Lattice Representations of the Virasoro Algebra I : Discrete Gaussian Free Field

Most two-dimensional massless field theories carry represe ntations of the Virasoro algebra as consequences of their conformal symmetry. Recently, conformal symmetry has been rigorously established for scaling limit s of lattice models by means of discrete complex analysis, which efficiently expresses th e integrability of these models. In this paper we study the discrete Gaussian free field on the square grid. We show that the lattice integrability of this model gives explicit representations of the Virasoro algebra acting on the Gibbs measures of the model. Thus, some what surprisingly, the algebraic structure of Conformal Field Theory describing the scaling limit of the model is already present on lattice level

A Side-Channel Attack on a Masked IND-CCA Secure Saber KEM

In this paper, we present the first side-channel attack on a first-order masked implementation of IND-CCA secure Saber KEM. We show how to recover both the session key and the long-term secret key from 16 traces by deep learning-based power analysis without explicitly extracting the random mask at each execution. Since the presented method is not dependent on the mask, we can improve success probability by combining score vectors of multiple traces captured for the same ciphertext. This is an important advantage over previous attacks on LWE/LWR-based KEMs, which must rely on a single trace. Another advantage is that the presented method does not require a profiling device with deactivated countermeasure, or known secret key. Thus, if a device under attack is accessible, it can be used for profiling. This typically maximizes the classification accuracy of deep learning models. In addition, we discovered a leakage point in the primitive for masked logical shifting on arithmetic shares which has not been known before. We also present a new approach for secret key recovery, using maps from error-correcting codes. This approach can compensate for some errors in the recovered message

Cerebrospinal fluid amyloid precursor protein as a potential biomarker of fatigue in multiple sclerosis: A pilot study

BACKGROUND: Fatigue is the major cause of disability in MS. Fatigue has been suggested to be primary, part of the neurological disease; it can also be secondary to other diseases outside the CNS or exist as a separate comorbidity. The only forms of measurement currently available are through subjective standardized questionnaires, which are not able to identify primary MS-related fatigue. Therefore, there is a need for objective biomarkers of fatigue in MS. This study explored the viability of 17 possible biomarkers of primary fatigue in MS. Our chosen biomarker panel represents the function and health of different parts of the CNS. METHODS: We evaluated 31 MS patients and 17 healthy controls using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). We assessed clinical parameters and collected CSF from all participants to analyze 17 biomarkers, some of which in multiple targeted sequences, reflecting structural and functional changes in the brain. Based on FSS scores, MS was divided into MS-Fatigue (MS-F, FSS ≥ 4) and MS-NoFatigue (MS-NoF, FSS < 4). RESULTS: MS-F had significantly lower levels of amyloid precursor protein (APP) peptides than MS-NoF (p = 0.005, p = 0.011). The only biomarker correlating with FSS in any group was APP in MS (r = -0.47, -0.52; p = 0.007, 0.002). APP did not correlate with any clinical parameter in MS but correlated with multiple markers. In MS, FSS correlated with the ISI and months since diagnosis. CONCLUSION: Although the mechanisms remain unknown, altered APP metabolism in MS seems to be associated with fatigue. APP should be evaluated as a biomarker of the role of structural MS pathology in the development of fatigue in individual MS patients

Grid Interoperation with ARC Middleware for the CMS Experiment

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) is one of the general purpose experiments at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). CMS computing relies on different grid infrastructures to provide computational and storage resources. The major grid middleware stacks used for CMS computing are gLite, Open Science Grid (OSG) and ARC (Advanced Resource Connector). Helsinki Institute of Physics (HIP) hosts one of the Tier-2 centers for CMS computing. CMS Tier-2 centers operate software systems for data transfers (PhEDEx), Monte Carlo production (ProdAgent) and data analysis (CRAB). In order to provide the Tier-2 services for CMS, HIP uses tools and components from both ARC and gLite grid middleware stacks. Interoperation between grid systems is a challenging problem and HIP uses two different solutions to provide the needed services. The first solution is based on gLite-ARC grid level interoperability. This allows to use ARC resources in CMS without modifying the CMS application software. The second solution is based on developing specific ARC plugins in CMS software

The EULAR Study Group for Registers and Observational Drug Studies: comparability of the patient case mix in the European biologic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug registers

