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Software-Defined Networking (SDN), with segregated data and control planes, provides faster data routing, stability, and enhanced quality metrics, such as throughput (Th), maximum available bandwidth (Bd(max)), data transfer (DTransfer), and reduction in end-to-end delay (D(E-E)). This paper explores the critical work of deploying SDN in large-scale Data Center Networks (DCNs) to enhance its Quality of Service (QoS) parameters, using logically distributed control configurations. There is a noticeable increase in Delay(E-E) when adopting SDN with a unified (single) control structure in big DCNs to handle Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) requests causing a reduction in network quality parameters (Bd(max), Th, DTransfer, D(E-E), etc.). This article examines the network performance in terms of quality matrices (bandwidth, throughput, data transfer, etc.), by establishing a large–scale SDN-based virtual network in the Mininet environment. The SDN network is simulated in three stages: (1) An SDN network with unitary controller-POX to manage the data traffic flow of the network without the server load management algorithm. (2) An SDN network with only one controller to manage the data traffic flow of the network with a server load management algorithm. (3) Deployment of SDN in proposed control arrangement (logically distributed controlled framework) with multiple controllers managing data traffic flow under the proposed Intelligent Sensing Server Load Management (ISSLM) algorithm. As a result of this approach, the network quality parameters in large-scale networks are enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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As a result of the research of the reaction of 3,4-dihydro-2H-pyrano-dimethylacetylene carbinol (also with its Csp-substituted derivatives) of iodo-alkylation on clinoptilolite in the presence of (NaK)4CaAl6Si30O72 and crystalline iodine, 3-iodine-2-[(2-methyl-4- organyl-but-3-in-2-yl)oxy]oxane was prepared. This method of preparation of heterocyclic compounds allows the reaction to be carried out in the absence of solvents, which reduces the amount of reagents and allows obtaining a product with high purity and high yield (67.5%). It was established that the latter under the conditions of the Kucherov reaction turn into heterocyclic compounds. Thus, effective regioselective methods for the synthesis of dioxin derivatives have been developed. This fact is probably related and is obviously explained by the intramolecular cyclization of the resulting intermediate-ketohydroxyester, i.e. tandem hydrolysis of C–I and hydration of C≡C bonds of the reaction products. The yield of 2-benzyl-3,3-dimethylhexahydro-4aH-piran[2,3-b][1,4]dioxin-2-ol is higher than that of structural analogues. It should also be noted that the synthesized compounds have an increased reactivity, and are rich in nucleophilic centers. Based on experimental data, it was established that the compounds obtained in this way are stable and do not undergo hydrolysis. Some physicochemical properties of the synthesized compounds were given, their composition and structure were confirmed by elemental analysis data, and all synthesized compounds were identified by IR and NMR spectroscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to evaluate and compare feeding responses of the non-native and native bivalves, the dark false mussel Mytilopsis leucophaeata and the scorched mussel Brachidontes darwinianus, respectively, by offering different concentrations of seston from the coastal lagoon where these species coexist after dark false mussel introduction (Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, Rio de Janeiro-Brazil). For this purpose, independent laboratory experiments were carried out under five concentrations of seston to test the differences in clearance and ingestion rates of bivalves as a function of increasing concentrations of suspended particulate matter (SPM) on seston. In addition, from the integrated analysis of data obtained in experiments, it can be inferred about the efficiency levels of these species to remove SPM from seston and their effects on water turbidity and nutrient concentrations (total carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus). Our hypothesis was that the non-native bivalve is more efficient to clear and ingest SPM from seston compared to the native one, which may lead to competitive advantages to the successful invasion of M. leucophaeata in coastal lagoons. Native species did not show a significant difference in clearance and ingestion rates with increasing concentrations of seston. Whereas the non-native bivalve showed a slight tendency to increase its clearance and ingestion rates with the increase in seston concentrations, evidencing its plasticity to adjust its feeding responses. The native bivalve was significantly more efficient to clear and ingest SPM at the lower seston concentration (i.e., close to natural concentrations found in the lagoon) compared to the non-native bivalve, which, on the other hand, showed a significant increase in its ingestion rates at the higher concentration tested (140 mg SPM L-1). Thus, the present results did not suggest food competition between the non-native M. leucophaeata and the native B. darwinianus in the introduced system. However, M. leucophaeata increased its feeding response with experimental increment in seston concentration, which suggests species ability to benefit from conditions of increased inputs of organic matter and higher primary production that could mediate its establishment in introduced systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The novel sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) potentially ameliorates heart failure and reduces cardiac arrhythmia. Cardiac fibrosis plays a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of HF and atrial myopathy, but the effect of SGLT2i on fibrogenesis remains to be elucidated. This study investigated whether SGLT2i directly modulates fibroblast activities and its underlying mechanisms. Methods and results: Migration, proliferation analyses, intracellular pH assay, intracellular inositol triphosphate (IP3) assay, Ca2+ fluorescence imaging, and Western blotting were applied to human atrial fibroblasts. Empagliflozin (an SGLT2i, 1, or 5 μmol/L) reduced migration capability and collagen type I, and III production. Compared with control cells, empagliflozin (1 μmol/L)- treated atrial fibroblasts exhibited lower endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ leakage, Ca2+ entry, inositol trisphosphate (IP3), lower expression of phosphorylated phospholipase C (PLC), and lower intracellular pH. In the presence of cariporide (an Na+-H+ exchanger (NHE) inhibitor, 10 μmol/L), control and empagliflozin (1 μmol/L)-treated atrial fibroblasts revealed similar intracellular pH, ER Ca2+ leakage, Ca2+ entry, phosphorylated PLC, pro-collagen type I, type III protein expression, and migration capability. Moreover, empagliflozin (10 mg/kg/day orally for 28 consecutive days) significantly increased left ventricle systolic function, ß-hydroxybutyrate and decreased atrial fibrosis, in isoproterenol (100 mg/kg, subcutaneous injection)-induced HF rats. Conclusions: By inhibiting NHE, empagliflozin decreases the expression of phosphorylated PLC and IP3 production, thereby reducing ER Ca2+ release, extracellular Ca2+ entry and the profibrotic activities of atrial fibroblasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low availability of phosphorus (P) in tropical soils may hinder the initial establishment of forest species planted in disturbed areas. However, the effects of P fertilization as a strategy to improve the survival, growth and photosynthesis-related traits of Amazonian tree species in P-limited soils remain unclear. Here, we investigate how contrasting levels of P fertilization affect the establishment of native Amazonian tree species with different successional statuses. We measured the survival, growth (height and root collar diameter) and leaf traits (e.g., chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters, leaf nutrients and gas exchange) of ten species (five pioneers and five nonpioneers) subjected to contrasting P supplies (−P = 0 kg P2O5 ha−1 and +P = 160 kg P2O5 ha−1) in the field over 24 months. Phosphorus fertilization improved the availability of P in the soil. Pioneers species were more responsive to fertilization. Erythrina fusca showed high mortality under −P, while Cedrela fissilis, Cordia alliodora and Guazuma ulmifolia (pioneers) exhibited the highest increases in growth rates after fertilization. Fertilization improved the P content in the leaves in the noonpioneers group, while both ecological groups had the highest K content in the leaves under no P fertilization. Carbon capture (stomatal conductance) increased only in pioneers species. Conversely, positive effects on carbon assimilation at the leaf level were not observed. P fertilization reduced the P use efficiency of nonpioneers species. Fertilization is an important management practice to relieve the effects of stress induced by soil phosphorus starvation on the establishment of Amazonian trees and is modulated by successional status and species identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crude oil degradation efficiency can be improved because of co-metabolism that exists when bacterial consortium is applied. However, because of possible vulnerability to environmental conditions and/or antagonistic interactions among members of the consortium, the degradation efficiency can be hampered. In this laboratory-based study, the biodegradation potentials of pure bacterial isolates namely Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain W15 (MW320658), Providencia vermicola strain W8 (MW320661) and Serratia marcescens strain W13 (MW320662) earlier isolated from crude oil-contaminated site and their consortium were evaluated using 3% crude oil-supplemented Bushnell Haas media. The efficiency was evaluated based on the viable cell count, biosurfactant analyses, percentage hydrocarbon degradation using gravimetric analysis and gas chromatography–mass spectrophotometry (GC–MS) analysis. There was decline in the population of W13 and predominance of W15 in the consortium as the incubation period progressed. Accelerated biodegradation of the crude oil hydrocarbons through co-metabolism was not achieved with the consortium; neither was there any improved resilience nor resistance to environmental changes of strain W13. The GC–MS analyses showed that the highest degradation was produced by W15 (48.23%) compared to W8 (46.04%), W13 (45.24%) and the Consortium (28.51%). The biodegradation of the crude oil hydrocarbons by W15, W8, W13 axenic cultures and their consortium treatments demonstrated that the bacterial constituent in a consortium can influence the synergistic effect that improves bioremediation. Future research that focuses on evaluating possible improvement in bioremediation through maintenance of diversity by continuous bioaugmentation using vulnerable but efficient degraders in a consortium is necessary to further understand the application of consortia for bioremediation improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) is primarily linked with the cardiac irregularities that occur due to recurrent seizures. Our previous studies found a role of mTOR pathway activation in seizures-linked cardiac damage in a rat model. In continuation to the earlier work, the present study was devised to explore the role of rapamycin (mTOR inhibitor and clinically used immunosuppressive agent) in a zebrafish kindling model and associated cardiac damage. Adult zebrafish were incubated with increasing concentrations of rapamycin (1, 2 and, 4 μM), followed by pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) exposure to record seizure latency and severity. In another experiment, zebrafish were subjected to a standardized PTZ kindling protocol. The kindled fish were treated daily with rapamycin for up to 25 days, along with PTZ to record seizure severity. At the end, zebrafish heart was excised for carbonylation assay, gene expression, and protein quantification studies. In the acute PTZ convulsion test, treatment with rapamycin showed a significant increase in seizure latency and decreased seizure severity without any change in seizure incidence. Treatment with rapamycin also reduced the severity of seizures in kindled fish. The cardiac expressions of gpx, nppb, kcnh2, scn5a, mapk8, stat3, rps6 and ddit were decreased, whereas the levels of trxr2 and beclin 1 were increased following rapamycin treatment in kindled fish. Furthermore, rapamycin treatment also decreased p-mTOR expression and protein carbonyls level in the fish cardiac tissue. The present study concluded that rapamycin reduces seizures and associated cardiac damage by inhibiting mTOR activation in the zebrafish kindling model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Software‐defined networking (SDN) has emerged as an evolving technique in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). SDN enables WSNs with programmable control to manage network functions dynamically and efficiently. In Internet of Things (IoT) applications, smart sensors suffer from the low battery issue, generally deployed in harsh network environments where regular recharge is not feasible. Moreover, integrating SDN with IoT‐enabled sensor network puts forward several challenges, for example, control nodes' selection, load balancing, and energy cost optimization while aggregating the collected data, focusing on heterogeneous traffic data. Thus, an energy‐efficient data collection technique via definite sensing control in two‐level IoT‐enabled software‐defined