From cryptocurrencies to cryptocourts: blockchain and the financialization of dispute resolution platforms

This paper contributes to emerging discussions of blockchain governance through an analysis of dispute resolution platforms that reimagine justice. We focus specifically on Kleros, a blockchain-enabled dispute resolution platform, that promises to secure, authenticate, and democratize access to justice for the twenty-first century. We advance the concept of cryptocourts whereby jurors, incentivized by accumulating cryptocurrency, rapidly mobilize using principles of on-demand crowdsourcing to resolve disputes. We critique the broader social imaginaries that cryptocourts such as Kleros will result in a more open, trustworthy, transparent, and democratic systems of justice. These platforms instead pose important questions concerning their potential impact on civil dispute resolution practices by embedding it within an economy of cryptocurrency speculation. This ostensibly results in a legal infrastructure founded on principles of financial acquisition that positions jurors as economic agents seeking to profit from disputes, and courts as computational systems that merely authenticate and secure the distribution of evidence and verdicts

Predicting Adverse Neonatal Outcomes for Preterm Neonates with Multi-Task Learning

Diagnosis of adverse neonatal outcomes is crucial for preterm survival since it enables doctors to provide timely treatment. Machine learning (ML) algorithms have been demonstrated to be effective in predicting adverse neonatal outcomes. However, most previous ML-based methods have only focused on predicting a single outcome, ignoring the potential correlations between different outcomes, and potentially leading to suboptimal results and overfitting issues. In this work, we first analyze the correlations between three adverse neonatal outcomes and then formulate the diagnosis of multiple neonatal outcomes as a multi-task learning (MTL) problem. We then propose an MTL framework to jointly predict multiple adverse neonatal outcomes. In particular, the MTL framework contains shared hidden layers and multiple task-specific branches. Extensive experiments have been conducted using Electronic Health Records (EHRs) from 121 preterm neonates. Empirical results demonstrate the effectiveness of the MTL framework. Furthermore, the feature importance is analyzed for each neonatal outcome, providing insights into model interpretability

Constant activity of glutamine synthetase after morphine administration versus proteomic results

Glutamine synthetase is a key enzyme which has a regulatory role in the brain glutamate pool. According to previously published proteomic analysis, it was shown that the expression level of this enzyme is affected by morphine administration. In our study, we examined the activity of glutamine synthetase in various structures of rat brain (cortex, striatum, hippocampus and spinal cord) that are biochemically and functionally involved in drug addiction and antinociception caused by morphine. We were not able to observe any significant changes in the enzyme activity between morphine-treated and control samples despite previously reported changes in the expression levels of this enzyme. These findings stressed the fact that changes observed in the expression of particular proteins during proteomic studies may not be correlated with its activity

ArrayExpress update—an archive of microarray and high-throughput sequencing-based functional genomics experiments

The ArrayExpress Archive (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/arrayexpress) is one of the three international public repositories of functional genomics data supporting publications. It includes data generated by sequencing or array-based technologies. Data are submitted by users and imported directly from the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus. The ArrayExpress Archive is closely integrated with the Gene Expression Atlas and the sequence databases at the European Bioinformatics Institute. Advanced queries provided via ontology enabled interfaces include queries based on technology and sample attributes such as disease, cell types and anatomy

The International Human Epigenome Consortium: A Blueprint for Scientific Collaboration and Discovery

The International Human Epigenome Consortium (IHEC) coordinates the generation of a catalog of high-resolution reference epigenomes of major primary human cell types. The studies now presented (see the Cell Press IHEC web portal at http://www.cell.com/consortium/IHEC) highlight the coordinated achievements of IHEC teams to gather and interpret comprehensive epigenomic datasets to gain insights in the epigenetic control of cell states relevant for human health and disease

