Campylobacter jejuni colonization of broiler chickens

The pathogenesis of C. jejuni in broiler chickens is still poorly understood despite the importance of poultry meat as a source of infection in humans. The overall objective of this project was to understand the role of flagella and Campylobacter invasion antigens in mucosal and systemic colonization, and to evaluate the vaccine potential of C. jejuni paralyzed flagella mutants. As a first step to track C. jejuni in vivo, a Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) reporter system that is constitutively expressed was constructed. The system was transformed into different C. jejuni strains and isolates, and their mucosal and systemic spreading was studied over the period of 7 days. C. jejuni NCTC11168V1 and V26 share the same background but differ in their ability to colonize chickens. C. jejuni 81-176 and K2-55 share the same genetic background but K2-55 has an insertion mutation in pflA gene that produced paralyzed flagella. Although the K2-55 flagella remained intact structurally, it did not secret Campylobacter invasion antigens (Cia). The reporter system was stable in all of these strains both in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescent bacteria were visualized successfully using fluorescent and confocal microscopes. C. jejuni NCTC11168V1 and 81-176 were detected in the intestinal tract and in the liver and spleen of more than 30% of the challenged birds, while V26 and K2-55 were only detected in the intestinal tract. C. jejuni 81-176 and K2-55 did not spread systemically to the spleen and liver of BALB/c mice challenged using the same approach, although they colonized the ceca. A live attenuated vaccine based on C. jejuni K2-55 protected broiler chickens from C. jejuni 81-176 challenge in chickens following streptomycin treatment of drinking water. The same vaccine had no significant protection against a heterolgous C. jejuni NCTC11168V1 strain challenge. The vaccine was a poor stimulator of secretory IgA. Macrophage-like HD11 cells inflammatory response to the presence of C. jejuni K2-55 was not significantly different from their response to wild-type 81-176 when measured by qRT-PCR. The lack of Cia secretion and motility had no effect on expression of IL-1â, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8, IL, IL-10, IL-12â, or TLR5. A flgK mutant expressing the flagella up to the hook had a significantly lower expression of these genes

Applying the FAHP to Improve the Performance Evaluation Reliability of Software Defect Classifiers

Today's software complexity makes developing defect-free software almost impossible. Consequently, developing classifiers to classify software modules into defective and non-defective before software releases have attracted great interest in academia and software industry alike. Although many classifiers have been proposed, no one has been proven superior over others. The major reason is that while a research shows that classifier A is better than classifier B, we can find other research that shows the opposite. These conflicts are usually triggered when researchers report results using their preferable performance evaluation measures such as, recall and precision. Although this approach is valid, it does not examine all possible facets of classifiers performance characteristics. Thus, the performance evaluation might improve or deteriorate if researchers choose other performance measures. As a result, software developers usually struggle to select the most suitable classifier to use in their projects. The goal of this paper is to apply the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP) as a popular multicriteria decision-making technique to reliably evaluate classifiers' performance. This evaluation framework incorporates a wider spectrum of performance measures to evaluate classifiers performance rather than relying on selected preferable measures. The results show that this approach will increase software developers' confidence in research outcomes and help them in avoiding false conclusions and infer reasonable boundaries for them. We exploited 22 popular performance measures and 11 software defect classifiers. The analysis was carried out using KNIME data mining platform and 12 software defect data sets provided by the NASA metrics data program (MDP) repository.https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2019.291596

Interactive Web-Based Shopping System for the Hypermarkets in Saudi Arabia

Interactive web-based shopping services give the flexibility and the easy to access anytime and anywhere without need to wisest the time for the hypermarkets that located in Saudi Arabia. However, Saudi Arabia contain a large number of these hypermarkets, the sell process for these hypermarkets not friendly to attractive the buyer and not appropriate to support them about merchandise information. For that the study proposed to design an Interactive Web-based Shopping System for the hypermarkets in Saudi Arabia that makes it easy and flexible for the customers to make their shopping by online services, otherwise the proposed Web-based shopping system provides the customers with the facility to check the merchandise price and view them via the system

Applying FAHP to Improve the Performance Evaluation Reliability and Validity of Software Defect Classifiers

