Hādhā Kitāb jāmiʻ al-mutūn fī ḥaqq anwāʻ al-ṣifāt al-ilāhīyah wa-al-ʻaqāʼid al-Māturīdīyah wa-alfāẓ al-kufr wa-taṣḥīḥ al-aʻmāl al-ʻajībīyah [microform] /

Microfilm.

The impact of peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin combination therapy on health-related quality of life in chronic hepatitis C

Background/Aims: Peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin improves sustained virological responses compared with interferon alfa-2b and ribavirin, or peginterferon alfa-2a alone in chronic hepatitis C. We examined the impact of these treatments on health related quality of life (HRQOL). Methods: Patients (n = 1121) were randomized to peginterferon alfa-2a weekly plus ribavirin or placebo, or interferon alfa-2b thrice weekly plus ribavirin. HRQOL was assessed with the SF-36 Health Survey and Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Results: Patients receiving peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin reported better HRQOL than those receiving interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin. These differences were statistically significant for three SF-36 domains and both FSS scores (p < = 0.05). Patients receiving peginterferon alfa-2a plus placebo had the least impairment; adding ribavirin significantly decreased five domains of the SF-36 and both FSS scores. Sustained virological response was associated with improvement at follow-up on all SF-36 and FSS scores. Conclusions: The effects of combination therapy on HRQOL and fatigue are less with peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin than interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin. Each medication in combination therapy with interferon and ribavirin, affects patients' quality of life differently. Understanding the relationship of specific therapeutic options to HRQOL may help physicians minimize the impact of therapy on HRQOL. (C) 2004 European Association for the Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Topical interferon alfa-2b for the treatment of recalcitrant ocular surface squamous neoplasia

center dot PURPOSE: To evaluate topical interferon alfa-2b (IFN-alpha 2b) for the treatment of recalcitrant ocular surface squamous neoplasia (OSSN). center dot DESIGN: Prospective, noncomparative, interventional consecutive case series. center dot METHODS: Ten patients with recalcitrant OSSN were treated with topical IFN-alpha 2b (1 million IU/ml) four times a day until clinical resolution of the lesion or until the lesion appeared nonresponsive-that is, treatment failure. Progress was assessed by clinical examination and photographic records, with a minimum follow,up of six months. center dot RESULTS: Eight of 10 patients achieved clinical resolution from topical IFN-alpha 2b treatment. One patient developed invasive squamous cell carcinoma and underwent exenteration. The other patient required further mitomycin C therapy to achieve clinical resolution. The mean duration to clinical resolution for the eight patients treated with IFN-alpha 2b was 21.9 weeks (range six to 59 weeks). There have been no recurrences for any of the nine patients during follow-up (mean 55.0 weeks; range 26 to 84 weeks). center dot CONCLUSIONS: Topical IFN-alpha 2b is an important treatment modality for recalcitrant OSSN; it avoids the risks of further limbal stem cell destruction from other agents and surgical excision. If invasive disease is diagnosed at any stage, topical therapy is contraindicated, necessitating surgical excision. (Am J Ophthalmol 2006; 142:568-571. (c) 2006 by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Modelo animal da Doença de Parkinson baseado na expressão de alfa - sinucleína: caracterização comportamental, eletrofisiológica e avaliação dos efei tos da estimulação da medula espinhal

Parkinson disease (PD) is associated with motor symptoms and dopaminergic cell loss in the nigrostriatal pathway. Alpha-synuclein is the major component of the Lewy bodies, the biological hallmarks of disease, and has been associated with familial cases of PD. Recently, the spinal cord stimulation (SCS) showed to be effective to alleviate the Parkinson symptoms in animal models and human patients. In this project, we characterized the motor and electrophysiological effects of alpha-synuclein overexpression in the substantia nigra of rats. We further investigated the effects of spinal electrical stimulation, AMPT and L-dopa administration in this model. Method: Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with empty viral vector or the vector carrying the gene for alpha-synuclein in the substantia nigra, and were tested weekly for 10 weeks in the open field and cylinder tests. A separated group of animals implanted with bilateral electrode arrays in the motor cortex and the striatum were recorded in the open field, during the SCS sessions and the pharmacological experiments. Results: Alpha-synuclein expression resulted in motor asymmetry, observed as the reduction in use of contralateral forepaw in the cylinder test. Animals showed an increase of local field potential activity in beta band three and four weeks after the virus injection, that was not evident after the 5th week. AMPT resulted in a sever parkinsonian state, with reduction in the locomotor activity and significant peak of oscillatory activity in cortex and striatum. SCS was effective to alleviate the motor asymmetry at long term, but did not reduce the corticostriatal low frequency oscillations observed 24 hs after the AMPT administration. These oscillations were attenuated by L-dopa that, even as SCS, was not effective to restore the locomotor activity during the severe dopaminergic depletion period. Discussion: The alpha-synuclein model reproduces the motor impairment and the progressive neurodegenerative process of PD. We demonstrated, by the first time, that this model also presents the increase in low frequency oscillatory activity in the corticostriatal circuit, compatible with parkinsonian condition; and that SCS has a therapeutic effect on motor symptom of this model.

