A Survey and Experimental Study on Privacy-Preserving Trajectory Data Publishing

Trajectory data has become ubiquitous nowadays, which can benefit various real-world applications such as traffic management and location-based services. However, trajectories may disclose highly sensitive information of an individual including mobility patterns, personal profiles and gazetteers, social relationships, etc, making it indispensable to consider privacy protection when releasing trajectory data. Ensuring privacy on trajectories demands more than hiding single locations, since trajectories are intrinsically sparse and high-dimensional, and require to protect multi-scale correlations. To this end, extensive research has been conducted to design effective techniques for privacy-preserving trajectory data publishing. Furthermore, protecting privacy requires carefully balance two metrics: privacy and utility. In other words, it needs to protect as much privacy as possible and meanwhile guarantee the usefulness of the released trajectories for data analysis. In this survey, we provide a comprehensive study and a systematic summarization of existing protection models, privacy and utility metrics for trajectories developed in the literature. We also conduct extensive experiments on two real-life public trajectory datasets to evaluate the performance of several representative privacy protection models, demonstrate the trade-off between privacy and utility, and guide the choice of the right privacy model for trajectory publishing given certain privacy and utility desiderata

High-surface-area -Fe2O3/carbon nanocomposite: one-step synthesis and its highly reversible and enhanced high-rate lithium storage properties

Hollow-structured α-Fe2O3/carbon (HIOC) nanocomposite with a high surface area of around 260 m2 g−1 was synthesized by a one-step, in situ, and industrially-oriented spray pyrolysis method using iron lactate and sucrose solution as the precursors. The small α-Fe2O3 nanocrystals were highly dispersed inside amorphous carbon to form a carbon nanocomposite. Electrochemical measurements showed that the carbon played an important role in affecting both the cycle life and the rate capability of the electrode. The HIOC composites showed the best electrochemical performance in terms of high capacity (1210 mAh g−1 at a current density of 0.1 C), enhanced rate capability and excellent cycle stability (720 mAh g−1 at a current density of 2 C up to 220 cycles). HIOC nanocomposite can also be used in other potential applications, such as in gas sensors, catalysts, and biomedical applications because it is easily dispersed in water and has a high surface area

Fermionic Casimir effect with helix boundary condition

In this paper, we consider the fermionic Casimir effect under a new type of space-time topology using the concept of quotient topology. The relation between the new topology and that in Ref. \cite{Feng,Zhai3} is something like that between a M\"obius strip and a cylindric. We obtain the exact results of the Casimir energy and force for the massless and massive Dirac fields in the ($D+1$)-dimensional space-time. For both massless and massive cases, there is a $Z_2$ symmetry for the Casimir energy. To see the effect of the mass, we compare the result with that of the massless one and we found that the Casimir force approaches the result of the force in the massless case when the mass tends to zero and vanishes when the mass tends to infinity.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, published in Eur. Phys. J.

Krüppel-Like Factor 8 Is a New Wnt/Beta-Catenin Signaling Target Gene and Regulator in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Krüppel-like factor 8 (KLF8) plays important role in cell cycle and oncogenic transformation. Here we report the mechanisms by which KLF8 crosstalks with Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and regulates hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells proliferation. We show that overexpression of KLF8 and nucleus accumulation of β-catenin in the human HCC samples are positively correlated. More importantly, KLF8 protein levels plus nucleus accumulation of β-catenin levels were significantly elevated in high-grade HCC compared to low-grade HCC. Using HCC HepG2 cells we find that, on the one hand both protein and mRNA of KLF8 are up-regulated under Wnt3a stimulation, on the other hand overexpression of KLF8 increases the cytoplasm and nucleus accumulation of β-catenin, recruits p300 to β-catenin/T-cell factor 4 (TCF4) transcription complex, enhances TOP flash report gene transcription, and induces Wnt/β-catenin signaling target genes c-Myc, cyclin D1 and Axin1 expression. Knockdown of KLF8 using shRNA inhibits Wnt3a induced transcription of TOP flash report gene and expression of c-Myc, cyclin D1 and Axin1. Knockdown of β-catenin by shRNA rescues the enhanced HepG2 and Hep3B cells proliferation ability induced by overexpression of KLF8

