Implementation of molecular detection techniques in the field of veterinary virology

This thesis deals with the molecular diagnosis of infectious diseases concerning animal and human health: in particular, with diseases notifiable to the World Organization for Animal Health, OIE (the vesicular complex and avian influenza), as well as with Hepatitis E, representing emerging zoonotic aspects. With the worldwide introduction and use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methodologies, the detection of different pathogens improved significantly - however, these systems have weak points as well. The parallel screening of more than a few pathogens is not resolved and, in general, the multiplexing capacity of most of the methods used in this area is insufficient. In the case of the detection of pathogens causing similar symptoms (like the vesicular complex, involving Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), Swine Vesicular Disease (SVD) and Vesicular Stomatitis (VS), the immediate differential diagnosis is essential, not only regarding the multiplexing, but also because of the high economic risks and the strict legislations. Subtyping of the avian influenza viruses is a broad and extensive task because it needs to differentiate 16 hemagglutinin and 9 neuraminidase types and their variants. The padlock probes, as used in these studies, seem to be optimal to fulfill the multiplexing requirements and to provide novel, high-throughput tools for the improved diagnosis of the vesicular complex and of avian influenza. The general detection and subtyping of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) is an important and complicated task today, as the virus shows zoonotic potential by causing endemics in humans and persisting infections in different animal species. Thus, there is a high need for sensitive and specific methods and identification of HEV variants. In the frame of this work, a highly specific and sensitive diagnostic assay was developed, based on two types of real-time PCR methods. In addition, a genotyping system was constructed using a simple and quick ligation-based technique

Válság és hitelderivatívák. A szintetikus fedezett adósságkötelezettségek (CDO-k) árazása és kockázataik (Crisis and loan derivatives. The pricing and risks of synthetic collateralized debt obligations)

A dolgozat első részében röviden áttekintjük a 2007-ben kezdődött pénzügyi válság lefolyását és a válsághoz vezető okokat. A bemutatás során igyekszünk végig a mögöttes folyamatokra és azok mozgatórugóira koncentrálni, ezzel megragadva a válság egyfajta "elméletét". A bemutatásból láthatóvá válik a hitelderivatívák kiemelt szerepe a válság során. A dolgozat második részében az egyik legnépszerűbb hitelderivatív termék, a szintetikus fedezett adósságkötelezettségek (CDO-k) matematikai modellezését és annak problémáit mutatjuk be. Sokak szerint ezek a matematikai modellek okozták - vagy legalábbis felerősítették - a válságot. Az elemzés során megmutatjuk, hogy nemcsak a modellezési eszközök nem voltak megfelelők, hanem az árazás elve sem állta meg a helyét a kockázatsemleges árazási keretben. Ez az eredmény élesen rámutat a mögöttes elméletek válságára. / === / The first part of the paper examines briefly the financial crisis of 2007 and its causes, focusing on its driving processes and key motifs. This shows clearly the importance and centrality of credit derivatives in the crisis. The second part presents a mathematical modelling of one of the most popular credit derivative products: synthetic collateralized debt obligations, along with the drawbacks and problems of the modelling process. It is widely claimed that these products caused or at least precipitated the crises. The authors show not only that the modelling tools were inappropriate, but that the principle for pricing did not match adequately the risk-neutral valuation framework