Identification of Felis catus Gammaherpesvirus 1 in Tsushima Leopard Cats (Prionailurus bengalensis euptilurus) on Tsushima Island, Japan

Felis catus gammaherpesvirus 1 (FcaGHV1) is a widely endemic infection of domestic cats. Current epidemiological data identify domestic cats as the sole natural host for FcaGHV1. The Tsushima leopard cat (TLC; Prionailurus bengalensis euptilurus) is a critically endangered species that lives only on Tsushima Island, Nagasaki, Japan. Nested PCR was used to test the blood or spleen of 89 TLCs for FcaGHV1 DNA; three (3.37%; 95% CI, 0.70–9.54) were positive. For TLC management purposes, we also screened domestic cats and the virus was detected in 13.02% (95% CI, 8.83–18.27) of 215 cats. Regarding phylogeny, the partial sequences of FcaGHV1 from domestic cats and TLCs formed one cluster, indicating that similar strains circulate in both populations. In domestic cats, we found no significant difference in FcaGHV1 detection in feline immunodeficiency virus-infected (p = 0.080) or feline leukemia virus-infected (p = 0.163) cats, but males were significantly more likely to be FcaGHV1 positive (odds ratio, 5.86; 95% CI, 2.27–15.14) than females. The higher frequency of FcaGHV1 detection in domestic cats than TLCs, and the location of the viral DNA sequences from both cats within the same genetic cluster suggests that virus transmission from domestic cats to TLCs is likely

Use of Satisfaction-Satisfaction Matrix (SSM) to Evaluate E-Government Services from the Perspective of Japanese Citizens and Government Service Providers

This paper addresses the issue of Japanese e-government benefits evaluation and stresses the need to develop a new measurement tool to evaluate e-government services from the perspective of Japanese citizens and government service providers. While research has used SERVQUAL, SERVPERF and Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) as evaluation tools to measure quality of services, most of these tools are developed to evaluate quality of services from the perspective of citizens or service providers. In this paper, we propose a new evaluation tool, namely Satisfaction-Satisfaction Matrix (SSM), to gauge both the perceptions of citizens and service providers concerning the performance of e-government services. The matrix not only serves as a useful tool to identify satisfaction responses, but also serves as a strategic decision making tool in the allocation of resources for improving e-government services

A New E-Government Role in Improving Local Government Performance: A Study Based on a Yardstick Competition Model

A New E-Government Role in Improving Local Government Performance: A Study Based on a Yardstick Competition Mode

Seconde nozze e identità materna nella Firenze del tardo Medioevo,

<div><p>Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) belongs to the genus <i>Gammaretrovirus</i>, and causes a variety of neoplastic and non-neoplastic diseases in cats. Alteration of viral <i>env</i> sequences is thought to be associated with disease specificity, but the way in which genetic diversity of FeLV contributes to the generation of such variants in nature is poorly understood. We isolated FeLV <i>env</i> genes from naturally infected cats in Japan and analyzed the evolutionary dynamics of these genes. Phylogenetic reconstructions separated our FeLV samples into three distinct genetic clusters, termed Genotypes I, II, and III. Genotype I is a major genetic cluster and can be further classified into Clades 1–7 in Japan. Genotypes were correlated with geographical distribution; Genotypes I and II were distributed within Japan, whilst FeLV samples from outside Japan belonged to Genotype III. These results may be due to geographical isolation of FeLVs in Japan. The observed structural diversity of the FeLV <i>env</i> gene appears to be caused primarily by mutation, deletion, insertion and recombination, and these variants may be generated <i>de novo</i> in individual cats. FeLV interference assay revealed that FeLV genotypes did not correlate with known FeLV receptor subgroups. We have identified the genotypes which we consider to be reliable for evaluating phylogenetic relationships of FeLV, which embrace the high structural diversity observed in our sample. Overall, these findings extend our understanding of <i>Gammaretrovirus</i> evolutionary patterns in the field, and may provide a useful basis for assessing the emergence of novel strains and understanding the molecular mechanisms of FeLV transmission in cats.</p></div

Pseudotype viruses derived from FeLV recombinant <i>env</i> genes having endogenous FeLV sequences were tested for viral interference assay.

<p>“N” indicates no recombination and “R” recombination in the indicated domain.</p