Information Security Risk Assessment Methods in Cloud Computing: Comprehensive Review

Cloud computing faces more security threats, requiring better security measures. This paper examines the various classification and categorization schemes for cloud computing security issues, including the widely known CIA trinity (confidentiality, integrity, and availability), by considering critical aspects of the cloud, such as service models, deployment models, and involved parties. A comprehensive comparison of cloud security classifications constructs an exhaustive taxonomy. ISO27005, NIST SP 800–30, CRAMM, CORAS, OCTAVE Allegro, and COBIT 5 are rigorously compared based on their applicability, adaptability, and suitability within a cloud-based hosting methodology. The findings of this research recommend OCTAVE Allegro as the preferred cloud hosting paradigm. With many security models available in management studies, it is imperative to identify those suitable for the rapidly expanding and dynamically evolving cloud environment. This study underscores the significant methods for securing data on cloud-hosting platforms, thereby contributing to establishing a robust cloud security taxonomy and hosting methodology

A novel mutation in HSD11B2 causes apparent mineralocorticoid excess in an Omani kindred

Apparent mineralocorticoid excess (AME) is a rare autosomal recessive genetic disorder causing severe hypertension in childhood due to a deficiency of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11βHSD2), which is encoded by HSD11B2. Without treatment, chronic hypertension leads to early development of end-organ damage. Approximately 40 causative mutations in HSD11B2 have been identified in ∼100 AME patients worldwide. We have studied the clinical presentation, biochemical parameters, and molecular genetics in six patients from a consanguineous Omani family with AME. DNA sequence analysis of affected members of this family revealed homozygous c.799A>G mutations within exon 4 of HSD11B2, corresponding to a p.T267A mutation of 11βHSD2. The structural change and predicted consequences owing to the p.T267A mutation have been modeled in silico. We conclude that this novel mutation is responsible for AME in this family

Clinical, genetic, and structural basis of apparent mineralocorticoid excess due to 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 deficiency

Mutations in 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 gene (HSD11B2) cause an extraordinarily rare autosomal recessive disorder, apparent mineralocorticoid excess (AME). AME is a form of low renin hypertension that is potentially fatal if untreated. Mutations in the HSD11B2 gene result either in severe AME or a milder phenotype (type 2 AME). To date, ∼40 causative mutations have been identified. As part of the International Consortium for Rare Steroid Disorders, we have diagnosed and followed the largest single worldwide cohort of 36 AME patients. Here, we present the genotype and clinical phenotype of these patients, prominently from consanguineous marriages in the Middle East, who display profound hypertension and hypokalemic alkalosis. To correlate mutations with phenotypic severity, we constructed a computational model of the HSD11B2 protein. Having used a similar strategy for the in silico evaluation of 150 mutations of CYP21A2, the disease-causing gene in congenital adrenal hyperplasia, we now provide a full structural explanation for the clinical severity of AME resulting from each known HSD11B2 missense mutation. We find that mutations that allow the formation of an inactive dimer, alter substrate/coenzyme binding, or impair structural stability of HSD11B2 yield severe AME. In contrast, mutations that cause an indirect disruption of substrate binding or mildly alter intramolecular interactions result in type 2 AME. A simple in silico evaluation of novel missense mutations could help predict the often-diverse phenotypes of an extremely rare monogenic disorder

Abnormal ECG Findings in Athletes: Clinical Evaluation and Considerations.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Pre-participation cardiovascular evaluation with electrocardiography is normal practice for most sporting bodies. Awareness about sudden cardiac death in athletes and recognizing how screening can help identify vulnerable athletes have empowered different sporting disciplines to invest in the wellbeing of their athletes. RECENT FINDINGS: Discerning physiological electrical alterations due to athletic training from those representing cardiac pathology may be challenging. The mode of investigation of affected athletes is dependent on the electrical anomaly and the disease(s) in question. This review will highlight specific pathological ECG patterns that warrant assessment and surveillance, together with an in-depth review of the recommended algorithm for evaluation

The Calcitonin and Glucocorticoids Combination: Mechanistic Insights into Their Class-Effect Synergy in Experimental Arthritis

PMCID: PMC3564948This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Quantum entanglement and disentanglement of multi-atom systems

