Collaborative Privacy Policy Authoring in a Social Networking Context.

Recent years have seen a significant increase in the popularity of social networking services. These online services enable users to construct groups of contacts, referred to as friends, with which they can share digital content and communicate. This sharing is actively encouraged by the social networking services, with users privacy often seen as a secondary concern. In this paper we first propose a privacy-aware social networking service and then introduce a collaborative approach to authoring privacy policies for the service. In addressing user privacy, our approach takes into account the needs of all parties affected by the disclosure of information and digital content. © 2010 Crown

Optimization of electricity trading using linear programming

In the last two decades, the liberalization of the electricity markets have been established in order to increase efficiency, harmonize and reduce electricity prices, make a better use of resources, give customers the right to choose their supplier and provide customers with a better service. This change made the electricity market competitive and introduced several new subjects. In this paper, we study one of these subjects: Electricity Trading Company (ETC) and its daily trading process. We present a linear mathematical model of total daily profit maximization subject to flow constraints. It is assumed that the demand and supply are known and some of them are arranged. Possible transmission capacities are known but also additional capacities can be purchased. All trading, transmission prices and amounts are subject of auctions. First, we present energy trading problem as directed multiple-source and multiple-sink network and then model it using linear programming. Also, we provide one realistic example which is slightly changed in order to save confidentiality of the given data

Effects of the 1997-1999 El Niño and La Niña

Abstract Zooplankton abundance and euphausiid community composition were sampled seasonally (spring, summer, fall) within Monterey Bay, California, between 1997 and 1999. Measurements of sea surface temperature (SST), mixed layer depth, and upwelling indices provided concurrent data on physical oceanographic parameters. Both total zooplankton and krill abundance dramatically declined in the summer of 1997 coincident with a rapid increase in SST and mixed layer depth. Changes in euphausiid community composition occurred in concert with the decline in overall abundance. The relative abundance of the southern neritic Nyctiphanes simplex increased from August to November in 1997, the abundance of cold temperate Euphausia pacifica decreased significantly, and that of the northern neritic Thysanoessa spinifera declined dramatically. The sudden appearance of an adult cohort of N. simplex in July 1997 suggests that rapid poleward flow characteristic of coastally trapped Kelvin waves occurred between June and July of 1997. The persistent presence of warm temperate and subtropical taxa in samples collected between August 1997 and October 1998 indicates that this poleward flow continued in 1998. Zooplankton abundance, euphausiid community composition, and physical oceanographic parameters gradually returned to a more typical upwelling-dominated state in the spring and summer of 1998. E. pacifica and T. spinifera abundances gradually increased during the summer and fall of 1998, while N. simplex abundance abruptly declined in the spring of 1998. However, this recovery was confined to a narrow coastal band as a result of the onshore movement of the oceanic waters of the California Current. This was reflected by higher than normal numbers of the oceanic Nematoscelis difficilis within samples collected during the spring and summer of 1998. By the spring and summer of 1999, both zooplankton and euphausiid abundance had increased to the highest levels recorded during the 3-year study. Both E. pacifica and T. spinifera abundance increased relative to 1998 while N. simplex was completely absent in all samples. These changes reflected the cooler, highly productive environmental conditions associated with th

Development of sperm vitrification protocols for freshwater fish (Eurasian perch, Perca fluviatilis) and marine fish (European eel, Anguilla anguilla)

