Interpretable Mechanistic and Machine Learning Models for Pre-dicting Cardiac Remodeling from Biochemical and Biomechanical Features

Biochemical and biomechanical signals drive cardiac remodeling, resulting in altered heart physiology and the precursor for several cardiac diseases, the leading cause of death for most racial groups in the USA. Reversing cardiac remodeling requires medication and device-assisted treatment such as Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT), but current interventions produce highly variable responses from patient to patient. Mechanistic modeling and Machine learning (ML) approaches have the functionality to aid diagnosis and therapy selection using various input features. Moreover, \u27Interpretable\u27 machine learning methods have helped make machine learning models fairer and more suited for clinical application. The overarching objective of this doctoral work is to develop computational models that combine an extensive array of clinically measured biochemical and biomechanical variables to enable more accurate identification of heart failure patients prone to respond positively to therapeutic interventions. In the first aim, we built an ensemble ML classification algorithm using previously acquired data from the SMART-AV CRT clinical trial. Our classification algorithm incorporated 26 patient demographic and medical history variables, 12 biomarker variables, and 18 LV functional variables, yielding correct CRT response prediction in 71% of patients. In the second aim, we employed a machine learning-based method to infer the fibrosis-related gene regulatory network from RNA-seq data from the MAGNet cohort of heart failure patients. This network identified significant interactions between transcription factors and cell synthesis outputs related to cardiac fibrosis - a critical driver of heart failure. Novel filtering methods helped us prioritize the most critical regulatory interactions of mechanistic forward simulations. In the third aim, we developed a logic-based model for the mechanistic network of cardiac fibrosis, integrating the gene regulatory network derived from aim two into a previously constructed cardiac fibrosis signaling network model. This integrated model implemented biochemical and biomechanical reactions as ordinary differential equations based on normalized Hill functions. The model elucidated the semi-quantitative behavior of cardiac fibrosis signaling complexity by capturing multi-pathway crosstalk and feedback loops. Perturbation analysis predicted the most critical nodes in the mechanistic model. Patient-specific simulations helped identify which biochemical species highly correlate with clinical measures of patient cardiac function

Evaluation Of An Architectural-Level Approach For Finding Security Vulnerabilities

The cost of security vulnerabilities of a software system is high. As a result, many techniques have been developed to find the vulnerabilities at development time. Of particular interest are static analysis techniques that can consider all possible executions of a system. But, static analysis can suffer from a large number of false positives. A recently developed approach, Scoria, is a semi-automated static analysis that requires security architects to annotate the code, typecheck the annotations, extract a hierarchical object graph and write constraints in order to find security vulnerabilities in a system. This thesis evaluates Scoria on three systems (sizes 6 KLOC, 6 KLOC and 25 KLOC) from different application domains (Android and Web) and confirms that Scoria can find security vulnerabilities in those systems without an excessive number of false positives

Systematic Approach for Modifying Project Schedules due to Unexpected Changes

Project schedules are subject to change due to uncertain aspects, such as failure of machines, worker Absenteeism and turnovers, changes of scope, and reworks, etc. These changes may often result in project delays, cost overruns, quality defects and other negative impacts. In response to changes, project managers need to revise the schedule to minimize the impact of the changes. They usually revise the schedule by modifying allocation of resources and arrangement of tasks to cope with the changes. In general, it is extremely difficult to modify a schedule due to limited resources, extensive interaction among activities and resources besides the typical constraints. The problem remains in how to control and minimize the overall impact of changes by taking necessary corrective actions. In the above context, we first introduce a standard model for task-resource allocation schedule that incorporates necessary relationships among tasks and resources, and possible constraints of the project. We then propose a reactive scheduling approach to modify the baseline schedule to address changes due to the absence of workers during project execution. To modify the schedule, we define three change options based on preemptive and non-preemptive resource reassignment strategies. When a change occurs, the reactive scheduling framework selects the best change option using systematic decision process by capturing the change scenario and assessing the change impact. The change impact is measured in view of the importance of absent worker, length of absence, and criticality of affected tasks. The objective of this approach is to limit the increasing of the project duration from initial deadline (i.e., delay) without changing too many task-resource assignments. Finally, an example application related to software development project is presented to illustrate the implementation and features of our proposed approach

A CORRELATIONAL STUDY OF BALANCE WITH FUNCTIONAL INDEPENDENCE AND COGNITION IN GERIATRIC POPULATION

Background and objective of the study: The presence of balance disturbances need to be examined in old age home-dwelling elderly because many studies have been done on community-dwelling elderly. Hence, there is a need of examining the balance disturbances in old age home-dwelling elderly depending on their physical function, cognitive function, and functional independence. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess the correlation of balance with cognitive functions and with functional independence. Methodology: This was a correlation study design in which 60 elderly (age>65 years) were recruited from SGT Hospital Gurugram, India. The Tinetti Test (TT) was utilized to assess patients' capacity to walk and maintain balance. The TT enables the division of patients into three groups depending on the level of their dependence and the risk of falls. The group at the highest risk obtains the lowest scores (≤18). The group at moderate risk consists of people with scores of 19–23 points, which reflects moderate dependence and fall risk. The group at minimal risk is the one with scores of ≥24 points. For TT, there were components where the elderly individual was asked to sit, stand and walk where the quality of these movements were observed accordingly. Results and discussion: At baseline, data was found to be non-significant. After the analysis of the data, it was found that there was a fair correlation between balance and functional independence. Although there was no correlation found between balance and cognitive functions.  Article visualizations

