An intelligent fuzzy based system for market design agents

In this paper, we will present an intelligent fuzzy logic based system for market agents operating within the Trading Agent Competition's Market Design game. The objective of this competition is to design intelligent agents and systems that would be able to manage an electronic double auction market effectively in competition with other markets for market share and profit. Thus the market share and profit along with the market's transaction success rate constitute the agent's score in the game. Managing the market involves setting rules for accepting, matching and clearing offers as well as pricing transactions and imposing fees. In this paper, we will present our agent which is called MyFuzzy which employs a fuzzy logic based module to impose its fees in order to balance the profit and market share. The novelty of this approach lies in the fact that it makes minimal assumptions about the nature of the game environment by using fuzzy techniques to adapt the agent behaviour by recognizing the market context. This allowed our agent to achieve superior performance to the other existing techniques as it avoids factors that other agents overlook. Furthermore, we introduce novel modifications of existing pricing and accepting techniques to work in conjunction with our charging module. The proposed agent has been compared against the other agents (including the winners of the 2009 trading agents competition) where our agent has achieved superior performance. © 2010 IEEE

Status of Diphtheria Immunity Among Saudi Population

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of diphtheria by a cross-sectional in Saudi population. The size of the population consisted of five-hundred healthy subjects from the western regions of Saudi Arabia from six months to 96 years age. ELISA assay kits was used to titers anti-diphtheria IgG. According to the widely used criteria, 31.7% of the total population was susceptible to diphtheria (IgG level 1.0 IU/ml). The majority (82%) of the population from 6 months to 96 years had a protective level of IgG against diphtheria. The frequencies of susceptibility were relatively high in middle-aged periods (30.2 - 37.5% of subjects aged 21–50 years). Significantly, more females (20.7%) than males (15%) were unprotected against diphtheria. In conclusion, monitoring immunization status and administering the diphtheria vaccine as required are essential to ensure adequate and long-lasting antibody levels

Disorder in Milk Proteins: Caseins, Intrinsically Disordered Colloids

This article opens a series of reviews on the abundance and roles of intrinsic disorder in milk proteins. The focus of this introductory article on caseins is symbolic, since caseins were among the first recognized functional unfolded proteins and since they are definitely the most disordered, the most abundant, and the most studied of all milk proteins. In eutherian milks, the casein family includes at least three and usually four major members (αs1-, αS2-, β-, and Κ-caseins) that are unrelated in sequence. However, in some species, two different αS2-casein genes are active, and therefore the total number of caseins can be as high as five. These proteins have found a number of uses in food industry. The functional repertoire of caseins ranges from nutritional function to involvement in the improving and/or maintaining cardiovascular health, to crucial contribution to the milk capacity to transport calcium phosphate, to serve as molecular chaperones, and to protect the mother’s mammary gland against amyloidoses and ectopic calcification. An intricate feature of caseins is their ability to assemble to colloidal protein particles, casein micelles, serving to sequester and transport amorphous calcium phosphate. These and many other functions of caseins are obviously dependent on their intrinsically disordered nature and are controlled by various posttranslational modifications. Since various aspects of casein structure and function are rather well studied and since several recent reviews emphasized the functional roles of caseins’ intrinsic disorder, the major goal of this article is to show how intrinsic disorder is encoded in the amino acid sequences of these proteins

Virucidal Activity of Human Α- and Β-defensins against Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 4

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the major etiological agent of human non-A and non-B hepatitis affecting about 180 million people worldwide. The goal of the current study was to find effective anti-HCV proteins. As a result, defensins were selected as promising candidates due to their well-known anti-viral potential and small size. We conducted in vitro evaluation of two kinds of defensins (human α- and β-defensins and synthetic linear avian α-defensins) using tissue culture combined with reverse transcription nested PCR (RT-nested-PCR) and real-time PCR. Human α- and β-defensins showed strong anti-HCV activity in experiments on cellular protection, neutralization, and treatment at all concentrations used (10, 20 and 50 μg). The synthetic linear defensins could reach similar anti-HCV potential only at a noticeably higher concentration (250 μg) and do not show noticeable activity at 10 and 20 μg. This study suggests that defensins are potent anti-HCV agents

Disorder in Milk Proteins: Structure, Functional Disorder, and Biocidal Potentials of Lactoperoxidase

