HaloDom: a new database of halophiles across all life domains

Abstract Background Halophilic organisms may thrive in or tolerate high salt concentrations. They have been studied for decades and a considerable number of papers reporting new halophilic species are being published every year. However, an extensive collection of these salt-loving organisms does not exist nowadays. Halophilic life forms have representatives from all three life domains, Archaea, Bacteria and Eukarya. The purpose of this study was to search for all documented halophilic species in the scientific literature and accommodate this information in the form of an online database. Results We recorded more than 1000 halophilic species from the scientific literature. From these, 21.9% belong to Archaea, 50.1% to Bacteria and 27.9% to Eukaryotes. Our records contain basic information such as the salinity that a particular organism was found, its taxonomy and genomic information via NCBI and other links. The online database named “HaloDom” can be accessed at http://www.halodom.bio.auth.gr. Conclusions Over the last few years, data on halophiles are growing fast. Compared to previous efforts, this new halophiles database expands its coverage to all life domains and offers a valuable reference system for studies in biotechnology, early life evolution and comparative genomics

Forensics for multi-stage cyber incidents: survey and future directions

The increase in the complexity and sophistication of multi-stage cyber attacks, such as advanced persistent threats, paired with the large volume of data pro- duced by modern systems and networks, have made forensic investigations more demanding in knowledge and resources. Thus, it is essential that cyber forensic investigators are supported to operate more efficiently, in terms of resources and evidence recovery, and cope with a wide range of cyber incidents. This paper presents a comprehensive survey of 49 works that aim to sup- port cyber forensic investigations of modern multi-stage cyber incidents and highlights the need for decision support systems on the field. The works reviewed are compared using 11 criteria, such as their evaluation method, how they optimise the forensic process, or what stage of investigation they study. We also classify the surveyed papers using 8 categories that represent the overall aim of the proposed cyber investigation method or tool. We identify and discuss open issues, arising from this extensive survey, such as the need for realistic evaluation, as well as realistic and representative modelling to increase applicability and performance. Finally, we provide directions for future research on improving the state-of-the-art of cyber forensics

Comparative effectiveness and survival of infliximab, adalimumab, and etanercept for rheumatoid arthritis patients in the Hellenic Registry of Biologics: Low rates of remission and 5-year drug survival

Objective: To compare effectiveness, drug survival, and safety between infliximab, adalimumab, and etanercept, in a nationwide cohort of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Methods: This study is a prospective cohort study of 1208 active RA patients. Effectiveness, drug survival, and serious adverse events during entire follow-up (median 2.9 years) were monitored. Results: EULAR and CDAI responses were comparable between the three agents (EULAR good/moderate responses at 12 months ranged 76-79%). At 12 months, 15-23% achieved remission. For adalimumab and etanercept, adjusted hazard rate (HR) for EULAR/ACR remission (reference: infliximab) was 2.7 and 2.1 (95% confidence interval was 1.7-4.1 and 1.3-3.4, respectively); males (HR 1.6; 1.1-2.4), use of glucocorticoids (HR 2.0; 13-3.0), and swollen joint count > 7 (HR 0.36; 0.24-0.55) were independent predictors. Five-year drug survival was 31%, 43%, and 49% for infliximab, adalimumab, and etanercept, respectively (p = 0.010). Infliximab was associated with significantly more withdrawals due to adverse events. Disease activity, CRP, and use of glucocorticoids predicted efficacy-related drug survival; age, use of methotrexate, and prior DMARDs failures predicted safety-related survival. Risk for serious infections was lower with adalimumab (odds ratio [OR] 0.62; 0.38-1.00) or etanercept (OR 0.39; 0.21-0.72) than infliximab, independent of the effects of age (OR 1.65; 1.37-2.00 per 10 years), tender joint count > 10 (OR 1.86; 1.21-2.86), and glucocorticoids >35 mg/week (OR 1.83; 1.12-2.99). Conclusions: Response rates were comparable among anti-TNF agents. Overall, 5-year drug survival was below 50%, with infliximab demonstrating increased safety-related discontinuations. Remission rates are low in clinical practice. Strategies to increase effectiveness and long-term survival of anti-TNF agents in RA are needed. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved