Late toxicity and five year outcomes after high-dose-rate brachytherapy as a monotherapy for localized prostate cancer

BACKGROUND To determine the 5-year outcome after high-dose-rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) as a monotherapy. METHODS Between 10/2003 and 06/2006, 36 patients with low (28) and intermediate (8) risk prostate cancer were treated by HDR-BT monotherapy. All patients received one implant and 4 fractions of 9.5 Gy within 48 hours for a total prescribed dose (PD) of 38 Gy. Five patients received concomitant androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). Toxicity was scored according to the common terminology criteria for adverse events from the National Cancer Institute (CTCAE) version 3.0. Biochemical recurrence was defined according to the Phoenix criteria and analyzed using the Kaplan Meier method. Predictors for late grade 3 GU toxicity were analyzed using univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. RESULTS The median follow-up was 6.9 years (range, 1.5-8.0 years). Late grade 2 and 3 genitourinary (GU) toxicity was observed in 10 (28%) and 7 (19%) patients, respectively. The actuarial proportion of patients with late grade 3 GU toxicity at 5 years was 17.7%. Late grade 2 and 3 gastrointestinal (GI) toxicities were not observed. The crude erectile function preservation rate in patients without ADT was 75%. The 5 year biochemical recurrence-free survival (bRFS) rate was 97%. Late grade 3 GU toxicity was associated with the urethral volume (p = 0.001) and the urethral V120 (urethral volume receiving ≥120% of the PD; p = 0.0005) after multivariate Cox regression. CONCLUSIONS After HDR-BT monotherapy late grade 3 GU was observed relatively frequently and was associated with the urethral V120. GI toxicity was negligible, the erectile function preservation rate and the bRFS rate was excellent.

Late Neogene carbonate sedimentation and stable isotope record of ODP Site 121-758

The evolution of oceanic and climatic conditions the northeast Indian Ocean during the last 7 m.y. is revealed in the sediments from Site 758. We present detailed and continuous records of d18O and d13C from planktonic foraminifers, weight percent calcium carbonate, weight percent coarse fraction, magnetic susceptibility, and geomagnetic reversals. Sample spacing of the records ranges from 3 to 10 cm and is equivalent to an average time interval of 2000 to 6000 yr. Despite the fact that core recovery ranged between 100% and 105%, recovery gaps as large as 2.7 m occurred at nearly every break between advanced hydraulic piston cores. Approximately 12% of the late Neogene sequence was not recovered in each of the two holes drilled at Site 758. To circumvent the discontinuity introduced by the gaps, a composite depth section was constructed from multiple cores taken from offset holes at Site 758. The resulting composite depth section extends continuously from 0 to 116 mbsf, from the Holocene to the upper Miocene. A detailed chronostratigraphy is based on geomagnetic reversals which extend from the Brunhes Chron to Chron 6, and on d18O stages 1 through 105, which span from 0 to 2.5 Ma. The d18O record is dominated by a ~40-k.y. cycle in the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene, and is followed by a change to a ~100-k.y. cycle in the late Pleistocene. The mid-Pleistocene transition between these two modes of variability occurs between d18O stages 25 and 22 (between 860 and 800 Ka). Thirteen major volcanic ash horizons from the Indonesian arc are observed throughout the sedimentary section and are dated by their relative position within the geomagnetic reversals and the d18O chronostratigraphy. Since 5 Ma, there has been a long-term decline in weight percent CaCO3 and CaCO3 mass accumulation rates, and an associated rise in non-CaCO3 mass accumulation rates. We attribute these changes to a decrease in CaCO3 productivity and an increase in terrigenous sedimentation through enhanced riverine input. Such input may be linked to rapid tectonic uplift of the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau via mechanisms such as the intensification of the monsoonal rains, increased fluvial erosion, and regional glaciation. The long-term increase in percent coarse fraction since 5 Ma suggests a gradual increase in CaCO3 preservation. Higher frequency fluctuations in CaCO3 preservation are superimposed on the long-term trend and are related to climate fluctuations. The abrupt drop (-50%) in CaCO3 accumulation at 3.4 Ma signals a dramatic decrease in CaCO3 production that occurred over much of the Indian Ocean.

