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| 2. |
- van Bragt, JJMH, et al.
(författare)
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Characteristics and treatment regimens across ERS SHARP severe asthma registries
- 2020
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Ingår i: The European respiratory journal. - : European Respiratory Society (ERS). - 1399-3003 .- 0903-1936. ; 55:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Little is known about the characteristics and treatments of patients with severe asthma across Europe, but both are likely to vary. This is the first study in the European Respiratory Society Severe Heterogeneous Asthma Research collaboration, Patient-centred (SHARP) Clinical Research Collaboration and it is designed to explore these variations. Therefore, we aimed to compare characteristics of patients in European severe asthma registries and treatments before starting biologicals.This was a cross-sectional retrospective analysis of aggregated data from 11 national severe asthma registries that joined SHARP with established patient databases.Analysis of data from 3236 patients showed many differences in characteristics and lifestyle factors. Current smokers ranged from 0% (Poland and Sweden) to 9.5% (Belgium), mean body mass index ranged from 26.2 (Italy) to 30.6 kg·m−2 (the UK) and the largest difference in mean pre-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s % predicted was 20.9% (the Netherlands versus Hungary). Before starting biologicals patients were treated differently between countries: mean inhaled corticosteroid dose ranged from 700 to 1335 µg·day−1 between those from Slovenia versus Poland when starting anti-interleukin (IL)-5 antibody and from 772 to 1344 µg·day−1 in those starting anti-IgE (Slovenia versus Spain). Maintenance oral corticosteroid use ranged from 21.0% (Belgium) to 63.0% (Sweden) and from 9.1% (Denmark) to 56.1% (the UK) in patients starting anti-IL-5 and anti-IgE, respectively.The severe asthmatic population in Europe is heterogeneous and differs in both clinical characteristics and treatment, often appearing not to comply with the current European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society guidelines definition of severe asthma. Treatment regimens before starting biologicals were different from inclusion criteria in clinical trials and varied between countries.
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| 3. |
- Ekberg-Jansson, Ann, et al.
(författare)
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Neutrophil-associated activation markers in healthy smokers relates to a fall in DL(CO) and to emphysematous changes on high resolution CT
- 2001
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Ingår i: Respiratory Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0954-6111 .- 1532-3064. ; 95:5, s. 363-373
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Smoking is a risk factor for developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but there are no good indicators for early identification of subjects who will develop symptomatic COPD. The aim of this study was to investigate inflammatory mechanisms related to changes in lung function and emphysematous changes on high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) in 'healthy' smokers. Subjects were 60-year-old men from a population study. Bronchoscopy was performed in 30 smokers and 18 who had never smoked. Blood tests, lung function measurements and HRCT were carried out in 58 and 34 subjects, respectively. In comparison with never-smokers, smokers had higher levels of myeloperoxidase (MPO), human neutrophil lipocalin (HNL), eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) and lysozyme in blood, higher levels of MPO, interleukin-8 (IL-8) and HNL in bronchial lavage (BL), and of IL-8, HNL and interleukin-lbeta (IL-1beta) in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Smokers also had lower levels of Clara cell protein 16 (CC-16) in blood. HNL in BL and BAL showed strong correlations to other inflammatory markers (MPO, IL-8, IL-1beta). The variations in MPO in BL were explained by variations in HNL (R2 =0.69), while these variations in BAL were explained by variations in HNL and IL-1beta (R2 = 0.76). DL(CO) was the lung function variable most closely related to MPO and IL-8 in BL and BAL and to IL-1beta in BAL. In a multiple regression analysis, MPO, IL-1beta, IL-8 and CC-16 in BL and MPO in BAL contributed to the explanation of variations in DL(CO) to 41% and 22%. respectively, independent of smoking habits. In smokers with emphysematous lesions on HRCT, HNL in BAL correlated to emphysema score (r(s) = 0.71). We conclude that 'healthy' smoking men with a near normal FEV1 show signs of inflammation in the lower airways that are related to a decrease in DL(CO) and to emphysematous lesions on HRCT. This inflammation seems to be the result of both monocyte/macrophage and neutrophil activation.
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| 4. |
- Ekberg-Jansson, A, et al.
