Critical Infrastructures You Can Trust: Where Telecommunications Fits

This paper discusses two NISs: the public telephone network (PTN) and the Internet. Being themselves large and complex NISs, they not only merit study in their own right but can help us to understand some of the technical problems faced by the developers and operators of other NISs. In addition, the high cost of building a global communications infrastructure from the ground up implies that one or both of these two networks is likely to furnish communications services for most other NISs. Therefore, an understanding of the vulnerabilties of the PTN and Internet informs the assessment of the trustworthiness of other NISs. Ideas for improving the trustworthiness of the PTN and Internet are also proposed, both for the short-term (by improved use of existing technologies and procedures) and for the long-term (by identifying some areas where the state-of-the-art is inadequate and research is therefore needed). Finally, some observations are offered about Internet telephony and the use of the Internet for critical infrastructures

Wortelverdikking bij komkommer : pH, potsoort en waardplanten

Wortelverdikking (WVD) bij komkommer komt een aantal jaren in Nederland voor. Uit eerder onderzoek kwam naar voren dan de vermoedelijke veroorzaker een bacterie is. Over het gedrag van de bacterie en het effect van omgevingsfactoren op het optreden van WVD was nog zeer weinig bekend. In het onderzoek zijn verschillende aspecten van het gedrag van de bacterie onderzocht en is bekeken of de kans op WVD en schade door WVD kan worden verminderd door teeltaanpassingen. Hierbij is het effect onderzocht van pH op WVD, de overlevingsduur van de bacterie in de voedingsoplossing en het effect van potsoort en watergehalte van de opkweekpot op WVD. Tevens is onderzocht of planten die niet tot de komkommerachtigen behoren aangetast kunnen worden door de bacterie, of de bacterie droge condities kan overleven en of door verlaging van de pH in het teeltsubstraat WVD-schade kan worden verminderd

Fv antibodies to aflatoxin B1 derived from a pre-immunized antibody phage display library system

The production and characterization of recombinant antibodies to aflatoxin B[SUB1] (AFB[SUB1]), a potent mycotoxin and carcinogen is described. The antibody fragments produced were then applied for use in a surface plasmon resonance-based biosensor (BIAcore), which measures biomolecular interactions in 'real-time'. Single chain Fv (scFv) antibodies were generated to aflatoxin B1 from an established phage display system, which incorporated a range of different plasmids for efficient scFv expression. The scFv's were used in the development of a competitive ELISA, and also for the development of surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based inhibition immunoassays. They were found to be suitable for the detection of AFB[SUB1], in this format, with the assays being sensitive and reproducible

Medical and surgical treatment for medication-induced tremor: case report and systematic review

Objective To present a case of refractory medication-induced tremor successfully treated with deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the thalamic ventral intermediate nucleus (Vim) and to propose a medical and surgical treatment algorithm based on a systematical review of the literature. Methods Patient data were retrospectively collected. A systematic search was performed in PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library. Subjective and objective data were pooled for analysis by classifying them into 5 predefined categories(no, minimal, moderate, good, and excellent effects). Results The patient presented with lithium-induced bilateral progressive hand tremor lasting 25 years. After DBS, he reported excellent tremor suppression until the last follow-up (36 months after Vim-DBS). For the review, 34 of 140 studies were included and evaluated (178 unique subjects, 31 different treatments). A good-to-excellent tremor suppression (50%-100%) in at least 50% of subjects was achieved using propranolol (12 studies, 50% of 56 subjects), tetrabenazine (5 studies, 51% of 13 subjects), and metoprolol (4 studies, 75% of 8 subjects). The effect of benztropine and diphenhydramine was none or only minimal to moderate (up to 50% improvement; both: 3 studies, 50% of 4 patients). One article reported minimal-to-moderate effectiveness after DBS of the ventral oral posterior nucleus of the thalamus. Methods were highly heterogeneous. All studies scored grade III or IV quality of evidence, which was insufficient for recommendations (level U). Conclusion Treatment decision making should be performed on a case-by-case basis considering the low level of evidence, and we propose a practically oriented treatment algorithm. Propranolol, tetrabenazine, and metoprolol might be effective. For selected and refractory cases, DBS might be considered.Neurological Motor Disorder

Elicitation of expert knowledge on dynamics of Salmonella infections and contamination in the pork chain

There is little information available from experiments and literature on the course of Salmonella infections in pigs and on the course of contamination at slaughter. To obtain such information, an expert elicitation study was carried out in the Netherlands (23 respondents). The estimation of the experts for the most likely duration to be infectious after infection with Salmonella is for a pig 38 days. The most likely duration to be a carrier was estimated at 55 days and to become serological negative 109 days. Application of fermented feed decreases the infectious period by II days. At slaughter, the average number of carcasses at risk after one to four contaminated carcasses was 10 to 21. So the duration of infection can be shortened by e.g. feed measures. In a situation that infected pigs enter the slaughterhouse, the order of the pigs to be slaughtered is important