On the Improvement of Wiener Attack on RSA with Small Private Exponent

RSA system is based on the hardness of the integer factorization problem (IFP). Given an RSA modulus N=pq, it is difficult to determine the prime factors p and q efficiently. One of the most famous short exponent attacks on RSA is the Wiener attack. In 1997, Verheul and van Tilborg use an exhaustive search to extend the boundary of the Wiener attack. Their result shows that the cost of exhaustive search is 2r+8 bits when extending the Weiner's boundary r bits. In this paper, we first reduce the cost of exhaustive search from 2r+8 bits to 2r+2 bits. Then, we propose a method named EPF. With EPF, the cost of exhaustive search is further reduced to 2r-6 bits when we extend Weiner's boundary r bits. It means that our result is 214 times faster than Verheul and van Tilborg's result. Besides, the security boundary is extended 7 bits

Granzyme G is expressed in the two-cell stage mouse embryo and is required for the maternal-zygotic transition

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Detailed knowledge of the molecular and cellular mechanisms that direct spatial and temporal gene expression in pre-implantation embryos is critical for understanding the control of the maternal-zygotic transition and cell differentiation in early embryonic development. In this study, twenty-three clones, expressed at different stages of early mouse development, were identified using differential display reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR). One of these clones, which is expressed in 2-cell stage embryos at 48 hr post-hCG injection, shows a perfect sequence homology to the gene encoding the granzyme G protein. The granzyme family members are serine proteases that are present in the secretory granules of cytolytic T lymphocytes. However, the pattern of granzyme G expression and its function in early mouse embryos are entirely unknown.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Upon the introduction of an antisense morpholino (2 mM) against granzyme G to knock-down endogenous gene function, all embryos were arrested at the 2- to 4-cell stages of egg cleavage, and the <it>de novo </it>synthesis of zygotic RNAs was decreased. The embryonic survival rate was dramatically decreased at the late 2-cell stage when serine protease-specific inhibitors, 0.1 mM 3,4-dichloroisocoumarin (3,4-DCI), and 2 mM phenyl methanesulphonyl fluoride (PMSF), were added to the <it>in vitro </it>embryonic culture medium. Survival was not affected by the addition of 0.5 mM EDTA, a metalloproteinase inhibitor.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We characterized for the first time the expression and function of <it>granzyme G </it>during early stage embryogenesis. Our data suggest that granzyme G is an important factor in early mouse embryonic development and may play a novel role in the elimination of maternal proteins and the triggering of zygotic gene expression during the maternal-zygotic transition.</p

A thematic analysis of shared experiences of essential health and support personnel in the COVID-19 pandemic.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Studies have shown that the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on individuals who interact with patients with SARS-CoV-2 but focused largely on clinicians in acute care settings. This qualitative descriptive study aimed to understand the experiences and well-being of essential workers across settings during the pandemic. BACKGROUND: Multiple studies of the well-being of individuals who have cared for patients during the pandemic have included interviews of clinicians from acute care settings and revealed high levels of stress. However, other essential workers have not been included in most of those studies, yet they may also experience stress. METHODS: Individuals who participated in an online study of anxiety, depression, traumatic distress, and insomnia, were invited to provide a free-text comment if they had anything to add. A total of 2,762 essential workers (e.g., nurses, physicians, chaplains, respiratory therapists, emergency medical technicians, housekeeping, and food service staff, etc.) participated in the study with 1,079 (39%) providing text responses. Thematic analysis was used to analyze those responses. RESULTS: Four themes with eight sub-themes were: Facing hopelessness, yet looking for hope; Witnessing frequent death; Experiencing disillusionment and disruption within the healthcare system, and Escalating emotional and physical health problems. CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed major psychological and physical stress among essential workers. Understanding highly stressful experiences during the pandemic is essential to identify strategies that ameliorate stress and prevent its negative consequences. This study adds to the research on the psychological and physical impact of the pandemic on workers, including non-clinical support personnel often overlooked as experiencing major negative effects. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The magnitude of stress among all levels of essential workers suggests the need to develop strategies to prevent or alleviate stress across disciplines and all categories of workers

