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IntroductionAnimals use camouflage (background matching, disruptive coloration, etc.) for protection, confusing predators and making detection difficult. Camouflage Object Detection (COD) tackles this challenge by identifying objects seamlessly blended into their surroundings. Existing COD techniques struggle with hidden objects due to noisy inferences inherent in natural environments. To address this, we propose the Discriminative Context-aware Network (DiCANet) for improved COD performance.MethodsDiCANet addresses camouflage challenges through a two-stage approach. First, an adaptive restoration block intelligently learns feature weights, prioritizing informative channels and pixels. This enhances convolutional neural networks’ ability to represent diverse data and handle complex camouflage. Second, a cascaded detection module with an enlarged receptive field refines the object prediction map, achieving clear boundaries without post-processing.ResultsWithout post-processing, DiCANet achieves state-of-the-art performance on challenging COD datasets (CAMO, CHAMELEON, COD10K) by generating accurate saliency maps with rich contextual details and precise boundaries.DiscussionDiCANet tackles the challenge of identifying camouflaged objects in noisy environments with its two-stage restoration and cascaded detection approach. This innovative architecture surpasses existing methods in COD tasks, as proven by benchmark dataset experiments.

In wireless sensor networks (WSNs), sensor nodes are randomly distributed to transmit sensed data packets to the base station periodically. These sensor nodes, because of constrained battery power and storage space, cannot utilize conventional security measures. The widely held challenging issues for the network layer of WSNs are the packet-dropping attacks, mainly sinkhole and wormhole attacks, which focus on the routing pattern of the protocol. This thesis presents an improved version of the second level of the guard to the system, intrusion detection systems (IDSs), to limit the hostile impact of these attacks in a Low Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy (LEACH) environment. The proposed system named multipath intrusion detection system (MIDS) integrates an IDs with ad hoc on-demand Multipath Distance Vector (AOMDV) protocol. The IDS agent uses the number of packets transmitted and received to calculate intrusion ratio (IR), which helps to mitigate sinkhole attacks and from AOMDV protocol round trip time (RTT) is computed by taking the difference between route request and route reply time to mitigate wormhole attack. MATLAB simulation results show that this cooperative model is an effective technique due to the higher packet delivery ratio (PDR), throughput, and detection accuracy. The proposed MIDS algorithm is proven to be more efficient when compared with an existing LEACH-based IDS system and MS-LEACH in terms of overall energy consumption, lifetime, and throughput of the network.

The increased number of possible inter-prediction blocks sizes, improved the coding efficiency of High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), but at the same time it also increased the complexity of the encoder. In this work, we propose an Efficient Inter-Prediction Mode Decision (EIPMD) technique for the Multi-View extension of the HEVC standard (MV-HEVC). We figure out the least and most probable inter-prediction Modes and use Coding Unit (CU) splitting information of the base view to find its relation with the prediction Modes. We improve the efficiency of our technique by optimizing the base view search area. In our technique, we also makes use of the current depth level of the CU and temporal level of the pictures. Simulation results show that compared to HTM [16.2], which is the reference encoder for MV-HEVC, our proposed technique reduces the encoding time by approximately 66% on average, with very minor change in other parameters.

