bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Age at Vaccination and Timing of Infection Do Not Alter Vaccine-Associated Enhanced Respiratory Disease in Influenza A Virus-Infected Pigs
Authors: Souza Carine K. , Rajão Daniela S. , Loving Crystal L. , Gauger Phillip C. , Pérez Daniel R. , Vincent Amy L. 
Published: March 2016

ABSTRACT
Whole inactivated virus (WIV) vaccines are widely used in the swine industry to reduce clinical disease against homologous influenza A virus (IAV) infection. In pigs experimentally challenged with antigenically distinct heterologous IAV of the same hemagglutinin subtype, WIV vaccinates have been shown to develop vaccine-associated enhanced respiratory disease (VAERD). We evaluated the impact of vaccine valency, age at vaccination, and duration between vaccination and challenge on the development of VAERD using vaccine containing δ1-H1N2 and challenge with pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) virus. Pigs were vaccinated with monovalent WIV MN08 (δ1-H1N2) and bivalent (δ1-H1N2–H3N2 or δ1-H1N2–pH1N1) vaccines and then were challenged with pH1N1 at 3 weeks postboost (wpb). Another group was vaccinated with the same monovalent WIV and challenged at 6 wpb to determine if the time postvaccination plays a role in the development of VAERD. In a follow-up study, the impact of age of first WIV vaccination (at 4 versus 9 weeks of age) with a boost 3 weeks later (at 7 versus 12 weeks of age) was evaluated. A monovalent live-attenuated influenza virus (LAIV) vaccine administered at 4 and 7 weeks of age was also included. All mismatched WIV groups had significantly higher lung lesions than the LAIV, bivalent MN08-CA09, and control groups. Age of first vaccination or length of time between booster dose and subsequent challenge did not alter the development of VAERD in WIV-vaccinated pigs. Importantly, the mismatched component of the bivalent MN08-CA09 WIV did not override the protective effect of the matched vaccine component.
GenoType NTM-DR for Identifying Mycobacterium abscessus Subspecies and Determining Molecular Resistance
Authors: Kehrmann Jan , Kurt Nermin , Rueger Kai , Bange Franz-Christoph , Buer Jan 
Published: March 2016

ABSTRACT

We studied the performance of a new line probe assay for identifying the subspecies and determining the macrolide and aminoglycoside resistance levels of 50
Mycobacterium abscessus
isolates. Agreement of GenoType NTM-DR results with sequencing and phenotypic resistance results was 92% for subspecies identification and 98% for determining molecular and phenotypic resistance.
Detection of the Emerging Picornavirus Senecavirus A in Pigs, Mice, and Houseflies
Authors: Joshi Lok R. , Mohr Kristin A. , Clement Travis , Hain Kyle S. , Myers Bryan , Yaros Joseph , Nelson Eric A. , Christopher-Hennings Jane , Gava Danielle , Schaefer Rejane , Caron Luizinho , Dee Scott , Diel Diego G. 
Published: March 2016

ABSTRACT
Senecavirus A (SVA) is an emerging picornavirus that has been recently associated with an increased number of outbreaks of vesicular disease and neonatal mortality in swine. Many aspects of SVA infection biology and epidemiology remain unknown. Here, we present a diagnostic investigation conducted in swine herds affected by vesicular disease and increased neonatal mortality. Clinical and environmental samples were collected from affected and unaffected herds and were screened for the presence of SVA by real-time reverse transcriptase PCR and virus isolation. Notably, SVA was detected and isolated from vesicular lesions and tissues of affected pigs, environmental samples, mouse feces, and mouse small intestine. SVA nucleic acid was also detected in houseflies collected from affected farms and from a farm with no history of vesicular disease. Detection of SVA in mice and housefly samples and recovery of viable virus from mouse feces and small intestine suggest that these pests may play a role on the epidemiology of SVA. These results provide important information that may allow the development of improved prevention and control strategies for SVA.
Trimer Enhancement Mutation Effects on HIV-1 Matrix Protein Binding Activities
Authors: Alfadhli Ayna , Mack Andrew , Ritchie Christopher , Cylinder Isabel , Harper Logan , Tedbury Philip R. , Freed Eric O. , Barklis Eric 
Published: March 2016

