Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Effective Protection (effective + protection)
Selected AbstractsIllness in French Travelers to Senegal: Prospective Cohort Follow-up and Sentinel Surveillance DataJOURNAL OF TRAVEL MEDICINE, Issue 5 2010Aïssata Dia MD Objective. To investigate travel-associated illnesses in French travelers to Senegal. Methods. A prospective cohort follow-up was conducted in 358 travelers recruited at a pre-travel visit in Marseille and compared to data from ill travelers collected from the GeoSentinel data platform in two clinics in Marseille. Results. In the cohort survey, 87% of travelers experienced health complaints during travel, which most frequently included arthropod bites (75%), diarrhea (46%), and sunburns (36%). Severe febrile illness cases, notably malaria and salmonella, were detected only through the surveillance system, not in the cohort follow-up. Food hygiene was inefficient in preventing diarrhea. Arthropod bites were more frequent in younger patients and in patients with pale phototypes. Sunburns were also more frequent in younger patients. Finally, we demonstrate that mild travel-related gastrointestinal symptoms and the lack of arthropod bites are significantly associated with poor observance of antimalarial prophylaxis. Conclusions. In this study, we suggest the complementary nature of using cohort surveys and sentinel surveillance data. Effective protection of skin from arthropod bites and sun exposure should result in significantly reduced travel-associated diseases in Senegal. Travelers to Senegal should be informed that diarrhea is extremely common despite preventive measures, but it is mild and transitory and should not lead to the disruption of malaria chemoprophylaxis. [source] Conservation Biology Framework for the Release of Wild-Born Orphaned Chimpanzees into the Conkouati Reserve, CongoCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2001Caroline E. G. Tutin Release of captive individuals is complex and controversial, however, particularly when risks are potentially high, as in the case of orphaned apes. We describe the decision-making process that led to the successive release of 20 wild-born orphan chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes troglodytes) into the Conkouati Reserve in the Republic of Congo. Recommendations of the Reintroduction Specialist Group of the World Conservation Union's Species Survival Commission were followed closely. The conservation status, ecology, and behavior of wild chimpanzees; the biological, social, economic and political context of the release site; and the health and genetic status of the candidates for release were all taken into account in the planning and execution of the project. Rigorous post-release monitoring of behavior and health allowed documentation of the outcome. The project was of benefit to the chimpanzees that were released but also brought broad benefits to the site through effective protection from poaching and deforestation, and direct and indirect benefits to local people. The genetic and behavioral diversity of chimpanzees require a variety of conservation strategies to reduce threats and maintain as many viable wild populations as possible. Resumen: El retorno de animales confiscados a sus hábitats nativos es deseable cuando ocasiona una contribución positiva para la conservación de la especie. Sin embargo, la liberación de individuos cautivos es compleja y controversial, particularmente cuando los riesgos son potencialmente altos, como es el caso de los monos huérfanos. Describimos el proceso de toma de decisiones que condujo a la liberación de exitosa de 20 chimpancés silvestres huérfanos ( Pan troglodytes troglodytes) dentro de la Reserva Conkouati de la República de Congo. Las recomendaciones del Grupo de especialistas en reintroducción de la UICN-SSC fueron seguidas de cerca. El estatus de conservación, ecología y conducta de los chimpancés silvestres; el contexto biológico, social, económico y político del sitio de liberación y la salud y estatus genético de los candidatos a ser liberados fueron también tomados en consideración en la planeación y ejecución del proyecto. El monitoreo riguroso post-liberación de la conducta y salud permitió la documentación de los resultados. El proyecto fue benéfico para los chimpancés liberados pero también trajo beneficios amplios al sitio mediante la protección efectiva de la caza fortuita y la deforestación y beneficios directos e indirectos para la población humana local. La diversidad genética y conductual de los chimpancés requiere de una variedad de estrategias de conservación para reducir las amenazas y mantener cuantas poblaciones silvestres viables sean posibles. [source] Privatisation and outsourcing in wartime: the humanitarian challengesDISASTERS, Issue 4 2006Gilles Carbonnier Abstract The tendency today to privatise many activities hitherto considered the exclusive preserve