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In this study, two different approaches to estimate the wind resource over the German Bight in the North Sea are compared: the mesoscale meteorological model MM5 and the wind resource assessment program WAsP. The dynamics of the atmosphere of the year 2004 was simulated with the MM5 model, with input from the NCEP global model, without directly utilizing measurement data. WAsP estimations were calculated on the basis of six measurement stations: three on islands, two offshore and one onshore. The annual mean wind speed at onshore, offshore and island sites is estimated by both models. The predictions are compared both with each other and with measured data. A spatial comparison of the wind resource calculated by the two models is made by means of a geographical information system. The results show that the accuracy of the WAsP predictions depends mainly on the measurement station used as input. Small differences are shown in the estimations performed by the three island stations, despite the large geographical distance between them. Compared with the measurements of the offshore sites, they seem to be suitable for estimating the offshore wind resource from measurements on land. The two offshore stations show differences when predicting each other's mean wind speed with the WAsP method, while the MM5 calculations show a similar deviation for both sites. The largest differences between the two models are found at distances of 5–50km from the coast. While in WAsP the increase occurs in the first 10km from the coast, MM5 models an increase due to coastal effects for at least 50km. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley &Sons, Ltd.

Evidence of the efficacy of dithranol and patient perspectives on the treatment is scant.Using a telephone interview survey, we collected retrospective data from 63 patients (41 men [65.1 %] and 22 women [34.9 %]) who had been treated with classic inpatient dithranol (CID). PsoRA (www.psoriasisregistry.at) was used to obtain clinical data and treatment responses, which were then correlated with the interview responses.Fifty-two (82.5 %) patients achieved a PASI75 and 51 (81 %) a PASI90 response within a median of 12.5 (range: 3 to 25) days. Ten out of twelve (83 %) patients showed a satisfactory response to CID (PASI75 or greater reduction) despite the fact that they had previously failed to adequately respond to methotrexate, oral retinoids, cyclosporine, or ustekinumab. Overall, patients recalled a median recurrence-free interval of four (95 % CI: 3-9) months after responding to CID, which was positively correlated with the patients' recommendation of (p = 0.018) and their overall high satisfaction with the treatment (p = 0.012).Despite the known limitations of CID, this survey indicates that dithranol remains a highly efficacious and valuable treatment option as induction therapy in psoriasis. CID can be effective in patients who have failed to respond to systemic therapy, including traditional agents and biologics.

Background/Purpose Photochemochemotherapy with 8-methoxypsoralen and UV-A light (PUVA) is a well-established treatment for mycosis fungoides (MF), although evidence for this therapy by means of prospective studies is scarce. However, long-term risks of PUVA are premature skin aging and development of nonmelanoma skin cancer. We therefore evaluated a device for targeted UV therapy, which reduces irradiation of unaffected skin in MF patients. Methods Ten patients with patch- or plaque-type MF affecting less than 10% body surface area were included in a prospective study. A total of 14 lesions were treated with cream PUVA using the digital phototherapy device skintrek® PT3. Results Seven of ten patients showed response to treatment. Complete clinical remission was achieved in four of ten patients (complete remission of seven of fourteen treated lesions) after an average of 13.4 weeks and an average cumulative UV dose of 42.6 J/cm2 in a mean of 31.2 treatment sessions. Adverse events were rare and of mild severity. Conclusions This study is the first prospective trial demonstrating efficacy and safety of cream PUVA in MF patients. As healthy adjacent skin remains unaffected, the potential to reduce the carcinogenic risk of PUVA treatment makes this new method a promising therapeutic option for localized MF.

Objective: In the age of multiresistant microbes and the increasing lack of efficient antibiotics, conventional antiseptics play a critical role in the prevention and therapy of wound infections. Recent studies have demonstrated the antiseptic effects of cold atmospheric pressure plasma (APP). In this pilot, study we investigate the overall suitability of one of the first APP sources for wound treatment focusing on its potential antimicrobial effects. Method: The wound closure rate and the bacterial colonisation of the wounds were investigated. Patients suffering from chronic leg ulcers were treated in a clinical controlled monocentric trial with either APP or octenidine (OCT). In patients who presented with more than one ulceration in different locations, one was treated with APP and the other one with OCT. Each group was treated three times a week over a period of two weeks. The antimicrobial efficacy was evaluated immediately after and following two weeks of treatment. Results: Wounds treated with OCT showed a significantly higher microbial reduction (64%) compared to wounds treated with APP (47%) immediately after the treatment. Over two weeks of antiseptic treatment the bacterial density was reduced within the OCT group (-35%) compared to a slight increase in bacterial density in the APP-treated group (+12%). Clinically, there were no signs of delayed wound healing observed in either group and both treatments were well tolerated. Conclusion: The immediate antimicrobial effects of the APP prototype source were almost comparable to OCT without any signs of cytotoxicity. This pilot study is limited by current configurations of the plasma source, where the narrow plasma beam made it difficult to cover larger wound surface areas and in order to avoid untreated areas of the wound bed, smaller wounds were assigned to the APP-treatment group. This limits the significance of AAP-related effects on the wound healing dynamics, as smaller wounds tend to heal faster than larger wounds. However, clinical wound healing studies on a larger scale now seem justifiable. A more advanced plasma source prototype allowing the treatment of larger wounds will address APP's influence on healing dynamics, synergetic treatment with current antiseptics and effects on multiresistant bacteria.

