Si/SiGe epitaxial-base transistors. I. Materials, physics, andcircuits

A detailed review of SiGe epitaxial base technology is presented, which chronicles the progression of research from materials deposition through device and integration demonstrations, culminating in the first SiGe integrated circuit application. In part I of this paper, the requirements and processes for high-quality SiGe film preparation are discussed, with emphasis on fundamental principles. A detailed overview of SiGe HBT device design and implications for circuit applications is then presented     

Use of somatic gene transfer to study lipoprotein metabolism in experimental animals in vivo

Genetic manipulations of experimental animals have provided valuable information on lipoprotein metabolism in vivo. Somatic gene transfer is a novel method for introducing foreign genes into animals in vivo. Adenovirus-mediated transfer of genes for the LDL receptor, the receptor-associated protein, apolipoprotein A-I, apolipoprotein E, cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase, and apolipoprotein B messenger RNA editing protein has resulted in high-level expression of these transgenes in mice and hamsters, and the production of interesting animal models of lipoprotein metabolism. Somatic gene transfer is a valuable tool for analyzing the role of transgenes in lipoprotein metabolism in vivo and for exploring the potential use of specific transgenes for human gene therapy.     

Foodborne diseases: a survey on working methods used by 6 Public Health Services in the Lombardy Region. 1. Outbreaks

Since foodborne diseases, especially those caused by bacteria, have become an increasingly important public health problem, the Authors conducted a survey in order to evaluate the organization of, and the intervention carried out by, six Public Health Services in the Lombardia region, after reports of foodborne diseases outbreaks. Lack of correct methodology was detected, not to mention the usual omission of epidemic curves and attack rates. Besides, too many microbiological tests were made and it took too much time to take care of and to report the outbreaks to Regional and National Health Authorities. Forty-one outbreaks were examined: 415 cases occurred (AR: 28.7%), most of which home-made food-related. In 25 outbreaks the suspected food vehicles were eggs or fish, but only 5 of them were confirmed by laboratory tests. Salmonella enterica, either serovar Eenteritidis or group D, appeared responsible for 26 of the outbreaks [corrected].     

Antral gastritis in chronic alcoholism. Role of cirrhosis and Helicobacter pylori

OBJECTIVES: Antral gastritis is frequent in alcoholics. The role of H. pylori in the pathogenesis of gastritis in these patients is not well known. The aim of our study was to study the role of H. pylori and cirrhosis in the pathogenesis of antral gastritis in alcoholic patients. METHODS: Seventy-nine patients were included in the study. All underwent upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopy with antral biopsies, independently of the presence of abdominal pain, and had serological examination for H. pylori antibodies. RESULTS: Cirrhosis and gastritis were present in 50 and 40 patients respectively, H. pylori serological assay and histological identification of the bacterium were positive in 35 (44%) and 19 (24%) patients respectively. Discrepancy between the 2 tests were observed more frequently in cirrhotic patients. A positive serology with a negative histologic examination for H. pylori was present for 18 cirrhotic and 4 noncirrhotic patients (p < 0.05). A gastritis without evidence of H. pylori was more frequent in cirrhotic than in noncirrhotic patients. H. pylori was histologically present in 11 of 29 cirrhotic patients and in 8 of the 11 noncirrhotic patients with a gastritis (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Discrepancies between histological examination and H. pylori serology in patients with cirrhosis might be due to the inhospitable environment for H. pylori in case of portal hypertension; the positive serology could be in relation with a past infection.     

