181 research outputs found
A Leishmania infantum FML-ELISA for the Detection of Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Canine Visceral Leishmaniasis in an Endemic Area of Iran
No full textBackground: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is caused by Leishmania infantum in
Mediterranean basin and is an endemic disease in some parts of Iran. Canines are the main
reservoirs of VL in most of the endemic areas. Different serological methods have been
introduced for diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL). Objective: In this survey a
Fucose-Mannose Ligand (FML) ELISA, using native L. infantum antigen, was developed and
its validity for detection of infected dogs in comparison with direct agglutination test (DAT)
and PCR was evaluated. Methods: Blood samples of sixty ownership dogs (≤ 3 years old)
were collected from Meshkin-shahr district in Ardabil province, North-west of Iran. Sera
were separated for serological assays (DAT and FML-ELISA) and the buffy coats were
collected for molecular evaluation. Results: Two out of the 60 (3.33%) samples were found
to be positive (antibody titer of ≥ 1/320) in DAT while seven of the 60 (11.66%) samples
were positive by FML-ELISA. Nine out of 60 (15%) buffy coat samples showed a band about
680 bp indicative of L. infantum in PCR. Three out of 60 dogs had Kala-azar symptoms and
were positive by PCR and FML-ELISA, while two of these three dogs had antibody titers
>1/320 in their serum samples. The sensitivity and specificity of FML-ELISA for the
detection of CVL in both symptomatic and asymptomatic dogs were found to be 77.8% and
100%, respectively. Conclusion: Considering the acceptable sensitivity and high specificity
of FML-ELISA, use of this serological method can be recommended for epidemiological
surveys of CVL
Why AC/DC matters
No full textFormer "Rolling Stone" journalist, rock critic, and "New York Times"-bestselling author Bozza pens a fan's tribute to one of the bestselling--and underrated--rock acts of all time: AC/DC
A Study of Bozza\u27s Eighteen Etudes In The Form of Improvisation For Horn and New Preparatory Etudes on the Works of Bozza
No full textThis document serves as an analysis of Eugene Bozza\u27s Dix-Huit Études en Forme d\u27Improvisation pour Cor (1961), translated to Eighteen Etudes in the Form of Improvisation for Horn for the purposes of this document. I found and documented all motifs within the eighteen etudes, and categorized connections between them and Bozza\u27s compositional ouerve as displayed in Dr. Lois Kuyper-Rushing\u27s A Thematic Index of the Works of Bozza. My research takes inspiration from Dr. Kuyper-Rushing\u27s work as well as Dr. Hsing-Fang Liu\u27s research involving Bozza\u27s use of “Adoptive Transcription”, or taking old melodies from previous works and using them in new works. Involved with this document is a recording of all eighteen etudes, recorded and performed by the author at the Barth House, a local Episcopalian center in Memphis, Tennessee. A discussion of each of the 18 etudes, their connections, and the process I had taken in practicing and recording them makes up the middle section of the document. Finally, using the knowledge gained from the connections made and the recordings provided, this document will conclude with three new preparatory etudes for the horn composed by the author in the spirit of making the performance of Bozza\u27s body of work easier for future horn students. In their current state, most of Bozza\u27s Eighteen Etudes in the Form of Improvisation are simply too difficult to be played well by intermediate students
La nobiltà della sconfitta: considerazioni sulla revisione costituzionale nipponica
No full textL'articolo analizza la recente bozza di riforma costituzionale presentata dal partito di governo, il Partito liberal-democratico. L'analisi si concentra in particolare su quelli che sono i profili maggiormente problematici dal punto di vista costituzionale: la modifica del procedimento di revisione costituzionale, l'eliminazione della qualifica di fondamentali ed eterni dei diritti umani, la modifica del preambolo così come del celeberrimo articolo 9 dedicato alla rinuncia alla guerra
An application for mobile systems developed with the community involvement. An open source mobile application project of a perceptive city map
No full textThe paper describes the hypothesis of an applicative part of the author’s research Design for the sensitive experience (The research has allowed the author to organize interviews and discussion with different city users and psychologists permitting the definition of parameters and categories described in this paper. Anyway these parameters are questionable and have to be implemented thru the second part of the research, thru the comparison with results taken from investigation that are planned to be made also with technological advices.). It’s an experimental project aimed to create the bases to develop an open source mobile application where the city users can directly communicate with planners, designers and administration. The ‘app’ would consist in an interactive city map, a model that can be extended to any cities. In particular, the paper displays the experiment conducted within the PhD research, applied to four itineraries of Rome city. The experiment can be tested on other urban realities and it illustrates the parameters identified to map the city areas and the tools that can be used. The method adopted to monitor the sustainable-mobility, is the development of an application that has to be used especially during the planning phase of the visit, before to start a city tour, not only in the while of a walk
L'edizione araba di Comunità immaginate: problemi definitori
No full textQuesto contributo presenta l’edizione araba di "Comunità immaginate" di Benedict Anderson, e nello specifico, attraverso la lettura fornita dall’autore dell'introduzione alla seconda edizione araba, Azmi Bishara, si focalizza su alcuni aspetti centrali della definizione del nazionalismo – e del suo correlato nazione – nella sua duplice caratterizzazione di concetto e di fenomeno, sia in generale, sia in particolare in relazione al contesto arabo.This article deals with the Arabic edition of Benedict Anderson's Imagined Communities. Specifically, through the analysis of Azmi Bishara, the author of the introduction to the second edition, it focuses on some aspects of the definition of nationalism – and nation – both as a concept and phenomenon, and both generally and in the specific case of Arab nationalism(s)
Soft fruit traceability in food matrices using Real Time PCR
No full textFood product authentication provides a means of monitoring and identifying products for consumer protection and regulatory compliance. There is a scarcity of analytical methods for confirming the identity of fruit pulp in products containing Soft Fruit. In the present work we have developed a very sensible qualitative and quantitative method to determine the presence of berry DNAs in different food matrices. To our knowledge, this is the first study that shows the applicability, to Soft Fruit traceability, of melting curve analysis and multiplexed fluorescent probes, in a Real-Time PCR platform. This methodology aims to protect the consumer from label misrepresentation
The decisionalization of individualization
No full textThroughout forensic science and adjacent branches, academic researchers and practitioners continue to diverge in their perception and understanding of the notion of ‘individualization’, that is the claim to reduce a pool of potential donors of a forensic trace to a single source. In particular, recent shifts to refer to the practice of individualization as a decision have been revealed as being a mere change of label [1], leaving fundamental changes in thought and understanding still pending. What is more, professional associations and practitioners shy away from embracing the notion of decision in terms of the formal theory of decision in which individualization may be framed, mainly because of difficulties to deal with the measurement of desirability or undesirability of the consequences of decisions (e.g., using utility functions). Building on existing research in the area, this paper presents and discusses fundamental concepts of utilities and losses with particular reference to their application to forensic individualization. The paper emphasizes that a proper appreciation of decision tools not only reduces the number of individual assignments that the application of decision theory requires, but also shows how such assignments can be meaningfully related to constituting features of the real-world decision problem to which the theory is applied. It is argued that the decisonalization of individualization requires such fundamental insight to initiate changes in the fields’ underlying understandings, not merely in their label
Molecular markers transferability from Fragraria and Malus to Rubus and their use in SNPs detection and genotyping
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