ABSTRACT
The HIV-1 matrix (MA) protein is the amino-terminal domain of the HIV-1 precursor Gag (Pr55Gag) protein. MA binds to membranes and RNAs, helps transport Pr55Gag proteins to virus assembly sites at the plasma membranes of infected cells, and facilitates the incorporation of HIV-1 envelope (Env) proteins into virions by virtue of an interaction with the Env protein cytoplasmic tails (CTs). MA has been shown to crystallize as a trimer and to organize on membranes in hexamer lattices. MA mutations that localize to residues near the ends of trimer spokes have been observed to impair Env protein assembly into virus particles, and several of these are suppressed by the 62QR mutation at the hubs of trimer interfaces. We have examined the binding activities of wild-type (WT) MA and 62QR MA variants and found that the 62QR mutation stabilized MA trimers but did not alter the way MA proteins organized on membranes. Relative to WT MA, the 62QR protein showed small effects on membrane and RNA binding. However, 62QR proteins bound significantly better to Env CTs than their WT counterparts, and CT binding efficiencies correlated with trimerization efficiencies. Our data suggest a model in which multivalent binding of trimeric HIV-1 Env proteins to MA trimers contributes to the process of Env virion incorporation.

IMPORTANCE
The HIV-1 Env proteins assemble as trimers, and incorporation of the proteins into virus particles requires an interaction of Env CT domains with the MA domains of the viral precursor Gag proteins. Despite this knowledge, little is known about the mechanisms by which MA facilitates the virion incorporation of Env proteins. To help elucidate this process, we examined the binding activities of an MA mutant that stabilizes MA trimers. We found that the mutant proteins organized similarly to WT proteins on membranes, and that mutant and WT proteins revealed only slight differences in their binding to RNAs or lipids. However, the mutant proteins showed better binding to Env CTs than the WT proteins, and CT binding correlated with MA trimerization. Our results suggest that multivalent binding of trimeric HIV-1 Env proteins to MA trimers contributes to the process of Env virion incorporation.
Short Intracellular HIV-1 Transcripts as Biomarkers of Residual Immune Activation in Patients on Antiretroviral Therapy
Authors: Ishizaka Aya , Sato Hidenori , Nakamura Hitomi , Koga Michiko , Kikuchi Tadashi , Hosoya Noriaki , Koibuchi Tomohiko , Nomoto Akio , Kawana-Tachikawa Ai , Mizutani Taketoshi 
Published: March 2016

ABSTRACTHIV-1 patients continue to remain at an abnormal immune status despite prolonged combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), which results in an increased risk of non-AIDS-related diseases. Given the growing recognition of the importance of understanding and controlling the residual virus in patients, additional virological markers to monitor infected cells are required. However, viral replication in circulating cells is much poorer than that in lymph nodes, which results in the absence of markers to distinguish these cells from uninfected cells in the blood. In this study, we identified prematurely terminated short HIV-1 transcripts (STs) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) as an efficient intracellular biomarker to monitor viral activation and immune status in patients with cART-mediated full viral suppression in plasma. STs were detected in PBMCs obtained from both treated and untreated patients. ST levels in untreated patients generally increased with disease progression and decreased after treatment initiation. However, some patients exhibited sustained high levels of ST and low CD4+cell counts despite full viral suppression by treatment. The levels of STs strongly reflected chronic immune activation defined by coexpression of HLA-DR and CD38 on CD8+T cells, rather than circulating proviral load. These observations represent evidence for a relationship between viral persistence and host immune activation, which in turn results in the suboptimal increase in CD4+cells despite suppressive antiretroviral therapy. This cell-based measurement of viral persistence contributes to an improved understanding of the dynamics of viral persistence in cART patients and will guide therapeutic approaches targeting viral reservoirs.IMPORTANCECombination antiretroviral therapy (cART) suppresses HIV-1 load to below the detectable limit in plasma. However, the virus persists, and patients remain at an abnormal immune status, which results in an increased risk of non-AIDS-related complications. To achieve a functional cure for HIV-1 infection, activities of viral reservoirs must be quantified and monitored. However, latently infected cells are difficult to be monitored. Here, we identified prematurely terminated short HIV-1 transcripts (STs) as an efficient biomarker for monitoring viral activation and immune status in patients with cART-mediated full viral suppression in plasma. This cell-based measurement of viral persistence will contribute to our understanding of the impact of residual virus on chronic immune activation in HIV-1 patients during cART.
Effects of prehospital hypothermia on transfusion requirements and outcomes: a retrospective observatory trial
Authors: Klauke Nora , Gräff Ingo , Fleischer Andreas , Boehm Olaf , Guttenthaler Vera , Baumgarten Georg , Meybohm Patrick , Wittmann Maria 
Published: March 2016

