Brief Announcement: Authenticated Consensus in Synchronous Systems with Mixed Faults

Protocols solving authenticated consensus in synchronous networks with Byzantine faults have been widely researched and known to exists if and only if n > 2f for f Byzantine faults. Similarly, protocols solving authenticated consensus in partially synchronous networks are known to exist if n > 3f+2k for f Byzantine faults and k crash faults. In this work we fill a natural gap in our knowledge by presenting MixSync, an authenticated consensus protocol in synchronous networks resilient to f Byzantine faults and k crash faults if n > 2f+k. As a basic building block, we first define and then construct a publicly verifiable crusader agreement protocol with the same resilience. The protocol uses a simple double-send round to guarantee non-equivocation, a technique later used in the MixSync protocol. We then discuss how to construct a state machine replication protocol using these ideas, and how they can be used in general to make such protocols resilient to crash faults. Finally, we prove lower bounds showing that n > 2f+k is optimally resilient for consensus and state machine replication protocols

Dysfunctional regulation of ocular blood flow: A risk factor for glaucoma?

Primary open angle glaucoma (OAG) is a multifactorial optic neuropathy characterized by progressive retinal ganglion cell death and associated visual field loss. OAG is an emerging disease with increasing costs and negative outcomes, yet its fundamental pathophysiology remains largely undetermined. A major treatable risk factor for glaucoma is elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Despite the medical lowering of IOP, however, some glaucoma patients continue to experience disease progression and subsequent irreversible vision loss. The scientific community continues to accrue evidence suggesting that alterations in ocular blood flow play a prominent role in OAG disease processes. This article develops the thesis that dysfunctional regulation of ocular blood flow may contribute to glaucomatous optic neuropathy. Evidence suggests that impaired vascular autoregulation renders the optic nerve head susceptible to decreases in ocular perfusion pressure, increases in IOP, and/or increased local metabolic demands. Ischemic damage, which likely contributes to further impairment in autoregulation, results in changes to the optic nerve head consistent with glaucoma. Included in this review are discussions of conditions thought to contribute to vascular regulatory dysfunction in OAG, including atherosclerosis, vasospasm, and endothelial dysfunction

Authenticated Consensus in Synchronous Systems with Mixed Faults

Protocols solving authenticated consensus in synchronous networks with Byzantine faults have been widely researched and known to exists if and only if $n>2f$ for $f$ Byzantine faults. Similarly, protocols solving authenticated consensus in partially synchronous networks are known to exist if $n>3f+2k$ for $f$ Byzantine faults and $k$ crash faults. Currently, the only known synchronous protocol for consensus with a resilience of $n>2f+k$ is a binary consensus protocol. In this work we fill a natural gap in our knowledge by presenting MixSync, an authenticated multivalued consensus protocol in synchronous networks resilient to $f$ Byzantine faults and $k$ crash faults if $n>2f+k$. As a basic building block, we first define and then construct a publicly verifiable crusader agreement protocol with the same resilience. The protocol uses a simple double-send round to guarantee non-equivocation, a technique later used in the MixSync protocol. We then discuss how to construct a state machine replication protocol using these ideas, and how they can be used in general to make such protocols resilient to crash faults. Finally, we prove lower bounds showing that $n>2f+k$ is optimally resilient for consensus and state machine replication protocols

The Changing Landscape for Stroke\ua0Prevention in AF: Findings From the GLORIA-AF Registry Phase 2

Background GLORIA-AF (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation) is a prospective, global registry program describing antithrombotic treatment patterns in patients with newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation at risk of stroke. Phase 2 began when dabigatran, the first non\u2013vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant (NOAC), became available. Objectives This study sought to describe phase 2 baseline data and compare these with the pre-NOAC era collected during phase 1. Methods During phase 2, 15,641 consenting patients were enrolled (November 2011 to December 2014); 15,092 were eligible. This pre-specified cross-sectional analysis describes eligible patients\u2019 baseline characteristics. Atrial fibrillation disease characteristics, medical outcomes, and concomitant diseases and medications were collected. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results Of the total patients, 45.5% were female; median age was 71 (interquartile range: 64, 78) years. Patients were from Europe (47.1%), North America (22.5%), Asia (20.3%), Latin America (6.0%), and the Middle East/Africa (4.0%). Most had high stroke risk (CHA2DS2-VASc [Congestive heart failure, Hypertension, Age  6575 years, Diabetes mellitus, previous Stroke, Vascular disease, Age 65 to 74 years, Sex category] score  652; 86.1%); 13.9% had moderate risk (CHA2DS2-VASc = 1). Overall, 79.9% received oral anticoagulants, of whom 47.6% received NOAC and 32.3% vitamin K antagonists (VKA); 12.1% received antiplatelet agents; 7.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. For comparison, the proportion of phase 1 patients (of N = 1,063 all eligible) prescribed VKA was 32.8%, acetylsalicylic acid 41.7%, and no therapy 20.2%. In Europe in phase 2, treatment with NOAC was more common than VKA (52.3% and 37.8%, respectively); 6.0% of patients received antiplatelet treatment; and 3.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. In North America, 52.1%, 26.2%, and 14.0% of patients received NOAC, VKA, and antiplatelet drugs, respectively; 7.5% received no antithrombotic treatment. NOAC use was less common in Asia (27.7%), where 27.5% of patients received VKA, 25.0% antiplatelet drugs, and 19.8% no antithrombotic treatment. Conclusions The baseline data from GLORIA-AF phase 2 demonstrate that in newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients, NOAC have been highly adopted into practice, becoming more frequently prescribed than VKA in Europe and North America. Worldwide, however, a large proportion of patients remain undertreated, particularly in Asia and North America. (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation [GLORIA-AF]; NCT01468701

Schizophrenia-associated somatic copy-number variants from 12,834 cases reveal recurrent NRXN1 and ABCB11 disruptions

While germline copy-number variants (CNVs) contribute to schizophrenia (SCZ) risk, the contribution of somatic CNVs (sCNVs)—present in some but not all cells—remains unknown. We identified sCNVs using blood-derived genotype arrays from 12,834 SCZ cases and 11,648 controls, filtering sCNVs at loci recurrently mutated in clonal blood disorders. Likely early-developmental sCNVs were more common in cases (0.91%) than controls (0.51%, p = 2.68e−4), with recurrent somatic deletions of exons 1–5 of the NRXN1 gene in five SCZ cases. Hi-C maps revealed ectopic, allele-specific loops forming between a potential cryptic promoter and non-coding cis-regulatory elements upon 5′ deletions in NRXN1. We also observed recurrent intragenic deletions of ABCB11, encoding a transporter implicated in anti-psychotic response, in five treatment-resistant SCZ cases and showed that ABCB11 is specifically enriched in neurons forming mesocortical and mesolimbic dopaminergic projections. Our results indicate potential roles of sCNVs in SCZ risk