Background Vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) is known as the major skin angiogenesis factor and can be produced by various resident skin cells including keratinocytes. Objectives To identify and characterize the role of VEGF-A in the pathogenesis of prurigo. Methods Expression of VEGF, VEGFR2, CD-31, and D2-40 was analyzed in the skin of eleven prurigo patients and seven healthy controls by immunohistochemistry. Results VEGF immunoreactivity (IR) was markedly increased in the epidermis, dermis and subcutis of prurigo patients, whereas expression of the main receptor for VEGF-A in the skin, VEGFR2, was comparable to that of healthy controls. The increased VEGF expression in the skin was associated with a marked increase in the number (12.8 ± 2.1 vs 5.6 ± 0.5, P < 0.05) but not in the size of blood vessels, as assessed by staining of the endothelial cell marker CD31. This increase in small blood vessels correlated closely with increases in the epidermal thickness in prurigo lesions. The number of lymphatic vessels as assessed by D2-40 staining was found to be similar in prurigo patients and healthy controls. Conclusions Based on these findings, we speculate that the observed profound vascular remodelling in prurigo might contribute to the pathogenesis of prurigo and the corresponding clinical symptoms and that targeting of VEGF may present a novel therapeutic strategy in the treatment of prurigo patients.

Verbrennungsmotoren werden weiterhin immer leiser; je leiser ein Motor aber insgesamt ist, desto eher treten einzelne Gerauschanteile storend hervor. Dies kann zum Beispiel das Nageln des Dieselmotors, das Tickern von Injektoren oder das Rasseln und Heulen von Zahnraderpaaren sein. Diese Storgerausche lassen sich kaum durch Angabe des Gerauschpegels beschreiben, vielmehr sind hier Grosen wie etwa die Impuls- oder Tonhaltigkeit relevant. Im Rahmen der hier vorgestellten Forschungsarbeiten wurden fur haufig beanstandete motorische Storgerausche Kennzahlen zur objektiven Bewertung erarbeitet. Diese Kennzahlen geben fur das jeweilige Storgerausch eine Note auf einer Skala von eins bis zehn an. Die Arbeiten wurden im Auftrag der FVV am Lehrstuhl fur Verbrennungskraftmaschinen (VKA) der RWTH Aachen durchgefuhrt.

Internal combustion engines are becoming ever more quiet. However, the more quiet an engine is overall, the more individual disturbing noise shares become conspicuous. These noise shares include diesel engine knocking, injector ticking or rattling and gear drive howling. The degree of annoyance of these disturbing noise shares cannot be adequately described by the noise level. To achieve an efficient evaluation of disturbing noise shares, acoustical characteristic values such as impulsiveness or tonality must be considered. In the research work described in this paper, characteristic values were developed for frequently complained about engine noises. These so called objective parameters rate the disturbing noises on a scale from 1 to 10. The work was carried out on behalf of the Forschungsvereinung Verbrennungskraftmaschinen e.V. (FVV) at the Institute for Internal Combustion Engines (VKA) of the Aachen University of Technology (RWTH Aachen).

Background. Patients with actinic cheilitis should be treated to prevent transformation into invasive squamous cell carcinoma. Treatment options comprise, for instance, destructive approaches, such as vermilionectomy and carbon dioxide laser ablation. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has demonstrated high efficacy in patients with epithelial skin cancers, but there is only one report on PDT with free d-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) and noncoherent light in the treatment of actinic cheilitis. Objective. We report the treatment of three patients with actinic cheilitis with PDT using the new photosensitizing agent methylaminolevulinate (methyl-5-amino-4-oxopenthanoate [MAOP]) combined with red light. Methods. MAOP was topically applied on the lower lip 3 hours before treatment with red light. Two consecutive treatments, 1 week apart, were administered. Clinical assessment was performed up to 13 months after the initial treatment. Results. A good clinical response with an excellent cosmetic outcome was observed in all three patients. Moderate to severe pain was associated with the application of the red light, and mild inflammation with edema of the lower lip occurred. Conclusion. This is the first use of PDT with MAOP and 634 mm wavelength red light in patients with actinic cheilitis. The clinical results demonstrate that PDT might be an alternative for patients who refuse surgical procedures. However, further studies are needed to compare the efficacy and cosmetic outcome with conventional treatment modalities.