Avaliação da suplementação de vitamina E sobre a concentração de alfa-tocoferol no leite materno em mulheres com partos prematuros

The term vitamin E refers to a group of eight molecular compounds which differ in structure and bioavailability, and the RRR-alpha-tocopherol more biologically active form. The composition of vitamin E in breast milk undergoes variations during lactation, colostrum and milk richer in this micronutrient compared to transitional and mature milk. Newborns, especially premature infants are more susceptible to vitamin E deficiency and to prevent the damage caused by this deficiency has been proposed supplementation of neonates with this micronutrient, however, there is no consensus to carry out this intervention. Thus, maternal supplementation with RRRalpha-tocopherol in the postpartum period can be a good alternative to try to raise the alpha-tocopherol levels in breast milk and therefore provide the premature newborn adequate amounts of vitamin E. This study to evaluate the effect of supplementation with 400 UI acetate RRR-alpha-tocopherol in women with premature births, on the concentration of alpha-tocopherol in breast milk colostrum, transitional and mature. The study included 89 healthy adult women were enrolled in the control group (n = 51) and supplemented group (n = 38). Blood samples were collected and milk colostrum soon after birth (0h milk) twenty-four hours, new rate of colostrum milk was collected (24h milk). The transitional and mature milk were collected in seven days (7d milk) and thirty days (30d milk) after delivery, respectively. Supplementation in the supplemented group was held after the collection of blood and 0h milk. The alpha-tocopherol analyzes were performed by high-performance liquid chromatography. Serum levels of alpha-tocopherol less than 516 μg/dL were considered indicative of nutritional deficiency. The average concentration of alphatocopherol in the serum of the control group mothers was 1159.8 ± 292.4 μg/dL and the supplemented group was 1128.3 ± 407.2 μg/dL (p = 0.281). All women had nutritional status in vitamin E suitable. In both groups, it was observed that the concentration of vitamin E in colostrum milk was higher compared to transitional and mature milk. In the supplemented group, the concentration of alpha-tocopherol in the milk increased 60 % after supplementation, from 1339.3 ± 414.2 μg/dL (0h milk) to 2234.7 ± 997.3 μg/dL (24h milk). While the control group values in colostrum 0h and colostrum 24h were similar (p = 0.681). In the control group the follow-on milk alphatocopherol value was 875.3 ± 292.4 μg/dL and in the group supplemented 1352.8 ± 542.3 μg/dL, an increase of 35% in the supplemented group compared to control (p <0.001). In mature milk alpha-tocopherol concentrations between the control group (426.6 ± 187.5 μg/dL) and supplemented (416.4 ± 214.2 μg/dL) were similar (p = 0.853). Only 24h milk supplemented group answered the nutritional requirement of alpha-tocopherol (4 mg/day) of the newborn. These results show that the transport of this micronutrient for milk occurs in a controlled and limited way. Thus, the native vitamin E supplementation increases the concentration of alpha-tocopherol in colostrum and milk and transition does not influence the concentration in mature milk. Only the increase in colostrum milk was sufficient to meet the nutritional requirement of premature newborns.