We present a review of recent research on quantum entanglement, with special emphasis on entanglement between single atoms, processing of an encoded entanglement and its temporary evolution. Analysis based on the density matrix formalism are described. We give a simple description of the entangling procedure and explore the role of the environment in creation of entanglement and in disentanglement of atomic systems. A particular process we will focus on is spontaneous emission, usually recognized as an irreversible loss of information and entanglement encoded in the internal states of the system. We illustrate some certain circumstances where this irreversible process can in fact induce entanglement between separated systems. We also show how spontaneous emission reveals a competition between the Bell states of a two qubit system that leads to the recently discovered "sudden" features in the temporal evolution of entanglement. An another problem illustrated in details is a deterministic preparation of atoms and atomic ensembles in long-lived stationary squeezed states and entangled cluster states. We then determine how to trigger the evolution of the stable entanglement and also address the issue of a steered evolution of entanglement between desired pairs of qubits that can be achieved simply by varying the parameters of a given system.Comment: Review articl

Sugar-sweetened carbonated beverage consumption correlates with BMI, waist circumference, and poor dietary choices in school children

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The prevalence of obesity and overweight is increasing globally. Frequently coexisting with under-nutrition in developing countries, obesity is a major contributor to chronic disease, and will become a serious healthcare burden especially in countries with a larger percentage of youthful population. 35% of the population of Saudi Arabia are under the age of 16, and adult dietary preferences are often established during early childhood years. Our objective was to examine the dietary habits in relation to body-mass-index (BMI) and waist circumference (W_C), together with exercise and sleep patterns in a cohort of male and female Saudi school children, in order to ascertain whether dietary patterns are associated with obesity phenotypes in this population.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>5033 boys and 4400 girls aged 10 to 19 years old participated in a designed Food Frequency Questionnaire. BMI and W_C measurements were obtained and correlated with dietary intake.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was 12.2% and 27.0% respectively, with boys having higher obesity rates than girls (P ≤ 0.001). W_C and BMI was positively correlated with sugar-sweetened carbonated beverage (SSCB) intake in boys only. The association between male BMI and SSCB consumption was significant in a multivariate regression model (P < 0.0001). SSCB intake was positively associated with poor dietary choices in both males and females. Fast food meal intake, savory snacks, iced desserts and total sugar consumption correlated with SSCB intake in both boys (r = 0.39, 0.13, 0.10 and 0.52 respectively, P < 0.001) and girls (r = 0.45, 0.23, 0.16 and 0.55 respectively, P < 0.001). Older children reported eating significantly less fruit and vegetables than younger children; and less eggs, fish and cereals. Conversely, consumption of SSCB and sugar-sweetened hot beverages were higher in older versus younger children (P < 0.001). BMI and W_C were negatively correlated with hours of night-time sleep and exercise in boys, but only with night time sleep in girls, who also showed the lowest frequency of exercise.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A higher intake of SSCB is associated with poor dietary choices. Male SSCB intake correlates with a higher W_C and BMI. Limiting exposure to SSCB could therefore have a large public health impact.</p

Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

SummaryBackground The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 provides an up-to-date synthesis of the evidence for risk factor exposure and the attributable burden of disease. By providing national and subnational assessments spanning the past 25 years, this study can inform debates on the importance of addressing risks in context. Methods We used the comparative risk assessment framework developed for previous iterations of the Global Burden of Disease Study to estimate attributable deaths, disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and trends in exposure by age group, sex, year, and geography for 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks from 1990 to 2015. This study included 388 risk-outcome pairs that met World Cancer Research Fund-defined criteria for convincing or probable evidence. We extracted relative risk and exposure estimates from randomised controlled trials, cohorts, pooled cohorts, household surveys, census data, satellite data, and other sources. We used statistical models to pool data, adjust for bias, and incorporate covariates. We developed a metric that allows comparisons of exposure across risk factors—the summary exposure value. Using the counterfactual scenario of theoretical minimum risk level, we estimated the portion of deaths and DALYs that could be attributed to a given risk. We decomposed trends in attributable burden into contributions from population growth, population age structure, risk exposure, and risk-deleted cause-specific DALY rates. We characterised risk exposure in relation to a Socio-demographic Index (SDI). Findings Between 1990 and 2015, global exposure to unsafe sanitation, household air pollution, childhood underweight, childhood stunting, and smoking each decreased by more than 25%. Global exposure for several occupational risks, high body-mass index (BMI), and drug use increased by more than 25% over the same period. All risks jointly evaluated in 2015 accounted for 57·8% (95% CI 56·6–58·8) of global deaths and 41·2% (39·8–42·8) of DALYs. In 2015, the ten largest contributors to global DALYs among Level 3 risks were high systolic blood pressure (211·8 million [192·7 million to 231·1 million] global DALYs), smoking (148·6 million [134·2 million to 163·1 million]), high fasting plasma glucose (143·1 million [125·1 million to 163·5 million]), high BMI (120·1 million [83·8 million to 158·4 million]), childhood undernutrition (113·3 million [103·9 million to 123·4 million]), ambient particulate matter (103·1 million [90·8 million to 115·1 million]), high total cholesterol (88·7 million [74·6 million to 105·7 million]), household air pollution (85·6 million [66·7 million to 106·1 million]), alcohol use (85·0 million [77·2 million to 93·0 million]), and diets high in sodium (83·0 million [49·3 million to 127·5 million]). From 1990 to 2015, attributable DALYs declined for micronutrient deficiencies, childhood undernutrition, unsafe sanitation and water, and household air pollution; reductions in risk-deleted DALY rates rather than reductions in exposure drove these declines. Rising exposure contributed to notable increases in attributable DALYs from high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, occupational carcinogens, and drug use. Environmental risks and childhood undernutrition declined steadily with SDI; low physical activity, high BMI, and high fasting plasma glucose increased with SDI. In 119 countries, metabolic risks, such as high BMI and fasting plasma glucose, contributed the most attributable DALYs in 2015. Regionally, smoking still ranked among the leading five risk factors for attributable DALYs in 109 countries; childhood underweight and unsafe sex remained primary drivers of early death and disability in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Interpretation Declines in some key environmental risks have contributed to declines in critical infectious diseases. Some risks appear to be invariant to SDI. Increasing risks, including high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, drug use, and some occupational exposures, contribute to rising burden from some conditions, but also provide opportunities for intervention. Some highly preventable risks, such as smoking, remain major causes of attributable DALYs, even as exposure is declining. Public policy makers need to pay attention to the risks that are increasingly major contributors to global burden. Funding Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Neonatal severe bacterial infection impairment estimates in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America for 2010.

BACKGROUND: Survivors of neonatal infections are at risk of neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI), a burden not previously systematically quantified and yet important for program priority setting. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were undertaken and applied in a three-step compartmental model to estimate NDI cases after severe neonatal bacterial infection in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America in neonates of >32 wk gestation (or >1,500 g). METHODS: We estimated cases of sepsis, meningitis, pneumonia, or no severe bacterial infection from among estimated cases of possible severe bacterial infection ((pSBI) step 1). We applied respective case fatality risks ((CFRs) step 2) and the NDI risk among survivors (step 3). For neonatal tetanus, incidence estimates were based on the estimated deaths, CFRs, and risk of subsequent NDI. RESULTS: For 2010, we estimated 1.7 million (uncertainty range: 1.1-2.4 million) cases of neonatal sepsis, 200,000 (21,000-350,000) cases of meningitis, 510,000 cases (150,000-930,000) of pneumonia, and 79,000 cases (70,000-930,000) of tetanus in neonates >32 wk gestation (or >1,500 g). Among the survivors, we estimated moderate to severe NDI after neonatal meningitis in 23% (95% confidence interval: 19-26%) of survivors, 18,000 (2,700-35,000) cases, and after neonatal tetanus in 16% (6-27%), 4,700 cases (1,700-8,900). CONCLUSION: Data are lacking for impairment after neonatal sepsis and pneumonia, especially among those of >32 wk gestation. Improved recognition and treatment of pSBI will reduce neonatal mortality. Lack of follow-up data for survivors of severe bacterial infections, particularly sepsis, was striking. Given the high incidence of sepsis, even minor NDI would be of major public health importance. Prevention of neonatal infection, improved case management, and support for children with NDI are all important strategies, currently receiving limited policy attention

Poverty and Wellbeing Impacts of Microfinance : What Do We Know?

Over the last 35 years, microfinance has been generally regarded as an effective policy tool in the fight against poverty. Yet, the question of whether access to credit leads to poverty reduction and improved wellbeing remains open. To address this question, we conduct a systematic review of the quantitative literature of microfinance’s impacts in the developing world, and develop a theory of change that links inputs to impacts on several welfare outcomes. Overall, we find that the limited comparability of outcomes and the heterogeneity of microfinance-lending technologies, together with a considerable variation in socio-economic conditions and contexts in which impact studies have been conducted, render the interpretation and generalization of findings intricate. Our results indicate that, at best, microfinance induces short-term dynamism in the financial life of the poor; however, we do not find compelling evidence that this dynamism leads to increases in income, consumption, human capital and assets, and, ultimately, a reduction in poverty