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Context: Bladder cancer (BC) is the sixth most common malignant neoplasm in men. Recently, great effort has been devoted to the study of BC variant histology (VH). Yet, the results from these studies have shown conflicting data and remain unclear whether their presence alters recurrence and survival rates after radical cystectomy (RC). Aims: We undertook this study aiming to test the effect on VH on recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in single-center RC patients. Settings and Design: We have retrospectively analyzed medical records and pathology reports from 331 patients who underwent RC with or without pelvic lymphadenectomy at University Urology Clinic-Skopje, North Macedonia, in the period between 2010 and 2018. Subjects and Methods: Microscopic analysis of the specimens involved the evaluation of histological tumor type, tumor grade, pathological tumor node metastasis stage, presence of lymphovascular invasion, and resection margin status. Statistical Analysis Used: Univariable and multivariable Cox regression models were applied to test the effect of VH on RFS and OS. Results: We found 185 patients who matched our inclusion criteria. At multivariable analyses, lymphovascular invasion and positive resection margins were associated with shorter RFS. Similarly, patients diagnosed with lymphovascular invasion, positive resection margins, and a pelvic lymph node metastasis had poorer OS. VH was not found to be an independent predictor of both RFS and OS (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The present study did not reveal prognostic effect of VH on RFS and OS. In our series, histomorphologic parameters including lymphovascular invasion, resection margins, and pelvic lymph node metastasis were the most relevant predictors on survival outcome after RC.

Simulation models of Hydro Power Plant (HPP) are complex and highly nonlinear control system, composed of tunnel, penstock, surge tank, hydro turbine and hydroelectrical governor models. Hydro Power Plant (HPP) models recommended by the IEEE working group is revised and is used for simulation of the transient and static response of the system of hydro turbine and auxiliary equipment. Verification was made using measurements of static and transient responses from real HPP. Modification of simulation model is made after comparison of the simulated response of the HPP simulation model and real response of the HPP with PID controller. Modification and adjustment of the two parameters of the model is made to adjust the static response of the model without affecting transient response and with consideration of smallest frequency and power error.

