This dissertation is comprised of two manuscripts that explore various contestations and representations of knowledge about the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1virus. In the first manuscript, I explore three narratives that have been produced to describe the 20-year journey of the virus. The journey begins in 1996 when the virus was a singular localized animal virus but then over the next 20 years multiplied its ontological status through a (de)stabilized global network of science and politics that promoted both fears of contagion and politics of otherness. Written by and for powerful actors and institutions in the global North, the narratives focused on technical solutions and outbreak fears. In doing so, the narratives produced policies and practices of biopower that obscured alternative considerations for equity, social justice, and wellbeing for the marginalized groups most directly affected by the H5N1 virus. The second manuscript explores a unique aspect of the H5N1 virus's journey as an emerging infectious disease -- its representation as a potential weapon for bioterrorists. The US government's recent attempt to secure what constitutes H5N1 knowledge produced a global debate between scientists and policy makers over how to balance the nation-state's desire for security with the life science's tradition of openly shared research. Known as the dual-use dilemma, this debate set up binaries of impossible reconciliation between the two groups. This dissertation argues that the dual-use dilemma obscures larger questions of justice. I propose a new concept of justice, knowledge justice, as an alternate more globally inclusive framework for exploring ways out of the dilemma. The concept is premised on the assertion that if knowledge is framed to obscure justice issues, then the justice questions of owning that knowledge can be used as a way out of the dual-use dilemma. Thus, knowledge becomes a question of justice that should be as important to policy makers as more traditional justice considerations of inequities in distribution, recognition, representation, and fairness. / Ph. D.

The COVID-19 Pandemic exacerbated a multitude of systems in the United States in 2020 up to current day. The structure of non-profit organizations across the country weakened as demands escalated for free food resources with specific pressure placed on food banks and food recovery organizations. There were citizens who had not previously relied on free food services who found themselves in drive through pickups, waiting for pre-packaged food boxes or the occasional you-pick operation to feed their families and themselves. The increase in demand for free food services was reacted to by those leading and directing the free food distribution sites through a time of crisis. This qualitative study serves to analyze food recovery organization (FRO) leadership strategies and principles that guided their decision making and problem-solving skills in response to food shortages and supply chain issues. The merge of the eight pillars of transformational and servant leadership theory provided propositional pillars that were tested in practice through interviews with FRO leaders in Appalachia. The discovery of how these leadership strategies were enacted during a time of crisis will guide the development of a training curriculum for nonprofit leaders in the future. / Master of Science in Life Sciences / The COVID-19 Pandemic exacerbated a multitude of systems in the United States in 2020 up to current day. The structure of non-profit organizations across the country weakened as demands escalated for free food resources with specific pressure placed on food banks and food recovery organizations. There were citizens who had not previously relied on free food services who found themselves in drive through pickups, waiting for pre-packaged food boxes or the occasional you-pick operation to feed their families and themselves. The increase in demand for free food services was reacted to by those leading and directing the free food distribution sites through a time of crisis. This qualitative study serves to analyze food recovery organization (FRO) leadership strategies and principles that guided their decision making and problem-solving skills in response to food shortages and supply chain issues. The merge of the eight pillars of transformational and servant leadership theory provided propositional pillars that were tested in practice through interviews with FRO leaders in Appalachia. The discovery of how these leadership strategies were enacted during a time of crisis will guide the development of a training curriculum for nonprofit leaders in the future.

Yes / We interviewed people with dementia and carers from the IDEAL cohort to find out how the COVID-19 lockdown and continuing restrictions affected those living with dementia. Some people with dementia coped well, while others coped with difficulty or were only just coping. The additional stress of COVID-19 exacerbated pre-existing coping difficulties. For many, social isolation increased anxiety. Some felt that lack of activity or lack of social contact caused a decline in their abilities to manage everyday tasks. Confusion about COVID-19 rules or difficulty remembering what to do led to anxiety when leaving the house. People felt that members of the public might not understand their particular needs. While some carers felt they were coping well, others experienced stress when having to leave the home because the person with dementia might not be safe if left alone. Some experienced increased strain in the caring relationship compounded by an uncertainty about future availability of respite. Some were concerned about the complex health needs of the person with dementia alongside COVID-19 risk and lack of personalised information. Both people with dementia and carers talked about the importance of access to safe outdoor space. People were anxious about how others would react or behave towards them regarding keeping a distance if they went out. Being connected to friends, family and wider community or support groups was important to help combat the effects of isolation. People from BAME communities worried about their increased vulnerability to the virus. A lack of trust in Government guidance and in health care services added to their anxiety. However, some benefitted from strong community and faith group involvement. What might be helpful for people with dementia? • Reablement to help regain or maintain skills • Personalised health advice regarding managing COVID-19 risk and the opportunity to ask questions. • Identification of people with dementia who live alone and an assessment of their needs. What might be helpful for carers? • Needs assessment in regard to respite. • Novel forms of respite care that incorporate social distancing. What might be helpful for both carers and people with dementia? • Access to COVID-safe outdoor spaces. • Continuation and expansion of ‘just checking’ services. • Support to get online and use the internet. • Communication and information through non-digital means. • Community COVID-19 ‘dementia awareness’ initiatives. What might be helpful for people from Black and minority ethnic groups? • Addressing concerns about their increased risk of COVID-19. • Directing information and support through existing community and faith groups. / This report presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research Policy Research Unit in Older People and Frailty.

