bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sodium Valproate Enhances the Urethane-Induced Lung Adenomas and Suppresses Malignization of Adenomas in Ovariectomized Female Mice
Authors: Stakisaitis Donatas , Mozuraite Raminta , Juodziukyniene Nomeda , Didziapetriene Janina , Uleckiene Saule , Matusevicius Paulius , Valanciute Angelija
Published: September 2015

In the present study, the possible effect of sodium valproate (NaVP) on urethane-induced lung tumors in female mice has been evaluated. BALB/c mice (n=60; 4–6 weeks old, females) were used in the following groups: (1) urethane-treated; (2) urethane-NaVP-treated; (3) only NaVP-treated; (4) control. In the same groups, ovariectomized female mice (n=60) were investigated. Urethane was given intraperitoneally, with a total dose of 50 mg/mouse. In NaVP-treated mice groups, 0.4% aqueous solution of NaVP was offered to micead libitum. The duration of the experiment was 6 months. The number of tumors per mouse in ovariectomized mice and in those treated with urethane and NaVP was significantly higher than in mice treated with urethane only (8.29±0.58versus6.0±0.63,p<0.02). No significant difference in the number of tumors per mouse was revealed while comparing the nonovariectomized urethane- and urethane-NaVP-treated groups (p=0.13). A significant decrease of adenocarcinoma number in ovariectomized mice treated with a urethane-NaVP as compared with ovariectomized mice treated with urethane only was found (p=0.031). NaVP together with low estrogen may have a protective effect on the malignization of adenomas in ovariectomized mice.
Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cells in Spinal Cord Injury: A Review and Update
Authors: Li Ning , Leung Gilberto K. K.
Published: September 2015

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating condition to individuals, families, and society. Oligodendrocyte loss and demyelination contribute as major pathological processes of secondary damages after injury. Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs), a subpopulation that accounts for 5 to 8% of cells within the central nervous system, are potential sources of oligodendrocyte replacement after SCI. OPCs react rapidly to injuries, proliferate at a high rate, and can differentiate into myelinating oligodendrocytes. However, posttraumatic endogenous remyelination is rarely complete, and a better understanding of OPCs’ characteristics and their manipulations is critical to the development of novel therapies. In this review, we summarize known characteristics of OPCs and relevant regulative factors in both health and demyelinating disorders including SCI. More importantly, we highlight current evidence on post-SCI OPCs transplantation as a potential treatment option as well as the impediments against regeneration. Our aim is to shed lights on important knowledge gaps and to provoke thoughts for further researches and the development of therapeutic strategies.
Past, Present, and Future of Nerve Conduits in the Treatment of Peripheral Nerve Injury
Authors: Muheremu Aikeremujiang , Ao Qiang
Published: September 2015

With significant advances in the research and application of nerve conduits, they have been used to repair peripheral nerve injury for several decades. Nerve conduits range from biological tubes to synthetic tubes, and from nondegradable tubes to biodegradable tubes. Researchers have explored hollow tubes, tubes filled with scaffolds containing neurotrophic factors, and those seeded with Schwann cells or stem cells. The therapeutic effect of nerve conduits is improving with increasing choice of conduit material, new construction of conduits, and the inclusion of neurotrophic factors and support cells in the conduits. Improvements in functional outcomes are expected when these are optimized for use in clinical practice.
Topologically Ordered Feature Extraction Based on Sparse Group Restricted Boltzmann Machines
Authors: Chen Zhong , Xiong Shengwu , Fang Zhixiang , Zhang Ruiling , Kong Xiangzhen , Rong Yi
Published: September 2015

How to extract topologically ordered features efficiently from high-dimensional data is an important problem of unsupervised feature learning domains for deep learning. To address this problem, we propose a new type of regularization for Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBMs). Adding two extra terms in the log-likelihood function to penalize the group weights and topologically ordered factors, this type of regularization extracts topologically ordered features based on sparse group Restricted Boltzmann Machines (SGRBMs). Therefore, it encourages an RBM to learn a much smoother probability distribution because its formulations turn out to be a combination of the group weight-decay and topologically ordered factor regularizations. We apply this proposed regularization scheme to image datasets of natural images and Flying Apsara images in the Dunhuang Grotto Murals at four different historical periods. The experimental results demonstrate that the combination of these two extra terms in the log-likelihood function helps to extract more discriminative features with much sparser and more aggregative hidden activation probabilities.
Homotopy Simulation of Nonlinear Unsteady Rotating Nanofluid Flow from a Spinning Body
Authors: Bég O. Anwar , Mabood F. , Nazrul Islam M.
Published: September 2015