(författare)
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Respiratory symptoms relate to physiological changes and inflammatory markers reflecting central but not peripheral airways. A study in 60-year-old 'healthy' smokers and never-smokers
- 2001
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Ingår i: Respiratory Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 1532-3064 .- 0954-6111. ; 95:1, s. 40-47
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between respiratory symptoms, lung function and inflammatory markers in 'healthy' smokers. The study population was recruited from an epidemiological study with subjects of the same age, 60 years. Only smokers who considered themselves healthy (n=58) and a random sample of never-smokers (n=34) were investigated. All subjects underwent lung function tests--spirometry, carbon monoxide transfer (DLco) and the single-breath N2 method (N2 test)--together with high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT). A flexible bronchoscopy with a bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was performed in 30 smokers and 18 never-smokers. Bronchial biopsies were also taken. Smokers who reported non-specific respiratory problems, chronic bronchitis and wheezing in a symptom questionnaire had a lower forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1), FEV% and specific airway conductance (sGaw), lung function tests supposed to reflect the more central airways, than smokers without respiratory symptoms. A limited number of smokers with occasional non-specific respiratory problems also had more cytotoxic T cells (CD8) in bronchial biopsies. No differences were found in DLCO and the N2 test, lung function tests supposed to reflect the more peripheral airways including the alveoli, HRCT-diagnosed emphysema or inflammatory markers in blood and BAL between smokers with and without respiratory symptoms. It is concluded that even when smokers consider themselves 'healthy' they have mild symptoms that are related more to physiological changes and inflammatory markers that may reflect events in the central airways than to changes that may reflect events in the peripheral airways.
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| 5. |
- Schmidt, H., et al.
(författare)
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Gamma and pulsed electron radiolysis studies of CyMe 4 BTBP and CyMe 4 BTPhen: Identification of radiolysis products and effects on the hydrometallurgical separation of trivalent actinides and lanthanides
- 2021
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Ingår i: Radiation Physics and Chemistry. - : Elsevier BV. - 1879-0895 .- 0969-806X. ; 189
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The radiolytic stability of the highly selective ligands CyMe4BTBP and CyMe4BTPhen against ionizing gamma radiation was studied in 1-octanol solution. CyMe4BTBP and CyMe4BTPhen are important extractants for a potential treatment of used nuclear fuel. They were studied under identical experimental conditions to directly compare the effects of gamma and pulsed electron radiolysis on the ligands and systematically study the influence of structural changes in the ligand backbone. Distribution ratios of Am3+, Cm3+ and Eu3+, the residual concentration of CyMe4BTBP and CyMe4BTPhen in solution, and the formation of radiolysis products were studied as a function of absorbed gamma dose and presence of an acidic aqueous phase during irradiation. Quantitative and semi-quantitative analyses were used to elucidate the radiolysis mechanism for both ligands. Addition products of alpha-hydroxyoctyl radicals formed through radiolysis of the 1-octanol diluent to the ligand molecules were identified as the predominant radiolysis products. These addition products also extract trivalent metal ions, as distribution ratios remained high although the parent molecule concentrations decreased. Therefore, the utilization time of a solvent using these extractants under the harsh conditions of used nuclear fuel treatment could be considerably longer than expected. Understanding the radiolysis mechanism is crucial for designing more radiation resistant extractants.
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| 6. |
- Altmaier, M., et al.
(författare)
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TALISMAN - A European Commission FP7 project promoting transnational access to large infrastructures for a safe management of actinides
- 2014
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Ingår i: Plutonium Futures: The Science 2014; Las Vegas; United States; 7 September 2014 through 12 September 2014. - 9781510808089 ; , s. 165-166
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- TALISMAN is a large international project funded within the European Commission FP7 EURATOM framework. The aim of TALISMAN is to offer transnational access to large infrastructures for a safe management of actinides. Although clearly focusing on R&D activities from European Union member states, TALISMAN is also open to participation from non-EU countries. TALISMAN is coordinated by CEA (contact by stephane.bourg@cea.fr), supported by a Governing Board and the ExCom. Dedicated studies on Pu containing materials are integral part of TALISMAN. Safety issues are of fundamental importance for the acceptance and sustainable application of nuclear energy. Actinides play a central role in the nuclear fuel cycle from mining, fuel fabrication, energy production, up to reprocessing, partitioning and transmutation treatment of used fuel, and finally the management and disposal of radioactive waste. Fundamental understanding of actinide properties and behavior in fuel materials during the separation processes and in geological repositories is an imperative prerequisite to tackle the related safety issues. Unravelling the complexity of the actinide components of used nuclear fuel certainly represents one of the great challenges in nuclear science. To