Padrões de diversidade α (alfa) e β (beta) zooplanctônica em lagos tropicais: a importância da estrutura do habitat e da identidade das espécies

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Padrões de diversidade α (alfa) e β (beta) zooplanctônica em lagos tropicais: a importância da estrutura do habitat e da identidade das espécies

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Évaluation pharmacodynamique et sécurité d'emploi de l'Époétine alfa chez les patients aux soins intensifs

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Évaluation pharmacodynamique et sécurité d'emploi de l'Époétine alfa chez les patients aux soins intensifs

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Stable expression of a human-like sialylated recombinant thyrotropin in a chinese hamster ovary cell line expressing 'alfa'2,6-sialyltransferase

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Musicalidades Quotidianas da Personalidade: estudo sobre o impacto da música na personalidade, comportamentos, emoções e quotidiano de jovens e adultos de língua portuguesa

Objetivos: A música, incomum pela sua ubiquidade e antiguidade, constitui uma das atividades humanas que ocupa um lugar significativo nas diversas culturas e vida diária. Geralmente agradável para grande parte das pessoas, produz numerosos e desmedidos efeitos, na sua maioria positivos para o ser humano. Esta investigação teve como objetivo principal estudar a relação entre alguns dos diferentes géneros musicais e os de traços de personalidade de jovens e de adultos com idades compreendidas entre os 18 e os 38 anos, fluentes em português. A investigação pretendeu descrever as preferências musicais em função da idade, género, estado civil e habilitações literárias; identificar os contextos, os períodos e as atividades mais comuns durante a escuta de música; reconhecer se a música é uma das atividades de lazer mais importantes para o grupo estudado; conhecer quais as razões mais frequentes apontadas pelos sujeitos para ouvir música; estudar a perceção que as pessoas têm sobre a influência da música na violência e no consumo de substâncias; verificar se os sujeitos consideram as preferências musicais como um fator importante e revelador de informações sobre a personalidade; avaliar o impacto e relação das preferências musicais com a personalidade e verificar quais os pares de emoções mais comuns, sentidos durante a escuta musical, e respetiva intensidade. Metodologia: A amostra foi constituída por 320 indivíduos com idades compreendidas entre os 18 e os 38 anos sendo a faixa etária mais comum a que se situa entre os 24 a 29 anos, maioritariamente do sexo feminino, solteiros, de nacionalidade portuguesa, detentores ou a frequentar um curso superior, nas áreas das ciências sociais/serviços ou exatas e tecnológicas. Os participantes aceitaram responder voluntariamente a uma bateria de testes (QCS, EPI, QMQEC e STOMP-PT). Para a caracterização da amostra, determinaram-se frequências absolutas e relativas ou valores médios e desvios-padrão. A normalidade da distribuição das pontuações médias dos instrumentos foi validada com o teste de Kolmogorov-Smirnov com correção de Lilliefors. A consistência interna estudou-se através do Alpha de Cronbach e da fórmula de Kuder Richarson. As diferenças entre grupos foram avaliadas recorrendo a uma ANOVA, a intensidade e magnitude das relações entre variáveis determinou-se através do coeficiente Eta quadrado (e 2) e com o coeficiente de correlação de Pearson avaliou-se a associação entre as variáveis em estudo. Resultados: Observou-se que a música energética é a mais típica dos escalões etários mais jovens, sendo que a rebelde trespassa todas as gerações, revelando os mais velhos também uma forte preferência pela música reflexiva. As escolhas musicais parecem não ser influenciadas pelo sexo e estado civil. Os indivíduos menos escolarizados parecem preferir músicas do tipo energético, excluindo as convencionais enquanto os detentores de maiores habilitações preferem os estilos reflexivos e rebeldes. É em casa, no quarto, ao fim de semana e quando estão sozinhos que os participantes mais ouvem música, constituindo esta a mais frequente atividade de lazer, por ser uma atividade essencial para a existência, não apelando à violência e ao consumo de substâncias e revelando as preferências musicais aspetos da personalidade. Encontraram-se diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre as dimensões da preferência musical e os traços de personalidade, sendo a música energética a que mais se destaca na extroversão e a rebelde no neuroticismo. Não se obtiveram resultados estatisticamente significativos entre os tipos de música e as emoções. Conclusão: Os resultados devem ser vistos a título de ensaio e como introdutórios, seguindo no entanto os referidos na literatura quer ao nível das preferências por idade, sexo e habilitações literárias, quer ao nível do contexto onde é ouvida, quer ainda entre as dimensões de preferência musical e traços de personalidade. / Aims: Music, unusual for its ubiquity and age, is one of the human activities that occupies a significant place in different cultures and daily life. Generally pleasant to most people, produces many and huge positive effects in humans. This investigation aimed to study the relationship between some of the different music preferences and personality types of young and adults aged between 18 and 38 years, fluent in Portuguese. The research intended to describe the musical preferences based on age, gender, marital status and educational attainment; identify contexts, periods and the most common activities during music listening; recognize the music as one of the most important leisure activities for the group studied; know which are the most frequent reasons given by the subjects to listen to music; study the perception that people have about the influence of music on violence and substance use; check whether the subjects consider the musical preferences as a major factor that reveals information about personality; assess the impact and relationship of musical preferences with the personality and see which pairs of most common emotions are felt during music listening, and its respective intensity. Methods: The sample consisted of 320 individuals aged between 18 and 38 years being the most common age group of between 24 to 29 years, mostly female, single, Portuguese, holders or to attend a higher education in the areas of social / services or exact science. Participants voluntarily agreed to answer a battery of tests (QCS, EPI, QMQEC and STOMP-PT). To characterize the sample, they were determined absolute and relative frequencies and mean values and standard deviations. The normality of the average scores of the instruments has been validated with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test with Lilliefors correction. Internal consistency was studied using Cronbach's alpha and Kuder Richardson formula. Differences between groups were assessed using an ANOVA, intensity and magnitude of the relationship between variables was determined by Eta squared coefficient and the Pearson correlation coefficient evaluated the association between the study variables. Results: It was observed that the energetic music is the most usual among the younger age groups, and the rebel pierces all generations, revealing the older ones a strong preference for reflective music. The musical choices do not seem to be influenced by sex and marital status. The less educated individuals seems to prefer the energetic type songs, excluding conventional, holders of higher qualifications prefer reflective and rebellious styles. It is at home, in the room, on the weekends and when they are alone that participants listen more music, making this the most common leisure activity, the essential for existence, not calling for violence and substance use and revealing aspects of personality. We found significant differences between the dimensions of music preferences and personality traits, with the energetic music standing out in extraversion and neuroticism on rebel. We did not get significant results among the types of music and emotions. Conclusions: The results should be viewed under test and has introductory , however following the reported in the literature both in terms of preferences by age, sex and education level , both in terms of the context in which it is heard, still follows music preference dimensions and personality traits .

