[Analysis of the efficiency of tick-borne encephalitis vaccination in the population in the natural foci of Austria].

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), the preventive measure against which is vaccination, is a disease caused by flavivirus (TBE virus). The infection is common in many European countries and in much of Central and Eastern Asia. Formaline-killed whole-virion high-purified vaccine inactivated is widely used for immunization of the population in Europe; however, the coverage of the population with vaccination greatly differs in the country where the natural foci of TBE are recorded. The exception is Austria where 88% of the population has been at least vaccinated against TBE and 58% has been regularly inoculated as evidenced by the officially recommended scheme. The present study has analyzed the efficacy of the above vaccine made in Austria in 2000 to 2006 in different age groups on the basis of documentary data on the cases of admissions for TBE among the unvaccinated and vaccinated and estimated the incidence of this disease in these groups, by taking into account the results of representative surveys. Our investigation has demonstrated that the efficiency of vaccination by the officially recommended scheme among the regularly inoculated persons is about 99% without statistically significant differences between the age groups. This result was observed after the first two vaccinations before completion of the basic course of vaccination, i.e. before the third vaccination; however, the efficiency of vaccination was substantially lower (about 95%) in the persons who had been irregularly inoculated, as shown by the records, i.e. they received the vaccine by the unofficial scheme. The findings confirm the high efficiency of vaccination of the population of Austria against TBE by the officially recommended scheme, which is shown in the prevention of about 2800 cases of TE.

Effects of uranium poisoning on cultured preimplantation embryos.

The toxic effect of uranium in cultured preimplantation embryos of the mouse is presented. Embryos were obtained from hybrid females CBA x C57 BL following induction of superovulation and were incubated in M16 cultured medium. Two different experiments were performed. In one, embryos in a one-cell stage were placed in culture media with final concentrations of uranyl nitrate of 104 and 208 microg/mL during 120 h in the same dish. In the other experiment, embryos in a one-cell stage were placed in culture medium with uranyl nitrate with final U concentrations of 26, 52, 104, and 208 microg/mL. At 24 h, those embryos which had reached the two-cell stage were transferred to another culture dish to which fresh solutions with uranyl nitrate were added. The percentage of embryos in two-cell stage, morula, early blastocyst, expanded blastocyst, and hatched blastocyst were recorded at 24, 72, 96 and 120 h of culture. The results obtained showed that concentrations as from 26 microg U/mL induced the delay of embryo development and the impairment of blastomere proliferation. The toxic effect of uranium increased in those experiments in which the embryos were transferred to a new medium. This embryo-culture system appears to be appropriate to evaluate the toxic effect of uranium on embryos removed from maternal influences and represents a suitable test system for environmental pollutants.

Lipolytic effects of heparin and low molecular weight heparin and their importance in hemodialysis.

The incidence and the degree of uremic hypertriglyceridemia in a hemodialysis population are exacerbated by the use of UF heparin as anticoagulant therapy. This hypertriglyceridemia is associated with an increase in the levels of triglyceride-rich remnant particles that are thought to be particularly atherogenic. Since arteriosclerosis and its related diseases are the major causes of morbidity and mortality in this dialysis population, the LMW heparins with their reduced stimulation of plasma lipolytic activity may provide a clinically superior alternative to UF heparin for anticoagulation therapy in long-term hemodialysis. One may also speculate that it may be more advantageous to use LMW heparin for all long-term treatments with heparin.