Pairing symmetry and properties of iron-based high temperature superconductors

Pairing symmetry is important to indentify the pairing mechanism. The analysis becomes particularly timely and important for the newly discovered iron-based multi-orbital superconductors. From group theory point of view we classified all pairing matrices (in the orbital space) that carry irreducible representations of the system. The quasiparticle gap falls into three categories: full, nodal and gapless. The nodal-gap states show conventional Volovik effect even for on-site pairing. The gapless states are odd in orbital space, have a negative superfluid density and are therefore unstable. In connection to experiments we proposed possible pairing states and implications for the pairing mechanism.Comment: 4 pages, 1 table, 2 figures, polished versio

Analysis of the functional conservation of ethylene receptors between maize and Arabidopsis

Ethylene, a regulator of plant growth and development, is perceived by specific receptors that act as negative regulators of the ethylene response. Five ethylene receptors, i.e., ETR1, ERS1, EIN4, ETR2, and ERS2, are present in Arabidopsis and dominant negative mutants of each that confer ethylene insensitivity have been reported. In contrast, maize contains just two types of ethylene receptors: ZmERS1, encoded by ZmERS1a and ZmERS1b, and ZmETR2, encoded by ZmETR2a and ZmETR2b. In this study, we introduced a Cys to Tyr mutation in the transmembrane domain of ZmERS1b and ZmETR2b that is present in the etr1-1 dominant negative mutant and expressed each protein in Arabidopsis. Mutant Zmers1b and Zmetr2b receptors conferred ethylene insensitivity and Arabidopsis expressing Zmers1b or Zmetr2b were larger and exhibited a delay in leaf senescence characteristic of ethylene insensitive Arabidopsis mutants. Zmers1b and Zmetr2b were dominant and functioned equally well in a hemizygous or homozygous state. Expression of the Zmers1b N-terminal transmembrane domain was sufficient to exert dominance over endogenous Arabidopsis ethylene receptors whereas the Zmetr2b N-terminal domain failed to do so. Neither Zmers1b nor Zmetr2b functioned in the absence of subfamily 1 ethylene receptors, i.e., ETR1 and ERS1. These results suggest that Cys65 in maize ZmERS1b and ZmETR2b plays the same role that it does in Arabidopsis receptors. Moreover, the results demonstrate that the mutant maize ethylene receptors are functionally dependent on subfamily 1 ethylene receptors in Arabidopsis, indicating substantial functional conservation between maize and Arabidopsis ethylene receptors despite their sequence divergence

Fifteen new risk loci for coronary artery disease highlight arterial-wall-specific mechanisms

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although 58 genomic regions have been associated with CAD thus far, most of the heritability is unexplained, indicating that additional susceptibility loci await identification. An efficient discovery strategy may be larger-scale evaluation of promising associations suggested by genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Hence, we genotyped 56,309 participants using a targeted gene array derived from earlier GWAS results and performed meta-analysis of results with 194,427 participants previously genotyped, totaling 88,192 CAD cases and 162,544 controls. We identified 25 new SNP-CAD associations (P < 5 × 10(-8), in fixed-effects meta-analysis) from 15 genomic regions, including SNPs in or near genes involved in cellular adhesion, leukocyte migration and atherosclerosis (PECAM1, rs1867624), coagulation and inflammation (PROCR, rs867186 (p.Ser219Gly)) and vascular smooth muscle cell differentiation (LMOD1, rs2820315). Correlation of these regions with cell-type-specific gene expression and plasma protein levels sheds light on potential disease mechanisms

Phosphorylation of LCRMP-1 by GSK3β Promotes Filopoda Formation, Migration and Invasion Abilities in Lung Cancer Cells

