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Glucocorticoid (GC) excess adversely affects skin integrity, inducing thinning and impaired wound healing. Aged skin, particularly that which has been photo-exposed, shares a similar phenotype. Previously, we demonstrated age-induced expression [...]

Objectives. We examined the use of voluntary HIV testing among state prisoners in the North Carolina prison system. Methods. We calculated system-wide and facility-specific proportions and rates of adult inmates tested for HIV and estimated associations between testing status and inmate characteristics for prisoners in North Carolina. Results. Of the 54016 inmates who entered prison between January 2004 and May 2006, 20 820 (38%) were tested for HIV; of those tested, 18 574 (89%) were tested at admission. Across the 8 intake prisons, more than 80% of inmates in both female facilities but less than 15% of inmates in 4 of 6 male facilities were tested. Prisoners with a documented history of heroin use, crack or cocaine use, conventional HIV risk behavior, or tuberculosis were at least 10% more likely to be tested than were inmates without these characteristics. However, more than 60% of men reporting conventional risk behaviors were not tested. Before covariate adjustment, Black men were 30% less likely than White men to be tested; in the multivariable regression model, this difference was attenuated to 13%. Conclusions. Rates of HIV testing varied widely across intake prisons, and many male inmates with documented risk of infection were never tested. (Am J Public Health. 2009;99:S452-S459. DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2007.133124)

Objectives. We identified factors associated with testing HIV positive in a prison system performing voluntary HIV testing on inmates and estimated the number of undetected HIV cases to evaluate the efficacy of risk-factor-based HIV testing. Methods. We used logistic regression to estimate associations between HIV serostatus and HIV risk behaviors, mental health, coinfection status, and sociodemographic characteristics for prisoners entering the North Carolina Department of Correction from January 2004 through May 2006. We estimated the number of undetected HIV cases on the basis of age-, gender-, and race-specific HIV prevalences among prisoners and in the state. Results. Nearly 3.4% (718/21 419) of tested prisoners were HIV positive. The strongest risk factors for infection among men were having sex with men (odds ratio [OR]=8.0), Black race (OR=6.2), other non-White race (OR=7.4), and being aged 35 to 44 years (OR = 4.1). The strongest risk factor among women was Black race (OR=3.8). Among HIV-positive prisoners, 65% were coinfected with HCV. We estimated that between 24% (223) and 61% (1101) of HIV cases remained undetected. Conclusions, The associations between HIV serostatus and a variety of factors highlight the potential limitations of risk-factor-based HIV testing in prisons, as do the high number of potential undetected HIV cases. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2007.133389)

COX-2 promotes colon cancer. While both nonselective NSAIDs and selective COX-2 inhibitors reduce disease burden, their adverse gastrointestinal and cardiovascular side effects limit their therapeutic use. In this issue of the JCI, Zhang et al. used gene silencing and a derivative of licorice root to show that inhibition of the enzyme 11[beta]--hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type II (11[beta]HSD2) reduces tumor COX-2 activity, tumor growth, and metastasis by increasing the tonic glucocorticoid-mediated suppression of the COX-2 signaling pathway without the adverse effects associated with NSAIDs and selective COX-2 inhibitors (see the related article beginning on page 876). Their findings suggest that 11[beta]HSD2 inhibition may be a potential therapeutic option in colon cancer, warranting further investigation., COX-2 is a crucial enzyme in the synthesis of prostaglandins and prostacyclin, which play a variety of roles in the regulation of cell growth, hemostasis, sensing of pain, and inflammation. [...]

BACKGROUND: Several epidemiologic studies have demonstrated relationships between prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and modest cognitive impairments in infancy and early childhood. However, few studies have followed cohorts of [...]

BACKGROUND: A few recent studies have demonstrated heightened hypothalamic--pituitary--adrenal (HPA) axis reactivity to acute stress in animals exposed to heavy metal contaminants, particularly lead. However, Pb-induced dysregulation of the HPA [...]

Byline: Mark Stuart Cooper, BM BCh, MRCP, PhD (Department of Endocrinology, Division of Medical Sciences, Institute of Biomedical Research, The University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, m.s.cooper@ bham.ac.uk); Paul Michael Stewart, [...]

Two distinct union strategies that can influence the future role of trade unions in Britain's aerospace industry are critically evaluated.

BACKGROUND: Animal studies have shown that exposure to common, low-level environmental contaminants [e.g., polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), lead] causes excessive and inappropriate responding on intermittent reinforcement schedules. The Differential Reinforcement of [...]

