Chikungunya Epidemic Mortality in India: Lessons from 17th Century Bills of Mortality Still Relevant

Chikungunya is a virus spread by the bite of the Aedes mosquito, which recently reemerged as a massive epidemic in the Indian Ocean islands and India. Chikungunya is generally considered self-limiting and has been reported as non-fatal but, since March 2005, one-third of the 770,000 people in the Indian Ocean Island of R�union (a French territory) have been affected by Chikungunya with 237 deaths. India reported 1.3 million cases of Chikungunya however the Government of India has not reported any deaths. However there is evidence that deaths due to Chikungunya did occur. The lack of official reports of deaths is mainly due to the poor recording of ‘Causes of Death’ in India. The London Bills of Mortality from the 17th provides a very good example of the importance of proper reporting of deaths especially during an epidemic period. This paper reflects on the London bills of mortality and modern day lessons to be drawn from it as well as the reasons behind the apparent lack of death reporting in 2006’s Chikungunya epidemic.

Chikungunya Fever: A Killer Epidemic in Ahmedabad City, India

Background The Chikungunya virus is an alphavirus native to tropical Africa and Asia and is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes. The symptoms of Chikungunya include sudden onset of fever, severe arthralgia, and maculopapular rash. Thirty percent of the population on the French R�union Island was afflicted with Chikungunya in the past year. They reported 237 deaths. India on the other hand reported 1.39 million cases of Chikungunya but no deaths. Methods Mortality data from 2002-2006 was obtained from the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). Actual mortality rate of 2006 was compared to the mortality rate of 2002-05 and its statistical significance tests were carried out. Findings Mortality data obtained from the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) suggests that 3112 excess deaths occurred in August-November (epidemic period) compared to the average deaths in the same months during the previous four years. These differences in deaths were found to be highly statistically significant. A peak in excess mortality is seen in the month of September when 1489 additional deaths were recorded. Case fatality rates for Ahmedabad also turn out to be much higher than that of the Reunion Island. Interpretation The Chikungunya epidemic was raging when the excess deaths occurred. There were no other adverse events or other epidemics that took place could explain this excess mortality. Government authorities, WHO and other international public health agencies should take these findings of excess mortality seriously and investigate into this occurrence of excess deaths to understand this reemerging disease and prevent future epidemics and mortality.

Generation of a User Interface Prototype from an Integrated Scenario Specification

This report discusses the design for the generation of a device independent user interface prototype for services offered by a digital library from an Integrated Scenario Specification using class diagrams and collaboration diagrams as input. The project was conceived as an extension to the SUIP tool, which generates a User interface in java. But this approach has an inherent problem. The interfaces thus generated have the java look and feel and this can't be changed if the user so desires. Our design overcomes this drawback by generating the interface in UIML which is device independent and thus it is possible to render the code in java, HTML, WML and other languages. The report aims at providing details about the intricacies of the design and deployment. In addition, it also lists possible enhancements to the code that could be taken up as future work

Impact of different musical nodes and vibrations on plant development

The effects of ambient environmental factors on physiological attributes of plants have been explored extensively. Among all the factors, impact of sound on the plants is an interesting aspect to study. This review attempts to comprehend the impact of sound waves on the development and behaviour of the plants. Musical nodes with healing energy have a certain impact on seeds germination. This can enhance overall plant health by improving growth and resistance, beyond chemical triggers.. In past, seed growth and germination behaviour, influenced by different pre-treatments has been studied for different plants. This review is an effort to provide an indication of the recent results, constraints, and prospective applications of sound wave therapy as a physical trigger for modulating physiological characteristics and giving plants an adaptive benefit. Sound wave therapy is now emerging as a fresh promotion for protecting crops from harmful circumstances and maintaining plant fitness

Increased Mortality Rate Associated with Chikungunya Epidemic, Ahmedabad, India

A total of 3,056 excess deaths epidemiologically linked to chikungunya occurred in 2006

Basic science232. Certolizumab pegol prevents pro-inflammatory alterations in endothelial cell function