heterogeneous WSN (2SD‐HWSN) is formulated as an optimization problem, with transmission distance from smart sensors, residual energy of sensors, and load based on node density. The proposed algorithm is divided into two: set‐up and transmission phases. In the set‐up phase, the control server (CS) elects the best‐suited control nodes (CNs) and sets up a schedule for coordinating data transmission. Further, normal nodes join appropriate CNs based on distance and residual energy. This way, CNs form clusters and route sensed data during the transmission phase. Therefore, an alternative nature‐inspired algorithm, that is, grey wolf optimization (GWO), is hybridized with particle swarm optimization using a low‐level co‐evolutionary technique to improve its overall performance. This hybrid variant of GWO, known as HGWO‐BC, offers balanced clustering (BC) via novel fitness function design. An exhaustive simulation study is performed in different scenarios considering homogeneous and heterogeneous sensors. Comparative results show that the HGWO‐BC outperforms state‐of‐the‐arts concerning network lifetime, instability period, residual energy, throughput, and computational efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The traditional centralized cloud computing (CC) model faces a range of problems with the exponential growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) applications, like high latency, reduced bandwidth, and network instability. Fog computing (FC) takes the cloud closer to IoT computers to overcome these problems. Rather than moving them to the cloud, the FC provides local IoT data processing and storage on IoT computers. This paper focuses on the Routing Protocol for Low‐Power and Lossy Network (RPL), a universally routing protocol for a static environment that is used for reducing energy consumption, delay, and packet loss with data aggregation at the border router using a fog simulation model in Contiki Cooja. The objective function (OF) choice has an impact on network topology, as each node selects a set of potential parents to send to the destination. However, no systematic analysis of the effects of OF behavior in the RPL environment has been undertaken. Here, three different OFs, Objective Function Zero (OF0), Advanced Objective Function Zero (AOF0), and Minimum Rank with Hysteresis Objective Function (MRHOF) for RPL in the static environment for different node numbers, have been compared. The findings demonstrate that altering all three OFs has a significant impact on RPL. The energy consumption is reduced in the case of the AOF0 in the fog node by 50.86%, which is less than the case of the OF0 and MRHOF function. Extensive simulations show that AOF0 outperforms the existing OFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cholesterol-ester transfer protein (CETP) plays a role in atherosclerosis, the inflammatory response to endotoxemia and in experimental and human sepsis. Functional alterations in lipoprotein (LP) metabolism and immune cell populations, including macrophages, occur during sepsis and may be related to comorbidities such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Macrophages are significantly associated with pulmonary emphysema, and depending on the microenvironment, might exhibit an M1 or M2 phenotype. Macrophages derived from the peritoneum and bone marrow reveal CETP that contributes to its plasma concentration. Here, we evaluated the role of CETP in macrophage polarization and elastase-induced pulmonary emphysema (ELA) in human CETP-expressing transgenic (huCETP) (line 5203, C57BL6/J background) male mice and compared it to their wild type littermates. We showed that bone marrow-derived macrophages from huCETP mice reduce polarization toward the M1 phenotype, but with increased IL-10. Compared to WT, huCETP mice exposed to elastase showed worsened lung function with an increased mean linear intercept (Lm), reflecting airspace enlargement resulting from parenchymal destruction with increased expression of arginase-1 and IL-10, which are M2 markers. The cytokine profile revealed increased IL-6 in plasma and TNF, and IL-10 in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), corroborating with the lung immunohistochemistry in the huCETP-ELA group compared to WT-ELA. Elastase treatment in the huCETP group increased VLDL-C and reduced HDL-C. Elastase-induced pulmonary emphysema in huCETP mice promotes lung M2-like phenotype with a deleterious effect in experimental COPD, corroborating the in vitro result in which CETP promoted M2 macrophage polarization. Our results suggest that CETP is associated with inflammatory response and influences the role of macrophages in COPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A safe and suitable approach in the treatment of unusual malformed anterior maxillary teeth would be to accept a birooted fused incisor as two central teeth by moving it across the midpalatal suture and improve the frontal esthetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: Certain ocular resident or pathogenic microbes may remain viable in the presence of multi-purpose disinfectant solutions (MPDSs), subsequently developing biofilms inside contact lens storage cases (CLSCs) which pose a risk of infection to wearers. This study evaluated the formation of ocular microbiota biofilms exposed to three top selling MPDS. METHODS: Crystal violet assay was carried out for the verification of biofilm formation. The in vitro assays evaluated Pseudomonas aeruginosa UFPEDA 416 and Staphylococcus aureus UFPEDA 02 exposure of 48 h to MPDS, as well as the use of 40 KHz ultrasound at the beginning and with 24 h immersion in the MPDS. Subsequently, in vivo assays evaluated the formation of microbial biofilms on the CLSC walls containing silicone-hydrogel contact lenses immersed in MPDS from 15 healthy volunteer patients, who had been wearing the lenses for 7 days. RESULTS: Biofilms were inhibited by 26%–98% in the in vitro assays, with a statistically significant difference only for P. aeruginosa UFPEDA 416 exposed to diluted MPDS. Most inhibitions occurred moderately and weakly. In addition, adherent cells were detected in more than 90% of the tests. Biofilm was not inhibited in more than one third of the results, nor was it disturbed, especially with the ultrasound treatments. The average of obtained optical densities at 590 nm was between 0.6 and 0.8 in the in vivo assays. The results were similar between the CLSC right and left wells. There was a correlation between microbial biofilm formation and the type of MPDS tested, with statistical difference between the three treatments. CONCLUSION: MPDS promoted a partial inhibition of microbial biofilm formation but only one MPDS proved to be more effective in vitro and in vivo. This study, however, could not distinguish the effect of possible errors in the good hygiene practices of the