The development of new applications of nanofluids in chemical engineering and other technologies has stimulated significant interest in computational simulations. Motivated by coating applications of nanomaterials, we investigate the transient nanofluid flow from a time-dependent spinning sphere using laminar boundary layer theory. The free stream velocity varies continuously with time. The unsteady conservations equations are normalized with appropriate similarity transformations and rendered into a ninth-order system of nonlinear coupled, multidegree ordinary differential equations. The transformed nonlinear boundary value problem is solved using the homotopy analysis method (HAM), a semicomputational procedure achieving fast convergence. Computations are verified with an Adomian decomposition method (ADM). The influence of acceleration parameter, rotational body force parameter, Brownian motion number, thermophoresis number, Lewis number, and Prandtl number on surface shear stress, heat, and mass (nanoparticle volume fraction) transfer rates is evaluated. The influence on boundary layer behavior is also investigated. HAM demonstrates excellent stability and leads to highly accurate solutions.
Mechanistic Perspectives of Maslinic Acid in Targeting Inflammation
Authors: Yap Wei Hsum , Lim Yang Mooi
Published: September 2015

Chronic inflammation drives the development of various pathological diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and cancer. The arachidonic acid pathway represents one of the major mechanisms for inflammation. Prostaglandins (PGs) are lipid products generated from arachidonic acid by the action of cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes and their activity is blocked by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). The use of natural compounds in regulation of COX activity/prostaglandins production is receiving increasing attention. In Mediterranean diet, olive oil and table olives contain significant dietary sources of maslinic acid. Maslinic acid is arising as a safe and novel natural pentacyclic triterpene which has protective effects against chronic inflammatory diseases in variousin vivoandin vitroexperimental models. Understanding the anti-inflammatory mechanism of maslinic acid is crucial for its development as a potential dietary nutraceutical. This review focuses on the mechanistic action of maslinic acid in regulating the inflammation pathways through modulation of the arachidonic acid metabolism including the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB)/COX-2 expression, upstream protein kinase signaling, and phospholipase A2enzyme activity. Further investigations may provide insight into the mechanism of maslinic acid in regulating the molecular targets and their associated pathways in response to specific inflammatory stimuli.
Error Modeling and Compensation of Circular Motion on a New Circumferential Drilling System
Authors: Fang Qiang , Li Yu-Chao , Fei Shao-Hua , Han Yong-Wei , Ke Ying-Lin
Published: September 2015

A new flexible circumferential drilling system is proposed to drill on the fuselage docking area. To analyze the influence of the circular motion error to the drilling accuracy, the nominal forward kinematic model is derived using Denavit-Hartenberg (D-H) method and this model is further developed to model the kinematic errors caused by circular positioning error and synchronization error using homogeneous transformation matrices (HTM). A laser tracker is utilized to measure the circular motion error of the two measurement points at both sides. A circular motion compensation experiment is implemented according to the calculated positioning error and synchronization error. Experimental results show that the positioning error and synchronization error were reduced by 65.0% and 58.8%, respectively, due to the adopted compensation, and therefore the circular motion accuracy is substantially improved. Finally, position errors of the two measurement points are analyzed to have little influence on the measurement result and the validity of the proposed compensation method is proved.
Sex Hormones and Their Receptors Regulate Liver Energy Homeostasis
Authors: Shen Minqian , Shi Haifei
Published: September 2015

The liver is one of the most essential organs involved in the regulation of energy homeostasis. Hepatic steatosis, a major manifestation of metabolic syndrome, is associated with imbalance between lipid formation and breakdown, glucose production and catabolism, and cholesterol synthesis and secretion. Epidemiological studies show sex difference in the prevalence in fatty liver disease and suggest that sex hormones may play vital roles in regulating hepatic steatosis. In this review, we summarize current literature and discuss the role of estrogens and androgens and the mechanisms through which estrogen receptors and androgen receptors regulate lipid and glucose metabolism in the liver. In females, estradiol regulates liver metabolism via estrogen receptors by decreasing lipogenesis, gluconeogenesis, and fatty acid uptake, while enhancing lipolysis, cholesterol secretion, and glucose catabolism. In males, testosterone works via androgen receptors to increase insulin receptor expression and glycogen synthesis, decrease glucose uptake and lipogenesis, and promote cholesterol storage in the liver. These recent integrated concepts suggest that sex hormone receptors could be potential promising targets for the prevention of hepatic steatosis.
Three-Dimensional Numerical Analysis of the Tunnel for Polyaxial State of Stress
Authors: Qiu Wenge , Kong Chao , Liu Kai
Published: September 2015

The aim of this study is to have a comprehensive understanding of the mechanical behavior of rock masses around excavation under different value of intermediate principal stress. Numerical simulation was performed to investigate the influence of intermediate principal stress using a new polyaxial strength criterion which takes polyaxial state of stress into account. In order to equivalently substitute polyaxial failure criterion with Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion, a mathematical relationship was established between these two failure criteria. The influence of intermediate principal stress had been analyzed when Mohr-Coulomb strength criterion and polyaxial strength criterion were applied in the numerical simulation, respectively. Results indicate that intermediate principal stress has great influence on the mechanical behavior of rock masses; rock strength enhanced by intermediate principal stress is significant based on polyaxial strength criterion; the results of numerical simulation under Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion show that it does not exert a significant influence on rock strength. Results also indicate that when intermediate principal stress is relatively small, polyaxial strength criterion is not applicable.
Cortical Excitability Measured with nTMS and MEG during Stroke Recovery
Authors: Mäkelä Jyrki P. , Lioumis Pantelis , Laaksonen Kristina , Forss Nina , Tatlisumak Turgut , Kaste Markku , Mustanoja Satu
Published: September 2015

