Runaway electron imaging spectrometry (REIS) system.

A portable Runaway Electron Imaging and Spectrometry System (REIS) was developed in ENEA-Frascati to measure synchrotron radiation spectra from in-flight runaway electrons in tokamaks. The REIS is a wide-angle optical system collecting simultaneously visible and infrared emission spectra using an incoherent bundle of fibers, in a spectral range that spans from 500 nm to 2500 nm, and visible images using a CCD color microcamera at a rate of 25 frames/s. The REIS system is supervised and managed using a dedicated LabVIEW program to acquire data simultaneously from three spectrometers every 20 ms (configurable down to 10 ms). An overview of the REIS architecture and acquisition system and resulting experimental data obtained in FTU are presented and discussed in this paper.

Note: Simultaneous electrical and optical detection of expanding dense partially ionized vapour clouds.

The scheme and construction of an electro-optical probe able to collect charge and detect optical emission from expanding dense partially ionized vapour clouds are reported. The instrument can be applied to phenomena such as dust impact ionization and solid target laser ablation. First, results of measurements of expanding plasma cloud formed upon ablating W target are presented. Use of the instrument in different experimental facilities, including tokamak, is discussed.

Effects of enalapril and isradipine alone and in combination on blood pressure, renal function and echocardiographic parameters in mild hypertension.

AIMS AND METHODS: A study was carried out to evaluate the influence of antihypertensive treatment with combined low doses of enalapril plus isradipine (5+5 mg daily) compared with those of either drug at a higher dose level (10 mg daily) by double-blind, three-way crossover study (balanced Latin square design) in 102 subjects (mean age 51.9 +/- 7.42 years) with essential hypertension. Left ventricular mass and function were evaluated by M-B mode echocardiography, renal function by glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and by serum and 24-h urinary Na+ and K+ during wash-out period and after 24 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: The supine blood pressure for subjects given placebo was 171/103 mmHg. After 24 weeks of treatment, systolic and diastolic supine blood pressure were significantly lower with 5 mg isradipine plus 5 mg enalapril (134/84 mmHg) than with 10 mg enalapril (137/84 mmHg) or with 10 mg isradipine (144/85 mmHg). Left ventricular posterior wall and septal thickness were significantly and similarly reduced in all groups. Left ventricular systolic and diastolic end diameters were not significantly changed. Left ventricular mass (LVM) was significantly reduced in E plus I group and enalapril group. GFR was not significantly altered. The 24-h urinary Na+ significantly increased with enalapril, more so than isradipine. The combination was tolerated better than either monotherapy. We observed no clinically significant changes in laboratory variables including blood lipoproteins. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of isradipine plus enalapril reduced blood pressure more effectively and was better tolerated than other drug alone. All three groups showed similar changes in echocardiographic indices and no change in renal function.

Reversal of left ventricular hypertrophy following once daily administration of felodipine for two years to elderly subjects with isolated systolic hypertension.

Left ventricular mass sometimes decreases during the treatment of hypertension. In a two-year open study, we investigated the ability of extended release (ER) felodipine (5 or 10 mg), plus chlorthalidone (25 mg), given once daily, to reduce left ventricular mass in 84 elderly patients with isolated systolic hypertension. Drug dosage was determined in an initial stepped-care titration phase lasting six weeks. Mean systolic blood pressure decreased after two years of treatment with 5 or 10 mg of felodipine (p < 0. 001) and the left ventricular mass index decreased too (p < 0.0001). One or two weeks after withdrawal of therapies, blood pressure returned to pretreatment values. We concluded that left ventricular mass can be reduced in elderly patients with isolated systolic hypertension and ventricular hypertrophy who receive felodipine 5-10 mg once daily. This treatment was generally well tolerated.

31P nuclear magnetic resonance study of growth and dimorphic transition in Candida albicans.

A 31P NMR study of the fungal pathogen Candida albicans was carried out. Yeast-form cells at different phases of growth, as well as germ tubes and hyphae were examined. In all cases, the NMR spectra showed well separated resonance peaks arising from phosphorus-containing metabolites, the most prominent being attributable to inorganic phosphate (Pi) polyphosphates, sugar phosphates and mononucleotides, NAD, ADP and ATP. Relevant signals were also detected in the phosphodiester region. The intensity of most signals, as measured relative to that of Pi, was clearly modulated both at the different phases of growth and during yeast-to-mycelium conversion, suggesting significant changes in the intracellular concentration of the corresponding metabolites. In particular, the intensity of the polyphosphate signal was high in exponentially growing, yeast-form cells, then progressively declined in the stationary phase, was very low in germ tubes and, finally, undetectable in hyphae. NMR spectral analysis of the Pi region showed that from early-stationary phase, Pi was present in two different cellular compartments, probably corresponding to the cytoplasm and the vacuole. From the chemical shift of Pi, the pH values of these two compartments could be evaluated. The cytoplasmic pH was generally slightly lower than neutrality (6.7-6.8), whereas the vacuolar pH was always markedly more acidic.