users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an important health care issue, and IL-17 can modulate inflammatory responses. We evaluated preventive and therapeutic effect of anti-interleukin (IL)-17 in a model of lung injury induced by elastase, using 32 male C57Bl6 mice, divided into 4 groups: SAL, ELASTASE CONTROL (EC), ELASTASE þ PREVENTIVE ANTI-IL-17 (EP), and ELASTASE þ THERAPEUTIC ANTI-IL-17 (ET). On the 29th day, animals were anesthetized with thiopental, tracheotomized, and placed on a ventilator to evaluate lung mechanical, exhaled nitric oxide (eNO), and total cells of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was collected. We performed histological techniques, and linear mean intercept (Lm) was analyzed. Both treatments with anti-IL-17 decreased respiratory resistance and elastance, airway resistance, elastance of pulmonary parenchyma, eNO, and Lm compared with EC. There was reduction in total cells and macrophages in ET compared with EC. Both treatments decreased nuclear factor-rB, inducible nitric oxide synthase, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, MMP-12, transforming growth factor-b, tumor necrosis factor-a, neutrophils, IL-1b, isoprostane, and IL-17 in airways and alveolar septa; collagen fibers, decorin and lumican in airways; and elastic fibers and fibronectin in alveolar septa compared with EC. There was reduction of collagen fibers in alveolar septa and biglycan in airways in EP and a reduction of eNO synthase in airways in ET. In conclusion, both treatments with anti-IL-17 contributed to improve most of parameters evaluated in inflammation and extracellular matrix remodeling in this model of lung injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) has achieved a great contribution in establishing the recent technological revolution. One of the most important challenges in WSNs is extending the lifetime of the network, wherein each task performed by a sensor node requires an amount of energy to complete. However, sensor nodes are powered by limited capacity batteries and distributed in remote locations. This causes a limitation in both the lifetime and the performance of the WSN. Most previous surveys ignored the energy waste phenomena and its vital role in exhausting the energy. So, this paper provides a comprehensive review for the previous energy conservation approaches and classifies them into two basic categories: energy optimization and energy-wasting avoidance. Concerning energy optimization techniques, we present an updated and comprehensive evaluation for Software Defined Network (SDN) as an energy optimization technique. Furthermore, in this paper, several recent WSN clustering algorithms are addressed and compared based on novel and efficient comparison dimensions. Finally, the paper collects the issues that cause waste of energy and discusses their detection and control mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of various security attacks, biometric authentication methods are gaining momentum in the security literature. Electrocardiogram or ECG signals are one of the essential biometric features generated by the human heart's electrical activities. Many authentication schemes apply these signals due to their uniqueness, resistance to fabrication attacks, and support for continuous authentication. This survey article focuses on the ECG-based authentication approaches and provides the required background knowledge about the ECG signals and authentication methods. Then, it presents a taxonomy of the ECG-based authentication approaches first based on the authentication factors and then according to the applied algorithms for conducting authentication. It then describes their key contributions, applied algorithms, and possible drawbacks. Furthermore, their employed evaluation factors, ECG datasets, and simulators are illuminated and compared. Finally, the concluding remarks and future studies directions in this context are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Dredged sediments are often disposed on land areas and can cause adverse effects on soil biota, since these materials generally may contain toxic agents. This work examines the ecotoxicological effects on earthworms exposed to technogenic deposits formed from the deposition of dredged sediments from an urban tropical lagoon. Such evaluation supports the understanding of the ecological effects derived from dredged sediments in the tropics, as well as the influence of soil properties in the toxicity. Materials and methods: To simulate dredged sediment disposal under tropical conditions, a dredged sediment sample from the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon (Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil) was mixed with a Gleysol (a typical organic tropical soil) to obtain the following doses: 0, 6, 12, 18, and 24%, where 0% = pure Gleysol. Acute and avoidance bioassays with Eisenia andrei were applied to these mixtures following standard protocols (ISO). Physical, chemical, and mineralogical characterization of the materials and metal determination in the test mixtures were performed to support the interpretations of ecotoxicological data. Results and discussion: Metal concentrations in the test mixtures were generally in accordance with the limits defined by Brazilian law. Earthworm mortality was significant in doses ≥ 8% (LC50 = 7.1%), while doses ≥ 2% caused avoidance responses (EC50 = 1.7%, p < 0.05). The salinity in 8% treatment is similar to the salinity levels described by the literature that cause adverse effects on earthworms, suggesting that salinity played a key role in the toxicity. Earthworm biomass increased (p < 0.05) when the organisms were exposed to non-lethal doses, and this is probably due to water bioaccumulation related to high contents of salts. When comparing the toxicity found in this work with data obtained with other tropical soils, one could suppose that Gleysol mineralogy seems to control the bioavailability of salts and metals. Conclusion: The possible formation of technogenic soils (constructed soils) due to land deposition of dredged sediments may potentially compromise natural soil fauna. In this particular case, soil mineralogy, salinity, and metals played a relevant role in the toxicity to earthworms. The development of approaches that can integrate ecotoxicological, ecological, and pedological data is urgent for better understanding the damages associated with the disposal of dredged sediments in tropical lowlands areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Software-Defined Networking (SDN) is gaining a lot of traction in wireless systems with several practical implementations and numerous proposals being made. Despite instigating a shift from monolithic network architectures towards more modulated operations, automated network management requires the ability to extract, utilise and improve knowledge over time. Beyond simply scrutinizing