Coxiella burnetii is a category B bioterrorism agent. We numerically evaluated the risks and benefits from postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) after an intentional release of C. burnetii to the general population, pregnant women, and other high-risk populations. For each group, we constructed a decision tree to estimate illness and deaths averted by use of PEP/100,000 population. We calculated the t...

Experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) is a well established model for immune-mediated organ-specific disease. Our group has recently shown that the M. leprae Hsp65 aggravated the uveitis in mice; in the present study, we evaluated the action of M. leprae  K(409)A mutant protein and the synthetic peptides Leader pep and K(409)A pep (covering amino acids residues 352-371 of WT and K(409)A protein...

The goal of this study was to evaluate the preejection time (PEP)-derived myocardial performance index (MPI) in hypertensive (HT) patients with sinus rhythm and its relationship to the classic Tei index. One hundred five patients were enrolled in the study (65 HT and 40 control subjects). The mean age of all patients was 50.5 ± 15 years and 60% were female. Echocardiography was performed on all...

We present evidence that a highly purified pepsin extract of type 5 streptococcal M protein (pep M5) contains at least three epitopes that are cross-reactive with sarcolemmal membrane proteins of human myocardium. The tissue-cross-reactive determinants of pep M5 are also partially shared with pep M6 and pep M19. Three rabbits immunized with a single 300 micrograms dose of pep M5 developed signi...

This study investigated the effects of polysaccharides from Enteromorpha prolifera (PEP) on glucose metabolism in a rat model of diabetes mellitus (DM). PEP (0, 150, 300, and 600 mg/kg) was administered intragastrically to rats for four weeks. After treatment, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and insulin (INS) levels were measured, and the insulin sensitivity index (ISI) was calculated. The morphopa...

Although fatal if untreated, human rabies can be prevented through post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), which involves a course of vaccination and immunoglobulin administered immediately after exposure. However, high costs and frequent lack of rabies vaccine and immunoglobulin lead to about 55,000 deaths per year worldwide. Using data from a detailed study of rabies in Tanzania, we calculate a cost...

The PEP-N project is a proposed new e+e− collider at SLAC to operate in the center of mass energy range of 1.0 GeV to 3.1 GeV. PEP-N consists of a new Very Low Energy electron Ring VLER (< 800 MeV) to collide with the PEP-II e+ Low Energy Ring LER (3.1 GeV) parasitically to PEP-II operation for BaBar. Since the e+ ring has a fixed energy, the very low energy ring needs an energy range of 100 Me...

Bernd Grahlmann Institut f ur Informatik, Universitat Hildesheim, [email protected] Abstract The PEP tool is a Programming Environment based on Petri Nets. Comprehensive modelling, compilation, simulation and veri cation components are embedded in a user-friendly graphical interface. The basic idea is that the modelling component allows the user to design parallel systems by ...

Pancreatitis is a common, costly, and occasionally devastating complication of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). Since post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP) is important and potentially preventable, a comprehensive approach to risk reduction should be employed by all who perform ERCP. Strategies to reduce the incidence of PEP, which should be considered in every case, include though...

It has been proposed that antiretroviral therapies (ART) possess both antiviral and immunomodulatory activities when used in HIV infected patients. Few studies have addressed whether these putative immunomodulatory effects are also seen in HIV negative patients, for example, when used for post exposure prophylaxis (PEP). We chose to evaluate immunologic function in HIV negative patients who rec...