The present invention relates to methods for the identification of clinical risk in patients having, or suspected of having, influenza. The invention also relates to methods for distinguishing between patients having influenza or viral pneumonia from patients having a symptomatically similar condition. The methods of the invention comprise determination of the level of expression of interferon alpha inducible protein 27 (IFI27) in a biological sample from a patient having, or suspected of having, influenza. Kits comprising suitable components for the performance of the methods are also provided by the invention. The invention allows stratification of patients into groups defining clinical risk, for example groups based on the severity of risk to the long-term health of the subject.

A method for screening substances for their ability to reduce malodours from emanations from an animal, said method comprising determining the effect of said substances on the C-S lyase activity of bacteria that emit volatile sulphuric compounds (VSCs), by contacting a test substance with a sample comprising said bacteria or a supernatant obtainable from a culture of said bacteria in the presence of a substrate for a C-S lyase, detecting the levels of thiol production from said bacteria, and comparing the results with those obtained from similar bacteria in the absence of said substance.

The present invention relates to novel strains of avian reovirus that were isolated from clinical cases of viral arthritis/tenosynovitis in chickens in the southeast United States. The invention is directed to these novel group 1 and group 2 avian reoviruses, diagnostic assays using antibodies and/or nucleotide- or amino acid-specific components of such viruses, such as the S1 gene encoding the sigma C protein, and to vaccines that protect chickens from disease caused by such viruses.

The present invention relates to methods for the identification of clinical risk in patients having, or suspected of having, influenza. The invention also relates to methods for distinguishing between patients having influenza or viral pneumonia from patients having a symptomatically similar condition. The methods of the invention comprise determination of the level of expression of interferon alpha inducible protein 27 (IF127) in a biological sample from a patient having, or suspected of having, influenza. Kits comprising suitable components for the performance of the methods are also provided by the invention. The invention allows stratification of patients into groups defining clinical risk, for example groups based on the severity of risk to the long-term health of the subject.

The present invention relates generally to the identification of patients suffering from cancer whether they will respond to specific therapies. More particularly the invention relates to a method and means for identifying responder to a therapy TLR-9 agonists.

This disclosure describes assay methods and kits for detecting a target. The methods and kits can be used to detect a target that is present in a sample at low concentration because the methods and kits amplify the signal indicating the presence of target in the sample. Generally, the methods and kits involve nanoparticle aggregation as a detectable signal that is enhanced by a trigger released from a vesicular compartment when the target is bound to a capture agent.

The present invention relates to novel strains of avian reovirus that were isolated from clinical cases of viral arthritis/tenosynovitis in chickens in the southeast United States. The invention is directed to these novel group 1 and group 2 avian reoviruses, diagnostic assays using antibodies and/or nucleotide- or amino acid-specific components of such viruses, such as the S1 gene encoding the sigma C protein, and to vaccines that protect chickens from disease caused by such viruses.

Nonwoven articles for detecting microorganisms or cellular analytes in a fluid sample are provided. The nonwoven article includes a fibrous porous matrix and concentration agent particles enmeshed in the fibrous porous matrix. The fibrous porous matrix generally consists of inorganic fibers and polymeric fibers. Methods of detecting microorganisms or cellular analytes in a fluid sample are also provided. The method includes providing the nonwoven article, providing a fluid sample suspected of containing at least one microorganism strain or target cellular analyte, contacting the fluid sample with the nonwoven article such that at least a portion of the at least one microorganism strain or target cellular analyte is bound to the nonwoven article, and detecting the presence of bound microorganism strain(s) or bound cellular analyte(s).

Methods of diagnosing infections are disclosed. In one embodiment, the method comprises measuring the amount of each of the polypeptides TRAIL, CRP, IP10 and at least one additional polypeptide selected from the group consisting of IL-6 and PCT.

Novel means that enables detection of the monocytogenes bacterium alone distinctly from other bacteria belonging to the genus Listeria with sufficiently high accuracy is disclosed. The present inventors intensively analyzed the genome of the monocytogenes bacterium to identify two genes (the lmo0084 gene and the lmo2736 gene) as target regions with which the monocytogenes bacterium can be specifically detected distinctly from other bacteria belonging to the genus Listeria utilizing a nucleic acid amplification method. By a further intensive study of the base sequences of these two genes, primer setting regions for highly accurate, specific detection of the monocytogenes bacterium alone were identified, and preferred particular examples of PCR primer sets, LAMP primer sets, and real-time PCR primer-probe sets were established.