H5N1 Clade 2.2 Polymorphism Tracing Identifies Influenza Recombination and Potential Vaccine Targets

Highly pathogenic Influenza A H5N1 was first identified in Guangdong Province in 1996, followed by human cases in Hong Kong in 1997 1. The number of confirmed human cases now exceeds 300 and the associated Case Fatality Rate exceeds 60% 2. The genetic diversity of the serotype continues to increase. Four distinct clades or sub-clades have been linked to human cases 3.4. The gradual genetic changes identified in the sub-clades have been attributed to copy errors by viral encoded polymerases that lack an editing function, thereby resulting in antigenic drift 5. We traced polymorphism acquisition in Clade 2.2 sequences. We report here the concurrent acquisition of the same polymorphism by multiple, genetically distinct, Clade 2.2 sub-clades in Egypt, Russia and Ghana. These changes are not easily explained by the current theory of “random mutation” through copy error, and are more easily explained by recombination with a common source. This conclusion is supported by additional polymorphisms shared by Clade 2.2 isolates in Egypt, Nigeria and Germany including aggregation of regional polymorphisms from each of these areas into a single Nigerian human hemagglutinin gene

Concurrent Acquisition of a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in Diverse Influenza H5N1 Clade 2.2 Sub-clades

Highly pathogenic Influenza A H5N1 was first identified in Guangdong Province in 1996, followed by human cases in Hong Kong in 1997. The number of confirmed human cases now exceeds 300, and the associated Case Fatality Rate exceeds 60%. The genetic diversity of the serotype continues to increase. Four distinct clades or sub-clades have been linked to human cases. The gradual genetic changes identified in the sub-clades have been attributed to copy errors by viral encoded polymerases that lack an editing function, thereby resulting in antigenic drift. We report here the concurrent acquisition of the same polymorphism by multiple, genetically distinct, clade 2.2 sub-clades in Egypt, Russia, and Ghana. These changes are not easily explained by the current theory of “random mutation” through copy error, and are more easily explained by recombination with a common source. This conclusion is supported by additional polymorphisms shared by clade 2.2 isolates in Egypt and Germany

Évaluation des impacts de l'utilisation des terres en analyse du cycle de vie: caractérisation axée sur la qualité des sols

RÉSUMÉ Les mécanismes à la base d’une détérioration de la qualité de l’environnement naturel sont majoritairement d’origine anthropique. Bien qu’elles ne soient pas intentionnelles, les conséquences de cette emprise humaine sont nombreuses sur les écosystèmes naturels et leur durabilité. Compte tenu de son rôle central et complexe, le sol est essentiel au maintien du fonctionnement des écosystèmes terrestres puisqu’il assure de multiples fonctions fondamentales. Sa qualité écologique est donc déterminante. Fondée sur une approche holistique, l’Analyse du Cycle de Vie (ACV) est un outil de prise de décision qui permet de quantifier différents impacts environnementaux potentiels en considérant l’ensemble des étapes du cycle de vie d’un produit. Il est bien établi que l’exploitation des terres engendre des impacts sur la biodiversité et est une source primaire de dégradation des sols affectant leur qualité écologique. Pourtant, les méthodes d’évaluation des impacts en ACV les comptabilisent de manière sommaire. Les approches publiées sont plutôt orientées vers les impacts sur la biodiversité ou encore vers une seule fonction écologique fournie par le sol, sa capacité productive. De plus, sur le plan spatial, la régionalisation des impacts qui varient selon les conditions de l’emplacement où l’intervention a lieu n’est pas pleinement explorée. Développés pour un contexte européen, les facteurs de caractérisation (FCs) disponibles sont généralement génériques et ne tiennent pas compte de la différenciation spatiale. La portée géographique des résultats obtenus en ACV pour la caractérisation des impacts de l’utilisation des terres peut donc être jugée insuffisante ce qui remet en question leur crédibilité, surtout pour un contexte canadien qui s’étend sur de nombreuses zones écologiques différentes. L’hypothèse de recherche sur laquelle se base ce projet est: L’adoption d’un modèle spatialisé permet de discriminer la variabilité spatiale des paramètres biogéographiques et améliore la représentativité géo-spatiale des FCs dans un contexte d’évaluation des impacts de l’utilisation des terres en ACV. Les objectifs sont: 1) d’établir un cadre d’analyse conceptuel pour considérer les impacts potentiels en ACV de l’utilisation des terres sur la qualité écologique du sol, 2) de développer des FCs par une approche spatialisée pour un contexte canadien et 3) d’opérationnaliser l’approche spatialisée à une échelle mondiale. Le cadre d’analyse conceptuel est établi dans le but d’harmoniser l’ensemble des voies d’impact majeures en ACV.----------ABSTRACT The mechanisms underlying the deterioration of natural environmental quality are mainly anthropogenic. Although they are not intentional, the consequences of human dominance are numerous, especially on natural ecosystems and their sustainability. Given its essential and complex role in maintaining terrestrial ecosystem functioning, the soil performs many fundamental functions. Thus, its ecological quality is crucial. Based on a holistic approach, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a decision-support tool used for the assessment of potential environmental impacts of a product over its entire life cycle. It is well established that land use causes impacts on biodiversity and is a primary source of soil degradation affecting its ecological quality. However, land use impact assessment methods are still lacking within LCA. So far, several published studies have only focused on the assessment of impacts on biodiversity and biotic production capacity, the latter being one ecological function among others. Moreover, the concept of regionalization (i.e. considering different impacts depending on the conditions of the location where they occur) is hardly explored. Indeed, developed within a European context, characterization factors (CFs) are often generic and do not account for spatial differentiation. Therefore, the geographic scope of land use impacts characterization is judged insufficient, creating doubts regarding LCA results credibility, especially for a Canadian context which spreads over several distinct ecological regions. The research hypothesis of this project is as follows: Using a spatial model allows discriminating spatial variability of biogeographical parameters and improves the geo-spatial representativeness of CFs within the context of LCA land use impact assessment. The main goals are: 1) to establish a conceptual framework accounting for LCA land use impacts on soil ecological quality, 2) to develop CFs for a Canadian context using a spatially-explicit approach and 3) to operationalize the approach at a global scale. The conceptual framework is established in order to harmonize major impact pathways suggested in LCA. It mainly focuses on the impact pathway regarding soil ecological quality by considering the multifunctional aspect of soil and emphasizing its contribution to more global ecosystem services at a larger scale. Thus, impacts are evaluated based on the soil’s performance to fulfill a range of intended ecological functions and for which impact indicators have to be selected

