Not all surveillance data are created equal—A multi‐method dynamic occupancy approach to determine rabies elimination from wildlife

1. A necessary component of elimination programmes for wildlife disease is effective surveillance. The ability to distinguish between disease freedom and non‐detection can mean the difference between a successful elimination campaign and new epizootics. Understanding the contribution of different surveillance methods helps to optimize and better allocate effort and develop more effective surveillance programmes. 2. We evaluated the probability of rabies virus elimination (disease freedom) in an enzootic area with active management using dynamic occupancy modelling of 10 years of raccoon rabies virus (RABV) surveillance data (2006–2015) collected from three states in the eastern United States. We estimated detection probability of RABV cases for each surveillance method (e.g. strange acting reports, roadkill, surveillance‐trapped animals, nuisance animals and public health samples) used by the USDA National Rabies Management Program. 3. Strange acting, found dead and public health animals were the most likely to detect RABV when it was present, and generally detectability was higher in fall– winter compared to spring–summer. Found dead animals in fall–winter had the highest detection at 0.33 (95% CI: 0.20, 0.48). Nuisance animals had the lowest detection probabilities (~0.02). 4. Areas with oral rabies vaccination (ORV) management had reduced occurrence probability compared to enzootic areas without ORV management. RABV occurrence was positively associated with deciduous and mixed forests and medium to high developed areas, which are also areas with higher raccoon (Procyon lotor) densities. By combining occupancy and detection estimates we can create a probability of elimination surface that can be updated seasonally to provide guidance on areas managed for wildlife disease. 5. Synthesis and applications. Wildlife disease surveillance is often comprised of a combination of targeted and convenience‐based methods. Using a multi‐method analytical approach allows us to compare the relative strengths of these methods, providing guidance on resource allocation for surveillance actions. Applying this multi‐method approach in conjunction with dynamic occupancy analyses better informs management decisions by understanding ecological drivers of disease occurrence

Experimental infection of Foxes with European bat Lyssaviruses type-1 and 2

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Since 1954, there have been in excess of 800 cases of rabies as a result of European Bat <it>Lyssaviruses </it>types 1 and 2 (EBLV-1, EBLV-2) infection, mainly in Serotine and Myotis bats respectively. These viruses have rarely been reported to infect humans and terrestrial mammals, as the only exceptions are sheep in Denmark, a stone marten in Germany and a cat in France. The purpose of this study was to investigate the susceptibility of foxes to EBLVs using silver foxes (<it>Vulpes vulpes</it>) as a model.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our experimental studies have shown that the susceptibility of foxes to EBLVs is low by the intramuscular (IM) route, however, animals were sensitive to intracranial (IC) inoculation. Mortality was 100% for both EBLV-1 (~4.5 logs) and EBLV-2 (~3.0 logs) delivered by the IC route. Virus dissemination and inflammatory infiltrate in the brain were demonstrated but virus specific neutralising antibody (VNA) was limited (log(ED₅₀) = 0.24–2.23 and 0.95–2.39 respectively for specific EBLV-1 and EBLV-2). Foxes were also susceptible, at a low level, to peripheral (IM) infection (~3.0 logs) with EBLV-1 but not EBLV-2. Three out of 21 (14.3%) foxes developed clinical signs between 14 and 24 days post-EBLV-1 infection. None of the animals given EBLV-2 developed clinical disease.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These data suggest that the chance of a EBLV spill-over from bat to fox is low, but with a greater probability for EBLV-1 than for EBLV-2 and that foxes seem to be able to clear the virus before it reaches the brain and cause a lethal infection.</p

Bioinformatics analysis of circulating miRNAs related to cancer following spinal cord injury

Patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) have an increased risk of developing esophageal, bladder and hematologic malignancies compared with the normal population. In the present study, we aimed to identify, through in silico analysis, miRNAs and their target genes related to the three most frequent types of cancer in individuals with SCI. In a previous study, we reported a pattern of expression of miRNAs in 17 sedentary SCI males compared with 22 healthy able-bodied males by TaqMan OpenArray. This list of miRNAs deregulated in SCI patients was uploaded to miRWALK2.0 to predict the target genes and pathways of selected miRNAs. We used Cytoscape software to construct the network displaying the miRNAs and their gene targets. Among the down-regulated miRNAs in SCI, 21, 19 and 20 miRNAs were potentially associated with hematological, bladder and esophageal cancer, respectively, and three target genes (TP53, CCND1 and KRAS) were common to all three types of cancer. The three up-regulated miRNAs were potentially targeted by 18, 15 and 10 genes associated with all three types of cancer. Our current bioinformatics analysis suggests the potential influence of several miRNAs on the development of cancer in SCI. In general, these data may provide novel information regarding potential molecular mechanisms involved in the development of cancer among individuals with SCI. Further studies aiming at understanding how miRNAs contribute to the development of the major cancers that affect patients after SCI may help elucidate the role of these molecules in the pathophysiology of the disease.39CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal e Nível SuperiorFAPESP – Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa Do Estado De São PauloSem informação2017/23563-

