Australian bat lyssavirus infection in two horses

In May 2013, the first cases of Australian bat lyssavirus infections in domestic animals were identified in Australia. Two horses (filly-H1 and gelding-H2) were infected with the Yellow-bellied sheathtail bat (YBST) variant of Australian bat lyssavirus (ABLV). The horses presented with neurological signs, pyrexia and progressing ataxia. Intra-cytoplasmic inclusion bodies (Negri bodies) were detected in some Purkinje neurons in haematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained sections from the brain of one of the two infected horses (H2) by histological examination. A morphological diagnosis of sub-acute moderate non-suppurative, predominantly angiocentric, meningo-encephalomyelitis of viral aetiology was made. The presumptive diagnosis of ABLV infection was confirmed by the positive testing of the affected brain tissue from (H2) in a range of laboratory tests including fluorescent antibody test (FAT) and real-time PCR targeting the nucleocapsid (N) gene. Retrospective testing of the oral swab from (H1) in the real-time PCR also returned a positive result. The FAT and immunohistochemistry (IHC) revealed an abundance of ABLV antigen throughout the examined brain sections. ABLV was isolated from the brain (H2) and oral swab/saliva (H1) in the neuroblastoma cell line (MNA). Alignment of the genome sequence revealed a 97.7% identity with the YBST ABLV strain.

Ecological dynamics of emerging bat virus spillover

Viruses that originate in bats may be the most notorious emerging zoonoses that spill over from wildlife into domestic animals and humans. Understanding how these infections filter through ecological systems to cause disease in humans is of profound importance to public health. Transmission of viruses from bats to humans requires a hierarchy of enabling conditions that connect the distribution of reservoir hosts, viral infection within these hosts, and exposure and susceptibility of recipient hosts. For many emerging bat viruses, spillover also requires viral shedding from bats, and survival of the virus in the environment. Focusing on Hendra virus, but also addressing Nipah virus, Ebola virus, Marburg virus and coronaviruses, we delineate this cross-species spillover dynamic from the within-host processes that drive virus excretion to land-use changes that increase interaction among species. We describe how land-use changes may affect co-occurrence and contact between bats and recipient hosts. Two hypotheses may explain temporal and spatial pulses of virus shedding in bat populations: episodic shedding from persistently infected bats or transient epidemics that occur as virus is transmitted among bat populations. Management of livestock also may affect the probability of exposure and disease. Interventions to decrease the probability of virus spillover can be implemented at multiple levels from targeting the reservoir host to managing recipient host exposure and susceptibility.

Distress call-induced gene expression in the brain of the Indian short-nosed fruit bat, Cynopterus sphinx

Individuals in distress emit audible vocalizations to either warn or inform conspecifics. The Indian short-nosed fruit bat, Cynopterus sphinx, emits distress calls soon after becoming entangled in mist nets, which appear to attract conspecifics. Phase I of these distress calls is longer and louder, and includes a secondary peak, compared to phase II. Activity-dependent expression of egr-1 was examined in free-ranging C. sphinx following the emissions and responses to a distress call. We found that the level of expression of egr-1 was higher in bats that emitted a distress call, in adults that responded, and in pups than in silent bats. Up-regulated cDNA was amplified to identify the target gene (TOE1) of the protein Egr-1. The observed expression pattern Toe1 was similar to that of egr-1. These findings suggest that the neuronal activity related to recognition of a distress call and an auditory feedback mechanism induces the expression of Egr-1. Co-expression of egr-1 with Toe1 may play a role in initial triggering of the genetic mechanism that could be involved in the consolidation or stabilization of distress call memories.

Bat foraging strategies and pollination of Madhuca latifolia (Sapotaceae) in southern India

The sympatrically occurring Indian short-nosed fruit bat Cynopterus sphinx and Indian flying fox Pteropus giganteus visit Madhuca latifolia (Sapotaceae), which offers fleshy corollas (approximate to 300 mg) to pollinating bats. The flowers are white, tiny and in dense fascicles The foraging activities of the two bat species were segregated in space and time. Cynopterus sphinx fed on resources at lower heights in the trees than P giganteus and its peak foraging activity occurred at 19 30 h, before that of P giganteus Foraging activities involved short searching flights followed by landing and removal of the corolla by mouth Cynopterus sphinx detached single corollas from fascicles and carried them to nearby feeding roosts, where it sucked the juice and spat out the Fibrous remains Pteropus giganteus landed on top of the trees and fed on the corollas in situ, its peak activity occurred at 20 30 11 This species glided and crawled between the branches and held the branches with claws and forearms when removing fleshy corollas with Its Mouth Both C sphinx and P giganteus consumed fleshy corollas with attached stamens and left the gynoecium intact Bagging experiments showed that fruit-set in bat-visited flowers was significantly higher (P < 0.001) than in self-pollinated flowers.

