Improvements and upgrades to the universal water system's communications, operations, and controls

This report details the improvements and upgrades to Murdoch University’s Universal Water Systems (UWS) operations, communications and controls. The UWS can operate as a single integrated control system or as three smaller sub-systems through the manipulation of manual valves. A high level of system interaction is present, which allows the use of single-input-single-output (SISO) or multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) operation, giving students the opportunity to implement various styles of control strategies. This project has focused on improving hardware, Client Software, Master Software, documentation, and the development of Student Software and an automatic operating procedure. Faulty equipment was replaced to ensure the system could perform optimally, as the hardware governed all possible system actions. The Client Software was modified to meet abnormal situation management (ASM) compliance and ensure operators have system-wide control. Further development of the Master Software has allowed an implementation of an automated operating procedure, which can demonstrate the capabilities of the system in a visually spectacular way. The Student Software was developed to create a workspace in which students can customise the user interface as well as design and implement advanced control schemes into the system, with no effect on the underlying system code. The project is now complete, with successful testing and commissioning on all aspects of the UWS. The changes have been thoroughly documented with extensive user and maintenance guides developed. There is still room to improve the UWS; however, these improvements were beyond the scope of this project. At the completion of this project, the system now allows students complete and reliable operation of the UWS through the use of a standardised interface and a fully customisable workspace

Ethnobotanical survey of plants used in the management of hypertension in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria

Background: Among diseases that affect humans, the non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are quite a number of which hypertension is a leading member of the group and a leading contributory cause of death worldwide.Objective: To identify and document medicinal plants used in ethno-medical management of hypertension in selected communities within Ibadan metropolis. This is with the aim of contributing to a database of plants for future systematic biological and chemical evaluation for possible templates of anti-hypertensive agents and drug leads.Materials and methods: An inventory of plant species/natural remedies used in folk medicine to manage hypertension in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State was undertaken. Interviews using semi-structured questionnaires and open-ended conversations were conducted among one hundred and seventy-six (176) respondents aged 30 years and above to obtain relevant information.Results: A total of one hundred and one (101) plants belonging to fifty-four (54) families were identified of which the highest number of plants mentioned belong to family Compositae. The usage profiles of the plants were quantified by the quotation frequency/ mention index.Conclusion: It was observed that Ibadan is a rich source of plants indicated in management of hypertension. More scientific work especially biological studies are needed to ascertain the efficacy, toxicity, safety and appropriate dosage regimen of these ethno-medicinal remedies.Keywords: Hypertension, Kigelia africana, Non-communicable diseases, ethnobotanical surve

Boosting of HIV Envelope Cd4 Binding Site Antibodies with Long Variable Heavy Third Complementarity Determining Region in the Randomized Double Blind Rv305 Hiv-1 Vaccine Trial

The canary pox vector and gp120 vaccine (ALVAC-HIV and AIDSVAX B/E gp120) in the RV144 HIV-1 vaccine trial conferred an estimated 31% vaccine efficacy. Although the vaccine Env AE.A244 gp120 is antigenic for the unmutated common ancestor of V1V2 broadly neutralizing antibody (bnAbs), no plasma bnAb activity was induced. The RV305 (NCT01435135) HIV-1 clinical trial was a placebo-controlled randomized double-blinded study that assessed the safety and efficacy of vaccine boosting on B cell repertoires. HIV-1- uninfected RV144 vaccine recipients were reimmunized 6–8 years later with AIDSVAX B/E gp120 alone, ALVAC-HIV alone, or a combination of ALVAC-HIV and AIDSVAX B/E gp120 in the RV305 trial. Env-specific post-RV144 and RV305 boost memory B cell VH mutation frequencies increased from 2.9% post-RV144 to 6.7% post-RV305. The vaccine was well tolerated with no adverse events reports

Intercontinental transport of pollution manifested in the variability and seasonal trend of springtime O3 at northern middle and high latitudes

