Mapping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Genetic Diversity Profiles in Tanzania and Other African Countries

The aim of this study was to assess and characterize Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) genotypic diversity in Tanzania, as well as in neighbouring East and other several African countries. We used spoligotyping to identify a total of 293 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates (one isolate per patient) collected in the Bunda, Dar es Salaam, Ngorongoro and Serengeti areas in Tanzania. The results were compared with results in the SITVIT2 international database of the Pasteur Institute of Guadeloupe. Genotyping and phylogeographical analyses highlighted the predominance of the CAS, T, EAI, and LAM MTBC lineages in Tanzania. The three most frequent Spoligotype International Types (SITs) were: SIT21/CAS1-Kili (n = 76; 25.94%), SIT59/LAM11-ZWE (n = 22; 7.51%), and SIT126/EAI5 tentatively reclassified as EAI3-TZA (n = 18; 6.14%). Furthermore, three SITs were newly created in this study (SIT4056/EAI5 n = 2, SIT4057/T1 n = 1, and SIT4058/EAI5 n = 1). We noted that the East-African-Indian (EAI) lineage was more predominant in Bunda, the Manu lineage was more common among strains isolated in Ngorongoro, and the Central-Asian (CAS) lineage was more predominant in Dar es Salaam (p-value<0.0001). No statistically significant differences were noted when comparing HIV status of patients vs. major lineages (p-value = 0.103). However, when grouping lineages as Principal Genetic Groups (PGG), we noticed that PGG2/3 group (Haarlem, LAM, S, T, and X) was more associated with HIV-positive patients as compared to PGG1 group (Beijing, CAS, EAI, and Manu) (p-value = 0.03). This study provided mapping of MTBC genetic diversity in Tanzania (containing information on isolates from different cities) and neighbouring East African and other several African countries highlighting differences as regards to MTBC genotypic distribution between Tanzania and other African countries. This work also allowed underlining of spoligotyping patterns tentatively grouped within the newly designated EAI3-TZA lineage (remarkable by absence of spacers 2 and 3, and represented by SIT126) which seems to be specific to Tanzania. However, further genotyping information would be needed to confirm this specificity

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns

What we talk about when we talk about "global mindset": managerial cognition in multinational corporations

Recent developments in the global economy and in multinational corporations have placed significant emphasis on the cognitive orientations of managers, giving rise to a number of concepts such as “global mindset” that are presumed to be associated with the effective management of multinational corporations (MNCs). This paper reviews the literature on global mindset and clarifies some of the conceptual confusion surrounding the construct. We identify common themes across writers, suggesting that the majority of studies fall into one of three research perspectives: cultural, strategic, and multidimensional. We also identify two constructs from the social sciences that underlie the perspectives found in the literature: cosmopolitanism and cognitive complexity and use these two constructs to develop an integrative theoretical framework of global mindset. We then provide a critical assessment of the field of global mindset and suggest directions for future theoretical and empirical research

The main actors involved in parasitization of Heliothis virescens larva

At the moment of parasitization by another insect, the host Heliothis larva is able to defend itself by the activation of humoral and cellular defenses characterized by unusual reactions of hemocytes in response to external stimuli. Here, we have combined light and electron microscopy, staining reactions, and immunocytochemical characterization to analyze the activation and deactivation of one of the most important immune responses involved in invertebrates defense, i.e., melanin production and deposition. The insect host/parasitoid system is a good model to study these events. The activated granulocytes of the host insect are a major repository of amyloid fibrils forming a lattice in the cell. Subsequently, the exocytosed amyloid lattice constitutes the template for melanin deposition in the hemocel. Furthermore, cross-talk between immune and neuroendocrine systems mediated by hormones, cytokines, and neuromodulators with the activation of stress-sensoring circuits to produce and release molecules such as adrenocorticotropin hormone, alpha melanocyte-stimulating hormone, and neutral endopeptidase occurs. Thus, parasitization promotes massive morphological and physiological modifications in the host insect hemocytes and mimics general stress conditions in which phenomena such as amyloid fibril formation, melanin polymerization, pro-inflammatory cytokine production, and activation of the adrenocorticotropin hormone system occur. These events observed in invertebrates are also reported in the literature for vertebrates, suggesting that this network of mechanisms and responses is maintained throughout evolution

