Robust routing

In a network, traffic demands are known with a degree of uncertainty, traffic engineering should take into account the traffic variability. In this research work we focus on the robust routing under changing network conditions. Daily Internet traffic pattern shows that network is vulnerable to malicious attacks, denial of service attacks, worms and viruses. Oblivious routing has a substantially better performance than open shortest path first [OSPF] routing for different level of uncertainty. We propose a theoretical framework for Robust Routing aiming to improve online and offline traffic engineering approaches

Pharmacological basis for the medicinal use of polyherbal formulation and its ingredients in cardiovascular disorders using rodents

A compound herbal formulation (POL4) has been used in the indigenous system of medicine to treat cardiometabolic disorders like diabetes and associated hypertension. POL4 and most of its constituents have not been studied widely for its therapeutic use in hypertension. This study is aimed to determine the efficacy and possible insight into mechanism(s) for the medicinal use of POL4 and its ingredients in hypertension

Grommet Surgery in Children With Orofacial Clefts in England.

OBJECTIVE: To assess grommet insertion practice in the first 5 years of life among children with an orofacial cleft in England. DESIGN: Analysis of national administrative data of hospital admissions. SETTING: National Health Service hospitals, England. PATIENTS: Patients born between 1997 and 2005 who underwent surgical cleft repair. INTERVENTION: Children receiving grommets before the age of 5 years. OUTCOME MEASURES: The proportion of children receiving grommets before the age of 5 years, the timing of the first grommet insertion, and the proportion of children having repeat grommet insertions were examined according to cleft type, the absence or presence of additional anomalies, socioeconomic deprivation, and region of residence. RESULTS: The study included 8,269 children. Before the age of 5 years, 3,015 (36.5%) children received grommets. Of these, 33.2% received their first grommets at primary cleft repair and 33.3% underwent multiple grommet insertion procedures. The most common age for the first procedure was between 6 and 12 months. Children with a cleft affecting the palate were more likely to receive grommets than children with a cleft lip alone (45.5% versus 4.5%). Grommet insertion practice also varied according to year of birth, absence or presence of additional anomalies, socioeconomic deprivation, and region of residence. CONCLUSION: Grommets practice in children with a cleft appears to vary according to their clinical characteristics. The differences in practice observed according to deprivation and region of residence need to be further explored

Determination of interatomic coupling between two-dimensional crystals using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy

Lack of directional bonding between two-dimensional crystals like graphene or monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides provides unusual freedom in selection of components for vertical van der Waals heterostructures. However, even for identical layers, their stacking, in particular the relative angle between their crystallographic directions, modifies properties of the structure. We demonstrate that the interatomic coupling between two two-dimensional crystals can be determined from angle-resolved photoemission spectra of a trilayer structure with one aligned and one twisted interface. Each of the interfaces provides complementary information and together they enable self-consistent determination of the coupling. We parametrize interatomic coupling for carbon atoms by studying twisted trilayer graphene and show that the result can be applied to structures with different twists and number of layers. Our approach demonstrates how to extract fundamental information about interlayer coupling in a stack of two-dimensional crystals and can be applied to many other van der Waals interfaces.Comment: This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Nature Communications. The final authenticated version is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17412-

Evaluation of seedling resistance and marker assisted selection for leaf rust (Puccinia triticina) resistance in Pakistani wheat landraces, cultivars and advanced lines

Leaf rust is amongst major biotic constraints of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) having ability to cause substantial yield reductions worldwide. A continuous exploration for novel sources of resistance is pre-requisite for its management. Objectives of study were to conduct resistance evaluation of 112 Pakistani landraces and 48 advanced lines/ cultivars at seedling stage with total 10 virulent pathotypes of leaf rust, 3 from Pakistan and 7 from U.S.A and to detect closely linked markers for Lr10, 16, 34 and 67 genes through marker-assisted selection (MAS). Findings revealed most of Pakistani landraces showed lack of resistance at seedling stage. Only 7 accessions of landraces and 11 advanced lines were found highly resistant against all pathotypes of Pakistan. Similarly, 10 advanced lines exhibited high resistance while variability in resistance was recorded for landraces against all pathotypes tested from USA. Marker-assisted selection revealed Lr genes i.e. Lr10, Lr16, Lr34 and Lr67 were present at various frequencies. Highest frequency was observed for Lr34 followed by Lr16 & Lr67 while lowest was recorded for Lr10. These genetic resources and lines identified effective against Pakistan and USA pathotypes are potential sources for improvement of leaf rust (LR) resistance and can be utilized as valuable material for breeding resistant wheat cultivars.Campus Ic

Social mobilisation, drug coverage and compliance and adverse reactions in a Mass Drug Administration (MDA) Programme for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis in Sri Lanka