T.V. Popova1, tati.popova2010@yandex.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-5060-8132, В. Pance2, lepansebenedicte@yahoo.fr, G.I. Maksutova1, sandugac2011@yandex.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-5518-9459, Yu.B. Korableva1, julya-74@yandex.ru, ORClD: 0000-0003-2337-3531, O.G. Kourova1, olga.k5691@mail.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-8544-7631 1South Ural State University, Chelyabinsk, Russian Federation, 2Le Panse Academy, Paris, France Попова Татьяна Владимировна, доктор биологических наук, профессор, ведущий эксперт, Южно-Уральский государственный университет. 454080, г. Челябинск, проспект Ленина, 76. E-mail: tati.popova2010@yandex.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-5060-8132. Панс Бенедикт, доктор физиологии, директор академии Ле Панс. Ул. Фобур Сен-Дени, 162, Париж, 75010, Франция. E-mail: lepansebenedicte@yahoo.fr. Максутова Гульнара Илгисовна, кандидат биологических наук, доцент кафедры спортивного совершенствования, Южно-Уральский государственный университет. 454080, г. Челябинск, проспект Ленина, 76. E-mail: sandugac2011@yandex.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-5518-9459. Кораблева Юлия Борисовна, лаборант, Южно-Уральский государственный университет. 454080, г. Челябинск, проспект Ленина, 76. E-mail: julya-74@yandex.ru, ORCID: 0000-0003-2337-3531. Коурова Ольга Германовна, кандидат биологических наук, доцент кафедры экологии и химической технологии, Южно-Уральский государственный университет. 454080, г. Челябинск, проспект Ленина, 76. E-mail: olga.k5691@mail.ru, ORCID: 0000-0002-8544-7631. Aim. The article deals with establishing psychophysiological features in overweight women to develop a set of measures for weight decrease and psychocorrection. Materials and methods. We studied two groups of women who were willing to participate in the study: the first group - mean age 54.2 ± 3.0; the second group - mean age 25.0 ± 1.7. The average BMI of the first group corresponded with obesity values (32.3 ± 1.6), while an average BMI of the second group was within the upper limit of reference values (23.7 ± 0.9). However, according to body composition data, there was a risk of BMI increase. As far as the percentage of adipose tissue exceeded the recommended values, recommended weight loss was 18.2 ± 2.6 kg for the older group and 5.6 ± 1.4 kg for the young group. Two groups of women of the same age with normal weight were examined as control groups. Results of the study revealed both age-related and psychophysiological features in women of different weight. EEG analysis showed that alpha rhythm amplitude in women from the first group was higher on average and frequency was lower compared to the second group. In the experimental group, we also revealed a higher level of delta activity in the frontal region at rest. The study of a psychoemotional status revealed that all participants hardly coped with stress. However, young participants overcame stress more easily compared to the older group. Anxiety assessment showed increased values of anxiety. In all participants, personal anxiety was almost at the same level within 48 points. Situational anxiety was higher in young women (51.2 ± 1.3 and 49.6 ± 2.1 points, respectively). Conclusion. The most psychophysiological indicators identified functional stress, particularly in overweight older women. To preserve the optimal psychophysiological status of persons participating in weight correction programs, it is also necessary to correct a psychophysical status in accordance with age-related features. Цель. Выявить психофизиологические особенности женщин с проблемами избыточного веса для дальнейшей разработки комплекса, включающего средства для снижения веса и психокоррекции. Материалы и методы. Исследованы две группы женщин, пожелавших заниматься по программе коррекции веса: 1-я - средний возраст 54,2 ± 3,0 и 2-я - 25,0 ± 1,7 года. В 1-й группе средний индекс массы тела (32,3 ± 1,6) свидетельствовал об ожирении; во 2-й группе (23,7 ± 0,9) он был на верхней границе нормы, но существовал риск его повышения. Так, процент жировой ткани превышал рекомендуемые цифры, и рекомендуемая потеря веса составила для старшей группы 18,2 ± 2,6 кг, а для молодых испытуемых 5,6 ± 1,4 кг. В качестве контрольных обследованы две группы женщин того же возраста, с нормальным весом. Результаты. Исследования выявили как возрастные, так и особенности психофизиологических показателей у женщин с разным весом. Амплитуда альфа-ритма ЭЭГ у испытуемых 1-й группы была ниже, а частота - выше; выявлен также более высокий уровень активности дельта диапазона в лобной области в покое, чем у женщин контрольной группы. Исследование психоэмоционального состояния показало, что все испытуемые относились к категории лиц, с трудом справляющихся со стрессами. Однако молодые испытуемые легче справляются со стрессовой ситуацией по сравнению со старшими. Результаты оценки тревожности показали ее повышенный уровень, у всех испытуемых групп наблюдения личностная тревожность была практически аналогичной, в пределах 48 баллов. Уровень же ситуационной тревожности у молодых женщин был выше, чем у старших (51,2 ± 1,3 и 49,6 ± 2,1 балла соответственно). Заключение. Большинство психофизиологических показателей свидетельствовали о функциональном напряжении, особенно у женщин старшего возраста с избыточным весом. Сделано заключение, что для сохранения оптимального психофизиологического статуса лиц, участвующих в программах по коррекции веса, необходима также коррекция психофизического состояния с учетом возрастных особенностей.

Current serology tests for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies mainly take the form of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassays or lateral flow assays, which are either laborious, expensive or lacking sufficient sensitivity and scalability. Here we present the development and validation of a rapid, low-cost, solution-based assay to detect antibodies in serum, plasma, whole blood and to a lesser extent saliva, using rationally designed split luciferase antibody biosensors. This new assay, which generates quantitative results in 30 min, substantially reduces the complexity and improves the scalability of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) antibody tests. This assay is well-suited for point-of-care, broad population testing, and applications in low-resource settings, for monitoring host humoral responses to vaccination or viral infection.

Creativity is the focus of research in various areas. The present paper focuses on creativity in music and the role of the teacher in stimulating and developing it in an individual’s musical development. It highlights the importance of evaluating musical ideas, the creative process and final products. The Music Olympiad involves a presentation of competitor’s own compositions. In the research, we analysed the characteristics of the compositions written for and performed at the first three Slovene Music Olympiads.

We recognize the need of certificateless PKI to reduce the step of obtaining the public key. This leads to ID-Based cryptography where we have PKI with full power to generate private keys for any identity. We solve this problem by implementing distributed key generation to form a group of players which will act as private key generator for ID-Based PKI. The implementation is done on the Android platform, showing the possibilities of running PKI on cheap and widely available hardware.

Background: Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a genetic condition which results from FMR1 gene mutation and leads to intellectual disability, autism-like symptoms and sensory hypersensitivity. Arbaclofen, a GABA-B agonist, showed efficacy for some individuals with FXS but was withdrawn from clinical trials, prompting interest in publicly available, racemic baclofen.

