Search results for "seasonal"
showing 10 items of 484 documents
Seasonal variations in the onset and healing rates of venous leg ulcers
2010
Objectives As many vascular pathologies exhibit circannual fluctuation, the aim of this study was to assess the chronobiological features of venous ulcers. Methods Based on a retrospective survey of the case histories of 391 venous ulcer patients, the rates of ulcer onset and healing in each month were analysed statistically; a time series was constructed to evaluate the seasonality. Results There was a significantly higher frequency of ulcer onset during the warmer part of the year (April–October), and onset showed strong seasonality. Healing rates were also unequally and statistically significantly distributed throughout the year: ulcers that appeared or that were treated with specialized…
Effectiveness of high dose sublingual immunotherapy to induce a stepdown of seasonal asthma: a pilot study
2009
There is ample evidence to support the efficacy of sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) on allergic rhinitis, while there is less solid data regarding asthma. We evaluated the effects of a high dose birch SLIT on birch-induced rhinitis and asthma in a controlled study.This double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised, single centre trial on SLIT with birch pollen allergen extract (Stallergenes, Antony, France) included 24 patients presenting severe rhinitis and slight to moderate asthma, 14 actively and 10 placebo treated. SLIT was performed by a pre-coseasonal protocol, and was repeated for 2 years. The study plan included a selection visit, a visit at the start of the first and the second trea…
Vegetation dynamics from NDVI time series analysis using the wavelet transform
2009
A multi-resolution analysis (MRA) based on the wavelet transform (WT) has been implemented to study NDVI time series. These series, which are non-stationary and present short-term, seasonal and long-term variations, can be decomposed using this MRA as a sum of series associated with different temporal scales. The main focus of the paper is to check the potential of this MRA to capture and describe both intra- and inter-annual changes in the data, i.e., to discuss the ability of the proposed procedure to monitor vegetation dynamics at regional scale. Our approach concentrates on what wavelet analysis can tell us about a NDVI time series. On the one hand, the intra-annual series, linked to th…
Airborne bio-aerosols and noise in a dry waste treatment plant in Pietarsaari, Finland
2001
Ewapower Ltd in Pietarsaari, Finland produces pellets from paper and plastic waste for burning. During 1998 and 1999, several measurements were made to determine the dust, particle, microbe and endotoxin concentrations, and also the noise level in the hall where the waste is received and pre-crushed. The noise level exceeded the Finnish recommended level of 85 dBA. The dust and the particle concentrations were low, but the microbe concentrations, especially in the summer and in the autumn, were at a level which may be harmful to health. The total concentration of microbes (both dead and alive) was high - approximately 4.8 million particles m-3. The concentrations of endotoxins was high in …
Seasonal changes in host phenotype manipulation by an acanthocephalan: time to be transmitted?
2009
Parasitology, 136 (2)
An alternative allergen:adjuvant formulation potentiates the immunogenicity and reduces allergenicity of a novel subcutaneous immunotherapy product f…
2012
Background Subcutaneous specific immunotherapy (SCIT) has proven sustained clinical efficacy against allergy. The recommended regimen for SCIT is a gradual updosing over a period of weeks. Commonly, in commercial products for SCIT, the specific allergen is formulated with an adjuvant, most often in the form of aluminium hydroxide (AlOH). It has been shown that allergen-specific IgG antibodies are induced as a result of successful SIT. Objective To investigate the possibility of optimizing the formulation of AlOH-based grass-pollen allergy vaccines for SCIT in a way that allows for shorter updosing regimens while maintaining the immunogenicity of the vaccine. Methods Mice were immunized with…
Animal Perception of Seasonal Thresholds: Changes in Elephant Movement in Relation to Rainfall Patterns
2012
Background The identification of temporal thresholds or shifts in animal movement informs ecologists of changes in an animal’s behaviour, which contributes to an understanding of species’ responses in different environments. In African savannas, rainfall, temperature and primary productivity influence the movements of large herbivores and drive changes at different scales. Here, we developed a novel approach to define seasonal shifts in movement behaviour by examining the movements of a highly mobile herbivore (elephant; Loxodonta africana), in relation to local and regional rainfall patterns. Methodology/Principal Findings We used speed to determine movement changes of between 8 and 14 GPS…
Sexual advertisement and immune function in an arachnid species (Lycosidae)
2004
A simple version of the immunocompetence handicap hypothesizes that through condition-dependence, the size of the sexual trait may be positively related to immune function at the population level. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between sexual advertisement and immune function in a natural population of male wolf spiders, Hygrolycosa rubrofasciata (Araneae: Lycosidae). Males of H. rubrofasciata have a costly and condition-dependent acoustic signal, courtship drumming. In the mating season, males drum against dry leaves while wandering around the habitat searching for receptive females. Males increase their mating success by increasing their drumming rate and mobility.…
The seasonal water temperature cycle in the Arctic Dicksonfjord (Svalbard) during the Holocene Climate Optimum derived from subfossil Arctica islandi…
2015
Future climate change will have significant effects on ecosystems worldwide and on polar regions in particular. Hence, palaeo-environmental studies focussing on the last warmer-than-today phase (i.e. the early Holocene) in higher latitudes are of particular importance to understand climate development and its potential impact in polar systems. Molluscan bivalve shells constitute suitable bio-archives for high-resolution palaeo-environmental reconstructions. Here, we present a first reconstruction of early Holocene seasonal water temperature cycle in an Arctic fjord based on stable oxygen isotope (δ18Oshell) profiles in shells of Arctica islandica (Bivalvia) from raised beach deposits in Di…
Cambios en la frecuencia de los Regímenes de Tiempo sobre la región Euro-Atlántica y Mediterránea y su relación con las temperaturas anómalas sobre e…
2014
An exercise has been carried out to assess to what extent the Euro-Atlantic Weather Regimes (WR), described from the ERA-interim Reanalysis in the summer season, projects onto a pool of AGCMAMIP simulations in which sea surface temperatures (SST) are prescribed from observations. Although the model simulations present some biases in the spatial structure and seasonality of WRs, exhibiting also less variability, they are able to capture main WR over the region in summer season: +Middle East –Middle East, +NAO, -NAO. WR paradigm is used to quantify changes in the atmosphere under warmer/colder than normal conditions over the Mediterranean Sea. To address this problem, firstly, changes in the …