This article continues a series of reviews on the abundance and roles of intrinsic disorder in milk proteins. Besides caseins, which are the major proteinaceous constituents of any milk that can be isolated by isoelectric precipitation, milk contains a set of soluble whey proteins, such as β-lactoglobulin, α-lactalbumin, serum albumin, immunoglobulins, lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase, glycomacropeptide, and proteose peptone (the last two are soluble casein derivatives). Lactoferrin and lactoperoxidase (LPO) are known to possess prominent biocidal activity, serving as efficient antibiotics and antiviral agents against a wide spectrum of bacteria, fungi, and viruses. LPO is a heme-containing peroxidase expressed as preproprotein. The mature protein has a single catalytic domain, structure of which is known for a protein isolated from several species. Functionally, LPO is a crucial component of the LPO system that includes LPO, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and thiocyanate (SCN−), being a well-studied, naturally occurring antimicrobial system in milk that is effective against many microorganisms and some viruses. Although various aspects of LPO structure and function are rather well studied and were subjects of several recent reviews, the abundance and potential functional roles of intrinsically disordered regions in this protein have never being addressed as of yet. The major goal of this article is to fill this gap and to show how intrinsic disorder is encoded in the amino acid sequence of LPO, and how intrinsic disorder is related to functions of this important milk protein

Disorder in Milk Proteins: Structure, Functional Disorder, and Biocidal Potentials of Lactoperoxidase

This article continues a series of reviews on the abundance and roles of intrinsic disorder in milk proteins. Besides caseins, which are the major proteinaceous constituents of any milk that can be isolated by isoelectric precipitation, milk contains a set of soluble whey proteins, such as β-lactoglobulin, α-lactalbumin, serum albumin, immunoglobulins, lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase, glycomacropeptide, and proteose peptone (the last two are soluble casein derivatives). Lactoferrin and lactoperoxidase (LPO) are known to possess prominent biocidal activity, serving as efficient antibiotics and antiviral agents against a wide spectrum of bacteria, fungi, and viruses. LPO is a heme-containing peroxidase expressed as preproprotein. The mature protein has a single catalytic domain, structure of which is known for a protein isolated from several species. Functionally, LPO is a crucial component of the LPO system that includes LPO, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and thiocyanate (SCN−), being a well-studied, naturally occurring antimicrobial system in milk that is effective against many microorganisms and some viruses. Although various aspects of LPO structure and function are rather well studied and were subjects of several recent reviews, the abundance and potential functional roles of intrinsically disordered regions in this protein have never being addressed as of yet. The major goal of this article is to fill this gap and to show how intrinsic disorder is encoded in the amino acid sequence of LPO, and how intrinsic disorder is related to functions of this important milk protein

Structural Heterogeneity and Multifunctionality of Lactoferrin

Lactoferrin or lactotransferrin is a multifunctional glycoprotein found in blood circulation, mucosal surfaces, neutrophils, and in various secretory fluids, such as milk, bile, tears, nasal secretion, pancreatic juice, and saliva. The lactoferrin content in milk varies between different mammalian species and, within one species, between lactation periods. Although lactoferrin is known to be involved with immunoprotection, its functions are not limited to the regulation of innate immunity, but extend to iron transfer to cells, control of the level of free iron in blood and external secretions, interaction with DNA, RNA, heparin, and polysaccharides, and pronounced antimicrobial and antiviral activities. This multifunctionality is determined by the fact that lactoferrin belongs to the class of hybrid proteins possessing both ordered domains and functionally important intrinsically disordered regions. Structurally, lactoferrin is a globular glycoprotein with a molecular mass of about 80 kDa consisting of two homologous domains known as N-terminal and C-terminal lobes. These lobes are unevenly glycosylated (with the C-lobe typically containing more N-linked glycosylation sites). Each lobe can bind a single ferric ion concomitantly with one bicarbonate anion. Lactoferrin and its lobes have a wide spectrum of antimicrobial and antiviral activities, with the antimicrobial and antiviral potentials dependent on the type of microbes and viruses. Often, the N-lobe possesses the majority of antimicrobial activities. In addition, lactoferrin and its lobes possess clear anti-cancer, wound healing, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulation activities

Acylated pregnane glycosides from Caralluma quadrangula

In a previous study, the methanolic extract as well as the chloroform fraction of the aerial parts of Caralluma quadrangula (Forssk.) N.E.Br. indigenous to Saudi Arabia showed significant in vitro cytotoxic activity against breast cancer (MCF7) cell line. In a biologically-guided fractionation approach, four acylated pregnane glycosides were isolated from the chloroform fraction of C. quadrangula. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated by the analysis of their MS and NMR data. The compounds were identified as 12,20-di-O-benzoylboucerin 3-O-?-D-digitoxopyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-canaropyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-cymaropyranoside (1), 12,20-di-O-benzoylboucerin 3-O-?-D-cymaropyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-canaropyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-cymaropyranoside (2), 12,20-di-O-benzoylboucerin 3-O-?-D-glucopyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-digitoxopyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-canaropyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-cymaropyranoside (3) and 12,20-di-O-benzoyl-3?,5?,12?,14?,20-pentahydroxy-(20R)-pregn-6-ene 3-O-?-D-glucopyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-digitoxopyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-canaropyranosyl-(1?4)-?-D-cymaropyranoside (4). The isolated compounds were tested for their cytotoxic activity against breast cancer (MCF7) cell line