Silent katydid females are at higher risk of bat predation than acoustically signalling katydid males

Males that produce conspicuous mate attraction signals are often at high risk of predation from eavesdropping predators. Females of such species typically search for signalling males and their higher motility may also place them at risk. The relative predation risk faced by males and females in the context of mate-finding using long-distance signals has rarely been investigated. In this study, we show, using a combination of diet analysis and behavioural experiments, that katydid females, who do not produce acoustic signals, are at higher risk of predation from a major bat predator, Megaderma spasma, than calling males. Female katydids were represented in much higher numbers than males in the culled remains beneath roosts of M. spasma. Playback experiments using katydid calls revealed that male calls were approached in only about one-third of the trials overall, whereas tethered, flying katydids were always approached and attacked. Our results question the idea that necessary costs of mate-finding, including risk of predation, are higher in signalling males than in searching females.

Robust design of multiple trailing edge flaps for helicopter vibration reduction: A multi-objective bat algorithm approach

The objective of this study is to determine an optimal trailing edge flap configuration and flap location to achieve minimum hub vibration levels and flap actuation power simultaneously. An aeroelastic analysis of a soft in-plane four-bladed rotor is performed in conjunction with optimal control. A second-order polynomial response surface based on an orthogonal array (OA) with 3-level design describes both the objectives adequately. Two new orthogonal arrays called MGB2P-OA and MGB4P-OA are proposed to generate nonlinear response surfaces with all interaction terms for two and four parameters, respectively. A multi-objective bat algorithm (MOBA) approach is used to obtain the optimal design point for the mutually conflicting objectives. MOBA is a recently developed nature-inspired metaheuristic optimization algorithm that is based on the echolocation behaviour of bats. It is found that MOBA inspired Pareto optimal trailing edge flap design reduces vibration levels by 73% and flap actuation power by 27% in comparison with the baseline design.

A Novel Approach for Multispectral Satellite Image Classification Based on the Bat Algorithm

Among the multiple advantages and applications of remote sensing, one of the most important uses is to solve the problem of crop classification, i.e., differentiating between various crop types. Satellite images are a reliable source for investigating the temporal changes in crop cultivated areas. In this letter, we propose a novel bat algorithm (BA)-based clustering approach for solving crop type classification problems using a multispectral satellite image. The proposed partitional clustering algorithm is used to extract information in the form of optimal cluster centers from training samples. The extracted cluster centers are then validated on test samples. A real-time multispectral satellite image and one benchmark data set from the University of California, Irvine (UCI) repository are used to demonstrate the robustness of the proposed algorithm. The performance of the BA is compared with two other nature-inspired metaheuristic techniques, namely, genetic algorithm and particle swarm optimization. The performance is also compared with the existing hybrid approach such as the BA with K-means. From the results obtained, it can be concluded that the BA can be successfully applied to solve crop type classification problems.

Garapenaren ekonomiari loturiko pentsamendu ekonomikoen bilakaeraren hurbilketa bat

Artikulu honek garapenaren politika ekonomiko ezberdinek, XX. mendearen erdi aldetik aurrera, garapen ekonomikoari buruz azaldu dituzten ekarpen esanguratsuenen laburpen bat aurkeztea du helburu. Horretarako,Garapenaren Teoria Ekonomikoarekin zerikusia duten paradigma ezberdinak defendatzen dituzten pentsamendu korronte batzuen ezaugarri nagusienak landuko dira, besteak beste: herrialde baten industrializazioa ezinbesteko irtenbide moduan planteatzen duen Modernizazioaren Teoria; Teoria Estrukturalista, modernizazioaren alternatiba moduan sortu zen eskola heterodoxoa, lehenengo aldiz Zentro-Periferia sistemaren ideia planteatu zuena; Garapenaren Teoria Neoliberala, azpigarapena Estatuaren partehartzearen ondorioz sortzen den merkatuaren funtzionamendu ezegokiak eragiten duen egoera bezala ulertzen duena; eta, Garapenari buruzko Hautabidezko Teoriak, orokorrean, banakakoen oinarrizko beharrak asetzearen garrantzia azpimarratzen dituztenak.

Ahozko azalpena unibertsitatean, ezagutzak ebaluatzeko tresna bat baino gehiago

En : I.Idiazabal, Inés M. García (eds.)(2007). Ahozko hizkuntza. Euskeraren azterketarako eta didaktikarako zenbait lan, Bilbo, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

Bideo-sekuentziak integratzeko teknologiak. Adibide bat

praktiken helburua, hainbat eduki multimedia izanda, bideo bat sortuz guztia elkartuko lukeen PC-rako aplikazio baten sorrera izan da. Aplikazioak erabiltzaileek era errazean erabiltzeko moduko interfaze bat behar zuen izan eta emaitza moduan sortu behar zuen bideoak, formatu eta parametro konkretu batzuk. Ideia horiekin buruan, aplikazioaren sorrera- rako pauso guztiak emango dira: teknologia desberdinen azterketa, analisia eta diseinua, interfazearen sorrera eta aplikazioaren garapena, eta azkenik probak.