Pollen record and dating of a sediment profile from Ahlequellmoor in Germany

A pollen diagram from the Ahlequellmoor in the Solling area shows the history of vegetation and settlement over the last 7,800 years. In the early Atlantic period mixed deciduous forest with mainly Tilia together with Ulmus and Quercus grew in the area. In the late Atlantic period Quercus became most abundant. Fagus spread in the Sub-boreal period at about 2700 B.C. Since ca. 900 B.C. the Solling was covered by beech forests with some oak. In prehistoric times woodland grazing is indicated. Only in Medieval times are two settlements in the vicinity of the Ahlequellmoor reflected in the pollen diagram. The earlier one is dated to about A.D. 750-1020, and may be connected with the former Monastery of Hethis, which is thought to have existed close to the fen from A.D. 815 to 822. The second Medieval settlement dates to the 11th-12th century. The large-scale woodland destruction of late Medieval and modern times is not clearly visible. The silvicultural measures of the last 200 years are reflected by increasing values of spruce and grassland taxa.

North Atlantic late Miocene stable-isotope stratigraphy, biostratigraphy, and magnetostratigraphy

Upper Miocene foraminiferal nannofossil ooze and chalk from DSDP Hole 552A in the northeast Atlantic Ocean have been closely sampled for biostratigraphic, paleomagnetic, and stable-isotopic studies. Sampling at 10-cm intervals resulted in an uppermost Miocene isotope stratigraphy with a 1000- to 3000-yr. resolution. Covariance in benthic (Planulina wuellerstorfi) and planktonic (Globigerina bulloides) foraminiferal d18O records is taken as evidence for variability in continental ice volume. Our best estimate is that glacial maxima occurred at -5.0 and ~ 5.5 Ma and lasted no more than 20,000 yrs. These events probably lowered sea level by 60 m below the latest Miocene average. There is little oxygen-isotope evidence, however, for a prolonged glaciation during the last 2 m.y. of the late Miocene. High- and low-frequency variability in the d13C record of foraminifers is useful for correlation among North Atlantic DSDP Sites 408, 410, 522, 610, and 611, and for correlation with sites in other oceans. Similar d13C changes are seen in P. wuellerstorfi and G. bulloides, but the amplitude of the signal is always greater in G. bulloides. Variability in d13C common to both species probably reflects variability in the d13C of total CO2 in seawater. Major long-term features in the d13C record include a latest Miocene maximum (P. wuellerstorfi = 1.5 per mil ) in paleomagnetic Chron 7, an abrupt decrease in d13C at -6.2 Ma, and a slight increase at -5.5 Ma. The decrease in d13C at -6.2 Ma, which has been paleomagnetically dated only twice before, occurs in the upper reversed part of Chronozone 6 at Holes 552A and 611C, in excellent agreement with earlier studies. Cycles in d13C with a period of ~ 10 4 yrs. are interpreted as changes in seawater chemistry, which may have resulted from orbitally induced variability in continental biomass. Samples of P. wuellerstorfi younger than 6 Ma from throughout the North Atlantic have d13C near lo, on average ~ l per mil greater than samples of the same age in the Pacific Ocean. Thus, there is no evidence for cessation of North Atlantic Deep Water production resulting from the Messinian "salinity crisis." Biostratigraphic results indicate continuous sedimentation during the late Miocene after about -6.5 Ma at Hole 552A. Nannofossil biostratigraphy is complicated by the scarcity of low-latitude marker species, but middle and late Miocene Zones NN7 through NN11 are recognized. A hiatus is present at -6.5 Ma, on the basis of simultaneous first occurrences of Amaurolithusprimus, Amaurolithus delicatus, Amaurolithus amplificus, and Scyphosphaera globulata. The frequency and duration of older hiatuses increase downsection in Hole 552A, as suggested by calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphy and magnetostratigraphy. Paleomagnetic results at Hole 552A indicate a systematic pattern of inclination changes. Chronozone 6 was readily identified because of its characteristic nannoflora (sequential occurrences of species assigned to the genus Amaurolithus) and the d13C decrease in foraminifers, but its lower reversed interval is condensed. Only the lower normal interval of Chronozone 5 was recognized at Hole 552A; the upper normal interval and the lowest Gilbert sediment are not recognized, owing to low intensity of magnetization and to coring disturbance. Interpreting magnetic reversals below Chronozone 6 was difficult because of hiatuses, but a lower normally magnetized interval is probably Chronozone 7. Correlation between DSDP Hole 552A and other North Atlantic sites is demonstrated using coiling direction changes in the planktonic foraminifer Neogloboquadrina. At most sites this genus changed its coiling preference from dominantly right to dominantly left during the late Miocene. At Hole 552A this event probably occurred about 7 m.y. ago. At the same time, P. wuellerstorfi had maximum d13C values. A similar d13C maximum and coiling change occurred together in Chron 7 at Hole 611C, and at Hole 610E. In sediment younger than -5.5 Ma, the coiling of small Neogloboquadrina species is random, but the larger species N. atlantica retains preferential left coiling.