Determinants of Profitability- A Case from the State-owned Commercial Banks of Bangladesh

This study is an attempt to investigate the impact of bank-specific and economy-specific determinants on the performance of selected State-owned Commercial Banks (SCB) operating in Bangladesh in terms of their profitability. This study considers three prominent SCBs, six bank specific determinants, two economy-specific determinants collected as secondary data from 2007-2014. Different financial ratios and statistical tools (descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation & regression analysis) have utilized for verifying the hypotheses. The results showed that SCBs’ profitability (Return on Assets) has positive relationships with capital adequacy ratio(CAR), cost of fund ratio (COF), cost to income ratio (CIR), GDP growth ratio (GDPR) and negative relationship with classified loans to total loans ratio(CLTL), bank’s size (SIZ) and inflation (INFL).  Among them, CAR and GDPR are the significant determinants of their profitability over the study period. Keywords:  Profitability, State-owned commercial Banks, Internal & External determinants

A CORRELATIONAL STUDY OF BALANCE WITH FUNCTIONAL INDEPENDENCE AND COGNITION IN GERIATRIC POPULATION

Background and objective of the study: The presence of balance disturbances need to be examined in old age home-dwelling elderly because many studies have been done on community-dwelling elderly. Hence, there is a need of examining the balance disturbances in old age home-dwelling elderly depending on their physical function, cognitive function, and functional independence. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess the correlation of balance with cognitive functions and with functional independence. Methodology: This was a correlation study design in which 60 elderly (age>65 years) were recruited from SGT Hospital Gurugram, India. The Tinetti Test (TT) was utilized to assess patients' capacity to walk and maintain balance. The TT enables the division of patients into three groups depending on the level of their dependence and the risk of falls. The group at the highest risk obtains the lowest scores (≤18). The group at moderate risk consists of people with scores of 19–23 points, which reflects moderate dependence and fall risk. The group at minimal risk is the one with scores of ≥24 points. For TT, there were components where the elderly individual was asked to sit, stand and walk where the quality of these movements were observed accordingly. Results and discussion: At baseline, data was found to be non-significant. After the analysis of the data, it was found that there was a fair correlation between balance and functional independence. Although there was no correlation found between balance and cognitive functions

Determinants of Profitability- A Case from the State-owned Commercial Banks of Bangladesh

This study is an attempt to investigate the impact of bank-specific and economy-specific determinants on the performance of selected State-owned Commercial Banks (SCB) operating in Bangladesh in terms of their profitability. This study considers three prominent SCBs, six bank specific determinants, two economy-specific determinants collected as secondary data from 2007-2014. Different financial ratios and statistical tools (descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation & regression analysis) have been utilized for verifying the hypotheses. The results showed that SCBs’ profitability (Return on Assets) has positive relationships with capital adequacy ratio(CAR), cost of fund ratio (COF), cost to income ratio (CIR), GDP growth ratio (GDPR) and negative relationship with classified loans to total loans ratio(CLTL), bank’s size (SIZ) and inflation (INFL).  Among them, CAR and GDPR are the significant determinants of their profitability over the study period. Keywords:  Profitability, State-owned commercial Banks, Internal & External determinants

Review on Extraction and Application of Natural Dyes

With the improvement of living standards, everybody is very much conscious about the environmental protection and health safety. Natural dyes have attracted more attention to the industry due to exhibiting better biodegradability and more compatibility with the environment. Characteristic colours that are gathered from common assets can be categorized as either plant, creature, mineral, or microbial colours and can be used for colouring a wide range of regular filaments. Late examination shows that it can likewise be utilized to colour a portion of the manufactured filaments too. Normal colours are not just utilized in the shading of material filaments, they are also utilized for food, prescriptions, handiwork articles, and leather preparing. Extraction and purification play a vital role in the processing of natural dyes. There are different types of extraction process currently available for these natural dyes, such as solvent extraction, aqueous extraction, enzymatic extraction and fermentation, extraction with microwave or ultrasonic energy, supercritical fluid extraction, and alkaline or acid extraction. All these extraction processes have their own advantages as well as some drawbacks depending on the parameters that need to be maintained during the extraction process. Appropriate extraction can be beneficial for specific types of such dyes. In this paper, the classification, characteristics, extraction methods, and the application of natural dyes are introduced in an organized manner

Review on Extraction and Application of Natural Dyes

With the improvement of living standards, everybody is very much conscious about the environmental protection and health safety. Natural dyes have attracted more attention to the industry due to exhibiting better biodegradability and more compatibility with the environment. Characteristic colours that are gathered from common assets can be categorized as either plant, creature, mineral, or microbial colours and can be used for colouring a wide range of regular filaments. Late examination shows that it can likewise be utilized to colour a portion of the manufactured filaments too. Normal colours are not just utilized in the shading of material filaments, they are also utilized for food, prescriptions, handiwork articles, and leather preparing. Extraction and purification play a vital role in the processing of natural dyes. There are different types of extraction process currently available for these natural dyes, such as solvent extraction, aqueous extraction, enzymatic extraction and fermentation, extraction with microwave or ultrasonic energy, supercritical fluid extraction, and alkaline or acid extraction. All these extraction processes have their own advantages as well as some drawbacks depending on the parameters that need to be maintained during the extraction process. Appropriate extraction can be beneficial for specific types of such dyes. In this paper, the classification, characteristics, extraction methods, and the application of natural dyes are introduced in an organized manner