Sistema konkurrenteak simulatzeko kernel bat: multiprozesadore sistemak

Jarraian, hainbat hilabetetan zehar garatutako proiektuaren deskribapena biltzen duen memoria dugu eskuragarri. Proiektu hau, sistema konkurrenteen simulazioan zentratzen da eta horretarako, mota honetako sistemen arloan hain erabiliak diren Petri Sareak lantzeaz gain, simulatzaile bat programatzeko informazio nahikoa ere barneratzen ditu. Gertaera diskretuko simulatzaile estatistiko batean oinarrituko da proiektuaren garapena, helburua izanik Petri Sareen bidez formalizatzen diren sistemak simulatzeko softwarea osatzea. Proiektuaren helburua da objektuetara zuzendutako hizkuntzaren bidez, Java hizkuntzaren bidez alegia, simulatzailearen programazioa erraztea eta ingurune honen baliabideak erabiltzea, bereziki XML teknologiari lotutakoak. Proiektu hau, bi zati nagusitan banatzen dela esan daiteke. Lehenengo zatiari dagokionez, konputazio munduan simulazioa aurkeztu eta honi buruzko behar adina informazio emango da. Hau, oso erabilgarria izango da programatuko den simulatzailearen nondik norakoak ulertu eta klase desberdinen inplementazioa egin ahal izateko. Horrez gain, zorizko aldagaiak eta hauen simulazioa ere islatzen dira, simulazio prozesu hori ahalik eta era errealean gauzatzeko helburuarekin. Ondoren, Petri Sareak aurkeztuko dira, hauen ezaugarri eta sailkapen desberdinak goraipatuz. Gainera, Petri Sareak definitzeko XML lengoaia erabiliko denez, mota honetako dokumentu eta eskemak aztertuko dira, hauek, garatuko den aplikazioaren oinarri izango direlarik. Bestalde, aplikazioaren muin izango diren klaseen diseinu eta inplementazioak bildu dira azken aurreko kapituluan. Alde batetik, erabili den DOM egituraren inguruko informazioa islatzen da eta bestetik, XML-tik habiatuz lortuko diren PetriNet instantziak maneiatzeko ezinbestekoak diren Java klaseen kodeak erakusten dira. Amaitzeko, egileak ateratako ondorioez gain, proiektuaren garapen prozesuan erabili den bibliografiaren berri ere ematen da.

Cluster analisiaren aplikazio bat ekonomian Donostiako auzoen ikerketa

Lan honekin Donostiako bizitza kalitatea ikertu nahi dute, hau da etxebizitzetako bizilagunen eta etxebizitzen egitura eta erabileraren arteko erlazio posiblea. Biztanle mota, etxebizitza mota eta Donostiako eremu homogeneoen arteko lotura bilatzen saiatuko dira, Aldagai Anitzeko Analisia, batez ere Osagai Nagusizko Analisia, erabiliz aldagai kopurua murrizteko eta faktore edo osagai gutxitan aldagaien informazio gehiena jasotzeko. Jarraian, Cluster aplikatuko dute auzo homogeneoen taldeak osatzeko.

Natura-eremu babestuen balorazio ekonomikoa Euskal Herrian: berrikusketa bibliografiko bat

[EUS[ Ingurumen-ondasun eta zerbitzuen gaineko balorazio ekonomikoa ebaluazio-tresna erabilgarri gisa azal daiteke, bereziki natura-eremu babestuen (NEB) politikak gero eta garrantzi handiagoa eskuratzen duen testuinguruetan. Nahiz eta NEBen gaineko balorazio ekonomikoak tradizio luzea duen, Euskal Herriko NEBen gain egindakoak oraintsukoak dira. Artikulu honek balorazio ekonomiko horiek jasotzen dituzten ikerlanen berrikusketa bibliografikoa egiten du. Egindako azterketak disparekotasun nabarmena azaltzen du emaitzei dagokienez, zeinak neurri handian balorazio-ariketetan definitutako ingurumen-ondasun eta erabilitako metodologien menpe dauden. Horrekin batera, NEBen izendatze eta garapenean arrazoi ekonomikoez gain beste era batzuetako arrazoiak kontuan hartzeko beharra ere azpimarratzen da.

Inklusibitatetik abiatuz DBHn haurdun dauden ikasleentzako Gorputz Hezkuntza arloko proposamen bat

Euskara. EAEko hezkuntza zentroetan ikasle haurdunak saioetatik eskluituak izan ez daitezen, Gorputz Hezkuntzako saioetarako inklusibotasun programa proposamen bat. Horretarako aurrena errebisio bibliografikoa egin da, eta jarraian proposamenaren garapena.