data, Machine Learning (ML) is evolving from a simple tool applied in networking to an active component in what is known as Knowledge-Defined Networking (KDN). This work discusses the inclusion of ML techniques in the specific case of Software-Defined Wireless Local Area Networks (SD-WLANs), paying particular attention to the frame length optimization problem. With this in mind, we propose an adaptive ML-based approach for frame size selection on a per-user basis by taking into account both specific channel conditions and global performance indicators. By relying on standard frame aggregation mechanisms, the model can be seamlessly embedded into any Enterprise SD-WLAN by obtaining the data needed from the control plane, and then returning the output back to this in order to efficiently adapt the frame size to the needs of each user. Our approach has been gauged by analysing a multitude of scenarios, with the results showing an average improvement of 18.36% in goodput over standard aggregation mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Software-Defined Networking (SDN) has been largely used in wired networks to separate the control plane and the data plane and enable users to programmatically change the networking capabilities. This investigation focused on understanding how SDN concepts could be applied in a networked embedded systems environment where the nodes have limited capabilities and the wireless links have limited bandwidth. The goals were to realize the benefits of SDN while maintaining the network's topology and connectivity. A SDN controller was implemented on BeagleBone Black Board and interfaced with a networked embedded system via a SINK node. The approach was validated through simulations and experiments based on a physical testbed in multiple scenarios. In the future, the design can be extended to a fully capable Wireless-SDN system for use in a variety of applications such as Healthcare Systems, Internet of Things and Advanced Manufacturing Systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is an interstitial lung disease with limited treatment options. Zingerone found in ginger (Zingiber officinale L.) has many pharmacological effects, especially antiinflammatory and antioxidant activity. However, the effect of zingerone on pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is not fully known. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of zingerone on bleomycin (BLM)-induced PF and its underlying mechanisms. Wistar-albino rats were given single dose of BLM (5 mg/kg, intratracheal) or vehicle (saline). In treatment groups, zingerone (50 and 100 mg/kg, p.o.) was administered orally for 14 days after BLM administration. Rats and lung tissue were weighed to determine lung index. Antioxidant, antiinflammatory effects, and hydroxyproline content of zingerone were determined by ELISA method. Pulmonary inflammation, collagen deposition, and fibrosis score were determined with Hematoxylin-Eosin (HxE) and Masson's trichrome staining. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expressions were detected immunohistochemically. BLM administration increased lipid peroxidation (MDA) and decreased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity. In addition, BLM caused increased levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and accumulation of collagen bundles. Zingerone administration decreased collagen accumulation, TNF-α and IL-1β levels, MDA level, TGF-β1, and iNOS expression and increased SOD and GPx activity. Histopathological findings supported the results. These results show that zingerone (50 and 100 mg/kg) at both doses significantly contributes to healing of PF by improving inflammation, oxidative stress, and histopathological alterations and by affecting TGF-β1 and iNOS signaling pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: With the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT), more and more devices can establish a connection with local area networks and use routing protocols to forward all information to the sink. But these devices may not have enough resources to execute a complex routing protocol or to memorize all information about the network. With proactive routing protocols, each node calculates the best path, and it needs enough resources to memorize the network topology. With reactive routing protocols, each node has to broadcast the message to learn the right path that the packets must follow. In all cases, in large networks such as IoT, this is not an appropriate mechanism. This paper presents a new software‐defined network (SDN)–based network architecture to optimize the resource consumption of each IoT object while securing the exchange of messages between the embedded devices. In this architecture, the controller is in charge of all decisions, and objects only exchange messages and forward packets among themselves. In the case of large networks, the network is organized into clusters. Our proposed network architectures are tested with 1000 things grouped in five clusters and managed by one SDN controller. The tests using OpenDayLight and IoT embedded applications have been implemented on several scenarios providing the ability and the scalability from dynamic reorganization of the end‐devices. This approach explores the network performance issues using a virtualized SDN‐clustered environment which contributes to a new model for future network architectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serine proteases and its inhibitors are involved in physiological process and its deregulation lead to various diseases like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), pulmonary emphysema, skin diseases, atherosclerosis, coagulation diseases, cancer, inflammatory diseases, neuronal disorders and other diseases. Serine protease inhibitors have been described in many species, as well as in plants, including cowpea beans (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp). Here, we purified and characterized a protease inhibitor, named VuEI (Vigna unguiculata elastase inhibitor), from Vigna unguiculata, with inhibitory activity against HNE (human neutrophil elastase) and chymotrypsin but has no inhibitory activity against trypsin and thrombin. VuEI was obtained by alkaline protein extraction followed by three different chromatographic steps in sequence. First, an ion exchange chromatography using Hitrap Q column was employed, followed by two reversed-phase chromatography using Source15RPC and ACE18 columns. The molecular mass of VuEI was estimated in 10.99 kDa by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. The dissociation constant (Ki) to HNE was 9 pM. These data indicate that VuEI is a potent inhibitor of human neutrophil elastase, besides to inhibit chymotrypsin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Billions of Internet of Things (IoT) devices are expected to populate our environments and provide novel