Background: Cardiovascular disease is a major comorbidity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and a leading cause of death. Chronic systemic inflammation involving tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF) could contribute to endothelial activation and atherogenesis. A number of anti-TNF therapies are in current use for the treatment of RA, including certolizumab pegol (CZP), (Cimzia ®; UCB, Belgium). Anti-TNF therapy has been associated with reduced clinical cardiovascular disease risk and ameliorated vascular function in RA patients. However, the specific effects of TNF inhibitors on endothelial cell function are largely unknown. Our aim was to investigate the mechanisms underpinning CZP effects on TNF-activated human endothelial cells. Methods: Human aortic endothelial cells (HAoECs) were cultured in vitro and exposed to a) TNF alone, b) TNF plus CZP, or c) neither agent. Microarray analysis was used to examine the transcriptional profile of cells treated for 6 hrs and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysed gene expression at 1, 3, 6 and 24 hrs. NF-κB localization and IκB degradation were investigated using immunocytochemistry, high content analysis and western blotting. Flow cytometry was conducted to detect microparticle release from HAoECs. Results: Transcriptional profiling revealed that while TNF alone had strong effects on endothelial gene expression, TNF and CZP in combination produced a global gene expression pattern similar to untreated control. The two most highly up-regulated genes in response to TNF treatment were adhesion molecules E-selectin and VCAM-1 (q 0.2 compared to control; p > 0.05 compared to TNF alone). The NF-κB pathway was confirmed as a downstream target of TNF-induced HAoEC activation, via nuclear translocation of NF-κB and degradation of IκB, effects which were abolished by treatment with CZP. In addition, flow cytometry detected an increased production of endothelial microparticles in TNF-activated HAoECs, which was prevented by treatment with CZP. Conclusions: We have found at a cellular level that a clinically available TNF inhibitor, CZP reduces the expression of adhesion molecule expression, and prevents TNF-induced activation of the NF-κB pathway. Furthermore, CZP prevents the production of microparticles by activated endothelial cells. This could be central to the prevention of inflammatory environments underlying these conditions and measurement of microparticles has potential as a novel prognostic marker for future cardiovascular events in this patient group. Disclosure statement: Y.A. received a research grant from UCB. I.B. received a research grant from UCB. S.H. received a research grant from UCB. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interes

Recommandations pour le Plan d’action national pour mettre fin à la violence fondée sur le genre : points de vue de dirigeants, de fournisseurs de services et de survivantes dans la plus grande ville du Canada pendant la pandémie de COVID-19

IntroductionLe gouvernement canadien s’est engagé à mettre en oeuvre un Plan d’action national pour mettre fin à la violence envers les femmes. Toutefois, aucun plan officiel de mise en oeuvre n’a été publié. En nous appuyant sur les recommandations déjà formulées et les consultations réalisées, nous avons effectué la première analyse qualitative officielle révisée par des pairs des points de vue de dirigeants, de fournisseurs de services et de survivantes quant aux éléments qui devraient être pris en compte dans le PAN visant à lutter contre la violence envers les femmes. MéthodologieNous avons réalisé une analyse thématique des données qualitatives de 18 employés des services de lutte contre la violence envers les femmes (11 offrant un soutien direct, 7 occupant un poste de direction) et 10 survivantes à la violence envers les femmes ayant participé à une étude communautaire sur les programmes de lutte contre la violence envers les femmes pendant la pandémie de COVID-19 dans la région du Grand Toronto (Ontario, Canada). RésultatsNous avons formulé 12 recommandations relatives au Plan d’action national pour mettre fin à la violence envers les femmes, recommandations que nous avons organisées selon quatre domaines thématiques : 1) investir dans les services de lutte contre la violence envers les femmes et de soutien en cas de crise (par exemple renforcer les mécanismes de référencement vers les programmes de lutte contre la violence envers les femmes); 2) améliorer les services de soutien structuraux (par exemple investir dans l’ensemble du secteur du logement pour les survivantes à la violence envers les femmes); 3) élaborer des systèmes coordonnés (par exemple renforcer la collaboration entre le système de santé et le système de lutte contre la violence envers les femmes) et 4) mettre en oeuvre et évaluer les stratégies de prévention primaire (par exemple mener une analyse intersectionnelle et tenant compte du genre à propos des politiques sociales et publiques mises en place). ConclusionDans le cadre de cette étude, nous avons formulé des recommandations, les avons classées par ordre de priorité et avons nuancé les recommandations déjà émises pour le Plan d’action national pour lutter contre la violence envers les femmes en nous fondant sur une analyse rigoureuse des points de vue de survivantes à la violence envers les femmes et d’employés luttant contre la violence envers les femmes dans la plus grande ville au Canada pendant la pandémie de COVID-19. Un plan efficace nécessite des investissements dans les organismes offrant un soutien direct; un accès au logement équitable ainsi que d’autres services de soutien structurel; une coordination stratégique des systèmes de santé, de justice et sociaux et enfin des stratégies de prévention primaires, en particulier une réforme pour des politiques transformatrices de genre

