A comparison between atmospheric/humidity and vacuum cyanoacrylate fuming of latent fingermarks.

A number of pseudo-operational trials were set up to compare the atmospheric/humidity and vacuum cyanoacrylate fuming processes on plastic carrier bags. The fuming processes were compared using two-step cyanoacrylate fuming with basic yellow 40 (BY40) staining and a one-step fluorescent cyanoacrylate fuming, Lumicyano 4%. Preliminary work using planted fingermarks and split depletions were performed to identify the optimum vacuum fuming conditions. The first pseudo-operational trial compared the different fuming conditions (atmospheric/humidity vs. vacuum) for the two-step process where an additional 50% more marks were detected with the atmospheric/humidity process. None of the marks by the vacuum process could be observed visually; however, a significant number of marks were detected by fluorescence after BY40 staining. The second trial repeated the same work in trial 1 using the one-step cyanoacrylate process, Lumicyano at a concentration of 4%. Trial 2 provided comparable results to trial 1 and all the items were then re-treated with Lumicyano 4% at atmospheric/humidity conditions before dyeing with BY40 to provide the sequences of process A (Lumicyano 4% atmospheric-Lumicyano 4% atmospheric-BY40) and process B (Lumicyano 4% vacuum-Lumicyano 4% atmospheric-BY40). The number of marks (visual and fluorescent) was counted after each treatment with a substantial increase in the number of detected marks in the second and third treatments of the process. The increased detection rate after the double Lumicyano process was unexpected and may have important implications. Trial 3 was performed to investigate whether the amount of cyanoacrylate and/or fuming time had an impact on the results observed in trial 2 whereas trial 4 assessed if the double process using conventional cyanoacrylate, rather than Lumicyano 4%, provided an increased detection rate. Trials 3 and 4 confirmed that doubling the amount of Lumicyano 4% cyanoacrylate and fuming time produced a lower detection rate than the double process with Lumicyano 4%. Furthermore, the double process with conventional cyanoacrylate did not provide any benefit. Scanning electron microscopy was also performed to investigate the morphology of the cyanoacrylate polymer under different conditions. The atmospheric/humidity process appears to be superior to the vacuum process for both the two-step and one-step cyanoacrylate fuming, although the two-step process performed better in comparison to the one-step process under vacuum conditions. Nonetheless, the use of vacuum cyanoacrylate fuming may have certain operational advantages and its use does not adversely affect subsequent cyanoacrylate fuming with atmospheric/humidity conditions.

Indicadores do Programa da Mulher do Serviço de Saúde Comunitária e as lições de uma tentativa de ensaio clínico randomizado para avaliar proposta de melhoria da captação de mulheres para realização de exame citopatológico do colo uterino

O trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar se uma intervenção breve baseada na entrevista motivacional realizada por agentes comunitários de saúde resulta em uma maior captação de mulheres que nunca realizaram o exame citopatológico do colo uterino para realização do mesmo, em comparação com a entrega de material informativo pelos mesmos agentes comunitários de saúde. Além disso teve como objetivo melhorar a qualidade do indicador relativo às mulheres que realizam CP na área de abrangência da Unidade de Saúde Barão de Bagé, em Porto Alegre.

Autoimmune diseases: Solution of the environmental, immunological and genetic components with principles for immunotherapy and transplantation.

Autoimmune diseases have environmental and genetic components. These are the microbial trigger, the immunity system component and the genetic component. Here we describe these components and how they interact. Known microbial triggers are Streptococcus pyogenes for rheumatic carditis, Proteus mirabilis for rheumatoid arthritis and Klebsiella pneumoniae for ankylosing spondylitis. The immunity system component has been clarified by realisation that no autoimmune disease is caused by loss of suppressor T cells. This leaves Burnet's forbidden clones, clearly seen in Graves' disease, as the immunological defect. With wide scope for clonal diversification by somatic gene mutations, to prevent frequent autoimmunity the immunity system is policed by the histocompatibility system. This dictates the immune response repertoire by deleting complementary clones (H Gene Theory). We show molecular evidence of how specific histocompatibility antigens can predispose to an autoimmune disease by influencing choice of the microbial antigen to which the immunity system reacts. Because of the unlucky random element in the somatic mutations involved in their development, forbidden clones are unlikely to reappear in new immune repertoires developing after immune ablation and autologous bone marrow cell reconstitution, as observed clinically. Isolation of autoantigens and their attachment to cytotoxic moieties could provide specific immunotherapy for autoimmune diseases. Kaplans's discovery that xenografts can be accepted without rejection after immune ablation followed by autologous and xenogeneic bone marrow inoculation, could enable widespread use of pig grafts for humans.

Autoimmune destruction of pericytes as the cause of diabetic retinopathy.

In diabetic retinopathy, collapse of the retinal vasculature is associated with loss of the pericytes. These are contractile cells that together with endothelial cells form the terminal arterioles of the retina. The cause of the loss of pericytes is not known. Recently, it has been discovered that type 1 diabetes is caused by forbidden clones of cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which destroy the insulin-making cells with exquisite specificity. In the light of this, I postulate that an antigenically-related forbidden clone of cytotoxic T lymphocytes selectively destroys the pericytes and that this is the cause of the vascular collapse of diabetic retinopathy. If this is so, the therapeutic implications are immense, involving a switch from ineffectual tight glycemic control to immunotherapy. This is already used as immunosuppression to prevent organ transplant rejection, and as the immune ablation and autologous bone marrow cell reconstitution that has saved the lives of patients with lethally-severe scleroderma. Once the pericyte surface auto-antigen for the T lymphocytes has been isolated, selective destruction of the pathogenic T lymphocytes would be possible by manufacture and use of cytotoxic auto-antigen complexes, which arrests progression of the retinopathy.