pervasive services by interconnecting the physical and digital world. However, the increased connectivity of everyday objects can open manifold security vectors for cybercriminals to perform malicious attacks. These threats are even augmented by the resource constraints and heterogeneity of low‐cost IoT devices, which make current host‐based and static perimeter‐oriented defense mechanisms unsuitable for dynamic IoT environments. Accounting for all these considerations, we reckon that the novel softwarization capabilities of Telco network can fully leverage its privileged position to provide the desired levels of security. To this aim, the emerging software‐defined networking (SDN) and network function virtualization (NFV) paradigms can introduce new security enablers able to increase the level of IoT systems protection. In this paper, we design a novel policy‐based framework aiming to exploit SDN/NFV‐based security features, by efficiently coupling with existing IoT security approaches. A proof of concept test bed has been developed to assess the feasibility of the proposed architecture. The presented performance evaluation illustrates the benefits of adopting SDN security mechanisms in integrated IoT environments and provides interesting insights in the policy enforcement process to drive future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quasigroup operations are essential for a wide range of cryptographic procedures that includes cryptographic hash functions, electronic signatures, pseudorandom number generators, and stream and block ciphers. Quasigroup cryptography achieves high levels of security at low memory and computational costs by an iterative application of quasigroup operations to streams and blocks of data. The use of large quasigroups can further improve the strength of cryptographic operations. However, the order of used quasigroups is the main factor affecting the memory requirements of quasigroup cryptographic schemes. Alternative quasigroup representations that do not store their multiplication tables in computer memory yield increased computational costs. In any case, an efficient implementation of quasigroup operations is critical for practical applications of quasigroup cryptography. Residue number systems allow a fast, concurrent realization of addition and multiplication. In this work, residue arithmetic is used to accelerate quasigroup operations, and an efficient computational approach to their implementation, designed with respect to the extended instruction sets of modern processors, is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) has increased rapidly over the last years. Due to their low resources, sensors come along with new issues regarding network security and energy consumption. Focusing on the network availability, previous studies proposed to protect clustered network against denial of service attacks with the use of traffic monitoring agents on some nodes. Those control nodes have to analyze the traffic inside a cluster and to send warnings to the cluster head whenever an abnormal behavior (e.g., high packets throughput or non-retransmission of packets) is detected. But if the control nodes ( cNodes) die out of exhaustion, they leave the network unprotected. To better fight against attacks, we try to enhance this solution by renewing periodically the election process. Furthermore, we propose three energy-aware and secure methods to designate the cNodes in a hierarchically clustered WSN. The first one is a simple self-election process where nodes randomly designate themselves. It leads to a better load balancing than a static method (i.e., with no renewal), but we argue that we can obtain better results by considering the remaining energy of the nodes at cNodes selection time. Hence, the second algorithm is purely based on the residual energy of the sensors. We discuss limitations of this deterministic process concerning security and cluster coverage and suggest workarounds. These improvements lead us to the third mechanism. It is based on residual energy too, but it includes a democratic election process in which nodes in the cluster vote to optimize the cNode role attribution. Results obtained from simulation experiments with the ns-2 tool are provided to analyze the energy repartition in the network and to compare the three selection algorithms. All experimental outcomes show improvements of the load balancing in the network, while maintaining good detection coverage, in regard to static selection. Furthermore, the analysis of the respective performances of the three mechanisms is used as a basis to establish recommendations regarding the use cases of those methods. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth cause of death in the world and it is currently presenting a major global public health challenge, causing premature death from pathophysiological complications and rising economic and social burdens. COPD develops from a combination of factors following exposure to pollutants and cigarette smoke, presenting a combination of both emphysema and chronic obstructive bronchitis, which causes lung airflow limitations that are not fully reversible by bronchodilators. Oxidative stress plays a key role in the maintenance and amplification of inflammation in tissue injury, and also induces DNA damages. Once the DNA molecule is damaged, enzymatic mechanisms act in order to repair the DNA molecule. These mechanisms are specific to repair of oxidative damages, such as nitrogen base modifications, or larger DNA damages, such as double-strand breaks. In addition, there is an enzymatic mechanism for the control of telomere length. All these mechanisms contribute to cell viability and homeostasis. Thus, therapies based on modulation of DNA repair and genomic stability could be effective in improving repair and recovery of lung tissue in patients with COPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We screened soil samples collected from underneath shrubs and/or large trees at different locations in the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh for xylanase-producing microorganisms. Xylose-utilizing bacteria were numerically dominant in soils of most locations whereas xylose- and xylan-utilizing actinobacteria were minor components. Xylan-utilizing fungi constituted a major share of total microbial populations in soil samples collected at half of the sites, whereas xylan-utilizing bacteria were predominant at other sampling locations. Some of the isolates of fungi exhibited xylanase activity with a range of 400-4000 U/ml, indicating great potential for their uses in paper, pulping and bioethanol industries for producing value-added products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the great success of the second-generation wireless telephone technology and the third-generation mobile telecommunications technology, and the fast development of the fourth-generation mobile telecommunications technology, the phase of fifth-generation mobile networks or fifth-generation wireless systems (5G) is coming. In this article, we indicate the open research issues of 5G security and trust in the context of virtualized networking and software-defined networking. We further propose a framework of security and trust focusing on solving 5G network security issues. The proposed framework applies adaptive trust evaluation and management technologies and sustainable trusted computing technologies to ensure computing platform trust and achieve software-defined network security. It adopts cloud computing to securely deploy various trustworthy security services over the virtualized networks. We analyze that the framework can support and satisfy all security requirements specified in standardization. We also suggest future research work according to the proposed framework and discuss the advantages of our framework in terms of practical deployment. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the basic cryptographic structure for multivariate quadratic quasigroup (MQQ) scheme, MQQ has been one of the latest tools in designing MQ cryptosystem. There have been several construction methods for MQQs in the literature, however, the algorithm for judging whether quasigroups of any order are MQQs over Galois fields is still lacking. To this end, the objective of this paper is to establish a necessary and sufficient condition for a given quasigroup of order p to be an MQQ over $$GF(p^{k})$$ . Based on this condition, we then propose an algorithm to justify whether or not a given quasigroup in the form of multiplication table of any order p is an MQQ over $$GF(p^{k})$$ , and generate the d Boolean functions of the MQQ if the quasigroup is an MQQ. As a result, we can obtain all the MQQs over $$GF(p^{k})$$ in theory using the proposed algorithm. Two examples are provided to illustrate the validity of our method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contents Dogs have been studied for several reasons, such as the genetic improvement, their use as experimental models, in zoonotic research, cell therapy and as a model for human diseases. However, many features relating to the embryonic development of dogs remain unknown because of the absence of embryological studies. Considering the importance of the cardiorespiratory system in the development of embryos, the aim of this study was to investigate the development of the main cardiorespiratory organs of dog embryos and foetuses with estimated gestational ages from 16 to 46 days using macro- and microscopic descriptions. On day 16 of development, the neural tube and crest were formed, the anterior and posterior neuropore closure had begun and the somites had developed. Between days 22 and 27 of gestation, the lung buds and the initial formation of the primary bronchi and heart chambers were observed. The heart chambers exhibited the endo-, myo- and epicardial layers but did not have obvious differences in thickness among each other. Between days 41 and 46 of gestation, the nasal conchae and septa and trachea were formed, which exhibited characteristic epithelia. The lung formation and lobation were complete. The heart and major vessels exhibited mature histological architecture when their anatomical development was complete. The results of this study contribute to a more accurate definition of the embryonic and foetal developmental stages in dogs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Security issue in Internet of Things (IoTs) has long been the topic of extensive research in the last decade. Data encryption and authentication are the most common two methods to address the security issues in IoTs. However, these efforts are ineffective in detecting the diverse malicious attacks, especially in intrusion detection. Comparatively, very few attentions have been paid for detecting intrusive nodes in IoTs research. Therefore, in this paper, we derive an innovative method called granulometric size distribution (GSD) method based on mathematical morphology for detecting malicious attack in IoTs, such as intrusion detection. We successfully generate GSD clusters to directly monitor the number of active nodes in a wireless sensor network because the GSD curves are similar when the number of active nodes in a wireless sensor network is fixed. Link Quality Indicator data of each node are utilized as the network parameters in this method. The results show the effectiveness in intrusion detection. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

doi: 10.1111/j.1741-2358.2012.00651.x Oral health-related quality of life and nutritional status of institutionalized elderly population aged 60 years and above in Mysore City, India Objective: To assess whether oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is associated with nutritional status in the institutionalised elderly population of Mysore. Background: Malnutrition in the elderly has an evident impact on their general health and quality of life. Analysis of data of the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) and their association with the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) results improves our understanding of the complex relationship between oral health and malnutrition. Materials and methods: The study was conducted among the institutionalised elderly population in Mysore city, Karnataka. Data on socio-demographic, oral health status were gathered. OHRQoL was evaluated using GOHAI, and malnutrition risk using MNA. Results: Out of 141 elderly, 41.1% were men and 58.9% were women with mean age of 72.2 ± 7.5 years. Mean GOHAI score was 47.03 ± 9.2, with 69.5% had low perception of oral health. Mean MNA score was 9.91 ± 2.4, 15.6% were malnourished, 52.5% were at risk of malnutrition and 31.9% were adequately nourished. A strong association was found between the mean GOHAI and MNA scores. Conclusion: Oral health-related quality of life was associated with nutritional deficit, and it requires a greater integration between dentistry and nutrition in the health promotion of older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examines the acute toxicity (48 h) of Lannate insecticide to three species of fish fingerling with different osmoregulatory capabilities, i.e., Oreochromis sp. (GET-Excel tilapia), Lates calcarifer (seabass), and Siganus fuscescens (rabbitfish). After 2 weeks acclimatization period in the laboratory, static bioassays were conducted to determine the median lethal concentration (LC50). Three acute toxicity trials were conducted to determine mortality and observations were done at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h. After 48 h, the mean LC50 values were 7.73 ppm for GET-Excel Tilapia, 6.1 I ppm for Lates calcarifer, and 1.47 ppm for Siganus fuscescens. Immediate changes in breathing rate were also observed upon introduction of Lannate into