Where are cinemas going? Are they an evening out, a festive occasion, something of a 'luxury' when compared to the parallel availability of television? Are we looking at fewer cinemas, with more advanced technical standards, itself again a reflection of urban reorganization? Are cinemas changing to a means of education like the IMAX that shows a variety of documentary films? Or are cinemas going to fade out to make place for the comfort and ease of the cinema in your own living room? The goal of the project is to design a cinema centre that is original and offers the user a new and exciting experience. The cinema is based on the film and information technology industry especially new and future technological trends. The main focus, however, is the user's experience through the space and how it can be enhanced through the use of technology. The aim is to create a sense of voyeurism, which exemplifies the user's experience in the cinema auditorium and in the rest of the building by creating passing glipmses, which combine activity and object. The cinema centre will provide a space of invention, innovation and experience. / Dissertation (MInt(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Architecture / unrestricted

No description available.

Early-onset diagnostics, or the detection of disease before clinical symptoms arise, has gained traction for its potential to improve patient quality of life and health outcomes. Biosensors, found in point-of-care (POC) devices, facilitate early-onset diagnostics and disease monitoring by addressing the limitations of current diagnostics strategies, which include timeliness, cost-effectiveness, and accessibility. Biosensors often incorporate microarrays within their design to allow for the detection of disease-associated biomolecules, known as biomarkers. Microarrays are composed of capture biomolecules, such as monoclonal antibodies, that are immobilized through either contact or non-contact printing techniques. In the following thesis, we investigated microarray designs within novel biosensing platforms for diagnostic and disease monitoring applications. First, we highlighted the advantages and challenges of implementing different types of biosensors, detection methods, and biomolecule immobilization strategies. Additionally, we proposed a novel 3D microarray incorporating hydrogels composed purely of crosslinked bovine serum albumin (BSA) proteins decorated with capture antibodies (CAbs). Utilizing industry-standard inkjet printing, we developed and optimized a two-step fabrication protocol, by which BSA proteins and CAbs are printed first, followed by the crosslinking agent, 1-Ethyl-3-[3-dimethylaminopropyl]carbodiimide (EDC). Characterization of the unique three-dimensional (3D) microstructure and hydrogel parameters and conducting comparisons with standard two-dimensional (2D) microdots, showed that increasing biosensor surface area led to a 3X increase in signal amplification. The limits of detection (LODs) for cytokine biomarkers were 0.3pg/mL for interleukin-6 (IL-6) and 1pg/mL for tumor necrosis factor receptor I (TNF RI), which were highly sensitive compared to reported LODs from literature. Alongside the investigation of novel printing protocols, proof-of-concepts for multiplex detection and distinguishing clinical patient samples from healthy donors were also presented. Overall, this thesis demonstrated the fabrication and optimization of microarray development shows promise in improving current biosensor designs, allowing for enhanced early-onset disease detection and monitoring. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Thesis (M.D.)--Boston University

Title: The influence of a passive rehabilitation on spasticity in multiple sclerosis Objectives: The main objective is to summarize the current knowledge about multiple sclerosis and the possibilities of influencing the spasticity as a serious symptom. Another objective is to verify the effectiveness of the antispastic passive rehabilitation of the lower limbs of selected patient in practice. Methods: Verification of the effectiveness of the system of antispastic passive rehabilitation of the lower limbs was through a qualitative research. For the work design is used the type of qualitative experiment. The research sample is a person with spasticity in the lower limbs. In the first two parts of the work was used an analysis of scientific literature and a content analysis. The strategy of data obtaining is also in the form of observation, interviewing, measuring, scale and variety. A medical documentation, anamnesis, casuistry and a secondary analysis were used. Results: Individual use of each method resulted in the influence of spasticity only for a short time. Mobility was affected in the sense of passive movement the most after the soft techniques and massage therapy. The most striking results were achieved after the use of all methods when the spasticity was positively influenced in accordance...