Objective. Stroke alters cortical excitability both in the lesioned and in the nonlesioned hemisphere. Stroke recovery has been studied using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Spontaneous brain oscillations and somatosensory evoked fields (SEFs) measured by magnetoencephalography (MEG) are modified in stroke patients during recovery.Methods. We recorded SEFs and spontaneous MEG activity and motor threshold (MT) short intracortical inhibition (SICI) and intracortical facilitation (ICF) with navigated TMS (nTMS) at one and three months after first-ever hemispheric ischemic strokes. Changes of MEG and nTMS parameters attributed to gamma-aminobutyrate and glutamate transmission were compared.Results. ICF correlated with the strength and extent of SEF source areas depicted by MEG at three months. The nTMS MT and event-related desynchronization (ERD) of beta-band MEG activity and SICI and the beta-band MEG event-related synchronization (ERS) were correlated, but less strongly.Conclusions. This first report using sequential nTMS and MEG in stroke recovery found intra- and interhemispheric correlations of nTMS and MEG estimates of cortical excitability. ICF and SEF parameters, MT and the ERD of the lesioned hemisphere, and SICI and ERS of the nonlesioned hemisphere were correlated. Covarying excitability in the lesioned and nonlesioned hemispheres emphasizes the importance of the hemispheric balance of the excitability of the sensorimotor system.
Laboratory Measurement and Interpretation of the Changes of Physical Properties after Heat Treatment in Tight Porous Media
Authors: Kang Yili , Chen Mingjun , You Lijun , Li Xiangchen
Published: September 2015

Prevention of water blocking and optimization of multiscale flow channels will increase gas production of tight reservoirs. Physical properties of samples from representative tight gas reservoirs were measured before and after high temperature treatment. Results show that, with the increase of treatment temperature, mass decreases, acoustic transit time increases, and permeability and porosity increase. Permeability begins to increase dramatically if treatment temperature exceeds the threshold value of thermal fracturing, which is 600~700°C, 500~600°C, 300~500°C, and 300~400°C for shale, mudstone, tight sandstone, and tight carbonate rock, respectively. Comprehensive analyses indicate that the mechanisms of heat treatment on tight porous media include evaporation and dehydration of water, change of mineral structure, generation of microfracture, and network connectivity. Meanwhile, field implementation is reviewed and prospected. Interpretations indicate that, according to the characteristics of multiscale mass transfer in tight gas formation, combining heat treatment with conventional stimulation methods can achieve the best stimulation result.
Targeting AGEs Signaling Ameliorates Central Nervous System Diabetic Complications in Rats
Authors: Zakaria Mohamed Naguib , El-Bassossy Hany M. , Barakat Waleed
Published: September 2015

Diabetes is a chronic endocrine disorder associated with several complications as hypertension, advanced brain aging, and cognitive decline. Accumulation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) is an important mechanism that mediates diabetic complications. Upon binding to their receptor (RAGE), AGEs mediate oxidative stress and/or cause cross-linking with proteins in blood vessels and brain tissues. The current investigation was designed to investigate the effect of agents that decrease AGEs signaling, perindopril which increases soluble RAGE (sRAGE) and alagebrium which cleaves AGEs cross-links, compared to the standard antidiabetic drug, gliclazide, on the vascular andcentral nervous system(CNS) complications in STZ-induced (50 mg/kg, IP) diabetes in rats. Perindopril ameliorated the elevation in blood pressure seen in diabetic animals. In addition, both perindopril and alagebrium significantly inhibited memory decline (performance in the Y-maze), neuronal degeneration (Fluoro-Jade staining), AGEs accumulation in serum and brain, and brain oxidative stress (level of reduced glutathione and activities of catalase and malondialdehyde). These results suggest that blockade of AGEs signaling after diabetes induction in rats is effective in reducing diabetic CNS complications.
Nonlinear Seepage Model of Gas Transport in Multiscale Shale Gas Reservoirs and Productivity Analysis of Fractured Well
Authors: Huang Ting , Guo Xiao , Wang Kun
Published: September 2015

Shale is abundant in nanoscale pores, so gas flow in shales cannot be simply represented by Darcy formula anymore. It is crucial to figure out the influence of gas flow in nano/micro pores on actual productivity, which can provide basic theories for optimizing parameters and improving the gas production from engineering perspective. This paper considers the effects of slippage and diffusion in nanoscale based on Beskok-Karniadakis (BK) equation, which can be applicable for different flow regimes including continuum flow, slip flow, transition flow, and free-molecule flow. A new non-Darcy equation was developed based on the analysis of effects of high order terms of BK equation on permeability correction factor. By using the conformal transformation principle and pressure coupling method, we established the productivity formula of fractured well (infinite and limited conductivity) satisfying mass variable seepage flowing in fractures. The simulation results have been compared with field data and influencing parameters are analyzed thoroughly. It is concluded that slippage effect affects gas production of fractured well when wellbore pressure is less than 15 MPa, and the effects of slippage and diffusion have greater influence on gas production of fractured well for reservoir with smaller permeability, especially when permeability is at nano-Darcy scale.
Information Security Modeling for the Operation of a Novel Highly Trusted Network in a Virtualization Environment
Authors: Chang Jung-Sook , Jeon Yong-Hee , Sim Sohyun , Kang An Na
Published: September 2015