"4D Biology for health and disease" workshop report

The "4D Biology Workshop for Health and Disease", held on 16-17th ofMarch 2010 in Brussels, aimed at finding the best organising principlesfor large-scale proteomics, interactomics and structural genomics/biology initiatives, and setting the vision for future high-throughputresearch and large-scale data gathering in biological and medical science.Major conclusions of the workshop include the following. (i)Development of new technologies and approaches to data analysis iscrucial. Biophysical methods should be developed that span a broadrange of time/spatial resolution and characterise structures andkinetics of interactions. Mathematics, physics, computational andengineering tools need to be used more in biology and new tools needto be developed. (ii) Database efforts need to focus on improveddefinitions of ontologies and standards so that system-scale data andassociated metadata can be understood and shared efficiently. (iii)Research infrastructures should play a key role in fosteringmultidisciplinary research, maximising knowledge exchange betweendisciplines and facilitating access to diverse technologies. (iv)Understanding disease on a molecular level is crucial. Systemapproaches may represent a new paradigm in the search for biomarkersand new targets in human disease. (v) Appropriate education andtraining should be provided to help efficient exchange of knowledgebetween theoreticians, experimental biologists and clinicians. Theseconclusions provide a strong basis for creating major possibilities inadvancing research and clinical applications towards personalisedmedicine.Biophysical Structural Chemistr

Assessment of vitamin D status in children aged 1-5 with simple obesity

Background. Proper vitamin D intake is important due to its pleiotropic effect. It seems that obese population is a groups at risk of the vitamin D deficiency. Objective. To assess the vitamin D status in 1-5-year-old children with simple obesity. Material and Methods. The study included 100 children: classified according to their body mass index (BMI) as obese – Group I (n=50) and non-obese – Group II (n=50). Their serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations were determined in the spring-summer and autumn-winter seasons and vitamin D intake (diet/supplements) was assessed. The study results were statistically analysed by means of Statistica 10PL. Results. In Group I the mean serum 25(OH)D level was 23.6±10.8 ng/ml, while in Group II it reached 26.6±9.8 ng/ml (p=0.08). The concentration ≤30 ng/ml was observed in 80% of children in Group I and in 70% of Group II. In autumnwinter and spring-summer period, respectively, 88.5% and 70.9% of the obese children had an insufficient vitamin D status (p=0.002). The mean daily intake of vitamin D was 128 IU (3.2 μg) in Group I and 188 IU (4.7 μg) in Group II. Conclusions. Children aged 1-5 (obese and non-obese) are a group at risk of the vitamin D deficiency, as a consequence of its insufficient intake and the lack of appropriate supplementation. Those particularly exposed to that risk are obese children in the autumn-winter season. Children aged 1-5 should be monitored with regard to their vitamin D status.Wstęp. Prawidłowe zaopatrzenie w witaminę D jest istotne ze względu na jej plejotropowe działanie. Jedną z grup narażonych na niedobór tej witaminy wydają się być otyłe dzieci. Cel badań. Ocena zaopatrzenia w witaminę D dzieci w wieku 1-5 lat z otyłością prostą. Materiał i metody. Badaniami objęto 100 dzieci, w tym 50 z otyłością prostą (grupa I) i 50 z prawidłową masą ciała (grupa II) odpowiednio dobranych pod względem wieku. U dzieci oznaczono stężenie 25 hydroksywitaminy D (25(OH)D) w surowicy krwi w okresach wiosenno-letnim i jesienno-zimowym oraz oceniono podaż witaminy D (dieta/suplementy). Przeprowadzono analizę statystyczną wyników badań (Statistica 10PL). Wyniki. Średnie stężenie 25(OH)D w surowicy krwi dzieci z otyłością prostą (grupa I) wynosiło 23,6±10,8 ng/ml, a z prawidłową masą ciała (grupa II) - 26,6±9,8 ng/ml (p=0,08). Stężenie 25(OH)D≤30 ng/ml stwierdzono u 80% dzieci z grupy I i u 70% dzieci z grupy II. U 88,5% dzieci otyłych w okresie jesienno-zimowym oraz u 70,9% w okresie wiosenno-letnim występował niedobór witaminy D (p=0,002). Średnia zawartość witaminy D w dietach dzieci z grupy I i II wynosiła odpowiednio 128 IU (3,2 μg) i 188 IU (4,7 μg). Wnioski. Dzieci w wieku 1-5 lat, otyłe i z prawidłową masą ciała, stanowią grupę ryzyka wystąpienia niedoboru witaminy D, co jest konsekwencją małego spożycia i braku odpowiedniej suplementacji. Na niedobór tej witaminy są szczególnie narażone dzieci otyłe w okresie jesienno-zimowym. Dzieci w wieku 1-5 lat wymagają monitorowania stanu zaopatrzenia organizmu w witaminę D