L'analyse de la réponse lymphocytaire T représente une exploration de plus en plus importante pour la compréhension de la physiopathologie de maladies et le suivi de protocoles d'immunothérapie. La mise en évidence de la production de cytokines par ces cellules permet d'identifier les sous populations de lymphocytes T (LT) et d'analyser leur fonctionnalité et leur état d'activation. L'Elispot est une technique déjà largement utilisée dans le suivi de la réponse vaccinale pour la détection de cellules sécrétrices de cytokines. Bien que la séroprotection soit le critère reconnu pour déterminer l'efficacité de la vaccination antigrippale, un rôle important de la réponse lymphocytaire T a été démontré dans le contrôle de l'infection. Nos travaux ont permis de mettre en évidence que l'utilisation de vaccins totaux pour le suivi de la réponse lymphocytaire T, par l'introduction de leurs excipients, peut induire un biais dans la détection des cytokines. Le thimérosal, conservateur utilisé dans certains vaccins, provoque in vitro lors de la détection d'interféron (IFN) par Elispot l'apparition de petits spots que nous avons associés a l'activation abortive précoce des LT. Leur taille permet cependant d'éliminer automatiquement du comptage ces spots non spécifiques. Contrairement à l'Elispot dont elle est dérivée, la technique Fluorospot permet l'analyse simultanée de plusieurs cytokines et est donc plus adaptée à la détection des profils de sécrétion et de la fréquence des LT polyfonctionnels, associés à un bon pronostic dans plusieurs pathologies. Nos résultats ont permis la validation technique de ce test pour la détection des couples IFN/interleukine (IL)-10 et IFN/IL-2. Grâce au développement au laboratoire d'une lignée produisant de l'IFN et l'IL-10, nous avons montré que le Fluorospot avait une sensibilité supérieure à la cytométrie intracellulaire pour la détection de l'IFN et de l'IL-10. Il était déjà connu que l'IL-10 était difficilement détectable par cytométrie, renforçant l'intérêt du Fluorospot pour détecter les cellules Tr1. L'utilisation du Fluorospot lors du suivi de la réponse vaccinale antigrippale a également permis de démontrer une équivalence de sensibilité avec l'Elispot. Au cours du suivi de ce protocole anti-grippal, nous avons montré à l'aide du Fluorospot que la réponse LT antigrippale était surtout caractérisée par une forte production d'IL-2 et que la détection isolée d'IFN a une faible sensibilité pour la mesure des réponses LT anti-grippales. Il s'agit de la première utilisation de ce test pour le suivi d'un protocole vaccinal démontrant sa robustesse et sa faisabilité dans un contexte clinique. Nos résultats offrent donc une validation complète de la technique Fluorospot, aussi bien du point de vue technique que clinique, ouvrant des perspectives d'utilisation pour le suivi de futurs protocoles. / The detection of cellular response via its different T cell subpopulations was proved to be crucial to better understand mechanisms of pathologies and monitor protocols of immunotherapy. Unicellular cytokine measurement not only allows the assessment of their inherent role on immunological response, but also the detection of T lymphocytes (LT) secretion profile which gives information on subpopulations involved, their activation state and their functionality. Detection of the cytokine secreting cells frequency is achievable with Elispot. This test is widely used in clinical trials to monitor vaccine response to diseases such as influenza. Although seroprotection is the recognized parameter to assess anti-influenza vaccine efficiency, cellular response has been proved to play an important role in infection control. Our results highlighted that the use of the whole vaccine to monitor T cell response may induce bias in cytokine detection. Indeed, their excipients can be considered as contaminants, like Thimerosal which is used as a preservative in some vaccines. We demonstrated that it induced detection of small spots in interferon (IFN) Elispot. We proved that these spots were associated with in vitro early abortive T cell activation. However, their size enabled us to remove these unspecific spots from bona fide spots.Fluorospot test is suited for multiplex cytokine analysis. Thus it is more adapted than Elispot to detect cytokine secretion profiles and polyfunctional T cells frequency. It is worth noting that polyfunctionnal Tcells are associated with a better clinical outcome in several pathologies. Our results led to technical validation of this test for detection of two cytokines couples, IFN/interleukin (IL)-10 and IFN/IL-2. Fluorospot showed a better sensitivity than intracellular staining cytometry (ICS) in detection of IFN and IL-10 produced by a cell line transfected with the cDNA encoding these cytokines. Moreover, Fluorospot demonstrated a similar sensitivity than Elispot when used to monitor the immunological response to an anti-influenza vaccine. Furthermore, using this technique, we showed that anti-influenza T cell producing IL-2 were the dominant population of T cells. Isolated IFN producing T cells were less sensitive than the detection of IL-2 to detect specific T cell response against influenza. Therefore our results provided a full validation of Fluorospot test, for the technical part as well as for the clinical part. These conclusions open perspectives of using this method to monitor protocols in a near future.

