Examination of the effect of reduction of probiotic species Lactobacillus due to broad spectrum antibiotic treatment on oral tolerance

Antibiotic usage is on the rise in industrialized countries and as a result the prevalence of autoimmune and atopic diseases has risen. The use of antibiotics is connected to a depletion of the microflora located within the gastrointestinal tract. The microflora contains a variety of different bacterial species, including some that are probiotic species, Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria, which have a beneficial effect on the host. Probiotic species of bacteria are important for immune function due to their ability to regulate oral tolerance, a state of unresponsiveness to antigens that have been introduced orally to the host. The goal of this study was to assess the effect of broad spectrum antibiotic treatment on the probiotic species Lactobacilli and the resulting effect on the induction of oral tolerization to the antigen ovalbumin.Department of BiologyThesis (M.S.

Analogue RF over fibre links for future radar systems

The distribution of analogue RF signals within a high performance radar system is challenging due to the limited space available and the high levels of performance required. This work investigates the gain, linearity and noise performance that can be achieved by an externally modulated direct detection link designed for operation up to 20 GHz using commercially available components. The aim was to assess the suitability of such links for use in future radar systems. Good correlation has been shown between modelled and measured results demonstrating that the performance should satisfy the linearity requirements for many radar applications

Do tasks make a difference? Accounting for heterogeneity of performance of children with reading difficulties on tasks of executive function : findings from a meta-analysis

Research studies have implicated executive functions in reading difficulties (RD). But while some studies have found children with RD to be impaired on tasks of executive function other studies report unimpaired performance. A meta-analysis was carried out to determine whether these discrepant findings can be accounted for by differences in the tasks of executive function that are utilized. A total of 48 studies comparing the performance on tasks of executive function of children with RD with their typically developing peers were included in the meta-analysis, yielding 180 effect sizes. An overall effect size of 0.57 (SE .03) was obtained, indicating that children with RD have impairments on tasks of executive function. However, effect sizes varied considerably suggesting that the impairment is not uniform. Moderator analysis revealed that task modality and IQ-achievement discrepancy definitions of RD influenced the magnitude of effect; however, the age and gender of participants and the nature of the RD did not have an influence. While the children's RD were associated with executive function impairments, variation in effect size is a product of the assessment task employed, underlying task demands, and definitional criteria

Use of implicit graph for recommending relevant videos: a simulated evaluation

In this paper, we propose a model for exploiting community based usage information for video retrieval. Implicit usage information from a pool of past users could be a valuable source to address the difficulties caused due to the semantic gap problem. We propose a graph-based implicit feedback model in which all the usage information can be represented. A number of recommendation algorithms were suggested and experimented. A simulated user evaluation is conducted on the TREC VID collection and the results are presented. Analyzing the results we found some common characteristics on the best performing algorithms, which could indicate the best way of exploiting this type of usage information

Teachers as mediators: an exploration of situated English teaching

Within the context of lower secondary English teaching in South West England, this study identifies in broad terms the competing goals between which English teachers mediate and the explicit and hidden tensions that result. To understand the interactions of competing goals, teachers’ goal-oriented behaviours are referenced to a set of idealised ‘role types’ based on the dimensions of goals, norms, discourses and practices. It is asserted that competing goals, significant to particular educational circumstances, emanate from various sometimes contradictory local, national and perhaps broader social and cultural influences on practice. Yet the teachers observed moved smoothly between goal-oriented behaviours in a continuous and comfortable style, easily and without reflecting any tensions between them. Thus, this article elaborates an account of situated English teaching

JPKWIC - General key word in context and subject index report generator

JPKWIC computer program is a general key word in context and subject index report generator specifically developed to help nonprogrammers and nontechnical personnel to use the computer to access files, libraries and mass documentation. This program is designed to produce a KWIC index, a subject index, an edit report, a summary report, and an exclusion list