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Background. There are limited data on high-risk human papillomavirus (hr-HPV) genotypes among HIV-positive women in Africa, and little is known about their relationship with cervical cytology in these populations. Methods. We conducted a cross-sectional study among 194 HIV-positive women (143 from Tanzania, and 51 from South Africa) to evaluate HPV genotypes among HIV-positive women with normal and abnormal cytology. Cervical samples were genotyped for HPV types, and slides were evaluated for atypical squamous cell changes according to the Bethesda classification system. Results. Prevalence of high grade squamous intraepithelial dysplasia (HSIL) was 9%. Overall, more than half (56%) of women were infected with an hr-HPV type; 94% of women with HSIL (n=16), 90% of women with LSIL (n=35), and 42% of women within normal limits (WNL) (n=58) tested positive for hr-HPV. Overall, the most prevalent hr-HPV subtypes were HPV16 (26%) and HPV52 (30%). Regional differences in the prevalence of HPV18 and HPV35 were found. Conclusion. Regional differences in HPV genotypes among African women warrant the need to consider different monitoring programmes for cervical preneoplasia. HPV-based screening tests for cervical preneoplasia would be highly inefficient unless coupled with cytology screening of the HPV-positive sample, especially in HIV-positive women.

Data acquired with the COBE Differential Microwave Radiometer (DMR) provide a unique opportunity to observe simultaneous emission from cosmic gamma-ray bursts in the previously unexplored microwave region of the spectrum. We have searched the COBE DMR time-ordered data sets for instances when one of the DMR horns (FWHM ~ 7°) was pointing in the direction of a gamma-ray burst at the time of burst occurrence. During the overlap period 1991 April-December corresponding to the first public release of COBE data, 210 Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO)/BATSE gamma-ray bursts listed in the Third BATSE (3B) Catalog were viewable by the COBE DMR. For five of these events the DMR was pointing within 7° of the burst positions at the exact moment of burst occurrence. For another four events the DMR was pointed within 2° of the BATSE positions within 10 s of the burst trigger time. No obvious microwave emission (at 31.5, 53, or 90 GHz), with upper limits in the 10-100 kJy range, can be associated with any of these events. The COBE DMR has a relatively low sensitivity for the detection of point sources within its field of view. A positive detection of a gamma-ray burst by the COBE DMR would imply that the integrated microwave flux must be of the same order as the energy observed in gamma rays. By extending an acceptance window in time of up to 20 minutes before and after a gamma-ray burst another 60 bursts are sampled by the DMR, whose signals are analyzed statistically. We conclude that the "average" gamma-ray burst produces less than about 7-42 kJy in simultaneous microwave radiation.

Vaginal lactobacilli assessed by PCR-based microarray and PCR-based genotyping of HPV in South African women at risk for HIV and BV. Vaginal lactobacilli can be defined by microarray techniques in fixed cervical samples of South African women. Cervical brush samples suspended in the coagulant fixative BoonFix of one hundred women attending a health centre for HIV testing in South Africa were available for this study. In the Ndlovu Medical Centre in Elandsdoorn, South Africa, identification of 18 hr-HPV genotypes was done using the INNO-LiPA method. An inventory of lactobacilli organisms was performed using microarray technology. On the basis of the Lactobacillus and Lactobacillus biofilm scoring, the cases were identified as Leiden bacterial vaginosis (BV) negative (BV-; n = 41), Leiden BV intermediate (BV±; n = 25), and Leiden BV positive (BV+; n = 34). Fifty-one women were HIV positive and 49 HIV negative. Out of the 51 HIV positive women, 35 were HPV infected. These 51 HIV positive women were frequently infected with HPV16 and HPV18. In addition, HPV35, HPV52, HPV33, and HPV66 were often detected in these samples. Lactobacillus salivarius and Lactobacillus iners were the most prevalent lactobacilli as established by the microarray technique. In women with HPV infection, the prevalence of Lactobacillus crispatus was significantly reduced. In both HIV and HPV infection, a similar (but not identical) shift in the composition of the lactobacillus flora was observed. We conclude that there is a shift in the composition of vaginal lactobacilli in HIV-infected women. Because of the prominence of HPV35, HPV52, HPV33, and HPV66, vaccination for exclusively HPV16 and HPV18 might be insufficient in South African HIV+ women. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

BACKGROUND. Nearly every Dutch woman will be exposed to genital human papillomavirus (HPV) at least once during her lifetime, and most likely several times. In the current study, the authors investigated the prevalence of high-risk–HPV (HR-HPV) infection and the likelihood of progression to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). METHODS. In this study, the course of HR-HPV infection in 703 women was observed. From a database of 720,016 negative cytology smears, the authors selected 703 women based on the availability of at least 2 HR-HPV polymerase chain reaction tests. The authors database stores not only the HPV data but also all other cytologic and histologic data, allowing the detection of women who progressed from negative cytology to CIN within a period of 10 years. RESULTS. Of the 703 selected women, 159 were found to have alternating HR-HPV infection (change from a negative HR-HPV test to a positive test or vice versa), 40 had a persistently positive HR-HPV test, and 504 women had a persistently negative HR-HPV test. The percentage of alternating HPV infection declined over time from 37% to 7%. Of the women age older than 40 years, 17% had an alternating HR-HPV infection, 2 of whom developed CIN. These findings led the authors to conclude that all the women in the current study with an increased risk of developing type 2 or 3 CIN were identified using 2 HPV tests. Women age older than 40 years still have a significant risk of acquiring a HR-HPV. CONCLUSIONS. In light of the current study findings, the authors believe it is worth considering the inclusion of women age 40 years and older who have negative cytology for HPV testing as part of the Dutch national screening program. Cancer (Cancer Cytopathol) 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society.

Some years ago, Willems & de Jong (1988) noticed that many carbon stars display an excess of emission at 60 µm and explained it by the presence of a fossil dust shell, containing only cold dust. This detached dust shell would be the result of an interruption of the mass loss, consequence of a thermal pulse. Detached shells around C stars have actually been mapped in the CO lines (Olofsson et al. 1992), and at 60µm (Waters et al. 1994). In 1992, Zijlstra et al. found about 100 M stars displaying an excess of emission at 60 µm, and proposed that interruptions of the mass loss due to thermal pulses is a general phenomenon on the AGB. This assumption is now supported by the theoretical calculations of Vassiliadis & Wood (1993). Here we present a detailed study of the 100 M stars of Zijlstra et al. in order to test the previous assumption.

The InfraRed Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) all-sky survey was designed and optimized for the detection of point sources. This allowed the survey to be conducted in the form of narrow strip scans with redundant coverage of the sky, but with non-uniform covering densities. The data shows in addition to point sources many sources of extended emission, which are best analyzed from images. However, the non-uniform coverage now forms a significant obstacle in the image (re-)construction. Low resolution images, such as in the Infrared Sky Survey Atlas, yield spatial resolutions of 5–10 times the IRAS telescope diffraction limit; HIRAS improves this to 1–2 times!