Studio del comportamento di poli-alfa-olefine come modificatori di viscosità negli oli lubrificanti

Il buon funzionamento di una qualsiasi tipologia di motore prevede l’utilizzo di un componente che abbia il compito di lubrificare le parti meccaniche in movimento, come, ad esempio, l’olio motore per l’automobile. Un fattore determinante nella scelta dell’olio è la variazione della sua viscosità in relazione alla variazione di temperatura, poiché la temperatura di esercizio di un macchinario è solitamente diversa dalla temperatura di avviamento. Tale valore viene identificato in maniera assoluta dal Viscosity Index (VI). L’olio motore è una formulazione complessa in cui sono presenti l’olio base ed una serie di additivi, tra cui molto importante è il modificatore di viscosità (Viscosity Index Improver, VII), che migliora il VI e permette di utilizzare lo stesso olio a basse ed alte temperature (olio multigrade). Come VII possono essere utilizzate diverse tipologie di polimeri solubili in olio, che variano per caratteristiche e target di mercato. La famiglia presa in esame in questa tesi è quella delle poli-alfa-olefine, utilizzate prevalentemente con oli base minerali, e più precisamente copolimeri etilene/propilene. Sono state analizzate le proprietà che questa famiglia ben nota di OCP (Olefin CoPolymer) ingenera nel sistema base-polimero. In particolare si è cercato di correlare le proprietà molecolari del polimero (composizione, peso molecolare e paracristallinità) con le proprietà “tecnologico-applicative” di ispessimento, stabilità meccanica al taglio, punto di non scorrimento, avviamento a freddo, pompabilità a freddo. L’attività è proseguita con la progettazione di un modello fisico, con l’obiettivo di predire il comportamento tecnologico del sistema olio-polimero in funzione delle proprietà molecolari di polimeri appartenenti alla classe delle poli-alfa-olefine lineari, esaminando anche le proprietà tecnologiche di un omopolimero sperimentale.