Yes / The continuing COVID-19 pandemic and social restrictions have impacted on the cognitive decline and mental health of people with dementia. Social isolation and loss of activities due to social restrictions may also have implications as to sense of identity for people with dementia. As part of the INCLUDE (Identifying and Mitigating the Individual and Dyadic Impact of COVID-19 and Life Under Physical Distancing on People with Dementia and Carers) component of the IDEAL (Improving the Experience of Dementia and Enhancing Active Life) cohort study, the overall aim of this subtle realist qualitative study was to explore the perspectives of people with dementia on living through the COVID-19 pandemic within the context of the ‘post-vaccine’ period and the national lockdowns in England and Wales; and to determine perceived challenges to and facilitators of ‘living well’ during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond as restrictions were eased. In addition, the study findings are considered in relation to understandings of identity in dementia which the broader accounts of living through the pandemic have highlighted. Seven people with mild-to-moderate dementia were interviewed and themes were derived using framework analysis. Themes suggest interviewees' stoic acceptance of the pandemic and social restrictions but also fear of decline related to the temporality of their condition as well as loss of self-confidence to re-engage with the world. Interviewees managed threats to social identity by striving to maintain social and emotional connections, where the importance of a shared, social identity, particularly for people with young-onset dementia, was also apparent. Unlike in previous studies during the pandemic, the relevance of occupation for identity was observed, where maintaining previous or new activities or occupations was important to facilitate identity as well as to keep a sense of purpose. Therefore, as well as supporting people with dementia as the pandemic eases, future research into occupation and identity in dementia is of potential value. / ‘Identifying and Mitigating the Individual and Dyadic Impact of COVID-19 and Life Under Physical Distancing on People with Dementia and Carers (INCLUDE)’ was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC; grant number ES/V004964/1).

SARS-CoV-2 is caused by a pathogenic and highly transmissible beta coronavirus leading to severe infections in immuno-compromised individuals. This study first evaluates the primers used in the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) to detect SARS-CoV-2 by understanding how mutations might affect the primer efficiency with the SARS-CoV-2 sequences. Mutations on the Spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 are the most important as the spike protein mediates the viral entry into host cells. This study tracks the course of mutations on the spike protein by focusing on the haplogroups of the sequences across the world. A comprehensive database linking three important, currently available databases is curated as part of this study to fill the gaps caused by sequencing errors. Further, this study exploits the data generated by the Illumina and Oxford Nanopore next generation sequencing methods to study the evolution of mutations in a single Septuagenarian patient over an infection period of 102 days using the gene analysis software Geneious Prime. / Master of Science / A novel corona virus named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has taken down the entire world by causing Covid-19 pandemic. Initially detected in Wuhan, China, the virus has now made its way to more than 200 countries with a heavy death toll. Understanding the virus through mutation tracking and improving diagnostics and vaccine design have now become the top priority of researchers. Most of these researchers depend on quality viral sequence datasets to identify and track mutations. One aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive dataset linking the GISAID (Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data), NCBI (National Center for Biological Information) and the SRA (Sequence Read Archive) sequences. The dataset can be used for genome analysis and mutation tracking which can provide important insights for vaccine design and in improving diagnostic assays. In addition, this study provides an analysis of viral mutations in in the genomic regions targeted by commonly used primers in the RT-PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 that may affect the efficiency of detection. This study also uses the haplogroup information of people across the world to track the D614G mutation on the S gene of SARS-CoV-2 as it may be associated with increased transmissibility. To track the course of mutations in SARS-CoV-2, it is important to analyze the sequencing data provided by the Illumina and Oxford Nanopore next generation sequencing methods. We present a case study to investigate the course of SARS-CoV-2 mutations in a single septuagenarian patient over a period of 102days using the Sequence Read Archive (SRA) data generated by two Next Generation Sequencing methods and compare the advantages that one has over the other.