In this paper, we describe the experiences from the collaboration between a software company and university. The company organizes a coding competition on which the best students from Macedonia participate. The competition quickly got the attention of university students and proved to be an arena where they show their knowledge. The involvement of the university staff in the competition directly and indirectly and the involvement of the company in the training process proved to be beneficial both for university and for company. The competition initiates skill improvement and this makes the Macedonian companies more competitive on the regional and European markets.

Elliptic curves are gaining momentum as scientists are continuously proving their security and performance. Pairings over elliptic curves are relatively new in the world of cryptography. Researchers are coming with new cryptographic usage of pairings for over ten years. ID-based cryptography is also gaining popularity because of the certificate-less mode of work. Blind signatures are appropriate schemes when user anonymity is wanted as property. One possible type of blind signature is ID-based blind signature based on bilinear pairings. For easy computation we look into pairing-friendly elliptic curves for implementation of pairings. This paper will review state of the art ID-based blind signature schemes from pairings over elliptic curves which are suitable for building blind signatures as part of e-voting protocols. We give comparative results about the computation cost of arithmetic operations. In our knowledge, this is first paper which gives head-to-head bandwidth comparison of the interactive protocol in the signing algorithm of blind signature schemes. The results are easy to use when choosing appropriate blind signature scheme for e-voting protocols.

Cantonese language rehabilitation in 28 prelingually deaf children who underwent cochlear implantation was evaluated. All patients were implanted with multichannel devices and the operations went smoothly. They all had improved scores on audiological assessments and speech perception tests. The speech evaluation tests included the recognition of sounds, vowels, consonants and tone. Sentence recognition and story comprehension were both improved after training for 2 years. Cochlear implantation is a useful measure for the speech rehabilitation of prelingually profound deaf children when hearing aids are of no benefit. The multichannel implant device is of clinical significance in the rehabilitation of those patients using tonal language.

The anonymous channels have been the essence of numerous protocols that include anonymous message passing between peers. The mixnet structure is one way to accomplish the anonymity . Since the publication of the Chaumian mixnet, there have been many practical implementations. There are two main approaches to implement mixnets: the decryption (Chaumian) and the re-encryption mixnets. In this paper we analyze four types of mixnets, from which one decryption and three re-encryption types. They were implemented in the Java programing language and evaluated on several criterias as: the number of messages, the total number of nodes, the number of threshold nodes, and the key length of underlying crypto system. In the results section we compare the results from the practical tests to answer the research question, which type of mixnets has better features.

The dominant source of noise in an SIS mixer is the noise in the photon-induced current. We have made accurate measurements of noise induced in SIS junctions by 95 GHz photons. The noise is measured at 1.5 GHz using a low-noise cryogenic measurement system. The measured photon-induced noise is compared to the noise predicted by Tucker's theory augmented by a vacuum/thermal noise term. For small to moderate rf powers, at which SIS mixers are operated, the measured noise is nearly perfectly predicted by this theory for all the devices measured. Measurements of series arrays of SIS junctions also agree with this theory showing that the noise of each SIS junction in the array is independent. At large rf powers, the measured noise was higher than the predicted noise, in devices with smaller capacitance. We also measured the noise in single junctions and arrays with no rf radiation. These measurements agreed very well with the predicted shot noise for most bias conditions. >

Shift registers have been demonstrated in YBaCuO operating at 77 K using from 64 to over 1000 junctions. These are some of the larger scale integrated circuits demonstrated to date using YBaCuO Josephson technology. The circuit is a modified rapid single flux quantum design in which a single trigger pulse causes a one bit shift of the entire word of 32-512 b in length. Two different junction technologies, electron-beam defined nanobridges and epitaxial edge junctions, have been used with parameter spreads ranging from 11% to 22%. Correct operation has been verified with low speed random word tests and circulating data tests while pseudo random bit sequence demonstrations are underway. A practical amount of time to shift between cells has been measured to be about 10 ps. >

The authors have designed and tested a quasioptical superconducting tunnel junction (superconductor-insulator-superconductor, or SIS) mixer with integrated tuning elements. The designs consists of a self-complementary log-periodic antenna, the SIS tunnel junction, and the broadband superconducting tuning circuit. The tuning circuit is placed between the SIS junction and the center of the antenna. Tuning circuits are designed for 98 GHz and 492 GHz. Self-induced resonant steps are observed in I-V curves. Results of noise temperature measurements performed between 89 GHz and 104.4 GHz are reported. Results from the Touchstone simulation program, when run with the actual fabrication process parameters, show agreement with the experiment. Three types of measurements are presented: DC I-V curve measurement, heterodyne detection measurement, and direct detection measurement. All measurements show consistent results and they all agree with the theoretical predictions. >

