Coverage of the 2011 Q fever vaccination campaign in the Netherlands, using retrospective population-based prevalence estimation of cardiovascular risk-conditions for chronic Q fever

Background: In 2011, a unique Q fever vaccination campaign targeted people at risk for chronic Q fever in the southeast of the Netherlands. General practitioners referred patients with defined cardiovascular risk-conditions (age >15 years). Prevalence rates of those risk-conditions were lacking, standing in the way of adequate planning and coverage estimation. We aimed to obtain prevalence rates retrospectively in order to estimate coverage of the Q fever vaccination campaign. Methods: With broad search terms for these predefined risk-conditions, we extracted patient-records from a large longitudinal general-practice research-database in the Netherlands (IPCI-database). Afte

Coverage of the 2011 Q fever vaccination campaign in the Netherlands, using retrospective population-based prevalence estimation of cardiovascular risk-conditions for chronic Q fever

Background: In 2011, a unique Q fever vaccination campaign targeted people at risk for chronic Q fever in the southeast of the Netherlands. General practitioners referred patients with defined cardiovascular risk-conditions (age >15 years). Prevalence rates of those risk-conditions were lacking, standing in the way of adequate planning and coverage estimation. We aimed to obtain prevalence rates retrospectively in order to estimate coverage of the Q fever vaccination campaign. Methods: With broad search terms for these predefined risk-conditions, we extracted patient-records from a large longitudinal general-practice research-database in the Netherlands (IPCI-database). Afte

Population genomics of post-glacial western Eurasia.

Western Eurasia witnessed several large-scale human migrations during the Holocene <sup>1-5</sup> . Here, to investigate the cross-continental effects of these migrations, we shotgun-sequenced 317 genomes-mainly from the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods-from across northern and western Eurasia. These were imputed alongside published data to obtain diploid genotypes from more than 1,600 ancient humans. Our analyses revealed a 'great divide' genomic boundary extending from the Black Sea to the Baltic. Mesolithic hunter-gatherers were highly genetically differentiated east and west of this zone, and the effect of the neolithization was equally disparate. Large-scale ancestry shifts occurred in the west as farming was introduced, including near-total replacement of hunter-gatherers in many areas, whereas no substantial ancestry shifts happened east of the zone during the same period. Similarly, relatedness decreased in the west from the Neolithic transition onwards, whereas, east of the Urals, relatedness remained high until around 4,000 BP, consistent with the persistence of localized groups of hunter-gatherers. The boundary dissolved when Yamnaya-related ancestry spread across western Eurasia around 5,000 BP, resulting in a second major turnover that reached most parts of Europe within a 1,000-year span. The genetic origin and fate of the Yamnaya have remained elusive, but we show that hunter-gatherers from the Middle Don region contributed ancestry to them. Yamnaya groups later admixed with individuals associated with the Globular Amphora culture before expanding into Europe. Similar turnovers occurred in western Siberia, where we report new genomic data from a 'Neolithic steppe' cline spanning the Siberian forest steppe to Lake Baikal. These prehistoric migrations had profound and lasting effects on the genetic diversity of Eurasian populations

Procyanidin dimers Are Metabolized by Human Microbiota with 2-(3,4-Dihydroxyphenyl)acetic Acid and 5-(3,4-Dihydroxyphenyl)-y-valerolactone as the Major Metabolites

Procyanidins (PCs) are highly abundant phenolic compounds in the human diet and might be responsible for the health effects of chocolate and wine. Due to low absorption of intact PCs, microbial metabolism might play an important role. So far, only a few studies, with crude extracts rich in PCs but also containing a multitude of other phenolic compounds, have been performed to reveal human microbial PC metabolites. Therefore, the origin of the metabolites remains questionable. This study included in vitro fermentation of purified PC dimers with human microbiota. The main metabolites identified were 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)acetic acid and 5-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-y-valerolactone. Other metabolites detected were 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 3-hydroxyphenylpropionic acid, phenylvaleric acids, monohydroxylated phenylvalerolactone, and 1-(3',4'-dihydroxyphenyl)-3-(2",4",6"-trihydroxyphenyl)propan-2-ol. Metabolites that could be quantified accounted for at least 12 mol % of the dimers, assuming 1 mol of dimers is converted into 2 mol of metabolite. A degradation pathway, partly different from that of monomeric flavan-3-ols, is proposed

Bestrijding van de nieuwe influenza A (H1N1): Deel I. Overzicht van de relevante virologische aspecten

In April 2009 a new influenza virus was discovered, which spread from Mexico to the rest of the world. The new influenza A (H1N1) virus is genetically related to swine flu viruses, and differs substantially from circulating human influenza viruses. It is able to spread from person to person. Because it is a completely new virus, there is probably little immunity in the population. The course of the infection is relatively mild, but the virus will mutate and it is not yet certain whether this will affect severity of the influenza. General practitioners have an important role in surveillance and treatment. The Community Health Services must be notified of any patients who are suspected of having the new influenza. Hygiene measures and administration of antiviral drugs to patients and their contacts may slow the spread. A delay in large-scale spread in the Netherlands allows time for the development of vaccines

Physical layer attacks on unlinkability in wireless LANs

Recent work has focused on hiding explicit network identifiers such as hardware addresses from the link layer to enable anonymous communications in wireless LANs. These protocols encrypt entire wireless packets, thereby providing unlinkability. However, we find that these protocols neglect to hide identifying information that is preserved within the wireless physical layer. We propose a technique using commodity wireless hardware whereby packets can be linked to their respective transmitters using signal strength information, thus degrading users ’ anonymity. We discuss possible countermeasures, but ultimately we argue that controlling information leakage at the physical layer is inherently difficult