Comparison of single-incision mini-slings (Ajust) and standard transobturator midurethral slings (Align) in the management of female stress urinary incontinence: A 1-year follow-up

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the effectiveness and safety of a new single-incision mini-sling (SIMS)—Ajust—compared with the standard transobturator midurethral sling (SMUS)—Align—for the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence (SUI).Materials and MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted between January 1, 2010 and August 31, 2012. Women with SUI who underwent either SMUS-Align or SIMS-Ajust were recruited. The primary outcomes included operation time, estimated operative blood loss, postoperative pain, and complications. The secondary outcomes included subjective and objective success, defined as an International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (ICIQ) score of 0 or improvement as felt by the patient and a long-term complication, such as dyspareunia and mesh erosion after 6 months and 12 months of follow-up.ResultsA total of 136 patients were enrolled, including 76 receiving SMUS-Align and 60 receiving SIMS-Ajust. Baseline characteristics of the patients in both groups were similar, without a statistically significant difference. Primary outcomes between both groups were similar, except that women treated with SIMS-Ajust had statistically significantly shorter operation time (p = 0.003), less intent to treat (p < 0.05), and earlier postoperative discharge (p = 0.001) than women treated with SMUS-Align. Secondary outcomes were similar without a significant difference between the two groups (93% vs. 88% success rate in each group).ConclusionOur results showed that SIMS-Ajust was not inferior to SMUS-Align with respect to success rate, and might have a slight advantage in early discharge. A long-term follow-up or prospective study is needed to confirm the above findings

Differential Differences in Methylation Status of Putative Imprinted Genes among Cloned Swine Genomes

DNA methylation is a major epigenetic modification in the mammalian genome that regulates crucial aspects of gene function. Mammalian cloning by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) often results in gestational or neonatal failure with only a small proportion of manipulated embryos producing live births. Many of the embryos that survive to term later succumb to a variety of abnormalities that are likely due to inappropriate epigenetic reprogramming. Aberrant methylation patterns of imprinted genes in cloned cattle and mice have been elucidated, but few reports have analyzed the cloned pig genome. Four surviving cloned sows that were created by ear fibroblast nuclear transfer, each with a different life span and multiple organ defects, such as heart defects and bone growth delay, were used as epigenetic study materials. First, we identified four putative differential methylation regions (DMR) of imprinted genes in the wild-type pig genome, including two maternally imprinted loci (INS and IGF2) and two paternally imprinted loci (H19 and IGF2R). Aberrant DNA methylation, either hypermethylation or hypomethylation, commonly appeared in H19 (45% of imprinted loci hypermethylated vs. 30% hypomethylated), IGF2 (40% vs. 0%), INS (50% vs. 5%), and IGF2R (15% vs. 45%) in multiple tissues from these four cloned sows compared with wild-type pigs. Our data suggest that aberrant epigenetic modifications occur frequently in the genome of cloned swine. Even with successful production of cloned swine that avoid prenatal or postnatal death, the perturbation of methylation in imprinted genes still exists, which may be one of reason for their adult pathologies and short life. Understanding the aberrant pattern of gene imprinting would permit improvements in future cloning techniques

Women with endometriosis have higher comorbidities: Analysis of domestic data in Taiwan

AbstractEndometriosis, defined by the presence of viable extrauterine endometrial glands and stroma, can grow or bleed cyclically, and possesses characteristics including a destructive, invasive, and metastatic nature. Since endometriosis may result in pelvic inflammation, adhesion, chronic pain, and infertility, and can progress to biologically malignant tumors, it is a long-term major health issue in women of reproductive age. In this review, we analyze the Taiwan domestic research addressing associations between endometriosis and other diseases. Concerning malignant tumors, we identified four studies on the links between endometriosis and ovarian cancer, one on breast cancer, two on endometrial cancer, one on colorectal cancer, and one on other malignancies, as well as one on associations between endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome, one on links with migraine headache, three on links with pelvic inflammatory diseases, four on links with infertility, four on links with obesity, four on links with chronic liver disease, four on links with rheumatoid arthritis, four on links with chronic renal disease, five on links with diabetes mellitus, and five on links with cardiovascular diseases (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc.). The data available to date support that women with endometriosis might be at risk of some chronic illnesses and certain malignancies, although we consider the evidence for some comorbidities to be of low quality, for example, the association between colon cancer and adenomyosis/endometriosis. We still believe that the risk of comorbidity might be higher in women with endometriosis than that we supposed before. More research is needed to determine whether women with endometriosis are really at risk of these comorbidities

