Detection, monitoring & clonal characterisation of human cytomegalovirus specific CD8+ T cells in hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients.

The human cytomegalovirus (CMV) can cause significant morbidity and mortality in haematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) patients. The immunosuppressed state of the hosts facilitates dissemination of the virus and disease. In contrast, CD8+ T cells in healthy individuals control viral dissemination and maintain a balance between antiviral host defence and replication of the virus that leads to viral latency with sporadic, harmless reactivations. Current pharmacological intervention in the HSCT setting is associated with significant toxicity and is counteracted by the occurrence of resistant viral strains. Alternative approaches, such as adoptive therapy of CMV specific CD8+ T cells are of great interest in the field. So far, levels of such cells correlating with protection against CMV disease in patients were only shown for cells targeting two different viral epitopes. The project described in this thesis investigates CD8+ T cell responses to several common CMV targets presented by different human leukocyte antigens in the HSCT setting. Results demonstrate significant differences between the numbers of different CMV specific CD8+ T cells that, in the presence of CD4+ T cell help, inversely correlate with the ability to detect CMV reactivation. Findings also demonstrate significant differences in the diversity of T cell receptors (TCRs) used by the different CMV specific CD8+ T cells isolated from HSCT patients. These findings are clinically relevant in that the quantity of cells shown to correlate with protection against CMV could be used as a marker for monitoring patients' immune status towards CMV. This may aid clinical decision making to limit pharmacological intervention to those patients at highest risk for the development of CMV disease. It may also aid the monitoring of the effectiveness of adoptive therapy trials. Therapeutic use of cells with high TCR diversity may be advantageous over other cells in that they may impede the development of CMV immune escape in patients

Big Data for Policymaking: Fad or Fast Track?

The buzz surrounding big data has taken shape in various theoretical and practical forms when it comes to policymaking. The paper combines current research streams with long-standing discussions on government and technology in public policy and public administration, such as e-government and evidence-based policymaking. The goal is to answer the question whether big data is a fleeting trend or has long-lasting effects on policymaking. Three larger themes in the literature are identified: First, the role that institutional capacity has within government to utilize big data analytics; second, government use of big data analytics in the context of digital public services; and finally, the way that big data information enters the policy cycle, focusing on substantive and procedural policy instruments. Examples from the education, crisis management, environmental and healthcare domain highlight the opportunities and challenges for each of these themes. Exploring the various aspects of big data and policymaking shows that big data is here to stay, but that its utilization by government will take time due to institutional barriers and capacity bottlenecks.The politics and administration of institutional chang

A novel data-driven approach to examine children’s movements and social behaviour in schoolyard environments

Social participation at schoolyards is crucial for children's development. Yet, schoolyard environments contain features that can hinder children's social participation. In this paper, we empirically examine schoolyards to identify existing obstacles. Traditionally, this type of study requires huge amounts of detailed information about children in a given environment. Collecting such data is exceedingly difficult and expensive. In this study, we present a novel sensor data-driven approach for gathering this information and examining the effect of schoolyard environments on children's behaviours in light of schoolyard affordances and individual effectivities. Sensor data is collected from 150 children at two primary schools, using location trackers, proximity tags, and Multi-Motion receivers to measure locations, face-to-face contacts, and activities. Results show strong potential for this data-driven approach, as it allows collecting data from individuals and their interactions with schoolyard environments, examining the triad of physical, social, and cultural affordances in schoolyards, and identifying factors that significantly impact children's behaviours. Based on this approach, we further obtain better knowledge on the impact of these factors and identify limitations in schoolyard designs, which can inform schools, designers, and policymakers about current problems and practical solutions.Algorithms and the Foundations of Software technolog

Decentralization in Ukraine and bottom-up European integration

Author´s accepted manuscript.Available from 30/07/2023.acceptedVersio

A framework for intelligent policy decision making based on a government data hub

Author ProofThe e-Oman Integration Platform is a data hub that enables data exchanges across government in response to transactions. With millions of transactions weekly, and thereby data exchanges, we propose to investigate the potential of gathering intelligence from these linked sources to help government officials make more informed decisions. A key feature of this data is the richness and accuracy, which increases the value of the learning outcome when augmented by other big and open data sources. We consider a high-level framework within a government context, taking into account issues related to the definition of public policies, data privacy, and the potential benefits to society. A preliminary, qualitative validation of the framework in the context of e-Oman is presented. This paper lays out foundational work into an ongoing research to implement government decision-making based on big data.“SmartEGOV: Harnessing EGOV for Smart Governance (Foundations, Methods, Tools)/NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000037”, supported by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (EFDR

Overcoming the Failure of ‘Silicon Somewheres’: Collective Learning in Innovation Networks

Increased pressure to use policy transfer as a tool has led policy-makers to seek it as a solution for innovation efforts. A prominent example is Silicon Valley, whose replication attempts have been widely criticised. Based on 'Silicon Somewhere' cases in Asia, Europe and the US, the research suggests that there are different types of learning contributing to the success or failure of policy transfer. These variations in the learning processes underlying the transfer include imitation, trialand-error and adaptive learning.The politics and administration of institutional chang

Comparative analysis of Sweden’s wind energy policy: The evolution of ‘coordinated’ networks

In search of an appropriate institutional structure for successful environmental policy, many researchers focus on network governance. And while it provides the flexibility and adaptability needed for climate change initiatives, the paper argues that many networks collaborate too loosely to have the capacity to reach strategic goals or mobilize local players. There is often a disconnect between national policy goals and on-the-ground dynamics. Instead, government should adopt a network perspective which does not eliminate state action, but involves network management institutions at arm’s length of government. As an example for this mode of network governance, the research looks at the Swedish “National Network for Wind Power”, which was initiated by government and is now led by four wind coordinators managing the development of on- and offshore wind electricity. The paper compares Swedish performance before and after the introduction of the wind network and shows how these government efforts have transformed Sweden from a weak performer to being a frontrunner in Europe.The politics and administration of institutional chang