A novel network architecture to be deployed in Korea is so called HTN (highly trusted network). The aim of HTN is the seamless communication of information in a secure manner, anytime and anywhere, in the national administration network infrastructure. In this paper, we present the results of information security modeling for the HTN. Through the use of security modeling procedure, we derive the requirements and corresponding technology for security control of the system by analyzing threat elements and attack possibility. First we analyze threat of each component for the HTN by STRIDE modeling and later construct an attack tree by analyzing attack examples for every threat. Finally we propose the security requirements and technology to respond against them, based on the analyzed threats and attack examples.
An Iterative Approach to Improve Images of Multiple Targets and Targets with Layered or Continuous Profile
Authors: Kuo Yu-Hsin , Kiang Jean-Fu
Published: September 2015

An iterative approach, based on the linear sampling method (LSM) and the contrast source inversion (CSI) method, is proposed to improve the recovered images of multiple targets and targets with layered or continuous profile, including shape and distribution of electric properties. The difficulties in dealing with large targets or high contrast are partly overcome with this approach. Typical targets studied in the literatures are chosen for simulations and comparison.
Individualized Therapy with Ranibizumab in Wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Authors: García-Layana Alfredo , Figueroa Marta S. , Arias Luis , Araiz Javier , Ruiz-Moreno José María , García-Arumí José , Gómez-Ulla Francisco , López-Gálvez María Isabel , Cabrera-López Francisco , García-Campos José Manuel , Monés Jordi , Cervera Enrique , Armadá Felix , Gallego-Pinazo Roberto
Published: September 2015

Individualized treatment regimens may reduce patient burden with satisfactory patient outcomes in neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Intravitreal anti-VEGF drugs are the current gold standard. Fixed monthly injections offer the best visual outcome but this regimen is not commonly followed outside clinical trials. A PRN regimen requires monthly visits where the patient is treated in the presence of signs of lesion activity. Therefore, an early detection of reactivation of the disease with immediate retreatment is crucial to prevent visual acuity loss. Several trials suggest that “treat and extend” and other proactive regimens provide a reasonable approach. The rationale of the proactive regimens is to perform treatment anticipating relapses or recurrences and therefore avoid drops in vision while individualizing patient followup. Treat and extend study results in significant direct medical cost savings from fewer treatments and office visits compared to monthly treatment. Current data suggest that, for one year, PRN is less expensive, but treat and extend regimen would likely be less expensive for subsequent years. Once a patient is not a candidate to continue with treatment, he/she should be sent to an outpatient unit with adequate resources to follow nAMD patients in order to reduce the burden of specialized ophthalmologist services.
Review on Fractal Analysis of Porous Metal Materials
Authors: Wang J. Z. , Ma J. , Ao Q. B. , Zhi H. , Tang H. P.
Published: September 2015

Porous metal materials are multifunctional lightweight materials and have been used widely in industry. The structural and functional characters of porous metal materials depend on the pore structure which can be described effectively by the fractal theory. This paper reviews the major achievements on fractal analysis of pore structure of porous metal materials made by State Key Laboratory of Porous Metal Materials, China, over the past few years. These include (i) designing and developing a set of novel fractal analytical software of porous metal materials, (ii) the influence of material characterization and image processing method on the fractal dimension, and (iii) the relationship between the material performance and the fractal dimension. Finally, the outlooks of fractal theory applied in porous metal materials are discussed.
The Importance of Social Value in the Evaluation of Web Services in the Public Sector
Authors: Lee Sunghwan , Park Sangun , Kim Wooju
Published: September 2015

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are widely used in many different fields. Even in the public sector, various services using WSN are offered. One of the key issues is how to control and manage heterogeneous devices of WSN devices. Devices Profile for Web Services (DPWS), a standard of Web services, has been adopted to solve the problems of interoperability between WSN devices. In order to evaluate WSN services in the public sector, this paper presents a method to evaluate Web services, a base technology of sensor network services. This paper presents a value analysis methodology assessing tangible and intangible benefits of Web services in the public sector. We classify stakeholders of Web services as a government, citizens, and agents (businesses) and selected the metrics for each stakeholder's benefit. After that, we determine the weight of each metric through AHP. The result shows that social value was the most important benefit in the construction of Web services in the public sector. We expect that the main contribution of this paper is the development of a value assessment framework that reflects the unique characteristics of Web services in the public sector.
A Study of K-ISMS Fault Analysis for Constructing Secure Internet of Things Service
Authors: Kim Hwankuk , Lim Jongin , Lee Kyungho
Published: September 2015

Although Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and services are being developed rapidly worldwide, concerns of potential security threats such as privacy violation, information leak, and hacking are increasing as more various sensors are connected to the Internet. There is a need for the study of introducing risk management and existing security management standard (e.g., ISO27001) to ensure the stability and reliability of IoT services. K-ISMS is a representative certification system that evaluates the security management level of the enterprise in Korea and is possible to apply as a standardized process to enhance the security management of IoT services. However, there are growing concerns about the quality deterioration of the K-ISMS certification assessment these days because of internet security incidents occurring frequently in K-ISMS certified enterprises. Therefore, various researches are required to improve the accuracy and objectivity of the certification assessment. Since existing studies mainly focus on simple statistical analysis of the K-ISMS assessment results, analysis on the cause of certification assessment fault based on past data analysis is insufficient. As a method of managing the certification inspection quality, in this paper, we analyze the association among the fault items of the K-ISMS certification assessment results using association rule mining which involves identifying an association rule among items in the database.
Roles of NOTCH1 as a Therapeutic Target and a Biomarker for Lung Cancer: Controversies and Perspectives
Authors: Guo Lixia , Zhang Ting , Xiong Ying , Yang Yanan
Published: September 2015

Lung cancer is one of the most common types of human malignancies and the leading cause of cancer-related death. Patients with surgically resectable early stage lung cancer are more likely curable, but currently only a small population of patients can be diagnosed at such a stage, partly due to our incomplete understanding of the biology of lung cancer and the lack of diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. Recent studies have shown that NOTCH1 is a critical regulator of human carcinogenesis and has been implicated in multiple steps of cancer development and progression. Herein, we review recent findings about the role of NOTCH1 in lung cancer and discuss its potential usefulness as both a therapeutic target and a biomarker for lung cancer.
Detection of Malware Propagation in Sensor Node and Botnet Group Clustering Based on E-mail Spam Analysis
Authors: Lee Taejin , Cho Hesun , Park Haeryong , Kwak Jin
Published: September 2015

Cyber incidents are increasing continuously. More than 200,000 new malicious codes appear, with more than 30,000 malicious codes distributed each day on average. These cyber attacks are expanding gradually to the social infrastructure (nuclear energy, power, water, etc.) and smart sensor networks. This paper proposes a method of detecting malware propagation in sensor Node and botnet clustering automatically by analyzing e-mails. More than 80% of spam e-mails are generated by the Node infected with malicious code, using various methods to avoid filtering such as direct-to-MX, fake Received header, and open relay vulnerability. This paper proposes a scheme that detects those types accurately, including a clustering method that targets the URL included in the e-mail body, e-mail subject, attached file, and hosting server, to detect the botnet group infected with the same malicious code. The proposed method recorded about 85% zombie IP detection rate when spam e-mails distributed in a commercial environment were analyzed. When applied to the portal site that delivers 10 million e-mails, the proposed technology is expected to detect at least 150,000 zombie Nodes each day. If advanced measures are taken against the detected zombie Nodes, the spread of cyber attack damages can apparently be reduced.
Pediatric Granular Cell Tumor of the Breast: A Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Heinzerling Nathan P. , Koehler Shannon M. , Szabo Sara , Wagner Amy J.
Published: September 2015

Objective. Granular cell tumors arise from neurogenic mesenchymal stem cells and can occur anywhere throughout the body. They rarely present as breast masses and should be included in the differential diagnosis of pediatric breast neoplasms. We report a rare presentation of a pediatric breast granular cell tumor and a review of the literature.Participant. A 15-year-old female presented with an enlarging breast mass. She underwent ultrasound imaging and excisional biopsy, which revealed a granular cell tumor. Granular cell tumors of the breast are difficult to diagnose using ultrasound and mammography due to numerous similarities to other breast masses. Histopathologic staining best differentiates breast granular cell tumors from other breast masses with their positive staining for S100, CD68, and neurospecific enolase.Conclusion. Although rare, granular cell tumors of the breast should be considered as a possible diagnosis for pediatric breast masses to allow for proper management and follow-up for these patients. Although rare, these tumors do have malignant potential necessitating a correct and timely diagnosis.
Medicine Sellers for Prevention and Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections: Effect of a Quasi-Experimental Training Intervention in Bangladesh
Authors: Alam Nazmul , Alam Anadil , Fournier Pierre
Published: September 2015

This study used a quasi-experimental pre-post design to test whether short training can improve medicine sellers’ (MSs) practices and skills for prevention and control of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in Bangladesh. The training included lectures, printed materials, and identification of referral sites. Difference-in-differences estimation was used to determine the effects of intervention on key primary and secondary outcomes. Advice given by the MSs in intervention group for partner treatment and condoms use increased significantly by 11% and 9%, respectively, after adjusting for baseline differences in education, religion, age, duration of training, and study site. Referral of clients to qualified service providers increased by 5% in the intervention group compared to the comparison group, but this change was not found to be statistically significant. Significantly higher proportion of MSs in the intervention group recognized the recommended medications as per the national syndromic management guidelines in Bangladesh for treatment of urethral discharge and genital ulcer symptoms. Short training intervention was found to be effective in improving MSs’ practice of promoting condom use and partner treatment to the clients. We anticipate the need for broad based training programs of MSs to improve their skills for the prevention and control of STI/HIV in Bangladesh.
Decision Making for the Adoption of Cloud Computing for Sensor Data: From the Viewpoint of Industrial Security
Authors: Koo Chang Jin , Kim JeongYeon
Published: September 2015