Characterisation of EfbA from the Endodontic Pathogen Enterococcus faecalis and Prediction of Immunodominant EfbA Epitope Peptides: An In-vitro and In-silico Study

Introduction: Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) belongs to Group D Streptococci and causes recalcitrant infections such as urinary tract infections, wound infections, intra-abdominal and pelvic infections, bacteraemia, and endocarditis. The emergence of multiple drug resistance, including to the last-resort drug vancomycin, is a major concern with E. faecalis infections. Therefore, it is necessary to implement alternative strategies to combat E. faecalis infections in dental settings. An immuno-informatics approach is one such strategy that can predict and assess the immunodominant B-cell and T-cell epitopes. Thus, there is a need to identify novel vaccine candidates as immunodominant epitope peptides from the Enterococcal Fibronectin Binding Protein-A (EfbA) protein for E. faecalis. Aim: To predict the immunodominant B-cell and T-cell epitopes from the EfbA protein of E. faecalis. Materials and Methods: An in-vitro and in-silico pilot study was conducted in the Department of Microbiology at Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Total of 20 carious scrapings were collected from patients with root caries and were phenotypically characterised for E. faecalis and the EfbA genetic determinant by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) amplification. The EfbA protein was retrieved from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, after which prediction of antigenicity and allergenicity was performed via the VaXiJen and Algpred servers, respectively. The prediction of T-cell epitopes was carried out with the help of the EpiDOCK server, and B-cell predictions were made using the Kolaskar and Tongaonkar tool. Docking of the epitopes with reference to Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) alleles was assessed using the ClusPro server, and the results were evaluated for the T-cell dominant epitopes. Results: Among the 20 samples, E. faecalis was characterised in 5 (25%) patients, with three strains exhibiting Multidrug Resistant (MDR) traits. Among the three MDR strains, two strains showed the presence of the EfbA gene by PCR. In-silico analysis of the EfbA protein yielded a total of 17 epitopes, and based on the assessments, a final selection of two epitopes (IRAKGKNHK and LLLSAHPSY) was made, showing promising docking scores with HLA alleles and TLR2. Conclusion: Among the two epitopes, LLLSAHPSY was identified as the most significant immune-dominant epitope predicted, which needs to be further evaluated for vaccine synthesis and experimentation

Microscale characterization of prostate biopsies tissues using optical coherence elastography and second harmonic generation imaging

© 2018 USCAP, Inc All rights reserved. Photonics, especially optical coherence elastography (OCE) and second harmonic generation (SHG) imaging are novel high-resolution imaging modalities for characterization of biological tissues. Following our preliminary experience, we hypothesized that OCE and SHG imaging would delineate the microstructure of prostate tissue and aid in distinguishing cancer from the normal benign prostatic tissue. Furthermore, these approaches may assist in characterization of the grade of cancer, as well. In this study, we confirmed a high diagnostic accuracy of OCE and SHG imaging in the detection and characterization of prostate cancer for a large set of biopsy tissues obtained from men suspected to have prostate cancer using transrectal ultrasound (TRUS). The two techniques and methods described here are complementary, one depicts the stiffness of tissues and the other illustrates the orientation of collagen structure around the cancerous lesions. The results showed that stiffness of cancer tissue was ∼57.63% higher than that of benign tissue (Young's modulus of 698.43±125.29 kPa for cancerous tissue vs 443.07±88.95 kPa for benign tissue with OCE. Using histology as a reference standard and 600 kPa as a cut-off threshold, the data analysis showed sensitivity and specificity of 89.6 and 99.8%, respectively. Corresponding positive and negative predictive values were 99.5 and 94.6%, respectively. There was a significant difference noticed in terms of Young's modulus for different Gleason scores estimated by OCE (P-value<0.05). For SHG, distinct patterns of collagen distribution were seen for different Gleason grade disease with computed quantification employing a ratio of anisotropic to isotropic (A:I ratio) and this correlated with disease aggressiveness