of the state has given rise to sharp debate. The specific nature of humanitarian emergencies elucidates in particularly stark contrast some of the main challenges connected to the privatisation and outsourcing of essential public services, such as the provision of drinking water and health care. Privatising the realms of defence and security, which are at the very core of state prerogative, raises several legal and humanitarian concerns. This article focuses on the roles and responsibilities of the various parties involved in armed conflicts, especially those of private companies engaged in security, intelligence and interrogation work, and in the provision of water supply and health services. It highlights the need for humanitarian and development actors to grasp better the potential risks and opportunities related to privatisation and outsourcing with a view to supplying effective protection and assistance to communities affected by war. [source] Race Equality and TCNs, or How to Fight Discrimination with A Discriminatory LawEUROPEAN LAW JOURNAL, Issue 6 2009Sara Benedí Lahuerta Two subjects often fit with difficulty in ,Fortress Europe': Equality and Third Country Nationals (TCNs). EC Law presents fundamental weaknesses with regard to TCNs in the intersections between race, religion and nationality discrimination. In particular for non-EU nationals, these three grounds of discrimination can be closely related, and difficult to distinguish. However, they are of great importance for the integration and fair treatment of migrants, which was one of the objectives of the Tampere Programme. This article analyses the extent to which the Race Equality Directive (43/2000/EC) and the Framework Equality Directive (78/2000/EC) provide an effective protection against ,racial related discrimination'. It suggests that the loopholes of both Directives, together with the current interpretation of Article 12 EC, have institutionalised not only a hierarchy of equalities, but also a hierarchy of peoples, and it explores possible interpretative solutions. [source] Clinical pharmacology and therapeutic use of antioxidant vitaminsFUNDAMENTAL & CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 2 2007Ramón Rodrigo Abstract The clinical use of antioxidants has gained considerable interest during the last decade. It was suggested from epidemiological studies that diets high in fruits and vegetables might help decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, supplements of vitamins C and E were applied through protocols aimed to prevent diseases such as atherosclerosis, preeclampsia or hypertension, thought to be mediated by oxidative stress. Despite the biological properties of these vitamins could account for an effective protection, as shown by several clinical and experimental studies, their efficacy remains controversial in the light of some recent clinical trials and meta-analyses. However, the methodology of these studies, criteria for selection of patients, the uncertain extent of progression of the disease when initiating supplementation, the lack of mechanistic studies containing basic scientific aspects, such as the bioavailability, pharmacokinetic properties, and the nature of the antioxidant sources of vitamins, could account for the inconsistency of the various clinical trials and meta-analyses assessing the efficacy of these vitamins to prevent human diseases. This review presents a survey of the clinical use of antioxidant vitamins E and C, proposing study models based on the biological effects of these compounds likely to counteract the pathophysiological mechanisms able to explain the structural and functional organ damage. [source] Trauma in the Crusader period city of Caesarea: a major port in the medieval eastern MediterraneanINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OSTEOARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 6 2006P. D. MitchellArticle first published online: 14 AUG 200 Abstract Caesarea is the first fortified city to undergo palaeopathological analysis of its Crusader period inhabitants. This study of the 12th and 13th century population aims to determine the major types of trauma present, whether from weapon injuries or accidents. Since the Crusades were known for the significant number of battles and raids that took place, weapon injuries were expected to be common. Thirteen cases of trauma are described and a highly unexpected pattern has come to light. These cases do not include one single example of weapon-related trauma. Every fracture is of a type expected from accidents or interpersonal violence without weapons. Possible explanations include the location of the city deep within Frankish territory and the robust city walls giving effective protection to the inhabitants, and also that the population were involved in activities that left them prone to accidents but not weapon injuries. The other important finding from this study was that the cases of lower limb long bone spiral fractures had healed in a near-anatomical alignment. This is not what we would expect, as a proportion of these injuries would normally have been unstable and tend to heal poorly aligned. The good position could have resulted from surgeons' use of splints to immobilise the bones while they healed. This suggestion is supported by laws of the kingdom of Jerusalem, which stated that surgeons were to be punished if they allowed such fractures to heal at an angle. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Refugee Women in Europe: Some Aspects of the Legal and Policy DimensionsINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 2 2000Alice Bloch This article presents an overview of the legal and policy issues affecting refugee and asylum-seeking women in European host societies. First, it explores the unique types of persecution experienced by women and shows that the asylum determination process, along with the status of women relative to men, mitigates against the effective protection of women. The legal basis for asylum, the evidential requirements and the procedural norms all reduce the protection which is likely to be conferred upon asylum-seeking women. Second, the article provides an overview of responses to female refugees and asylum-seekers in European countries of asylum. Although there are differences between countries, there is also a large degree of uniformity. For example, there is a lack of recognition and understanding of the diversity and the range of experiences which refugees bring with them, including different social and cultural norms. Moreover, European policies do not provide special provisions to facilitate the settlement of refugee women and instead place barriers to their social and economic participation. Third, the article examines policies for family reunion in different countries and shows that such unfavourable and unsympathetic policies mitigate against the settlement of refugee women. Finally, the article argues that if refugee and asylum-seeking women are to have their cases recognized and to be successfully settled, then there needs to be a complete rethink of legislation and policy in Europe. [source] The Insecure Social Protection of Migrant Workers From the MaghrebINTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY REVIEW, Issue 2 2000Abdellah Boudahrain Is it possible to speak of just and equitable social protection for the active populations of poor countries which suffer from development problems and are dominated by an international order in which only the law of the strongest prevails, especially when those populations emigrate to seek work in order to live or merely to survive? Universal standards that are supposed to ensure some measure of international coordination of national legislation and practice in social security between developed countries and the so-called developing countries suffer from this somewhat original form of inequality. The adaptation of such standards at the bilateral, regional and multilateral levels only reflects the discrimination and selfish interests of States and of the rich and powerful, and indeed of broad sectors of their civil society who reject others simply because of their different culture and traditions. The debate is more involved than at first it may seem. By accepting others as being like oneself one can imagine a better world in which, when people move freely - including migrant workers and their families - they enjoy effective protection through social security. A study of the situation of Maghreb migrants employed and residing in western Europe and the Gulf States has much to teach us in this respect, especially in determining whether any form of solidarity is plausible or achievable in some not too distant future. [source] State transitions and physicochemical aspects of cryoprotection and stabilization in freeze-drying of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG)JOURNAL OF APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 6 2008K.S. Pehkonen Abstract Aims:, The frozen and dehydrated state transitions of lactose and trehalose were determined and studied as factors affecting the stability of probiotic bacteria to understand physicochemical aspects of protection against freezing and dehydration of probiotic cultures. Methods and Results:,Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG was frozen (,22 or ,43°C), freeze-dried and stored under controlled water vapour pressure (0%, 11%, 23% and 33% relative vapour pressure) conditions. Lactose, trehalose and their mixture (1 : 1) were used as protective media. These systems were confirmed to exhibit relatively similar state transition and water plasticization behaviour in freeze-concentrated and dehydrated states as determined by differential scanning calorimetry. Ice formation and dehydrated materials were studied using cold-stage microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Trehalose and lactose,trehalose gave the most effective protection of cell viability as observed from colony forming units after freezing, dehydration and storage. Enhanced cell viability was observed when the freezing temperature was ,43°C. Conclusions:, State transitions of protective media affect ice formation and cell viability in freeze-drying and storage. Formation of a maximally freeze-concentrated matrix with entrapped microbial cells is essential in freezing prior to freeze-drying. Freeze-drying must retain a solid amorphous state of protectant matrices. Freeze-dried matrices contain cells entrapped in the protective matrices in the freezing process. The retention of viability during storage seems to be controlled by water plasticization of the protectant matrix and possibly interactions of water with the dehydrated cells. Highest cell viability was obtained in glassy protective media. Significance and Impact of the Study:, This study shows that physicochemical properties of protective media affect the stability of dehydrated cultures. Trehalose and lactose may be used in combination, which is particularly important for the stabilization of probiotic bacteria in dairy systems. [source] Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices With Regard to Adult Pertussis Vaccine Booster in TravelersJOURNAL OF TRAVEL MEDICINE, Issue 3 2007Annelies Wilder-Smith MD, FAMS Introduction Pertussis is a worldwide, highly communicable, vaccine-preventable respiratory disease and is a frequent but often underestimated cause of prolonged cough illness in adults. Immunity from childhood pertussis immunization is thought to last only up to 10 years. The incidence of adult pertussis has been estimated to be 200 to 500 per 100,000 persons-years. Acellular pertussis vaccines have been evaluated in adults and confer safe and effective protection and now exist as combination vaccine together with tetanus and diphtheria. Methods We did a questionnaire survey to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices toward pertussis in adult travelers. We consecutively enrolled all travelers who presented at the Travellers' Health & Vaccination Centre in Singapore in 1 month. Results Of 218 consecutively enrolled travelers, 184 (84.4%) completed the questionnaire; of which 80% were Singaporeans. Seventy persons (38%) did not know or gave a wrong answer for the mode of transmission of pertussis, 147 (83%) had never heard of a pertussis vaccine for adults, and almost none had received an adult pertussis vaccine booster. Travelers from Western countries were seven times [95% confidence interval (CI): 2,27] more likely than Asians to have knowledge about pertussis; women were 4.27 times (95% CI: 1.59,11.53) more likely than men to be aware of the booster vaccine, after adjusting for nationality ( p= 0.004). Conclusions Knowledge about pertussis was poor among adult travelers. Although pertussis was viewed as a serious illness by the majority of participants, and 38% expressed the desire to be vaccinated, almost no one had received the pertussis vaccine booster. Awareness about pertussis, its risks, and prevention via vaccination need to be increased among adult travelers. Studies are needed to quantify the risk of pertussis in adult travelers. [source] Solar disinfection of poliovirus and Acanthamoeba polyphaga cysts in water , a laboratory study using simulated sunlightLETTERS IN APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2006W. Heaselgrave Abstract Aims:, To determine the efficacy of solar disinfection (SODIS) in disinfecting water contaminated with poliovirus and Acanthamoeba polyphaga cysts. Methods and Results:, Organisms were subjected to a simulated global solar irradiance of 850 Wm,2 in water temperatures between 25 and 55°C. SODIS at 25°C totally inactivated poliovirus after 6-h exposure (reduction of 4·4 log units). No SODIS-induced reduction in A. polyphaga cyst viability was observed for sample temperatures below 45°C. Total cyst inactivation was only observed after 6-h SODIS exposure at 50°C (3·6 log unit reduction) and after 4 h at 55°C (3·3 log unit reduction). Conclusions:, SODIS is an effective means of disinfecting water contaminated with poliovirus and A. polyphaga cysts, provided water temperatures of 50,55°C are attained in the latter case. Significance and Impact of the Study:, This research presents the first SODIS inactivation curve for poliovirus and provides further evidence that batch SODIS provides effective protection against waterborne protozoan cysts. [source] Antibodies to surface epitopes of the carbohydrate larval antigen CarLA are associated with passive protection in strongylid nematode challenge infectionsPARASITE IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 11-12 2008G. B. L. HARRISON SUMMARY Sheep were immunized by multiple truncated infections with the gastrointestinal nematodes Trichostrongylus