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Abstract. This work reports high-resolution spectroscopic stellar parameters and abundance analysis of the post-AGB star IRAS 19386+0155. The analysis of the high resolution spectrum shows that it has an effective temperature of T eff = 6800 ± 100 K and a surface gravity of log g = 1.4 ± 0.2. The abundance analysis reveals IRAS 19386+0155 to be a metal-poor object having [Fe/H] = −1.1. Carbon, oxygen and nitrogen are found to be slight underabundant than solar, and so are the α-elements (Mg, Si and Ca). The analysis of ISO spectra revealed an oxygen-rich envelope and showed crystalline silicate features. The dust envelope of this object was modelled using a Monte Carlo type numerical method and amorphous and crystalline silicate grains were considered. The photospheric temperature obtained through the optical spectroscopy was used to constrain these models. The Spectral Energy Distribuition (SED) of this object is broad and extensive suggesting the presence of a dust disk around IRAS 19386+0155.

Abstract. We present new high-resolution observations of the LBV (or S Dor variable) HR Carinae, taken with the FEROS spectrograph in the wavelength range λ 3900-8200. Nota et al. (1997) indicates that HR Carinae is moving redward across the H-R diagram on a short timescale, due to a new S Dor-phase.

We investigated using haplotype analysis whether genetic variation of the apo B gene is associated with a higher risk for coronary heart disease in a Brazilian population. Ins/Del, XbaI, and EcoRI polymorphic sites of the apolipoprotein B (apo B) gene were studied in 67 patients with CHD and in 67 age‐matched healthy individuals selected from a population of Brazilians. The allelic frequency of apo B polymorphisms did not differ between the CHD patients and controls. However, a significant linkage disequilibrium was observed between the XbaI site and Ins/Del polymorphism of the apo B gene in CHD individuals (χ2, P < 0.01). The simultaneous presence of the rare X+ and Del alleles (X+Del haplotype) in males of CHD group was associated with significantly higher serum levels of total cholesterol (P < 0.01), triglycerides (P < 0.05), and LDL‐cholesterol (P < 0.05), and with a higher TC/HDL‐C ratio (P < 0.05). These data indicate that a single haplotype, X+Del, within the apo B gene exerts an impact on lipid metabolism and may contribute to the susceptibility to development of CHD in males from a population of Brazilians. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 15:19–24, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.