First detection of kobuvirus in farm animals in Brazil and the Netherlands.

Animal kobuviruses have been described in pigs, cattle, sheep and bats in countries in Asia and Europe. The virus can be detected in fecal and serum samples of infected animals with or without diarrhea, but most of the clinical as well as epidemiological features of kobuvirus infection are still unknown. This study reports the first detection of kobuvirus in farm animals from Brazil and the Netherlands and the molecular analysis of the detected strains. In Brazil, 53% (61/115) of the pigs (suckling, weaned and sows) were shedding porcine kobuvirus in feces, while in the Netherlands 16.7% (3/18) of the tested weaned pigs were infected. Kobuviruses detected in fecal samples of pigs in Brazil showed association (p = 0.0002) with diarrhea. In pig serum, kobuvirus was detected at different ages (3, 21, 36, 60, 75, and 180 days), with an overall rate of 76.7% (23/30). The sequencing of amplicons detected in serum of pigs of different ages suggested reinfection and no persistent infection. Kobuvirus was also detected in sheep and cattle feces from Brazil and the Netherlands, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses of Brazilian and Dutch kobuviruses from pig, cattle and sheep revealed genetic variability, particularly in one strain detected in sheep feces, which was more closely related to human Aichi virus. The molecular and phylogenetic analyses performed with other published kobuvirus strains and the strains presented in this study, showed that, in most of the cases, kobuvirus seems to group according to host species, but not to geographical region of origin. The data presented in this study contribute to the comprehension of kobuvirus epidemiology and also to the molecular identification of kobuvirus strains circulating worldwide

Upsilon invariants from cyclic branched covers

We extend the construction of upsilon-type invariants to null-homologous knots in rational homology three-spheres. By considering $m$-fold cyclic branched covers with $m$ a prime power, this extension provides new knot concordance invariants $\Upsilon_m^C (K)$. We give computations of these invariants for some families of alternating knots and reprove some independence results.Comment: 26 pages, 13 figures. Comments are welcome

Impregnant formulation to the preservation, protection and consolidation of wood heritage assets

The protection of cultural heritage is an integral part of the world´s material wealth. The cultural heritage, movable and immovable, together with the natural environment, represents values that contribute to the education and social culture of the community. It also has a significant economic impact because, it represents the basic prerequisite for a tourism industry. Therefore, the modern developing based on non-polluting technological products for the protection of patrimonial is needed. Also, it is necessary to build a bridge between the basic knowledge generated as a product of scientific research and applied science. The knowing of what kind of deterioration occurs and how it impacts the physical-mechanical properties of the materials are important issues and, that must be considered so that the constructions made can be adequately conserved and/or consolidated. Wood was treated with an innovate formulation based on silanes (methyltriethoxysilane, MTES and noctyltryethoxysilane, OTES) to achieve the protection and the consolidation of the heritage assets. The performance of treatment about dimensional stability, fire and biodeterioration/biodegradation resistance was investigated. It was concluded that the treatment resulted effective as a protective and consolidate lasur system based on silanes by surface treatment for wood heritage assets.Fil: Alfieri, Paula Vanesa. Laboratorio de Entrenamiento Multidisciplinario para la Investigación Tecnológica; ArgentinaFil: Lofeudo, Rosana. Laboratorio de Entrenamiento Multidisciplinario para la Investigación Tecnológica; ArgentinaFil: Canosa, Guadalupe. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Tecnología de Pinturas. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigaciones en Tecnología de Pinturas; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentin

Connected Floer homology of covering involutions

Using the covering involution on the double branched cover of the three-sphere branched along a knot, and adapting ideas of Hendricks-Manolescu and Hendricks-Hom-Lidman, we define new knot invariants and apply them to deduce novel linear independence results in the smooth concordance group of knots.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figure

Building Deeper Relationships: How Steppenwolf Theatre Company Is Turning Single-Ticket Buyers Into Repeat Visitors

Describes the company's strategies to engage all audience members, including through post-show discussions, special events, diverse online content, and equal treatment of subscribers and non-subscribers; outcomes; and contributing factors