colubriformis, Haemonchus contortus and Teladorsagia circumcincta. Three infections with T. colubriformis of 14 days plus five booster doses of L3 stimulated highly effective protection against challenge (99%). Three infections of 14 days plus three booster doses with H. contortus also resulted in significant protection against challenge infection (87%), but the same procedure was not effective for T. circumcincta. Antibodies derived from gastrointestinal mucus of these immunized sheep were tested for their ability to reduce worm burden following injection of antibody-coated exsheathed larvae into the abomasum (H. contortus and T. circumcincta) or duodenum (T. colubriformis) of nematode-naïve sheep in a passive immunity test. The IgG fraction from the mucus of immunized sheep reduced worm burdens by 62%, 76% and 91% in three tests with T. colubriformis but was not effective for either of the abomasal dwelling nematodes H. contortus and T. circumcincta. Antibodies in immune mucus predominantly recognized two larval surface antigens on immunoblots of L3 extract, a high MW surface glycoprotein and the carbohydrate larval antigen (CarLA). Antibodies raised against purified T. colubriformis glycoprotein Tc-120 and CarLA were tested in the passive immunity model and it was found that only the antibody against CarLA resulted in a significant reduction of infection (87%). The protective anti-CarLA antibodies strongly recognized the surface of living T. colubriformis L3. Antibodies from abomasal mucus of sheep immunized by H. contortus and T. circumcincta infections reacted weakly with CarLA and the larval surface and did not reduce worm counts in a passive immunity test. The results provide further evidence that the larval surface carbohydrate antigen CarLA has potential as a mucosal immunogen for a strongylid nematode vaccine. [source] Noise exposures aboard catcher/processor fishing vesselsAMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 8 2006Richard L. Neitzel MS Abstract Background Commercial fishing workers have extended work shifts and potential for 24 hr exposures to high noise. However, exposures in this industry have not been adequately characterized. Methods Noise exposures aboard two catcher/processors (C/P) were assessed using dosimetry, sound-level mapping, and self-reported activities and hearing protection device (HPD) use. These data were combined to estimate work shift, non-work, and 24 hr overall exposure levels using several metrics. The length of time during which HPDs were worn was also used to calculate the effective protection received by crew members. Results Nearly all workers had work shift and 24 hr noise levels that exceeded the relevant limits. After HPD use was accounted for, half of the 24 hr exposures remained above relevant limits. Non-work-shift noise contributed nothing to 24 hr exposure levels. HPDs reduced the average exposure by about 10 dBA, but not all workers wore them consistently. Conclusions The primary risk of hearing loss aboard the monitored vessels comes from work shift noise. Smaller vessels or vessels with different layouts may present more risk of hearing damage from non-work periods. Additional efforts are needed to increase use of HPDs or implement noise controls. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] IMPORT LIBERALIZATION AND PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH IN INDIAN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES IN THE 1990sTHE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, Issue 4 2003Bishwanath GOLDAR Total factor productivity growth in Indian manufacturing decelerated in the 1990s, a decade of major economic reforms in India. Econometric analysis presented in the paper indicates that the lowering of effective protection to industries favorably affected productivity growth. The results suggest that gestation lags in investment projects and slower agricultural growth in the 1990s had an adverse effect on productivity growth. The analysis reveals that underutilization of industrial capacity was an important cause of the productivity slowdown. With corrections for capacity utilization, the estimated productivity growth in the 1990s is found to be about the same as in the 1980s. [source] Intellectual Property Right Abuses in the Patent Licensing of Technology Standards from Developed Countries to Developing Countries: A Study of Some Typical Cases from ChinaTHE JOURNAL OF WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, Issue 3-4 2007Ying Zhan While Western countries continually criticize developing countries, especially China, for a lack of effective protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs), the IPR abuses of developed countries in developing countries are also worth paying attention to. This article takes several representative cases that have occurred in recent years in China and discusses the IPR abuses in the licensing of technology