Antimicrobial resistance in food-producing animals has not yet judiciously been reported from Pakistan. Here, we report on the isolation rate of poultry-associated multidrug resistant extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) -producing Escherichia coli in Peshawar, Pakistan. A total of 200 samples, 50 from retail-poultry meat, 50 from sick birds, 50 from the boiler farm-environment, and 50 from human beings working on or exposed to poultry were analyzed for isolation of ESBL -producing E. coli, ESBL -encoding genes and antimicrobial susceptibility. A total of 81 E. coli isolates [(50.0% Phylogroup-A, 33.3% D and 16.7% phylogroup B2)], were recovered, 36 (44.4%) of them were found to be ESBL -producers. PCR revealed that blaCTXM was the most prevalent (14/36 = 38.9%) ESBL -encoding gene followed by blaSHV2 (9/36 = 25%). Strikingly, co-occurrence of multiple ESBL - and/or carbapenemase-encoding genes in a single isolate was observed, and combination of blaCTXM + blaSHV2 was the most predominant (19.4%) followed by blaCTXM + blaNDM1 + blaOXA-48 (11.1%) and blaCTXM + blaOXA-48 (8.8%). All these ESBL producers were found to be multidrug resistant (MDR) and were carrying either integron 1 (48.5%) or 2 (51.5%). Finally, 14 of the 36 isolates were also found positive for variable region and insertion sequence common region 1, which was found linked to ESBL/carbapenemase encoding genes in 5/14 isolates suggesting its role in dissemination.

Cognitive Radio Network (CRN) is an emerging technology used to solve spectrum shortage problems in wireless communications. In CRN, unlicensed secondary users (SUs) and licensed primary users (PUs) use spectrum resources at the same time by avoiding any interference from SUs. However, the spectrum sensing process in CRN is often disturbed by a security issue known as the Primary User Emulation Attack (PUEA). PUEA is one of the main security issues that disrupt the whole activity of CRN. The attacker transmits false information to interrupt the spectrum sensing process of CRN, which leads to poor usage of the spectrum. The proposed study uses a proficient Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) based localization method using the Differential Evolution (DE) algorithm to identify the PUEA in CRNs. The DE algorithm is used to solve the objective function of TDOA values. The proposed methodology constructs a CRN and identifies PUEA. The proposed method aims to sense and localize PUEA efficiently. Mean Square Error (MSE) is the performance evaluation parameter that is used to measure the accuracy of the proposed technique. The results are compared with the previously proposed Firefly optimization algorithm (FA). It is clear from the results that DE converges faster than FA.

The current work analyzes the transmission behavior of plane harmonic waves in an isotropic medium. The observation is made for homogeneous type solid in the context of generalized dual phase lag model of thermoelasticity. Concept micro-temperature, where the microelements have different temperatures has also been considered. The basic focus of thework is to predict the influence of initially applied magnetic field on plane waves through the elastic solid. We have made an attempt to find exact solution of the problem using an analytical technique of a normal mode analysis method. The theoretical results are obtained for a generalized solid in order to test the numerical calculation of a magnesium crystal. It is found that the magnetic field reduces the strength of the attenuation factor.

This article deals with the q-differential subordinations for starlike functions associated with the lemniscate of Bernoulli and cardioid domain. The primary goal of this work is to find the conditions on γ for 1+γz∂q hz/hn z ≺1+z, where hz is analytic function and is subordinated by the function which is producing cardioid domain as its image domain while mapping the open unit disk. Along with this, certain sufficient conditions for q-starlikeness of analytic functions are determined.

Abstract Background In digital mammography, finding accurate breast profile segmentation of women’s mammogram is considered a challenging task. The existence of the pectoral muscle may mislead the diagnosis of cancer due to its high-level similarity to breast body. In addition, some other challenges due to manifestation of the breast body pectoral muscle in the mammogram data include inaccurate estimation of the density level and assessment of the cancer cell. The discrete differentiation operator has been proven to eliminate the pectoral muscle before the analysis processing. Methods We propose a novel approach to remove the pectoral muscle in terms of the mediolateral-oblique observation of a mammogram using a discrete differentiation operator. This is used to detect the edges boundaries and to approximate the gradient value of the intensity function. Further refinement is achieved using a convex hull technique. This method is implemented on dataset provided by MIAS and 20 contrast enhanced digital mammographic images. Results To assess the performance of the proposed method, visual inspections by radiologist as well as calculation based on well-known metrics are observed. For calculation of performance metrics, the given pixels in pectoral muscle region of the input scans are calculated as ground truth. Conclusions Our approach tolerates an extensive variety of the pectoral muscle geometries with minimum risk of bias in breast profile than existing techniques.