Performance of CMS muon reconstruction in pp collision events at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The performance of muon reconstruction, identification, and triggering in CMS has been studied using 40 inverse picobarns of data collected in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV at the LHC in 2010. A few benchmark sets of selection criteria covering a wide range of physics analysis needs have been examined. For all considered selections, the efficiency to reconstruct and identify a muon with a transverse momentum pT larger than a few GeV is above 95% over the whole region of pseudorapidity covered by the CMS muon system, abs(eta) < 2.4, while the probability to misidentify a hadron as a muon is well below 1%. The efficiency to trigger on single muons with pT above a few GeV is higher than 90% over the full eta range, and typically substantially better. The overall momentum scale is measured to a precision of 0.2% with muons from Z decays. The transverse momentum resolution varies from 1% to 6% depending on pseudorapidity for muons with pT below 100 GeV and, using cosmic rays, it is shown to be better than 10% in the central region up to pT = 1 TeV. Observed distributions of all quantities are well reproduced by the Monte Carlo simulation.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Performance of CMS muon reconstruction in pp collision events at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The performance of muon reconstruction, identification, and triggering in CMS has been studied using 40 inverse picobarns of data collected in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV at the LHC in 2010. A few benchmark sets of selection criteria covering a wide range of physics analysis needs have been examined. For all considered selections, the efficiency to reconstruct and identify a muon with a transverse momentum pT larger than a few GeV is above 95% over the whole region of pseudorapidity covered by the CMS muon system, abs(eta) < 2.4, while the probability to misidentify a hadron as a muon is well below 1%. The efficiency to trigger on single muons with pT above a few GeV is higher than 90% over the full eta range, and typically substantially better. The overall momentum scale is measured to a precision of 0.2% with muons from Z decays. The transverse momentum resolution varies from 1% to 6% depending on pseudorapidity for muons with pT below 100 GeV and, using cosmic rays, it is shown to be better than 10% in the central region up to pT = 1 TeV. Observed distributions of all quantities are well reproduced by the Monte Carlo simulation.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Quantification of blood and CSF volume to predict outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage

This study aimed to describe the relationship between blood and CSF volumes in different compartments on baseline CT after aSAH, assess if they independently predict long-term outcome, and explore their interaction with age. CT scans from patients participating in a prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial of patients with aSAH were segmented for blood and CSF volumes. The primary outcomes were the mRS, and the Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Outcome Tool (SAHOT) at day 28 and 180. Univariate regressions were conducted to identify significant predictors of poor outcomes, followed by principal component analysis to explore correlations between imaging variables and WFNS. A multivariate predictive model was then developed and optimized using stepwise regression. CT scans from 97 patients with a median delay from symptom onset of 271 min (131–547) were analyzed. Univariate analysis showed only WFNS, and total blood volume (TBV) were significant predictors of both short and long-term outcome with WFNS more predictive of mRS and TBV more predictive of SAHOT. Principal component analysis showed strong dependencies between the imaging predictors. Multivariate ordinal regression showed models with WFNS alone were most predictive of day 180 mRS and models with TBV alone were most predictive of SAHOT. TBV was the most significant measured imaging predictor of poor long-term outcome after aSAH. All these imaging predictors are correlated, however, and may have multiple complex interactions necessitating larger datasets to detect if they provide any additional predictive value for long-term outcome

Heavy metals in the irrigation water, soils and vegetables in the Philippi horticultural area in the Western Cape Province of South Africa

The aims of this study were to investigate the extent of heavy metal contamination in the Philippi horticultural area in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. Concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn were determined in the irrigation water, soils and vegetables in both winter and summer cropping seasons with an ICP-AES and tested against certified standards. Differences were found in heavy metal concentrations between the winter and summer cropping seasons in the irrigation water, soils and vegetables. Certain heavy metals exceeded the maximum permissible concentrations in the irrigation water, soils and vegetables produced in South Africa. These toxic concentrations were predominantly found in the summer cropping season for the soils and in the crops produced in winter. It is thus suggested that further studies are carried out in the Philippi horticultural area to determine the sources of the heavy metals to try and mitigate the inputs thereof and therefore reduce the amount of heavy metals entering the human food chain.ISI & Scopu