standards from developed countries to developing countries. Under de facto standards, the IPR abuses of western enterprises are mainly conducted through blocking competitors by taking advantage of the status of controlling the standards. Under de jure standards, the most urgent antitrust concerns for developing countries are being charged an excessively high patent royalty and being refused independent licensing in practice by the western patent pools under the standards. In addition, this article also shows China's responses, such as improving its legal system to restrict IPR abuses and commonweal intellectual property litigation filed by IPR scholars. A brief analysis on categories of commonweal relative to IPR abuses is also presented. [source] Making agricultural landscapes more sustainable for freshwater biodiversity: a case study from southern EnglandAQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 4 2009Bella Davies Abstract 1.Agriculture is known to have a range of deleterious impacts on freshwater habitats and biota and many countries have introduced measures to attempt to mitigate these impacts through agri-environment initiatives. Despite the protection they provide, water bodies (any discrete body of surface fresh water) in farmland landscapes commonly remain impaired by agriculture. In some areas of the UK there have been calls to halt farming completely, indicating that the measures offered for the widespread protection of aquatic systems, particularly the use of buffer strips, may not be extensive enough to provide sufficient protection for freshwater biota. 2.This study investigated whether existing agri-environment measures for the widespread protection of aquatic habitats could be better deployed to provide a higher level of protection for the aquatic macrophytes and macroinvertebrates of a study area in southern England. 3.Reserve selection procedures were used to reallocate the area of land that could be remunerated under the Environmental Stewardship scheme as buffer strips bordering water bodies, so that a higher level of protection was provided for both the richness and rarity of aquatic species in the study area. 4.Almost 395 ha were available for reallocation in the reserve selection process, which was found to provide a satisfactory level of protection for up to 90% of the surveyed species. 5.The results showed that the agri-environment scheme in England has a great deal of potential to provide more effective protection for the aquatic biodiversity of agricultural landscapes if measures are targeted. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Insect repellents and sunscreen: implications for personal protection strategies against mosquito-borne diseaseAUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 5 2009Cameron E. Webb Abstract Objective: To determine the protection times provided by insect repellent and sunscreen in combined formulations against biting mosquitoes. To determine if concurrent use of repellent and sunscreen influenced protection times. Methods: Insect repellent containing comparable concentrations of N, N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (DEET) with and without sunscreen were tested on human skin to determine the mean protection time (MPT) against Aedes aegypti (L.) in the laboratory. Further trials were undertaken to determine the effect on MPT of sunscreen reapplication over repellent every two hours. Results: There was no significant difference in the MPT provided by 80% DEET with (MPT±SE=770±54.8 minutes) and without (MPT±SE=830±20.2 minutes) sunscreen or 7.14% DEET with (MPT±SE =240±15.5 minutes) and 6.98% DEET without (MPT±SE =230±18.4 minutes) sunscreen. Reapplication of sunscreen resulted in a significantly lower MPT of a 17.0% DEET formulation when sunscreen was reapplied concurrently (MPT±SE=330±25.2 minutes), compared with DEET alone (MPT±SE =400±12.7 minutes). Conclusions: When combined in a single formulation with sunscreen, the MPT provided by both high and low concentrations of DEET is not reduced. However, if sunscreen is reapplied over insect repellent, protection times can be reduced significantly. Implications: In areas of endemic mosquito-borne disease, the reapplication of a low concentration repellent and sunscreen formulation may provide the most effective protection from biting mosquitoes while minimising the risk of overexposure to DEET. [source] PRIVACY, THE INDIVIDUAL AND GENETIC INFORMATION: A BUDDHIST PERSPECTIVEBIOETHICS, Issue 7 2009SORAJ HONGLADAROM ABSTRACT Bioinformatics is a new field of study whose ethical implications involve a combination of bioethics, computer ethics and information ethics. This paper is an attempt to view some of these implications from the perspective of Buddhism. Privacy is a central concern in both computer/information ethics and bioethics, and with information technology being increasingly utilized to process biological and genetic