322,997 research outputs found
Understanding the role of sexual transmission in the spread of ZIKA virus using an individual-based interconnected population model
No full textCitation: Tanver, F., Lee, C., Mcvey, D., & Scoglio, S. (2018). Understanding the role of sexual transmission in the spread of ZIKA virus using an individual-based interconnected population model. Pre-Print, Unpublished Manuscript.Zika virus has affected the world as a long-term threat. Modeling its transmission is important in order to facilitate forecasts and control measures. We propose a novel node-based interconnected population model to simulate both vectored and sexual transmission of Zika virus. Using a sexual contact network, we incorporate heterogeneous mixing in the host population with stochastic transmission for realistic predictions. We also incorporate climatic variations in our model, which affect the mosquito vector population and consequently the arbovirus transmission. We perform extensive simulations to understand the effects of sexual transmission rate and network topology on the spreading of infections. Sexual transmission contributes to the epidemic spread and under certain conditions, can sustain it up to several months without vectors. This can potentially lead to recurrences once the mosquitoes overwinter. We also find that sexual transmission can have a stronger effect when vectored transmission is relatively weaker due to climatic conditions. Our results show that vectored and sexual transmission affect the disease dynamics differently
Biologically Informed Individual-Based Network Model for Rift Valley Fever in the US and Evaluation of Mitigation Strategies
No full textCitation: Scoglio, C. M., Bosca, C., Riad, M. H., Sahneh, F. D., Britch, S. C., Cohnstaedt, L. W., & Linthicum, K. J. (2016). Biologically Informed Individual-Based Network Model for Rift Valley Fever in the US and Evaluation of Mitigation Strategies. Plos One, 11(9), 26. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0162759Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a zoonotic disease endemic in sub-Saharan Africa with periodic outbreaks in human and animal populations. Mosquitoes are the primary disease vectors; however, Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) can also spread by direct contact with infected tissues. The transmission cycle is complex, involving humans, livestock, and multiple species of mosquitoes. The epidemiology of RVFV in endemic areas is strongly affected by climatic conditions and environmental variables. In this research, we adapt and use a network-based modeling framework to simulate the transmission of RVFV among hypothetical cattle operations in Kansas, US. Our model considers geo-located livestock populations at the individual level while incorporating the role of mosquito populations and the environment at a coarse resolution. Extensive simulations show the flexibility of our modeling framework when applied to specific scenarios to quantitatively evaluate the efficacy of mosquito control and livestock movement regulations in reducing the extent and intensity of RVF outbreaks in the United States
Oxygen radical absorbance capacity of phycocyanin and phycocyanobilin from the food supplement Aphanizomenon flos-aquae
No full textAntioxidant properties of a novel pyicocyanin extract from the blu-green alga Aphanizomenon flos-acquae
No full textDiffusive author(s), cohesive author: Analysis of S/N (1994)
No full textThis study indicates the ways in which various aspects of the author(s) are brought forth in Dumb type’s performance art, the S/N production. Previous research has suggested a non-hierarchical organization of Dumb type and the absence of a “privileged author” in Dumb type’s collaborative work, S/N. However, the results that I have investigated from member’s interviews on the creative process of S/N along with my analysis of the recorded images of S/N, indicate a different aspect of the author(s). First, S/N was created through, so to speak, the collective ideas of the members of Dumb type. Further, S/N has at least nine quotations from previous performances, installations, and printed writings, besides the work-in-progress technique. Explicating one of the “author functions” as given by Michel Foucault, each text has plural subjects of the author. However, it has been revealed from members’ interviews that Teiji Furuhashi had a decision-making role in selecting the members’ ideas within the performance. Since then, S/N has had plural subjects of creation; however, Furuhashi is one of the subjects of creation along with the “privileged author.” S/N has plural authors (diffusive authors) yet at the same time, it has a “privileged author,” Teiji Furuhashi (cohesive author)
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Spasmolytic Effects of Aphanizomenon Flos Aquae (AFA) Extract on the Human Colon Contractility.
No full textThe blue-green algae Aphanizomenon flos aquae (AFA), rich in beneficial nutrients, exerts
various beneficial effects, acting in different organs including the gut. Klamin® is an AFA extract
particularly rich in -PEA, a trace-amine considered a neuromodulator in the central nervous
system. To date, it is not clear if -PEA exerts a role in the enteric nervous system. The aims of
the present study were to investigate the effects induced by Klamin® on the human distal colon
mechanical activity, to analyze the mechanism of action, and to verify a -PEA involvement. The
organ bath technique, RT-PCR, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were used. Klamin® reduced, in a
concentration-dependent manner, the amplitude of the spontaneous contractions. EPPTB, a traceamine
receptor (TAAR1) antagonist, significantly antagonized the inhibitory effects of both Klamin®
and exogenous -PEA, suggesting a trace-amine involvement in the Klamin® effects. Accordingly,
AphaMax®, an AFA extract containing lesser amount of -PEA, failed to modify colon contractility.
Moreover, the Klamin® effects were abolished by tetrodotoxin, a neural blocker, but not by L-NAME,
a nitric oxide-synthase inhibitor. On the contrary methysergide, a serotonin receptor antagonist,
significantly antagonized the Klamin® effects, as well as the contractility reduction induced by 5-HT.
The RT-PCR analysis revealed TAAR1 gene expression in the colon and the IHC experiments showed
that 5-HT-positive neurons are co-expressed with TAAR1 positive neurons. In conclusion, the results
of this study suggest that Klamin® exerts spasmolytic effects in human colon contractility through
-PEA, that, by activating neural TAAR1, induce serotonin release from serotoninergic neurons of
the myenteric plexus
Effect of a two-months treatment with Klamin®, a Klamath algae extract, on the general well-being, antioxidant profile and oxidative status of postmenopausal women
No full textEffect of a 2-month treatment with Klamin®, a Klamath algae extract, on the general well-being, antioxidant profile and oxidative status of postmenopausal women
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