A chemical catalytic method for determination of silver in human saliva.
Abstract A catalytic method for the determination of silver in saliva is suggested. Silver was determined by a very simple technique in concentrations in saliva higher than 1 μg/100 ml with a coefficient of variation of 5.7 per cent. The method was used to investigate the correlation between some pathogalvanic phenomena connected with the presence of amalgam restorations in the oral cavity and the concentration of silver in saliva. The application of the method showed no correlation between the number of restorations and the silver concentration in saliva. The joint effects of restorations, their corrosion potential and the concentration of silver in saliva were correlated with the occurrence of unpleasant sensations in the mouth.
Precious Metals and Living Organisms
Abstract In principle, the biosphere contains the essential minerals necessary for growth, survival and multiplication of the diverse spectra of living organisms, as well as all of the remaining naturally occurring elements of the Periodic Table. Here we emphasize the concept of selective element accumulation characteristically displayed by individual species from all of the major taxonomic groups. In particular, we describe the range of organisms and tissues known to contain relatively large concentrations of precious metals, including gold, silver, platinum and iridium. These accumulator species may indeed be detected in various natural habitats as well as on contaminated and polluted sites. Specific examples, drawn from a variety of life science disciplines, are presented to illustrate the possible involvement of organisms in precious metal cycling and biogeochemical deposition over geologic time. The prospects for metal recovery from fresh and ocean water utilizing specific organisms is also assessed....
Complex telemonitoring of patients and elderly people for telemedical and homecare services
The paper presents a project that has as main goal researches, design and implementation of an electronic-informatics-telecom and scalable system, that allows the automatic and complex telemonitoring, everywhere and every time (at home, in hospitals, at work, of mobile subject etc, using several communication paths), in real time, of persons with chronic illnesses, of elderly people, of those having high medical risk and of those with neurolocomotor disabilities.