On detection algorithms for spurious retransmissions in TCP

In TCP, a spurious packet retransmission can be caused by either spurious timeout (STO) or spurious fast retransmit (SFR). The "lost" packets are unnecessarily retransmitted and the evoked congestion control process causes network underutilization. In this paper, we focus on spurious retransmission detection. We first present a survey on some important and interesting spurious retransmission detection algorithms. Based on the insights obtained, we propose a novel yet simple detection algorithm called split-and-retransmit (SnR). SnR only requires a minor modification to the TCP sender while leaving the receiver intact. The key idea is to split the retransmitted packet into two smaller ones before retransmitting them. As the packet size is different, the ACK triggered will carry different ACK numbers. This allows the sender to easily distinguish between the original transmission and the retransmission of a packet without relying on, e.g., TCP options. We then compare our SnR with STODER, F-RTO and Newreno under both loss-free and lossy network environments. We show that our SnR is resilient to packet loss and yields good performance under various simulation settings. ©2010 IEEE.published_or_final_versionThe 2010 IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference (WCNC), Sydney, Australia, 18-21 April 2010. In Proceedings of WCNC, 2010, p. 1-

Robust recursive bi-iteration singular value decomposition (SVD) for subspace tracking and adaptive filtering

IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems Proceedings, Bangkok, Thailand, 25-28 May 2003The recursive bi-iteration singular value decomposition (Bi-SVD), proposed by Strobach, is en efficient and well-structured algorithm for performing subspace tracking. Unfortunately, its performance under impulse noise environment degrades substantially. In this paper, a new robust-statistics-based bi-iteration SVD algorithm (robust Bi-SVD) is proposed. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm offers significantly improved robustness against impulse noise than the conventional Bi-SVD algorithm with slight increase in arithmetic complexity. For nominal Gaussian noise, the two algorithms have similar performance.published_or_final_versio

Closest playback-point first: A new peer selection algorithm for P2P VoD systems

Peer-to-peer (P2P) based video-on-demand (VoD) streaming service has been gaining popularity recently. Unlike live streaming, a VoD peer always starts its playback from the beginning of a stored video. The playback-points of different peers, as well as the amount of video contents/pieces they cached, depend on when they join the video session, or their viewing ages. As a result, the upload bandwidth of younger peers tends to be underutilized because older peers are not interested in their cached video pieces. The collaborative piece exchange among peers is undermined due to the unbalanced supply and demand. To address this issue, a playback-point based request peer selection algorithm is proposed in this paper. Specifically, when a peer requests a particular video piece, among the set of potential providers, a request is sent to the peer that has the smallest playback-point difference with itself. We call this request peer selection algorithm closest playback-point first (CPF). With CPF, peers with similar available content can be loosely grouped together for a more balanced collaborative piece exchange. Extensive packet-level simulations show that with CPF, the video playback quality is enhanced and the VoD server load is significantly reduced. © 2011 IEEE.published_or_final_versionThe IEEE Global Telecommunications Conference (GLOBECOM 2011), Houston, TX, USA, 5-9 December 201

Optimization of C/TiCx duplex diffusion barrier coatings for SiCf/Ti composites based on interfacial structure evolution exploration

Introducing a carbon single coating is a popular method used to protect SiCf/Ti composites from severe interface reactions. However, carbon coatings lose their protective effect on SiC fibres at high temperature, even after a short period time. As such, given the strong demand for high temperature applications in aeronautics and astronautics a more coating which is more effective at high temperatures is desirable. In order to improve the high temperature interfacial stability of SiCf/Ti composites, a C/TiCx duplex coating system with different C contents in TiCx was introduced to explore the protection of fibres at 1200 °C for 1 h. The results show that the C/quasi-stoichiometric TiC coating system protects the SiC fibres most effectively. Based on insights from the evolution of the interface structure, TiCx has been identified as an interfacial reaction product from the C single coating, exhibiting a gradient in C content and grain size, which is different from a deposited TiC layer with a well-distributed composition and structure. The different coating structure gives rise to different ability to resist C diffusion at high temperatures, in which poor resistance ability appears in TiCx interfacial reaction layer coming from C single coating due to short-circuit diffusion in C-rich fine-grained TiC layer and fast intracrystalline diffusion trigged by amounts of vacancies in sub-stoichiometric coarse-grained TiC layer. Therefore, C/quasi-stoichiometric TiC duplex coatings with a thick, coarse-grained quasi-stoichiometric TiC layer could effectively inhibit C diffusion by comparison to C single coatings, and is more effective than C/rich-carbon TiC duplex coatings due to the existence of short-circuit diffusion in the latter. As such, C/quasi-stoichiometric TiC duplex coatings appear to be an optimal diffusion barrier for SiCf/Ti composites at high temperature

