Formalising the Optimised Link State Routing Protocol

Routing protocol specifications are traditionally written in plain English. Often this yields ambiguities, inaccuracies or even contradictions. Formal methods techniques, such as process algebras, avoid these problems, thus leading to more precise and verifiable descriptions of protocols. In this paper we use the timed process algebra T-AWN for modelling the Optimised Link State Routing protocol (OLSR) version 2.Comment: In Proceedings MARS 2020, arXiv:2004.1240

Design, optimization, and in vitro characterization of idebenone-loaded PLGA microspheres for LHON treatment

Biodegradable poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) microspheres (PLGA MSs) are attractive delivery systems for site-specific maintained release of therapeutic active substances into the intravitreal chamber. The design, development, and characterization of idebenone-loaded PLGA microspheres by means of an oil-in-water emulsion/solvent evaporation method enabled the obtention of appropriate production yield, encapsulation efficiency and loading values. MSs revealed spherical shape, with a size range of 10–25 μm and a smooth and non-porous surface. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra demonstrated no chemical interactions between idebenone and polymers. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), X-ray diffractometry, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetry (TGA) analyses indicated that microencapsulation led to drug amorphization. In vitro release profiles were fitted to a biexponential kinetic profile. Idebenone-loaded PLGA MSs showed no cytotoxic effects in an organotypic tissue model. Results suggest that PLGA MSs could be an alternative intraocular system for long-term idebenone administration, showing potential therapeutic advantages as a new therapeutic approach to the Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) treatment by intravitreal administrationThis research was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (RTI2018-099597-B-100)S

The Effect of Low-Processing Temperature on the Physicochemical and Mechanical Properties of Bovine Hydroxyapatite Bone Substitutes

Bovine bone grafts (BBX) require protein removal as part of the manufacturing process to reduce antigenicity and, in consequence, to be safely used in humans. Deproteinisation may have direct effects on the characteristics of the bone material and on in vivo material performance. This research aimed to comprehensively study the physicochemical and mechanical properties of BBX processed at low deproteinisation processing temperatures. Cubes of bovine bone (8 mm3) were treated with temperatures between 100 °C and 220 °C at 30 °C intervals and with pressures ranging from 1.01 to 24.58 Bar. The samples were characterised topographically and mechanically using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and uniaxial bending tests. The organic content and the chemical composition were determined using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). X-ray diffraction (XRD) and FTIR were also used to quantitatively determine the specimen crystallinity. Increasing temperature/pressure was associated with decreasing protein levels and compressive strength and increasing surface irregularities and crystallinity. The findings suggest that low-temperature processed bone is likely to exhibit a rapid in vivo degradation rate. The deproteinisation temperature can be adjusted to tailor the graft properties for specific applications

Parameterized Object Sensitivity for Points-to Analysis for Java

The goal of points-to analysis for Java is to determine the set of objects pointed to by a reference variable or a reference object field. We present object sensitivity, a new form of context sensitivity for flow-insensitive points-to analysis for Java. The key idea of our approach is to analyze a method separately for each of the object names that represent runtime objects on which this method may be invoked. To ensure flexibility and practicality, we propose a parameterization framework that allows analysis designers to control the tradeo#s between cost and precision in the object-sensitive analysis

Programming constraint services

This thesis presents design, application, implementation, and evaluation of computation spaces as abstractions for programming constraint services at a high level. Spaces are seamlessly integrated into a concurrent programming language and make constraintbased computations compatible with concurrency through encapsulation. Spaces are applied to search and combinators as essential constraint services. State-of-the-art and new search engines such as visual interactive search and parallel search are covered. Search is expressive and concurrency-compatible by using copying rather than trailing. Search is space and time efficient by using recomputation. Composable combinators, also known as deep-guard combinators, stress the control facilities and concurrency integration of spaces. The implementation of spaces comes as an orthogonal extension to the implementation of the underlying programming language. The resulting implementation is shown to be competitive with existing constraint programming systems.Diese Dissertation beschreibt Entwurf, Verwendung, Implementierung und Evaluierung von Computation Spaces für die Programmierung von Constraintdiensten. Spaces werden in eine nebenläufige Programmiersprache integriert. Sie fungieren als Kapseln für Berechnungen mit Constraints. Dadurch wird die Kompatibilität zu nebenläufigen Berechnungen gewährleistet. Suche und Kombinatoren sind zentrale Constraintdienste, die mit Spaces programmiert werden. Es werden sowohl übliche, als auch vollkommen neue Suchmaschinen, wie zum Beispiel interaktive Suche und parallele Suche, vorgestellt. Durch Kopieren wird Suche ausdrucksstark und kompatibel mit Nebenläufigkeit. Durch Wiederberechnung wird Suche effizient hinsichtlich Speicherbedarf und Laufzeit. Kombinatoren, die ineinander geschachtelt werden können (so genannte deep-guard Kombinatoren), verdeutlichen die Kontrollmöglichkeiten von Spaces. Die Implementierung von Spaces erfolgt als orthogonale Erweiterung einer Implementierung für die zugrundeliegende Programmiersprache. Das Ergebnis ist konkurrenzfähig zu existierenden Constraintprogrammiersystemen