the medium, with Siganus fuscescens having the highest average breathing rate (74/min). Mortality increased with Lannate concentrations with Siganus fuscescens determined to be most sensitive to Lannate among the three species.Recent use of Lannate insecticide in killing nearshore fishes and the result of this study should serve as a wake-up call to regulate usage of this insecticide at the barangay level, i.e., the smallest administrative unit in the Philippines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Thiamine, an essential vitamin for aerobic metabolism and glutathione cycling, may decrease the effects of critical illnesses. The objective of this study was to determine whether intravenous thiamine administration can reduce vasopressor requirements in patients with septic shock. Methods: This study was a prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. We included adult patients with septic shock who required a vasopressor within 1–24 h after admission between March 2018 and January 2019 at a tertiary hospital in Thailand. Patients were divided into two groups: those who received 200 mg thiamine or those receiving a placebo every 12 h for 7 days or until hospital discharge. The primary outcome was the number of vasopressor-free days over 7 days. The pre-defined sample size was 31 patients per group, and the study was terminated early due to difficult recruitment. Results: Sixty-two patients were screened and 50 patients were finally enrolled in the study, 25 in each group. There was no difference in the primary outcome of vasopressor-free days within the 7-day period between the thiamine and placebo groups (mean: 4.9 days (1.9) vs. 4.0 days (2.7), p = 0.197, mean difference − 0.9, 95% CI (− 2.9 to 0.5)). However, the reductions in lactate (p = 0.024) and in the vasopressor dependency index (p = 0.02) at 24 h were greater among subjects who received thiamine repletion vs. the placebo. No statistically significant difference was observed in SOFA scores within 7 days, vasopressor dependency index within 4 days and 7 days, or 28-day mortality. Conclusions: Thiamine was not associated to a significant reduction in vasopressor-free days over 7-days in comparison to placebo in patients with septic shock. Administration of thiamine could be associated with a reduction in vasopressor dependency index and lactate level within 24 h. The study is limited by early stopping and low sample size. Trial registration: TCTR, TCTR20180310001. Registered 8 March 2018, http://www.clinicaltrials.in.th/index.php?tp=regtrials&menu=trialsearch&smenu=fulltext&task=search&task2=view1&id=3330. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are very prone to ongoing security threats due to its resource constraints and unprotected transmission medium. WSN contains hundreds and thousands of resource-constrained and self-organized sensor nodes. These sensor nodes are usually organized in a distributed manner; thus, it permits the creation of an ad hoc network without predefined infrastructure or centralized management. As WSNs are going to get control of real-time applications, where a malicious activity can cause serious damage, the inherent challenge is to fortify the security enforcement in these networks. As a solution, software-defined network (SDN) has come out and has been merged with WSN to form what is known as software-defined wireless sensor network (SDWSN). SDWSN has come into existence, and it legitimizes network operators with more flexibility and control over the network. SDWSN has more tightened the security enforcement based on the global view and centralized control of the network topology. Moreover, machine learning (ML)–based and deep learning (DL)–based network intrusion detection systems (NIDS) have been introduced to the SDN environment to protect the networks against anomaly threats. In this review article, we illustrated the SDN–based security approaches to WSN followed by its architectures, advantages, and possible security threats. Finally, ML/DL–based NIDS integrated with the SDN controller is proposed as a complete solution for the WSN environment to confront the ongoing anomaly threats and to sufficiently protect the network against both known and unknown attacks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Energy consumption is one of the most important design constraints when building a wireless sensor and actuator network since each device in the network has a limited battery capacity, and prolonging the lifetime of the network depends on saving energy. Overcoming this challenge requires a smart and reconfigurable network energy management strategy. The Software‐Defined Networking (SDN) paradigm aims at building a flexible and dynamic network structure, especially in wireless sensor networks. In this study, we propose an SDN‐enabled wireless sensor and actuator network architecture that has a new routing discovery mechanism. To build a flexible and energy‐efficient network structure, a new routing decision approach that uses a fuzzy‐based Dijkstra's algorithm is developed in the study. The proposed architecture can change the existing path during data transmission, which is the key property of our model and is achieved through the adoption of the SDN approach. All the components and algorithms of the proposed system are modeled and simulated using the Riverbed Modeler software for more realistic performance evaluation. The results indicate that the proposed SDN‐enabled structure with fuzzy‐based Dijkstra's algorithm outperforms the one using the regular Dijkstra's and the ZigBee‐based counterpart, in terms of the energy consumption ratio, and the proposed architecture can provide an effective cluster routing while prolonging the network lifetime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In wireless sensor networks, the existing data aggregation algorithms usually cannot evaluate the extent of data damage in presence of additive attacks. To resolve such problem, a resilient data aggregation method based on spatio-temporal correlation for wireless sensor networks is presented in this paper. On the basis of the distributed data convergence model, the algorithm combines the centroid distance and similarity to measure the attack degree of each cluster node’s perceived data, and the weighted calculation can improve the convergence precision of data recovery. In addition, this method can obtain the estimated value of data sample of all clusters according to the temporal correlation characteristic of the nodes’ perceived data at different time. Using the chi-square fitting, the extent of the data being tampered in each cluster can be measured effectively. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show our method can improve the restoration convergence precision as the attack increment is small. Also, it can enhance the robustness from noise interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]