As a part of an intervention project, all detected carriers of penicillin-resistant pneumococci (PRP) (MIC, > or = 0.5 mg/L) in Malmöhus County, southern Sweden, were followed by means of weekly nasopharyngeal cultures. The median duration of carriage in 678 individuals was 19 days (range, 3-267 days). The duration of carriage was longest in children < 1 year old (median, 30 days) and shortest in adults > 18 years old (median, 14 days). Index cases, whose cultures were performed during an acute infection, were carriers for a mean of 10 days longer than asymptomatic contact cases (P < .05). The PRP spontaneously disappeared from the nasopharynx within 4 weeks in 68%, within 8 weeks in 87%, and within 12 weeks in 94% of the individuals. Other significant risk factors for prolonged carriage were the occurrence of > 6 episodes of acute otitis media (AOM) or first episode of AOM before the age of 1 year (P < .01), the carriage of PRP by other family members (P < .05), and the obtainment of a first positive culture during the winter months (P < .05).

Human lymph was collected from patients with leaking lymph vessels after thoracic surgery. Ovine lymph was obtained from the mesenteric, lumbar, popliteal and prescapular lymph ducts by cannulation. The concentration of hyaluronate varied considerably (between 0.2 and 50 mg/l) and the highest concentrations were found in mesenteric lymph. The Mr of the polysaccharide showed a great polydispersity and variation between individuals and in different regions of the lymphatic system. High-Mr hyaluronate (greater than 10(6) was present in lymph both from man and sheep. Hyaluronate was also isolated by affinity chromatography in 70-80% yield from human serum and plasma obtained from healthy individuals and patients with rheumatoid arthritis and primary biliary cirrhosis. The weight (Mw)- and number (Mn)-average relative molecular masses were roughly the same in the three groups [(1.4-2.7) X 10(5) and (2.1-5.7) X 10(4) respectively]. The low Mr of hyaluronate in blood compared with that in lymph is explained by a preferential uptake of the large molecules by the liver endothelial cells.

HIV-1 can be subdivided into at least nine genetic subtypes (A through H and O), but in Europe and the United States there is an almost complete dominance of subtype B. In this study three Swedish HIV-1 transmission chains of subtypes other than subtype B have been biologically and molecularly characterized. The three index cases were African men. The p17 gag and env V3 regions of the HIV-1 genome were directly sequenced from uncultured lymphocytes. Phylogenetic analyses showed that the HIV-1 variants with each transmission group were genetically closely related, supporting the epidemiological information. The individuals in transmission groups I (n = 3) and II (n = 2) carried subtype G and D virus, respectively. Interestingly, all four individuals in transmission group III displayed a recombinant genotype with subtype D p17 gag sequence and subtype A V3 sequence. The biological phenotype of virus isolates (rapid/high, syncytium-inducing; or slow/low, non-syncytium-inducing) correlated with the clinical stage of the infected individual. The study also suggested that the correlation between biological phenotype and V3 genotype that has been established for subtype B HIV-1 variants may be valid also for other subtypes. This study demonstrates that HIV-1 variants of subtypes other than B, including a subtype A/D recombinant, are being transmitted in Europe.