Using atomic absorption spectrometry the aluminium concentrations in blood and urine and in two iliac bone biopsies obtained from welders with long term exposure to fumes containing aluminium were measured. The urinary excretion of two workers who had welded for 20 and 21 years varied between 107 and 351 micrograms Al/l, more than 10 times the concentration found in persons without occupational...

BACKGROUND Aluminium is considered a bone toxic metal since poisoning can lead to aluminium-induced bone disease in patients with chronic renal failure. Healthy subjects with normal renal function retain 4% of the aluminium consumed. They might thus also accumulate aluminium and eventually be at risk of long-term low-grade aluminium intoxication that can affect bone health. METHODS We therefo...

The investigation of the toxic effects and the uptake of aluminium by Escherichia coli in growth medium (GM) and in physiological solution (PS) have been studied. The toxicity was quantitatively determined according to the decrease of the colony forming units (CFU) in the physiological solution, that is its growth inhibition in the growth medium, vs. the aluminium concentration and incubation t...

The genetic predispositions which describe a diagnosis of familial Alzheimer's disease can be considered as cornerstones of the amyloid cascade hypothesis. Essentially they place the expression and metabolism of the amyloid precursor protein as the main tenet of disease aetiology. However, we do not know the cause of Alzheimer's disease and environmental factors may yet be shown to contribute t...

BACKGROUND Recent research published in this journal highlighted the issue of the high content of aluminium in infant formulas. The expectation was that the findings would serve as a catalyst for manufacturers to address a significant problem of these, often necessary, components of infant nutrition. It is critically important that parents and other users have confidence in the safety of infant...

The usage of powder metallurgy aluminium compacts in lieu of ferrous components in automotives helps to lower vehicle weight. The major drawback in the commercially available press sintered aluminium alloy is porosity which is mainly dependent on the powder metallurgical process parameters such as compaction pressure, sintering temperature and cooling rate after sintering. In this paper the eff...

BACKGROUND There is a continuing need for non-aluminium and non-calcium-containing oral phosphate binders. A novel product, i.e. stabilized polynuclear iron hydroxide, has experimentally been shown to be an effective phosphate binder. The purpose of the study was to test the efficacy and tolerability of the compound in hyperphosphataemic patients with stable preterminal renal failure. METHODS...