Comparative patent analysis for the identification of global research trends for the case of battery storage, hydrogen and bioenergy

Patent documents provide knowledge about which countries are investing in certain technologies and make it possible to identify potential innovation trends. The aim of this article is to analyze trends in patenting that might result in innovations for three energy technologies: thermochemical conversion of biomass (Bioenergy), lithium-ion battery storage, and hydrogen production by alkaline water electrolysis. Based on different patent indicators, the most active countries are compared to provide insights into the global market position of a country, particularly Germany which is used as a reference here. In line with this, a freely available patent analysis software tool was developed directly using the European Patent Office database through their Open Patent Services. The results for named technologies show that patenting activity of Germany is low in comparison to other countries such as Japan, China, and the US. Whereas the position of Germany for batteries and hydrogen is comparable, bioenergy shows different results regarding the identified countries and the number of patents found. However, a broader context beyond patenting is suggested for consideration to make robust statements about particular technology trends. The presented tool and methodology in this study can serve as a blueprint for explorative assessments in any technological domain

Long-Term Survival of an Urban Fruit Bat Seropositive for Ebola and Lagos Bat Viruses

Ebolaviruses (EBOV) (family Filoviridae) cause viral hemorrhagic fevers in humans and non-human primates when they spill over from their wildlife reservoir hosts with case fatality rates of up to 90%. Fruit bats may act as reservoirs of the Filoviridae. The migratory fruit bat, Eidolon helvum, is common across sub-Saharan Africa and lives in large colonies, often situated in cities. We screened sera from 262 E. helvum using indirect fluorescent tests for antibodies against EBOV subtype Zaire. We detected a seropositive bat from Accra, Ghana, and confirmed this using western blot analysis. The bat was also seropositive for Lagos bat virus, a Lyssavirus, by virus neutralization test. The bat was fitted with a radio transmitter and was last detected in Accra 13 months after release post-sampling, demonstrating long-term survival. Antibodies to filoviruses have not been previously demonstrated in E. helvum. Radio-telemetry data demonstrates long-term survival of an individual bat following exposure to viruses of families that can be highly pathogenic to other mammal species. Because E. helvum typically lives in large urban colonies and is a source of bushmeat in some regions, further studies should determine if this species forms a reservoir for EBOV from which spillover infections into the human population may occur

Response to Imported Case of Marburg Hemorrhagic Fever, the Netherlands

Adventure tourism may bring this disease to Western countries

Chikungunya Fever in Travelers Returning to Europe from the Indian Ocean Region, 2006

Chikungunya fever should be added to the list of differential diagnoses for ill travelers returning from this region

Detection of novel tick-borne pathogen, Alongshan virus, in Ixodes ricinus ticks, south-eastern Finland, 2019

The newly identified tick-borne Alongshan virus (ALSV), a segmented Jingmen virus group flavivirus, was recently associated with human disease in China. We report the detection of ALSV RNA in Ixodes ricinus ticks in south-eastern Finland. Screening of sera from patients suspected for tick-borne encephalitis for Jingmen tick virus-like virus RNA and antibodies revealed no human cases. The presence of ALSV in common European ticks warrants further investigations on its role as a human pathogen.Peer reviewe

Genetic Diversity and New Lineages of Dengue Virus Serotypes 3 and 4 in Returning Travelers, Germany, 2006–2015

During 2006–2015, we analyzed 70 dengue virus (DENV) strains isolated from febrile travelers returning to Germany. High genetic diversity, including multiple co-circulating DENV lineages and emerging new lineages of DENV-3 and DENV-4, was demonstrated. Our passive surveillance system based on returning travelers yielded substantial information on DENV diversity

Huddle Up: Using Mediation to Help Settle the National Football League Labor Dispute

In a patient transferred from Togo to Cologne, Germany, Lassa fever was diagnosed 12 days post mortem. Sixty-two contacts in Cologne were categorised according to the level of exposure, and gradual infection control measures were applied. No clinical signs of Lassa virus infection or Lassa specific antibodies were observed in the 62 contacts. Thirty-three individuals had direct contact to blood, other body fluids or tissue of the patients. Notably, with standard precautions, no transmission occurred between the index patient and healthcare workers. However, one secondary infection occurred in an undertaker exposed to the corpse in Rhineland-Palatinate, who was treated on the isolation unit at the University Hospital of Frankfurt. After German authorities raised an alert regarding the imported Lassa fever case, an American healthcare worker who had cared for the index patient in Togo, and who presented with diarrhoea, vomiting and fever, was placed in isolation and medevacked to the United States. The event and the transmission of Lassa virus infection outside of Africa underlines the need for early diagnosis and use of adequate personal protection equipment (PPE), when highly contagious infections cannot be excluded. It also demonstrates that larger outbreaks can be prevented by infection control measures, including standard PPE

Epizootic Emergence of Usutu Virus in Wild and Captive Birds in Germany

This study aimed to identify the causative agent of mass mortality in wild and captive birds in southwest Germany and to gather insights into the phylogenetic relationship and spatial distribution of the pathogen. Since June 2011, 223 dead birds were collected and tested for the presence of viral pathogens. Usutu virus (USUV) RNA was detected by real-time RT-PCR in 86 birds representing 6 species. The virus was isolated in cell culture from the heart of 18 Blackbirds (Turdus merula). USUV-specific antigen was demonstrated by immunohistochemistry in brain, heart, liver, and lung of infected Blackbirds. The complete polyprotein coding sequence was obtained by deep sequencing of liver and spleen samples of a dead Blackbird from Mannheim (BH65/11-02-03). Phylogenetic analysis of the German USUV strain BH65/11-02-03 revealed a close relationship with strain Vienna that caused mass mortality among birds in Austria in 2001. Wild birds from lowland river valleys in southwest Germany were mainly affected by USUV, but also birds kept in aviaries. Our data suggest that after the initial detection of USUV in German mosquitoes in 2010, the virus spread in 2011 and caused epizootics among wild and captive birds in southwest Germany. The data also indicate an increased risk of USUV infections in humans in Germany