A new measurement technique for determining the broadband driving point impedance of large two-dimensional active grid arrays is presented. The active array radiates a plane wave in the broadside direction when all elements are locked in phase. For analysis, the array is reduced to a single unit cell by exploiting the array symmetries. The driving point impedance of the unit cell is determined by using the dielectric waveguide measurement method (DWM). The approximations of the method are discussed, and the method is compared with other measurement techniques. Results are presented for four square arrays: dipole, bow-tie, double-vee and slot array. The measurement method is verified by comparing it to the full-wave theory in the whole range. It is shown that all four antenna arrays can be represented by very simple circuits that use only transmission lines as circuit elements. The bow-tie array is found to represent the best choice for broadband operation. >

The authors report measurements of gain and noise in SIS mixers at 230 and 492 GHz. Measurements were made of relatively high gain and noise associated with Josephson currents that have not been previously reported. These measurements show that Josephson currents are increasingly important as operating frequencies are raised. The techniques used to make these measurements are discussed. Measurements made with hot and cold black-bodies are shown to be inaccurate at high frequencies. The problem is that SIS mixers do not always respond linearly to the signal power incident on them. This is particularly important when (1) very broad band mixers are used and (2) Josephson effect currents are important. Both of these circumstances are present in the quasioptical SIS mixers favored for 500 GHz and higher. Monochromatic signals were used to measure gain and noise to get around these problems. >

The new tunable filter technology with truncated cone resonators is used here to realize multiple bands in different center frequencies in the same housing and with the same resonators. The bandwidth is varied from 20 MHz to 5 MHz and the center frequency is varied from 1930 MHz to 1990 MHz. The filter responses for 20 MHz and 5 MHz are achieved through complete external tuning and no cross couplings are applied. For the 15 MHz and 10 MHz responses the cross couplings are applied. The dielectric constant for the truncated cones and dielectric plugs is epsivr=35 and provides a very high Quality Factor Q and very good intrinsic spurious, which are so crucial for such a flexible design. To our knowledge this tunability in both bandwidth and frequency without affecting the Q is achieved for the first time. The design is patent-pending and we strongly believe that this represents a very important step towards the goal of remotely controlled filters for base stations.

The new tunable filter technology is used here to build full band (60 MHz) 9 pole dielectric resonator (DR) filters tuned at two different ranges separated by 200 MHz, PCS band (1930-1990 MHz) and UMTS band (2110-2170 MHz). All the measurements are taken in the same housing and the same resonators. The double conical resonators when put in proximity, provide the required strong couplings for the full band filter. The gap between the two conical parts that make the resonator, regulates the frequency over a very wide range without affecting the quality factor and helps provide a safe spurious free band. The fine tuning of the frequency is achieved with metal tuning plugs. Two different dielectric constants are used epsivr=35 and epsivr=45. In both cases, a typical 0.4 dB insertion loss is achievable for the 9 pole filter. An optimization of the design can push it very well near 0.3 dB for Er=35 or even lower. The design is patent pending and to our knowledge this full band DR filter tuned over such a wide range is presented for the first time.

There exists a clinical need for the production of platelets in vitro to help keep up with the existing demand used in transfusions. The use of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) to produce platelets is an attractive alternative to current sources, as they provide a potentially infinite source of cells. Our lab uses a technique we have termed ‘forward programming’ to produce mature megakaryocytes, the platelet precursor cell, from hiPSCs by overexpressing three key haematopoietic transcription factors (TFs), to drive differentiation. One of the major aims of my PhD is to improve our existing technique and move towards a more clinically compatible method, by generating a stable, inducible hiPSC line, for MK production. So far, I have demonstrated that the stoichiometric expression of these three TFs (FLI1, GATA1 and TAL1) generates a bipotent megakaryocyte-erythroid progenitor population, from which both megakaryocytes and red blood cells can be produced. I have demonstrated that inducible expression of a fluorescent protein in iPSCs is achievable by targeting a genomic safe harbour in iPSCs. This is an important breakthrough in stem cell technology, as this proof of principle demonstrates that a gene of interest can be inserted into the genome of iPSCs and expressed at a desired point in differentiation. We believe that these important findings will help to make the in vitro production of platelets more amenable to scaling-up, in order to move from the bench to the clinic.