The analysis is made on reflection of waves in thermoelastic micropolar medium. The medium is having an additional property of viscosity, while studying waves the effect of micro-temperature is also been considered. It is found that after reflection three longitudinal and three transverse waves propagate through the medium. Reflected coefficients are calculated for each wave to examine deviation of reflected waves. Results obtained theoretically are shown graphically against angle of incidence. It is analyzed that effect of viscosity and micro-temperature reaches to its maximum level during intermediate values of angle of incident. Keywords: Visco-elasticity, Green Naghdi theory, Micro-temperature, Reflection, Micropolar

The Human Vision System (HVS) is responsible for color constancy and dynamic range. It is reasonably tolerant to variation under strong lighting conditions; however, this is not the case for camera images. We present a new six-step technique to enhance colored images that have been degraded due to non-uniform illuminations, using Multi Scale Retinex (MSR): (1) principal component analysis is employed on the colored (RGB) image to extract the desired luminance and chrominance, (2) the luminance is enhanced by the MSR scales, (3) the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) is introduced to optimize the enhancement process, (4) an enhanced luminance ratio is computed, (5) RGB values of image are computed in a ratio of the enhanced luminance with initial RGB values, and (6) the final enhanced image is attained using a contrast stretching approach. The proposed MSR image enhancement algorithm is a simple, automatic, and fast technique, and provides dynamic range compression with precise color rendition. Extensive simulations are performed on 994 colored images captured in outdoor environments. The proposed technique is shown to obtain the desired rendering in terms of fine details and naturalness. Keywords: Multi Scale Retinex, Component analysis, Chrominance channel, Enhanced luminance, Impaired color

Objective: FTY720, an immunomodulator derived from sphingosine-1-phosphate, has recently demonstrated its immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory properties. Furthermore, FTY720 might be a key pharmacological target for preconditioning. In this preclinical model, we have investigated the effects of FTY720 on myocardium during reperfusion in an experimental model of cardioplegic arrest (CPA) and cardiopulmonary bypass.Methods: 30 Sprague–Dawley rats (300–350 g) were randomized into two groups: Group-A, treated with FTY720 1 mg/kg via intravenous cannulation, and Group-B, as control. After 15 min of treatment, rats underwent CPA for 30 min followed by initiation of extracorporeal life support for 2 h. Support weaning was done, and blood and myocardial tissues were collected for analysis. Hemodynamic parameters, inflammatory mediators, nitro-oxidative stress, neutrophil infiltration, immunoblotting analysis, and immunohistochemical staining were analyzed and compared between groups.Results: FTY720 treatment activated the Akt/Erk1/2 signaling pathways, reduced the level of inflammatory mediators, activated antiapoptotic proteins, and inhibited proapoptotic proteins, leading to reduced nitro-oxidative stress and cardiomyocyte apoptosis. Moreover, significant preservation of high-energy phosphates were observed in the FTY720-treated group. This resulted in improved recovery of left ventricular systolic and diastolic functions.Conclusion: The cardioprotective mechanism in CPA is associated with activation of prosurvival cell signaling pathways that prevents myocardial damage. FTY720 preserves high-energy phosphates attenuates myocardial inflammation and oxidative stress, and improves cardiac function.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194343.].

In this work, theoretical investigation of the influence of Auger recombination coefficient and built-in polarization field on the internal quantum efficiency (IQE) in terms of lateral-vertical single quantum well (SQW) as well as multiquantum well (MQW) GaN-based blue light-emitting diodes are presented. The degradation effect of the built-in polarization field on the IQE of vertical light-emitting diodes is used to strengthening the Auger recombination coefficient in comparison to lateral light-emitting diodes. This result has been found consistent in both single-as well as multi-quantum well structures. In addition, when Auger recombination coefficient has been included in the analysis, vertical multiquantum well structure shows more degradation in the IQE in comparison to the lateral structures. The effect has been dominant in vertical MQW case.