The transformation of public housing provision in Egypt and the role of self help

PhD ThesisEgypt faces a great challenge in relation to the provision of housing for its urban poor. Not only has the right formula to be found of how to satisy the escalating demand, both in terms of quantity and quality, but also of where to locate such housing. The New Cities and Settlements in the desert seem to be the only option left in order to combat the continuous loss of the agricultural land to the expanding existing urban centres. The New Cities however, initiated in the late 70's, failed to attract the low income groups of settlers. This was mainly due to the lack of affordable housing for such groups. Whilst thousands of finished residential units remain unoccupied, the workers employed in some of the New Cities' factories are commuting on a daily basis to and from the closest urban or agricultural centres near Cairo. This research argues that aided self-help and user interventions in general could offer an appropriate answer. When most of the New Cities and Settlements were planned many self-help schemes were proposed but were frequently abandoned in favour of the conventional medium rise mass housing approach. Little or no research has been carried out to evaluate the very few schemes which were implemented. The decision to cancel self-help schemes was entirely political and seemed to stem from the governments fear of the creation of sub-standard and poor image built environments within the New Cities. The research based its defence on projects which allow user interventions and participation in two Case Studies. The first concerns multi-storey extensions informally built by the residents in 5 storey walk-up public housing flats located in Heiwan and El Tebeen. The second deals with a core housing project located in The Tenth of Ramadan, one of the New Cities. The multi-storey extensions of Helwan and El Tebeen provided clear . evidence on the potentialities and capabilities of low income users working and living in positive and supportive circumstances. The Tenth of Ramadan Core Housing Scheme provides explicit and substantiated proof of the benefits of self-help and user intervention approaches, in contrast to the views of the Government and Local Authority who condemn the process as negative development leading to a lowering of standards and poor quality envi ronments. The research argues that self-help has succeeded where the mass housing approach has failed.The involvement of the household and community group are seen as integral decison makers in the planning and design process. The user's efforts to transform and consolidate their housing requirements should be appreciated and encouraged and to achieve this the research concludes that a review of management and design procedures would be the first step towards achieving this aim.The British Counci

Survey of indoor tracking systems using augmented reality

Augmented reality overlays virtual content on the physical world, displaying location-based information more efficiently. Tracking is a trace detail of the location recorded, either by taking a reading based on a set time interval, set distance, and change in direction by more than a certain angle, or a combination of these. Tracking is divided into two types, outdoor tracking, and indoor tracking. Augmented reality added value and information to tracking applications, whether indoor or outdoor. Recently, outdoor tracking by the global positioning system (GPS) became an essential component in navigation applications. However, indoor tracking is still challenging in the augmented reality field. Most augmented reality indoor tracking use optical and sensor-based tracking, such as markers, beacons, Raspberry Pi, and route planner modules for the building. With the technology enhancement, indoor tracking started to rely on Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, geographic information system, radiofrequency identification, and sensor chip technologies. Our paper describes the recent augmented reality tracking techniques from 2011 to 2021. The paper compares image detection algorithms with various communication technologies, disscusing the advantages and the limitations of each technology

Aggregation of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in a Human H5N1 Clade 2.2 Hemagglutinin