We present here a new type of DR filters. The resonators have the shape of a truncated cone and their couplings are tuned by moving the resonators itself. Therefore, the layouts do not require the need of coupling screws and many of them do not even require the need of the irises. The unique shape makes the complete control of the strong couplings possible through the resonator movement. Using this technique we can build bandwidth tunable filters, i.e. different bandwidths in the same housing. Different measurements are presented with the same housing tuned from 1 MHz to 20 MHz. The technique also allows us to achieve up to 200 MHz bandwidth at 2 GHz, which is an order of magnitude greater than the present bandwidths that can commonly be achieved by standard DR filters. The new filters are simple in construction, with high Q and work particularly well at high dielectric constants. They can therefore be very small, compact and easily tunable. The unique layout intrinsically allows the implementation of the new cross-couplings. To our knowledge this is a breakthrough technology and all these are done for the first time.

We present here a breakthrough technology which is very promising for building broadband dielectric resonator (DR) filters. To the best of our knowledge this is the only technology versatile enough to allow us to build filters at different centre frequencies and the bandwidths ranging from 30MHz to 80MHz in the same housing (there are seven pending patents on this technology). Unlike the contemporary DR filter technology, this also allows to tune high dielectric constant resonators easily. The resonators have the shape of truncated cone. The way the filter is tuned and the particular shape of the resonators enhances the electromagnetic field energy in between the resonators by favoring the continuous components of the fields thus helping the tuning and rejecting the discontinuous components. As a result our technology can easily realize and control the strong couplings, which are usually difficult to be achieved with the existing DR technologies. The measurements for a 10 pole 60MHz DR filter at PCS bands without irises are presented. The insertion loss (IL) is 0.34dB. A tunable version of it is also presented. The particular shape of the resonator and the particular layouts improve the spurious response. The measured spurious response of the 60MHz filter is more than 700MHz, without a clean up filter. The incorporation of the comblines to further improve the spurious does not affect the tunability. Response of a 5 pole filter with three DR and two comblines are presented. The same housing is tuned externally for 25MHz, 20MHz and 15MHz and after fixing the bandwidth at 15MHz the center frequency is shifted by 70MHz. Many of the ideas to our knowledge are presented for the first time

In this paper, we demonstrate that basic implementation choices can have an order of magnitude of difference in the final power dissipation of the cutting-edge ASIC/SOC designs, and outline a basic checklist for power-aware implementation in deep sub-micron processes. We analyze the significant impact of 1) library choices, 2) register implementation, 3) tools utilization and 4) micro-architectural choices on dynamic power dissipation. We demonstrate that ASIC/SOC designers can achieve significant power reduction without resorting to full-custom techniques by following power-aware implementation prescriptions. We report eight-fold dynamic power reduction and five-fold clock power reduction on CMOS implementation of an adaptive processor IC in 0.13 /spl mu/m TSMC technology.

The authors present two different designs of integrated tuning elements for superconducting tunnel junction mixers. The structures consist of a self-complementary log-periodic antenna, superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) tunnel junction, and a broadband superconducting tuning circuit placed between the center of the antenna and the SIS junction. The designs allow good coupling to relatively large-area (7 mu m/sup 2/) junctions. The best design has a 3-dB bandwidth of 102 GHz at the central frequency of 98 GHz, and 75 GHz at the central frequency of 492 GHz. Microwave scale-model measurements show excellent agreement with simulation results. Devices are being fabricated in niobium technology. >

A broadband quasi-optical superconducting tunnel junction (SIS) mixer with integrated tuning elements was designed and tested. We are able to achieve very low noise performance using commercially available niobium integrated circuit (IC) technology. The low critical current density (980 A/cm/sup 2/) and large area (12 /spl mu/m/sup 2/) of the commercial SIS's is compensated by the ability to fabricate accurate integrated tuning structures in the mature niobium IC process available from Hypres, Inc. Noise measurements were made in the frequency range from 70 to 105 GHz. The best uncorrected double sideband receiver noise is 38 K at 77 GHz, with receiver noise temperatures less than 100 K from 75 to 102 GHz. >

Superconducting tunnel diodes (SISs) are investigated for both the generation and detection of submillimeter wavelengths. For detection, heterodyne receivers using SISs are investigated. Josephson currents are found to have a large effect on SIS mixers in the submillimeter, even though their effect is less at lower frequencies. At 492 GHz, fixer conversion gain increased by 4 dB when Josephson currents are not suppressed by a magnetic field. A much higher noise is seen in this gain mode, but further investigation of this recently discovered phenomenon is warranted. For submillimeter generation, a two-dimensional array of SISs is investigated. The ac Josephson effect in the SIS is expected to deliver submillimeter power into a free-space radiation mode traveling perpendicular to the array. No experimental devices have been developed yet, but the authors show computer simulations and microwave scale model measurements of array structures.© (1991) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

