Floods in southern Portugal: their physical and human causes,impacts and human response

Floods have been the most deadlynatural disasters in Portugal during the lastcentury, followed by earthquakes. The typeof flood known as a `progressive flood'mainly affects the larger basins, such asthat of the Tagus River, and results in alarge inundated area. These floods arecaused by heavy rains associated with awesterly zonal circulation that may persistfor weeks. The system of dams within thebasin reduces the frequency of flooding,but cannot `tame' the river. The dam systemhas even contributed to an increase in thepeak flow, as in the 1979 flood.Nevertheless, these floods are not a dangerfor the human population. In contrast, flashfloods are more dangerous and deadlier thanprogressive floods, as demonstrated in 1967and 1997. They affect the small drainagebasins and are caused by heavy andconcentrated rainfall, created byconvective depressions (active cold poolsor depressions caused by the interactionbetween polar and tropical air masses),active in the south of the country, in theLisbon region, Alentejo and the Algarve.Deforestation, soil impermeability, chaoticurbanization, building on floodplains, theblockage of small creeks or theircanalisation, and the building of walls andtransverse embankments along the smallcreeks all contribute to the aggravation ofthis kind of flood.     

环境地球化学与人体健康的关系

本文探讨了环境地球化学与人体健康的关系,试图以医学与环境地球化学相结合和元素地球化学分布与生态学特征相结合的方式进一步阐述这一问题,揭示其内在联系和规律。最后从营养角度讨论了强身健体、延年益寿的方法。     

Fetal intestinal microvilli in human amniotic fluid

The intestinal microvilli of fetal origin in human amniotic fluid were purified by Ca²⁺ precipitation of contaminating organelles followed by differential centrifugation of microvillar membranes. In the purified preparation, the specific activity of the microvillar marker-enzymes maltase and sucrase increased about 77-fold over that in cell-free amniotic fluid. Significant contamination of the purified preparation by endoplasmic reticulum (microsomes) and lysosomes was ruled out on the basis of a low content of the marker enzymes glucose-6-phosphatase (microsomes) and acid phosphatase (lysosomes). Amniotic fluid microvilli contain typical enzymes of the fetal intestine including maltase, sucrase, trehalase, alkaline phosphatase and γ-glutamyltransferase, and their morphology by electron microscopy resembles that of vesiculated intestinal microvilli. Prenatal detection of genetic diseases due to a deficiency of a protein expressed in these membranes or associated to abnormal microvilli seems feasible.     

不同铅暴露区人体离体牙铅含量和年龄关系及指示意义

人体牙釉质是记录环境铅（Pb）暴露信息的较好载体。本研究采用微波消解-电感耦合等离子体质谱仪（ICP-MS）联用的方法测定来自高Pb暴露区（铅锌冶炼厂地区）和Pb暴露对照区（农业种植区）附近长期居住/不同年龄段人体离体牙的Pb含量,结果显示：高Pb暴露区离体牙表现出Pb含量高且随居民年龄增长而增高的趋势,离体牙Pb含量从6—12岁儿童的(60.8±15.3) μg?g^?1增加到65岁以上老年人的(200.1±30.5) μg?g^?1;而铅暴露对照区人体离体牙Pb含量低且基本随年龄增长变化不大。Pb主要通过呼吸道和消化道进入人体并在牙齿中富集,因此,牙齿中的Pb含量与生活环境密切相关。研究结果表明：生活在高Pb暴露区的人群,环境中的Pb可能通过各种介质（空气、水、实物等）不断进入人体,其牙齿不断蓄积环境来源的Pb。因此人体离体牙Pb有可能作为人体长期Pb暴露生物标 志物。     

Universal time constant in human short-term behavior

The authors thank Prof. I. Eibl-Eibesfeldt and Prof. E. Pöppel for their support of this research.     

Novel mutations in the human CYP21 gene

The great majority of genetic defects underlying steroid 21-hydroxylase deficiency appear to result from intergenic recombinations between the homologous CYP21 and CYP21P genes. For a minority, novel sporadic point mutations have been detected. De novo mutations in CYP21 have also been reported, but only a few studies have systematically screened their occurrence. We here describe a population-based patient sample in order to estimate the rate of single-family (i.e. sporadic) and de novo germline mutations in the human CYP21 locus. Among 76 Finnish families were observed three single-family mutations and two de novo mutations in CYP21. The rates obtained, ∼5% and ∼2% for novel and de novo mutations, respectively, indicate that they are not rare and that their occurrence should not be ignored in genetic diagnostics of this disorder. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assay of some volatile compounds in human exhalation

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三丁基锡对正常人胚胎羊膜细胞凋亡的诱导作用

为了探讨三丁基锡(TBT,tributyltin)对正常人羊膜细胞FL(humanamnioticcells)凋亡的诱导作用,进行了流式细胞仪PIAnnexinⅤ双染色检测TBT对FL细胞凋亡的诱导作用,并采用荧光染料FITC标记的特异性的caspase3的抑制剂检测活细胞中caspase3的酶活性.实验结果表明,0、1、2、3、4μmol·L-1浓度的三丁基锡作用于FL细胞2h后,细胞凋亡率和细胞中caspase3酶活性都明显升高,且有良好的剂量效应关系.表明三丁基锡在一定浓度和暴露时间下能够诱导FL细胞的凋亡,而且在此过程中,caspase3起重要作用.