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-954X.2006.00670.x Byline: Paul Stewart (1) Abstract: Abstract In Japan, some of the socially, economically and politically marginalised have developed robust social and labour movements that engage with mainstream society. These movements have developed strategies challenging the conditions of the excluded, while also highlighting pathways to establish, or enhance, individual and collective participation in the labour market and the wider society. Two distinct though related, social and organisational forms of these movements are elaborated - firm-centred and community centred respectively. The former especially has a combative past in the labour struggles of the 1950s in what are known as sa'ha shōsū-ha kumiai (left wing Minority union, or, Minority-faction union). However, this does not mean Minorities are inherently leftist in orientation. In the 1940s and 1950s, during a period of radical union hegemony, a collaborative form of second unions developed assisting the purge of radical leaderships. Our focus here is on a contemporary radical democratic current. While articulating concerns of those in full time employment outside the political mainstream they may also represent ethnically and otherwise socially marginalised workers. The community unions, a form of what are known as 'new-type union', shingata kumiai (this term will be used here to describe the community unions) articulate the concerns of those socially and economically marginalized in the community and the wider labour market. Controversially, the term 'Minority union' is used to depict the different forms of oppositional social movement union in a broader sense than is typically understood in the literature. This is because they share a common concern with the articulation of Minority social and political interests in the context of the employment relationship and the local community. In considering the character of these social movement unions the article seeks to add to what Price (1997) describes as 'bottom up history' which we term 'sociology from below'. Author Affiliation: (1)University of Stirling Article History: Received 20 April 2004finally accepted 15 December 2005

In Japan, some of the socially, economically and politically marginalised have developed robust social and labour movements that engage with mainstream society. These movements have developed strategies challenging the conditions of the excluded, while also highlighting pathways to establish, or enhance, individual and collective participation in the labour market and the wider society. Two distinct though related, social and organisational forms of these movements are elaborated--firm-centred and community centred respectively. The former especially has a combative past in the labour struggles of the 1950s in what are known as sa'ha shosu-ha kumiai (left wing Minority union, or, Minority-faction union). However, this does not mean Minorities are inherently leftist in orientation. In the 1940s and 1950s, during a period of radical union hegemony, a collaborative form of second unions developed assisting the purge of radical leaderships. Our focus here is on a contemporary radical democratic current. While articulating concerns of those in full time employment outside the political mainstream they may also represent ethnically and otherwise socially marginalised workers. The community unions, a form of what are known as 'new-type union', shingata kumiai (this term will be used here to describe the community unions) articulate the concerns of those socially and economically marginalized in the community and the wider labour market. Controversially, the term 'Minority union' is used to depict the different forms of oppositional social movement union in a broader sense than is typically understood in the literature. This is because they share a common concern with the articulation of Minority social and political interests in the context of the employment relationship and the local community. In considering the character of these social movement unions the article seeks to add to what Price (1997) describes as 'bottom up history' which we term 'sociology from below'.

A study was conducted to characterize the incidence and magnitude of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) elevations in healthy participants receiving 4g of acetaminophen daily, either alone or in combination with selected opioids, as compared with participants treated with placebo. It was found that initiation of recurrent dally intake of 4g acetaminophen in healthy adults is associated with ALT elevations and concomitant treatment with opioids does not increase this effect.

Study is conducted to assess the impact of patients' antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence of a multicomponent, motivational interviewing (MI)-based ART adherence intervention compared with that of an HIV informational control program. It provides some evidence that MI is a counseling technique that has been used effectively to change a number of health-related behaviors.

The likelihood, and predictors, of the emergence of incident mutations associated with reduced antiretroviral drug susceptibility, among patients maintained on a potent combination therapy with persistent detectable plasma HIV-1 RNA is estimated. The likelihood of acquiring drug resistance mutations while remaining on potent combination antiretroviral therapy that does not confer complete suppression of HIV replication is relatively low and depends on the level of viral replication and prior resistance.

The association of cytomegalovirus (CMV) viremia with CMV disease and death in patients with AIDS is determined. The detection of CMV viremia by plasma CMV DNA polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is associated with reduced survival in a cohort of patients with AIDS treated with combination antiretroviral therapy despite a low rate of CMV disease incidence.

A significant number of people living with HIV infection in the U.S. are incarcerated; at least 8% of all HIV-infected people are in prison or jail. (1,2) The prevalence of […]

ABSTRACT. The Grand Calumet River watershed of southern Lake Michigan was surveyed to determine the occurrence of salmonid fishes during the predominant fall spawning run. Weekly core collections were performed [...]