Dietary intake of vitamin D in obese children aged 1-3 years with simple obesity

Background. Obese children are predisposed to vitamin D deficiency. Most of the findings suggest that requirement for vitamin D is increased in obese children due to this vitamin sequestration in adipose tissue. Objective. The aim of the study was to evaluate dietary intake of vitamin D in children with simple obesity in relation to nutritional standards. Materials and Methods. The study included 73 children aged 1-3 years: 38 with simple obesity (group I) and 35 non-obese ones (group II - control). The inclusion criterion for the obese group was BMI z-score > +2.0, for the control group BMI z-score between -1.0 and +1.0.The intake of vitamin D was estimated using the Dieta 5.0 software on the basis of 3-days dietary record. Outcomes were related to nutritional standards. Differences in intake of energy and nutrients between both groups were assessed using the Mann-Whitney test (statistical significance was set at p = 0.05). Results. Vitamin D intake in both groups was below the nutritional standards (10 μg/400 IU). Median values / interquartile ranges of results were 2.0 / 1.3-5.9 μg and 4.0 / 1.1-7.6 μg daily, for obese and non-obese children, respectively. The risk of deficient vitamin D intake was observed in 94.7% of obese children and in 82.4% of control group. The main dietary source of vitamin D in both groups was growing-up milk/Junior formula. The median intake of energy, protein, fat and carbohydrates in the obese children were significantly higher than in the control group (p<0.05). Conclusions. In obese children aged 1-3 years adequate dietary intake of vitamin D was not achieved. Similarly, the intake of vitamin D by normal weight children was lower than recommended. Consequently, it is necessary to provide products rich in vitamin D in the diet of toddlers, particularly obese.Wstęp. Dzieci z otyłością są szczególnie narażone na niedobór witaminy D. Wiele badań wskazuje, że jednym z czynników mogących niekorzystnie wpływać na biodostępność witaminy D jest jej sekwestracja w tkance tłuszczowej. Cel badań. Celem badania była ocena podaży witaminy D w dietach dzieci z otyłością prostą w odniesieniu do norm żywienia. Materiał i metody. Badaniem objęto 73 dzieci w wieku 1-3 lat, w tym 38 dzieci z otyłością prostą (grupa I) i 35 dzieci z prawidłową masą ciała (grupa II/ grupa kontrolna). Kryterium włączenia dzieci do grupy I było BMI z-score > +2,0, do grupy II BMI z-score od -1,0 do +1,0. Spożycie witaminy D oceniono na podstawie 3-dniowego zapisu jadłospisu wykorzystując program żywieniowy Dieta 5.0. Uzyskane wyniki odniesiono do norm żywienia. Do oceny różnic w wartości energetycznej diet i spożyciu składników pokarmowych pomiędzy grupami posłużono się testem Manna-Whitneya (za poziom istotności statystycznej przyjęto p = 0,05). Wyniki. Zawartość witaminy D w dietach dzieci z obu grup była zbyt mała w odniesieniu do norm spożycia (10 μg/400 j.m.). Wartości mediany i zakresu 1.-3. kwartyla wynosiły w dietach dzieci otyłych i z prawidłową masą ciała, odpowiednio: 2,0 μg (1,3-5,9 μg) i 4,0 μg (1,1-7,6 μg). Ryzyko niewystarczającego spożycia witaminy D obserwowano u 94,7% dzieci otyłych i u 82,4% dzieci z prawidłową masą ciała. Głównym źródłem witaminy D w dietach z obu grup było mleko modyfikowane typu Junior. Mediany wartości energetycznej diet oraz zawartości białek, tłuszczów i węglowodanów w dietach dzieci otyłych były istotnie większe w porównaniu z grupą dzieci z prawidłową masą ciała (p<0,05). Wnioski. U dzieci otyłych jak i z prawidłową masą ciała w wieku 1-3 lat spożycie witaminy D z całodzienną dietą było mniejsze od zalecanego. Dzieci w wieku 1-3 lat, w tym dzieci otyłe, wymagają modyfikacji diety pod względem doboru produktów bogatych w witaminę D