CIRAS News, Winter/Spring 2009, Vol. 44, no. 2

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

CIRAS News, Spring/Summer 2011, Vol. 46, no. 3, 4

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

CIRAS News, Spring 2012, Vol. 47, no. 3

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

CIRAS News, Spring 2013, Vol. 48, no. 3

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

CIRAS News, Spring 2014, Vol. 49, no. 3

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

Viral suppression rates in salvage treatment with raltegravir improved with the administration of genotypic partially active or inactive nucleoside/tide reverse transcriptase inhibitors.

BACKGROUND: Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) are often administered in salvage therapy even if genotypic resistance tests (GRTs) indicate high-level resistance, but little is known about the benefit of these additional NRTIs. METHODS: The effect of <2 compared with 2 NRTIs on viral suppression (HIV-1 RNA < 50 copies/mL) at week 24 was studied in salvage patients receiving raltegravir. Intent-to-treat and per-protocol analyses were performed; last observation carried forward imputation was used to deal with missing information. Logistic regressions were weighted to create a pseudopopulation in which the probability of receiving <2 and 2 NRTIs was unrelated to baseline factors predicting treatment response. RESULTS: One-hundred thirty patients were included, of whom 58.5% (n = 76) received <2 NRTIs. NRTIs were often replaced by other drug classes. Patients with 2 NRTIs received less additional drug classes compared with patients with <2 NRTIs [median (IQR): 1 (1-2) compared with 2 (1-2), P Wilcoxon < 0.001]. The activity of non-NRTI treatment components was lower in the 2 NRTIs group compared with the <2 NRTIs group [median (IQR) genotypic sensitivity score: 2 (1.5-2.5) compared with 2.5 (2-3), P Wilcoxon < 0.001]. The administration of <2 NRTIs was associated with a worse viral suppression rate at week 24. The odds ratios were 0.34 (95% confidence interval: 0.13 to 0.89, P = 0.027) and 0.19 (95% confidence interval: 0.05 to 0.79, P = 0.023) when performing the last observation carried forward and the per-protocol approach, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed that partially active or inactive NRTIs contribute to treatment response, and thus the use of 2 NRTIs in salvage regimens that include raltegravir seems warranted.

CenterLines, Spring 2015

CenterLines for Families, the newsletter of the Center for Disabilities and Development at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital, is published four times a year. It provides families with current information on child and adult development, issues affecting people with disabilities, and CDD resources available to them and their families.

Leopold Letter: A Newsletter of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Spring 2015, vol. 27, no.1

The Leopold Center was created by the Iowa Legislature as part of the Iowa Groundwater Protection Act of 1987. The Leopold Center believes contribute to a healthy ways of thinking about markets for Iowa farmers, a better understanding of local ecosystems, public policies and economic practices, and partnerships with consumers.

Syndrome of birt-hogg-dubé, a histopathological pitfall with similarities to tuberous sclerosis: a report of three cases.

: Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome (BHD) is a rare condition, transmitted as an autosomal-dominant trait. The etiology is due to a mutation in the BHD gene, which encodes folliculin (FLCN), located on chromosome 17p. The skin changes observed are benign skin tumors consisting of hamartomas of the hair follicle with dermal changes. Patients with BHD have an increased risk of spontaneous pneumothorax due to rupture of lung cysts and an increased risk of kidney tumors. We report 3 new cases of BHD and discuss their clinical features, histopathological findings, and molecular diagnostics. We highlight the importance of genetic analysis to confirm the diagnosis because of the clinical pitfalls involved in establishing a diagnosis. Finally, we discuss the histopathological features in BHD and tuberous sclerosis complex and focus on their overlapping criterias. A correct diagnosis is essential as it can be life saving for patients.

Proposal of three thermodynamic variables to discriminate between storms associated with hail and storms with intense rainfall in Catalonia (Proposta de tres variables termodinàmiques per discriminar entre tempestes amb pedregades i tempestes amb pluges intenses)

Between late spring and early fall, the development of storms is common in Catalonia. Despite the fact that they usually produce heavy showers of short duration, they can also involve severe weather with ice pellets or hail. While the latter usually affect inland regions, and there are numerous publications on these cases; the analysis of events affecting the coast and causing damage to public and private properties is not so well developed. The aim of this study is to provide additional thermodynamic indicators that help differentiate storms with hail from storms without hail, considering cases that have affected various regions of Catalonia, mainly coastal areas. The aim is to give more information to improve prognosis and the ability to detail information in these situations. The procedure developed involved the study of several episodes of heavy rainfall and hail that hit Catalonia during the 2003-2009 period, mainly in the province of Girona, and validated the proposal during the campaign of late summer and fall of 2009, as well as 2012. For each case, several variables related to temperature, humidity and wind were analyzed at different levels of the atmosphere, while the information provided by the radio sounding in Barcelona was also taken into account. From this study, it can be concluded that the temperature difference between 500 hPa and 850 hPa, the humidity in the lower layers of the atmosphere and the LI index are good indicators for the detection of storms with associated hail.

Changes in running mechanics and spring-mass behaviour during a 5-km time trial.

Research into the biomechanical manifestation of fatigue during exhaustive runs is increasingly popular but additional understanding of the adaptation of the spring-mass behaviour during the course of strenuous, self-paced exercises continues to be a challenge in order to develop optimized training and injury prevention programs. This study investigated continuous changes in running mechanics and spring-mass behaviour during a 5-km run. 12 competitive triathletes performed a 5-km running time trial (mean performance: ̴17 min 30 s) on a 200 m indoor track. Vertical and anterior-posterior ground reaction forces were measured every 200 m by a 5-m long force platform system, and used to determine spring-mass model characteristics. After a fast start, running velocity progressively decreased (- 11.6%; P<0.001) in the middle part of the race before an end spurt in the final 400-600 m. Stride length (- 7.4%; P<0.001) and frequency (- 4.1%; P=0.001) decreased over the 25 laps, while contact time (+ 8.9%; P<0.001) and total stride duration (+ 4.1%; P<0.001) progressively lengthened. Peak vertical forces (- 2.0%; P<0.01) and leg compression (- 4.3%; P<0.05), but not centre of mass vertical displacement (+ 3.2%; P>0.05), decreased with time. As a result, vertical stiffness decreased (- 6.0%; P<0.001) during the run, whereas leg stiffness changes were not significant (+ 1.3%; P>0.05). Spring-mass behaviour progressively changes during a 5-km time trial towards deteriorated vertical stiffness, which alters impact and force production characteristics.

CIRAS News, Spring 2015, Vol. 50, no. 3

CIRAS is to enhance the performance of Iowa industry, and associated entities, through education and technology-based services. This newsletter holds information regarding these services.

Health consultation : Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul rail yard targeted brownields assessment, Spring Valley Township, Perry, Dallas County, Iowa (2007)

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) has requested the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) Hazardous Waste Site Health Assessment Program evaluate future health impacts of exposures at the formerly utilized Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul Rail Yard located on the west side of Perry, Iowa. This site has undergone a Targeted Brownfields Assessment conducted by the Contaminated Sites Section of the IDNR. This health consultation assesses potential health risks to people from future exposure to soil and surface water within the property boundary, and any health impacts resulting from contaminated groundwater beneath the site property from an evaluation of the data collected during the Targeted Brownfields Assessment. The information in this health consultation was current at the time of writing. Data that emerges later could alter this document’s conclusions and recommendations.