In the present work, we use SOHO/SUMER, SOHO/UVCS, SOHO/EIT, SOHO/LASCO, STEREO/EUVI, and Hinode/EIS coordinated observations of an active region (AR 10989) at the west limb taken on 2008 April 8 to ...study the cooling of coronal loops. The cooling plasma is identified using the intensities of SUMER spectral lines emitted at temperatures in the 4.15 <= log T <= 5.45 range. EIS and SUMER spectral observations are used to measure the physical properties of the loops. We found that before cooling took place these loops were filled with coronal hole-like plasma, with temperatures in the 5.6 <= log T <= 5.9 range. SUMER spectra also allowed us to determine the plasma temperature, density, emission measure, element abundances, and dynamic status during the cooling process. The ability of EUVI to observe the emitting region from a different direction allowed us to measure the volume of the emitting region and estimate its emission measure. Comparison with values measured from line intensities provided us with an estimate of the filling factor. UVCS observations of the coronal emission above the active region showed no streamer structure associated with AR 10989 at position angles between 242°and 253 EIT, LASCO, and EUVI-A narrowband images and UVCS spectral observations were used to discriminate between different scenarios and monitor the behavior of the active region in time. The present study provides the first detailed measurements of the physical properties of cooling loops, a very important benchmark for theoretical models of loop cooling and condensation.
Rat forebrain synaptosomes were extracted with Triton X‐100 at 4°C and the insoluble material, which is enriched in post‐synaptic densities (PSDs), was subjected to sedimentation on a continuous ...sucrose gradient. Two pools of Triton X‐100‐insoluble γ‐aminobutyric acid type‐A receptors (GABAARs) were identified: (i) a higher‐density pool (ρ = 1.10–1.15 mg/mL) of GABAARs that contains the γ2 subunit (plus α and β subunits) and that is associated to gephyrin and the GABAergic post‐synaptic complex and (ii) a lower‐density pool (ρ = 1.06–1.09 mg/mL) of GABAARs associated to detergent‐resistant membranes (DRMs) that contain α and β subunits but not the γ2 subunit. Some of these GABAARs contain the δ subunit. Two pools of GABAARs insoluble in Triton X‐100 at 4°C were also identified in cultured hippocampal neurons: (i) a GABAAR pool that forms clusters that co‐localize with gephyrin and remains Triton X‐100‐insoluble after cholesterol depletion and (ii) a GABAAR pool that is diffusely distributed at the neuronal surface that can be induced to form GABAAR clusters by capping with an anti‐α1 GABAAR subunit antibody and that becomes solubilized in Triton X‐100 at 4°C after cholesterol depletion. Thus, there is a pool of GABAARs associated to lipid rafts that is non‐synaptic and that has a subunit composition different from that of the synaptic GABAARs. Some of the lipid raft‐associated GABAARs might be involved in tonic inhibition.
The role of rs1127354/rs7270101 alleles at the inosine triphosphatase (ITPA) gene on ribavirin-induced anemia was assessed in 74 human immunodeficiency virus/hepatitis C virus-coinfected patients. ...Anemia developed in 80% of patients with normal compared to 33% of those with reduced ITPA activity. In contrast, ITPA variants did not influence sustained virological response.
The role of rs1127354/rs7270101 alleles at the inosine triphosphatase (ITPA) gene on ribavirin-induced anemia was assessed in 74 patients with hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus coinfection. Anemia developed in 80% of patients with normal ITPA activity compared with 33% of those with reduced ITPA activity. In contrast, ITPA variants did not influence sustained virological response.
Torque teno virus (TTV) and torque teno mini virus (TTMV) have been potentially related to liver diseases. The aim of the study was to quantify TTV and TTMV in human immunodeficiency virus ...(HIV)/hepatitis C virus (HCV)-coinfected patients to study the relationship between the TTV and TTMV viral loads and the severity of liver disease. We carried out a cross-sectional study in 245 patients coinfected with HIV and HCV (HIV/HCV-group), 114 patients monoinfected with HIV (HIV-group), and 100 healthy blood donors (Control-group). Plasma samples were tested for TTV and TTMV by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The prevalences of TTV and TTMV infections in the HIV/HCV-group and the HIV-group were significantly higher than the Control-group (
p
< 0.05). Furthermore, TTV and TTMV coinfections were found in 92.2 % (226/245) in the HIV/HCV-group, 84.2 % (96/114) in the HIV-group, and 63 % (63/100 %) in the Control-group (
p
≤ 0.05). HIV/HCV-coinfected patients with HIV viral load ≥50 copies/mL and patients with severe activity grade had the highest viral loads of TTV and TTMV (
p
≤ 0.05). HIV/HCV-coinfected patients with high TTV load (>2.78 log copies/μL) had increased odds of having advanced fibrosis or severe necroinflammatory activity grade in the liver biopsy. Moreover, HIV/HCV-coinfected patients with high TTMV load (>1.88 log copies/μL) had decreased odds of having no/minimal fibrosis and no/mild activity grade, and increased odds of having a high fibrosis progression rate. In conclusion, TTV and TTMV might play a role in the development of liver disease in immunodeficiency patients, such as the patients coinfected with HIV and HCV.
The hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) is the gold standard for assessing portal pressure and correlates with the occurrence of portal hypertension (PH)–related complications. Transient ...elastography (TE) is a new, highly accurate noninvasive technique, which enables us to evaluate hepatic fibrosis to detect advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis. We performed a hepatic haemodynamic study and TE in 38 HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients. The association between HVPG and liver stiffness was assessed by linear regression. The diagnostic value of TE was assessed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. We considered clinically significant PH as an HVPG ≥10 mmHg and severe PH as an HVPG ≥12 mmHg. A total of 38 HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients were included. Twenty‐eight patients (73.7%) had clinically significant PH (HVPG ≥10 mmHg), and 23 (60.5%) of these had severe PH (HVPG ≥12 mmHg). We found a statistically significant association between liver stiffness (kPa) and HVPG (r2 = 0.46, P < 0.001, straight line equation HVPG=7.4 + 0.204*TE). The areas under the ROC curves were 0.80 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.64–0.97 and 0.80 (95% CI, 0.66–0.94) for the prediction of HVPG ≥10 and ≥12 mmHg, respectively. Our data suggest that TE can predict the presence of clinically significant and severe PH in HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients.
Summary
The aim of the study was to evaluate whether bacterial translocation (BT) predicts the clinical outcome in HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients with compensated cirrhosis. A cohort of 282 ...HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients with cirrhosis and no previous liver decompensation (LD) was recruited. Serum levels of the DNA sequences encoding the well‐conserved 16S rRNA subunit (16S rDNA), the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and soluble CD14 (sCD14) at diagnosis of cirrhosis were measured. Primary endpoint was the emergence of the first LD and/or death of any cause. Secondary endpoints were LD, liver‐related death (LRD) and death of any cause. After a median (Q1‐Q3) follow‐up of 51 (27‐72) months, 67 patients (24%; 95% CI: 19‐29) developed their first LD or died during follow‐up. Baseline levels of 16S rDNA, LPS and sCD14 were not associated with the probability of developing the primary endpoint of the study. The mean (SD) survival time free of LD and/or death according to levels of 16S rDNA (<83, 83‐196, 197‐355, >355 copies/μL) was 78 (5), 72 (5), 81 (4) and 82 (4) months, respectively (P = .5). The corresponding figures for LPS (<0.1, 0.1‐0.6, 0.6‐1.5, > 1.5 IU/mL) were 76 (5), 71 (5), 77 (5) and 81 (4) months, respectively (P = .4). Baseline levels of BT serum markers were not associated with any of the secondary endpoints analysed in the study. Thus, BT does not seem to be a relevant predictor of clinical outcome in HIV/HCV‐coinfected patients with compensated cirrhosis.
Restless Travellers Pérez, Antonio José Miralles; Perez, Antonio Jose Miralles; Parez, Antonio Josa Miralles
2011, 2011-08-08
eBook
The first part of this book deals with Britains imperial age, its militants and its critics. The selection of works generates a large field of debate explored using traditional or innovative ...approaches. The 19th century is presented as a time for writers (J. E. Aylmer, E. Marryat Norris, G. A. Henty, Conan Doyle) who tell stories of Europeans venturing forth into uncivilised regions of the world where they meet other races. But writers of a different outlook are also considered. Before the.
In this Letter, we investigate the application of the intensity ratio from pairs of narrow-band images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on the Solar Dynamics Observatory, the Extreme ...Ultraviolet (EUV) Imager (EUVI) on board the Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation, and the EUV Imaging Telescope (EIT) on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, to density diagnostics of optically thin plasmas. By inspecting the filtered spectra allowed by each instrument's effective area, we find that ratios between AIA images in the 171 A and 193 A channels can be used to determine the plasma electron density at transition region temperatures. This diagnostic potential is due to a pair of O v transitions which dominate the effective spectra of these two channels at temperatures around approx =2.5-3.0 x 10 super(5) K. The temperature and electron density ranges where the 171/193 ratio is density sensitive are relevant for the cores of accelerating coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in the inner solar corona. We discuss how AIA series of images can be used for simultaneous temperature and density diagnostics of CME cores.
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