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens

Don’t turn your back on the symptoms of psychosis : a proof-of-principle, quasi-experimental public health trial to reduce the duration of untreated psychosis in Birmingham, UK

Background: Reducing the duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) is an aspiration of international guidelines for first episode psychosis; however, public health initiatives have met with mixed results. Systematic reviews suggest that greater focus on the sources of delay within care pathways, (which will vary between healthcare settings) is needed to achieve sustainable reductions in DUP (BJP 198: 256-263; 2011). Methods/Design: A quasi-experimental trial, comparing a targeted intervention area with a ‘detection as usual’ area in the same city. A proof-of–principle trial, no a priori assumptions are made regarding effect size; key outcome will be an estimate of the potential effect size for a definitive trial. DUP and number of new cases will be collected over an 18-month period in target and control areas and compared; historical data on DUP collected in both areas over the previous three years, will serve as a benchmark. The intervention will focus on reducing two significant DUP component delays within the overall care pathway: delays within the mental health service and help-seeking delay. Discussion: This pragmatic trial will be the first to target known delays within the care pathway for those with a first episode of psychosis. If successful, this will provide a generalizable methodology that can be implemented in a variety of healthcare contexts with differing sources of delay. Trial registration: http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN45058713 Keywords: Public mental health campaign, First-episode psychosis, Early detection, Duration of untreated psychosis, Youth mental healt

Robust Protection of III-V Nanowires in Water Splitting by a Thin Compact TiO2 Layer.

Narrow-band-gap III-V semiconductor nanowires (NWs) with a suitable band structure and strong light-trapping ability are ideal for high-efficiency low-cost solar water-splitting systems. However, due to their nanoscale dimension, they suffer more severe corrosion by the electrolyte solution than the thin-film counterparts. Thus, short-term durability is the major obstacle for using these NWs for practical water-splitting applications. Here, we demonstrated for the first time that a thin layer (∼7 nm thick) of compact TiO2 deposited by atomic layer deposition can provide robust protection to III-V NWs. The protected GaAs NWs maintain 91.4% of its photoluminescence intensity after 14 months of storage in ambient atmosphere, which suggests the TiO2 layer is pinhole-free. Working as a photocathode for water splitting, they exhibited a 45% larger photocurrent density compared with unprotected counterparts and a high Faraday efficiency of 91% and can also maintain a record-long highly stable performance among narrow-band-gap III-V NW photoelectrodes; after 67 h photoelectrochemical stability test reaction in a strong acid electrolyte solution (pH = 1), they show no apparent indication of corrosion, which is in stark contrast to the unprotected NWs that fully failed after 35 h. These findings provide an effective way to enhance both stability and performance of III-V NW-based photoelectrodes, which are highly important for practical applications in solar-energy-based water-splitting systems

Prenatal exposure to DDT in malaria endemic region following indoor residual spraying and in non-malaria coastal regions of South Africa

Exemption was granted by the Stockholm Convention in 2004 for use of DDT by indoor residual spraying (IRS) as a malaria vector control. South Africa endorsed the use of DDT in its Malaria Control Programmes in malaria endemic regions and IRS remains a primary method of controlling malaria transmitting mosquitoes in this country. This study examines the impact of IRS on the levels of DDT and its metabolites in maternal blood of delivering women as a measure of prenatal exposure. We report on the concentrations of DDT and its metabolites (p,p′- DDE, p,p′-DDT, o,p′-DDE, o,p′-DDD, p,p′-DDD, and o,p′-DDT) in maternal plasma of 255 delivering women residing in three sites along Indian Ocean, namely in malaria endemic where IRS takes place, low risk and non-malaria sites. Concentrations of measured compounds were found to be significantly higher in the malaria endemic site (p = 0.0001): the geometric mean concentration (95% confidence intervals; n = 91) for o,p′-DDE was 9 ng/g lipids (7–10); for p,p′-DDE, 3840 ng/g lipids (3008–4902); for o,p′-DDD, 8 ng/g lipids (6–9); for p,p′-DDD, 26 ng/g lipids (20–32); for o,p′-DDT, 168 ng/g lipids (127–221) and for p,p′-DDT, 2194 ng/g lipids (1706–2823). These compounds were also detected in women residing in other sites but in lower concentrations. The maternal characteristics, age, IRS, number of children and breastfeeding were significantly associated for both p,p′-DDE and p,p′-DDT levels in the malaria area where exposure through IRS is predominant. There was no association between maternal characteristics and DDT levels in the low risk and non-malaria area. Results presented are of particular value to the policy decision makers and regulatory toxicology organizations as they characterise the extent of controlled exposure to DDT used exclusively for IRS purposes. Furthermore, findings of this study will form a base for further investigation of foetal exposure to pollutants.Research Council of Norway and National Research Foundation, South Africa (Grant 64528), the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), the Royal Norwegian Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the SA Medical Research Council.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/scitotenvhb2013ay201