Today’s Software complexity makes developing defect-free software almost impossible. On an average, billions of dollars are lost every year because of software defects in the United States alone, while the global loss is much higher. Consequently, developing classifiers to classify software modules into defective and non-defective before software releases, has attracted a great interest in academia and the software industry alike. Although many classifiers have been proposed, none has been proven superior to others. The major reason is that while a research shows that classifier-A is better than classifier-B, we can find other research coming to a diametrically opposite conclusion. These conflicts are usually triggered when researchers report results using their preferred performance quality measures such as recall and precision. Although this approach is valid, it does not examine all possible facets of classifiers’ performance characteristics. Thus, performance evaluation might improve or deteriorate if researchers choose other performance measures. As a result, software developers usually struggle to select the most suitable classifier to use in their projects. The goal of this dissertation is to apply the Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP) as a popular multi-criteria decision-making technique to overcome these inconsistencies in research outcomes. This evaluation framework incorporates a wider spectrum of performance measures to evaluate classifiers’ performance, rather than relying on selected, preferred measures. The results show that this approach will increase software developers’ confidence in research outcomes, help them in avoiding false conclusions and indicate reasonable boundaries for them. We utilized 22 popular performance measures and 11 software defect classifiers. The analysis was carried out using KNIME data mining platform and 12 software defect data sets provided by NASA Metrics Data Program (MDP) repository

A framework for evaluating sustainability indicators in the real estate industry

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. The growth in the use of sustainability indicators and ratings in the real estate industry has been accompanied by strong criticism of the most commonly used rating systems designed to evaluate the sustainability performance of real estate developments. Most of these criticisms focus on the content of the different rating systems. A systematic evaluation of the methodologies of sustainability ratings is lacking. This article builds a framework that can be used to evaluate the methodologies of sustainability ratings and applies the evaluation framework to five widely used sustainability ratings for homes and communities (BREAAM, CASBEE, Estidama, Green Star, LEED). The evaluation results highlight three major shortcomings in the rating systems that have been evaluated. First, the systems lack unambiguous definitions of sustainability. They give insufficient explanation of why certain components are included in the ratings and on what basis these components have been accorded their weights. Second, the rating systems put more emphasis on sustainable design than performance, especially for the ratings for communities. Finally, the ratings are generally not responsive to local conditions of a project. Each rating system has its particular strengths and weaknesses and no system is superior on all dimensions. The proposed evaluation framework can be applied to sustainability ratings in different industries and is adaptable depending on stakeholder requirements

Implementing Wireless Capsule Endoscopy WCE In Digestive System Diagnostics

The purpose of this research is to discuss the revolutionary endoscopy method WCE that would enhance the diagnostic accuracy and reliability level. Additionally, a comparison has been made with other currently in practice endoscopy methods to single out the strengths and advantages of such endoscopy method. The limitation of this research caused by limited up to date data due to the restrict privacy policy normally adopted by hospitals regarding releasing patients information. This limitation will impose a partially outdated comparison results and conclusions. However, the past trends showed a steady increase in the number of medical facilities that decided to approve the usage of the WCE. These trends are derived from direct interactions with various medical communities. This paper originality and value comes from the fact that increasing number of patients showed a serious reluctant toward continuing all their prescribed medical testing or procedures. Consequently, serious implication can be expected affecting those patients’ health. WCE if understood correctly by both patients and doctors will have a positive impact on the success of diagnostic and treatment statistics

Towards recycling cost modelling framework for carbon fibre composites

Environmental legislation puts more pressure on solving carbon fibre composites (CFC) waste management through recycling and reuse. Despite their superior properties, CFC creates environmental issue when it reaches its end of life. The aim of this paper is to to provide a framework that represents the first step towards the development of a cost modelling framework for recycling CFC materials. The focus is the mechanical and thermal (Pyrolysis) recycling process. The activities and the tasks related to each recycling process are presented. The research has been accomplished by embracing a qualitative research plan consisting of five phases. To enhance understanding of the parameters affecting the cost of the recycling process, the major and detailed cost drivers are recognised. The developed costing framework has been implemented in an IT-based cost estimation tool for easy handling and calculation of the cost parameters. This tool identifies all tasks and activities related to the two recycling processes