Tab. 1: Radiocarbon ages of the late Pleistocene and early Holocene of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and surrounding areas

Several geoscientific projects in the last decade led to a marked increase of radiocarbon dates in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and in neighbouring areas. The studies were mostly focussed on the genesis of the Baltic Basin and the last termination. In this Paper, a regional collection of 271 radiocarbon dates of the late Pleistocene and early Holocene (ca. 50,000-8,000 14C yr BP) is presented. The dates were calibrated, correlate, and assessed with regard to their credibility. The evaluation of the data is focussed on problems of regional palaeogeography. The age of the last Weichselian deglaciation (deglaciation after the Mecklenburg Advance) is assumed to be around 14,000 14C yr BP through radiocarbon dates from the Pomeranian Bay. This data is ca. 1,000 years older compared to former views. On the other hand, the database allows the dating of late Pleistocene basin sequences from the Baltic coast, This indicates three stratigraphic units for basin areas 0-15 m above sea level - glaciolacustrine sedimentation in the late Pleniglacial, lacustrine and telmatic sedimentation as well as soil formation in the early Lateglacial and Alleroed and aeolian sedimentation in the Younger Dryas. The Younger Dryas in the huge Mecklenburg Bay-Darss Basin NE of Rostock is characterised by lacustrine sedimentation ca. 20 m below sea level ("Baltic Ice Lake"), and by aeolian sedimentation above sea level.

Planktonic foraminiferal (Globigerinoides ruber) Mg/Ca ratios and SSTs of sediment cores GeoB9501-4 and GeoB9501-5

Multidecadal variations in Atlantic sea surface temperatures (SST) influence the climate of the Northern Hemisphere. However, prior to the instrumental time period, information on multidecadal climate variability becomes limited, and there is a particular scarcity of sufficiently resolved SST reconstructions. Here, we present an eastern tropical North Atlantic reconstruction of SSTs based on foraminiferal (Globigerinoides ruber pink) Mg/Ca ratios that resolves multidecadal variability over the past 1700 years. Spectral power in the multidecadal band (50 to 70 years period) is significant over several time intervals suggesting that the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) has been influencing local SST. Since our data exhibit high scatter the absence of multidecadal variability in the remaining record does not exclude the possibility that SST variations on this time scale might have been present without being detected in our data. Cooling by ~0.5 °C takes place between about AD 1250 and AD 1500; while this corresponds to the inception of the Little Ice Age (LIA), the end of the LIA is not reflected in our record and SST remains relatively low. This transition to cooler SSTs parallels the previously reconstructed shift in the North Atlantic Oscillation towards a low pre-20th century mean state and possibly reflects common solar forcing.

Rammed earth walls in the late middle age castles in the actual province of Soria, Spain

This paper analyzed the building techniques based in the use of rammed earth in the Late Medieval fortifications in the province of Soria, Spain. The manorial castles of Serón de Nágima and Yanguas were built completely with rammed earth. However, these techinques are different. Through the study of the constructive signals, we can reconstruct the constructive process and made an hypothesis of the auxiliary scaffolding necessary for the construction. After, other four cases in which there is presence of rammed earth are described: Ágreda, Arcos de Jalón, Caracena and the tower of Martín González or castle of La Raya (the Border). Rammed earth is used in some secondary architectural elements and also as a filling of the masonry walls, but somtimes there are ancient rammed earth walls overlaid with stone masonry.

Hacia una taxonomía constructiva de las tapias de tierra y fábricas encofradas históricas = Towards a constructive taxonomy of the historical rammed-earth and formwork masonry