Investigating antibody neutralization of lyssaviruses using lentiviral pseudotypes: a cross-species comparison

Cross-neutralization between rabies virus (RABV) and two European bat lyssaviruses (EBLV-1 and -2) was analysed using lentiviral pseudotypes as antigen vectors. Glycoprotein (G-protein) cDNA from RABV challenge virus standard-11 (CVS-11) and EBLV-1 and -2 were cloned and co-expressed with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or murine leukemia virus (MLV) gag–pol and packageable green fluorescent protein (GFP) or luciferase reporter genes in human cells. The harvested lentiviral (HIV) vector infected over 40 % of baby hamster kidney (BHK) target cells, providing high-titre pseudotype stocks. Tests on blinded antibody-positive (n=15) and -negative (n=45) sera, predetermined by the fluorescent antibody virus neutralization (FAVN) test approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Office International des Epizooties (OIE), revealed that the CVS-11 pseudotype assay had 100 % concordance with FAVN and strongly correlated with neutralization titres (r2=0.89). Cross-neutralization tests using sera from RABV-vaccinated humans and animals on pseudotypes with CVS-11, EBLV-1 and EBLV-2 envelopes showed that the relative neutralization titres correlated broadly with the degree of G-protein diversity. Pseudotypes have three major advantages over live-virus neutralization tests: (i) they can be handled in low-biohazard-level laboratories; (ii) the use of reporter genes such as GFP or β-galactosidase will allow the assay to be undertaken at low cost in laboratories worldwide; (iii) each assay requires <10 μl serum. This robust microassay will improve our understanding of the protective humoral immunity that current rabies vaccines confer against emerging lyssaviruses, and will be applicable to surveillance studies, thus helping to control the spread of rabies

Antibodies against Lagos Bat Virus in Megachiroptera from West Africa

To investigate the presence of Lagos bat virus (LBV)–specific antibodies in megachiroptera from West Africa, we conducted fluorescent antibody virus neutralization tests. Neutralizing antibodies were detected in Eidolon helvum (37%), Epomophorus gambianus (3%), and Epomops buettikoferi (33%, 2/6) from Ghana. These findings confirm the presence of LBV in West Africa

Pulmonary function testing in quadriplegic subjects

Study design: Cross-sectional study.Objective: Pulmonary functional capacity in 23 Brazilian quadriplegic subjects (ASIA A), aged 30 (9.5) years, weight 66 (10.75) kg, height 176 (7) cm, was investigated at 42 ( 64) months postinjury.Setting: University Hospital-UNICAMP, Campinas, Brazil.Method: Subjects performed forced vital capacity ( FVC) and maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) tests while seated in their standard wheelchairs. Forced Expired Volume after 1 s (FEV1) and FVC/FEV1 ratio were calculated from these tests. Values obtained were compared to three prediction equations from the literature that are used specifically for spinal cord subjects and include different variables in their formulae, such as age, gender, height, postinjury time and injury level. Data are expressed as median (interquartile interval). Differences between values were demonstrated by median confidence interval with significance level set at a 0.05.Results: Obtained data were statistically different from prediction equation results, with FVC 3.11 ( 0.81), 4.46 (0.28), 4.16 (0.33), 4.26 (0.42); FEV1 2.77 (1.03), 3.67 (0.21), 3.66 (0.30), 3.45 (0.39) and MVV 92 (27), 154.2 (11.9), 156.6 (14),157.3 (16.8), where the first value is obtained experimentally and the second, third and fourth values correspond to predicted values. the results obtained from spirometry test in this study differed significantly from the results obtained when prediction equations were used.Conclusion: the use of prediction equations developed to estimate pulmonary function in wheelchair users significantly overestimates pulmonary function of quadriplegic individuals with complete lesions (ASIA group A), in comparison to measured values.Univ Estadual Campinas, Dept Orthopedia & Traumatol, FCM, BR-13083970 Campinas, SP, BrazilUniv Estadual Campinas, Fac Phys Educ, BR-13083970 Campinas, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Santos, SP, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Fac Med, Dept Biomech Med & Rehabil Locomotor Syst, BR-14049 Ribeirao Preto, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Dept Elect Engn, Sao Carlos, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Santos, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc

Non-pharmacological treatments in the stimulation of osteogenesis

Mechanical loads cause bone deformation leading to bone resorption and an increase in local bone formation. However, the stimulus for bone formation depends on the amount and frequency of bone deformation. High calcium intake is required to increase bone formation. There are also non-pharmacological treatments, such as electrical stimulation, low-intensity ultrasound, and laser, which revealed to promote osteogenesis. The article intends to evaluate non-pharmacological, alternative methods which assist in the increase of bone formation or in the osteogenic stimulus. A literature review was carried out for the period between 1982 to 2001.A carga mecânica provoca microdeformações ósseas, que estimulam células osteoblásticas e, conseqüentemente, promovem adaptações nos ossos, muitas vezes relacionadas com uma menor reabsorção óssea e um aumento na formação óssea local. No entanto, o estímulo para formação óssea depende do número e freqüência das deformações aplicadas no osso. Concomitantemente aos estímulos ósseos providos pelas cargas mecânicas, é importante uma dieta rica em cálcio, a qual também beneficia o aumento da massa óssea. Entretanto, existem também outros métodos não farmacológicos, como o ultra-som pulsado de baixa intensidade, a estimulação elétrica e o laser, que já mostraram efeitos positivos na promoção da osteogênese. Assim, realizou-se um levantamento na literatura, no período de 1982 a 2001, sobre esses métodos não farmacológicos com o objetivo de avaliar tais métodos alternativos, que ajudam no aumento da massa óssea ou no estímulo à osteogênese.64765

Proposing new variables for the identification of strategic groups in franchising

The identification of strategic groups in the Spanish franchising area is the main aim of this study. The authors have added some new strategic variables (not used before) to the study and have classified franchisors between sectors and distribution strategy. The results reveal the existence of four perfectly differentiated strategic groups (types of franchisors). One of the major implications of this study is that the variables that build a strategic group vary depending on the respective sector the network operates in and its distribution strategy. This fact indicates that including sector and distribution strategy is absolutely necessary to achieve good classifications of franchisor type

Kinematic analisys of the knee when climbing up/down stairs in patellofemoral instability

OBJECTIVE: To analyze and to identify possible gait adaptations by individuals with objective patellofemoral instability when climbing up/down stairs. METHODS: A control group (group A) composed by nine women with mean age = 25 years (±1.87), height = 1.62 m (±0.05) and weight = 56.20 kg (±7.34), and; nine women with objective patellofemoral instability (group B) with mean age = 24 years (±6.02), height = 1.62 m (±0.06) and weight = 60.33 kg (±10.31) were analyzed. The groups underwent kinematic analysis while climbing up/down stairs, in a previously determined area. Images were obtained by six cameras (Qualysis) and data analysis utilized the Q gait software program. RESULTS: Group B presented, in the support phase, less knee flexion when climbing up (p = 0.0268), and lower speed (p = 0.0076/ p =0.0243) and pace (p = 0.0027/ p = 0.0165) when climbing up and down stairs, respectively. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that group B used functional changes such as reduced knee flexion, speed and pace when climbing up and down stairs.OBJETIVO: Analisar e identificar possíveis adaptações da marcha em indivíduos com diagnóstico de instabilidade patelofemoral objetiva, durante a atividade de subida e descida de escada. MÉTODOS: Foram analisados um grupo controle (grupo A), composto por 9 mulheres com média de idade de 25 anos (±1,87), média de altura de 1,62m (±0,05) e média de peso de 56,20kg (±7,34); e, um grupo de 9 mulheres com instabilidade patelofemoral objetiva (grupo B), média de idade de 24 anos (±6,02), média de altura de 1,62m (±0,06) e média de peso de 60,33kg (±10,31). Os grupos foram submetidos a uma análise cinemática, onde as voluntárias subiram e desceram degraus, em uma área previamente selecionada. As imagens foram obtidas por seis câmeras (Qualysis) e a análise dos dados foi realizada através do programa Q gait. RESULTADOS: O grupo B apresentou, no período de apoio, menor flexão do joelho durante a subida (p=0,0268), além de menores velocidade (p=0,0076/ p=0,0243) e cadência (p=0,0027/ p=0,0165) na subida e na descida, respectivamente. CONCLUSÃO: Sugere-se que o grupo B utilizou adaptações funcionais como redução da flexão do joelho, da velocidade e da cadência, durante a subida e a descida de degraus.UNICAMP FCM Departamento de Ortopedia e TraumatologiaUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESPSciEL