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Invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) imposes a significant burden on the global community due to its high case fatality rate (4-20%) and the risk of long-term sequelae for one in five survivors. An expert group meeting was held to discuss the epidemiology of IMD and immunization policies in Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Most of these countries do not include meningococcal immunization in their routine vaccination programs, except for high-risk groups such as immunocompromised people and pilgrims. It is difficult to estimate the epidemiology of IMD in the highly diverse Asia-Pacific region, but available evidence indicate serogroup B is increasingly dominant. Disease surveillance systems differ by country. IMD is not a notifiable disease in some of them. Without an adequate surveillance system in the region, the risk and the burden of IMD might well be underestimated. With the availability of new combined meningococcal vaccines and the World Health Organization roadmap to defeat bacterial meningitis by 2030, a better understanding of the epidemiology of IMD in the Asia-Pacific region is needed.

University research capacity building has now become an increasingly important task in both developed and less developed countries. In this capacity building endeavour, research late-developer universities in particular need to develop a sound research organizational structure. However, what elements are needed in organizing and structuring university research has rarely been discussed systematically. Applying Mintzberg's (1979) theory on the structuring of organizations, this study sheds light on the generic parameters of organizing and structuring research. Five of the more visible parameters consist of: (1) create research positions; (2) create research management positions; (3) decide primary organizational units for research delivery; (4) create a research office; and (5) create research oversight committees. The five less visible parameters are: (1) develop rules for research integrity; (2) develop rules and procedures for managing the lifecycle of a research project; (3) develop a mechanism for evaluating the quality of research outcomes; (4) prepare researchers and research managers for the necessary skills and knowledge; and (5) decide vertical and horizontal decentralization. We argue that institutions that pay close attention to these ten management and organisational tasks for creating an environment in which research can flourish are more likely to be successful in building and/or enhancing their overall research capacity than other institutions.

Snails are the first intermediate host in the life cycle of trematodes. Previous research found that Trichopodus microlepis fish, cultured in earthen ponds in Tan Nhut Commune, Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam had a high infection rate with metacercariae of Centrocestus formosanus and Procevorum sp. It is necessary to investigate whether habitats supplying water to the ponds may contribute to the transmission by carrying intermediate hosts and/or cercariae into these ponds or not. A study of cercariae and snail composition in rice fields and canal supplying water directly to these Trichopodus microlepis ponds was carried out with six samplings in the years 2022 and 2023. A total of 1,151 snails were collected, and nine snail species belonging to 8 genera and 6 families were identified. Three snail species in both rice fields and canal were infected with trematode (cercariae stage) including Bithynia siamensis, Lymnaea viridis and Indoplanorbis exustus. The overall prevalence in the dry season (25.9%) was significantly higher than in the wet season (10.6%) (P<0.05). Three cercariae morphotypes were recovered from snails: xiphidio (in all three snails), echinostome (in Lymnaea viridis and Indoplanorbis exustus), and pleurolophocercous in Bithynia siamensis. This finding shows that Bithynia siamensis is one of the infected sources for Trichopodus microlepis fish cultured in ponds, as pleurolophocercous is also the cercariae in the family of Heterophyidae (including Centrocestus formosanus and Procevorum sp.). Further research should be done to clarify the transmission of fish-borne zoonotic diseases to cultured Trichopodus microlepis in other habitats including the actual fishponds, and sources of trematodes in order to produce Trichopodus microlepis free of metacercariae, contributing to clean aquaculture development and safe food for local people in the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dye pollutants, mainly discharged from the textile industry, have caused severe risks to human health and the ecosystem because of their toxicity, non-biodegradability, and carcinogenicity. This study investigated the use of commercial biochar derived from melaleuca wood as an adsorbent for the removal of methylene blue (MB) using a packed-bed column. The selected biochar was characterized by nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The experiments were performed to determine breakthrough curves (BTCs) with varying pH (3-9), inflow rate (5-20 mL min-1), bed height (16-65 cm), and initial MB concentration (0.75-9 mg L-1). The biochar (particle size of 1-2 mm) exhibited a low adsorption capacity for MB (~21 mg kg-1), resulting in a short breakthrough time. The Thomas, Bohart-Adams, Yoon-Nelson, and Bed Depth Service Time models were quite suitable for describing the experimental BTCs, with R2-values ranging from 0.92 to 0.98. The obtained BTCs were not in the typical S-shape, which characterizes diffusion-controlled adsorption. Therefore, a serial logistic-exponential model, which accounts for both the mass transfer and interaction contributions, was proposed. The experimental data effectively fit this proposed model, as indicated by high R2-values (>0.998). The dominant influence of mass transfer compared to interaction in controlling the adsorption rate of MB was highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We characterized the spatial distribution of drug-susceptible (DS) and multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis (TB) cases in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, a major metropolis in southeastern Asia, and explored demographic and socioeconomic factors associated with local TB burden. Hot spots of DS and MDR TB incidence were observed in the central parts of Ho Chi Minh City, and substantial heterogeneity was observed across wards. Positive spatial autocorrelation was observed for both DS TB and MDR TB. Ward-level TB incidence was associated with HIV prevalence and the male proportion of the population. No ward-level demographic and socioeconomic indicators were associated with MDR TB case count relative to total TB case count. Our findings might inform spatially targeted TB control strategies and provide insights for generating hypotheses about the nature of the relationship between DS and MDR TB in Ho Chi Minh City and the wider southeastern region of Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stable operation of quantum computers will rely on error correction, in which single quantum bits of information are stored redundantly in the Hilbert space of a larger system. Such encoded qubits are commonly based on arrays of many physical qubits, but can also be realized using a single higher-dimensional quantum system, such as a harmonic oscillator.sup.1-3. In such a system, a powerful encoding has been devised based on periodically spaced superpositions of position eigenstates.sup.4-6. Various proposals have been made for realizing approximations to such states, but these have thus far remained out of reach.sup.7-11. Here we demonstrate such an encoded qubit using a superposition of displaced squeezed states of the harmonic motion of a single trapped .sup.40Ca.sup.+ ion, controlling and measuring the mechanical oscillator through coupling to an ancillary internal-state qubit.sup.12. We prepare and reconstruct logical states with an average squared fidelity of 87.3 [plus or minus] 0.7 per cent. Also, we demonstrate a universal logical single-qubit gate set, which we analyse using process tomography. For Pauli gates we reach process fidelities of about 97 per cent, whereas for continuous rotations we use gate teleportation and achieve fidelities of approximately 89 per cent. This control method opens a route for exploring continuous variable error correction as well as hybrid quantum information schemes using both discrete and continuous variables.sup.13. The code states also have direct applications in quantum sensing, allowing simultaneous measurement of small displacements in both position and momentum.sup.14,15. A single logical qubit is encoded, manipulated and read out using a superposition of displaced squeezed states of the harmonic motion of a trapped calcium ion., Author(s): C. Flühmann [sup.1] , T. L. Nguyen [sup.1] , M. Marinelli [sup.1] , V. Negnevitsky [sup.1] , K. Mehta [sup.1] , J. P. Home [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Institute [...]

