Safety and Immunogenicity of a Novel Recombinant Subunit Respiratory Syncytial Virus Vaccine (BBG2Na) in Healthy Young Adults

A novel recombinant respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) subunit vaccine, designated BBG2Na, was administered to 108 healthy adults randomly assigned to receive 10, 100, or 300 μg of BBG2Na in aluminum phosphate or saline placebo. Each subject received 1, 2, or 3 intramuscular injections of the assigned dose at monthly intervals. Local and systemic reactions were mild, and no evidence of harmful properties of BBG2Na was reported. The highest ELISA and virus-neutralizing (VN) antibody responses were evident in the 100- and 300-μg groups; second or third injections provided no significant boosts against RSV-derived antigens. BBG2Na induced ⩾2-fold and ⩾4-fold increases in G2Na-specific ELISA units in up to 100% and 57% of subjects, respectively; corresponding RSV-A–specific responses were 89% and 67%. Furthermore, up to 71% of subjects had ⩾2-fold VN titer increases. Antibody responses to 2 murine lung protective epitopes were also highly boosted after vaccination. Therefore, BBG2Na is safe, well tolerated, and highly immunogenic in RSV-seropositive adults

Distribution of Uranium Contamination in Weathered Fractured Saprolite/Shale and Ground Water

The objective of this study was to determine how structure, stratigraphy, and weathering influence fate and transport of contaminants (particularly U) in the ground water and geologic material at the Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Remediation Sciences Department (ERSD) Field Research Center (FRC). Several cores were collected near four former unlined adjoining waste disposal ponds. The cores were collected, described, analyzed for U, and compared with ground water geochemistry from surrounding multilevel wells. At some locations, acidic U-contaminated ground water was found to preferentially flow in small remnant fractures weathering the surrounding shale (nitric acid extractable U [UNA] usually <50 mg kg–1) into thin (

Microscopic models for dielectric relaxation in disordered systems

It is shown how the Debye rotational diffusion model of dielectric relaxation of polar molecules (which may be described in microscopic fashion as the diffusion limit of a discrete time random walk on the surface of the unit sphere) may be extended to yield the empirical Havriliak-Negami (HN) equation of anomalous dielectric relaxation from a microscopic model based on a kinetic equation just as in the Debye model. This kinetic equation is obtained by means of a generalization of the noninertial Fokker-Planck equation of conventional Brownian motion (generally known as the Smoluchowski equation) to fractional kinetics governed by the HN relaxation mechanism. For the simple case of noninteracting dipoles it may be solved by Fourier transform techniques to yield the Green function and the complex dielectric susceptibility corresponding to the HN anomalous relaxation mechanism.

Clinical Features of Dominant and Recessive Interferon γ Receptor 1 Deficiencies

Background Interferon ? receptor 1 (IFN? R1) deficiency is a primary immunodeficiency with allelic dominant and recessive mutations characterised clinically by severe infections with mycobacteria. We aimed to compare the clinical features of recessive and dominant IFN?R1 deficiencies. Methods We obtained data from a large cohort of patients worldwide. We assessed these people by medical histories, records, and genetic and immunological studies. Data were abstracted onto a standard form. Findings We identified 22 patients with recessive complete IFN?R1 deficiency and 38 with dominant partial deficiency. BCG and environmental mycobacteria were the most frequent pathogens. In recessive patients, 17 (77%) had environmental mycobacterial disease and all nine BCG-vaccinated patients had BCG disease. In dominant patients, 30 (79%) had environmental mycobacterial disease and 11 (73%) of 15 BCG-vaccinated patients had BCG disease. Compared with dominant patients, those with recessive deficiency were younger at onset of first environmental mycobacterial disease (mean 3·1 years [SD 2·5] vs 13·4 years [14·3], p=0·001), had more mycobacterial disease episodes (19 vs 8 per 100 person-years of observation, p=0·0001), had more severe mycobacterial disease (mean number of organs infected by Mycobacterium avium complex 4·1 [SD 0·8] vs 2·0 [1·1], p=0·004), had shorter mean disease-free intervals (1·6 years [SD 1·4] vs 7·2 years [7·6], p

Isotope Shift in the Dielectronic Recombination of Three-Electron ^ANd⁵⁷⁺

<p>Isotope shifts in dielectronic recombination spectra were studied for Li-like <sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><em>A</em></sup>Nd<sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">57+</sup> ions with <em>A</em>=142 and <em>A</em>=150. From the displacement of resonance positions energy shifts <em>d</em><em>E</em><sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">142?150</sup>(2<em>s</em>-2<em>p</em><sub style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">1/2</sub>)=40.2(3)(6)??meV [(stat)(sys)] and <em>d</em><em>E</em><sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">142?150</sup>(2<em>s</em>-2<em>p</em><sub style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">3/2</sub>)=42.3(12)(20)??meV of 2<em>s</em>-2<em>p</em><sub style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><em>j</em></sub>transitions were deduced. An evaluation of these values within a full QED treatment yields a change in the mean-square charge radius of <sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">142?150</sup><em>d</em>?<em>r</em><sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">2</sup>?=-1.36(1)(3)??fm<sup style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 0.88em; vertical-align: 0.5em; line-height: 1em; color: rgb(50, 50, 50); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">2</sup>. The approach is conceptually new and combines the advantage of a simple atomic structure with high sensitivity to nuclear size.</p>

