Scaling and Visualizing Network Data to Facilitate in Intrusion Detection Tasks

As the trend of successful network attacks continue to rise, better forms of intrusion, detection and prevention are needed. This thesis addresses network traffic visualization techniques that aid administrators in recognizing attacks. A view of port statistics and Intrusion Detection System (IDS) alerts has been developed. Each help to address issues with analyzing large datasets involving networks. Due to the amount of traffic as well as the range of possible port numbers and IP addresses, scaling techniques are necessary. A port-based overview of network activity produces an improved representation for detecting and responding to malicious activity. We have found that presenting an overview using stacked histograms of aggregate port activity, combined with the ability to drill-down for finer details allows small, yet important details to be noticed and investigated without being obscured by large, usual traffic. Another problem administrators face is the cumbersome amount of alarm data generated from IDS sensors. As a result, important details are often overlooked, and it is difficult to get an overall picture of what is occurring in the network by manually traversing textual alarm logs. We have designed a novel visualization to address this problem by showing alarm activity within a network. Alarm data is presented in an overview from which system administrators can get a general sense of network activity and easily detect anomalies. They additionally have the option of then zooming and drilling down for details. Based on our system administrator requirements study, this graphical layout addresses what system administrators need to see, is faster and easier than analyzing text logs, and uses visualization techniques to effectively scale and display the data. With this design, we have built a tool that effectively uses operational alarm log data generated on the Georgia Tech campus network. For both of these systems, we describe the input data, the system design, and examples. Finally, we summarize potential future work.Ph.D.Committee Chair: Copeland, John; Committee Member: Hamblen, James; Committee Member: Ji, Chuanyi; Committee Member: Owen, Henry; Committee Member: Stasko, Joh

Stress, anxiety, and depression among medical students in a multiethnic setting

Bibi Kulsoom,1 Nasir Ali Afsar2 1Department of Biochemistry, 2Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Background: Contemporary literature suggests that medical education might adversely affect students’ mental health. Alfaisal University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is a developing institution; hence, there has been a concern regarding the mental well-being of the students.Objectives: This study was designed to assess the traits of depression, anxiety, and stress among students in relation to potential underlying reasons.Methods: All 575 medical students across the 5 years of study participated by filling out the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) questionnaire anonymously twice. Firstly, 2–3 weeks before a major examination (pre-examination), and secondly, during regular classes (post-examination). Correlation was sought regarding sex, year of scholarship, attendance of a premedical university preparatory program (UPP), housing, and smoking. Subjective comments from students were also obtained.Results: A total of 76.8% and 74.9% of students participated in pre- and post-examination groups, respectively. The majority were the children of expatriate workers in Saudi Arabia, and included Arabs, South Asians, and North Americans. Prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress was high (43%, 63%, and 41%, respectively) which reduced (to 30%, 47%, and 30%, respectively) to some extent after examinations. Saudis and those who had attended UPP had higher DASS-21 scores. Smoking and female sex predicted higher levels of “baseline” depression, anxiety, or stress. The students perceived the curriculum and schedule to be the primary causes of their high DASS-21 scores.Conclusion: The students had high “baseline” traits of depression, anxiety, and stress, and these were higher if an examination was near, especially among Saudis and those who had attended UPP. Smoking and female sex predicted higher levels of “baseline” depression, anxiety, or stress. Students suggested that study burden and a busy schedule were the major reasons for their high DASS-21 scores. Keywords: DASS, examination, medical education, smoking, depression, anxiety, stres

Gene expression of hENT1, dCK, CDA, dCMPD and topoisomerase IIα as an indicator of chemotherapy response in AML treated with cytarabine and daunorubicin

Bibi Kulsoom,1,2 Tahir Sultan Shamsi,1 Nasir Ali Afsar3 1Center of Excellence in Molecular Medicine, National Institute of Blood Diseases and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Karachi, Pakistan; 2Department of Biochemistry, Jinnah Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan; 3Department of Pharmacology, Jinnah Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan Purpose: Acute myeloid leukemia patients are commonly treated with cytarabine (Ara-C) and anthracyclines but the sustained remission rate is not very promising. We explored the role of drug-metabolizing enzymes and transporters in the therapeutic response.Patients and methods: Bone marrow and peripheral blood samples of 90 newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia patients treated with standard 3+7 regimen were analyzed through real-time PCR for expression of human equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1, deoxycytidine kinase, cytidine deaminase (CDA), deoxycytidine monophosphate deaminase (dCMPD) and topoisomerase IIα (Topo-IIa). The expression of these markers was studied in relationship with good (persistent remission) and poor therapeutic response (relapse/resistance).Results: High Topo-IIa expression in peripheral blood was associated with good response (P=0.006). Relapse was higher among low expressors of Topo-IIa in peripheral blood (OR: 26.25). Bone marrow Topo-IIa expression followed a similar trend but did not reach statistical significance. In contrast, patients with high bone marrow dCMPD expression had poor response (OR: 3; P=0.043). One-year disease-free survival (DFS) was better among those with high bone marrow Topo-IIa (P=0.04) or CDA (P=0.03) expression. High bone marrow Topo-IIa expression also had better DFS at 6 months (P=0.04) and at 12 months (P=0.04).Conclusion: High expression of Topo-IIa in peripheral blood is a favorable indicator of persistent remission, good therapeutic response and DFS. High dCMPD and low CDA expression in bone marrow is associated with poor therapeutic outcome. Keywords: topoisomerase IIα, hENT1, dCMPD, CDA, dCK, survival, AML, antimetabolites, anthracyclines&nbsp