El objetivo fundamental de la investigación es el estudio de los fundamentos constructivos de las fábricas históricas de tapia de tierra y mampostería encofrada de las fortificaciones bajomedievales. Ante las incertidumbres detectadas en la datación de estas estructuras y frente al excesivo número de excepciones que quedan fuera de las clasificaciones tradicionalmente empleadas para estudiar este tipo de técnicas, el artículo desarrolla una propuesta de tipología o taxonomía constructiva basada en un sistema abierto. Este sistema nace del análisis de un número significativo de fábricas y atiende a diversos parámetros de control para la completa caracterización de cada fábrica: material, grado de compactación, función constructiva, encofrado, acabado superficial, combinación de materiales y situación, profundidad, formación y sección de los agujales. Cada fábrica se clasifica mediante una etiqueta alfanumérica. El sistema permite establecer tipos constructivos con los que se genera una clasificación cronotipológica constructiva. ABSTRACT The principal aim of the research is the study of the constructive reasons of the historical masonries built with rammed earth and formwork masonry, belonging to late medieval fortifications. Uncertainties have been warned about dating the historical masonries and there are excessive exceptions that do not fall in the rankings traditionally employed to study these techniques. Due to these reasons, the article develops a proposal of constructive typology or taxonomy based in an open system that comes from the analysis of a representative number of masonries and that attends to several control parameters tor the complete characterization of each masonry: material, compaction degree, constructive function, formwork, rendering, combination of materials and, last, the situation, deepness, formation and section of the putlogholes. Each masonry is classified through an alphanumeric label. The system allows establishing several constructive types which it is possible to do a cronotypological and constructive classification.

Mineralogy ol late Quaternary marine sediments from the West and East Greenland shelves offshore from early Tertiary basalt outcrops

We use quantitative X-ray diffraction to determine the mineralogy of late Quaternary marine sediments from the West and East Greenland shelves offshore from early Tertiary basalt outcrops. Despite the similar basalt outcrop area (60 000-70 000 km**2), there are significant differences between East and West Greenland sediments in the fraction of minerals (e.g. pyroxene) sourced from the basalt outcrops. We demonstrate the differences in the mineralogy between East and West Greenland marine sediments on three scales: (1) modern day, (2) late Quaternary inputs and (3) detailed down-core variations in 10 cores from the two margins. On the East Greenland Shelf (EGS), late Quaternary samples have an average quartz weight per cent of 6.2 ± 2.3 versus 12.8 ± 3.9 from the West Greenland Shelf (WGS), and 12.02 ± 4.8 versus 1.9 ± 2.3 wt% for pyroxene. K-means clustering indicated only 9% of the samples did not fit a simple EGS vs. WGS dichotomy. Sediments from the EGS and WGS are also isotopically distinct, with the EGS having higher eNd (-18 to 4) than those from the WGS (eNd = -25 to -35). We attribute the striking dichotomy in sediment composition to fundamentally different long-term Quaternary styles of glaciation on the two basalt outcrops.

Mid-to Late Holocene flood frequency in the northeastern Alps as recorded in varved sediments of Lake Mondsee

Annually laminated (varved) lake sediments with intercalated detrital layers resulting from sedimentary input by runoff events are ideal archives to establish precisely dated records of past extreme runoff events. In this study, the mid- to late Holocene varved sediments of Lake Mondsee (Upper Austria) were analysed by combining sedimentological, geophysical and geochemical methods. This approach allows to distinguish two types of detrital layers related to different types of extreme runoff events (floods and debris flows) and to detect changes in flood activity during the last 7100 years. In total, 271 flood and 47 debris flow layers, deposited during spring and summer, were identified, which cluster in 18 main flood episodes (FE 1-18) with durations of 30-50 years each. These main flood periods occurred during the Late Neolithic (7100-7050 vyr BP and 6470-4450 vyr BP), the late Bronze Age and the early Iron Age (3300-3250 and 2800-2750 vyr BP), the late Iron Age (2050-2000 vyr BP), throughout the Dark Ages Cold Period (1500-1200 vyr BP), and at the end of the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age (810-430 vyr BP). Summer flood episodes in Lake Mondsee are generally more abundant during the last 1500 years, often coinciding with major advances of alpine glaciers. Prior to 1500 vyr BP, spring/summer floods and debris flows are generally less frequent, indicating a lower number of intense rainfall events that triggered erosion. In comparison with the increase of late Holocene flood activity in western and northwestern (NW) Europe, commencing already as early as 2800 yr BP, the hydro-meteorological shift in the Lake Mondsee region occurred much later. These time lags in the onset of increased hydrological activity might be either due to regional differences in atmospheric circulation pattern or to the sensitivity of the individual flood archives. The Lake Mondsee sediments represent the first precisely dated and several millennia long summer flood record for the northeastern (NE) Alps, a key region at the climatic boundary of Atlantic, Mediterranean and East European air masses aiding a better understanding of regional and seasonal peculiarities of flood occurrence under changing climate conditions.

Memoirs relative to Egypt : written in that country during the campaigns of General Bonaparte, in the years 1798 and 1799, by the learned and scientific men who accompanied the French Expedition : published in Paris by authority.

Signatures: [A]⁴ B-2F⁸ 2G⁶ [2H]².