Special issue on design and programming of signal processors for multimedia communication:Special issue on design and programming of signal processors for multimedia communication

The technical challenges in the design and programming of signal processors for multimedia communication are discussed. The development of terminal equipment to meet such demand presents a significant technical challenge, considering that it is highly desirable that the equipment be cost effective, power efficient, versatile, and extensible for future upgrades. The main challenges in the design and programming of signal processors for multimedia communication are, general-purpose signal processor design, application-specific signal processor design, operating systems and programming support and application programming. The size of FFT is programmable so that it can be used for various OFDM-based communication systems, such as digital audio broadcasting (DAB), digital video broadcasting-terrestrial (DVB-T) and digital video broadcasting-handheld (DVB-H). The clustered architecture design and distributed ping-pong register files in the PAC DSP raise new challenges of code generation.

Involvement of Nox2 NADPH oxidase in adverse cardiac remodeling after myocardial infarction.

Oxidative stress plays an important role in the development of cardiac remodeling after myocardial infarction (MI), but the sources of oxidative stress remain unclear. We investigated the role of Nox2-containing reduced nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase in the development of cardiac remodeling after MI. Adult Nox2(-/-) and matched wild-type (WT) mice were subjected to coronary artery ligation and studied 4 weeks later. Infarct size after MI was similar in Nox2(-/-) and WT mice. Nox2(-/-) mice exhibited significantly less left ventricular (LV) cavity dilatation and dysfunction after MI than WT mice (eg, echocardiographic LV end-diastolic volume: 75.7+/-5.8 versus 112.4+/-12.3 microL; ejection fraction: 41.6+/-3.7 versus 32.9+/-3.2%; both P

WASP-14b: 7.3 M-J transiting planet in an eccentric orbit

We report the discovery of a 7.3 M-J exoplanet WASP-14b, one of the most massive transiting exoplanets observed to date. The planet orbits the 10th-magnitude F5V star USNO-B1 11118-0262485 with a period of 2.243 752 d and orbital eccentricity e = 0.09. A simultaneous fit of the transit light curve and radial velocity measurements yields a planetary mass of 7.3 +/- 0.5 M-J and a radius of 1.28 +/- 0.08 R-J. This leads to a mean density of about 4.6 g cm(-3) making it the densest transiting exoplanets yet found at an orbital period less than 3 d. We estimate this system to be at a distance of 160 +/- 20 pc. Spectral analysis of the host star reveals a temperature of 6475 +/- 100 K, log g = 4.07 cm s(-2) and v sin i = 4.9 +/- 1.0 km s(-1), and also a high lithium abundance, log N(Li) = 2.84 +/- 0.05. The stellar density, effective temperature and rotation rate suggest an age for the system of about 0.5-1.0 Gyr.

Inward rectifier potassium channels in the HL-1 cardiomyocyte-derived cell line.

HL-1 is a line of immortalized cells of cardiomyocyte origin that are a useful complement to native cardiomyocytes in studies of cardiac gene regulation. Several types of ion channel have been identified in these cells, but not the physiologically important inward rectifier K(+) channels. Our aim was to identify and characterize inward rectifier K(+) channels in HL-1 cells. External Ba(2+) (100?µM) inhibited 44?±?0.05% (mean?±?s.e.m., n?=?11) of inward current in whole-cell patch-clamp recordings. The reversal potential of the Ba(2+)-sensitive current shifted with external [K(+)] as expected for K(+)-selective channels. The slope conductance of the inward Ba(2+)-sensitive current increased with external [K(+)]. The apparent Kd for Ba(2+) was voltage dependent, ranging from 15?µM at -150 ?mV to 148?µM at -75 ?mV in 120 ?mM external K(+). This current was insensitive to 10?µM glybenclamide. A component of whole-cell current was sensitive to 150?µM 4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS), although it did not correspond to the Ba(2+)-sensitive component. The effect of external 1 mM Cs(+) was similar to that of Ba(2+). Polymerase chain reaction using HL-1 cDNA as template and primers specific for the cardiac inward rectifier K(ir)2.1 produced a fragment of the expected size that was confirmed to be K(ir)2.1 by DNA sequencing. In conclusion, HL-1 cells express a current that is characteristic of cardiac inward rectifier K(+) channels, and express K(ir)2.1 mRNA. This cell line may have use as a system for studying inward rectifier gene regulation in a cardiomyocyte phenotype.