Observations (0–8 km) from the Tropospheric Ozone Production about the Spring Equinox (TOPSE) experiment are analyzed to examine air masses contributing to the observed variability of springtime O3 and its seasonal increase at 40°–85°N over North America. Factor analysis using the positive matrix factorization and principal component analysis methods is applied to the data set with 14 chemical tracers (O3, NOy, PAN, CO, CH4, C2H2, C3H8, CH3Cl, CH3Br, C2Cl4, CFC-11, HCFC-141B, Halon-1211, and 7Be) and one dynamic tracer (potential temperature). Our analysis results are biased by the measurements at 5–8 km (70% of the data) due to the availability of 7Be measurements. The identified tracer characteristics for seven factors are generally consistent with the geographical origins derived from their 10 day back trajectories. Stratospherically influenced air accounts for 14 ppbv (35–40%) of the observed O3 variability for data with O3concentrations \u3c100 ppbv at middle and high latitudes. It accounts for about 2.5 ppbv/month (40%) of the seasonal O3 trend at midlatitudes but for only 0.8 ppbv/month (\u3c20%) at high latitudes, likely reflecting more vigorous midlatitude dynamical systems in spring. At midlatitudes, reactive nitrogen-rich air masses transported through Asia are much more significant (11 ppbv in variability and 3.5 ppbv/month in trend) than other tropospheric contributors. At high latitudes the O3 variability is significantly influenced by air masses transported from lower latitudes (11 ppbv), which are poor in reactive nitrogen. The O3 trend, in contrast, is largely defined by air masses rich in reactive nitrogen transported through Asia and Europe across the Pacific or the Arctic (3 ppbv/month). The influence from the stratospheric source is more apparent at 6–8 km, while the effect of O3 production and transport within the troposphere is more apparent at lower altitudes. The overall effect of tropospheric photochemical production, through long-range transport, on the observed O3 variability and its seasonal trend is more important at high latitudes relative to more photochemically active midlatitudes

Predicting In-Hospital Mortality of ICU Patients: The PhysioNet/Computing in Cardiology Challenge 2012

Acuity scores, such as APACHE, SAPS, MPM, and SOFA, are widely used to account for population differ ences in studies aiming to compare how medications, care guidelines, surgery, and other interventions impact mortality in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients. By contrast, the focus of the PhysioNet/CinC Challenge 2012 is to develop methods for patient-specific prediction of in-hospital mortality. The data used for the challenge consisted of 5 general descriptors and 36 time series (measurements of vital signs and laboratory results) from the first 48 hours of the first available ICU stay of 12,000 adult patients from the MIMIC II database. The challenge was organized as two events: event 1 measured performance of a binary classifier, and event 2 measured performance of a risk estimator. The score of event 1 was the lower of sensitivity and positive predictive value. The score for event 2 was a range-normalized Hosmer-Lemeshow statistic. A baseline algorithm (using SAPS-1) obtained event 1 and 2 scores of 0.3125 and 68.58 respectively. Most participants submitted entries that outperformed the baseline algorithm. The top final scores for events 1 and 2 were 0.5353 and 17.88 respectively.National Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (U.S.)National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U.S.) (NIH cooperative agreement U01-EB-008577)National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U.S.) (NIH grant R01-EB-001659

Hyb:A bioinformatics pipeline for the analysis of CLASH (crosslinking, ligation and sequencing of hybrids) data

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Functional Movement Screentm Scores in Collegiate Track and Field Athletes in Relation to Injury Risk and Performance

