UNITAID can address HCV/HIV co-infection

This book is a guide to the law that applies in the three international criminal tribunals, for the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone, set up by the UN during the period 1993 to 2002 to deal with atrocities and human rights abuses committed during conflict in those countries. Building on the work of an earlier generation of war crimes courts, these tribunals have developed a sophisticated body of law concerning the elements of the three international crimes (genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes), and forms of participation in such crimes, as well as other general principles of international criminal law, procedural matters and sentencing. The legacy of the tribunals will be indispensable as international law moves into a more advanced stage, with the establishment of the International Criminal Court. Their judicial decisions are examined here, as well as the drafting history of their statutes and other contemporary sources

Enumeration of regular fractional factorial designs with four-level and two-level factors

Designs for screening experiments usually include factors with two levels only. Adding a few four-level factors allows for the inclusion of multi-level categorical factors or quantitative factors with possible quadratic or third-order effects. Three examples motivated us to generate a large catalog of designs with two-level factors as well as four-level factors. To create the catalog, we considered three methods. In the first method, we select designs using a search table, and in the second method, we use a procedure that selects candidate designs based on the properties of their projections into fewer factors. The third method is actually a benchmark method, in which we use a general orthogonal array enumeration algorithm. We compare the efficiencies of the new methods for generating complete sets of non-isomorphic designs. Finally, we use the most efficient method to generate a catalog of designs with up to three four-level factors and up to 20 two-level factors for run sizes 16, 32, 64, and 128. In some cases, a complete enumeration was infeasible. For these cases, we used a bounded enumeration strategy instead. We demonstrate the usefulness of the catalog by revisiting the motivating examples.Comment: 37 pages, 1 figure, 13 table

Bone erosions and joint damage caused by chikungunya virus: a systematic review

Background: Chikungunya fever is an emerging global infection transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes that manifests as an acute febrile illness with joint pain and can lead to chronic arthritis. The mechanism underlying chronic joint damage remains unclear; however, chronic chikungunya arthritis shares similarities with rheumatoid arthritis. Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs have revolutionized rheumatoid arthritis treatment by preventing joint damage. However, the role of these therapies in chronic chikungunya arthritis has not been determined. We conducted a systematic review to evaluate the burden of joint structural damage in chronic chikungunya arthritis to help to define the role of disease-modifying therapy in this disease. Methods: This systematic review included retrospective and prospective studies, trials, and case reports evaluating joint damage caused by chikungunya virus. Various databases were searched without any date or language restrictions. Study selection was conducted independently by two researchers, and data were extracted from the articles selected. Results: A total of 108 studies were initially evaluated, with 8 meeting the inclusion criteria. Longitudinal studies have reported persistent joint pain from chikungunya infection and the progression of radiographic joint damage up to 13 years post-infection. Joint imaging revealed synovial inflammation, bone erosion, and cartilage destruction in patients with chronic chikungunya arthritis. Conclusions: Few studies have addressed chikungunya-induced joint damage, limiting our understanding of chronic chikungunya arthritis. Nevertheless, chronic chikungunya arthritis has similarities to rheumatoid arthritis. The success of early disease-modifying antirheumatic drug therapy in rheumatoid arthritis underscores the need for comprehensive research on its role in chikungunya arthritis

Innovative Technology for High Performance and Mass Participation Sport

The chapter analyzes technological innovations used in high-level sport and how mass participants have and will benefit from these advancements. The authors discuss progressive practices of different successful sporting nations. The chapter debriefs high-performance facility development and utilization practices, as well as examples of modern equipment and technology being applied in multiple high-performance athlete service areas, such as general fitness, sport-specific training, restoration, nutrition, medicine, and psychology. This section also emphasizes examples of national and local high-performance technology practices for enhancing mass participation, such as evolving networks of comprehensive multisport training centers available for nurturing every possible age and socioeconomic group. Finally, suggestions are made to provide communities, in partnership with universities or local military installations, with recreation and sport technologies which are free or affordable for all, including instructions enabling everyone to utilize and enjoy the new technologies

The power of prediction with social media

Social media provide an impressive amount of data about users and their interactions, thereby offering computer and social scientists, economists, and statisticians – among others – new opportunities for research. Arguably, one of the most interesting lines of work is that of predicting future events and developments from social media data. However, current work is fragmented and lacks of widely accepted evaluation approaches. Moreover, since the first techniques emerged rather recently, little is known about their overall potential, limitations and general applicability to different domains. Therefore, better understanding the predictive power and limitations of social media is of utmost importanc

Diagnostic application of padlock probes—multiplex detection of plant pathogens using universal microarrays

