High gain observer for structured multi-output nonlinear systems

In this note, we present two system structures that characterize classes of multi-input multi-output uniformly observable systems. The first structure is decomposable into a linear and a nonlinear part while the second takes a more general form. It is shown that the second system structure, being more general, contains several system structures that are available in the literature. Two high gain observer design methodologies are presented for both structures and their distinct features are highlighted

The effect of Artificial Intelligence and products recommendation on purchase intention: a study of the cosmetics field

Masteroppgave(MSc) in Master of Science in Business, Marketing - Handelshøyskolen BI, 2023Rapid development and adoption of Artificial Intelligence challenge managers to exploit this transforming technology to enhance the customer experience and therefore their sales. This study aims to explore the effect of Artificial Intelligence on consumers’ purchase intention in the cosmetics field. We have decided to narrow our research to digital services powered by Artificial Intelligence, able to recommend products to the users. We have defined two different types of skin analysis: via a selfie or via a questionnaire; and two different types of recommended products: products already existing in a brand’s product range or personalized products, tailored to each consumer. Using four different scenarios, based on a type of skin analysis and a type of recommended product, we have analyzed 11 different constructs: Rapidity, Enjoyment, Innovativeness, Trust, Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived Usefulness, Behavioral Intention, Technology Adoption Propensity, Involvement Into Product Category, Attitude Toward the Brand and Purchase Intention. Findings indicate that there is a positive effect of Rapidity and Enjoyment on Perceived Ease of Use, but that Perceived Ease of Use does not have a significant effect on Behavioral Intention or Purchase Intention. Besides, Innovativeness and Trust positively affect Perceived Usefulness, which in turn positively affects Behavioral Intention and Purchase Intention. Also, Behavioral Intention itself has a positive impact on Purchase Intention. Finally, Technology Adoption Propensity does not have a significant effect on Behavioral Intention and Involvement Into Product Category does not have a significant effect on Purchase Intention, but Attitude Toward the Brand positively affects Purchase Intention. Keywords: Artificia

Toxoplasmosis and Horse Meat, France

International audienc

A new fluorescence-based approach for direct visualization of coat formation during sporulation in Bacillus cereus

Funding Information: The Ph.D. thesis of A.L. was funded by INRAE and the PACA Region and was partly supported by a grant of the MICA division and a Perdiguier grant of Avignon University. Part of this work was supported by the microscopy facilities of the Platform 3A, funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the French Ministry of Research, Higher Education and Innovation, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, the Departmental Council of Vaucluse and the Urban Community of Avignon. This work was also funded through grants PEst-OE/EQB/LA0004/2011 to AOH, by project LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-007660 (“Microbiologia Molecular, Estrutural e Celular”) funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020 – “Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização”, and by project PPBI—Portuguese Platform of BioImaging (PPBI-POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022122) co-funded by national funds from OE—"Orçamento de Estado" and by European funds from FEDER—"Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional". Work and Lattice SIM imaging in the R.C-L. lab was supported by funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No 772178, ERC Consolidator grant to R.C.-L.). Publisher Copyright: © 2023, Springer Nature Limited.The human pathogenic bacteria Bacillus cereus, Bacillus anthracis and the entomopathogenic Bacillus thuringiensis form spores encased in a protein coat surrounded by a balloon-like exosporium. These structures mediate spore interactions with its environment, including the host immune system, control the transit of molecules that trigger germination and thus are essential for the spore life cycle. Formation of the coat and exosporium has been traditionally visualized by transmission electronic microscopy on fixed cells. Recently, we showed that assembly of the exosporium can be directly observed in live B. cereus cells by super resolution-structured illumination microscopy (SR-SIM) using the membrane MitoTrackerGreen (MTG) dye. Here, we demonstrate that the different steps of coat formation can also be visualized by SR-SIM using MTG and SNAP-cell TMR-star dyes during B. cereus sporulation. We used these markers to characterize a subpopulation of engulfment-defective B. cereus cells that develops at a suboptimal sporulation temperature. Importantly, we predicted and confirmed that synthesis and accumulation of coat material, as well as synthesis of the σK-dependent protein BxpB, occur in cells arrested during engulfment. These results suggest that, unlike the well-studied model organism Bacillus subtilis, the activity of σK is not strictly linked to the state of forespore development in B. cereus.publishersversionpublishe

Mapping the decision pathways of acute infection management in secondary care among UK medical physicians: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: The inappropriate use of antimicrobials drives antimicrobial resistance. We conducted a study to map physician decision-making processes for acute infection management in secondary care to identify potential targets for quality improvement interventions. METHODS: Physicians newly qualified to consultant level participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis using NVIVO11.0 software. Grounded theory methodology was applied. Analytical categories were created using constant comparison approach to the data and participants were recruited to the study until thematic saturation was reached. RESULTS: Twenty physicians were interviewed. The decision pathway for the management of acute infections follows a Bayesian-like step-wise approach, with information processed and systematically added to prior assumptions to guide management. The main emerging themes identified as determinants of the decision-making of individual physicians were (1) perceptions of providing 'optimal' care for the patient with infection by providing rapid and often intravenous therapy; (2) perceptions that stopping/de-escalating therapy was a senior doctor decision with junior trainees not expected to contribute; and (3) expectation of interactions with local guidelines and microbiology service advice. Feedback on review of junior doctor prescribing decisions was often lacking, causing frustration and confusion on appropriate practice within this cohort. CONCLUSION: Interventions to improve infection management must incorporate mechanisms to promote distribution of responsibility for decisions made. The disparity between expectations of prescribers to start but not review/stop therapy must be urgently addressed with mechanisms to improve communication and feedback to junior prescribers to facilitate their continued development as prudent antimicrobial prescribers

A systematic review of clinical decision support systems for antimicrobial management: are we failing to investigate these interventions appropriately?

Objectives Clinical decision support systems (CDSS) for antimicrobial management can support clinicians to optimize antimicrobial therapy. We reviewed all original literature (qualitative and quantitative) to understand the current scope of CDSS for antimicrobial management and analyse existing methods used to evaluate and report such systems. Method PRISMA guidelines were followed. Medline, EMBASE, HMIC Health and Management and Global Health databases were searched from 1 January 1980 to 31 October 2015. All primary research studies describing CDSS for antimicrobial management in adults in primary or secondary care were included. For qualitative studies, thematic synthesis was performed. Quality was assessed using Integrated quality Criteria for the Review Of Multiple Study designs (ICROMS) criteria. CDSS reporting was assessed against a reporting framework for behaviour change intervention implementation. Results Fifty-eight original articles were included describing 38 independent CDSS. The majority of systems target antimicrobial prescribing (29/38;76%), are platforms integrated with electronic medical records (28/38;74%), and have a rules-based infrastructure providing decision support (29/38;76%). On evaluation against the intervention reporting framework, CDSS studies fail to report consideration of the non-expert, end-user workflow. They have narrow focus, such as antimicrobial selection, and use proxy outcome measures. Engagement with CDSS by clinicians was poor. Conclusion Greater consideration of the factors that drive non-expert decision making must be considered when designing CDSS interventions. Future work must aim to expand CDSS beyond simply selecting appropriate antimicrobials with clear and systematic reporting frameworks for CDSS interventions developed to address current gaps identified in the reporting of evidence