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The authors describe the incidence and mortality rates of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related female cancers in Umbria (Italy) in the pre-vaccination period from 1978-2008. Joinpoint regression was applied on age-adjusted incidence and mortality rates to evaluate temporal trends. Mouth and pharynx cancers incidence and mortality trends decreased about three percent per year. For anus and anal canal cancer, incidence and mortality trends presented a non-significant decrease. For malignant neoplasm of vulva, a significant change was found in incidence trend: the annual percentage change decreased from 2001 (- 1.8%). Mortality trend showed a non-significant decrease. Incidence and mortality rates from vaginal cancer were non-significantly decreased. For malignant neoplasm of cervix uteri, incidence rates showed a significant decrease by 2.1% per year. Mortality rates decreased as well, although non-significantly. HPV-related cancers consistently decreased in Umbria. This trend may be a consequence of safer sexual behavior. For cervical cancer, a combination of opportunistic and programmed screening led to a much-reduced disease burden. It is expected that the implementation of vaccination in the future will lead to a further decrease of HPV-related cancer incidence and mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fire characteristics in tropical ecosystems are poorly documented quantitatively in the literature. This paper describes an understorey fire propagating across the edges of a biomass burn of a cleared primary forest. The experiment was carried out in 2001 in the Amazon forest near Alta Floresta, state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, as part of biomass burning experiments conducted in the same area since 1997. The vegetation of a 200×200-m² forested area was clear-cut in early June and burned in late August. The understorey fire that escaped from the main burn was monitored across the four sides of the land clearing area. Flame-front spread varied between 0.14 and 0.35 m min -1. Maximum flame height was about 30 cm and typical flame depth was 10 to 15 cm. Tree mortality was investigated in 2003 in four areas adjacent to the biomass burning experiment. A total of 210 trees were counted in the four areas, 29.5% were dead as a consequence of the understorey fire that had occurred 2 years before. This fire-caused mortality is evidence of the synergistic effect betweenslash burning, tree mortality and future fire vulnerability on the forest-land clearing interfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the carbon dynamics in north western Portugal. The study was implemented in sampling plots from the National Forest Inventory 2006 for the parameterization and validation of the process level ecosystem model FOREST-Bio Geochemical Cycles (BGC). It says that Trá-os-Montes area is divided into climatic zones such as Hot Zone, Transition Zone, and Cold Zone. It reveals that precipitation variation has a bigger impact in the Cold Zone than temperature change.

The article presents a study that shows the function of large-scale eddies in the happening of winter precipitation deficits in Portugal. The severest winter precipitation shortages in Portugal due from an improvement in the stationary wave pattern of the atmospheric big-scale circulation over the Northern Hemisphere. The enhancement results to a strong warm-core elevation westward of Iberia, with almost equivalent baroteopihc structure.

Objective: To compare the cardiovascular responses to passive postural maneuvers (tilt test) and the cardiorespiratory capacity in middle-aged men and women, before and after aerobic physical training. Methods: Seven men (44.6±2.1 years old) and seven women (51.7±4.8 years old) participated in aerobic physical training for 12 weeks. The tilt test protocol (five minutes supine, ten minutes tilted at 70° and five minutes supine) was followed, with arterial blood pressure and heart rate monitoring. A cycle ergometer protocol was used to measure cardiorespiratory capacity. Results: In the sedentary condition, men showed greater parasympathetic influence in heart rate control, as demonstrated by their higher RR interval (iRR) during the tilt test. After training, the iRR values became more similar in the two groups, although the women had higher iRR in the supine position and the men continued to present higher iRR under tilted conditions. The women's blood pressures continued to be higher after training, but heart rate tended to become similar in the two groups. The cardiorespiratory capacity patterns in the two groups were similar after training. Except for absolute heart rate values, for which there were no differences between the groups, the men's values were higher than those of the women for all other variables. It was also observed that, after the training, the women's blood pressures were significantly lower, even though their pressures remained higher than the men's. Conclusions: The training seemed to reduce the women's arterial blood pressure levels and improve both groups' cardiorespiratory capacity, but the men continued to present better performance than the women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the study was to evaluate the frequency and clinical characteristics of ocular complications and their risk factors, as well as autologous serum tears (AST) for the treatment of dry eye in these patients. Data from the files of 124 patients who had undergone allogeneic haematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation (HPCT) were evaluated. In addition, 33 HPCT patients were examined and their data were compared with controls. Analysis of tears and AST was performed. Dry eye manifestation occurred in 32% of patients and was positively correlated with age over 27 years (P=0.05), peripheral blood progenitor cell transplant (P=0.002), chronic graft-versus-host disease (P=0.0027), and chronic or acute myeloid leukaemia (P=0.001). Dry mouth and Schirmer test <5 mm were predictive factors for dry eye in HPCT patients (P=0.002 and odds ratio 3.9 and P=0.007, odds ratio=5.9, respectively). Microbiological analysis revealed that six of 11 AST samples were contaminated after 30 days of use. The present study supports the role of potential risk factors for ocular complications and key elements to detect alterations in the tear film from HPCT patients. In addition, AST contamination must be considered after longer periods of use.Bone Marrow Transplantation (2006) 38, 223–227. doi:10.1038/sj.bmt.1705426; published online 19 June 2006 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waste biomass Sargassum sp. biosorbed 100% of Cd2+ and 99.4% of Zn2+ from a 3 and 98 mg l-1 solution (pH 4.5), respectively, at the end of four serial experiments. Of the five desorbents studied in consecutive adsorption/desorption cycles, CaCl2 0.05 M eluted nearly 40% of both metals and decreased the biosorption in only 8% and 17% of Cd2+ and Zn2+, respectively. Although NaOH desorbent improved the heavy metal uptake from the second cycle onwards, it did not elute metals from the pre-loaded biomass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]