[EN] Vitrification was successfully applied to the sperm of two fish species, the freshwater Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis) and marine European eel (Anguilla anguilla). Sperm was collected, diluted in species specific non-activating media and cryoprotectants and vitrified by plunging directly into liquid nitrogen without pre-cooling in its vapor. Progressive motility of fresh and vitrified-thawed sperm was evaluated with computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Additional sperm quality parameters such as sperm head morphometry parameters (in case of European eel) and fertilizing capacity (in case of Eurasian perch) were carried out to test the effectiveness of vitrification. The vitrification method for Eurasian perch sperm resulting the highest post-thaw motility (14 +/- 1.6%) was as follows: 1:5 dilution ratio, Tanaka extender, 30% cryoprotectant (15% methanol + 15% propylene-glycol), cooling device: Cryotop, 2 mu l droplets, and for European eel sperm: dilution ratio 1:1, with 40% cryoprotectant (20% MeOH and 20% PG), and 10% FBS, cooling device: Cryotop, with 2 mu l of sperm suspension. Viable embryos were produced by fertilization with vitrified Eurasian perch sperm (neurulation: 2.54 +/- 1.67%). According to the ASMA analysis, no significant decrease in head area and perimeter of vitrified European eel spermatozoa were found when compared to fresh spermatozoa.The work was funded by the NKFI (previously OTKA) project number K-109847 and by a Short-term Scientific Mission awarded to E. Kasa by the COST Office (Food and Agriculture COST Action FA1205: Assessing and improving the quality of aquatic animal gametes to enhance aquatic resources. The need to harmonize and standardize evolving methodologies, and improve transfer from academia to industry; AQUAGAMETE). The work was supported by the project Research Center of Excellence - 9878-3/2016/FEKUT of the Ministry of Human Resources of Hungary and the project EUREKA_HU_12-1-2012-0056 (PERCAHATCH).Kása, E.; Bernáth, G.; Kollár, T.; Zarski, D.; Lujic, J.; Marinovic, Z.; Bokor, Z.... (2017). Development of sperm vitrification protocols for freshwater fish (Eurasian perch, Perca fluviatilis) and marine fish (European eel, Anguilla anguilla). General and Comparative Endocrinology. 245:102-107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ygcen.2016.05.010S10210724

Post-AGB stars with hot circumstellar dust: binarity of the low-amplitude pulsators

While the first binary post-AGB stars were serendipitously discovered, the distinct characteristics of their Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) allowed us to launch a more systematic search for binaries. We selected post-AGB objects which show a broad dust excess often starting already at H or K, pointing to the presence of a gravitationally bound dusty disc in the system. We started a very extensive multi-wavelength study of those systems and here we report on our radial velocity and photometric monitoring results for six stars of early F type, which are pulsators of small amplitude. To determine the radial velocity of low signal-to-noise time-series, we constructed dedicated auto-correlation masks. The radial velocity variations were subjected to detailed analysis to differentiate between pulsational variability and variability due to orbital motion. Finally orbital minimalisation was performed to constrain the orbital elements. All of the six objects are binaries, with orbital periods ranging from 120 to 1800 days. Five systems have non-circular orbits. The mass functions range from 0.004 to 0.57 solar mass and the companions are likely unevolved objects of (very) low initial mass. We argue that these binaries must have been subject to severe binary interaction when the primary was a cool supergiant. Although the origin of the circumstellar disc is not well understood, the disc is generally believed to be formed during this strong interaction phase. The eccentric orbits of these highly evolved objects remain poorly understood. With the measured orbits and mass functions we conclude that the circumbinary discs seem to have a major impact on the evolution of a significant fraction of binary systems.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figures, accepted for Astronomy and Astrophysic

Definitions and outcome measures for bullous pemphigoid: Recommendations by an international panel of experts

Our scientific knowledge of bullous pemphigoid (BP) has dramatically progressed in recent years. However, despite the availability of various therapeutic options for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, only a few multicenter controlled trials have helped to define effective therapies in BP. A major obstacle in sharing multicenter-based evidences for therapeutic efforts is the lack of generally accepted definitions for the clinical evaluation of patients with BP. Common terms and end points of BP are needed so that experts in the field can accurately measure and assess disease extent, activity, severity, and therapeutic response, and thus facilitate and advance clinical trials. These recommendations from the International Pemphigoid Committee represent 2 years of collaborative efforts to attain mutually acceptable common definitions for BP and proposes a disease extent score, the BP Disease Area Index. These items should assist in the development of consistent reporting of outcomes in future BP reports and studies. © 2011 by the American Academy of Dermatology, Inc