Cutaneous melanoma is a common melanocytic neoplasm that can quickly metastasize to regional lymph nodes. Currently, prognosis is determined by measuring tumor thickness but more reliable markers for metastatic spread are urgently needed. We investigated whether the extent of tumor lymphangiogenesis can predict melanoma metastasis to sentinel lymph nodes. We quantified the extent of tumor lymphangiogenesis, as well as other factors, in excised primary tumors and in sentinel lymph node biopsy samples from 45 patients with primary cutaneous melanoma. The results were correlated with histological and clinical outcome. Primary melanomas from patients whose tumors had metastasized to the sentinel lymph nodes contained prominent 'hot spots' of increased lymphatic vessel density, compared to nonmetastatic tumors. Multivariate risk analysis revealed that the lymphatic vascular area of primary melanomas, an index of tumor lymphangiogenesis, was the most sensitive prognostic marker for sentinel lymph node metastasis, and was even able to more accurately predict which tumors were metastatic to sentinel lymph nodes than the currently used method of measuring tumor thickness. Highly lymphangiogenic melanomas maintained their lymphangiogenic activity after metastasis to the sentinel lymph node. The extent of tumor lymphangiogenesis is a highly sensitive (83%) and specific (89%) prognostic marker of lymph node metastasis. Assessment of lymphangiogenesis in primary melanomas may be a more effective approach than the currently used technique of measuring tumor thickness in selecting patients with early metastatic disease for aggressive therapy.

The suitability of the computer model MM5 for predicting wind speed, and hence wind energy, is investigated by performing simulations for different geographical regions. The focus is on wind speed in the lowest 200 m of the planetary boundary layer (PBL). The dependency of the simulated wind speed on PBL parameterization and atmospheric stability is studied. The smallest deviation between measured and simulated wind speed, averaged over a three-day period, is 1% and occurs for an off-shore simulation with unstable stratification. The largest deviations of 31% and 20% occur with orographically structured terrain, stable stratification and weak synoptic forcing. The results suggest that unstable conditions are simulated with better accuracy by MM5. Changes of the PBL scheme cause wind speed variations between 9% and 40% of the average wind speed. None of the PBL schemes is clearly the best and their performance can strongly vary for different conditions. Nevertheless, the Mellor-Yamada-Janjic (ETA) and the Blackadar PBL parameterization (BLK) schemes seem to be the most suitable schemes for wind energy applications. Additionally, MM5 was successfully adapted for idealised, stationary simulations in order to calculate a wind-climatology for Sardinia using a statistical-dynamical downscaling approach.

The wind speed profile in a coastal marine environment is investigated with observations from the measurement program Rodsand, where meteorological data are collected with a 50 m high mast in the Danish Baltic Sea, about 11 km from the coast. When compared with the standard Monin—Obukhov theory the measured wind speed increase between 10 m and 50 m height is found to be systematically larger than predicted for stable and near-neutral conditions. The data indicate that the deviation is smaller for short (10–20 km) distances to the coast than for larger (>30 km) distances.

Vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) expression is up-regulated in several inflammatory diseases including psoriasis, delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions, and rheumatoid arthritis. To directly characterize the biologic function of VEGF-A in inflammation, we evaluated experimental DTH reactions induced in the ear skin of transgenic mice that overexpress VEGF-A specifically in the epidermis. VEGF-A transgenic mice underwent a significantly increased inflammatory response that persisted for more than 1 month, whereas inflammation returned to baseline levels within 7 days in wild-type mice. Inflammatory lesions in VEGF-A transgenic mice closely resembled human psoriasis and were characterized by epidermal hyperplasia, impaired epidermal differentiation, and accumulation of dermal CD4+ T-lymphocytes and epidermal CD8+ lymphocytes. Surprisingly, VEGF-A also promoted lymphatic vessel proliferation and enlargement, which might contribute to the increased inflammatory response, as lymphatic vessel enlargement was also detected in human psoriatic skin lesions. Combined systemic treatment with blocking antibodies against VEGF receptor-1 (VEGFR-1) and VEGFR-2 potently inhibited inflammation and also decreased lymphatic vessel size. Together, these findings reveal a central role of VEGF-A in promoting lymphatic enlargement, vascular hyperpermeability, and leukocyte recruitment, thereby leading to persistent chronic inflammation. They also indicate that inhibition of VEGF-A bioactivity might be a new approach to anti-inflammatory therapy.