Distribution of Melioidosis Cases and Viable Burkholderia pseudomallei in Soil: Evidence for Emerging Melioidosis in Taiwan▿

A survey for the prevalence if Burkholderia pseudomallei in soil in Taiwan found that its incidence is comparable to that in other regions of the world where melioidosis is endemic. The presence of identical genetic patterns among the clinical and environmental isolates evaluated suggested a link between the pathogens present in contaminated soil and the emergence of indigenous melioidosis

The Potential Regulatory Mechanisms of miR-196a in Huntington's Disease through Bioinformatic Analyses.

High throughput screening is a powerful tool to identify the potential candidate molecules involved during disease progression. However, analysis of complicated data is one of the most challenging steps on the way to obtaining useful results from this approach. Previously, we showed that a specific miRNA, miR-196a, could ameliorate the pathological phenotypes of Huntington's disease (HD) in different models, and performed high throughput screening by using the striatum of transgenic mice. In this study, we further tried to identify the potential regulatory mechanisms using different bioinformatic tools, including Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID), Molecular Signatures Database (MSigDB), TargetScan and MetaCore. The results showed that miR-196a dominantly altered "ABC transporters", "RIG-I-like receptor signaling pathway", immune system", "adaptive immune system","tissue remodeling and wound repair" and "cytoskeleton remodeling". In addition, miR-196a also changed the expression of several well-defined pathways of HD, such as apoptosis and cell adhesion. Since these analyses showed the regulatory pathways are highly related to the modification of the cytoskeleton, we further confirmed that miR-196a could enhance the neurite outgrowth in neuroblastoma cells, suggesting miR-196a might provide beneficial functions through the alteration of cytoskeleton structures. Since impairment of the cytoskeleton has been reported in several neuronal diseases, this study will provide not only the potential working mechanisms of miR-196a but also insights for therapeutic strategies for use with different neuronal diseases

Sustainable housing Options for independent energy, water supply and sewerage

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:2354.351(26/97) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Cruciform DNA Structures Act as Legible Templates for Accelerating Homologous Recombination in Transgenic Animals

Inverted repeat (IR) DNA sequences compose cruciform structures. Some genetic disorders are the result of genome inversion or translocation by cruciform DNA structures. The present study examined whether exogenous DNA integration into the chromosomes of transgenic animals was related to cruciform DNA structures. Large imperfect cruciform structures were frequently predicted around predestinated transgene integration sites in host genomes of microinjection-based transgenic (Tg) animals (αLA-LPH Tg goat, Akr1A1eGFP/eGFP Tg mouse, and NFκB-Luc Tg mouse) or CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing (GE) animals (αLA-AP1 GE mouse). Transgene cassettes were imperfectly matched with their predestinated sequences. According to the analyzed data, we proposed a putative model in which the flexible cruciform DNA structures acted as a legible template for DNA integration into linear DNAs or double-strand break (DSB) alleles. To demonstrate this model, artificial inverted repeat knock-in (KI) reporter plasmids were created to analyze the KI rate using the CRISPR/Cas9 system in NIH3T3 cells. Notably, the KI rate of the 5′ homologous arm inverted repeat donor plasmid (5′IR) with the ROSA gRNA group (31.5%) was significantly higher than the knock-in reporter donor plasmid (KIR) with the ROSA gRNA group (21.3%, p < 0.05). However, the KI rate of the 3′ inverted terminal repeat/inverted repeat donor plasmid (3′ITRIR) group was not different from the KIR group (23.0% vs. 22.0%). These results demonstrated that the legibility of the sequence with the cruciform DNA existing in the transgene promoted homologous recombination (HR) with a higher KI rate. Our findings suggest that flexible cruciform DNAs folded by IR sequences improve the legibility and accelerate DNA 3′-overhang integration into the host genome via homologous recombination machinery