Immunofluorescence assay reactivity patterns of serum samples presenting indeterminate Western blot results for antibodies to HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II in Cordoba, Argentina

Serum samples (n: 110) from blood donors and high risk individuals from Cordoba, Argentina with indeterminate HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II Wb profiles were studied for specific antibodies to HTLV-I/II and HIV-1 by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and for the presence or absence of HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II specific bands by Wb. This study was carried out in order to characterize their putative reactions with HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II proteins and to resolve the retrovirus infection status of these individuals. Results indicated that blood donors sera displaying indeterminate HIV-1 or HTLV-I/II Wb patterns were not immunoreactive to HTLV-I/II and HIV-1 on IFA. However, a high rate of indeterminate HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II Wb samples from high risk individuals had positive HTLV-I/II and HIV-1 IFA results respectively. Our study supports the growing evidence that HTLV-HIV indeterminate seroreactivity in low risk population is due to a cross reaction against nonviral antigens, and in high risk populations the indeterminate samples show serological cross-recognition between HIV-1 proteins and HTLV-I/II proteins on Wb. These results point out the necessity to investigate the HTLV-I/II reactivity in indeterminate HIV-1 samples and viceversa in order to confirm the diagnosis. Finally, this study shows the potential usefulness of IFA in elucidating the status of HIV-1 and HTLV-I/II infection of individuals with indeterminate Wb profiles, thus enabling resolution of retrovirus infection status.

Metals in proteins from sulphate-reducing bacteria: adenylate kinase and ATP sulfurylase. Proteins containing cobalt, zinc, iron (II) ions

A Thesis submitted at the Faculty Science and Technology of the New University of Lisbon for a degree in Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry with specialization in Physical Biochemistry

European Union emissions trading scheme impact on the Spanish electricity price during phase II and phase III implementation

The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is a cornerstone of the European Union's policy to combat climate change and its key tool for reducing industrial greenhouse gas emissions cost-effectively. The purpose of the present work is to evaluate the influence of CO2 opportunity cost on the Spanish wholesale electricity price. Our sample includes all Phase II of the EU ETS and the first year of Phase III implementation, from January 2008 to December 2013. A vector error correction model (VECM) is applied to estimate not only long-run equilibrium relations, but also short-run interactions between the electricity price and the fuel (natural gas and coal) and carbon prices. The four commodities prices are modeled as joint endogenous variables with air temperature and renewable energy as exogenous variables. We found a long-run relationship (cointegration) between electricity price, carbon price, and fuel prices. By estimating the dynamic pass-through of carbon price into electricity price for different periods of our sample, it is possible to observe the weakening of the link between carbon and electricity prices as a result from the collapse on CO2 prices, therefore compromising the efficacy of the system to reach proposed environmental goals. This conclusion is in line with the need to shape new policies within the framework of the EU ETS that prevent excessive low prices for carbon over extended periods of time.

I primi umanisti italiani nello scontro tra papa Giovanni XXII e Ludovico il bavaro

pp. 63-71

As teses do defensor Pacis, II, XIII

pp. 205-227

Human T-cell lymphotropic virus types I and II infections in a cohort of patients with neurological disorders in Belém, Pará, Brazil

Serum- and/or- cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples obtained from 190 patients suffering from chronic, progressive neurological disease were screened for the presence of human T-cell lymphotropic viruses type I (HTLV-I) and type II (HTLV-II) antibodies over a six-year period (1996 to 2001) in Belém, Pará, Brazil. Patients were of both sexes (male subjects, 52%) with ages ranging from 2 to 79 years (mean, 35.9). Overall, 15 (7.9%) subjects - of whom 12 (80%) were female adults - reacted HTLV-I/II-seropositive when screened by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Serum samples from 14 of these patients were also analyzed using a recombinant Western blot (WB) assay that yielded HTLV-I-, HTLV-II-, and HTLV-I/II- reactivities for 10 (71.4%), 3 (21.4%) and 1 (7.2%) of them, respectively. The yearly rates of HTLV-I/II antibodies ranged from 2.6% (2001) to 21.7% (2000), with progressively increasing seropositivities from 1998 to 2000. Altogether, walking difficulty (n = 5 subjects), spasticity (n = 4) and leg weakness (n = 3) accounted for 80% of symptoms recorded among the 15 patients whose sera had antibodies to HTLV-I/II as detected by ELISA. These findings provide evidence that both HTLV-I and HTLV-II play a role in the development of chronic myelopathy in Belém, Pará, Northern Brazil.

p53 immunostaining pattern in Brazilian patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an important type of cancer etiologically related to some viruses, chemical carcinogens and other host or environmental factors associated to chronic liver injury in humans. The tumor suppressor gene p53 is mutated in highly variable levels (0-52%) of HCC in different countries. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study was to compare the frequency of aberrant immunohistochemical expression of p53 in HCC occurring in cirrhotic or in non-cirrhotic patients as well as in liver cell dysplasia and in adenomatous hyperplasia. We studied 84 patients with HCC or cirrhosis. RESULTS: We detected p53 altered immuno-expression in 58.3% of patients in Grade III-IV contrasting to 22.2% of patients in Grade I-II (p = 0.02). Nontumorous areas either in the vicinity of HCC or in the 30 purely cirrhotic cases showed no nuclear p53 altered expression, even in foci of dysplasia or adenomatous hyperplasia. No significant difference was found among cases related to HBV, HCV or alcohol. CONCLUSION: The high frequency of p53 immunoexpression in this population is closer to those reported in China and Africa, demanding further studies to explain the differences with European and North American reports.

