Anti-Leishmania titers and positive skin tests in patients cured of kala-azar

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala-azar, is an important public health problem. If not treated, virtually all clinically symptomatic patients die within months. The diagnosis is based on the Montenegro skin test (MST) and anti-Leishmania titers. Nevertheless, the time required for cured individuals living in a leishmaniasis-endemic area to present a positive skin test and negative anti-Leishmania serology is known. To determine the cellular and humoral immune response profile in relation to different times post-VL cure, a cross-sectional study was conducted on subjects from a kala-azar endemic area in Paço do Lumiar, MA, Brazil, on the basis of 1995-2005 notifications reported by the National Health Foundation/Regional Coordination of Maranhão. We visited cured individuals with a history of VL within the last 10 years. Seventy-four subjects (30 females) ranging in age from 1 to 44 years were included, all of them symptom free at the time of the study. A cellular immune response was observed in 73 (98.6%) subjects, whereas no significant antibody titers were detected by indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) in the sera of 69 (93.2%) cases. Ten years post-cure, 39 (52%) subjects had a positive MST and negative IIF reaction, while in one subject the skin and anti-Leishmania serology tests were negative. Two other subjects were positive in both tests 1 year after cure. These data suggest that a cellular immune response may still be present in subjects cured of VL regardless of post-cure time, and that the parasite persists in the host after clinical cure of the disease. This would explain the persistence of significant Leishmania sp antibody titers in some subjects after treatment.

3D Mesh Simplification. A survey of algorithms and CAD model simplification tests

Simplification of highly detailed CAD models is an important step when CAD models are visualized or by other means utilized in augmented reality applications. Without simplification, CAD models may cause severe processing and storage is- sues especially in mobile devices. In addition, simplified models may have other advantages like better visual clarity or improved reliability when used for visual pose tracking. The geometry of CAD models is invariably presented in form of a 3D mesh. In this paper, we survey mesh simplification algorithms in general and focus especially to algorithms that can be used to simplify CAD models. We test some commonly known algorithms with real world CAD data and characterize some new CAD related simplification algorithms that have not been surveyed in previous mesh simplification reviews.

Standardized electrical tests for electrical equipment in road vehicles Case: Visedo Oy PowerMASTER M-frame

Electrical road vehicles were common at the begin of the 20th century but internal combustion engines took a victory from electrical motors in road vehicles. The acknowledgement of the environment, and the price and the availability of the crude oil are reasons for the comeback of the electrical vehicles. Advancement in industrial technology and political atmosphere in EU as the directive 20--20--20, which consists of reducing fossil emission, increasing renewable energy and increasing the energy efficiency, have made the electrification popular again. In this thesis tests based on standard ISO 16750--2 electrical loads for electrical equipment in road vehicles are made for Visedo Oy's PowerMASTER M-frame power electronics device. This device is designed for mainly drive trains in mobile work machines and marine vessels but can be used in other application in its power range which also includes road vehicles. The functionality of the device is tested with preliminary tests which act as a framework for the tests based on standards.

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/05/23 (N2).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/06/26 (N6).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/09/15.

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/05/28 (N3).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/07/10 (N10).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/09/04 (N13).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944 (NTABLE).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/06/30 (N7).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/07/13 (N11).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/05/18 (N1).

Sondages de l'opinion publique française / Service de sondages et statistiques ; Comité directeur Pascal Copeau, Pierre Hervé, Yvon Morandat, Max Barioux

1944/06/02 (N4).