Computer Immunodeficiency: Analogy between Computer Security and HIV

Current security systems are designed to prevent foreseeable attacks. Those security systems do not prevent effectively the more emergent types of attacks, like a botnet, whose presence and behavior is difficult to predict. In order to predominate those types of attacks, we advocate an adaptive security approach based on the animal immune system. But since those sophisticated attacks can also be directed at the security systems themselves, leading to computer immunodeficiency, like HIV, in this paper we propose a protocol that protects the immune system itself. This approach discriminates between attacks on the security systems, which are part of the computer immune system, and attacks on other vital computer systems in an information infrastructure

A quest to optimize the clinical pharmacology of tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus drug treatment

Tuberculose (TB) is op dit moment de dodelijkste infectieuze ziekte wereldwijd, met alleen in 2016 al 1.7 miljoen doden. HIV infectie is de belangrijkste risicofactor voor TB. Patiënten met een TB/HIV co-infectie hebben last van geneesmiddel interacties, ze moeten veel pillen slikken en ze moeten hun levensstijl ingrijpend aanpassen voor de genezing of remming van hun infectie. Ten slotte lopen ze ook nog eens de kans dat de behandeling niet goed lukt doordat zij een wat andere resorptie, omzetting of uitscheiding van geneesmiddelen hebben (door natuurlijk voorkomende variatie in farmacokinetiek). Dit proefschrift richt zich op het optimaliseren van de medicamenteuze TB behandeling bij de combinatie van TB en HIV infectie en daarnaast op het gebruik van het antiretrovirale middel darunavir. We hebben in de literatuur onderzocht wat er bekend is over het effect van HIV infectie op de bloedspiegelconcentraties van de meest gangbare TB geneesmiddelen. TB patiënten worden normaal gesproken 6 maanden lang behandeld met geneesmiddelen. In de praktijk blijkt echter dat een deel van de patiënten langer behandeld moet worden. We hebben onderzocht welke risicofactoren kunnen bijdragen aan een langere behandeling. We verschaften ook inzicht in de complexiteit van de behandeling van mensen met TB en HIV door de opgedane ervaringen te beschrijven. Daarnaast hebben we ook methoden, zoals laboratoriumbepalingen en algoritmes, ontwikkeld die kunnen helpen bij het optimaal doseren van de HIV medicijn darunavir. Ook hebben we gekeken naar de voedingspatronen van patiënten die darunavir gebruiken met als doel om gezonder eten te bevorderen

Risk factors contributing to a low darunavir plasma concentration

Darunavir is an efficacious drug; however, pharmacokinetic variability has been reported. The objective of this study was to find predisposing factors for low darunavir plasma concentrations in patients starting the once- or twice-daily dosage. Darunavir plasma concentrations from January 2010 till December 2014 of human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals treated in the outpatient clinic of the University Medical Center Groningen were retrospectively reviewed. The first darunavir plasma concentration of patients within 8weeks after initiation of darunavir therapy was selected. A dichotomous logistic regression analysis was conducted to select the set of variables best predicting a darunavir concentration below median population pharmacokinetic curve. In total 113 patients were included. The variables best predicting a darunavir concentration besides food intake included age together with estimated glomerular filtration rate (Hosmer-Lemeshow test P=0.945, Nagelkerke R-2=0.284). Systematic evaluation of therapeutic drug monitoring results may help to identify patients at risk for low drug exposure

"Flogging dead horses": evaluating when have clinical trials achieved sufficiency and stability? A case study in cardiac rehabilitation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Most systematic reviews conclude that another clinical trial is needed. Measures of sufficiency and stability may indicate whether this is true.</p> <p>Objectives: To show how evidence accumulated on centre-based versus home-based cardiac rehabilitation, including estimates of sufficiency and stability</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Systematic reviews of clinical trials of home versus centre-based cardiac rehabilitation were used to develop a cumulative meta-analysis over time. We calculated the standardised mean difference (SMD) in effect, confidence intervals and indicators of sufficiency and stability. Sufficiency refers to whether the meta-analytic database adequately demonstrates that an intervention works - is statistically superior to another. It does this by assessing the number of studies with null results that would be required to make the meta-analytic effect non-statistically significant. Stability refers to whether the direction and size of the effect is stable as new studies are added to the meta-analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The standardised mean effect difference reduced over fourteen comparisons from a non-significant difference favouring home-based cardiac rehabilitation to a very small difference favouring hospital (SMD -0.10, 95% CI -0.32 to 0.13). This difference did not reach the sufficiency threshold (failsafe ratio 0.039 < 1) but did achieve the criteria for stability (cumulative slope 0.003 < 0.005).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The evidence points to a relatively small effect difference which was stable but not sufficient in terms of the suggested thresholds. Sufficiency should arguably be based on substantive significance and decided by patients. Research on patient preferences should be the priority. Sufficiency and stability measures are useful tools that need to be tested in further case studies.</p

Internet of things: where to be is to trust

[EN] Networks' creation is getting more and more required, anytime, anywhere. Devices that can participate on these networks can be quite different among them. Sensors, mobiles, home appliances, or other type of devices will have to collaborate to increase and improve the services provided to clients. In the same way, network configuration, security mechanisms establishment, and optimal performance control must be done by them. Some of these devices could have limited resources to work, sometimes even resources restriction not existing, they must work to optimize network traffic. In this article, we center our researching on spontaneous networks. We propose a secure spontaneous ad-hoc network, based on direct peer-to-peer interaction and communities' creation to grant a quick, easy, and secure access to users to surf the Web. Each device will have an identity in the network. Each community will also have an identity and will act as a unity on a world based on Internet connection. 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