Seasons and meteorological factors in suicidal behaviour

This study is part of a joint venture project carried out by the Centre for Suicidological Research, Odense, and the Danish Meteorological Institute, Copenhagen. The overall purpose of that project is to examine the seasonality of suicidal behaviour and any covariations between suicidal behaviour and the weather in the Scandinavian countries. The project will comprise studies involving parameters such as suicide and attempted suicide, temporal variations including weekdays, holidays, lunar phases, etc., and a variety of meteorological factors. In this article, which presents results from a pilot study based on Danish data (county of Funen), focus is on temporal variations (month, week) and covariations between suicide and meteorological factors and the methodological problems involved. The material comprises all deaths registered as suicides in Funen (appr. 10% of Denmark) in the period 1970–1993, in all 2610 (age 15+). The meteorological data from the same period consists of daily information on precipitation, temperatures, wind velocities, hours of sunlight, etc. The results confirm findings of several previous studies, especially concerning the spring peak and a decreasing tendency throughout the week with significantly fewer suicides on weekends. Our findings indicate that climatological factors, e.g., changing weather, also to some extent might have an impact on suicidal behaviour. Weather may not be a major factor, but it needs, however, to be taken seriously and into account, when considering the etiology of suicide.     

武汉东湖风景区交通噪声污染及控制对策

介绍了东湖风景区概况,系统监测了东湖风景区的交通噪声污染状况,借鉴了比例预测法对其未来5 a的交通噪声发展趋势进行了预测,并提出了相应控制对策.     

气象因素与脑血管病关系的研究

目的 探讨脑血管病发病与气象因素间的关系。方法 收集青岛市1998～2002年6186例脑血管病患者[脑出血（CH）1179例、脑梗死（C1）4821例、蛛网膜下腔出血（SAH）186例]的发病时间及同期的月平均气温、气压、相对湿度、风速等气象资料。圆分布分析脑血管病发病的季节规律；直线相关、多元逐步回归分析气象因素与脑血管病发病之间的关系。结果 CH冬季高发，平均角在1月份（P〈0．05）；CI及SAH均于秋季高发，平均角在10门份（均P〈0．05）。CH多发于低气温、高气压的气象条件（r=-0．370、0．349，均P〈0．05），CI多发于高温、高气压、低湿度的气象条件（r=0．308、0．264、-0．370，均P〈0．05）。影响月发病人数的气象因素，CH是月平均气压、相对湿度和风速，CI是月平均气压和气温。结论 气象因素是脑血管病发病的影响因素，在脑血管病的预防工作中应充分考虑其发病的季节特点。气象因素为自变量的多元逐步回归方程不宜用来进行预测发病人数。     

福建省2002年传染病疫情态势分析

[目的]了解福建省甲、乙类传染病疫情态势。[方法]利用EDA、比数图表、CMR和对应分析等技术，分析我省报告疫情和其他监测资料。[结果]我省2002年总发病率为194．14／l0万，估计实际发病率为388．14／l0万至596．03／l0万。报告发病率与前5年平均水平比较上升12．5％。疫情特点：因子负荷图显示，城市以血源及性传播传染病为中心，农村以肠道传染病为主，并有趋向于血源及性传播传染病；年龄组发病率有25～34岁与65～79岁两个高峰，分别以肝炎、肺结核为主；乙肝呈U型曲线上升，服从二次曲线方程发展趋势(y=0．6363x^2-5．297x 36．904，R^2=0．9566)；l0岁以内儿童发病率与90年代初相比下降明显；计免4病发病率年递减趋势服从指数曲线方程(y=140．82e^0.1817x，R^2=0．9069)，但时有暴发点。EDA技术展示报告总发病率在第l0％位以下的地区主要分布在沿海。[结论]目前福建省传染病疫情依然严峻，必须针对疫情特点确定防治策略，一些地区疫情报告工作有待加强。     

Frequency Dependent Effects of d-Sotalol and Amiodarone on the Action Potential Duration of the Human Right Ventricle

Frequency dependent effects of d-Sotalol (2.0 mg/kg IV, n = 6) and amiodarone (400 mg/day for 3 months, n = 9) were studied on the action potential duration (APD) in 14 patients who underwent electrophysiological testing. Monophasic action potentials were recorded from the right ventricle at five different steady-state paced cycle lengths (700 msec, 600 msec, 500 msec, 400 msec, and 350 msec), and during ventricular extra stimuli with coupling intervals between 300 msec and 1000 msec, before and after d-sotalol and amiodarone, respectively. D-sotalol caused a prolongation of the APD at slow steady-state stimulation rates (11 ± 5% at cycle length of 700 msec), which became attenuated at faster cycle lengths (5 ± 3% at cycle length of 350 msec). Prolongation of APD after amiodarone was independent of pacing rate, e.g., 12 ± 9% at cycle length of 700 msec, and 11 ± 6% at cycle length of 350 msec. Similar frequency dependent prolongation of the APD was observed during abrupt changes of cycle lengths after d-sotalol, whereas amiodarone caused uniform prolongation of the APD at different extrasfimulus intervals. Thus, d-sotalol, a nonselective potassium channel blacker, has reverse use-dependent effects on the human ventricular APD, while amiodarone with greater potassium channel selectivity, has equal ability to prolong the ventricular APD at fast and slow heart rates.     

Soluble HLA class I in epithelial lining fluid of lung transplants: Associations with graft outcome

We hypothesized that the small amounts of donor HLA-A and HLA-B proteins detected in the serum during organ allograft rejection are indicative of higher local releases within the graft itself. We determined the concentrations of total HLA class I (HLA-I) and, in selected cases, specific donor and host HLA-A and HLA-B proteins, in the epithelial lining fluid (ELF) sampled by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) of lung transplant recipients (n = 37) and of normal controls (n = 25). We found that 1) HLA-I proteins were enriched in the lung ELF relative to other proteins; 2) the concentration of HLA-I in the ELF of well-functioning transplants was similar to that in normal lungs; 3) HLA-I proteins and total proteins were elevated in the ELF of patients who developed chronic rejection or refractory acute rejection; 4) the concentration of HLA-I was correlated with the percentage of neutrophils but not with the percentage of lymphocytes in the ELF of transplanted lungs; and 5) only the percentage of lymphocytes was elevated in the ELF of transplant patients with active CMV infections. Total HLA-I from the ELF was found to contain a mixture of both donor- and recipient-type HLA-A and HLA-B proteins and the donor-type HLA-A2 was found to be highly enriched in the ELF relative to serum.     

A retro-inverso analog mimicks the cognate peptide epitope of a CD4+ T cell clone

Synthetic analogs of peptide epitopes may activate specific T helper cells, antagonize their antigen receptors, or block recognition by competing for major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II binding sites. Rationally designed peptides may therefore prove useful as vaccines and for treatment of autoimmune diseases and allergies mediated by CD4⁺ T cells. However, their susceptibility to proteolytic degradation limits the applicability of conventional peptides in vivo. By contrast, retro-inverso analogs, in which a native sequence is substituted with D -amino acids linked with a reversed backbone, resist proteolysis and still maintain the side chain topology of the corresponding natural peptide. We report here that an end group-modified retro-inverso analog of the IgG2a^b heavy chain allopeptide determinant γ2a^b 435–447 was recognized by an I-A^d-restricted, γ2a^b 435–447-reactive T cell clone. The pseudopeptide elicited near-maximal interleukin-2 responses, although 300-fold higher concentrations were needed than the native determinant. The weaker antigenicity of the retro-inverso analog could be fully accounted for by an impaired I-A^d binding capacity, which might reflect reduced ability of the distorted main chain to form hydrogen bonds with I-A^d. Glycine substitution at the residue corresponding to the first primary anchor (P1) of the native peptide abrogated I-A^d binding and antigenicity of the retro-inverso analog. Thus, the pseudopeptide resembled the native determinant with respect to orientation in the class II binding site, configuration of the epitopic side chains, and the constraints that governed the interactions between a major anchoring side chain and I-A^d. In conclusion, proteolytically resistant compounds with predefined capacity to interact with MHC class II allelic products and T cell antigen receptors may be designed by retro-inverso modification of native determinants.     

The microglia/macrophage response in the neonatal rat facial nucleus following axotomy

Microglia represent a population of brain macrophage precursor cells which are intrinsic to the CNS parenchyma. Transection of the facial nerve in the newborn rat causes death of the affected motor neurons which is accompanied by massive activation of local microglia. Many of these cells develop into macrophages as can be shown by immunocytochemistry for OX-42 and ED1. Using the new polyclonal microglial marker ionized calcium binding adapter molecule 1, iba1, in combination with immunocytochemical double-labeling for the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), or [³H]thymidine autoradiography, and confocal microscopy, qualitative as well as quantitative differences can be demonstrated between the newborn and the adult axotomized rat facial nucleus. While microglial cells are the only cell population which responds to axotomy by cell division in the adult facial nucleus, GFAP positive reactive astrocytes can be shown to undergo mitosis following axotomy in the newborn rat. Furthermore, ED1 immunoreactivity, early expression of MHC class II molecules and morphological transformation of microglia into macrophages can only be observed under conditions of neuronal degeneration, i.e., in the neonatal rat facial nucleus. Thus, the combination of cellular markers described here should be useful for studies employing the neonatal rat facial nucleus as an in vivo assay system to test the efficacy of neurotrophic factors.