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between Functional Movement Screentm (FMS) scores, injury rate, and performance in collegiate track and field athletes. Methods: Forty seven male (n=17) and female (n=30) competitive track and field athletes at an NCAA Division I university volunteered for this study. As part of their regular team assessment, the athletes were evaluated on three separate occasions using the FMS tool: in August, one week prior to the start of university organized practice for the fall (T1); in December, one week prior to the end of the fall academic semester (T2); and in March, the week following the conclusion of the indoor competition season (T3). The FMS consists of the performance of seven fundamental movement patterns that are evaluated and scored by a trained professional. For each time point, athletes were divided into two categories based on total FMS score (≤14 and ≥15). Throughout the competitive season, injuries were tracked and categorized as either mild (no loss of practice or competition time) or moderate/severe (loss of practice or competition time). As part of an ongoing injury prevention program, athletes performed generalized corrective exercises for 15 min 2-3 times per week. The performance in the last event of the season (conference meet) was also recorded. Results: Average FMS scores significantly (p\u3c0.05) decreased across the three time points (Mean ± SD, T1: 15.5 ± 2.2, T2: 14.9 ± 1.8, T3: 14.7 ± 1.6) despite that generalized corrective exercises were performed. Analyses of results found no association between FMS scores and likelihood to sustain a moderate/severe injury. Athletes with a score of ≤14 on the FMS at T1 were 3.1 times more likely not to place in the top 8 at the conference meet. 53% of the athletes who had a score of ≥15 at T1 placed in the top 8 at the meet while only 27% of athletes with a score of ≤14 at T1 placed in the top 8 at the meet. Conclusion: FMS scores ≤14 indicate reduced performance ability but not increased likelihood of injury in track and field athletes

Banana root and soil health project - Australia

The banana plant forms an adventitious root system that is dependent on soil physical, chemical and biological properties to function efficiently. A pot experiment demonstrated that increasing soil compaction was able to significantly reduce the weight of banana roots and shoots. However, in the presence of Radopholus similis the effects of soil compaction were obscured, due to the significant reduction in root weight caused by the nematode. The use of a basic set of soil quality indicators that can be readily used by farmers, was linked to soil nematode indicators to determine relationships between soil properties. In a survey of banana fields in North Queensland, different diameter root classes were affected differently by changing soil properties. Banana roots greater than 5 mm diameter were positively correlated with aggregate stability and negatively correlated with soil bulk density. Banana roots less than 1 mm were positively correlated with electrical conductivity. Specific interactions between soil properties become apparent as crop production systems become more uniform. This allows farmers to prioritise management options to improve the most deficient soil health indicators. The addition of organic amendments is one possible method of correcting degrading soils. The use of amendments with high carbon contents, such as grass hay, banana trash and lucerne hay, were able to significantly suppress R. similis in the roots of banana plants relative to untreated soil. Due to banana production being located near environmentally sensitive areas there is an increasing need to monitor and modify soil management practices. However, this needs to be linked with a framework that allows the integration of all soil components with a system to allow continual improvement in soil management to allow banana production to have minimal impact on the surrounding environment

Banana root and soil health project - Australia

The banana plant forms an adventitious root system that is dependent on soil physical, chemical and biological properties to function efficiently. A pot experiment demonstrated that increasing soil compaction was able to significantly reduce the weight of banana roots and shoots. However, in the presence of Radopholus similis the effects of soil compaction were obscured, due to the significant reduction in root weight caused by the nematode. The use of a basic set of soil quality indicators that can be readily used by farmers, was linked to soil nematode indicators to determine relationships between soil properties. In a survey of banana fields in North Queensland, different diameter root classes were affected differently by changing soil properties. Banana roots greater than 5 mm diameter were positively correlated with aggregate stability and negatively correlated with soil bulk density. Banana roots less than 1 mm were positively correlated with electrical conductivity. Specific interactions between soil properties become apparent as crop production systems become more uniform. This allows farmers to prioritise management options to improve the most deficient soil health indicators. The addition of organic amendments is one possible method of correcting degrading soils. The use of amendments with high carbon contents, such as grass hay, banana trash and lucerne hay, were able to significantly suppress R. similis in the roots of banana plants relative to untreated soil. Due to banana production being located near environmentally sensitive areas there is an increasing need to monitor and modify soil management practices. However, this needs to be linked with a framework that allows the integration of all soil components with a system to allow continual improvement in soil management to allow banana production to have minimal impact on the surrounding environment