15 research outputs found
Detection of Multiple Genotypes of Calicivirus Infection in Asymptomatic Swine in Taiwan
Noroviruses (NoVs) and sapoviruses (SaVs) of the family Caliciviridae are
emerging enteric pathogens in humans and animals. Recent detection of genogroup
II norovirus (GII NoV) RNA from swine raises public health concerns
about zoonotic transmission of porcine NoVs to humans. However, few papers
reported genotype distributions and epidemiological features in swine farms
and their genetic relationship to human strains, which was the objective of our
study. This study investigated the epidemiological features and genotypes of
caliciviruses in swine farms using 533 pig faecal samples from six farms in central
and southern Taiwan, tested for viral RNA using RT-PCR targeting the conserved
polymerase gene. NoVs and SaVs were detected with a positive rate of
7.1% and 0.6%, respectively. To confirm the positive rate of NoVs, 255 pig
faecal samples from two farms in central Taiwan were tested with primer pairs
targeting the partial capsid gene of GII, and 32.3% of the positive rate was
found. Furthermore, the results from the capsid region suggested a higher positive
rate of 41.7% in winter than 26.4% in summer with statistical significance
(P < 0.05). Sequence analysis showed 29 strains belonging to GII.4 (human)
and nine strains belonging to GII.11 (swine) identified based on the partial
polymerase gene. Additional genotypes clustered with GII.2 (human) and GII.18
(swine) were also characterized based on the partial capsid gene. SaVs detected
in porcine faecal samples belonged to genogroup III (GIII), which clustered with
the PEC-Cowden strain. Our study demonstrated the presence of multiple genotypes
of both human and porcine NoVs infecting swine of various ages asymptomatically.
Although the zoonotic potential of detected human NoVs in swine
was not conclusive owing to the lack of local human faecal samples, our study
revealed the importance of monitoring emerging strains in swine to mitigate the
potential impact of recombinant NoVs infecting the human population
The emerging ethics of knowledge sharing: hacker ethics, participatory culture ethics and proselytization commons ethics
A key challenge that is emerging for organizations in nowadays is how to encourage knowledge sharing. Knowledge sharing is an activity through which knowledge is exchanged among people, a community or organization. Knowledge constitutes a valuable intangible asset for creating and sustaining competitive advantages. Knowledge sharing activities are generally supported by knowledge management systems. Nevertheless, technology comprises simply one of the several issues that influence organizational knowledge sharing, such as organizational culture, trust, and incentives. So, knowledge sharing entails a key challenge in the field of knowledge management because some individuals tend to resist sharing their knowledge with others (it may be an individual, a group, a community, or an organization). The aim of this chapter is to describe and discuss three emerging ethics of knowledge-sharing, namely: (1) hacker ethics, (2) participatory culture ethics, and (3) proselytization commons ethics. Future research directions are suggested and concluded the chapter
Applying the Direct and Indirect Methods of Purchase Intentions to Assess Interest in a Proposed Graduate Student Association
Design and Development of a Novel Localization Scheme for Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks
Structural characterization of interfaces in epitaxial Fe/MgO/Fe magnetic tunnel junctions by transmission electron microscopy
We present a detailed structural characterization of the interfaces in Fe/MgO/Fe layers grown by molecular-beam epitaxy using aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning TEM, and electron energy-loss spectroscopy. When fabricated into magnetic tunnel junctions, these epitaxial devices exhibit large tunnel magnetoresistance ratios (e.g., 318% at 10 K), though still considerably lower than the values predicted theoretically. The reason for this discrepancy is being debated and has been attributed to the structure of, and defects at the interface, namely, the relative position of the atoms, interface oxidation, strain, and structural asymmetry of the interfaces. In this structural study, we observed that Fe is bound to O at the interfaces. The interfaces are semicoherent and mostly sharp with a minor degree of oxidation. A comparison of the two interfaces shows that the top MgO/Fe interface is rougher.1124sciescopu