Basic problems arising in the growing use of the wind energy are discussed. We mainly focus on problems which are related to the turbulent character of the wind. The meaning of large and meso-scale atmospheric turbulence for the energy production is discussed. We show for the wind turbulence on small scales how statistics with anomalous probabilities arise, which can be set into the context of wind gusts. Furthermore, we discuss a new method to extract a stochastic process from given data which enables a new and more profound statistical description of the complexity of turbulence and turbulent wind fields.

ENDOW: Efficient Development of Offshore Windfarms: modelling wake and boundary-layer interactions

The wave age dependency of the nondimensional sea surface roughness (also called the Charnock parameter) is investigated with data from the new field measurement program at Rodsand in the Danish Baltic Sea. An increasing Charnock parameter with inverse wave age is found, which can be described by a power-law relation. Friction velocity is a common quantity in both the Charnock parameter and wave age. Thus self-correlation effects are unavoidable in the relation between them. The significance of self-correlation is investigated by employing an artificial “dataset” with randomized wave parameters. It is found that self-correlation severely influences the relation. For the Rodsand dataset the difference between real and randomized “data” was found to be within the measurement uncertainty. By using a small subset of the data it was found that the importance of self-correlation increases for a narrower range of wave age values. This supports the conclusion of Johnson et al. that because of the scatter and self-correlation problems the coefficients of the power-law relation can only be obtained from the analysis of an aggregated dataset with a wide wave age range combining measurements from several sites. The dependency between wave age and sea roughness has been discussed extensively in the literature with different and sometimes conflicting results. A wide range of coefficients has been found for the power-law relation between the Charnock parameter and wave age for different datasets. It is shown that self-correlation contributes to such differences, since it depends on the range of wave age values present in the datasets. Also, data are often selected for rough flow conditions with the Reynolds roughness number. It is shown that for datasets with large scatter this can lead to misleading results with regard to the relationship between wave age and Charnock parameter. Two different methods to overcome this problem are presented.

The wind farm layout program FLaP estimates the wind speed at any point in a wind farm and the power output of the turbines. The ambient flow conditions and the properties of the turbines and the farm are used as input. The core of the program is an axisymmetric wake model describing the wake behind one rotor. Here an approach based on the simplified Reynolds equation with eddy viscosity closure is chosen. The single-wake model is combined with a model for the vertical wind speed profile and a wind farm model, which takes care of the interaction of all wakes in a wind farm. The wake model has been extended to improve the description of wake development in offshore conditions, especially the low ambient turbulence and the effect of atmospheric stability. Model results are compared with measurements from the Danish offshore wind farm Vindeby. Vertical wake profiles and mean turbulence intensities in the wake are compared for single-, double- and quintuple-wake cases with different mean wind speed, turbulence intensity and atmospheric stability. It is found that within the measurement uncertainties the results of the wake model compare well with the measurements for the most important ambient conditions. The effect of the low turbulence intensity offshore on the wake development is modelled well for Vindeby wind farm. Deviations are found when atmospheric stability deviates from near-neutral conditions. For stable atmospheric conditions both the free vertical wind speed profile and the wake profile are not modelled satisfactorily. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis represents a promising new approach for the treatment of human cancers. It has remained unclear, however, whether inhibition of tumor angiogenesis may also result in impaired wound healing, a process thought to be angiogenesis dependent. To determine the effects of the angiogenesis inhibitor vasostatin, a 180 amino acid calreticulin fragment, on wound healing at tumor inhibiting doses, full-thickness wounds were generated on the back of nude mice that were also injected intradermally with CA46 Burkitt lymphoma cells. Mice were treated with daily injections of vasostatin or vehicle control at a site between the wounds and the transplanted tumor cells over 14 d. Vasostatin potently inhibited tumor growth and significantly reduced tumor angiogenesis, as measured by computer-assisted image analysis of CD31-stained tumor sections. Moreover, vasostatin treatment resulted in an increased fraction of mature tumor-associated blood vessels. In contrast, no impairment of wound healing was observed in vasostatin-treated mice, despite a significantly reduced vascularity of the wound granulation tissue. Our results reveal a different sensitivity of malignant tumor growth and physiologic wound healing to inhibition of angiogenesis, and they suggest that therapeutic inhibition of tumor angiogenesis may be achieved without impairment of tissue repair.