ObjectivesPrehospital hypothermia is defined as a core temperature <36.0°C and has been shown to be an independent risk factor for early death in patients with trauma. In a retrospective study, a possible correlation between the body temperature at the time of admission to the emergency room and subsequent in-hospital transfusion requirements and the in-hospital mortality rate was explored.SettingThis is a retrospective single-centre study at a primary care hospital in Germany.Participants15 895 patients were included in this study. Patients were classified by admission temperature and transfusion rate. Excluded were ambulant patients and patients with missing data.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe primary outcome values were length of stay (LOS) in days, in-hospital mortality, the transferred amount of packed red blood cells (PRBCs), and admission to an intensive care unit. Secondary influencing variables were the patient's age and the Glasgow Coma Scale.ResultsIn 22.85% of the patients, hypothermia was documented. Hypothermic patients died earlier in the course of their hospital stay than non-hypothermic patients (p<0.001). The administration of 1–3 PRBC increased the LOS significantly (p<0.001) and transfused patients had an increased risk of death (p<0.001). Prehospital hypothermia could be an independent risk factor for mortality (adjusted OR 8.521; p=0.001) and increases the relative risk for transfusion by factor 2.0 (OR 2.007; p=0.002).ConclusionsLow body temperature at hospital admission is associated with a higher risk of transfusion and death. Hence, a greater awareness of prehospital temperature management should be established.
Time trends in statin utilisation and coronary mortality in Western European countries
Authors: Vancheri Federico , Backlund Lars , Strender Lars-Erik , Godman Brian , Wettermark Björn 
Published: March 2016

ObjectivesTo determine whether there is a relation between statin utilisation and coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality in populations with different levels of coronary risk, and whether the relation changes over time.DesignEcological study using national databases of dispensed medicines and mortality rates.SettingWestern European countries with similar public health systems.Main outcome measuresPopulation CHD mortality rates (rate/100 000) as a proxy for population coronary risk level, and statin utilisation expressed as Defined Daily Dose per one Thousand Inhabitants per Day (DDD/TID), in each country, for each year between 2000 and 2012. Spearman's correlation coefficients between CHD mortality and statin utilisation were calculated. Linear regression analysis was used to assess the relation between changes in CHD mortality and statin utilisation over the years.Results12 countries were included in the study. There was a wide range of CHD mortality reduction between the years 2000 and 2012 (from 25.9% in Italy to 57.9% in Denmark) and statin utilisation increase (from 121% in Belgium to 1263% in Denmark). No statistically significant relations were found between CHD mortality rates and statin utilisation, nor between changes in CHD and changes in statin utilisation in the countries over the years 2000 and 2012.ConclusionsAmong the Western European countries studied, the large increase in statin utilisation between 2000 and 2012 was not associated with CHD mortality, nor with its rate of change over the years. Factors different from the individual coronary risk, such as population ageing, health authority programmes, guidelines, media attention and pharmaceutical industry marketing, may have influenced the large increase in statin utilisation. These need to be re-examined with a greater emphasis on prevention strategies.
Too feral to save?
Authors: Mills David 
Published: March 2016