data, the issue has become even more pronounced. Traditionally, privacy presupposes the individual self but as Buddhism does away with the ultimate conception of an individual self, it has to find a way to analyse and justify privacy that does not presuppose such a self. It does this through a pragmatic conception that does not depend on a positing of the substantial self, which is then found to be unnecessary for an effective protection of privacy. As it may be possible one day to link genetic data to individuals, the Buddhist conception perhaps offers a more flexible approach, as what is considered to be integral to an individual person is not fixed in objectivity but depends on convention. [source] Genomics of berry fruits antioxidant componentsBIOFACTORS, Issue 4 2005E. D'Amico Abstract Reactive oxygen and nitrogen metabolites, which are side products of cell metabolism, can produce a lot of damage in biological macromolecules and tissues, producing a number of chronic illnesses. On the other hand, antioxidant metabolites usually accumulated in fruits and vegetables can provide an effective protection by neutralizing these reactive molecules. Among comestible vegetables, berry fruits are considered one of the richest sources of antioxidant metabolites; hence, they represent a good model for molecular and biochemical investigations about the biosynthesis and the functional role of antioxidants in plants. This review illustrates how recent developments in the fields of genomics and bioinformatics can provide powerful tools to better understand the molecular mechanisms that trigger biosynthesis and accumulation of antioxidant metabolites in berries. [source] Breast-feeding and a subsequent diagnosis of measlesACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 4 2009SA Silfverdal Abstract Background: Breast-feeding protects against many infectious diseases and may also influence immunization outcomes. Aim: This study investigated if breast-feeding protects against clinical measles and if it modified the effect of immunization. Methods: We used logistic regression with data for 10 207 individuals from the 1970 British Cohort study (BCS70). Breast-feeding data were collected at five years of age, and information on clinical measles infection, as well as socio-economic measures was collected at the age of ten years. Breast feeding was categorized as: breast-fed <1 month (n = 1611), breast-fed for 1,3 months (n = 1016), breast-fed for more than three months (n = 1108), breast-feeding of uncertain duration (n = 21) and never breast-fed (n = 6451). Results: Breast-feeding for more than three months was negatively associated with a diagnosis of clinical measles infection after adjustment for crowding, social class, measles vaccination, parity and sex with an odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of 0.69 (0.60,0.81) compared with those who never breast-fed. Measles vaccination was highly associated with low risk for measles with: 0.14 (0.13,0.16). Age at acute measles infection was not associated with breastfeeding. Breast-feeding did not notably alter measles immunization efficacy. Conclusion: Immunization against measles provides effective protection against the disease. A more modest reduction in the risk of a measles diagnosis is associated with breast-feeding. The associations with a diagnosis of measles for breast-feeding and measles immunization are independent of each other. [source] hytic Acid Conversion Coatings of MagnesiumCHINESE JOURNAL OF CHEMISTRY, Issue 4 2010Jianrui Liu Abstract A chrome-free conversion coating treatment for magnesium by phytic acid solution was developed. The immersion experiments were used for evaluating the effects of the processing parameters (such as conversion temperature and time, concentration and pH value of phytic acid solution) on the corrosion resistance of the phytic acid conversion coating. The morphologies and compositions of the coatings were determined by SEM and EDS respectively. The experimental results indicated that the corrosion resistance of the conversion coating formed in the solution containing 0.5% phytic acid at 25°C and pH=4 for 30 min was higher than that of natural oxide, and the conversion coating formed on the surface of magnesium was of multilayer mainly consisting of Mg, C, O and P. The thicknesses of the conversion coatings were approximately 1.0,15 µm and the conversion coatings presented obvious network-like cracks. The electrochemical potentiodynamic polarization experiment indicated that the free corrosion potential of the magnesium with phytic acid conversion coating was increased, and its corrosion current and corrosion rate declined in 3.5% NaCl solution. Phytic acid conversion coating could improve the electrochemical property of magnesium and provide effective protection, which can improve the corrosion resistance of magnesium. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||