Objective. Under the auspices of the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR), a study group of investigators representing European biologic DMARD (bDMARD) registers was convened. The purpose of this initial assessment was to collect and compare a cross section of patient characteristics and collate information on the availability of potential confounders within these registers. Methods. Baseline characteristics of patients starting their first bDMARD in an arbitrary year (2008) for the treatment of RA, including demographic and disease characteristics, bDMARD drug details and co-morbidities, were collected and compared across 14 European bDMARD registers. Results. A total of 5320 patients were included. Half the registers had restricted recruitment to certain bDMARDs during the study year. All registers's collected data on age, gender, disease duration, seropositivity for IgM-RF and 28-joint DAS (DAS28). The mean DAS28 ranged from 4.2 to 6.6 and the mean HAQ from 0.8 to 1.9. Current smoking ranged from 9% to 34%. Nine registers reported co-morbidities with varying prevalence. Conclusion. In addition to demonstrating European-wide collaboration across rheumatology bDMARD registers, this assessment identified differences in prescribing patterns, recruitment strategies and data items collected. These differences need to be considered when applying strategies for combined analysis. The lack of a common data model across Europe calls for further work to harmonize data collection across register

Antimicrobial Colloidal Silver-Lignin Particles via Ion- and Solvent Exchange

Acid-precipitated lignin nanoparticles with a cationic polymer coating exhibit antibacterial activity when infused with silver. While the use of such particles would be beneficial due to their high antibacterial activity with a low silver content, their production holds steps that are difficult to scale up to inexpensive industrial manufacture. For example, the production of acid-precipitated lignin nanoparticles requires the use of ethylene glycol, which is not easily recycled. Furthermore, the binding of silver to these particles is weak, and thus the particles need to be used rapidly after preparation. Here, we show that with a deprotonation reaction of an organic solution of anhydrous lignin and subsequent ion exchange with silver nitrate and colloid formation by solvent exchange, highly spherical silver carboxylate colloidal lignin particles (AgCLPs) can be prepared. Silver is not released from the particles in deionized water but can be released in physiological conditions, shown by their high antibacterial efficacy with low silver loading. In comparison to lignin nanoparticles with weakly bound silver, AgCLPs have high antibacterial activity even without cationic polyelectrolyte coating, and they retain their antibacterial activity for days. While the rapid depletion of silver from silver-infused lignin nanoparticles can be considered beneficial for some applications, the sustained antibacterial activity of the AgCLPs with ionically bound silver will enable their use in applications where silver nanoparticles have been previously used. Our results demonstrate that CLPs, which can be produced with a closed cycle process on a large scale, can be rapidly and quantitatively functionalized into active materials.Peer reviewe

Pan-cancer analysis of whole genomes

Cancer is driven by genetic change, and the advent of massively parallel sequencing has enabled systematic documentation of this variation at the whole-genome scale(1-3). Here we report the integrative analysis of 2,658 whole-cancer genomes and their matching normal tissues across 38 tumour types from the Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We describe the generation of the PCAWG resource, facilitated by international data sharing using compute clouds. On average, cancer genomes contained 4-5 driver mutations when combining coding and non-coding genomic elements; however, in around 5% of cases no drivers were identified, suggesting that cancer driver discovery is not yet complete. Chromothripsis, in which many clustered structural variants arise in a single catastrophic event, is frequently an early event in tumour evolution; in acral melanoma, for example, these events precede most somatic point mutations and affect several cancer-associated genes simultaneously. Cancers with abnormal telomere maintenance often originate from tissues with low replicative activity and show several mechanisms of preventing telomere attrition to critical levels. Common and rare germline variants affect patterns of somatic mutation, including point mutations, structural variants and somatic retrotransposition. A collection of papers from the PCAWG Consortium describes non-coding mutations that drive cancer beyond those in the TERT promoter(4); identifies new signatures of mutational processes that cause base substitutions, small insertions and deletions and structural variation(5,6); analyses timings and patterns of tumour evolution(7); describes the diverse transcriptional consequences of somatic mutation on splicing, expression levels, fusion genes and promoter activity(8,9); and evaluates a range of more-specialized features of cancer genomes(8,10-18).Peer reviewe