THIS series gives readers the opportunity to consider and contribute to discussion of some of the ethical dilemmas that can arise in veterinary practice. Each month, a case scenario is presented, followed by discussion of some of the issues involved.In addition, a possible way forward is suggested; however, there is rarely a cut‐and‐dried answer in such cases, and readers may wish to suggest an alternative approach. This month's dilemma, ‘Too feral to save?’, was submitted and is discussed by David Mills. Readers with comments to contribute are invited to send them as soon as possible, so that they can be considered for publication in the next issue. Discussion of the dilemma ‘Questioning morals’, which was published in the March issue of In Practice, appears on page 199.The series is being coordinated by Steven McCulloch, a practising vet with a PhD in the ethics of veterinary policy. It is hoped it will provide a framework that will help practitioners find solutions when facing similar dilemmas.
Performance Analysis of Complex System in Series Configuration Under Different Failure and Repair Discipline Using Copula
Authors: Singh V. V. , Gulati Jyoti , Rawal D. K. , Goel C. K. 
Published: March 2016

This paper deal with the study of reliability of a complex system consists of three subsystems, (subsystem-1, subsystem-2 and subsystem-3) connected in series configuration. The subsystem-1 has three units and working under the policy 2-out-of-3: F policy, subsystem-2 has two units in parallel configuration and is working under 1-out-of-2: G policy and subsystem-3 is connected with subsystem-2. All three subsystems are connected in series configuration. The system has two types of failure, partial failure and completely failure. It is assumed that the partial failure bring the system to degraded state, while the complete failure stop functioning in the system. All failure rates are constant and assumed to follow exponential time distribution, but the repair follow two types of distribution, i.e., general distribution and exponential distribution. It is assumed that the system in partially failed/degraded states are repaired by employing general time distribution but the completely failed states are repaired by Gumbel–Hougaard family copula distribution. The system is analyzed by supplementary variable technique. Some crucial measures of reliability such as Availability, mean-time-to-failure (MTTF) and profit analysis have been discussed. Some computations are taken as special case by evaluating Availability, MTTF and profit by taking different failure rates.
Endoscopists’ Opinions of Indications for Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
Authors: Sutherland Lloyd R , Verhoef Marja J , Meddings Jonathan B , Bailey Robert J , Blustein Philip B , Lalor Eoin A , Thomson Alan BR , Rosendaal Guidomvan 
Published: March 2016

OBJECTIVE:To determine whether endoscopists and general internistsagreed with the characterization of appropriatenessfor endoscopy of various clinical scenarios, as previouslyreported by the RAND Corporation.DESIGN: Mail survey.STUDY SAMPLE: All endoscopists in western Canadaand a random sample of general internists who did notperform endoscopy.METHODS: Questionnaires were sent to 179 endoscopistsin western Canada who were asked to rate the 53 scenariosfor endoscopy on a nine‐point scale ranging from mostappropriate to most inappropriate. A similar questionnairewas sent to 39 general internists practising in theprovince of Alberta.RESULTS: Response rate was 72% of endoscopists(n=128) and 64% of general internists (n=25). Amongthe endoscopists, there was agreement with the RANDclassification for 32 scenarios. All 18 indicationspreviously thought to be appropriate were consideredto be appropriate. However, endoscopists agreed withonly six of 16 equivocal and eight of 19 indicationsconsidered inappropriate. Discrepancies were reviewedby five experienced endoscopists and most appeared tobe related to a concern regarding possible malignancylinked in part with the definition of failure to respondto medical therapy; and to a refusal to request a bariummeal before endoscopy. Among general internists, therewas agreement with RAND in 26 scenarios. When the appropriatenessrankings of endoscopists and general internists werecompared, there was agreement in 40 of 53 scenarios.Significant discrepancies in ratings were identifiedin scenarios in which barium studies were describedas being normal, known or not done.CONCLUSIONS: The equivocal and inappropriateratings developed by the RAND Corporation are not uniformlyaccepted by the endoscopy community or general internists.Use of the RAND indications for assessing quality assurancecan be challenged.
Patients’ Perceptions of their Participation in a Clinical Trial for Postoperative Crohn’s Disease
Authors: Kennedy ED , Blair JE , Ready R , Wolff BG , Steinhart AH , Carryer PW , McLeod RS 
Published: March 2016