Yes / Planetary health sees neoliberal capitalism as a key mediator of socioecological crises, a position that is echoed in much COVID-19 commentary. In this Personal View, I set out an economic theory that emphasises some of the ways in which neoliberal capitalism's conceptualisation of value has mediated responses to COVID-19. Using the intersection of ecological, feminist, and Marxist economics, I develop an analysis of neoliberal capitalism as a specific historical form of the economy. I identify the accumulation of exchange value as a central tendency of neoliberal capitalism and argue that this tendency creates barriers to the production of other forms of value. I then analyse the implications of this tendency in the context of responses to COVID-19. I argue that resources and labour flow to the production of exchange value, at the expense of production of other value forms. Consequently, the global capitalist economy has unprecedented productive capacity but uses little of this capacity to create the conditions that improve and maintain people's health. To be more resilient to coming crises, academics, policy makers, and activists should do theoretical work that enables global economies to recognise multiple forms of value and political work that embeds these theories in societal institutions.

In recent years, rare catastrophic disasters have triggered pharmaceutical supply chain disruptions, resulting in product shortages and other problems that have negatively impacted healthcare delivery. Since the health sector is part of many nations’ critical infrastructure, ensuring minimal disruption in the supporting supply chains is an essential aspect of national security. While traditional risk management approaches have proven adequate for handling independent routine operational risks, these methods are inadequate for infrequent disruptive risks that propagate further risks, producing a domino effect in complex systems. Since today’s pharmaceutical supply chains have many characteristics of complex systems, elucidating the disruptive risks and required resilience capabilities, through knowledge gained from actual disasters, can be valuable in developing mitigation strategies. This research aims to investigate two catastrophic disasters that disrupted pharmaceutical supply chains in recent years. The first case explores the impact of a localized Category IV hurricane that hit Puerto Rico and disrupted the supply chain for saline, an essential product used in the treatment of many illnesses. The risk events that propagated from the disaster are identified and modeled using a Bayesian network to determine where resilience should be strengthened. In accordance with ISO 31000 risk management guidelines, Bayesian networks have been identified as appropriate tools for modeling complex system risks. The second case employs a qualitative research study on the vaccine supply chain supporting mass immunization during the COVID-19 pandemic. A content analysis is conducted to extract the insights of over 100 professionals on disruptors and resilience capability requirements of the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain. The results indicate that a large and diverse set of risk factors and resilience capabilities are pertinent to pharmaceutical supply chains during localized severe weather and global pandemic disasters. Furthermore, to mitigate the impacts of severe weather risk in the case of Puerto Rico, the predominant type of resilience required is absorptive capacity, while in the case of the mass immunization vaccine supply chain, adaptive capacity is key. These findings should be useful to national leaders, pharmaceutical supply chain and healthcare sourcing managers, disaster preparedness officers, and others charged with pharmaceutical supply chain resilience.

