The effects of mono- and dibutyl phthalate and mono- and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate on energy-dependent K+ uptake, respiration rates, and succinate cytochrome c reductase activities of isolated rat liver mitochondria were evaluated. The energy-coupling processes, active K+ transport and oxidative phosphorylation, were affected most by di-n-butyl phthalate and mono(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate. Mono-...

Methoxychlor, a currently used pesticide, is a proestrogen exhibiting estrogenic activity in mammals in vivo. Methoxychlor undergoes oxidative metabolism by cytochromes P450, yielding 1,1,1-trichloro-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)ethane (mono-OH-M) and 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethane (bis-OH-M) as main metabolites. Since humans may be exposed to these estrogenic metaboli...

Recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) and its PEGylated product "mono-PEG20-GCSF" have already been widely used for treatment of all kinds of neutropenia. However, the high required dosage of mono-PEG20-GCSF made it relatively expensive in clinical use. We postulated that an N-terminal site-specific PEGylated rhG-CSF with higher PEG Mw (PEG30 kDa) might be able to ac...

Upright radiotherapy is not new. It has been practiced for specialized treatments such as boron neutron capture therapy, light ion and even photon therapy before isocentric C-arm gantries became standardized more than 60 years ago. Today, treatment planning relies on CT and/or MRI systems which were typically designed only recumbent positioning, however, lately scanners that can scan patients i...

BACKGROUND Isoniazid and rifampicin are the two most efficacious first-line agents for tuberculosis (TB) treatment. We assessed the prevalence of isoniazid and rifampicin mono-resistance, associated risk factors, and the association of mono-resistance on treatment outcomes. METHODS A prospective, observational cohort study enrolled adults with a first episode of smear-positive pulmonary TB fr...

This paper is concerned with the calibration of the intrinsic and extrinsic parameters of a X-ray angiographic system for 3D reconstruction of coronary vessel centerlines. We discuss whether the isocentric model is an accurate model for the movement of the C-arm, and analyse the assumptions made by this model. We propose a methodology which takes into account these facts and we propose for each...

The National Accelerator Centre (NAC) is the only particle therapy facility in the Southern Hemisphere and the only one in the world where both high energy neutrons and high energy protons are used for patient treatment. Routine treatment began on the p( 66)/Be isocentric neutron therapy unit in 1989 and 764 patients had been treated in a variety of clinical protocols up to September 1995. The ...