The present study reports the association between prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), the corpus callosum, and response inhibition in children who are 4.5 years old. Children (n = 189) [...]

Infectious diseases have influenced population genetics and the evolution of the structure of the human genome in part by selecting for host susceptibility alleles that modify pathogenesis. Norovirus infection is associated with [similar]90% of epidemic non-bacterial acute gastroenteritis worldwide. Here, we show that resistance to Norwalk virus infection is multifactorial. Using a human challenge model, we showed that 29% of our study population was homozygous recessive for the [alpha](1,2)fucosyltransferase gene (FUT2) in the ABH histo-blood group family and did not express the H type-1 oligosaccharide ligand required for Norwalk virus binding. The FUT2 susceptibility allele was fully penetrant against Norwalk virus infection as none of these individuals developed an infection after challenge, regardless of dose. Of the susceptible population that encoded a functional FUT2 gene, a portion was resistant to infection, suggesting that a memory immune response or some other unidentified factor also affords protection from Norwalk virus infection., Author(s): Lisa Lindesmith [1]; Christine Moe [2, 7]; Severine Marionneau [3, 7]; Nathalie Ruvoen [3, 6]; Xi Jiang [4]; Lauren Lindblad [5]; Paul Stewart [5]; Jacques LePendu [3]; Ralph Baric [...]

Many chronically ill patients may develop adrenal gland insufficiency. This means the adrenal glands do not produce enough natural corticosteroid hormones. Doctors should consider treating all critically ill patients with low doses of corticosteroid drugs while they wait for the results of diagnostic tests for adrenal gland insufficiency.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent pollutants that are ubiquitous in the food chain, and detectable amounts are in the blood of almost every person in most populations that have been [...]

Body mass and an index of condition for badgers (Meles meles) in a high-density population (Wytham Woods, UK were examined between 1990 and 1997 and compared with the size of the groups with which individuals were associated. Both body mass and condition decreased as centered group size increased. Fecundity also declined with increasing centered group size. Female badgers exhibited the greatest effects of density-dependent constraints on body mass and condition in autumn, whereas for males the effect was most pronounced in spring. Key words: badgers; body mass; condition; density dependence; fecundity; Meles meles; RDH; resource dispersion hypothesis; Wytham Woods, UK.

The drug pegvisomant appears to be effective in treating acromegaly. Acromegaly is a pituitary disorder that causes excess amounts of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I). Pegvisomant blocks the receptor for growth hormone. Researchers randomly assigned 112 people with acromegaly to take one of three different doses of pegvisomant or a placebo, or inactive substance. About 90% of the patients taking the highest dose achieved normal blood levels of growth hormone and IGF-I, compared to only 10% of those taking the lowest dose. Dosages ranged from 10 milligrams to 20 milligrams per day.

An overview is presented on the slow implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, Northern Ireland's peace agreement in 1998. Reasons for the slowdown include continuing social and economic conflicts maintained by a sectarian system of governance.

A study was conducted to determine the functions of the individual badger Meles meles in the den maintenance activities of digging and bedding at their communal setts. Results show that 60-90% of the digging and bedding tasks were done by both adult and yearling Eurasian badgers. It was also observed that male badgers do more digging and collect more bedding as compared to their female counterparts.

Previous studies have suggested that women with a history of sexual abuse more likely to become pregnant as adolescents than nonabused peers. We examined a cohort of 734 mothers ages 12 to 42 selected form 1985 to 1987 for participation in a longitudinal investigation for any relationship between sexual abuse prior to age 18 and childbearing characteristics, including their age at the birth of their first child as well as parity. Thirty-two percent reported sexual abuse. After controlling for poverty, race, maternal education, marital status, and age, there was no significant difference between the abused and nonabused mothers in their age at first birth; how ever, parity was higher for the sexually abused group. Fifty-five percent of mothers with a sexual abuse history had had more than one child as opposed to 39% of the nonabused mothers (p [is less than] 0.0001)., Sexual abuse and teenage pregnancy are each a significant and increasingly recognized public health problem in our society. Increased risk of teenage pregnancy as a consequence of sexual abuse (whether [...]