Sudden unexpected perinatal collapse is a major trauma for the parents of victims. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is unexpected and mysterious death of an apparently healthy neonate from birth till 1 year of age without any known causes, even after thorough postmortem investigations. However, the incidence of sudden intrauterine unexplained death syndrome (SIUDS) is seven times higher as compared with SIDS. This observation is approximated 40–80%. Stillbirth is defined as death of a fetus after 20th week of gestation or just before delivery at full term without a known reason. Pakistan has the highest burden of stillbirth in the world. This basis of SIDS, SIUDS, and stillbirths eludes specialists. The purpose of this study is to investigate factors behind failure in control of these unexplained deaths and how research may go ahead with improved prospects. Animal models and physiological data demonstrate that sleep, arousal, and cardiorespiratory malfunctioning are abnormal mechanisms in SIUDS risk factors or in newborn children who subsequently die from SIDS. This review focuses on insights in neuropathology and mechanisms of SIDS and SIUDS in terms of different receptors involved in this major perinatal demise. Several studies conducted in the past decade have confirmed neuropathological and neurochemical anomalies related to serotonin transporter, substance P, acetylcholine α7 nicotine receptors, etc., in sudden unexplained fetal and infant deaths. There is need to focus more on research in this area to unveil the major curtain to neuroprotection by underlying mechanisms leading to such deaths.

In this paper, a unique and more distinctive encryption algorithm is proposed. This is based on the complexity of highly nonlinear S box in Flesnelet domain. The nonlinear pattern is transformed further to enhance the confusion in the dummy data using Fresnelet technique. The security level of the encrypted image boosts using the algebra of Galois field in Fresnelet domain. At first level, the Fresnelet transform is used to propagate the given information with desired wavelength at specified distance. It decomposes given secret data into four complex subbands. These complex sub-bands are separated into two components of real subband data and imaginary subband data. At second level, the net subband data, produced at the first level, is deteriorated to non-linear diffused pattern using the unique S-box defined on the Galois field [Formula: see text]. In the diffusion process, the permuted image is substituted via dynamic algebraic S-box substitution. We prove through various analysis techniques that the proposed scheme enhances the cipher security level, extensively.

Background and Objective: Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), and S1P receptor modulator fingolimod have been suggested to play important cardioprotective role in animal models of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injuries. To understand the cardioprotective function of S1P and its mechanism in vivo, we analyzed apoptotic, inflammatory biomarkers, and myocardial fibrosis in an in vivo heterotopic rat heart transplantation model.Methods: Heterotopic heart transplantation is performed in 60 Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats (350–400 g). The heart transplant recipients (n = 60) are categorized into Group A (control) and Group B (fingolimod treated 1 mg/kg intravenous). At baseline with 24 h after heart transplantation, blood and myocardial tissue are collected for analysis of myocardial biomarkers, apoptosis, inflammatory markers, oxidative stress, and phosphorylation of Akt/Erk/STAT-3 signaling pathways. Myocardial fibrosis was investigated using Masson’s trichrome staining and L-hydroxyline.Results: Fingolimod treatment activates both Reperfusion Injury Salvage Kinase (RISK) and Survivor Activating Factor Enhancement (SAFE) pathways as evident from activation of anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory pathways. Fingolimod treatment caused a reduction in myocardial oxidative stress and hence cardiomyocyte apoptosis resulting in a decrease in myocardial reperfusion injury. Moreover, a significant (p < 0.001) reduction in collagen staining and hydroxyproline content was observed in fingolimod treated animals 30 days after transplantation demonstrating a reduction in cardiac fibrosis.Conclusion: S1P receptor activation with fingolimod activates anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory pathways, leading to improved myocardial salvage causing a reduction in cardiac fibrosis.

