormalities. Occurrence in infants, children, and young adults.

In infants and children, the effect of heart failure and/or cyanotic heart disease on the liver has not been well documented, nor has there been any comparison between the degree of liver dysfunction and hemodynamic factors. Sixty-five patients with cardiovascular abnormalities were examined. Hepatic function, as indicated by laboratory data and histologic liver studies, was compared with the following categories of cardiovascular dysfunction: hypoxemia, systemic venous congestion, and low cardiac output. If any one of these factors was present, or any combination, abnormalities of liver function were usually noted. Patients with both hypoxemia and systemic venous congestion had marked hepatic dysfunction. Those with low cardiac output had the most severe abnormalities. Serial studies indicated that liver function correlated with cardiac status.

Adolescent↗

Hypertensive encephalopathy. A cause of neonatal seizures.

Hypertensive encephalopathy is rare in newborns. The few reported cases of malignant hypertension in newborns have been secondary to renovascular disease. We studied an infant with hypertensive encephalopathy secondary to isolated coarctation of the aorta. Infants with this condition are generally asymptomatic; to our knowledge, this is the youngest patient to have had neurologic complications secondary to isolated coarctation of the aorta.

Adult↗

Vagal control of heart period in alloxan diabetic rats.

Autonomic neuropathies are a frequent complication to diabetes in humans. Similar neuropathies have not been well-documented in animal models. To determine if diabetic rats would develop parasympathetic neuropathies, rats were made diabetic by the injection of alloxan into the tail vein and then maintained on daily injections of insulin. At various times subsequent to the induction of diabetes (3-5 weeks, 7-9 weeks, and 14 weeks), the effect of constant frequencies of vagal stimulation on the efferent cardiac chronotropic response was evaluated using analysis of variance techniques. It was found that the vagal parasympathetic effect was accentuated in diabetic rats. That is, at a given frequency of supramaximal vagal stimulation, the heart rate slowed more in diabetic rats than in nondiabetic rats. Whether a similar phenomenon exists in humans is not known.

Analysis of Variance↗

Echocardiographic abnormalities in infants of diabetic mothers.

In order to evaluate the presence of myocardial hypertrophy and/or abnormalities of postnatal cardiovascular adaptation, echocardiograms were performed on 34 infants of diabetic mothers. Based on cardiopulmonary assessment, the IDM were divided into three groups: Group I with congestive heart failure predominating: Group II with respiratory distress predominating: Group III asymptomatic. Hypertrophy of the interventricular septum and of the walls of left and right ventricles was frequently present in IDM: this change was most notable in association with clinical CHF. Six IDM, four of whom were found to have CHF, had additional echocardiographic signs of subaortic stenosis. All IDM had normal indices of left ventricular performance, despite the presence of CHE. In IDM with respiratory distress, the right ventricular pre-ejection period to ventricular ejection time ratio was elevated, suggesting an abnormality of the transitional pulmonary circulation. Poor maternal diabetes control and maternal systemic hypertension were closely correlated with evidence of myocardial hypertrophy in the infants.

Birth Weight↗

LSD.

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Chemistry↗

A study in vitro of the abrasive effect of the tongue on enamel and dentine softened by acid erosion.

The palatal aspect of upper anterior teeth appears to be one site of predilection for erosion. This raises the question of whether abrasion of softened enamel and dentine by the tongue has a role in this process. The aim of this study in vitro was to determine whether enamel and dentine specimens licked by the tongue after exposure to acid lost more tissue than when exposed to acid alone. Flat enamel and dentine specimens were prepared from human third molars and taped to expose a window of tissue. Three groups of specimens were exposed to citric acid for 10 min followed by 60 s tongue licking, ultrasonication or immersion in water. Two further groups of enamel specimens were placed in a low erosive drink for 10 min with or without licking. At the end of 5, 10 and 15 treatment cycles tissue loss was measured by profilometry. Enamel loss was significantly greater with licking and ultrasonication compared to water immersion. Dentine loss was greater with licking and ultrasonication compared to water immersion, but differences only reached significance for ultrasonication. The low erosive drink produced one third of the citric acid erosion and licking had no effect. The results suggest that the tongue could exert an abrasive effect on dental tissues softened by erosion, thereby increasing the overall loss of tooth substance.

Adolescent↗