High‐temperature superconducting arrays of Josephson junctions have been fabricated and tested as millimeter‐wave oscillators at 77 K. Power levels in the microwatt range have been detected in the range of 90–160 GHz from arrays using from 350 to almost 60 000 YBa2Cu3O7 junctions. Monolithic log‐periodic spiral antennas as well as quasioptical resonators have been used to enable power coupling. The arrays were also found to be bias tunable over ranges limited by the receiving apparatus.

Two-dimensional active grid arrays are being investigated for the submillimeter frequency range. The quasioptical Josephson oscillator is a large 2-D array of active antennas. Each active antenna consists of an active device integrated with a short antenna. For the active device, the Josephson function is used. Because of the extremely small power output of the single oscillator ( approximately nW), a large array of active antennas needs to be employed. The power radiated from each active antenna is quasioptically combined using the Fabry-Perot type cavity to give useful power levels. The arrays are designed for baseband operation, i.e. for the broad frequency range below the first array resonance. Several grid arrays have been measured and characterized. Of the four arrays considered, the slot array has the smallest input impedance and the dipole array has the highest. The bow-tie array represents the best combination of the wide baseband operating range and moderate driving point impedance. >

Malaria antibody detection is valuable in providing retrospective confirmation of an attack of malaria. Blood bank screening is another area were malaria serology is potentially useful. In the present study, we tested the presence of antibodies to Plasmodium falciparum in sera from blood bank donors of non-endemic and malaria-endemic areas of Venezuela. Sera from 1,000 blood donors were tested by an indirect immunofluorescent antibody (IFA) assay and an IgG-ELISA for the presence of malaria antibodies using a synchronized in vitro-cultured Venezuelan isolate of P. falciparum as the antigen source. A selected group of positive and negative sera (n = 100) was also tested by a dot-IgG-ELISA. Positive results (reciprocal titer > or = 40) were found in 0.8% and 3.8% of blood donors when tested by the IFA assay and in 0.8% and 2% (optical density > or = 0.2) when tested by the IgG-ELISA in Caracas (non-endemic area) and Bolivar City (endemic area), respectively. The presence of anti-malarial antibodies in some sera from non-endemic areas such as Caracas reflects the increased potential risk of post-transfusional malaria in those areas due to the mobility of the blood donors. The data obtained indicate the need to implement new blood donor policy in blood banks in developing areas. Our results also indicate that the IFA assay is the most reliable test to use in malaria serodiagnosis.

In this chapter, we show how the predictive clustering tree framework can be used to predict the functions of genes. The gene function prediction task is an example of a hierarchical multi-label classification (HMC) task: genes may have multiple functions and these functions are organized in a hierarchy. The hierarchy of functions can be such that each function has at most one parent (tree structure) or such that functions may have multiple parents (DAG structure). © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC. ispartof: Inductive Databases and Constraint-based Data Mining pages:365-387 ispartof: pages:365-387 status: published

We study how probabilistic reasoning and inductive querying can be combined within ProbLog, a recent probabilistic extension of Prolog. ProbLog can be regarded as a database system that supports both probabilistic and inductive reasoning through a variety of querying mechanisms. After a short introduction to ProbLog, we provide a survey of the different types of inductive queries that ProbLog supports, and show how it can be applied to the mining of large biological networks. ispartof: Inductive Databases and Constraint-Based Data Mining pages:229-262 ispartof: pages:229-262 status: published

It is increasingly clear that machine learning algorithms need to be integrated in an iterative scientific discovery loop, in which data is queried repeatedly by means of inductive queries and where the computer provides guidance to the experiments that are being performed. In this chapter, we summarise several key challenges in achieving this integration of machine learning and data mining algorithms in methods for the discovery of Quantitative Structure Activity Relationships (QSARs). We introduce the concept of a robot scientist, in which all steps of the discovery process are automated; we discuss the representation of molecular data such that knowledge discovery tools can analyse it, and we discuss the adaptation of machine learning and data mining algorithms to guide QSAR experiments. ispartof: Inductive Databases and Constraint-Based Data Mining pages:425-451 ispartof: pages:425-451 status: published