The evolution of H5N1 has attracted significant interest 1-4 due to linkages with avian 5,6 and human infections 7,8. The basic tenets of influenza genetics 9 attribute genetic drift to replication errors caused by a polymerase complex that lacks a proof reading function. However, recent analysis 10 of swine influenza genes identifies regions copied with absolute fidelity for more than 25 years. In addition, polymorphism tracing of clade 2.2 H5N1 single nucleotide polymorphisms identify concurrent acquisition 11 of the same polymorphism onto multiple genetic backgrounds in widely dispersed geographical locations. Here we show the aggregation of regional clade 2.2 polymorphisms from Germany, Egypt, and sub-Sahara Africa onto a human Nigerian H5N1 hemagglutinin (HA), implicating recombination in the dispersal and aggregation of single nucleotide polymorphisms from closely related genomes

Aggregation of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in a Human H5N1 Clade 2.2 Hemagglutinin

The rapid evolution of the H5N1 serotype of avian influenza has been explained by a mechanism involving the selection of single nucleotide polymorphisms generated by copy errors. The recent emergence of H5N1 Clade 2.2 in fifty countries, offered a unique opportunity to view the acquisition of new polymorphism in these evolving genomes. We analyzed the H5N1 hemagglutinin gene from a fatal human case from Nigeria in 2007. The newly emerged polymorphisms were present in diverse H5N1 isolates from the previous year. The aggregation of these polymorphisms from clade 2.2 sub-clades was not supported by recent random mutations, and was most easily explained by recombination between closely related sequences

Real-time indoor tracking for augmented reality using computer vision technique

In recent times, there has been an increase in the stability and integration of augmented reality (AR) technology in everyday applications. AR relies on tracking techniques to capture the characteristics of the surrounding environment. Tracking falls into two categories: outdoor and indoor. While outdoor tracking predominantly relies on the global positioning system (GPS), it is performance indoors is hindered by imprecise GPS signals. Indoor tracking offers a solution for navigating complex indoor environments. This paper introduces an indoor tracking system that combines smartphone sensor data and computer vision using the oriented features from accelerated and segments test and rotated binary robust independent elementary features (ORB) algorithm for feature extraction, along with brute force match (BFM) and k-nearest neighbor (KNN) for matching. This approach outperforms previous systems, offering efficient navigation without relying on pre-existing maps. The system uses the A* algorithm to find the shortest path and cloud computing for data storage. Experimental results demonstrate an impressive 99% average accuracy within a 7-10 cm error range, even in scenarios with varying distances. Moreover, all users successfully reached their destinations during the experiments. This innovative model presents a promising advancement in indoor tracking, enhancing the accuracy and effectiveness of navigation in complex indoor space

Effect of Soft Tissue Mobilization on Cervical Pain in Nursing Women

Introduction: cervical pain in nursing women is aserious health problem because it certainly limits function and capacity in both work and personal life. Purpose: This study was performed to determine the effectiveness of soft tissue mobilization on the treatment of cervical pain in nursing women. Subjects: sixty breastfeeding women were selected from Fakous Hospital at El Sharqia, diagnosed with neck pain and active myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) in the upper fibres of trapezius muscle. Patients were divided randomly into two groups equal in number: group (A) received convential physical therapy (stretching exercise), group (B) received instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM) and convential physical therapy. Methods: The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Neck disability index scale (NDI) were assessed before the study and after four weeks. Results: The mean difference in VAS between groups post treatment was 1.6. There was a significant decrease in VAS of group B compared with that of group A post treatment. The mean difference in NDI between groups post treatment was 5.4%. There was a significant decrease in the NDI of group B compared with that of group A post treatment. Conclusion: soft tissue mobilization can be used on the treatment of cervical pain in nursing women. It has significant effect on Visual Analogue Scale and Neck disability index scale rather than convential physical therapy only

Dual-band multiple-element MIMO antenna system for next-generation smartphones

This work presents a cost-effective multiple-element multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna system for next-generation smartphones. The proposed antenna system is developed on a 0.8 mm thin FR-4 substrate with a relative permittivity of 4.4, which consists of one main board and two sideboards. The dimensions of the main board and the two side boards are 150 × 75 mm2 and 150 × 6 mm2, respectively. The radiating elements are printed on the sideboards to provide space for other radio frequency (RF) components to be embedded on the main board. The proposed antenna resonates at two distinct allotted 5G bands, i.e., 3.5 GHz and 5.4 GHz, with impedance bandwidths of 200 MHz and 700 MHz, respectively. The isolation between the antenna elements is noted to be >18 dB and >12 dB for the 3.5 GHz and 5.4 GHz frequency bands. In addition, the proposed MIMO antenna provides pattern and spatial diversity characteristics in both bands with good gain and efficiency. Furthermore, the MIMO parameters such as envelope correlation coefficient (ECC), mean effective gain (MEG), and channel capacity (CC) are calculated, and it is observed that the MIMO antenna offers good diversity performance for the bands of interest. A prototype is fabricated and measured to verify the numerical data. The simulated results were discovered to be in excellent agreement with the measured results. It is also observed that the proposed MIMO antenna system holds promising features, and can be utilized for future generations of smartphones.Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman Universit