3,392 research outputs found
Dynamics of African swine fever virus shedding and excretion in domestic pigs infected by intramuscular inoculation and contact transmission
African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a highly virulent swine pathogen that has spread across Eastern Europe since 2007 and for which there is no effective vaccine or treatment available. The dynamics of shedding and excretion is not well known for this currently circulating ASFV strain. Therefore, susceptible pigs were exposed to pigs intramuscularly infected with the Georgia 2007/1 ASFV strain to measure those dynamics through within- and between-pen transmission scenarios. Blood, oral, nasal and rectal fluid samples were tested for the presence of ASFV by virus titration (VT) and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Serum was tested for the presence of ASFV-specific antibodies. Both intramuscular inoculation and contact transmission resulted in development of acute disease in all pigs although the experiments indicated that the pathogenesis of the disease might be different, depending on the route of infection. Infectious ASFV was first isolated in blood among the inoculated pigs by day 3, and then chronologically among the direct and indirect contact pigs, by day 10 and 13, respectively. Close to the onset of clinical signs, higher ASFV titres were found in blood compared with nasal and rectal fluid samples among all pigs. No infectious ASFV was isolated in oral fluid samples although ASFV genome copies were detected. Only one animal developed antibodies starting after 12 days post-inoculation. The results provide quantitative data on shedding and excretion of the Georgia 2007/1 ASFV strain among domestic pigs and suggest a limited potential of this isolate to cause persistent infection
Experimental pig-to-pig transmission dynamics for African swine fever virus, Georgia 2007/1 strain
African swine fever virus (ASFV) continues to cause outbreaks in domestic pigs and wild boar in Eastern European countries. To gain insights into its transmission dynamics, we estimated the pig-to-pig basic reproduction number (R 0) for the Georgia 2007/1 ASFV strain using a stochastic susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered (SEIR) model with parameters estimated from transmission experiments. Models showed that R 0 is 2·8 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1·3–4·8] within a pen and 1·4 (95% CI 0·6–2·4) between pens. The results furthermore suggest that ASFV genome detection in oronasal samples is an effective diagnostic tool for early detection of infection. This study provides quantitative information on transmission parameters for ASFV in domestic pigs, which are required to more effectively assess the potential impact of strategies for the control of between-farm epidemic spread in European countries.ISSN:0950-2688ISSN:1469-440
On Maximal Massive 3D Supergravity
We construct, at the linearized level, the three-dimensional (3D) N = 4
supersymmetric "general massive supergravity" and the maximally supersymmetric
N = 8 "new massive supergravity". We also construct the maximally
supersymmetric linearized N = 7 topologically massive supergravity, although we
expect N = 6 to be maximal at the non-linear level.Comment: 33 page
Metastable Dynamics above the Glass Transition
The element of metastability is incorporated in the fluctuating nonlinear
hydrodynamic description of the mode coupling theory (MCT) of the liquid-glass
transition. This is achieved through the introduction of the defect density
variable into the set of slow variables with the mass density and
the momentum density . As a first approximation, we consider the case
where motions associated with are much slower than those associated with
. Self-consistently, assuming one is near a critical surface in the MCT
sense, we find that the observed slowing down of the dynamics corresponds to a
certain limit of a very shallow metastable well and a weak coupling between
and . The metastability parameters as well as the exponents
describing the observed sequence of time relaxations are given as smooth
functions of the temperature without any evidence for a special temperature. We
then investigate the case where the defect dynamics is included. We find that
the slowing down of the dynamics corresponds to the system arranging itself
such that the kinetic coefficient governing the diffusion of the
defects approaches from above a small temperature-dependent value .Comment: 38 pages, 14 figures (6 figs. are included as a uuencoded tar-
compressed file. The rest is available upon request.), RevTEX3.0+eps
Anomalous Exponent of the Spin Correlation Function of a Quantum Hall Edge
The charge and spin correlation functions of partially spin-polarized edge
electrons of a quantum Hall bar are studied using effective Hamiltonian and
bosonization techniques. In the presence of the Coulomb interaction between the
edges with opposite chirality we find a different crossover behavior in spin
and charge correlation functions. The crossover of the spin correlation
function in the Coulomb dominated regime is characterized by an anomalous
exponent, which originates from the finite value of the effective interaction
for the spin degree of freedom in the long wavelength limit. The anomalous
exponent may be determined by measuring nuclear spin relaxation rates in a
narrow quantum Hall bar or in a quantum wire in strong magnetic fields.Comment: 4 pages, Revtex file, no figures. To appear in Physical Revews B,
Rapid communication
Hopf algebras, coproducts and symbols: an application to Higgs boson amplitudes
We show how the Hopf algebra structure of multiple polylogarithms can be used
to simplify complicated expressions for multi-loop amplitudes in perturbative
quantum field theory and we argue that, unlike the recently popularized
symbol-based approach, the coproduct incorporates information about the zeta
values. We illustrate our approach by rewriting the two-loop helicity
amplitudes for a Higgs boson plus three gluons in a simplified and compact form
involving only classical polylogarithms.Comment: 46 page
Heterotic/type I duality, D-instantons and an N=2 AdS/CFT correspondence
D-instanton effects are studied for the IIB orientifold T^2/I\Omega(-1)^{F_L}
of Sen using type I/heterotic duality. An exact one loop threshold calculation
of t_8 \tr F^4 and t_8(\tr F^2)^2 terms for the heterotic string on T^2 with
Wilson lines breaking SO(32) to SO(8)^4 is related to D-instanton induced terms
in the worldvolume of D7 branes in the orientifold. Introducing D3 branes and
using the AdS/CFT correspondence in this case, these terms are used to
calculate Yang-Mills instanton contributions to four point functions of the
large N_c limit of N=2 USp(2N_c) SYM with four fundamental and one
antisymmetric tensor hypermultiplets.Comment: 25 pages, harvmac(b), one figure, v2: minor changes, version to
appear in PR
Cancer symptom awareness and barriers to symptomatic presentation in England – Are we clear on cancer?
Background: Low cancer awareness may contribute to delayed diagnosis and poor cancer survival. We aimed to quantify socio-demographic differences in cancer symptom awareness and barriers to symptomatic presentation in the English population.
Methods: Using a uniquely large data set (n=49?270), we examined the association of cancer symptom awareness and barriers to presentation with age, gender, marital status and socio-economic position (SEP), using logistic regression models to control for confounders.
Results: The youngest and oldest, the single and participants with the lowest SEP recognised the fewest cancer symptoms, and reported most barriers to presentation. Recognition of nine common cancer symptoms was significantly lower, and embarrassment, fear and difficulties in arranging transport to the doctor’s surgery were significantly more common in participants living in the most deprived areas than in the most affluent areas. Women were significantly more likely than men to both recognise common cancer symptoms and to report barriers. Women were much more likely compared with men to report that fear would put them off from going to the doctor.
Conclusions: Large and robust socio-demographic differences in recognition of some cancer symptoms, and perception of some barriers to presentation, highlight the need for targeted campaigns to encourage early presentation and improve cancer outcomes
Does Quantum Mechanics Clash with the Equivalence Principle - and Does it Matter?
With an eye on developing a quantum theory of gravity, many physicists have
recently searched for quantum challenges to the equivalence principle of
general relativity. However, as historians and philosophers of science are well
aware, the principle of equivalence is not so clear. When clarified, we think
quantum tests of the equivalence principle won't yield much. The problem is
that the clash/not-clash is either already evident or guaranteed not to exist.
Nonetheless, this work does help teach us what it means for a theory to be
geometric.Comment: 12 page
- …