Utilizing cloud computing platform to meet the new business requirements brought several business and technical benefits including cost-saving, high scalability, and business risk reductions. The new requirements of sensor-based systems for computing and communication also need cloud platforms. Based on the survey results of Korean companies, we analyze important factors of decision making for cloud platform adoption. Survey results show the cost efficiency is the most important factor for cloud platform adoption. With the economic benefits of cloud computing utilization, we provide basic arguments on data sharing issue with infrastructure providers, which requires additional investments to implement data management policies in cloud computing environment.
Redox Signaling in Diabetic Nephropathy: Hypertrophy versus Death Choices in Mesangial Cells and Podocytes
Authors: Manda Gina , Checherita Alexandru-Ionel , Comanescu Maria Victoria , Hinescu Mihail Eugen
Published: September 2015

This review emphasizes the role of oxidative stress in diabetic nephropathy, acting as trigger, modulator, and linker within the complex network of pathologic events. It highlights key molecular pathways and new hypothesis in diabetic nephropathy, related to the interferences of metabolic, oxidative, and inflammatory stresses. Main topics this review is addressing are biomarkers of oxidative stress in diabetic nephropathy, the sources of reactive oxygen species (mitochondria, NADPH‐oxidases, hyperglycemia, and inflammation), and the redox‐sensitive signaling networks (protein kinases, transcription factors, and epigenetic regulators). Molecular switches deciding on the renal cells fate in diabetic nephropathy are presented, such as hypertrophy versus death choices in mesangial cells and podocytes. Finally, the antioxidant response of renal cells in diabetic nephropathy is tackled, with emphasis on targeted therapy. An integrative approach is needed for identifying key molecular networks which control cellular responses triggered by the array of stressors in diabetic nephropathy. This will foster the discovery of reliable biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis, and will guide the discovery of new therapeutic approaches for personalized medicine in diabetic nephropathy.
A Rare Case of Meconium Periorchitis Diagnosed in Utero
Authors: Ochiai Daigo , Omori Sayu , Ikeda Toshiyuki , Yakubo Kazumi , Fukuiya Tatsuro
Published: September 2015

Meconium periorchitis is a rare disorder caused by fetal meconium peritonitis, with subsequent passage of meconium into the scrotum via a patent processus vaginalis. To date, clinical significance of meconium periorchitis for the prenatal diagnosis of meconium peritonitis and prediction for postnatal surgery remains to be determined. We present a clinical course of a fetus presenting with meconium periorchitis induced by meconium peritonitis. At 28 weeks’ gestation, fetal ultrasonography indicated fetal ascites associated with bilateral hydrocele and peritesticular calcification without other signs of meconium peritonitis. The pregnancy was uneventful until delivery and the infant was delivered at 37 weeks’ gestation. No abdominal distension was observed at birth, and radiography did not reveal any abdominal calcification except for scrotal calcification. Abdominal distension was observed 3 days after birth and laparotomy was performed. The diagnosis of meconium peritonitis was confirmed at surgery. Our case illustrated that careful examination of the scrotum during fetal life was helpful for prenatal diagnosis of meconium peritonitis as well as postnatal management.
Multidrug Resistance Protein‐4 Influences Aspirin Toxicity in Human Cell Line
Authors: Massimi Isabella , Ciuffetta Ambra , Temperilli Flavia , Ferrandino Francesca , Zicari Alessandra , Pulcinelli Fabio M. , Felli Maria Pia
Published: September 2015

Overexpression of efflux transporters, in human cells, is a mechanism of resistance to drug and also to chemotherapy. We found that multidrug resistance protein‐4 (MRP4) overexpression has a role in reducing aspirin action in patients after bypass surgery and, very recently, we found that aspirin enhances platelet MRP4 levels through peroxisome proliferator activated receptor‐α (PPARα). In the present paper, we verified whether exposure of human embryonic kidney‐293 cells (Hek‐293) to aspirin modifies MRP4 gene expression and its correlation with drug elimination and cell toxicity. We first investigated the effect of high‐dose aspirin in Hek‐293 and we showed that aspirin is able to increase cell toxicity dose‐dependently. Furthermore, aspirin effects, induced at low dose, already enhance MRP4 gene expression. Based on these findings, we compared cell viability in Hek‐293, after high‐dose aspirin treatment, in MRP4 overexpressing cells, either after aspirin pretreatment or in MRP4 transfected cells; in both cases, a decrease of selective aspirin cell growth inhibition was observed, in comparison with the control cultures. Altogether, these data suggest that exposing cells to low nontoxic aspirin dosages can induce gene expression alterations that may lead to the efflux transporter protein overexpression, thus increasing cellular detoxification of aspirin.
Related-Key Differential Attacks on COSB-128
Authors: Tran Song Dat Phuc , Lee Changhoon
Published: September 2015