Recent advances on smart glycoconjugate vaccines in infections and cancer

Vaccination is one of the greatest achievements in biomedical research preventing death and morbidity in many infectious diseases through the induction of pathogen-specific humoral and cellular immune responses. Currently, no effective vaccines are available for pathogens with a highly variable antigenic load, such as the human immunodeficiency virus or to induce cellular T-cell immunity in the fight against cancer. The recent SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has reinforced the relevance of designing smart therapeutic vaccine modalities to ensure public health. Indeed, academic and private companies have ongoing joint efforts to develop novel vaccine prototypes for this virus. Many pathogens are covered by a dense glycan-coat, which form an attractive target for vaccine development. Moreover, many tumor types are characterized by altered glycosylation profiles that are known as “tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens”. Unfortunately, glycans do not provoke a vigorous immune response and generally serve as T-cell-independent antigens, not eliciting protective immunoglobulin G responses nor inducing immunological memory. A close and continuous crosstalk between glycochemists and glycoimmunologists is essential for the successful development of efficient immune modulators. It is clear that this is a key point for the discovery of novel approaches, which could significantly improve our understanding of the immune system. In this review, we discuss the latest advancements in development of vaccines against glycan epitopes to gain selective immune responses and to provide an overview on the role of different immunogenic constructs in improving glycovaccine efficacy

The role of glucocorticoids in the induction of zinc-α2-glycoprotein expression in adipose tissue in cancer cachexia

Loss of adipose tissue in cancer cachexia in mice bearing the MAC16 tumour arises from an increased lipid mobilisation through increased expression of zinc-α2-glycoprotein (ZAG) in white (WAT) and brown (BAT) adipose tissue. Glucocorticoids have been suggested to increase ZAG expression, and this study examines their role in cachexia and the mechanisms involved. In mice bearing the MAC16 tumour, serum cortisol concentrations increased in parallel with weight loss, and the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist RU38486 (25 mg kg−1) attenuated both the loss of body weight and ZAG expression in WAT. Dexamethasone (66 μg kg−1) administration to normal mice produced a six-fold increase in ZAG expression in both WAT and BAT, which was also attenuated by RU38486. In vitro studies using 3T3-L1 adipocytes showed dexamethasone (1.68 μM) to stimulate lipolysis and increase ZAG expression, and both were attenuated by RU38486 (10 μM), anti-ZAG antibody (1 μgml−1), and the β3-adrenoreceptor (β3-AR) antagonist SR59230A (10 μM). Zinc-α2-glycoprotein also increased its own expression and this was attenuated by SR59230A, suggesting that it was mediated through the β3-AR. This suggests that glucocorticoids stimulate lipolysis through an increase in ZAG expression, and that they are responsible for the increase in ZAG expression seen in adipose tissue of cachectic mice

β-Hydroxy-β-Methylbutyrate (HMB) Normalizes Dexamethasone-Induced Autophagy-Lysosomal Pathway in Skeletal Muscle

Dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy is due to an increase in protein breakdown and a decrease in protein synthesis, associated with an over-stimulation of the autophagy-lysosomal pathway. These effects are mediated by alterations in IGF-1 and PI3K/Akt signaling. In this study, we have investigated the effects of β-Hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) on the regulation of autophagy and proteosomal systems. Rats were treated during 21 days with dexamethasone as a model of muscle atrophy. Co-administration of HMB attenuated the effects promoted by dexamethasone. HMB ameliorated the loss in body weight, lean mass and the reduction of the muscle fiber cross-sectional area (shrinkage) in gastrocnemius muscle. Consequently, HMB produced an improvement in muscle strength in the dexamethasone-treated rats. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms responsible for these effects, rat L6 myotubes were used. In these cells, HMB significantly attenuated lysosomal proteolysis induced by dexamethasone by normalizing the changes observed in autophagosome formation, LC3 II, p62 and Bnip3 expression after dexamethasone treatment. HMB effects were mediated by an increase in FoxO3a phosphorylation and concomitant decrease in FoxO transcriptional activity. The HMB effect was due to the restoration of Akt signaling diminished by dexamethasone treatment. Moreover, HMB was also involved in the regulation of the activity of ubiquitin and expression of MurF1 and Atrogin-1, components of the proteasome system that are activated or up-regulated by dexamethasone. In conclusion, in vivo and in vitro studies suggest that HMB exerts protective effects against dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy by normalizing the Akt/FoxO axis that controls autophagy and ubiquitin proteolysis.This project has been funded by Abbott Nutrition R&D