Gerard Schepers1, Rebecca Barthelmie2, Kostas Rados3, Bernhard Lange4 and Wolfgang Schlez5 1Energy Research Centre,Wind Energy, 1755 ZG Petten,The Netherlands. E-mail 2Wind Energy Dept., Riso National Laboratory, 40 0 0 Roskilde, Denmark 3The Robert Gordon University, School of Mechanical and Offshore Engineering,Aberdeen AB10 1FR, Scotland 4Dept. of Energy and Semiconductor Research EHF,University of Oldenburg,D-26111 Oldenburg,Germany 5Wolfgang Schlez, Garrad Hassan and Partners Ltd, Bristol BS2 0 QD, UK

The partners in the ENDOW (Efficient Development of Offshore Windfarms) project are validating, testing, designing and improving wind farm design tools for the efficient design of offshore wind farms. The different meteorological conditions offshore constitute a challenge for the current design tools and models because they have been developed and tested primarily for the design of land based wind farms. Measured downwind of turbines, wake-affected wind speed profiles at Vindeby offshore wind farm have been compared with the model predictions for single, double and quintuple wake cases. The modelling groups have based on these results adjusted their wake models for offshore wind farm design. This paper presents the data, model comparisons and the improvements to the models.

The objective of the ENDOW project is to evaluate, enhance and interface wake and boundary-layer models for utilisation in developing offshore windfarms. The model hierarchy will form the basis of design tools for use by wind energy developers and turbine manufacturers to optimise power output from offshore wind farms through minimised wake effects immediately downwind of wind turbines and optimal grid connections. The initial focus of the project was to use databases from existing offshore wind farms (Vindeby and Bockstigen) for the first comprehensive evaluation of offshore wake model performances. The six wake models vary in complexity from empirical solutions to the most advanced models based on solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations using eddy viscosity or k-epsilon turbulence closure. One of the wake models is also being coupled with a full aeroelastic model for the calculation of wind loads on the turbines. Parallel research includes comparison of a local-scale stability/roughness model with a mesoscale model focusing on boundary-layer development within and over a large offshore wind farm, and particularly the influence of large scale thermal flows. A new experiment was conducted using SODAR immediately downwind of offshore wind turbines to examine vertical wind speed profiles to hub-height and beyond in near-wake conditions and wake dispersion to assist in model development and evaluation.

The increasing interest in harvesting offshore wind energy requires reliable tools for the wind resource estimation at these sites. Most commonly used for wind resource predictions on land as well as offshore is the WAsP program. It has been validated extensively for sites on land and at the coast. However, due to the lack of suitable measurements there is still a need for further validation for offshore sites. Data from ongoing measurements at prospective wind farm sites in the Danish Baltic Sea region are available now. The wind resources estimated from these measurements are compared to WAsP-predictions. They agree well. The only deviation found is for two sites, which are located at about the same distance, but on different sides of the island Lolland. Here the measurements show a difference in the wind resources, which is not predicted by WAsP. A direction-dependent comparison explains this deviation. Wind speed ratios of several pairs of stations are modeled with WAsP for 12 directional sectors and compared with the measurements. Deviations in the directional wind speed predictions were found to correspond with the length of the sea fetch: For smaller sea fetches WAsP seems to slightly over-predict the wind speed, while for long fetches of more than 30 km an under-prediction is found. An analysis of the vertical wind speed profiles at three sites indicates that a combination of different effects is responsible for the correlation between sea fetch and model behavior. Effects of atmospheric stability as well as a fetch dependent sea surface roughness have to be taken into account.

Potential antimicrobial effects of sequential applications of tissue-tolerable plasma (TTP) and the conventional liquid antiseptic octenidine dihydrochloride (ODC) were investigated. 34 patients with chronic leg ulcers were treated with TTP, ODC or a combination of both. The bacterial colonization was measured semi-quantitatively before and immediately after treatment and changes in the microbial strains' compositions before and after antiseptic treatments were analyzed. All antiseptic procedures reduced the bacterial counts significantly. The sequential application of TTP and ODC displayed the highest antimicrobial efficacy. Me combined use of TTP and conventional antiseptics might represent the most efficient strategy for antiseptic treatment of chronic wounds.

In 2002, the German government set the target of reaching 20 to 25 GW of offshore wind power capacity installed in German waters by 2030. With financial support from the Federal Government, the trans-disciplinary research initiative RAVE (Research at Alpha VEntus) was set up to accompany the construction and operation of alpha ventus, Germany’s first offshore windfarm, with research, development and demonstration activities. Over 30 individual projects conducted by over 50 partners from academia and industry focus on foundations and support structures, turbine technology and monitoring, environmental research including health and safety, and grid integration. Summarizing the initiative’s achievements, it can be said that RAVE has been extremely successful.

