HIV-1 and HIV-2 antibodies in pregnant women in the City of Maputo, Mozambique. A comparative study between 1982/1983 and 1990

The seroprevalence of HIV-1 and HIV-2 among pregnant women in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, was compared between the years 1982/83, 1988 and 1990. None of the 432 serum samples collected in 1982/83 was positive for HIV antibodies whereas in 1988 the HIV-1 and HIV-2 seroprevalence was 0.4% (2/500) and 0.6% (3/500), respectively, and in 1990 0.6% (12/2014) and 0.2% (4/2014), respectively. These results indicate that HIV infection has been introduced recently in Maputo and is spreading at a slow rate among women.     

A new eicosapentaenoic acid formed from arachidonic acid in the coralline red algaeBossiella orbigniana

Aqueous extracts of the coralline red algaeBossiella orbigniana have been shown to catalyze the enzymatic oxidation of arachidonic acid to a previously unreported ω6 eicosapentaenoic acid product. This unique fatty acid contains a conjugated tetraene with absorption maxima at 293, 306, and 321 nm, and was identified by spectral methods as 5(Z),8(Z),10(E),12(E),14(Z)-eicosapentaenoic acid. The compound was given the trivial name bosseopentaenoic acid. Under experimental conditions, production of bosseopentaenoic acid was linear up to 2 hr and dioxygen was consumed. Bosseopentaenoic acid, along with several other conjugated tetraenes, was also present in the algae endogenously as revealed by a comparison of the ultraviolet (UV) spectra and the high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) pattern of the purified product and the organic extract ofBossiella.     

Spatial soliton-induced guiding by cross-phase modulation

The authors show that spatial solitons are able to induce the stable guiding of a weak probe beam in a homogeneous Kerr-type nonlinear media through cross-phase modulation (XPM). The modes of the induced waveguide are derived from the propagation equation of the probe. Experiments have been performed in Kerr liquid CS₂, with beams of picosecond duration at infrared and visible wavelengths. Stable guiding of a green probe induced by an IR soliton beam has been demonstrated in several different experimental situations. Induced antiguiding and beam splitting are also reported for pump and probe of perpendicular polarizations. All results are in excellent agreement with numerical simulations of the propagation     

Measurement of synchronous machine rotor angle from analysis ofzero sequence harmonic components of machine terminal voltage

Generator rotor angle measurement is useful in identification of electric machine parameters in the d and q axes and as an indicator of stability of the operating condition. Rotor angle measurements with the appropriate bandwidth are also very useful in observation of rotor torsional oscillations both for monitoring and protection against undamped torsional modes, and for use in control schemes designed to damp torsional oscillations. A method of measurement of synchronous machine rotor angle from an analysis of the phase angle of zero sequence harmonic components of terminal voltage is presented     

Ischemia‐reperfusion injury. A phenomenon,that also occurs in the bone

Ischemia‐reperfusion injury of the bone occurs due to traumatic and non‐traumatic alterations affecting blood supply to the bone. It is likely to occur also upon insertion of an implant. Ischemia‐reperfusion injury of the bone has been studied by interruption of blood supply in situ, in limb replantation/transplantation models, in revascularized bone grafts and non‐vascularized bone fragments, as well as in isolated cultured cells. All cells of the bone are affected, including osteoblasts, osteocytes, osteoclasts, chondrocytes, and bone marrow cells. Critical ischemia times for induction of bone cell death, either in the ischemic period or following reperfusion, are in the range of 3 to 7 h. These critical ischemia times are significantly increased by decreasing the temperature from 37 °C to 0–4 °C. Anoxia is the most likely trigger of cell injury in the ischemic phase. In the reperfusion phase, reactive oxygen species are decisively involved in the injurious process. In general, however, the available information on the mechanism of ischemia‐reperfusion injury of the bone is relatively sparse. On the other hand, there are clear similarities to the mechanisms of ischemia‐reperfusion injury known from other organs, and there is a clear potential for protection against ischemia‐reperfusion injury of the bone.     

Flood risk mapping at European scale.

The aim of this article is to illustrate a framework for flood risk mapping at pan-European scale produced by the Weather-Driven Natural Hazards (WDNH) action of the EC-JRC-IES. Early results are presented in the form of flood risk index maps. We assess several flood risk factors that contribute to the occurrence of flood disasters. Among the causal factors of a flood disaster one is triggering a natural event in the form of extreme precipitation and consequently extreme river discharge and extreme flood water levels. The threatening natural event represents the hazard component in our assessment. Furthermore exposure and vulnerability are anthropogenic factors that contribute also to flood risk. In the proposed approach, flood risk is considered on the light of exposure, vulnerability and hazard. We use a methodology with a marked territorial approach for the assessment of the flood risk. Hence, based on mathematical calculations, risk is the product of hazard, exposure and vulnerability. Improvements on datasets availability and spatial scale are foreseen in the next phases of this study. This study is also a contribution to the discussion about the need for communication tools between the natural hazard scientific community and the political and decision making players in this field.     

A knowledge-based system for sensor selection

This paper presents a Knowledge-based system (KBS) developed to allow users, who may not be knowledgeable about sensors, to select sensors suitable for their specific needs. The KBS runs on a micro-computer. The selection criteria are user specified and are based on the desired measurement parameters. The system output includes all of the operational and dimensional parameters of the recommended sensor, price, and vendor information.     

Longitudinal analysis of semiconductor lasers with low reflectivity facets

An analysis is made of longitudinal effects in semiconductor lasers with low facet reflectivities. For this purpose, a self-consistent model is used based on the beam propagation method, which takes into account both the lateral and longitudinal dimension. The calculations show that longitudinal effects have a significant influence on the output fields in the laser.     

Adjuvant arthritis: influence of the adjuvant volume and composition on the non-specific inflammation

Adjuvant-induced arthritis is an animal model of chronic inflammatory disease widely used in anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive drugs testing. When the development and the inhibition of the induced arthritis are measured by the injected paw oedema, it is difficult to delineate the immunological contribution from the persistent non-specific primary section. To study the influence of volume and composition of the injected adjuvant upon the primary non-specific inflammation, we devised a 3X4 factorial experiment on a strain of inbred rats with a low susceptibility to adjuvant-induced arthritis. The injection of mineral oil alone produces a persistent oedema. The injection of mycobacteriae in suspension in saline induces a rapid inflammatory response followed by a fast decrease of the oedema. When complete adjuvant is used, there is always a very strong interaction between the effects of the two components of the adjuvant, i.e. the measured oedemas are much greater than the calculated values, For a given injected volume, the inflammation is maximum when the concentration of mycobacteriae is 2.5 mg/ml. All the rats injected with complete adjuvant present a transient oedema of the non-injected hind paw. This oedema is very small and proportional to the amount of mycobacteria injected.