Copies of author's previously published articles inserted. / Bibliography: leaves 120-129. / 129 leaves : / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Shows no significant difference in reactivity between sera from non-Aboriginals with previous rheumatic fever and matched controls. Using peptides in combination, or using related 20-mer peptides with the same panel of sera, did not reliably differentiate between subjects with rheumatic fever and those without. / Thesis (M.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology, 1998?

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), or prion diseases, are a group of invariably fatal neurodegenerative diseases of both humans and animals, thought to be caused by the abnormally folded prion protein PrPSc. Prion disease research continues to be faced by a number of difficult challenges. First, the unequivocal diagnosis of most prion diseases currently requires the post-mortem collection of central nervous system tissue, either for histological examination or Western blot analysis; second, a viable treatment for clinical stage disease has not yet been identified; third, the exact details of disease pathogenesis have not been elucidated; and fourth, the normal function of PrPC is not definitively known. The primary objective of the studies presented here was to diagnose prion disease in live animals, using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Increases in T2 relaxation time and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were observed very early following the infection of Syrian golden hamsters with the 263K strain of scrapie. These changes were evident well before the appearance of either clinical symptoms or the typical histological changes characteristic of prion disease, suggesting that they are the result of the progressive accumulation of fluid, and that this may constitute a novel early marker of prion disease pathogenesis. Following the establishment of this model system, a secondary objective was composed: to test the viability of a potential treatment (pentosan polysulphate) using a number of different treatment regimens. It was determined that pentosan polysulphate (PPS) was ineffective as a treatment unless it was administered intra-cerebrally very early in infection, although it was shown to slow the appearance of the histological hallmarks of prion disease. In response to the results of these studies, a potential model was proposed, relating PrP, aquaporin-4 (AQP4) regulation, and oedema. Although speculative, this model may have implications for both normal PrPC function and disease pathogenesis. / February 2009

I have investigated how municipalities support children with ADHD. I have interviewed persons responsible in five different municipalities. The persons have had the authority to decide how the support funds are to be shared in the municipality. Mostly I was interested to know if the support was the same in all these municipalities and if the children with ADHD really got the help and support they were entitled to. I discovered that the support varied; in some the children were correctly diagnosed but in others municipalities I was not convince. It became obvious that all municipalities were aware of that children with "messy" behaviour ought to get special professional support. They agreed that the support ought to consist of encoring and strengthening the child’s positive abilities. As well as that the child’s self-confidence ought to be encouraged and situations with a lot of stress, anticipation and changes ought to be avoided. I have working experience of preschool child groups and of children in need of special support and this have given me an extra motivation to research and to learn to know more.

Listeria monocytogens can be found widely in nature. It can grow at refrigeration temperature, low pH, and high salt. The disease that it caused a fatality rate of 20% or higher makes L. monocytogens to be a famous foodborn pathogen. After a number of recent foodborn outbreaks, it has been demonstrated that this bacterium poses a significant health risk and has attracted the attention of the food safety professionals and public health officers. This thesis introduces the general characteristics of this bacterium, including its physiological and biochemical traits, virulent factors, infection routes, symptoms, therapy, and epidemiology. This thesis is also especially emphasized on the introduction and comparison of the differences, the advantages, as well as the disadvantages between the traditional and rapid diagnosis methods. According to the US FDA Bacterial Analytical Manual, the rapid tests had been classified into three classes: miniaturized biochemical kits, immunochemical kits, and genetic kits. The principles, formats, techniques, commercial products and its production companies of each diagnosis methods are also incorporated in this thesis. The advantages and disadvantages of these methods and their applications have been assessed. Finally, we also evaluated the market of the traditional methods being used and the rapid tests in the world, including the US, and European Union. In conclusion, the diagnosis of this important bacterium both by rapid methods or newly developed biochip and sensor will continue to grow in the future.

No description available.

This thesis studies and develops an agent-based on-line monitoring and diagnosis system. With the advent of industry facilities toward high speed and automation, the on-line monitoring and diagnosis mechanism becomes important. The traditional time-based maintenance strategy cannot consider all practical conditions of machines. The accidental breakdowns may occur unexpectedly. In order to make production line automation, yield high production rate, and enhance the ability of market competition, an effective way is to ensure facilities running smoothly and to reduce the manpower monitoring. Meanwhile in order to reduce the cost of development and enhance the feature of reuse, we use a communication interface to integrate and interact information among developed softwares. Through this system, users may easily monitor and diagnose the machines on production lines through user interfaces, such as display of machine status, malfunction alarming, trend chart, waveform, spectrum, cepstrum and envelop spectrum, etc. A model consisting of domain knowledge and behaviors of cooperative multi-agents to integrate various facilities and functions in different production lines is proposed. In addition, via a Web-based environment, it releases the restrictions by of temporal and regional isolation. The system provides a real-time and dynamical operation circumstance and can meet the needs of different levels of users. Consequently, it is of greatly help to lower the cost of personnel and enhance the ability of market competition.

Thesis (M.S.)--Case Western Reserve University, 2009. / [School of Medicine] Department of Genetic Counseling. Includes bibliographical references.

published_or_final_version / Medical Sciences / Master / Master of Medical Sciences