Development of an Alphavirus Replicon Classical Swine Fever Virus Vaccine Candidate

Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) E2 glycoprotein was expressed in an alphavirus based replicon expression system. Vaccinated pigs developed CSFV-specific antibodies. This is the first known use of this technology against CSFV

The road to deterministic matrices with the restricted isometry property

The restricted isometry property (RIP) is a well-known matrix condition that provides state-of-the-art reconstruction guarantees for compressed sensing. While random matrices are known to satisfy this property with high probability, deterministic constructions have found less success. In this paper, we consider various techniques for demonstrating RIP deterministically, some popular and some novel, and we evaluate their performance. In evaluating some techniques, we apply random matrix theory and inadvertently find a simple alternative proof that certain random matrices are RIP. Later, we propose a particular class of matrices as candidates for being RIP, namely, equiangular tight frames (ETFs). Using the known correspondence between real ETFs and strongly regular graphs, we investigate certain combinatorial implications of a real ETF being RIP. Specifically, we give probabilistic intuition for a new bound on the clique number of Paley graphs of prime order, and we conjecture that the corresponding ETFs are RIP in a manner similar to random matrices.Comment: 24 page

Factors Associated with Revision Surgery after Internal Fixation of Hip Fractures

Background: Femoral neck fractures are associated with high rates of revision surgery after management with internal fixation. Using data from the Fixation using Alternative Implants for the Treatment of Hip fractures (FAITH) trial evaluating methods of internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures, we investigated associations between baseline and surgical factors and the need for revision surgery to promote healing, relieve pain, treat infection or improve function over 24 months postsurgery. Additionally, we investigated factors associated with (1) hardware removal and (2) implant exchange from cancellous screws (CS) or sliding hip screw (SHS) to total hip arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, or another internal fixation device. Methods: We identified 15 potential factors a priori that may be associated with revision surgery, 7 with hardware removal, and 14 with implant exchange. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses in our investigation. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of revision surgery included: female sex, [hazard ratio (HR) 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.25-2.50; P = 0.001], higher body mass index (fo

Development of an Alphavirus Replicon Classical Swine Fever Virus Vaccine Candidate

Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) E2 glycoprotein was expressed in an alphavirus based replicon expression system. Vaccinated pigs developed CSFV-specific antibodies. This is the first known use of this technology against CSFV.</p

Differential Expression of Genes in Cells Cultured from Juxtacanalicular Trabecular Meshwork and Schlemm's Canal

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to distinguish differences in gene expression between cells cultured from the juxtacanalicular trabecular meshwork (JCTM) and those from Schlemm's canal (SC), to gain clues to differences between those cell types, and to add to our baseline knowledge of gene expression differences in these cell types for later comparison between cells from nonprimary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and POAG outflow tissues. Methods: A set of JCTM and SC cells was cultured from each of 2 donor eyes by an explant method, grown to passage 3, and frozen in liquid nitrogen. The cells were thawed, total RNA was extracted, and the probes made from total RNAs were hybridized to MICROMAX human cDNA microarray slides in 2 separate trials. Differentially expressed genes were analyzed using PubMed, Prosite, and IPA software, and the expression of several of the genes including intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), tenascin, and β-spectrin was assessed by immunofluorescence. Results: Schlemm's canal cells differentially expressed ICAM-1, spectrin, complement, fibulin-1, and several genes consistent with an endothelial origin in both arrays, while the JCTM cells more often overexpressed genes consistent with contractile, matrix function, and neural character. At the same time, many genes highly expressed in the first array were not highly overexpressed in the second. One highly overexpressed gene in the JCTM in both arrays, that for heparan sulfate 3-O-sulfotransferase-1 precursor, is thought to be somewhat unique, and could affect the glycosaminoglycan functionality in the extracellular matrix (ECM). Conclusions: We found generally good agreement between the 2 array trials, but some contradictions as well. Many of the genes overexpressed in each cell type had been described in earlier work, but several were new. Tables of genes, grouped by cellular function, and the complete datasets are provided for the development of new hypotheses