The green ICT initiative: an IEEE-wide focus building upon ComSoc's leadership

This month's President's Page is devoted to the IEEE Green Information and Communications Technology (ICT) initiative. By its very nature, Green ICT is a theme, not only of interest but also offering numerous opportunities, for virtually every IEEE Society and Council. Through this initiative, ComSoc seeks an IEEE-wide outreach to achieve even greater recognition for IEEE's mission of advancing technology for humanity

Case study exemplar of detecting severe diastolic dysfunction using ballistocardiogram

The specific aim of this case study was to describe how monitoring ballistocardiogram (BCG) waveforms can detect early heart failure (HF) changes. HF significantly impairs quality of life and is the principal cause for hospital readmissions in older adults. HF prevalence in American adults aged 65 years and older is expected to increase over 70% by 2030. Detecting worsening HF is challenging. Invasive arterial waveforms display blood pressure changes with each heartbeat; BCG waveforms display repetitive body motions resulting from ejection of blood into the great vessels. BCG waveforms change as cardiac function changes. Currently, BCG signals can be captured non-invasively using sensors placed under a bed mattress and provide heart and respiratory rates. We have developed a new way to analyze the BCG waveform using an innovative closed-loop physiological model of the cardiovascular system. The subject, a 94-year old female with hypertension, presented to her physician with symptoms associated with a new diagnosis of acute mixed congestive HF. Mean heart and respiratory rate trends obtained from her bed sensor in the prior two months did not indicate HF. We simulated cardiac cycles using normal cardiac function data, mildly impaired diastolic function data, and the subject’s echocardiography data. The results demonstrated BCG waveform changes that correlated with decreasing cardiac output related to worsening diastolic function. New methods for clinically interpreting BCG waveforms present a significant opportunity for improving early HF detection and improving outcomes. Working on a clinical problem from an engineering perspective merges two disciplines, creating a new methodology

The Core Protein of Classical Swine Fever Virus Is Dispensable for Virus Propagation In Vitro

Core protein of Flaviviridae is regarded as essential factor for nucleocapsid formation. Yet, core protein is not encoded by all isolates (GBV- A and GBV- C). Pestiviruses are a genus within the family Flaviviridae that affect cloven-hoofed animals, causing economically important diseases like classical swine fever (CSF) and bovine viral diarrhea (BVD). Recent findings describe the ability of NS3 of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) to compensate for disabling size increase of core protein (Riedel et al., 2010). NS3 is a nonstructural protein possessing protease, helicase and NTPase activity and a key player in virus replication. A role of NS3 in particle morphogenesis has also been described for other members of the Flaviviridae (Patkar et al., 2008; Ma et al., 2008). These findings raise questions about the necessity and function of core protein and the role of NS3 in particle assembly. A reverse genetic system for CSFV was employed to generate poorly growing CSFVs by modification of the core gene. After passaging, rescued viruses had acquired single amino acid substitutions (SAAS) within NS3 helicase subdomain 3. Upon introduction of these SAAS in a nonviable CSFV with deletion of almost the entire core gene (Vp447Δc), virus could be rescued. Further characterization of this virus with regard to its physical properties, morphology and behavior in cell culture did not reveal major differences between wildtype (Vp447) and Vp447Δc. Upon infection of the natural host, Vp447Δc was attenuated. Hence we conclude that core protein is not essential for particle assembly of a core-encoding member of the Flaviviridae, but important for its virulence. This raises questions about capsid structure and necessity, the role of NS3 in particle assembly and the function of core protein in general