At research-intensive universities, building human resources management (HRM) capacity has become a key approach to enhancing a university's research performance. However, despite aspiring to become a research-intensive university, many teaching-intensive universities in developing countries may not have created effective research-promoted HRM policies. This study investigates the extent to which four leading universities in Vietnam have motivated their academics to improve research performance. By analysing policy documents and 55 semi-structured interviews with university leaders, managers, and academics, the study found that compared to the "ideal" research-enhanced HRM policies employed by research-intensive universities, the four case-study Vietnamese universities have shown their recognition of academic research; however, their HRM policies are not powerful enough to encourage academics to do research to the best of their potential. In realizing their vision of becoming research-oriented universities, the four Vietnamese universities should employ a long-term HRM capacity-building strategy by providing stronger remuneration packages for academics, applying explicit indicators in assessing lecturers' research performance, and building a comprehensive staff development agenda for research team building. However, for the four universities to implement these recommendations, changes must also be made at the system level. The Vietnamese government must allocate more research funding and confer a higher level of autonomy to universities so that they can implement their desired HRM policies to accelerate institutional research capacity and performance.

This work focused on synthesising Ni-doped LiNixFe1−xPO4/C (x = 0, 0.05 and 0.1) cathode materials by hydrothermal method. The crystalline structure and morphology of the synthesised materials were investigated through x-ray diffraction, Raman scattering spectroscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. Their electrochemical performance was analysed by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic cycling test. The highest initial capacity of 170.3 mAh/g was achieved for LiNi0.1Fe0.9PO4/C. It also maintained 99.68% of its initial capacity for 120 cycles, with a Li+-ion diffusion coefficient of 1.12 × 10−12 cm2/s compared with that (9.21 × 10−13 cm2/s) of LiNi0.05Fe0.95PO4/C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: Scholarship applicants often receive different advice on what should be included in their Curriculum Vitae (CV). This study aims to investigate what the essential components of a CV being prepared for scholarships are, how to present them, and what their level of impact is. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors sent an online structured questionnaire to 7512 corresponding authors of recent published papers in Scopus; 124 completed questionnaires were returned. Recommended elements for a CV were chosen according to the Delphi consensus technique with a threshold of 50%. RESULTS: This survey revealed that headings, bullet points and careful error checking were essential parts of the layout. For the content of the CV, besides publications, education and training background, research experience and research interest were also necessary. Moreover, almost all respondents ranked publications as the most important qualification of an academic scholarship candidate. Publications also came first as the most impressive factor, followed by awards and honours. The number of publications, quality of journal, impact factor and total citation should be presented in publication section. The importance of publications in getting academic scholarships is significantly emphasized in this recent study. CONCLUSIONS: Having research experience and papers in peer review journals, are highly recommended for students seeking academic scholarships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]