Acquired uterine vascular anomaly: Experience from a tertiary care centre in Pakistan

Objectives: This study aimed to retrospectively review imaging findings and the outcomes of uterine artery embolisation (UAE) in symptomatic uterine vascular anomalies (UVA). Methods: This study included a total of 15 patients with acquired UVA admitted to the Aga Khan University Hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, from 2010 to 2020. These patients were evaluated using ultrasound, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, either alone or in combination. All patients had a history of dilatation and curettage or uterine instrumentation and underwent angiography and embolisation of the uterine arteries. The primary outcome post embolisation was assessed clinically and/or in combination with ultrasound. Post-procedure pregnancies were also recorded. Results: Non-invasive imaging was abnormal in all patients; however, this pre-intervention imaging was unable to accurately classify the type of vascular anomaly, except in the case of a pseudoaneurysm. Conventional angiography showed uterine artery hyperaemia in six patients, arteriovenous malformation in seven patients and pseudoaneurysm in two patients. The technical success rate was 100% and no repeat embolisation was needed. The follow-up ultrasound in 12 patients revealed a resolution of the abnormal findings, while the remaining three were found to be normal on clinical follow-up. Seven patients (46.7%) had a normal pregnancy 15.7 months after the procedure (range: 4-28 months). Conclusions: UAE is a safe and effective management option for intractable severe bleeding in patients with UVA post instrumentation and it was found that the procedure does not impair future pregnanc

Bax, Bcl-2, and Bax/Bcl-2 as prognostic markers in acute myeloid leukemia: are we ready for Bcl-2-directed therapy?

Bibi Kulsoom,1 Tahir Sultan Shamsi,1 Nasir Ali Afsar,2,3 Zahida Memon,4 Nikhat Ahmed,4 Syed Nazrul Hasnain5 1National Institute of Blood Diseases and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Karachi, Pakistan; 2Jinnah Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan; 3College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; 4Ziauddin University, Karachi, Pakistan; 5Dow International Medical College, Karachi, Pakistan Purpose: Many anticancer drugs induce apoptosis in malignant cells, and resistance to apoptosis could lead to suboptimal or no therapeutic benefit. Two cytoplasmic proteins, B-cell lymphoma protein 2 (Bcl-2)-associated X (Bax) and Bcl-2, act as a promoter and an inhibitor of apoptosis, respectively. Both Bax and Bcl-2 as well as their ratio have been regarded as prognostic markers in various cancers. However, conflicting results have been reported. A clear understanding of apoptosis has also become crucial due to reports about anti-Bcl-2 chemotherapy. We explored the relationship of Bax and Bcl-2 gene expression and their ratio with the therapeutic response in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients.Patients and methods: Bone marrow and/or blood samples from 90 AML patients treated with cytarabine and daunorubicin were included. Expression of Bax and Bcl-2 was determined through real-time polymerase chain reaction by using ΔΔCt method of relative expression.Results: Bax and Bcl-2 expression among marrow and blood samples correlated with each other (rs=0.5, p<0.01). Although bone marrow expression of Bax and Bcl-2 tended to remain higher among responders (median 1.01 and 0.29, respectively) as compared to non-responders (median 0.66 and 0.24, respectively), the difference failed to reach statistical significance (U=784.5 and 733; p=0.68 and 0.28, respectively). Conversely, Bax/Bcl-2 ratio was higher among poor responders (median 3.07 vs 1.78), though again failed to reach statistical significance (U=698.5, p=0.07).Conclusion: Expression of Bax and Bcl-2 does not differ significantly among AML patients treated with cytarabine and daunorubicin in terms of remission, relapse, resistance, overall survival, and disease-free survival, thus questioning the utility of emerging anti-Bcl-2 therapy. Keywords: anthracyclines, cytarabine, Bcl-2, Bax Bcl-2 ratio, anti Bcl-2 therapy, BH3 mimetic inhibitor