A robust subspace tracking algorithm for subspace-based blind multiuser detection in impulsive noise

Subspace tracking is an efficient method to reduce the complexity in estimating the signal subspace required in subspace-based multiuser detection algorithm. Recursive least square (RLS)-based subspace tracking algorithms such as the PAST algorithm can be used to estimate the signal subspace adaptively with relatively low computational complexity. However, it is shown in this paper that subspace estimation using conventional autocorrelation matrix is very sensitive to impulse noise. A new robust correlation matrix, based on robust statistics, is proposed to overcome this problem. Moreover, a new robust PAST algorithm is developed, again using robust statistics, for robust subspace tracking. A new restoring mechanism is also proposed to handle long bursts of impulses, which sporadically occur in communications systems. Simulation results show that the proposed robust subspace tracking-based blind multiuser detector performs better than the conventional approach, especially under consecutive impulses. The adaptation of the proposed scheme in a dynamic multiple access channel, where users may enter and exit the shared mobile channel, is also found to be satisfactory.published_or_final_versio

Interleukin-17D and Nrf2 mediate initial innate immune cell recruitment and restrict MCMV infection.

Innate immune cells quickly infiltrate the site of pathogen entry and not only stave off infection but also initiate antigen presentation and promote adaptive immunity. The recruitment of innate leukocytes has been well studied in the context of extracellular bacterial and fungal infection but less during viral infections. We have recently shown that the understudied cytokine Interleukin (IL)-17D can mediate neutrophil, natural killer (NK) cell and monocyte infiltration in sterile inflammation and cancer. Herein, we show that early immune cell accumulation at the peritoneal site of infection by mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV) is mediated by IL-17D. Mice deficient in IL-17D or the transcription factor Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2), an inducer of IL-17D, featured an early decreased number of innate immune cells at the point of viral entry and were more susceptible to MCMV infection. Interestingly, we were able to artificially induce innate leukocyte infiltration by applying the Nrf2 activator tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ), which rendered mice less susceptible to MCMV infection. Our results implicate the Nrf2/IL-17D axis as a sensor of viral infection and suggest therapeutic benefit in boosting this pathway to promote innate antiviral responses

Genetic polymorphisms of DNA double strand break gene Ku70 and gastric cancer in Taiwan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background and aim</p> <p>The DNA repair gene <it>Ku70</it>, an important member of non-homologous end-joining repair system, is thought to play an important role in the repairing of DNA double strand breaks. It is known that defects in double strand break repair capacity can lead to irreversible genomic instability. However, the polymorphic variants of <it>Ku70</it>, have never been reported about their association with gastric cancer susceptibility.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this hospital-based case-control study, the associations of <it>Ku70 </it>promoter T-991C (rs5751129), promoter G-57C (rs2267437), promoter A-31G (rs132770), and intron 3 (rs132774) polymorphisms with gastric cancer risk in a Taiwanese population were investigated. In total, 136 patients with gastric cancer and 560 age- and gender-matched healthy controls recruited from the China Medical Hospital in Taiwan were genotyped.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>As for <it>Ku70 </it>promoter T-991C, the ORs after adjusted by age and gender of the people carrying TC and CC genotypes were 2.41 (95% CI = 1.53-3.88) and 3.21 (95% CI = 0.96-9.41) respectively, compared to those carrying TT wild-type genotype. The <it>P </it>for trend was significant (<it>P </it>< 0.0001). In the dominant model (TC plus CC versus TT), the association between <it>Ku70 </it>promoter T-991C polymorphism and the risk for gastric cancer was also significant (adjusted OR = 2.48, 95% CI = 1.74-3.92). When stratified by age and gender, the association was restricted to those at the age of 55 or elder of age (TC vs TT: adjusted OR = 2.52, 95% CI = 1.37-4.68, <it>P </it>= 0.0139) and male (TC vs TT: adjusted OR = 2.58, 95% CI = 1.33-4.47, <it>P </it>= 0.0085). As for the other three polymorphisms, there was no difference between both groups in the distributions of their genotype frequencies.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In conclusion, the <it>Ku70 </it>promoter T-991C (rs5751129), but not the <it>Ku70 </it>promoter C-57G (rs2267437), promoter A-31G (rs132770) or intron 3 (rs132774), is associated with gastric cancer susceptibility. This polymorphism may be a novel useful marker for gastric carcinogenesis.</p

