104,099 research outputs found

    An Analysis Pathway for the Quantitative Evaluation of Public Transport Systems

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    We consider the problem of evaluating quantitative service-level agreements in public services such as transportation systems. We describe the integration of quantitative analysis tools for data fitting, model generation, simulation, and statistical model-checking, creating an analysis pathway leading from system measurement data to verification results. We apply our pathway to the problem of determining whether public bus systems are delivering an appropriate quality of service as required by regulators. We exercise the pathway on service data obtained from Lothian Buses about the arrival and departure times of their buses on key bus routes through the city of Edinburgh. Although we include only that example in the present paper, our methods are sufficiently general to apply to other transport systems and other cities

    Recent developments in the application of risk analysis to waste technologies.

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    The European waste sector is undergoing a period of unprecedented change driven by business consolidation, new legislation and heightened public and government scrutiny. One feature is the transition of the sector towards a process industry with increased pre-treatment of wastes prior to the disposal of residues and the co-location of technologies at single sites, often also for resource recovery and residuals management. Waste technologies such as in-vessel composting, the thermal treatment of clinical waste, the stabilisation of hazardous wastes, biomass gasification, sludge combustion and the use of wastes as fuel, present operators and regulators with new challenges as to their safe and environmentally responsible operation. A second feature of recent change is an increased regulatory emphasis on public and ecosystem health and the need for assessments of risk to and from waste installations. Public confidence in waste management, secured in part through enforcement of the planning and permitting regimes and sound operational performance, is central to establishing the infrastructure of new waste technologies. Well-informed risk management plays a critical role. We discuss recent developments in risk analysis within the sector and the future needs of risk analysis that are required to respond to the new waste and resource management agenda

    Pathways to physical activity legacy: assessing the regeneration potential of multi-sport events using a prospective approach

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    Urban regeneration is now commonly cited as the rationale for hosting multi-sport events. However, the concept of legacy arising from these events is contested and the evidence base in relation to benefits for the host community is weak, especially in respect of increasing physical activity and sports participation. A theory-based assessment framework is developed to provide a robust prospective assessment of the likely impacts of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games on physical activity for the host community in the East End of the city. We identify scope for change, anticipated causal pathways and propose supporting physical activity though better designed environments as a means of generating legacy benefits at population level

    Transport and energy in India. Energy used by Indian transport systems and consequent emissions: the need for quantitative analyses (Well-to-Wheel, Lifecycle)

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    The purpose of this work is, at first, a general overview on the state-of-art of the transportation system in India outlining the related energy consumption, for the different transport modes, with consequent estimated emissions. These elements are essential for the preparation of a high-level strategic transport planning on the whole energy issue, to help India in the choices of most suitable transportation systems, according to the well-to-wheel analysis (WTW). Pursuing a WTW global index for India that takes into account both the energy and environmental aspects on a uniform basis is an important aim: it allows the best choices to be made as well as enabling the comparison between some of the most important powertrain and fuel options on the Indian market, the results are discussed from three different points of view: energy, environmental and economic impac

    A Systemic Receptor Network Triggered by Human cytomegalovirus Entry

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    Virus entry is a multistep process that triggers a variety of cellular pathways interconnecting into a complex network, yet the molecular complexity of this network remains largely unsolved. Here, by employing systems biology approach, we reveal a systemic virus-entry network initiated by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a widespread opportunistic pathogen. This network contains all known interactions and functional modules (i.e. groups of proteins) coordinately responding to HCMV entry. The number of both genes and functional modules activated in this network dramatically declines shortly, within 25 min post-infection. While modules annotated as receptor system, ion transport, and immune response are continuously activated during the entire process of HCMV entry, those for cell adhesion and skeletal movement are specifically activated during viral early attachment, and those for immune response during virus entry. HCMV entry requires a complex receptor network involving different cellular components, comprising not only cell surface receptors, but also pathway components in signal transduction, skeletal development, immune response, endocytosis, ion transport, macromolecule metabolism and chromatin remodeling. Interestingly, genes that function in chromatin remodeling are the most abundant in this receptor system, suggesting that global modulation of transcriptions is one of the most important events in HCMV entry. Results of in silico knock out further reveal that this entire receptor network is primarily controlled by multiple elements, such as EGFR (Epidermal Growth Factor) and SLC10A1 (sodium/bile acid cotransporter family, member 1). Thus, our results demonstrate that a complex systemic network, in which components coordinating efficiently in time and space contributes to virus entry.Comment: 26 page

    Impacts of Climate Change on indirect human exposure to pathogens and chemicals from agriculture

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    Objective: Climate change is likely to affect the nature of pathogens and chemicals in the environment and their fate and transport. Future risks of pathogens and chemicals could therefore be very different from those of today. In this review, we assess the implications of climate change for changes in human exposures to pathogens and chemicals in agricultural systems in the United Kingdom and discuss the subsequent effects on health impacts. Data sources: In this review, we used expert input and considered literature on climate change ; health effects resulting from exposure to pathogens and chemicals arising from agriculture ; inputs of chemicals and pathogens to agricultural systems ; and human exposure pathways for pathogens and chemicals in agricultural systems. Data synthesis: We established the current evidence base for health effects of chemicals and pathogens in the agricultural environment ; determined the potential implications of climate change on chemical and pathogen inputs in agricultural systems ; and explored the effects of climate change on environmental transport and fate of different contaminant types. We combined these data to assess the implications of climate change in terms of indirect human exposure to pathogens and chemicals in agricultural systems. We then developed recommendations on future research and policy changes to manage any adverse increases in risks. Conclusions: Overall, climate change is likely to increase human exposures to agricultural contaminants. The magnitude of the increases will be highly dependent on the contaminant type. Risks from many pathogens and particulate and particle-associated contaminants could increase significantly. These increases in exposure can, however, be managed for the most part through targeted research and policy changes

    Quantitative Proteomic Analysis Reveals Changes in the Benchmark Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis Biovar Equi Exoproteome after Passage in a Murine Host

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    Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis biovar equi is the etiologic agent of ulcerative lymphangitis. To investigate proteins that could be related to the virulence of this pathogen, we combined an experimental passage process using a murine model and high-throughput proteomics with a mass spectrometry, data-independent acquisition (LC-MSE) approach to identify and quantify the proteins released into the supernatants of strain 258_equi. To our knowledge, this approach allowed characterization of the exoproteome of a C. pseudotuberculosis equi strain for the first time. Interestingly, the recovery of this strain from infected mouse spleens induced a change in its virulence potential, and it became more virulent in a second infection challenge. Proteomic screening performed from culture supernatant of the control and recovered conditions revealed 104 proteins that were differentially expressed between the two conditions. In this context, proteomic analysis of the recovered condition detected the induction of proteins involved in bacterial pathogenesis, mainly related to iron uptake. In addition, KEGG enrichment analysis showed that ABC transporters, bacterial secretion systems and protein export pathways were significantly altered in the recovered condition. These findings show that secretion and secreted proteins are key elements in the virulence and adaptation of C. pseudotuberculosis. Collectively, bacterial pathogenesis-related proteins were identified that contribute to the processes of adherence, intracellular growth and evasion of the immune system. Moreover, this study enhances our understanding of the factors that may influence the pathogenesis of C. pseudotuberculosis.Fil: Marques Da Silva, Wanderson. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Instituto de Ciências Biológicas; Brasil. Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique; Francia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Carvalho, Rodrigo D. De Oliveira. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Instituto de Ciências Biológicas; BrasilFil: Dorella, Fernanda A.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Folador, Edson L.. Universidade Federal da Paraíba. Centro de Biotecnologia; BrasilFil: Souza, Gustavo H. M. F.. Waters Corporation; BrasilFil: Pimenta, Adriano M. C.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Instituto de Ciências Biológicas; BrasilFil: Figueiredo, Henrique C. P.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Le Loir, Yves. Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique; FranciaFil: Silva, Artur. Universidade Federal do Pará; BrasilFil: Azevedo, Vasco. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Instituto de Ciências Biológicas; Brasi
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