Whose Genome Is It Anyway?: Re-identification and Privacy Protection in Public and Participatory Genomics

This Comment advocates for a comprehensive solution to achieve the balance between privacy rights and availability of information. In particular, a strong ban on malicious re-identification and broader anti-discrimination and privacy legislation are necessary to ensure the participants\u27 privacy protection and encourage participation in genomics projects. In addition, the scientific community should establish data standards that can aid in implementation of protective measures to minimize privacy violations. Part II provides an overview of recent developments in genomic technologies and public and participatory genomics. Part III summarizes the privacy issues present in public genomics. Part IV reviews current legislation on genetic information and research participation, including their limitations. Part V proposes a multi-faceted solution, including legislative and research governance solutions to adequately balance participants\u27 privacy with information availability

Assessment for the installation of a solar PV system in Pakistan for a sustainable environmental and economic development

In this study, a photovoltaic system with RETScreen software is simulated to see its economic and environmental feasibility in the one of the remote locations in Pakistan. Our proposed photovoltaics power system is installed south Asia: particularly, Pakistan which receives a high amount of solar irradiance throughout the year. The proposed location has an electricity demand of 28.70 MWh/month, and our simulated PV system generates 31 MWh/month which is more than the amount of required electricity demand. The 25 years long life project will have energy payback time of 7.4 years and the net greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction will be 3,942 tCO2 for the whole project life. These results summarize that installation of this solar power system is not only economically feasible, but also reduces the emission of greenhouse gases in that selected location

MR Imaging Findings of a Primary Cardiac Osteosarcoma and Its Bone Metastasis with Histopathologic Correlation

An osteosarcoma of cardiac origin is extremely rare, and a comprehensive description of MR imaging (MRI) findings of cardiac osteosarcoma and its metastasis in the femur have not been reported in the literature. We present a case of cardiac osteosarcoma in a 47-year-old woman and its metastasis to the femur, focusing on the description of MRI findings of the cardiac and metastatic bony osteosarcoma with a histopathologic correlation

TSCOT + Thymic Epithelial Cell-Mediated Sensitive CD4 Tolerance by Direct Presentation

Although much effort has been directed at dissecting the mechanisms of central tolerance, the role of thymic stromal cells remains elusive. In order to further characterize this event, we developed a mouse model restricting LacZ to thymic stromal cotransporter (TSCOT)-expressing thymic stromal cells (TDLacZ). The thymus of this mouse contains approximately 4,300 TSCOT+ cells, each expressing several thousand molecules of the LacZ antigen. TSCOT+ cells express the cortical marker CDR1, CD40, CD80, CD54, and major histocompatibility complex class II (MHCII). When examining endogenous responses directed against LacZ, we observed significant tolerance. This was evidenced in a diverse T cell repertoire as measured by both a CD4 T cell proliferation assay and an antigen-specific antibody isotype analysis. This tolerance process was at least partially independent of Autoimmune Regulatory Element gene expression. When TDLacZ mice were crossed to a novel CD4 T cell receptor (TCR) transgenic reactive against LacZ (BgII), there was a complete deletion of double-positive thymocytes. Fetal thymic reaggregate culture of CD45- and UEA-depleted thymic stromal cells from TDLacZ and sorted TCR-bearing thymocytes excluded the possibility of cross presentation by thymic dendritic cells and medullary epithelial cells for the deletion. Overall, these results demonstrate that the introduction of a neoantigen into TSCOT-expressing cells can efficiently establish complete tolerance and suggest a possible application for the deletion of antigen-specific T cells by antigen introduction into TSCOT+ cells

Trends in obesity at the national and local level among South Korean adolescents

Obesity is a global phenomenon affecting all socioeconomic groups, irrespective of age, gender or ethnicity. In many countries, obesity trends are causing serious public health concerns threatening the viability of basic health care delivery. In this article, we examine the trends of adolescent obesity at the national level in South Korea introducing a new approach for visualising data at the local level based on linked micromap plots. Our analysis shows that the obesity rates for 2013 have only increased slightly since 2006 for South Korean adolescents of both genders in various age groups. However, considerable increases could be observed for the subgroup of adolescent males and adolescent females living in rural areas. Trends at the local level show a slight increase of the prevalence of obesity in most regions of the country, with the highest obesity prevalence found in the Northeast

Time–Frequency Envelope Analysis for Fault Detection of Rotating Machinery Signals with Impulsive Noise

Envelope analysis is a widely used tool for fault detection in rotating machines. In envelope analysis, impulsive noise contaminates the measured signal, making it difficult to extract the features of defects. This paper proposes a time–frequency envelope analysis that overcomes the effects of impulsive noises. Envelope analysis is performed by dividing the signal into several sections through a time window. The effect of impulsive noises is eliminated by using the frequency characteristics of the short time rectangular wave. The proposed method was verified through simulation and experimental data. The simulation was conducted by mathematically modeling a cyclo-stationary process that characterizes rotating machinery signals. In addition, the effectiveness of the method was verified by the measured data of normal and defective air-conditioners produced on the actual assembly line. This simple proposed method is effective enough to detect the faults. In the future, the approaches of big data and deep learning will be required for the development of the prognostic health-management framework

Additional file 2 of Network analysis for estimating standardization trends in genomics using MEDLINE

Supplementary Material

Additional file 1 of Network analysis for estimating standardization trends in genomics using MEDLINE

Supplementary Material