Monitoring neural activity with bioluminescence during natural behavior

Existing techniques for monitoring neural activity in awake, freely behaving vertebrates are invasive and difficult to target to genetically identified neurons. We used bioluminescence to non-invasively monitor the activity of genetically specified neurons in freely behaving zebrafish. Transgenic fish with the Ca^(2+)-sensitive photoprotein green fluorescent protein (GFP)-Aequorin in most neurons generated large and fast bioluminescent signals that were related to neural activity, neuroluminescence, which could be recorded continuously for many days. To test the limits of this technique, we specifically targeted GFP-Aequorin to the hypocretin-positive neurons of the hypothalamus. We found that neuroluminescence generated by this group of ~20 neurons was associated with periods of increased locomotor activity and identified two classes of neural activity corresponding to distinct swim latencies. Our neuroluminescence assay can report, with high temporal resolution and sensitivity, the activity of small subsets of neurons during unrestrained behavior

Expression of ezrin is associated with invasion and dedifferentiation of hepatitis B related hepatocellular carcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common malignancy in the world and constitutes the leading cause of cancer-related death among men, and second among women in Taiwan. Liver cirrhosis and HCC are relatively prevalent, and 80% to 85% of the patients with these conditions have positive results for hepatitis B surface antigen in Taiwan. Only 5% of the general population is seronegative for all hepatititis B virus (HBV) markers. This is the first study to determine the role of ezrin upon HBV HCC cell and patients with HBV HCC undergoing hepatectomy</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Immunohistochemical study with ezrin in 104 human HBV-HCC cases were carried out to investigate its association with the clinicopathological features and the outcomes of 104 HBV-HCC patients undergoing hepatetomy. In addition, DNA constructs including the wild type ezrin (wt-ezrin) and mutant ezrin Tyr353 (Y353) were transfected into Hep3B cell to study its role in tumor invasion and differentiation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>HBV HCC patients with ezrin over-expression independently have smaller tumor size, cirrhotic liver background, poor tumor differentiation, and more vascular invasion. Ezrin expression status has no impact on survival for HBV-HCC patients undergoing hepatectomy. The in vitro assay showed that wt-ezrin Hep3B cells have a significant higher level of AFP secretion and higher invasion ability as compared with the control and Y353- ezrin Hep3B cells.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Ezrin over-expression contributed to de-differentiation and invasion of HBV-HCC cell. HBV-HCC patients with ezrin over-expression were independently associated with tumor with smaller size, cirrhotic liver background, poor differentiation, and vascular invasion.</p

Preparation and Characterization of Stimuli-Responsive Magnetic Nanoparticles

In this work, the main attention was focused on the synthesis of stimuli-responsive magnetic nanoparticles (SR-MNPs) and the influence of glutathione concentration on its cleavage efficiency. Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) were first modified with activated pyridyldithio. Then, MNPs modified with activated pyridyldithio (MNPs-PDT) were conjugated with 2, 4-diamino-6-mercaptopyrimidine (DMP) to form SR-MNPs via stimuli-responsive disulfide linkage. Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize MNPs-PDT. The disulfide linkage can be cleaved by reduced glutathione (GHS). The concentration of glutathione plays an important role in controlling the cleaved efficiency. The optimum concentration of GHS to release DMP is in the millimolar range. These results had provided an important insight into the design of new MNPs for biomedicine applications, such as drug delivery and bio-separation