The skin is not only the largest organ of the human body but also represents a barrier to the environment, protecting our body from water loss, penetration of environmental pollutants and microorganisms [1–3]. The skin has also a social function, as people frequently associate success in their private and professional lives with young-looking, smooth skin [4]. Therefore, not only medical but also cosmetic aspects are to be considered in skin treatment. While topically applied medical products must penetrate through the skin barrier in order to become effective in the living cells, cosmetic products do not necessarily induce any medical effects [5]. In most cases, these products remain on the skin surface or in the upper corneal layers in order to protect the skin (e.g., sunscreens) or to stabilise the dermal barrier (e.g., skin protection creams or lotions). Sometimes, in particular with respect to anti-aging creams, it is difficult to distinguish medical from cosmetic products.

During the past decades, encouraging progress has been made in the prevention of surgical site infections (SSI). However, as SSI still occur today, strategic prevention measures such as standardized skin antisepsis must be implemented and rigorously promoted. Recent discoveries in skin physiology necessitate the development of novel antiseptic agents and procedures in order to ameliorate their efficacy. In particular, alternate target structures in the skin need to be taken into consideration for the development of the next generation of antiseptics. Recent investigations have shown that a high number of microorganisms are located within and in the close vicinity of the hair follicles. This suggests that these structures are an important reservoir of bacterial growth and activity in human skin. To date, it has not been fully elucidated to what extent conventional liquid antiseptics sufficiently target the hair follicle-related microbial population. Modern technologies such as tissue-tolerable plasma (TTP) have been tested for their potential antiseptic efficiency by reducing the bacterial load in the skin and in the hair follicles. First experiments using liposomes to deliver antiseptics into the hair follicles have been evaluated for their potential clinical application. The present review evaluates these two innovative methods for their efficacy and applicability in preoperative skin antiseptics.

Background/Aims: The palmoplantar erythrodysaesthesia (PPE) is an inflammatory cutaneous side effect in patients under chemotherapy with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD), with indications that also other chemotherapeutics induce similar side effects. Recently, it has been demonstrated that PLD escapes with the sweat onto the skin inducing radical-forming processes that damage the skin. The topical application of antioxidants with a high radical protection factor has proven to be a very efficient prevention strategy for PLD-treated patients. Methods: 68 patients, who had been treated with 12 different chemotherapeutics and experienced side effects similar to PPE, were treated with a meanwhile commercially available ointment. Results: At the beginning of the therapy, 46 patients suffered from a PPE of severity grade III, while in 22 patients a PPE of severity grade II was diagnosed. The application of the ointment resulted in a significant improvement of the clinical symptoms and the skin status in all these patients; their chemotherapies could be continued. Conclusion: The obtained results suggest that radical-forming processes play an essential role in a great number of chemotherapeutics which induce dermal side effects. The topical application of the antioxidant-containing ointment proved to be a good therapeutic option which needs further evaluation.

SPECIFIC AIMSIn surgical wounds, lymphatic vessel regeneration occurs about 1 wk after blood vascular regeneration; the reasons that repair-associated lymphangiogenesis occurs after angiogenesis are unknown. This study was performed to investigate the role of vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A)—generally considered to be a blood vessel-specific angiogenesis factor—in lymphatic regeneration. The specific aims were to determine whether VEGF-A promotes repair-associated lymphangiogenesis and whether this involves up-regulation of distinct integrin receptors on lymphatic endothelium. Using a transgenic model for targeted overexpression of VEGF-A and systemic inhibition of VEGF signaling, our studies identify VEGF-A as a potent lymphangiogenesis factor and reveal that the lymphangiogenic activity of VEGF-A is mediated through the VEGFR-2. They identify a novel molecular mechanism by which VEGF-A, through up-regulation of the α1 and the α2 integrins, promotes lymphatic endothelial cell migration in vi...

The efficacy of topically applied drugs is determined by their action mechanism and their potential capacity of passing the skin barrier. Nanoparticles are assumed to be efficient carrier systems for drug delivery through the skin barrier. For flexible nanoparticles like liposomes, this effect has been well demonstrated. The penetration properties of solid nanoparticles are currently under intensive investigation. The crucial advantage of nanoparticles over non-particulate substances is their capability to penetrate deeply into the hair follicles where they can be stored for several days. There is no evidence, yet, that solid particles ≥40 nm are capable of passing through the healthy skin barrier. Therefore and in spite of the long-standing research efforts in this field, commercially available solid nanoparticle-based products for drug delivery through the healthy skin are still missing. Nevertheless, the prospects for the clinical use of nanoparticles in drug delivery are tremendous. They can be designed as transport systems delivering drugs efficiently into the hair follicles in the vicinity of specific target structures. Once deposited at these structures, specific signals might trigger the release of the drugs and exert their effects on the target cells. In this article, examples of such triggered drug release are presented.