COSB-128 (Moldovyan et al., 2002) is a block cipher with 128-bit and 256-bit secret keys, which use key and data-dependent operational substitutions in fast controllable permutation blocks (CPB) concept. It is designed with a simple key schedule to ensure a high speed of data transformation by fast block encryption algorithms and expected to be high stability to all known methods of cryptanalysis, especially differential and linear attacks. In this paper, we show that the COSB-128 block cipher still remains weaknesses to differential related-key cryptanalysis, by constructing two full 10-round related-key differential characteristics (DCs) of COSB-128 with high probabilities, and thence propose our two related-key differential attacks. The attacks require about 224 data and time complexities to recover 63-bit key information and 222 data and time complexities to recover 6-bit key information. This study is the first known cryptanalytic result on COSB-128 until now. From this study, the new potential for the cryptanalysis on these types of block cipher will be further revealed.
Are Biodegradable Osteosyntheses Still an Option for Midface Trauma? Longitudinal Evaluation of Three Different PLA-Based Materials
Authors: Kolk Andreas , Köhnke Robert , Saely Christoph H. , Ploder Oliver
Published: September 2015

The aim was to evaluate three different biodegradable polylactic acid- (PLA-) based osteosynthesis materials (OM). These OM (BioSorb, LactoSorb, and Delta) were used in 64 patients of whom 55 (85.9%) had fractures of the zygoma, five (7.8%) in the LeFort II level, two of the frontal bone (3.1%), and two of the maxillary sinus wall (3.1%). In addition to routine follow-up (FU) at 3, 6, and 12 months (m) (T1, T2, and T3) all patients were finally evaluated at a mean FU after 14.1 m for minor (e.g., nerve disturbances, swelling, and pain) and major (e.g., infections and occlusal disturbances) complications. Out of all 64 patients 38 presented with complications; of these 28 were minor (43.8%) and 10 major (15.6%) resulting in an overall rate of 59.4%. Differences in minor complications regarding sensibility disturbance at T1 and T3 were statistically significant (P=0.04). Differences between the OM were not statistically significant. Apart from sufficient mechanical stability for clinical use of all tested OM complications mostly involved pain and swelling probably mainly related to the initial bulk reaction attributable to the drop of pH value during the degradation process. This paper includes a review of the current aspects of biodegradable OM.
Energy Efficient Metadata Management for Cloud Storage System
Authors: Ko Young Woong , Kim Sun-Jeong , Kim Jin , Kim Eui-Jik , So Jung Min
Published: September 2015

To effectively handle duplicate files, data deduplication schemes are widely used in many storage systems. Data deduplication algorithms reduce storage space by eliminating data to ensure that only single instance of data is stored in storage device. In this paper, we propose an energy efficient file synchronization scheme that provides hybrid data chunking using variable-length chunking (VLC) and fixed-length chunking (FLC). The main idea is to analyze similarities between old and new versions of data and decide which chunking method to apply in synchronizing the files. In particular, the proposed algorithm exploits the file similarity pattern for calculating the energy efficiency of chunking algorithms. We have developed an Android mobile application for file synchronization and measured energy consumption. The experiment results show that the proposed scheme helps save energy in synchronizing files, regardless of file types or amount of redundancies the files have.
Study on Resource Configuration on Cloud Manufacturing
Authors: Cao Yanlong , Wu Zijian , Zhao Qijian , Yan Huiwen , Yang Jiangxin
Published: September 2015

The purpose of manufacturing is to realize the requirement of customer. In manufacturing process of cloud system, there exist a lot of resource services which have similar functional characteristics to realize the requirement. It makes the manufacturing process more diverse. To develop the quality and reduce cost, a resource configuration model on cloud-manufacturing platform is put forward in this paper. According to the generalized six-point location principle, a growth design from the requirement of customers to entities with geometric constraints is proposed. By the requirement growing up to product, a configuration process is used to match the entities with the instances which the resources in the database could supply. Different from most existing studies, this paper studies the tolerance design with multiple candidate resource suppliers on cloud manufacturing to make the market play a two-level game considering the benefit of customers and the profit of resources to give an optimal result. A numerical case study is used to illustrate the proposed model and configuration process. The performance and advantage of the proposed method are discussed at the end.
Design of a Situation Aware Service for Internet of Things
Authors: Jung Im Y. , Jang Gil-Jin , Yang Jung-Min , Yoo Jaesoo
Published: September 2015

The Internet of Things (IoT) operates solely on local interactions among its components, which include various devices with communications capabilities. Because the IoT is a fully distributed computing network, it is important to mitigate any negative effects resulting from faults occurring in its components and to provide sustainable services. This paper focuses on fault management of IoT services. In particular, it handles a fault management scheme for the self-organizing software platform (SoSp), a platform on which IoT services connected to various IT devices are deployed. The proposed fault management scheme enables SoSp to provide situation aware IoT services without loss of data and state.
An In-Vehicle Application Providing System Based on Driver’s Biodata
Authors: Seok Kwang-Ho , Kim Yoon Sang
Published: September 2015