In this article, a blind data hiding reversible methodology to embed the secret data for hiding purpose into cover image is proposed. The key advantage of this research work is to resolve the privacy and secrecy issues raised during the data transmission over the internet. Firstly, data is decomposed into sub-bands using the integer wavelets. For decomposition, the Fresnelet transform is utilized which encrypts the secret data by choosing a unique key parameter to construct a dummy pattern. The dummy pattern is then embedded into an approximated sub-band of the cover image. Our proposed method reveals high-capacity and great imperceptibility of the secret embedded data. With the utilization of family of integer wavelets, the proposed novel approach becomes more efficient for hiding and retrieving process. It retrieved the secret hidden data from the embedded data blindly, without the requirement of original cover image.

The Multi-View extension of High Efficiency Video Coding (MV-HEVC) has improved the coding efficiency of multi-view videos, but this comes at the cost of the extra coding complexity of the MV-HEVC encoder. This coding complexity can be reduced by efficiently reducing time-consuming encoding operations. In this work, we propose two methods to reduce the encoder complexity. The first one is Early Coding unit Splitting (ECS), and the second is the Efficient Reference Picture Selection (ERPS) method. In the ECS method, the decision of Coding Unit (CU) splitting for dependent views is made on the CU splitting information obtained from the base view, while the ERPS method for dependent views is based on selecting reference pictures on the basis of the temporal location of the picture being encoded. Simulation results reveal that our proposed methods approximately reduce the encoding time by 58% when compared with HTM (16.2), the reference encoder for MV-HEVC.

In this work, our focus is to study the Fekete-Szegö functional in a different and innovative manner, and to do this we find its upper bound for certain analytic functions which give hyperbolic regions as image domain. The upper bounds obtained in this paper give refinement of already known results. Moreover, we extend our work by calculating similar problems for the inverse functions of these certain analytic functions for the sake of completeness.

To improve the internal quantum efficiency of green light-emitting diodes, we present the numerical design and analysis of bandgap-engineered W-shaped quantum well. The numerical results suggest significant improvement in the internal quantum efficiency of the proposed W-LED. The improvement is associated with significantly improved hole confinement due to the localization of indium in the active region, leading to improved radiative recombination rate. In addition, the proposed device shows reduced defect-assisted Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) recombination rate as well as Auger recombination rate. Moreover, the efficiency rolloff in the proposed device is associated with increased built-in electromechanical field.

This study presents an innovative approach to designing a shoe insole with enhanced durability, sustainability, and antibacterial properties. Needle-punched non-woven recycled polyester fabrics with three different GSMs (100, 200, and 300) were developed. The composite shoe insole was developed using non-woven fabric laminated with a polyurethane sheet to enhance durability. The fabrics were treated with an antibacterial finish with three different concentrations (5%, 10%, and 15%) and subjected to 5 and 10 washing cycles. The developed composites were evaluated against their relative hand value, abrasion resistance, tensile strength, antibacterial activity, and overall moisture management capability. Overall results reveal that the developed composite shoe insole is durable, sustainable, and presents no bacterial growth, demonstrating the insole's hygienic effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the objectives of sustainable development is water, sanitation, and hygiene, or WASH. Developing countries, however, continue to face the difficulty of sophisticated WASH. There are disparities regarding how the WASH project for sustainable development is being implemented among different administrative units. In the three central districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan -- Charsadda, Mardan, and Nowshera -- the current study sought to evaluate the relative WASH conditions. Using a structured questionnaire and simple random sample, data in the knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) domains about WASH was gathered. Composite indices for each domain (knowledge, attitude and practices) and an overall composite WASH index were calculated. Based on the WASH index values, the results showed that Nowshera had a relatively better WASH status than Mardan and Charsadda. The study's findings suggested that while a sizable section of the study region may have access to enough water and toilets, attention should also be paid to the water's quality and the toilets' outlets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]