Influenza illness occures masively in human population for centuries. Influenza is an acute disorder of viral origin. Currently influenza can be found all over the world. The viruses of influenza are circulating continously in all continents not only in the human population, but in animals too. Every year the population is affected by the seasonal epidemic of different magnitude. Influenza illness pose an important medical, social and economical problem. Next to the seasonal outbreaks occuring every year the influenza pandemic can appear after several tens of years. The pandemic of influenza would mean spread all over the world and it is caused by the new variant of the influenza virus. In past the influenza pandemics caused mortality of millions of people all over the world, high economical losses and social collapse of the states in the history. That´s why the particular states prepare their national pandemic plans. The early preparedness for possible influenza pandemic elaborated in the national pandemic plans and the measures following from the plans constitute a tool for reduction of extent, impact and outcomes of pandemic. The quality of preparedness can influence the economical functions of states, medical impacts of illness and final number of the victims. The aim of the dissertation is to compare the proposed measures responding to the influenza pandemic arising from the national pandemic plans of the Czech and Slovak Republic, to ascertain the state of preparedness to the influenza pandemic following from the pandemic plan of the Czech Republic and the situation in awareness of the civil population about the influenza pandemic in the Czech Republic. The theoretical part of the dissertation is focused on the epidemiological characteristic of the influenza illness. In the sphere of interest the issue of influenza pandemics is explained in terms of their history and the next field of the dissertation is focused on the pandemic plans. The research part of the dissertation is focused on the solution to the given research questions. Two research questions were specified to accomplish the defined aim: What are the differences between the approaches and measures in the pandemic plans of the Czech and Slovak Republic? What is the knowledge and awareness of civil population about the influenza pandemic in the Czech Republic? Regarding the issue the methodology the first research question included analysis of the content of the pandemic plans of the Czech and Slovak Republic and performance of the Checklist method in order to obtain an overview on approach, procedures and standard of preparedness in the territory of both states and possibilities their reciprocal comparison. Under the second research question the awareness and knowledge of the civil population about the pandemic influenza in the Czech Republic was investigated. For acquiring the data of researching study there was used The method of quantitative research was used to acquire the data for the research survey. The form of twenty questions was created. The first part of the questionnaire was focused on the general knowledge about influenza and the second part on the influenza pandemic and related measures. The respondents chose from the answers defined in advance. There wasn´t used the random sampling of the respondents. Fifty respondents from the non-representative sample filled out the form for acquiring the basic knowledge and finding out theoretical information about the influenza pandemic. Subsequently the statistical analysis was made from the obtained data using the methods of descriptive and mathematic statistic. It follows from the analysing results that the knowledge about the influenza illness and influenza pandemic exists among the civil population which means the laic public, but they are the lower extent and do not correspond to the normal frequency distribution.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has had an enormous impact worldwide and is posing a threat to the physical and mental health of world citizens. The present study examines the extent to which a sample of Swedish university students have experienced loneliness during COVID-19. Furthermore, it also examines if there is a correlation between a high degree of loneliness and increased alcohol consumption. Participants consisted of Swedish university students recruited online using opportunity sampling (N=224). Loneliness was measured using the UCLA Loneliness Scale translated into Swedish. Results showed that the sample displayed higher levels of loneliness compared to normative scores but lower levels when compared to students elsewhere who have been quarantined. A logistic regression found no connection between high degrees of loneliness and increased alcohol consumption in the sample. The results and their implications are discussed. A pre-post measurement design and longitudinal studies are encouraged for future research to evaluate long term consequences of loneliness, along with an increased focus on ways to reduce loneliness. Finally, we suggest that loneliness should continue to be a priority in research in order to fully understand the psychological impact of COVID-19. / Utbrottet av COVID-19 pandemin har haft en enorm påverkan världen över och utgör ett hot mot den fysiska och mentala hälsan. Vår studie syftade till att undersöka i vilken utsträckning ett urval av svenska universitetsstudenter upplevt ensamhet under COVID-19. Vidare har studien undersökt om det fanns ett samband mellan en hög grad av upplevd ensamhet under COVID-19 och ökad alkoholkonsumtion. Deltagarna bestod av svenska universitetsstudenter vilka rekryterades online genom bekvämlighetsurval (N=224). Deltagarna fyllde i en enkät där subjektiv ensamhet mättes med hjälp av en översatt version av UCLA Loneliness Scale till svenska. Resultaten visade att studenterna i vårt urval uppvisade högre nivå av ensamhet jämfört med normvärden, men lägre jämfört med studenter i andra länder som suttit i karantän. En logistisk regression fann inget samband mellan upplevd ensamhet och ökad alkoholkonsumtion. Resultaten och deras implikationer diskuteras. För framtida forskning uppmuntras en för- och eftermätningsdesign samt longitudinella studier att utvärdera långsiktiga konsekvenser av ensamhet, samt ett ökat fokus på sätt att minska ensamhet. Slutligen föreslås att ensamhet blir ett fortsatt fokus i forskningen för att fullt ut förstå psykologiska effekterna av COVID-19.

Работа состоит из введения, трех глав, заключения, рекомендации и списка литературы. Первая глава «Теоретические основы формирования банковского капитала» в общих чертах определяет проблему исследования и причины, по которым проводится данное исследование. Во второй главе «Анализ состава и структуры капитала банков Эквадора» дана финансово-экономическая характеристика деятельности Центрального банка Эквадора и оценка структуры капитала коммерческих банков Эквадора. В третьей главе «Оценить влияние пандемии на структуру капитала коммерческих банков Эквадора и разработать меры по устранению негативных последствий» проведен анализ негативных последствий развития пандемии COVID-19 и провести соответствующие мероприятия. Рекомендации по увеличению стоимости капитала банков Эквадора. / The work consists of an introduction, three chapters, a conclusion, recommendations and a list of references. The first chapter "Theoretical foundations of the formation of bank capital" defines in general terms the problem of research and the reasons for which this research is conducted. In the second chapter, "Analysis of the composition and capital structure of banks in Ecuador", the financial and economic characteristics of the Central Bank's activities are given. the Bank of Ecuador and the assessment of the capital structure of commercial banks in Ecuador. In the third chapter, "To assess the impact of the pandemic on the capital structure of commercial banks in Ecuador and to develop measures to eliminate negative consequences", an analysis of the negative consequences of the development of the COVID-19 pandemic was carried out and appropriate measures were taken. Recommendations for increasing the cost of capital of banks in Ecuador.