Objective To describe the process and results of diet standardization, diet validation, and monitoring of diet composition, which were key components of protocol i of Dietary Effects on Lipoproteins and Thrombogehic Activity (DELTA-1), the initial protocol in a program of multicenter human feeding studies designed to evaluate the effects of amount and type of fat on lipoproteins and hemostasis parameters in various demographic groups. Design DELTA-1 was based on a randomized, blinded, crossover experimental design. Three diets were fed for 8 weeks to 103 healthy men and women aged 22 to 67 years at 4 field centers. Diet A, an average American diet, was designed to provide 37% of energy from fat, 16% of energy from saturated fatty acids (SFAs); diet B (step 1 diet) was designed to provide 30% of energy from fat, 9% of energy from SFA; and diet C (low SFA diet) was designed to provide 26% of energy from fat, 5% of energy from SFA. Key features of diet standardization included central procurement of fat-containing foods, inclusion of standard ingredients, precision weighing of foods - especially sources of fat and cholesterol-and use of standardized written procedures. Setting For menu validation, a set of 12 menus for each diet was prepared in duplicate and chemically assayed. For monitoring of diet composition during the study, an 8-day diet cycle (6 weekday and 2 weekend menus) was sampled by every field center twice during each of 3 feeding periods. Statistical analyses Means (±standard error) were calculated and compared with target nutrient specifications. Results DELTA-1 was able to provide a standardized diet that met nutrient specifications across 4 field centers over 24 weeks of participant feeding spanning a total of 8 months. Applications Prestudy chemical validation of menus and continuous sampling and assay of diets throughout the study are essential to standardize experimental diets and to ensure that nutrient target goals are met and maintained throughout a controlled multicenter feeding study., Epidemiologic, clinical, and laboratory evidence underlies current dietary recommendations for population-based prevention of coronary heart disease (1). Clearly, average blood cholesterol levels in the US population will decrease with a [...]

Objective: The purpose of this research was to determine whether risk factors for a maltreatment report in the first year of life, especially the interaction of life event stress and social support, persist into the second and third years of life. Method: Predominantly low income mothers who had been interviewed shortly after the birth of infants in a longitudinal cohort were re-interviewed around the infants' first birthdays, and reports to North Carolina's Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect were tracked for substantiated maltreatment reports. Results: Variables significantly associated with a substantiated maltreatment report in the second or third year of life (p < .01) were first year maltreatment reports and participation in Medicaid. Three interactions between a stressful life event indicator variable and a social support indicator variable were significant predictors of substantiated second or third year reports (p < .05). Conclusions: Even in the presence of significant risk factors from the first year of life, life event stress can increase the risk of a substantiated maltreatment report in the second or third years of life, but social support may moderate the effect of life events. Key Words - Child abuse, Child neglect. Life change events, Stress, Psychological, Social support.

Vauxhall Motors, the UK subsidiary of General Motors, faced well-planned actions by employees and trade unions between 1995 and 1996 as it attempted an understanding of the new industrial relations of lean production. Employees went on strike in support of their claims for a reduced work week and an across-the-board pay hike. This shop floor power surprised Vauxhall as the action exposed the rhetoric of consensus and participation that revolved around lean production. The strike action also offered an ideal case for the study of the social and ideological restructuring of workplace relations needed in the UK automotive sector.

The purposes of this research were to identify risk factors for reported child abuse or neglect and to examine the roles of stress and social support in the etiology of child maltreatment. Mothers of newborn infants with biomedical and sociodemographic risk factors were recruited from community and regional hospitals and local health departments in 42 counties of North and South Carolina selected for geographic distribution and for large numbers of such newborns. For every four such mothers, the next mother to deliver an otherwise normal newborn was sought. Mothers were interviewed shortly after giving birth, and state Central Registries of Child Abuse and Neglect were reviewed when each infant was I year of age. Eight hundred forty-two of 1,111 recruited mothers were successfully interviewed in their homes between March 1986 and June 1987. Seven, hundred forty-nine North Carolina births who resided in the state more than 6 months were eligible for inclusion in the analysis. Logistic regression with backward elimination procedures was used in the analysis. Maternal education (p < .01), number of other dependent children in the home (p < .01), receipt of Medicaid (p < .01), maternal depression (p < .05), and whether the maternal subject lived with her own mother at age 14 years (p < .05) were the best predictors of a maltreatment report. Further examination revealed an interaction effect between stressful life events, as measured by life event scores, and social well-being (p < .01). For children born at risk for social and/or medical problems, extreme low income (participation in public income support programs), low maternal education, maternal depression, the presence of any other young children in the home, and a mother's separation at age 14 years from her own mother significantly predict child maltreatment reports in the first year of life. In addition, stressful life events, even if perceived positively, may increase or decrease the risk of maltreatment reports, depending upon the presence of social support. Key Words - Child abuse, Child neglect, Poverty, Psychological stress, Social support.

An intermediate-mass star ends its life by ejecting the bulk of its envelope in a slow, dense wind (1-3). Stellar pulsations are thought to elevate gas to an altitude cool [...]