Recommendations for Canada’s National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence: perspectives from leaders, service providers and survivors in Canada’s largest city during the COVID-19 pandemic

IntroductionThe Canadian government has committed to a national action plan (NAP) to address violence against women (VAW). However, a formalized plan for implementation has not been published. Building on existing recommendations and consultations, we conducted the first formal and peer-reviewed qualitative analysis of the perspectives of leaders, service providers and survivors on what should be considered in Canada’s NAP on VAW. MethodsWe applied thematic analysis to qualitative data from 18 staff working on VAW services (11 direct support, 7 in leadership roles) and 10 VAW survivor participants of a community-based study on VAW programming during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Greater Toronto Area (Ontario, Canada). ResultsWe generated 12 recommendations for Canada’s NAP on VAW, which we organized into four thematic areas: (1) invest into VAW services and crisis supports (e.g. strengthen referral mechanisms to VAW programming); (2) enhance structural supports (e.g. invest in the full housing continuum for VAW survivors); (3) develop coordinated systems (e.g. strengthen collaboration between health and VAW systems); and (4) implement and evaluate primary prevention strategies (e.g. conduct a gender-based and intersectional analysis of existing social and public policies). ConclusionIn this study, we developed, prioritized and nuanced recommendations for Canada’s proposed NAP on VAW based on a rigorous analysis of the perspectives of VAW survivors and staff in Canada’s largest city during the COVID-19 pandemic. An effective NAP will require investment in direct support organizations; equitable housing and other structural supports; strategic coordination of health, justice and social care systems; and primary prevention strategies, including gender transformative policy reform

Isolation and Genomic Characterization of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant Obtained from Human Clinical Specimens

Due to the failure of virus isolation of the Omicron variant in Vero CCL-81 from the clinical specimens of COVID-19 cases, an initial in vivo and subsequent in vitro approach was utilized for the isolation of the virus. A total of 74 oropharyngeal/nasopharyngeal specimens were collected from SARS-CoV-2 positive international travellers and a contact case at Delhi and Mumbai, India. All the specimens were sequenced using next-generation sequencing and simultaneously inoculated onto Vero CCL-81 cells for virus isolation. Subsequently, two omicron positive specimens were inoculated into Syrian hamsters for two passages. The initial passage of the positive hamster specimens was inoculated onto Vero CCL-81 cells. The clinical specimens, hamster specimens, and Vero CCL-81 passages were sequenced to assess the mutational changes in different host species. The replication of the Omicron variant in hamsters was confirmed with the presence of a high viral load in nasal turbinate and lung specimens of both passages. The successful isolation of the virus from hamster specimens with Vero CCL-81 was observed with cytopathic effect in infected cells and high viral load in the cell suspension. The genome analysis revealed the presence of L212C mutation, Tyrosine 69 deletion, and C25000T nucleotide change in spike gene of hamster passage sequences and an absence of V17I mutation in E gene in hamster passage sequences, unlike human clinical specimen and Vero CCL-81 passages. No change was observed in the furin cleavage site in any of the specimen sequences, suggesting intact pathogenicity of the virus isolate. Our data demonstrated successful isolation of the Omicron variant with the in vivo method first followed by in vitro method. The virus isolate could be used in the future to explore different aspects of the Omicron variant