Scientific investigation of the Imperial Gates belonging to the wooden church from Sacel, Turda County, Romania.

Cultural heritage objects have a major contribution to the historical patrimony of every country. In Romania, wooden churches are famous, they are mostly dated in between the XVth and XXth century, but unfortunately many of them have been destroyed, by natural or anthropic means. Therefore, the necessity of conservation and restoration has appeared, to the ones that still exist, as legacy for the future generations. In the present article, an Imperial Gate from a wooden church in Cluj County, Romania, has been investigated, using scientific techniques (FTIR and XRF). A 3D reconstruction has been performed, using similar colors with the original artwork, as resulted from the scientific investigation of the painting materials. A limited number of constituent materials have been used for this artwork, and the wood species used was lime, due to the ease of carving.

Micro-Raman spectroscopic investigation of external wall paintings from St. Dumitru's Church, Suceava, Romania.

The external sixteenth century wall paintings of St. Dumitru's Church in Suceava (Romania) are suffering visually from deterioration. Fragments of these paintings spallated from the external wall have been studied by micro-Raman microscopy in order to elucidate possible causes of this process. Calcite and alpha-quartz are the components of the substratum indicating that the artists used the Roman fresco technique comprising a limewash putty. No organic binders have been detected in the substrate or pigment application. Amorphous carbon and goethite, alpha-FeOOH, have been identified in areas containing residues of grey and yellow pigments, respectively. Small amounts of gypsum have been detected in the grey areas which we attribute to special attention being given to surface preparation and pigment application in these areas. An abundance of sodium nitrate, nitratine, microcrystals have been observed on the surfaces of many fragments which suggests that a biodeterioration process originating from guano deposits could have been operating in these frescoes.

1H-NMR study of the inclusion processes for alpha- and gamma-cyclodextrin with fenbufen.

1H-NMR spectra of aqueous solutions of fenbufen and two cyclodextrins (alpha- or gamma-cyclodextrin, respectively) mixtures confirm the formation of an inclusion complex if gamma-cyclodextrin is used, whereas in the case of alpha-cyclodextrin no inclusion complex was obtained. The stoichiometry of the fenbufen/gamma-cyclodextrin complex is of the [2:1] type. The geometry of this supramolecular architecture was established through MM+ molecular mechanics calculations.

Inclusion complex of fenbufen with beta-cyclodextrin.

An inclusion complex of fenbufen with beta-cyclodextrin (beta-CD) in aqueous solution was characterized by (1)H-NMR spectroscopy. The [1:1] stoichiometry was determined and a stability constant of several 1000s (M(-1)) was calculated. The geometry of the inclusion complex was established based on MM(+) molecular mechanics calculations.

Pulmonary structural maturation and pulmonary artery remodeling after reversible fetal ovine tracheal occlusion in diaphragmatic hernia.

PURPOSE: Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is associated with thickened pulmonary arteries (PA) contributing to pulmonary hypertension. In the current study, the effects of antenatal glucocorticoids and reversible tracheal occlusion (TO) on PA structure were assessed in a hypoplastic lung model. METHODS: A left-sided CDH was created in fetal lambs at 80 days gestation, TO at 108 days, and release of the occlusion (TR) at 129 days. All were given 1 dose of maternal glucocorticoids at 135 days. At 136 days (term, 145 days), the fetus was delivered by cesarian section. CDH (n = 7), CDH + TO (n = 6), CDH + TO + TR (n = 6), and unoperated twin controls (n = 16) were compared. Outcome measurements were (1) lung growth, represented by lung weight to body weight ratio (LW/BW), (2) lung structural maturation, which is inversely proportional to mean terminal bronchiole density (MTBD), (3) PA medial and adventitial areas (square micrometers), (4) lung capillary load, which is the ratio of vessel surface area (SA) to tissue SA ratio. RESULTS: CDH lungs were hypoplastic with a low LW/BW and high MTBD. The small PAs (<75 microm) of CDH had an increased medial area, indicating increased muscle mass and an increased adventitial area. CDH + TO +/- TR increased LW/BW and achieved normal structural lung maturity with a low MTBD. Only CDH + TO thinned the PA medial area closer to control values. The adventitial area remained thick in CDH +/- TO +/- TR when compared with controls. All 4 groups had similar capillary load. CONCLUSIONS: TO may be especially important for PA remodeling in the latter part of gestation, because TR 1 week before delivery prevents thinning of the small PAs in CDH. The shaping achieved by TO in terms of lung growth, structural maturity, and pulmonary artery medial area thinning may prove beneficial in lessening the severity of the associated pulmonary hypertension in CDH.

The multiple facets of pulmonary sequestration.