meet the needs of safe and sustainable management of nuclear energy it is essential to maintain a high level of expertise in actinide sciences both on a European and international level. Educating and training the next generation of scientists and engineers who will contribute to developing safe actinide management strategies is a key mission. Because actinides are radioactive elements and handling requires specific safety measures, their study requires advanced tools and facilities that are only available to a limited extent. Only a few academic and research organisations have the capabilities and licenses to work on actinide elements. From a European perspective it is therefore strategic to coordinate the existing actinide infrastructures in Europe and strengthen the community of scientists working on actinides. Within TALISMAN we offer (for positively evaluated scientific research proposals submitted in reply to a specific TALISMAN call) access to the previous ACTINET Pooled Facilities (CEA Atalante and CEA DPC, France; ITU Laboratories & hot-cells, European Commission; KIT-INE laboratories and KIT-INE beamline, Germany; HZDR-IRE & ROBL, Germany; PSI microXAS Beamline, Switzerland) to which two new facilities have been added: NNL Central Lab in the UK and CHALMERS in Sweden. TALISMAN is also open to scientists and research organizations from outside the European Union. TALISMAN leads and coordinates a network of actinide facilities across Europe, but also manages a network between facilities and users to increase the knowledge for a safer management of actinides. TALISMAN also enhances the efforts made to support education and training issues by continuing the former ACTINET Summer School series and travel grant attributions for attending international conferences like the Plutonium Futures series. The TALISMAN project website is regularly updated and offers detailed information on all TALISMAN activities at http://www.talisman-project.eu. This is including contact addresses, TALISMAN newsletters, announcements and description of open and forthcoming calls for transnational user access and indicates several other options to perform actinide research within the TALISMAN context.
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| 8. |
- Hariz, Marwan I, et al.
(författare)
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Multicentre European study of thalamic stimulation for parkinsonian tremor : a 6 year follow-up
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of neurology, neurosurgery and psychiatry. - : BMJ Group. - 1468-330X .- 0022-3050. ; 79:6, s. 694-699
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AIM: To evaluate the results of ventral intermediate (Vim) thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with tremor predominant Parkinson's disease (PD) at 6 years post surgery.METHODS: This was a prolonged follow-up study of 38 patients from eight centres who participated in a multicentre study, the 1 year results of which have been published previously. Total scores as well as scores for individual items of the motor part and the disability part of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale were used for evaluation.RESULTS: Tremor was still effectively controlled by DBS and appendicular rigidity and akinesia remained stable compared with baseline. Axial scores (speech, gait and postural instability), however, worsened, and in parallel the initial improvement in activities of daily living scores at the 1 year follow-up had disappeared at 6 years, despite sustained improvement of tremor. Remarkably, neither daily doses of dopaminergic medication nor fluctuations and dyskinesias had changed at 6 years compared with baseline in this particular patient group.CONCLUSION: This study confirms that patients with tremor dominant PD who do not present with fluctuations and dyskinesias may have a relatively benign progression of the disease. Vim DBS, although having no effect on akinesia and rigidity, is a relatively lenient surgical procedure and may still have a place for long term symptomatic control of PD tremor in selected patients.
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| 9. |
- Huang, Y. L., et al.
(författare)
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Prevention of Acute and Chronic Allograft Rejection by Combinations of Tolerogenic Dendritic Cells
- 2011
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Immunology. - : Wiley. - 1365-3083 .- 0300-9475. ; 73:2, s. 91-101
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It is well known that adoptive transfer of donor-derived tolerogenic dendritic cells (DC) helps to reduce acute allograft rejection. However, this method cannot effectively prevent grafts from infiltration of inflammatory cells and fibrosis, and thus has minimal effect on chronic allograft rejection. In this study, we used mitomycin C (MMC) to generate tolerogenic DC and demonstrated that donor (Balb/c)-derived MMC-DC could induce hyporesponsiveness of recipient (C57BL/6) T cells in vitro, potentially by inducing T-cell apoptosis, decreasing IL-2 and IL-12 secretion, and increasing regulatory T-cell numbers and IL-10 secretion. Furthermore, anti-CD154 monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment combined with donor-derived MMC-DC prolonged the survival of the allografts in vivo. The mechanisms were similar to those in vitro. Impressively, both acute and chronic rejection were prevented when donor and F1 generation (Balb/c x C57BL/6) derived MMC-DC were injected together with anti-CD154 mAb into recipients before heart allotransplantation. In summary, we showed that donor and F1-derived tolerogenic DC have a synergistic effect on induction and maintenance of T-cell regulation and the secretion of immunosuppressive cytokines. Moreover, adoptive transfer of these two types of DC could inhibit both acute and chronic transplant rejection in mice.
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