Mine operating accurate stability control with optical fibersensing and Bragg grating technology: the European BRITE/EURAM STABILOSproject

Recent developments of stability control in mines, essentially based on Ge-doped fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) are reported including results about the different aspects of the system: accurate characterizations of FBG, sensor network topology and multiplexing method, user interface design and sensor packaging     

Silicon bipolar chipset for SONET/SDH 10 Gb/s fiber-opticcommunication links

High-speed multiplexers, demultiplexers, frequency dividers, mixers, and amplifiers are key electronic components in high-speed fiber-optic communications systems such as SONET/SDH. In this paper, we present several important digital and analog integrated circuits (IC) which have been developed for use in SONET/SDH 10 Gb/s optical communication links. The circuits have been fabricated in MOSAIC 5E, an advanced silicon bipolar technology (f_T=26 GHz). The resulting chipset which amounts to a total of 10 IC's consists of multiplexers, demultiplexers, a regenerative frequency divider (2:1), a dual output limiting amplifier, and two different types of mixers for clock extraction. Specifically, the design and performance of these IC's and a hybrid clock recovery module are discussed. The high performance and potential low cost of this research chipset show that advanced silicon bipolar circuit technology can play an important role in future multigigabit fiber-optic communication systems     

Health insurance status and the use of emergency and other outpatient services by adults with sickle cell disease

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate insurance status and frequency of use of emergency services in adults with sickle cell disease. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of visits. SETTING: Emergency department and outpatient clinics of an urban university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred seventy-two subjects, who made 771 visits to the ED during 1990. RESULTS: Of the 172 subjects, 31 were covered by commercial insurance, 32 were covered by Medicare, and 109 were covered by Medicaid or were uninsured. Insurance status and frequency of use of emergency services were independent (P > .05). On discriminant analysis, Medicaid-covered and uninsured subjects were correctly classified, but commercially insured and Medicare subjects were not. Medicaid and uninsured subjects were more likely to be younger and to live closer to the hospital (P < .00005). High-frequency users of emergency services were discriminated from low-frequency users. High-frequency users were more likely to be younger, to be users of primary-care services, and to live closer to the hospital (P = .0004). CONCLUSION: Provision of primary-care services or stable insurance in the form of commercial insurance or Medicare did not decrease use of emergency services in subjects with sickle cell disease in a group of patients selected from one urban academic ED.     

Tetradecylthioacetic acid incorporated into very low density lipoprotein: changes in the fatty acid composition and reduced plasma lipids in cholesterol-fed hamsters

The mechanism behind the hypolipidemic effect of tetradecylthioacetic acid (CMTTD, a non-beta-oxidizable 3-thia fatty acid) was studied in hamsters fed a high cholesterol diet (2%), which resulted in hyperlipidemia. Treating hyperlipidemic hamsters with CMTTD resulted in a progressive hypocholesterolemic and hypotriacylglycerolemic effect. Decreased plasma cholesterol was followed by a 39% and 30% reduction in VLDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol, respectively. In contrast, the HDL-cholesterol content was not affected, thus decreasing the VLDL-cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol ratios. 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl- (HMG) CoA reductase activity and its mRNA level were unchanged after CMTTD administration. Also, the LDL receptor and LDL receptor-related protein (LRP-4) mRNAs were unchanged. The decrease in plasma triacylglycerol was accompanied by a 45% and 56% reduction in VLDL-triacylglycerol and LDL-triacylglycerol, respectively. The hypolipidemic effect of CMTTD was followed by a 1.4-fold increase in mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation and a 2.3-fold increase in peroxisomal fatty acid oxidation. CMTTD treatment led to an accumulation of dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (20:3n-6) in liver, plasma, very low density lipoprotein, and heart. Noteworthy, CMTTD accumulated more in the heart, plasma, and VLDL particles compared to the liver, and in the VLDL particle alpha-linolenic acid (18:3n-3) decreased whereas eicosatetraenoic acid (20:4n-3) increased. In addition, linoleic acid (18:2n-6) and the total amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids decreased, the latter mainly due to a decrease in n-6 fatty acids. The present data show that CMTTD was detected in plasma and incorporated into VLDL, liver, and heart. The relative incorporation (mol%) of CMTTD was heart > VLDL > liver. In conclusion, CMTTD causes both a hypocholesterolemic and hypotriacylglycerolemic effect in hyperlipidemic hamsters.