Fin avril 2009, des cas de grippe causés par un nouveau virus grippal A/H1N1 d’origine porcine sont confirmés au Mexique et aux Etats-Unis. Rapidement, le virus est détecté aux quatre coins du globe causant la première pandémie du XXIème siècle. Les différents travaux présentés dans cette thèse retracent les moyens mis en œuvre pour obtenir des informations permettant d’estimer le taux d’attaque réel de ce nouveau virus et des informations sur les populations à risque. Durant les premiers mois, nous avons mis en place une plateforme de sérologies comprenant un laboratoire de réception et de traitement des échantillons pour l’exécution de notre technique d’IHA. Le traitement d’environ 40.000 sérums provenant de plusieurs endroits du globe : France, Bolivie, Djibouti, Mali, île de la Réunion et Laos a permis l’analyse de données sérologiques et leur comparaison. Nos études sérologiques de la grippe A(H1N1)pdm09 montrent que 10% à 40% des populations testées ont été infectées par ce nouveau virus après la première vague de 2009. Les plus forts taux d’attaque ont été observés chez les enfants et les jeunes adultes alors que les personnes âgées ont été relativement épargnées du fait qu’elles étaient déjà protégées contre des virus antigéniquements proches qui circulaient avant 1957 (virus pandémique et/ou saisonniers). L’analyse des données sérologiques ont également permis de tenter de définir les facteurs de risque à l’infection de A(H1N1)pdm09. / In late April 2009, news swine-origin A/H1N1 influenza virus cases were confirmed in Mexico and the United States. Quickly, it was spread worldwide causing the first flu pandemic of the 21st century. Different works presented in this thesis describe the means used to obtain information to estimate the actual attack rate of this new virus, and information on risk populations. During the first months, we have established a serology platform including a reception-processing samples laboratory for implementing our hémagglutination Inhibition technique (IHA). Processing of 40,000 sera from several parts of the world: France, Bolivia, Djibouti, Mali, Reunion and Laos, has allowed the analysis of serological data and their comparison. Our serological studies of influenza A(H1N1) pdm09 show that 10% to 40% of people tested were infected with this new virus after the first wave in 2009. The highest attack rates were observed in children and young adults, while the elderly were relatively spared because they were already protected again antigenic close viruses that circulated before 1957 (pandemic and / or seasonal). The analysis of serological data were also used to try to identify the risk factors for A(H1N1)pdm09 infection. It appears that infection with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 was ubiquitous on the French territory, whatever the socio-demographic factors, and the Flu virus transmission can probably conditioned by the environmental and hygienic conditions in household.

No presente trabalho, foi realizada uma MULTIPLEX-PCR para a detecção do DNA bacteriano de S. agalactiae, S.pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenzae e outros possíveis agentes etiológicos bacterianos das meningites. Este ensaio combina cinco diferentes iniciadores que detectam simultaneamente o gene crtA de N. meningitidis, o gene p6 de H. influenzae, o gene fbsA de S. agalactiae, o gene lytA de S. pneumoniae e o gene universal 16S rDNA para identificar a presença de agente bacteriano. Foram analisadas 447 amostras de LCR, o ensaio detectou 27 amostras positivas para cultura bacteriana e 13 amostras com resultado de cultura negativa. Estas amostras com cultura negativa apresentavam alterações bioquímicas, hematológicas, imunológicas ou microbiológicas (bacterioscopia) sugestivas de meningite, estes dados auxiliaram na análise dos resultados do MULTIPLEX-PCR. Este ensaio não apresentou reações inespecíficas com fungos, vírus e com outros agentes bacterianos testados (amplificando somente o gene 16S rDNA). A MULTIPLEX-PCR é um ensaio rápido, confiável, de fácil execução e facilmente implementável para a confirmação de meningite bacteriana. E este método pode auxiliar no diagnóstico de meningite com cultura de LCR negativa, particularmente para pacientes que previamente iniciaram antibioticoterapia e no diagnostico diferencial de meningite bacteriana ou viral. / In this work, a MULTIPLEX-PCR has conducted for the bacterial DNA detection of S. agalactiae, S.pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenza and other possible etiologic bacterial meningitis agents. This test combines five different primers that detect simultaneously the crtA gene of N. meningitides, the p6 gene of H. influenza, the fbsA gene of S. agalactiae, the lytA gene of S. pneumoniae and the 16S rDNA universal gene to identify the presence of bacterial agent. From the 447 samples of CSF that were analyzed, the test detected 27 positive samples for bacterial culture and 13 samples with the result of negative culture. These negative culture samples presented biochemical changes, hematological, immunological or microbiological (bacterioscopy) suggestive of meningitis, these data helped in the analysis of the MULTIPLEX-PCR results. This test showed no nonspecific reactions with fungi, viruses and other bacterial agents tested (only amplifying the gene 16S rDNA). The MULTIPLEX-PCR test is a fast, reliable, easy to implement and easily implementable for of bacterial meningitis confirmation. And this method can aid in the meningitis diagnosis with negative culture of CSF, particularly for patients who previously started antibiotic therapy and in the differential diagnosis of bacterial or viral meningitis.