Prurigo is a difficult to treat condition characterized by severe pruritus presenting with chronic secondary scratch lesions. We report here a dramatic improvement in pruritus in a patient with prurigo simplex who was being treated with bevacizumab, a monoclonal vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibody. On the basis of the increased VEGF expression measured in the skin of this patient, serum levels of VEGF were subsequently analysed in 27 consecutive patients with prurigo and 19 healthy controls. VEGF levels were significantly increased in the serum of patients with prurigo. Moreover, VEGF concentrations correlated with physician-assessed disease activity. Based on these observations, we speculate that VEGF is involved in the pathophysiology of prurigo.

There is a high demand for noninvasive imaging techniques for wound assessment. In vivo reflectance confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) represents an innovative optical technique for noninvasive evaluation of normal and diseased skin in vivo at near cellular resolution. This study was designed to test the feasibility of CLSM for noninvasive analysis of cutaneous wound healing in 15 patients (7 male/8 female), including acute and chronic, superficial and deep dermal skin wounds. A commercially available CLSM system was used for the assessment of wound bed and wound margins in order to obtain descriptive cellular and morphological parameters of cutaneous wound repair noninvasively and over time. CLSM was able to visualize features of cutaneous wound repair in epidermal and superficial dermal wounds, including aspects of inflammation, neovascularisation, and tissue remodelling in vivo. Limitations include the lack of mechanic fixation of the optical system on moist surfaces restricting the analysis of chronic skin wounds to the wound margins, as well as a limited optical resolution in areas of significant slough formation. By describing CLSM features of cutaneous inflammation, vascularisation, and epithelialisation, the findings of this study support the role of CLSM in modern wound research and management.

In this study, we compared the UV-protective abilities of the europium complex compared to titanium dioxide, which represents the most common physical filter for ultraviolet light in the broad-band spectral range. The UV absorption and light transformative capacities of the europium complex were evaluated using a spectrometer with a double-integrating sphere showing that the europium complex does not only absorb and reflect UV light, but transforms it into red and infrared light. It was found that the europium complex binds to the surface of Jurkat cells in vitro. Cells incubated with the europium complex showed a significantly higher viability after UVA and UVB irradiation as compared to untreated cells and cells incubated with titanium dioxide pointing out its photoprotective properties. The europium complex and titanium dioxide show similar penetration capacities into the stratum corneum as tested in human and porcine skin using tape stripping analysis. The europium complex has proved to be an efficient UV filter with a low cyto- and phototoxic profile and therefore represents a potential candidate for use in sunscreen formulations.

This article highlights and demonstrates the new requirements variable and partly unpredictable wind power will bring to unit commitment and power system operations. Current practice is described and contrasted against the new requirements. Literature specifically addressing questions about wind power and unit commitment related power system operations is surveyed. The scope includes forecast errors, operating reserves, intra-day markets, and sharing reserves across interconnections. The discussion covers the critical issues arising from the research.

The dynamic process of wound healing is routinely evaluated by clinical or histological evaluation. Recently, a number of non-invasive imaging techniques have been evaluated for their clinical applicability in dermatology. Among them, reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) represents a non-invasive imaging technique that allows the in vivo characterization of the skin at near-histological resolution. The aim of this study was to monitor epidermal wound repair using RCM in a model of tissue damage induced by cryosurgery. For this purpose, contact cryosurgery was performed at -32 °C for 10 seconds on the volar forearm of five healthy volunteers. Clinical and RCM evaluations were performed at nine consecutive time points. RCM allowed the visualization of edema formation and blood vessel dilatation immediately after cryosurgery, as well as morphologic features of wound repair, including the formation of finger-like protusions of keratinocytes into the wound bed, the appearance of hairpin-like vessels, and inflammatory cells. This pilot study illustrates that RCM represents a promising technique for quasi-real-time monitoring the kinetics of wound repair non-invasively and over time, thus offering new insights into in vivo processes of cutaneous wound repair and angiogenesis, as well as potential effects of topically applied drugs on the process of tissue repair.

The power systems in Denmark, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, and Germany have some of the highest wind penetrations in the world, as shown in the paper. In this article, the situations of five countries with high wind penetration are briefly presented, with special emphasis given to their future needs with respect to accommodating targeted wind power amounts. The final section provides an overview of offshore grid developments and plans in Europe.