Padlock probes (PLPs) are long oligonucleotides, whose ends are complementary to adjacent target sequences. Upon hybridization to the target, the two ends are brought into contact, allowing PLP circularization by ligation. PLPs provide extremely specific target recognition, which is followed by universal amplification and microarray detection. Since target recognition is separated from downstream processing, PLPs enable the development of flexible and extendable diagnostic systems, targeting diverse organisms. To adapt padlock technology for diagnostic purposes, we optimized PLP design to ensure high specificity and eliminating ligation on non-target sequences under real-world assay conditions. We designed and tested 11 PLPs to target various plant pathogens at the genus, species and subspecies levels, and developed a prototype PLP-based plant health chip. Excellent specificity was demonstrated toward the target organisms. Assay background was determined for each hybridization using a no-target reference sample, which provided reliable and sensitive identification of positive samples. A sensitivity of 5 pg genomic DNA and a dynamic range of detection of 100 were observed. The developed multiplex diagnostic system was validated using genomic DNAs of characterized isolates and artificial mixtures thereof. The demonstrated system is adaptable to a wide variety of applications ranging from pest management to environmental microbiology

Design and analysis of a microplate assay in the presence of multiple restrictions on the randomization

Experiments using multi-step protocols often involve several restrictions on the randomization. For a specific application to in vitro testing on microplates, a design was required with both a split-plot and a strip-plot structure. On top of two-level treatment factors and the factors that define the randomization restrictions, a multi-level fixed blocking factor not involving further restrictions on the randomization had to be added. We develop a step-by-step approach to construct a design for the microplate experiment and analyze a response. To consolidate the approach, we study various alternative scenarios for the experiment.Comment: 31 pages, 13 tables, 4 figure

Simulation of fluid-solid coexistence in finite volumes: A method to study the properties of wall-attached crystalline nuclei

The Asakura-Oosawa model for colloid-polymer mixtures is studied by Monte Carlo simulations at densities inside the two-phase coexistence region of fluid and solid. Choosing a geometry where the system is confined between two flat walls, and a wall-colloid potential that leads to incomplete wetting of the crystal at the wall, conditions can be created where a single nanoscopic wall-attached crystalline cluster coexists with fluid in the remainder of the simulation box. Following related ideas that have been useful to study heterogeneous nucleation of liquid droplets at the vapor-liquid coexistence, we estimate the contact angles from observations of the crystalline clusters in thermal equilibrium. We find fair agreement with a prediction based on Young's equation, using estimates of interface and wall tension from the study of flat surfaces. It is shown that the pressure versus density curve of the finite system exhibits a loop, but the pressure maximum signifies the "droplet evaporation-condensation" transition and thus has nothing in common with a van der Waals-like loop. Preparing systems where the packing fraction is deep inside the two-phase coexistence region, the system spontaneously forms a "slab state", with two wall-attached crystalline domains separated by (flat) interfaces from liquid in full equilibrium with the crystal in between; analysis of such states allows a precise estimation of the bulk equilibrium properties at phase coexistence

Quantitative multiplex detection of plant pathogens using a novel ligation probe-based system coupled with universal, high-throughput real-time PCR on OpenArrays™

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Diagnostics and disease-management strategies require technologies to enable the simultaneous detection and quantification of a wide range of pathogenic microorganisms. Most multiplex, quantitative detection methods available suffer from compromises between the level of multiplexing, throughput and accuracy of quantification. Here, we demonstrate the efficacy of a novel, high-throughput, ligation-based assay for simultaneous quantitative detection of multiple plant pathogens. The ligation probes, designated Plant Research International-lock probes (PRI-lock probes), are long oligonucleotides with target complementary regions at their 5' and 3' ends. Upon perfect target hybridization, the PRI-lock probes are circularized via enzymatic ligation, subsequently serving as template for individual, standardized amplification via unique probe-specific primers. Adaptation to OpenArrays™, which can accommodate up to 3072 33 nl PCR amplifications, allowed high-throughput real-time quantification. The assay combines the multiplex capabilities and specificity of ligation reactions with high-throughput real-time PCR in the OpenArray™, resulting in a flexible, quantitative multiplex diagnostic system.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The performance of the PRI-lock detection system was demonstrated using 13 probes targeting several significant plant pathogens at different taxonomic levels. All probes specifically detected their corresponding targets and provided perfect discrimination against non-target organisms with very similar ligation target sites. The nucleic acid targets could be reliably quantified over 5 orders of magnitude with a dynamic detection range of more than 10⁴. Pathogen quantification was equally robust in single target versus mixed target assays.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This novel assay enables very specific, high-throughput, quantitative detection of multiple pathogens over a wide range of target concentrations and should be easily adaptable for versatile diagnostic purposes.</p