S. pneumoniae coloniza a nasofaringe e é um dos principais agente de otite média, pneumonia, bacteremia e meningite com altas taxas de morbidade e mortalidade. Estima-se que 1,6 milhões de pessoas morram de doença pneumocócica por ano, a maioria crianças menores de cinco anos de idade, principalmente em países em desenvolvimento. A cápsula polissarídica antifagocitária é o principal fator de virulência deste microrganismo e determina os 93 sorotipos conhecidos, sendo o alvo de vacinas pneumocócicas. No presente trabalho foi padronizada a tipagem molecular por Multiplex PCR de S. pneumoniae, que compreende 30 pares de iniciadores agrupados em seis reações sequenciais. Foram tipadas 270 cepas de pneumococo isoladas entre janeiro de 2005 a setembro de 2011, proveniente de líquor (13%), sangue (76%) e líquido pleural (11%) de 232 pacientes atendidos no Hospital Universitário da USP. Além disso, a caraterização dessas amostras quanto ao perfil de sensibilidade aos antimicrobianos e à diversidade foi realizada, segundo o CLSI 2011 e a genotipagem molecular pelas técnicas de Multilocus Sequencie Typing Scheme (MLST) e Pulsed Field Eletrophoresis Gel (PFGE), respectivamente. A tipagem por Multiplex PCR detectou 24 sorotipos/sorogrupos diferentes, que foram: 14 (22%), 5 (12%), 12F/A (11%), 6A/B/C (10%), 7F/A (5%), 1 (4%), 3 (4%), 10A (4%), 19A (4%), 18 A/B/C/F (3%), 4 (3%), 8 (3%), 23F (3%), 19F (3%) e outros (9%) (9V/A, 9N/L, 15A, 22F, 11A/D, 31, 38, 34, 16F, 17F e não tipável). Este método apresentou 100% de especificidade e 98% de sensibilidade para determinação de sorogrupos e 66% para sorotipos. Os sorotipos 14, 6B, 5 e 19F foram significativamente mais comuns em criança até dois anos, já entre adultos, os sorotipos 5 e 12F foram os predominantes. O perfil de sensibilidade em infecções não meníngeas foi de 99% de sensibilidade e 1% de resistência intermediária para penicilina e ceftriaxona. Para infecções meníngeas os resultados mostraram 73% de sensibilidade e 27% de resistência para penicilina e 88% de sensibilidade e 12% de resistência intermediária para ceftriaxona. A resistência aos beta-lactâmicos está ligada principalmente ao sorotipo 14 que foi o sorotipo mais isolado com 52 cepas e dessas foram realizados MLST e PFGE. No MLST encontramos 51 cepas pertencentes ao clone Spain9V-3 (ST 156) que é predominante na região sul e sudeste do Brasil e uma cepa com um tipo de sequência ainda não depositada. Pela técnica de PFGE foram detectados três clusters e quatro amostras não relacionadas, o cluster A foi predominante com 41(79%) cepas com 81,7% de similaridade entre elas. A técnica de Multiplex PCR demonstrou ser excelente ferramenta para a detecção dos sorotipos/sorogrupos de S. pneumoniae. Não foi detectada resistência plena à penicilina e ceftriaxona em infecções não meníngeas consolidando a importância do uso da penicilina no tratamento da doença pneumocócica não meníngea. Houve grande similaridade genética entre cepas de S. pneumoniae sorotipo 14. / S.pneumoniae colonizes the nasopharynx and is a major agent of otitis media, pneumonia, bacteremia and meningitis with high morbidity and mortality. It is estimated that 1.6 million people die of pneumococcal disease every year, mostly children under five years old, mainly in developing countries. The antiphagocytic polissarídica capsule is the main virulence factor of this organism and determine the 93 serotypes known for being the target of pneumococcal vaccines. In the present study was standardized molecular typing by Multiplex PCR molecular typing, which comprises 30 primer pairs grouped into six sequential reactions. We performed antimicrobial susceptibility profile, according to the CLSI 2011 and the most frequent serotype was made by molecular genotyping techniques Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) and pulsed-field gel Eletrophoresis (PFGE). We studied 270 pneumococcal strains isolated from 2005 to September 2011, from CSF (13%), blood (76%) and pleural fluid (11%) of 232 patients attended at University Hospital of USP. Typing by Multiplex PCR detected 24 serotypes / serogroups different, which were: 14 (22%), 5 (12%), 12F / A (11%), 6A/B/C (10%), 7F / A (5 %), 1 (4%), 3 (4%), 10A (4%), 19A (4%), 18 A / B / C / F (3%), 4 (3%), 8 (3% ), 23F (3%), 19F (3%) and others (9%) (9V / A, 9N / L, 15A, 22F, 11A / D, 31, 38, 34, 16F, 17F and nontypable). This method showed 100% specificity and 98% sensitivity for the determination of 66% for serogroups and serotypes. Serotypes significantly more common in children under two years were: 14, 6B, 5 and 19F among adults serotypes 5 e12F were predominant. The sensitivity profile in non-meningeal infections was 99% sensitivity and 1% penicillin intermediate resistance to ceftriaxone. For meningeal infections the results showed 73% sensitivity and 27% resistance to penicillin and 88% sensitivity and 12% intermediate resistance to ceftriaxone. Resistance to beta-lactams is linked mainly to serotype 14 was the serotype most isolated, and of these 52 strains were performed MLST and PFGE. MLST found in 51 strains belonging to clone Spain9V-3 (ST 156) which is prevalent in south and southeastern Brazil and a strain with a type of sequence is not deposited. The technique of PFGE found three clusters and four non-related samples, cluster A predominated with 41 (79%) strains with 81.7% similarity between them. Multiplex PCR technique proved to be an excellent tool for the detection of serotypes/serogroups of S. pneumoniae. We did not detect full resistance to penicillin and ceftriaxone in non-meningeal infections showing the importance of use of penicillin in the treatment of pneumococcal non-meningeal disease. There was great genetic similarity among strains of S. pneumoniae serotype 14.

No presente trabalho, foi realizada uma MULTIPLEX-PCR para a detecção do DNA bacteriano de S. agalactiae, S.pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenzae e outros possíveis agentes etiológicos bacterianos das meningites. Este ensaio combina cinco diferentes iniciadores que detectam simultaneamente o gene crtA de N. meningitidis, o gene p6 de H. influenzae, o gene fbsA de S. agalactiae, o gene lytA de S. pneumoniae e o gene universal 16S rDNA para identificar a presença de agente bacteriano. Foram analisadas 447 amostras de LCR, o ensaio detectou 27 amostras positivas para cultura bacteriana e 13 amostras com resultado de cultura negativa. Estas amostras com cultura negativa apresentavam alterações bioquímicas, hematológicas, imunológicas ou microbiológicas (bacterioscopia) sugestivas de meningite, estes dados auxiliaram na análise dos resultados do MULTIPLEX-PCR. Este ensaio não apresentou reações inespecíficas com fungos, vírus e com outros agentes bacterianos testados (amplificando somente o gene 16S rDNA). A MULTIPLEX-PCR é um ensaio rápido, confiável, de fácil execução e facilmente implementável para a confirmação de meningite bacteriana. E este método pode auxiliar no diagnóstico de meningite com cultura de LCR negativa, particularmente para pacientes que previamente iniciaram antibioticoterapia e no diagnostico diferencial de meningite bacteriana ou viral. / In this work, a MULTIPLEX-PCR has conducted for the bacterial DNA detection of S. agalactiae, S.pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenza and other possible etiologic bacterial meningitis agents. This test combines five different primers that detect simultaneously the crtA gene of N. meningitides, the p6 gene of H. influenza, the fbsA gene of S. agalactiae, the lytA gene of S. pneumoniae and the 16S rDNA universal gene to identify the presence of bacterial agent. From the 447 samples of CSF that were analyzed, the test detected 27 positive samples for bacterial culture and 13 samples with the result of negative culture. These negative culture samples presented biochemical changes, hematological, immunological or microbiological (bacterioscopy) suggestive of meningitis, these data helped in the analysis of the MULTIPLEX-PCR results. This test showed no nonspecific reactions with fungi, viruses and other bacterial agents tested (only amplifying the gene 16S rDNA). The MULTIPLEX-PCR test is a fast, reliable, easy to implement and easily implementable for of bacterial meningitis confirmation. And this method can aid in the meningitis diagnosis with negative culture of CSF, particularly for patients who previously started antibiotic therapy and in the differential diagnosis of bacterial or viral meningitis.