Radar Based Collision detection developments on USV ROAZ II

This work presents the integration of obstacle detection and analysis capabilities in a coherent and advanced C&C framework allowing mixed-mode control in unmanned surface systems. The collision avoidance work has been successfully integrated in an operational autonomous surface vehicle and demonstrated in real operational conditions. We present the collision avoidance system, the ROAZ autonomous surface vehicle and the results obtained at sea tests. Limitations of current COTS radar systems are also discussed and further research directions are proposed towards the development and integration of advanced collision avoidance systems taking in account the different requirements in unmanned surface vehicles.

ROAZ and ROAZ II Autonomous Surface Vehicle Design and Implementation

International Lifesaving Congress 2007, La Coruna, Spain, December, 2007

O Impacto Económico da II Guerra Mundial no Sector Vitivinícola Português - O caso dos Vinhos Comuns

Dissertação apresentada para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em História Contemporânea

Avaliação e Tratamento do Doente com Acne - Parte II: Tratamento Tópico, Sistémico e Cirúrgico, Tratamento da Acne na Grávida, Algoritmo Terapêutico

O Portuguese Acne Advisory Board (PAAB), grupo de dermatologistas portugueses que, à semelhança de grupos congéneres internacionais, tem dedicado particular atenção à definição de linhas de orientação para o tratamento da acne, pretende que o presente documento constitua uma ferramenta útil na abordagem dos doentes com esta patologia. Elaborou-se um dossier, para educação médica contínua, subdividido em 2 partes: Parte I – etiopatogenia e clínica; Parte II – abordagem terapêutica. Nesta Parte II discute-se a abordagem terapêutica – tópica e sistémica – em cada forma clínica de acne, dando particular ênfase aos retinóides e aos antimicrobianos, e salientam-se as estratégias a adoptar para limitar a crescente resistência bacteriana aos antibióticos. Referem-se as indicações específicas para terapêutica hormonal e analisam-se as particularidades do tratamento da acne na grávida e lactante. Descrevem-se algumas técnicas para correcção das cicatrizes da acne. Por último, publica-se um algoritmo que pretende ilustrar a classificação da acne e definir, para cada tipo clínico, a abordagem terapêutica consensualmente recomendada.

Contribuição para a análise espacial da distribuição, variação e evolução da precipitação anual na bacia hidrográfica do Rio Mira: Projecto PREMIRA II

Relatório de Estágio apresentado para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Gestão do Território

Os anúncios na imprensa periódica portuguesa – da grande depressão à II Guerra Mundial

Dissertação de Mestrado em História Contemporânea

Clinical and epidemiological aspects of HTLV-II infection in São Paulo, Brazil: presence of Tropical Spastic Paraparesis/HTLV-Associated Myelopathy (TSP/HAM) simile diagnosis in HIV-1-co-infected subjects

In this study, the epidemiological and clinical features observed in solely HTLV-II-infected individuals were compared to those in patients co-infected with HIV-1. A total of 380 subjects attended at the HTLV Out-Patient Clinic in the Institute of Infectious Diseases "Emilio Ribas" (IIER), São Paulo, Brazil, were evaluated every 3-6 months for the last seven years by infectious disease specialists and neurologists. Using a testing algorithm that employs the enzyme immuno assay, Western Blot and polymerase chain reaction, it was found that 201 (53%) were HTLV-I positive and 50 (13%) were infected with HTLV-II. Thirty-seven (74%) of the HTLV-II reactors were co-infected with HIV-1. Of the 13 (26%) solely HTLV-II-infected subjects, urinary tract infection was diagnosed in three (23%), one case of skin vasculitis (8%) and two cases of lumbar pain and erectile dysfunction (15%), but none myelopathy case was observed. Among 37 co-infected with HIV-1, four cases (10%) presented with tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-associated myelopathy (TSP/HAM) simile. Two patients showed paraparesis as the initial symptom, two cases first presented with vesical and erectile disturbances, peripheral neuropathies were observed in other five patients (13%), and seven (19%) patients showed some neurological signal or symptoms, most of them with lumbar pain (five cases). The results obtained suggest that neurological manifestations may be more frequent in HTLV-II/HIV-1-infected subjects than those infected with HTLV-II only.

Arterite de Takayasu Tipo II

Descreve-se o caso de uma arterite de Takayasu tipo II numa mulher jovem, com hipertensão arterial grave, resistente à terapêutica médica. No exame histológico encontraram-se lesões compatíveis com o diagnóstico clínico. Foi feita revascularização com enxerto complexo. Apesar de não ter sido possível recuperar a insuficiência renal que se estabelecera como consequência das lesões renais da hipertensão arterial, a eliminação dos factores de manutenção da elevação da pressão arterial diminuiu o risco de complicações graves nesta doente.