Previous studies over recent years have revealed the presence of a resident bacterial population in the human skin throughout the entire body. However, the localization and composition of the bacteria within the epidermis and the skin appendages have not been fully investigated. Using differential tape stripping, cyanoacrylate skin surface biopsies and mapping of hair follicles, bacteria on the forearms of study participants were isolated, mapped, cultured and identified with respect to their origin within the epidermis and the hair follicles. Our studies showed that 85% of the bacteria were found within the first 6 corneocyte layers and roughly 25% of the cutaneous bacterial population were localized within the hair follicles. The microbial flora of the skin between individuals is subject to considerable fluctuations. Micrococcaceae represent the biggest fraction of hair-follicle-associated bacteria. The techniques developed for this study allowed us to selectively investigate the bacterial population within the hair follicles. Our results point out the role of skin appendages as potential microbial reservoirs and the need to develop new antiseptic formulations that sufficiently penetrate into the hair follicles.

Epidermal wound healing is a complex and dy- namic regenerative process necessary to reestablish skin integrity. Fluorescence confocal laser scanning micros- copy FLSM is a noninvasive imaging technique that has previously been used for evaluation of inflammatory and neoplastic skin disorders in vivo and at high resolution. We employed FLSM to investigate the evolution of epider- mal wound healing noninvasively over time and in vivo. Two suction blisters were induced on the volar forearms of the study participants, followed by removal of the epider- mis. To study the impact of wound ointment on the pro- cess of reepithelization, test sites were divided into two groups, of which one test site was left untreated as a nega- tive control. FLSM was used for serial/consecutive evalu- ations up to 8 days. FLSM was able to visualize the devel- opment of thin keratinocyte layers developing near the wound edge and around hair follicles until the entire epi- dermis has been reestablished. Wounds treated with the wound ointment were found to heal significantly faster than untreated wounds. This technique allows monitoring of the kinetics of wound healing noninvasively and over time, while offering new insights into the potential effects of topically applied drugs on the process of tissue repair. ©

Summary Background UV radiation (UVR) represents the main risk factor for skin cancer. Sunscreens are commonly used to prevent acute and chronic effects of UVR. The efficacy of sunscreens is currently determined by measurement of minimal erythema dose. Reflectance confocal microscopy represents a non-invasive imaging technique that allows the in- vivo characterization of the skin at near histological resolution. Objective The aim of this study was to compare standardized clinical and histological features of UV-exposure with morphological changes detected by RCM. Results RCM allowed the detection of morphological changes induced by UV including spongiosis, sunburn cells, micro-vesicles and blood vessel dilatation. The appearance of sunburn cells and micro-vesicles was depending on the dose of UV-B and on the individual susceptibility of the study participants. Conclusion RCM seems to be beneficial for the non-invasive evaluation of dynamic changes following acute UV exposure. Similar to histopathology RCM allows the characterization of sunburn cells and micro-vesicle formation as a sign for acute photo damage. RCM may therefore be used for classification of sunburn reaction and to test the efficacy of sunscreens on a cellular level.

International audience

Wind farms built at offshore locations are likely to become an important part of the electricity supply of the future. For an efficient development of this energy source, in depth knowledge about the wind conditions at such locations is therefore crucial. Offshore wind power meteorology aims to provide this knowledge. This paper describes its scope and argues why it is needed for the efficient development of offshore wind power.

International audience; This paper describes a new project trying to harmonise approaches to wave and wind modelling offshore, helping the short-term forecasting and wake research communities by establishing virtual laboratories, offering specialised workshops, and setting up expert groups with large outreach in the mentioned fields. Currently, a good number of research projects is underway on the European and national level in the fields of short-term forecasting of wind power, offshore wind and wave resource prediction, and offshore wakes in large wind farms. The leaders of those research projects are assuming the function of a multiplier towards the larger research and user community. In the fields of short-term forecasting and offshore energy resource, Expert Groups will be formed to act as the central focus point for external stakeholders. The liaison with other groups will also include groups outside of Europe. To facilitate the spread of knowledge, a number of workshops is planned. One of them took place just before this conference on the topic of best practice in the use of short-term forecastingsystems, where utilities with a combined experience of over 50 years and a combined wind power installation of over 30 GW could share their experiences and views on the best use of those systems. A preliminary overview of the resulting best practice guide will be given. One issue hampering the progress in our fields is the difficulty of getting access to good data. In most cases, data on offshore wind or power is strictly confidential, and also data on onshore wind power, especially in conjunction with numerical weather predictions, is not easy to come by. One example of a good testing procedure comes from the Anemos project, where in all 6 test cases were defined, to be run by all involved institutes. This idea is taken to the next level with the set-up of two Virtual Laboratories, one for offshore wake modelling, the other one for short-term forecasting. Both laboratories will be well-defined and maybe already open for business by the time of the workshop.