Response of Mycobacterium habana vaccine in patients with lepromatous leprosy and their household contacts. A pilot clinical study.

Single dose vaccination was carried out with Mycobacterium habana vaccine, 31 lepromatous leprosy cases receiving 1.5 mg (1.5 mg = 6.27 x 10(8) bacilli) and 36 household contacts randomly receiving 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 mg vaccine intradermally. Duration of study was 18 weeks. Vaccination induced lepromin conversion in 100% of lepromatous leprosy cases and lepromin negative household contacts and augmentation of lepromin reactivity in 100% of lepromin positive household contacts, which was stable for the 15 weeks duration of follow-up. The maximum augmentation in lepromin reactivity was obtained with 1.5 mg of vaccine, which is probably the supramaximal dose. Overall, post-vaccination, those without prior BCG vaccination scars showed higher mean values of lepromin augmentation. Local vaccination site changes included induration, ulceration, itching, pain and uncomplicated regional lymphadenopathy, all of which remitted spontaneously by 15 weeks. Systemic side-effects noted were pyrexia, ENL and jaundice, and were seen with no greater frequency than that reported in other vaccine trials. Overall, systemic side-effects were easily controlled and were not accompanied by clinically detectable nerve or ocular damage. The safety profile investigations revealed an increase in the mean values of Hb%, RBC count and PCV in household contacts and of PCV in lepromatous patients, post-vaccination. Alterations in the liver function tests were also observed in patients of lepromatous leprosy. Thus, M. habana vaccine appears to be useful in stimulating specific CMI against M. leprae as evidenced by increased lepromin reactivity.

Analysis of weighted fan-out/fan-in volume holographic optical interconnections.

The feasibility of employing volume holographic techniques for the implementation of highly multiplexed weighted fan-out/fan-in interconnections is analyzed on the basis of interconnection fidelity, optical throughput, and complexity of recording schedule or implementation hardware. These feasibility criteria were quantitatively evaluated using the optical beam propagation method to numerically simulate the diffraction characteristics of volume holographic interconnections recorded in a linear holographic material. We find that conventional interconnection architectures (that are based on a single coherent optical source) exhibit a direct trade-off between interconnection fidelity and optical throughput on the one hand, and recording schedule or hardware complexity on the other. In order to circumvent this trade-off we describe and analyze in detail an incoherent/coherent double angularly multiplexed interconnection architecture that is based on the use of multiple-source array of individually coherent but mutually incoherent sources. This architecture either minimizes or avoids several key sources of cross talk, permits simultaneous recording of interconnection weights or weight updates, and provides enhanced fidelity, interchannel isolation, and thróughput performance.