Laser-induced direct space-selective precipitation of CdS nanoparticles embedded in a transparent silica xerogel.

A simple method, suitable for direct space-selective precipitation of semiconducting nanoparticles inside a transparent silica xerogel, is presented. The porous silica monoliths, prepared by the sol-gel method, are first loaded with specific CdS precursors. Then, the samples can be irradiated using either a femtosecond laser to generate the nanoparticles inside the deep volume of the silica matrix or a continuous visible laser to yield a nanocrystal growth under the surface. The resulting CdS nanoparticles are characterized using absorption and Raman spectroscopies, x-ray diffraction analysis and transmission electron microscopy.

Polyarthritis in HTLV-1-infected patients. A review of 17 cases.

A retrospective study was conducted in Martinique to identify patients with polyarthritis and positive serologic tests for the human T-cell lymphotropic virus Type I (HTLV-1). Patients with metabolic or bacterial causes of polyarthritis were excluded. We found 17 cases of HTLV-1-positive polyarthritis (6.7% of the total of polyarthritis patients followed in our department); there were 14 females and three males, and all the patients were West-Indian blacks. Mean age at diagnosis was 50 years. Five patients also had tropical spastic paraparesis. The polyarthritis was the inaugural manifestation of T-cell leukemia in one patient. Four patients had received blood transfusions. Fever, myalgia, and/or skin lesions were present at onset of the polyarthritis in seven cases. All 17 patients had peripheral, bilateral, symmetric polyarthritis; the most commonly involved sites were the hands (17/17) and knees (14/17). Three patients had rheumatoid factor and five had antinuclear antibody. Ten patients met at least four American Rheumatism Association criteria for rheumatoid arthritis; they accounted for 6.7% (10/150) of all polyarthritis patients managed in the same hospital department during the same period. We compared these ten patients with 20 HTLV-1-negative rheumatoid arthritis patients matched on gender, ethnic origin, and disease duration. There were no significant differences between the two groups for any of the parameters studied.

[Uveo-papillitis associated with paraparesis caused by HTLV-1 virus]. / Uvéo-papillite associée à une paraparésie due au virus HTLV I.

The human T-lymphotropic retrovirus type I (HTLV-1), isolated in 1980, has been shown to be responsible for two distinct systemic diseases: adult T-cell leukemia and HTLV associated myelopathy (HAM). Recently, an ever increasing number of publications have described other disorders associated with HAM. We report a case of uveitis-optic disc neuritis which, to our knowledge, had not been previously described. The fact that both uvea and optic disc were inflamed would suggest that immune-mediated reactions are involved in the pathogenesis of HAM.

Effect of oxipurinol and allopurinol riboside on whewellite crystallization: in vitro and in vivo observations.

Solubility measurements, seeded crystal growth kinetics, solution depletion adsorption studies, nucleation observations, zeta potential measurements, and measurements of in vivo intrarenal crystallization all failed to show that either oxipurinol or allopurinol riboside interacts with calcium, oxalate, or whewellite (CaC2O4.H2O) at concentrations expected in therapeutic situations. We conclude that at therapeutically expected concentrations, oxipurinol and allopurinol riboside do not affect crystallization of calcium oxalate.

Adsorption of heparin on sodium acid urate.

The adsorption of heparin on sodium acid urate powder suspended in aqueous solution was found to be dependent upon the concentration of Ca2+ and Mg2+. It was concluded that heparin adsoprtion on sodium acid urate powder can occur in urine. Speculations are made about the relevance of these observations to calcium oxalate urolithiasis.

Mesothelioma and asbestos in the Province of Quebec, 1969-1972.

All records of patients who died of mesothelioma in the Province of Quebec during the period 1969-1972 were collected and reviewed. Asbestos exposure in this group was compared with that in two control groups, one of persons dying of accidental causes and the other of those dying of cardiovascular disease. The mortality rate for mesothelioma was estimated at between 2.3 and 2.8 per million per year. Men were affected twice as frequently as women, this difference being related exclusively to pleural mesothelioma. The incidence in urban regions was much higher than in rural areas, and areas involved in mining showed an incidence in the expected range. Thirty-four percent of the patients with mesothelioma and only 2% of controls had histories of direct exposure to asbestos. This exposure was related to asbestos processing and not its production. No woman gave a history of occupational exposure to asbestos. It appeared that chrysotile may be less related to the production of mesothelioma than other types of asbestos fibers.