The recent technologies for vehicular networks including wireless communication have allowed vehicles to provide biosensor based various applications to a driver. This paper proposes a system to provide a driver with the application which the driver wants in a vehicle using driver’s biodata. The proposed system is composed of four components including a sensing unit, an inference unit, an application providing unit, and vehicular network unit. In this paper, the experiments were performed for correlation investigation between the number of biodata and the reliability of driver’s characteristics extraction. We found that the number of the data used had a significant influence on improving the driver’s satisfaction level, playing an important role in reflecting driver’s status. Experiments using actual vehicles are conducted to examine the effectiveness of the proposed system, and the results are analyzed and discussed. The results on the investigation of detection of biodata in gasoline and diesel vehicles by the experiments are also given. We confirmed that the proposed sensing method was capable of accurate detection irrespective of vehicle mode and vehicle type.
Acoustic Sensor Based Recognition of Human Activity in Everyday Life for Smart Home Services
Authors: Sim Jae Mun , Lee Yonnim , Kwon Ohbyung
Published: September 2015

A novel activity recognition method is proposed based on acoustic information acquired from microphones in an unobtrusive and privacy-preserving manner. Behavior detection mechanisms may be useful in context-aware domains in everyday life, but they may be inaccurate, and privacy violation is a concern. For example, vision-based behavior detection using cameras is difficult to apply in a private space such as a home, and inaccuracies in identifying user behaviors reduce acceptance of the technology. In addition, activity recognition using wearable sensors is very uncomfortable and costly to apply for commercial purposes. In this study, an acoustic information-based behavior detection algorithm is proposed for use in private spaces. This system classifies human activities using acoustic information. It combines strategies of elimination and similarity and establishes new rules. The performance of the proposed algorithm was compared with that of commonly used classification algorithms such as case-based reasoning, k-nearest neighbors, support vector machine, and multiple regression.
Heat Transport and Water Permeability during Cracking of the Landfill Compacted Clay Cover
Authors: Lu Haijun , Liu Jianjun , Li Yuan , Dong Yiqie
Published: September 2015

The heat-moisture transport through the compacted clay was observed in laboratory. The hydraulic conductivity of cracked clay under wetting-drying cycles was also investigated. At the early phase of heating, the temperature of soil columns rose fast and moisture decreased dramatically; after this phase, the temperature rose at a lower speed and moisture loss stabilized gradually. The moisture content of compacted clay at 25 cm depth decayed to 0. The crack intensity factor (CIF) of compacted clay was 0.043 and 0.097; the crack depth was about 6.5 cm and 8.2 cm at 50°C and 60°C, respectively. The hydraulic conductivity of compacted clay was within 8.3 × 10−7to 1.5 × 10−5 cm/s after four wetting-drying cycles. This value was 2~3 orders of magnitude higher than that of uncracked clay.
Smart IT Management Evaluation in Intelligent Environment Computing
Authors: Kim Yanghoon , Hwang Heon , Chang Hangbae
Published: September 2015

As everything is integrated with smart IT technologies due to their rapid growth and enhancement, smart IT technologies and environments have been pervading business environments in the way of intelligent environment computing and have been embedded in them. Accordingly, it is expected that the number of information devices used and utilized in industry would be increased significantly. Therefore, intracompany smart IT management becomes more important to efficiently utilize information devices increased rapidly due to introduction of intelligent environment computing. In addition, there is a need of understanding corporate smart IT management levels in the intelligent environment computing to establish information strategies for flexibly responding to internal and external environment factors being varied rapidly by corporate policies. Therefore, this study would like to analyze management levels for smart IT to improve corporate smart IT application capabilities in the intelligent environment computing. In detail, it designed a conceptual system for analyzing smart IT management levels to analyze 282 companies. And it suggested a direction of utilizing smart IT efficiently and properly in the intelligent environment computing through comparative analysis of the smart IT management level cases analyzed by other organizations.
Neural Basis of Intrinsic Motivation: Evidence from Event-Related Potentials
Authors: Jin Jia , Yu Liping , Ma Qingguo
Published: September 2015

Human intrinsic motivation is of great importance in human behavior. However, although researchers have focused on this topic for decades, its neural basis was still unclear. The current study employed event-related potentials to investigate the neural disparity between an interesting stop-watch (SW) task and a boring watch-stop task (WS) to understand the neural mechanisms of intrinsic motivation. Our data showed that, in the cue priming stage, the cue of the SW task elicited smaller N2 amplitude than that of the WS task. Furthermore, in the outcome feedback stage, the outcome of the SW task induced smaller FRN amplitude and larger P300 amplitude than that of the WS task. These results suggested that human intrinsic motivation did exist and that it can be detected at the neural level. Furthermore, intrinsic motivation could be quantitatively indexed by the amplitude of ERP components, such as N2, FRN, and P300, in the cue priming stage or feedback stage. Quantitative measurements would also be convenient for intrinsic motivation to be added as a candidate social factor in the construction of a machine learning model.