Publications by authors named "N J Knowles"

Single-energy quantitative computed tomography (SEQCT) provides volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD) measures for bone analysis and input to image-based finite element models (FEMs). Dual-energy CT (DECT) improves vBMD by accounting for voxel-specific material variations utilizing scans at multiple x-ray energies. vBMD is also altered by reconstruction kernel that cannot be accounted for using calibration phantoms.

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This study characterised type O foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) viruses recovered from outbreaks that were reported between 2010 and 2019 in the Republic of Korea. We used 96 newly generated whole-genome sequences (WGS) along with 131 already published WGSs from samples collected from countries in East and Southeast Asia. We identified at least eight independent introductions of O/SEA/Mya-98 and O/ME-SA/Ind-2001e FMDV strains into the Republic of Korea during the study period, which were closely related to the sequences of viruses circulating in the East and Southeast Asia neighbourhood with over 97 % nucleotide identity.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers analyzed stool samples from farm animals and children in the Central African Republic (CAR) to investigate enteroviruses (EVs) and potential transmission between species.
  • They found that enteroviruses in children belonged mainly to species A, B, and C, with a significant presence of EV-Cs closely related to poliovirus strains from recent vaccine-derived outbreaks.
  • In animals, they identified multiple types of EV-Gs, including a new one (EV-G28), and noted evidence that some human EV-Cs could infect pigs, highlighting the risk of cross-species virus transmission in this region.
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Aims: The aim of this study was to identify factors influencing midwives' conversations about smoking, and referral to specialist smoking cessation services, using an evidence-based theoretical framework.

Methods: Semi-structured, qualitative interviews were undertaken with community midwives employed within one health board region of Wales. Deductive framework analysis was employed by coding data to the domains of the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and then identifying themes within domains and across participants.

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Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an endemic disease in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in both wild and domestic animals. Despite this, no systematic FMD outbreak investigation accompanied by molecular characterisation of FMD viruses (FMDVs) in small ruminants or cattle has been performed, and only a single report that describes sequences for FMDVs in wildlife from the Emirate has been published. In this study, FMD outbreaks that occurred in 2021 in five animal farms and one animal market in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi were investigated.

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