Social Entrepreneurship and the Rotary International Peace Fellows Program

Social Entrepreneurship is a vital function of the Rotary International Peace Fellows Program and its efforts to promote peace through social change. Social Entrepreneurship has many definitions that apply to different organizations, but for RI Peace fellows, it is focused on adopting new and innovative approaches to foster social change by bringing together individuals from around the world with different socio-economic backgrounds and shared educational and altruistic values. The scholarship on social entrepreneurship suggests that there are three categories of capital that Rotary would need to advance in order to promote successful social entrepreneurship on the part of its Fellows. These are financial, human and social capital. RI has six areas of focus for applying its financial, human and social capital resources. Using field-based research and interviews with RI staff, current and former fellows associated with RI’s Durham Center, this paper analyzes the efficacy of RI’s efforts to marshal its resources to shape social entrepreneurs through this Fellowship program. The paper finds that social network, robust funding and mechanisms to help the Fellows hone their skills and capabilities are the RI Fellowship’s strength. These strengths are most evident and most strongly leveraged during the Fellows’ preparatory traineeship at select institutions. They however atrophy or at least are under-leveraged after the Fellows complete their training and return to their home countries. Given the remarkable effectiveness of RI’s in-traineeship support, this paper argues that there exists strong potential to reorganize ties among and between RI and its trained Fellows to ensure that their social entrepreneurship potential is more actively harnessed after they graduate.Master of City and Regional Plannin

The Syntactical Meanings in Selected Verse lines of Al-Ghusn Poem “TheBranch” by Dr. Wad'ha Al Qahtani: An Analytical Study

          اختارت الشَّاعرة السُّعوديَّة د. وضحى القحطاني قصيدة "الغُصْن" التي نظمتها على بحر الوافر في أحد عشر بيتًا لتكون فاتحة ديوانها الشِّعري "فَنَن". وقد استعارت (الغُصْن) فيها؛ للتَّعبير عن مقوِّمات الحياة البهيجة الآمنة الهانئة التي تفيض حسنًا وجمالا، وتنضح بالحُبِّ والعطاء، فتغمر الأرجاء نفعًا، وتعمَّ الأجواء أنْسًا. فمثَّلت بهذا الغُصْن رمزًا لجوهر الحياة في مراحل العُمْر، تلك الحياة الولَّادة المتجدِّدة في البذل لغُنْم العُمْر في إعمار الحياة الدُّنيا وصولا إلى الحياة الخالدة في جنَّات عدن. فزاوجت الشَّاعرة في تحقيق تلك المقاصد بين الجملتين الاسميَّة والفعليَّة، فكانت صولة الفعليَّة أقوى وأظهر استصحابًا لدلالة التَّجدُّد التي يُفيدُها الفعل المضارع، وحضرت الجملة الاسميَّة في مواضع الدَّلالات المستلزمة للثُّبوت كحضورها في عنواني "القصيدة" و"الدِّيوان". وقد ظهر التَّناغم والانسجام بين عنوان الدِّيوان "فَنَن" وعنوان فاتحة قصائده " الغُصْن" مدار هذه الدِّراسة.  Saudi poet Dr. Wadha Al Qhatani had selected the poem "AL GHUSN: The Branch" which it set in Al WAAFER meter in eleven lines to form the beginning of her poet collection "FANAN: Art". In this regard, the poet had affected the branch as a metaphor for the elements for joyful good life which is fully packed with beauty and splendor, exudes affection and bestowment, consequently, it floods around with wholesomeness and spreads joviality. What is more, the post utilized this branch to indicate the essence of life over different periods of age including the fruitful life renewable by means of donating to gain age intending to construct this worldly life then reaching the eternal life in gardens of Eden. Likewise, the poet in terms of achieving such intentions mingled the noun clause and verb clause, notwithstanding, the verb clause had been predominant in view of indication of renovation effected by the present verb. In the same vein, the noun clause had remarkably appeared in the positions of denotations which require evidences as the case with the attendance in the two titles "The Poem" and "Collection". In this connection, the harmony and consistency popped up in the title of collection "FANAN: Art" with its initial poem "GHUSN: Branch" hereinabove. &nbsp