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to identify the proportion of sequestrations that were atypical or associated with other entities, such as congenital cystic adenomatoid malformations, communicating bronchopulmonary foregut malformations, bronchogenic cyst, and scimitar syndrome. METHODS: All charts of patients with pulmonary sequestration admitted at 2 children's hospitals from 1982 to July 1999 were reviewed retrospectively. The authors included all anomalies with a systemic arterial supply or without bronchial connection. RESULTS: Only 22 of the 39 patients (56%) had a classic isolated extralobar or intralobar sequestration, whereas the others presented with a spectrum of anomalies. Of the 13 cases diagnosed prenatally, 85% were asymptomatic at birth. In contrast, 26 cases diagnosed postnatally were all symptomatic, with those patients less than 2 weeks old presenting with various degrees of respiratory distress, and those older than 2 weeks old presenting with respiratory infections. The correct diagnosis was made preoperatively in 59% of cases. Only 4 patients did not undergo resection of their lesion, of which, 1 underwent interventional radiology with embolization of the anomalous arterial supply. Follow-up issues of importance included pneumonia, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux, and pectus excavatum. CONCLUSIONS: Sequestrations represent a spectrum of anomalies that overlap with other lung lesions. To facilitate management, they should be described according to their (1) connection to the tracheobronchial tree, (2) visceral pleura, (3) arterial supply, (4) venous drainage, (5) foregut communication, (6) histology, (7) mixed/multiple lesions, and (8) whether there are associated anomalies. Surgeons should be aware that approximately 50% of sequestrations could be atypical or associated with other anomalies. This should be kept in mind when weighing the benefits of resection versus conservative management of pulmonary sequestrations.

Surfactant levels after reversible tracheal occlusion and prenatal steroids in experimental diaphragmatic hernia.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: In normal lungs, fetal tracheal occlusion (TO) induces lung growth but decreases the number of type II cells; this is remedied if TO is released (TR) before delivery. In the current study, the effects of TO with or without TR on pulmonary structure and surfactant were assessed in the ovine model in which lung hypoplasia was induced by creation of a diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). METHODS: A left-sided CDH was created in fetal lambs at 80 days gestation; TO was done at 108 days; and TR at 129 days. All ewes were given 1 dose of glucocorticoids at 135 days. At 136 days, the fetus was delivered. Lung weight to body weight ratio, mean terminal bronchiole density, type II cell density, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) phosphatidylcholine (PC), BAL surfactant protein A (SP-A) and B (SP-B), and lung tissue SP-A and SP-B were assessed in CDH, CDH with TO, CDH with TO and TR, and controls. RESULTS: CDH lungs were hypoplastic and structurally immature, but had increased type II cell density. TO with or without TR caused lung growth with normalization of lung parenchymal architecture and type II cell density. Although the BAL SP-A and BAL SP-B were similar in all 4 groups, the BAL PC was low in CDH with or without TO or TR. Also, lung tissue SP-B levels were low in CDH with or without TO or TR. However, lung tissue SP-A levels were normal in CDH, but low in CDH with TO with or without TR. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the finding that lung morphology was improved in CDH with TO with or without TR animals, surfactant content and composition remained abnormal. Although surfactant secreted early by the fetus into alveolar spaces contained normal levels of BAL SP-A and BAL SP-B, the low levels of BAL PC and low lung tissue stores of SP-B indicate that these experimental lambs may experience respiratory insufficiency soon after birth. This implies that prophylactic surfactant at birth might be beneficial for CDH.

Regression of antenatally diagnosed localized Caroli's disease.

The authors report on an infant who had a multiloculated cystic lesion located in segment IV of the liver, consistent with Caroli's disease diagnosed, by routine prenatal ultrasound at 25 weeks' gestation, and confirmed by hepatobiliary HIDA scan and computed tomography soon after birth. Because there was no sign of biliary obstruction, the patient was observed initially, with gradual regression of the cysts noted by serial sonograms. Caroli's disease in older children and adults often is associated with recurrent cholangitis and cirrhosis, mandating resection when the disease is unilobar. However, the natural history of Caroli's disease diagnosed in utero is unclear, and a period of observation appears warranted in the asymptomatic patient.

Vibrational analysis and spectra of orotic acid.

The IR and Raman spectra of polycrystalline anhydrous orotic acid and its N1, N3, and O12 trideuterated isotopomer are recorded in the 4000-40 cm(-1) spectral interval as part of a series of vibrational analyses of nucleosides, nucleotides, and related compounds carried out in our laboratory. The frequencies of the fundamental transitions and the potential energy distributions of the 39 normal modes of orotic acid and its isotopomer are calculated by an ab initio density functional theory Becke3P86/6-311G** treatment. Assignments of the vibrational modes are proposed that consider the results of these calculations and the observed spectra. The results of the ab initio treatment are related to crystallographic and spectral data, and they are compared with previous assignments for similar molecules.

FT-IR and X-ray spectroscopic investigations of Na-diclofenac-cyclodextrins interactions.

The association of DCF-Na (the salt of the 2-[(2,6-dichlorophenyl)amino]-phenyl-acetic acid) with beta-CD (cyclodextrin) in some therapeutic formulas can contribute to the optimisation of the physico-chemical and pharmaceutical properties of the parent drug. The understanding of the interaction between DCF with beta-CD represents the objective of this study. FT-IR spectroscopy is one of the methods which clarify the nature of these interactions in complexes of such type. Therefore the changes in FT-IR spectra of binary dispersed systems DCF/beta-CD in physical mixture and coprecipitate from methanol (molar ratios: 1/1, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, 7/4) were analysed. The analysis of the broadening of the X-ray powder diffraction line has been applied to investigate the average effective crystallite size, the mean square of the microstrain caused by distortions within beta-CD crystallite and the fault probability in the binary dispersed DCF/beta-CD coprecipitate system.