OBJECTIVE: To explore patients′ perceptions of their participation in a randomized controlled trial.PATIENTS AND METHODS: A 27‐item questionnaire was mailed to all patients who participated in a randomized controlled trial that determined the effectiveness of mesalamine in preventing the recurrence of Crohn′s disease postoperatively.RESULTS: The response rate was 66% (99 of 149). Fifty‐five per cent of the patients felt that they received better medical care than they otherwise would have and 53% liked taking the medication. Sixty‐eight per cent of the patients did not feel that annual colonoscopy was too frequent and 81% felt that the time commitment did not significantly interfere with their job or other activities. Seventy‐five per cent and 62% of the patients would have liked more information and education, respectively, about Crohn′s disease incorporated into the trial. Although 91% of the patients would agree to participate in a future randomized controlled trial comparing medical therapies, only 44% would agree to participate in a future randomized controlled trial comparing medical with surgical therapies.CONCLUSIONS: The majority of patients were satisfied with their participation in the trial. A large proportion of the patients would participate again but would like more information and education incorporated into the trial. Furthermore, post‐trial questionnaires may be helpful in the design of future trials.
Improved Learning Scheme for Cognitive Radio using Artificial Neural Networks
Authors: Mahajan Rita , Bagai Deepak 
Published: March 2016

<p>The future of wireless system is facing the problem of spectrum scarcity. Number of users is increasing rapidly but available spectrum is limited. The Cognitive Radio (CR) network technology can enable the unlicensed users to share the frequency spectrum with the licensed users on a dynamic basis without creating any interference to primary user. Whenever secondary user finds that primary user is not transmitting and channel is free then it uses channel opportunistically. In this paper cognitive radio with predictive capability using artificial neural network has been proposed. The advantage of such cognitive user is saving of time and energy for spectrum sensing. Proposed radio will sense only that channel which is predicted to be free and channel is selected on the basis of maximum vacant time. Performance has been evaluated in the term of mean square error. The results show that this learning capability can be embedded in secondary users for better performance of future wireless technologies. </p>
Frequency and Time Response of Power Plant Grounding System Exposed to Lightning Strike
Authors: Nikolovski Srete N , Baus Zoran , Knežević Goran 
Published: March 2016

This paper examines the frequency response of power plant grounding system exposed to the lightning current. Large amount of current generated by the stroke flow in the grounding system of power plant and dissipate in the soil. The electric and magnetic field generated by such high voltages and currents may cause damage of equipment and may be dangerous for the personnel in power plant. For the every given frequency obtained using Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) of lightning current impulse, electromagnetic field theory approach is used to solve Maxell’s equation and compute scalar potential, electric and magnetic field. Also, the influence of the point in which lightning current is diffused in the grounding system is presented. Three dimensional plots of spatial distribution of scalar potential, electric and magnetic field are presented. The time domain response of scalar potential, electric and magnetic field on one profile is also presented.
Effect of Contaminant Flow-rate and Applied Voltage on the Current Density and Electric Field of Polymer Tracking Test
Authors: Muhamedin F. L. , M. Piah M. A. , Othman N. A. , Ahmed Algeelani Nasir 
Published: March 2016

<p>Electrical failure due to surface discharge on the insulation material will cause material degradation and eventually lead to system failure. The flow of leakage current (LC) on the insulator surface under wet contamination is used to determine the material degradation level. According to IEC 60587 standard, LC exceeding 60 mA for more than two seconds is considered as failure. In this study, the electric field and current density distributions on the linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) and natural rubber blend material have been analyzed using finite element method (FEM) analysis. The physical parameters used in FEM simulation were applied with voltage and contaminant flow rate, in accordance to contaminant conductivity. Tracking test condition according to IEC 60587 standard has been applied as proposed by the reference work in simulation using QuickField FEM software. The results show that the electric field and current density would become critical in higher applied voltage and contaminant flow rate. The highest average and highest maximum current density and electric field are found in both applied voltage of 6 kV and contaminant flow rate of 0.90 mlmin<sup>-1</sup>.</p>