LCRMP-1, a novel isoform of CRMP-1, can promote cancer cell migration, invasion and associate with poor clinical outcome in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the underlying regulatory mechanisms of LCRMP-1 in cancer cell invasiveness still remain obscure. Here, we report that GSK3β can phosphorylate LCRMP-1 at Thr-628 in consensus sequences and this phosphorylation is crucial for function of LCRMP-1 to promote filopodia formation, migration and invasion in cancer cells. Impediment of Thr-628 phosphorylation attenuates the stimulatory effects of LCRMP-1 on filopodia forming, migration and invasion abilities in cancer cells; simultaneously, kinase-dead GSK3β diminishes regulation of LCRMP-1 on cancer cell invasion. Furthermore, we also found that patients with low-level Ser-9-phosphorylated GSK3β expression and high-level LCRMP-1 expression have worse overall survival than those with high-level inactive GSK3β expressions and low-level LCRMP-1 expressions (P<0.0001). Collectively, these results demonstrate that GSK3β-dependent phosphorylation of LCRMP-1 provides an important mechanism for regulation of LCRMP-1 on cancer cell invasiveness and clinical outcome

14-3-3epsilon contributes to tumour suppression in laryngeal carcinoma by affecting apoptosis and invasion

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>14-3-3epsilon regulates a wide range of biological processes, including cell cycle control, proliferation, and apoptosis, and plays a significant role in neurogenesis and the formation of malignant tumours. However, the exact function and regulatory mechanism of 14-3-3epsilon in carcinogenesis have not been elucidated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The expression of <it>14-3-3epsilon </it>was assessed by RT-PCR and western blotting. The invasiveness and viability of Hep-2 cells were determined by the transwell migration assay and MTT assay, respectively. Cell cycle and apoptosis of Hep-2 cells were detected by flow cytometry.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mRNA and protein expression of <it>14-3-3epsilon </it>in larynx squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) tissues were significantly lower than those in clear surgical margin tissues. Statistical analysis showed that the 14-3-3epsilon protein level in metastatic lymph nodes was lower than that in paired tumour tissues. In addition, the protein level of 14-3-3epsilon in stage III or IV tumours was significantly lower than that in stage I or II tumours. Compared with control Hep-2 cells, the percentages of viable cells in the 14-3-3epsilon-GFP and negative control GFP groups were 36.68 ± 14.09% and 71.68 ± 12.10%, respectively. The proportions of S phase were 22.47 ± 3.36%, 28.17 ± 3.97% and 46.15 ± 6.82%, and the apoptotic sub-G1 populations were 1.23 ± 1.02%, 2.92 ± 1.59% and 13.72 ± 3.89% in the control, negative control GFP and 14-3-3epsilon-GFP groups, respectively. The percentages of the apoptotic cells were 0.84 ± 0.25%, 1.08 ± 0.24% and 2.93 ± 0.13% in the control, negative control GFP and 14-3-3epsilon-GFP groups, respectively. The numbers of cells that penetrated the filter membrane in the control, negative control GFP and 14-3-3epsilon-GFP groups were 20.65 ± 1.94, 17.63 ± 1.04 and 9.1 ± 0.24, respectively, indicating significant differences among the different groups.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Decreased expression of <it>14-3-3epsilon </it>in LSCC tissues contributes to the initiation and progression of LSCC. <it>14-3-3epsilon </it>can promote apoptosis and inhibit the invasiveness of LSCC.</p

Polarized \Lambda_b \to X_c \tau \nu in the SM and THDM

The inclusive rate and $\tau$ spectrum for a polarized $\Lambda_b$ -baryon to decay to charm hadronic final states and leptons $\tau \nu$ in the SM and a two-Higgs doublet model are computed.The $O(\alpha_s)$ QCD corrections to $\tau$ spectrum in the two-Higgs model are also given.Comment: Revtex,11 pages,5 figure